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The article offers information on exploring generative artificial intelligence (AI), specifically ChatGPT, and its potential applications in information literacy instruction. Topics include the impact of generative AI on teaching and learning, the development and features of generative AI technologies like ChatGPT, and the need for thoughtful integration of AI in education.

Susan Greenhalgh's chapter explores how scientists with top political capital lobby the party-state and multinational corporations to set up an ILSI-China (International Life Sciences Institute). Can Science and Technology Save China? : edited by Susan Greenhalgh and Li Zhang, Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2020, 226 pp., hardcover $125.00, ISBN 9781501747021, paperback $26.95, ISBN 9781501747038, ebook $17.99, LCCN 2019018070. [Extracted from the article]

Reconstruction of injured bone remains challenging in the clinic owing to the lack of suitable bone grafts. The utilization of PAI‐1 transfected‐conditioned media (P‐CM) has demonstrated its ability to facilitate the differentiation process of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), potentially serving as a crucial mediator in tissue regeneration. This research endeavored to explore the therapeutic potential of P‐CM concerning the differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs). To assess new bone formation, a rat calvaria critical defect model was employed, while in vitro experiments involved the use of the alizarin Red‐S mineral induction test. In the rat calvaria critical defect model, P‐CM treatment resulted in significan new bone formation. In vitro, P‐CM treated hBMSCs displayed robust osteogenesis compared to the control group, as demonstrated by the mineral induction test using alizarin Red‐S. P‐CM with hydroxyapatite/β‐tricalcium phosphate/fibrin gel treatment significantly exhibited new bone formation, and the expression of osteogenic associated markers was enhanced in the P‐CM‐treated group. In conclusion, results demonstrate that P‐CM treatment significantly enhanced the osteogenic differantiation efficiency and new bone formation, thus could be used as an ideal therapeutic biomolecule for constructing bone‐specific implants, especially for orthopedic and dental applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new 3D Terbium (III) metal-organic framework has been solvothermally synthesized by using terbium ion as the metal center and 1,1′,1′′-(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl-1,3,5-tri) trimethyl tritrium (4-carboxylpyridyl) tribromide (H3LBr3) as ligand. The molecular formula is [Tb(H3LBr3) (OH)2](NO3)●(DMAC)3. Compound crystallizes in the triclinic system, space group P−1, with a=9.5747(8), b=12.8667(10), c=18.9440(14)Å, α=107.619(2)∘, β=99.057(2)∘, γ=97.615(3)∘, V=2156.0(3)Å3, Z=2, Mr=1041.85, Dc=1.605g/cm3, μ=1.717mm−1, F(000)=1068, R=0.0583 and wR=0.1262 for 7586 observed reflections (I>2σ (I)). Meanwhile, the fluorescence property was also studied. The result shows that the synthesized Tb-MOF displays highly selective sensing of acetone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a severe global public health emergency that has caused a major crisis in the safety of human life, health, global economy, and social order. Moreover, COVID-19 poses significant challenges to healthcare systems worldwide. The prediction and early warning of infectious diseases on a global scale are the premise and basis for countries to jointly fight epidemics. However, because of the complexity of epidemics, predicting infectious diseases on a global scale faces significant challenges. In this study, we developed the second version of Global Prediction System for Epidemiological Pandemic (GPEP-2), which combines statistical methods with a modified epidemiological model. The GPEP-2 introduces various parameterization schemes for both impacts of natural factors (seasonal variations in weather and environmental impacts) and human social behaviors (government control and isolation, personnel gathered, indoor propagation, virus mutation, and vaccination). The GPEP-2 successfully predicted the COVID-19 pandemic in over 180 countries with an average accuracy rate of 82.7%. It also provided prediction and decision-making bases for several regional-scale COVID-19 pandemic outbreaks in China, with an average accuracy rate of 89.3%. Results showed that both anthropogenic and natural factors can affect virus spread and control measures in the early stages of an epidemic can effectively control the spread. The predicted results could serve as a reference for public health planning and policymaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the one hand, China's containment of the virus has been viewed - both within China and without - as a success story in contrast to bungled responses in many Western democracies. Meanwhile, there is widespread frustration, resentment, and anger in China at the coercive public health methods employed by the party-state. Can Science and Technology Save China?. [Extracted from the article]

