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Abstract Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic), a high-stakes English language proficiency test, underwent substantial revisions in 2021. The test duration was reduced from 3 h to 2 h by reducing specific task numbers and sections. This study investigates the impact of these changes on teachers’ perceptions and teaching practices, areas previously underexplored in language assessment literature. It focuses on the implications of the test’s modifications, examining the face validity and washback effects through the lens of teachers in mainland China. Semi-structured interviews with four experienced PTE Academic test trainers, who were familiar with both the original and revised test formats, reveals that the revised PTE Academic is perceived to maintain strong face validity, particularly noted in its academic authenticity, balanced skill structure, and perceived result accuracy. Additionally, most teachers perceived an increase in test difficulty. A mixed washback effect was observed: while improvements in students’ language competence—a positive outcome—were noted, teachers also reported a continued reliance on teaching test-oriented strategies for higher-scoring tasks, indicating negative washback. This study highlights the significant implications of reducing PTE Academic’s duration and offers targeted recommendations for its future improvement. These suggestions aim to enhance students’ academic language skills, thereby better aligning PTE Academic with the practical language abilities required in university settings.

Abstract Lactate-derived histone lactylation is involved in multiple pathological processes through transcriptional regulation. The role of lactate-derived histone lactylation in the repair of spinal cord injury (SCI) remains unclear. Here we report that overall lactate levels and lactylation are upregulated in the spinal cord after SCI. Notably, H4K12la was significantly elevated in the microglia of the injured spinal cord, whereas exogenous lactate treatment further elevated H4K12la in microglia after SCI. Functionally, lactate treatment promoted microglial proliferation, scar formation, axon regeneration, and locomotor function recovery after SCI. Mechanically, lactate-mediated H4K12la elevation promoted PD-1 transcription in microglia, thereby facilitating SCI repair. Furthermore, a series of rescue experiments confirmed that a PD-1 inhibitor or microglia-specific AAV-sh-PD-1 significantly reversed the therapeutic effects of lactate following SCI. This study illustrates the function and mechanism of lactate/H4K12la/PD-1 signaling in microglia-mediated tissue repair and provides a novel target for SCI therapy. Graphical Abstract

Abstract Background The therapeutic strategies for acute ischemic stroke were faced with substantial constraints, emphasizing the necessity to safeguard neuronal cells during cerebral ischemia to reduce neurological impairments and enhance recovery outcomes. Despite its potential as a neuroprotective agent in stroke treatment, Chikusetsu saponin IVa encounters numerous challenges in clinical application. Result Brain-targeted liposomes modified with THRre peptides showed substantial uptake by bEnd. 3 and PC-12 cells and demonstrated the ability to cross an in vitro blood-brain barrier model, subsequently accumulating in PC-12 cells. In vivo, they could significantly accumulate in rat brain. Treatment with C-IVa-LPs-THRre notably reduced the expression of proteins in the P2RX7/NLRP3/Caspase-1 pathway and inflammatory factors. This was evidenced by decreased cerebral infarct size and improved neurological function in MCAO rats. Conclusion The findings indicate that C-IVa-LPs-THRre could serve as a promising strategy for targeting cerebral ischemia. This approach enhances drug concentration in the brain, mitigates pyroptosis, and improves the neuroinflammatory response associated with stroke.

In order to better apply starch as a polymer material in the material industry, it is necessary to modify starch. In this study, cassava starch was used as raw material, and it was pretreated and acetylated in an anhydrous medium. By controlling the change in reaction time, acetylated starch with different degrees of substitution was prepared. And the effects of pretreatment on the physicochemical properties of acetylated starch particles, as well as the differences in physicochemical properties between high degree of substitution starch and low degree of substitution starch, were investigated through characterization methods such as X-ray diffraction, polarizing microscope, scanning electron microscope, contact angle measurement, and differential scanning calorimetry analysis. The results showed that pre-treatment could shorten the time required for acetylation of raw starch. The crystal diffraction peak of high degree of substitution acetylated starch disappeared, the polarized cross disappeared, and the morphology changed from circular to porous. It could be dissolved in organic solvents such as acetone. After 0.5 hours of acetylation reaction, the hydrophobic contact angle of pretreated starch could reach 69.006°±0.520°, the starch melting temperature decreased to 155 ℃, and the decomposition temperature increased from 280 ℃ to 340 ℃, enhanced the thermal stability of starch and possessed thermoplastic properties. This study can prepare acetylated starch with a degree of substitution of 2.5 within half an hour, which can be dissolved in organic solvents, providing new ideas for accelerating the application of starch in the material industry.

Water level adjustment downstream of dams significantly impacts river regimes and flood control. However, due to constant strong scouring, our quantitative understanding of the characteristics of water level variations and their causes in the Chenglingji–Jiujiang Reach of the Yangtze River remains limited. Here, we analyzed the water level change trend via the Mann–Kendall method and analyzed geomorphic change and river resistance using 406 cross-sectional profiles as well as data on discharge and water levels from 1991 to 2022. Results showed that the critical conversion discharges (CCD) in the Chenglingji-Hankou Reach and the Hankou-Jiujiang Reach were approximately 35,000 and 30,000 m3/s, respectively, after the operation of the Three Gorges Dam. The water level exhibited an overall decline mainly due to river erosion when the discharge was lower than the CCD. The water level exhibited a nonsignificant upward trend mainly due to increased river resistance (7–20%) when the discharge was higher than the CCD. The obvious increase in the floodwater level in individual years was caused by the effect of downstream water level increase. Our findings further the understanding of downstream geomorphic response to dam operation and their impacts on water levels and have important implications for flood management in such rivers worldwide. HIGHLIGHTS The critical conversion discharges of the water level changes in the Chenglingji-Hankou Reach and Hankou-Jiujiang Reach are approximately 35,000 and 30,000 m3/s, respectively.; The dominant cause of the water level decrease below or increase above the critical conversion discharge is river erosion or greater increase in resistance.; The obvious increase in the floodwater level in individual years was due to the more obvious increase of downstream water level.;

Abstract Objective The objective of this study was to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the molecular transmission networks and transmitted drug resistance (TDR) patterns among individuals newly diagnosed with HIV-1 in Nanjing. Methods Plasma samples were collected from newly diagnosed HIV patients in Nanjing between 2019 and 2021. The HIV pol gene was amplified, and the resulting sequences were utilized for determining TDR, identifying viral subtypes, and constructing molecular transmission network. Logistic regression analyses were employed to investigate the epidemiological characteristics associated with molecular transmission clusters. Results A total of 1161 HIV pol sequences were successfully extracted from newly diagnosed individuals, each accompanied by reliable epidemiologic information. The analysis revealed the presence of multiple HIV-1 subtypes, with CRF 07_BC (40.57%) and CRF01_AE (38.42%) being the most prevalent. Additionally, six other subtypes and unique recombinant forms (URFs) were identified. The prevalence of TDR among the newly diagnosed cases was 7.84% during the study period. Employing a genetic distance threshold of 1.50%, the construction of the molecular transmission network resulted in the identification of 137 clusters, encompassing 613 nodes, which accounted for approximately 52.80% of the cases. Multivariate analysis indicated that individuals within these clusters were more likely to be aged ≥ 60, unemployed, baseline CD4 cell count ≥ 200 cells/mm3, and infected with the CRF119_0107 (P

Abstract Background Bacterial nanocellulose (BNC), a natural polymer material, gained significant popularity among researchers and industry. It has great potential in areas, such as textile manufacturing, fiber-based paper, and packaging products, food industry, biomedical materials, and advanced functional bionanocomposites. The main current fermentation methods for BNC involved static culture, as the agitated culture methods had lower raw material conversion rates and resulted in non-uniform product formation. Currently, studies have shown that the production of BNC can be enhanced by incorporating specific additives into the culture medium. These additives included organic acids or polysaccharides. γ-Polyglutamic acid (γ-PGA), known for its high polymerization, excellent biodegradability, and environmental friendliness, has found extensive application in various industries including daily chemicals, medicine, food, and agriculture. Results In this particular study, 0.15 g/L of γ-PGA was incorporated as a medium additive to cultivate BNC under agitated culture conditions of 120 rpm and 30 ℃. The BNC production increased remarkably by 209% in the medium with 0.15 g/L γ-PGA and initial pH of 5.0 compared to that in the standard medium, and BNC production increased by 7.3% in the medium with 0.06 g/L γ-PGA. The addition of γ-PGA as a medium additive resulted in significant improvements in BNC production. Similarly, at initial pH levels of 4.0 and 6.0, the BNC production also increased by 39.3% and 102.3%, respectively. To assess the characteristics of the BNC products, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis were used. The average diameter of BNC fibers, which was prepared from the medium adding 0.15 g/L γ-PGA, was twice thicker than that of BNC fibers prepared from the control culture medium. That might be because that polyglutamic acid relieved the BNC synthesis from the shear stress from the agitation. Conclusions This experiment held great significance as it explored the use of a novel medium additive, γ-PGA, to improve the production and the glucose conversion rate in BNC fermentation. And the BNC fibers became thicker, with better thermal stability, higher crystallinity, and higher degree of polymerization (DPv). These findings lay a solid foundation for future large-scale fermentation production of BNC using bioreactors.

