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To master the heat transfer performance of the condensers， a model based on convolutional neural network and bidirectional gated recurrent unit with attention mechanism （CNN-BiGRU-AT） is adopted to predict their heat transfer coefficients. Taking the condenser of a 1，000 MW unit in a power plant as the research subject， the condenser characteristics are first analyzed， and a theoretical model for calculating its heat transfer coefficients is constructed. Then， CNN is employed to extract the data features of factors influencing the heat transfer characteristics， while BiGRU is utilized to capture the long and short-term dependencies between the data. Finally， AT is used to highlight the important parts of the features， thereby constructing a prediction model for heat transfer coefficients based on CNN-BiGRU-AT. The analysis of the computational results indicates that compared to traditional theoretical calculations and BP （backpropagation） networks， as well as GRU networks， the computational results obtained using the CNN-BiGRU-AT model are more accurate and exhibit better regularity.

Abstract This article presents a composite tunnel rockfall protection structure (CPRC) employing galvanized corrugated steel plates as the inner formwork for reinforced concrete structures. It addresses the threats posed by frequent rockfall disasters in mountainous regions with complex geology. The research investigates impact damage from various rockfall shapes through numerical simulations and experiments on five representative forms, comparing traditional reinforced concrete structures RC with CPRC. The study highlights both structures’ dynamic responses and damage characteristics across different impact scenarios, introducing the Residual Resistance Index RRI as a measure of post-impact safety performance. Results show that the numerical simulations align with laboratory tests, with discrepancies within 10%, validating the simulation method’s accuracy in predicting impact resistance. Following impacts, both structures primarily displayed brittle concrete damage; however, the CPRC structure demonstrated a 79.46% reduction in concrete damage and an 86.31% decrease in reinforcement damage. The energy-dissipating properties of the corrugated plates significantly lowered rockfall penetration depth and impact energy transfer ratio, with an RRI exceeding 0.88 post-event. Additionally, the study reveals varying damage effects from different rockfall shapes, further supporting the CPRC structure’s superior impact resistance and its effectiveness in preventing secondary disasters in tunnel engineering within mountainous terrains.

Ying Liu,1,* Li Wang,2,* Er-Hao Bao,1,* Jia-Hao Wang,1 Lin Yang,1 Lei Wang,1 Long Xia,1 Ben Wang,1 Ping-Yu Zhu1 1Department of Urology, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Urology, The Second Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Ping-Yu Zhu, Email zhupingyu@nsmc.edu.cnPurpose: The prevalence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is high, and there are many complications. Few studies have reported the relationship between OSA and kidney stones. The purpose of this study is to explore whether people at risk of OSA will increase the risk of kidney stones.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study, and information was collected through the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted from 2015 to 2018. Multiple logistic regression analyses were employed to calculate the odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the link between obstructive sleep apnea and the presence of kidney stones. Additionally, to assess causality and reduce observational biases, five distinct two-sample Mendelian randomization techniques were applied.Results: Following the adjustment for relevant confounders, findings indicated a statistically significant correlation between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and higher prevalence of kidney stones (OR = 1.29; 95% CI: 1.00– 1.66). Additionally, using the inverse-variance weighted approach in Mendelian randomization, results suggested a genetic predisposition to OSA might be causally linked to an elevated risk of developing kidney stones (OR: 1.00221, 95% CI 1.00056– 1.00387).Conclusion: OSA promotes the formation of kidney stones, and the treatment and management of OSA can improve or mitigate the occurrence of kidney stones.Keywords: obstructive sleep apnea, kidney stones, national health and nutrition examination survey, Mendelian randomization

Abstract Background Antineoplastic medications, including doxorubicin, idarubicin, and epirubicin, have been found to adversely affect the heart due to oxidative stress - mitochondrial dysfunction - ferroptosis (ORMFs), which act as contributing attributes to anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity. To better understand this phenomenon, the time-resolved measurements of ORMFS genes were analyzed in this study. Methods The effect of three anthracycline drugs on ORMFs genes was studied using a human 3D cardiac microtissue cell model. Transcriptome data was collected over 14 days at two doses (therapeutic and toxic). WGCNA identified key module-related genes, and functional enrichment analysis investigated the biological processes quantified by ssGSEA, such as immune cell infiltration and angiogenesis. Biopsies were collected from heart failure patients and control subjects. GSE59672 and GSE2965 were collected for validation. Molecular docking was used to identify anthracyclines’s interaction with key genes. Results The ORMFs genes were screened in vivo or in vitro. Using WGCNA, six co-expressed gene modules were grouped, with MEblue emerging as the most significant module. Eight key genes intersecting the blue module with the dynamic response genes were obtained: CD36, CDH5, CHI3L1, HBA2, HSD11B1, OGN, RPL8, and VWF. Compared with control samples, all key genes except RPL8 were down-regulated in vitro ANT treatment settings, and their expression levels varied over time. According to functional analyses, the key module-related genes were engaged in angiogenesis and the immune system pathways. In all ANT-treated settings, ssGSEA demonstrated a significant down-regulation of angiogenesis score and immune cell activity, including Activated CD4 T cell, Immature B cell, Memory B cell, Natural killer cell, Type 1 T helper cell, and Type 2 T helper cell. Molecular docking revealed that RPL8 and CHI3L1 show significant binding affinity for anthracyclines. Conclusion This study focuses on the dynamic characteristics of ORMFs genes in both human cardiac microtissues and cardiac biopsies from ANT-treated patients. It has been highlighted that ORMFs genes may contribute to immune infiltration and angiogenesis in cases of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity. A thorough understanding of these genes could potentially lead to improved diagnosis and treatment of the disease.

Kailun Yan, Jiawen Li, Pei Zhu, Xiaofang Tang, Yulong Li, Yuejin Yang, Runlin Gao, Jinqing Yuan, Xueyan Zhao National Clinical Research Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, State Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease, Fu Wai Hospital, National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100037, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xueyan Zhao; Jinqing Yuan, National Clinical Research Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, State Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease, Fu Wai Hospital, National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100037, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-10-88322451, Fax +86-10-68351786, Email zhao_xueyan@sina.com; jqyuanfw@163.comPurpose: The association between high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I) and cardiovascular risk in patients with coronary artery disease remains inconsistent. Recent investigations indicated potential dysfunctionality of HDL under inflammation. This study endeavors to explore whether the inflammatory status modifies the effects of HDL-C and ApoA-I on cardiovascular risk in individuals with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).Patients and Methods: Consecutive 10,724 PCI patients at Fuwai hospital in 2013 were enrolled. Inflammation status was defined by high-sensitivity C-reactive proteins (hsCRP) ≥ 2 mg/L. The study endpoint was cardiac mortality.Results: Among 9569 PCI patients eventually included, 225 (2.4%) cardiac mortality happened during 5 years. In hsCRP ≥ 2 mg/L group, an U-shaped curve was observed for HDL-C and multivariate Cox regression showed that elevated risks of cardiac mortality correlated to both the lowest quintile (hazard ratio [HR], 2.50; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.32– 4.71) and the highest quintile of HDL-C (HR, 2.28; 95% CI, 1.23– 4.25). However, an L-shaped curve existed in ApoA-I, indicating only the lowest quintile level of ApoA-I was associated with an increased cardiac mortality risk (HR, 2.19; 95% CI, 1.28– 3.75). Nevertheless, in hsCRP < 2 mg/L group, no significant correlations between HDL-C and ApoA-I and cardiac mortality risk were identified (both P > 0.05).Conclusion: In PCI patients with hsCRP ≥ 2 mg/L. both low and high HDL-C levels correlated with higher cardiac mortality risk (U-shaped), while only low ApoA-I levels were linked to elevated risk (L-shaped). However, in patients with hsCRP < 2 mg/L, neither HDL-C nor ApoA-I levels were associated with higher cardiac mortality risk. These findings shed light on the importance of considering inflammation status, particularly hsCRP levels, in managing HDL-C and ApoA-I levels, and suggest targeting elevated ApoA-I levels as a potential therapeutic approach for PCI patients with hsCRP ≥ 2 mg/L. Keywords: apolipoprotein A-I, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, inflammation, mortality, percutaneous coronary intervention

