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Abstract Cytochrome c oxidase (complex IV) is the terminal enzyme in the mitochondrial respiratory chain. As a rare neurometabolic disorder caused by mutations in the human complex IV assembly factor SURF1, Leigh Syndrome (LS) is associated with complex IV deficiency. In this study, we comprehensively characterized Schizosaccharomyces pombe Shy1, the homolog of human SURF1. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that Shy1 contains a conserved SURF1 domain that links to the biogenesis of complex IV and shares high structural similarity with its homologs in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and humans. Our study showed that Shy1 is required for the expression of mtDNA-encoded genes and physically interacts with structural subunits and assembly factors of complex IV. Interestingly, Rip1, the subunit of ubiquinone-cytochrome c oxidoreductase or cytochrome bc 1 complex (complex III), can also co-immunoprecipitate with Shy1, suggesting Shy1 may be involved in the assembly of the mitochondrial respiratory chain supercomplexes. This conclusion is further corroborated by our BN-PAGE analysis. Unlike its homologs, deletion of shy1 does not critically disrupt respiratory chain assembly, indicating the presence of the compensatory mechanism(s) within S. pombe that ensure mitochondrial functionality. Collectively, our investigation elucidates that Shy1 plays a pivotal role in the sustainability of the regular function of mitochondria by participating in the assembly of complex IV in S. pombe.

Wind power has been developing rapidly as a key measure to mitigate human-driven global warming. The understanding of the development and impacts of wind farms on local climate and vegetation is of great importance for their rational use but is still limited. In this study, we combined remote sensing and on-site investigations to identify wind farm locations in Inner Mongolia and performed landscape pattern analyses using Fragstats. We explored the impacts of wind farms on land surface temperature (LST) and vegetation net primary productivity (NPP) between 1990 and 2020 by contrasting these metrics in wind farms with those in non-wind farm areas. The results showed that the area of wind farms increased rapidly from 1.2 km2 in 1990 to 10,755 km2 in 2020. Spatially, wind farms are mainly clustered in three aggregation areas in the center. Further, wind farms increased nighttime LST, with a mean value of 0.23 °C, but had minor impacts on the daytime LST. Moreover, wind farms caused a decline in NPP, especially over forest areas, with an average reduction of 12.37 GC/m². Given the impact of wind farms on LST and NPP, we suggest that the development of wind farms should fully consider their direct and potential impacts. This study provides scientific guidance on the spatial pattern of future wind farms.

Ultra-high dose rate radiotherapy (FLASH radiation) can naturally render normal tissues around the tumor tissue resistant to radiotherapy. In contrast, the tumor tissue remains sensitive to radiation under the same conditions. However, the effects of different fractions and dose rates on FLASH radiation remain unclear. This study aimed to determine the optimal dose rate and fraction of FLASH radiation for thoracic radiotherapy. Female Balb/c mice aged 6–8 weeks were irradiated with different dose rates (100 Gy/s or 250 Gy/s) and fractions (1, 2, or 4). Survival was observed in mice receiving 30Gy, with lung tissue examined for acute radiation damage 48 h post-radiation. Late radiation pneumonia and survival rates were monitored in mice irradiated with 20 Gy. The median overall survival (OS) was not reached on the 95th day for mice irradiated with 250 Gy/s FLASH radiation, while it was 89.5 days for those irradiated with 100 Gy/s (P = 0.0436). Mice irradiated with 30 Gy/2 Fr and 250 Gy/s FLASH had shorter median OS than those with 30 Gy/1F (P = 0.0132). However, there was no significant difference in OS between mice irradiated with 30 Gy/2 F and 30 Gy/4 F. Survival curves for mice receiving 20 Gy showed no significant difference in toxicity between different dose rates and fractions. FLASH radiation at 250 Gy/s reduced the incidence of acute radiation pneumonitis in mice compared to 100 Gy/s. Different fractions of irradiation influenced survival in mice, but they were only observed in acute radiation reactions and not chronic radiation reactions. Among the tested fraction methods, fraction 2 had the worst impact on the survival of mice, while fractions 1 and 4 showed similar effects and improved survival compared to fraction 2.

Water electrolysis via alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is a promising approach for large-scale production of high-purity hydrogen at a low cost, utilizing renewable and clean energy. However, the sluggish kinetics derived from the high energy barrier of water dissociation impedes seriously its practical application. Herein, a series of hybrid Pt nanoclusters/Ru nanowires (Pt/Ru NWs) catalysts are demonstrated to accelerate alkaline HER. And the optimized Pt/Ru NWs (10 ​% wt Pt) exhibits exceptional performance with an ultralow overpotential (24 ​mV at 10 ​mA ​cm−2), a small Tafel slope (26.3 ​mV dec−1), and long-term stability, outperforming the benchmark commercial Pt/C-JM-20 ​% wt catalyst. This amazing performance also occurred in the alkaline anion-exchange membrane water electrolysis devices, where it delivered a cell voltage of about 1.9 ​V at 1 ​A ​cm−2 and an outstanding stability (more than 100 ​h). The calculations have revealed such a superior performance exhibited by Pt/Ru NWs stems from the formed heterointerfaces, which significantly reduce the energy barrier of the decisive rate step of water dissociation via cooperative-action between Pt cluster and Ru substance. This work provides valuable perspectives for designing advanced materials toward alkaline HER and beyond.

Abstract Background Sublobar resection for ground-glass opacity became a recommend surgery choice supported by the JCOG0804/JCOG0802/JCOG1211 results. Sublobar resection includes segmentectomy and wedge resection, wedge resection is suitable for non-invasive lesions, but in clinical practice, when pathologists are uncertain about the intraoperative frozen diagnosis of invasive lesions, difficulty in choosing the appropriate operation occurs. The purpose of this study was to analyze how to select invasive lesions with clinic-pathological characters. Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 134 cases of pulmonary nodules diagnosed with minimally invasive adenocarcinoma by intraoperative freezing examination. The patients were divided into two groups according to intraoperative frozen results: the minimally invasive adenocarcinoma group and the at least minimally invasive adenocarcinoma group. A variety of clinical features were collected. Chi-square tests and multiple regression logistic analysis were used to screen out independent risk factors related to pathological upstage, and then ROC curves were established. In addition, an independent validation set included 1164 cases was collected. Results Independent risk factors related to pathological upstage were CT value, maximum tumor diameter, and frozen result of AL-MIA. The AUC of diagnostic mode was 71.1% [95%CI: 60.8-81.3%]. The independent validation included 1164 patients, 417 (35.8%) patients had paraffin-based pathology of invasive adenocarcinoma. The AUC of diagnostic mode was 75.7% [95%CI: 72.9-78.4%]. Conclusions The intraoperative frozen diagnosis was AL-MIA, maximum tumor diameter larger than 15 mm and CT value is more than − 450Hu, highly suggesting that the lung GGO was invasive adenocarcinoma which represent a higher risk to recurrence. For these patients, sublobectomy would be insufficient, lobectomy or complementary treatment is encouraged.

Abstract Cascading effects can result in the nonlinear propagation of failures in complex networks, ultimately leading to network collapse. Research on the fault propagation principles, defense strategies, and repair strategies can help mitigate the effects of cascading failures. Especially, proactive defense and dynamic repair are flexible and effective methods to ensure network security. Most studies on the cascade of complex networks are based on the unprocessed initial information of the network. However, marginal nodes are a type of node that cloaks the initial information of the network. In this study, we rank the importance of nodes according to the intensity of network energy confusion after the removal of this node, clarify the meaning of marginal nodes and proposed two methods to screen marginal nodes. The results indicated that the proactive removal of marginal nodes can effectively reduce the effect of cascading failures without causing any negative disturbance to the energy flow of the network. In addition, network repair according to the proposed strategy can minimize the cascade effect in the repair process and improve repair efficiency.

