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Non-line-of-sight (NLOS) imaging is a novel radar sensing technology that enables the reconstruction of hidden targets. However, it may suffer from synthetic aperture length reduction caused by ambient occlusion. In this study, a complex total variation (CTV) regularization-based sparse reconstruction method for NLOS three-dimensional (3-D) imaging by millimeter-wave (mmW) radar, named RM-CSTV method, is proposed to improve imaging quality and speed. In this scheme, the NLOS imaging model is first introduced, and associated geometric constraints for NLOS objects are established. Second, an effective high-resolution NLOS imaging method based on the range migration (RM) kernel and complex sparse joint total variation constraint, dubbed as modified RM-CSTV, is proposed for 3-D high-resolution imaging with edge information. The experiments with multi-type NLOS targets show that the proposed RM-CSTV method can provide effective and high-resolution NLOS targets 3-D imaging.

In this study, two types of Cu/Nb multilayer composite sheets with individual layer thicknesses of 11.11 μm and 0.35 μm, respectively, were first prepared and then tested by micro-blanking. The results show that the sheets of 0.35 μm exhibit higher ultimate tensile and shear strengths, and greater elongation, compared to those with an individual layer thickness of 11.11 μm. The sheet with an individual layer thickness of 11.11 μm achieves optimal blanking accuracy at a relative blanking clearance of 7%. Additionally, when the relative blanking clearance is 3%, it exhibits a significant proportion of smooth areas on the shear surface. Investigation of the shear surface at different ratios of punch stroke to sheet thickness (h/t) reveals that the Cu/Nb multilayer composite sheet experiences significant extrusion and bending during the micro-blanking process. Furthermore, the laminated structure exhibits remarkable continuity and deformation mobility, delaying crack formation. This study provides theoretical support for the plastic micro-blanking technology of multilayer composite.

Objective To screen the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) loci and related genes that are significantly associated with essential hypertension among Chinese Tajiks by using exon sequencing and to reveal the unique essential hypertension related gene polymorphisms of the high-altitude minority. Methods A total of 62 Chinese Tajiks (26 in the control group and 36 in the hypertension group) from Tashkurgan County (in the east of Pamir Plateau), Kashgar, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, in July 2017 were recruited in this study. Their venous blood were collected for DNA extraction to make exon sequencing. According to the significant differences in allele frequency distribution between the 2 groups, the SNP loci associated with essential hypertension were screened out. Finally, after the currently known hypertension-related genes were removed, enrichment analysis was carried out on the remaining genes to find out the most significant enrichment pathway, and the obtained top 5 significantly related SNP loci were further analyzed with genetic association analysis. Results A total of 6 739 SNP loci with statistically significant differences in allele frequency distribution between the 2 groups were screened out, and these loci were located on 3 646 genes in total. The remaining genes were significantly enriched in the regulation of GTPase activity pathway after the removal of currently known hypertension-related genes[log10(P)=-4.06]. Among them, the significantly related SNP loci and their genes were rs17261772(RAB3GAP1), rs7319836(LRCH1), and rs868188(ARHGEF11). Conclusion Regulation of GTPase activity pathway may be involved in the progression of essential hypertension among Chinese Tajiks. The mutation of rs17261772, rs7319836 and rs868188 on this pathway may have an important influence on the risk of hypertension to the high-altitude minority.

Objective To determine the effects of diffuse oxygen inhalation on hypoxia stress, blood oxygen saturation and human metabolic process in migrants in plateau, and to illustrate the anti-hypoxia effect of a new oxygen supply mode and its possible molecular mechanism. Methods Ten workers who had migrated to a plateau at an altitude of 3 540 m for more than 1 year were recruited as the subjects. They were asked to breathe oxygen in a newly developed accommodation cabin with diffuse oxygen supply for 3 consecutive days, 2 h per day. Their physiological indexes, blood routine indexes and plasma metabolic profiles before and after oxygen intake were measured and compared. Results ① The oxygen concentration was (22.85±0.36)% on the first day, (22.52±0.76)% on the second day and (22.57±1.05)% on the third day during the diffusion oxygen inhalation in the accommodation cabin. ②The oxygen saturation level and pulse rate were significantly increased after oxygen inhalation in the subjects (P < 0.01), but there was no significant change in blood pressure (P>0.05). ③ There were 44 metabolites significantly changed (VIP>1, P < 0.05). Among them, 18 metabolites were identified in the positive ion mode and 27 in the negative ion mode. And 4 major metabolic pathways also had significant changes [impact>0.05, -log10(P)>1.3]. Conclusion Oxygen inhalation via diffuse oxygen supply can effectively improve the capacity of cardiopulmonary oxygen supply, and alleviate the impact of hypoxia and cold environment on human metabolism.

Background/Aim. High-altitude pulmonary oedema (HAPE), which normally occurs at altitudes higher than 3,000 m, is a potentially fatal disease due to hypoxia. The role of mitochondrial genomes in determining an individual's susceptibility to HAPE has not been determined yet. However, a number of genetic polymorphisms have recently been found to be overrepresented in HAPE patients. The majority of published genome-wide association studies have investigated only a small number of top-ranking single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)/genes by the overview of nuclear DNA and considered each of the identified SNPs/genes in-dependently. Little research has been conducted on mitochondrial genomes in relapsing HAPE patients by genome-wide association studies. Methods. To identify biological pathways important to HAPE occurrence, we examined approximately 500,000 SNPs genome-wide from 10 unrelated cases of relapsing HAPE and we compared the SNPs in these cases with those in the Chinese in Beijing, China population (45 controls) to discover the association between genotypes and HAPE susceptibility among the mitochondrial function-related genes. We used the FUMA platform to expand those SNPs to selected candidate SNPs. Results. A total of 369 candidate SNPs, 4 lead SNPs, 4 genomic risk loci and 5 mapped genes were obtained. The 7 mapped genes were ADAMTS9-AS2, NEK1, CLCN3, C4orf27(HPF1), RP11-219J21.2, ANKRD26 and YME1L1. Conclusion. This study confirms the association of ADAMTS9-AS2, NEK1, CLCN3, C4orf27(HPF1), RP11- 219J21.2, ANKRD26 and YME1L1 with HAPE, which may provide future targets for the treatment of this disease.

Apart from traditional optimization techniques, e.g. progressive optimality algorithm (POA), modern intelligence algorithms, like genetic algorithms, differential evolution have been widely used to solve optimization problems. This paper deals with comparative analysis of POA, GA and DE and their applications in a reservoir operation problem. The results show that both GA and DES are feasible to reservoir operation optimization, but they display different features. GA and DE have many parameters and are difficult in determination of these parameter values. For simple problems with mall number of decision variables, GA and DE are better than POA when adopting appropriate parameter values and constraint handling methods. But for complex problem with large number of variables, POA combined with simplex method are much superior to GA and DE in time-assuming and quality of optimal solutions. This study helps to select proper optimization algorithms and parameter values in reservoir operation.