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This paper aims to compare the effect of different soil configurations on plant growth under long-term drought to provide a theoretical basis for soil reclamation and vegetation restoration in the contiguous area between Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Inner Mongolia, China. With the widely distributed montmorillonite-enriched sandstone in this area as the soil structure ameliorator and the sandy soil as the test soil, indoor simulation and soil column tests were conducted to study the water holding capabilities of different reconstructed soils configurations. The drought stress test of alfalfa on these soils explored the correlation between the growth of alfalfa and soil water in various configurations. The soil–water characteristic curve and soil texture were analyzed to determine plant survival. The results showed that the addition of montmorillonite-enriched sandstone with high water holding capacity and water diffusion rates could increase the water content of the sandy soil. The treatments with 20 and 30 cm montmorillonite-enriched sandstone at the depths of 20–40 cm and 20–50 cm demonstrated the longest survival time (60 days and 59 days), the highest germination (34% and 35%), and the highest water holding capacity (22.6% and 27.3%), indicating that soils with higher water holding capacity and lower diffusion rates could be used as a reservoir, in combination with other soil materials with high water content, and that the addition of the montmorillonite-enriched sandstone layer at 20–30 cm in the sandy soil is the optimal choice for topsoil reclamation in open-mining areas.

Nan Lu,1,* Jinhui Liu,2,* Mengting Xu,2,* Jianqiang Liang,2 Yichun Wang,3 Zhipeng Wu,4 Yan Xing,2 Feiyang Diao1 1Department of Reproduction, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 210029, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Urology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 210029, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Urology, The Affiliated Sir Run Run Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Feiyang DiaoDepartment of Reproduction, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail phenix_y@163.comYan XingDepartment of Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 210029, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail 13951891712@163.comBackground: Globally, ovarian cancer (OC), the deadliest gynecologic malignancy, remains a major cause of mortality, with a rising number of cases in many low- and middle-income countries. Immunotherapy has been proven to be promising for OC. There is increasing awareness of the vital role that tumor mutation burden (TMB) plays in predicting the efficacy of immunotherapy. Women with a family history of OC are at higher risk of the disease due to gene mutations. However, whether these gene mutations are related to immune response and TMB remains to be explored.Methods: Our present work analyzed genetic mutation data of OC patients obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) cohorts, and we identified 11 frequently mutated genes, namely, APOB, CSMD3, DST, FAT3, FLG, HMCN1, MUC16, RYR1, TP53, TTN, and USH2A, in accordance with the overlap of two databases.Results: A statistically higher TMB was detected by whole-exome sequencing in patients with OC with CSMD3 mutation than in those with mutations in the other frequently mutated genes. Prognosis analysis performed with patients from the TCGA cohort revealed that those with CSMD3 mutation had an overall survival (OS) that was inferior to that of those with wild-type CSMD3. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) and CIBERSORT analysis indicated that OC samples with CSMD3 mutations had significant involvement of pathways related to the immune response.Conclusion: In summary, we found that CSMD3 mutation is highly correlated with increased TMB and poor clinical prognosis and that it might function as a biomarker for predicting prognosis and choosing an immunotherapy regimen.Keywords: ovarian cancer, CSMD3, tumor mutation burden, prognosis, tumor-infiltrating immune cells

Women from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds are particularly vulnerable to domestic and family violence, including technology-facilitated abuse. Often CALD women depend on technology to connect with support networks in their home country. Technology-facilitated abuse can be devastating and isolating. There is limited comprehensive knowledge of how technology-facilitated abuse is experienced by CALD women. This scoping review addresses this gap by exploring and analysing the available literature on technology-facilitated abuse amongst CALD women in the context of domestic and family violence. Employing a scoping review methodology, a total of nine studies were identified from a database search and other sources (including snowball, web search, and search verification processes). Studies were included if they contained the following three elements: (1) a focus on technology-facilitated abuse, (2) the inclusion of CALD women’s experiences, and (3) a context of domestic and family violence (DFV). This review firstly maps the methodologies and characteristics of the studies. Second, the most common types of technology-facilitated abuse that disproportionally affect CALD women are identified together with culturally related help-seeking barriers. Areas for future research are discussed along with suggestions for improving practises and policies for prevention and intervention.