Abstract Optimizing the efficiency of definitive endoderm (DE) differentiation is necessary for the generation of diverse organ-like structures. In this study, we used the small molecule inhibitor saracatinib (SAR) to enhance DE differentiation of human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells. SAR significantly improved DE differentiation efficiency at low concentrations. The interaction between SAR and Focal Adhesion Kinase (FAK) was explored through RNA-seq and molecular docking simulations, which further supported the inhibition of DE differentiation by p-FAK overexpression in SAR-treated cells. In addition, we found that SAR inhibited the nuclear translocation of Yes-associated protein (YAP), a downstream effector of FAK, which promoted DE differentiation. Moreover, the addition of SAR enabled a significant reduction in activin A (AA) from 50 to 10 ng/mL without compromising DE differentiation efficiency. For induction of the pancreatic lineage, 10 ng/ml AA combined with SAR at the DE differentiation stage yielded a comparative number of PDX1+/NKX6.1+ pancreatic progenitor cells to those obtained by 50 ng/ml AA treatment. Our study highlights SAR as a potential modulator that facilitates the cost-effective generation of DE cells and provides insight into the orchestration of cell fate determination. Graphical Abstract

Abstract Background Ticks are blood-feeding significant arthropods that can harbour various microorganisms, including pathogens that pose health risks to humans and animals. Tick-symbiont microorganisms are believed to influence tick development, but the intricate interactions between these microbes and the relationships between different tick-borne microorganisms remain largely unexplored. Results Based on 111 tick pool samples presenting questing and engorged statuses including 752 questing tick and 1083 engorged tick from cattle and goats, which were collected in two types of geographic landscape (semi-desert and alpine meadow). We observed significant variations in the composition of tick-borne microorganisms across different environments and blood-engorgement statuses, with a pronounced divergence in symbionts compared to environmental bacteria. Metabolic predictions revealed over 90 differential pathways for tick-borne microorganisms in distinct environments and more than 80 metabolic variations in response to varying blood engorgement statuses. Interestingly, nine pathways were identified, particularly related to chorismate synthesis and carbohydrate metabolism. Moreover, microbial network relationships within tick-borne microorganism groups were highly distinct across different environments and blood-engorgement statuses. The microbial network relationships of symbionts involve some pathogenic and environmental microorganisms. Regression modelling highlighted positive correlations between the Coxiella symbiont and related pathogens, while some environmental bacteria showed strong negative correlations with Coxiella abundance. We also identified commensal bacteria/pathogens in bacterial cooccurrence patterns. Furthermore, we tested pathogenic microorganisms of each tick sample analysis revealed that 86.36% (1601/1855) of the tick samples carried one or more pathogenic microorganisms, The total carrier rate of bacterial pathogens was 43.77% ((812/1855). Most blood samples carried at least one pathogenic microorganism. The pathogens carried by the ticks have both genus and species diversity, and Rickettsia species are the most abundant pathogens among all pathogens. Conclusion Our findings underscore that the bacterial pattern of ticks is dynamic and unstable, which is influenced by the environment factors and tick developmental characteristics.

Chinese plum (Prunus salicina Lindl.) originates from China and makes a large contribution to the global production of plums. The P. salicina ‘Wushancuili’ has a green coloration and high fruit quality and is economically important in eliminating poverty and protecting ecology in the Yangtze River Three Gorges Reservoir. However, rain-induced cracking (rain-cracking, literally skin cracking caused by rain) is a limitation to ‘Wushancuili’ fruit production and causes severe losses. This study reported a high-quality ‘Wushancuili’ genome assembly consisting of a 302.17-Mb sequence with eight pseudo-chromosomes and a contig N50 of 23.59 Mb through the combination of Illumina sequencing, Pacific Biosciences HiFi Ⅲ sequencing, and high-throughput chromosome conformation capture technology. A total of 25 109 protein-coding genes are predicted and 54.17% of the genome is composed of repetitive sequences. ‘Wushancuili’ underwent a remarkable orthoselection during evolution. Gene identification revealed that loss-of-function in four core MYB10 genes results in the anthocyanin deficiency and absence of red color, revealing the green coloration due to the residual high chlorophyll in fruit skin. Besides, the occurrence of cracking is assumed to be closely associated with cell wall modification and frequently rain-induced pathogen enrichment through transcriptomic analysis. The loss of MYB10 genes might render fruit more susceptible to pathogen-mediated cracking by weakening the epidermal strength and reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging. Our findings provided fundamental knowledge regarding fruit coloration and rain-cracking and will facilitate genetic improvement and cultivation management in Chinese plums.

Abstract Background Mechanical softening of the glial scar region regulates axonal regeneration to impede neurological recovery in central nervous system (CNS) injury. Microglia, a crucial cellular component of the glial scar, facilitate neuronal survival and neurological recovery after spinal cord injury (SCI). However, the critical mechanical characterization of injured spinal cord that harmonizes neuroprotective function of microglia remains poorly understood. Methods Spinal cord tissue stiffness was assessed using atomic force microscopy (AFM) in a mouse model of crush injury. Pharmacological depletion of microglia using PLX5622 was used to explore the effect of microglia on mechanical characterization. Conditional knockout of Fascin-1 in microglia (Fascin-1 CKO) alone or in combination with inhibition of myosin activity was performed to delve into relevant mechanisms of microglia regulating mechanical signal. Immunofluorescence staining was performed to evaluate the related protein levels, inflammatory cells, and neuron survival after SCI. The Basso mouse scale score was calculated to assess functional recovery. Results Spinal cord tissue significantly softens after SCI. Microglia depletion or Fascin-1 knockout in microglia limits tissue softening and alters mechanical characterization, which leads to increased tissue pathology and impaired functional recovery. Mechanistically, Fascin-1 inhibits myosin activation to promote microglial migration and control mechanical characterization after SCI. Conclusions We reveal that Fascin-1 limits myosin activity to regulate mechanical characterization after SCI, and this mechanical signal should be considered in future approaches for the treatment of CNS diseases.

The accurate simulation of regional-scale winter wheat yield is important for national food security and the balance of grain supply and demand in China. Presently, most remote sensing process models use the “biomass×harvest index (HI)” method to simulate regional-scale winter wheat yield. However, spatiotemporal differences in HI contribute to inaccuracies in yield simulation at the regional scale. Time-series dry matter partition coefficients (Fr) can dynamically reflect the dry matter partition of winter wheat. In this study, Fr equations were fitted for each organ of winter wheat using site-scale data. These equations were then coupled into a process-based and remote sensing-driven crop yield model for wheat (PRYM-Wheat) to improve the regional simulation of winter wheat yield over the North China Plain (NCP). The improved PRYM-Wheat model integrated with the fitted Fr equations (PRYM-Wheat-Fr) was validated using data obtained from provincial yearbooks. A 3-year (2000–2002) averaged validation showed that PRYM-Wheat-Fr had a higher coefficient of determination (R²=0.55) and lower root mean square error (RMSE=0.94 t ha–1) than PRYM-Wheat with a stable HI (abbreviated as PRYM-Wheat-HI), which had R² and RMSE values of 0.30 and 1.62 t ha–1, respectively. The PRYM-Wheat-Fr model also performed better than PRYM-Wheat-HI for simulating yield in verification years (2013–2015). In conclusion, the PRYM-Wheat-Fr model exhibited a better accuracy than the original PRYM-Wheat model, making it a useful tool for the simulation of regional winter wheat yield.

