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In this paper, the cyclic elastic–plastic behaviors of the centrifugal steam compressor impeller (CSCI) structure under practical operating conditions are discussed employing the linear matching method (LMM). The three‐stage strategy of the LMM is employed to determine the shakedown and ratchet boundaries by conducting a series of iterative direct steady cyclic analysis, and based on this, the load regions corresponding to different types of damage behavior that may occur during the operation are identified. Computational results reveal slight contraction in the structural response diagram when considering actual material constitutive relationships, compared to ideal elastic–plastic models. Meanwhile, by integrating the unified ratchet and fatigue program with fatigue experimental data, a series of constant low‐cycle fatigue life curves has been presented for different service conditions. Furthermore, a comparison with detailed step‐by‐step inelastic analyses confirms the applicability and great efficiency of the LMM in practical engineering problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Topological photonic states are immune to structural defects and perturbations, which are considered as a promising solution for realizing robust integrated optical devices. As an essential photonic component, the chiral mode converter, which can directionally switch the modes of photonic states, plays a key role in integrated photonics. However, there is no way to realize topological photonic chiral mode converters. Here, a method is proposed to realize topological photonic chiral mode converters by dynamically encircling exceptional points in topological photonic systems. The device can directionally switch modes of topological photonic states and endow the mode converter with topology protection. Chiral dynamic behavior emerges between the two topological states due to the nonadiabatic transitions within the non‐Hermitian topological photonic system. The topological photonic chiral mode converter is robust against random perturbations of coupling strengths. The realization of a topological chiral mode converter endows topology protection into traditional photonic devices and will promote the practical applications of topological photonic states, such as mode multiplexers and optical isolators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Compared to the independent application of chopper stabilization or correlated double sampling (CDS), this paper proposed a 2nd‐order cascade of integrators with feedforward delta–sigma modulator (DSM) utilizing an innovatively synthetic technique of chopper‐integrator within CDS at 1st stage for reducing the flicker noise and DC offset cancelation from about 9.5 mV to −4.4 μV ± 115.6 μV (δ). On the regard of further enhancing the noise suppression and mitigating the nonlinearities of capacitor mismatch, instead of applying the dynamic elements randomization (DER) to the nonlinear correction of DAC under multi‐bits quantizer, here the operation of 3‐bits DER with scrambler has been intelligently employed on the 2nd integrators' sampling capacitors to gain the 2nd noise‐shaping characteristic in spite of 1‐bit quantizer. The noise floor could be theoretically scaled down by −16.1 dB at input frequency of 10 kHz within the limited bandwidth of 100 kHz. The prototype DSM was manufactured in 180‐nm BCD process with an active area of 0.2625 mm2 and achieves the SNDR‐based Schreier figure‐of‐merit (FoMS) of 144 dB and Walden figure‐of‐merit (FoMW) of 25.96 pJ/conv under a 3.3 V supply at 10 kHz working frequency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the association between Composite Dietary Antioxidant Index (CDAI) and the risk of endometriosis (EM)-related rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in women of childbearing age. Methods: Using the data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey database, this cross-sectional study included women of childbearing age. The CDAI was obtained by summing the standardized Z-values of the dietary intakes. EM was diagnosed based on a questionnaire-based survey. The outcome of this study was the presence of RA, which was defined by a questionnaire. The associations of CDAI and EM with the risk of RA were determined using weighted logistic analysis. Additive interaction was evaluated using the relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI), the attributable proportion due to interaction (AP), and the synergy index (S). Results: In total, 3803 patients were included, of which 74 patients (1.99%) were with RA. A lower CDAI [odds ratio (OR): 1.85, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.12 to 3.04, P= 0.015] and the presence of EM (OR: 3.05, 95% CI: 1.19 to 7.81, P= 0.023) was associated with the risk of RA. The result demonstrated an additive interaction of a lower CDAI and the presence of EM on the risk of RA (OR: 6.19, 95% CI: 2.33 to 16.43, P < 0.001, P of trend =0.007). Nevertheless, there was no significant additive interaction after being assessed by the RERI, AP, and S. However, a joint effect of a lower CDAI and EM on the risk of RA (OR: 3.94, 95% CI: 1.35 to 11.51, P= 0.013) was observed. Conclusion: Our study identified EM, and lower CDAI, was related to the risk of RA. Lower CDAI score was also associated with the risk of EM-related RA. This study indicates the importance of antioxidant intake in daily diet for the management of EM-related RA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purposes: To evaluate radiomics from Gd-EOB-DTPA enhanced MR combined with clinical variables for stratifying hepatic functional reserve in hepatitis B virus (HBV) patients. Methods: Our study included 279 chronic HBV patients divided 8:2 for training and test cohorts. Radiomics features were extracted from the hepatobiliary phase (HBP) MR images. Radiomics features were selected to construct a Rad-score which was combined with clinical parameters in two models differentiating hepatitis vs. Child–Pugh A and Child–Pugh A vs. B/C. Performances of these stratifying models were compared using area under curve (AUC). Results: Rad-score alone discriminated hepatitis vs. Child–Pugh A with AUC = 0.890, 0.914 and Child–Pugh A vs. B/C with AUC = 0.862, 0.865 for the training and test cohorts, respectively. Model 1 [Rad-score + clinical parameters for hepatitis vs. Child–Pugh A] showed AUC = 0.978 for the test cohort, which was higher than ALBI [albumin-bilirubin] and MELD [model for end-stage liver disease], with AUCs of 0.716, 0.799, respectively (p < 0.001, < 0.001). Model 2 [Rad-score + clinical parameters for Child–Pugh A vs. B/C] showed AUC of 0.890 in the test cohort, which was similar to ALBI (AUC = 0.908, p = 0.760), and higher than MELD (AUC = 0.709, p = 0.018). Conclusion: Rad-score combined with clinical variables stratifies hepatic functional reserve in HBV patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stress‐induced dilatancy anisotropy is an important kinematic response in granular materials and is very complex due to the stochastic motion of particles. In this study, the local stress‐dilatancy relationship is investigated referring to the local contact force and relative displacement in a certain contact direction. The micromechanism of this anisotropy is investigated from the view of affine and nonaffine approaches based on DEM simulation. Numerical results indicate that the local nonaffine dilatancy/contraction tendency is opposite with that of local affine deformation in macroscopic compression and extension direction, which mainly stems from the counteraction effect between the normal components of affine and nonaffine displacements. The local stress‐dilatancy of affine and nonaffine components is linear and orientation‐dependent, which results in the nonlinear character of macroscopic stress‐dilatancy. By establishing an analytical relation of stress‐dilatancy, the local affine/nonaffine dilatancy is decomposed into the component of stress‐induced dilatancy synchronized with the local stress anisotropy; and the component of stress‐induced dilatancy asynchronized with the local stress anisotropy. The former is related to the unchanged isotropic microstructure, and the latter attributes to the anisotropic microstructure. Besides, the contribution of nonsliding contacts to nonaffine dilatancy is larger than that of sliding contacts even for the case of relatively higher sliding ratio, which indicates that the heterogeneous deformation attributes not only to the friction dissipation, but to the blocked energy at micro contacts in granular materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Postpartum depression is a common and serious mental health problem that is affecting an increasing percentage of the world's population. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of postpartum depressive symptoms in Beijing, China, during the COVID-19 pandemic and identify several potential risk factors. This was a cross-sectional observational study conducted at Peking University First Hospital from 2020 to 2021. Women who delivered and had postpartum reviews at 42 days after delivery were invited to complete the Chinese version of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) under the guidance of trained nurses. A score of ≥10 was used as the threshold of postpartum depression. t- tests, chi-square tests or Mann–Whitney U tests were applied. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the risk factors for postpartum depressive symptoms. A total of 2462 mothers were included in this study, 20.2 % of whom were considered to have postpartum depressive symptoms. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that formula feeding (OR = 2.219, 95 % CI: 1.300–3.786, P = 0.013), preterm birth (OR = 1.619, 95 % CI: 1.108–2.367, P = 0.013), cervical insufficiency (OR 3.022, 95 % CI: 1.200–7.615, P = 0.019) and history of depression (OR = 6.519, 95 % CI: 1.537–27.659, P = 0.011) were associated with a high prevalence of postpartum depressive symptoms. There is a high prevalence of postpartum depressive symptoms in developed regions of China during the COVID-19 pandemic. More attention should be given to mothers with risk factors for PPD, and follow-up care is needed. • There is a high prevalence of postpartum depressive symptoms in Beijing of China. • History of depression, preterm birth, CI and formula feeding are risk factors for postpartum depressive symptoms. • Routine assessments of PPD at postpartum outpatient visits and a follow-up care for high-risk mothers are necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loss function is a critical component of machine learning. Some robust loss functions are proposed to mitigate the adverse effects caused by noise. However, they still face many challenges. Firstly, there is currently a lack of unified frameworks for building robust loss functions in machine learning. Secondly, most of them only care about the occurring noise and pay little attention to those normal points. Thirdly, the resulting performance gain is limited. To this end, we put forward a general framework of robust loss functions for machine learning (RML) with rigorous theoretical analyses, which can smoothly and adaptively flatten any unbounded loss function and apply to various machine learning problems. In RML, an unbounded loss function serves as the target, with the aim of being flattened. A scale parameter is utilized to limit the maximum value of noise points, while a shape parameter is introduced to control both the compactness and the growth rate of the flattened loss function. Later, this framework is employed to flatten the Hinge loss function and the Square loss function. Based on this, we build two robust kernel classifiers called FHSVM and FLSSVM, which can distinguish different types of data. The stochastic variance reduced gradient (SVRG) approach is used to optimize FHSVM and FLSSVM. Extensive experiments demonstrate their superiority, with both consistently occupying the top two positions among all evaluated methods, achieving an average accuracy of 81.07% (accompanied by an F-score of 73.25%) for FHSVM and 81.54% (with an F-score of 75.71%) for FLSSVM. • Propose a general framework of robust loss functions for machine learning (RML). • Build two robust kernel classifiers termed FHSVM and FLSSVM under RML. • Use stochastic variance reduced gradient (SVRG) to optimize FHSVM and FLSSVM. • Experiments validate the effectiveness of FHSVM and FLSSVM in handling datasets with and without noise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural pumice concrete (NPC) is a building material with the advantages of light weight and high thermal resistance. In cold regions, NPC undergoes damage from freeze–thaw cycles. Freeze–thaw damage is closely related to changes in the pore structure of concrete. Therefore, it is meaningful to investigate the evolution characteristics and damage threshold of pore structure for NPC under freeze–thaw cycles. In this study, freeze–thaw cycle tests and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) tests were designed. The characteristics of the evolution of the pore structure during freeze–thaw cycles were discussed. The results showed that the porosity in NPC specimens increases with the number of freeze–thaw cycles and the main evolution of the pores showed the degradation of fine capillary pores (10 nm < r < 100 nm) into coarse capillary pores (100 nm < r < 1000 nm) and non-capillary pores (r > 1000 nm). After freeze–thaw cycles, the proportion of coarse capillary pores and non-capillary pores increased by 4.83–10.59%. This evolutionary feature directly leads to the degradation of the mechanical properties of NPC. Additionally, a pore damage model was established, and the pore damage threshold was also calculated based on the experimental results. The obtained damage threshold of pore structure can provide the theoretical foundation for the application of NPC in cold regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Persistent pain is the most reported symptom in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA); however, effective and brief assessment tools are lacking. We validated the Chinese version of the Global Pain Scale (C-GPS) in Chinese patients with RA and proposed a short version of the C-GPS (s-C-GPS). Method: The study was conducted using a face-to-face questionnaire survey with a multicenter cross-sectional design from March to December 2019. Patients aged > 18 years who met the RA diagnostic criteria were included. Based on the classical test theory (CTT) and the item response theory (IRT), we assessed the validity and reliability of the C-GPS and the adaptability of each item. An s-C-GPS was developed using IRT-based computerized adaptive testing (CAT) analytics. Results: In total, 580 patients with RA (mean age, 51.04 ± 24.65 years; mean BMI, 22.36 ± 4.07 kg/m2), including 513 (88.4%) women, were included. Most participants lived in a suburb (49.3%), were employed (72.2%) and married (91.2%), reported 9–12 years of education (66.9%), and had partial medical insurance (57.8%). Approximately 88.1% smoked and 84.5% drank alcohol. Analysis of the CTT demonstrated that all items in the C-GPS were positively correlated with the total scale score, and the factor loadings of all these items were > 0.870. A significant positive relationship was found between the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and the C-GPS. IRT analysis showed that discrimination of the C-GPS was between 2.271 and 3.312, and items 6, 8, 13, 14, and 16 provided a large amount of information. Based on the CAT and clinical practice, six items covering four dimensions were included to form the s-C-GPS, all of which had very high discrimination. The s-C-GPS positively correlated with the VAS. Conclusion: The C-GPS has good reliability and validity and can be used to evaluate pain in RA patients from a Chinese cultural background. The s-C-GPS, which contains six items, has good criterion validity and may be suitable for pain assessment in busy clinical practice. Trial registration: This cross-sectional study was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR1800020343), granted on December 25, 2018. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Electrochemical conversion of CO 2 into chemical feedstock, such as an energy-dense liquid product (formate), is desirable to address the excessive emission of greenhouse gases and store energy. Cu-based catalysts exhibit great advantages in electrochemical CO 2 reduction reaction (eCO 2 RR) due to their low cost and high abundance, but suffer from low selectivity of formate. In this work, a facile one-pot approach is developed to synthesize CuBr nanoparticle (CuBr NP) that can conduct in situ dynamic restructuring during eCO 2 RR to generate Br-doped Cu NP. The in situ-formed Br-doped Cu NP can afford up to 91.6% Faradaic efficiency (FE) for formate production with a partial current density of 15.1 mA·cm−2 at −0.94 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) in an H-type cell. Moreover, Br-doped Cu NP can deliver excellent long-term stability for up to 25 h. The first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations show that the doped Br can regulate the electronic structure of Cu active sites to optimize the adsorption of the HCOO* intermediate, greatly hindering the formation of CO and H 2. This work provides a strategy for electronic modulation of metal active site and suggests new opportunities in high selectivity for electrocatalytic reduction of CO 2 to formate over Cu-based catalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher‐order topological insulators hosting topological modes at hinges and corners provide a new avenue for disorder‐immune light transport, which prospects great potential in applications of integrated photonics devices. However, the active control of topological modes in 3D higher‐order topological insulators is not realized yet, and its construction is too complicated and huge to analyze. Here, a method is proposed to construct effective Hamiltonians for higher‐order topological insulators, which provides a correct physical picture of the states and the corresponding energies at the domain walls. A non‐Hermitian 3D honeycomb lattice is constructed, which can generate arbitrary‐located, arbitrary‐shaped, and robust topological hinge states propagating at gain‐loss domain walls. The 3D honeycomb lattice can also appear as non‐Hermitian third‐order TIs exhibiting corner states, which can be dynamically controlled and show new topologically protected confinement rules. This work expands the understanding of the topological properties in non‐Hermitian systems and enables the dynamic control of topological states of different dimensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of bowel