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Abstract The global rise in prediabetes and diabetes, with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) being predominant, highlights the association between T2DM and hypertriglyceridemia (HTG). Patients with both abnormal glucose levels and HTG require increased attention due to higher risks of complications and mortality. Therefore, this study aimed to find the key long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) of HTG in the abnormal glucose metabolism patients. We collected blood samples for RNA sequencing experiments and blood samples for validation in population. We have conducted RNA sequencing, weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) in a 82-vs-82-sample-size population and insulin induced HepG2, RNA- Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8). We also explored lipid metabolism related transcription factor and the related protein expression and processed key lncRNA by both interference expression and overexpression, and the related consequences were rescued by its target mRNA. ENST00000540317.5 (LINC317.5) was lower in HTG with abnormal glucose metabolism and was found in both cytoplasm and nucleus in HepG2, inversely regulating the accumulation of TG and its target mRNA TKFC. Relative expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) were decreasing, and SREBP-1c (sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1c) was increasing of the interference expression of LINC317.5. Interference expression of LINC317.5 significantly decreased the protein expression of ACADM and CPT1A, whereas increased the protein expression of FAS and ACC1. TKFC partly reduced the triglyceride (TG) accumulation of LINC317.5. In conclusion, we suggested LINC317.5-TKFC as a key for TG accumulation in the HepG2-insulin resistant (IR). These might provide information of non-invasive biomarkers for the HTG with abnormal glucose.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are universally distributed in soils, including saline soils, and can form mycorrhizal symbiosis with the vast majority of higher plants. This symbiosis can reduce soil salinity and influence plant growth and development by improving nutrient uptake, increasing plant antioxidant enzyme activity, and regulating hormone levels. In this study, rhizosphere soil from eight plants in the Songnen saline–alkaline grassland was used to isolate, characterize, and screen the indigenous advantageous AMF. The promoting effect of AMF on alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) under salt treatment was also investigated. The findings showed that 40 species of AMF in six genera were identified by high-throughput sequencing. Glomus mosseae (G.m) and Glomus etunicatum (G.e) are the dominant species in saline ecosystems of northern China. Alfalfa inoculated with Glomus mosseae and Glomus etunicatum under different salt concentrations could be infested and form a symbiotic system. The mycorrhizal colonization rate and mycorrhizal dependence of G.m inoculation were significantly higher than those of G.e inoculation. With increasing salt concentration, inoculation increased alfalfa plant height, fresh weight, chlorophyll content, proline (Pro), soluble sugar (SS), soluble protein (SP), peroxidase (POD), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) activity while decreasing the malondialdehyde (MDA) content and superoxide anion production rate. The results highlight that inoculation with G.m and G.e effectively alleviated salinity stress, with G.m inoculation having a significant influence on salt resistance in alfalfa. AMF might play a key role in alfalfa growth and survival under harsh salt conditions.

BackgroundAcute coronary syndrome (ACS) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. In recent years, ACS has been reported to be associated with age, and the incidence has become more common in younger patients. Previous studies have identified various risk factors that contribute to the stratification of ACS patients. However, it remains unclear whether these risk factors, along with proteomic and clinical characteristics, are applicable to young ACS patients, as they are for middle-aged and elderly patients. This study aimed to investigate the proteomics, risk factors, and clinical characteristics of young ACS patients, as well as the differences between them and middle-aged and elderly ACS patients. By comparing these findings with those of middle-aged and elderly patients, we aimed to identify any discrepancies and these findings possibly may have implications for future management strategies of this specific population.MethodsThis observational study included a total of 187 participants diagnosed with ACS and 17 young healthy individuals as the control group. ACS patients were divided into three age groups:

Abstract Background This study aimed to explore the association between ideal cardiovascular health metrics (ICVHM) and arthritis (AR), as well as the interactions of various indicators in ICVHM on AR in US adults. Methods We involved 17,041 participants who were interviewed by NHANES from 2011 to 2018. AR included osteoarthritis or degenerative arthritis (OA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and psoriatic arthritis and other arthritis (Other AR). Logistic regression was applied to analyze the association between AR and ICVHM. Mixed graphical model (MGM) was used to explore the interaction between variables in ICVHM. Results Higher ICVHM scores had a protective effect on AR. Compared to “≤1” score, the ORs of AR in participants with 2, 3, 4, and ≥5 were 0.586, 0.472, 0.259, and 0.130, respectively. Similar results were also found in different types of AR. ICVHM has a maximum area under the curve value of 0.765 and the interaction between blood pressure and total cholesterol was 0.43. Conclusions ICVHM correlates significantly with AR and is better at identifying AR than individual indicators. ICVHM can be better improved by controlling the indicators with stronger interactions. Our findings provide guidance for promoting health factors, which have important implications for identification and prevention of AR.

