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Impulsivity increases the risk for depression and anxiety. However, the granular pathways among them remain unknown. A network approach that moves from disorder-level analysis to symptom-level analysis can provide further understanding of psychopathological mechanisms. In this study, we examined the network structure of impulsivity and separate and comorbid symptoms of depression and anxiety. Regularized partial-correlation networks were estimated using cross-sectional data from 1047 Chinese participants aged 18–26 years (main dataset, mean age = 21.45 ± 2.01 years) and 325 Chinese participants aged 18–36 years (an independent replication dataset, mean age = 21.49 ± 3.73 years), including impulsivity-depression, impulsivity-anxiety, and impulsivity-depression-anxiety networks. The datasets were collected from 1 June 2023 to 4 August 2023 and from 27 April 2022 to 16 May 2022, respectively. Impulsivity, depression, and anxiety were assessed using Barratt Impulsiveness Scale Version 11, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, respectively. Bridge centrality was analyzed, and a network comparison test (NCT) was conducted to investigate the differences between the main dataset and replication dataset. The motor impulsivity dimension was revealed to be closely connected with individual symptoms of depression and anxiety regardless of whether they were in separate disorder forms or comorbid forms. In all the networks, motor impulsivity was the most important bridge node. The NCT showed comparable network connectivity and network structure between the main and replication datasets. The use of cross-sectional data limited the inferences about the direction of causality between variables. These findings elucidate the psychopathological mechanisms underlying how impulsivity functions within depression, anxiety, and comorbidity and support that motor impulsivity is an important risk factor across different mental disorders and is responsible for comorbidity. The implications of these findings are discussed. • The links of impulsivity with depression, anxiety and comorbidities were examined. • Motor impulsivity was strongly associated with depression and anxiety symptoms. • Motor impulsivity was a risk factor across depression, anxiety, and comorbidity. • Disorders and comorbidity were understood from the perspective of impulsivity. • Network connectivity and structure showed no significant difference (p s ≥ 0.10). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial insemination (AI) with liquid-stored semen is the most prevalent and efficient assisted reproduction technique in the modern pork industry. Pyruvate dehydrogenase complex component X (PDHX) was demonstrated to be associated with sperm metabolism and affected the boar sperm viability, motility, and fertility. Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Kinases (PDKs) are the key metabolic enzymes that regulate pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDHC) activity and also the conversion from glycolysis to oxidative phosphorylation. In the present study, two PDK inhibitors, Dichloroacetate (DCA) and Phenylbutyrate (4-PBA), were added to an extender and investigated to determine their regulatory roles in liquid-stored boar sperm at 17 °C. The results indicated that PDK1 and PDK3 were predominantly located at the head and flagella of the boar sperm. The addition of 2 mM DCA and 0.5 mM 4-PBA significantly enhanced the sperm motility, plasma membrane integrity (PMI), mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and ATP content. In addition, DCA and 4-PBA exerted their effects by inhibiting PDK1 and PDK3, respectively. In conclusion, DCA and 4-PBA were found to regulate the boar sperm metabolic activities via PDK1 and PDK3. These both can improve the quality parameters of liquid-stored boar sperm, which will help to improve and optimize liquid-stored boar semen after their addition in the extender. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polyaniline is the most famous conducting polymer and also a promising organic cathode material for rechargeable batteries, however, it has demonstrated poor utilization of its theoretical capacity (294 mAh g−1) and inferior cycling stability in previous studies. Herein, for the first time, its fully reduced form, i.e., leucoemeraldine base (LB), is studied as an alternative to the commonly used emeraldine salt and base (ES and EB). For the three different forms, the precise structures are carefully determined, and the electrochemical performance are systematically investigated. Within 2.0−4.3 V, LB realizes almost full capacity utilization (92%) that is much superior to those of ES and EB. Within 2.0−4.2 V, it shows both high reversible capacity (277 mAh g−1) and cycling stability (84% capacity retention after 1000 cycles). The combination of electrochemical analysis, density functional theory calculation, and ex situ characterization reveals that the capacity utilization is positively associated with the pristine proportion of ─NH─ groups, and the capacity fading is caused by the irreversible electrochemical deprotonation at high charge potential. This work promotes both the electrochemical performance and mechanistic understanding of polyaniline to a new stage, towards practical application in energy storage devices as a low‐cost, high‐performance, sustainable, and green cathode material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Preemptive intercostal nerve block (pre-ICNB) achieves the same analgesic effects as postoperative ICNB (post-ICNB) remains unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of preemptive ICNB on perioperative outcomes for patients undergoing video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS). Methods: This was a randomized, open-label study (ChiCTR2200055667) from August 1, 2021, to December 30, 2021. Eligible patients scheduled for lobectomy for lung cancer were allocated into the pre-ICNB group and the post-ICNB group. The postoperative pain evaluation, patient rehabilitation, and opioid consumption were observed. Results: A total of 81 patients were included. When compared with the post-ICNB group, the pre-ICNB group had a lower proportion of hypertension comorbidity (P = 0.023), significantly lower total consumption of morphine milligram equivalents (MMEs) (P = 0.016), shorter extubation time (P = 0.019). The pre-ICNB group has similar Numeric Rating Scales (NRS) scores of dynamic pain in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU), postoperative 6 h, 12 h, 24 h, and 48 h (P > 0.05), and had simialr scores of Bruggrmann Comfort Scale (BCS) in postoperative 6 h, 12 h, 24 and 48 h (P > 0.05). The scores of the Mini-mental state examination (MMSE) and Ramsay in the pre-ICNB group were comparable to those in the post-ICNB group, except the scores of MMSE and Ramsay in postoperative 6 h were lower (P = 0.048 and P = 0.019). The pain evaluation in the 1-month follow-up was comparable with that in the post-ICBN group (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Pre- ICNB is equally efficacious in perioperative pain management as post-ICNB, and pre-ICNB significantly reduces intra-operative opioid consumption, providing faster recovery in PACU. Trial registration: Registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Register (ChiCTR2200055667). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous studies have investigated the relationships between psychache or meaning in life and suicidal ideation based on sum score of corresponding scale. However, this practice has hampered the fine-grained understanding of their relationships. This network analysis study aimed to conduct a dimension-level analysis of these constructs and the relationships among them in a joint framework, and identify potential intervention targets to address suicidal ideation. Methods: Suicidal ideation, psychache, and meaning in life were measured using self-rating scales among 738 adults. A network of suicidal ideation, psychache, and meaning in life was constructed to investigate the connections between dimensions and calculate the expected influence and bridge expected influence of each node. Results: "Psychache" was positively linked to "sleep" and "despair", while "presence of meaning in life" had negative associations with "psychache", "despair", and "pessimism". The most important central nodes were "sleep" and "despair", and the critical bridge nodes were "presence of meaning in life" and "psychache". Conclusion: These preliminary findings uncover the pathological pathways underlying the relationships between psychache, meaning in life, and suicidal ideation. The central nodes and bridge nodes identified may be potential targets for effectively preventing and intervening against the development and maintenance of suicidal ideation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we study the nonlocality of star-shaped correlation tensors (SSCTs) based on a general multi-star-network M S N (m , n 1 , ... , n m) . Such a network consists of 1 + m + n 1 + ⋯ + n m nodes and one center-node A that connects to m star-nodes B 1 , B 2 , ... , B m while each star-node B j has n j + 1 star-nodes A , C 1 j , C 2 j , ... , C n j j . By introducing star-locality and star-nonlocality into the network, some related properties are obtained. Based on the architecture of such a network, SSCTs including star-shaped probability tensors (SSPTs) are proposed and two types of localities in SSCTs and SSPTs are mathematically formulated, called D-star-locality and C-star-locality. By establishing a series of characterizations, the equivalence of these two localities is verified. Some necessary conditions for a star-shaped CT to be D-star-local are also obtained. It is proven that the set of all star-local SSCTs is a compact and path-connected subset in the Hilbert space of tensors over the index set Δ S and has least two types of star-convex subsets. Lastly, a star-Bell inequality is proved to be valid for all star-local SSCTs. Based on our inequality, two examples of star-nonlocal M S N (m , n 1 , ... , n m) are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum coherence has recently emerged as a key candidate for use as a resource in various quantum information processing tasks. One of the main problems in any quantum resource theory is the characterization of the conversions between resources by means of the free operations of the theory. In this work, we ask if coherence, already present in a reference system, can be broadcast to the auxiliary system via incoherent operations. We prove that it is impossible for a weaker form of broadcasting via incoherent operations. This shows that broadcasting of coherence is forbidden via incoherent operations in every finite-dimensional system. We also prove that a generalized form of broadcasting via incoherent quantum operations can occur if and only if the state of system is coherent. In this case, we are able to give a method for constructing an incoherent quantum operation to broadcast coherence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a novel ratiometric electrochemical readout platform was proposed and developed for the fast and flexible analysis of M.SssI methyltransferase (MTase) activity. In this platform, two hairpin DNAs (H1 and H2) were designed. H1 contains the palindromic sequence of 5′-CCGG-3′ in its stem which could be methylated and hybridize with H2 labeled by methylene blue (MB) as one of the signal reporters on a gold electrode (GE) in the presence of M.SssI MTase. Additionally, a specific immunoreaction was introduced by conjugating an anti-5-methylcytosine antibody, a DNA CpG methylation recognition unit, with 1,3-ferrocenedicarboxylic acid (Fc) as the second signal reporter. The results showed that when the Fc tag approaches, the MB tag was far from the gold electrode surface, resulting in a decrease in the oxidation peak current of MB (IMB) and an increase in the oxidation peak current of Fc (IFc). The ratiometric electrochemical method above shows the linear range of detection was 0 U/mL 40 U/mL with a detection limit of 0.083 U/mL (the mean signal of blank measures þ3s). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) is currently one of the most reliable and improved tools for analyzing gene expression. Various studies have shown that housekeeping genes vary with cultivars, tissues and treatment. Reliable and stable reference genes were necessarily identified and evaluated according to different experimental requirements. In this study, 10 candidate reference genes were initially screened based on transcriptome sequencing data of four pear fruit development stages for three pear cultivars, including a candidate housekeeping gene PbrTUB. Furthermore, we ranked the expression stability of 10 candidate reference genes using GeNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper and ReFinder algorithms. The results showed that Pbr028511, Pbr038418 and Pbr041114 were the most stable reference genes in Cuiguan, Housui and Xueqing fruit, respectively. Taken together, these results serve as a useful reference for gene function investigations and molecular mechanism studies in fruit development and ripening for various pear cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(1) Background: The combined n-back + Go/NoGo paradigm was used to investigate whether audiovisual interactions interfere with or facilitate WM. (2) Methods: College students were randomly assigned to perform the working memory task based on either a single (visual or auditory) or dual (audiovisual) stimulus. Reaction times, accuracy, and WM performance were compared across the two groups to investigate effects of audiovisual interactions. (3) Results: With low cognitive load (2-back), auditory stimuli had no effect on visual working memory, whereas visual stimuli had a small effect on auditory working memory. With high cognitive load (3-back), auditory stimuli interfered (large effect size) with visual WM, and visual stimuli interfered (medium effect size) with auditory WM. (4) Conclusions: Audiovisual effects on WM follow the resource competition theory, and the cognitive load of a visual stimulus is dominated by competition; vision always interferes with audition, and audition conditionally interferes with vision. With increased visual cognitive load, competitive effects of audiovisual interactions were more obvious than those with auditory stimuli. Compared with visual stimuli, audiovisual stimuli showed significant interference only when visual cognitive load was high. With low visual cognitive load, the two stimulus components neither facilitated nor interfered with the other in accordance with a speed–accuracy trade-off. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum coherence is known as an important resource in many quantum information tasks, which is a basis-dependent property of quantum states. In this paper, we discuss quantum incoherence based simultaneously on k bases using Matrix Theory Method. First, by defining a correlation function m (e , f) of two orthonormal bases e and f, we investigate the relationships between sets I (e) and I (f) of incoherent states with respect to e and f. We prove that I (e) = I (f) if and only if the rank-one projective measurements generated by e and f are identical. We give a necessary and sufficient condition for the intersection I (e) ⋂ I (f) to include a state except the maximally mixed state. Especially, if two bases e and f are mutually unbiased, then the intersection has only the maximally mixed state. Secondly, we introduce the concepts of strong incoherence and weak coherence of a quantum state with respect to a set B of k bases and propose a measure for the weak coherence. In the two-qubit system, we prove that there exists a maximally coherent state with respect to B when k = 2 and it is not the case for k = 3 . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the problem of adaptive tracking control for multi-agent systems subject to output constraint and unknown hysteresis. Different from most existing results that use the barrier Lyapunov function and integral barrier Lyapunov function to solve the output constraint problem, the transformation technique is introduced in this paper, which can convert the original system to a constrained or completely unconstrained system. The difficulty caused by unknown Bouc-Wen hysteresis is solved via the Nussbaum gain technique. The continuous unknown function is estimated by using the radial basis function neural networks. The tracking differentiator is utilized to overcome the difficulty of "explosion of complexity". By using the Lyapunov stability theory, it is indicated that all signals of the closed-loop system are semi-globally uniformly ultimately bounded, and the tracking error converges to a small neighborhood of the origin. Eventually, the feasibility of the designed approach is demonstrated by some simulation results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Filtration temperature-sensitive H (FtsH) is an ATP-dependent protease family that plays important roles in many aspects of cellular processes and environmental adaption. However, little information is available about the FtsH genes in pear (Pyrus bretschneideri). In this study, 19 PbrFtsH genes were identified and classified into eight groups with several subgroups. The FtsH genes in pear show high sequence and structural conservation in the coding regions, and the majority of the FtsH members were located on the chromosome 3 (three members), chromosome 9 (four members), and chromosome 15 (three members). The WGD/segmenta, dispersed duplication played a major driving force in pear FtsH evolution. A Synteny analysis provided deep insight into the evolutionary relationships of PbrFtsH genes. The subcellular localization of the PbrFtsH genes showed them in the mitochondrion or chloroplast. Expression profiles derived from transcriptome data and RT-qPCR analysis revealed distinct expression patterns of PbrFtsH genes in different fruit developmental stages. These results provided valuable information that extends our understanding of the function, evolution and expression profile of the FtsH family during fruit development in pear, and a foundation for the further functional characterization of PbrFtsH genes, which can be applied to pear crop improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Masking of quantum information means that information is hidden from a subsystem and spread over a composite system. Modi et al. proved in [Phys. Rev. Lett. 120, 230501 (2018)] that this is true for some restricted sets of nonorthogonal quantum states and it is not possible for arbitrary quantum states. In this paper, we discuss the problem of masking quantum information encoded in pure and mixed states, respectively. Based on an established necessary and sufficient condition for a set of pure states to be masked by an operator, we find that there exists a set of four states that can not be masked, which implies that to mask unknown pure states is impossible. We construct a masker S♯ and obtain its maximal maskable set, leading to an affirmative answer to a conjecture proposed in Modi's paper mentioned above. We also prove that an orthogonal (resp. linearly independent) subset of pure states can be masked by an isometry (resp. injection). Generalizing the case of pure states, we introduce the maskability of a set of mixed states and prove that a commuting subset of mixed states can be masked by an isometry S◇ while it is impossible to mask all of mixed states by any operator. We also find the maximal maskable sets of mixed states of the isometries S♯ and S◇, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigations in the area of tumor‐derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) open a new horizon in developing cancer biology and its potential as cancer biomarkers. Following this prospect, we aimed to identify that the role of successfully isolated EVs from drug‐resistance cells in the progression of non‐small–cell lung cancer (NSCLC). P‐EVs and R‐EVs secreted by A549 cells and drug‐resistant A549‐R cells respectively were extracted and characterized. The targeting relationship between miR‐425 and MED1 was verified. Cell proliferation, invasion, migration and apoptosis after treatment of P‐EVs, R‐EVs, miR‐425 inhibitor, miR‐425 mimic, pcDNA‐MED1, or phosphatidylinositol‐3‐kinase (PI3K)/AKT inhibitor LY294002 were detected. Furthermore, xenograft tumor in nude mice was established for further confirming our in vitro findings. P‐EVs and R‐EVs were successfully extracted and could be internalized by A549 cells. A549‐R cells and R‐EVs showed higher miR‐425 expression compared with A549 cells and P‐EVs, respectively. miR‐425 delivered by R‐EVs could promote the proliferation, migration, and invasion, while inhibit apoptosis of NSCLC cells. MED1 was the target gene of miR‐425. EVs‐encapsulated miR‐425‐derived from A549‐R cells could promote the progression of NSCLC in vivo through regulating DAPK1‐medicated PI3K/AKT pathway. Moreover, miR‐425 delivered by R‐EVs promoted tumorigenesis in vivo. Taken together, the result suggested that EVs‐delivered miR‐425‐derived from A549‐R cells promoted the progression of NSCLC through regulating DAPK1‐medicated PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overlap between quantum states or observables is a fundamental quantity in quantum theory. Equioverlapping measurements arise naturally when considering quantum measurements with equal overlap between measurement operators. This is essentially a kind of symmetric configuration for quantum measurements. The conventional von Neumann measurements and symmetric informationally complete positive operator valued measures (SIC-POVMs) are two extreme cases of equioverlapping measurements. These measurements not only have intuitive physical significance, but also have rich and subtle mathematical structures. However, they remain largely unexplored. In this work, we investigate some general features of equioverlapping measurements with focus on qutrit systems (i.e., three dimensional systems), and partially classify equioverlapping measurements in this case. We further pose the challenge of complete classification and construction of equioverlapping measurements. • Some general features of equioverlapping measurements are revealed. • Equioverlapping measurements in qutrit systems are partially classified and explicitly constructed. • The challenge of complete classification and construction of equioverlapping measurements is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Celastrol, a Chinese herbal medicine, has already shown an inhibition effect on retinoblastoma growth activity in our previous research, but its mechanism is not well understood. Angiogenesis is a main driving force in many tumors. Here, we studied whether celastrol could inhibit angiogenesis-mediated retinoblastoma growth, if so, through what mechanism. In this work, we developed celastrol-loaded polymeric nanomicelles to improve the poor water solubility of celastrol. When given an intraperitoneal injection to mice bearing human retinoblastoma xenografts, celastrol nanomicelles (CNMs, 27.2 mg/kg/2 days) significantly reduced the weight and the volume of tumors and decreased tumor angiogenesis. We found that CNMs suppressed hypoxia-induced proliferation, migration, and invasion by human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (EA.hy 926) in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, CNMs inhibited SO-Rb 50 cells-induced sprouting of the vessels and vascular formation in chick embryo chorioallantoic membrane assay in vitro. To understand the molecular mechanism of these activities, we assessed the signaling pathways in CoCl2 treated EA.hy 926. CNMs inhibited the hypoxia-induced HIF-1α and VEGF. In conclusion, our results reveal that CNMs target the HIF-1α/VEGF pathway, which may be an important reason for the suppression of retinoblastoma growth and angiogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the feasibility and efficacy of nurse-led team management (NLTM) intervention at improving the self-management of patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) at community settings in Changsha, Hunan, China. Background: China has become the country with the largest number of patients with diabetes, and that number is growing, causing increasing pressure on the health care system. At present, the main diabetes management model in China is teamwork guided by general practitioners. However, the number of general practitioners is insufficient, and their work is overloaded, which leads to poor outcomes of diabetes management. Therefore, it is important to explore