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Abstract Previously, we reported successful cellular expansion of a murine colorectal carcinoma cell line (CT-26) using a three-dimensional (3D) engineered extracellular matrix (EECM) fibrillar scaffold structure. CCL-247 were grown over a limited time period of 8 days on 3D EECM or tissue culture polystyrene (TCPS). Cells were then assayed for growth, electroporation efficiency and Vigil manufacturing release criteria. Using EECM scaffolds, we report an expansion of CCL-247 (HCT116), a colorectal carcinoma cell line, from a starting concentration of 2.45 × 105 cells to 1.9 × 106 cells per scaffold. Following expansion, 3D EECM-derived cells were assessed based on clinical release criteria of the Vigil manufacturing process utilized for Phase IIb trial operation with the FDA. 3D EECM-derived cells passed all Vigil manufacturing release criteria including cytokine expression. Here, we demonstrate successful Vigil product manufacture achieving the specifications necessary for the clinical trial product release of Vigil treatment. Our results confirm that 3D EECM can be utilized for the expansion of human cancer cell CCL-247, justifying further clinical development involving human tissue sample manufacturing including core needle biopsy and minimal ascites samples.

Chondroitin sulfate (CS) is a sulfated linear polysaccharide with different functional activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, lipid-lowering, and immune regulation. As natural sulfated polysaccharides have high molecular weight, high apparent viscosity, low water solubility, complex structure, and high negative charge, they have difficulty binding to receptors within cells across tissue barriers, resulting in low bioavailability and unclear structure–activity relationships. In this study, an H2O2-Vc oxidative degradation system was employed to perform environmentally friendly and controllable degradation of CS extracted from the nasal cartilage of Shaanxi Yellow cattle. Two low-molecular-weight chondroitin sulfates (LMWCSs), CS-1 (14.8 kDa) and CS-2 (50.9 kDa), that exhibit strong in vitro free radical scavenging ability were obtained, and their structures were characterized. Mice intraperitoneally administered lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were used to explore the cognitive intervention effects of LMWCS. Supplementing CS-1 and CS-2 significantly downregulated the levels of the serum inflammatory factors, TNF-α and IL-1β, promoted the expression of GSH in the brain, and inhibited the production of the lipid peroxidation product, malondialdehyde (MDA), ultimately inhibiting LPS-induced cognitive impairment in mice. Surprisingly, compared to the LPS model group, the abundances of Streptococcus, Eisenbergiella, Vampirovibrio, Coprococcus, Enterococcus and Lachnoanaerobaculum were significantly increased in the intestines of mice in the CS-1 and CS-2 group, whereas those of Parabacteroides and Mycoplasma were significantly decreased. Altogether, this study provides a theoretical basis for the comprehensive utilization of agricultural and animal resources and the application of brain nutrition, anti-inflammatory, and LMWCS health products.

Abstract Microfluidic platforms enable more precise control of biological stimuli and environment dimensionality than conventional macroscale cell-based assays; however, long fabrication times and high-cost specialized equipment limit the widespread adoption of microfluidic technologies. Recent improvements in vat photopolymerization three-dimensional (3D) printing technologies such as liquid crystal display (LCD) printing offer rapid prototyping and a cost-effective solution to microfluidic fabrication. Limited information is available about how 3D printing parameters and resin cytocompatibility impact the performance of 3D-printed molds for the fabrication of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based microfluidic platforms for cellular studies. Using a low-cost, commercially available LCD-based 3D printer, we assessed the cytocompatibility of several resins, optimized fabrication parameters, and characterized the minimum feature size. We evaluated the response to both cytotoxic chemotherapy and targeted kinase therapies in microfluidic devices fabricated using our 3D-printed molds and demonstrated the establishment of flow-based concentration gradients. Furthermore, we monitored real-time cancer cell and fibroblast migration in a 3D matrix environment that was dependent on environmental signals. These results demonstrate how vat photopolymerization LCD-based fabrication can accelerate the prototyping of microfluidic platforms with increased accessibility and resolution for PDMS-based cell culture assays.