Xulin Liu,1,&ast; Zhancheng Qiu,2,&ast; Elijah Ndhlovu,1,&ast; Yunyan Wan,3 Huapeng Sun,4 Shuai Wang,5 Yugang Cao,6 Peng Zhu1 1Department of Hepatic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, People’s Republic of China; 2Division of Liver Surgery, Department of General Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Hepatobiliary Pancreatic Surgery, Taihe Hospital, Shiyan City, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of General Surgery, Xiangyang Central Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Hubei University of Arts and Science, Xiangyang, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Jingzhou Central Hospital, Jingzhou, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Huangshi Central Hospital of Edong Healthcare Group, Huangshi, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Peng Zhu, Department of Hepatic Surgery, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 13907170712, Email zhupeng@tjh.tjmu.edu.cnPurpose: Early recurrence (ER) is associated with poor prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In this study, we developed and externally validated a nomogram based on the hemoglobin, albumin, lymphocytes, and platelets (HALP) score to predict ER for patients with BCLC stage 0/A HCC who underwent radical liver resection.Patients and Methods: A total of 808 BCLC stage 0/A HCC patients from six hospitals were included in this study, and they were assigned to a training cohort (n = 500) and an external validation cohort (n = 308). We used univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis to identify the independent risk factors for disease-free survival (DFS). We also established and externally validated a nomogram based on these risk predictors. The nomogram was evaluated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), the concordance index (C-index), the calibration curve, decision curve analysis (DCA), and Kaplan‒Meier analysis.Results: Multivariate COX regression showed that HBV DNA ≥ 10,000 IU/mL (P < 0.001), HALP score ≤ 38.20 (P < 0.001), tumor size (P = 0.003), clinically significant portal hypertension (P = 0.001), Edmondson-Steiner grade (III–IV) (P = 0.007), satellite nodules (P < 0.001), and MVI (P = 0.001) were independent risk factors for post-operative tumor recurrence. The AUC of our nomogram for predicting the 2-year and 5-year DFS was 0.756 and 0.750, respectively, in the training cohort and 0.764 and 0.705, respectively, in the external validation cohort. We divided the patients into low-, intermediate- and high-risk groups according to the risk score calculated by the nomogram. There were statistically significant differences in the DFS and overall survival (OS) among the three groups of patients (P < 0.001).Conclusion: We developed and externally validated a new nomogram, which is accurate and can predict ER in BCLC stage 0/A HCC patients after curative liver resection.Keywords: early recurrence, hepatocellular carcinoma, HALP score, nomogram, Barcelona Clinic of Liver Cancer staging system, disease-free survival

Peiqiu Zhu,1 Weiwei Deng2 1Department of Dermatology and Venereology, Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Dermatology, Dermatology Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Weiwei Deng, Department of Dermatology, Dermatology Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 15622165048, Email 1601178683@qq.comBackground: Systemic sclerosis represents a persistent autoimmune disorder marked with fibrosis affecting both skin and other organs, which leads to a diminished quality of life and increased mortality. The affected skin provides a valuable opportunity to explore the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis. Nevertheless, the roles of various cell populations within scleroderma remain intricate.Methods: We conducted a comprehensive reanalysis of recently published single-cell RNA-sequencing data from skin tissue cells in scleroderma. Through the utilization of Seurat, irGSEA, AUCell packages, and WGCNA analysis, we aimed to unveil crucial genes associated with the disease’s etiological factors. Our investigation involved the characterization of heterogeneous pathway activities in both healthy and SSc-affected skin. Furthermore, we employed immunofluorescence techniques to validate the expression patterns of hub genes and differentially expressed genes.Results: The Endothelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition (EndMT) pathway was upregulated in SSc skin. Notably, the M4 module within Endothelial cell subpopulation 1 exhibited a strong association with EndMT. Furthermore, we identified three overexpressed genes (APLNR, INS-IGF2, RGCC) that demonstrated a significant correlation with EndMT. Importantly, their expression levels were markedly higher in skin of individuals with SSc when compared to healthy controls.Conclusion: APLNR, INS-IGF2 and RGCC serve as potential key players in the pathogenesis of SSc skin through EndMT-dependent mechanisms.Keywords: systemic sclerosis skin, single cell RNA-sequencing analysis, the Endothelial to Mesencchymal Transition, EndMT, APLNR, INS-IGF2, RGCC

Likui Fang, Fangming Zhong, Wenfeng Yu, Pengfei Zhu, Guocan Yu Department of Thoracic Surgery, Hangzhou Red Cross Hospital, Hangzhou, 310003, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Likui Fang, Department of Thoracic Surgery, Hangzhou Red Cross Hospital, Hangzhou, 310003, People’s Republic of China, Email 21618100@zju.edu.cnBackground: The impact of coagulation indicators on postoperative outcomes of patients with constrictive pericarditis undergoing pericardiectomy has been poorly investigated. This study aimed to assess the prognostic role of preoperative coagulation indicators in these patients.Methods: We retrospectively included 158 patients with constrictive pericarditis undergoing pericardiectomy. The diagnostic values of coagulation indicators for postoperative complications were evaluated by ROC curves. Patients were divided into two groups according to the cutoff value calculated by ROC curve. Postoperative outcomes were compared between the two groups. Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify risk factors of postoperative complications.Results: ROC curve showed that among different coagulation indicators, preoperative D-dimer (DD) level could effectively identify patients with postoperative complications (AUC 0.771, 95% CI 0.696– 0.847, P < 0.001). Patients were divided into the low DD group and the high DD group. The comparison of postoperative outcomes suggested that high preoperative DD level was significantly associated with longer durations of vasoactive agents using (P = 0.018), intubation (P = 0.020), ICU stay (P = 0.008), chest drainage (P=0.004) and hospital stay (P = 0.002). Multivariable analysis showed that high preoperative DD level was the independent risk factor of postoperative complications (OR 6.892, 95% CI 2.604– 18.235, P < 0.001).Conclusion: High preoperative DD level was significantly linked to poor postoperative outcomes and could provide an effective prediction ability for postoperative complications in patients with constrictive pericarditis.Keywords: constrictive pericarditis, D-dimer, postoperative complications, outcomes

The resistance characteristics of aero-engine high-altitude ice crystal particles will affect the movement of ice crystals. In order to explore the influence of different shapes of ice crystals on the drag coefficient, the paper adopts the method of high-speed camera tracking to investigate the drag coefficient of spherical particles and nonspherical particles(long cylinder, short cylinder and disk). The Reynolds number and drag coefficient of different particles are obtained according to the velocity of particles at uniform velocity, and the correlation formula for calculating drag coefficient of different particles in the working condition range is obtained by fitting experimental data.Finally, the correlation formula is verified by using experimental data other than fitting data. The results show that the Reynolds number ranges from 3 961 to 24 144. The average relative error between the calculated and experimental values of the four particle resistance coefficients is less than 5%.

There is increasing evidence that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play a crucial role in the development and progression of malignant tumors, particularly pancreatic cancer. In this study, the influence of the lncRNA TINCR on the behavior of human pancreatic cancer cells was investigated with the aim of deciphering its role in growth, migration, and invasion. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to investigate TINCR expression in pancreatic cancer cells. Ectopic expression of TINCR in PANC-1 cells was induced to evaluate the effects on cell viability and apoptosis, examining the apoptotic genes Bax and Bcl-2. Migration and invasion assays were used to measure the impact of TINCR on these cellular processes. In vivo studies using a xenograft mouse model examined the effects of TINCR on tumor growth, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers, and the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. PANC-1 cells showed strikingly low TINCR expression compared to other pancreatic cancer cell lines. Ectopic TINCR expression reduced the viability of PANC-1 cells primarily by inducing apoptosis, as evidenced by increased Bax and decreased Bcl-2 expression. Overexpression of TINCR significantly increased the percentage of apoptotic cells. It also decreased the migration and invasion ability of PANC-1 cells, as demonstrated in wound healing and transwell assays. In addition, overexpression of TINCR-suppressed proteins is associated with the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in PANC-1 cells. In the xenograft mouse model, overexpression of TINCR inhibited tumor growth, EMT markers, and proteins associated with the Wnt/β-catenin pathway. This study sheds light on the tumour-suppressive role of TINCR in PANC-1 cells and suggests its potential as a therapeutic target. These results shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying the impact of TINCR on pancreatic cancer and offer promising opportunities for innovative therapeutic strategies to improve outcomes in this serious malignancy.

