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(1-x)BiFe0·94Zn0·03Ti0·03O3-xBaTiO3 (BFZN-BT) ceramics are prepared via sol-gel method, followed by conventional solid-state sintering or two-step sintering processes. Then, systematic experimental characterization and performance evaluation are carried out to investigate this technique and its effects on eight different ceramic samples. Owing to morphotropic phase boundary and optimal sintering conditions, 0.7BiFe0·94Zn0·03Ti0·03O3-0.3BaTiO3 ceramic sintered at T1 = 1025 °C and T2 = 900 °C shows the largest rhombohedral distortion (90°−αR = 0.14°) and tetragonal distortion (cT/αT = 1.021), as well as low leakage (1.19 × 10−5 A/cm2), excellent d33 = 149 pC/N, 2Pr = 85.1 μC/cm2 and Curie temperature of 461 °C. Moreover, large unipolar strain of 0.307% and d 33 ∗ value of 516 p.m./V are also obtained for this ceramic. Overall, the proposed strategy exhibits promise in the advancement of eco-friendly lead-free piezoceramics.

In this work, (1-x)Bi1+yFeO3-xBaTiO3 (x = 0.25, 0.30, 0.35, 0.40; y = − 0.02, 0.00, 0.02, 0.04) ceramics were prepared via the solid-state reaction method. The effects of BaTiO3 doping and different Bi contents on the phase structure, microstructure, and electrical properties of the ceramics was investigated. Compared with pure BiFeO3, doping with BaTiO3 can significantly improve the electrical properties of the ceramics through affecting the phase structure. It is found that the phase structure undergoes a transition from a rhombohedral to a pseudo-cubic phase as x increases. The ceramics with x = 0.30 can be considered as a morphotropic phase boundary, where the rhombohedral and pseudo-cubic phases coexist; furthermore, their electrical performance was improved (Pr = 23.9 µC/cm2, EC = 28.5 kV/cm, $${d}_{33}^{*}$$ = 237 pm/V, TC = 419 °C). Bi excess can improve the dielectric performance of the ceramics at high temperature; however, a severe deficiency of Bi can induce a change in the structure from a mixed phase to a rhombohedral phase where an impurity phase is produced, thus reducing the ceramics performance.

In this paper, effects of sintering temperature (Ts) and dwell time (td) on crystalline structure, microstructure and electrical properties (dielectric and ferroelectric) of BiFe0.96 Zn0.02Ti0.02O3...

To study the effects of Nur77 on prostate cancer (PCa) cell growth and its potential value in the treatment of PCa.We detected the expression of the NUR77 protein in human PCa tissues and cells by Western blot and determined the effects of Nur77 on the proliferation and apoptosis of the PCa cells by flow cytometry.Nur77 and AR were expressed in the human PCa tissue and cells, and overexpressed NUR77 inhibited the proliferation and cell cycle progression of the PCa LNCaP cells. The small-molecule receptor agonists cytosporone B and DIMC of Nur7 significantly suppressed the growth and induced the apoptosis of the PCa LNCaP cells.Nur77 inhibits the proliferation and induces the apoptosis of PCa cells, and is expected to be a potential molecular target for the treatment of PCa.

The transient receptor potential (TRP) channels comprise a large family of ion channels that control a vast array of cellular functions. Growing evidence has demonstrated that a diversity of bioactive components from foods activate or inhibit different types of TRP channels, and interfere with related pathophysiological processes. This review highlights current advances in finding various bioactive components from foods that target TRP channels, and ends with comments on the potential of functional foods that target TRP channels. Furthermore, some types of TRP-related functional food products currently on the market are discussed.