INTRODUCTION Macrophages play an important role in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Cigarette smoke (CS) impairs autophagy in alveolar macrophages from COPD patients, and autophagic impairment leads to reduced clearance of protein aggregates, dysfunctional mitochondria, and defective bacterial delivery to lysosomes. However, the exact function of lung macrophage autophagy in the pathogenesis of CS-induced COPD remains largely unknown. METHODS Western blot detected the expression of autophagy-related proteins induced by CSE. The model of COPD mice was established by CS exposure combined with CSE intraperitoneal injection. Double immunofluorescence was used to measure the CD206+LC3B+ cells. The morphological changes and effects on lung function were observed. Masson staining detected the changes in collagen fibers in lung tissue. The expression levels of E-cadherinb and N-cadherinb were detected by immunohistochemistry. Western blot detected the expression of ATP6V1E1 in lung tissue. RESULTS At 24 hours of exposure to CSE, the expression levels of LC3B (microtubuleassociated protein 1A/1B-light chain 3B) and P62 (nucleoporin 62) were highest at 1% CSE and AGT5 (nucleoporin 62) at 2.5% CSE; at 48 hours, the expression levels of LC3B, P62 and AGT5 were highest at 2.5% CSE, and as the intervention time increased. CD206+LC3B+ cells were significantly higher in the COPD group. Enhanced macrophage autophagy may promote emphysema formation and aggravate lung function damage. The expression of E-cadherinb in lung tissue of the COPD group was decreased, and N-cadherinb expression was increased; the expression of E-cadherinb was increased, and N-cadherinb expression was decreased in ATG5myeΔ COPD mice. The expression of ATP6V1E1 in the lung tissue was increased in the COPD group; ATP6V1E1 expression was decreased in the lung tissues of ATG5myeΔ COPD mice. CONCLUSIONS CSE enhanced macrophage autophagy, leads to increased lung function impairment and collagenous fiber in lung tissue, as well as promotes epithelialmesenchymal transition, and eventually leads to small airway remodeling, which may be achieved through the ATG5/ATP6V1E1 pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C21H27NO4, triclinic, P 1 ‾ (no. 2), a = 7.5904(17) Å, b = 10.394(2) Å, c = 12.651(3) Å, α = 73.270(4)°, β = 85.888(4)°, γ = 86.078(4)°, V = 952.2(4) Å3, Z = 2, Rgt(F) = 0.0469, wRref(F2) = 0.1545, T = 296(2) K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dissolution and diffusion of CO2 in oil and water and its displacement mechanism were investigated by laboratory experiment and numerical simulation for Block 9 in the Tahe oilfield, a sandstone oil reservoir with strong bottom-water drive in Tarim Basin, Northwest China. Such parameters were analyzed as solubility ratio of CO2 in oil, gas and water, interfacial tension, in-situ oil viscosity distribution, remaining oil saturation distribution, and oil compositions. The results show that CO2 flooding could control water coning and increase oil production. In the early stage of the injection process, CO2 expanded vertically due to gravity differentiation, and extended laterally under the action of strong bottom water in the intermediate and late stages. The CO2 got enriched and extended at the oil-water interface, forming a high interfacial tension zone, which inhibited the coning of bottom water to some extent. A miscible region with low interfacial tension formed at the gas injection front, which reduced the in-situ oil viscosity by about 50%. The numerical simulation results show that enhanced oil recovery (EOR) is estimated at 5.72% and the oil exchange ratio of CO2 is 0.17 t/t. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the two-stage innovation value chain model, incorporating environmental regulation policies and three-waste emissions into the research framework, constructing a green technology innovation efficiency evaluation index system from the perspectives of green inputs and outputs, and utilizing the super-efficiency SBM model and the Malmquist-Luenberger index model, assessing the effectiveness of green technological innovation in two aspects, namely, static, and dynamic, respectively. The results show that: the average value of green technical innovation efficiency of China's hightech industries is 0.5277, with significant differences between provinces, but the overall is constantly improving, showing an upward trend; the green technological innovation efficiency decreases from east to west, and the differences among the three major regions are not only embodied in spatial patterns, but also in the growth rate; during the period of investigation, the inefficient provinces are gradually decreasing, and the level of green technological innovation of China is constantly getting better; China's The average value of ML index of green technical innovation efficiency of high-tech industries in China is greater than 1, and the overall development trend is better; the increase