Tao Xue,1,&ast; Hongbin Yu,2,&ast; Wenming Feng,2 Yao Wang,2 Shiyong Wu,3 Lili Wang,4 Peiqin Zhu,5 Jianming Guan,6,7 Quan Sun8 1Clinical Research Center, First People’s Hospital Affiliated to Huzhou University, Huzhou, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First People’s Hospital Affiliated to Huzhou University, Huzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Radiology, First People’s Hospital Affiliated to Huzhou University, Huzhou, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Nursing, Physical Examination Center of Aishan, Huzhou, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Internal Medicine, Huzhou Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital Affiliated to Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Ultrasound, First People’s Hospital Affiliated to Huzhou University, Huzhou, People’s Republic of China; 7Department of Ultrasound, Mingzhou Hospital, Huzhou, People’s Republic of China; 8Laboratory of Blood Transfusion Research, Huzhou Center Blood Station, Huzhou, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Quan Sun, Laboratory of Blood Transfusion Research, Huzhou Center Blood Station, Fenghuang Road 577&num;, Huzhou, 313000, People’s Republic of China, Email sunquanhz@163.com Jianming Guan, Department of Ultrasound, First People’s Hospital Affiliated to Huzhou University, Guangchanghou Road 158&num;, Huzhou, 313000, People’s Republic of China, Email guan9300@126.comBackground: The presence of macrovascular invasion (MVI) is associated with poor prognosis in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Cinobufacini therapy via hepatic arterial infusion (HAI) in advanced HCC patients with MVI.Methods: The clinical records of 130 consecutive patients with unresectable advanced HCC and MVI who had received Cinobufacini or cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil (CF) treatment via HAI were retrospectively analyzed. The therapeutic efficacy, overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and adverse events were compared between the two treatment groups.Results: The Cinobufacini group demonstrated significant curative effects on treatment via HAI compared with the CF group, including the objective response rate (44.9% vs 27.9%, P=0.048), the median OS (14.8 months vs 11.1 months, P=0.010), and the median PFS (10.3 months vs 6.0 months, P=0.006). Result in subgroup analysis of portal vein invasion grade supported the efficacy in Cinobufacini treatment, especially in the median OS of Vp1-2 (18.3 months vs 14.3 months, P=0.043) and Vp3 (15.0 months vs 11.4 months, P=0.046), as well as the median PFS of Vp1-2 (14.8 months vs 10.2 months, P=0.028) and Vp3 (10.8 months vs 6.6 months, P=0.033) compared with CF treatment. Cox proportional hazards model and forest plot analysis of factors confirmed the survival benefit from HAI with Cinobufacini over CF (hazard ratio [HR], 0.61; 95% CI: 0.40– 0.91; P=0.010). Multivariable analysis identified portal vein invasion grade (Vp4; HR, 1.78; 95% CI: 1.03– 2.16; P=0.032) and AFP (> 1000; HR, 1.61; 95% CI: 1.08– 1.91; P=0.039) as the independent factors for prognosis. Moreover, the total incidence of adverse events in the Cinobufacini group was significantly lower than in the CF group (60.9% vs 82.0%, P=0.009).Conclusion: Cinobufacini therapy via HAI is a viable strategy for curing advanced HCC with MVI, due to prolonged survival and a superior safety profile.Keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma, macrovascular invasion, cinobufacini, hepatic arterial infusion, efficacy

Yan-Hua Chen,1 Xue-Luo Zhang,1 Zhong-Yun Li,2 Xian-Ping Wang,1 Jun Wang,3 Zhi-Ping Zhang,1 Peng-Fei Zhu,1 Xue-Qing Wu1 1Reproductive Medicine Center, Shanxi Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, Taiyuan, People’s Republic of China; 2Rectum Branch, Shanxi Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taiyuan, People’s Republic of China; 3The Sixth Hospital of Shanxi Medical University (General Hospital of Tisco), Taiyuan, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xue-Qing Wu, Reproductive Medicine Center, Shanxi Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, No. 13, Xinmin Middle Street, Xinghualing District, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, 030013, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 351-3360725, Email xueqingwu18@outlook.comObjective: This study aimed to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy and safety of Dan’e Fukang soft extracts in moderate ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) for the simultaneous treatment of blood and fluid, guided by the traditional Chinese medicine principle of “triple prevention”.Methods: This study conducted a retrospective analysis of clinical data from outpatients who underwent in vitro fertilization (IVF)/intracytoplasmic sperm injection embryo transfer (ICSI-ET). A total of 2245 cases were included and divided into a treatment group (1002 cases) and a control group (1243 cases). Patients in the treatment group were administered Dan’e Fukang soft extracts orally in addition to conventional Western medicine. Comparative assessments were made between the two groups on pelvic ascites volume, maximum ovary diameter, dysmenorrhea incidence post-oocyte retrieval, and safety indicators.Results: There were no statistically significant differences between the treatment group and the control group in terms of general characteristics or the levels of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteotropic hormone (LH), estradiol (E2), or progesterone (P) at the time of gonadotropin (Gn) initiation. The groups did not differ significantly when we compared the levels of LH, E2, or P on the day of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) injection and during ovarian hyperstimulation protocols (P > 0.05 for all indicators). The differences in the volume of pelvic ascites, the maximum ovarian diameter, and the incidence of dysmenorrhea after oocyte retrieval were statistically significant between the treatment group and the control group (P < 0.05 in both). There were no instances of adverse reactions in either group.Conclusion: Based on the traditional Chinese medicine principle of “triple prevention”, the use of Dan’e Fukang soft extracts for the simultaneous treatment of blood and fluid in moderate OHSS significantly improved the absorption of pelvic ascites, promoted ovarian recovery, and reduced the incidence of dysmenorrhea after oocyte retrieval.Keywords: Dan’e Fukang soft extracts, guiding principle of triple prevention, in vitro fertilization embryo transfer/intracytoplasmic sperm injection embryo transfer, ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome, simultaneous treatment of blood and fluid

There is a variation in the composition of seawater in different seas. Three major cations (Mg2+, Ca2+and Na+) constitute about 40.00% by weight of salinity of seawater in the Persian Gulf coast. The concentration of these cations has significant influence on the performance of calcium bentonite (CaB) slurries prepared from seawater. The high salinity of seawater results in the decrease of the physical stability of the slurry. Polyanionic cellulose (PAC) is commonly used to increase the viscosity and enhance the stability of the slurry. In this study, the performance and deterioration mechanism characteristics of polyanionic cellulose (PAC) modified CaB in seawater with different compositions were investigated through macroscopic performance tests and microscopic characterizations of seawater slurry. A series of slurry performance tests were conducted to determine various parameters, including the Marsh viscosity, filtrate loss and colloid fraction values of slurries. Then, the sensitivities of slurry performance to cation type and concentration were analyzed. An optical microscope (OM) test of fresh slurry was developed. Using this method, the porosity was extracted by image recognition technology to quantitatively analyze the deterioration degree of seawater slurry. The filter cake after filtration loss was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and the evolution processes of the microstructure and molecular structure of the filter cake subjected to seawater with different compositions were analyzed. The results showed that the slurry performance was most sensitive to Ca2+ concentration, followed by Mg2+ and Na+. In a low cationic concentration environment, bridging and hydrogen bonding occurred between the slurry modifiers and CaB particles, the fresh slurry exhibited a low porosity and homogeneous structure, and the filter cake microstructure was layered. As the cationic concentration increased, the slurry porosity increased, the structure tended to flocculate. SEM morphological analysis of the filter cake showed an agglomerate structure.

Drought and land salinization are inhibiting factors for the sustainable development of forestry, and the plants will release volatile substances such as terpenoids during biological or non-biological stress. The 1-hydroxy-2-methyl-2-(E)-buteny-4-pyrophosphate reductase is the terminal active enzyme of the MEP pathway, which provides precursor terpenoids and has the main rate-limiting effect. In order to investigate whether HDR gene of Pinus massoniana is involved in stress response under drought and salt stress, the open reading frame of PmHDR gene was cloned, and bioinformation, tissue specific expression and preliminary function were analyzed. The results were as follows: (1) The coding region length of PmHDR gene is 1 458 bp, encoding 485 amino acids, and its encoded protein contains the core sequence of LytB/IspH gene superfamily and PLN02821 multifunctional structural domain, which belongs to the HDR family. (2) The PmHDR codon use preference was weak, with a preference for codons ending in A/U. Nicotiana tabacum, Arabidopsis thaliana and Saccharomyces cerevisiae were more suitable as its heterologous expression receptors. (3) Results of qRT-PCR showed that the PmHDR gene was most highly expressed in old needles of Pinus massoniana, followed by young needles, young stem and old stem and least expressed in root. (4) The gene expression vector pBI121-PmHDR was constructed and transformed into Arabidopsis thaliana. The transgenic A.thaliana showed greater resistance to drought and salt stress. These results indicate that PmHDR is involved in plant response and regulation to drought and salt stress, and provide some theoretical supports for Pinus massoniana stress-resistance breeding.

ObjectiveTo explore the risk of different levels of pre-pregnancy obesity on trimester-specific thyroid dysfunction.MethodsQuestionnaire information， blood samples， and urine samples from a 2017 pregnancy cohort study in Shanghai， China were collected. A total of 2 455 pregnant women were included in the analysis. Pre-pregnancy BMI was calculated based on the height and self-reported pre-pregnancy weight. Serum TSH， total thyroxine （TT4）， free thyroxine （FT4）， total triiodothyronine （TT3）， free triiodothyronine （FT3）， thyroid globulin antibody（TgAb）， and Thyroid peroxidase antibody （TPOAb） were measured using the electrochemiluminescence method. Urine iodine levels were measured using the acid digestion method. Levels of thyroid function indexes of pregnant women with different degrees of obesity during pre-pregnancy were compared， and trimester-specific thyroid dysfunction was evaluated according to the reference range of trimester-specific thyroid hormone established by this cohort. Multivariate logistic regressions analysis was used to assess the correlation between pre-pregnancy obesity and trimester-specific thyroid dysfunction.ResultsAs the degree of obesity increased， maternal levels of FT3 and TT3 gradually increased during pregnancy （P

Background: We aim to explore the effect of the score for the targeting of atrial fibrillation (STAF) combined with the serum D-dimer (DD) level in screening acute ischemic stroke patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods: This study is a retrospective case observation study. This study consecutively selected patients with acute ischemic stroke who were hospitalized in the Department of Neurology at Zhuhai Hospital Affiliated with Jinan University from February 2019 to February 2021. Venous blood was drawn from all patients within 24 hours of hospitalization for DD detection. In accordance with the medical records, the patients were classified into an AF group and a non-AF group and were scored according to the STAF standard. A combined test method was used to estimate the diagnostic screening value of the STAF combined with the DD value for acute ischemic stroke patients with AF. Results: A total of 480 patients were enrolled, of whom 73 patients (15.2%) had AF and 42 patients had paroxysmal AF. The diagnostic sensitivity of a STAF ≥ 5 for patients with AF was 78%, and the specificity was 91%. The diagnostic sensitivity of DD ≥ 826.5 ng/mL for AF was 70%, and the specificity was 76%. The diagnostic sensitivity of the two indicators combined for AF was 86%, and the specificity was 97%. Conclusion: The STAF combined with the serum DD level has good diagnostic value in screening acute ischemic stroke patients with AF.