Drug-eluting stents (DES) play a crucial role in treating coronary artery disease (CAD) by preventing restenosis. These stents are coated with drug carriers that release antiproliferative drugs within the vessel. Over the past two decades, DES have been employed in clinical practice using various materials, polymers, and drug types. Despite optimizations in their design and materials to enhance biocompatibility and antithrombotic properties, evaluating their long-term efficacy and safety necessitates improved clinical follow-up and monitoring. To delineate future research directions, this study employs a bibliometric analysis approach. We comprehensively surveyed two decades' worth of literature on DES for CAD using the Web of Science Core Collection (WOSCC). Out of 5,778 articles, we meticulously screened them based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Subsequently, we conducted an in-depth analysis encompassing annual publication trends, authorship affiliations, journal affiliations, keywords, and more. Employing tools such as Excel 2021, CiteSpace 6.2R3, VOSviewer 1.6.19, and Pajek 5.17, we harnessed bibliometric methods to derive insights from this corpus. Analysis of annual publication data indicates a recent stabilisation or even a downward trend in research output in this area. The United States emerged as the leading contributor, with Columbia University and CRF at the forefront in both publication output and citation impact. The most cited document pertained to standardized definitions for clinical endpoints in coronary stent trials. Our author analysis identifies Patrick W. Serruys as the most prolific contributor, underscoring a dynamic exchange of knowledge within the field.Moreover, the dual chart overlay illustrates a close interrelation between journals in the “Medicine,” “Medical,” and “Clinical” domains and those in “Health,” “Nursing,” and “Medicine.” Frequently recurring keywords in this research landscape include DES coronary artery disease, percutaneous coronary intervention, implantation, and restenosis. This study presents a comprehensive panorama encompassing countries, research institutions, journals, keyword distributions, and contributions within the realm of DES therapy for CAD. By highlighting keywords exhibiting recent surges in frequency, we elucidate current research hotspots and frontiers, thereby furnishing novel insights to guide future researchers in this evolving field.

Beef is an important high-nutrition livestock product, and several byproducts, such as bovine cartilage, are produced during slaughter. To effectively utilize these agricultural and pastoral byproducts, combined (trypsin-papain) enzymolysis and cetylpyridine chloride purification methods were used to obtain chondroitin sulfate (CS) from the nasal cartilage of Shaanxi Yellow cattle. The effects of pH, temperature, and time on the CS yield during enzymatic hydrolysis were investigated, and the CS extraction process was optimized using response surface methodology. The best yield of CS was 21.62% under the optimum conditions of pH 6.51, temperature of 64.53°C, and enzymolysis time of 19.86 h. The molecular weight of CS from Shaanxi cattle nasal cartilage was 89.21 kDa, glucuronic acid content was 31.76±0.72%, protein content was 1.12±0.03%, and sulfate group content was 23.34±0.08%. The nasal cartilage CS of the Yellow cattle showed strong DPPH•, •OH, and ABTS+• radical scavenging abilities and ferrous reduction ability in the experimental concentration range. This study could contribute to “turn waste into treasure” and improve the comprehensive utilization of regional characteristic biological resources.

With escalating energy demands, solar power stands out for its abundance and renewable advantages, presenting a paramount sustainable solution. Herein, we tactically incorporate phase change material (PCM) into solar energy systems, resulting in substantial enhancements in energy storage and utilization. Through numerical simulations, the thermal dynamics and phase change processes associated with various heating methodologies are investigated, aiming to achieve optimal thermal performance and energy efficiency. Detailed analysis of temperature dynamics within the PCM under two distinct heating methods reveals pivotal thermal fluctuations in both the PCM and water during heat release. The results indicate that bottom heating promptly induces rayleigh convection, resulting in a uniform temperature and a stable phase interface, which are desirable for heat transfer. In contrast, central tube heating concentrates heat transfer in the upper PCM layer, leading to an uneven phase interface and thermal stratification. Configurations with two horizontally aligned heating tubes result in a 36% reduction in melting duration compared to the single central tube setup, highlighting enhanced efficiency. Additionally, the bottom heating approach demonstrates improved energy storage efficiency in both the initial and second heating cycles. These findings highlight the potential of PCM-integrated combined heating systems for solar energy capture, confirming their efficiency and practicality in addressing modern household energy demands.