alternative methods of diabetes management, such as NLTM. Patients and methods: In a randomized controlled trial, 171 T2D patients were randomized into the control or intervention arm. Participants in the control group received routine management from the community health service center, whereas the intervention group received 12 months NLTM intervention in addition to the standard care. The diabetes self-management scale, fasting blood sugar, and glycosylated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) were assessed at baseline and at 6 and 12 months after the start of the intervention. Results: Baseline data were comparable between arms. Repeated-measurement analysis showed that self-management of the intervention group improved compared with the control group after the intervention (P<0.05). There were no significant differences in HbA1c at 6 months, whereas after 12 months of intervention, there was a significant difference in HbA1c between the two groups (F=10.114, P<0.05). The intervention had no significant effect on fasting blood sugar. Conclusion: The NLTM intervention has resulted in an impact of practical significance on T2D self-management, and was beneficial for controlling the level of HbA1c. The study has demonstrated the feasibility and efficacy of using NLTM in the management of T2D in a Chinese community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with a nonlocal epidemic model arising from the spread of an epidemic by oral-fecal transmission. Comparing with the previous works, here we extend the model in Capasso and Maddalena, Nonlinear Phenom Math Sci. 41:207–217 (1982) by including a spatial convolution term and a discrete delay term corresponding to the dispersal of bacteria in the environment and the latent period of the virus, respectively. Besides existence and asymptotic behavior, the main part of the paper is devoted to the stability of the traveling wavefronts under some monostable assumptions. By using a comparison theorem and the weighted energy method with a suitably selected weight function, we show that all the non-critical traveling waves are exponentially stable. Finally, we apply our results to a specific epidemic model and discuss the effect of time delay on the stability of wavefront. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The clinical utility of malignant pleural effusion (MPE) to detect mutation has been well documented; however, routine practice of the use of MPE involves collection of the cell pellet to detect mutation, and limited studies have interrogated the MPE supernatant as an alternative source of tumor‐derived DNA for mutation profiling. In this study, we investigated the potential of MPE supernatant as a liquid biopsy specimen by comparing its mutation profile with that of matched MPE cell pellets, tissue, and plasma samples. Methods: Sequencing data from 17 patients with matched lung tissue, plasma, and MPE samples were retrospectively analyzed. Capture‐based targeted sequencing was performed on matched plasma and MPE supernatant samples obtained from 154 patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma. Results: MPE supernatants had significantly higher median maximum allelic fractions (maxAFs) than their corresponding cell pellets (P = 0.008) and plasma samples (P = 0.036), and a comparable maxAF value to that of tissue samples (P = 0.675). Comparison of MPE supernatant and matched plasma samples from the larger cohort (n = 154) revealed a comparable mutation detection rate; however, MPE supernatant had a significantly higher median maxAF than plasma (20.3% vs. 1.13%; P < 0.001). Furthermore, the concordance rates between MPE supernatant and plasma for single‐nucleotide and copy number variations were 56% and 18%, respectively, suggesting that MPE supernatant reveals a more comprehensive mutation spectrum, particularly for copy number variations. Conclusion: Overall, our study shows that MPE supernatant is an optimal alternative source of tumor‐derived DNA for comprehensive mutation profiling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bayinsukhtu tungsten deposit is a newly discovered quartz‐vein tungsten deposit in the Xing'an–Mongolia Orogenic Belt (XMOB) in southern Mongolia, hosted by the Bayinsukhtu granite porphyry. The granite porphyry is located mainly south of the study area, over 3 km2. The rock consists of quartz and feldspar phenocrysts in a fine‐grained matrix, also mainly composed of feldspar and quartz. The granite porphyry samples demonstrate high SiO2 and high alkalinity. All samples also straddle the high‐potassium calc‐alkaline series. In a plot of the molar ratios of A/NK versus A/CNK, the granites are metaluminous. The chondrite‐normalized REE patterns are characterized by large negative Eu anomalies and fractionated LREEs. The U–Pb age of zircons from the granite porphyry is 298.8 ± 1.8 Ma, and the Sm–Nd age of the five wolframite samples from the tungsten deposit is 303 ± 19 Ma. The cooling age of the granite porphyry and tungsten mineralization is within the error of measurement and is of the Late Carboniferous age. Geological and geochronological evidence shows that the tungsten mineralization and the granite porphyry at Bayinsukhtu are genetically closely related and that they are results of Carboniferous magmatism. Their tectonic setting is related to the accretion of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt during the late Paleozoic era. The results show that the ages of the quartz porphyry and tungsten mineralization are the same within the margin of error. Furthermore, the geological and geochronological evidence indicates that the quartz porphyry and tungsten mineralization are products of Carboniferous magmatism. Their tectonic settings are related to the accretion of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) during the late Paleozoic era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Qili Qiangxin Capsule (QLQXC) combined with western medicine in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM) comorbid with heart failure (HF) for clinical application. Methods We searched relevant references in Chinese databases including China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), China Scientific Journal Database (VIP), Wanfang Database, and China Biology Medicine (CBM), as well as English databases including PubMed and Embase, from the foundation of the database to January 8, 2023, without language restrictions. All statistical analyses, including subgroup and sensitivity analyses, were performed using the Review Manager (version 5.4) and Stata (version 15.0). Results QLQXC combined with western medicine significantly increased the endpoints of overall response rate (ORR) (P < 0.000 01), left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (P < 0.000 01), the score of Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLHFQ) (P = 0.000 2), and 6-minute walking distance (6MWD) (P < 0.000 01), decreased left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD) (P < 0.000 01), left ventricular end-systolic diameter (LVESD) (P = 0.03), and pro-brain natriuretic peptide (pro-BNP) (P < 0.000 01), and reduced the incidence of rehospitalization (P = 0.000 3) and adverse events (AEs) (P = 0.000 6) compared with those under the conventional western therapy alone. Nonetheless, no significant difference was observed in reducing the mortality between the QLQXC combined with western medicine group and the western medicine group (P = 0.30). Conclusion The combination therapy of QLQXC with western medicine can potentiate cardiac function and raise the quality of life in patients with ICM comorbid with HF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