ABSTRACT Sugarcane yellow leaf virus (SCYLV) can reduce sugarcane productivity. A novel detection system based on reverse transcription-multienzyme isothermal rapid amplification (RT-MIRA) combined with CRISPR-Cas12a, named RT-MIRA-CRISPR-Cas12a, was developed. This innovative approach employs crude leaf extract directly as the reaction template, streamlining the extraction process for simplicity and speed. Combining RT-MIRA and CRISPR-Cas12a in one reaction tube increases the ease of operation while reducing the risk of aerosol contamination. In addition, it exhibits sensitivity equivalent to qPCR, boasting a lower detection limit of 25 copies. Remarkably, the entire process, from sample extraction to reaction completion, requires only 52–57 minutes, just a thermostat water bath. The result can be observed and judged by the naked eye.IMPORTANCESugarcane yellow leaf disease (SCYLD) is an important viral disease that affects sugarcane yield. There is an urgent need for rapid, sensitive, and stable detection methods. The reverse transcription-multienzyme isothermal rapid amplification combined with CRISPR-Cas12a (RT-MIRA-CRISPR-Cas12a) method established in this study has good specificity and high sensitivity. In addition, the system showed good compatibility and stability with the crude leaf extract, as shown by the fact that the crude extract of the positive sample could still be stably detected after 1 week when placed at 4°C. RT-MIRA-CRISPR-Cas12a, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) were used to detect SCYLV on 33 sugarcane leaf samples collected from the field, and it was found that the three methods reached consistent conclusions. This Cas12a-based detection method proves highly suitable for the rapid on-site detection of the SCYLV.

Modern medical understanding suggests that hyperproliferative skin diseases (HSDs) are complex syndromes characterized by localized hypertrophy or hyperplasia and infiltration of inflammatory cells. Various treatments, including systemic and topical pharmacotherapy, laser interventions, photodynamic therapy, and surgery, have been proposed for managing HSDs. However, challenges such as wound healing and recurrence after laser treatment have hindered the effectiveness of laser therapy. To overcome these challenges, we conducted a study combining laser therapy with cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) for the treatment of HSDs. Seven patients with different forms of HSDs, who had not responded well to conventional treatments, were enrolled in the study. These HSDs included cases of erythroplasia of Queyrat, pyoderma gangrenosum, keloids and hypertrophic scars, cellulitis, cutaneous lichen planus, and verruca vulgaris. Laser therapy was performed to remove the hyperplastic skin lesions, followed immediately by daily CAP treatment. The results were promising, with all patients successfully treated and no recurrence observed during the follow-up periods. The combined application of CAP and laser therapy proved to be an effective and complementary strategy for managing HSDs. This innovative approach provide evidence for addressing the limitation of laser therapy by utilizing CAP to promote wound healing and mitigate inflammatory responses.Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR2300069993).

BackgroundAfter spinal cord injury (SCI), lipid metabolism dysregulation at the lesion site exacerbates secondary damage. The transcription factor pu.1 has been implicated as a negative regulator of multiple lipid metabolism-related genes and pathways. However, its role in post-SCI lipid metabolism remains unclear.MethodsWe employed a mouse model of complete T10 crush SCI. Non-targeted metabolomics and bioinformatics analysis were utilized to investigate lipid metabolism at the lesion site after SCI. Polarized light imaging was used to evaluate the presence of cholesterol crystals. DB1976, a specific inhibitor of pu.1, was administered to examine its impact on local lipid metabolism after SCI. Immunofluorescence staining was performed to assess pu.1 expression and distribution, and to evaluate lipid droplet formation, astrocytic/fibrotic scar development, inflammatory cell infiltration, and tight junctions within the vasculature.ResultsNon-targeted metabolomics and bioinformatics analyses revealed significant alterations in lipid metabolism components after SCI. Moreover, immunofluorescence staining and polarized light imaging demonstrated substantial BODIPY+ lipid droplet accumulation and persistent cholesterol crystal formation at the lesion site after SCI. Increased pu.1 expression was predominantly observed within macrophages/microglia at the lesion site after SCI. DB1976 treatment significantly mitigated lipid droplet accumulation and cholesterol crystal formation, reduced CD68+ macrophage/microglial infiltration, and attenuated fibrotic scar formation. Moreover, DB1976 treatment promoted the expression of claudin-5 and zonula occludens-1 between vascular endothelial cells and enhanced GFAP+ glial connectivity after SCI.ConclusionOur study reveals a significant correlation between lipid metabolism disturbance post-SCI and transcription factor pu.1 upregulation, specifically in macrophages/microglia at the lesion site. Thus, targeted pu.1 modulation has the potential to yield promising results by substantially diminishing the deposition of lipid metabolism byproducts at the lesion site and fostering a milieu conducive to SCI repair.

BackgroundThe objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the clinical application effects of transnasal high flow nasal cannula compared to other conventional modalities for oxygen therapy devices in patients undergoing bronchoscopy.MethodsA comprehensive literature search was conducted in multiple English databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library, to collect relevant studies on the application of high flow nasal cannula in patients undergoing bronchoscopy, and conducted a meta-analysis utilizing RevMan 5.4 software, following the predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria.ResultsA total of 12 studies meeting the inclusion criteria were included, involving 1,631 patients (HFNC group: n = 811, other oxygen therapy group: n = 820). The meta-analysis results demonstrated that HFNC significantly reduced the incidence of hypoxemia and improved the minimum oxygen saturation compared to conventional oxygen therapy (RR = 0.27, 95% CI: 0.18–0.41, p

Abstract Purpose In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the bandage contact lens (BCLs) in the treatment of dry eye disease (DED) after complicated cataract or/and intraocular lens (IOL) surgery. Methods In this retrospective, single-centered, observational study, we collected data from 69 patients who underwent complicated cataract or/and IOL surgery. Of these, 35 cases wore their own BCLs immediately after the operation, while the other 34 cases did not have their own BCLs and were instead covered with gauze. The Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) questionnaire, slit-lamp microscope examination, keratograph analysis, and Schirmer I test were measured at baseline, 1 week and 1 month postoperatively. Results In the BCL group, the score of the OSDI questionnaire was significantly decreased at 1 week and 1 month postoperatively compared with baseline levels (P = 0.000, collectively). Moreover, the fluorescein staining score of the BCL group was remarkably decreased 1-week and 1-month postoperatively compared with the non-BCL group (P = 0.000 and P = 0.000, respectively). Furthermore, the redness score of the BCL group was also better compared with the non-BCL group at 1 week and 1 month postoperatively (P = 0.014 and P = 0.004, respectively). Conclusions Complicated cataract or/and IOL surgery would intensify the DED. Early application of BCLs postoperatively improved patients’ comfort and alleviated dry eye-related symptoms and signs. Furthermore, this mechanism might involve the acceleration of corneal epithelial healing, the alleviation of ocular stress response and the stabilization of the tear film. Trial registration Trial registration ClinicalTrials, NCT04120389. Registered 10 October 2019—retrospectively registered.

Abstract The landscape of traditional villages reflects specific geographical and cultural environments, with distinct regional cultural and living space characteristics. An exploration of the deep genetic core of traditional villages from the perspective of “cultural landscape genes” can help reveal the mechanism of historical evolution of regional settlements and provide a reference for maintaining the regional characteristics of traditional villages today. This study focuses on 23 nationally recognized traditional villages along the northern roads of the ancient Qin-Shu roads. The “landscape-gene” theory, centred on both artificial construction and cultural inheritance in traditional villages, was used to develop a method for identifying and extracting the northern roads of the ancient Qin-Shu roads landscape genes in “architecture culture”. Then, a genome of the cultural landscape of traditional villages was constructed. Six different dimensions with identified genes, including environmental layout, landscape, architectural landscape, material culture, behavioural culture and mentality culture, were analysed. The results showed the following: (1) the traditional villages on the northern roads of the ancient Qin–Shu roads have 8 genes in the constructed landscape, including ‘location layout mainly along mountains and ancient roads, supplemented by water and pictographic patterns’, ‘orderly, flexible and changeable spatial form’, ‘natural landscape surrounded by mountains and rivers, culture and scenery blend’, ‘water in the south and drought in the north’, ‘agricultural main forest auxiliary production landscape’, ‘single north section, complex south section courtyard layout’, ‘load-bearing diversity, good utilization of the gable building structure’, ‘combination of earth, stone and bamboo, recycled and reused building materials’ and ‘atmospheric regularity, exquisite and gorgeous building decoration’. (2) There were six cultural landscape genes, such as ‘strong personalities and regional customs’, ‘preference for flavourful and spicy foods, wine and meat’, which characterized material culture. ‘Romantic history and thrifty values’, and a ‘combination of elegance and vulgarity’ characterized behavioural culture. The mentality of the region was characterized by ‘Xiangtu and Shengxing’, ‘open and inclusive values’, and ‘varied’ beliefs. (3) Philosophical and cosmological underpinnings such as the ‘unity of heaven and humanity’ and the ‘yin-yang and five-element’ theory guide human settlements in traditional villages along the northern roads. This study aims to clarify the characteristics of cultural landscapes in traditional villages through the analysis of cultural landscape genes and a resulting mapped genome, which will provide a scientific basis for the sustainable development of cultural landscapes in traditional villages. Cultural genes can protect the inheritance of regional culture and provide a new perspective for the study of traditional villages along linear cultural heritage zones.