Ping Li,1– 3,* Chang Liu,4– 6,* Shuang Wu,2,3,7 Lin Deng,2,3,8 Guangyuan Zhang,2,3,8 Xin Cai,1– 3 Silong Hu,4– 6 Jingyi Cheng,2,3,6,9 Xiaoping Xu,4– 6 Bin Wu,2,3,10 Xiaomao Guo,2,3,7 Yingjian Zhang,4– 6 Shen Fu,5,11 Qing Zhang1– 3 1Department of Radiation Oncology, Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Center, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Shanghai Key Laboratory of Radiation Oncology, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 3Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Proton and Heavy ion Radiation Therapy, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Nuclear Medicine, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 5Key Laboratory of Nuclear Physics and Ion-Beam Application (MOE), Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 6Shanghai Engineering Research Center for Molecular Imaging Probes, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 7Department of Radiation Oncology, Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Center, Fudan University Cancer Hospital, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 8Department of Radiology, Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Center, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 9Department of Nuclear Medicine, Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Center, Fudan University Cancer Hospital, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 10Department of Radiology, Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Center, Fudan University Cancer Hospital, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 11Department of Radiation Oncology, Shanghai Concord Cancer Hospital, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Qing ZhangDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Center, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 139 1737 4609Fax +86 2138296518Email qing.zhang@hotmail.comShen FuDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Center, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail shen_fu@hotmail.comPurpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the potential of 99mTc-labeled PSMA-SPECT/CT and diffusion-weighted image (DWI) for predicting treatment response after carbon ion radiotherapy (CIRT) in prostate cancer.Patients and Methods: We prospectively registered 26 patients with localized prostate cancer treated with CIRT. All patients underwent 99mTc-labeled PSMA-SPECT/CT and multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) before and after CIRT. The tumor/background ratio (TBR) and mean apparent diffusion coefficient (ADCmean) were measured on the tumor and the percentage changes before and after therapy (ΔTBR and ΔADCmean) were calculated. Patients were divided into two groups: good response and poor response according to clinical follow-up.Results: The median follow up time was 38.3months. The TBR was significantly decreased (p=0.001), while the ADCmean was significantly increased compared with the pretreatment value (p< 0.001). The ΔTBR and ΔADCmean were negatively correlated with each other (p = 0.002). On ROC curve analysis for predicting treatment response, the area under the ROC curve (AUC) of ΔTBR (0.867) for predicting good response was higher than that of ΔADCmean (0.819). The AUC of combined with ΔTBR and ΔADCmean (0.895) was higher than that of either ΔADCmean or ΔTBR alone. The combined use of ΔTBR and ΔADCmean showed 91.4% sensitivity and 95.2% specificity.Conclusion: Our preliminary data indicate that the changes of TBR and ADCmean maybe an early bio-marker for predicting prognosis after CIRT in localized prostate cancer patients. In addition, the ΔTBR seems to be a more powerful prognostic factor than ΔADCmean in prostate cancer treated with CIRT.Keywords: PSMA, DWI, prostate cancer, carbon ion radiotherapy

To investigate the regulatory effect of the transcription factor NF-kB1 on the expression of miR-195 in prostate cancer (PCa).We analyzed the possibility of NF-kB1 binding to the miR-195 promoter and the expression of NF-kB1 in PCa using the JASPAR and Oncomine databases, respectively, and determined the expressions of NF-kB1 and miR-195 in PCa cells by real-time quantitative PCR after inhibiting the former by interfering RNA targeting NF-kB1. We detected the activity of the luciferase reporter gene after constructing its gene plasmid in the miR-195 promoter region and having it co-transfected with the NF-kB1 plasmid. Then we analyzed the correlation between the expressions of miR-195 and NF-kB1 in the prostate tissue.NF-kB1 was overexpressed in PCa. After inhibition of the expression of NF-kB1, that of miR-195 was increased in PC-3 and DU-145 cell lines, with a negative correlation between the NF-kB1 and miR-195 expressions in the PCa tissue. The results of luciferase reporter gene assay showed direct binding of NF-kB1 to the miR-195 promoter zone.NF-kB1 regulates the expression of miR-195 in prostate cancer.

Antibiotics contribute a lot to human beings and can kill bacteria effectively. However, more and more studies show that antibiotics can disturb the intestinal microbial community. It has been widely reported that oral antibiotics can reduce the diversity of intestinal microflora, but the effect of intramuscular injection on intestinal microflora is less studied. In this study, we sequenced the intestinal microflora of mice treated with tetracycline by 16SrRNA method, and found that intramuscular injection of tetracycline (TET) can also reduce the intestinal microbial richness of mice. In addition, the results showed that within a certain range (3 mg), with the increase of TET injection concentration, the wind of intestinal microflora in mice decreased significantly. When the injection concentration reached saturation, although the amount of TET injection was increased, the degree of intestinal flora affected was not increased. The results showed that the degree of diversity decrease was in direct proportion to the amount of tetracycline injection in the saturated concentration, but not positively related to the high amount of TET injection after exceeding the saturated concentration.