EPR steering is a kind of quantum correlation that is intermediate between entanglement and Bell nonlocality. In this paper, by recalling the definitions of unsteerability and steerability, some properties of them are given, e.g, it is proved that a local quantum channel transforms every unsteerable state into an unsteerable state. Second, a way of quantifying quantum steering, which we called the generalized steering robustness (GSR), is introduced and some interesting properties are established, including: (1) GSR of a state vanishes if and only if the state is unsteerable; (2) a local quantum channel does not increase GSR of any state; (3) GSR is invariant under each local unitary operation; (4) as a function on the state space, GSR is convex and lower-semi continuous. Lastly, by using the majorization between the reduced states of two pure states, GSR of the two pure states are compared, and it is proved that every maximally entangled state has the maximal GSR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transitioning fromholistic analysis to a fine-grained level analysis may provide further understanding of psychopathology. This study aimed to explore dimension-level relationships between suicidal ideation, meaning in life, and affect in a joint framework using network analysis and to identify potential prevention and intervention targets to address suicidal ideation. A total of 852 healthy adults aged 18–35 years completed self-report scales to assess suicidal ideation, meaning in life, and affect. A regularized partial correlation network was then built to examine the links between these dimensions. Expected influence and bridge expected influence values were calculated for each node. The prevalence of suicidal ideation was 4.2%. The search for and presence of meaning in life and positive and negative affect exhibited distinct and complex links to the three dimensions of suicidal ideation (pessimism, sleep, and despair). The important central nodes were search for meaning in life, sleep, despair, and positive affect, while the critical bridge nodes were positive affect, negative affect, and presence of meaning in life. These findings provide further understanding of the specific roles of meaning in life and affect in suicidal ideation. The identified nodes may be promising targets for prevention and intervention for suicidal ideation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maximally entangled states, defined as those states that have the maximal entanglement of formation under some entanglement measure, are the ideal resource for many quantum missions. In this paper, we call a convex roof of maximally entangled pure states a quasi maximally entangled state. First, we present the concept of a witness for non-quasi maximally entangled states, which is an observable that can distinguish some non-quasi maximally entangled states from quasi maximally entangled ones. Then we prove that every non-quasi maximally entangled state can be witnessed by a witness and obtain some necessary and sufficient conditions for an observable to be a witness for non-quasi maximally entangled states. Lastly, we give some classes of Hermitian operators, which can become witnesses. Especially, we compute non-quasi maximally entangled states that can be detected by a specific product operator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultralow Pt-loading Au nanoparticles have been fabricated on the surface of reduced graphene oxide (RGO) by using underpotential deposition (UPD) monolayer redox replacement process. The Pt/Au/RGO modified electrode exhibits an excellent electrocatalytic activity toward catechol and hydroquinone. Under the optimized condition, the separation of peak-to-peak between hydroquinone and catechol is 197 mV, which is wide enough to distinguish the isomers of benzenediol. Catechol is detected by the Pt/Au/RGO/GCE with a low detection limit in the presence of hydroquinone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a bipartite quantum system, quantum states are classified as classically correlated (CC) and quantum correlated (QC) states, the later are important resources of quantum information and computation protocols. Since correlations of quantum states may vary under a quantum channel, it is necessary to explore the influence of quantum channels on correlations of quantum states. In this paper, we discuss CC-preserving, QC-breaking and strongly CC-preserving local quantum channels of the form $$\Phi _1\otimes \Phi _2$$ and obtain the structures of these three types of local quantum channels. Moreover, we obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for a quantum state to be transformed into a CC state by a specific local channel $$\Phi _1\otimes \Phi _2$$ in terms of the structure of the input quantum state. Lastly, as applications of the obtained results, we present a classification of local quantum channels $$\Phi _1\otimes \Phi _2$$ and describe the quantum states which are transformed as CC ones by the corresponding local quantum channel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Doxorubicin (DOX) is a highly effective anti-cancer drug with limited clinical use due to its serious cardiotoxicity. Recent studies reported that erythropoietin (EPO) could exert a cardioprotective effect by non-erythropoietic effects. This study was to investigate fibrosis of DOX-induced cardiotoxicity and determine mechanisms of EPO against extracellular matrix (ECM) remodelling. Methods Rats were grouped as the control group, the DOX group and the DOX+EPO group. DOX (2.5mg/kg/dose, six doses for two weeks) was administered to induce cardiotoxicity by intraperitoneal injections in the DOX group and the DOX+EPO group, and EPO (2500U/kg/dose, six doses for two weeks) was administered simultaneously in the DOX+EPO group. Two weeks after the last administration, rats were killed with cardiac tissues used for histological analyses and immunological detections for matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-2 (TIMP-2). Results Rats treated with DOX showed degenerative changes with cardiac fibrosis. Compared to the control group, the expression of MMP-2 was up-regulated whereas that of TIMP-2 was down-regulated in the DOX group. EPO administration improved cardiac fibrosis, decreased MMP-2 expression, increased TIMP-2 expression and ameliorated imbalance of MMP-2/TIMP-2 ratio. Conclusions The present study suggests that EPO can exert a cardioprotective effect on DOX-induced cardiotoxicity which may be associated with improving MMP-2/TIMP-2 imbalance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we discuss two types of trilocality of probability tensors (PTs) P = 〚 P (a 1 a 2 a 3) 〛 over an outcome set Ω 3 and correlation tensors (CTs) P = 〚 P (a 1 a 2 a 3 | x 1 x 2 x 3) 〛 over an outcome-input set Δ 3 based on a triangle network and described by continuous (integral) and discrete (sum) trilocal hidden variable models (C-triLHVMs and D-triLHVMs). We say that a PT (or CT) P is C-trilocal (resp. D-trilocal) if it can be described by a C-triLHVM (resp. D-triLHVM). It is proved that a PT (resp. CT) is D-trilocal if and only if it can be realized in a triangle network by three shared separable states and a local POVM (resp. a set of local POVMs) performed at each node; a CT is C-trilocal (resp. D-trilocal) if and only if it can be written as a convex combination of the product deterministic CTs with a C-trilocal (resp. D-trilocal) PT as a coefficient tensor. Some properties of the sets consisting of C-trilocal and D-trilocal PTs (resp. C-trilocal and D-trilocal CTs) are proved, including their path-connectedness and partial star-convexity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To obtain a classification of correlations of tripartite mixed states, various correlated states are introduced by using measurement-induced disturbance, including CCC, QC, GQC, CCX, CXC, XCC, CXX, XCX and XXC-states. Standard forms of them are established and equivalent characterizations of them are obtained in terms of normality and commutativity of the associated component operators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We derive that sufficient and necessary conditions for existence of a quantum channel ϕ and a generalized unitary operation ɛ sending A to B (1 ⩾ i ⩾ k) for two given families { A}, { B} of matrices, respectively. As an application, a sufficient and necessary condition for existence of a unitary duality quantum computer with given input-output states is obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Denoted by M( A), QM( A) and SQM( A) the sets of all measures, quantum measures and subadditive quantum measures on a σ-algebra A, respectively. We observe that these sets are all positive cones in the real vector space F( A) of all real-valued functions on A and