To improve the photoelectric conversion efficiency (η) of the solar cell, a green wavelength (532 nm) laser source in a nanosecond range was used to ablate the passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) to form the contact holes. If the laser ablation hole opening process was not set properly, the diameter or the external expansion of holes would be too large, causing the decline of the PERC performance. The Gaussian distribution of the laser is regulated by the output power (P o) and the repetition frequency (f rep) of the incident pulse laser, so that the optimized morphology of holes is obtained on the back of the PERC solar cells. After the contact holes are screen printed by the aluminum paste, the local back surface field is finally formed. The experimental results showed that the outward expansion decreases obviously with the increase of laser P o. Second, the spacing of the holes decreases with the increase of the laser f rep. It was found that under the laser P o of 33.0 W and f rep of 1,400 kHz, the η of the industrial PERC solar cells was the highest. The Quokka simulations indicated that small outward expansion, small diameter, and long spacing of holes would further decrease the recombination parameter in the rear surface. With the optimized morphology of contact holes and the low contact resistance, the PERC cell’s calculated V oc and η improvements were 6.5 mV and 0.48%, respectively, which was verified with experimental findings.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent and chronic joint disease that affects the aging population, causing pain and disability. Macrophages in synovium are important mediators of synovial inflammatory activity and pathological joint pain. Previous studies have demonstrated the significant involvement of κ-opioid receptor (KOR) in the regulation of pain and inflammation. Our study reveals a significant reduction in synovial KOR expression among patients and mice with OA. Here, we find that KOR activation effectively inhibits the expressions of the LPS-induced-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6 by inhibiting macrophage M1 phenotype. Mechanistically, KOR activation effectively suppresses the proinflammatory factor secretion of macrophages by inhibiting the translocation of NF-κB into the nucleus. Our animal experiments reveal that activation of KOR effectively alleviates knee pain and prevents synovitis progression in OA mice. Consistently, KOR administration suppresses the expressions of M1 macrophage markers and the NF-κB pathway in the synovium of the knee. Collectively, our study suggests that targeting KOR may be a viable strategy for treating OA by inhibiting synovitis and improving joint pain in affected patients.

Xiaozhen Cui,1 Zhi Cheng,2 Han Li,2 Xiaobao Zhang,2 Hengfei Luan,2 Zhibin Zhao,2 Pin Zhu2 1Department of Anesthesiology, Graduate Training Base of Lianyungang First People’s Hospital of Jinzhou Medical University, Lianyungang, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Anesthesiology, The First People’s Hospital of Lianyungang, Lianyungang, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Pin Zhu, The First People’s Hospital of Lianyungang, No. 6 East Zhenhua Road, Lianyungang, Jiangsu, People’s Republic of China, Email zhupin198348@163.comBackground: Remimazolam is a novel benzodiazepine narcotic. When used for gastrointestinal endoscopy or bronchoscopy, it provides adequate sedation and rapid recovery. However, studies on the optimal initial loading dose of remimazolam remain inadequate. Therefore, we conducted a randomized controlled clinical trial to investigate the efficacy and safety of different doses of remimazolam applied in upper gastrointestinal endoscopy.Methods: A total of 218 patients scheduled for upper gastrointestinal endoscopy were included in our trial and divided into experimental and control groups: the experimental groups were the remimazolam groups (R1 of 0.2 mg/kg, R2 of 0.3 mg/kg, and R3 of 0.4 mg/kg), and the control group was the propofol group. Following a single injection of trial drugs during the induction period, operational requirements were evaluated based on MOAA/S scores. When the sedation was successfully achieved, safety was evaluated based on the incidence of various intraoperative and postoperative adverse events.Results: The success rates of intraoperative sedation were 82% in group R1, 98% in group R2, 96% in group R3, and 100% in group P. The incidence of hypotension was lower in the remimazolam groups than in the propofol group (16%), 4% in group R1, 6% in group R2, and 6% in group R3. The incidence of postoperative vertigo was significantly higher, and sedation recovery time was prolonged in high-concentration remimazolam group.Conclusion: Satisfactory efficacy can be obtained with higher concentrations of remimazolam tosilate in patients undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy with ASA grade I or II. However, as the dose is progressively increased, the incidence of adverse reactions by remimazolam tosilate are also significantly increased, such as vertigo and prolonged sedation recovery time.Trial Registration: The trial was registered prior to enrollment at the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR 2000032067).Keywords: remimazolam, sedation, hypotension, hypoxemia, upper gastrointestinal endoscopy

For air traffic controllers, the extent of their cognitive workload can significantly impact their cognitive function and response time, consequently influencing their operational efficiency or even resulting in safety incidents. In order to enhance the accuracy and efficiency in determining the cognitive workload of air traffic controllers, a cognitive workload detection method for air traffic controllers based on mRMR and fewer EEG channels was proposed in this study. First of all, a set of features related to gamma waves was initially proposed; subsequently, an EEG feature evaluation method based on the mRMR algorithm was employed to pinpoint the most relevant indicators for the detection of the cognitive workload. Consequently, a model for the detection of the cognitive workload of controllers was developed, and it was optimized by filtering out channel combinations that exhibited higher sensitivity to the workload using the mRMR algorithm. The results demonstrate that the enhanced model achieves the accuracy and stability required for practical applications. Notably, in this study, only three EEG channels were employed to achieve the highly precise detection of the cognitive workload of controllers. This approach markedly increases the practicality of employing EEG equipment for the detection of the cognitive workload and streamlines the detection process.

Gang Qin,1 Bo Wang,2 Geng Zhang,2 Lili Wu,1 Peng Zhu,1 Qian Zhang2 1Department of Gastroenterology, Suining First People’s Hospital, Suining, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Infectious Diseases, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Qian Zhang, Department of Infectious Diseases, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China, Email zhangqian105@swmu.edu.cnPurpose: To screen out potential prognostic biomarkers for HBV-related acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF).Patients and Methods: Peripheral blood samples of HBV-ACLF patients (n=56) and normal controls (n=15) from the Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University from January 2021 to April 2022 were collected, 5 normal patients and 10 patients with ACLF were randomly selected for Data independent acquisition (DIA) mass spectrometry analysis, and the potential core proteins were screened out via bioinformatics. All samples were validated by Enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) technology, and the survival curve was constructed based on the patient’s 90-day survival time.Results: A total of 247 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were screened, of which 148 were upregulated and 99 were down-regulated. The DEPs were mainly enriched in high-density lipoprotein particle remodeling, coagulation, and hemostasis and participated in signaling pathways such as cholesterol metabolism, coagulation cascades, and PPAR signaling pathway. Finally, bikunin was selected for further study and validated via the ELISA, compared with the normal group, bikunin was poorly expressed in the HBV-ACLF group, the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.0001), the area under the curve (AUC) for Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was 0.917. Furthermore, compared with the non-survival group, bikunin was highly expressed in the HBV-ACLF survival group, the difference was statistically significant (P=0.0015), and the survival curve showed a positive correlation with patient survival (P=0.0063).Conclusion: The level of plasma bikunin in HBV-ACLF is down-regulated, which is positively correlated with the survival of the patients with HBV-ACLF, and is expected to become a new prognostic biomarker.Keywords: HBV-ACLF, AMBP, bikunin, DIA

In order to gain insights into the key factors affecting students’ success in online education, this paper extracts students’ online learning behavioral feature indicators through the behavioral record data in the online learning platform, applies the attribute approximation algorithm based on the Bayesian Fuzzy Rough Set (IDB-BRS) model to attribute approximation of the behavioral indicators, and utilizes the improved Apriori algorithm to mine the association rules between online learning behaviors and learning effects. The improved Apriori algorithm is used to establish association rules between online learning behaviors and learning effects. In comparison to the VPFRS model attribute approximation algorithm, the IDB-BRS model attribute approximation algorithm does not necessitate pre-given parameters and achieves superior classification accuracy and approximation time in the Soybean, Credit, and Balance datasets, thereby offering greater practical value. The association rules reveal that students who carefully study course resources, actively submit assignments, and study online frequently contribute positively to their success in online learning. This paper holds significant implications for enhancing the effectiveness of learning in online education.

