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Abstract Depression frequently comorbidities with cancer, adversely affecting survivors’ quality of life. Liver dysfunction is also prevalent among cancer survivors. However, the association between these two conditions remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the relationship between depression and liver function biomarkers in US cancer survivors. A cross-sectional study was conducted utilizing data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2005–2020. Cancer survivors were screened and depression was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and 18 liver function biomarkers were included. Survey-weighted generalized linear models with multiple covariables adjusted were employed to examine the associations between depression and liver function biomarkers. A total of 4118 cancer survivors were included, representing a weighted population of 21 501 237. After adjusted with age, gender, race, marital status, education level, family income-to-poverty ratio, and number of cancer types, 8 biomarkers demonstrated positive correlations with depression in cancer survivors, included alanine aminotransferase (ALT, OR = 1.007, 95% CI: 1.000 to 1.013), alkaline phosphatase (ALP, 1.006 [1.002, 1.010]), gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT, 1.004 [1.001, 1.007]), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH, 1.004 [1.000, 1.009]), total protein (TP, 1.040 [1.009, 1.072]), globulin (GLB, 1.060 [1.030, 1.091]), total cholesterol (TC) to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) ratio (1.162 [1.050, 1.286]), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) to HDL-C ratio (1.243 [1.012, 1.526]); while 4 other biomarkers exhibited negative correlations, included HDL-C (0.988 [0.980, 0.997]), total bilirubin (TBi, 0.501 [0.284, 0.883]), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) to ALT ratio (0.588 [0.351, 0.986]), albumin (ALB) to GLB ratio (0.384 [0.229, 0.642]). Following sensitivity analysis, 5 biomarkers included LDH, HDL-C, TBi, AST/ALT and LDL-C/HDL-C lost their statistical significance for the association. This study identified certain associations between 7 liver function biomarkers and depression in US cancer survivors. Further research, particularly prospective longitudinal studies, is warranted to elucidate the causal relationships and explore the potential of improving liver function for the management of depression in cancer patients.

Abstract Background Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) is a major global public health issue. There is limited research on the relationship between ambient temperature and AIS hospital admissions, and the results are controversial. Our objective is to assess the short-term impact of ambient temperature on the risk of AIS hospital admissions in Yancheng, China. Methods We collected data on daily AIS hospital admissions, meteorological factors, and air quality in Yancheng from 2014 to 2019. We used Poisson regression to fit generalized linear models and distributed lag non-linear models to explore the association between ambient temperature and AIS hospital admissions. The effects of these associations were evaluated by stratified analysis by sex and age. Results From 2014 to 2019, we identified a total of 13,391 AIS hospital admissions. We observed that the influence of extreme cold and heat on admissions for AIS manifests immediately on the day of exposure and continues for a duration of 3–5 days. Compared to the optimal temperature (24.4 °C), the cumulative relative risk under extreme cold temperature (-1.3 °C) conditions with a lag of 0–5 days was 1.88 (95%CI: 1.28, 2.78), and under extreme heat temperature (30.5 °C) conditions with a lag of 0–5 days was 1.48 (95%CI: 1.26, 1.73). Conclusions There is a non-linear association between ambient temperature and AIS hospital admission risk in Yancheng, China. Women and older patients are more vulnerable to non-optimal temperatures. Our findings may reveal the potential impact of climate change on the risk of AIS hospital admissions.

Gaussian beam carries orbital angular momentum with infinite Hebert space distribution, which is expected to realize large-capacity and long-distance transmission of underwater wireless optical communication. To address the problem that Gaussian beam will be dispersed by diffusion and crosstalk after passing through an ocean turbulence channel, resulting in blurring of OAM mode features and difficulty in extracting OAM mode information, this paper proposes a DCNN-RF mode recognition model, which aims to extract the multidimensional feature information of the RGB and HSV of the OAM mode image through a dual-channel CNN, and then optimize the CNN model by combining with Adam optimizer parameters, and finally the extracted multidimensional features are fused by RF classifier and classify the OAM mode. The experimental results show that the DCNN-RF model achieves 100% recognition rate for weak and medium turbulence, and 97% to 99.5% recognition rate for strong turbulence environment. Analyzing the recognition rate analysis of CNN, CNN-SVM, ResNet50-SVM model and DCNN-RF model, DCNN-RF model has more excellent OAM mode detection ability, and the recognition rate of DCNN-RF model reaches 99.5% in the actual OAM experimental system. This will provide a new reference for mode recognition in OAM optical communication.

To investigate the crack growth behavior in a cladded structure, a numerical simulation method based on the extended finite element method (XFEM) was developed. This method employs 8-node hexahedral continuum elements enriched only with the Heaviside step function, which can model planar crack independently of finite elements. For a crack across the interface of dissimilar materials in cladded structures, stress intensity factors along the crack front are evaluated by the domain integral method. Crack front shapes are updated by using Paris’ law and then smoothed by cubic Bézier curves in each region. In addition, fatigue crack propagation analyses for cladded compact tension [C(T)] specimens were performed. The relationships between crack length and load cycles as well as the transition of propagating crack front shapes were compared with experimental results and validated. Furthermore, sensitivity analyses were performed to explore the influence on the crack propagation behaviors of analysis parameters and conditions. The developed method was shown to provide an appropriate approximation of fatigue crack growth behaviors in cladded C(T) specimens.

Foam concrete can be widely utilized as precast walls for its low density, excellent heat resistance and sound insulation. The challenge of its application is its low strength due to the porous matrix, which prolongs the demolding time. Steam curing at an early time is a common strategy to improve its early-age strength. Here, an orthogonal experiment (OA16) was adopted to investigate the influence of curing parameters on the properties of foam concrete. Specific compressive strengths (SCS) given as the ratio of the strength and the density at 12 h (12 h) and 28 days (28d) were calculated to evaluate the early-age and long-age strength. The range analysis and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that the optimum steam-curing system that can yield the highest 12 h SCS (1.9 MPa, which meets the demand for demolding) is that preheating temperature of 25 ℃, preheating duration of 4 h, curing temperature of 50 ℃, together with 1.5% early-strength agent Na2SO4. Compared to the normal cured concrete, the addition of mineral power (fly ash by 20%) will successfully increase the early-age strength under steam curing, while XRD, SEM and FTIR analysis all show there are more hydrated products formed after steam curing and the activity of fly ash is activated to form C-S-H gels. However, improving early-age strength too much will lead to a deficiency of later-age strength growth. MIP analysis also exhibited high pore probability in the sample cured under higher steam-curing temperatures. These results can provide experiences for the wide application of foam concrete in precast walls and help improve the efficiency of their template turnover.

The soil seed bank plays a key role in vegetation resilience under environmental disturbances, and is especially important for the restoration of degraded vegetation. However, the responsive dynamics of the soil seed bank to animal grazing and its potential in the restoration of grazing degraded steppe grassland remain unclear. Here we examined the changes in plant species diversity and density in both the soil seed bank and the aboveground vegetation of a natural grassland along an experimental gradient of four grazing intensities (nil, light, moderate and heavy grazing) in an adaptive grazing management system that ensures grassland residual cover was always above a certain criteria. The grassland is a typical steppe dominated by Leymus chinensis, Stipa grandis, and Cleistogenes squarrosa in central Inner Mongolia, China. We found that (i) plant species richness and density of the seed bank in the top 10 cm soil layer increased with grazing intensity, though the density of the seed bank in the top 5 cm soil layer showed an decrease. (ii) Moderate and heavy grazing significantly decreased the density of perennial but increased annual and biennial plants in the top 5 cm soil layer, which dominate the changes in the top 10 cm soil layer. (iii) Plant species richness and density in the aboveground vegetation also increased with grazing intensity, so did the similarity between the species composition of the soil seed bank and aboveground vegetation in the top 10 cm. The increase in the richness and density of annual and biennial species dominated the responsive changes to grazing of the soil seed bank and aboveground vegetation in the studied grassland. Our results provide a reference basis for grazing management in the region from the perspective of the soil seed bank, and suggest that the adaptive grazing system with grassland residual height controlled above a criterion benefits to the soil seed bank thus the re-generation of vegetation.