symptoms in patients with pelvic organ prolapse (POP), to evaluate the changes in bowel symptoms after different POP surgeries, and to identify risk factors for unrelieved bowel symptoms. Methods: This was an observational prospective cohort study conducted at Peking University First Hospital from 2020 to 2021. Demographic, clinical, and therapeutic data were collected. Participants underwent POP Quantification examination and completed the Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory‐20 questionnaire at baseline and 1 year postoperatively. Results: The prevalence of bowel symptoms and bothersome bowel symptoms in women with POP was 46.38% and 24.40%, respectively. Surgical correction of prolapse was associated with significant relief in bowel symptoms (P < 0.05). Colpocleisis may relieve bowel symptoms better than reconstructive surgeries (41% vs. 31%, P = 0.048). However, 35% of women had at least one bowel symptom at the 1‐year follow up. A long perineal body (Pb) and levator ani muscle injury were found to be predictors of unrelieved bowel symptoms in patients undergoing colpocleisis and those undergoing reconstructive surgery, respectively (odds ratio [OR] 2.306, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.112–4.783, P = 0.025 and OR 3.245, 95% CI 1.266–8.317, P = 0.014, respectively), and perineoplasty was a protective factor for women who underwent colpocleisis (OR 0.102, 95% CI 0.025–0.417, P = 0.001) Conclusion: Women with POP have a high prevalence of bowel symptoms. Although bowel symptoms can be relieved after POP surgeries, one‐third of women still experience bowel symptoms. A long Pb and levator ani muscle injury were associated with unrelieved bowel symptoms, while perineoplasty was a protective factor. Synopsis: Surgical correction of POP is associated with significant relief of bowel symptoms, especially obstructive; approximately one‐third of patients still had bowel symptoms after 1 year. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decreased dietary protein intake (DPI) may lead to protein-energy malnutrition and may be associated with increased mortality risk. We hypothesized that longitudinal changes in dietary protein intake have independent associations with survival in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. 668 stable PD patients were selected in the study from January 2006 to January 2018 and were followed up until December 2019. Their three-day dietary records were collected at the baseline (the sixth month after PD) and thereafter every 3 months for two and a half years. The latent class mixed models (LCMM) were used to identify subgroups of PD patients with similar longitudinal trajectories of DPI. The relation between DPI (baseline and longitudinal data) and survival was examined using Cox model to estimate death hazard ratios. Meanwhile, different formulae were used to assess nitrogen balance. The results showed that baseline DPI ≤ 0.60g/kg/day was associated with the worst outcome in PD patients. Patients with DPI 0.80–0.99g/kg/day and DPI ≥ 1.0g/kg/day both presented positive nitrogen balance; patients with DPI 0.61–0.79g/kg/day presented obviously negative nitrogen balance. Longitudinal association between time-dependent DPI and survival was found in PD patients. The consistently low DPI' (0.61–0.79g/kg/d) group was correlated with increased death risk as compared with the 'consistently median DPI' group (0.80–0.99g/kg/d, HR = 1.59, p = 0.008), whereas there was no difference in survival between 'consistently median DPI' group and 'high-level DPI' group (≥1.0 g/kg/d, p > 0.05). Our study revealed that DPI ≥ 0.8 g/kg/day was beneficial to the long-term outcome for the PD population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several new uniqueness conditions of the stationary probability matrix of transition probability tensors arising from higher-order multivariate Markov chains are given by using contract mapping principle, the technique of inequality scaling and parameter method. It is proved that the new results are better than the one provided by Li et al. [Comput. Math. Appl., 2019, 78(3): 1008–1025]. As applications, a new convergence condition and an error bound for the power method to calculate the stationary probability matrix are given. Meanwhile, a perturbation bound for stationary probability matrix is obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Anti‐PD‐1 antibody has shown certain effects in patients with newly diagnosed extranodal NK/T‐cell lymphoma (ENKTL). Here, we evaluated the clinical efficacy and safety of first‐line anti‐PD‐1 antibody for the treatment of patients with ENKTL and explored biomarkers for treatment response. The clinical data of 107 patients with newly diagnosed ENKTL were retrospectively analysed. Patients received either first‐line anti‐PD‐1 antibody induction treatment or anti‐PD‐1 antibody combined with asparaginase‐based chemotherapy (immunochemotherapy). We found that immunochemotherapy was an independent prognostic factor for longer PFS (p < 0.001). The overall response rate and complete remission rate of immunochemotherapy group was higher than immunotherapy induction group (86.11% vs. 62.86% and 72.22% vs. 52.29%, respectively, p = 0.013). We also observed pretreatment CD4/CD8 ratio >0.83 was significant associated with better response and longer PFS in ENKTL patients received first‐line anti‐PD1‐antibody. Plasma copy number of EBV decreased more significantly in patients with CD4/CD8 ratio >0.83 after treatment. PD‐L1 expression was associated with better response and PFS, while elevated plasma IL‐6, IL‐10 and IFN‐γ were associated with poor prognosis. Anti‐PD‐1 antibody treatment showed promising results in newly diagnosed ENKTL patients. The assessment of pretreatment CD4/CD8 ratio in ENKTL seems feasible for identifying responders to anti‐PD‐1 antibody treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

All-optical switches are among the most important parts of integrated photonics. Ultrahigh speed and ultralow energy consumption are two necessary indexes of all-optical switches. Traditionally, all-optical switches are based on concepts such as micro-ring resonators, surface plasmon polaritons, photonic crystals, and metamaterials. However, such platforms cannot satisfy the demand for high performance of all-optical switches. To overcome the limited response time and energy consumption, recent studies have introduced new applications of such physics as parity–time symmetry, exceptional points, topological insulators, and bound states in a continuum. Such physical concepts not only provide promising research avenues for the all-optical switch but also broaden the design channel. This is expected to achieve ultracompact, ultrafast, and high-capacity all-optical information processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a facile one-step method via pyrolysis was used to prepare nitrogen self-doped metal free catalysts derived from inexpensive biomass-chitin for an electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR). The microstructure, surface area, defect and N type in the catalysts were analyzed by BET, Raman, XPS, SEM and TEM. The sustainable chitin-based electrocatalyst prepared under optimized conditions has a surface area of 1972 m2/g and can convert CO2 into CO with FECO of ~90% at a potential of −0.59 V (vs. RHE). This good CO2RR performance results from plentiful active sites due to a high surface area, rich ultra-micropores that are beneficial to CO2 adsorption, abundant mesopores for CO2 transport improvement, a high content of pyridinic and graphitic nitrogen that is favorable for a CO2 reduction reaction and a low interfacial charge transfer resistance leading to a rapid electron transfer rate from the catalyst to CO2. This study shows the feasibility of N self-doped biomass-derived catalysts for CO2RR with the potential for large-scale industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sarcopenia and osteoporosis are common diseases that predominantly affect older individuals. The interaction between muscle and skeleton exerts pivotal roles in bone remodeling. This study aimed to explore the function of myoblast-derived exosomal Prrx2 in osteogenic differentiation and its potential mechanisms. Methods: Exosomes were isolated from myogenic differentiated C2C12 cells. qRT-PCR and Western blotting were used to determine target molecule expression. Osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs was evaluated by Alizarin red staining, ALP activity and levels of OCN, OPN, RUNX2, and BMP2. Dual-luciferase reporter assay, RIP, and ChIP assays were performed to verify the interaction between molecules. The nuclear translocation of YAP1 was observed by immunofluorescence staining. In vivo osteoporotic model was established by ovariectomy in mice. Bone loss was examined using HE staining. Results: Prrx2 expression was elevated in myogenic differentiated C2C12 cells and their exosomes. Myoblast-derived exosomal Prrx2 enhanced osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs. Delivering exosomal Prrx2 directly bond to MIR22HG promoter and promoted its transcription and expression. MIR22HG enhanced expression and nuclear translocation of YAP via sponging miR-128, thus facilitating BMSC osteogenic differentiation. Knockdown of exosomal Prrx2 suppressed osteogenic differentiation, which could be abolished by MIR22HG overexpression. Similarly, miR-128 inhibitor