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The performance of a 56 m deep circular excavation supported by a double-wall system, consisting of an inner circular diaphragm wall and an outer rectangular cut-off wall, in Shanghai soft ground is studied in this paper. The surveyed data (e.g., lateral wall deflections ([[delta].sub.h]), horizontal displacement of soil ([[delta].sub.s]), ground surface settlement ([[delta].sub.v]), soil rebound ([[delta].sub.v+]), earth pressure (P), pore water pressure ([P.sub.w]), and soil stress path) are systematically investigated. The results show that the maximum lateral wall deflections are 0.002% ~ 0.03% of the excavation depth ([H.sub.e]). The maximum ground surface settlement ([[delta].sub.vm]) is generally larger than [[delta].sub.hm], which is located at 0.4 ~ 0.6[H.sub.e]. Moreover, an innovative formula is proposed to estimate the ground settlement. It is able to distinguish various characteristics of surface settlement in different zones of the settlement profile. The ground surface settlements are mainly induced by surcharge loading and continuous excavation, and they are related to the change in confined water level. The lateral earth and pore water pressures in the active zone are relatively insensitive to the excavation, while the correlation becomes obvious in the passive zone. The findings from this study can be helpful to the design of other similar deep excavations in soft clay. Key words: Deep excavation, diaphragm and cut-off double-wall system, soft ground, deflection, settlement, 1. Introduction With the rapid development of underground space utilization in urban areas, cases of deep excavation become more extensive. Meanwhile, complex geological conditions and increased water and earth pressures [...]

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a global challenge, and heat shock protein 90 (HSP90) is identified as a key driver in cancer progression. However, the tumor-promoting mechanism of HSP90 in CRC, particularly HSP90AB1, remains unclear. This study aims to explore and analyze the oncogenic mechanism of HSP90AB1 in CRC and identify potential therapeutic targets. HSP90AB1 expression underwent analysis in CRC cell lines and tissues at mRNA and protein levels. Through the use of shRNA, targeted suppression of HSP90AB1 was achieved in CRC cell lines, enabling analysis of its influence on cell proliferation, invasion, apoptosis, and cell cycle progression. Subsequent investigation focused on elucidating the regulatory relationship between HSP90AB1 and IDO1, employing a combination of bioinformatics approaches and in vitro/vivo experiments. These efforts confirmed IDO1 as a downstream target of HSP90AB1 and provided insight into its role in driving CRC progression. HSP90AB1 exhibits overexpression in both CRC cell lines and tumor tissues (p<0.05). Its downregulation impedes cell proliferation and invasion (p<0.01), promotes apoptosis and cell cycle arrest (p<0.05). Investigation reveals that decreased HSP90AB1 leads to the inhibition of IDO1 (p<0.01), suggesting that IDO1 regulation plays a crucial role in mediating the pro-tumorigenic effects of HSP90AB1. In vivo experiments confirm the substantial reduction in tumor growth upon HSP90AB1 knockdown in xenograft models (p<0.01). However, this tumor-suppressive effect is reversed upon IDO1 overexpression (p<0.01), highlighting IDO1 as a downstream target of HSP90AB1 in CRC progression. HSP90AB1 exerts a regulatory role in the progression of CRC by upregulating IDO1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the clinical effect of the application of Jianpi Huatan Dingxuan Decoction in the treatment of patients with vertigo and phlegm obstruction. Method: The research work was started in Henan Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The work will be carried out from October 2019 to October 2020. The patients are all patients with vertigo and phlegm obstruction syndrome who received treatment during this period. 100 of them were selected as this time. The study subjects were randomly divided into two groups, the control group given conventional western medicine treatment and the experimental group given Jianpi Huatan Dingxuan Decoction. The treatment effects of the two groups were compared and analyzed. Results: The treatment efficiency and nursing satisfaction of the experimental group were 96.00% and 94.00% respectively, which were significantly higher than the 82.00% and 78.00% of the control group. Before treatment, the vertebrobasilar blood flow velocity of the patients was relatively low, P>0.05. After the treatment intervention, the vertebral artery blood flow velocity and the basilar artery blood flow velocity of the experimental group were significantly higher than those of the control group. The data differed greatly. P