Abstract Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most common chronic liver diseases, whose severe form is associated with oxidative stress. Vitamin E as an antioxidant has a protective potential in NAFLD. Whether dietary intake of vitamin E, supplementary vitamin E use, and total vitamin E have a preventive effect on NAFLD requires investigation. A cross-sectional study used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2017–2020) was conducted. Vitamin E intake, including dietary vitamin E, supplementary vitamin E use, and total vitamin E, was obtained from the average of two 24-h dietary recall interviews. The extent of hepatic steatosis was measured by liver ultrasound transient elastography and presented as controlled attenuated parameter (CAP) scores. Participants were diagnosed with NAFLD based on CAP threshold values of 288 dB/m and 263 dB/m. The statistical software R and survey-weighted statistical models were used to examine the association between vitamin E intake and hepatic steatosis and NAFLD. Overall, 6122 participants were included for NAFLD analysis. After adjusting for age, gender, race, poverty level index, alcohol consumption, smoking status, vigorous recreational activity, body mass index, abdominal circumference, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, diabetes, and supplementary vitamin E use, dietary vitamin E was inversely associated with NAFLD. The corresponding odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of NAFLD for dietary vitamin E intake as continuous and the highest quartile were 0.9592 (0.9340–0.9851, P = 0.0039) and 0.5983 (0.4136–0.8654, P = 0.0091) (P trend = 0.0056). Supplementary vitamin E was significantly inversely associated with NAFLD (fully adjusted model: OR = 0.6565 95% CI 0.4569–0.9432, P = 0.0249). A marginal improvement in total vitamin E for NAFLD was identified. The ORs (95% CIs, P) for the total vitamin E intake as continuous and the highest quartile in the fully adjusted model were 0.9669 (0.9471–0.9871, P = 0.0029) and 0.6743 (0.4515–1.0071, P = 0.0538). Sensitivity analysis indicated these findings were robust. The protective effects of vitamin E significantly differed in the stratum of hyperlipidemia (P interaction

Abstract Marine natural gas hydrate (NGH) is a promising substitutive low-carbon energy resource, whereas NGH-production induced geoengineering concerns remain challenging. Advanced forecast of possible geoengineering risks is the fundamental for eco-friendly NGH exploitation. Reservoir creep deformation is an early symptom of the geoengineering risks. However, whether the creep deformation behaviors of the NGH-bearing strata is predictable remains controversial. In this study, a series of multi-step loading creep test are conducted for sandy gas hydrate bearing sediment (GHBS) samples, during which the ultrasonic responses are recorded simultaneously. The acoustic velocity, compression-to-shear velocity ratio, Poission’s ratio, main frequency, and main frequency amplitude are used to characterize creep failures of the GHBS for the first time. Combining analyses of the creep behaviors and acoustic responses yield the following conclusions. Firstly, the long-term strength derived from creeping test is 0.45–0.60 times of the shear strength derived from triaxial shearing. Ignoring the creep effect might underestimate the scale and intensity of possible geoengineering risks during long-term NGH exploitation. Secondly, the acoustic velocity increases gently and then decreases continuously during creeping. Once the accelerated creep appears, the acoustic velocity plummets significantly, together with a sudden decrease in the compression-to-shear velocity ratio, and fluctuations in the main frequency and its amplitude. Furthermore, the main frequency and its amplitude shall fluctuate abruptly prior to the emergence of the accelerated creep. Therefore, we anticipate that the combination of abnormal fluctuations of main frequency and its amplitude can be used as early-warning indicators for possible creep failure of the GHBS. The results might have great significance for in-situ detection and prediction of possible reservoir failure during long-term NGH exploitation.

The limited surface area and structural constraints of small underwater communication devices necessitate a dense placement of transmitting and receiving array elements in optical multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems. The compact layout leads to the formation of sub-channels that exhibit notable spatial correlation and a tendency toward homogeneity. Although sub-channel spatial homogeneity (SSH) may diminish the communication capacity of MIMO systems, it provides a significant advantage by reducing the pilot overhead. In this study, we exploit the inherent SSH and the natural time-domain sparsity of channel impulse response (CIR) in the underwater optical densely arrayed MIMO (UODA-MIMO) system to propose an innovative SSH-based channel estimation (SSH-CE) method. We model the underwater optical CIR at Gbaud rates and integrate it with SSH characteristics. This approach transforms the reconstruction targets of compressive sensing (CS) from conventional CIR samples to prior CIR model parameters and the fitting residuals of the homogeneous sub-channels, reducing the pilot overhead. The simulation results of photon tracing for UODA-MIMO sub-channels in turbid harbor water indicate a monotonic, exponential decay in CIR at Gbaud rates, with transmission delays exceeding 5 nanoseconds for distances over 8 m. Moreover, the correlation coefficients among sub-channels reach a minimum of 0.975, confirming the presence of SSH in UODA-MIMO systems. In comparison to existing CS methods that rely on known sparsity, sparsity adaptation, and the structural sparsity of MIMO channels, the SSH-CE method achieves a lower degree of sparsity in reconstruction targets and a reduced lower bound for pilot requirements under the SPARK criterion. Specifically, the SSH-CE method achieves a reduction in the pilot overhead for reconstructing Nt sub-channels of K-sparse to 2Nt irrespective of CIR residual compensation.

As the communication distance changes, the received signal strength of an underwater optical communication system will change, and the range of its variation may not only exceed the dynamic range of the photoelectric detection device but also cause the reliability of communication to change due to the change in the received signal-to-noise ratio. In order to maintain better communication over a longer distance, this paper proposes a rate-adaptive method for underwater optical communication with joint control in the photoelectric domain. In the optical domain, the incident light’s power is adaptively adjusted by controlling the transmittance of the liquid crystal light valve to reduce saturation distortion. In the electrical domain, the constellation distribution is optimized according to the desired probability mass function, and the modulation order is adjusted in real time by estimating the received signal-to-noise ratio of the link. The simulation results show that under the forward error correction (FEC) threshold, the proposed method increases the dynamic range of the photomultiplier tube (PMT) by about 10 dB and expands the dynamic range of the system’s communication distance.

Wearable sensor-based human activity recognition (HAR) methods hold considerable promise for upper-level control in exoskeleton systems. However, such methods tend to overlook the critical role of data quality and still encounter challenges in cross-subject adaptation. To address this, we propose an active learning framework that integrates the relation network architecture with data sampling techniques. Initially, target data are used to fine tune two auxiliary classifiers of the pre-trained model, thereby establishing subject-specific classification boundaries. Subsequently, we assess the significance of the target data based on classifier discrepancy and partition the data into sample and template sets. Finally, the sampled data and a category clustering algorithm are employed to tune model parameters and optimize template data distribution, respectively. This approach facilitates the adaptation of the model to the target subject, enhancing both accuracy and generalizability. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed adaptation framework, we conducted evaluation experiments on a public dataset and a self-constructed electromyography (EMG) dataset. Experimental results demonstrate that our method outperforms the compared methods across all three statistical metrics. Furthermore, ablation experiments highlight the necessity of data screening. Our work underscores the practical feasibility of implementing user-independent HAR methods in exoskeleton control systems.

Previous experimental results show that the poloidal mode spacing of the filamentary structures increases and the dominant toroidal mode number decreases in the edgelocalized mode (ELM) rising phase with increasing plasma current. In addition, the experimental results in this paper show that the energy loss ratio of the pedestal (ΔW/Wped) decreases as the edge safety factor (q95) increases. The BOUT++ three-field two-fluid model can reproduce the experimental results and provide a possible explanation mechanism. The pedestal density plays an important role in the characteristics of filamentary structures as the current ramps up. On the one hand, the resistivity related to the pedestal density drives the instability of the peeling–ballooning mode, and the resistive effect is stronger in the high current case, making the dominant toroidal mode number lower and the corresponding poloidal mode spacing wider in the high current case. A low q95 corresponds to a high pedestal collision rate and a high pedestal energy loss ratio. On the other hand, the ELM crash process is dominated by resistivity, so the ratio of pedestal energy loss caused by ELM is not inversely proportional to the pedestal collision rate.