Many different factors, such as species traits, socio-economic factors, geographical and environmental factors, can lead to specimen collection preference. This study aims to determine whether grassland specimen collection in China is preferred by species traits (i.e., plant height, flowering and fruiting period), environmental range (i.e., the temperature and precipitation range) and geographical range (i.e., distribution range and altitudinal range). Ordinary least squares models and phylogenetic generalized linear mixed models were used to analyze the relationships between specimen number and the explanatory variables. Random Forest models were then used to find the most parsimonious multivariate model. The results showed that interannual variation in specimen number between 1900 and 2020 was considerable. Specimen number of these species in southeast China was notably lower than that in northwest China. Environmental range and geographical range of species had significant positive correlations with specimen number. In addition, there were relatively weak but significant associations between specimen number and species trait (i.e., plant height and flowering and fruiting period). Random Forest models indicated that distribution range was the most important variable, followed by flowering and fruiting period, and altitudinal range. These findings suggest that future floristic surveys should pay more attention to species with small geographical range, narrow environmental range, short plant height, and short flowering and fruiting period. The correction of specimen collection preference will also make the results of species distribution model, species evolution and other works based on specimen data more accurate.

Abstract Cardiac function requires appropriate proteins in each chamber. Atria requires slow myosin to act as reservoirs, while ventricles demand fast myosin for swift pumping. Myosins are thus under chamber-biased cis-regulation, with myosin gene expression imbalances leading to congenital heart dysfunction. To identify regulatory inputs leading to cardiac chamber-biased expression, we computationally and molecularly dissected the quail Slow Myosin Heavy Chain III (SMyHC III) promoter that drives preferential expression to the atria. We show that SMyHC III gene states are orchestrated by a complex Nuclear Receptor Element (cNRE) of 32 base pairs. Using transgenesis in zebrafish and mice, we demonstrate that preferential atrial expression is achieved by a combinatorial regulatory input composed of atrial activation motifs and ventricular repression motifs. Using comparative genomics, we show that the cNRE might have emerged from an endogenous viral element through infection of an ancestral host germline, revealing an evolutionary pathway to cardiac chamber-specific expression.

Abstract The effect of age on outcomes after simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation (SPK) among type II diabetes (T2DM) recipients remains inconclusive. This study aimed to analyze the relationship between the age at time of transplantation and mortality, graft loss and metabolic profiles of T2DM SPK recipients. A retrospective cohort consisting of T2MD SPK recipients in a single transplant center was established. The baseline clinical characteristics and outcomes were collected and analyzed based on the age groups divided by 55-year-old. Time-to-event data analysis was performed using Kaplan-Meier method, and competing risk method was adopted to calculate the cumulative incidence of graft loss. A mixed regression model was applied to compare metabolic outcomes including glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), fasting blood glucose, triglyceride, cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein, and higher estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). 103 T2DM SPK recipients were included, of which 35 were > = 55 years old and 68 were

Abstract Background Macrophages phenotypic deviation and immune imbalance play vital roles in pregnancy-associated diseases such as spontaneous miscarriage. Trophoblasts regulate phenotypic changes in macrophages, however, their underlying mechanism during pregnancy remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to elucidate the potential function of trophoblast-derived miRNAs (miR-410-5p) in macrophage polarization during pregnancy. Methods Patient decidual macrophage tissue samples in spontaneous abortion group and normal pregnancy group (those who had induced abortion for non-medical reasons) were collected at the Reproductive Medicine Center of Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from April to December 2021. Furthermore, placental villi and decidua tissue samples were collected from patients who had experienced a spontaneous miscarriage and normal pregnant women for validation and subsequent experiments at the Shenzhen Zhongshan Obstetrics & Gynecology Hospital (formerly Shenzhen Zhongshan Urology Hospital), from March 2021 to September 2022. As an animal model, 36 female mice were randomly divided into six groups as follows: naive-control, lipopolysaccharide-model, agomir-negative control prevention, agomir-410-5p prevention, agomir-negative control treatment, and agomir-410-5p treatment groups. We analyzed the miR-410-5p expression in abortion tissue and plasma samples; and supplemented miR-410-5p to evaluate embryonic absorption in vivo. The main source of miR-410-5p at the maternal–fetal interface was analyzed, and the possible target gene, signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) 1, of miR-410-5p was predicted. The effect of miR-410-5p and STAT1 regulation on macrophage phenotype, oxidative metabolism, and mitochondrial membrane potential was analyzed in vitro. Results MiR-410-5p levels were lower in the spontaneous abortion group compared with the normal pregnancy group, and plasma miR-410-5p levels could predict pregnancy and spontaneous abortion. Prophylactic supplementation of miR-410-5p in pregnant mice reduced lipopolysaccharide-mediated embryonic absorption and downregulated the decidual macrophage pro-inflammatory phenotype. MiR-410-5p were mainly distributed in villi, and trophoblasts secreted exosomes-miR-410-5p at the maternal–fetal interface. After macrophages captured exosomes, the cells shifted to the tolerance phenotype. STAT1 was a potential target gene of miR-410-5p. MiR-410-5p bound to STAT1 mRNA, and inhibited the expression of STAT1 protein. STAT1 can drive macrophages to mature to a pro-inflammatory phenotype. MiR-410-5p competitive silencing of STAT1 can avoid macrophage immune disorders. Conclusion MiR-410-5p promotes M2 macrophage polarization by inhibiting STAT1, thus ensuring a healthy pregnancy. These findings are of great significance for diagnosing and preventing spontaneous miscarriage, providing a new perspective for further research in this field.

To accurately describe the dynamic inductance gradient during the operation process of the series enhanced four-rail electromagnetic rail launcher, an equivalent geometric model based on skin depth is constructed. The influence of armature motion on current diffusion in the rail is considered, and the velocity skin effect is derived. Combined with Biot-Savart Law, an analytical calculation method for dynamic inductance gradient is proposed, and an experimental platform for the series-enhanced four-rail electromagnetic launcher is built, Calculate the dynamic inductance gradient of the experimental device and compare it with the eddy current field simulation calculation, demonstrating the correctness of the proposed analytical method for calculating the dynamic inductance gradient. Analyze the influence of armature motion on the system inductance gradient, and obtain that the initial velocity of armature launching is small, and the distribution of rail current is affected by the current skin effect and related to the current frequency. As the armature velocity increases, the distribution of current in the middle section of armature launching is affected by the velocity skin effect, The skin depth decreases and the dynamic inductance gradient decreases. As the armature speed increases, the dynamic inductance gradient gradually decreases and tends to stabilize in the accelerated stage of armature launching.

Network slicing is envisioned as one of the key techniques to meet the extremely diversified service requirements of the Internet of Things (IoT) as it provides an enhanced user experience and elastic resource configuration. In the context of slicing enhanced IoT networks, both the Service Provider (SP) and Infrastructure Provider (InP) face challenges of ensuring efficient slice construction and high profit in dynamic environments. These challenges arise from randomly generated and departed slice requests from end-users, uncertain resource availability, and multi-dimensional resource allocation. Admission and resource allocation for distinct demands of slice requests are the key issues in addressing these challenges and should be handled effectively in dynamic environments. To this end, we propose an Opportunistic Admission and Resource allocation (OAR) policy to deal with the issues of random slicing requests, uncertain resource availability, and heterogeneous multi-resources. The key idea of OAR is to allow the SP to decide whether to accept slice requests immediately or defer them according to the load and price of resources. To cope with the random slice requests and uncertain resource availability, we formulated this issue as a Markov Decision Process (MDP) to obtain the optimal admission policy, with the aim of maximizing the system reward. Furthermore, the buyer-seller game theory approach was adopted to realize the optimal resource allocation, while motivating each SP and InP to maximize their rewards. Our numerical results show that the proposed OAR policy can make reasonable decisions effectively and steadily, and outperforms the baseline schemes in terms of the system reward.