Background The purpose of this study was to assess the potential of 99mTc-labeled PSMA-SPECT/CT and Diffusion-Weighted Image (DWI) for predicting treatment response after carbon ion radiotherapy (CIRT) in prostate cancer. Methods We prospectively registered 26 patients with localized prostate cancer treated with CIRT. All patients underwent 99m Tc-labeled PSMA-SPECT/CT and multiparametric MRI before and after CIRT. The tumor/background ratio (TBR) and mean apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC mean ) were measured on the tumor and the percentage changes between 2 time points (ΔTBR and ΔADC mean ) were calculated. Patients were divided into two groups: good response and poor response according to clinical follow-up. Results The median follow up time was 38.3months. The TBR was significantly decreased ( p =0.001), while the ADC mean was significantly increased compared with the pretreatment value ( p

The solubility of 1,1-diamino-2,2-dinitroethylene (FOX-7) in four binary mixed solvents (Dimethyl sulfoxide+Acetonitrile, Cyclohexanone, 1,2-Dichloroethane, Ethyl acetate) was measured by a laser dynamic method over the temperature range from 298.15 K to 333.15 K under 0.1 MPa. Experimental results showed that the solubility increases monotonously as the temperature increases at a given solvent composition or increases with the increasing of mole fraction of good solvent (Dimethyl sulfoxide) in binary mixed solvents, whereas there exists a maximum solubility value in Dimethyl sulfoxide+ Cyclohexanone system. Solubility data were well correlated by the Apelblat equation, van't Hoff equation, general single model (GSM) and modified Jouyban-Acree model, and the Apelblat equation achieved the best fitting results. Moreover, the thermodynamic properties of FOX-7 dissolution process in the investigated mixed solvents, including standard dissolution enthalpy, standard dissolution entropy and standard Gibbs free energy, were calculated by the van't Hoff and the Gibbs equations. The results demonstrate that the dissolution of FOX-7 is a non-spontaneous and endothermic process. The solubility data, correlation models, and thermodynamics properties presented in this study would provide essential support for the further research of crystallization and spheroidization of FOX-7.

Objective: To observe the effect of sodium hyaluronate combined with qizhengxiaotong plaster on senile traumatic arthritis treatment and offer help to senile traumatic arthritis treatment. Methods: A total of 160 enile patient with traumatic arthritis were selected and randomly divided into groups: the observation group (80 people) and the control group (80 people). The enile patient in the control group were treated with diclofenac sodium tablets and the patients in the observation group were treated with sodium hyaluronate and qizhengxiaotong plaster. Inflammatory on the base of diclofenac sodium tablets therapy. Free radicals related factors, inflammatory factors and osteogenesis related factors were compared before and after fifteen days therapy. Results: Before treatment, free radicals related factors, inflammatory factors and osteogenesis related factors of two groups had no statistically significant difference comparison. Free radicals related factors (NO, MDA), inflammatory factors (IL-1, MMP-3, TNF-α) and osteogenesis related factors (OPG, BPG) on the observation group treated with sodium hyaluronate and qizhengxiaotong plaster decreased significantly than before treatment (P＜0.05). SOD on the observation group increased significantly than before treatment (P ＜0.05). The variation of CT was not obvious (P＞0.05). Free radicals related factors (NO, MDA), inflammatory factors (IL-1, MMP-3, TNF-α) and osteogenesis related factors (CT) on the observation group decreased significantly than after treatment of the control group, SOD and osteogenesis related factors (OPG, BPG) increased significantly, comparative differences between groups exist statistical significance (P＜0.05). Conclusions: Sodium hyaluronate combined with qizhengxiaotong plaster can perfect effectively free radicals related factors, inflammatory factors and osteogenesis related factors on enile patient traumatic arthritis, it has important clinical significance for traumatic arthritis.

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text, To explore different posttreatment changes between multimode tumor ablation therapy (MTAT) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) using intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion-weighted imaging (IVIM-DWI) and diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) in patients with hepatic malignancies. Eighty - seven patients with one hundred and twenty eight hepatic lesions receiving MTAT or RFA underwent IVIM-DWI and DKI before and after treatment. The mean value of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), IVIM-DWI parameters, including true diffusion coefficient (D), pseudo-diffusion coefficient (DP), perfusion fraction (f), and DKI parameters including diffusion coefficient (DK), apparent diffusional kurtosis (K) were retrospectively compared prior to and following treatment as well as between treatment groups. The degree of parameters change after ablation was compared between 2 treatment modalities. The mean value of ADC, D, and DK increased while f, and K decreased significantly in MTAT group. In RFA group, just ADC and K showed significantly change following treatment. The ADC and D value were higher in MTAT group than in RFA group 1 month after treatment. While f was lower in MTAT group after treatment compared with RFA group. The ADC, D and DK increased (21.89 ± 24.95% versus 8.76 ± 19.72%, P = .04 for ADC, 33.78 ± 54.01% versus 7.91 ± 25.16%, P = .03 for D, 25.91 ± 36.28% versus 1.75 ± 46.42%, P = .01 for DK) while f declined (-32.62 ± 41.48% versus 6.51 ± 44.16%, P