Objective Borehole Televiewer (BHTV) imaging serves as an effective tool for analyzing deep rock formations in geological engineering, offering crucial insights into surface discontinuity extensions and the distribution of buried discontinuities, especially within complex geological environments associated with hydraulic engineering projects. Recognizing the current issues of subjectivity and low efficiency, prevalent in the manual calculation of rock discontinuity morphological characteristics within rock masses, we propose an intelligent approach for segmenting geometric data from digital borehole images. Leveraging the segmentation outcomes, an image thinning technique is employed to facilitate precise quantitative analysis of borehole data. Methods In this research, we employ deep learning models to intelligently identify fractures within BHTV images, utilizing various network structures such as Unet, SegNet, and DeepLabV3. The recognition results are compared with traditional image processing methods, demonstrating the advantages of deep models in accurately segmenting complex geological images. Furthermore, we enhance the model's performance by incorporating an attention mechanism into the encoder-decoder process.Once precise segmentation of rock discontinuities is achieved, the fracture skeleton is extracted using the image thinning method, representing fractures as one-pixel-width curves. Ultimately, automated calculations is completed for dip strike, dip angle, and fracture thickness. Results This method is applied to segment and calculate borehole televiewer images in hydraulic engineering. Comparing the results of manual extraction and automatic extraction of fracture information, the error of dip strike and dip angle is less than 3°, and the fracture thickness error is less than 0.65 mm. Conclusion The results verify that the intelligent calculation method of fracture information proposed in this paper. The proposed method has wide application prospects in hydraulic engineering.

Abstract Objective We aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy and prognostic significance of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT)-based salvage concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) for patients with locoregional recurrence cervical cancer after radical hysterectomy and evaluated two salvage radiotherapy modes—regional RT (involved-field RT combined with regional lymph nodes) and local RT (involved-field RT). Methods Patients were enrolled retrospectively from January 2011 to January 2022 in three medical centers. Clinical outcomes were analyzed using the Kaplan–Meier method and a Cox proportional hazards model. Propensity score (PS) matching analysis was used to compare the two RT groups. Results There were 72 patients underwent IMRT-based salvage CCRT. The 5-year overall survival and progression-free survival rates were 65.9% and 57.6%, respectively. Univariate analysis showed that patients with stump recurrence, a lower systemic inflammation response index (SIRI), only one metastatic lesion, and received regional RT had better prognosis than their counterparts. In multivariate analysis, recurrence site was the independent prognostic factor of OS, and SIRI was that of PFS. After PS matching, there were 15 patients each in the regional RT group and local RT group. The 5-year OS rate of regional RT group was better than that of local RT group (90.9 vs. 42.4, p = 0.021). However, there was no significant difference between them in terms of PFS rate (47.1 vs. 38.1, p = 0.195). Conclusion Locoregional recurrent cervical cancer treated with IMRT-based salvage therapy has a good prognosis. Recurrence site and SIRI were independent prognostic factors. Regional RT may be a better option for patients with locoregional recurrent.

[Introduction] Under the existing converter station reactive power compensation scheme, the synchronous condenser only provides transient reactive power support, and the AC (Alternating Current) filter undertakes steady-state reactive power compensation and adjustment tasks, with a lack of coordination scheme between the two and insufficient economy. [Method] On the basis of ensuring the dynamic characteristics of the synchronous condenser, based on the operating characteristics of the DC (Direct Current) sending and receiving end systems, firstly, a reactive power optimization scheme for the converter station was proposed, in which the regulator was used to replace a part of the part of the AC filter capacity with the regulator, and both participated in steady state reactive power compensation. Ubsequently, a two-layer reactive power adjustment strategy for the converter station was proposed according to the sequence of actions. The first layer of reactive power adjustment was undertaken by the synchronous condenser, which was realized by adjusting the output within the range of steady state operation. The second layer of reactive power adjustment was started after the first layer of reactive power adjustment, and the AC filters were switched on group by group for reactive power adjustment until the reactive power adjustment requirement of the converter station was reached. Finally, a LCC-HVDC (Line-Commutated Converter High Voltage Direct Current) system simulation model was built in PSCAD for simulation verification. [Result] The simulation results show that the reactive power compensation scheme and the two-layer reactive power adjustment strategy proposed can optimize the number of AC filter configuration groups in the converter station, reduce the frequency of AC filter switching in the converter station. [Conclusion] The proposed scheme achieves optimization of the existing LCC-HVDC converter station reactive power compensation scheme and reactive power adjustment strategy.

A novel 3(Rc)PU parallel mechanism based on the reconfigurable circular groove cross joint (Rc joint) is proposed. The motion branch transformation relationship and constraint performance evaluation method for the mechanism are studied. According to constrained screw analysis, the (Rc)PU limb provides a constraint couple to the moving platform in one motion mode and no constraint to the platform in another motion mode. According to the two configurations of the limb, the 3(Rc)PU mechanism has four different motion branches, namely 3T, 1R3T, 2R3T, and 3R3T. Based on the input selection principle, the input selection scheme of the 3(Rc)PU mechanism is determined, and it is concluded that, to achieve stable motion, at least two input drive pairs need to be applied on each limb. A unified kinematic model with four motion branches is established, and the geometric constraint equations of the 3(Rc)PU parallel mechanism are derived. After selecting the input actuated joints, the local minimization transmission index (LMTI) of the reconfigurable mechanism under different motion branches is established to evaluate the motion/force transmission performance of the reconfigurable mechanism under different motion branches. The conclusion shows that the LMTI values satisfy the corresponding constraint conditions, and the 3(Rc)PU parallel mechanism has good motion/force transmission performance.

As a key ecological function area and a priority area for biodiversity conservation in China, Qilian Mountain National Park is facing a severe test of its ecological environment, and the study of its landscape ecological risk is of great significance to the construction and high-quality development of the Qilian Mountain National Park. In this research, based on land use data from six periods (i.e., year in 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, and 2020) in the Qilian Mountain National Park, we divided the ecological risk plots, calculated the landscape pattern, and constructed the landscape ecological risk index to deeply explore the temporal and spatial heterogeneity of landscape ecological risk in Qilian Mountain National Park by using ArcGIS, Fragstats and GeoDa. The results showed that: Grassland is the predominant land use type, the area covered by woodland and grassland have exhibited a significant increase since 1995. Landscape fragmentation and disturbance indices exhibit fluctuations across different years, but showed an overall decreasing trend, and landscape stability was improved in the study area. There were obvious differences in the disturbance indices of different landscape types, with grassland and bare land having the highest values. Ecological risk in the study area is heterogeneous, with an overall low ecological risk and a shift to a lower risk level, and a decreasing trend in ecological risk, which is positively correlated spatially and mainly manifested as a “low-low” aggregation. Global warming and unreasonable human activities have exacerbated the ecological degradation of Qilian Mountain National Park, but a series of ecological restoration strategies after the establishment of the national park have gradually improved the regional ecological environment.

Abstract Plant anthers are composed of different specialized cell types with distinct roles in plant reproduction. High temperature (HT) stress causes male sterility, resulting in crop yield reduction. However, the spatial expression atlas and regulatory dynamics during anther development and in response to HT remain largely unknown. Here, the first single‐cell transcriptome atlas and chromatin accessibility survey in cotton anther are established, depicting the specific expression and epigenetic landscape of each type of cell in anthers. The reconstruction of meiotic cells, tapetal cells, and middle layer cell developmental trajectories not only identifies novel expressed genes, but also elucidates the precise degradation period of middle layer and reveals a rapid function transition of tapetal cells during the tetrad stage. By applying HT, heterogeneity in HT response is shown among cells of anthers, with tapetal cells responsible for pollen wall synthesis are most sensitive to HT. Specifically, HT shuts down the chromatin accessibility of genes specifically expressed in the tapetal cells responsible for pollen wall synthesis, such as QUARTET 3 (QRT3) and CYTOCHROME P450 703A2 (CYP703A2), resulting in a silent expression of these genes, ultimately leading to abnormal pollen wall and male sterility. Collectively, this study provides substantial information on anthers and provides clues for heat‐tolerant crop creation.