Abstract Enteral nutrition (EN) is important for critically ill patients. This study investigated the current situation of EN treatment in SHANGHAI intensive care units (ICUs). We hypothesized that improving EN practice in SHANGHAI may benefit the prognosis of ICU patients. Clinical information on EN use was collected using clinic information forms in 2019. The collected data included the patient’s general clinical information, EN prescription status, EN tolerance status, and clinical outcomes. The observation time points were days 1, 3, and 7 after starting EN. A total of 491 patients were included. The proportion of EN intolerance (defined as 0.5 g/kg/day on day 3 or day 7 might affect the 28-day mortality. Risk factors with EN tolerance on day 7 by logistic regression showed that the AGI grade on day 1 was a major factor against EN tolerance. The proportion of EN tolerance in SHANGHAI ICU patients was low. Achieving tolerance on day 7 after the start of EN is a protective factor for 28-day survival. Improving EN tolerance and protein intake maybe beneficial for ICU patients.

The Shear wave (S-wave) velocity is an essential parameter in reservoir characterization and evaluation, fluid identification, and prestack inversion. However, the cost of obtaining S-wave velocities directly from dipole acoustic logging is relatively high. At the same time, conventional data-driven S-wave velocity prediction methods exhibit several limitations, such as poor accuracy and generalization of empirical formulas, inadequate exploration of logging curve patterns of traditional fully connected neural networks, and gradient explosion and gradient vanishing problems of recurrent neural networks (RNNs). In this study, we present a reliable and low-cost deep learning (DL) approach for S-wave velocity prediction from real logging data to facilitate the solution of these problems. We designed a new network sensitive to depth sequence logging data using conventional neural networks. The new network is composed of one-dimensional (1D) convolutional, bidirectional long short-term memory (BiLSTM), attention, and fully connected layers. First, the network extracts the local features of the logging curves using a 1D convolutional layer, and then extracts the long-term sequence features of the logging curves using the BiLSTM layer, while adding an attention layer behind the BiLSTM network to further highlight the features that are more significant for S-wave velocity prediction and minimize the influence of other features to improve the accuracy of S-wave velocity prediction. Afterward, the nonlinear mapping relationship between logging data and S-wave velocity is established using several fully connected layers. We applied the new network to real field data and compared its performance with three traditional methods, including a long short-term memory (LSTM) network, a back-propagation neural network (BPNN), and an empirical formula. The performance of the four methods was quantified in terms of their coefficient of determination (R2), root mean square error (RMSE), and mean absolute error (MAE). The new network exhibited better performance and generalization ability, with R2 greater than 0.95 (0.9546, 0.9752, and 0.9680, respectively), RMSE less than 57 m/s (56.29, 23.18, and 30.17 m/s, respectively), and MAE less than 35 m/s (34.68, 16.49, and 21.47 m/s, respectively) for the three wells. The test results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed approach, which has the potential to be widely applied in real areas where S-wave velocity logging data are not available. Furthermore, the findings of this study can help for a better understanding of the superiority of deep learning schemes and attention mechanisms for logging parameter prediction.

Highlights A multifactorial and oriented scaffolds was constructed to stimulate osteochondral regeneration. This is the first demonstration that both drug and gene nanoparticles were spatially deposited on a patterned film through metal-ligand interactions. For the first time, film-rolling approach was employed to construct osteochondral plug to mimick the Haversian canal structure of natural bone.

Abstract Miniaturization and electrochemical performance enhancement of electrodes and microelectrode arrays in emerging long-term implantable neural stimulation devices improves specificity, functionality, and performance of these devices. However, surgical site and post-implantation infections are amongst the most devastating complications after surgical procedures and implantations. Additionally, with the increased use of antibiotics, the threat of antibiotic resistance is significant and is increasingly being recognized as a global problem. Therefore, the need for alternative strategies to eliminate post-implantation infections and reduce antibiotic use has led to the development of medical devices with antibacterial properties. In this work, we report on the development of electrochemically active antibacterial platinum-iridium electrodes targeted for use in neural stimulation and sensing applications. A two-step development process was used. Electrodes were first restructured using femtosecond laser hierarchical surface restructuring. In the second step of the process, atomic layer deposition was utilized to deposit conformal antibacterial copper oxide thin films on the hierarchical surface structure of the electrodes to impart antibacterial properties to the electrodes with minimal impact on electrochemical performance of the electrodes. Morphological, compositional, and structural properties of the electrodes were studied using multiple modalities of microscopy and spectroscopy. Antibacterial properties of the electrodes were also studied, particularly, the killing effect of the hierarchically restructured antibacterial electrodes on Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus—two common types of bacteria responsible for implant infections.

Pressure resistance welding is usually used to seal the connection between the cladding tube and the end plug made of zirconium alloy. The seal welded joint has a direct effect on the service performance of the fuel rod cladding structure. In this paper, the pressure resistance welded joints of zirconium alloy tube-plug structure were obtained by thermal-mechanical simulation experiments. The microstructure and microhardness of the joints were both analyzed. The effect of processing parameters on the microstructure was studied in detail. The results showed that there was no β-Zr phase observed in the joint, and no obvious element segregation. There were different types of Widmanstätten structure in the thermo-mechanically affected zone (TMAZ) and heat affected zone (HAZ) of the cladding tube and the end plug joint because of the low cooling rate. Some part of the grains in the joint grew up due to overheating. Its size was about 2.8 times that of the base metal grains. Due to the high dislocation density and texture evolution, the microhardnesses of TMAZ and HAZ were both significantly higher than that of the base metal, and the microhardness of the TMAZ was the highest. With the increasing of welding temperature, the proportion of recrystallization in TMAZ decreased, which was caused by the increasing of strain rate and dislocation annihilation.

Abstract The desert ecosystem of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (QTP) is an important component of China's desert ecosystem. Studying the mechanisms shaping the taxonomic, phylogenetic, and functional beta diversity of plant communities in the QTP desert will help us to promote scientific conservation and management of the region's biodiversity. This study investigated the effects of environmental (including altitude, climate factors, and soil factors) and geographic distances on three facets of beta diversity as well as their turnover and nestedness components based on field survey data. The results showed that turnover components dominate the three facets of beta diversity. However, the turnover contributions to phylogenetic and functional beta diversity were lower than for taxonomic beta diversity. Environmental distance had a greater influence than geographic distance, with the former uniquely explaining 15.2%–22.8% of beta diversity and the latter explaining only 1.7%–2.4%. Additionally, the explanatory power of different factors for beta diversity differed between herbs and shrubs, with environmental distance being more important for the latter. Distance‐based redundancy analysis suggested that soil total potassium content had a substantial impact on the beta diversity of three dimensions, with mean temperature of the coldest month and soil total phosphorus content having a substantial impact on taxonomic and functional beta diversity as well. Our results support that environmental sorting plays a predominant role in shaping plant community composition across QTP desert ecosystems. To maintain the plant diversity of this region, it is crucial to prioritize the conservation of its diverse environmental conditions and actively mitigate its degradation by anthropogenic pressures.

