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The response to climate change and air pollution control demonstrates strong synergy across scientific mechanisms, targets, strategies, and governance systems. This report, based on a monitoring indicator system for coordinated governance of air pollution and climate change, employs an interdisciplinary approach combining natural and social sciences. It establishes 20 indicators across five key areas: air pollution and climate change, governance systems and practices, structural transformation and technologies, atmospheric components and emission reduction pathways, and health impacts and co-benefits. This report tries to provide actionable insights into the interconnectedness of air pollution and climate governance. It highlights key policy gaps, presents updated indicators, and offers a refined monitoring framework to track progress toward China's dual goals of reducing emissions and improving air quality. Compared to previous editions, this year's report has updated four key indicators: meteorological impacts on air quality, climate change and its effects, governance policies, and low-carbon building energy systems. The aim is to further refine the monitoring framework, track progress, and establish a comprehensive theory for collaborative governance while identifying challenges and proposing solutions for China's pathway to carbon neutrality and clean air. The report comprises six chapters. The executive summary chapter is followed by analyzing air pollution and climate change interactions. Governance systems and practices are discussed in the third chapter, focusing on policy implementation and local experiences. The fourth chapter addresses structural transformations and emission reduction technologies, including energy and industrial shifts, transportation, low-carbon buildings, carbon capture and storage, and power systems. The fifth chapter outlines atmospheric component dynamics and emission pathways, presenting insights into emission drivers and future strategies. The sixth chapter assesses health impacts and the benefits of coordinated actions. Since 2019, China Clean Air Policy Partnership has produced annual reports on China's progress in climate and air pollution governance, receiving positive feedback. In 2023, the report was co-developed with Tsinghua University's Carbon Neutrality Research Institute, involving over 100 experts and multiple academic forums. The collaboration aims to continuously improve the indicator system and establish the report as a key resource supporting China's efforts in pollution reduction, carbon mitigation, greening, and sustainable growth.

In the preparation of magnesium by Pidgeon process, the phenomenon slag pellets sticking on the wall of reduction pot always appear, and the glaze sticking on the inner wall of the reduction pot is difficult to remove. The mechanism of this phenomenon is studied in this work by X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (XRF) measurement, electron probe microanalyzer scanning (EPMA) analysis, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis, and thermodynamic calculations. The main components of the glaze are MgO, Ca12Al14F2O32, CaF2, CaO, and a small amount of Ca4Si2O7F2. The solid-liquid transition temperature of Ca12Al14F2O32 and CaF2 is close to the production temperature of Pidgeon process, which leads to the bonding between the slag pellets and the pot wall. The loss of CaF2 in glaze layer will reduce the total amount of liquid phase and increase the temperature at which Ca12Al14F2O32 is completely transformed into liquid phase, which causes glaze layer sticking on the inner wall of the reduction pot.

Abstract Patients with glycogen storage disease type Ib (GSD‐Ib) frequently have inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). however, the underlying etiology remains unclear. Herein, this study finds that digestive symptoms are commonly observed in patients with GSD‐Ib, presenting as single or multiple scattered deep round ulcers, inflammatory pseudo‐polyps, obstructions, and strictures, which differ substantially from those in typical IBD. Distinct microbiota profiling and single‐cell clustering of colonic mucosae in patients with GSD are conducted. Heterogeneous oral pathogenic enteric outgrowth induced by GSD is a potent inducer of gut microbiota immaturity and colonic macrophage accumulation. Specifically, a unique population of macrophages with high CCL4L2 expression is identified in response to pathogenic bacteria in the intestine. Hyper‐activation of the CCL4L2‐VSIR axis leads to increased expression of AGR2 and ZG16 in epithelial cells, which mediates the unique progression of IBD in GSD‐Ib. Collectively, the microbiota‐driven pathomechanism of IBD is demonstrated in GSD‐Ib and revealed the active role of the CCL4L2‐VSIR axis in the interaction between the microbiota and colonic mucosal immunity. Thus, targeting gut dysbiosis and/or the CCL4L2‐VISR axis may represent a potential therapy for GSD‐associated IBD.

At present, titanium alloy/carbon fiber reinforced polymer (TA1/CFRP) laminates, representing the latest fourth generation of fiber metal laminates (FMLs), are predominantly applied in the field of aerospace. The miniaturization of traditional FMLs in thickness or plane size to the micron level for the study of structural properties of ultra-thin laminates will further expand the application of FMLs in the field of micro-devices. Given that carbon nanotubes have a strengthening mechanism in polymers. However, most existing studies have focused on the effect of carbon nanotubes on the properties of macro-scale FMLs, while the enhancement mechanism of the interfacial and mechanical properties of ultra-thin micro-scale FMLs has not been studied, leaving the mechanism still unclear. Based on this, this paper explores the interfacial deformation mode, damage fracture and performance enhancement mechanism of the ultra-thin TA1/CFRP laminates by comparing the parameters of tensile strength and elongation under quasi-static conditions and different process parameters of multi-walled carbon nanotubes content, test temperature, geometry size and grain size. Meanwhile, the correlation law between high-speed tension and quasi-static tension is determined, a 29.3 % increase in tensile strength as the strain rate rises from 0.001 s−1 to 100 s−1, yielding the basic deformation law of ultra-thin FMLs.

China is now confronting the intertwined challenges of air pollution and climate change. Given the high synergies between air pollution abatement and climate change mitigation, the Chinese government is actively promoting synergetic control of these two issues. The Synergetic Roadmap project was launched in 2021 to track and analyze the progress of synergetic control in China by developing and monitoring key indicators. The Synergetic Roadmap 2022 report is the first annual update, featuring 20 indicators across five aspects: synergetic governance system and practices, progress in structural transition, air pollution and associated weather-climate interactions, sources, sinks, and mitigation pathway of atmospheric composition, and health impacts and benefits of coordinated control. Compared to the comprehensive review presented in the 2021 report, the Synergetic Roadmap 2022 report places particular emphasis on progress in 2021 with highlights on actions in key sectors and the relevant milestones. These milestones include the proportion of non-fossil power generation capacity surpassing coal-fired capacity for the first time, a decline in the production of crude steel and cement after years of growth, and the surging penetration of electric vehicles. Additionally, in 2022, China issued the first national policy that synergizes abatements of pollution and carbon emissions, marking a new era for China's pollution-carbon co-control. These changes highlight China's efforts to reshape its energy, economic, and transportation structures to meet the demand for synergetic control and sustainable development. Consequently, the country has witnessed a slowdown in carbon emission growth, improved air quality, and increased health benefits in recent years.