or YAP overexpression reversed the inhibitory effect of MIR22HG depletion or miR-128 mimics on osteogenic differentiation. Finally, myoblast-derived exosomal Prrx2 alleviated osteoporosis in mice via up-regulating MIR22HG and activating the Hippo pathway. Conclusion: Myoblast-derived exosomal Prrx2 contributes to transcriptional activation of MIR22HG to activate YAP pathway via sponging miR-128, thereby facilitating osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a highly heterogeneous disease with a poor prognosis and a paucity of therapeutic options. In recent years, immunotherapy has emerged as a new treatment option for patients with TNBC. However, this therapeutic evolution is paralleled by a growing need for biomarkers which allow for a better selection of patients who are most likely to benefit from this immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI)-based regimen. These biomarkers will not only facilitate a better optimization of treatment strategies, but they will also avoid unnecessary side effects in non-responders, and limit the increasing financial toxicity linked to the use of these agents. Huge efforts have been deployed to identify predictive biomarkers for the ICI, but until now, the fruits of this labor remained largely unsatisfactory. Among clinically validated biomarkers, only programmed death-ligand 1 protein (PD-L1) expression has been prospectively assessed in TNBC trials. In addition to this, microsatellite instability and a high tumor mutational burden are approved as tumor agnostic biomarkers, but only a small percentage of TNBC fits this category. Furthermore, TNBC should no longer be approached as a single biological entity, but rather as a complex disease with different molecular, clinicopathological, and tumor microenvironment subgroups. This review provides an overview of the validated and evolving predictive biomarkers for a response to ICI in TNBC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Co-MoP/PCNFs modified Celgard separator in Lithium-sulfur battery. [Display omitted] Rational design of separators is especially critical to solve the "shuttle effect" of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) and the sluggish redox kinetics in lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs). Here, the multi-functional nanocomposite involving Co-doped molybdenum phosphide (Co-MoP) nanofibers and porous carbon nanofibers (PCNFs) is designed and prepared through electro-blow spinning and phosphating process, which possesses multiple adsorption and catalytic sites and is acted as the functional material for LSBs separators. In this multifunctional nanocomposite, the prepared Co-MoP nanofibers can provide internal adsorption and catalytic sites for LiPSs conversion. And the interconnected nitrogen-doped PCNFs can be elaborated an efficient LiPSs mediator and accommodate the huge volume changes in the reaction process for LSBs. Benefiting from the multiple adsorptive and catalytic sites of the developed functional materials, the assembled LSBs with a Co-MoP/PCNFs modified separator display outstanding electrochemical performances, including an admirable capacity retention of 770.4 mAh g−1 after 400 cycles at 1.0 C, only 0.08 % capacity decay per cycle at 2.0 C, rate performance up to 5 C, and also decent areal capacity even under a high sulfur loading of 4.9 mg cm−2. The work provides a facile pathway towards multifunctional separators in LSBs, and it may also help deepen preparation method of MoP through the electrostatic blowing/electrospinning technology in other related energy storage fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several new uniqueness conditions for the stationary probability matrix of transition probability tensors arising from the higher-order multivariate Markov chains are given. Numerical examples are given to demonstrate that the new results are simpler and easier to be verified than the one provided by Li et al. (Comput Math Appl 78:1008–1025, 2019). As an application, a new convergence theorem for the power method to calculate the stationary probability matrix is given. Meanwhile, several perturbation bounds of the stationary probability matrix are obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aging has led to a series of problems in eldercare throughout the world, with focus on the quality of the daily living environments for aged people. Community public spaces are essential for the daily life of elderly people; however, many of such spaces are becoming unsuitable for use, because most communities were built in an era when aging had not yet acquired the dimension of a serious problem. Macao has shown a pronounced aging trend, and as most aged people living in Macao hope that their community public spaces will meet their daily needs, constructing public spaces for quality eldercare in the aging communities of Macao could improve the sense of belonging and the happiness index of residents. This study investigates the Iao Hon Community of Macao, a community with a serious aging phenomenon. The syntax method was adopted to analyze the integration value, connectivity, selectivity, and intelligibility of public spaces in the Iao Hon Community from the perspective of the aged residents. A satisfaction evaluation system was then created to assess public activity spaces. The degree of satisfaction of the aged people with the community public spaces was evaluated via field survey and analyzed using the importance-performance composite method. The physiological, psychological, and behavioral factors of the aged residents were considered for a comprehensive examination of community public spaces. The findings of this paper enrich the literature on the construction of public spaces for quality eldercare in old communities, and relevant strategies for constructing such spaces are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toxic cyanobacterial blooms have become a severe global hazard to human and environmental health. Most studies have focused on the relationships between cyanobacterial composition and cyanotoxins production. Yet, little is known about the environmental conditions influencing the hazard of cyanotoxins. Here, we analysed a unique 22 sites dataset comprising monthly observations of water quality, cyanobacterial genera, zooplankton assemblages, and microcystins (MCs) quota and concentrations in a large-shallow lake. Missing values of MCs were imputed using a non-negative latent factor (NLF) analysis, and the results achieved a promising accuracy. Furthermore, we used the Bayesian additive regression tree (BART) to quantify how Microcystis bloom toxicity responds to relevant physicochemical characteristics and zooplankton assemblages. As expected, the BART model achieved better performance in Microcystis biomass and MCs concentration predictions than some comparative models, including random forest and multiple linear regression. The importance analysis via BART illustrated that the shade index was overall the best predictor of MCs concentrations, implying the predominant effects of light limitations on the MCs content of Microcystis. Variables of greatest significance to the toxicity of Microcystis also included pH and dissolved inorganic nitrogen. However, total phosphorus was found to be a strong predictor of the biomass of total Microcystis and toxic M. aeruginosa. Together with the partial dependence plot, results revealed the positive correlations between protozoa and Microcystis biomass. In contrast, copepods biomass may regulate the MC quota and concentrations. Overall, our observations arouse universal demands for machine-learning strategies to represent nonlinear relationships between harmful algal blooms and environmental covariates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complexity of the data type and distribution leads to the increase in uncertainty in the relationship between samples, which brings challenges to effectively mining the potential cluster structure of data. Ensemble clustering aims to obtain a unified cluster division by fusing multiple different base clustering results. This paper proposes a three-way ensemble clustering algorithm based on sample's perturbation theory to solve the problem of inaccurate decision making caused by inaccurate information or insufficient data. The algorithm first combines the natural nearest neighbor algorithm to generate two sets of perturbed data sets, randomly extracts the feature subsets of the samples, and uses the traditional clustering algorithm to obtain different base clusters. The sample's stability is obtained by using the co-association matrix and determinacy function, and then the samples can be divided into a stable region and unstable region according to a threshold for the sample's stability. The stable region consists of high-stability samples and is divided into the core region of each cluster using the K-means algorithm. The unstable region consists of low-stability samples and is assigned to the fringe regions of each cluster. Therefore, a three-way clustering result is formed. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm in this paper can obtain better clustering results compared with other clustering ensemble algorithms on the UCI Machine Learning Repository data set, and can effectively reveal the clustering structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide and the adoptive immunotherapy of which is worth studying. CD133, a kind of cancer stem cell (CSC) antigen, together with glypican-3 (GPC3) has been proved to be highly expressed in HCC cells and both of them are used as targets to generate chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells. But there are limitations like "off-target" toxicity, low transfection efficacy and weak antitumor ability in CAR T cells treatment.Methods: The peripheral blood was acquired from healthy donors and T cells were separated by density-gradient centrifugation. We used an electroporation system to deliver anti-CD133 and anti-GPC3 single chain Fragment variable (scFv) structures as target genes into the T cells. The cell membrane was opened by the momentary electric current effect, and the target gene was delivered into the cell by non-viral minicircle DNA (mcDNA) vector. The flow cytometry and western blot assays were used to detect whether the two scFv were simultaneously transfected and the transfection efficacy of this bispecific CAR T cell generation method. We respectively detected the in vitro and in vivo tumor-suppression efficacy of CAR T cells through the CCK-8 assays and the HCC xenograft mice models. The CoG133-CAR T cells containing both CD133 and GPC3 antigen recognition sites were the effector cells. CD133-CAR T cells and GPC3-CAR T cells were defined as single-targeted control groups, normal T and mock T cells were defined as blank control groups.Results: The mcDNA vector accommodated two target gene structures successfully transfected to generate bispecific CAR T cells. The detection methods on gene level and protein level confirmed that CoG133-CAR T cells had considerable transfection efficiency and exhibited both antigen-binding capacity of CD133 and GPC3. Compared to single-targeted CAR T cells or control T cells, CoG133-CAR T cells performed enhanced eliminated efficacy against CD133 and GPC3 double-positive HCC cell line in vitro and HCC xenograft mice in vivo. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining indicated no fatal "off-target" combination existed on CoG133-CAR T cells and major organs.Conclusion: Our study suggests that it is with higher efficiency and more safety to prepare bispecific CAR T cells through non-viral mcDNA vectors. CoG133-CAR T cells have enhanced tumor-suppression capacity through dual antigen recognition and internal activation. It provides an innovative strategy for CAR T therapy of HCC, even solid tumors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The existing graph-based RGBT tracking methods mainly focus on assigning a weight to each local image patch to suppress background influence in target bounding box, but the influences of background clutter might limit the improvement of tracking performance. To solve this problem, we propose a new algorithm, called cooperative low-rank graph model, to suppress background clutter. Specifically, the proposed feature decomposition module decomposes input dual-modal features into low-rank components and sparse noisy components, which could be used collaboratively by regularizing graph learning by combining modal weights. Besides, to avoid SVD (Singular Value Decomposition) operations we have designed an efficient solver based on ADMM (Alternating Direction Methods of Multipliers), which could factorize the low-rank matrix into two low-dimensional submatrices. Extensive experiments on four RGBT tracking benchmark data sets show that our method performs favorably against other state-of-the-art tracking algorithms, and achieves more robust tracking performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Developing a facile adsorption − reduction method to synthesize a kind of Janus nanomotor with charge reversal capability. • The nanomotor can penetrate deeply into the tumor by the synergistic effects of charge reversal and self-propelled motion, resulting in a superior tumor-killing effect. • This nanotherapeutic system is smart-responsive, allowing for long circulation, deep tumor penetration, and well-timed drug release. Enhancing the diffusion capability of nanoparticles through rational engineering is an effective strategy for promoting the penetration of nanotherapeutic systems into tumors. However, the efficiency of diffusion remains inadequate due to the unchanged passive diffusion mode. Nanomotors hold promise for achieving deep tumor permeability due to their self-propelled motility. Developing smart-responsive nanomotor therapeutic systems for long circulation, deep tumor penetration, and well-timed drug release presents significant challenges. Herein, we design and synthesize a kind of nanomotor with charge reversal capability that shifts from negative to positive charge in response to weakly acidic tumor microenvironment on the base of the Janus nanostructure, which consists of the mesoporous organosilica degraded in response to glutathione and asymmetric Pt provided driving force by catalyzing endogenous H 2 O 2 to decompose into O 2. The cap-like Janus structure is prepared by a facile adsorption − reduction method. Such a nanomotor can achieve deep tumor penetration by the synergism of charge reversal and self-propelled motion. The drug-loaded nanomotor displays a superior tumor killing effect, which provides a promising strategy for the nano-chemotherapy system with deep penetration ability to break through the limitation of current tumor treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advancement of cancer treatment technologies, immunotherapy has begun to be widely utilized. Colon cancer is one of the most common types of cancer, with metastasis being a frequent occurrence in late-stage patients. Hence, immunotherapy, as an emerging and potentially effective treatment modality, merits exploration to enhance patient survival rates and clinical benefits. However, various immune-related adverse events cannot be entirely avoided. Myasthenia gravis induced by immunotherapy serves as a rare but potentially lethal adverse event, and it has been increasingly reported. Understanding the mechanisms of irAEs can aid in controlling the side effects induced by treatment. Here, we reported a case of myasthenia gravis occurring after anti-PD-1 therapy for late-stage colon cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The polyphenols and plant proteins are increasingly being utilized as functional food ingredients, it is critical to understand their interaction mechanism with each other. In this study, protein composites (RP-PP and RP-SPI) were fabricated using pH-driven technology by rice protein (RP) with pea protein (PP) and soy protein isolates (SPI), respectively. The interaction mechanism between the protein composites and proanthocyanidins (PA) was also explored using a combined approach of spectroscopy and thermodynamics. The analysis of fluorescence spectroscopy and turbidity confirmed the formation of the protein composites-PA colloidal complexes. The thermodynamic results calculated from fluorescence data and ITC analysis indicated the hydrogen bond was the main interaction force between the protein composites and PA. The secondary structures of the protein composites were changed with the decreased α -helix and β -turn due to the increasing PA. In addition, the existence of PA reduced the surface hydrophobicity, particle size, and the interfacial tension of proteins. Furthermore, the thermal stability and zeta potential of proteins increased after the binding of the PA. Ultimately, the PA showed a potential in reducing the dimension of droplet and enhancing storage stability of proteins-PA emulsion. This study provides useful information for the industrial application of the proteins-polyphenols complexes. • The protein compesites-proanthocyanidins (PA) complexes were formed and characterized. • The main interaction between the protein compesites and PA were hydrogen bond. • The presence of PA enhances the thermal stability of the protein compesites. • The protein compesites-PA complexes improved the stability of oil-in-water emulsions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this essay, we try to present a case for having a general privacy offence. Privacy is about much more than voyeurism involving sexual exploitation. The recent offence of upskirting is too narrow to protect the broader set of privacy interests that exist in plural societies. Current technology means it is all too easy for the masses not only to spy, but to keep digital records of information that belongs to others including their images, voices and correspondence. We shall try to demonstrate that private acts and information that are revealed in an ephemeral sense in a public place should not be put in permanent form and a fortiori should not be published online or in hardcopy. It will be argued that publishing such information without consent or lawful justification is sufficiently harmful to justify making it a crime. It shall be submitted that while human rights law, data protection law and tort law recognise the wrongful harm in privacy violations, the protection offered by these bodies of laws is limited, because they rely on expensive civil litigation that is out of the reach of most. Billionaires can pay for nondisclosure agreements to keep misconduct (such as bullying and sexual harassment) out of the news, but many people with genuine privacy claims cannot afford to seek compensation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The accurate estimation of leaf hydraulic