Search

In this article, using the Fuk-Nagaev type inequality, we studied general strong law of large numbers for weighted sums of $ m $-widely acceptable ($ m $-WA, for short) random variables under sublinear expectation space with the integral condition $ \hat{\mathbb{E}} \left ( f^-\left ( \left | X \right | \right ) \right ) \le \mathrm{C}_\mathbb{V}\left ( f^-\left ( \left | X \right | \right ) \right )< \infty $ and $ Choquet $ integrals existence, respectively, where$ f\left ( x \right ) = x^{1/\beta }L\left ( x \right ) $for $ \beta > 1 $, $ L\left (x \right) > 0 $ $ \left(x > 0\right) $ was a monotonic nondecreasing slowly varying function, and $ f^-\left (x \right) $ was the inverse function of $ f\left(x\right) $. One of the results included the Kolmogorov-type strong law of large numbers and the partial Marcinkiewicz-type strong law of large numbers for $ m $-WA random variables under sublinear expectation space. Besides, we obtained almost surely convergence for weighted sums of $ m $-WA random variables under sublinear expectation space. These results improved the corresponding results of Ma and Wu under sublinear expectation space.

Mg-Gd-Zn based alloys have better creep resistance than other Mg alloys and attract more attention at elevated temperatures. However, the multiple alloying elements and various heat treatment conditions, combined with complex microstructural evolution during creep tests, bring great challenges in understanding and predicting creep behaviors. In this study, we proposed to predict the creep properties and reveal the creep mechanisms of Mg-Gd-Zn based alloys by machine learning. On the one hand, the minimum creep rates were effectively predicted by using a support vector regression model. The complex and nonmonotonic effects of test temperature, test stress, alloying elements, and heat treatment conditions on the creep properties were revealed. On the other hand, the creep stress exponents and creep activation energies were calculated by machine learning to analyze the variation of creep mechanisms, based on which the constitutive equations of Mg-Gd-Zn based alloys were obtained. This study introduces an efficient method to comprehend creep behaviors through machine learning, offering valuable insights for the future design and selection of Mg alloys.

Abstract This study aimed to explore the link between various forms of obesity, including body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC), and the risk of dyslipidemia among Chinese residents. We selected the study population through a multi-stage random sampling method from permanent residents aged 35 and older in Ganzhou. Obesity was categorized as non-obesity, general obesity, central obesity, or compound obesity according to established diagnostic criteria. We employed a logistic regression model to assess the relationship between different types of obesity and the risk of dyslipidemia. Additionally, we used the restricted cubic spline model to analyze the association between BMI, WC, and the risk of dyslipidemia. The study included 2030 residents aged 35 or older from Ganzhou, China. The prevalence of dyslipidemia was found to be 39.31%, with an age-standardized prevalence of 36.51%. The highest prevalence of dyslipidemia, 58.79%, was observed among those with compound obesity. After adjusting for confounding factors, we found that the risk of dyslipidemia in those with central and compound obesity was respectively 2.00 (95% CI 1.62–2.46) and 2.86 (95% CI 2.03–4.03) times higher than in the non-obese population. Moreover, the analysis using the restricted cubic spline model indicated a nearly linear association between BMI, WC, and the risk of dyslipidemia. The findings emphasize the significant prevalence of both dyslipidemia and obesity among adults aged 35 and above in Ganzhou, China. Notably, individuals with compound obesity are at a substantially increased risk of dyslipidemia. Therefore, it is crucial to prioritize the use of BMI and WC as screening and preventive measures for related health conditions.

Abstract. Background:. Ebstein's anomaly (EA) is a rare and complex congenital heart anomaly, and the effect of surgical treatment is not ideal. This study aims to introduce our experience in management strategies, surgical techniques, and operative indications for patients with Ebstein's anomaly. Methods:. A retrospective study of 258 operations was performed in 253 patients by the same cardiac surgeon in The First Hospital of Tsinghua University between March 2004 and January 2020. 32 patients had previously received cardiac surgery in other hospitals. The clinical data including diagnosis, operative indications, techniques, pathological changes, and survival rates were collected and analyzed. Results:. Anatomical correction was performed in 203 (78.7%) operations, 1½ ventricle repair in 38 (14.7%) operations, tricuspid valve repair only in four operations (1.6%), tricuspid valve replacement in ten (3.9%), total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) in two (0.8%), and Glenn operation in one operation (0.4%). Reoperation was performed in five patients (2.0%) during hospitalization. Among them, tricuspid valve replacement was performed in one patient, 1½ ventricle repair in two patients, and tricuspid valve annulus reinforcement in two patients. Five patients died with an early mortality rate of 2.0%. Complete atrioventricular conduction block was complicated in one patient (0.4%). A total of 244 patients was followed up (four in the 253 patients lost) with a duration of 3.0–168.0 (87.6 ± 38.4) months. Cardiac function of 244 patients improved significantly with mean New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class recovery from 3.5 to 1.1. The mean grade of tricuspid valve regurgitation improved from 3.6 to 1.5. Three late deaths (1.2%) occurred. The survival rates at five and ten years after surgery were 98.6% and 98.2%, respectively. Reoperation was performed in five patients (2.0%) during the follow-up period. Conclusion:. Based on our management strategies and operative principles and techniques, anatomical correction of EA is capable of achieving excellent long-term results, and low rates of TCPC, 1½ ventricle repair and valvular replacement.