Abstract China, the world leader in automobile production and sales, confronts the challenge of transportation emissions, which account for roughly 10% of its total carbon emissions. This study, utilizing real-world vehicle data from three major Chinese cities, assesses the impact of Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) on air quality. Our analysis reveals that BEVs, when replacing gasoline vehicles in their operational phase, significantly reduce emissions, with reductions ranging from 8.72 to 85.71 kg of CO2 per vehicle monthly. The average monthly reduction rate is 9.47%, though this effect is less pronounced during winter. Advanced BEVs, characterized by higher efficiency and newer technology, exhibit greater emission reduction benefits. While private BEVs generally contribute positively to environmental outcomes, taxi BEVs, due to their intensive usage patterns, show less environmental advantage and may sometimes worsen air quality. Looking ahead, we project substantial emission reductions from the replacement of gasoline vehicles with electric alternatives over the next decade. Policymakers are urged to adopt proactive measures, focusing on promoting medium to large electric vehicles and fostering the use of private and ride-hailing electric vehicles.

This paper comprehensively introduces a new magnesium production technology the compound-vertical-retort technology, involving in the related fundamental researches, core equipment development, working flow, and technical characteristics. Scale-up test and an annual 1200-ton-magnesium demonstration-level test was conducted to confirm the rationality, reliability, and advancement of the equipment, system and process design. It is indicated that the new technology solved a series of problems of traditional silicothermic process including adhesion and glaze, short life of retort, low efficiency, high impurity of crystallized magnesium, large heat losses, and poor working environment, making a great technological breakthrough in this field. Representatively, the new well-designed ceramic-lined steel retort serves 2∼3 times in life than the normal retorts. The magnesium yield per retort is improved 4∼5 times, with purity of >99.8%. The energy consumption in reduction stage is reduced by more than 20%. The mechanical production is fully realized and operating environment is significantly improved.

Safe, green and efficient industrial production has always been the pursuit of the chemical industry. Since thermal energy is the driving force for most of chemical reactions, an ideal reaction tank would have the capacity to automatically regulate heat conduction rate. In detail, this reaction tank should endow an ability that resists the heat loss when the reaction temperature is lower than the target, while accelerating the heat dissipation when the system is overheated. In this case, this smart reactor can not only minimize energy consumption but also reduce safety risks. Hollow structures are known to reduce heat conductivity. Particularly, the hollow structure with multishells can provide more interfaces and thus further inhibit heat transmission, which would be more favorable for heat isolation. Step forward, by coupling HoMSs with temperature-sensitive polymer, a smart heat isolation material has been fabricated in this work. It performs as a good heat isolator at a relatively lower temperature. A heat insulation effect of 6.5 °C can be achieved for the TSPU/3S–TiO2 HoMSs with a thickness of 1 mm under the temperature field of 50 °C. The thermal conductivity of composite material would be raised under overheating conditions. Furthermore, this composite displays an unusual two-stage phase transformation during heating. Benefiting from the unique multishelled structure, energy is found to be gradually guided into the hollow structure and stored inside. This localized heat accumulation enables the composite to be a potential coating material for intelligent thermal-regulator and site-defined micro-reactor.

From 2013 to 2019, a series of air pollution control actions significantly reduced PM2.5 pollution in China. Control actions included changes in activity levels, structural adjustment (SA) policy, energy and material saving (EMS) policy, and end-of-pipe (EOP) control in several sources, which have not been systematically studied in previous studies. Here, we integrate an emission inventory, a chemical transport model, a health impact assessment model, and a scenario analysis to quantify the contribution of each control action across a range of major emission sources to the changes in PM2.5 concentrations and associated mortality in China from 2013 to 2019. Assuming equal toxicity of PM2.5 from all the sources, we estimate that PM2.5-related mortality decreased from 2.52 (95 % confidence interval, 2.13–2.88) to 1.94 (1.62–2.24) million deaths. Anthropogenic emission reductions and declining baseline incidence rates significantly contributed to health benefits, but population aging partially offset their impact. Among the major sources, controls on power plants and industrial boilers were responsible for the highest reduction in PM2.5-related mortality (∼80 %), followed by industrial processes (∼40 %), residential combustion (∼40 %), and transportation (∼30 %). However, considering the potentially higher relative risks of power plant PM2.5, the adverse effects avoided by their control could be ∼2.4 times the current estimation. Our power plant sensitivity analyses indicate that future estimates of source-specific PM2.5 health effects should incorporate variations in individual source PM2.5 effect coefficients when available. As for the control actions, while activity levels increased for most sources, SA policy significantly reduced the emissions in residential combustion and industrial boilers, and EOP control dominated the contribution in health benefits in most sources except residential combustion. Considering the emission reduction potential by source and control actions in 2019, our results suggest that promoting clean energy in residential combustion and enforcing more stringent EOP control in the iron and steel industry should be prioritized in the future.

The physical and chemical stabilities of SiC and heat-resistant steel were assessed by the diffusion couple method under vacuum at 1200 °C, which is a commonly used condition in magnesium metallurgy. High-temperature visualization instruments were used and Differential thermal analysis (DTA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and thermodynamic analyses were performed to verify the relevant mechanism. The reaction between SiC and heat-resistant steel can be divided into two stages: solid–solid and solid–liquid reactions. The solid–solid interfacial reaction produces graphite, which hinders the interfacial reaction. The interfacial reaction simultaneously generates silicides (NiSi, Ni2Si, and Ni3Si) with low melting points and transforms the reaction interface into a solid–liquid interface. The formation of the liquid phase promotes the dissolution and diffusion of carbon, leading to the accelerated corrosion of SiC and low-temperature melting of steel. Supersaturated carbon precipitates in the melt in the form of nanowires or nanotubes are catalyzed by Fe/Ni. Herein, a general model describing the direct interfacial reaction mechanism of SiC and heat-resistant steel is proposed to explain the reaction process under vacuum.

Abstract Background Cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) is considered an age‐related degenerative neurological disorder and the most common risk factor for vascular cognitive impairment (VCI). The amplitude of fluctuation of low frequency (ALFF) can detect altered intrinsic brain activity in CSVD. This study explored the static and dynamic ALFFs in the early stage of CSVD with (CSVD‐M) or without (CSVD‐W) mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in these patients and how these changes contribute to cognitive deterioration. Methods Thirty consecutive CSVD cases and 18 healthy controls (HC) were included in this study. All the participants underwent a 3D magnetization‐prepared rapid gradient‐echo (MPRAGE) sequence to obtain structural T1‐weighted images. Simultaneous multislice imaging 5(SMS5) was used for resting‐state functional MRI (rs‐fMRI), and Data Processing and Analysis of Brain Imaging software helped determine static ALFF (sALFF). The dynamic ALFF (dALFF) was calculated using the sliding window method of DynamicBC software. Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and two‐sample t‐test were used to evaluate the sALFF and temporal variability of dALFF among the three groups. The subjects were rated on a broad standard neuropsychological scale. Partial correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlation between sALFF and dALFF variability and cognition (Bonferroni correction, statistical threshold set at p

It is well recognized that carbon dioxide and air pollutants share similar emission sources so that synergetic policies on climate change mitigation and air pollution control can lead to remarkable co-benefits on greenhouse gas reduction, air quality improvement, and improved health. In the context of carbon peak, carbon neutrality, and clean air policies, this perspective tracks and analyzes the process of the synergetic governance of air pollution and climate change in China by developing and monitoring 18 indicators. The 18 indicators cover the following five aspects: air pollution and associated weather-climate conditions, progress in structural transition, sources, inks, and mitigation pathway of atmospheric composition, health impacts and benefits of coordinated control, and synergetic governance system and practices. By tracking the progress in each indicator, this perspective presents the major accomplishment of coordinated control, identifies the emerging challenges toward the synergetic governance, and provides policy recommendations for designing a synergetic roadmap of Carbon Neutrality and Clean Air for China.