To further understand the characteristics of clay and sand production (hereafter collectively referred to as sand production) and to provide optimization designs of sand control schemes are critical for gas production from clayey silt natural gas hydrate reservoirs in the South China Sea. Thus, gas-water-sand production behavoirs and coupling reservoir subsidence characteristics before, during, and after hydrate dissociation of the clayey silt hydrate reservoirs with different clay contents (5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, and 30%) have been studied through a self-developed experimental system. The results show that with the increase of clay content, the total mass of sand production first increases and then decreases, and it reaches maximum when the clayey content is 20%. The sand production is the lowest before hydrate dissociation and increases significantly during hydrate dissociation, which mainly occurs in the high-speed gas and water production stage at the beginning of hydrate dissociation. After hydrate dissociation, the sand production decreases significantly. During the whole depressurization process, the clay and free sand particles generally move to the sand outlet due to the fluid driving force and overlying stress extrusion. However, for conditions of high clay contents, those particles fail to pass through the sand control screen and gradually accumulate and block the screen by forming a mud cake, which greatly reduce the permeability of the screen and limite sand production as well as gas and water production. Our research lays a foundation for sand production prediction and sand control scheme selection during gas recovery from clayey silty hydrate reservoirs that greatly need to consider a balance between sand control and gas productivity.

At present, the main raw material for producing graphene is graphite ore. However, researchers actively seek alternative resources due to their high cost and environmental problems. Biomass waste has attracted much attention due to its carbon-rich structure and renewability, emerging as a potential raw material for graphene production to be used in sports equipment. However, further progress is required on the quality of graphene produced from waste biomass. This paper, therefore, summarizes the properties, structures, and production processes of graphene and its derivatives, as well as the inherent advantages of biomass waste-derived graphene. Finally, this paper reviews graphene’s importance and application prospects in sports since this wonder material has made sports equipment available with high-strength and lightweight quality. Moreover, its outstanding thermal and electrical conductivity is exploited to prepare wearable sensors to collect more accurate sports data, thus helping to improve athletes’ training levels and competitive performance. Although the large-scale production of biomass waste-derived graphene has yet to be realized, it is expected that its application will expand to various other fields due to the associated low cost and environmental friendliness of the preparation technique.

Paraneoplastic Cushing’s syndrome (PCS) is a rare, but clinically important feature of small cell lung cancer (SCLC) that is associated with even worse prognosis. To identify key considerations in comprehensive management of SCLC patients complicated with PCS, we conducted a systematic review of relevant reports on PubMed and Web of Science, focusing on SCLC with PCS cases. The systematic review analyzed 61 reports published between 1985 and 2022 with a total of 157 SCLC patients included. Out of the 157 patients, 132 (84.1%) patients across 58 (95.1%) reports were diagnosed with ectopic Cushing’s syndrome. The immunohistochemical (IHC) staining for adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) was performed on 30 (19.1%) patients across 22 (36.1%) reports and demonstrated encouraging performance. For treatment, chemotherapy and ketoconazole were utilized in 50 (81.97%) and 24 (39.34%) reports, respectively. Regarding cause of death, infection and cancer were equally frequent, each being recorded in 17 (27.87%) reports. To conclude, the majority of PCS cases in SCLC patients were caused by ectopic hormone secretion. In order to make a differential diagnosis, it is recommended to utilize IHC staining for a specific hormone such as ACTH or corticotropin-releasing hormone. In the comprehensive treatment of SCLC with PCS patients, effective management of hypercortisolism and potent safeguarding against infection play two crucial roles. Ultimately, further confirmations are required regarding the specificity and accuracy of IHC staining technique as well as the efficacy and safety of immunotherapy in the treatment of SCLC with PCS patients.

BackgroundIn recent years, there has been considerable growth in abnormal inflammatory reactions and immune system dysfunction, which are implicated in chronic inflammatory illnesses and a variety of other conditions. Dietary fibers have emerged as potential regulators of the human immune and inflammatory response. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the associations between dietary fibers intake and systemic immune and inflammatory biomarkers.MethodsThis cross-sectional study used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2015–2020). Dietary fibers intake was defined as the mean of two 24-h dietary recall interviews. The systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), systemic inflammation response index (SIRI), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), red blood cell distribution width-to-albumin ratio (RA), ferritin, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and white blood cell (WBC) count were measured to evaluate systemic immune and inflammatory states of the body. The statistical software packages R and EmpowerStats were used to examine the associations between dietary fibers intake and systemic immune and inflammatory biomarkers.ResultsOverall, 14,392 participants were included in this study. After adjusting for age, gender, race, family monthly poverty level index, alcohol consumption, smoking status, vigorous recreational activity, body mass index, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, diabetes, and dietary inflammatory index, dietary fibers intake was inversely associated with SII (β = −2.19885, 95% CI: −3.21476 to −1.18294, p = 0.000248), SIRI (β = −0.00642, 95% CI: −0.01021 to −0.00263, p = 0.001738), NLR (β = −0.00803, 95% CI: −0.01179 to −0.00427, p = 0.000284), RA (β = −0.00266, 95% CI: −0.00401 to −0.00131, p = 0.000644), ferritin (β = −0.73086, 95% CI: −1.31385 to −0.14787, p = 0.020716), hs-CRP (β = −0.04629, 95% CI: −0.0743 to −0.01829, p = 0.002119), WBC (β = −0.01624, 95% CI: −0.02685 to −0.00563, p = 0.004066), neutrophils (β = −0.01346, 95% CI: −0.01929 to −0.00764, p = 0.000064). An inverse association between dietary fibers and PLR was observed in the middle (β = −3.11979, 95% CI: −5.74119 to −0.4984, p = 0.028014) and the highest tertile (β = −4.48801, 95% CI: −7.92369 to −1.05234, p = 0.016881) and the trend test (βtrend = −2.2626, 95% CI: −3.9648 to −0.5604, Ptrend = 0.0150). The observed associations between dietary fibers intake and SII, SIRI, NLR, RA, ferritin, hs-CRP, WBC, and neutrophils remained robust and consistent in the sensitivity analysis. No significant interaction by race was found.ConclusionDietary fibers intake is associated with the improvement of the parameters of the immune response and inflammatory biomarkers, supporting recommendations to increase dietary fibers intake for enhanced immune health.

Gravel packing is a promising sand control method for natural gas wells in deepwater environments. However, premature screenout, wellbore shrinkage, and packer installationlimit gravel packing efficiency in long-reach horizontal wells. In this paper, we introduce a novel multi-path screen that provides alternative pathways once the circulating annulus is blocked. The basic geometric parameters of the screen are given first. Then, the frictional pressure loss in each circulating unit during packing is evaluated. Finally, the application of this screen in a long-reach horizontal well in the northern South China Sea is discussed. The application results demonstrate the applicability of multi-path screens in complex downhole completion conditions. The multi-path screen described here may widen the application ranges of gravel packing techniques to meet the exploitation demand for unconventional natural gas resources, such as marine natural gas hydrate.

Abstract Sand production is a crucial geotechnical issue for safe and efficient gas recovery from natural gas hydrate (NGH) reservoirs. Although the same gas production method of depressurization was chosen for the production trials in the Nankai Trough and the Northern South China Sea, their sand production behaviors differed greatly due to the skeleton diversity of sand in the Nankai Trough and clayey‐silt in the Northern South China Sea, which resulted in different sand control and sand production characteristics. In this study, we conducted experiments to compare sediment responses and sand production behaviors from these two typical gas hydrate‐bearing sediments (GHBSs) before, during, and after hydrate dissociation under depressurization. The results reveal the fluid and sand production rates in both GHBSs are relatively low before and after hydrate dissociation. However, the sand production rate in sandy GHBS keeps stable at a relatively high value during the whole hydrate dissociation period, accompanied by a high fluid production rate and continuous sample subsidence. In contrast, the fluid and sand production rates are proved to be high only at the early stages of hydrate dissociation in clayey‐silty GHBS with sand production decreasing obviously afterward, and the sample subsidence rate exponentially decay until the ultimate subsidence is reached. After experiments, two kinds of particle plugging phenomena, sand bridge and mud cake, are found to form outside sand screens in sandy and clayey‐silty GHBSs, respectively. Differences in permeability, particle migration, and plugging characteristics are thought to be the main inducement of the variability in sand production behaviors in different GHBS types. These findings indicate that sand‐production control strategies should obey geological engineering integration and differ according to the GHBS type. Specifically, we should concern sand production risk in sandy GHBS during and after hydrate dissociation, whereas more attention should be paid to the early stages of hydrate dissociation in clayey‐silty GHBS.