This paper first analyzes and researches the current practice status of digital transformation of Chinese agricultural production from production, credit, and management aspects. Then, it analyzes the measurement of agricultural production efficiency and the factors influencing agricultural production efficiency in the context of digital transformation by using DEA measurement tools. The impact of digitalization level enhancement on rural economic structure is also analyzed and explained from the perspective of technological progress bias through spatial econometric models. The results show that the level of digitalization promotes the development of agricultural modernization in terms of the change in the ranking of scores between 2014 and 2023. The correlation coefficients of the level of digital economy development, financial support for agriculture, and urbanization rate are 0.483, 1.163, and 0.764, which significantly promote the efficiency of agricultural production in China. There is a significant spatial dependence relationship between economic structure and digital transformation (P

At this stage, the information literacy of teachers and students is constantly improving, and the “digital campus” represented by artificial intelligence is landing in various regions and schools. This paper accurately constructs a college management and education innovation system based on artificial intelligence technology, including institutional mechanisms, a one-stop service platform, and an early warning mechanism. The early warning mechanism has an early warning model constructed. The construction of an academic early warning model for students is based on multivariate linear regression. A model for early warning of student activity safety was constructed using multiclassification logistic regression. The impact of fusing the two models was evaluated, as well as the impact of practical application. The ROC value of the first-level warning is 0.9533, and the ROC value of the second-level warning is 0.9428, and both values are close to 1, which verifies that the model can be practically applied. By analyzing the F1-score value through practical application, the average value of the F1-score throughout the semester was as high as 84.68%, and the number of warnings of the early warning model was higher than the number of feedback from teachers. It has been verified that the early warning model in this study can effectively and efficiently manage student activities and academic anomalies in colleges and universities.

In recent years, the development of artificial intelligence has led to the growing influence of new media on society. The creators of digital images no longer play the role of exporters of art and culture but gradually delegate power to the audience, who are no longer passive recipients of information but are more involved in the interactive experience of video works, better engaged in the background of artworks and the emotional exchange of art and culture that occurs with artworks. Dunhuang murals, as a representative of the excellent traditional Chinese culture, have formed a wide range of cultural expressions with the help of new media technologies with different characteristics, effectively attracting audiences to participate in dissemination activities such as knowledge learning, cultural experience, and artistic exchange of Dunhuang culture. This paper provides an overview of interactive perceptual video design methods, the impact of interactive perceptual design on the narrative line of the video, and the features of the interactive perceptual invention, such as immersion, immersion, and fun. Firstly, a comparative analysis of interactive perceptual image design cases is conducted to summarize the differences between interactive perceptual image design and traditional images and outline the advantages of the former. Finally, a complete augmented reality display work is formed through the organic combination of the interactive perceptual design in three dimensions: user experience, visual guidance, and content narrative. The results of this paper show that 80% of the 120 people believe that the interactive perceptual presentation has made Dunhuang murals more vivid and exciting; 91% believe that the production of Dunhuang murals with perceptual machine technology gives visitors an immersive experience; among them, it is found through the research that visitors are 85% satisfied with this design, which exceeds the expected guesses. This paper, as a new exploration of future cases of digital communication of cultural heritage based on enhanced interactive perception technology, also argues the feasibility and effectiveness of its design in terms of results and provides new ideas for the communication of traditional culture.

Objective To study the epidemiology of mold infections in China. Methods Based on the surveillance data of 19 hospitals participating in the China Hospital Invasive Fungal Surveillance Net from Jan 2019 to Jun 2022, the general information of patients and the epidemiological characteristics such as the proportion of different strains and clinical infection were analyzed by WHONET software. Results A total of 16 285 mold infection cases were included in the analysis, of which 49.3% were patients aged 61 and over, with the median age of 60 years old. The proportion of males was significantly higher than that of females (62.1% vs. 37.9%). The patients were mainly from the internal medicine, ICU and surgical wards. Most strains were isolated from lower respiratory tract, accounting for 81.7%, followed by pus and secretions (7.8%). In terms of species distribution, Aspergillus spp. accounted for the highest proportion (84.8%), with Penicillium spp., Fusarium spp., order Mucorales and Sedosporium spp. accounting for 5.1%, 3.0%, 1.3% and 0.4%, respectively. For species distribution among different mold infection, 88.7% of lower respiratory tract mold infections were caused by Aspergillus spp., and Aspergillus fumigatus(47.8%) was the most common species. Otomycosis was mainly caused by Aspergillus spp.(98.7%), of which Aspergillus terreus accounted for 39.7%, and ophthalmomycosis was mainly caused by Fusarium spp.(54.6%). Conclusions By the retrospective analysis of mold isolation from multicenter in China, we found that Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus terreus, and Fusarium spp. were the most common species causing pneumonomycosis, otomycosis, and ophthalmomycosis, respectively. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to the differences in species distribution among different mold infections in clinical empirical treatment of fungal infections.

The classification of surrounding rock stability of coal roadway has important theoretical and practical significance for the design, construction and management of on-site rock mass engineering.This paper selected seven key indexes that affect the surrounding rock stability of coal roadway, collected the samples through field cases collection, questionnaires and literature measurement, and established the surrounding rock stability classification database.By drawing on six machine learning methods, this study established the classification prediction models of surrounding rock stability of coal roadway accordingly.Through model calculation, it is concluded that the Neural Network and the improved Support Vector Machine model have higher prediction accuracy.The model is applied to the actual project of Huozhou mining area.Results show that the neural network and the improved support vector machine methods have high prediction accuracy and good reliability.

Abstract To achieve accurate contour tracking of robotic manipulators with system uncertainties, external disturbance and actuator faults, a cross-coupling contour adaptive nonsingular terminal sliding mode control (CCCANTSMC) is proposed. A nonsingular terminal sliding mode manifold is developed which eliminates the singularity completely. In order to avoid the demand of the prior knowledge of system uncertainties, external disturbance and actuator faults in practical applications, an adaptive tuning approach is proposed. The stability of the proposed control strategy is demonstrated by the finite-time stability theory. Then, the developed controller combines adaptive nonlinear terminal sliding mode control (ANTSMC) of joint trajectory tracking and proportion–differentiation control of end-effector contour tracking by introducing the coupling factor between multiple axes based on Jacobian. Moreover, a unified framework of cross-coupling contour compensation and reference position pre-compensation is built. Finally, numerical simulation and experimental results validate the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy.

It has been strongly suggested that selenium deficiency and T-2 toxin contamination have a strong relationship with the occurrence and development of Kashin–Beck disease (KBD). In order to provide information for understanding the high prevalence of KBD in Tibet, this study collected the responses to a cubital venous blood and dietary questionnaire of 125 subjects including 75 KBD patients and 50 healthy controls in a KBD-prevalent county (Luolong County) in Tibet, China. A total of 10 household local families were randomly selected in this area, and local diet samples of brick tea, Zanba powder, milk residue, and hulless Barley were collected from these residents. Selenium content in blood was detected by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The T-2 toxin contamination level in food sample was assayed using an ELISA kit. The selenium levels of patients and controls were 42.0 ± 19.8 and 56.06 ± 22.4 μg/L, respectively. The serum selenium level in controls was higher than that in patients, but there was no significant difference, and the serum selenium level both in patients and controls in Tibet was lower than the normal range. The results of the dietary survey showed that the number of respondents who consumed butter tea was large; 46.67% of patients indicated that they drank buttered tea every day, which was significantly higher than in controls. The contents of T-2 toxin in Zanba powder, milk residue, hulless barley and drinking water samples were below the detection limit (0.05 μg/kg); this result was labeled Tr. Unexpectedly, the contents of T-2 toxin in brick tea were higher, with average levels of 424 ± 56 μg/kg in Detong village and 396 ± 24 μg/kg in Langcuo village. For the first time, we report the presence of an extremely high concentration of T-2 toxin in brick tea of Tibet.

Jun Wan,&ast; Jie Yang,&ast; Wenrui Lei, Zezhou Xiao, Pengyu Zhou, Shaoyi Zheng, Peng Zhu Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Shaoyi Zheng; Peng Zhu, Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-20-62786747, Email zhsy@smu.edu.cn; doctff@smu.edu.cnPurpose: Oxidative stress is one of the main pathogenic factors of atherosclerosis. However, no antioxidants have brought positive effects on the treatment of atherosclerosis. To selectively treat atherosclerosis, various means such as antioxidation, anti-apoptosis, and M2 polarization are used. The ultimate goal is that multiple regulatory pathways can help to treat atherosclerosis.Patients and Methods: In this study, Simvastatin (SIM) as a model drug, EGCG as an antioxidant agent, and distearyl phosphatidylcholine (DSPC) as major carriers were used to make liposome nanoparticles (SE-LNPs). The cytotoxicity, phagocytosis, antioxidant, and anti-apoptotic properties of nanoparticles were tested in vitro. ApoE−/− atherosclerotic mice were treated with nanoparticles. The changes of aortic Oil red staining, blood lipid, HE, and Masson sections of the aortic root were observed.Results: SE-LNPs exhibited a sustained release profile, potentially enabling the accumulation of the majority amount of drugs at the atherosclerotic plaque. The phagocytosis effect was stronger in RAW. The anti-oxidative and anti-apoptotic effects of the formulation were verified in vitro. SE-LNPs promoted the polarization of M2 macrophages. The therapeutic effect of SE-LNPs was assessed in the ApoE−/− mice model of atherosclerosis. SE-LNPs reduced reactive oxygen species and lipids in vivo. The results of Oil red staining, blood lipid, HE, and Masson sections of the aortic root showed the recovery of the focus.Conclusion: Studies have shown that SE-LNPs could resist oxidation, and apoptosis, promote M2 polarization, and reduce blood lipids and lesions, which is a reliable and selective treatment for atherosclerosis.Graphical Abstract: Keywords: scavenging ROS, reduce apoptosis, macrophage polarization, inhibit inflammation