Abstract Background Surgical site infection (SSI) is a common complication following craniotomy that increases morbidity, mortality, and medical expenses. The objectives of this study were to determine the relevant risk factors associated with SSI after elective craniotomy for brain tumor and analyse the treatments for SSI. Methods A retrospective nested case‒control study was conducted using data from patients who underwent craniotomy for brain tumor resection at the Neurosurgical Oncology Department No. 6 of Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical University, between January 2019 and December 2021. Risk factors for SSI were determined using multivariate logistic regression analysis. We analyzed microbiological and related treatment data for different SSI types. Results Among 2061 patients who underwent craniotomy for brain tumor, 31 had SSI (1.50%). In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, body mass index (BMI) and operative duration were identified as independent risk factors for SSI. The most common microorganism isolated from SSIs was Staphylococcus epidermidis (22.9%), and drug sensitivity results showed that gram-positive bacteria were sensitive to linezolid, vancomycin and tigecycline, whereas gram-negative bacteria were sensitive to meropenem, cefepime and ceftazidime. Six of the seven patients who underwent bone flap removal due to osteomyelitis were infected with gram-negative bacteria. Conclusions BMI and operative duration were identified as independent risk factors for SSI. Diabetes mellitus, previous ratio therapy, type of incision, recurrence tumor and other risk factors were not found to be associated with the occurrence of SSI in this study.

The demand for high‐throughput and scalable cell expansion platforms that can accommodate diverse cell types remains a critical requirement across various biomedical fields. Fibronectin (Fn), an essential component of the extracellular matrix (ECM), has been used as a conformal surface coating for two‐dimensional (2D) cell culture systems. However, the soluble, globular Fn used for 2D coatings differs structurally from the native Fn, which possesses a three‐dimensional (3D) fibrillar structure. Herein, a large‐scale engineered ECM (EECM) cell expansion platform based on a 3D fibrillar Fn network spanning over centimeters is presented. Extended fibrillar networks are formed by shearing dilute Fn solutions over tessellated polymeric scaffolds, which are conveniently prepared by 3D printing. The structure and size of the Fn‐based 3D EECM scaffold are optimized by evaluating the proliferation of a colorectal tumor cell line, CT26, commonly used in the in vivo tumor immunotherapy models. The 3D EECM scaffolds support a fourfold more efficient tumor cell expansion than a conventional 2D culture system, demonstrating the potential efficacy in supporting the robust expansion of cancer cells ex vivo with an eye on cancer immunotherapy.

ObjectiveTo evaluate safety and efficacy of dietary polyphenols in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).MethodsCNKI, Pubmed, Cochrane library, Embase were searched to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of dietary polyphenols in the treatment of RA. The databases were searched from the time of their establishment to November 8nd, 2022. After 2 reviewers independently screened the literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies, Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan5.4 software.ResultsA total of 49 records (47 RCTs) were finally included, involving 3852 participants and 15 types of dietary polyphenols (Cinnamon extract, Cranberry extract, Crocus sativus L. extract, Curcumin, Garlic extract, Ginger extract, Hesperidin, Olive oil, Pomegranate extract, Puerarin, Quercetin, Resveratrol, Sesamin, Tea polyphenols, Total glucosides of paeony). Pomegranate extract, Resveratrol, Garlic extract, Puerarin, Hesperidin, Ginger extract, Cinnamon extract, Sesamin only involve in 1 RCT. Cranberry extract, Crocus sativus L. extract, Olive oil, Quercetin, Tea polyphenols involve in 2 RCTs. Total glucosides of paeony and Curcumin involve in more than 3 RCTs. These RCTs showed that these dietary polyphenols could improve disease activity score for 28 joints (DAS28), inflammation levels or oxidative stress levels in RA. The addition of dietary polyphenols did not increase adverse events.ConclusionDietary polyphenols may improve DAS28, reduce C-reactive protein (CRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and improve oxidative stress, etc. However, more RCTs are needed to verify or modify the efficacy and safety of dietary polyphenols.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, identifier CRD42022315645.