Abstract Background From an economic perspective, cotton is one of the most important crops in the world. The fertility of male reproductive organs is a key determinant of cotton yield. Anther dehiscence or indehiscence directly determines the probability of fertilization in cotton. Thus, rapid and accurate identification of cotton anther dehiscence status is important for judging anther growth status and promoting genetic breeding research. The development of computer vision technology and the advent of big data have prompted the application of deep learning techniques to agricultural phenotype research. Therefore, two deep learning models (Faster R-CNN and YOLOv5) were proposed to detect the number and dehiscence status of anthers. Result The single-stage model based on YOLOv5 has higher recognition speed and the ability to deploy to the mobile end. Breeding researchers can apply this model to terminals to achieve a more intuitive understanding of cotton anther dehiscence status. Moreover, three improvement strategies are proposed for the Faster R-CNN model, where the improved model has higher detection accuracy than the YOLOv5 model. We have made three improvements to the Faster R-CNN model and after the ensemble of the three models and original Faster R-CNN model, R2 of “open” reaches to 0.8765, R2 of “close” reaches to 0.8539, R2 of “all” reaches to 0.8481, higher than the prediction results of either model alone, which are completely able to replace the manual counting results. We can use this model to quickly extract the dehiscence rate of cotton anthers under high temperature (HT) conditions. In addition, the percentage of dehiscent anthers of 30 randomly selected cotton varieties were observed from the cotton population under normal conditions and HT conditions through the ensemble of the Faster R-CNN model and manual counting. The results show that HT decreased the percentage of dehiscent anthers in different cotton lines, consistent with the manual method. Conclusions Deep learning technology have been applied to cotton anther dehiscence status recognition instead of manual methods for the first time to quickly screen HT–tolerant cotton varieties. Deep learning can help to explore the key genetic improvement genes in the future, promoting cotton breeding and improvement.

Underwater robots have been widely used in ocean exploration, deep-sea observation, seabed operations, marine scientific research, and other fields. Underwater low-latency, efficient, and safe communication modes are key to realizing the application of an underwater robot data transmission system. This paper mainly studies the optical communication between underwater mobile robots, including the large-dispersion-angle light-emitting diode (LED) design, large field of view receiving technology, weak light detector technology, etc. By designing a 120° large divergence angle underwater optical communication system in this study, the receiving field-of-view angle of the receiving end can reach 60°, which is suitable for the optical communication system of an underwater mobile platform. The high-power LED driver circuit is designed to drive the high-power LED and adopt weak light detection technology to ensure its stability and reliability. The experimental results show that, in the case of incomplete alignment between the transmitter and receiver, stable communication of underwater robots in motion is achieved through the design of a large divergence angle and a receiving field-of-view angle and the use of an underwater weak light detection technology. The communication distance is 30 m, and the communication rate remains above 10 Mbps. The information transmission content can include network data transmission, real-time video, high-definition video, high-definition images, and other data types. This equipment provides a solution for cableless data transmission of remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and substantially enhances the application field of ROVs.

With the rapid development of the underwater Internet of Things (IoT), the number of underwater communication nodes is rapidly increasing. The access capacity of a traditional multi-antenna communication system is limited by the number of transmitting antennas, and multi-beam communication systems using non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) technology can enhance the access capacity of the system. However, this can lead to serious inter-beam and intra-beam interference. To address the severe issues of inter-beam and intra-beam interference in underwater multi-beam NOMA systems, we propose an adaptive transmit diversity strategy. We design an algorithm for adaptive selection and merging beams based on the degree of interference between beams in space, which merges LED beams with high interference. Diversity technology is used to reduce interference between beams, and spatial multiplexing is still performed between LED groups with low interference. Within the same beam, we use an OFDM-NOMA scheme to match and group the users. Signals from different user groups are sent through different subcarriers to improve resource utilization. This enhances access capacity while reducing NOMA inter-user interference. Simulation results show that the bit error rate (BER) of users with the adaptive transmit diversity strategy satisfies the forward error correction (FEC) limits in the presence of high inter-beam interference and has a better reachable rate and BER performance compared to the multi-beam access system without interference management. We also analyze the system BER performance of the proposed strategy in the multi-user case, and the BER of all 32 access nodes are lower than the FEC threshold at a communication distance of 5 m. This demonstrates that the strategy can effectively reduce the interference of the multi-beam NOMA system.

Abstract Dynamic mechanical properties of natural gas hydrate (NGH) reservoirs are extremely important owing to their critical role in drilling safety and reservoir stability during NGH development. However, the comprehensive influence of reservoir skeleton and hydrate status on the dynamic mechanical properties of hydrate‐bearing sediments (HBS) has rarely been reported. In this study, three types of sandy sediments with different particle size were simulated. A customized resonant column system was used to synthesize HBS and to test the dynamic mechanical properties of the HBS under the conditions of different confining pressures and shear strains. In addition, the dynamic mechanical responses of the hydrate‐free and hydrate‐dissociated specimens were comprehensively studied to further demonstrate the dominant role of hydrate status and skeleton‐hydrate interactions on the dynamic mechanical properties of HBS. The results show that the shear moduli of the HBS specimens increase exponentially with an increase in confining pressure and decrease in amplitude strain. However, the damping ratios decreases with an increase in confining pressure and decrease in amplitude strain. With an increase in the median particle size (D50) of the simulated sediments, the shear moduli tend to increase, whereas the damping ratios decreas. In addition, the hydrate occurrence decreases differences in moduli between fine‐, medium‐ and coarse‐skeleton specimens, and the enhancement effect of hydrate on the mechanical properties of the specimen is the maximum for the fine sediment specimens. Interestingly, we find that the modulus of the hydrate‐dissociated specimen is relatively smaller than that of the hydrate‐free specimen, which implies that the structure of the sediments could be rearranged and weakened due to the hydrate formation‐dissociation processes.

Aging is accompanied with progressive deterioration of immune responses and tissue’s function. Using 12-month-old mice as model, we showed that conditioned medium of human cord blood mesenchymal stem cells (CBMSC-CM) significantly reduced the population percentage of CD3−CD335+ NK and CD4+CD25+ regulatory T-cells in peripheral blood. The CBMSC-CM administration also increased naïve T-cells number and restored the ratio of naïve to memory T-cells in CD4+ T-cells population. These results indicated that CBMSC-CM improved the immune response efficiency of aged mice. Moreover, we also found CBMSC-CM treatment significantly reduced the number of senescenT-cells in kidney tissues. Finally, we demonstrated that CBMSC-CM remarkably attenuated hydrogen peroxide triggered T-cell response and ameliorated oxidative stress induced cellular senescence. All of these data suggest a prominent anti-aging effect of secretome of CBMSCs.