of ML index in the eastern and central regions mainly relies on the positive influence of technological efficiency, while the decrease of ML index in the western part is affected by the recession of technological progress and technological efficiency, and the efficiency of technology research and development stage is generally higher than that of scientific and technical achievements transformation stage, and low efficiency of achievements transformation stage is mainly affected by the inhibiting effect of technological progress - inhibitory effect of technological advancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective • This systematic comparative analysis aimed to assess the efficacy of metformin (MET) versus insulin (INS) in the treatment of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), providing valuable insights for future GDM management strategies. Methods • We conducted a comprehensive search of clinical studies related to MET and INS interventions in GDM through online literature databases, applying predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The quality of the included studies was rigorously evaluated. Data on fasting plasma glucose (FPG), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), pregnancy weight gain (PWG), premature delivery rate (PDR), and neonatal outcomes among GDM patients were extracted and analyzed using Review Manager 5.3 software. Results • We identified eleven high-quality studies comprising 8679 participants following careful screening and assessment. Our meta-analysis revealed a significant reduction in the incidence of excessive PWG and neonatal hypoglycemia in the MET treatment group (research group) compared to the INS treatment group (control group) (P < .05). Conclusions • Our findings support the effectiveness and safety of MET in achieving optimal blood glucose control in GDM. These results suggest the potential for broader clinical adoption of MET in GDM management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Sellick maneuver is used for endotracheal intubation to prevent the occurrence of gastroesophageal reflux. The aim of the present study was to observe the effect of the Sellick maneuver on safety, esophageal closure status, gastric mucosal fold extension status, and positive detection rate of lesions in patients with esophageal hiatal hernia under painless gastroscopy. A total of 40 patients with esophageal hiatal hernia who underwent painless gastroscopy were screened for the use of the Sellick maneuver, in which the operator applied pressure to the cervical cricoid cartilage during the examination. The status of esophageal closure at the are pressed, examination time, gastric mucosal fold extension score, positive rate of lesion detection, and reflux of gastric juice or gastric contents, amongst other parameters were assessed. After using the Sellick maneuver, the state of esophageal closure during gastroscopy was significantly better than the no-Sellick maneuver group (P<0.05), and the extension scores of the greater curvature folds of the gastric body, the lateral folds of the lesser curvature of the gastric body, and the mucosal folds of the fundus were significantly higher than that of the no-Sellick maneuver (all P<0.05). The number of gastric polyps and gastric lesions (gastric ulcers and mucosal hyperplasia, amongst others) examined with the Sellick maneuver was significantly higher than the no-Sellick maneuver group (P<0.01). The Sellick maneuver effectively improved the extension of gastric mucosal folds during gastroscopy in patients with esophageal hiatal hernia, increased the positive detection rate of gastric lesions, and shortened the endoscopy time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C20H22N2O4, monoclinic, P21/n (no. 14), a = 11.4033(15) Å, b = 14.2998(16) Å, c = 11.6486(16) Å, β = 91.197(8)°, V = 1899.1(4) Å3, Z = 4, Rgt(F) = 0.0513, wRref(F2) = 0.1542, T = 296.2 K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background • Bone fractures are a significant cause of health impairment. However, observational studies have yielded inconsistent conclusions regarding the correlation between tea consumption and bone fractures. Objective • This meta-analysis aims to examine the influence of tea consumption on bone fractures by conducting a comprehensive search of databases such as PubMed, Embase, and others. Methods • The meta-analysis utilized STATA software and identified a total of 9 observational studies involving 147 950 participants. The pooled odds ratio (OR) and corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using a random effects model. Results •The pooled OR estimating the correlation between tea consumption and bone fractures, based on the data from the 9 observational studies, was 0.89 (95% CI, 0.78- 1.04). Subgroup analysis revealed no significant correlation between the two factors in either cohort studies (n = 3; OR=0.97; 95% CI, 0.89-1.06) or case-control studies (n=6; OR=0.91; 95% CI, 0.70-1.19). The dose-response analysis did not find a significant linear