prove that M( A) is a face of SQM( A). It is proved that the product of m grade-1 measures is a grade- m measure. By combining a matrix M to a quantum measure µ on the power set A of an n-element set X, it is proved that µ ≪ ν (resp. µ ⊥ ν) if and only if M ≪ M (resp. M M =0). Also, it is shown that two nontrivial measures µ and ν are mutually absolutely continuous if and only if µ· ν∈ QM( A ). Moreover, the matrices corresponding to quantum measures are characterized. Finally, convergence of a sequence of quantum measures on A is introduced and discussed; especially, the Vitali-Hahn-Saks theorem for quantum measures is proved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Viruses are very widespread in nature, and they cause severe diseases and yield losses in potato production. The transfer of the dsRNA-producing gene could confer a high level virus resistance by specific targeting of cognate viral RNA. In this study, we constructed a marker-free expression vector of a chimeric gene derived from the coat protein sequence of Potato virus X (PVX) and the nuclear inclusion protein sequence of Potato virus Y (PVY) in the form of an intramolecular dsRNA. Then this chimeric gene was introduced into potato cv. Zihuabai, a popular variety in China, via Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. Marker gene-free transgenic plants resistant to both PVX and PVY were obtained and confirmed by RT-PCR and DAS-ELISA detection. Northern blot analysis showed that transgene-derived mRNA was cleaved into short interfering RNAs (siRNAs), and that the virus resistance was mediated by RNA silencing. One important aspect of the study is that the transgenic viral sequence is not translated and the actual RNA transcript is cleaved, which possibly limit the environmental risks, such as transcapsidation and recombination of the transgene with an incoming virus. In addition, the biosafety risk resulting from marker genes can be avoided because of the absence of marker genes in transgenic plants. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

AIM: To investigate the effects and mechanism of Xin-Tong-Tai granule on oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) in mice with atherosclerosis (AS). METHODS: A total of 72 SPF-grade healthy male ApoEmice aged 6-8 weeks were fed with high-fat diet for 12 weeks to replicate AS models, and 12 SPF-grade healthy male C57BL/6J wild mice were fed with ordinary diet as the control group. After the corresponding drugs were administered for 8 weeks, the body weight and general condition of mice in each group were observed. The serum levels of total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) were detected by biochemical kits. The pathological structures of aorta were observed by HE and oil red O staining. The levels of serum ox-LDL and aortic ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 were detected by ELISA. The protein levels of NADPH oxidase 4 (NOX4), NOX subunit p22phox, inhibitor of kB kinase-a (IKK-a), IKK-p and nuclear factor-KB (NF-kB) in aorta were detected by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with control group, the mice in model group showed increased body weight (P<0. 05), dull and local shedding hair, slow grasping response, increased serum TC, TG and LDL-C levels, decreased serum HDL-C level (P< 0.05), increased the levels of serum ox-LDL and aortic ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 (P<0. 05), and increased protein expressions of NOX4, p22phox, IKK-a, IKK-p and NF-kB in aorta (P<0. 05). Compared with model group, the body weight of mice in each treatment group decreased (P<0. 05), the hair loss and the response flexibility were also improved. The serum levels of TC, TG and LDL-C decreased and HDL-C increased (P<0. 05). The levels of serum ox-LDL and aortic ICAM-1 (except the low-dose Xin-Tong-Tai granule group) and VCAM-1 decreased (P<0. 05). The protein levels of NOX4, p22phox, IKK-a, IKK-p and NF-kB in aorta decreased (P<0. 05). HE and oil red O staining showed that typical AS plaques could be seen in blood vessels of the model group, and the red-stained areas were widely distributed. The above lesions were alleviated to different degrees in each treatment group compared with model group. CONCLUSION: Xin-Tong-Tai granule reduces the atherosclerotic plaque area of Apoh mice induced by high-fat diet, decreased serum TC, TG and LDL-C levels, increased HDL-C level, decreased the levels of serum ox-LDL and aorta ICAM-1 and VCAM- 1,and inhibited protein expression of NOX4, p22phox, IKK-a and IKK-p in the aorta, thereby attenuating AS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corneal stromal fibrosis is a common cause of visual impairment resulting from corneal injury, inflammation and surgery. Therefore, there is an unmet need for inhibiting corneal stromal fibrosis. However, bioavailability of topical eye drops is very low due to the tear and corneal barriers. In situ delivery offers a unique alternative to improve efficacy and minimize systemic toxicity. Herein, a drug delivery platform based on thermoresponsive injectable hydrogel/nano-micelles composite with in situ drug-controlled release and long-acting features is developed to prevent corneal scarring and reduce corneal stromal fibrosis in lamellar keratoplasty. The in-situ gelation hydrogels enabled direct delivery of celastrol to the corneal stroma. In vivo evaluation with a rabbit anterior lamellar keratoplasty model showed that hydrogel/micelles platform could effectively inhibit corneal stromal fibrosis. This strategy achieves controlled and prolonged release of celastrol in the corneal stroma of rabbit. Following a single corneal interlamellar injection, celastrol effectively alleviated fibrosis via mTORC1 signal promoting autophagy and inhibiting TGF-β1/Smad2/3 signaling pathway. Overall, this strategy demonstrates promise for the clinical application of celastrol in preventing corneal scarring and reducing corneal stromal fibrosis post-lamellar keratoplasty, highlighting the potential benefits of targeted drug delivery systems in ocular therapeutics. Thermoresponsive injectable and transparent hydrogel deliver drug locally to treat corneal scars and various eye diseases. [Display omitted] • An injectable thermoresponsive-hydrogel-based drug delivery platform was fabricated. • The in-situ gelation platform delivered celastrol directly to corneal stroma with controlled and prolonged release. • The platform hampered corneal scars in lamellar keratoplasty. • Celastrol alleviates fibrosis via promoting autophagy and inhibiting TGF-β1 pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To detect serum levels of thyroid hormones in patients with thyroid nodules (TN), and investigate their relationship with the nature of TN. Methods A total of 245 patients with TN were recruited in the study. According to levels of thyroid antibodies and postoperative pathological results, all patients were divided into nodular goiter (NG) group, thyroid adenoma (TA) group and thyroid cancer (TC) group. TC group was further classified as the TC with increased level of thyroid antibodies (TC-AB+ group) and the TC with normal level of thyroid antibodies (TC-AB- group). The serum levels of free T3 (FT3), free T4 (FT4) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) were detected for all patients before operation, and differences of thyroid hormones were analyzed between different groups. Results The serum level of TSH was significantly higher in TC group than that of NG group and TA group (P < 0.05). The serum level of FT3 was significantly lower in TC-AB+ group than that of NG group and TC-AB- group. The serum level of FT4 was significantly lower in TC-AB+ group than that of NG group, and the serum TSH level was significantly higher than that of other groups (P < 0.05). Conclusion The increased serum levels of TSH were found in some patients with TC, which may partly attribute to their coexistence with autoimmune thyroiditis and subsequent hypothyroidism. The increased serum TSH level may not be the inherent characteristics of TC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum coherence is an important physical resource in quantum information science, and also as one of the most fundamental and striking features