Li Chen,1,&ast; Qin Chen,2 Xueping Chen,3,4 Pengli Zhu,5 Meinan Chen,6 Wei Wang,7,8 Shandong Ye,7,8 Mao Zheng7,8,&ast; 1Department of Endocrinology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University (The First People’s Hospital of Hefei City), Hefei, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Pharmacy, Taihe County People’s Hospital, Taihe, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Pharmacy, Hefei Fourth People’s Hospital, Hefei, People’s Republic of China; 4Psychopharmacology Research Laboratory, Anhui Mental Health Center and Department of Pharmacy, Affiliated Psychological Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, People’s Republic of China; 6Ethics Committee on Medical Research, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, People’s Republic of China; 7Department of Endocrinology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, People’s Republic of China; 8Laboratory of Diabetes, Department of Endocrinology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Shandong Ye; Mao Zheng, Department of Endocrinology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, 230001, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 189 6378 9135 ; +86 13215603125, Fax +86 0551-62283524, Email ysd196406@163.com; zhengmao1999@foxmail.comPurpose: Given the importance of metformin, reasonable utilization is essential. We designed a cross-sectional survey on physicians’ attitude and clinical application of metformin in Anhui Province, China.Methods: The survey was distributed via an electronic questionnaire among endocrinologists and general practitioners. Seven representative questions were used to evaluate professional levels.Results: Among the 477 valid responses, 72.75% of the respondents preferred to prescribe metformin extended-release, while only 34.38% of them would prescribe metformin extended-release at the correct frequency. More than half of the respondents thought that estimated glomerular filtration rate ˂ 45 mL/min/1.73 m² should be the contraindication of metformin prescription. Less than 10% of the physicians selected correct responses for two questions regarding metformin usage and contrast agent. Physicians with higher levels of hospital grades, education background and professional titles as well as working in general hospitals and in the Department of Endocrinology achieved high scores (P˂0.05). Logistic regression showed that department was an independent predictor for high scores.Conclusion: Physicians, especially non-endocrinologists, are not at a professional level for prescribing metformin. Physicians should be highly vigilant in terms of standardized prescription for metformin. The guidelines or consensuses about diabetes care for physicians should be promoted.Keywords: metformin, professional knowledge, clinical application, diabetes mellitus, physicians

Objective(s): To determine the protective effect of Apelin-13 on cardiac hypertrophy through activating the PI3K-AKT-mTOR signaling pathway.Materials and Methods: The phenylephrine-induced cardiomyocyte hypertrophy model was established in H9C2 cells in vitro. Electroporation transfection technology was utilized to prepare and screen the H9C2 cells inducing low expression of the angiotensin type one receptor-related protein (Si-APJ). H9C2 and Si-APJ cells were divided independently into five groups: the control group, the PE group, the PE+Apelin group, the PE+Rapa group, and the PE+Apelin+Rapa group. RT-PCR was performed to analyze the mRNA expression levels of myosin heavy chain 7 (MYH7). Expression of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway proteins and MYH7 was investigated by western blot.Results: The expression of PI3K/AKT/mTOR phosphorylated proteins was significantly higher in the PE group compared with the PE+Apelin group in H9C2 cells (P0.05).Conclusion: Apelin-13 reduces PE-induced cardiac hypertrophy by activating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.

Objective To investigate the current quality of life of patients with radiotherapy and chemotherapy for lung cancer under the normalization of COVID-19 prevention, and to explore the influence factors of the quality of life in patients with radiotherapy or chemotherapy for lung cancer. Methods General information questionnaire, the Brief Fatigue Inventory(BFI), Self-Rating Anxiety Scale(SAS), Self-rating depression scale(SDS)and European organization for the research and treatment of cancer quality of life questionnaire-C30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) were used to investigate 134 patients with radiotherapy or chemotherapy for lung cancer from Jiangsu Cancer Hospital by convenience sampling method. Multiple linear regression was used to analyze the influencing factors of quality of life. Results The total quality of life in 134 patients with lung cancer was (72. 33±11. 13); Univariate analysis showed that treatment delay (t=5. 355, P

Visible and infrared image fusion (VIF) aims at remodeling an informative and panoramic image for subsequent image processing or human vision. Due to the widespread application in military and civil fields, the VIF technology has achieved considerable development in recent decades. However, the assignment of weights and the selection of fusion rules seriously restrict the performance improvement of most existing fusion algorithms. In response to this issue, an innovative and efficient VIF model based on convolutional neural network (CNN) is proposed in this paper. Firstly, multi-layer convolution kernel is performed on two source images with a multi-scale manner for extracting the salient image features. Secondly, the extracted feature maps are concatenated along the number of channels. Finally, the fusion feature maps are reconstructed to achieve the fusion images. The main innovation of this paper is to adequately preserve meaningful details and adaptively integrate features information driven by source image information in CNN learning model. In addition, in order to adequately train the network model, we generate a large-scale and high-resolution image training dataset based on COCO dataset. Compared with the existing fusion methods, experiment results indicate that the proposed method not only achieves universally outstanding visual quality and objective metrics but also has some advantages in terms of runtime efficiency compared to other neural network algorithms.

Yuan Cao,1– 3 Yulin Li,1– 3 Wenqiang Han,1– 3 Xu Jia,1– 3 Ping Zhu,1– 3 Bin Wei,4 Xiaoyan Cong,5,6 Zhihao Wang7,8 1Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Function Research, Chinese Ministry of Education, Chinese National Health Commission and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Jinan, People’s Republic of China; 2State and Shandong Province Joint Key Laboratory of Translational Cardiovascular Medicine, Jinan, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Cardiology, Qilu Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, People’s Republic of China; 4Shandong Asia-Pacific Highvarve Organisms Science and Technology Co, Ltd, Jinan, People’s Republic of China; 5Institute of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Shandong Key Laboratory of Animal Disease Control and Breeding, Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Jinan, People’s Republic of China; 6Jinan Kuoda Biotechnology Co, Ltd, Jinan, People’s Republic of China; 7Department of Geriatric Medicine, Qilu Hospital, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, People’s Republic of China; 8Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Proteomics of Shandong Province, Qilu Hospital, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xiaoyan Cong; Zhihao Wang, Email xycong@163.com; wangzhihaosdu@126.comPurpose: Sarcopenia has been described as a new complication of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). T2DM and sarcopenia impact each other, resulting in a variety of adverse outcomes such as frailty, disability, poor quality of life and increased mortality. Sodium butyrate (NaB) is reported to play a protective role against T2DM. The present study aimed to investigate whether NaB could ameliorate T2DM-related sarcopenia and the underlying mechanisms.Materials and Methods: The male db/db mice at 7-weeks were used as T2DM-related sarcopenia animal model with C57BL/6J mice as control. Mice were grouped according to whether they received NaB orally as follows: C57BL/6J+water group, C57BL/6J+NaB group, db/db+water group, and db/db+NaB group. Then, db/db mice receiving NaB orally were administered with inhibitors of group 2 innate lymphocytes (ILC2s), anti-CD90.2 by intraperitoneal injection divided into db/db+NaB+PBS group and db/db+NaB+anti-CD90.2 group. NaB dissolved in water at 150 mM. The skeletal muscle mass was measured by dural X-ray (DXA) test. ILC2s in spleen and skeletal muscle were evaluated by flow cytometry. The expressions of IL-33, IL-13, STAT3, P-STAT3, GATA-3 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1 alpha (PGC-1α) were assessed by ELISA or WB. The morphology of skeletal muscle fibers was assessed by immunofluorescence staining.Results: The proportion of ILC2s and the expressions of ILC2s markers IL-13 and GATA-3 were all significantly decreased in db/db mice, and these changes were improved by NaB. NaB increased the proportion of slow-twitch fibers in gastrocnemius, thus partially reversing the reduced exercise capacity of db/db mice. The expression of slow-twitch fibers marker PGC-1α induced by NaB was increased via activation of ILC2s/IL-13/STAT3 pathway. On the other way, IL-33 was not necessary for the activation of ILC2s/IL-13/STAT3 pathway. After depletion of ILC2s by anti-CD90.2, the ameliorating effect of NaB on T2DM-related sarcopenia was partially antagonized.Conclusion: These results indicated that NaB could ameliorate type 2 diabetes-related sarcopenia by activating IL-33-independent ILC2s/IL-13/STAT3 signaling pathway.Keywords: diabetes mellitus, sarcopenia, ILC2s, sodium butyrate, IL-13

The worsening global environmental crisis highlights the urgency of integrating Environmental Education (EE) throughout the curriculum including in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) curricula. However, challenges exist, such as the development of appropriate curriculum documents and educators' understanding of approaches to EE. This study looked at Indonesian EFL textbooks for elementary schools, focusing mainly on the images and how they can portray environmental themes. These images and some brief texts that accompany the images were examined using tools from ecolinguistics literature, including Stibbe's (2021) nine stories and the United Nations' EE objectives (UNESCO-UNEP, 1975). This study intends to fill a gap in the EE literature by analyzing images in elementary school textbooks in the specific context of Indonesia, generalizing the idea of EE to other contexts. Findings revealed that while some EE efforts were evident, the majority of the material leaned towards an anthropocentric (human centered) perspective, indicating a need for greater incorporation of insights from ecolinguistics to enhance the content. Moreover, in terms of EE objectives, the textbooks provided ecological knowledge but lacked emphasis on developing skills and encouraging student participation in solving environmental problems. Examples demonstrating the ability to evaluate and address environmental issues were also absent. Suggestions are made for future EE content in EFL materials.