Abstract Background Lycium Linn. (Solanaceae) is a genus of economically important plants producing fruits and leaves with high nutritional value and medicinal benefits. However, genetic analysis of this plant and molecular breeding for quality improvement are limited by the lack of sufficient molecular markers. Results In this study, two parental strains, ‘Ningqi No. 1’ (Lycium barbarum L.) and ‘Yunnan Gouqi’ (Lycium yunnanense Kuang et A.M. Lu), and 200 F1 hybrid individuals were resequenced for genetic analysis. In total, 8,507 well-selected SNPs were developed, and a high-density genetic map (NY map) was constructed with a total genetic distance of 2,122.24 cM. A consensus genetic map was established by integrating the NY map and a previously published genetic map (NC map) containing 15,240 SNPs, with a total genetic distance of 3,058.19 cM and an average map distance of 0.21 cM. The 12 pseudochromosomes of the Lycium reference genome were anchored using this consensus genetic map, with an anchoring rate of 64.3%. Moreover, weak collinearities between the consensus map and the pepper, potato, and tomato genomes were observed. Twenty-five stable QTLs were identified for leaf- and fruit-related phenotypes, including fruit weight, fruit longitude, leaf length, the fruit index, and the leaf index; these stable QTLs were mapped to four different linkage groups, with LOD scores ranging from 2.51 to 19.37 and amounts of phenotypic variance explained from 6.2% to 51.9%. Finally, 82 out of 188 predicted genes underlying stable QTLs for fruit-related traits were differentially expressed according to RNA-seq analysis. Conclusions A chromosome-level assembly can provide a foundation for further functional genomics research for wolfberry. The genomic regions of these stably expressed QTLs could be used as targets for further fine mapping and development of molecular markers for marker-assisted selection (MAS). The present study provided valuable information on saturated SNP markers and reliable QTLs for map-based cloning of functional genes related to yield and morphological traits in Lycium spp.

Background: Antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) is a promising therapy for solid cancer that has raised global concern. Although several papers have reviewed the current state of ADCs in different solid cancers, a quantitative analysis of the publications in this field is scarce.Methods: Publications related to ADC in the field of solid cancer were obtained from the Web of Science Core Collection. Data analyses were performed with VOSviewer 1.6.9, HistCite 2.1, CiteSpace V and R package Bibliometrix.Results: A total of 3,482 records were obtained in the holistic field and 1,197 in the clinical field. Steady growth in the number of publications was observed. The United States was the leading contributor in this field. Krop IE was the most influential author. The most productive institution was Genentech Inc., while Mem Sloan Kettering Canc Ctr was the most cited one. The most impactful journal was the Journal of Clinical Oncology. A total of 37 burst references and five burst references were identified between 2017–2022 in the holistic and clinical fields, respectively. Keywords analysis indicated that ADCs research mainly involved breast cancer, triple-negative breast cancer, ovarian cancer, small cell lung cancer, prostate cancer, gastric cancer, and urothelial carcinoma. ADC agents including trastuzumab emtansine, trastuzumab deruxtecan, sacituzumab govitecan, enfortumab vedotin, and rovalpituzumab tesirine were highly studied. Targets including HER2, trophoblast cell-surface antigen, mesothelin, delta-like ligand 3, and nectin-4 were the major concerns.Conclusion: This study analyzed publications concerning ADCs in the field of solid cancer with bibliometric analysis. Further clinical trials of ADCs and designs of the next generation of ADCs are the current focuses of the field. Acquired resistance of ADCs and biomarkers for ADC therapy efficacy monitoring are future concerns.

Abstract Background Casein kinase I (CKI) is a kind of serine/threonine protein kinase highly conserved in plants and animals. Although molecular function of individual member of CKI family has been investigated in Arabidopsis, little is known about their evolution and functions in Gossypium. Results In this study, five cotton species were applied to study CKI gene family in cotton, twenty-two species were applied to trace the origin and divergence of CKI genes. Four important insights were gained: (i) the cotton CKI genes were classified into two types based on their structural characteristics; (ii) two types of CKI genes expanded with tetraploid event in cotton; (iii) two types of CKI genes likely diverged about 1.5 billion years ago when red and green algae diverged; (iv) two types of cotton CKI genes which highly expressed in leaves showed stronger response to photoperiod (circadian clock) and light signal, and most two types of CKI genes highly expressed in anther showed identical heat inducible expression during anther development in tetraploid cotton (Gossypium hirsutum). Conclusion This study provides genome-wide insights into the evolutionary history of cotton CKI genes and lays a foundation for further investigation of the functional differentiation of two types of CKI genes in specific developmental processes and environmental stress conditions.

Mechanical properties of hydrate-bearing strata are crucial to evaluate hydrate production related geohazards. However, the mechanical parameters of the hydrate reservoirs in the Shenhu area of the South China Sea have been rarely reported. In this paper, the sediments from the top of the hydrate reservoirs in the Shenhu area are taken to analyze the triaxial shearing behaviors of clayey-silty sediments containing tetrahydrofuran (THF) hydrates. The results indicate that the stress–strain curves of THF hydrate-bearing clayey-silty sediments show strain-hardening failure characteristics under a relatively low hydrate mass fraction (≤16.7%). Triaxial shearing strength, tangent modulus, and cohesion force increase with the increase of hydrate less fraction. However, prime results from pure THF hydrates reveal a brittle failure mode, which is totally different from that when hydrate mass fraction is more than 16.7%. Therefore, hydrate fraction (either mass fraction or volume fraction), rather than hydrate saturation, is strongly recommended to characterize the content of hydrate within clayey-silty sediments. The clayey-silty sediment-hydratemixed system is suggested to be divided into pure sediment, hydrate-bearing sediment (HBS), sediment-bearing hydrate (SBH), and pure hydrate, for which a universally applicable mechanical property evaluation method is thus established.

The key to realize the commercial production of natural gas hydrate (NGH) is to increase theNGH productivity significantly in the scale of magnitude. Whether NGH production can be commercialized depends on two aspects. The first is whether the in-situ recoverable reserves are large enough to support the basic production period for commercial production. The second is whether the average productivity can reach the standard for commercial production. In this paper, we will analyze mainly about the potential stimulation technologies for NGH development, and discuss about the basic principles, the evaluation methods, and the technical bottlenecks for NGH production and stimulation. The results indicate that the main mechanisms for increasing theNGH productivity are in three respects, namely enlarging the drainage area, increasing the NGH dissociation efficiency, and improving the seepage conditions. With complex-structure wells and multiple-well patterns, combined with novel production methods and/or reservoir stimulation technologies, the NGH productivity can be increased greatly. Particularly, the complex-structure wells and well patterns are very important for increasing NGH productivity. With complex-structure wells and well patterns, combined with heat injection and/or reservoir stimulation, NGH productivity can be increased on a magnitude scale. Currently, in fundamental researches, there are some technical bottlenecks for the studies of NGH production, mainly in sample preparation, simulated reservoir monitoring, and mechanical coupling technologies. Therefore, it is suggested that the study focuses should be on the above technical bottlenecks during the basic research on how to increase the NGH productivity. It is concluded that the combined application of complex-structure wells (horizontal wells and multi-lateral wells), well-pattern production models (with multi-cluster/group well production), the novel production methods (mainly thermal stimulation, together with depressurization), and reservoir stimulation technologies (hydraulic fracturing) are the keys to increase NGH productivity in the scale of magnitude.

Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) has been widely recognized as a promising technology to improve the transmission capacity of wireless optical communication systems. NOMA considers the principle of successive interference cancellation (SIC) to separate a user’s signal at the receiver side. To improve the ability of optical signal detection, we developed a quantum dot (QD) fluorescent concentrator incorporated with multiple-input and single-output (MISO) to realize an uplink NOMA-based optical wireless system. However, inaccurate interference assessment of multiple users using the SIC detection algorithm at the receiver side may lead to more prominent error propagation problems and affect the bit error rate (BER) performance of the system. This research aims to propose a novel recurrent neural network-based guided frequency interference coefficient estimation algorithm in a NOMA visible light communication (VLC) system. This algorithm can improve the accuracy of interference estimation compared with the traditional SIC detection algorithm by introducing interference coefficients. It provides a more accurate reconstruction possibility for level-by-level interference cancellation and weakens the influence of error propagation. In addition, we designed uplink and downlink NOMA-VLC communication systems for experimental validation. When the power allocation ratio was in the range of 0.8 to 0.97, the experimental results of the downlink validated that the BER performance of both users satisfied the forward error correction (FEC) limit with the least squares (LS)-SIC and the long short-term memory recurrent neural networks (LSTM)-SIC detection strategy. Moreover, the BER performance of the LSTM-SIC algorithm was better than that of the LS-SIC algorithm for all users when the power allocation ratio was in the range of 0.92 to 0.93. In particular, our proposed system offered a large detection area of 2 cm2 and corresponding aggregate data rate up to 40 Mbps over 1.5 m of free space by using QDs, and we successfully achieved a mean bit error rate (BER) of 2.3 × 10−3 for the two users.