Abstract Background The association between macronutrient intake and diabetes is unclear. We used data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey to explore the association between macronutrient intake trajectories and diabetes risk in this study. Methods We included 6755 participants who did not have diabetes at baseline and participated in at least three surveys. The energy supply ratio of carbohydrate, protein, and fat was further calculated from dietary data; different macronutrient trajectories were determined using multitrajectory models; and multiple Cox regression models were used to evaluate the association between these trajectories and diabetes. Results We found three multitrajectories: decreased low carbohydrate‐increased moderate protein‐increased high fat (DLC‐IMP‐IHF), decreased high carbohydrate‐moderate protein‐increased low fat (DHC‐MP‐ILF), and balanced‐macronutrients (BM). Compared to the BM trajectory, DHC‐MP‐ILF trajectories were significantly associated with increased risk of diabetes (hazard ratio [HR]: 3.228, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.571–6.632), whereas no association between DLC‐IMP‐IHF trajectories and diabetes was found in our study (HR: 0.699, 95% CI: 0.351–1.392). Conclusions The downward trend of high carbohydrate and the increasing trend of low fat increased the risk of diabetes in Chinese adults.

Waxy maize (Zea mays L. sinensis Kulesh) is highly regarded for its high nutritional content and unique taste. Although the stalks and leaves contain high carbohydrate levels after ear harvesting, inadequate crude protein (CP) limits the utilization and promotion of waxy maize silage in animal husbandry. In this study, waxy maize and fodder soybeans were mixed for sowing in different proportions [1:0 (CK), 1:1 (A1), 1:2 (A2), 1:3 (A3), and 1:4 (A4)] to investigate the effects of different mixing ratios on the growth of the waxy maize, the chemical indices, fermentation quality, and the microbial community of the mixed silage after ear harvesting. The mixed planting of waxy maize and fodder soybeans in different proportions had no effect on the yield and quality of the waxy maize ears and increased the aboveground biomass after ear harvesting. After ear harvesting, the neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) contents significantly decreased, and the CP content and relative feeding value (RFV) gradually increased in the mixed silage. The pH of the treatments was lower than 4.2 except for A4, and the lowest ammonia nitrogen (AN) concentration was observed in A3. With increasing proportions of fodder soybeans, the abundance of beneficial bacteria increased and that of harmful bacteria decreased; Firmicutes and Lactobacillus were the dominant phylum and genus, respectively, and both increased gradually. Redundancy analysis (RDA) revealed that the fermentation indices affecting the microbial community composition in the silage were inconsistent among the different mixed sowing combinations. The Mantel test showed that the composition of the microbial communities in the treatments was significantly correlated with the ADF, water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC), and propionic acid (PA) contents. Comprehensive analysis revealed that the optimal mixed sowing ratio of waxy maize to fodder soybeans was 1:3, and waxy maize and fodder soybeans silage can increase the utilization of aboveground biomass and improve the fermentation quality and feeding quality of silage by changing the microbial community. These findings lay a certain theoretical foundation for improving the utilization of waxy maize.

Background: Manual bone age assessment (BAA) is associated with longer interpretation time and higher cost and variability, thus posing challenges in areas with restricted medical facilities, such as the high-altitude Tibetan Plateau. The application of artificial intelligence (AI) for automating BAA could facilitate resolving this issue. This study aimed to develop an AI-based BAA model for Han and Tibetan children.Methods: A model named “EVG-BANet” was trained using three datasets, including the Radiology Society of North America (RSNA) dataset (training set n = 12611, validation set n = 1425, and test set n = 200), the Radiological Hand Pose Estimation (RHPE) dataset (training set n = 5491, validation set n = 713, and test set n = 79), and a self-established local dataset [training set n = 825 and test set n = 351 (Han n = 216 and Tibetan n = 135)]. An open-access state-of-the-art model BoNet was used for comparison. The accuracy and generalizability of the two models were evaluated using the abovementioned three test sets and an external test set (n = 256, all were Tibetan). Mean absolute difference (MAD) and accuracy within 1 year were used as indicators. Bias was evaluated by comparing the MAD between the demographic groups.Results: EVG-BANet outperformed BoNet in the MAD on the RHPE test set (0.52 vs. 0.63 years, p < 0.001), the local test set (0.47 vs. 0.62 years, p < 0.001), and the external test set (0.53 vs. 0.66 years, p < 0.001) and exhibited a comparable MAD on the RSNA test set (0.34 vs. 0.35 years, p = 0.934). EVG-BANet achieved accuracy within 1 year of 97.7% on the local test set (BoNet 90%, p < 0.001) and 89.5% on the external test set (BoNet 85.5%, p = 0.066). EVG-BANet showed no bias in the local test set but exhibited a bias related to chronological age in the external test set.Conclusion: EVG-BANet can accurately predict the bone age (BA) for both Han children and Tibetan children living in the Tibetan Plateau with limited healthcare facilities.