ObjectiveTo explore the efficacy and safety of Iguratimod (IGU) intervention in the treatment of Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS).MethodsWe used computer to search literature databases, collected randomized controlled trials (RCTs) related to IGU treatment of AS, and searched the relevant literature in each database until Sep. 2022. Two researchers independently carried out literature screening, data extraction, and evaluation and analysis of the risk of bias in the included studies, and then used Rev Man5.3 software for meta-analysis. The protocol is CRD42020220798.ResultsA total of 10 RCTs involves in 622 patients were collected. The statistical analysis showed that IGU can decrease the BASDAI score (SMD -1.62 [-2.20, -1.05], P

Osteoporosis (OP) is a systemic bone disease caused by various factors, including, the decrease of bone density and quality, the destruction of bone microstructure, and the increase of bone fragility. It is a disease with a high incidence in a large proportion of the world’s elderly population. However, osteoporosis lacks obvious symptoms and sensitive biomarkers. Therefore, it is extremely urgent to discover and identify disease-related biomarkers for early clinical diagnosis and effective intervention for osteoporosis. In our study, the Linear Models for Microarray Data (LIMMA) tool was used to screen differential expressed genes from transcriptome sequencing data of OP blood samples downloaded from the GEO database, and cluster Profiler was used for enriching analysis of differently expressed genes. In order to analyzed the relevance of gene modules, clinical symptoms, and the most related module setting genes associated with disease progression, we adapted Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) to screen and analyze the related pathways and relevant molecules. We used the Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes/Proteins (STRING) database to construct protein interaction network of key modules, and Cytoscape software was used to complete network visualization and screen of core genes in the network. Various plug-in algorithms of cytoHubba were used to identify key genes of OP. Finally, correlation analysis and single-gene gene probe concentration analysis (GSEA) analysis were performed for each core gene. Results of a total of 8 key genes that were closely related to the occurrence and development of OP were screened out, which provided a brand-new idea for the clinical diagnosis and early prevention of OP. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) was performed for validation, the expression levels of CUL1, PTEN and STAT1 genes in the OS group were significantly higher than in the non-OS groups. Receiver operating characteristic analysis demonstrated that CUL1, PTEN and STAT1 displayed considerable diagnostic accuracy for OS.

BackgroundProstate cancer (PCa) is an age-associated malignancy with high morbidity and mortality rate, posing a severe threat to public health. Cellular senescence, a specialized cell cycle arrest form, results in the secretion of various inflammatory mediators. In recent studies, senescence has shown an essential role in tumorigenesis and tumor development, yet the extensive effects of senescence in PCa have not been systematically investigated. Here, we aimed to develop a feasible senescence-associated prognosis model for early identification and appropriate management in patients with PCa.MethodThe RNA sequence results and clinical information available from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and a list of experimentally validated senescence-related genes (SRGs) from the CellAge database were first obtained. Then, a senescence-risk signature related with prognosis was constructed using univariate Cox and LASSO regression analysis. We calculated the risk score of each patient and divided them into high-risk and low-risk groups in terms of the median value. Furthermore, two datasets (GSE70770 and GSE46602) were used to assess the effects of the risk model. A nomogram was built by integrating the risk score and clinical characteristics, which was further verified using ROC curves and calibrations. Finally, we compared the differences in the tumor microenvironment (TME) landscape, drug susceptibility, and the functional enrichment among the different risk groups.ResultsWe established a unique prognostic signature in PCa patients based on eight SRGs, including CENPA, ADCK5, FOXM1, TFAP4, MAPK, LGALS3, BAG3, and NOX4, and validated well prognosis-predictive power in independent datasets. The risk model was associated with age and TNM staging, and the calibration chart presented a high consistency in nomogram prediction. Additionally, the prognostic signature could serve as an independent prediction factor due to its high accuracy. Notably, we found that the risk score was positively associated with tumor mutation burden (TMB) and immune checkpoint, whereas negatively correlated with tumor immune dysfunction and exclusion (TIDE), suggesting that these patients with risk scores were more sensitive to immunotherapy. Drug susceptibility analysis revealed differences in the responses to general drugs (docetaxel, cyclophosphamide, 5-Fluorouracil, cisplatin, paclitaxel, and vincristine) were yielded between the two risk groups.ConclusionIdentifying the SRG-score signature may become a promising method for predicting the prognosis of patients with PCa and tailoring appropriate treatment strategies.