Endometrial cancer (EC) is the most common gynecological malignancy. Recent studies have uncovered miRNA acted a striking role in predicting the prognosis of multiple tumors. Over 500 EC samples were selected from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Univariate, LASSO and multivariate Cox regression analysis were employed to screen out the prognosis-involved miRNAs. Kaplan-Meier (K-M) and time-dependent receiver operation characteristic (ROC) curves were conducted to reveal survival analysis and assess the accuracy of the signature. The independence of the model was verified via univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis. Besides, qRT-PCR was conducted to testified the expression of 11 miRNAs in 16 paired tissues. A total of 514 specimens were randomly divided into the training set and the testing set, then an 11 miRNAs-based signature were determined which divided the patients into high-risk group and low-risk group. The survival was markedly different and the ROC curve exhibited a precise prediction. Meanwhile, the univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis verified the miRNAs-based model was an independent indicator of EC. Moreove, the prediction ability of this model with clinicopathological features was more efficient. Finally, functional enrichment analysis demonstrated these miRNAs were associated with the occurrence and progression of cancer. Additionally, hsa-mir-216b, hsa-mir-363, hsa-mir-940 and hsa-mir-1301 were highly expressed in EC tissues in contrast to normal tissues through qRT-PCR. Importantly, the eleven-miRNA signature was full of robust ability to predict the prognosis of EC., GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

This paper is devoted to the convergence problem for second-order signed networks that are associated with two signed graphs in the presence of heterogeneous topologies. An eigenvalue analysis approach is presented to develop convergence results for second-order signed networks, which employs a sign-consistency property for signed graph pairs. When the sign-consistency of two heterogeneous signed graphs and the connectivity of their union are given, bipartite consensus (respectively, state stability) can be derived for second-order signed networks if and only if the union signed graph is structurally balanced (respectively, unbalanced). Two examples are provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the obtained results.

This paper mainly explores how to enrich the social work practice with young migrant workers via discussion of using narrative approach as an action research tool to capture the life experiences of young migrant workers, and to inform social work practice. It begins with the importance of action research, action research in China, and how narrative approach could become one of the key tools of action research with young migrant workers in China. Then it further discusses the nature and application of narrative approach using the first author’s experience of conducting a research project with young migrant workers in Shenzhen, Guangdong province. Findings and limitation of the narrative approach to social work with young migrant workers are finally presented.

Phloridzin has been an attractive target for the development of preparation methodologies due to its various applications as pharmaceutical ingredient and food additive. In this study, an enzymatic synthesis approach using engineered P. pastoris GS115 was developed to produce phloridzin. Four factors, identifying as key factors affecting the phloridzin yield, were optimized by response surface methodology as follows: induction time 121.8 h, pH 7.0, methanol 0.75%, and a rotation speed 194 rpm. The maximal yield of phloridzin reached 41.59 mg/L (95.31 μM) and the specific bioconversion rate of substrate was up to 98.50% with 1L working volume in a 5L bioreactor under the optimal conditions. Phloridzin with purity of 93.98% and recovery of 78.14% was achieved just using affinity chromatography and preparative high performance liquid chromatography ( Pre -HPLC). These results confirm the enzymatic synthesis developed provides an efficient alternative to traditional approach for the preparation of phloridzin in vitro .

This book has a very clear target group of readers, including social work students on placement and newly qualified social workers. It is a very useful introductory textbook to learn, explore, iden...