conductance (Kleaf) is important for revealing leaf physiological characteristics and function. However, the Kleaf values are largely incomparable in previous studies for a given species indicating some uncertain influencing factors in Kleaf measurement. Result: We investigated the potential impacts of plant sampling method, measurement setup, environmental factors, and transpiration steady state identification on Kleaf estimation in Oryza sativa and Cinnamomum camphora using evaporation flux method (EFM). The effects of sampling and rehydration time, the small gravity pressure gradients between water sources and leaves, and water degassing on Kleaf estimation were negligible. As expected, the estimated steady flow rate (E) was significantly affected by multiple environmental factors including airflow around leaf, photosynthetically active radiation (PARa) on leaf surfaces and air temperature. Kleaf decreased by 40% when PARa declined from 1000 to 500 µmol m−2 s−1 and decreased by 15.1% when air temperature increased from 27 to 37 °C. In addition, accurate steady-state flow rate identification and leaf water potential measurement were important for Kleaf estimation. Conclusions: Based on the analysis of influencing factors, we provided a format for reporting the metadata of EFM-based Kleaf to achieve greater comparability among studies and interpretation of differences. Highlights: The influences of measurement setup, environmental factors, and steady state identification on leaf hydraulic conductance measurement were estimated and reporting format of Kleaf were proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

YF 3 /CoF 3 co-doped 1D carbon nanofibers as S host. [Display omitted] Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries have attracted extensive attention in the field of energy storage due to their high energy density and low cost. However, conundrums such as severe polarization, poor cyclic performance originating from shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides and sluggish sulfur redox kinetics are stumbling blocks for their practical application. Herein, a novel sulfur cathode integrating sulfur and polyvinylpyrrolidone(PVP)-derived N -doped porous carbon nanofibers (PCNFs) with embedded CoF 3 and YF 3 nanoparticles are designed and prepared though the electrostatic blowing technology and carbonization process. The unique flexible PCNFs with embedded polar CoF 3 and YF 3 nanoparticles not only offer enough voids for volume expansion to maintain the structural stability during the electrochemical process, but also promote the physical encapsulation and chemical entrapment of all sulfur species. Moreover, the uniform distribution of YF 3 /CoF 3 nanoparticles also can expose more binding active sites to lithium polysulfide and present more catalytic sites to the greatest extent. Therefore, the assembled cells with the prepared cathode exhibited stable performances with an outstanding initial capacity of 1055.2 mAh g−1 and an extended cycling stability of 0.029% per cycle during the 300 cycles at 0.5C. Even at a high sulfur loading of 2.1 mg cm−2, The YF 3 /CoF 3 doped-PCNFs exhibited a high discharge specific capacity of 1038 mAh g−1, and the decay rate is also as low as 0.05% over 1000 cycles. This work shares a convenient and safe strategy for the synthesis of multi-dimension, dual-functional and stable superstructure electrode for advanced Li-S batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emerging toxicant N-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-N′-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine quinone (6PPD-Q) is of wide concern due to its ubiquitous occurrence and high toxicity. Despite regular human exposure, limited evidence exists about its presence in the body and potential health risks. Herein, we analyzed cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from Parkinson's disease (PD) patients and controls. The CSF levels of 6PPD-Q were twice as high in PD patients compared to controls. Immunostaining assays performed with primary dopaminergic neurons confirm that 6PPD-Q at environmentally relevant concentrations can exacerbate the formation of Lewy neurites induced by α-synuclein preformed fibrils (α-syn PFF). Assessment of cellular respiration reveals a considerable decrease in neuronal spare respiratory and ATP-linked respiration, potentially due to changes in mitochondrial membrane potential. Moreover, 6PPD-Q-induced mitochondrial impairment correlates with an upsurge in mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mROS), and Mito-TEMPO-driven scavenging of mROS can lessen the amount of pathologic phospho-serine 129 α-synuclein. Untargeted metabolomics provides supporting evidence for the connection between 6PPD-Q exposure and changes in neuronal metabolite profiles. In-depth targeted metabolomics further unveils an overall reduction in glycolysis metabolite pool and fluctuations in the quantity of TCA cycle intermediates. Given its potentially harmful attributes, the presence of 6PPD-Q in human brain could potentially be a risk factor for PD. [Display omitted] • The concentration of 6PPD-Q in the CSF of PD patients is twice as high as that in the control group • 6PPD-Q exposure to neurons can exacerbate the formation of Lewy neurites induced by α-syn PFF • 6PPD-Q and α-Syn PFF act synergistically to induce mitochondrial dysfunction • Exposing neurons to 6PPD-Q lowers the glycolysis metabolite pool and leads to changes in TCA cycle intermediates [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particulate organic matter (POM), as an important component of organic matter, can act as a redox mediator and thus intervene in the environmental behavior of microplastics (MPs). However, quantitative information on the role of POM in the photoaging of MPs under ultraviolet (UV) light is still lacking. To raise the knowledge gap, through environmental simulation experiments and qualitative/quantitative experiments of active substances, we found that POM from peat soil has stronger oxidation capacity than POM from sediment, and the involvement of POM at high water content makes the aging of MPs more obvious. This is because the persistent radicals and electron-absorbing groups on the surface of POM indirectly generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) by promoting electron transfer, and the dissolved organic matter (DOM) released from POM under UV light (POM-DOM) is further excited to generate triplet-state photochemistry of DOM (3DOM*) to promote the aging of MPs. Theoretical calculations revealed that the benzene ring, mainly C = C, and C = O in the main chain in the plastic macromolecule structure are more susceptible to ROS attack, and the differences in the vulnerable sites contained in different plastic structures as well as the differences in the energy band gaps lead to differences in their aging processes. This study firstly elucidates the key role and intrinsic mechanism of POM in the photoaging of MPs, providing a theoretical basis for a comprehensive assessment of the effect of POM on MPs in the environment. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The maximum capacity of storing elastic energy corresponds to the unstable stress peak observed for a dense specimen. • The ultimate shear band corresponds to an optimal dissipative structure that appears later than the beginning of the critical state regime. • Plastic dissipation localizes inside the shear band domain developing in the dense specimen. No further dissipation processes occur outside the shear band. • The shear band domain concentrates more intense elastic processes than the outside shear band domain does. • The shear band is an optimal dissipative structure, marked by a constant degree of dynamic plastic activity together with a complementary dynamic elastic activity. Granular assemblies are an illustrative example of complex material where unexpected macroscopic properties may emerge when they are subjected to a given loading. The complexity is the consequence of the huge geometrical disorder governed by particle rearrangements, entailing plastic dissipation at contacts. This local dissipation, associated with the global geometric disorder, is probably a key ingredient responsible for various macroscopic features, such as the strain localization in dense granular assemblies leading to the formation of a shear band. Based on a discrete element method (DEM), this manuscript investigates the energy processes at the microscopic scale in granular assemblies along biaxial loading paths for dense and loose assemblies. The localized shear band domain in a dense specimen is inspected. The analysis of elastic processes suggests a maximum capacity for storing elastic energy, giving rise to a phase transition from a homogeneous state to a heterogeneous one. This phase transition is marked by a significant release of elastic energy associated with plastic dissipation. The elastic-to-plastic energy transfer is shown to be a key ingredient to reach the stationary state regime characterized by a unique dynamic equilibrium. It is signaled by the constant ratios of elastic storage and plastic dissipation over the available energy, whatever the initial density of granular assemblies. Finally, the energy processes inside the shear band domain are shown to be largely dominated by intense plastic dissipation. This suggests that the shear band acts as an optimal dissipative structure in dense specimens where elastic mechanisms continue to be active at a much higher level than they are in the outside shear band domain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) is an adipokine that was mainly derived from adipocytes and macrophages. Vascular calcification (VC) is highly prevalent in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients and could predict their cardiovascular mortality. The pathogenesis of VC is complex, and adipokines may play an important role in it. This study aimed to examine the relationship between serum FABP4 and VC in PD patients. Serum FABP4 was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. According to the median value of serum FABP4, the participants were divided into the low FABP4 group and the high FABP4 group. Lateral plain X-ray films of abdomen were used to evaluate the abdominal aortic calcification (AAC) score. The participants were divided into the high AAC score group (AAC score ≥4, indicating moderate or heavy VC) and the low AAC score group (AAC score <4, indicating no or mild VC). 