Overuse of fossil energy has accelerated the development of industrialization and improved the quality of human life. However, it also leads to the excessive emission of CO2, and the greenhouse effect is threatening global climate stability and human health. Various countries have implemented measures and initiatives to promote carbon emission reduction and the carbon cycle. Chemical capture and utilizing CO2 generated by fossil energy combustion has proved an efficient and valuable method. This review describes the recent progress in synthesizing high-value-added oxazolidinones from CO2 as a C1 source. Firstly, the development and value of oxazolidinones are discussed, and the necessity of finding efficient and green chemical synthesis methods for oxazolidinones is proved. Furthermore, the significance of the CO2 cycloaddition reaction in the green and efficient synthesis of oxazolidinones is introduced, and we summarize and compare various transition metal-based and organic-based reaction systems that catalyze the cycloaddition reaction of CO2 to oxazolidinones. In order to achieve potential industrial applications, the significance of novel heterogeneous catalysts, such as atomically dispersed catalysis for the CO2 reduction reaction, is expounded by comparing the characteristics of homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. Finally, the interaction mechanism of cycloaddition reaction between CO2 and N-propargylamine is discussed in the metallic and metal-free catalytic system, which provides insights for the precise design and control of the reaction and promotes the further development of catalytic systems.

Objective: The aim of this study was to optimize the fermentation process of Radix Ranunculi ternate via microbial fermentation and analyze the changes in the contents of the main components, the antioxidant and hypoglycemic capacities of the extract before and after fermentation. Methods: The solid-state fermentation process was optimized using single-factor tests and the response surface method, with the yield of the alcohol extract of R. ternate as an evaluation index. Results: The best fermentation process was optimized using solid-state endophytic fungus fermentation technology as follows: strain addition ratio of Chaetomium globosum/Fusarium equiseti = 1:1, fermentation for 5 d, sieve size of 40 mesh, liquid/material ratio of 0.8:1 mL·g−1, fermentation temperature of 31 °C, and inoculation amount of 7.5%. Under the optimized conditions, the contents of the water-soluble extract and total polysaccharides decreased by 12.71% and 12.95%, respectively. In the fermentation, the contents of the ethanol-soluble extract, flavonoids, saponins, polyphenols, organic acids, and total amino acids of the fermented R. ternate increased by 19.77%, 57.14%, 79.67%, 14.29%, 17.63%, and 3.82%, respectively. The scavenging rate for DPPH, ABTS+, and ·OH free radicals and inhibitory rate for α-amylase of the fermented R. ternate also increased by 19.02%, 14.17%, 7.53%, and 34.54%, respectively, compared with the unfermented R. ternate. Conclusions: Solid-state fermentation opens new avenues for the development and application of R. ternate as a natural antioxidant and hypoglycemic food.

Abstract Novel promising strategies for combination with sorafenib are urgently needed to enhance its clinical benefit and overcome toxicity in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). the molecular and immunomodulatory antitumor effects of sorafenib alone and in combination with the new immunotherapeutic agent R848 are presented. Syngeneic HCC mouse model is presented to explore the antitumor effect and safety of three sorafenib doses alone, R848 alone, or their combination in vivo. R848 significantly enhances the sorafenib antitumor activity at a low subclinical dose with no obvious toxic side effects. Furthermore, the combination therapy reprograms the tumor immune microenvironment by increasing antitumor macrophages and neutrophils and preventing immunosuppressive signaling. Combination treatment promotes classical M1 macrophage‐to‐FTH1high M1 macrophage transition. The close interaction between neutrophils/classical M1 macrophages and dendritic cells promotes tumor antigen presentation to T cells, inducing cytotoxic CD8+ T cell‐mediated antitumor immunity. Additionally, low‐dose sorafenib, alone or combined with R848, normalizes the tumor vasculature, generating a positive feedback loop to support the antitumor immune environment. Therefore, the combination therapy reprograms the HCC immune microenvironment and normalizes the vasculature, improving the therapeutic benefit of low‐dose sorafenib and minimizing toxicity, suggesting a promising novel immunotherapy (R848) and targeted therapy (tyrosine kinase inhibitors) combination strategy for HCC treatment.

As a regional cooperation framework, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) aims to spur economic development by investing in infrastructure and improving connectivity between the countries in Asia, Europe, and Africa located along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. Many studies have documented that BRI-related investment projects reduce trade costs, increase trade and investment flows, bring benefits to trading parties, and improve connectivity between countries along the Belt and Road. Financial integration is a critical aspect of intangible connectivity that is fundamental to and benefits from increased trade and investment flows between countries. This study examines the pairwise correlations between 39 stock markets in the Belt and Road regions from 2008 to 2018, focusing on the correlations between China and the other markets. We find that the correlation between two markets in the same region is greater than those in different regions. China has a higher correlation with markets in Southeast Asia and North and Central Asia than in other regions. The correlations fluctuate over time, but their relative rankings among market pairs remain stable. In the first half of 2015, there was an unusually low correlation between China and all other markets, most likely due to China’s stock market bubble. Our systematic examination of stock market correlations in the Belt and Road regions sheds new light on the temporal and cross-sectional dynamics in these understudied financial markets. The findings suggest significant potential for financial integration in the Belt and Road regions.

Overproduction of efflux pumps represents an important mechanism of Klebsiella pneumonia resistance to tigecycline. Here, the authors design TPGS- and S-thanatin functionalized nanorods loaded with tigecycline to increase drug accumulation inside bacteria and overcome bacterial resistance.