Objective: We aim to explore the association between the Composite Dietary Antioxidant Index (CDAI), physical activity, and cognitive impairment. Methods: 2395 participants from the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were included in this study. The association of CDAI and physical activity with cognitive impairment was analyzed using binary logistic regression. A stratified analysis was employed for a sensitivity analysis of the logistic regression, examining the interaction between CDAI and each stratified variable. Results: Both low scores on CDAI and physical inactivity are associated with higher prevalence of cognitive impairment. Compared to the fourth quartile of CDAI and active group, the prevalence of cognitive impairment is statistically increased in other sub-groups. Conclusion: There is an interaction between CDAI and physical activity. The elderly population with low scores on CDAI especially combined with physical inactivity should be focused, so as to reduce the adverse effects of cognitive impairment.

Abstract Objectives To validate the correlation between histopathological findings and quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (qMRI) fat fraction (FF) and water T2 mapping in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM). Methods The study included 13 patients with histopathologically confirmed IIM who underwent dedicated thigh qMRI scanning within 1 month before open muscle biopsy. For the biopsied muscles, FF derived from the iterative decomposition of water and fat with echo asymmetry and least-squares estimation quantitation (IDEAL-IQ) and T2 time from T2 mapping with chemical shift selective fat saturation were measured using a machine learning software. Individual histochemical and immunohistochemical slides were evaluated using a 5-point Likert score. Inter-reader agreement and the correlation between qMRI markers and histopathological scores were analyzed. Results Readers showed good to perfect agreement in qMRI measurements and most histopathological scores. FF of the biopsied muscles was positively correlated with the amount of fat in histopathological slides (p = 0.031). Prolonged T2 time was associated with the degree of variation in myofiber size, inflammatory cell infiltration, and amount of connective tissues (p ≤ 0.008 for all). Conclusions Using the machine learning-based muscle segmentation method, a positive correlation was confirmed between qMRI biomarkers and histopathological findings of patients with IIM. This finding provides a basis for using qMRI as a non-invasive tool in the diagnostic workflow of IIM. Relevance statement By using ML-based muscle segmentation, a correlation between qMRI biomarkers and histopathology was found in patients with IIM: qMRI is a potential non-invasive tool in this clinical setting. Key points • Quantitative magnetic resonance imaging measurements using machine learning-based muscle segmentation have good consistency and reproductivity. • Fat fraction of idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) correlated with the amount of fat at histopathology. • Prolonged T2 time was associated with muscle inflammation in IIM. Graphical Abstract

Utilizing a variety of solid wastes to prepare alkali-activated cementitious materials is one of the principal trends in the development of cementitious materials. Commonly used alkali activation precursors such as granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) and fly ash (FA) will be less available due to resource pressures. Supply limitation is an important reason to research alternative precursors. To realize the high value-added utilization of copper–molybdenum tailings (CMTs), this study adopted the modified sodium silicate solution as an alkaline activator to activate GBFS-FA-CMTs cementitious system to prepare alkali-activated cementitious materials. The influence of CMTs content on the compressive strength of GBFS-FA-CMTs cementitious system was analyzed, and the mechanism of GBFS-FA-CMTs cementitious system was also analyzed through hydration product types, physical phase composition, and microscopic morphology. The results indicated that a paste with the incorporation of CMTs, S50F30C20 (50% GBFS, 30% FA, 20% CMTs), achieved the highest compressive strength of 79.14 MPa, which was due to the filling effect of the CMTs and the degree of participation in the reaction. Pastes with different contents of CMTs, while maintaining a constant CBFS content, exhibited similar strength development. Excessive amounts of CMTs could result in reduced compressive strength. Microstructural analysis revealed that the hydration products were structurally altered by the addition of CMTs. In addition to ettringite, quartz, C(-N)-S-H gel, and calcite, gaylussite was also formed; moreover, the mass of chemically bound water increased, and the microstructure of reaction products became denser. An excess of CMTs may restrict the growth of the hydration gel, leading to more microstructural defects. The study suggests that CMTs could enhance the compressive strength of hardened paste within an alkali-activated slag-fly ash system, possibly due to a filling effect and participation in the chemical reaction. This research confirms the feasibility of using CMTs in alkali-activated cementitious materials.