Background: Coronary atherosclerotic heart disease (CHD) is highly prevalent in Northwest China; however, effective preventive measures are limited. This study aimed to develop metabolic risk models tailored for the primary and secondary prevention of CHD in Northwest China. Methods: This hospital-based cross-sectional study included 744 patients who underwent coronary angiography. Data on demographic characteristics, comorbidities, and serum biochemical indices of the participants were collected. Three machine learning algorithms—recursive feature elimination, random forest, and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator—were employed to construct risk models. Model validation was performed using receiver operating characteristic and calibration curves, and the optimal cutoff values for significant risk factors were determined. Results: The predictive model for CHD onset included sex, overweight/obesity, and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels. For CHD progression to multiple coronary artery disease, the model included age, total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and HbA1c levels. The model predicting an increased coronary Gensini score included sex, overweight/obesity, TC, LDL-C, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, lipoprotein(a), and HbA1c levels. Notably, the optimal cutoff values for HbA1c and lipoprotein(a) for determining CHD progression were 6 % and 298 mg/L, respectively. Conclusions: Robust metabolic risk models were established, offering significant value for both the primary and secondary prevention of CHD in Northwest China. Weight loss, strict hyperglycemic control, and improvement in dyslipidemia may help prevent or delay the occurrence and progression of CHD in this region.

To investigate the laser-based displays that can offer the light source with a high level of photobiological safety and are suitable for users of different ages, this research optimizes the light source of the three-primary laser-based displays from its peak wavelength and the fractions of radiant flux. The non-linear program based on genetic algorithm is used to set the color gamut coverage over 90% and the correlated color temperature at 6500K. Find suitable peak wavelength and fractions of radiant flux with the premise of less than the blue light hazard (BLH) caused by the D65 light source to the 1 year, and select the result with the maximum circadian action factor (CAF) as the optimization for each age. Meanwhile, this research explores the effect that a change in the peak wavelength and fractions of radiant flux near the optimal results on CAF and BLH in different age groups. It provides reference for the design of health consideration laser displays for different age users in the daily working environment.

The microstructure and hardness of fusion boundary (FB) and near FB of a low alloy steel (LAS) 16MND5 welding cladded with stainless steel 308L for nuclear reactor pressure vessel were investigated by using modern electron microscopes and nano-indenter. The wavy morphology of fusion line results in changes of nearby microstructures of both cladding 308L and substrate 16MND5 along the FB. The microstructure of the cladding 308L is composed of columnar grains adjacent most of the FB, but it is equiaxed grains at the valley of the wavy fusion line with large curvature. The microstructures of 16MND5 near the FB are ferrite at the wavy fusion line with large curvature, martensite at the wavy fusion line with small curvature, and transition mixed structure between them. A carbide-depleted zone adjacent to the FB was observed in the 16MND5 side, of which the hardness is lower than both FB and 16MND5 base metal. Three types of FB can be observed according to the width, being narrow or sharp FB, needle-like martensite FB, and partially-mixed zone FB. The FB includes high density of carbides of M7C3 and M3C, leading to a hardness peak at FB.

Suspended particulate matter (SPM) is an important component of natural water bodies and can significantly influence the photolytic behavior of water pollutants. A comprehensive understanding of the photochemical behavior of water pollutants in natural waters requires consideration of the presence of SPM. In this study, montmorillonite–humic acid (MMT-HA) composite particles were synthesized to simulate SPM in natural waters and their effects on the photolysis of tetracycline (TC) were investigated. The results demonstrated that the presence of MMT-HA composite particles in water significantly enhanced the photolysis of TC, with the photolytic kinetics following a pseudo-first-order model. Electron spin resonance spectra and free radical quenching experiments indicated that the photoactive components (MMT and humic acids) in the composite particles induced the generation of reactive oxygen species under light exposure, further contributing to the enhanced photolysis of TC. Comparative analysis of the free radical signals and adsorption experiments revealed that the accelerated photolysis of TC was also related to the interfacial interaction between the MMT in the composite particles and the TC molecules. The formation of surface complexes between TC molecules and the negatively charged sites on the MMT surface facilitated light absorption and electron transfer, thereby accelerating the photolysis of TC. Photoproduct analysis indicated that the primary degradation pathways of TC in the composite particle systems included the addition of hydroxyl radicals to the aromatic ring, as well as demethylation, deamination and dehydration in the side chains. This study shows that SPM in water bodies can affect the photochemical behavior of pollutants and should be taken into account when assessing the phototransformation of pollutants in natural waters.

Abstract Background Craniopharyngiomas are low‐grade malignancies (WHO I) in the sellar region. Most cases of childhood‐onset craniopharyngioma are adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma, and neurosurgery is the treatment of choice. Affected patients have postoperative complications, including water and electrolyte disturbances, because these malignancies develop near the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. Determining postoperative serum sodium fluctuation patterns in these patients can reduce postoperative mortality and improve prognosis. Objective To measure changes in serum sodium levels in pediatric patients who underwent craniopharyngioma surgery and identify influencing factors. Methods This retrospective study measured the serum sodium levels of 202 patients aged 0–18 years who underwent craniopharyngioma resection in Beijing Tiantan Hospital and Beijing Children's Hospital and identified predictors of severe hyponatremia and hypernatremia. Results The mean age of the cohort was 8.35 ± 4.35 years. The prevalence of hypernatremia, hyponatremia, and their severe forms (serum Na+ > 150 mmol/L and serum Na+