Ab initio calculations were used to study the adsorption mechanism of Pt monolayer on oppositely polarized BiAlO3 (0 0 0 1) surfaces. The results show that Pt monolayer deposited on both the negative and positive BiAlO3 (0 0 0 1) polar surfaces forms a satisfactory epitaxial layer. According to the adsorption sites and electronic properties, the Pt adatoms can be divided into two types: Three-fourths of Pt atoms are characterized by remarkable orbital hybridization and charge transfer with the underlying Bi cations and show strong anionic character. The remaining one-fourth of Pt adatoms displays different interaction with the BiAlO3 (0 0 0 1) substrate and has weak anionic feature. Moreover, for the BiAlO3 (0 0 0 1) substrate, the surface electronic properties are affected significantly because of the Pt overlayer. Our results present theoretical foundations for noble metals adsorbed onto the BiAlO3 (0 0 0 1) polar surfaces.

Purpose:The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical efficacy of salvage percutaneous radiofrequency ablation in patients with unresectable colorectal cancer liver metastases.Methods:The cohort consisted of 81 patients with 126 colorectal cancer liver metastases who underwent radiofrequency ablation between January 2012 and September 2016. The clinical data and ablation data were retrospectively analyzed. The local tumor progression-free survival, overall survival, and prognostic factors were analyzed using the log-rank test and Cox regression model.Results:The technique success rate was 99.21%. The primary efficacy rate was 100% at the 1-month follow-up. Minor complications were observed in 2 patients, which recovered within 1 week. The median local tumor progression-free survival time of all patients was 29.8 months. The absence of subsequent chemotherapy was an independent predictor of a shorter local tumor progression-free survival time ( P < 0.001, hazard ratio: 2.823, 95% confidence interval: 1.603, 4.972). The median overall survival time was 26.8 months. A lesion size greater than 3 cm ( P = 0.011, hazard ratio: 2.112, 95% confidence interval: 1.188, 3.754) and the presence of early local tumor progression ( P = 0.011, hazard ratio: 2.352, 95% confidence interval: 1.217, 4.545) were related to a shorter survival time.Conclusions:Percutaneous radiofrequency ablation is safe in patients with colorectal cancer liver metastases refractory from chemotherapy. Subsequent chemotherapy is important to enhance local control. Small lesions and favorable early responses are related to prolonged overall survival.

Cancer is one of the most important health problems today; therefore, many researchers are focusing on exploring the mechanisms underlying its development and treatment. The field of cancer epigenetics has flourished in recent decades, and studies have shown that different epigenetic events, such as DNA methylation, histone modification, and noncoding RNA regulation, work together to influence cancer development and progression. In this short review, we summarize the interactions between methylation and noncoding RNAs that affect cancer development.

The expression of estrogen receptor α (ER) in breast cancers may be indicative of a favorable prognosis and most of these cancers respond to anti-estrogens or aromatase inhibitors. However, ER-positive (ER+) breast cancers receiving anti-hormone and/or chemotherapy sometimes lose their ER expression, which leads to the evolution of the disease to higher aggressiveness and drug resistance. In the present study, an ER-modified signature (EMS) was developed from the expression profile of a chemoresistant MCF-7 breast cancer cell line that lost ER expression during long-term treatment with a chemotherapeutic agent. The EMS could discriminate the ER-negative (ER-) breast cancer cells from the ER+ ones, which included seven pathways essential for the ER- cell development. Furthermore, the EMS indicated a more malignant subgroup of the ER- cells by discriminating the chemoresistant ER- cells from the chemosensitive ones. In addition, the classified chemoresistant ER- patients demonstrated worse prognosis. In conclusion, we developed a new method to discriminate subgroups of ER- breast cancer cells.