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin disease characterized by intense pruritus and skin lesions. The exact cause of AD is not yet known and the available therapeutic strategies for AD are limited. Fructus cnidii is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine as an herb for treating chronic itch. However, the mechanism underlying the antipruritic effects of Fructus cnidii is not well understood. In the present study, we investigated the antipruritic effect of locally administered ethyl acetate extract from Fructus cnidii (EAEFC) to 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene- (DNFB-) induced AD in a mouse model. The scratching behavior, skin thickness, dermatitis score, weight, blood immunoglobulin E (IgE) level, and itch-related cytokine levels were subsequently monitored and evaluated. Results showed that EAEFC treatment attenuated the DNFB-induced AD-like symptoms by alleviating the skin lesions and decreasing the dermatitis score. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and toluidine blue (TB) staining analyses demonstrated that EAEFC mitigated the DNFB-induced increase in skin thickness and prevented the infiltration of mast cells. Behavioral tests showed that EAEFC decreased the DNFB-induced acute and chronic scratching behaviors. Furthermore, EAEFC reduced the levels of itch-related cytokines, such as thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP), interleukin- (IL-) 17, IL-33, and IL-31, and the DNFB-induced boost in serum IgE. Collectively, these results suggest that EAEFC is a potential therapeutic candidate for the treatment of chronic itch in AD.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin disease characterized by intense pruritus and skin lesions. The exact cause of AD is not yet known and the available therapeutic strategies for AD are limited. Fructus cnidii is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine as an herb for treating chronic itch. However, the mechanism underlying the antipruritic effects of Fructus cnidii is not well understood. In the present study, we investigated the antipruritic effect of locally administered ethyl acetate extract from Fructus cnidii (EAEFC) to 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene- (DNFB-) induced AD in a mouse model. The scratching behavior, skin thickness, dermatitis score, weight, blood immunoglobulin E (IgE) level, and itch-related cytokine levels were subsequently monitored and evaluated. Results showed that EAEFC treatment attenuated the DNFB-induced AD-like symptoms by alleviating the skin lesions and decreasing the dermatitis score. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and toluidine blue (TB) staining analyses demonstrated that EAEFC mitigated the DNFB-induced increase in skin thickness and prevented the infiltration of mast cells. Behavioral tests showed that EAEFC decreased the DNFB-induced acute and chronic scratching behaviors. Furthermore, EAEFC reduced the levels of itch-related cytokines, such as thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP), interleukin- (IL-) 17, IL-33, and IL-31, and the DNFB-induced boost in serum IgE. Collectively, these results suggest that EAEFC is a potential therapeutic candidate for the treatment of chronic itch in AD.

Summary This article discusses a missing but emergent role of social work with unemployed young people. The authors highlight the transitional and structural factors of youth unemployment. Using a social work lens, the “Youth Employment Network” (YEN) is discussed and the International Labour Organization’s “4Es” (employability, equal opportunity, employment creation, entrepreneurship) framework is elaborated. This article adds a fifth “E” (Ecological connection) and proposes a “5Es” model for social workers to support unemployed young people to overcome transitional and structure barriers for employment. Findings Limited social work programs, studies, or evaluations are targeted for unemployed young people despite historical concern with employment conditions of workers and suggest the instrumental role in research, policy and practice concerning the unemployed young people. Applications Recommendations are provided in terms of how to implement the 5Es in policy, education, training, and direct practice of social work in youth employment.

Moral education is a practice to promote the moral competence of adolescents, particularly in nurturing their moral judgement and moral behaviour. In China, under the rapid development of social work practice at schools, moral education could serve as a collaborative point between teachers, school counsellors, social workers and policymakers to promote the moral, holistic and healthy development of students. However, moral education is not as yet widely and systematically evaluated? particularly the details of relevant policy, curriculum, textbooks, teaching and learning approach, examination and evaluation. This paper takes an initiative to conduct a comprehensive literature review and theoretical discussion on the subject ‘Moral and Character Education’ (Sixiangpinde思想品德) which is a mandatory moral education subject for Grade 7–9 students in junior high schools in China. It also provides reflections and suggestions on how the subject and moral education could be promoted under the contexts of pr...

