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BackgroundAllergy to iodine contrast agents has long been a contraindication for balloon pulmonary angioplasty (BPA). We report the successful zero-contrast BPA procedure of a patient with inoperable chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) and severe iodine allergy using real-time fusion of computed tomography angiography (CTA) with x-ray fluoroscopy.Case presentationA 62-year-old woman with CTEPH who developed a severe allergic reaction after the first BPA procedure. The second BPA procedure was successfully performed using the fusion of previous pulmonary artery CTA images and real-time fluoroscopy images. Pulmonary artery pressure showed a significant decrease after performing BPA twice. As of 6-month follow-up, the patient has recovered well.Conclusion3 Dimensions (3D) reconstruction of CTA images and real-time fluoroscopic image fusion navigation technology provide a new option for BPA treatment in patients allergic to iodine contrast agents.

AbstractCOPD is an inflammatory lung disease that limits airflow and remodels the pulmonary vascular system. This study delves into the therapeutic potential and mechanistic underpinnings of Panax notoginseng Saponins (PNS) in alleviating inflammation and pulmonary vascular remodeling in a COPD rat model. Symmap and ETCM databases provided Panax notoginseng-related target genes, and the CTD and DisGeNET databases provided COPD-related genes. Intersection genes were subjected to protein-protein interaction analysis and pathway enrichment to identify downstream pathways. A COPD rat model was established, with groups receiving varying doses of PNS and a Roxithromycin control. The pathological changes in lung tissue and vasculature were examined using histological staining, while molecular alterations were explored through ELISA, RT-PCR, and Western blot. Network pharmacology research suggested PNS may affect the TLR4/NF-κB pathway linked to COPD development. The study revealed that, in contrast to the control group, the COPD model exhibited a significant increase in inflammatory markers and pathway components such as TLR4, NF-κB, HIF-1α, VEGF, ICAM-1, SELE mRNA, and serum TNF-α, IL-8, and IL-1β. Treatment with PNS notably decreased these markers and mitigated inflammation around the bronchi and vessels. Taken together, the study underscores the potential of PNS in reducing lung inflammation and vascular remodeling in COPD rats, primarily via modulation of the TLR4/NF-κB/HIF-1α/VEGF pathway. This research offers valuable insights for developing new therapeutic strategies for managing and preventing COPD.

Abstract Orthogonality among channels is a canonical basis for optical multiplexing featured with division multiplexing, which substantially reduce the complexity of signal post-processing in demultiplexing. However, it inevitably imposes an upper limit of capacity for multiplexing. Herein, we report on non-orthogonal optical multiplexing over a multimode fiber (MMF) leveraged by a deep neural network, termed speckle light field retrieval network (SLRnet), where it can learn the complicated mapping relation between multiple non-orthogonal input light field encoded with information and their corresponding single intensity output. As a proof-of-principle experimental demonstration, it is shown that the SLRnet can effectively solve the ill-posed problem of non-orthogonal optical multiplexing over an MMF, where multiple non-orthogonal input signals mediated by the same polarization, wavelength and spatial position can be explicitly retrieved utilizing a single-shot speckle output with fidelity as high as ~ 98%. Our results resemble an important step for harnessing non-orthogonal channels for high capacity optical multiplexing.

Abstract. Background:. Risk assessment and treatment stratification for three-vessel coronary disease (TVD) remain challenging. This study aimed to investigate the prognostic value of left atrial volume index (LAVI) with the Synergy Between Percutaneous Coronary Intervention with Taxus and Cardiac Surgery (SYNTAX) score II, and its association with the long-term prognosis after three strategies (percutaneous coronary intervention [PCI], coronary artery bypass grafting [CABG], and medical therapy [MT]) in patients with TVD. Methods:. This study was a post hoc analysis of a large, prospective cohort of patients with TVD in China, that aimed to determine the long-term outcomes after PCI, CABG, or optimal MT alone. A total of 8943 patients with TVD were consecutively enrolled between 2004 and 2011 at Fuwai Hospital. A total of 7818 patients with available baseline LAVI data were included in the study. Baseline, procedural, and follow-up data were collected. The primary endpoint was major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE), which was a composite of all-cause death, myocardial infarction (MI), and stroke. Secondary endpoints included all-cause death, cardiac death, MI, revascularization, and stroke. Long-term outcomes were evaluated among LAVI quartile groups. Results:. During a median follow-up of 6.6 years, a higher LAVI was strongly associated with increased risk of MACCE (Q3: hazard ratio [HR] 1.20, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.06-1.37, P = 0.005; Q4: HR 1.85, 95%CI 1.64-2.09, P