The present study aimed to investigate the clinical outcomes of percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage in patients with obstructive jaundice and identify potential predictors of patient survival. Clinical data from 102 patients (66 males and 36 females; median age, 63.50 years; range, 29–84 years) with a mean (± standard deviation) pre-drainage serum bilirubin level of 285.4 (±136.7 μmol/l), were retrospectively studied. Technical and clinical success, complications and survival time were recorded and their relationship with clinical factors, including age, obstruction level, liver metastases, serum bilirubin level and subsequent treatments following drainage, were analyzed by Fisher’s exact test. Patient survival rate and other predictors were analyzed by Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox’s proportional hazard model. The technical and clinical success rates were 100 and 76.5%, respectively. The presence of liver metastases was associated with reduced successful drainage. The overall complication rate was 7.8% and the overall median survival time was 185 days [95% confidence interval (CI), 159–211 days]. A log-rank test showed that age (χ2, 4.003; P=0.04), bilirubin levels following procedure (χ2, 5.139; P=0.02) and subsequent therapy (χ2, 15.459; P=0.00) affected survival time. However, Cox’s regression analysis revealed no administration of additional treatments to be a risk factor of survival (odds ratio, 2.323; 95% CI, 1.465–3.685; P=0.000). Percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage for malignant biliary obstruction was found to be a safe and effective method to relieve jaundice caused by progressive neoplasms. Subsequent radical therapy following drainage, including surgery, chemotherapy and other local treatment types, are likely to increase patient survival.

Chemotherapeutic response is critical for the successful treatment and good prognosis in cancer patients. In this study, we analysed the gene expression profiles of preoperative samples from oestrogen receptor (ER)-negative breast cancer patients with different responses to taxane-anthracycline-based (TA-based) chemotherapy, and identified a group of genes that was predictive. Pregnancy specific beta-1-glycoprotein 1 (PSG1) played a central role within signalling pathways of these genes. Inhibiting PSG1 can effectively reduce chemoresistance via a transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β)-related pathway in ER-negative breast cancer cells. Drug screening then identified dicumarol (DCM) to target the PSG1 and inhibit chemoresistance to TA-based chemotherapy in vitro, in vivo, and in clinical samples. Taken together, this study highlights PSG1 as an important mediator of chemoresistance, whose effect could be diminished by DCM.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in cancer progression. In the present study, we analyzed the lncRNA profiles in adriamycin-resistant and -sensitive breast cancer cells and found a group of dysregulated lncRNAs in the adriamycin-resistant cells. Expression of the dysregulated lncRNAs was correlated with dysregulated mRNAs, and these were enriched in GO and KEGG pathways associated with cancer progression and chemoresistance development. Among these lncRNA-mRNA interactions, some lncRNAs may cis‑regulate neighboring protein-coding genes and be involved in chemoresistance. We then validated that the lncRNA NONHSAT028712 regulated nearby CDK2 and interfered with the cell cycle and chemoresistance. Furthermore, we identified another group of lncRNAs that trans-regulated genes by interacting with different transcription factors. For example, NONHSAT057282 and NONHSAG023333 modulated chemoresistance and most likely interacted with the transcription factors ELF1 and E2F1, respectively. In conclusion, in the present study, we report for the first time the lncRNA expression patterns in adriamycin-resistant breast cancer cells, and provide a group of novel lncRNA targets that mediate chemoresistance development in both cis- and trans-action modes.

The aim of our study was to investigate the predictive role of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in evaluating for therapeutic changes from carbon-ion radiotherapy (CIRT) in prostate cancer patients.Thirty-one patients with prostate cancer treated with CIRT were enrolled in this retrospective study. Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) at 3-T was performed before and after CIRT. Before and after treatment, ADC values were measured in the tumors and in the benign tissues of the prostate, and serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels were also assessed. We divided the patients into two groups: PSA response (PSA declines ≥50 %) and non-PSA response group (PSA declines50 %).After CIRT treatment, the mean ADC value of the tumors (1.23 × 10(-3)mm(2)/s) was significantly increased as compared with the pretreatment value (1.07 × 10(-3)mm(2)/s) (p 0.001), whereas the ADC values of the benign tissues after treatment did not significantly increase compared with the pretreatment values (p = 0.235). The mean PSA level was significantly reduced from 2.027 ng/mL before treatment to 0.822 ng/mL, respectively, after treatment (p = 0.0063). The mean of ADC changes in PSA response group before and after CIRT was significantly higher than that in non-PSA response group (∆ADC value: 0.217 vs 0.097 × 10(-3)mm(2)/s, p = 0.0229), and the rate of patients with PSA response was higher in the high ∆ADC group (∆ADC ≥ 0.10) than in the low ∆ADC group (∆ADC 0.10) (72.7 and 33.3 %, respectively), but marginally significant (p = 0.056). Additionally, the baseline tumor ADC values revealed a negative correlation with changes in PSA levels after treatment (correlation coefficient, ρ = -0.524; p = 0.0025).Our preliminary results suggest that ADC vales measurement may be a useful imaging biomarker for prediction and early assessment of therapeutic response of prostate cancer to CIRT.