PurposeGiven the unique features of the liver, it is necessary to combine immunotherapy with other therapies to improve its efficacy in patients of advanced cancer with liver metastases (LM). High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) ablation is now widely used in clinical practice and can enhanced immune benefits. The study is intended to prospectively evaluate the safety and clinical feasibility of HIFU ablation in combination with systemic immunotherapy for patients with liver metastases.MethodsThe study enrolled 14 patients with LM who received ultrasound-guided HIFU ablation combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) such as anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (anti-PD-1 agents manufactured in China) at Mianyang Central Hospital. Patients were followed up for adverse events (AEs) during the trial, using the CommonTerminology Criteria for Adverse Events v5.0(CTCAE v5.0) as the standard. Tumour response after treatment was assessed using computerized tomography.ResultsThe 14 patients (age range, 35-84 years) underwent HIFU ablation at 19 metastatic sites and systemic immunotherapy. The mean lesion volume was 179.9 cm3 (maximum: 733.1 cm3). Median follow-up for this trial was 9 months (range: 3-21) months. The study is clinically feasible and acceptable to patients.ConclusionThis prospective study confirmed that HIFU combined with immunotherapy is clinically feasible and safe for treating liver metastases.

Biological specimens are fundamental for taxonomy and flora/fauna research. More importantly, they also play crucial roles in recording environmental impacts on morphology and behavior, which is vital for biodiversity research and conservation. However, there are few systematic studies on the patterns and drivers of bird specimen number at regional scales. This study is the first attempt to examine the relationships between bird specimen number and species traits as well as climate niche breadth in China, aiming to answer two questions: 1) how do species’ temperature niche breadth and precipitation niche breadth influence specimen number? 2) which trait is most associated with bird specimen number? The associations between bird specimen number and explanatory variables were examined using ordinary least squares, generalized linear models, phylogenetic generalized linear mixed models, and multiple comparisons. The results showed that Muscicapidae was the family with the highest specimen number, and Passeriformes was the order with the highest specimen number. Bird specimen number significantly increased with larger temperature niche breadth and precipitation niche breadth. Specimen number was also positively associated with geographic range size, habitat specificity, hunting vulnerability and clutch size, but negatively associated with body size. These findings suggest that future bird specimen collection should pay more attention to birds with limited ecological niches, large body sizes, and small clutch sizes. This research enhances the use of bird specimen data to study and preserve biodiversity.

BackgroundMultidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings are the gold standard of cancer treatment. However, the limited participation of multiple medical experts and the low frequency of MDT meetings reduce the efficiency and coverage rate of MDTs. Herein, we retrospectively report the results of an asynchronous MDT based on a cloud platform (cMDT) to improve the efficiency and coverage rate of MDT meetings for digestive tract cancer.MethodsThe participants and cMDT processes associated with digestive tract cancer were discussed using a cloud platform. Software programming and cMDT test runs were subsequently conducted to further improve the software and processing. cMDT for digestive tract cancer was officially launched in June 2019. The doctor response duration, cMDT time, MDT coverage rate, National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines compliance rate for patients with stage III rectal cancer, and uniformity rate of medical experts’ opinions were collected.ResultsThe final cMDT software and processes used were determined. Among the 7462 digestive tract cancer patients, 3143 (control group) were diagnosed between March 2016 and February 2019, and 4319 (cMDT group) were diagnosed between June 2019 and May 2022. The average number of doctors participating in each cMDT was 3.26 ± 0.88. The average doctor response time was 27.21 ± 20.40 hours, and the average duration of cMDT was 7.68 ± 1.47 min. The coverage rates were 47.85% (1504/3143) and 79.99% (3455/4319) in the control and cMDT groups, respectively. The National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines compliance rates for stage III rectal cancer patients were 68.42% and 90.55% in the control and cMDT groups, respectively. The uniformity rate of medical experts’ opinions was 89.75% (3101/3455), and 8.97% (310/3455) of patients needed online discussion through WeChat; only 1.28% (44/3455) of patients needed face-to-face discussion with the cMDT group members.ConclusionA cMDT can increase the coverage rate of MDTs and the compliance rate with National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines for stage III rectal cancer. The uniformity rate of the medical experts’ opinions was high in the cMDT group, and it reduced contact between medical experts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Plant diseases caused by bacteria lead to enormous yield and economic losses in agricultural production. To develop innovative bactericides for controlling plant disease, a series of coumarin-3-carboxylic acid derivatives containing acylhydrazone thioether/sulfoxide were designed and synthesized by utilizing the principles of bioisosterism and active splicing. The bactericidal activities of these derivatives were subsequently evaluated. The result indicated that E2 exhibited the highest antibacterial activities in vitro against Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae, Ralstonia solanacearum, and Acidovorax citrulli, with EC50 values of 2.97, 1.17, and 1.23 µg/mL, respectively. Moreover, in vivo experiments showed that E2 exhibited robust protective properties against Ralstonia solanacearum, and Acidovorax citrulli, with efficacies of 72.52 % and 63.90 %, respectively, at a concentration of 100 µg/mL, which was comparable to the positive control kasugamycin at the same concentration. Scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed that E2 induced changes in the cellular morphology of Acidovorax citrulli, such as shrinkage and collapse. Subsequent investigation revealed that E2 had the capacity to compromise the structural stability of the bacterial membrane of Ralstonia solanacearum. This study represents the first report on the antibacterial activities of this series of coumarin-3-carboxylic acid derivatives containing the acylhydrazone thioether/single-sulfoxide moiety, and the results suggest that coumarin-3-carboxylic acid derivatives containing the acylhydrazone single-sulfoxide may hold potential as effective antibacterial agents. And coumarin-3-carboxylic acid derivatives exhibited promise as plant bacterial agent to prevent rice bacterial leaf blight, tomato bacterial wilt, and melon bacterial fruit blotch.

IntroductionValue hierarchies, as motivational goals anchored in the self-schema, may be correlated with spontaneous activity in the resting brain, especially those involving self-relevance. This study aims to investigate the neural correlates of value hierarchies from the perspective of typology.MethodsA total of 610 Chinese college students (30.31% women), aged 18 to 23, completed the personal values questionnaire and underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging.ResultsThe latent profile analysis revealed three personal value profiles: traditional social orientation, modernized orientation, and undifferentiated orientation. Neuroimaging results revealed that individuals with modernized orientation prioritized openness to change value, and this personal-focus is related to the higher low-frequency amplitude of the posterior insula; individuals with traditional social orientation prioritized self-transcendence and conservation values, and this social-focus is related to the stronger functional connectivity of the middle insula with the inferior temporal gyrus, temporal gyrus, posterior occipital cortex, and basal ganglia, as well as weaker functional connections within the right middle insula.DiscussionTaken together, these findings potentially indicate the intra-generational differentiation of contemporary Chinese emerging adults’ value hierarchies. At the neural level, these are correlated with brain activities involved in processing self- and other-relevance.

Abstract Due to the excellent biocompatible physicochemical performance, luminogens with aggregation-induced emission (AIEgens) characteristics have played a significant role in biomedical fluorescence imaging recently. However, screening AIEgens for special applications takes a lot of time and efforts by using conventional chemical synthesis route. Fortunately, artificial intelligence techniques that could predict the properties of AIEgen molecules would be helpful and valuable for novel AIEgens design and synthesis. In this work, we applied machine learning (ML) techniques to screen AIEgens with expected excitation and emission wavelength for biomedical deep fluorescence imaging. First, a database of various AIEgens collected from the literature was established. Then, by extracting key features using molecular descriptors and training various state-of-the-art ML models, a multi-modal molecular descriptors strategy has been proposed to extract the structure-property relationships of AIEgens and predict molecular absorption and emission wavelength peaks. Compared to the first principles calculations, the proposed strategy provided greater accuracy at a lower computational cost. Finally, three newly predicted AIEgens with desired absorption and emission wavelength peaks were synthesized successfully and applied for cellular fluorescence imaging and deep penetration imaging. All the results were consistent successfully with our expectations, which demonstrated the above ML has a great potential for screening AIEgens with suitable wavelengths, which could boost the design and development of novel organic fluorescent materials.