Background and Aim: Liver cancer stem cells (LCSCs) cause therapeutic refractoriness and relapse in hepatocellular carcinoma. Heat shock factor 1 (HSF1) plays versatile roles in multiple cancers. However, the role of HSF1 in LCSCs is not well understood. This study investigated the function and signal mechanisms of HSF1 in maintaining LCSC phenotypes. Methods: We established two LCSC lines, HepG2‐R and HuH‐7‐R. Constitutive activation of HSF1 was observed in these LCSCs. Specific short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) and chemical inhibitors were used to identify the relationship between HSF1 expression and LCSCs phenotypes. Results: We revealed a concomitant activation modality involving HSF1 and STAT3 in LCSCs and liver cancer tissues. We also found that liver cancer patients whose HSF1 and STAT3 mRNA expression levels were high presented with unfavorable clinicopathological characteristics. Moreover, the secretion of interleukin‐8 (IL‐8) was elevated in the LCSC medium and was directly regulated by HSF1 at the transcriptional level. In turn, IL‐8 activated HSF1 and STAT3 signaling, and a neutralizing IL‐8 antibody inhibited HSF1 and STAT3 activity, reduced cancer stem cell marker expression, and decreased LCSC microsphere formation. Simultaneous intervention with HSF1 and STAT3 led to synergistically suppressed stemness acquisition and growth suppression in the LCSCs in vivo and in vitro. Conclusions: Our study indicates that IL‐8 mediates the crosstalk between the HSF1 and Stat3 signaling pathways in LCSCs and that the combined targeting of HSF1 and STAT3 is a promising treatment strategy for patients with advanced liver cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An analytical method is proposed to characterize the stress distribution of the soil around a caisson foundation under lateral load in an elastic half-space. A series of model-scale tests is performed to delineate the characteristics of lateral resistance stress along the foundation periphery. Accordingly, the mathematical expression of circumferential resistance stress is established based on the elastic-beam theory. Thereafter, the stress increment in the surrounding soil is derived by numerically integrating the Mindlin's stress solution. The analytical solution for the stress variation in different directions can be solved by a numerical calculation program, the effectiveness of which is further evaluated by comparing with the experimental results. It is found that the stress increment of the soil around the caisson foundation decreases exponentially with the increase of the distance from the foundation side. The vertical additional stress is approximately saddle-shaped and anti-symmetric with respect to the x-axis and the y-axis of the foundation. A bridge project with caisson foundation is further analyzed using the proposed method to demonstrate the influence of caisson foundation geometry, including the embedment and the diameter, on the additional stress distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Colon carcinogenesis is the third most commonly occurring malignant neoplasm and the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths globally. Betulin (BE) is a pentacyclic lupane-type triterpenoid naturally dispersed in many plants. It is also recognized as betuline, betulinol, or betulinic alcohol. Objectives: In this study, we explored the anticancer, antiproliferative, and anti-inflammatory effects of BE on 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH)-treated rat model of colon cancer. Materials and Methods: Colon cancer was induced by a subcutaneous injection of DMH (20 mg/kg bwt) once a week for the initial 4 weeks of the experiment. We analyzed body weight, tumor incidence, tumor volume, total number of tumors, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), and levels of antioxidants (glutathione peroxidase, glutathione, catalase, and superoxide dismutase), bacterial enzymes (β-glucuronidase and mucinase), Phase I (cytochrome P450 and cytochrome b5) and Phase II (GST and Glutathione reductase (GR)) detoxification enzymes, and inflammatory (cyclooxygenase-2, interleukin-1 beta [IL-1β], inducible nitric oxide synthase, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and IL-6) and cell proliferative (cyclin D1 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen) markers. We also assessed the histopathological alterations found in experimental and control rats. Results: We observed decreased body weight and levels of antioxidants and Phase II enzymes; augmented tumor incidence, tumor volume, total number of tumors, Phase I enzymes, TBARS, and levels of bacterial enzymes; and irregular histopathological changes in DMH-treated rats. Moreover, the Western blotting analysis of colon tissues revealed upregulation of inflammatory and cell proliferative markers in DMH-treated rats. Oral supplementation of 20 mg/kg bwt BE led to inhibition of tumor formation and inflammation, regulation of cell proliferation, and restoration of biochemical parameters. Our findings were supported by histopathological analysis. Conclusion: Our results suggested that BE exhibited anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and antiproliferative effects against DMH-induced colon cancer in rats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]