In the past few years, underwater wireless optical communication (UWOC) has become a promising wireless communication technology in the underwater environment. Aiming at the problem formulation of sub-channel correlation enhancement occurring due to the joint impact of underwater link misalignment and turbulence in the process of optical signal transmission in an underwater optical massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system, we propose an adaptive diversity approach depending on partition space time block code (STBC). STBC technology is used to reduce the random fading of optical signals caused by turbulence. At the same time, the channel correlation occurring due to channel misalignment is effectively alleviated by adaptive processing. The adaptive diversity algorithm based on segmented STBC effectively improves the reliability and decrease complexity of underwater optical Massive MIMO communication systems. It determines the particular link misalignment degree by the channel gain matrix obtained from the channel estimation and selects different combinations of detectors according to the degree of misalignment to obtain the maximum gain of the received signal combination. Compared with the chunking scheme, simulation and result shows that the adaptive diversity algorithm improves the tolerance of the system to the link misalignment error from 30 mm to 60 mm under the same condition number of channel gain matrix, and it can still demodulate the source signal directly without requiring detection algorithm in case of a large error in the link misalignment.

In recent years, underwater wireless optical communication (UWOC) has become a potential wireless carrier candidate for signal transmission in water mediums such as oceans. Underwater signal transmission is impaired by several challenges such as turbulence, scattering, attenuation, and misalignment. In this paper, we propose an improved-order successive interference cancellation (I-OSIC) algorithm based on partition space–time block coding (STBC) technology to solve the sub-channel correlation enhancement problem, which is caused by the combined effects of turbulence and link misalignment in the underwater optical massive multiple-input multiple-output (massive MIMO) systems. The partition STBC technology can make the encoded symbols orthogonality of space and time resist random fading under turbulence environments and fully use the communication link of the massive MIMO system. Under link misalignment conditions, the receiver detector will receive multiple beams. The proposed I-OSIC algorithm based on partition STBC can precisely track the degree of link misalignment error and reorder receiver signals based on the minimum interference criterion. It can use the channel matrix to estimate the interference magnitude of the link misalignment, and then eliminate the interference successively by demodulating the least interfered signal first. When the link misalignment error is large, the I-OSIC algorithm can provide a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) gain of about 3 dB and provides the same error performance compared with the successive interference cancellation algorithm based on the received signal power.

Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) has become a promising evolution with the emergence of fifth-generation (5G) and Beyond-5G (B5G) rollouts. The potentials of NOMA are to increase the number of users, the system’s capacity, massive connectivity, and enhance the spectrum and energy efficiency in future communication scenarios. However, the practical deployment of NOMA is hindered by the inflexibility caused by the offline design paradigm and non-unified signal processing approaches of different NOMA schemes. The recent innovations and breakthroughs in deep learning (DL) methods have paved the way to adequately address these challenges. The DL-based NOMA can break these fundamental limits of conventional NOMA in several aspects, including throughput, bit-error-rate (BER), low latency, task scheduling, resource allocation, user pairing and other better performance characteristics. This article aims to provide firsthand knowledge of the prominence of NOMA and DL and surveys several DL-enabled NOMA systems. This study emphasizes Successive Interference Cancellation (SIC), Channel State Information (CSI), impulse noise (IN), channel estimation, power allocation, resource allocation, user fairness and transceiver design, and a few other parameters as key performance indicators of NOMA systems. In addition, we outline the integration of DL-based NOMA with several emerging technologies such as intelligent reflecting surfaces (IRS), mobile edge computing (MEC), simultaneous wireless and information power transfer (SWIPT), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM), and multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO). This study also highlights diverse, significant technical hindrances in DL-based NOMA systems. Finally, we identify some future research directions to shed light on paramount developments needed in existing systems as a probable to invigorate further contributions for DL-based NOMA system.

The enhanced proliferation of connected entities needs a deployment of innovative technologies for the next generation wireless networks. One of the critical concerns, however, is the spectrum scarcity, due to the unprecedented broadcast penetration rate nowadays. Based on this, visible light communication (VLC) has recently emerged as a viable solution to secure high-speed communications. VLC, a high data rate communication technology, has proven its stature as a promising complementary to its radio frequency (RF) counterpart. VLC is a cost-effective, energy-efficient, and secure technology that exploits the current infrastructure, specifically within indoor and underwater environments. Yet, despite their appealing capabilities, VLC systems face several limitations which constraint their potentials such as LED’s limited bandwidth, dimming, flickering, line-of-sight (LOS) requirement, impact of harsh weather conditions, noise, interference, shadowing, transceiver alignment, signal decoding complexity, and mobility issue. Consequently, non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) has been considered an effective technique to circumvent these shortcomings. The NOMA scheme has emerged as a revolutionary paradigm to address the shortcomings of VLC systems. The potentials of NOMA are to increase the number of users, system’s capacity, massive connectivity, and enhance the spectrum and energy efficiency in future communication scenarios. Motivated by this, the presented study offers an overview of NOMA-based VLC systems. This article provides a broad scope of existing research activities of NOMA-based VLC systems. This article aims to provide firsthand knowledge of the prominence of NOMA and VLC and surveys several NOMA-enabled VLC systems. We briefly highlight the potential and capabilities of NOMA-based VLC systems. In addition, we outline the integration of such systems with several emerging technologies such as intelligent reflecting surfaces (IRS), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Furthermore, we focus on NOMA-based hybrid RF/VLC networks and discuss the role of machine learning (ML) tools and physical layer security (PLS) in this domain. In addition, this study also highlights diverse and significant technical hindrances prevailing in NOMA-based VLC systems. We highlight future research directions, along with provided insights that are envisioned to be helpful towards the effective practical deployment of such systems. In a nutshell, this review highlights the existing and ongoing research activities for NOMA-based VLC systems, which will provide sufficient guidelines for research communities working in this domain and it will pave the way for successful deployment of these systems.

Abstract Background Upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), harboring a complex allotetraploid genome, consists of A and D sub-genomes. Every gene has multiple copies with high sequence similarity that makes genetic, genomic and functional analyses extremely challenging. The recent accessibility of CRISPR/Cas9 tool provides the ability to modify targeted locus efficiently in various complicated plant genomes. However, current cotton transformation method targeting one gene requires a complicated, long and laborious regeneration process. Hence, optimizing strategy that targeting multiple genes is of great value in cotton functional genomics and genetic engineering. Results To target multiple genes in a single experiment, 112 plant development-related genes were knocked out via optimized CRISPR/Cas9 system. We optimized the key steps of pooled sgRNAs assembly method by which 116 sgRNAs pooled together into 4 groups (each group consisted of 29 sgRNAs). Each group of sgRNAs was compiled in one PCR reaction which subsequently went through one round of vector construction, transformation, sgRNAs identification and also one round of genetic transformation. Through the genetic transformation mediated Agrobacterium, we successfully generated more than 800 plants. For mutants identification, Next Generation Sequencing technology has been used and results showed that all generated plants were positive and all targeted genes were covered. Interestingly, among all the transgenic plants, 85% harbored a single sgRNA insertion, 9% two insertions, 3% three different sgRNAs insertions, 2.5% mutated sgRNAs. These plants with different targeted sgRNAs exhibited numerous combinations of phenotypes in plant flowering tissues. Conclusion All targeted genes were successfully edited with high specificity. Our pooled sgRNAs assembly offers a simple, fast and efficient method/strategy to target multiple genes in one time and surely accelerated the study of genes function in cotton.