correlation (P=.983). Conclusions • The findings indicate that tea consumption does not exhibit a significant association with the risk of bone fractures. However, further studies with larger sample sizes are warranted to confirm this conclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urothelial carcinoma with squamous differentiation (UCS) is a common variant of bladder cancer for which treatment outcomes with novel agents are largely unknown. In this retrospective analysis comparing 40 patients with UCS and 120 patients with pure UC, we found inferior outcomes for UCS patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors or Enfortumab vedotin. This highlights an important unmet clinical need that should be addressed with further studies. Introduction: Urothelial carcinoma with squamous differentiation (UCS) is associated with increased resistance to chemotherapy, but outcomes associated with newer therapies approved in this space over the last 5 to 10 years are less well defined. We investigated clinical outcomes and molecular profiling of patients with UCS treated with an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) and/or Enfortumab vedotin (EV). Patients and Methods: We undertook a retrospective analysis of UC patients treated with ICI and/or EV. Objective response rate (ORR), progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were compared between pure UC (pUC) and UCS using X 2 and log-rank tests, respectively. Prevalence of the most commonly detected somatic alterations were also compared between the 2 histologic subgroups. Results: A total of 160 patients (40 UCS, 120 pUC) were identified for this analysis. Among 151 patients treated with ICI (38 UCS, 113 pUC), UCS patients had a shorter mPFS (1.9 vs. 4.8 months, P < 0.01) and mOS (9.2 vs. 20.7 months, P < 0.01) compared to pUC. Among 37 patients treated with EV (12 UCS, 25 pUC), UCS patients had a lower ORR (17% vs. 70%, P < 0.01) and shorter mPFS (3.4 vs. 15.8 months, P < 0.01). UCS samples were enriched for CDKN2A, CDKN2B, PIK3CA, while pUC samples were enriched for ERBB2 alterations. Conclusion: In this single-center retrospective analysis, patients with UCS had a distinct somatic genomic profile relative to patients with pUC. Patients with UCS also had inferior outcomes to ICIs and EV compared to patients with pUC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the perspective of heritage tourism, this paper selected Dali Ancient City, one of the first group of national historic and cultural cities, located in Yunnan Province, China, as case study to analyze the motivation, satisfaction, and loyalty of tourists to national historic and cultural cities with concentrations of ethnic minorities. Through the questionnaire survey on the experience of tourists during their stay in Dali Ancient City, the study identified two motivations related to their visit: cultural motivation and multi-factor motivation, such as delicious food, enjoying holidays. By identifying and understanding the type, motivation, behavior, perception, and experience of tourists in national historic and cultural cities, it was hoped to provide reference for destination management and formulation of corresponding countermeasures. In addition, this study also discussed how tourist motivation analysis contributed to higher satisfaction and loyalty of tourists to a destination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the "throat" of the drilling well control system, ram blowout preventers (BOPs) can effectively prevent blowout accidents. However, the ram shear mechanism under complex working conditions is unclear, and it is difficult to evaluate the ram BOP shear force, leading to frequent shear failure accidents in oilfields. Aiming at the above problems, this paper takes the double-V ram BOP as the research object, and integrates the methods of theoretical analysis, simulation modeling, and test verification to analyze the shear force in the pipe shear process under both static and moving conditions. A ram BOP shear force evaluation method is proposed based on equivalent stress. Finally, by comparing with calculation data and experimental data, the error between them is less than 5%, demonstrating the applicability and effectiveness of the proposed method. The research results can provide a theoretical basis for oilfield operations of ram BOPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: About one-fifth of newly diagnosed cancer patients are parents to young children. These patients are at higher risk of psychosocial stress and inability to attend treatment due to having to balance their own healthcare needs with childcare duties. This study aims to explore the impact of childcare on cancer parents and elicit their perspectives on potential supports. The results could help inform the implementation of suitable childcare programs to remove this barrier in accessing care. Methods: Patients at a large Canadian cancer treatment center were screened by oncologists for having minor children at home. Secure electronic surveys were then