Introduction: This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of docetaxel + trastuzumab + pertuzumab and docetaxel + carboplatin + trastuzumab + pertuzumab for treating HER2-positive breast cancer. Method: HER2-positive breast cancer from patients diagnosed between January 2020 and September 2022 were included in this retrospective study. Docetaxel + trastuzumab + pertuzumab or docetaxel + carboplatin + trastuzumab + pertuzumab was selected as the neoadjuvant regimen. The primary endpoint was a complete pathological remission rate. Secondary endpoints were toxicity during neoadjuvant treatment, adjustment of the neoadjuvant therapy scheme, and adjuvant medication. Result: A total of 81 patients were included in this study (38 in the docetaxel + carboplatin + trastuzumab + pertuzumab treatment group and 43 in the docetaxel + trastuzumab + pertuzumab group). The complete pathological remission rates in the docetaxel + carboplatin + trastuzumab + pertuzumab and docetaxel + trastuzumab + pertuzumab groups were 44.7% (95% confidence interval: 30.2%-60.3%) and 51.2% (95% confidence interval: 36.8%-65.4%), respectively. The incidence of grade 3 or higher toxicity in the docetaxel + carboplatin + trastuzumab + pertuzumab group was significantly higher than that in the docetaxel + trastuzumab + pertuzumab group (68.4% vs 39.5%, P = .009). Neutropenia and asthenia were the most common grade 3 or higher toxicities. The incidence of neoadjuvant scheme adjustment was significantly higher in the docetaxel + carboplatin + trastuzumab + pertuzumab group than in the docetaxel + trastuzumab + pertuzumab group (26.3% vs 7.0%, P = .039). The proportion of patients who received

Coumarin-3-carboxylic acid (3-CCA), previously screened from natural coumarins, was found to possess strong antibacterial activity against Acidovorax citrulli (Ac). In order to further evaluate the activity of this compound against plant bacterial pathogens and explore its potential value as a bactericidal lead compound, the activity of 3-CCA against 14 plant pathogenic bacteria in vitro and in vivo was tested. Results showed that 3-CCA exhibited strong in vitro activities against Ac, Ralstonia solanacearum, Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. manihotis, X. oryzae pv. oryzae, and Dickeya zeae with EC50 values ranging from 26.64 μg/mL to 40.73 μg/mL. Pot experiment results showed that 3-CCA had powerful protective and curative effects against Ac. In addition, the protective efficiency of 3-CCA was almost equivalent to that of thiodiazole copper at the same concentration. The results of SEM and TEM observation and conductivity tests showed that 3-CCA disrupted the integrity of the cell membrane and inhibited polar flagella growth. Furthermore, 3-CCA resulted in reductions in motility and extracellular exopolysaccharide (EPS) production of Ac while inhibiting the biofilm formation of Ac. These findings indicate that 3-CCA could be a promising natural lead compound against plant bacterial pathogens to explore novel antibacterial agents.

BackgroundPost-operative etiological studies are critical for infection prevention in lung transplant recipients within the first year. In this study, mNGS combined with microbial culture was applied to reveal the etiological characteristics within one week (ultra-early) and one month (early) in lung transplant recipients, and the epidemiology of infection occurred within one month.MethodsIn 38 lung transplant recipients, deep airway secretions were collected through bronchofiberscope within two hours after the operation and were subjected to microbial identification by mNGS and microbial culture. The etiologic characteristics of lung transplant recipients were explored. Within one month, the infection status of recipients was monitored. The microbial species detected by mNGS were compared with the etiological agents causing infection within one month.ResultsThe detection rate of mNGS in the 38 airway secretions specimens was significantly higher than that of the microbial culture (P

Millimeter Wave (mmWave) communication has been widely acknowledged as an attractive solution to address high-speed transmission of massive data in 5G and beyond 5G systems due to the promising spectrum availability. However, mmWave signals are highly susceptible to blockage and may suffer from rapidly changing channels. Thus, directional/beam tracking becomes imperative yet essential for robust mmWave communications. To address this challenge, we propose a robust beam tracking scheme for mmWave Heterogeneous Networks (HetNets) with multi-connectivity. Different from most existing schemes, the proposed beam tracking scheme is effective for outage events. We first discuss the μWave-assisted beam tracking procedure with and without candidate beams, and then analyze the inherent correlation between mmWave link quality and the operating beamwidth and occlusion range to derive the optimal beamwidth. Theoretical and numerical results show that the proposed beam tracking scheme can improve the robustness of mmWave communications while guaranteeing the rate performance.

Abstract Objectives Surgical lung resection involves a critical task of stapled ligation and transection of major vascular structures and tissue, which may lead to bleeding and complications. A newer powered stapling system with Gripping Surface Technology (GST) was introduced to account for tissue movements. This study aimed to examine the real-world effectiveness of GST system on intraoperative and postoperative outcomes of pulmonary resection. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted using the electronic medical records of Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital between July 2020 and March 2021 in China. Patients who underwent their first procedures of single-port lobectomy or multi-port segmentectomy by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery were identified and grouped as GST group or manual stapler group (manual group) by the stapler types. The intraoperative outcomes such as bleeding rate, blood loss volume, and intervention rate at the staple line (including intraoperative pressure, suture, and electrocoagulation) were documented by trained nurses during the surgery. Propensity score matching was performed between the two groups, controlling forage, BMI, smoking history, history of surgery, complications, and level of complexity of pneumonectomy. Results A total of 108 matched patients were included in the analysis (54 in the GST group and 54 in the manual group). GST group had lower risks for intraoperative bleeding (22.8% vs 51.9%; p = 0.003) and intraoperative interventions (31.5% vs 55.6%; p = 0.02), compared to the manual group. A decrease in the intraoperative blood loss was observed in the GST group, but not statistically significant (134.39 ± 52.82 ml vs 158.11 ± 73.14 ml, p = 0.102). The use of NEOVEIL (reinforcement material to prevent air leakage from the staple line) intraoperatively during surgery was significantly lower in the GST group (24.1%) than in the manual group (50%, p = 0.01). Conclusion The GST system was associated with better intraoperative outcomes in clinical practice in China.

Abstract Background Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains one of the most lethal cancers worldwide accompany with an extremely poor prognosis. Therefore, this study aims to screen for new molecules affecting ESCC and explore their mechanisms of action to provide ideas for targeted therapies for ESCC. Methods Firstly, we screened out the membrane protein SCARA5 by high-throughput sequencing of the ESCC patient tissues, and RT-qPCR and WB were used to verify the differential expression of SCARA5 in esophageal cell lines, and IHC analyzed the expression localization of SCARA5 in ESCC tissue. Then, flow cytometry, wound healing assay, Transwell assay and CCK-8 assay were used to explore the effects of SCARA5 on cell cycle, migration and invasion as well as cell proliferation activity of esophageal squamous carcinoma cells. Meanwhile, transmission electron microscopy was used to detect changes in cellular mitochondrial morphology, and flow cytometry were used to detect changes in intracellular reactive oxygen metabolism, and immunofluorescence and flow cytometry were used to detect changes in intracellular Fe2+. Mechanistically, co-immunoprecipitation was used to detect whether SCARA5 binds to ferritin light chain, and ferroptosis-related protein expression was detected by WB. Finally, the tumor xenograft model was applied to validation the role of SCARA5 tumor growth inhibition in vivo. Results We found that SCARA5 was aberrantly decreased in ESCC tissues and cell lines. Furthermore, we confirmed that SCARA5 suppressed the cell cycle, metastasis and invasion of ESCC cells. Meanwhile, we also found that overexpression of SCARA5 caused changes in mitochondrial morphology, accumulation of intracellular reactive oxygen species and increased intracellular Fe2+ in ESCC cells, which induced ferroptosis in ESCC cells. Mechanically, we validated that SCARA5 combined with ferritin light chain and increased intracellular Fe2+. As well as, overexpression SCARA5 induced ferroptosis by increasing ferritin light chain in nude mice subcutaneous tumors and inhibited the growth of nude mice subcutaneous tumors. Conclusion Collectively, our findings demonstrated that SCARA5 suppressed the proliferation and metastasis of ESCC by triggering ferroptosis through combining with ferritin light chain.