in quantum physics. To quantify coherence, two proper measures were introduced in the literature, the one is the relative entropy of coherence C r (ρ) = S (ρ diag) − S (ρ) and the other is the ℓ 1 -norm of coherence C ℓ 1 (ρ) = ∑ i ≠ j | ρ i j | . In this paper, we obtain a symmetry-like relation of relative entropy measure C r (ρ A 1 A 2 ⋯ A n ) of coherence for an n-partite quantum states ρ A 1 A 2 ⋯ A n , which gives lower and upper bounds for C r (ρ) . As application of our inequalities, we conclude that when each reduced states ρ A i is pure, ρ A 1 ⋯ A n is incoherent if and only if the reduced states ρ A i and tr A i ρ A 1 ⋯ A n (i = 1 , 2 , ... , n) are all incoherent. Meanwhile, we discuss the conjecture that C r (ρ) ≤ C ℓ 1 (ρ) for any state ρ , which was proved to be valid for any mixed qubit state and any pure state, and open for a general state. We observe that every mixture η of a state ρ satisfying the conjecture with any incoherent state σ also satisfies the conjecture. We also observe that when the von Neumann entropy is defined by the natural logarithm ln instead of log 2 , the reduced relative entropy measure of coherence C ¯ r (ρ) = − ρ diag ln ρ diag + ρ ln ρ satisfies the inequality C ¯ r (ρ) ≤ C ℓ 1 (ρ) for any state ρ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The prevalence of neoplastic polyps in gallbladder polyps (GPs) increases sharply with age and is associated with gallbladder carcinoma (GBC). This study aims to predict neoplastic polyps and provide appropriate treatment strategies based on preoperative ultrasound features in patients with different age level. Methods: According to the age classification of WHO, 1523 patients with GPs who underwent cholecystectomy from January 2015 to December 2019 at 11 tertiary hospitals in China were divided into young adults group (n=622), middle-aged group (n=665) and elderly group (n=236). Linear scoring models were established based on independent risk variables screened by the Logistic regression model in different age groups. The area under ROC (AUC) to evaluate the predictive ability of linear scoring models, long- and short- diameter of GPs. Results: Independent risk factors for neoplastic polyps included the number of polyps, polyp size (long diameter), and fundus in the young adults and elderly groups, while the number of polyps, polyp size (long diameter), and polyp size (short diameter) in the middle-aged groups. In different age groups, the AUCs of its linear scoring model were higher than the AUCs of the long- and short- diameter of GPs for differentiating neoplastic and non-neoplastic polyps (all P<0.05), and Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness of fit test showed that the prediction accuracy of the linear scoring models was higher than the long- and short- diameter of GPs (all P>0.05). Conclusion: The linear scoring models of the young adults, middle-aged and elderly groups can effectively distinguish neoplastic polyps from non-neoplastic polyps based on preoperative ultrasound features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to investigate the protective mechanism of dihydromyricetin PLGA nanoparticles (DMY-PLGA NPs) against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI) in vitro and the improvement of oral bioavailability in vivo. Methods: DMY-PLGA NPs was prepared and characterized by emulsifying solvent volatilization, and the oxidative stress model of rat H9c2 cardiomyocyte induced by H2O2 was established. After administration, cell survival rate, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were detected, and the expressions of PGC1α and PPARα were detected by western blot (WB). At the same time, the pharmacokinetics in rats were studied to explore the improvement of bioavailability. Results: DMY-PLGA NPs can significantly increase cell survival rate, decrease LDH and MDA content, increase SOD content and PGC1α、PPARα protein expression. Compared with DMY, the peak time of DMY-PLGA NPs was extended (P<0.1), and the bioavailability was increased by 2.04 times. Conclusion: DMY-PLGA NPs has a significant protective effect on H9c2 cardiomyocytes, which promotes the absorption of DMY and effectively improves bioavailability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sandy conglomerate reservoir in layer Es3 of the Liaohe Eastern Depression has good potential for oil reservoir exploration and has been identified as a key area for future exploration. The low porosity and permeability, complex lithology, and strong heterogeneity of the target layer make it difficult to predict favorable reservoirs. The objective of this study is to analyze and process conventional logging data to extract feature parameters that affect lithology by establishing a decision tree lithology classifier. Principal component analysis is used to reduce data dimensionality, and the elbow method is applied to the clustering algorithm to establish the optimal number of clusters for the automatic classification of reservoir types. Further, support vector machines are used for lithology classification based on features with higher classification capabilities. The results show that the support vector machine lithology recognition method based on feature selection achieved an accuracy of 91.8%. The processing of actual well data has verified the feasibility of the method. Based on the combination of core experiments and oil testing results, the characteristics of three types of reservoirs were presented, and potential reservoir zones were proposed for drilling wells. The comprehensive analysis and the practical application of the developed method reveal that the class I reservoir has high hydrocarbon production and could be the most favorable reservoir in the Es3 sandy conglomerate. The processing data of lithology identification and reservoir classification evaluation are consistent with core data and hydrocarbon production data, verifying the effectiveness and practicability of the method proposed in this paper. The results of this study will serve as a reference for low porosity and permeability sandy conglomerate reservoir evaluation based on machine learning in the target area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A temporal network of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) symptoms could provide valuable understanding of the occurrence and maintenance of GAD. We aim to obtain an exploratory conceptualization of temporal GAD network and identify the central symptom. Methods: A sample of participants (n = 115) with elevated GAD-7 scores (Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-Item Questionnaire [GAD-7] ≥ 10) participated in an online daily diary study in which they reported their GAD symptoms based on DSM-5 diagnostic criteria (eight symptoms in total) for 50 consecutive days. We used a multilevel VAR model to obtain the temporal network. Results: In temporal network, a lot of lagged relationships exist among GAD symptoms and these lagged relationships are all positive. All symptoms have autocorrelations and there are also some interesting feedback loops in temporal network. Sleep disturbance has the highest Out-strength centrality. Conclusions: This study indicates how GAD symptoms interact with each other and strengthen themselves over time, and particularly highlights the relationships between sleep disturbance and other GAD symptoms. Sleep disturbance may play an important role in the dynamic development and maintenance process of GAD. The present study may develop the knowledge of the theoretical model, diagnosis, prevention and intervention of GAD from a temporal symptoms network perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen energy is regarded as an ideal solution for addressing climate change issues and an indispensable part of future integrated energy systems. The most environmentally friendly hydrogen production method remains water electrolysis, where the electrolyzer constructs the physical interface between electrical energy and hydrogen energy. However, few articles have reviewed the electrolyzer from the perspective of power supply topology and control. This review is the first to discuss the positioning of the electrolyzer power supply in the future integrated energy system. The electrolyzer