Xanthoceras sorbifolium Bunge oil exhibits favorable characteristics such as excellent low temperature fluidity, high flash point, and degradability. However, it also suffers from drawbacks including low kinematic viscosity at low temperatures and significant loss of kinematic viscosity at high temperatures. In view of these characteristics of X. sorbifolium oil, it was modified in this work with a combination of ethyl cellulose (EC), montmorillonite (MMT), and cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAB). The effects of temperature, time, and additive content on the rheological properties of lubricating oil were studied. The kinematic viscosity of the prepared lubricating oil reached up to 433 mm2/s at 40 °C and 51.1 mm2/s at 100 °C. The coagulation point could be reduced to -25 °C, the friction coefficient was 0.026, and the average wear spot diameter was 0.81 mm, The anti-friction performance was enhanced, and the anti-wear performance decreased somewhat. The prepared lubricating oil had the characteristics of high kinematic viscosity at high temperature and excellent rheological properties at low temperature. It also met the energy and environmental application requirements of a green, environmentally friendly, and biodegradable sustainable development strategy. This study greatly broadens the application range of lubricating oil.

As the scale of underground rail transit construction in urban areas continues to expand, the tunnel construction environment has become progressively more complex. In recent years, an emerging artificial intelligence (AI) method in the civil engineering field, called the Random Forest (RF) method, has been widely used. In the construction of Zhengzhou Metro Line 7, the RF method was used to predict and control the vertical displacement of the bridge pier pile foundation. Such displacement can indicate the deformation of the structure, particularly under long-term utilization and strenuous circumstances that could sink or lift the pier body. Moreover, the vertical displacement of the bridge pier can affect the stiffness and bearing capacity of the bridge, thus impacting driving safety and the bridge's service life. Therefore, the vertical displacement of bridge piers has become the main prediction and control indicator for research. In the Zhengzhou Metro Line 7 tunnel, the tunnel continuously passes through 78 bridge pier foundations, among which the pile foundations of 4 key bridge piers are less than 0.5 times the tunnel diameter with a clear distance planned for the tunnel. However, limitations such as surface traffic and environmental conditions prevent the reinforcement of the bridge pier foundation in advance. Therefore, determining and setting sensible shield construction parameters is crucial to effectively controlling the vertical displacement of these essential bridge piers. This project can serve as a model for future endeavors. The study combines Random Forest with Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm (PSO) to upgrade the technology of shield tunneling through Pier 2, introduces the Bayesian principle for statistical analysis, and optimizes various main construction variables. Random Forest is an ensemble learning method based on decision trees, which has high flexibility and predictive performance. It can automatically filter out important features from a large number of input features, thereby establishing an effective prediction model. The primary research objective is to enhance tunnel construction by accurately predicting and controlling the vertical displacement of pier foundations. To achieve this objective, the study utilizes the PSO to optimize the parameters and structure of the RF model. By doing this, the model's ability to predict the pier's vertical displacement accuracy can be improved. By combining these two methods, the accuracy of the prediction model and the optimization effect of construction parameters can be improved. In addition, the reliability of the model is further improved by using the Bayesian principle for statistical analysis. The paper compares and evaluates the engineering data objectively, presenting the evaluation index and feature selection method. This approach is innovative and purposeful, aiming to enhance the predictive ability, construction efficiency, and quality. This method can provide support for decision-making and optimization of engineering projects and promote sustainable development of the project. After the construction was completed, the model was established, and the results were predicted. The actual engineering measurement data of Pier Two was taken for comparison with it. Two parameters, Root-Mean-Square Error (RMSE) and Linear Curvature (R2), were introduced to evaluate the prediction results, and the results were subjected to Correlation-based Feature Selection (CFS). The test sets for the downstream and the upstream tunnel were extracted, in which R2 for the three extracted comparisons of the downstream were 0.83, 0.82, and 0.89, respectively, while R2 for the upstream was 0.88, 0.86, and 0.86, respectively. From this, it can be seen that the optimized model has good predictive performance. In the construction process of other projects, the model can be used to predict the vertical displacement of bridge piers, which has real-time performance in preventing accidents.

PurposeThis study aimed to systematically evaluate the clinical effects of using transnasal high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) and conventional oxygen therapy (COT) in patients undergoing gastrointestinal endoscopy.MethodsA comprehensive literature search was conducted from 2004 to April 2024 to collect relevant studies on the application of HFNC in patients undergoing gastrointestinal endoscopy. Multiple Chinese and English databases, including China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang Data, Web of Science, PubMed, and Cochrane Library, were searched systematically for randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Two researchers independently screened the literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias in the included studies. RevMan 5.4 software was utilized for conducting the network meta-analysis.ResultsA total of 12 RCTs involving 3,726 patients were included. Meta-analysis results showed that HFNC reduced the incidence of hypoxemia and improved the minimum oxygen saturation (SpO2) compared with COT [odds ratio (OR) = 0.39, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.29–0.53], [mean difference (MD) = 4.07, 95% CI: 3.14–5.01], and the difference was statistically significant. However, the baseline SpO2 levels and incidence of hypercapnia were not statistically significantly different between the HFNC and COT groups [MD = −0.21, 95% CI: −0.49–0.07]; [OR = 1.43, 95% CI: 0.95–2.15]. In terms of procedure time, the difference between HFNC and COT was not statistically significant, and subgroup analyses were performed for the different types of studies, with standard deviation in the gastroscopy group (MD = 0.09, 95% CI: −0.07–0.24) and the endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography group (MD = 0.36, 95% CI: −0.50–1.23). The results demonstrated a significant reduction in the adoption of airway interventions in the HFNC group compared to the COT group (OR = 0.16, 95% CI: 0.05–0.53), with a statistically significant difference; this result was consistent with those of the included studies.ConclusionThe application of HFNC improves the incidence of hypoxemia, enhances oxygenation, and reduces airway interventions during gastrointestinal endoscopy. However, HFNC does not significantly affect baseline SpO2, hypercapnia, or procedure time. The limitations of this study must be acknowledged, and further high-quality studies should be conducted to validate these findings.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) has emerged as the foremost cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) globally. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress plays a critical role in DN progression. Triterpenoid saponin from Aralia taibaiensis (sAT) has been reported to possess anti-diabetic and anti-oxidant effects. The aim of this study was to examine the influence of sAT on DN treatment and elucidate potential underlying mechanisms. A high-fat diet (HFD) and Streptozotocin (STZ) were employed to induce DN in male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats which were subsequently treated with varying concentrations of sAT for 8 weeks. Our findings reveal that different doses of sAT significantly mitigated hyperglycemia, reduced urinary albumin excretion, and decreased plasma creatinine and blood urea nitrogen levels in DN rats. Moreover, sAT administration improved body weight, alleviated renal fibrosis and histopathological changes in the diabetic kidneys. Notably, sAT treatment partially restored increased Bax expression and decreased Bcl-2 expression. Additionally, sAT inhibited ER stress-related proteins, including GRP78, p-PERK, ATF4 and CHOP in kidneys of DN rats. These results suggest that sAT ameliorated experimental diabetic nephropathy, at least in part, through ER stress pathway. These findings provide a scientific basis for the potential development of sAT as a therapeutic agent for DN treatment.