distributed to consenting participants. Domains surveyed included patient demographics, childcare burden, impact on treatment, and preference for childcare supports. Results: The mean age of correspondents was 43.9 (range 33–54), 46 patients (92%) were female, and breast cancer was the most common primary tumor. The median number of children per correspondent was two, and their mean age was 8.4. Balancing childcare with cancer treatment had a significant impact on self-reported stress levels for most correspondents. Twenty (40%) participants had to reschedule and 7 (14%) participants missed at least one appointment due to childcare conflicts. During the COVID-19 pandemic, access to childcare resources decreased while childcare responsibilities increased. Three-quarters of correspondents reported that a flexible childcare would make it easier for them to adhere to appointment schedules. Conclusion: Childcare is a significant psychosocial barrier for patients accessing cancer care. Our results indicate that most parents undergoing treatment may benefit from hospital-based childcare services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the same time as the rapid growth of the global economy, excessive production has led to serious pollution of water sources and the environment, endangering health and sustainable development of the environment. Realizing the informatization of environmental supervision and the intelligent supervision of pollution sources has become an urgent environmental challenge. In this study, in order to solve the problem of intelligent supervision of pollution sources, an energy-saving and environmentally friendly multi-objective load scheduling method was designed by using multi-objective load dispatching, incorporating environmental factors into power system operation to reduce pollution emissions. The main pollution sources were detected and analyzed. The demand analysis of pollution source online monitoring system was carried out from the perspective of software engineering. According to B/S architecture, the system was divided into corresponding functional modules with the idea of modularization. The system architecture encompassed data collection, transmission, alarm systems, data processing, and centralized control. This integrated approach aided in achieving sustainability in power system operations and environmental protection, offering an effective solution for online monitoring and pollution source management. The results showed that the power system dispatching administrator could view the historical alarm information through the alarm statistics and analysis function and carry out alarm statistics according to different needs. This study provided effective help for the analysis of power system business flow, network operation, and equipment performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Whole-body diffusion-weighted imaging (WB-DWI) is commonly used for the detection of multiple myeloma (MM). Comparative data on the efficiency of WB-DWI compared with F-18 fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography-computed tomography (18F-FDG PET/CT) to detect MM is limited. Methods: This was a retrospective, single-center study of 22 patients with MM enrolled from January 2018 to December 2019. All patients underwent WB-DWI and 18F-FDG PET/CT. Pathological and clinical manifestations, as well as radiologic follow-up, were used for diagnosis. The overall accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of both methods were compared. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values of MM lesions and false-positive lesions were estimated. Results: A total of 214 MM bone lesions were evaluated. There was no significant difference in the accuracy of WB-DWI and PET/CT (86.92 versus 88.32%). Though WB-DWI had a higher sensitivity (99.26% versus 84.56%) and PET-CT had a higher specificity (96.10% versus 64.56%), these differences were not statistically significant. There was a statistically significant difference in PPV (83.33% versus 96.64%) and NPV (98.08% versus 77.89%) of WB-DWI and PET/CT, respectively. The ADC value for MM lesions was significantly lower than that for false-positive lesions (P < 0.001). Receiver operating curve analysis showed that the AUC was 0.846, and when the cut-off value was 0.745 x 10-3 mm²/s, the sensitivity and specificity were 86.3 and 83.4%, respectively, which distinguished MM lesions from non-MM lesions. Conclusion: WB-DWI and PET-CT scans have similar overall accuracy for detecting MM lesions. The higher PPV of PET-CT and NPV of WB-DWI make them complementary imaging modalities. The ADC value for MM lesions is significantly lower than that for false-positive lesions. An ADC cutoff value of 0.745 x 10-3 mm²/s results in sensitivity and specificity of 86.3 and 83.4%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HCl regularly yields as a byproduct in the tail gas of pharmaceutical and chemical processes, including chlorination and dechlorination reactions. It is very challenging to obtain value-added