is reviewed from the perspective of the electrolysis method, the market, and the electrical interface modelling, reflecting the requirement of the electrolyzer for power supply. Various electrolyzer power supply topologies are studied and reviewed. Although the most widely used topology in the current hydrogen production industry is still single-stage AC/DC, the interleaved parallel LLC topology constructed by wideband gap power semiconductors and controlled by the zero-voltage switching algorithm has broad application prospects because of its advantages of high power density, high efficiency, fault tolerance, and low current ripple. Taking into account the development trend of the EL power supply, a hierarchical control framework is proposed as it can manage the operation performance of the power supply itself, the electrolyzer, the hydrogen energy domain, and the entire integrated energy system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effectively promoting corneal allograft survival remains a challenge in corneal transplantation. The emerging therapeutic agents with high pharmacological activities and their appropriate administration routes provide attractive solutions. In the present study, a celastrol-loaded positive nanomedicine (CPNM) was developed to enhance corneal penetration and to promote corneal allograft survival. The in vitro, in vivo and ex vivo results demonstrated the good performance of CPNM prolonging the retention time on ocular surface and opening the tight junction in cornea, which resulted in enhanced corneal permeability of celastrol. Both in vitro and in vivo results demonstrated that celastrol inhibited the recruitment of M1 macrophage and the expression of TLR4 in corneal allografts through the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway, thereby significantly decreasing secretion of multiple pro-inflammatory cytokines to promote corneal allograft survival. This is the first celastrol-based topical instillation against corneal allograft rejection to provide treatment more potent than conventional eye drops for ocular anterior segment diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance of quantum entanglement has been demonstrated in various applications. Usually, separability of a bipartite state is defined by its algebraic structure, i.e. a convex combination of product states. But it seems to be hard to check separability (equivalently, entanglement) of a state from its algebraic structure. In this note, we give some characterizations of separability of bipartite states based on POVM measurements. For bipartite pure states, we prove the separability, Bell locality, unsteerability and classical correlation are the same. As a consequence, every entangled pure bipartite state is always Bell nonlocal, steerable and quantum correlated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(1) Background: Ginsenoside Rb1-PLGA nanoparticles (GRb1@PLGA@NPs) represent a novel nanotherapeutic system, yet their therapeutic efficacy and underlying mechanisms for treating heart failure (HF) remain unexplored. This study aims to investigate the potential mechanisms underlying the therapeutic effects of GRb1@PLGA@NPs in HF treatment; (2) Methods: The left anterior descending coronary artery ligation was employed to establish a HF model in Sprague-Dawley rats, along with an in vitro oxidative stress model using H9c2 myocardial cells. Following treatment with GRb1@PLGA@NPs, cardiac tissue pathological changes and cell proliferation were observed. Additionally, the serum levels of biomarkers such as NT-proBNP, TNF-α, and IL-1β were measured, along with the expression of the ROS/PPARα/PGC1α pathway; (3) Results: GRb1@PLGA@NPs effectively ameliorated the pathological status of cardiac tissues in HF rats, mitigated oxidative stress-induced myocardial cell damage, elevated SOD and MMP levels, and reduced LDH, MDA, ROS, NT-proBNP, TNF-α, and IL-1β levels. Furthermore, the expression of PPARα and PGC1α proteins was upregulated; (4) Conclusions: GRb1@PLGA@NPs may attenuate myocardial cell injury and treat HF through the ROS/PPARα/PGC1α pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to construct a Ginsenoside Rb1-PLGA nano drug delivery system, optimize its preparation process, characterize and evaluate the resulting Ginsenoside Rb1-PLGA Nanoparticles (GRb1@PLGA@NPs). GRb1@PLGA@NPs were prepared using the emulsion solvent evaporation method. The optimal preparation process was determined using Plackett–Burman design combined with Box-Behnken experiments. Physical characterization and in vitro release studies were conducted. LC–MS/MS technique was employed to investigate the pharmacokinetic characteristics of GRb1 and GRb1@PLGA@NPs in rat plasma. The optimal preparation process yielded GRb1@PLGA@NPs with a particle size of 120.63 nm, polydispersity index (PDI) of 0.172, zeta potential of − 22.67 mV, encapsulation efficiency of 75%, and drug loading of 11%. In vitro release demonstrated sustained drug release. Compared to GRb1, GRb1@PLGA@NPs exhibited a shortened time to peak concentration by approximately 0.72-fold. The area under the plasma concentration–time curve significantly increased to 4.58-fold of GRb1. GRb1@PLGA@NPs formulated using the optimal process exhibited uniform distribution and stable quality, its relative oral bioavailability was significantly improved compared to free GRb1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hemicellulose was extracted from the Stachys floridana Shuttlew. ex Benth by ultrasonic-assisted, fractional alcohol precipitation method, mixed with chitosan solution, and coated on the surface of the paper with three layers, to explore the effect of its morphology, thermal stability, barrier, mechanical properties of coated paper. The results showed that the gas barrier property of the paper coated with hemicellulose – chitosan mixed solution decreased from 180 mL/min to 0.265 mL/min, the water barrier property increased from 0 to 84.8°, and the oil barrier property increased from 0 to Kit nº11. The tearing degree of paper increased by 9.2 %, the folding resistance increased by 1296.6 %, dry and wet tensile strength and dry and wet rupture resistance were also significantly improved. The thermal stability mixed solution coated paper is slightly lower than the base paper, but higher than the pure chitosan coated paper. The prepared S. floridana Shuttlew. ex Benth hemicellulose – chitosan blend coating has good barrier property and mechanical properties, and has a wide application prospect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Polyp size of 10 mm is insufficient to discriminate neoplastic and non-neoplastic risk in patients with gallbladder polyps (GPs). The aim of the study is to develop a Bayesian network (BN) prediction model to identify neoplastic polyps and create more precise criteria for surgical indications in patients with GPs lager than 10 mm based on preoperative ultrasound features. Methods: A BN prediction model was established and validated based on the independent risk variables using data from 759 patients with GPs who underwent cholecystectomy from January 2015 to August 2022 at 11 tertiary hospitals in China. The area under receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs) were used to evaluate the predictive ability of the BN model and current guidelines, and Delong test was used to compare the AUCs. Results: The mean values of polyp cross-sectional area (CSA), long, and short diameter of neoplastic polyps were higher than those of non-neoplastic polyps (P < 0.0001). Independent neoplastic risk factors for GPs included single polyp, polyp CSA ≥ 85 mm 2, fundus with broad base, and medium echogenicity. The accuracy of the BN model established based on the above independent variables was 81.88% and 82.35% in the training and testing sets, respectively. Delong test also showed that the AUCs of the BN model was better than that of JSHBPS, ESGAR, US-reported, and CCBS in training and testing sets, respectively (P < 0.05). Conclusion: A Bayesian network model was accurate and practical for predicting neoplastic risk in patients with gallbladder polyps larger than 10 mm based on preoperative ultrasound features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]