Due to the advantage that the non-convex penalty accurately characterizes the sparsity of structural damage, various models based on non-convex penalties have been effectively utilized to the field of structural damage identification. However, these models generally ignore the influence of the uncertainty on the damage identification, which inevitably reduces the accuracy of damage identification. To improve the damage identification accuracy, a probabilistic structural damage identification method with a generic non-convex penalty is proposed, where the uncertainty corresponding to each mode is quantified using the separate Gaussian distribution. The proposed model is estimated via the iteratively reweighted least squares optimization algorithm according to the maximum likelihood principle. The numerical and experimental results illustrate that the proposed method improves the damage identification accuracy by 3.98% and 7.25% compared to the original model, respectively.

Abstract The optimization of open pit mine production scheduling is not only a multistage decision-making problem but also involves space–time dynamic action among multiple factors, which makes it difficult to optimize production capacity, mining sequence, mining life, and other factors simultaneously in optimizing design. In addition, the production capacity is disorderly expanded, the calculation scale is large, and the optimization time is long. Therefore, this article designs a mobile capacity search domain method to improve computing efficiency without omitting the optimal production capacity. At the same time, taking the maximum net present value as the objective function, an enumeration method is used to optimize the possible paths in different capacity domains and calculate the infrastructure investment and facility idle cost required to meet the maximum production capacity on each possible path to control the disorderly expansion and violent fluctuation of production capacity. The research shows that the open pit mine production scheduling optimization algorithm proposed in this article can not only realize the simultaneous optimization of the three elements of production capacity, mining sequence, and mining life but also improve the computing efficiency by 200 times. Furthermore, the production capacity fluctuation is less than 1.4%. The mining life of the mine is extended by 13 years, and the overall economic benefit is increased by 18%.

Background: The global aging situation has reached a serious stage, and healthy lifestyles, like regular physical activity and eating breakfast, could slow the process. Phenotypic age (PhenoAge) is regarded as a novel measure of aging. Therefore, our study aimed to quantify the impact of physical activity and eating breakfast on aging via PhenoAge and phenotypic age acceleration (PhenoAgeAccel). Methods: A total of 3719 adults who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were involved in this study. Physical activity was divided into an active group and an inactive group. According to the number of reported breakfast recalls, eating breakfast was divided into the no recalls group, one recall group, and both recalls group. Sensitivity analysis was performed by stratified analysis. Results: Active physical activity was a protective factor for PhenoAge and PhenoAgeAccel. Compared to the inactive group, the β values of the active group were −8.36 (−10.09, −6.62) for PhenoAge and −1.67 (−2.21, −1.14) for PhenoAgeAccel. The stratified analysis results showed that in the groups reporting breakfast in both recalls, one recall, and no recalls, the β values of the active group were −8.84 (−10.70, −6.98), −8.17 (−12.34, −4.00), and −3.46 (−7.74, 0.82), respectively, compared to the inactive group. Conclusions: Active physical activity was strongly correlated with lower values of PhenoAge and PhenoAgeAccel, but the association was no longer statistically significant when combined with not regularly eating breakfast.

Abstract Heart failure (HF) is a global pandemic which affects about 26 million people. PFKM (Phosphofructokinase, Muscle), catalyzing the phosphorylation of fructose-6-phosphate, plays a very important role in cardiovascular diseases. However, the effect of PFKM in glycolysis and HF remains to be elucidated. H9c2 rat cardiomyocyte cells were treated with doxorubicin (DOX) to establish injury models, and the cell viability, apoptosis and glycolysis were measured. Quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunoblotting were used for gene expression. DOX treatment significantly inhibited PFKM expression in H9c2 cells. Overexpression of PFKM inhibited DOX-induced cell apoptosis and DOX-decreased glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), while silencing PFKM promoted cell apoptosis and inhibited glycolysis and OXPHOS in H9c2 cells. Moreover, PFKM regulated DOX-mediated cell viability and apoptosis through glycolysis pathway. Mechanism study showed that histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) inhibited H3K27ac-induced transcription of PFKM in DOX-treated cells and regulated glycolysis. PFKM could inhibit DOX-induced cardiotoxicity by enhancing OXPHOS and glycolysis, which might benefit us in developing novel therapeutics for prevention or treatment of HF.