pure HCl gas by making the use of a non-aqueous absorbent for the separation and recovery of HCl with both high efficiency and excellent reversibility. In this study, a new type of choline chloride-glycerol (ChCl-Gly) deep eutectic solvents (DESs) was synthesized and used as non-aqueous absorbents for the efficient absorption and recovery of HCl gas. It was found that the ChCl-Gly (1 : 1.5) DES exhibited high HCl absorption capacity (0.303 g g−1) at 298.2 K and 1.0 bar. In addition, the results of FTIR and 1H NMR spectroscopies revealed that the interaction of ChCl-Gly (1 : 1.5) with HCl was through hydrogen-bonding, demonstrating a high reversibility and recyclability of ChCl-Gly (1 : 1.5) DES in twenty cycles. The present study indicates that the ultilization of a ChCl-based non-aqueous absorbent is an effective methodology for the efficient absorption and recovery of HCl gas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glutamate (Glu) is the major excitatory transmitter in the nervous system. Impairment of its vesicular release by β-amyloid (Aβ) oligomers is thought to participate in pathological processes leading to Alzheimer's disease. However, it remains unclear whether soluble Aβ42 oligomers affect intravesicular amounts of Glu or their release in the brain, or both. Measurements made in this work on single Glu varicosities with an amperometric nanowire Glu biosensor revealed that soluble Aβ42 oligomers first caused a dramatic increase in vesicular Glu storage and stimulation-induced release, accompanied by a high level of parallel spontaneous exocytosis, ultimately resulting in the depletion of intravesicular Glu content and greatly reduced release. Molecular biology tools and mouse models of Aβ amyloidosis have further established that the transient hyperexcitation observed during the primary pathological stage is mediated by an altered behavior of VGLUT1 responsible for transporting Glu into synaptic vesicles. Thereafter, an overexpression of Vps10p-tail-interactor-1a, a protein that maintains spontaneous release of neurotransmitters by selective interaction with t-SNAREs, resulted in a depletion of intravesicular Glu content, triggering advanced-stage neuronal malfunction. These findings are expected to open perspectives for remediating Aβ42-induced neuronal hyperactivity and neuronal degeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we demonstrate that dichloromethanol but not difluoromethanol is a viable surrogate of carbon monoxide for prodrug design. A proof of concept was established by the successful development of a ROS-responsive carbon monoxide prodrug, presenting specific CO release in response to endogenous ROS in cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this issue of Neuron , Li, Zhang, et al. 1 find that the bile acid receptor TGR5 in the lateral hypothalamus influences neuronal dynamics underlying stress-induced depression-like behaviors. Inhibition of these neurons produces antidepressant-like effects through a circuit that includes hippocampal CA3 and dorsolateral septum, revealing a novel potential therapeutic for depression. In this issue of Neuron , Li, Zhang, et al. find that the bile acid receptor TGR5 in the lateral hypothalamus influences neuronal dynamics underlying stress-induced depression-like behaviors. Inhibition of these neurons produces antidepressant-like effects through a circuit that includes hippocampal CA3 and dorsolateral septum, revealing a novel potential therapeutic for depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Muscle-derived stem cells ( MI) SCs ) contribute to the repair of injured muscles . However, the myogenicity of MDSCs generated from patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) relative to healthy individuals remains unclear. Methods: A human DMD model was established using the stem cells prepared from muscle derived from patients with DMD (DMD-hMDSCs). The expression of myogenic lineage-specific markers in MDSCs was examined with immunofluorescence, real-time polymerase chain reaction, and western blotting. Results: It was demonstrated that, compared with cells from healthy subjects, DMD-liMDSCs are primed to selfdifferentiate in growth-inducing medium (GM) and robustly differentiate into myotubes in differentiationinducing medium(DM). This feature was termed 'myogenesis activation," and it was speculated that it contributes to the depletion of myogenic progenitors. Furthermore, MI)SCs consistently express pax7, but the timecourse of this expression does not correlate with the expression of the myogenic lineage-specific markers. Conclusions: The myogenesis activation in DMD-hMDSCs demonstrated in this study may provide novel mechanistic insights into DMD pathogenesis and potential therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computed tomography angiography (CTA) is very popular because it is characterized by rapidity and accessibility. However, CTA is inferior to digital subtraction angiography (DSA) in the diagnosis of intracranial artery stenosis or occlusion. DSA is an invasive