Abstract Purification of ethylene (C2H4) as the most extensive and output chemical, from complex multi-components is of great significance but highly challenging. Herein we demonstrate that precise pore structure tuning by controlling the network hydrogen bonds in two highly-related porous coordination networks can shift the efficient C2H4 separation function from C2H2/C2H4/C2H6 ternary mixture to CO2/C2H2/C2H4/C2H6 quaternary mixture system. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction revealed that the different amino groups on the triazolate ligands resulted in the change of the hydrogen bonding in the host network, which led to changes in the pore shape and pore chemistry. Gas adsorption isotherms, adsorption kinetics and gas-loaded crystal structure analysis indicated that the coordination network Zn-fa-atz (2) weakened the affinity for three C2 hydrocarbons synchronously including C2H4 but enhanced the CO2 adsorption due to the optimized CO2-host interaction and the faster CO2 diffusion, leading to effective C2H4 production from the CO2/C2H2/C2H4/C2H6 mixture in one step based on the experimental and simulated breakthrough data. Moreover, it can be shaped into spherical pellets with maintained porosity and separation performance.

Long-period fiber gratings (LPFGs) functioning as band-reject filters have played a pivotal role in the realm of optical communication. Since their initial documentation in 1996, LPFGs have witnessed rapid advancements in areas such as optical sensing, the equalization of optical amplification, and optical band-pass filtering, etc. The unique attributes of optical fiber-based grating, including their miniaturized size, cost-effectiveness, and immunity to electromagnetic interference, have contributed significantly to various sectors over the last two decades. This paper presents a review of the evolution of LPFGs, with a specific focus on the progression and current trends of mechanically induced long-period fiber gratings. It offers a concise overview of coupled-mode theory, the fabrication processes, the merits, and the limitations associated with mechanically induced LPFGs. Moreover, this review elucidates the application methodologies of mechanically induced LPFGs and anticipates future directions in this field.

This study was designed to evaluate the effects of BoxA on allergic rhinitis (AR). Ovalbumin (OVA)-induced AR mice model was employed and BoxA was administered to AR mice. AR symptoms, levels of cytokines and chemokines, and the expression of high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), TLR2, and TLR4 were measured. BoxA treatment significantly ameliorated AR symptoms, decreased level of histamine, OVA-specific antibodies, suppressed the infiltration of immune cells in nasal tissues, inhibited the expression of IL-4, IL-6, IL-5, TNF-α, IL-13, IL-17, IL-2 while promoting the expression of IL-10, suppressed the expression of HMGB1, TLR2, and TLR4 in AR mice. BoxA ameliorated allergic rhinitis in mice by inhibiting HMGB1.

We proposed and experimentally demonstrated a temperature-insensitive two-dimensional (2D) vector bending sensor on the basis of Fabry-Pérot Interferometer (FPI). The sensor is fabricated by splicing a section of silica capillary optical fiber (COF) between a trench-assisted seven-core fiber (SCF) and a multimode fiber (MMF). For orientation angle from 0° to 360°, the vector bending responses of six outer-core FPIs were studied at a step of 30°. From experimental results, the proposed sensor exhibits strong bending-direction dependence, and the maximum sensitivity is 200.6 pm/m−1. The curvature magnitude and orientation angle can be reconstructed through the dip wavelength shifts of any two off-diagonal outer-core FPIs. Hence, there are 12 various combinations from six outer-core FPIs, and the average value can be taken in multiple reconstructions to develop exact 2D vector bending measurement. For curvature magnitude and orientation angle reconstructed, the average relative error is 6.2% and 3.3%, respectively. In addition, experiments verified the proposed sensor is insensitive to ambient temperature changes.