ObjectivesExplore the relationship between adult attachment and depression among college students, and the mechanism of perfectionism.Study designQuestionnaire survey.MethodsA questionnaire survey was conducted nationwide, totally 313 valid questionnaires were received. The survey collected information such as adult attachment (Adult Attachment Scale, AAS), depression (The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, CESD), and perfectionism (The Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, FMPS). Then used SPSS26.0 to analyze the collected data.ResultsThere were significant differences in perfectionism and depression between secure attachment and insecure attachment in college students. Perfectionism plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between the close-depend composite dimension, anxiety dimension of attachment and depression.ConclusionThe closeness-dependence dimension of attachment significantly and negatively predicted perfectionism and depression; the anxiety dimension of attachment significantly and positively predicted perfectionism and depression; and perfectionism partially mediated the effect of both the closeness-dependence dimension of attachment on depression and the anxiety dimension of attachment on depression. Attachment can directly affect college students’ depression, but also indirectly through perfectionism.

ObjectiveTo assess the impact of different treatment strategies and risk factors on the prognosis of patients with extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma, nasal type (ENKTL) in a single medical center.Methods and analysisThe clinical features of 266 patients with ENKTL were retrospectively analyzed, among whom those in stages I and II received sandwich therapy, while those in stages III and IV underwent chemotherapy plus autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The Kaplan–Meier curves, univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were employed for survival and prognosis analysis. Statistical significance was set at P

AbstractContext Styrax is used for prevention and treatment of cerebrovascular diseases. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear.Objective To elucidate styrax’s anti-ischemic stroke protective effects and underlying mechanisms.Materials and methods An ischemic-stroke rat model was established based on middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to the following groups (n = 10) and administered intragastrically once a day for 7 consecutive days: sham, model, nimodipine (24 mg/kg), styrax-L (0.1 g/kg), styrax-M (0.2 g/kg) and styrax-H (0.4 g/kg). Neurological function, biochemical assessment, and ultra-performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q/TOF-MS)-based serum metabonomics were used to elucidate styrax’s cerebral protective effects and mechanisms. Pearson correlation and western blot analyses were performed to verify.Results The addition of 0.4 g/kg styrax significantly reduced cerebral infarct volume and neurobehavioral abnormality score. Different doses of styrax also decrease MDA, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β, and increase SOD and GSH-Px in ischemic-stroke rats (p

Wireless Power Transfer (WPT) has become a key technology to extend network lifetime in Wireless Rechargeable Sensor Networks (WRSNs). The traditional omnidirectional recharging method has a wider range of energy radiation, but it inevitably results in more energy waste. By contrast, the directional recharging mode enables most of the energy to be focused in a predetermined direction that achieves higher recharging efficiency. However, the MC (Mobile Charger) in this mode can only supply energy to a few nodes in each direction. Thus, how to set the location of staying points of the MC, its service sequence and its charging orientation are all important issues related to the benefit of energy replenishment. To address these problems, we propose a Fuzzy Logic-based Directional Charging (FLDC) scheme for Wireless Rechargeable Sensor Networks. Firstly, the network is divided into adjacent regular hexagonal grids which are exactly the charging regions for the MC. Then, with the help of a double-layer fuzzy logic system, a priority of nodes and grids is obtained that dynamically determines the trajectory of the MC during each round of service, i.e., the charging sequence. Next, the location of the MC’s staying points is optimized to minimize the sum of charging distances between MC and nodes in the same grid. Finally, the discretized charging directions of the MC at each staying point are adjusted to further improve the charging efficiency. Simulation results show that FLDC performs well in both the charging benefit of nodes and the energy efficiency of the MC.

This paper examines the role of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) in the global surveillance and management of pathogens. Since the creation of WOAH, one of its missions has been to ensure transparency of the global animal health situation. WOAH established a Working Group on Wildlife in 1994 to inform and advise WOAH Members, leadership, and technical teams on issues relating to wildlife health. In 2020 it conducted a consultation with its Members before developing a Wildlife Health Framework to improve global health and wildlife conservation. WOAH Members report diseases in wildlife, but detections are dependent on the surveillance systems in place. As an example of data collected in the most recent years (2019–2023), 154 countries have reported 68,862,973 cases, through alert messages and weekly updates, for 84 diseases. One-hundred and fifty countries have reported 68,672,115 cases in domestic animals and 95 countries have reported 190,858 cases in wild animals. These figures illustrate the performance of the organization in collecting data on wildlife, and provide an indication of the difference in completeness of data collected in domestic animals and wildlife. There are several challenges to wildlife disease surveillance and real figures remain unknown; they depend on the existence, quality and sensitivity of national surveillance. A WOAH-led One Health approach with cross-sectoral collaboration is needed to improve surveillance sensitivity, address the challenges and help safeguard wildlife population health and biodiversity conservation.

BackgroundPrevious investigations have demonstrated a correlation between the composition of gut microbiota and the development of thyroid cancer (TC). Nonetheless, there was no consensus on the causal effect of gut microbiota composition on TC risk. Therefore, the present study aimed to perform a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis to explore potential causal associations between gut microbiota and TC risk.MethodsUtilizing data from the MiBioGen consortium’s genome-wide association studies (GWAS) meta-analysis involving a sample size of 18,340, we identified instrumental variables for 211 gut microbiota taxa. The summary statistics for TC was from relevant large-scale GWAS conducted by the FinnGen consortium. In the first stage, the Inverse-variance weighted (IVW) method was used as the primary estimate method, and the stability of estimations was tested by a battery of sensitivity analyses. In the second stage, a reverse MR analysis was applied to determine whether reverse causality existed.ResultsAccording to the IVW method, we identified 9 genetically predicted gut microbiota that were causally correlated with TC risk. Among them, we observed a positive causal effect of Family Christensenellaceae (OR = 1.664, 95% CI: 1.103–2.511, P = 0.015), Family Victivallaceae (OR = 1.268, 95% CI: 1.009–1.594, P = 0.042), Genus Methanobrevibacter (OR = 1.505, 95% CI: 1.049–2.159, P = 0.027), Genus Ruminococcus2 (OR = 1.846, 95% CI: 1.261–2.704, P = 0.002), Genus Subdoligranulum (OR = 1.907, 95% CI: 1.165–3.121, P = 0.010), Phylum Verrucomicrobia (OR = 1.309, 95% CI: 1.027–1.668, P = 0.029) on TC risk, while Class Betaproteobacteria (OR = 0.522, 95% CI: 0.310–0.879, P = 0.015), Family Family XI (OR = 0.753, 95% CI: 0.577–0.983, P = 0.037), Genus Sutterella (OR = 0.596, 95% CI: 0.381–0.933, P = 0.024) might be correlated with a decreased risk of TC. Subsequently, various sensitivity analyses indicated no heterogeneity, directional pleiotropy or outliers. In addition, reverse analysis demonstrated a negative causal effect of TC risk on the abundance of the gut microbiota (Genus Ruminococcus2, OR = 0.947, 95% CI: 0.907–0.989, P = 0.014).ConclusionGenetic evidence suggested that bidirectional causal associations of specific bacteria taxa and the risk of TC, highlighting the association of the “gut-thyroid” axis. Further exploration of the potential microbiota-related mechanisms might have profound implications for public health in terms of the early prevention and treatment of TC.

Background: Based on real-world medical data, the artificial neural network model was used to predict the risk factors of linezolid-induced thrombocytopenia to provide a reference for better clinical use of this drug and achieve the timely prevention of adverse reactions.Methods: The artificial neural network algorithm was used to construct the prediction model of the risk factors of linezolid-induced thrombocytopenia and further evaluate the effectiveness of the artificial neural network model compared with the traditional Logistic regression model.Results: A total of 1,837 patients receiving linezolid treatment in a hospital in Xi ‘an, Shaanxi Province from 1 January 2011 to 1 January 2021 were recruited. According to the exclusion criteria, 1,273 cases that did not meet the requirements of the study were excluded. A total of 564 valid cases were included in the study, with 89 (15.78%) having thrombocytopenia. The prediction accuracy of the artificial neural network model was 96.32%, and the AUROC was 0.944, which was significantly higher than that of the Logistic regression model, which was 86.14%, and the AUROC was 0.796. In the artificial neural network model, urea, platelet baseline value and serum albumin were among the top three important risk factors.Conclusion: The predictive performance of the artificial neural network model is better than that of the traditional Logistic regression model, and it can well predict the risk factors of linezolid-induced thrombocytopenia.