examination, so we optimized the quality of cephalic CTA images. We used 5000 CTA images to train multi-scale residual denoising generative adversarial network (MRDGAN). And then 71 CTA images with intracranial large arterial stenosis were treated by Super-Resolution based on Generative Adversarial Network (SRGAN), Enhanced Super-Resolution based on Generative Adversarial Network (ESRGAN) and post-trained MRDGAN, respectively. Peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) and structural similarity index measurement (SSIM) of the SRGAN, ESRGAN, MRDGAN and original CTA images were measured respectively. The qualities of MRDGAN and original images were visually assessed using a 4-point scale. The diagnostic coherence of digital subtraction angiography (DSA) with MRDGAN and original images was analyzed. The PSNR was significantly higher in the MRDGAN CTA images (35.96 ± 1.51) than in the original (31.51 ± 1.43), SRGAN (25.75 ± 1.18) and ESRGAN (30.36 ± 1.05) CTA images (all P < 0.001). The SSIM was significantly higher in the MRDGAN CTA images (0.95 ± 0.02) than in the SRGAN (0.88 ± 0.03) and ESRGAN (0.90 ± 0.02) CTA images (all P < 0.01). The visual assessment was significantly higher in the MRDGAN CTA images (3.52 ± 0.58) than in the original CTA images (2.39 ± 0.69) (P < 0.05). The diagnostic coherence between MRDGAN and DSA (κ = 0.89) was superior to that between original images and DSA (κ = 0.62). Our MRDGAN can effectively optimize original CTA images and improve its clinical diagnostic value for intracranial large artery stenosis. • SRCTA we proposed, is the first application of super-resolution technology in cephalic CTA images. • SRCTA can generate more high-quality cephalic CTA images than the state-of-the-art models ESRGAN and SRGAN. • SRCTA has excellent diagnostic coherence with DSA in intracranial large artery stenosis or occlusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cowpea plants exhibiting virescence, phyllody and little leaf symptoms were observed in the fields of Zhanjiang City, Guangdong province of China in October 2020. Total DNA was extracted from symptomatic cowpea leaves. Using phytoplasma universal primer pairs (R16mF2/R16mR1, P1/P7) and a secA primer pair (secAfor1/secArev3), expected PCR fragments of approximately 1400, 1800 and 800 bp were amplified from all symptomatic cowpea leaves. MUSCLE analysis revealed that the representative 16S rRNA gene sequence of cowpea phyllody phytoplasma (CPP) shared 98.67% nucleotide identity with the reference strain WBDL of 'Ca. Phytoplasma aurantifolia' (GenBank accession number U15442); and 100% nucleotide identity with 16SrII-V phytoplasmas associated with 'Praxelis clematidea' phyllody (GenBank accession number KY568717); 'Desmodium triflorum' little leaf (GenBank accession number MT452308); and 'Ixeris chinensis', 'Emilia sonchifolia', and 'Desmodium ovalifolium' witches' broom (GenBank accession number MT416114, MT420682 and MK956144, respectively). Phylogenetic analyses based on the 16S rRNA and secA gene sequences revealed that the CPP strain clustered with the 16SrII-V subgroup and 16SrII group, respectively. Virtual restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of the 16S rRNA sequence revealed that CPP was associated with the 16SrII-V subgroup. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the16SrII-V subgroup of phytoplasmas associated with cowpea phyllody disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A key function of SUMOylation is the coordinated modification of numerous proteins to optimize plant growth and resistance to environmental stress. Plant cuticular wax is deposited on the surface of primary plant organs to form a barrier that provides protection against changes in terrestrial environments. Many recent studies have examined cuticular wax biosynthetic pathways and regulation. However, whether SUMOylation is involved in the regulation of cuticle wax deposition at the posttranslational level remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate that a small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) E3 ligase, SAP AND MIZ1 DOMAIN CONTAINING LIGASE1 (MdSIZ1), regulates wax accumulation and cuticle permeability in apple (Malus domestica Borkh), SUMO E2 CONJUGATING ENZYME 1(MdSCE1) physically interacts with MdMYB30, a transcription factor involved in the regulation of cuticle wax accumulation. MdSIZ1 mediates the SUMOylation and accumulation of MdMYB30 by inhibiting its degradation through the 26S proteasome pathway. Furthermore, MdMYB30 directly binds to the ß-KETOACYL-COA SYNTHASE 1 (MdKCS1) promoter to activate its expression and promote wax biosynthesis. These findings indicate that the MdSIZ1-MdMYB30-MdKCS1 module positively regulates cuticular wax biosynthesis in apples. Overall, the findings of our study provide insights into the regulation pathways involved in cuticular wax biosynthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study compared the outcomes of single blastocyst transfer cycles, using day-5 poor-quality blastocysts and day-6 