Abstract CAMSAP2 has been reported to act as an oncogene in hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the expression CAMSAP2 and its potential roles in colorectal cancer remain unclear. In this study, qRT-PCR and immunoblotting analysis were used to detect the mRNA and protein levels of CAMSAP2 in colorectal cancer tissues and cell lines. Wound-healing, transwell migration and invasion assay were performed to determine whether CAMSAP2 promotes the capabilities of migration and invasion of colorectal cancer cells. The results showed that CAMSAP2 was highly elevated in colorectal cancer tissues and cell lines. Moreover, the high CAMSAP2 expression was positively correlated with tumor invasion depth, lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, and the poor prognosis of colorectal cancer. Additionally, ectopic expression of CAMSAP2 in colorectal cancer cells promoted the migration and invasion in vitro and enhanced the lung metastasis in nude mice. Conversely, silencing CAMSAP2 resulted in an opposite phenomenon. By gain- and loss-of function experiments, we demonstrated that MMP-1 was a substantial downstream target of CAMSAP2, and it played a crucial role in regulating the migration and invasion induced by CAMSAP2 in colorectal cancer cells. Mechanistically, CAMSAP2 promoted the activation of JNK/c-Jun signaling pathway and subsequently upregulated the transcription activity of MMP-1. Taken together, our findings demonstrated that CAMSAP2 promoted colorectal cancer cell migration, invasion and metastasis through activation of JNK/c-Jun/MMP-1 signaling pathway, indicating CAMSAP2 is a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer patients.

Objective This study is aimed to investigate the clinical outcomes of a novel SSPS for fixation of the comminuted coronoid fracture. Methods A retrospective study was carried out in the patients with comminuted fractures of the coronoid treated by SPSS fixation between January 2014 and December 2018. A total of 17 patients (17 sides) was included in our study, including 11 male and six female, with a mean age range from 18 to 60. All cases started to functional rehabilitation immediately after the operation. Clinical outcomes were evaluated both radiographically and functionally at the follow‐up visit, including the elbow instability, range of motion and Mayo elbow performance score (MEPS). Results According to the O'Driscoll classification system, there was two side of type 1.2, two of type 2.1, four of type 2.2, three of type 2.3, two of 3.1 and four of type 3.2. The surgery was carried out by Kocher and anteromedial approach in 12 patients, posterior and anteromedial approach in four, anterior approach in one. The average operation time and intraoperative blood loss was 129.41±43.87 min and 115.29±104.65 ml. The median follow‐up time was 9 months (range, 6 to 15 months). The mean flexion, extension, pronation and supination motion was 138.76±8.67 degrees, 20.00±13.58, 82.94±5.32and 74.12±14.39 respectively at final follow up. The mean MEPS score was 89.76±8.46, including 11 excellent, 3 good and 3 fair result. The mean VAS score was 1.94±0.97. The mean union time of coronoid fractures was 2.77±0.31 months according to the established standard of healing. There were no significant differences in clinical outcomes among groups according to the O'Driscoll classification (P > .05) and ligament repair strategy (P > .05). No patient underwent instability or dislocation of the elbow during follow up. There were two cases with mild ulnar nerve symptoms which recovered totally at follow up. Meanwhile, there were three cases with heterotopic ossification of the elbow. Conclusion Our findings demonstrated that the SSPS can provide a reliable fixation for the comminuted coronoid fracture with satisfactory clinical outcomes.

Precise DNA quantification and nuclear imaging are pivotal for clinical testing, pathological diagnosis, and drug development. The detection and localization of mitochondrial DNA serve as crucial indicators of cellular health. We introduce a novel conjugated oligoelectrolyte (COE) molecule, COE-S3, featuring a planar backbone composed of three benzene rings and terminal side chains. This unique amphiphilic structure endows COE-S3 with exceptional water solubility, a high quantum yield of 0.79, and a significant fluorescence Stokes shift (λex = 366 nm, λem = 476 nm), alongside a specific fluorescence response to DNA. The fluorescence intensity correlates proportionally with DNA concentration. COE-S3 interacts with double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) through an intercalation binding mode, exhibiting a binding constant (K) of 1.32 × 106 M−1. Its amphiphilic nature and strong DNA affinity facilitate its localization within mitochondria in living cells and nuclei in apoptotic cells. Remarkably, within 30 min of COE-S3 staining, cell vitality can be discerned through real-time nuclear fluorescence imaging of apoptotic cells. COE-S3’s high DNA selectivity enables quantitative intracellular DNA analysis, providing insights into cell proliferation, differentiation, and growth. Our findings underscore COE-S3, with its strategically designed, shortened planar backbone, as a promising intercalative probe for DNA quantification and nuclear imaging.

Abstract Background Patients with bone metastasis often experience severe pain that is difficult to control and seriously affects quality of life. Radiotherapy is an effective way to relieve pain in these patients. Currently, there is no standard recommended range of radiotherapy targets for vertebral metastasis. The effect of radiotherapy on pain relief varies among patients, and some patients with metastases have serious side effects. Methods This study aims to verify whether reducing the radiotherapy range for vertebral metastases can achieve the same effect as whole vertebral radiotherapy while minimizing side effects. Sixty-six patients with pain caused by vertebral metastasis were randomly divided into two groups. The study group is receiving partial vertebrae body radiotherapy at the regions of abnormal signal, suspected invasion, and adjacent subclinical focus of vertebral metastasis, and the control group is receiving the same dose of radiotherapy on whole vertebrae body where metastasis occurred. After radiotherapy, along-term follow-up of patients will determine pain relief and side effects. Discussion The expected results of this study are that local irradiation of vertebral metastases can achieve a palliative effect of pain control not less than total vertebral irradiation with fewer side effects. Trial registration This study was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (No: ChiCTR1900023401 ).

Summary: Genetics have nominated many schizophrenia risk genes and identified convergent signals between schizophrenia and neurodevelopmental disorders. However, functional interpretation of the nominated genes in the relevant brain cell types is often lacking. We executed interaction proteomics for six schizophrenia risk genes that have also been implicated in neurodevelopment in human induced cortical neurons. The resulting protein network is enriched for common variant risk of schizophrenia in Europeans and East Asians, is down-regulated in layer 5/6 cortical neurons of individuals affected by schizophrenia, and can complement fine-mapping and eQTL data to prioritize additional genes in GWAS loci. A sub-network centered on HCN1 is enriched for common variant risk and contains proteins (HCN4 and AKAP11) enriched for rare protein-truncating mutations in individuals with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Our findings showcase brain cell-type-specific interactomes as an organizing framework to facilitate interpretation of genetic and transcriptomic data in schizophrenia and its related disorders.