During attempts to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic in China, higher education programs shifted their traditional educational models to online models. This paper aimed to explore how Chinese universities organized online teaching and learning during the pandemic. It investigated the factors affecting the implementation of online teaching and provided policy recommendations for improving the quality of education in the post-pandemic period. The primary data for this study came from in-depth interviews with nine students and five teaching and administrative staff at eight major universities in mainland China. Literature was obtained in both English and Chinese from January 2020 to September 2021. Peer-reviewed journals, policy reports, and university documents regarding online education in Chinese universities were reviewed, and their challenges and countermeasures were investigated. The paper found that the implementation of online education was affected by various sources, including technologies, teachers' teaching skills, network information literacy, and students' learning motivations and self-directed learning skills. Based on the insiders' views, the paper suggested that to promote the quality of online education in the post-COVID-19 pandemic, higher education institutes and programs could develop their infrastructure construction, improve teachers' quality of teaching, and focus on students' learning motivations.

随着物联网(IoT)行业的快速发展, 无线传感器网络(WSN)融合云计算技术面临着任务处理时延高、传感器节点能量有限的挑战。因此, 提出了一种基于云雾网络架构的路径计算方法, 利用雾计算层的网络边缘设备计算资源, 将WSN监测任务合理地部署到指定边缘设备上完成处理, 以减少能耗制约下的任务处理时延。为了将任务有效地分配到雾计算层, 采用了一种任务映射规则, 将有向无环图表示的监测任务映射到无向图表示的雾计算层网络; 结合时延和能耗约束建立了一个关于寻求最优映射关系的二值优化问题; 采用模拟退火-离散二值粒子群优化(SA-BPSO)算法实现了对该优化问题的求解。仿真结果显示, 在数据量为10 Mb时, 该方法的时延性能相比较WSN融合云计算技术提高了约40%。

ObjectiveTo explore the sensory processing characteristics of preschool children with autism spectrum disorder （ASD）， and to provide a theoretical basis for early screening and intervention training of ASD.MethodsA total of 215 preschool children with ASD and 170 typically developed （TD） children were investigated with a basic situation questionnaire and sensory processing measure （SPM）. The two groups were stratified according to age and gender， and the differences of scores in sensory domains were compared to analyze the sensory processing characteristics of preschool children with ASD.ResultsThe scores of social participation， vision， hearing， touch， taste and smell， body awareness， balance and motion， planning and ideas， and total sensory system in children with ASD were all higher than those in children with TD （all P0.05）. Boys and girls with ASD had higher scores in all developmental quotients than TD children （P0.05）.ConclusionSensory processing abnormalities are common in preschool children with ASD， which are different from those of TD children in multiple sensory domains. Sensory processing abnormalities may be used as an indicator for early screening of ASD， and it is necessary to conduct corresponding intervention training for sensory processing abnormalities in children with ASD.

Mold on the phosphogypsum wallboard seriously hinders the resource utilization of phosphogypsum, and incorporating inorganic antibacterial materials can effectively inhibit mold growth. In this study, Escherichia coli and wallboard mold were used as experimental strains, and the antibacterial activity of antibacterial material-modified calcined gypsum from phosphogypsum (CPG) was determined using the inhibition zone method and mold surface growth area analysis. Characterization techniques such as XRF, XRD, and SEM were used to study the phase composition and microstructure of the samples, and an antibacterial model was constructed to explore the antibacterial mechanism. The results indicated that using E. coli as an indicator bacterium, ZnO-0.05TiO _2 -CPG exhibited the best bactericidal effect, while ZnO-CPG exhibited the best bacteriostatic effect. Against mold, ZnO contents of 2.5% or 5% demonstrated strong antibacterial properties, with compressive strengths of 10.1 MPa and 9.95 MPa, respectively, meeting the requirements of ≥3.50 MPa for compressive strength according to the ‘Lightweight Partition Plates for Building’ standard (GB/T 23451 2009). The superior antibacterial performance of ZnO compared to TiO _2 is attributed to the slow release of Zn ^2+ , which disrupts cell membranes and the generated reactive oxygen species inhibit cell growth.

The selection of mobile phase is significant for the separation result of HPLC, for it may have influence on the quantitative analysis. During HPLC analysis, engineers usually use (water-acetonitrile) mobile phase system to separate aldehydes and ketones, however, the existence of acetone will affect the separation effect of other substances. The paper researches one new (water-acetonitrile-tetrahydrofuran) mobile phase system to separate aldehydes and ketones. By analyzing the standard curves and test results of unknown samples, the new mobile phase can meet the analyzing needs, also it can eliminate the influence of acetone in the analysis process. What’s more, the paper uses molecular simulation[1–3] (MS) to calculate the interactions between the mobile phase and the aldehydes and ketones, mean square displacement value (MSD) and radial distribution function value (RDF), and the separation phenomenon can be well explained. In this paper, MS technology is first proposed for the development of new mobile phase, which can predict new unknown mobile phase, improve the efficiency of method development, also it can benefit the accurate qualitative analysis and prediction of peak out behavior of unknown substances.

The operational strategy of the district cooling system (DCS) with an ice storage system must be carefully optimized for many objectives to achieve optimal operation. However, owing to the fact that the variables of DCS are in different orders of magnitude and there is a vast gap between the variables, it is not easy to perform arithmetic. In this paper, the DCS model based on the per-unit value form is formulated to develop a many-objectives operational strategy that is solved by the linear weighting method. And a multiple-attribute decision-making method is taken to get the optimal operating strategy. The simulation results are discussed for an existing cooling system with 619-node and 614-branch to illustrate that the model based on the per-unit value form can obtain satisfactory optimization results and a significant reduction in time consumption.

This study investigates the effectiveness of fusion-based appreciative curriculum moral education through non-experimental research methods involving college students from Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and mainland China who took the Ethics and Life course. The findings indicate that: (1) moral education based on integrated appreciation significantly enhances students’ moral cognition and demonstrates a positive but nonsignificant impact on moral behaviour. (2) Both classroom reflection and course papers reveal that integrative appreciation-based moral education promotes moral cognition and fosters value cultivation. (3) Gender can influence the effectiveness of curriculum moral education, warranting attention to the active utilization of this subgroup characteristic in practice. (4) College students’ moral cognition and behaviour are not significantly correlated with their academic performance.

BackgroundTwo X-ray diffractometers manufactured by HUBER company are installed at BL02U2 beamline of Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility (SSRF).PurposeThis study aims to develop a new grazing incidence diffractometer installed between the two HUBER diffractometers to further satisfy the needs of users for grazing incidence diffraction experimental methods.MethodsThe overall scheme of the grazing incidence diffractometer was introduced, followed by detail discussion on several important modules such as high-precision, high-load and large-stroke linear stage, three-dimensional adjustment platform for a detector, sample stage system, and the control system. A compatible operation of the three diffractometers was realized, and the MoS2 sample was taken as an example to obtain a typical experimental result of the grazing incidence diffractometer.ResultsThe grazing incidence X-ray diffractometer has been in operation for more than two years. The X-ray energy range of the diffractometer is 4.8~28 keV. The temporal resolution of the detector is 50 ms, and the maximum detection angle is 52°. Experimental results of MoS2 sample shown that the nanosheets are more likely to accumulate on the surface of silicon wafers along the (001) crystal plane.ConclusionsThe grazing incidence X-ray diffractometer developed in this study improves the experimental conditions for grazing incidence diffraction and expands the experimental platform for material surface science research at SSRF.

The therapeutic interventions of human hypertrophic scars (HHS) remain puzzle largely due to the lack of accepted models. Current HHS models are limited by their inability to mimic native scar architecture and associated pathological microenvironments. Here, we create a 3D functional HHS model by preformed cellular aggregates (PCA) bioprinting, firstly developing bioink from scar decellularized extracellular matrix (ECM) and alginate-gelatin (Alg-Gel) hydrogel with suitable physical properties to mimic the microenvironmental factors, then pre-culturing patient-derived fibroblasts in this bioink to preform the topographic cellular aggregates for sequent printing. We confirm the cell aggregates preformed in bioink displayed well defined aligned structure and formed functional scar tissue self-organization after bioprinting, hence showing the potential of creating HHS models. Notably, these HHS models exhibit characteristics of early-stage HHS in gene and protein expression, which significantly activated signaling pathway related to inflammation and cell proliferation, and recapitulate in vivo tissue dynamics of scar forming. We also use the in vitro and in vivo models to define the clinically observed effects to treatment with concurrent anti-scarring drugs, and the data show that it can be used to evaluate the potential therapeutic target for drug testing. The ideal humanized scar models we present should prove useful for studying critical mechanisms underlying HHS and to rapidly test new drug targets and develop patient-specific optimal therapeutic strategies in the future.