Abstract High myopia is a leading cause of blindness worldwide. It may lead to emotional defects that rely closely on the link between visual sensation and the central nervous system. However, the extent of the defects and its underlying mechanism remain unknown. Here, we report that highly myopic patients exhibit greater anxiety, accompanied by higher CC chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2) and monocyte levels in the blood. Similar findings are found in the mouse model of high myopia. Mechanistic evaluations using GFP-positive bone marrow chimeric mice, parabiotic mouse model, enhanced magnetic resonance imaging, etc., show that highly myopic visual stimulation increases CCL2 expression in eyes, aggravates monocyte/macrophage infiltration into eyes and brains, and disrupts blood–ocular barrier and blood–brain barrier of mice. Conversely, Ccl2-deficient highly myopic mice exhibit attenuated ocular and brain infiltration of monocytes/macrophages, reduced disruption of the blood–ocular barrier and blood–brain barrier, and less anxiety. Substantial alleviation of high myopia-related anxiety can also be achieved with the administration of CCL2-neutralizing antibodies. Our results establish the association between high myopia and anxiety, and implicate the CCL2-mediated inflammatory pathogenesis as an underlying mechanism.

Abstract Retraction: [Yingdong Wang, Yuhui Zheng, Lu Cao, Zhiling Zhang, Qunsehng Ruan, Qingfeng Wu, Self‐attention Bi‐RNN for developer emotion recognition based on EEG, IET Software 2022 (https://doi.org/10.1049/sfw2.12080)]. The above article from IET Software, published online on 23 December 2022 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), has been retracted by agreement between the Editor‐in‐Chief, Hana Chockler, the Institution of Engineering and Technology (the IET) and John Wiley and Sons Ltd. This article was published as part of a Guest Edited special issue. Following an investigation, the IET and the journal have determined that the article was not reviewed in line with the journal’s peer review standards and there is evidence that the peer review process of the special issue underwent systematic manipulation. Accordingly, we cannot vouch for the integrity or reliability of the content. As such we have taken the decision to retract the article. The authors have been informed of the decision to retract.

Background: B-cell receptor-associated protein 31 (BCAP31) has protective effects against alveolar epithelial type II cells (AECII) damage by inhibiting mitochondrial injury in acute lung injury (ALI) induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS), whereas the precise mechanism is still unclear. It is known that PTEN-induced putative kinase 1 (PINK1)/Parkin-mediated mitophagy can remove damaged mitochondria selectively, which may be involved in BCAP31 protection against mitochondrial injury. Methods: In the current study, ALI mice models were established by using surfactant protein C (Sftpc)-BCAP31 transgenic mice (BCAP31TG mice) and AECII-specific BCAP31 knockout mice (BCAP31CKO mice) treated with LPS. Results: BCAP31 expression in lung tissue and AECII were inhibited in ALI mice. Under LPS challenge, lower level of BCAP31 was found to correlate positively with pathological injury of the lung, respiratory dysfunction, mortality rates, inflammation response, and AECII damage. Further study showed that down-regulation of BCAP31 induced decreased phosphorylation of PINK1 via reduced binding to PINK1, thereby restraining PINK1/Parkin-mediated mitophagy. Down-regulation of mitophagy promoted mitochondrial injury, as shown by the increase in mitochondrial permeability transition pore opening rate, together with enhanced mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mROS), which were accompanied by increased cellular apoptosis and reactive oxygen species (ROS). The increased cellular ROS contributed to the inflammatory response via activation of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB). In contrast, BCAP31 overexpression promoted phosphorylation of PINK1 and PINK1/Parkin-mediated mitophagy, thus blocking the mROS/ROS/NF-κB pathway, favoring a protective condition that ultimately led to the inhibition of AECII apoptosis and inflammatory response in LPS-induced ALI. Conclusion: Ultimately, BCAP31 alleviated ALI by activating PINK1/Parkin-mediated mitophagy and blocking the mROS/ROS/NF-κB pathway in AECII.

ObjectiveHypothalamic-pituitary axis dysfunction is a common complication in post-operative craniopharyngioma(CP) patients, and it greatly impacts the long-term quality of life of such patients. To better understand the effects of postoperative hypothalamic-pituitary dysfunction and long-term hormone replacement therapy in patients with childhood CP, we assessed approximately 200 patients with childhood-onset CP postoperatively.MethodsClinical details of patients with childhood-onset CP who underwent sellar tumor resection in Beijing Children’s Hospital and Beijing Tiantan Hospital from 2018 to 2019 were retrieved retrospectively. The participants were followed up to assess the effects of post-operative long-term hormone replacement therapy and assess the tumor recurrence rate.ResultsThe median age of admission was 8.1 (1.8, 14.3) years. Headache (45.5%), visual impairment (39.5%), and nausea (33.0%) were the most common clinical manifestations. ACP accounted for 95% of all CP cases. The incidence of central adrenal insufficiency and central hypothyroidism within the first week after surgery was 56.2% and 70.3%, respectively. At the same time 85.5% of the patients required at least one dose of desmopressin to control urine output. Total survival and tumor recurrence rates were 98.6% and 26.1%, respectively, with a median follow-up time of 29.7 (19.0, 40.3) months. During the follow-up period, 28.1% patients met the diagnostic criteria for short stature, while 54.4% fit the criteria for obesity. In addition, 94.4% of the patients were taking at least one kind of hormone substitution, and 74.7% were taking three or more. The prevalence of levothyroxine, glucocorticoid, desmopressin, and growth hormone replacement therapy was 87.3%, 77.5%, 78.9% and 31.0%, respectively. The proportion of patients treated with the substitutive combination of levothyroxine, hydrocortisone, and desmopressin was 54.9%.ConclusionThis study is a large-sample systematic postoperative endocrine function evaluation of patients with childhood-onset CP. Due to the high prevalence of post-operative hypothalamic-pituitary dysfunction, patients with CP usually require long-term multiple hormone substitution therapy. Individualized management and accurate hormone replacement dosage for postoperative childhood-onset CP patients are of great importance.