PurposeThis study aimed to investigate the ability of enhanced computed tomography (CT)-based radiomics and dosimetric parameters in predicting response to radiotherapy for esophageal cancer.MethodsA retrospective analysis of 147 patients diagnosed with esophageal cancer was performed, and the patients were divided into a training group (104 patients) and a validation group (43 patients). In total, 851 radiomics features were extracted from the primary lesions for analysis. Maximum correlation minimum redundancy and minimum least absolute shrinkage and selection operator were utilized for feature screening of radiomics features, and logistic regression was applied to construct a radiotherapy radiomics model for esophageal cancer. Finally, univariate and multivariate parameters were used to identify significant clinical and dosimetric characteristics for constructing combination models. The area evaluated the predictive performance under the receiver operating characteristics (AUC) curve and the accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of the training and validation cohorts.ResultsUnivariate logistic regression analysis revealed statistically significant differences in clinical parameters of sex (p=0.031) and esophageal cancer thickness (p=0.028) on treatment response, whereas dosimetric parameters did not differ significantly in response to treatment. The combined model demonstrated improved discrimination between the training and validation groups, with AUCs of 0.78 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.69–0.87) and 0.79 (95% CI, 0.65–0.93) in the training and validation groups, respectively.ConclusionThe combined model has potential application value in predicting the treatment response of patients with esophageal cancer after radiotherapy.

IntroductionSpecies inventories based on various data sources have been widely used in biodiversity research, conservation policy formulation, reserve designation and biodiversity resource management. In this paper, we explored the relationships of species inventories obtained from different sources and whether they would affect the inference of biodiversity patterns and their environmental drivers.MethodsWe compiled the species inventories from different data sources (observational data including large amounts of citizen-based observational records and digitalized specimens, and avifauna data extracted from avifaunas which mainly integrated professional-based species surveys, expert knowledge and documentary records) at the prefectural level in China. Then we explored the relationships of different inventories and compared the correlations between the taxonomic, phylogenetic, functional diversity calculated from different datasets and the environmental factors.Results and DiscussionThe results showed that the avifauna datasets contributed more additional species to the combined species inventories when the species richness was relatively low and vice versa. Species inventories integrated from two different data sources formed complementary relationship rather than nested or totally different relationships. In addition, the species inventories based on observational data had no obvious disadvantage or were even better at inferring the biodiversity patterns than those based on avifauna data. The stepwise multiple regression analyses showed that the best models were the ones using the species inventories combined by observational and avifauna dataset, and the best models built with different datasets included inconsistent environmental variables. Thus, the species inventories from different data sources will indeed affect the inference of the correlations between taxonomic diversity, phylogenetic diversity, functional diversity and environmental factors. Moreover, although it may be more reliable to use a combined species inventory to analyze the relationship between diversity indices and environmental factors, individualized improvement schemes should be proposed for different data sources to fill the data gaps.

In the existing composite four-rail electromagnetic launcher (CFREL), the armature and rail contact surface produces significant heat and bears considerable wear, thereby reducing the potential amount of electromagnetic thrust to be generated. To eliminate the damage caused by the thermal effect of the rail contact surface and to meet the electromagnetic thrust demand of the load, a CFREL is proposed. The proposed CFREL model is constructed, and the launcher’s electromagnetic characteristics are simulated and compared using the finite element method. The current density, distribution of magnetic flux density, and electromagnetic thrust characteristics are analysed. The results showed that the proposed CFREL reduced the maximum current density of the contact surface and effectively eliminated the current concentration of the armature and rail contact surfaces. Effective magnetic field shielding is realised with a larger range, which can better meet the requirements of the intelligent load’s magnetic field environment and provide stronger electromagnetic thrust for the load, hence solving the problem of insufficient thrust.

Objective To tackle the challengeable dilemma of delayed femoral fracture, a technique of fixator‐assisted closed reduction and intramedullary nailing at one stage was introduced herein and its clinical results were investigated. Methods A retrospective study was conducted on delayed femoral shaft fracture between February 2008 and January 2017. The multiple injured patients aged from 18 to 60 years with delayed femoral fracture was included. All patients were treated by one‐stage internal fixation technique and followed up for more than 1 year. Outcome measures including the operation time, intraoperative blood loss and limb alignment, healing time of fracture, visual analog scale (VAS), and range of knee motion were recorded and evaluated. Results A total of 13 patients (16 sides) with a mean injury severity score (ISS) of 32.77 ± 9.98 (range, 19 to 52) participated in the investigation. The median length of time‐after‐fracture was 38 days (range, 21 to 110 days). The average shortening distance of the fracture ends was 35.48 ± 19.24 mm (range, 10.00 to 79.00 mm). The average surgery time was 192.19 ± 29.38 min for unilateral femoral fracture, with blood loss of 587.50 ± 232.02 ml. The postoperative discrepancy of lower limb was 3.87 ± 2.52 mm. No patient had vascular and neurologic complications due to the lengthening. All fractures healed successfully with a mean time of 2.98 ± 0.57 months. The mean VAS and maximal knee flexion were 1.63 ± 1.09 and 131.25° ± 5.32° at final follow‐up, respectively. Conclusions Our findings indicated that fixator‐assisted closed reduction and intramedullary nailing at one stage is an effective treatment for delayed femoral fracture with satisfactory functional recovery.

In the quest to scientifically develop power systems increasingly reliant on renewable energy sources, the potential and temporal complementarity of wind and solar power in China’s northwestern provinces necessitated a systematic assessment. Using ERA5 reanalysis data for wind speed and solar irradiance, an evaluation was carried out to determine the potential and spatial distribution of wind and solar power across these provinces. Land use types and terrestrial surface slopes were considered in gauging this potential. Theoretical wind and solar power outputs were then compared to understand their complementarity on annual, monthly, and hourly temporal scales. This exploration utilized methodologies including rank correlation coefficients, crossover frequency analysis, and standard deviation complementarity rates. Areas such as the Tarim Basin, Jungar Basin, and the northeastern part of Xinjiang, northwestern Qinghai, and northern Gansu were identified as having significant wind and solar power potential, with wind power densities reaching as high as 600 W/m2 and solar irradiance surpassing 2000 kWh/m2. In these energy-rich areas, the distinct complementarity between theoretical wind and solar outputs was discerned. On an annual scale, the complementarity appeared weakest, with only 7.48% of the combined provinces’ area showing medium-level complementarity. On a monthly scale, conversely, a pronounced complementarity was displayed, especially during the March–May and October–November periods. When evaluated on an hourly basis, an impressive 63.63% of the total output duration exhibited complementary characteristics.

Sliding friction wear of high-speed current-carrying is a key factor limiting the engineering of electromagnetic railgun, and is also a hot spot and difficult area for current research. In this paper, we simulate the internal ballistic dynamics and electrical contact characteristics based on multi-physics field effects and consider the actual working conditions such as Lorentz force, friction force and interference fit to simulate the motion of the armature in the bore. Based on the Archard wear model, a finite element simulation method combining HyperMesh and ANSYS is proposed to realize the wear prediction. The simulation results are compared with the experimental results to verify the accuracy of the prediction model. The results show that under the single firing condition, the wear is mainly concentrated at the end of the armature arm, and the rail wear is relatively light; with the increase of electromagnetic thrust, the increase of armature wear volume does not change much and is approximately equal; the armature wear volume is influenced by the wear coefficient, in which the armature wear volume increases about 190 times when the wear coefficient increases from $1\times 10^{-6}$ to $1\times 10^{-3}$ . Therefore, in order to reduce the degree of wear between the armature and rails, the lubrication conditions should be improved as much as possible. This study provides a simulation method for the wear prediction of electromagnetic rail launcher, which is important for the engineering application of electromagnetic rail launcher.