Objective: “Metabolism affects function” is the consensus of researchers at present. It has potential clinical application value to study the effects of regulating glutamine (Gln) metabolism on diabetes physiology or pathology. Our research aimed to summarize the latest research progress, frontier hot topics and future development trends in this field from the perspective of scientometrics. Methods: Relevant literatures and reviews were obtained from the Web of Science (WoS) between January 1, 2001 and May 31, 2022. An online analysis platform of bibliometrics, CiteSpace, and VOS viewer software were used to generate visual knowledge network graphs, including publication countries, institutions and authors partnership analysis, co-occurrence analysis, co-citation analysis, as well as citations and keywords burst detection to acquire research trends and hotspots. Results: Our results showed that a total of 945 publications in the WoS database met the analysis requirements, with articles being the main type. The overall characteristics showed an increasing trend in the number of publications and citations. The United States was leading the way in this research and was a hub for aggregating collaborations across countries. Vanderbilt University delivered high-quality impact with the most published articles. DeBerardinis, RJ in this field was the most representative author and his main research contents were Gln metabolism and mitochondrial glutaminolysis. Significantly, there was a relative lack of collaboration between institutions and authors. In addition, “type 2 diabetes”, “glutamine”, “metabolism”, “gene expression” and “metabolomics” were the keywords categories with high frequency in co-citation references and co-occurrence cluster keywords. Analysis of popular keywords burst detection showed that “branched chain”, “oxidative phosphorylation”, “kinase”, “insulin sensitivity”, “tca cycle”, “magnetic resonance spectroscopy” and “flux analysis” were new research directions and emerging methods to explore the link between Gln metabolism and diabetes. Overall, exploring Gln metabolism showed a gradual upward trend in the field of diabetes. Conclusion: This comprehensive scientometric study identified the general outlook for the field and provided valuable guidance for ongoing research. Strategies to regulate Gln metabolism hold promise as a novel target to treat diabetes, as well as integration and intersection of multidisciplinary provides cooperation strategies and technical guarantees for the development of this field.

Network platforms have ushered in a novel propagation model for feminist discourses. The emergence of oriental feminism in society has led to gender-based public opinions surrounding public events becoming a trending topic on Chinese social media. This study uses the 2022 Tangshan restaurant attack as a case study, an incident that sparked widespread discussions across China in 2022. The research gathered 366,602 network communication nodes within a week and examined the communication networks of three types of content nodes (information, opinion, and appeasement) using the complex network modeling method. The findings revealed that all three types of information communication networks exhibit an apparent scale-free characteristic, and the "key minority" of nodes significantly affects information communication. Information-type and appeasement-type Weibo display notable similarities in the quantity and degree distribution of nodes within the communication networks and in the information decay rate. Moreover, authoritative information issuers have become the primary catalyst for information propagation. Conversely, opinion-type Weibo has the widest communication network diameter and features a high degree of participation, multilevel propagation, and a slow decay rate. This indicates that the interaction between opinion leaders and netizens has enhanced the depth and breadth of information diffusion for opinion-type Weibo.

Objective: To develop a rapid, efficient and visual method for the detection of bacterial colistin resistance gene mcr-1, so as to provide the basis and convenience for the development of its detection at the grassroots level. Methods: Using recombinase polymerase amplification combined with a lateral flow dipstick (RPA-LFD) assay, supplemented by a hand-held colloidal gold reader. According to the conserved sequence of the mcr-1 gene, a pair of specific RPA primers were designed and synthesized. Through the optimization of the reaction conditions and system, as well as the specificity test, sensitivity test, simulated food sample test and actual sample test, the RPA-LFD assay for visual and quantitative detection of bacterial colistin resistance gene mcr-1 was successfully established. Results: When the primer concentration was 400 nmol/L and the primer ratio was 1:1, the optimal reaction conditions of this method are Mg2+ concentration 14.0 mmol/L, reaction temperature 37 ℃ and reaction time 20 min. The sensitivity was good, the standard curve equation was y=0.117x+0.051, the quantification limit was 101~108 copies/μL, and the detection limit was 101 copies/μL, which was an order of magnitude lower than the PCR method and the detection result of the simulated sample was consistent with the PCR method. Carrying status of colistin resistance gene mcr-1 in each 15 pork samples, chicken samples, pig farm environmental samples, broiler farm environmental samples, Escherichia coli isolates and Enterobacter campylobacter isolates were analyzed by the established RPA-LFD assay. The detection rate of positive samples by RPA-LFD assay was consistent with that of conventional PCR method, and a total of 9 mcr-1 gene positive samples were detected. RPA-LFD quantitative analysis showed that the concentration of mcr-1 gene in positive samples was between 4.5×102~8.6×104 copies/µL. Conclition: The RPA-LFD detection method of the bacterial colistin resistance gene mcr-1 established in this study had strong specificity, high sensitivity, and simple operation, and could be widely used in grassroots inspections.

Abstract Background This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of high-dose methotrexate (HD-MTX) versus teniposide (TEN) in patients with newly diagnosed immunocompetent primary central nervous system lymphomas (PCNSLs). Methods The study included immunocompetent, adult patients with newly diagnosed PCNSL at 22 centers in China from 2007 to 2016. The patients received HD-MTX or TEN as first-line induction therapy. The objective response rate, progression-free survival, and overall survival were analyzed for each patient cohort. Results A total of 96 patients were eligible: 62 received HD-MTX, while 34 received teniposide. The overall response rate was 73.2% and 72.7% in the MTX and the TEN cohorts, respectively (P = 0.627). The median progression-free survival was 28.4 months [95% confidence interval (CI): 13.7–51.2] in the MTX cohort and 24.3 months (95% CI: 16.6–32.1) in the TEN cohort (P = 0.75). The median overall survival was 31 months (95% CI: 26.8–35.2) in the MTX cohort and 32 months (95% CI: 27.6–36.4) in the TEN cohort (P = 0.77). The incidence of any grade of coagulopathy/deep-vein thrombosis and gastrointestinal disorders was significantly higher in the MTX cohort than in the TEN cohort; no significant difference was found in the incidence of other adverse events between the two cohorts. Conclusions This was the first multicenter study using TEN as the main agent compared with HD-MTX in newly diagnosed primary CNS lymphoma. The TEN-based regimen was non-inferior to the HD-MTX-based regimen with similar overall responses. Classification of evidence This study provided Class III evidence that the teniposide-based regimen was non-inferior to high-dose methotrexate − based regimen with similar overall responses and long-time survival in immunocompetent patients with PCNSL.

Highlights A multi-scale structural carbon fiber-based composite was synthesized through the assembly of one-dimensional materials. The construction of multiple conductive networks makes the composite have a strong EMI shielding performance of 73.9 dB. The reasonable design endows the composite with excellent positive and passive thermal management properties.

Formability of copper sheet is generally affected by microstructure and crystallographic texture. In this study, the effects of two different microstructure and textures on the deep drawability of C10200 copper sheets were analyzed by the optical microscopy (OM), the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and the electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD) technique. The results show that the first rolling reduction rate before intermediate annealing decreased, and the strong {001} (Cube) texture was formed after final annealing. When the second rolling reduction decreased, Cube texture was weak and final annealing textures dominated by {123} (S), {112} (Copper) and {110} (Brass) components were obtained. The texture difference had a great influence on the deep drawing quality. Strong Cube texture was unfavorable for deep drawing because of the more heterogeneous strain distribution resulted from the remarkable planar anisotropy, while the coexistence of S, Copper, Brass, and {110} (Goss) texture components was conducive to improving the average r-values, which was beneficial to the deep drawability.

With the widespread deployment of surveillance cameras, automatic violence detection has attracted extensive attention from industry and academia. Though researchers have made great progress in video-based violence detection, it is still a challenging task to realize accurate violence detection in real time, especially with limited computing resources. In this paper, we propose a lightweight 2D CNN-based violence detection scheme, which takes advantage of frame-grouping to reduce data redundancy greatly and, meanwhile, enable short-term temporal modeling. In particular, a lightweight 2D CNN, named improved EfficientNet-B0, is constructed by integrating our proposed bi-directional long-term motion attention (Bi-LTMA) module and a temporal shift module (TSM) into the original EfficientNet-B0. The Bi-LTMA takes both spatial and channel dimensions into consideration and captures motion features in both forward and backward directions. The TSM is adopted to realize temporal feature interaction. Moreover, an auxiliary classifier is designed and employed to improve the classification capability and generalization performance of the proposed model. Experiment results demonstrate that the computational cost of the proposed model is 1.21 GFLOPS. Moreover, the proposed scheme achieves accuracies of 100%, 98.5%, 91.67%, and 90.25% on the Movie Fight dataset, the Hockey Fight dataset, the Surveillance Camera dataset, and the RWF-2000 dataset, respectively.