Malignant meningiomas have a high mortality rate and short survival time and currently have no effective treatment. In our study, proteomics analysis was performed to identify highly expressed proteins as therapeutic targets in malignant meningiomas. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assays were performed to verify the effect of LB-100 on the growth of malignant meningiomas. In addition, immunoblotting was used to verify the expression of B7-H3 and phosphorylation of STAT1 (Tyr701) in tissues and cells. Our results show that STAT1 and CD276 (B7-H3) regulated by PP2A were enriched in GO_IMMUNE_EFFECTOR_PROCESS and GO_REGULATION_OF_IMMUNE_SYSTEM_PROCESS. The immunotherapy target protein B7-H3 was confirmed to be upregulated in malignant meningiomas compared with meningothelial (p = 0.0001) and fibroblastic (p = 0.0046) meningiomas. In vitro, the PP2A inhibitor LB-100 suppressed the growth and invasion of malignant meningioma cells. Notably, the PP2A inhibitor LB-100 increased the phosphorylation of STAT1, thereby increasing the expression of the immune checkpoint protein B7-H3 in malignant meningioma cells in vitro. In conclusion, B7-H3 was found to be upregulated in malignant meningiomas. The PP2A inhibitor LB-100 increased the phosphorylation of STAT1 and B7-H3 expression, which could increase the sensitivity of malignant meningiomas to B7-H3 targeted immunotherapy.

The pumped storage unit has a hump area and S characteristics during operation. The operating conditions of the unit are complex, and it is necessary to switch between working conditions. The unit frequently crosses the hump area and the S characteristic area, thus hindering the unit to connect to the grid. Severe vibration affects the safe and stable operation of a power station. With the joint efforts of the industry, the impact of the hump and S-shaped problems on project commissioning has been fundamentally resolved, but the mechanism of inducing hump and S-shaped problems has not yet been well established. Therefore, in this study, the particle image velocity measurement method based on a full-characteristic test was adopted. According to the operating characteristics of the unit, 32 operating points with four guide-vane opening degrees were selected to test the flow pattern in the vaneless space. After subtracting the average flow velocity, the vortex image of the leafless area was obtained, which provided a reference for the design of the runner of the water pump turbine.

Prostate cancer (PCa) has a high incidence rate, mortality rate, and biochemical recurrence (BCR) rate. 7-Methylguanosine (m7G), as one of the RNA modifications, has been considered to be actively involved in cancer-related translation disorders in recent years. Therefore, we first used The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database to identify prognosis and m7G-related long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). Then we randomly divided the samples into the training set and test set and then constructed and verified the m7G lnRNA prognostic model (m7Gscore) by the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression analysis. The m7Gscore has been proved to be an independent marker of BCR-free survival in patients with PCa. Furthermore, the m7Gscore was significantly correlated with the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) and somatic mutation of PCa patients and had the potential to be an indicator for the selection of drug treatment. We also clustered TCGA cohort into three m7G-related patterns (C1, C2, and C3). The Kaplan–Meier survival analysis revealed that C1 had the best BCR-free survival and C3 had the worst. The TIME was also significantly distinct among the three m7G-related patterns. According to the TIME characteristics of the patterns, we defined C1, C2, and C3 as immune-desert phenotype, immune-inflamed phenotype, and immune-excluded phenotype, respectively.