Abstract Background To explored the clinical, pathological, and bacteriological characteristics of pleural-based masses occurred during anti-tuberculosis (TB) treatment in patients with pleural TB. Methods Patients referred with newly diagnosed pleural TB were prospectively enrolled into the study. Patients were followed up throughout the treatment, and clinical data were recorded. Percutaneous biopsy and surgical tissues from pleural-based masses were examined histologically and samples sent for PCR. Cytokines in the pleural effusions and clinical factors were collected and compared between different patients. Results A total of 122 patients with pleural TB were enrolled, and 34.4% (42/122) displayed newly observed pleural-based mass during the treatment. Twelve cases underwent surgical resection at the 12 ± 0.5 months during the treatment course. Based on the surgical observation, 58.3% (7 /12) were located in pleura, 41.7% (5/12) were located in the lung parenchyma. Pathological observations showed that the pleural-based masses were typed as granulomatous inflammation, fibrous hyperplasia and necrosis. Mycobacterium tuberculosis PCR was positive in 57.1% of the cases (24/42). Any first-line anti-TB drug resistance gene mutations were positive in only 9.5% (4/42). Aside from 12 cases who underwent the surgical operation, 86.7% of the patients (26/30) still had a pleural-based mass at the end of 12 months treatment course. Patients with a pleural-based mass were younger, had a thicker pleural, a higher proportion of pleural adhesive, loculated pleural effusion and residual pleural effusion, and a higher level of LDH, ADA and lower glucose in pleural effusion than those without a pleural-based mass occurrence during the treatment (all Pcorr

To enable diverse functions and precise regulation, an RNA sequence often folds into complex yet distinct structures in different cellular states. Probing RNA in its native environment is essential to uncovering RNA structures of biological contexts. However, current methods generally require large amounts of input RNA and are challenging for physiologically relevant use. Here, we report smartSHAPE, a new RNA structure probing method that requires very low amounts of RNA input due to the largely reduced artefact of probing signals and increased efficiency of library construction. Using smartSHAPE, we showcased the profiling of the RNA structure landscape of mouse intestinal macrophages upon inflammation, and provided evidence that RNA conformational changes regulate immune responses. These results demonstrate that smartSHAPE can greatly expand the scope of RNA structure-based investigations in practical biological systems, and also provide a research paradigm for the study of post-transcriptional regulation.

The distribution pattern of near-road air pollutants is important for addressing air pollution issues. In this study, size-segregated particle number concentration (PNC) and black carbon (BC) concentration were measured at different locations perpendicular to a major roadway in Shanghai, aiming to improve the understanding of distribution patterns of traffic-related air pollutants. Results suggest that, despite the high emission level of on-road traffic, PNC0.3-1 (particle diameter in 0.3–1 μm) exhibited negligible concentration gradients (no variation trend) with increasing distance from the road. BC and PNC>1 (>1 μm, coarse particles) exhibited significant spatial gradients, showing a pronounced increase in concentration near the road. This is closely associated with the high spatial homogeneity of fine particles and the high spatial variability of BC and coarse particles. The influence zone of traffic on pollutants was increased in rush hours due to increased emission intensity and pollutants dispersed a longer distance downwind. Additionally, the horizontal profiles of pollutants can all be well characterized by exponential curves, despite the small spatial gradient of PNC0.3-1. The concentration gradient and fall-off range of pollutants increased with the particle size (in 0.3–25 μm). This study provides implications that fine particles (e.g., PNC0.1-1, PM1) are poor tracers of traffic emissions, which could perform poorly in characterizing the behavior of traffic emissions in the road environment but are more related to regional and background components. Moreover, the evaluation of pollutant traceability before the field study could contribute to improved experimental efficiency and more satisfactory results.

To keep the global search capability and robustness for unmanned surface vessel (USV) path planning, an improved differential evolution particle swarm optimization algorithm (DePSO) is proposed in this paper. In the optimization process, approach to optimal value in particle swarm optimization algorithm (PSO) and mutation, hybridization, selection operation in differential evolution algorithm (DE) are combined, and the mutation factor is self-adjusted. First, the particle population is initialized and the optimization objective is determined, the individual and global optimal values are updated. Then differential variation is conducted to produces new variables and cross over with the current individual, the scaling factor is adjusted adaptively with the number of iterations in the mutation process, particle population is updated according to the hybridization results. Finally, the convergence of the algorithm is determined according to the decision standard. Numerical simulation results show that, compared with conventional PSO and DE, the proposed algorithm can effectively reduce the path intersection points, and thus greatly shorten the overall path length.

Aiming at the complex strata, lost circulation often occurs. and lost circulation control becomes a difficult issue. A drilling fluid loss accident delays the drilling progress and even causes major economic losses. If we take a self-made sodium polyacrylate grafting and modify a starch water absorbent resin, using an amphiphilic compatibilizer as raw material through mechanical blending and chemical compatibilization, we can synthesize a resin–rubber blend swelling lost circulation material. This material presents a good resistance to anti-high-temperature performance, but the quality declines while the temperature is higher than 363 °C, and with the increasing temperature, the water-swelling expansion ratio becomes higher. The range of the water-swelling expansion ratio is 8 to 25 times and the water swelling rate becomes larger along with the reduced diameter of the lost circulation materials and decreases with the increasing salinity. The resin-rubber blend swelling lost circulation material after water swelling has excellent toughness and high elastic deformation capacity, thus, forming a 7 Mpa to 2 mm fracture via expansion, extrusion, deformation, and filling, which presents a good performance for fracture plugging and realizes the purpose of lost circulation control.

The molecular mechanisms of resistance to immune checkpoint therapy remain elusive. Here, the authors perform immunogenomic analysis of TCGA data and data from clinical trials for antiPD-1/PD-L1 therapy and highlight the association of 9p21 loss with a cold tumor microenvironment and resistance to therapy.

Abstract The mechanisms driving therapeutic resistance and poor outcomes of mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) are incompletely understood. We characterize the cellular and molecular heterogeneity within and across patients and delineate the dynamic evolution of tumor and immune cell compartments at single cell resolution in longitudinal specimens from ibrutinib-sensitive patients and non-responders. Temporal activation of multiple cancer hallmark pathways and acquisition of 17q are observed in a refractory MCL. Multi-platform validation is performed at genomic and cellular levels in PDX models and larger patient cohorts. We demonstrate that due to 17q gain, BIRC5/survivin expression is upregulated in resistant MCL tumor cells and targeting BIRC5 results in marked tumor inhibition in preclinical models. In addition, we discover notable differences in the tumor microenvironment including progressive dampening of CD8+ T cells and aberrant cell-to-cell communication networks in refractory MCLs. This study reveals diverse and dynamic tumor and immune programs underlying therapy resistance in MCL.

Abstract Objective Surgical resection plays an essential role in the treatment of Pulmonary Tuberculosis (PTB). There are few reports comparing lobectomy and sublobectomy for pulmonary TB with cavity. To compare the advantages between lobectomy and sublobectomy for localized cavitory PTB, we performed a single-institution cross sectional cohort study of the surgical patients. Methods We consecutively included 203 patients undergoing lobectomy or sublobectomy surgery for localized cavitary PTB. All patients were followed up, recorded and compared their surgical complication, outcome and associated characteristics. Results Both groups had similar outcomes after follow up for 13.1 ± 12.1 months, however, sublobectomy group suffered fewer intraoperative blood losses, shorter length of stay, and fewer operative complications than lobectomy group (P 0.05). Conclusion Both sublobectomy and lobectomy resection were effective ways for cavitary PTB with surgical indications. If adequate anti-TB chemotherapy had been guaranteed, sublobectomy is able to be recommended due to more lung parenchyma retain, faster recover, and fewer postoperative complications.