In this paper, a comprehensive performance analysis of OSSDL and VCN are presented to explore their performances. Also comparisons with classic DV-Hop and Centroid algorithms are made under different simulation environments. Two aspects of the performance comparison are addressed: positioning accuracy and computational time. VCN has better estimation accuracy than OSSDL, which is much better than that of DV-Hop. Also VCN costs the least localization time.

Regional integration will promote the flow of elements in accordance with Regional Economics, to achieve the most optimal configuration. In 2007, the Jilin Provincial Government made a strategic plan about Changchun-Jilin Integration, however, we don’t have much more experiences in China, so that this thesis analyzes the US New York Metropolitan Vicinity and indicates three outstanding features as follows: First, the evolution of planning tend to be people-oriented, focusing on the harmonious development between human and nature; Second, to build multi-level coordination and management mechanism, the semi-official organizations have the largest contribution to the development of metropolitan; Third, the evolution of the industrial structure tend to be third tilt with a larger proportion of modern service industry. Changchun-Jilin Integration should develop appropriation strategies plan based on above findings and domestic background.

Let \(S=\overline{\mathbb{C}}\) be the unit Riemann sphere. A basic consequence of Ahlfors’ theory of covering surfaces is that there exists a positive constant h such that for any simply-connected surface Σ over S∗=S∖{0,1,∞}, $$A(\varSigma)\leq hL(\partial\varSigma).$$ Here A(Σ) is the area of Σ and L(∂Σ) is the length of the boundary of Σ. The goal of this paper is to prove that the least possible value of h is $$h_{0}=\max_{\theta\in\lbrack0,\pi/2]} \biggl[ \frac{ ( \pi+\theta ) \sqrt{1+\sin^{2}\theta}}{\arctan\frac{\sqrt{1+\sin^{2}\theta}}{\cos\theta}}-\sin\theta \biggr] =4.03415979051\ldots $$

Densities and viscosities of binary mixtures of Tris(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate with n -heptane, or n -octane have been determined over the entire range of composition at T = (298.15, 303.15, and 308.15) K and atmospheric pressure. The excess molar volumes are calculated and fitted to a Redlich–Kister type equation. The excess molar volumes are negative over the whole composition range. Several semi-theoretical equations based on Eyring's absolute rate theory and the excess Gibbs free energy function have been applied to correlate the experimental viscosity data and compared. The evaluated models include the Eyring–Van Laar, Eyring–Margules, Eyring–NRTL, Eyring–UNIQUAC and the Grunberg–Nissan equations.

We first generalize a classical iteration formula for one variable holomorphic mappings to a formula for higher dimensional holomorphic mappings. Then, as an application, we give a short and intuitive proof of a classical theorem, due to H. Poincaré, for the condition under which a singularity of a holomorphic vector field is an isochronous center.

Based on computing spherical lengths of polygonal curves and spherical areas of domains bounded by polygonal curves on the complex plane, this paper proves a property of holomorphic functions and, as an application, gives a very brief proof of a famous inequality obtained by L. V. Ahlfors which easily implies Picard’s theorem. Taken together with the arguments given by Alhfors, therefore, this paper in fact gives an elementary, brief and geometrical proof of Picard’s theorem. 1. Lengths and areas on the Riemann sphere In this paper, we denote by C the complex plane, by the disk jzj < 1, by r the disk jzj

Let f be a Cr (r ≥ 0) map from the interval [0, 1] into itself and m be a positive integer. This paper gives a sufficient and necessary condition under which the set of periodic points of period m disappears after a certain small Cr-perturbation.