Prostate cystadenoma is a rare benign prostatic neoplasm, which grows outside prostate and locates midline between the urinary bladder and rectum. It usually presents as multilocular cysts, thus, named giant multilocular prostate cystadenoma. The definite diagnosis is difficult to be made before surgery, and it depends on histopathology. Here, we report a rarer condition of prostate cystadenoma, which manifests as a giant unilocular cyst with a solid nodule inside. The 55-year-old Chinese male patient presented with dysuria and constipation. MRI revealed a 10.5 × 8.2 cm mono-cystic lesion displacing the rectum to the posterior, prostate, and bladder to the anterior, with a 2.8 × 2.1 cm solid nodule at the anterior wall. 18F-FDG PET/CT demonstrated an elevated SUVmax (3.5) of the solid nodule. Laparoscopic pelvic mass resection was performed and prostate cystadenoma was diagnosed. In conclusion, when a mass of single locular cyst sits in the male pelvis, the diagnosis of prostate cystadenoma could not be excluded.

Selenium (Se) plays an important role in the growth of plants. Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is a perennial legume forage crop with high nutritional value and Se-rich functions. Many studies have shown that selenium can promote alfalfa growth, but few have explored the molecular biology mechanisms behind this effect. In this study, alfalfa was divided into two groups. One group was sprayed with sodium selenite (Na2SeO3) and the other group was sprayed with distilled water as a control. This study determined the growth, reproductive traits, physiological changes, transcriptome and metabolome of both groups of alfalfa. We found that foliar spraying of 100 mg/L Na2SeO3 could significantly increase the growth rate, dry weight, total Se content, amount of pollen per flower, pollen viability, pod spirals, and seed number per pod of alfalfa plants. The level of chlorophyll, soluble protein, proline, and glutathione also increased dramatically in Na2SeO3-sprayed alfalfa seedlings. After transcriptome and metabolome analysis, a total of 614 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 1500 differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs), including 26 secondary differentially metabolites were identified. The DEGs were mainly enriched in MAPK signaling pathway, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, isoflavonoid biosynthesis, cutin, suberine, and wax biosynthesis, and glycerolipid metabolism. The DEMs were mainly enriched in flavone and flavonol biosynthesis, carbon metabolism, glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism, nitrogen metabolism, and phenylpropanoid biosynthesis. Integrative analysis of transcriptome and metabolome showed that the foliar spraying of Na2SeO3 mainly affects phenylpropanoid biosynthesis to promote alfalfa growth.

Abstract Background Soil salinization is a major limiting factor for crop cultivation. Switchgrass is a perennial rhizomatous bunchgrass that is considered an ideal plant for marginal lands, including sites with saline soil. Here we investigated the physiological responses and transcriptome changes in the roots of Alamo (alkaline-tolerant genotype) and AM-314/MS-155 (alkaline-sensitive genotype) under alkaline salt stress. Results Alkaline salt stress significantly affected the membrane, osmotic adjustment and antioxidant systems in switchgrass roots, and the ASTTI values between Alamo and AM-314/MS-155 were divergent at different time points. A total of 108,319 unigenes were obtained after reassembly, including 73,636 unigenes in AM-314/MS-155 and 65,492 unigenes in Alamo. A total of 10,219 DEGs were identified, and the number of upregulated genes in Alamo was much greater than that in AM-314/MS-155 in both the early and late stages of alkaline salt stress. The DEGs in AM-314/MS-155 were mainly concentrated in the early stage, while Alamo showed greater advantages in the late stage. These DEGs were mainly enriched in plant-pathogen interactions, ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis and glycolysis/gluconeogenesis pathways. We characterized 1480 TF genes into 64 TF families, and the most abundant TF family was the C2H2 family, followed by the bZIP and bHLH families. A total of 1718 PKs were predicted, including CaMK, CDPK, MAPK and RLK. WGCNA revealed that the DEGs in the blue, brown, dark magenta and light steel blue 1 modules were associated with the physiological changes in roots of switchgrass under alkaline salt stress. The consistency between the qRT-PCR and RNA-Seq results confirmed the reliability of the RNA-seq sequencing data. A molecular regulatory network of the switchgrass response to alkaline salt stress was preliminarily constructed on the basis of transcriptional regulation and functional genes. Conclusions Alkaline salt tolerance of switchgrass may be achieved by the regulation of ion homeostasis, transport proteins, detoxification, heat shock proteins, dehydration and sugar metabolism. These findings provide a comprehensive analysis of gene expression dynamic and act network induced by alkaline salt stress in two switchgrass genotypes and contribute to the understanding of the alkaline salt tolerance mechanism of switchgrass and the improvement of switchgrass germplasm.