116 PD patients were involved in the study. The AAC score and the proportion of patients with an AAC score ≥4 of the high FABP4 group were significantly higher than those of the low FABP4 group. Serum FABP4 of the high AAC score group was significantly higher than that of the low AAC score group [164.5 (138.4, 362.8) ng/mL versus 144.7 (123.8, 170.1) ng/mL, p = 0.002]. Serum FABP4 was positively associated with the AAC score according to the multivariate linear regression analysis. In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, serum FABP4 was the independent influencer of an AAC score ≥4. Serum FABP4 is positively associated with the AAC score and is an independent marker of AAC in PD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

GIGANTEA (GI) is known to play significant roles in various molecular pathways. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanism of the transcriptional regulation of GI remains obscure in sweetpotato. In the present study, a 1518-bp promoter sequence was obtained from the Ipomoea batatas GIGANTEA (IbGI) gene, and several potential cis -elements responsive to light, phytohormones and abiotic stresses were identified by in silico analysis. In order to functionally validate the IbGI promoter, the 5' deletion analysis of the promoter was performed by cloning the full-length promoter (D0) and its four deletion fragments, D1 (1235 bp), D2 (896 bp), D3 (549 bp) and D4 (286 bp), upstream of the β-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene. Then, these were stably transformed in Arabidopsis plants. All transgenic seedlings exhibited stable GUS activity in the condition of control, but with decreased activity in the condition of most treatments. Interestingly, merely D1 seedlings that contained an abscisic acid responsive cis -element (ABRE-element) had an extremely powerful GUS activity under the treatment of ABA, which implies that fragment spanning nucleotides of −1235 to −896 bp might be a crucial component for the responses of ABA. Eight different types of potential transcriptional regulators of IbGI were isolated by Y1H, including TGA2.2, SPLT1 and GADPH, suggesting the complex interaction mode of protein-DNA on the IbGI promoter. Taken together, these present results help to better understand the transcriptional regulation mechanism of the IbGI gene, and provides an insight into the IbGI promoter, which can be considered as an alternation for breeding transgenic plants. • IbGI gene promoter was isolated and characterized from sweet potato. • IbGI gene promoter can drive GUS expression in transgenic Arabidopsis. • IbGI promoter showed multiple phytohormone and abiotic stress-responsive functions. • IbGI promoter can be used as an alternate transgene expression in transgenic plant. • Eight potential transcriptional regulators of IbGI were isolated by Y1H. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrocatalytic CO 2 reduction (ECO 2 R) is an environment-friendly way to convert CO 2 into profitable products. Amine solution recently has been employed as an electrolyte in ECO 2 R but suffers from low efficiency. Herein, aqueous solutions containing different amine-based deep eutectic solvents (DESs) were used as electrolytes for CO 2 reduction. The effect of different DESs on the CO 2 reduction was investigated at Ag, Cu, and Zn metal electrodes. Tafel and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were applied to understand the CO 2 reduction. DES in aqueous solution facilitates the CO 2 reduction to CO with higher faradaic efficiency of CO (FE CO) than amine solutions and a mixture of hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) and hydrogen bond donor (HBD). Both HBD and HBA have an influence on CO 2 reduction. [Monoethanolamine hydrochloride] [methyldiethanolamine] ([MEAHCl][MDEA]) gives high FE CO , 71% FE CO at −1.1 V vs RHE at Ag electrode, 33% higher than [MEAHCl][MEA]. Experimental results and EIS analysis reveal that the facilitation of CO 2 reduction to CO probably stems from a synergistic effect of nano-size agglomerate dispersion on Ag-surface, bicarbonate formation, exchange current density, and Cl− ions present in DESs. These findings present a feasible method to employ the aqueous MDEA-based DES solution as an electrolyte for CO 2 reduction. [Display omitted] • The presence of DESs facilitates CO 2 to be reduced to products of CO and HCOO−. • Both hydrogen bond donor (HBD) and hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) have an important impact on ECO 2 R. • DESs [MDEAHCl][MDEA] and [MEAHCl][MDEA] gives high FE CO than aqueous amine. • Faradaic Efficiency of CO increases as the amine concentration decreases. • DESs provide a synergistic mechanism to enhance CO 2 reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lithium‐sulfur (Li−S) batteries, possessing excellent theoretical capacities, low cost and nontoxicity, are one of the most promising energy storage battery systems. However, poor conductivity of elemental S and the "shuttle effect" of lithium polysulfides hinder the commercialization of Li−S batteries. These problems are closely related to the interface problems between the cathodes, separators/electrolytes and anodes. The review focuses on interface issues for advanced separators/electrolytes based on nanomaterials in Li−S batteries. In the liquid electrolyte systems, electrolytes/separators and electrodes system can be decorated by nano materials coating for separators and electrospinning nanofiber separators. And, interface of anodes and electrolytes/separators can be modified by nano surface coating, nano composite metal lithium and lithium nano alloy, while the interface between cathodes and electrolytes/separators is designed by nano metal sulfide, nanocarbon‐based and other nano materials. In all solid‐state electrolyte systems, the focus is to increase the ionic conductivity of the solid electrolytes and reduce the resistance in the cathode/polymer electrolyte and Li/electrolyte interfaces through using nanomaterials. The basic mechanism of these interface problems and the corresponding electrochemical performance are discussed. Based on the most critical factors of the interfaces, we provide some insights on nanomaterials in high‐performance liquid or state Li−S batteries in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Homogeneous nucleation and heterogeneous condensation of salt vapors near the wall of superheater or reheater tubes greatly improve the sticky propensity of deposited surfaces or impacting particles and then lead to a fast‐growing rate of initial layer. Based on the deposition experiment of mechanically mixed KCl + SiO2 particles in an entrained flow reactor, a numerical model with considering the salt particle vaporization, salt vapor condensation, and its effect on SiO2 deposition is proposed for simulating impaction and adhesion behavior of molten and solid particles. The results show that deposits are mainly from the impaction of solid and molten particles and the condensation of salt vapors. The condensation rate of salt vapors in the stagnation zone at the windward side of metal probe is maximal. In comparison with the overall deposition rate, although the amount of salt vapors condensed on the probe surface can be negligible, it significantly affects the deposition rate of SiO2 particles. The coupled CFD model over a link between particle sticking and salt vapor condensation could well simulate the deposition behavior of mechanically mixed ash particles under rich‐salt‐vapor atmosphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evolutions of meso structures of granular materials play important roles during shearing toward the critical state. This study aims to establish an extended analytical model based on a specific upscaling procedure considering the distributions of meso structures in granular materials. A general Gaussian distribution is applied when determining the relationship between meso critical state parameters and order n, and then a quantitative model of macro CSL is developed by taking the discrete case into a continuous function. The quantitative model is then related to interparticle friction μ and contact stiffness k for predicting the macro CSLs for ideal granular assemblies, and the analytical results have good agreement with DEM results. Furthermore, the influence patterns of contact properties