Let $F: {\Bbb C}^n \to {\Bbb C}^n$ be a holomorphic map, $F^k$ be the $k$th iterate of $F$, and $p \in {\Bbb C}^n$ be a periodic point of $F$ of period $k$. That is, $F^k(p) = p$, but for any positive integer $j$ with $j < k$, $F^j(p) \ne p$. If $p$ is hyperbolic, namely if $DF^k(p)$ has no eigenvalue of modulus $1$, then it is well known that the dynamical behaviour of $F$ is stable near the periodic orbit $\Gamma = \{p, F(p),\ldots, F^{k-1}(p)\}$. But if $\Gamma$ is not hyperbolic, the dynamical behaviour of $F$ near $\Gamma$ may be very complicated and unstable. In this case, a very interesting bifurcational phenomenon may occur even though $\Gamma$ may be the only periodic orbit in some neighbourhood of $\Gamma$: for given $M \in {\Bbb N}\setminus \{1\}$, there may exist a $C^r$-arc $\{F_t: t\in [0,1]\}$ (where $r \in {\Bbb N}$ or $r = \infty$) in the space ${\Bbb H}({\Bbb C}^n)$ of holomorphic maps from ${\Bbb C}^n$ into ${\Bbb C}^n$, such that $F_0 =F$ and, for $t \in (0,1]$, $F_t$ has an $Mk$-periodic orbit $\Gamma_t$ with $d(\Gamma_t, \Gamma) = \sup_{p \in \Gamma_t}\inf_{q \in \Gamma} \|p - q\| \to 0$ as $t \to 0$. The period thus increases by a factor $M$ under a $C^r$-small perturbation! If such an $F_t$ does exist, then $\Gamma$, as well as $p$, is said to be {\em $M$-tupling bifurcational.} This definition is independent of~$r$. For the above $F$, there may exist a $C^r$-arc $F^*_t$ in ${\Bbb H}({\Bbb C}^n)$, with $t \in [0,1]$, such that $F^*_0 = F$ and, for $t \in (0,1]$, $F^*_t$ has two distinct $k$-periodic orbits $\Gamma_{t,1}$ and $\Gamma_{t,2}$ with $d(\Gamma_{t,i}, \Gamma) \to 0$ as $t \to 0$ for $i = 1,2$. If such an $F^*_t$ does exist, then $\Gamma$, as well as $p$, is said to be {\em $1$-tupling bifurcational.} In recent decades, there have been many papers and remarkable results which deal with period doubling bifurcations of periodic orbits of parametrized maps. L. Block and D. Hart pointed out that period $M$-tupling bifurcations cannot occur for $M > 2$ in the 1-dimensional case. There are examples showing that for any $M\in {\Bbb N}$, period $M$-tupling bifurcations can occur in higher-dimensional cases. An $M$-tupling bifurcational periodic orbit as defined here acts as a critical orbit which leads to period $M$-tupling bifurcations in some parametrized maps. The main result of this paper is the following. {\sc Theorem.} {\em Let $k \in {\Bbb N}$ and $M \in {\Bbb N}$, and let $F: {\Bbb C}^2 \to {\Bbb C}^2$ be a holomorphic map with $k$-periodic point $p$. Then $p$ is $M$-tupling bifurcational if and only if $DF^k(p)$ has a non-zero periodic point of period $M$.} 1991 Mathematics Subject Classification: 32H50, 58F14.

Background: Anesthesia, surgery, and other nociceptive stimuli affect stress and hemorheological indices, impact physiological function, decrease immune function, and thereby influence recovery of hip joint function in elderly patients who undergo total hip replacement. Previous anesthesia methods for hip replacement in elderly patients include general, lumbar puncture, or epidural anesthesia alone. A combined nerve block is more suitable for total hip replacement in the elderly because of the safety and reliability of the method. In this study, we hypothesized that a combined nerve block is superior to any previous anesthesia method alone for total hip replacement in the elderly. Specifically, we hypothesized that intraoperative stress, hemorheological indices, postoperative immune function, and incidence of postoperative complications would be more favorable using a combined nerve block compared with previous anesthesia methods. Methods/Design: This is a prospective, single-center, randomized controlled, open-label trial, which will be performed at Qinghai University Affiliated Hospital, China. A total of 120 elderly patients scheduled to undergo total hip replacement will be randomly assigned to undergo a combined nerve block (involving lower lumbar plexus, sciatic nerve, and paraspinal nerve L 1-2 ) (experimental group, n = 60), or general anesthesia (control group, n = 60). All patients will be followed up at 3 months. The primary outcome is serum cortisol concentration during surgery, as a measure of intraoperative stress. Secondary outcomes include serum cortisol concentration prior to anesthesia, and prior to and immediately after surgery; blood glucose level prior to anesthesia, and prior to, during, and after surgery, used to evaluate stress during different times. In addition, immune function-related indices including absolute leukocyte count, absolute neutrophil count, interleukin-1, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, and T-lymphocyte subset levels prior to anesthesia, immediately after surgery, 1, 3, 7 days, and 3 months after surgery, will be used to evaluate patients' immune function after surgery. Hemorheological indices including electrocardiogram, pulse, systolic pressure, diastolic pressure, heart rate, blood gas analysis prior to anesthesia, and during and after surgery will be used to investigate changes in blood-related indices. Lastly, incidence of adverse events 1, 3, 7 days, and 3 months after surgery will be used to evaluate postoperative complications. Discussion: This study will investigate the effects of a combined nerve block versus general anesthesia on intraoperative stress and postoperative immune function in elderly patients who undergo total hip replacement. This study will provide objective evidence for selection of anesthesia method for total hip replacement in the elderly, with the aim of reducing intraoperative risks and postoperative complications. Trial registration: ClinicalTrial.gov identifier: NCT02884388; registered on 19 August 2016. Ethics: This trial has been approved by Ethics Committee, Qinghai University Affiliated Hospital, China (approval number QHY1017D) and will be performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, formulated by the World Medical Association. Informed consent: Signed informed consent will be obtained from the patients or their relatives.