Abstract High myopia is a leading cause of blindness worldwide with increasing prevalence. Retina percepts visual information and triggers myopia development, but the underlying etiology is not fully understood because of cellular heterogeneity. In this study, single‐cell RNA sequencing analysis was performed on retinas of mouse highly myopic and control eyes to dissect the involvement of each cell type during high myopia progression. For highly myopic photoreceptors, Hk2 inhibition underlying metabolic remodeling from aerobic glycolysis toward oxidative phosphorylation and excessive oxidative stress was identified. Importantly, a novel Apoe+ rod subpopulation was specifically identified in highly myopic retina. In retinal neurons of highly myopic eyes, neurodegeneration was generally discovered, and the imbalanced ON/OFF signaling driven by cone‐bipolar cells and the downregulated dopamine receptors in amacrine cells were among the most predominant findings, indicating the aberrant light processing in highly myopic eyes. Besides, microglia exhibited elevated expression of cytokines and TGF‐β receptors, suggesting enhanced responses to inflammation and the growth‐promoting states involved in high myopia progression. Furthermore, cell–cell communication network revealed attenuated neuronal interactions and increased glial/vascular interactions in highly myopic retinas. In conclusion, this study outlines the transcriptional landscape of highly myopic retina, providing novel insights into high myopia development and prevention.

The ever most widely used eutectic alloys often suffer from limited ductility. Here the authors propose a distinctive concept of phase-selective recrystallization to significantly improve their ductility and strength and pave the way for new applications of the widespread eutectic alloys.

BackgroundIn recent years, depression in early adulthood has become an urgent global public health concern. The university years mark a transitional period from adolescence to adulthood. Young people are required to face academic and life pressures independently, which increases the risk of mental health problems in university.PurposeThe main goal of the current study was to explore the sex differences in depression, body dissatisfaction, sleep quality, and exercise intensity among university students in southern China and to analyze the factors affecting the level of depression among university students.MethodsIn total, 1,258 university students aged 18–23 years were recruited for this study. All participants completed anthropometric measurements, the Self-rating Depression Scale, Physical Activity Rating Scale, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Body dissatisfaction levels were measured using sex-appropriate silhouettes.ResultsCompared with young women, young men had higher exercise intensity and sleep quality, whereas young women’s body dissatisfaction and depression levels were significantly higher than those of young men. Sleep quality score (β = 0.34, p

Abstract The MR/FI bimodal imaging has attracted widely studied due to combining the advantages of MRI and FI can bridge gaps in sensitivity and depth between these two modalities. Herein, a novel MR/FI bimodal imaging probe is facile fabricated by coating the Mn-phenolic coordination polymer on the surface of the carbon quantum dots. The structure of the as-prepared nanocomposite probe is carefully validated via SEM, TEM, and XPS. The content of Mn2+ is calculated through the EDS and TGA. The quantum yield (QY) and emission wavelength of the probe are about 7.24% and 490 nm, respectively. The longitudinal r1 value (2.43 mM−1 s−1) with low r2/r1 (4.45) of the probe is obtained. Subsequently, fluorescence and MR imaging are performed. The metabolic pathways in vivo are inferred by studying the bio-distribution of the probe in major organs. Thus, these results indicate that probe would be an excellent dual-modal imaging probe for enhanced MR imaging and fluorescence imaging. MR/FI bimodal imaging probe is built via in-situ coated Mn-phenolic coordination polymer on the surface of the carbon quantum dots. The in vitro and vivo image property of the probe is evaluated.

BackgroundSintilimab plus chemotherapy (SIDCHM) is more effective than placebo plus chemotherapy (PLCHM) for advanced or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). However, considering the high cost of sintilimab, this study evaluated the cost-effectiveness of SIDCHM in comparison with PLCHM for advanced or metastatic ESCC from the Chinese healthcare system perspective.MethodsPolymorphic Markov models were constructed to simulate the course and cost of SIDCHM. Treatment drug costs were calculated at national list prices and clinical data, other costs, and utility values were extracted from the reference literature. Primary outcomes included quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs). The robustness of the model was verified by one-way sensitivity analysis and probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA).ResultsSIDCHM obtained 1.03 QALYs at $24,044.49, whereas the effectiveness and cost of PLCHM were 0.67 QALYs and $14,166.24, respectively. The ICER for SIDCHM versus PLCHM was $23,458.08/QALY. The utility of the PFS state was the parameter that had the greatest effect on the ICER. The PSA showed that SIDCHM had an 86% probability of being cost-effective at the willingness-to-pay threshold of 3* Chinese gross domestic product per capita ($37,653/QALY).ConclusionFrom the Chinese healthcare system perspective, SIDCHM is considered a cost-effective treatment option compared with PLCHM as first-line therapy for advanced or metastatic ESCC.