Anaplastic meningioma is classified as a World Health Organization (WHO) grade III tumor and shows a strong tendency to recur. Although the incidence of anaplastic meningioma is low, the high rate of recurrence and death still makes treatment a challenge. A proteomics analysis was performed to investigate the differentially expressed proteins between anaplastic meningiomas and fibrous meningiomas by micro-LC-MS/MS. The key metabolic enzyme nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT) showed upregulated expression in anaplastic meningiomas. However, targeting NAMPT to treat anaplastic meningiomas has not been reported. In vitro, NAMPT inhibitor -FK866 reduced the viability of anaplastic meningiomas by inducing cell cycle arrest at the G2/M phase. Intriguingly, the NAMPT inhibitor -FK866 decreased the protein expression of immune checkpoints PD-L1 and B7-H3 by down-regulating the STAT1 and p-STAT1 expression in vitro. Furthermore, FK866 suppressed the growth of anaplastic meningiomas in an in vivo xenograft model. The expression of Ki-67 and immune checkpoint proteins (PD-L1 and B7-H3) showed significant differences between the group treated with FK866 and the control group treated with DMSO. In conclusion, the expression of NAMPT, which plays a crucial role in energy metabolism, was upregulated in anaplastic meningiomas. The NAMPT inhibitor -FK866 significantly suppressed the growth of anaplastic meningiomas in vitro and in vivo. More strikingly, FK866 potently inhibited immune checkpoint protein (PD-L1 and B7-H3) expression by regulating STAT1 in vitro and in vivo. Our results demonstrated that NAMPT inhibitors could potentially be an effective treatment method for patients suffering from anaplastic meningiomas.

Abstract Background China is undergoing a massive transition toward an urban and industrial economy. These changes will restructure the demographics and economy which will eventually influence the future patterns of disease. The risk factors of vision-impairing eye diseases remain ambiguous and poorly understood. Metabolomics is an ideal tool to understand and shed light on the ocular disease mechanisms for earlier treatment. This article aims to describe the design, methodology and baseline data of the Yueqing Ocular Diseases Investigation (YODI), a developed county population-based study to determine the prevalence and primary causes of visual impairment; also with metabonomics analysis we aimed to identify, predict and suggest some preventive biomarkers that cause blindness. Methods A population-based, cross-sectional study. Randomized clustering sampling was used to identify adults aged 50 years and older in Xiangyang Town, Yueqing county-level City. The interviews covered demographic, behavioral, ocular risk factors and mental health state. The ocular examination included visual acuity, autorefraction, intraocular pressure, anterior and posterior segment examinations, fundus photography, retinal tomography and angiography, and visual field testing. Anthropometric measurements included height and weight, waist and hip circumference, blood pressure, pulse rate, electrocardiogram, and abdominal ultrasound scan. A venous blood sample was collected for laboratory tests and metabonomics studies. Results Of the 5319 individuals recruited for the YODI, 4769 (89.7%) subjects were enrolled for analyses. The median age was 62.0 years, and 45.6% were male. The educational level of illiteracy or semi-illiteracy, primary, middle and high school or above was 29.8%, 45.5%, 20.1%, and 3.3%, respectively. Majority of the participants were female, younger, and less educated when compared with nonparticipants. The average body mass index and waist-hip ratios were 24.4 ± 3.4 kg/m2 and 0.9 ± 0.1 respectively. Blood sample collection reached a sample size of 1909 (479 from subjects with self-reported diabetes and 1430 from one-third of the 4290 subjects without self-reported diabetes). Conclusions The YODI provides population-based data with a high response rate (89.7%) on the prevalence and primary causes of major vision-impairing eye diseases in developed county areas in eastern China. Metabonomics analysis from YODI will provide further association of metabolic characteristics with the visual impairment eye diseases. The risk prediction model could be created and has the potential to be generalized to developed eastern areas in China for prevention.