on both meso and macro critical states are discussed in detail, which provides a roughly explanation on the variations of critical friction angle φcs with μ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In line with aging populations and increased application of anesthesia and surgery, perioperative neurocognitive disorder (PND) has received growing attention worldwide. Considerable researches into PND are being conducted; however, the quantity and quality of such researches have not been reported. Through a retrospective bibliometric analysis, this study aims to identify and characterize the top 100 cited publications on PND. Methods: We searched the Web of Science database to find the top 100 cited articles focusing on PND. We collected bibliographic information, including year of publication, country of origin, article type, published journal, citation count, and authorship. To determine changes with time, we compared older and newest articles. Results: The top 100 cited articles were published between 1955 and 2016; the number of citations ranged from 111 to 1248. The United States had the most published papers; clinical trial was the most common article type. The specialty journals of Anesthesiology and Anesthesia & Analgesia were the two most cited journals. Newest articles had a comparable number of citations to older articles, but the former had higher annual citation rates, greater funding disclosures, more focus on basic research, and more open access publications. Conclusions: This study provides a comprehensive overview of the most cited articles and highlights the increasing attention on PND. High-quality clinical trials with a greater journal impact factor receive more citations. However, there has been a growth in the number of basic science studies as an area of research with respect to the pathogenesis of PND. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The interactions between rhizosphere microorganisms and pioneer plants play important roles in the restoration of ecological functions after a disturbance. Different pioneer species appear in the initial phase of ecological restoration. However, the patterns of the composition of different pioneer species shaping the microbial communities of the rhizosphere are still poorly understood. Methods: Microcosm experiments were established to compare the taxonomic and functional features of rhizosphere bacterial with fungal communities in response to plant species composition. Results: Both bacterial and fungal communities didn't have significant variation related to the diversity, community composition, and predicted functions between rhizosphere soils collected from treatments containing different compositions of plant species. Rhizosphere bacteria were more sensitive to the external environment than fungi. The fungal diversity exhibited a more significant relationship with the traits of different plant species compared with bacteria. Similar plant traits, especially aboveground plant traits (i.e., total coverage, and aboveground biomass), were correlated with dominant taxa and functional profiles of the both bacterial and fungal community. Furthermore, network analyses showed that Gaiellales and Ganoderma were the key bacterial and fungal taxa, respectively, which played important roles in community assembly. Conclusions: The composition of different pioneer species within a community had similar patterns of rhizosphere bacterial and fungal communities. The connection between plants and soil microorganisms was more likely related to plant traits instead of the species composition. Thus, the processes of plant growth and nutrient uptake, not the combinations of plant species, may be determinants of soil microbial community assemblage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Immunotherapy has become the standard of care for various cancer types. The widespread use of immune checkpoints inhibitors confronts us with a whole range of novel immune-related adverse events. Skin toxicity is one of the most frequent adverse events. In this article, we report a case of anti-PD-1 induced late bullous pemphigoid (BP) with mucosal erosions and associated with a troublesome neurological disorder of undetermined origin in a patient with metastatic melanoma. Skin biopsy was essential to make the diagnosis and rapid initiation of systemic prednisolone played a role in favorable clinical outcome of BP. We will discuss the difficulty of early diagnosis of BP, its unusual association with neurological disorders, and the specific management of this particular dermatological entity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tracking-by-detection is a common approach for online multi-object tracking problem. At present, the following challenges still exist in the multi-object tracking scenarios: (1) The result of object re-tracking after full occlusion is not ideal; (2) The predicted position of object is not accurate enough in the complicated video scenarios. Aiming at these two problems, this paper proposes a multi-object tracking framework called DROP (Deep Re-identification Occlusion Processing). The framework consists of object detection, fast pedestrian re-identification, and a confidence-based data association algorithm. A lightweight convolutional neural network that can solve the re-tracking problem is constructed by increasing and learning the affinity of appearance features of the same object in different frames. And this paper proposes to judge the occlusion of the object that can solve inaccurate position predicted by Kalman filter by using the data association result of the appearance features of the object, and to reduce the matching error by improving the data association formula. The experimental results on the multi-object tracking datasets MOT15 and MOT16 show that the proposed method can improve the precision while ensure the real-time tracking performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) seroclearance is regarded as the ideal endpoint for antiviral treatment. However, reports on the durability of and outcomes after HBsAg seroclearance are few, which has become a focus in clinical practice. This meta‐analysis was performed to evaluate the durability and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) incidence after HBsAg seroclearance after treatment cessation. We searched PubMed, Embase, Medline and Web of Science for studies that reported the durability and HCC incidence after HBsAg seroclearance published between 1 January 2000 and 31 January 2020. Data were analysed by a random‐effects model. Thirty‐eight studies and 43,924 patients were finally included. The results showed that HBsAg seroclearance was durable, with a pooled recurrence rate of 6.19% (95% CI: 4.10%–8.68%). There was no significant difference in recurrence rates after different seroclearance methods or among recurrence types and different regions. Anti‐HBs seroconversion resulted in a significantly reduced recurrence rate (RR = 0.25, p <.001). Patients who experienced HBsAg seroclearance had significantly lower HCC incidence than HBsAg‐positive (RR = 0.41, p <.001). The pooled HCC incidence after HBsAg seroclearance was 1.88%; this rate was reduced to 0.76% among patients without baseline cirrhosis. In conclusion, the analysis during an average follow‐up of 4.74 years suggested that in patients who experienced sustained HBsAg seroclearance and anti‐HBs seroconversion, this was associated with low HCC incidence. Patients without baseline cirrhosis benefited even more. We emphasize the importance of gaining HBsAg seroclearance while highlighting the benefits of achieving this as early as possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a type of non-coding RNA (ncRNA) that possesses a unique single-stranded circular structure. They are primarily formed through alternative splicing of pre-mRNA (messenger RNA). The primary biological function of circRNAs is to regulate gene expression at both the transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. Recent studies have increasingly demonstrated a close association between the dysregulation of circRNAs and the progression of diverse cancers, where they can function as either tumor suppressors or oncogenes. circWHSC1 (circNSD2) is a circular ncRNA that originates from the first 2 exons of the Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome candidate gene (WHSC1). As Chen 2019 discovery that circWHSC1 (circNSD2) functions as a sponge for miRNAs and promotes cancer, this circRNA has garnered significant interest among researchers. circWHSC1 (circNSD2) has been found to be up-regulated in various malignant tumors, including nasopharyngeal carcinoma, lung cancer, breast cancer, liver cancer, colorectal cancer, ovarian cancer, cervical cancer, and endometrial cancer. It exerts its effects on cancer by either inhibiting or promoting the expression of related genes through direct or indirect pathways, ultimately affecting cancer proliferation, invasion, and prognosis. This article provides a comprehensive review and discussion of the biological roles of circWHSC1 (circNSD2) and its target genes in various cancers, as well as the latest research progress on related molecular biological regulatory mechanisms. Furthermore, the potential significance of circWHSC1 (circNSD2) in future clinical applications and transformations is thoroughly analyzed and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]