Supplementary cementitious material (SCM) plays an important role in blended cement, and the effect of the particle size and morphology of siliceous supplementary cementitious material on hydration should not be ignored. In this study, 0.5 h and 1 h of wet grinding was applied to pretreat iron ore tailing powder (TP), and the divergence in pozzolanic behavior and morphology were investigated. Then, the treated TPs were used to replace the 30% cement contents in preparing blended cementitious paste, and the impact mechanism of morphology on performance was studied emphatically. M, the autogenous shrinkages of pastes were tested. Finally, hydration reaction kinetics was carried out to explore the hydration behavior, while X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were used to characterize the hydration product properties, respectively. Meanwhile, microscopy intrusion porosimetry (MIP) was also carried out to characterize the pore structures of hardened specimens. Results indicated that wet grinding has a dramatic effect on particle size and morphology, but hardly affects the phase assemblages and pozzolanic reactivity of TP, while the particle shape of TP changes from sub-circular to clavate and, finally, back to sub-circular. The results of hydration reaction kinetics, representing the morphology of particles, had a significant effect on hydration rate and total heat, and compared with the sub-circle one, the clavated particle could inhibit the hydration procedure. With the increasing grinding time, the compressive strength of cementitious paste was increased from 17.37% to 55.73%, and the micro-pore structure became denser; however, the autogenous shrinkage increased.

Summary: There is an urgent need for alternative compact technologies that can derive and store energy from the sun, especially the large amount of solar heat that is not effectively used for power generation. Here, we report a combination of solution- and neat-film-based molecular solar thermal (MOST) systems, where solar energy can be stored as chemical energy and released as heat, with microfabricated thermoelectric generators to produce electricity when solar radiation is not available. The photophysical properties of two MOST couples are characterized both in liquid with a catalytical cycling setup and in a phase-interconvertible neat film. Their suitable photophysical properties let us combine them individually with a microelectromechanical ultrathin thermoelectric chip to use the stored solar energy for electrical power generation. The generator can produce, as a proof of concept, a power output of up to 0.1 nW (power output per unit volume up to 1.3 W m−3). Our results demonstrate that such a molecular thermal power generation system has a high potential to store and transfer solar power into electricity and is thus potentially independent of geographical restrictions.

Abstract Background Erdheim-Chester Disease (ECD) is a rare type of non-Langerhans histiocytosis. Skeletal structures are affected in over 95% ECD patients. Due to the lack of proper imaging assessment tools, the alteration of bone microarchitecture in ECD has not been well studied. High-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) is a newly developed assessment of bone mineral density and bone microarchitecture. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study with 13 patients diagnosed with ECD in Peking Union Medical College Hospital between October 2018 and June 2019. The diagnosis of ECD was based on typical pathological findings in the context of appropriate clinical and radiological manifestations. Bone geometry, volumetric bone mineral density and bone microarchitecture of those ECD patients were assessed using HR-pQCT at the non-dominant distal radius and distal tibia. Those HR-pQCT parameters were then compared to an ongoing population-based database of HR-pQCT for Mainland Chinese. Results As a result, remarkable heterogeneity of osteosclerosis in the HR-pQCT images was found in ECD patients, ranging from apparent normal structure, scattered thickening of trabecula, to homogenous consolidation. In terms of quantitative measurements, total volumetric BMD (383.50 mg/cm3, 1.352 times of normal mean, p = 0.023) of the tibia differed significantly in ECD patients, due to the increased trabecular volumetric BMD (291 mg/cm3, 2.058 times of normal mean, p = 0.003). The increased trabecular volumetric BMD of tibia was associated with remarkably increased number of trabecula (1.7/mm, 1.455 times of normal mean, p = 0.002) and increased thickness of trabecula (0.37 mm, 1.466 times of normal mean, p = 0.003). These differences could be due to the existence of dense bone interposed in the trabecula. Conclusion This study is the first to assess the volumetric bone mineral density and bone microstructure with HR-pQCT in a cohort of ECD patients and indicated that the application of HR-pQCT may help to reveal the nature of bone lesions in the disease.

Abstract Multilayer structure is one of the research focuses of thermoelectric (TE) material in recent years. In this work, n-type 800 nm Bi2Te3/(Pt, Au) multilayers are designed with p-type Sb2Te3 legs to fabricate ultrathin microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) TE devices. The power factor of the annealed Bi2Te3/Pt multilayer reaches 46.5 μW cm−1 K−2 at 303 K, which corresponds to more than a 350% enhancement when compared to pristine Bi2Te3. The annealed Bi2Te3/Au multilayers have a lower power factor than pristine Bi2Te3. The power of the device with Sb2Te3 and Bi2Te3/Pt multilayers measures 20.9 nW at 463 K and the calculated maximum output power reaches 10.5 nW, which is 39.5% higher than the device based on Sb2Te3 and Bi2Te3, and 96.7% higher than the Sb2Te3 and Bi2Te3/Au multilayers one. This work can provide an opportunity to improve TE properties by using multilayer structures and novel ultrathin MEMS TE devices in a wide variety of applications.