Background: The findings of the CAPSTONE-1 trial showed that adebrelimab in combination with chemotherapy (etoposide-carboplatin) (ADCHM) is clinically beneficial as a first-line treatment for patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC), compared with placebo plus chemotherapy (PLCHM, etoposide-carboplatin). However, owing to the higher cost of adebrelimab, it is unclear whether ADCHM is cost-effective compared with PLCHM. This study aimed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of ADCHM as a first-line treatment for patients with ES-SCLC from the perspective of the Chinese healthcare system.Methods: A Markov model with three health states was developed to assess the cost-effectiveness of ADCHM as a first-line treatment option with ES-SCLC. Clinical data were obtained from the CAPSTONE-1 trial. Costs of the drug were calculated at national tender prices, and other costs and utility values were obtained from published literature. The outcomes included life years (LYs), quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs). One-way sensitivity analysis and probabilistic sensitivity analysis were used to validate the robustness of the model.Results: The ADCHM group achieved 1.21 QALYs (2.47 LYs) for $25,312, whereas the PLCHM group achieved 0.81 QALYs (1.59 LYs) for $14,846. The ICER for ADCHM versus PLCHM was $25914 per QALY gained. The variables with the greatest impact on the model results were the utility value of progressive disease, the utility value of progression-free survival, and the price of adebrelimab (100 mg). At a willingness-to-pay threshold of $37,653/QALY, ADCHM had an 89.1% probability of being cost-effective compared with PLCHM.Conclusion: ADCHM may be a cost-effective first-line treatment strategy for ES-SCLC from the perspective of the Chinese healthcare system.

The Huashi Baidu Formula (HSBDF), a key Chinese medical drug, has a remarkable clinical efficacy in treating acute lung injury (ALI), and it has been officially approved by the National Medical Products Administration of China for drug clinical trials. Nevertheless, the regulated mechanisms of HSBDF and its active compounds in plasma against ALI were rarely studied. Based on these considerations, the key anti-inflammatory compounds of HSBDF were screened by molecular docking and binding free energy. The key compounds were further identified in plasma by LC/MS. Network pharmacology was employed to identify the potential regulatory mechanism of the key compounds in plasma. Next, the network pharmacological prediction was validated by a series of experimental assays, including CCK-8, EdU staining, test of TNF-α, IL-6, MDA, and T-SOD, and flow cytometry, to identify active compounds. Molecular dynamic simulation and binding interaction patterns were used to evaluate the stability and affinity between active compounds and target. Finally, the active compounds were subjected to predict pharmacokinetic properties. Molecular docking revealed that HSBDF had potential effects of inhibiting inflammation by acting on IL-6R and TNF-α. Piceatannol, emodin, aloe-emodin, rhein, physcion, luteolin, and quercetin were key compounds that may ameliorate ALI, and among which, there were five compounds (emodin, aloe-emodin, rhein, luteolin, and quercetin) in plasma. Network pharmacology results suggested that five key compounds in plasma likely inhibited ALI by regulating inflammation and oxidative damage. Test performed in vitro suggested that HSBDF (0.03125 mg/ml), quercetin (1.5625 μM), emodin (3.125 μM), and rhein (1.5625 μM) have anti-inflammatory function against oxidative damage and decrease apoptosis in an inflammatory environment by LPS-stimulation. In addition, active compounds (quercetin, emodin, and rhein) had good development prospects, fine affinity, and stable conformations with the target protein. In summary, this study suggested that HSBDF and its key active components in plasma (quercetin, emodin, and rhein) can decrease levels of pro-inflammatory factors (IL-6 and TNF-α), decrease expression of MDA, increase expression of T-SOD, and decrease cell apoptosis in an inflammatory environment. These data suggest that HSBDF has significant effect on anti-inflammation and anti-oxidative stress and also can decrease cell apoptosis in treating ALI. These findings provided an important strategy for developing new agents and facilitated clinical use of HSBDF against ALI.

High myopia is associated with lens changes, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here, the authors show increased equatorial diameter of the lens in subjects affected by high myopia, and find that these changes are associated with an increase in crystallin expression driven by the transcription factor MAF and TGF-β1 signaling.

Network traffic anomaly detection is a key step in identifying and preventing network security threats. This study aims to construct a new deep-learning-based traffic anomaly detection model through in-depth research on new feature-engineering methods, significantly improving the efficiency and accuracy of network traffic anomaly detection. The specific research work mainly includes the following two aspects: 1. In order to construct a more comprehensive dataset, this article first starts from the raw data of the classic traffic anomaly detection dataset UNSW-NB15 and combines the feature extraction standards and feature calculation methods of other classic detection datasets to re-extract and design a feature description set for the original traffic data in order to accurately and completely describe the network traffic status. We reconstructed the dataset DNTAD using the feature-processing method designed in this article and conducted evaluation experiments on it. Experiments have shown that by verifying classic machine learning algorithms, such as XGBoost, this method not only does not reduce the training performance of the algorithm but also improves its operational efficiency. 2. This article proposes a detection algorithm model based on LSTM and the recurrent neural network self-attention mechanism for important time-series information contained in the abnormal traffic datasets. With this model, through the memory mechanism of the LSTM, the time dependence of traffic features can be learned. On the basis of LSTM, a self-attention mechanism is introduced, which can weight the features at different positions in the sequence, enabling the model to better learn the direct relationship between traffic features. A series of ablation experiments were also used to demonstrate the effectiveness of each component of the model. The experimental results show that, compared to other comparative models, the model proposed in this article achieves better experimental results on the constructed dataset.