A compact fiber cascaded structure for simultaneous measurement of curvature and temperature based on Fabry-Perot (FP) interference and anti-resonant (AR) mechanism is designed and experimentally demonstrated. The proposed structure is manufactured by sandwiching a segment of hollow core fiber (HCF) with large inner diameter and suitable length between two segments of single mode fibers (SMFs). Three sample sensors were fabricated with different HCF lengths. With theoretical analysis and experimental verifications, an HCF length of 1197 μm was selected for curvature and temperature experiments. The reflection fringes based on FP interference and transmission envelopes based on AR mechanism can be monitored to measure curvature and temperature variations at the same time. From experimental results, the sensitivities of curvature based on AR mechanism and FP interference are 0.2345 nm/m−1 and -0.1021 nm/m−1, and those of sensitivities of temperature are 0.0172 nm/°C and 0.0017 nm/°C, respectively. Therefore, the different responses in curvature and temperature based on two mechanisms enable the proposed structure to simultaneously measure curvature and temperature.

According to the description of 50 Gbit/s-Ethernet Passive Optical Network (EPON) in IEEE 802.3ca new standard, multi-wavelength dynamic bandwidth allocation is needed in network uplink. In this paper, long short-term memory neural network is used to predict the network traffic in order to improve the efficiency of bandwidth allocation. At the same time, considering the different requirements of network delay and bandwidth for different types of services in the network, different allocation schemes are adopted for different priority services. The simulation results show that the neural network prediction method can effectively reduce the delay of the network. When different allocation schemes are adopted for different services, the latency of high-priority services decreases, and the latency varies with the increase of network load. The algorithm proposed in this paper meets the requirements of high-priority service. Although the latency of low-priority service is increased compared with the previous method, it has little impact on the overall service quality of the network considering that low-priority service does not have high latency requirements.

A broadband microwave photonic mixer with tunable phase shift and supporting dispersion-induced power-fading-free fiber transmission is proposed and demonstrated based on a dual-polarization dual-parallel Mach–Zehnder modulator (DP-DPMZM). In this scheme, the intermediate-frequency (IF)/radiofrequency (RF) signal and the local oscillation (LO) signal are applied to the four sub-MZMs biased at their minimum transmission points via a power splitter and a 90° hybrid coupler, respectively. Through mutual beating between the IF/RF and the LO modulation sidebands in a high-speed photodetector at the remote site, high-efficiency frequency conversion is achieved. The dispersion-induced power fading over long-distance fiber transmission is eliminated through setting the biased-induced phase difference between the parent-MZMs in the two sub-DPMZMs of the DP-DPMZM to be π/2. In addition, the phase shift of the frequency-converted signal can be continuously tuned over 360° through synchronously adjusting the bias voltages of the parent-MZMs in the two sub-DPMZMs. The proposed scheme is experimentally demonstrated, where a microwave photonic mixer with a 6-dB operation bandwidth of 40 GHz and supporting dispersion-induced power-fading-free transmission over 20 km SMF is realized. Meanwhile, a continuously tunable phase shift over 360° in the frequency range of 0.1 GHz to 29.9 GHz is achieved, where the power variation during phase tuning is smaller than 4 dB.