Abstract: Under the background of China's high-quality development and "domestic and international double circulation", it is required to gradually optimize the economic structure and social structure while ensuring economic growth. The role of consumption is increasingly prominent. The development of digital finance can promote residents' consumption and consumption upgrading, which in turn can promote high-quality economic development. In order to promote high-quality economic development, this paper reviews the literature in relevant fields, and finds that the literature that studies the three topics simultaneously is still very rare. The research on digital finance and high-quality economic development from the perspective of consumption upgrading is still very rare. It is suggested that the corresponding research can be conducted from the perspective of consumption upgrading in the future.

The purpose of this experiment was to study the effect of sea buckthorn extract (SBE) supplementation on the production performance, serum biochemical indexes, egg quality, and cholesterol deposition of laying ducks. A total of 240 23-week-old laying ducks (female ducks) with similar body weight were randomly divided into four treatment groups with 6 replicates of 10 each. The experimental groups were fed diets supplemented with 0, 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 g/kg of SBE, respectively. The results showed that the addition of 1.0 g/kg SBE to the diet had significant increase (P < 0.05) in average egg weight and feed conversion ratio. The inclusion of SBE showed the significant improvement (P < 0.05) in yolk weight, shell strength, egg white height and haugh unit. Ducks fed with 1.0 and 1.5 g/kg SBE displayed a significant decrease (P < 0.05) in yolk cholesterol. The significant improvements were observed in the contents of total amino acid essential amino acids, non-essential amino acids, umami amino acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, and docosahexenoic acids of eggs (P < 0.05) when supplemented with SBE. However, the contents of total saturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids in eggs showed decrease when ducks fed with SBE diets (P < 0.05). SBE diets may reduce (P < 0.05) the levels of serum total cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, while increased (P < 0.05) the levels of serum superoxide dismutase, total antioxidant capacity, and glutathione catalase compared to the control. The levels of serum immunoglobulin G, immunoglobulin A and immunoglobulin M were improved in SBE diets (P < 0.05) in comparation to the control. The addition of SBE to diets can improve feed nutrient utilization, increase egg weight, optimaze egg quality and amino acid content in eggs, reduce blood lipids, improve fatty acid profile and yolk cholesterol in eggs, and increase antioxidant capacity and immunity in laying ducks.

Laser energy is commonly used in tissue ablation, wound suturing, and other precise manipulations during surgery. However, currently available laser scanners require further improvements in terms of miniaturization, driving voltage, and stability to steer the laser beam accurately within a constrained environment. Herein, the development of a liquid‐driven laser scanner installed on the end effector of a continuum endoscope to perform fast and reliable laser steering is proposed. The developed laser scanner is 7 mm in diameter and 7 mm in length, and it is actuated with a voltage lower than 15 V due to the liquid‐infused membrane. The miniature size and low driving voltage of the proposed laser scanner facilitate safe laser‐assisted surgery in confined spaces. A theoretical model is established to predict laser spot position quantitatively, and laser steering ability is also tested experimentally. The fiber‐delivered laser beam can be steered for 21.2° (±10.6°) with a standard deviation of 0.3° in 1000 cycles, demonstrating excellent stability. A laser steering speed of up to 27.3 mm s−1 and a reflection loss of less than 3.1% are achieved.

Shear wave velocity plays an important role in both reservoir prediction and pre-stack inversion. However, the current deep learning-based shear wave velocity prediction methods have certain limitations, including lack of training dataset, poor model generalization, and poor physical interpretability. In this study, the theoretical rock physics models are introduced into the construction of the labeled dataset for deep learning algorithms, and a forward simulation of the theoretical rock physics models is utilized to supplement the dataset that incorporates geological and geophysical knowledge. This markedly increases the physical interpretability of the deep learning algorithm. Theoretical rock physics models for two different types of reservoirs, i.e., conventional sandstone and tight sandstone reservoirs, are first established. Then, a full-sample labeled dataset is constructed using these two types of theoretical rock physics models to traverse the elasticity parameter space of the two types of reservoirs through random variation and combination of parameters in the theoretical models. Finally, based on the constructed full-sample labeled dataset, four parameters (P-wave velocity, clay content, porosity, and density) that are highly correlated with the shear wave velocity are selected and combined with a deep neural network to build a deep shear wave velocity prediction network with good generalization and robustness, which can be directly applied to field data. The errors between the predicted shear wave velocity using the deep neural network and the measured shear wave velocity data in the laboratory and the logging data in three real field work areas are less than 5%, which are much smaller than the errors predicted by both Han’s and Castagna’s empirical formula. Furthermore, the prediction accuracy and generalization performance are better than those of these two common empirical formulas. The forward simulation based on theoretical models supplements the training dataset and provides high-quality labels for machine learning. This can considerably improve the interpretability and generalization of models in real applications of a machine learning algorithm.

β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) was used to prepare remarkable and stable copper-based catalysts for hydrogenation of dimethyl oxalate (DMO) to ethylene glycol (EG). The DMO conversion (95.6% vs. 99.9%), EG selectivity (53.6% vs. 97.4%) and lifetime (25 h vs. 200 h) were significantly increased on the 0.2CD-Cu-SiO2 sample compared with Cu-SiO2 at 190 °C. The prominent catalytic property was due to the significant roles of β-cyclodextrin to regulate surface dispersion of copper species along with their particle sizes, namely improved copper phyllosilicate morphology, increased BET surface area, improved Cu dispersion, and enhanced surface ratio of Cu+/(Cu+ + Cu0).

Abstract Background BES/BZR family genes have vital roles in plant growth, development, and adaptation to environmental stimuli. However, they have not yet been characterized and systematically analyzed in wheat and foxtail millet. Results In the current study, five common and two unique BES/BZR genes were identified by genome-wide analysis in wheat and foxtail millet, respectively. These genes were unevenly distributed on 14 and five chromosomes of wheat and foxtail millet, respectively, and clustered in two subgroups in a phylogenetic analysis. The BES/BZR gene family members in each subgroup contained similar conserved motifs. Investigation of cis-acting elements and expression profile analysis revealed that the BES/BZR genes were predominantly expressed in leaf tissues of wheat and foxtail millet seedlings and responded to brassinosteroid, abscisic acid, and NaCl treatments. Conclusions Our results provide a basis for future studies on the function and molecular mechanisms of the BES/BZR gene family in wheat, foxtail millet, and other plants.

Abstract Most Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) resistant to rifampicin (RIF) has mutations in the rpoB gene, while most Mtb resistant to isoniazid (INH) has mutations in the katG gene or inhA promoter. We used gene chip technology to detect mutations in these genes to determine the resistance of Mtb to RIF and INH. A total of 4148 clinical specimens with sputum smear positivity for acid-fast bacilli (AFB) were detected. Then, taking the results of the drug sensitivity test (DST) as the reference standard, the detection efficiency of sputum samples from different grades of positive smears was compared in detail. We found that the sensitivity of the gene chip method for detecting sputum samples with a grade ≥ AFB 2 + was higher than that of sputum samples with a grade ≤ AFB 1 + (P

In the medical field, it is important to monitor and evaluate the blood supply status of organs and tissues during the clinical surgery. However, this largely depends on the surgeon’s experience and naked eye, which is easy to misjudge due to the interference of blood stains or other factors. A portable and flexible photoplethysmographic (PPG) detection probe is developed in this paper. And a new evaluation methodology of blood supply status is proposed based on this probe. Three typical indicators based on PPG is proposed to comprehensively evaluate the blood supply status, which are the blood oxygen saturation and its pulsation, differential characteristics of different lights, and time-frequency energy spectral characteristic. The probe and its evaluation methodology are verified using the brain of rats as a model.