The extensive use of synthetic materials in modern society presents a great challenge to environmental and water quality. As such, numerous studies were dedicated to the removal of emerging contaminants from water using novel materials as sorbents or catalysts. With large reserves and low material costs, Earth material has also attracted great attention for contaminant removal. Halloysite is a 1:1 layered clay mineral with moderate cation exchange capacity that can be used for the removal of cationic contaminants. On the other hand, as it may bear positive charges on the aluminum hydroxyl sheets, it could be used to remove anionic contaminants. In this study, the removal of a cationic dye, methylene blue (MB), and an anionic dye, alizarin red S (ARS), from the water was evaluated from single and mixed solutions. The results suggested that from single solutions, MB removal was via cation exchange while ARS removal could have originated from anion exchange. From mixed solutions, their removal was mutually increased, which may be due to a synergistic effect in the presence of a type of charged dyes serving as counterions to enhance the sorption of dyes of opposite charges. This finding suggests that halloysite may serve as a sorbent for the removal of organic contaminants of different charges at the same time, which is a new perspective that needs further evaluation and expansion.

To improve the performance and economy of the hybrid energy storage system (HESS) coordinating thermal generators to participate in automatic generation control (AGC), a HESS bi-layer capacity configuration model that considers the control strategy and net benefits of HESS is proposed. In addition, an improved mode-pursuing sampling (MPS) optimization algorithm based on meta-model is presented to improve the accuracy of model solving. In the lower layer, to improve the performance of HESS participating in AGC, a model predictive control (MPC) strategy is presented to distribute HESS power reasonably. Based on this, the upper layer develops a life-cycle net benefit model of HESS participating in AGC to improve its economy. The bi-layer model realizes iterative optimization of HESS capacity and operation through parameter transmission. Furthermore, to improve the solution accuracy of the bi-layer model, the convergence speed of the MPS algorithm is improved, so that the global search and local convergence speed can be taken into account. The case study results show that the bi-layer model can comprehensively consider the interaction between the economy and operating strategy of HESS. The proposed MPC strategy has better frequency regulation performance and the improved MPS algorithm has better solution performance.

Radiotherapy (RT) is one of the most effective cancer treatments. However, successful radiation protection for normal tissue is a clinical challenge. Our previous study observed that MitoQ, a mitochondria-targeted antioxidant, was adsorbed to the inner mitochondrial membrane and remained the cationic moiety in the intermembrane space. The positive charges in MitoQ restrained the activity of respiratory chain complexes and decreased proton production. Therefore, a pseudo-mitochondrial membrane potential (PMMP) was developed via maintenance of exogenous positive charges. This study identified that PMMP constructed by MitoQ could effectively inhibit mitochondrial respiration within normal cells, disrupt energy metabolism, and activate adenosine 5′-monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling to induce autophagy. As such, it could not lead to starvation-induced autophagy among tumor cells due to the different energy phenotypes between normal and tumor cells (normal cells depend on mitochondrial respiration for energy supply, while tumor cells rely on aerobic glycolysis). Therefore, we successfully protected the normal cells from radiation-induced damage without affecting the tumor-killing efficacy of radiation by utilizing selective autophagy. MitoQ-constructed PMMP provides a new therapeutic strategy for specific radiation protection.

A comprehensive understanding on the phototransformation of antibiotics in aqueous environments requires consideration of particulate matters contained in natural waters. However, relevant studies on this issue are still limited. Considering the wide distribution of natural sands in natural waters, especially in rainy seasons, the photolysis of CIP in water containing natural sands was investigated, and the influence of natural sands on photolysis was evaluated. The photolytic kinetics showed that the natural sands suspended in water notably accelerated the photodegradation of CIP, and the affecting degree depended on their compositions. The scavenger experiments combined with electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) experiments showed that 1O2, O2−•, and ·OH generated in the natural sand systems under irradiation, and responsible for the enhanced photodegradation of CIP. The H2O2 and HCl treatment experiments, together with deoxygenation experiments, confirmed that the production of reactive radicals was mainly ascribed to the photoactive oxides and natural organic matter (NOM) in natural sands. The photoproducts of CIP in the presence of natural sands were identified by LC-MS, and the possible degradation pathways were proposed. This study suggested that particulate matters contained in natural waters was a important factor influencing the phototransformation of pollutants, and should be considered in assessing their fate in aqueous environments.

The study on the flow behave inside of a ball valve is important for heavy crude oil transportation. Owe to the fast progress of the numerical technique, it becomes an effective way to observe the flows inside a valve and to analyze the flow structure of the oil-water core annular flow. In the present study, the simulation of the oil-water core annular flowing through the valve is conducted by combined the VOF and CSF model, and the effects of open rate on vortex and oil distribution characteristics are analyzed. The simulated data is a satisfactory match with empirical value and the experimental results. The results show that there are lots of vortexes inside and behind the valve, the coordinate values of the vortex decrease and the aggregation rate increases with an increase in open rate. As the input velocity increases, the change rate of the vortex position is greater, and the oil aggregation rate decreases, the highly viscous oil with has greater aggregation rate after flow through the valve, and the variation of the vortex core position is relatively slow. As the vortex flow across the oil core, the oil will be scattered and contributes to the instability of the annular flow.