CsPbBr3 nanoplatelets (NPLs) have gained significant attention as promising blue-emitting materials due to their large exciton binding energy and narrow full width at half-maximum (FWHM) of emission spectra. However, the weak binding ability of ligands to the surface of pure blue-emitting CsPbBr3 NPLs results in reduced optical properties and stability. Here, a ligand passivation strategy was developed for synthesizing monodisperse pure blue-emitting CsPbBr3 NPLs with enhanced photoluminescence (PL) by incorporating phenylalanine (PHE) ligands during NPLs growth. Due to the simultaneous interaction of the amino and carboxyl groups of PHE with the lead halide octahedron formed, the growth of CsPbBr3 NPLs in the vertical direction is inhibited, while the surface defects of the NPLs prepared are effectively passivated. As a result, combined with the post-treatment with oleamine bromide (OAmBr), the synthesized monodisperse CsPbBr3 NPLs show an emission peak centered at 461 nm with a narrow FWHM of 16 nm and a PLQY value of 98%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical oxygen demand (COD) emissions from the pulp and paper industry in China have declined continuously since the tighter COD discharge standards were implemented in 2008. Using firm-level data from 2003 to 2013, we investigate how China's pulp and paper firms would respond to the tighter COD discharge standards with a difference-in-differences design. We find that the tighter COD discharge standards have significant causal effects to induce the pulp and paper firms to reduce their COD emissions primarily through adopting cleaner production. However, the effectiveness of the tighter COD discharge standards depends on monitoring and enforcement activities as well as other regulations accompanying with the tighter COD discharge standards, all of which have become strengthened since China's 11th Five-Year-Plan (FYP, 2006–2010). While strengthened environmental regulations since the 11th FYP are from the top leadership of the Chinese government in order to deal with the increasing environmental degradation, the underlying driving force of the strengthened environmental regulations is from the household demand for better environmental quality as income increases. This study enriches literature not only on firms' responses to environmental regulations in developing countries but also on environmental regulations and technology adoption as well as environmental enforcement and compliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the theoretical study of polarization-maintaining multi-core few-mode fiber (PM MC-FMF) with a cladding diameter of 125 μm, in order to secure the maximum number of independent spatial channels arising in the single fiber. By taking both the inter-core crosstalk (XT) and the intra-core mode coupling into account, we identify that the PM five-core three-mode fiber is able to provide 19 parallel channels without the need of MIMO signal processing. After the numerical optimizations, the inter-core XT of MC-FMF is less than −30 dB/100km, due to the use of trench-assisted heterogeneous core distribution. Meanwhile, the effective refractive index (RI) differences among both spatial modes and polarization modes are more than 8 × 10−4 and 3.26 × 10−4 over the C+L band, respectively, due to the introduction of stress and geometric birefringence. Moreover, the cladding diameter of such MC-FMF is the same as that of the standard single-mode fiber (SSMF), leading to a convenient upgrading from the SSMF to the MC-FMF.

We propose a design of ring-core few-mode fiber (RC-FMF) with the erbium doping at the cladding region near the outer ring edge. After the parameter optimization of the RC-FM-EDF, the intensity overlapping difference between LP01 and LP11 modes can be minimized, leading to a DMG of 0.22 dB for the corresponding ring-core few-mode erbium-doped fiber amplifier (RC-FM-EDFA). Meanwhile, in comparison with uniform core doping design, the saturation input signal power of the RC-FM-EDFA can be enhanced from −17.7 dBm and −16 dBm to −8.5 dBm for LP01 and LP11 modes, respectively. Consequently, our proposed RC-FM-EDFA is characterized by both low differential modal gain (DMG) and the enhanced saturation input signal power. Those new characteristics of the RC-FM-EDFA is ideally desired for future agile networks.

Objective To analyse the association between on-treatment platelet reactivity (TPR) and long-term outcomes of patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and thrombocytopenia (TP) in the real world. Methods This prospective observational study enrolled patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) that underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Patients with ACS and TP under dual antiplatelet therapy were selected for analysis. The 2- and 5-year clinical outcomes were evaluated among patients with high on-treatment platelet reactivity (HTPR), low on-treatment platelet reactivity (LTPR) and normal on-treatment platelet reactivity (NTPR), as tested by thromboelastogram at baseline. Results A total of 10 724 patients with CAD that underwent PCI were identified. Of these, 474 patients with ACS and TP met the inclusion criteria: 124 (26.2%) with HTPR, 163 (34.4%) with LTPR and 187 (39.5%) with NTPR. The 5-year rates of all-cause death, major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events, cardiac death, myocardial infarction, revascularization, stroke and bleeding were not significantly different among the three groups. Multivariate Cox regression analysis demonstrated that patients with HTPR were not independently associated with any of the 5-year endpoints compared with patients with NTPR. Conclusions TPR at baseline was not independently associated with long-term outcomes in patients with ACS and TP that underwent PCI.