Let $\Delta^{n}$ be the ball $|x|< 1$ in the complex vector space ${\mathbb C}^{n}$, let $f\colon \Delta^{n}\rightarrow {\mathbb C}^{n}$ be a holomorphic mapping and let $M$ be a positive integer. Assume that the origin $0=(0,\ldots ,0)$ is an isolated fixed point of both $f$ and the $M$-th iteration $f^{M}$ of $f$. Then the (local) Dold index $P_{M}(f,0)$ at the origin is well defined, which can be interpreted to be the number of periodic points of period $M$ of $f$ hidden at the origin: any holomorphic mapping $f_{1}\colon \Delta^{n}\rightarrow {\mathbb C}^{n}$ sufficiently close to $f$ has exactly $P_{M}(f,0)$ distinct periodic points of period $M$ near the origin, provided that all the fixed points of $f_{1}^{M}$ near the origin are simple. Therefore, the number ${\mathcal O}_{M}(f,0)=P_{M}(f,0)/M$ can be understood to be the number of periodic orbits of period $M$ hidden at the fixed point. ¶ According to Shub-Sullivan [A remark on the Lefschetz fixed point formula for differentiable maps, Topology 13 (1974), 189–191] and Chow-Mallet-Paret-Yorke [A periodic orbit index which is a bifurcation invariant, Lecture Notes in Math., vol. 1007, Springer, Berlin, 1983, pp. 109–131], a necessary condition so that there exists at least one periodic orbit of period $M$ hidden at the fixed point, say, ${\mathcal O}_{M}(f,0)\geq 1$, is that the linear part of $f$ at the origin has a periodic point of period $M$. It is proved by the author in [Fixed point indices and periodic points of holomorphic mappings, Math. Ann. 337 (2007), 401–433] that the converse holds true. ¶ In this paper, we continue to study the number ${\mathcal O}_{M}(f,0)$. We will give a sufficient condition such that ${\mathcal O}_{M}(f,0)\geq 2$, in the case that all eigenvalues of $Df(0)$ are primitive $m_{1}$-th,$\ldots$, $m_{n}$-th roots of unity, respectively, and $m_{1},\ldots,m_{n}$ are distinct primes with $M=m_{1}\ldots m_{n}$.

This paper presents a combination Manchu language model on post-processing optimization for handwritten Manchu characters recognition. The thinking of this model is take corpus as post-processing core and rule assistant correction. The model is based on a Manchu machine dictionary. The aim of work is to explore the language model in order to optimize the recognition accuracy rate. Present method focuses on the following tasks: a Manchu machine dictionary organization; rule description language; the contents of form grammar rule base; and corpus building. Experimental results are reported using the combination language model is efficient on the Manchu handwritten characters recognition post-processing.

The Manchu character recognition method based on Manchu character unit is an efficient method. In this method, the recognition accuracy rate of Manchu character unit has great influence on the final recognition result. As new approach to solve this problem, a hybrid wavelet neural network scheme has developed as a recognition method replaces the original mini-distance method. Both the learning samples set and testing samples set are used, experimental results demonstrate the method based on the wavelet neural network is more efficient than the original mini-distance method.

This note presents a method to study center families of periodic orbits of complex holomorphic differential equations near singularities, based on some iteration properties of fixed point indices. As an application of this method, we will prove Needham's theorem in a more general version., Comment: 10 pages, To appear in Proc. Amer.Math.Soc

Let $\Delta ^{n}$ be the ball $|x, Comment: 26 pages

Probing into the features of Manchu language especially its characters or letters, the stroke elements of primitive Manchu are defined. Then, a system of offline handwritten primitive Manchu character recognition method based on strokes is built. Briefly, a pre-process for primitive Manchu is operated to get single word with digital image process methods, which then decompounds the word to stroke elements, the stroke elements sequence is obtained by using statistical pattern recognition method and the Manchu-Roman code is obtained by using fuzzy string matching algorithm. Simulation results showed that the result is effective based on the features library and rules library.