Developing new methods to detect biomass information on freshwater fish in farm conditions enables the creation of decision bases for precision feeding. In this study, an approach based on Keypoints R-CNN is presented to identify species and measure length automatically using an underwater stereo vision system. To enhance the model’s robustness, stochastic enhancement is performed on image datasets. For further promotion of the features extraction capability of the backbone network, an attention module is integrated into the ResNeXt50 network. Concurrently, the feature pyramid network (FPN) is replaced by an improved path aggregation network (I-PANet) to achieve a greater fusion of effective feature maps. Compared to the original model, the mAP of the improved one in object and key point detection tasks increases by 4.55% and 2.38%, respectively, with a small increase in the number of model parameters. In addition, a new algorithm is introduced for matching the detection results of neural networks. On the foundation of the above contents, coordinates of head and tail points in stereo images as well as fish species can be obtained rapidly and accurately. A 3D reconstruction of the fish head and tail points is performed utilizing the calibration parameters and projection matrix of the stereo camera. The estimated length of the fish is acquired by calculating the Euclidean distance between two points. Finally, the precision of the proposed approach proved to be acceptable for five kinds of common freshwater fish. The accuracy of species identification exceeds 94%, and the relative errors of length measurement are less than 10%. In summary, this method can be utilized to help aquaculture farmers efficiently collect real-time information about fish length.

A combined solar phase-change thermal-storage heating system is proposed, wherein erythritol is used as the phase-change material (PCM) used to fill the thermal-storage device, and the storage cavity is heated and stored with a disc concentrator. The Solidification/Melting, Volume-of-Fluid (VOF) model of ANSYS Fluent software was used to simulate the phase-change process of erythritol inside the thermal-storage device. The thermal-storage device was designed based on our numerical calculations, and its performance was tested. We found that larger PCM-volume fractions correlated with lower PCM volume-expansion rates and longer total melting times during the heat storage process. When the φ value equaled 80%, the PCM solid–liquid-phase interface and temperature distribution were most uniform and showed the best heat storage. In addition, the size of the heat-storage device affected the heat-exchange area, and the total melting time of the PCM decreased and then increased as the width-to-height ratio (I) increased. With this design capacity, the late stage of the charging process of the heat-storage device accounted for 70% of the total time, and the heat energy-utilization rate during the boiling process was 66.3%. Overall, this combined heating system can be considered a very efficient solar energy-utilization terminal for basic domestic energy needs.

Personalized diets change the internal metabolism of organisms, which, in turn, affects the health of the body; this study was performed to explore the regulatory effects of polysaccharides extracted from Auricularia auricula on the overall metabolism and gut microbiota in normal C57BL/6J mice. The study was conducted using metabolomic and microbiomic methods to provide a scientific basis for further development and use of Auricularia auricula resources in the Qinba Mountains and in nutritional food with Auricularia auricula polysaccharides (AAP) as the main functional component. Based on LC-MS/MS metabolomic results, 51 AAP-regulated metabolites were found, mainly enriched in the arginine biosynthesis pathway, which had the highest correlation, followed by the following metabolisms: arginine and proline; glycine, serine and threonine; and glycerophospholipid, along with the sphingolipid metabolism pathway. Furthermore, supplementation of AAP significantly changed the composition of the mice intestinal flora. The relative abundance levels of Lactobacillus johnsonii, Weissella cibaria, Kosakonia cowanii, Enterococcus faecalis, Bifidobacterium animalis and Bacteroides uniformis were markedly up-regulated, while the relative abundance of Firmicutes bacterium M10-2 was down-regulated. The bioactivities of AAP may be related to the regulatory effects of endogenous metabolism and gut microbiota composition.

We report a procedure using a pressure-controllable flute needle to remove subfoveal retention of perfluorocarbon liquid (PFCL) under silicone oil. With a two-port pars plana approach, we used a 27-gauge dental injection needle to create a retinotomy at the farthest edge of the PFCL bubble from the fovea. A 27-gauge flute needle was then inserted into the edge of the subfoveal PFCL to aspirate it with vacuum pressure. Three patients with subfoveal retained PFCL were treated by this procedure within silicone oil tamponade 1 month after the first operation. They promptly underwent successful removal of the PFCL with postoperative retinal reattachment and good visual outcome. This procedure allows safe and early treatment for subfoveal retained PFCL. Many medical institutions around the world could implement this procedure using common dental injection needles and flute needles.