China’s past economic growth has substantially relied on fossil fuels, causing serious air pollution issues. Decoupling economic growth and pollution has become the focus in developing ecological civilization in China. We have analyzed the three-decade progress of air pollution controls in China, highlighting a strategic transformation from emission control toward air quality management. Emission control of sulfur dioxide (SO2) resolved the deteriorating acid rain issue in China in 2007. Since 2013, control actions on multiple precursors and sectors have targeted the reduction of the concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), marking a transition to an air-quality-oriented strategy. Increasing ozone (O3) pollution further requires O3 and PM2.5 integrated control strategies with an emphasis on their complex photochemical interactions. Fundamental improvement of air quality in China, as a key indicator for the success of ecological civilization construction, demands the deep de-carbonization of China’s energy system as well as more synergistic pathways to address air pollution and global climate change simultaneously.

AbstractThe structural plane plays a decisive role in the development processes of rockburst. In this paper, Barton-Bandis criterion of structural plane and its conversion relationship with Mohr-Coulomb criterion are discussed in detail. Firstly, when the structural plane obeys Barton-Bandis criterion, the value range of the dip angle of the structural plane when it is yield is deduced theoretically, and the yield function of the structural plane is proposed: F=sinA−2β+PsinA. The correctness of the theoretical derivation result is verified by a mapping method and numerical simulation method. Secondly, based on the result of theoretical derivation and assuming that rock obeys Mohr-Coulomb criterion, a fast identification method for the failure modes of rock mass is proposed. The failure modes of rock mass are divided into “no failure”, “failure along structural plane”, “failure along rock”, and “failure along both rock and structural plane”, and the correctness of the fast identification method is verified by numerical simulation. Finally, from the perspective of structural plane failure, a new method for converting Barton-Bandis criterion to Mohr-Coulomb criterion is proposed. Based on the yield of structural plane and relative error of displacement, the differences between the new method and existing conversion methods are compared. The results show that the yield condition determined by the new method is consistent with those determined by Barton-Bandis criterion, and the relative error of displacement is less than the tangent regression method and linear fitting method. In summary, the relevant methods and conclusions of this paper provide theoretical support and technical guidance for the mutual conversion between different criteria and the prediction and identification of rock mass failure modes in rockburst.

The corrosion behavior and corrosion resistance of WE43 and AZ80 immersed in NaCl and Na2SO4 solutions were investigated, respectively. Two alloys were immersed in 0.6 M NaCl and Na2SO4 solution to observe the corrosion morphologies. Hydrogen evolution and weight loss experiments were conducted to obtain the corrosion rates. Electrochemical tests were used to characterized detailed corrosion situation. The results show that, when immersed in Na2SO4 solution, WE43 alloy shows a unique micro-galvanic corrosion behavior. On the other hand, the corrosion rate of WE43 in Na2SO4 solution is much faster than that in NaCl solution, which is the direct opposite of AZ80 and most magnesium alloys. The protection of the surface film maybe the key factor to the unexpected phenomena.

Macrophage autophagy plays a major role in the control and elimination of invading Mycobacterium tuberculosis . However, the function and mechanism of circRNA on macrophage autophagy in tuberculosis remain unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the role of circRNA underlying macrophage autophagy in tuberculosis. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the expression of hsa_circ_0045474, miR-582-5p and TNKS2. Autophagy was detected by LC3B immunofluorescence and transmission electron microscopy. Dual-luciferase reporter assays were used to detect the relationship of miR-582-5p and hsa_circ_0045474 or TNKS2. Western blot was used to detect the expression of LC3-І and LC3-ІІ. The results showed that hsa_circ_0045474 was down-regulated in monocytes from patients with tuberculosis and induced autophagy in macrophages. hsa_circ_0045474 sponged miR-582-5p and negatively regulated miR-582-5p expression. Overexpression of miR-582-5p affected by hsa_circ_0045474 induced autophagy in macrophages. TNKS2 served as a target of miR-582-5p and down-regulation of TNKS2 induced autophagy in macrophages regulated by miR-582-5p. In conclusion, our results demonstrated that hsa_circ_0045474 down-regulation induced macrophage autophagy in tuberculosis via miR-582-5p/ TNKS2 axis, implying a novel strategy to treat the occurrence of active pulmonary tuberculosis caused by immune escape of M. tuberculosis .

Introduction: The burden of personality disorders (PDs) in China is large and the focus on mental health services is increasing. However, there is a lack of sufficient evidence regarding the prevalence of comorbid PD in psychotic and non-psychotic disorders, and whether PDs have different distributions. We aimed to investigate the PD comorbidity distribution pattern between psychotic and non-psychotic disorders using a clinical population-based study.Materials and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 1,497 patients in Shanghai. PDs were screened using the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire Fourth Edition Plus (PDQ-4+). All patients were interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition (DSM-IV) Axis II (SCID-II). We compared the differences in PD comorbidities classified as the 10 types of PDs in the DSM-IV, in 531 patients with psychosis and 966 patients with non-psychotic disorders.Results: More than one-third (37%) of patients with psychotic disorders met the criteria of at least one PD. Approximately half (46%) of patients with non-psychotic disorders met the criteria of at least one PD. Patients with non-psychotic disorders were more likely to meet the criteria of borderline (χ2 = 20.154, p < 0.001) and obsessive-compulsive PD (χ2 = 21.164, p < 0.001) diagnoses compared to those with psychotic disorders. In contrast, patients with psychotic disorders were more likely to meet the criteria of paranoid (χ2 = 11.144, p = 0.001) and schizotypal PD (χ2 = 14.004, p < 0.001) diagnoses than those with non-psychotic disorders.Discussion: PD comorbidity is common and comorbidity distribution pattern is varied in patients with psychotic and non-psychotic disorders, implicating the development of specific strategies that could screen and assess PDs in psychiatric clinical practice.

Vehicle mileage is one of the key parameters for accurately evaluating vehicle emissions and energy consumption. With the support of the national annual vehicle emission inspection networked platform in China, this study used big data methods to analyze the activity level characteristics of the light-duty passenger vehicle fleet with the highest ownership proportion. We found that the annual mileage of vehicles does not decay significantly with the increase in vehicle age, and the mileage of vehicles is relatively low in the first few years due to the run-in period, among other reasons. This study indicated that the average mileage of the private passenger car fleet is 10,300 km/yr and that of the taxi fleet was 80,000 km/yr in China in 2019, and the annual mileage dropped by 22% in 2020 due to the pandemic. Based on the vehicle mileage characteristics, the emission inventory of major pollutants from light-duty passenger vehicles in China for 2010–2020 was able to be updated, which will provide important data support for more accurate environmental and climate benefit assessments in the future.