This paper addresses the behavior analysis problems for directed signed networks that involve cooperative-antagonistic interactions among agents. Of particular interest is to explore the convergence behaviors of directed signed networks with agents of mixed first-order and second-order dynamics. Further, the agents are subject to nonidentical topologies represented by two different signed digraphs that have a strongly connected union. It is shown that when considering signed networks subject to sign-consistent nonidentical topologies, polarization (respectively, neutralization) can be achieved if and only if the union of two signed digraphs is structurally balanced (respectively, unbalanced). By comparison, signed networks can always be guaranteed to become neutralized in the presence of sign-inconsistent nonidentical topologies., Comment: Accepted for publication in IEEE TAC

In this paper, discrete-time signed networks with cooperative and antagonistic interactions are considered in the presence of time-varying topologies. A separation approach is proposed such that the cooperations and antagonisms can be clearly distinguished. It is shown that given the repeated joint strong connectivity, signed networks can achieve bipartite consensus (respectively, stability) if and only if the repeated joint structural balance (respectively, unbalance) are ensured. Furthermore, when only joint spanning tree condition is satisfied, quasi-interval bipartite consensus (respectively, stability) holds if and only if the repeated joint structural balance (respectively, unbalance) can be guaranteed for the signed digraphs formed by only these joint root nodes. The simulation tests are included to verify the effectiveness of our obtained results.

Phloretin-2′-O-glycosyltransferase (P2′GT) catalyzes the last glycosylation step in the biosynthesis of phloridzin that contributes to the flavor, color and health benefits of apples and processed apple products. In this work, a novel P2′GT of Malus x domestica (MdP2′GT) with a specific activity of 46.82 μkat/Kg protein toward phloretin and uridine diphosphate glucose (UDPG) at an optimal temperature of 30 °C and pH 8.0 was purified from the engineered Pichia pastoris broth to homogeneity by anion exchange chromatography, His-Trap affinity chromatography and gel filtration. The purified MdP2′GT was low N-glycosylated and secreted as a stable dimer with a molecular mass of 70.7 kDa in its native form. Importantly, MdP2′GT also exhibited activity towards quercetin and adenosine diphosphate glucose (ADPG), kaempferol and UDPG, quercetin and UDP-galactose, isoliquiritigenin and UDPG, and luteolin and UDPG, producing only one isoquercitrin, astragalin, hyperoside, isoliquiritin, or cynaroside, respectively. This broad spectrum of activities make MdP2′GT a promising biocatalyst for the industrial preparation of the corresponding polyphenol glycosides, preferably for their subsequent isolation and purification. Besides, MdP2′GT displayed the lowest Km and the highest kcat/Km for phloretin and UDPG compared to all previously reported P2′GTs, making MdP2′GT favor phloridzin synthesis the most.

A piezoresistive force transmitter has been developed for gauging the variation of yarn's linear density with the measuring range of 0-5 N and the corresponding voltage output of 0- -5 V. The transmitter simply consists of a force sensor head and a signal processing circuit unit. The sensor head consists of a sensitive silicon chip and an elastic metal element. The chip is based on piezoresistive effect of silicon and is made using microfabrication techniques. The elastic metal element is designed using finite-element method (FEM) and fabricated by electrical discharge machining (EDM). The location of the expected maximum stress of the elastic metal element is also analyzed using FEM. The sensitive silicon chip is packaged on the elastic metal by glass powder sintering process. The signal processing circuit unit is used to amplify the sensor's output to the standard voltage. According to the dynamic and static experiments, the experimental results show that the accuracy of the piezoresistive force transmitter is 0.203%FS and the response frequency is 878.5 Hz, so the transmitter is suitable for the auto leveling system for high-speed textile machinery.

First-year undergraduate students (n=890) responded to a 48-item subjective outcome evaluation scale (SOES) after taking a leadership subject at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in the second semester of the 2012–2013 academic year. Consistent with our expectation, factor analyses showed that the scale contains three dimensions (program, instructor and benefits). Results showed that students had positive perceptions of the program contents and the instructors, and most of the students perceived the subject to be beneficial to their development in different areas. As predicted, perceived qualities of the program and instructors were significant predictors of the perceived effectiveness of the program. Perceived qualities of the program, instructors and benefits predicted student’s overall satisfaction with the program.