To assess the effect of TDG on the survival of different sizes of pelagic fish, bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) were subjected to TDG supersaturated water at levels of 125, 130, 135, and 140%. The results showed that apparent abnormal behaviours and symptoms of gas bubble disease (GBD) were observed in bighead carp. The survival probability of large and small juvenile bighead carp declined with increasing TDG levels. The median survival time (ST50) values of large juvenile bighead carp were 74.97 and 31.90 h at 130% and 140% TDG, respectively. While the ST50 of small fish were 22.40 and 6.72 h at the same TDG levels. In comparison to the large juvenile bighead carp, the small juvenile bighead carp showed weaker tolerance to TDG supersaturated water. Furthermore, acute lethality experiments after chronic exposure to TDG were initiated to further investigate the effect of TDG on bighead carp. The juveniles were first subjected to 115% TDG supersaturated water for 96 h. After chronic exposure, live fish were immediately transferred to TDG supersaturated water at levels of 125, 130, 135, and 140%. The results demonstrated that no fish died under chronic exposure and few fish exhibited slight GBD symptoms. The ST50 values for bighead carp subjected to acute exposure after chronic exposure were 61.23 and 23.50 h at 130 and 140%, respectively. Compared with the bighead carp subjected to acute exposure, bighead carp subjected to multiple exposures were more vulnerable to TDG.

Rosacea is a common chronic facial disorder that affects patients' health-related quality of life; the only questionnaire designed specifically for rosacea is the Rosacea-specific Quality-of-Life instrument (RosQol). However, the questionnaire has not been validated among Chinese patients. This study aimed to validate the Chinese version of the RosQol. First, we translated the questionnaire into Chinese. Then, rosacea patients completed the RosQol and Dermatology Life Quality Index, indicating the disease's impact on their lives. We also collected patients' demographic and clinical data, including symptom self-evaluation scores and rosacea severity scores. Internal consistency was determined by using Cronbach's alpha, test-retest reliability, and Spearman's correlation. Criterion-related validity and internal construct validity were also determined. Most RosQol items showed good internal consistency. However, items 13 and 19 were not sufficiently sensitive for use in the Chinese population; we deleted them and constructed the adjusted Chinese-version RosQol, which had good reliability and validity. When patients' clinical symptoms changed, the scores on the relevant dimensions of the adjusted RosQol also changed. Some RosQol items were not suitable for use in the Chinese sample. The adjusted Chinese-version RosQol was easy to complete, well received by patients, and demonstrated acceptable validity and reliability.

Background/aim To evaluate the clinical outcomes of penetrating canaloplasty in traumatic angle recession glaucoma at 1 year. Methods Patients with angle recession glaucoma underwent penetrating canaloplasty, a new Schlemm's canal-based internal drainage procedure, which creates a direct canal for flow of aqueous humour from the anterior chamber to the ostia of Schlemm's canal via a window created at the corneal scleral bed without use of antimetabolites. Postoperative intraocular pressure (IOP), number of glaucoma medications, and procedure-related complications were evaluated. Success was defined as an IOP ≤21 mm Hg without (complete) or with (qualified) use of glaucoma medication. Results Forty eyes in 40 patients with angle recession glaucoma underwent successful circumferential catheterisation. The mean patient age was 42±13 years. In patients with penetrating canaloplasty that was deemed to be completely successful, the mean IOP decreased from a preoperative value of 37.8±12.3 mm Hg on 3.3±1.2 anti-glaucoma medications to 18.5±6.4 mm Hg on 1.2±1.4 medications, 14.9±4.6 mm Hg on 0.1±0.5 medications, 15.7±5.4 mm Hg on 0.1±0.4 medications and 14.8±3.6 mm Hg on 0.1±0.5 medications at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months postoperatively (p<0.05). Complete success was achieved in 35/40 eyes (87.5%) at 6 months and in 34/38 (89.5%) at 12 months. Hyphema (18/40, 45.0%) and transient IOP elevation (≥30 mm Hg, 9/40, 22.5%) were the most common postoperative complications. Conclusion Penetrating canaloplasty significantly reduces IOP and has a high success rate in angle recession glaucoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]