Abstract Immunotherapy for cancer has moved from pre‐clinical hypothesis to successful clinical application in the past 15 years. However, not all cancers have shown response rates in clinical trials for these new agents. igh‐grade gliomas, in particular, have proved exceedingly refractory to immunotherapy. In adult patients, there has been much investigation into these failures, and researchers have concluded that an immunosuppressive microenvironment combined with low mutational burden renders adult glioblastomas “immune cold.” Pediatric cancer patients develop gliomas at a higher rate per malignancy than adults, and their brain tumors bear even fewer mutations. These tumors can also develop in more diverse locations in the brain, beyond the cerebral hemispheres seen in adults, including in the brainstem where critical motor functions are controlled. While adult brain tumor immune infiltration has been extensively profiled from surgical resections, this is not possible for brainstem tumors that can only be sampled at autopsy. Given these limitations, there is a dearth of information on immune cells and their therapeutic and prognostic impact in pediatric high‐grade gliomas (pHGGs), including hemispheric tumors in addition to brainstem. In this report, we use computational methods to examine immune infiltrate in pHGGs and discover distinct immune patterns between hemispheric and brainstem tumors. In hemispheric tumors, we find positive prognostic associations for regulatory T‐cells, memory B‐cells, eosinophils, and dendritic cells, but not in brainstem tumors. These differences suggest that immunotherapeutic approaches must be cognizant of pHGG tumor location and tailored for optimum efficacy.

Background: Changes in the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) and the fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (fALFF) have provided stronger evidence for the pathophysiology of cognitive impairment. Whether the altered patterns of ALFF and fALFF differ in amnestic cognitive impairment (aMCI) and vascular mild cognitive impairment (vMCI) is largely unknown. The purpose of this study was to explore the ALFF/fALFF changes in the two diseases and to further explore whether they contribute to the diagnosis and differentiation of these diseases.Methods: We searched PubMed, Ovid, and Web of Science databases for articles on studies using the ALFF/fALFF method in patients with aMCI and vMCI. Based on the activation likelihood estimation (ALE) method, connectivity modeling based on coordinate meta-analysis and functional meta-analysis was carried out.Results: Compared with healthy controls (HCs), patients with aMCI showed increased ALFF/fALFF in the bilateral parahippocampal gyrus/hippocampus (PHG/HG), right amygdala, right cerebellum anterior lobe (CAL), left middle temporal gyrus (MTG), left cerebrum temporal lobe sub-gyral, left inferior temporal gyrus (ITG), and left cerebrum limbic lobe uncus. Meanwhile, decreased ALFF/fALFF values were also revealed in the bilateral precuneus (PCUN), bilateral cuneus (CUN), and bilateral posterior cingulate (PC) in patients with aMCI. Compared with HCs, patients with vMCI predominantly showed decreased ALFF/fALFF in the bilateral CUN, left PCUN, left PC, and right cingulate gyrus (CG).Conclusions: The present findings suggest that ALFF and fALFF displayed remarkable altered patterns between aMCI and vMCI when compared with HCs. Thus, the findings of this study may serve as a reliable tool for distinguishing aMCI from vMCI, which may help understand the pathophysiological mechanisms of these diseases.

This paper reports an intracavity terahertz parametric source based on the stimulated polariton scattering in RbTiOPO4 crystal with a high repetition rate and a high average power. The side pumping for the gain medium by laser diodes is adopted to get a higher fundamental power and a larger fundamental laser beam size than those in the diode-end-pumping in order to improve the THz output power. A non-collinear convex-plane fundamental cavity is adopted so that the thermal effect can be offset in some degree and the fundamental beam size is further increased. The obtained maximum average THz output power is 367 μW at 3.88 THz when the diode pump power is 105 W and the pulse repetition frequency (PRF) is 7 kHz. The terahertz power of 367 μW is the highest ever obtained in SPS sources.

Abstract: Multiple myeloma is, in most patients, an incurable cancer. Its precursors can be identified with routine tests setting the stage for early intervention to prevent active myeloma. We investigated the efficacy and safety of pembrolizumab, an antiprogrammed cell death 1 antibody, in smoldering myeloma patients with intermediate/high risk of progression to symptomatic myeloma. Thirteen patients were treated with a median number of 8 cycles. One patient achieved a stringent complete response with bone marrow next-generation sequencing negativity at 10−4 that is ongoing at 27 months (8%); 11 had stable disease (85%), and 1 progressed (8%). Three patients discontinued therapy due to immune-related adverse events: 2 with transaminitis and 1 due to tubulointerstitial nephritis. Immune profiling of bone marrow samples at baseline showed markers associated with a preexisting immune response in the responder compared with nonresponders and features of increased T-cell exhaustion in nonresponders. Consistent with this, transcriptome sequencing of bone marrow samples at baseline revealed an increased interferon-γ signature in the responder compared with the nonresponders. In summary, our results suggest that smoldering myeloma may be immunogenic in a subset of patients, and therapies that enhance antitumor T-cell responses may be effective in preventing its progression. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT02603887.

Vortex-induced vibration (VIV) is a process that wind energy converts to the mechanical energy of the bluff body. Enhancing VIV to harvest wind energy is a promising method to power wireless sensor nodes in the Internet of Things. In this work, a VIV-driven square cylinder triboelectric nanogenerator (SC-TENG) is proposed to harvest broadband wind energy. The vibration characteristic and output performance are studied experimentally to investigate the effect of the natural frequency by using five different springs in a wide range of stiffnesses (27 N/m

Abstract Introduction The current diagnosis of Parkinson's disease (PD) comorbidity with depression (DPD) largely depends on clinical evaluation. However, the modality may tend to lack precision in detecting PD with depression. A radiomic approach that combines functional connectivity and activity with clinical scores has the potential to achieve accurate and differential diagnosis between PD and DPD. Methods In this study, we aimed to employ the radiomic approach to extract large‐scale features of functional connectivity and activity for differentiating among DPD, PD with no depression (NDPD), and healthy controls (HC). We extracted 6,557 features of five types from all subjects including clinical characteristics, resting‐state functional connectivity (RSFC), amplitude of low‐frequency fluctuation (ALFF), regional homogeneity (ReHo), and voxel‐mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC). Lasso, random forest, and support vector machine (SVM) were implemented for feature selection and dimension reduction based on the training sets, and the prediction performance for different methods in the testing sets was compared. Results The results showed that nineteen features were selected for the group of DPD versus HC, 34 features were selected for the group of NDPD versus HC, and 17 features were retained for the group of DPD versus NDPD. In the testing sets, Lasso prediction achieved the accuracies of 0.95, 0.96, and 0.85 for distinguishing between DPD and HC, NDPD and HC, and DPD and NDPD, respectively. Random forest achieved the accuracies of 0.90, 0.82, and 0.90 for distinguishing between DPD and HC, NDPD and HC, and DPD and NDPD, respectively, while SVM yielded the accuracies of 1, 0.86 and 0.65 for distinguishing between DPD and HC, NDPD and HC, and DPD and NDPD, respectively. Conclusions By identifying aberrant functional connectivity and activity as potential biomarkers, the radiomic approach facilitates a deeper understanding and provides new insights into the pathophysiology of DPD to support the clinical diagnosis with high prediction accuracy.