This six-wave longitudinal study in Project P.A.T.H.S. examined the growth trajectories and predictors of moral competence in Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong. Linear mixed models utilizing individual growth curves were used to analyze the initial status and rate of change of moral competence with reference to gender, economic disadvantage, family intactness, family functioning and parent-child subsystem quality. Results showed that adolescent moral competence increased across 6 years. Female adolescents had higher initial levels of moral competence than that of male adolescents. Adolescents from well-functioning families had higher initial levels of moral competence but slower growth of moral competence than did those from families with lower family functioning. Adolescents with higher mother-child subsystem quality had higher initial levels of moral competence but slower growth of moral competence than did those with relatively lower mother-child subsystem quality. Finally, adolescents with higher father-child subsystem quality had higher initial levels of moral competence than those with relatively lower father-child subsystem quality.

This chapter examines the effects of two risk factors (economic disadvantage and family non-intactness) and two protective factors (positive youth development and family functioning) on substance abuse among Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong. Based on four waves of data collected from Secondary 1 to Secondary 4 students in a longitudinal study (3328 students at Secondary 1), individual growth curve models demonstrated a growing trend of adolescents engaging in substance abuse across time. Gender, age, and family intactness were significantly related to the initial status of adolescent substance abuse, while economic disadvantage and family intactness were significantly related to the growth trajectory of substance abuse, with adolescents from poor and non-intact families having a higher risk of engaging in substance abuse. While positive youth development and family functioning at Wave 4 predicted substance abuse in Wave 4, positive youth development and family functioning at Wave 1 only predicted smoking but not overall substance abuse at Wave 4.

University students (n=58) responded to a 45-item subjective outcome evaluation scale after taking a credit-bearing elective subject titled “Service Leadership” at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in the first semester of the 2013–14 academic year. Results showed that the students generally displayed positive perceptions of the program content and the instructors, and most of them perceived the subject to be beneficial to different aspects of their development. As predicted, three subscales of the scale (Program Content, Program Implementer, and Program Benefits) were significantly correlated. Similar to the previous studies, perceived quality of the program but not quality of instructors and program benefits predicted the students’ overall satisfaction with the program.

The appearance of chromium in the aqueous effluent is a major concern for the modern industry. In this work, Mesorhizobium amorphae strain CCNWGS0123 was investigated as a biosorbent to remove chromium from aqueous solutions. The optimum pH for Cr(III) and Cr(VI) biosorption were 4 and 2, respectively. This isolate showed an experimental maximum Cr(III) adsorption capacity of 53.52 mg L(-1), while the result was 47.67 mg L(-1) for Cr(VI), with an initial 100 mg L(-1) Cr ions and 1.0 g L(-1) biomass. In terms of time equilibrium, Cr(III) ion was more readily adsorbed than Cr(VI) by this isolate. The biosorption data of both ions fit the Langmuir isotherm better than that of Freundlich model. Meanwhile, this organism exhibited a good capability to release Cr ions, with desorption efficiency of 70 % for Cr(III) and 76 % for Cr(VI). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis showed that -OH, -COO, -NH, amide I, and C=O were involved in Cr(III) and Cr(VI) binding. The biosorbent was further characterized by scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry, which indicated an accumulation of chromium on the cellular level. In the binary mixtures, the removal ratio of total Cr and Cr(III) increased from pH 2 to 4. The highest removal ratio of the total Cr was observed in the 25/25 mg L(-1) mixture at pH 4. In addition, the removal efficiency of Cr(VI) was closely influenced by Cr(III) in the mixture, decreasing to 23.57 mg g(-1) in the 100/100 mg L(-1) mixture system, due to the competition of Cr(III). The potential usage of the chromium-resistant rhizobium for the remediation of chromium-contaminated effluents has been demonstrated based on the above results.