In this study, a type of fly ash and iron tailing powder were used as a binary supplementary cementitious material (SCM) and two different mechanically activated procedures, named coalescent activation and separated activation, were carried out to improve the pozzolanic reactivity. Then, three binary supplementary cementitious materials were used to replace 30 wt% of ordinary Portland cement to develop cemented mortars, and the compressive strength, hydration products, and micro-structure were studied. The experimental results indicated that the activated supplementary cementitious materials increased the compressive strengths of the mortars by 5.4% and 13.2%, negligibly changed the hydration product types, and impacted the quantity only. The application of SCMs also prolonged the setting time and decreased the hydration rate, profiting the application. Simultaneously, the micro-pore structure was ameliorated, and the porosity decreased. Therefore, comprehensively considering the improved mechanical behavior and inexpensive cost, the activated binary SCM can be considered an ecological and economical admixture, especially for the coalescent activation procedure.

The adverse effects of anti-tuberculosis (TB) drugs in the intestines were related to alteration of the intestinal microbiota. However, there was less information about microbial metabolism on the adverse reactions. This study aimed to explore whether Lactobacillus casei could regulate gut microbiota or short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) disorders to protect intestinal adverse reactions induced by isoniazid (H) and rifampicin (R). Male Wistar rats were given low and high doses of Lactobacillus casei two hours before daily administration of anti-TB drugs. After 42 days, colon tissue and blood were collected for analysis. The feces at two-week and six-week were collected to analyze the microbial composition and the content of SCFAs in colon contents was determined. Supplementation of Lactobacillus casei increased the proportion of intestinal goblet cells induced by H and R (p < 0.05). In addition, HR also reduced the level of mucin-2 (p < 0.05), and supplementation of Lactobacillus casei restored. After two weeks of HR intervention, a decrease in OTUs, diversity index, the abundance of Bacteroides, Akkermansia, and Blautia, and an increase of the abundance of Lacetospiraceae NK4A136 group and Rumencoccus UCG-005, were observed compared with the control group (p all < 0.05). These indices in Lactobacillus casei intervention groups were similar to the HR group. Six-week intervention resulted in a dramatic reduction of Lacetospiraceae NK4A136 group, butyric acid, valeric acid and hexanoic acid, while an increase of Bacteroides and Blautia (p all < 0.05). Pretreatment with Lactobacillus casei significantly increased the content of hexanoic acid compared with HR group (p < 0.05). Lactobacillus casei might prevent intestinal injury induced by anti-tuberculosis drugs by regulating gut microbiota and SCFAs metabolism.

Objective Bone age (BA) is a crucial indicator for revealing the growth and development of children. This study tested the performance of a fully automated artificial intelligence (AI) system for BA assessment of Chinese children with abnormal growth and development. Materials and Methods A fully automated AI system based on the Greulich and Pyle (GP) method was developed for Chinese children by using 8,000 BA radiographs from five medical centers nationwide in China. Then, a total of 745 cases (360 boys and 385 girls) with abnormal growth and development from another tertiary medical center of north China were consecutively collected between January and October 2018 to test the system. The reference standard was defined as the result interpreted by two experienced reviewers (a radiologist with 10 years and an endocrinologist with 15 years of experience in BA reading) through consensus using the GP atlas. BA accuracy within 1 year, root mean square error (RMSE), mean absolute difference (MAD), and 95% limits of agreement according to the Bland-Altman plot were statistically calculated. Results For Chinese pediatric patients with abnormal growth and development, the accuracy of this new automated AI system within 1 year was 84.60% as compared to the reference standard, with the highest percentage of 89.45% in the 12- to 18-year group. The RMSE, MAD, and 95% limits of agreement of the AI system were 0.76 years, 0.58 years, and −1.547 to 1.428, respectively, according to the Bland-Altman plot. The largest difference between the AI and experts’ BA result was noted for patients of short stature with bone deformities, severe osteomalacia, or different rates of maturation of the carpals and phalanges. Conclusions The developed automated AI system could achieve comparable BA results to experienced reviewers for Chinese children with abnormal growth and development.