By Maker Fringe (MF) method, all of the nonlinear optical (NLO) coefficients including d11, d12, d13, d31, d32 and d33 of TmCa4O(BO3)3 (TmCOB) crystals were measured to be 0.19, 0.26, −0.61, −0.30, 1.66 and −1.25 pm/V, respectively. Based on which, the second-harmonic-generation (SHG) phase-matching (PM) characteristics of TmCOB crystals in two-dimensional principal planes and three-dimensional non-principal planes (space) were theoretically calculated, such as PM tuning curves, distribution of effective NLO coefficient (deff), beam walk-off angle, and angular acceptance bandwidth. At the fundamental waves of 1064 nm, the type-II optimal PM angles with largest deff for principal planes and space were decided to be (52.8°, 90.0°) (deff = 0.24 pm/V) and (118.0°, 77.2°) (deff = 0.35 pm/V), respectively. The type-II SHG of TmCOB crystals was found to present large acceptance angle bandwidth (~2–12 times of type-I values) and small beam walk-off angle (~0.2–0.4 times of type-I values). At a high input energy of 6.89 mJ (35 ps, 10 Hz, 1064 nm), the SHG transformation efficiency for an uncoated TmCOB crystal sample cut along type-II optimal angle (118.0°, 77.2°) with 12 mm in length was measured to be 55.9%, which achieved the same conversion efficiency grade as type-I optimal PM.

We investigated if corilagin can ameliorate or reverse atherosclerotic development via the toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling pathway in vitro and in vivo. Ana-1 cells or mouse peritoneal macrophages (MPMs) were stimulated with oxidized low-density lipoprotein followed by corilagin treatment. TLR4 expression in Ana-1 cells was upregulated by lentiviral transduction and downregulated by small interfering RNA. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), plasma samples, and femoral arteries were collected from rats exhibiting peripheral artery disease (PAD). mRNA and protein expression of TLR4 and downstream molecules were decreased significantly by corilagin treatment in Ana-1 cells, MPMs, and rat PBMCs, and the reduction remained irrespective of downregulation or upregulation of TLR4 expression in Ana-1 cells. Corilagin also exerted a prominent effect on changes in plasma levels of cytokines and the pathologic manifestation of atherosclerosis in femoral arteries. Corilagin could ameliorate the development of atherosclerotic plaques by inhibiting the TLR4 signaling pathway in monocyte/macrophages and reduce the release of proinflammatory cytokines. This study provides a new therapeutic target and new niche targeting drug to oppose atherosclerosis and reveals the enormous potential of corilagin for control of PAD in humans.

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive, chronic, and neurodegenerative disorder that is primarily diagnosed by clinical examinations and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In this study, we proposed a machine learning based radiomics method to predict PD. Fifty healthy controls (HC) along with 70 PD patients underwent resting-state magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). For all subjects, we extracted five types of 6664 features, including mean amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (mALFF), mean regional homogeneity (mReHo), resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC), voxel-mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC) and gray matter (GM) volume. After conducting dimension reduction utilizing Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), fifty-three radiomic features including 46 RSFCs, 1 mALFF, 3 mReHos, 1 VMHC, 2 GM volumes and 1 clinical factor were retained. The selected features also indicated the most discriminative regions for PD. We further conducted model fitting procedure for classifying subjects in the training set employing random forest and support volume machine (SVM) to evaluate the performance of the two methods. After cross-validation, both methods achieved 100% accuracy and area under curve (AUC) for distinguishing between PD and HC in the training set. In the testing set, SVM performed better than random forest with the accuracy, true positive rate (TPR) and AUC being 85%, 1 and 0.97, respectively. These findings demonstrate the radiomics technique has the potential to support radiological diagnosis and to achieve high classification accuracy for clinical diagnostic systems for patients with PD.

In terahertz (THz) wave parametric sources, the large angle between the pump and terahertz waves (about 65° in LiNbO3 crystal) will affect the spatial intensity distributions. To investigate how the noncollinear phase-matching affects the spatial intensity properties of the pump, Stokes, and THz waves, we take the injection-seeded THz-wave parametric generator (is-TPG) as an example to study the beam spatial intensity properties via the numerical solutions of the coupled-wave equations. The simulated results demonstrate that the pump and Stokes intensities have significant changes along the THz-wave propagation direction. It is the first time that the spatial intensity distributions of the three waves in the THz-wave parametric sources have been studied in theory. In addition, the output intensity distributions of the pump, Stokes, and THz waves are measured in the designed is-TPG. The measured spatial intensity distributions are in coincidence with the simulated results. Investigations on the beam spatial intensity properties provide a potential approach to improve the THz-wave outputs and the pump conversion efficiency for the is-TPG and other THz-wave parametric sources.

Background/Aims: Disseminated tumors, known as metastases, are responsible for ninety-percent of mortality due to cancer. Epithelial to mesenchymal transition, a phenomenon required for morphological conversion of non-motile discoid shaped epithelial cells to highly motile spindle-shaped mesenchymal cells, is thought to be a pre-requisite for metastatic progression. Metastasis-associated 1 (MTA1) protein is a prime inducer of EMT and metastatic progression in all solid tumors including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate the expression and function of MTA1 in HCC have not been elucidated. Methods: In silico prediction algorithms were used to find microRNAs (miRNAs) that may target MTA1. We examined the relationship between the expression of MTA1 and miR-183 using quantitative real time PCR. We also determined the levels of the MTA1 protein using immunohistochemistry. Reporter assays, in the presence and absence of the miR-183 mimic, were used to confirm MTA1 as a bona fide target of miR183. The effect of miR-183 on HCC pathogenesis was determined using a combination of in vitro migration and invasion assay, together with in vivo xenograft experiments. The correlation between miR-183 and MTA1 expression was also studied in samples from HCC patients, and in The Cancer Genome Atlas dataset. Results: Analysis of the sequence database revealed that MTA1 is a putative target of miR-183. MTA1 protein and RNA expression showed opposite trends to miR-183 expression in breast, renal, prostate, and testicular tissue samples from cancer patients, and in the metastatic HCC cell line HepG2. An inverse correlation was also observed between MTA1 (high) and miR-183 (low) expression within samples from HHC patients and in the TCGA dataset. Reporter assays in HepG2 cells showed that miR-183 could inhibit translation of a reporter harboring the wild-type, but not the mutant miR-183 3’-untranslated region (UTR). In addition, miR-183 significantly inhibited in vitro migration and invasion in HepG2 cells, and in vivo hepatic metastasis. Conclusion: Our results reveal a novel post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism for MTA1 expression via miR-183, which is suppressed during HCC pathogenesis.