The electronic structure, elastic, optical and thermodynamic properties of cubic perovskite NaBaF3 under high pressure were investigated using the ab initio calculations. The calculated lattice constant (a0) and bulk modulus (B0) at 0 GPa were determined to be 4.278 Å and 53.555 GPa, respectively, which are consistent with previous reports. The elastic constants and bulk modulus at high pressure were calculated. According to Pugh’s crystal mechanical stability conditions, the phase transition point of NaBaF3 is found to be 68.8 GPa, which has not been reported by any previous paper. The band structure calculations reveal that cubic perovskite NaBaF3 is a direct band-gap material in the pressure range from 0 GPa to 60 GPa. The dielectric function ɛ(ω), absorption coefficient α(ω), reflectivity R(ω), transmittance T(ω), absorbance A(ω) and complex refractive index N(ω) at 0 GPa, 20 GPa, 40 GPa and 60 GPa were studied. It is found that the band gap increases with the increasing pressure, and the absorption spectra show blue shift. The Debye temperature at 300 K and the values of the relative volume, heat capacity, bulk modulus, thermal expansion coefficient, heat capacities, and relative Debye temperature with pressures and temperatures effect were investigated. Our results will provide theoretical guidance for the experimental investigations and industrial applications of NaBaF3 in future.

The electronic and optical properties before and after Au decoration on (1 0 1¯ 4) surface of dolomite were investigated based on first principles calculations. The electronic structure analysis indicates that the band gap decreases from 4.25 eV (pristine) to 0.81 eV (1 Au decorated case), and the work functions increase from 2.41 eV to 3.53 eV. The density of states analysis revealed that the band gap decrease is mainly attributed to the Au 5d doping states in the forbidden band gap. Moreover, an additional peak located at 310 nm of polarization direction on E//c appears after Au decoration, resulting in the increased absorption intensity in the ultraviolet and visible range. By comparing the redox potential with that of different kinds of pollution gas, it can be found that the Au decorated dolomite might be a good photocatalyst for NO removal. The above results indicate that the Au decorated dolomite could be used in visible light photocatalysis or photovoltaic applications due to its semiconductor characteristics and suitable redox potentials.

Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) bar-reinforced unsaturated polyester resin concrete (UPC) can solve the problem of rebar corrosion in ordinary reinforced concrete members. However, it has not been widely used in engineering practice because there have been few studies conducted on the bond behaviors of FRP bar and UPC, and the interaction mechanisms between FRP bar and UPC have not been well understood. A series of pull-out tests are conducted on FRP bar-UPC specimens to study the bond behaviors between these two materials. Parametric studies are also carried out to investigate the effects of FRP bar diameter, fiber type, type of surface treatment, concrete cover thickness, and interfacial bond length between the two. Three failure modes of the specimens are observed from pull-out tests, i.e., FRP bar pull-out, tensile failure of FRP bar, and UPC split. A new constitutive model is, therefore, proposed to predict the bond stress of FRP bar and UPC in the residual stage, and the proposed model is finally verified by test data reported in this study.

Keyn-gram extraction can be seen as extracting n-grams which can distinguish different registers. Keyword (as n=1, 1-gram is the keyword) extraction models are generally carried out from two aspects, the feature extraction and the model design. By summarizing the advantages and disadvantages of existing models, we propose a novel key n-gram extraction model “attentive n-gram network” (ANN) based on the attention mechanism and multilayer perceptron, in which the attention mechanism scores each n-gram in a sentence by mining the internal semantic relationship between words, and their importance is given by the scores. Experimental results on the real corpus show that the key n-gram extracted from our model can distinguish a novel, news, and text book very well; the accuracy of our model is significantly higher than the baseline model. Also, we conduct experiments on key n-grams extracted from these registers, which turned out to be well clustered. Furthermore, we make some statistical analyses of the results of key n-gram extraction. We find that the key n-grams extracted by our model are very explanatory in linguistics.

In this study, the performance degradation law and mechanism of glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars were investigated by being immersed in natural seawater (denoted as SW), saline-alkali solution (SA), or wrapped with concrete, and then submerged in natural seawater (SWC). A series of short-beam shear tests were conducted to investigate the effects of aging temperature and time on the interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) of GFRP bars. Microstructure changes, glass transition temperature (Tg) difference, and hydrolysis degree of GFRP bars after aging in three environments for 183 days were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Test results demonstrated that the temperature could accelerate the strength degradation of GFRP bars significantly. After 183-day aging treatment at 60 °C, the ILSS retention rates of GFRP bars in the three environments of SW, SWC, and SA were 66.41%, 53.10%, and 45.36%, respectively; and Tg was 1.7%, 7.0%, 7.8% lower than that of unconditioned sample, respectively. Meanwhile different degrees of damage, such as separation between fiber and resin and few holes in the resin, were observed on the GFRP bars in the SWC and SA environments. It was also found that irreversible hydrolysis took place in some resins. The durability prediction model of GFRP bars serving in the Yellow Sea of China was established by using Arrhenius equation, and the correlation coefficient with the test data was not less than 0.94.