Commercial oxygen-free copper sheets were cold-rolled with reduction rates ranging from 20% to 87% and annealed at 400, 500 and 600 °C. The microstructure and texture evolution during the cold-rolling and annealing processes were studied using optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD). The results show that the deformation textures of {123} (S), {112} (Copper) and {110} (Brass) were continuously enhanced with the increase in cold-rolling reduction. The orientations along the α-oriented fiber converged towards Brass, and the orientation density of β fiber obviously increased when the rolling reduction exceeded 60%. The recrystallization texture was significantly affected by the cold-rolling reduction. After 60% cold-rolling reduction, Copper and S texture components gradually decreased, and the {011} recrystallization texture component formed with the increase in annealing temperature. After 87% cold-rolling reduction, a strong Cube texture formed, and other textures were inhibited with the increase in annealing temperature. The strong Brass and S deformation texture was conducive to the formation of a strong Cube annealing texture. The density of the annealing twin boundary decreased with the increase in annealing temperature, and more annealing twin boundaries formed in the oxygen-free copper sheets with the increase in cold-rolling reduction.

As a prerequisite and foundation for studying the evolution mechanism of river channels, an in-depth understanding of the cross-sectional morphology adjustment is required. As a starting point, it is crucial to systematically summarize and generalize the research findings on channel morphological adjustment obtained to date, particularly in the context of the significant changes in the water and sediment conditions of large rivers that have occurred worldwide. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the research findings on the three following aspects of the Lower Yellow River: the transverse distribution of overbank flow velocity, the transverse distribution of suspended sediment concentration, and the morphological adjustment of the river cross-section. There are various equations available to predict the lateral depth–average flow velocity distribution. These equations are classified into the two following categories: empirical and theoretical formulas. Theoretical formulas are obtained through consideration of the cross-sectional morphology, accounting for inertial force terms caused by secondary flow, and momentum transfer between the main channel and its floodplain. Similarly, empirical equations and theoretical formulas for sediment concentration transverse distribution are also summarized, given the different influencing factors and assumptions. We also discuss the morphological adjustment of river cross-sections based on the analysis of measured data, mathematical model calculation, and the physical model test. In particular, we propose the idea of revealing channel cross-section morphology evolution mechanisms from the theoretical level of water and sediment movement and distribution. This review aims to enhance understanding of overbank flow, sediment transport, and channel morphology in the Lower Yellow River and may also serve to some extent as a reference for the evolution and management of channels in other rivers.

Abstract Background Transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion is an effective surgical treatment of intervertebral disk herniation. However, its clinical efficacy for adjacent segment disk degeneration (ASDD) after hybrid bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral cortical screw (pedicle screw at L4 and cortical bone trajectory screw at L5) and hybrid bilateral cortical screw - bilateral pedicle screw (bilateral cortical screw at L4 and bilateral pedicle screw at L5) remains undiscovered. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of the hybrid bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral cortical screw and hybrid bilateral cortical screw - bilateral pedicle screw on the adjacent segment via a 3-dimensional (3D) finite element (FE) analysis. Methods Four human cadaveric lumbar spine specimens were provided by the anatomy teaching and research department of Xinjiang Medical University. Four finite element models of L1-S1 lumbar spine segment were generated. For each of these, four lumbar transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion models at L4-L5 segment with the following instruments were created: hybrid bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral cortical screw, bilateral cortical screw - bilateral cortical screw (bilateral cortical screw at both L4 and L5 segments), bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral pedicle screw (bilateral pedicle screw at both L4 and L5 segments), and hybrid bilateral cortical screw - bilateral pedicle screw. A 400-N compressive load with 7.5 Nm moments was applied for the simulation of flexion, extension, lateral bending, and rotation. The range of motion of L3-L4 and L5-S1 segments and von Mises stress of the intervertebral disc at the adjacent segment were compared. Results Hybrid bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral cortical screw has the lowest range of motion at L3-L4 segment in flexion, extension, and lateral bending, and the highest disc stress in all motions, while the range of motion at L5-S1 segment and disc stress was lower than bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral pedicle screw in flexion, extension, and lateral bending, and higher than bilateral cortical screw - bilateral cortical screw in all motions. The range of motion of hybrid bilateral cortical screw - bilateral pedicle screw at L3-L4 segment was lower than bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral pedicle screw and higher than bilateral cortical screw - bilateral cortical screw in flexion, extension, and lateral bending, and the range of motion at L5-S1 segment was higher than bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral pedicle screw in flexion, lateral bending, and axial rotation. The disc stress at L3-L4 segment was lowest and more dispersed in all motions, and the disc stress at L5-S1 segment was higher than bilateral pedicle screw - bilateral pedicle screw in lateral bending and axial rotation, but more dispersed. Conclusion Hybrid bilateral cortical screw - bilateral pedicle screw decreases the impact on adjacent segments after spinal fusion, reduces the iatrogenic injury to the paravertebral tissues, and provides throughout decompression of the lateral recess.

Abstract Objective The present study aims to evaluate the predictive ability of estimated maximum oxygen consumption (e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max) and 6-min walk distance (6MWD) for postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) in adult surgical patients undergoing major upper abdominal surgery. Method This study was conducted by collecting data prospectively from a single center. The two predictive variables in the study were defined as 6MWD and e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max. Patients scheduled for elective major upper abdominal surgery from March 2019 to May 2021 were included. The 6MWD was measured for all patients before surgery. e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max was calculated using the regression model of Burr, which uses 6MWD, age, gender, weight, and resting heart rate (HR) to predict aerobic fitness. The patients were categorized into PPC and non-PPC group. The sensitivity, specificity, and optimum cutoff values for 6MWD and e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max were calculated to predict PPCs. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 6MWD or e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max was constructed and compared using the Z test. The primary outcome measure was the AUC of 6MWD and e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max in predicting PPCs. In addition, the net reclassification index (NRI) was calculated to assess ability of e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max compared with 6MWT in predicting PPCs. Results A total of 308 patients were included 71/308 developed PPCs. Patients unable to complete the 6-min walk test (6MWT) due to contraindications or restrictions, or those taking beta-blockers, were excluded. The optimum cutoff point for 6MWD in predicting PPCs was 372.5 m with a sensitivity of 63.4% and specificity of 79.3%. The optimum cutoff point for e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max was 30.8 ml/kg/min with a sensitivity of 91.6% and specificity of 79.3%. The AUC for 6MWD in predicting PPCs was 0.758 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.694–0.822), and the AUC for e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max was 0.912 (95%CI: 0.875–0.949). A significantly increased AUC was observed in e $$\dot{V}$$ V ˙ O2max compared to 6MWD in predicting PPCs (P

Against the global trend of increasing multiple participants involvement in protected areas management, the Chinese government has implemented a series of stricter policies since 2015. Tourism is an important alternative livelihood for farmers near protected areas. Based on survey data from 1,028 households in six protected areas, this study uses the propensity score matching (PSM) method to empirically examine the change effects of poverty reduction and conservation of farmers engaged in tourism under the influence of protected areas tourism management policies. The PSM method reduces sample self-selection bias and improves the accuracy of research conclusions. The findings reveal that irrespective of whether the areas are subjected to regulatory policies or not, tourism operations are significantly and inversely correlated with households’ multidimensional poverty index, and are notably positively correlated with their comprehensive conservation index. Consequently, tourism operations exhibit substantial poverty alleviation and protective effects. However, the current suite of protected areas control policies has curtailed the sustainable growth of tourism within these areas, resulting in 9.64% decrease in poverty alleviation effects and 10.33% decrease in protective effects derived from tourism operations. Despite their restrictive impacts on tourism, these policies have yielded some positive outcomes, fostering social equity within protected areas and catalyzing the transition from traditional livelihoods. Drawing upon these empirical findings, this study proposes recommendations and directions for fine-tuning China’s existing regulatory policies pertaining to tourism in protected areas.