Lattice Boltzmann method is one of the widely used in multiphase fluid flow. However, the two main disadvantages of this method are the instability of numerical calculations due to the large density ratio of two phases and impossibility of the temperature distribution to be fed back into the velocity distribution function when the temperature is simulated. Based on the combination prescribed by Inamuro, the large density ratio two-phase flow model and thermal model makes the density ratio of the model simulation to be increased to 2778:1 by optimizing the interface distribution function of two-phase which improves the accuracy of differential format. The phase transition term is added as source term into the distribution function controlling two phase order parameters to describe the temperature effect on the gas-liquid phase transition. The latent heat generated from the phase change is also added as a source term into the temperature distribution function which simulates the movement of the flow under the common coupling of density, velocity, pressure and temperature. The density and the temperature distribution of single bubble are simulated. Comparison of the simulation results with experimental results indicates a good agreement pointing out the effectiveness of the improved model. Keywords: Lattice Boltzmann model, Density ratio, Composite grids, Bubble motion, Temperature effect

Distributed control plane is a common approach to improve the scalability of software-defined data center networks. However, learning how to balance the load among the controllers remains a difficult problem, since the flows in the network fluctuate frequently. In this paper, we propose an online controller load balancing (OCLB) scheme to address this issue. We first formulate the load balancing problem as an optimization problem to minimize the average controller response time. Then we decompose it into a sequence of switch migrations, with each migration aiming to reduce the average response time as much as possible based on the realtime request distribution. An OCLB algorithm is designed based on the derived optimality and termination conditions of switch migration, and is proved to be near optimal with a bounded competitive ratio. Evaluations demonstrate that our scheme can achieve near-optimal load balancing among the control plane in an online manner.

Background: This study investigated the relationship strength between hypothyroidism and cardiovascular and renal outcomes in diabetic patients.Methods: The electronic databases PubMed, EmBase, and Cochrane library were screened for relevant studies published before November 2018. The outcomes included major cardiovascular events (MACEs), all-cause mortality, cardiac death, stroke, diabetic nephropathy (DN), diabetic retinopathy (DR), and chronic kidney disease (CKD). The pooled results for all outcomes were calculated using random-effects models.Results: A total of eight studies met the inclusion criteria. The summary results indicated that hypothyroidism was not associated with the risk of MACEs (OR:1.21; 95%CI:0.68–2.16; P = 0.514), all-cause mortality (OR:1.27; 95%CI:0.93–1.74; P = 0.136), cardiac death (OR:1.16; 95%CI:0.89–1.52; P = 0.271), stroke (OR:0.96; 95%CI: 0.49–1.88; P = 0.915), and DN (OR:1.71; 95%CI:0.37–7.90; P = 0.490). There was a significant association between hypothyroidism and the risk of DR (OR:1.73; 95%CI:1.08–2.77; P = 0.023) and CKD (OR:1.22; 95%CI:1.10–1.36; P < 0.001).Conclusions: These findings indicate that diabetic patients with hypothyroidism have an increased risk of DR and CKD. Additional large-scale prospective studies should be carried out to verify the prognosis of patients with diabetes and hypothyroidism.

This study aims to evaluate the effects of different electrolyte concentrations on titanium-porcelain bonding strength after microarc oxidation (MAO) treatment. Four MgSiF6 electrolyte concentrations (10 g/L, 20 g/L, 30 g/L, and 40 g/L) were chosen for the MAO bath solutions. According to ISO 9693, the bonding strengths of titanium-porcelain restorations were detected by the three-point bending test. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) were applied to evaluate the morphologies and elemental compositions of the MAO coating, titanium-porcelain fracture surfaces, titanium-porcelain interfaces, and oxygen diffusion. The bonding strength of the 20 g/L MgSiF6 group was significantly higher than that of the control group. However, overly high MgSiF6 concentrations had a negative influence on the bonding strength between titanium and porcelain. The results demonstrate that MAO treatment with only appropriate electrolyte concentration can improve the titanium-porcelain bonding strength.

The serious fine particle (PM2.5) pollution in China causes millions of premature deaths. Driven by swift economic growth and stringent control policies, air pollutant emissions in China have changed significantly in the last decade, but the change in the source contribution of PM2.5-related health impacts remains unclear. In this study, we develop a multi-pollutant emission inventory in China for 2005–2015, and combine chemical transport modeling, ambient/household exposure evaluation and health impact assessment to quantify the contribution of eight emission sectors to PM2.5 exposure and associated health risk. From 2005 to 2015, the mortality due to PM2.5 from ambient air pollution (AAP) decreases from 1.04 (95% confidence interval, 0.84–1.25) million to 0.87 (0.70–1.04) million. The agricultural sector contributes 25% and 32% to ambient PM2.5-attributed mortality in 2005 and 2015, respectively, representing the largest contributor during this period. The contribution of power plants drops monotonously from 13% to 6%. The percentage contribution of industrial process drops significantly while the contribution of industrial combustion stays the same level. The overall contribution of industry is still as large as 26% in 2015 in spite of strict control measures. For transportation, despite strict emission standards, its contribution increases remarkably due to the rapid growth of vehicle population. When both ambient and household PM2.5 exposures are taken into account, the mortality due to integrated population-weighted exposure to PM2.5 (IPWE) drops from 1.78 (1.46–2.09) million in 2005 to 1.28 (1.05–1.52) million in 2015. Most of the IPWE reduction comes from domestic combustion as a result of urbanization and improved income, whereas this sector remains the largest contributor (58%) to IPWE-related health risk in 2015. Our results suggest that the government should dynamically adjust the air pollution control strategy according to the change in source contributions. Domestic combustion and agriculture should be prioritized considering their predominant contributions to mortality and the lack of effective control policies. More stringent control measures for industry and transportation are necessary since the existing policies have not adequately reduced their health impacts. Electricity production is no longer the top priority of air pollution control policies given its lower health impact compared with that of other sources. Keywords: Emission inventory, PM2.5, Health impact, Source apportionment, Household air pollution, Ambient air pollution

We report a novel synthesis of monodisperse samples of copper telluride with crystallinity and stoichiometry corresponding to forms of rickardite, Cu3−xTe2 (x < 1). This synthesis makes use of a ligand balanced reaction to allow control over shape and size by varying the relative and absolute concentration of oleylamine to stearic acid. The rickardite samples presented here display size dependent plasmon peaks in the near infrared and direct energy band gaps between 1.7 and 2.3 eV. As such they may find utility in photovoltaic, thermoelectric or as novel optical materials for study of surface plasmons.