Abstract Background Increasing evidence has suggested that microRNAs (miRNAs) act as key post-transcriptional regulators in tumor progression. Previous studies have confirmed that miR-17-5p functions as an oncogene in multiple cancers and contributes to tumor progression. However, the role and biological functions of miR-17-5p in the development of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) still remain unknown. Methods qRT-PCR was used to detect miRNA and mRNA expression levels in LSCC tissues and cell lines. CCK-8 assay was used to measure cell viability and flow cytometry was performed to evaluate cell apoptosis. Western blot analysis was used to detect the protein levels of BAX, BCL-2, cleaved Caspase-3, PIK3R1 and AKT. Luciferase reporter assay was used to detect the effect of miR-17-5p on PIK3R1 expression. Xenograft animal model was used to test the effect of miR-17-5p on LSCC cell in vivo. Results In the present study, we found that miR-17-5p expression level was upregulated in LSCC tissues and cell lines. Depletion of miR-17-5p in LSCC cells significantly reduced cell proliferation and promoted cell apoptosis in vitro and in vivo. Mechanically, knockdown of miR-17-5p in LSCC cells inhibited BCL-2 expression while enhanced BAX and cleaved Caspase-3 protein expression. Moreover, depletion of miR-17-5p in LSCC cells suppressed AKT phosphorylation but did not influence PTEN expression. Importantly, miR-17-5p positively regulated PIK3R1 expression by directly binding to its 3′-untranslated region (UTR). Additionally, PIK3R1, which expression was downregulated in LSCC tissues and cell lines, was involved in LSCC cell survival by modulating the activation of AKT signal pathway. Dysregulation of miR-17-5p/PIK3R1 axis was participated in LSCC cell proliferation and apoptosis by inhibiting the activation of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Conclusions In conclusion, our study indicates that the miR-17-5p/PIK3R1 axis plays an essential role in the development of LSCC and provides a potential therapeutic target for LSCC treatment.

An image-rejected multi-band frequency down-conversion scheme is proposed and experimentally demonstrated based on photonic sampling. The multi-band radio-frequency (RF) signals to be processed are copied into two replicas in quadrature, which are then sampled by an ultra-short optical pulse train via a polarization-multiplexed modulator. After polarization demultiplexing and detection using a pair of low-speed photodetectors, the multi-band RF signals are simultaneously down-converted to the intermediate frequency (IF) band. The image components can be suppressed by quadrature coupling the two generated IF signals via an electrical 90° hybrid coupler (HC). In the experiment, multi-band RF signals in the frequency range of 6 GHz to 39 GHz are down-converted to the IF band below 4 GHz using a local oscillator (LO) signal at 8 GHz to generate the ultra-short optical pulse train. Image rejection is achieved in the digital domain using digital signal processing to compensate for the amplitude and phase mismatch between the two IF signals and to implement quadrature coupling. In addition, through using an electrical phase shifter, an electrical attenuator, and an electrical 90° HC to achieve quadrature coupling of the two IF signals, image-rejected multi-band frequency down-conversion is also verified in the analog domain.

We propose a mode switch based on hybrid-core vertical directional couplers with an embedded graphene electrode to realize the switching function with low power consumption. We designed the device with Norland Optical Adhesive (NOA) material as the guide wave cores and epoxy polymer material as cladding to achieve a thermo-optic switching for the E11, E21 and E12 modes, where monolayer graphene served as electrode heaters. The device, with a length of 21 mm, had extinction ratios (ERs) of 20.5 dB, 10.4 dB and 15.7 dB for the E21, E12 and E11 modes, respectively, over the C-band. The power consumptions of three electric heaters were reduced to only 3.19 mW, 3.09 mW and 2.97 mW, respectively, and the response times were less than 495 µs, 486 µs and 498 µs. Additionally, we applied such a device into a mode division multiplexing (MDM) transmission system to achieve an application of gain equalization of few-mode amplification among guided modes. The differential modal gain (DMG) could be optimized from 5.39 dB to 0.92 dB over the C-band, together with the characteristic of polarization insensitivity. The proposed mode switch can be further developed to switch or manipulate the attenuation of the arbitrary guided mode arising in the few-mode waveguide.