Background: Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) is an effective treatment for various skin diseases. Plasma-activated solution (PAS) is an indirect method of CAP treatment that produces biological effects similar to those of direct treatment with plasma devices. The anticancer and bacteriostatic effects of PAS have been demonstrated in vitro experiments; however, on the basis of the lack of toxicological studies on PAS, its effects on living mammals when administered by subcutaneous injection is poorly known. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of PAS on local skin tissue cells, blood system, heart, liver, lungs, kidneys and other vital organs of the rat when injected subcutaneously. Methods: PAS was prepared by CAP irradiation of phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). PBS and different PBS groups (CAP irradiation for 1, 3, or 5 min) were injected subcutaneously once every 48 h. The rats were euthanized immediately after 10 cycles of therapy. Results: No adverse effects were observed during the entire period of the experiment. Histopathological examination of organs and tissues revealed no structural changes. Moreover, no obvious structural changes were observed in skin tissue. DNA damage and cancerous proliferative changes were not detected in skin tissue treated with PAS. Subsequently, RNA sequencing and western blotting were performed. The results showed that PAS increased the expression of growth factors like transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA). These results might be directly linked to the role of PAS in stimulating TGF-β receptor signaling pathway and angiogenesis. Conclusion: The results showed that multiple subcutaneous injections of PAS did not show significant toxic side effects on local skin tissues and some vital organs in rats, providing a scientific basis to support the future treatment of skin diseases with PAS.

Abstract The involvement of endothelial barrier function in abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) and its upstream regulators remains unknown. Single‐cell RNA sequencing shows that disrupted endothelial focal junction is an early (3 days) and persistent (28 days) event during Angiotensin II (Ang II)‐induced AAA progression. Consistently, mRNA sequencing on human aortic dissection tissues confirmed downregulated expression of endothelial barrier‐related genes. Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2), a negative regulator of AAA, is found to be upregulated in the intimal media of AAA samples, leading to testing its role in early‐stage AAA. ALDH2 knockdown/knockout specifically in endothelial cells (ECs) significantly increases expression of EC barrier markers related to focal adhesion and tight junction, restores endothelial barrier integrity, and suppresses early aortic dilation of AAA (7 and 14 days post‐Ang II). Mechanically, ELK3 acts as an ALDH2 downstream regulator for endothelial barrier function preservation. At the molecular level, ALDH2 directly binds to LIN28B, a regulator of ELK3 mRNA stability, hindering LIN28B binding to ELK3 mRNA, thereby depressing ELK3 expression and impairing endothelial barrier function. Therefore, preserving vascular endothelial barrier integrity via ALDH2‐specific knockdown in ECs holds therapeutic potential in the early management of AAAs.

BackgroundMost coronary artery disease (CAD) patients with a normal left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) experience a poor prognosis. Single-photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT)–myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI), a routine examination, is useful in assessing risk and predicting major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) in populations with suspected or known CAD. SPECT/CT is a “one-stop shop” examination, which, through non-contrast CT, can produce attenuation correction for MPI and obtain information on coronary artery calcium (CAC) and epicardial fat volume (EFV) simultaneously. This study aims to investigate the predictive and incremental value of EFV to MPI for MACE in Chinese populations with suspected or known CAD with a normal LVEF.Methods and resultsWe retrospectively studied 290 suspected or known CAD inpatients with a normal LVEF who underwent SPECT/CT between February 2014 and December 2017. Abnormal MPI was defined as a summed stress score ≥4 or summed difference score ≥2. EFV and CAC were calculated using non-contrast CT. The end date of follow-ups was in February 2022. The follow-up information was obtained from the clinical case notes of the patients or reviews of telephone calls. MACE was defined as cardiac death, late coronary revascularization ≥3 months after MPI, non-fatal myocardial infarction, angina-related rehospitalization, heart failure, and stroke. During the 76-month follow-up, the event rate was 32.0% (93/290). Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses concluded that high EFV (>108.3 cm3) [hazard ratio (HR): 3.3, 95% CI: 2.1–5.2, P

Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a leading cause of hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the function and mechanism of the effect of HBV on host protein ubiquitination remain largely unknown. We aimed at characterizing whether and how HBV promotes self-replication by affecting host protein ubiquitination. In this study, we identified UBXN7, a novel inhibitor for nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signaling, was degraded via interaction with HBV X protein (HBx) to activate NF-κB signaling and autophagy, thereby affecting HBV replication. The expression of UBXN7 was analyzed by Western blot and quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction in HBV-transfected hepatoma cells and HBV-infected primary human hepatocytes (PHHs). The effects of UBXN7 on HBV replication were analyzed by using in vitro and in vivo assays, including stable isotope labeling by amino acids in cell culture (SILAC) analysis. Changes in HBV replication and the associated molecular mechanisms were analyzed in hepatoma cell lines. SILAC analyses showed that the ubiquitination of UBXN7 was significantly increased in HepG2.2.15 cells compared with control cells. After HBV infection, HBx protein interacted with UBXN7 to promote K48-linked ubiquitination of UBXN7 at K99, leading to UBXN7 degradation. On the other hand, UBXN7 interacted with the ULK domain of IκB kinase β through its ubiquitin-associating domain to facilitate its degradation. This in turn reduced NF-κB signaling, leading to reduced autophagy and consequently decreased HBV replication.

Mucosal vaccines are highly attractive due to high patient compliance and their suitability for mass immunizations. However, all currently licensed mucosal vaccines are composed of attenuated/inactive whole microbes, which are associated with a variety of safety concerns. In contrast, modern subunit vaccines use minimal pathogenic components (antigens) that are safe but typically poorly immunogenic when delivered via mucosal administration. In this study, we demonstrated the utility of various functional polymer-based nanostructures as vaccine carriers. A Group A Streptococcus (GAS)-derived peptide antigen (PJ8) was selected in light of the recent global spread of invasive GAS infection. The vaccine candidates were prepared by either conjugation or physical mixing of PJ8 with rod-, sphere-, worm-, and tadpole-shaped polymeric nanoparticles. The roles of nanoparticle shape and antigen conjugation in vaccine immunogenicity were demonstrated through the comparison of three distinct immunization pathways (subcutaneous, intranasal, and oral). No additional adjuvant or carrier was required to induce bactericidal immune responses even upon oral vaccine administration.

Haemaphysalis longicornis (the longhorned tick), the predominant tick species in China, serves as a vector for a variety of pathogens, and is capable of transmitting the tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), the causative agent of tick-borne encephalitis. However, it is unclear how these ticks transmit TBEV. Langat virus (LGTV), which has a reduced pathogenicity in humans, has been used as a surrogate for TBEV. In this study, we aimed to investigate the vector competence of H. longicornis to transmit LGTV and demonstrate the efficient acquisition and transmission of LGTV between this tick species and mice. LGTV localization was detected in several tick tissues, such as the midgut, salivary glands, and synganglion, using quantitative PCR and immunohistochemical staining with a polyclonal antibody targeting the LGTV envelope protein. We demonstrated the horizontal transmission of LGTV to different developmental stages within the same generation but did not see evidence of vertical transmission. It was interesting to note that we observed mice acting as a bridge, facilitating the transmission of LGTV to neighboring naïve ticks during blood feeding. In conclusion, the virus–vector–host model employed in this study provides valuable insights into the replication and transmission of LGTV throughout its life cycle.

Multifunctional nanoparticles are of significant importance for synergistic multimodal antitumor activity. Herein, zinc oxide (ZnO) was used as pH-sensitive nanoparticles for loading the chemotherapy agent doxorubicin (DOX) and the photosensitizer agent indocyanine green (ICG), and biocompatible low-molecular-weight heparin (LMHP) was used as the gatekeepers for synergistic photothermal therapy/photodynamic therapy/chemotherapy/immunotherapy. ZnO was decomposed into cytotoxic Zn2+ ions, leading to a tumor-specific release of ICG and DOX. ZnO simultaneously produced oxygen (O2) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) for photodynamic therapy (PDT). The released ICG under laser irradiation produced ROS for PDT and raised the tumor temperature for photothermal therapy (PTT). The released DOX directly caused tumor cell death for chemotherapy. Both DOX and ICG also induced immunogenic cell death (ICD) for immunotherapy. The in vivo and in vitro results presented a superior inhibition of tumor progression, metastasis and recurrence. Therefore, this study could provide an efficient approach for designing multifunctional nanoparticles for synergistic multimodal antitumor therapy.