Goji berries have been used as food and medicine for millennia. Due to their high morphological similarity, fruits of two distinct species belonging to the family Solanaceae, Lycium barbarum (LB) and Lycium chinense (Chinese boxthorn), are usually marketed together as goji berries, but nearly 90% of all commercially available goji berries belong to the former species. A third closely related species, a wild perennial thorny shrub native to north‐western China, Lycium ruthenicum (LR; known as Russian box thorn, and its fruit as black wolfberry), has become a popular choice for combating soil desertification and for alleviating soil salinity/alkalinity due to its high resistance to the harsh environment of saline deserts. Despite the phylogenetic closeness of LB and LR, their fruits are very different. To identify the genes involved in these distinct phenotypes, here we studied expression patterns of 22 transcriptional regulators that may be crucial drivers of these differences during five developmental stages. BAM1 may contribute to higher sugar content in LB. High expression of BFRUCT in ripe LR is likely to be an evolutionary adaptation to fruit ripening in an arid environment. Two arogenate dehydratase paralogues, CHS and LDOX, are probably crucial elements of the mechanism by which LR accumulates much higher levels of anthocyanin. DXS2 (carotenoid accumulation in LB) and CCD4 (carotenoid degradation in ripe LR fruit) may be crucial drivers behind the much higher content of carotenoids in LB. EIL3 and ERF5 are two transcription factors that may contribute to the higher abiotic stress resilience of LR. GATA22‐like appears to have more important roles in growth than ripening in LB fruit and vice versa in LR. HAT5‐like exhibited opposite temporal patterns in two fruits: high in the 1st stage in LB and high in the 5th stage in LR. PED1 was expressed at a much lower level in LR. Finally, we hypothesise that the poorly functionally characterised SCL32 gene may play a part in the increased resistance to environmental stress of LR. We suggest that BAM1, BFRUCT, EIL3, ERF5, ADT paralogues (for functional redundancy), PED1, GATA22‐like, HAT5‐like and SCL32 warrant further functional studies.

Laboratory hydrate formation process simulation provides a theoretical support for determining the dynamic revolution behaviors of actual hydrate reservoirs. In view of this, based on the ITS electrical resistance tomography (ERT) module, a dedicated apparatus was developed to simulate the in-situ core-scale distribution of natural gas hydrate directly during the process of hydrate formation and dissociation in artificial sediments. Beach sand was used as porous media to simulate the formation of methane hydrate and assess the 2-D ERT evolution characteristics simultaneously. The findings were obtained. (1) The apparent average resistance values of hydrate-bearing sediment system are determined by the combination of hydrate forming rate and salt-removing effect, showing fluctuation rise behaviors during the process of hydrate formation. (2) When the hydrate forming rate is high enough, hysteresis influence of salt-removing effect on apparent average resistance value is observed. After the hydrate formation, there still exists a mass transfer process controlled by the difference of salt ion concentration. (3) Difference between original and real-time ERT distribution indicates a heterogeneous formation process of hydrate within the sediments. In conclusion, initial gas–water contact relationship and distribution is the virtual factors for hydrate heterogeneous distribution behaviors, while that of spatial difference of ion concentration caused by the salt-removing effect plays a key role in promoting local hydrate formation position change.

Abstract The process of extracting natural gas from gas hydrate‐bearing sediments (GHBS) may yield significant sand influx due to the metastable nature of GHBS. Selecting appropriate sand control media is vital to addressing the challenges caused by excessive sand production. This study proposes a protocol called holding coarse expelling fine particles (HCEFP) for sand control design. The protocol aims to provide a new optimization method for screen mesh size selection for clayey silt hydrate reservoirs. Detailed optimizing procedures of proper candidate screen mesh sizes in hydrate exploitation well in clayey silt hydrate reservoirs are depicted based on the HCEFP. Then, the site W18, which is located in the Shenhu area of the northern South China Sea, is taken as an example to illustrate the optimization procedure for screen mesh size selection. The results reveal that complete solid retention via a standalone screen is rarely beneficial as high clay contents can adversely affect wellbore productivity due to excessive plugging. Screen aperture size selection for clayey silt hydrate wells should strike a balance between retaining coarser particles and avoiding screen blockage by the relatively fine particles. Furthermore, longitudinal heterogeneity of the PSDs also increases the difficulties associated with sand control design. Multistage sand control optimization is necessary in hydrate production wells. For Site W18, we recommend that the entire production interval can be divided into two subintervals for multistage sand control operations.

The current natural gas hydrate extraction experimental research has always been carried out in a small-scale simulation test device, and the resulted boundary effect is so obvious due to the small size of samples in the reaction kettle that the experimental results will be difficult to apply in the field. In this paper, an integrated experimental system for drilling and exploitation of gas hydrate is developed innovatively based on the idea of depressurization method and the technological process. This experimental system consists of high-pressure vesselmodule, drilling & extraction module, liquid supply module, gas supply module, confining pressure loading module, back-pressure control module, three-phase separation module, temperature control module, data acquisition module and an operational platform. The hydrate-bearing samples similar to marine hydrate formations were prepared inthe experimental system with the actual geological surroundings simulated. The electrical resistance tomography was used to real-time monitor the dynamic distribution of gas hydrate in sediments inside the high-pressure vessel (521 L). This experimental system can also simulate the process of wellbore drilling in hydrate reservoirs and depressurization extraction, and realize the real-time monitoring of parameters in the whole production process such as gas production, water production, sand production, temperature, pressure, etc. We carried out a preliminary experiment on the CO2 hydrate extraction via depressurization by using this experimental system. Fundamental procedures for data acquisition and analysis were established and verified. The variations of temperature and pressure fields and gas/water output behaviors in the reservoirs were both achieved. The results show that (1) the gas and water production rate fluctuate greatly even at a constant backpressure; (2) the reservoir temperature distribution is uneven during hydrate decomposition, and the maximum temperature is decreased by 5 °C, suggesting that the hydrate decomposition is heterogeneous and stochastic. The abundant and credible experimental results based on this system are expected to provide important data support for marine gas hydrate production tests. Keywords: Natural gas hydrate, Experimental system, Drilling and production integration, Real-time monitoring, Depressurization method, CO2 hydrate, Production behavior, Electrical resistance tomography

In this paper, the inerting effect and migration law of inert N2 and CO2 in large inclined goaf are studied using a physical simulation model. The differences in oxygen reduction and inert gas migration are analyzed and compared. The results show that as N2 and CO2 injection increased, the oxidation zone’s range and width shrunk, and the end of the loose and oxidation zones moved closer to the working face. The migration profile of CO2 and N2 resembled a trumpet and an L shape, respectively, and under the same inerting flow rate, the effect of CO2 inerting on oxygen reduction was much less significant than that of N2.

Online hashing is a valid storage and online retrieval scheme, which is meeting the rapid increase in data in the optical-sensor network and the real-time processing needs of users in the era of big data. Existing online-hashing algorithms rely on data tags excessively to construct the hash function, and ignore the mining of the structural features of the data itself, resulting in a serious loss of the image-streaming features and the reduction in retrieval accuracy. In this paper, an online hashing model that fuses global and local dual semantics is proposed. First, to preserve the local features of the streaming data, an anchor hash model, which is based on the idea of manifold learning, is constructed. Second, a global similarity matrix, which is used to constrain hash codes is built by the balanced similarity between the newly arrived data and previous data, which makes hash codes retain global data features as much as possible. Then, under a unified framework, an online hash model that integrates global and local dual semantics is learned, and an effective discrete binary-optimization solution is proposed. A large number of experiments on three datasets, including CIFAR10, MNIST and Places205, show that our proposed algorithm improves the efficiency of image retrieval effectively, compared with several existing advanced online-hashing algorithms.

With the passage of time, the exploitation of Internet of Things (IoT) sensors and devices has become more complicated. The Internet of Underwater Things (IoUT) is a subset of the IoT in which underwater sensors are used to continually collect data about ocean ecosystems. Predictive analytics can offer useful insights to the stakeholders associated with environmentalists, marine explorers, and oceanographers for decision-making and intelligence about the ocean, when applied to context-sensitive information, gathered from marine data. This study presents an architectural framework along with algorithms as a realistic solution to design and develop an IoUT system to excel in the data state of the practice. It also includes recommendations and forecasting for potential partners in the smart ocean, which assist in monitoring and environmental protection. A case study is implemented which addresses the solution’s usability and agility to efficiently exploit sensor data, executes the algorithms, and queries the output to assess performance. The number of trails is performed for data insights for the 60-day collection of sensor data. In the context of the smart ocean, the architectural design innovative ideas and viable approaches can be taken into consideration to develop and validate present and next-generation IoUTs and are simplified in this solution.