Spoof LSP (Localized Surface Plasmon) is a great advance in metamaterials, expanding the LSP resonance from optical band into microwave band. It will yield amazing outcomes by integration with flexible electronics, wearable electronics and nanophotonics. Here, an ultrathin and flexible spoof LSP prepeared by layer-by-layer (LBL) assembly of gold nanoparticles was demonstrated. The LSPR effects in microwave band was assembly-induced and the electric resonance component disappeared, which is significantly different from that of the spoof LSPs by bulk metal. It was thought and proved by simulation to be relative with the special micro-structure of the gold nanoparticle assemblies. Furthermore, the spoof LSP by gold nanoparticles was flexible and showed a strong relationship between the resonance frequency and the curvature degree of the spoof LSP, meaning that the LSP resonance can be modulated by the deformation of the spoof LSP. We believed that these results could deepen understanding about the spoof LSPs and widen the application in multiple areas.

Abstract Background Accumulating evidence shows that circular RNAs (circRNAs) plays vital roles in tumor progression. However, the biological functions of circRNAs in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) metastasis is still unclear. Methods qRT-PCR was used to detect circFLNA, miRNAs and FLNA mRNA expression. Transwell assay and western blot were performed to evaluate cell migration ability and to detect FLNA, MMP2 and MLK1 protein expression, respectively. RNA pull-down analysis was used to find the binding-miRNAs of circFLNA. Luciferase reporter assay was used to examine the effect of circFLNA on miRNAs and miR-486-3p on FLNA expression. Results In this study, we confirmed that a Filamin A (FLNA)-derived hsa_circ_0092012 known as circFLNA, was upregulated in LSCC, and the higher expression of circFLNA was correlated with LSCC lymph node metastasis. Increased circFLNA facilitates LSCC cell migration ability through upregulating FLNA and MMP2 protein expression. Mechanistically, we find that circFLNA sponges miR-486-3p in LSCC cells, relieving miR-486-3p-induced repression of FLNA which promotes LSCC cell migration. Accordingly, FLNA mRNA is overexpressed in LSCC tissues and a higher FLNA level is correlated with poor survival. Dysregulation of the circFLNA/miR-486-3p/FLNA regulatory pathway contributes to LSCC migration. Conclusions In summary, our study sheds light on the regulatory mechanism of circFLNA in LSCC migration via sponging miR‐486-3p, which downregulates the FLNA protein expression. Targeting circFLNA/miR-486-3p/FLAN axis provides a potential therapeutic target for aggressive LSCC.

The development and plasticity of central auditory system can be influenced by the change of peripheral neuronal activity. However, the molecular mechanism participating in the process remains elusive. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) binding with its functional receptor tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB) has multiple effects on neurons. Here we used a rat model of auditory deprivation by bilateral cochlear ablation, to investigate the changes in expression of BDNF and TrkB in the auditory cortex after auditory deprivation that occurred during the critical period for the development of central auditory system. Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and immunohistochemistry methods were adopted to detect the mRNA and protein expression levels of BDNF and TrkB in the auditory cortex at 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks after surgery, respectively. The change in the expression of BDNF and TrkB mRNAs and proteins followed similar trend. In the bilateral cochlear ablation groups, the BDNF-TrkB expression level initially decreased at 2 weeks but increased at 4 weeks followed by the reduction at 6 and 8 weeks after cochlear removal, as compared to the age-matched sham control groups. In conclusion, the BDNF-TrkB signaling is involved in the plasticity of auditory cortex in an activity-dependent manner.