Guilan Cheng,1,&ast; Dingxi Wang,1,&ast; Ping Zhu,2 Ziqi Lin,2 Shichao Zhu,3 Juan Li,1 Linqian Li,1 Yipeng Zhang,4 Guixiang Li1 1Department of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University/West China School of Nursing, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Infection Control, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Information Centre, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Guixiang Li, Department of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University/West China School of Nursing, Sichuan University, No. 37 Wainan Guoxue Alley, Chengdu, 610041, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 18980601726, Email liguixiang@wchscu.cnBackground: There are few published reports describing the clinical characteristics of acute pancreatitis (AP) patients with multidrug-resistant organism (MDRO) infection.Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of AP patients with MDRO infection in West China Hospital between July 2015 and June 2020. Basic clinical data, disease progression states, and prognoses of the MDRO and non-MDRO infection groups were compared and analyzed. Logistic regression analysis was performed to explore the related risk factors for MDRO infection. The prognoses of different MDRO infection types were compared.Results: In total, 9812 AP patients were included, 2436 (24.83%) of whom had healthcare-associated infections (641 [26.31%] MDRO infections and 1795 [73.69%] non-MDRO infections). The main MDRO strain was carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) (400/62.40%). The rate of discharge against doctor’s advice, mortality, hospitalization expenses, and hospitalization days was higher in the MDRO infection group than in the noninfection group. By logistic regression analysis, the independent risk factors associated with MDRO infection included male sex (OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.09∼ 1.70), severity (OR 1.40, 95% CI 1.10∼ 1.78), ICU referral (OR 2.48, 95% CI 1.79∼ 3.44), abdominal puncture (OR 2.78, 95% CI 1.93∼ 4.02), fiberoptic bronchoscopy (OR 1.95, CI 1.35∼ 2.81), and PICC/CVC placement (OR 1.48, CI 1.06∼ 2.06). Compared with biliary and hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) (OR 0.94, 95% CI 0.73∼ 1.23), alcohol (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.19∼ 0.47) and other etiologies (OR 0.58, 95% CI 0.41∼ 0.81) conferred a lower risk of MDRO infection. The carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) infection rate was highest in the patients who died.Conclusion: The CRAB proportion was highest in AP patients with MDRO infection. MDRO infection is related to many factors, has a poor prognosis, and increases the patient burden. CRKP infection is directly related to poor prognosis.Keywords: acute pancreatitis, multidrug-resistant organisms, infection

Ying Zhang,1,&ast; Lingbo Wang,1,&ast; Liqiong Chen,2 Peiwu Zhu,1 Na Huang,1 Tao Chen,1 Lijiang Chen,1 Zhongyong Wang,1 Wenli Liao,1 Jianming Cao,2 Tieli Zhou1 1Department of Clinical Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Key Laboratory of Clinical Laboratory Diagnosis and Translational Research of Zhejiang Province, Wenzhou, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Medical Laboratory Science, School of Laboratory Medicine and Life Science, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Tieli Zhou, Department of Clinical Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Key Laboratory of Clinical Laboratory Diagnosis and Translational Research of Zhejiang Province, Wenzhou, 325035, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-577-8668-9885, Email wyztli@163.com Jianming Cao, Department of Medical Laboratory Science, School of Laboratory Medicine and Life Science, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325035, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-577-88069595, Email wzcjming@163.comIntroduction: Globally, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) is emerging as a predominant nosocomial pathogen that often induces aggressive and even deadly infections. Pseudomonas type III repressor A (PtrA) can be activated specifically by copper ions and interacts with type-III transcriptional activator ExsA. This study aims to provide insight into the PtrA-mediated regulation of the pathogenicity and antibiotics resistance of PA.Methods and Results: The results of transcriptome sequencing analyses and real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) showed that PtrA plays a dual regulatory role in the virulence systems of PA: negatively regulates the type-III secretion system (T3SS) and positively regulates the quorum-sensing system (QS). The ptrA mutant attenuated extracellular virulence related to QS like pyocyanin, elastase, rhamnolipids, proteolytic activity, and biofilm production. According to adhesion and invasion experiments, PtrA can not only contribute to the adhesiveness but also the invasive of PA. Moreover, the PtrA-mediated regulation of PA pathogenicity was determined both in vivo and in vitro through cytotoxicity and Galleria mellonella survival experiments. In addition, apart from virulence, PtrA was found to influence the carbapenems resistance of PA. After deleting ptrA, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of carbapenems antibiotics was decreased by 2-fold, while a 2– 8 fold increase was noted for the complemented strain.Conclusion: Our findings establish that PtrA exerts a regulatory role in both pathogenicity and carbapenems resistance of PA. This work may shed light on a novel target for the clinical treatment of PA.Keywords: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, PtrA, T3SS, Quorum-sensing, pathogenicity, carbapenems resistance

Abstract Doxorubicin (DOX) is an effective chemotherapy drug, but its clinical use has adverse effects on male reproduction. However, there are few studies about the specific biological processes related to male reproduction or strategies for improving fertility protection. In this paper, we examined the effects of DOX on spermatogenesis and sperm function, and tested the possible protective role of melatonin (MLT) against DOX’s reproductive toxicity. DOX-treated mice showed signs of significantly impaired spermatogenesis, including vacuolated epithelial cells, decreased testis weights, and lowered sperm counts and motility. DOX also reduced germ cell proliferation (PCNA) and meiosis-related proteins (SYCP3), but this effect could be partially improved with MLT administration. HSPA2 expression was maintained, which indicated that although MLT did not improve sperm motility, it did have a significant protective effect on elongated sperm. IVF results showed that MLT could partially promote two-cell and blastocyte development that was restricted by DOX. MLT reversed DOX-driven changes in the testes, including the antioxidant indices of SOD1, CAT and PRDX6, and the apoptotic indices of BAX and Caspase3. These results suggest that MLT effectively prevents DOX-induced early reproductive toxicity, and increase our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying DOX’s effects on male reproduction and the protective mechanism of MLT.

Siyang Lin,1,2,&ast; Fang Wang,2– 4,&ast; Jiaxin Zheng,1,2 Yin Yuan,1,2,5,6 Feng Huang,1,2,5,6 Pengli Zhu1,2,5,6 1Shengli Clinical Medical College of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Geriatric Medicine, Fujian Provincial Hospital, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China; 3Fujian Health College, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China; 4Nursing School of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China; 5Fujian Provincial Center for Geriatrics, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China; 6Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Geriatrics, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Feng Huang; Pengli Zhu, Shengli Clinical Medical College of Fujian Medical University, No. 134 Dongjie Road, Gulou District, Fuzhou, 350001, Fujian, People’s Republic of China, Tel/Fax +86-591-88216023, Email wmhf0327@126.com; zpl7755@hotmail.comPurpose: Intrinsic capacity (IC) reflects the overall health status of older adults and has great public health significance. But few studies described the related biomarkers for IC. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between homocysteine (Hcy) and IC in older adults.Participants and Methods: This cross-sectional study included 1927 community-dwelling Chinese older adults aged 60– 98 years from May 2020 to December 2020. Data were collected through interviews, physical examinations, and laboratory tests. IC involved five domains of cognition, locomotion, sensory, vitality, and psychology evaluated by the Mini-cog scale, 4-m walk test, self-reported visual and hearing conditions, MNA-SF scale, and GDS-4 scale, respectively. The score of each domain dichotomized as 0 (normal) and 1 (impaired) was added together to an IC total score. Low IC was defined as a score of 3– 5, and high IC as 0– 2. Hcy was measured by a two-reagent enzymatic assay. A restricted cubic spline regression model was used to explore the non-linear relationship between Hcy and low IC.Results: Hcy was higher in the low IC group than in the high IC group. Restricted cubic spline analysis revealed a J-shaped nonlinear association between Hcy and low IC. The risk of IC decline was slowly decreased until 8.53 μmol/L of Hcy (OR=0.753, 95% CI=0.520– 1.091, P=0.132), and increased with elevations of per 5 μmol/L Hcy afterwards (OR=1.176, 95% CI=1.059– 1.327, P=0.005). Among the five domains of IC, Hcy had ORs of 1.116 (1.009– 1.247) for cognition impairment, 1.167 (1.055– 1.305) for vitality, and 1.160 (1.034– 1.303) for psychology per 5 μmol/L increase in Hcy above the change point. Additional sensitivity analysis also demonstrated the nonlinear association between Hcy and low IC.Conclusion: Hcy had a J-shaped association with low IC. Higher Hcy (Hcy ≥ 8.53μmol/L) might provide clinical implications for early identifying the risk of low IC.Keywords: homocysteine, intrinsic capacity, older adults, frailty