Interactions between cationic dyes and negatively charged mineral surfaces have long attracted great attention from clay mineralogists, environmental scientists, and chemical engineers. In this study, the interactions between a cationic dye toluidine blue (TB) and palygorskite and sepiolite were investigated under different experimental conditions. The results showed that in addition to cation exchange, the specific surface area (SSA) of the minerals, particularly the formation of dimer molecules on the surface of both minerals, also accounted for the much higher TB uptake in comparison to their cation exchange capacities (CEC). The TB molecules were sorbed to the external surfaces, as no d-spacing expansion was observed in X-ray diffraction analyses. FTIR analyses showed strong interactions between the C=N or N-(CH3)2 group and the mineral surfaces, suggesting net electrostatic interactions if either of these functional groups bears a positive charge. Results from molecular dynamic simulations suggested dense monolayer TB formation on palygorskite because of its limited SSA and large CEC values. In comparison, a loosely dimeric formation was revealed on sepiolite for its large SSA and limited CEC values. Therefore, palygorskite is a better carrier for the sorption of cationic dyes, as evidenced by Maya blue paintings.

(1) Background: Diabetic retinopathy, one of the most serious complications of diabetes, is the primary cause of blindness in developed countries. Therefore, the prediction of diabetic retinopathy has a positive impact on its early detection and treatment. The prediction of diabetic retinopathy based on high-dimensional and small-sample-structured datasets (such as biochemical data and physical data) was the problem to be solved in this study. (2) Methods: This study proposed the XGB-Stacking model with the foundation of XGBoost and stacking. First, a wrapped feature selection algorithm, XGBIBS (Improved Backward Search Based on XGBoost), was used to reduce data feature redundancy and improve the effect of a single ensemble learning classifier. Second, in view of the slight limitation of a single classifier, a stacking model fusion method, Sel-Stacking (Select-Stacking), which keeps Label-Proba as the input matrix of meta-classifier and determines the optimal combination of learners by a global search, was used in the XGB-Stacking model. (3) Results: XGBIBS greatly improved the prediction accuracy and the feature reduction rate of a single classifier. Compared to a single classifier, the accuracy of the Sel-Stacking model was improved to varying degrees. Experiments proved that the prediction model of XGB-Stacking based on the XGBIBS algorithm and the Sel-Stacking method made effective predictions on diabetes retinopathy. (4) Conclusion: The XGB-Stacking prediction model of diabetic retinopathy based on biochemical and physical data had outstanding performance. This is highly significant to improve the screening efficiency of diabetes retinopathy and reduce the cost of diagnosis.

The traditional heterogeneous embedding method based on a random walk strategy does not focus on the random walk fundamentally because of higher-order Markov chains. One of the important properties of Markov chains is stationary distributions (SDs). However, in large-scale network computation, SDs are not feasible and consume a lot of memory. So, we use a non-Markovian space strategy, i.e., a heterogeneous personalized spacey random walk strategy, to efficiently get SDs between nodes and skip some unimportant intermediate nodes, which allows for more accurate vector representation and memory savings. This heterogeneous personalized spacey random walk strategy was extended to heterogeneous space embedding methods in combination with vector learning, which is better than the traditional heterogeneous embedding methods for node classification tasks. As an excellent embedding method can obtain more accurate vector representations, it is important for the improvement of the recommendation model. In this article, recommendation algorithm research was carried out based on the heterogeneous personalized spacey embedding method. For the problem that the standard random walk strategy used to compute the stationary distribution consumes a large amount of memory, which may lead to inefficient node vector representation, we propose a meta-path-based heterogenous personalized spacey random walk for recommendation (MPHSRec). The meta-path-based heterogeneous personalized spacey random walk strategy is used to generate a meaningful sequence of nodes for network representation learning, and the learned embedded vectors of different meta-paths are transformed by a nonlinear fusion function and integrated into a matrix decomposition model for rating prediction. The experimental results demonstrate that MPHSRec not only improves the accuracy, but also reduces the memory cost compared with other excellent algorithms.

14-O-[(4,6-Diaminopyrimidine-2-yl)thioacetyl] mutilin (DPTM), a novel pleuromutilin candidate with a substituted pyrimidine moiety, has been confirmed to possess excellent antibacterial activity against Gram-positive bacteria. To illustrate the pharmacokinetic profile after intravenous (i.v.), intramuscular (i.m.) and oral (p.o.) administrations with DPTM, as well as tissue distribution and excretion via urine and feces in vivo, a specific, sensitive and robust HPLC-MS/MS method was first developed to determine DPTM in rat plasma, various tissues, urine and feces. The plasma, tissues, urine and feces samples were treated by protein precipitation with acetonitrile using tiamulin fumarate as an internal standard (IS). This method which was achieved on an HPLC system detector equipped with an ESI interface, was sensitive with 5 ng/mL as the lower limit of detection and exhibited good linearity (R2 > 0.9900) in the range of 5⁻4000 ng/mL for plasma, various tissues, urine and feces, as well as intra-day precision, inter-day precision and accuracy. The matrix effects ranged from 94.2 to 109.7% with RSD ≤ 9.4% and the mean extraction recoveries ranged from 95.4 to 109.5% in plasma, tissue homogenates, urine and feces (RSD ≤ 9.9). After i.v., i.m. and p.o. administrations, DPTM was rapidly absorbed and metabolized in rats with the half-life (t1/2) of 1.70⁻1.86, 3.23⁻3.49 and 4.38⁻4.70 for 10, 25 and 75 mg/kg doses, respectively. The tissue distribution showed that DPTM was diffused into all the tested tissues, especially into the intestine and lung. Excretion via urine and feces studies demonstrated that DPTM was mainly excreted by feces after administration.