Leymus chinensis is a perennial forage grass that has good palatability, high yield and high feed value, but seed dormancy is a major problem limiting the widespread cultivation of L. chinensis. Here, we performed transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis of hulled and de-hulled seeds of L. chinensis treated with or without GA3 to investigate the changes in gene and metabolites associated with dormancy release induced by GA3. The germination test revealed that the optimum concentration of GA3 for disruption of L. chinensis seed dormancy was 577 μM. A total of 4327 and 11,919 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 871 and 650 differentially abundant metabolites were identified in de-hulled and hulled seeds treated with GA3, respectively, compared with seeds soaked in sterile water. Most of the DEGs were associated with starch and sucrose metabolism, protein processing in the endoplasmic reticulum, endocytosis and ribosomes. Furthermore, isoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis, tyrosine metabolism, starch and sucrose metabolism, arginine and proline metabolism, and amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism were significantly enriched pathways. Integrative analysis of the transcriptomic and metabolomic data revealed that starch and sucrose metabolism is one of the most important pathways that may play a key role in providing carbon skeletons and energy supply for the transition of L. chinensis seeds from a dormant state to germination by suppressing the expression of Cel61a, egID, cel1, tpsA, SPAC2E11.16c and TPP2, enhancing the expression of AMY1.1, AMY1.2, AMY1.6 and GLIP5, and inhibiting the synthesis of cellobiose, cellodextrin, and trehalose while promoting the hydrolysis of sucrose, starch, cellobiose, cellodextrin, and trehalose to glucose. This study identified several key genes and provided new insights into the molecular mechanism of seed dormancy release induced by GA3 in L. chinensis. These putative genes will be valuable resources for improving the seed germination rate in future breeding studies.

Objective. Bone lesion is crucial for diagnosing and management of polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopathy, monoclonal protein, and skin change (POEMS) syndrome, a rare plasma cell disorder. This study is to compare the effectiveness of X-ray skeletal survey (SS) and computed tomography (CT) for detecting bone lesions in Chinese POEMS syndrome patients, and to investigate the relationship between bone lesion features and serum markers. Methods. SS and chest/abdomen/pelvic CT images of 38 Chinese patients (26 males, 12 females, aged 21–70 years) with POEMS syndrome recruited at our medical center between January 2013 and January 2015 were retrospectively analyzed. Bone lesions identified by CT were further categorized according to the size (10 mm) and appearance (osteosclerotic, lytic, mixed). The percentage of plasma cells in bone marrow smears, type of immunoglobulin, platelet (Plt), and levels of serum bone metabolic markers and inflammatory factors including alkaline phosphatase (ALP), calcium, phosphate, parathyroid hormone (PTH), beta-isomerized C-telopeptide (β-CTx), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and interleukin (IL)-6 levels were also recorded. Results. Of the 38 POEMS syndrome patients, the immunoglobulin heavy chain isotypes were IgA in 25 patients (65.8%; 25/38) and IgG in 13 patients (34.2%; 13/38), and the light chain isotypes were λ in 35 patients (92.1%; 35/38) and κ in 3 patients (7.9%; 3/38). There were 23 patients with thrombocytosis. More patients with bone lesions were detected by CT than by SS (97.4% vs. 86.8%). The most commonly affected location was the pelvis (89.5%), followed by the spine, clavicle/scapula/sternum/ribs, skull, and long bones. Of the 38 POEMS syndrome patients, 35 (94.6%) had osteosclerotic and 32 (86.5%) had mixed lesions. Osteosclerotic lesions were typically scattered, variable in size, and plaque-like, whereas mixed lesions were pouch-shaped or soup bubble-like with a clear sclerotic margin and were generally larger. Although the majority of bone lesions were small in size, 23 (62.2%) had at least one lesion >10 mm. There was no correlation between serum marker levels and bone lesion patterns after Bonferroni correction (all P > 0.001). Conclusions. CT is more sensitive and accurate than SS in detecting bone lesions in POEMS syndrome.

Chemotherapy is a primary treatment for cancer, but its efficacy is often limited by the adverse effects of cytotoxic agents. Targeted drug delivery may reduce the non-specific toxicity of chemotherapy by selectively directing anticancer drugs to tumor cells. MUC1 protein is an attractive target for tumor-specific drug delivery owning to its overexpression in most adenocarcinomas. In this study, a novel MUC1 aptamer is exploited as the targeting ligand for carrying doxorubicin (Dox) to cancer cells. We developed an 86-base DNA aptamer (MA3) that bound to a peptide epitope of MUC1 with a K(d) of 38.3 nM and minimal cross reactivity to albumin. Using A549 lung cancer and MCF-7 breast cancer cells as MUC1-expressing models, MA3 was found to preferentially bind to MUC1-positive but not MUC1-negative cells. An aptamer-doxorubicin complex (Apt-Dox) was formulated by intercalating doxorubicin into the DNA structure of MA3. Apt-Dox was found capable of carrying doxorubicin into MUC1-positive tumor cells, while significantly reducing the drug intake by MUC1-negative cells. Moreover, Apt-Dox retained the efficacy of doxorubicin against MUC1-positive tumor cells, but lowered the toxicity to MUC1-negative cells (P