high-quality blastocysts. Methods: We analyzed 462 frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET) cycles performed at our center from January 2014 to December 2019. The cycles were divided into two groups: a day-5 poor-quality blastocyst transfer group (group A) and a day-6 high-quality blastocyst transfer group (group B). The clinical outcomes were tested. Results: In groups A and B, respectively, the clinical pregnancy rate (CPR; 61.65% vs. 67.17%, p=0.258), implantation rate (IR; 61.65% vs. 67.17%, p=0.258), and live birth rate (LBR; 69.51% vs. 77.83%, p=0.134) showed no significant differences. Moreover, when day-3 embryo quality was considered, the CPR, IR, and LBR were also similar in group A and group B (p>0.05). Conclusion: The clinical outcomes of day-5 poor-quality blastocysts and day-6 high-quality blastocysts were similar, suggesting that the developmental speed of the embryo might be more important than embryo quality for the clinical outcomes of single blastocyst transfer in FET cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nan0an Basin is a giant hydrocarbon basin, but its tectonic division scheme and associated fault systems has not been well understood. Based on newly acquired seismic data from the southwestern margin of the South China Sea, this study analyzed the structural units, tectonic feature and geodynamics of the sedimentary basin. The new data suggests that the Nan0an Basin is a rift basin oriented in the NE-SW direction, rather than a pull-apart basin induced by strike-slip faults along the western margin. The basin is a continuation of the rifts in the southwest South China Sea since the late Cretaceous. It continued rifting until the middle Miocene, even though oceanic crust occurred in the Southwest Subbasin. However, it had no transfer surface at the end of spreading, where it was characterized by a late middle Miocene unconformity (reflector T3). The Nan0an Basin can be divided into eight structural units by a series of NE-striking faults. This study provides evidences to confirm the relative importance and interplay between regional strike-slips and orthogonal displacement during basin development and deformation. The NE-SW-striking dominant rift basin indicates that the geodynamic drivers of tectonic evolution in the western margin of the South China Sea did not have a large strike-slip mechanism. Therefore, we conclude that a large strike-slip fault system did not exist in the western margin of the South China Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author offers her response to the comments made on her article about the rise of Internet-oriented nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in China. She agrees with the claim that one of the reasons behind the difficulty in understanding the field of Chinese NGOs is because of the enormous variety among organizations. She argues on her cited oversimplication of the privatization perspective in her article. She also elaborates on the ways to avoid institutions controlled by the state.

Background: Outcomes of earlier systematic reviews of the efficacy of ablative and excisional techniques to treat cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or 3 (CIN2/3) were biased, as most of the included studies did not compare the techniques head-to- head. Objective: To systematically review the outcomes of studies comparing ablative and excisional techniques to treat CIN2/3 head-to- head. Search strategy: Medline, Embase and Global Index Medicus were searched from inception until May 2021. Selection criteria: Studies directly comparing the efficacy and safety of excisional and ablative treatments on histologically confirmed CIN2/3. Eligibility criteria for the women treated with ablation had to be same as those treated with excision. Data collection and analysis: A total of 323 articles were archived. Data on the risk of persistence/recurrence and safety were extracted from the original trials. Comparison between the two procedures was reported by forest plots, stratified by follow-up intervals and by HIV status. Main results: Six publications were included. The risk of persistence/recurrence following ablation was significantly higher than that following excision (overall, RR 1.65, 95% CI 1.25–2.19; at 6-month follow-up, RR 1.94, 95% CI 1.29–2.91; at 12-month follow-up, RR 1.78, 95% CI 1.27–2.51; at 24-month follow-up, RR 1.57, 95% CI 1.11–2.23). The findings remained similar among women living with HIV (WLHIV). Both procedures were equally safe. Conclusions: Excisional treatment was more effective than ablative treatment, with both procedures having similar safety profiles. Other programmatic considerations will guide the selection of technique, especially in resource-limited settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four new complexes of copper(II), nickel(II) and zinc(II), [CuL2] (1), [Ni3L2(4-BrSal)2(CH3COO)2(CH3OH)2]-2CH3OH (2), [ZnBr2(HL)2] (3) and [ZnL(dca)]n (4), where L is 5-bromo-2-((cychlopentylimino)methyl)phenolate, HL is the zwitterionic form of 5-bromo-2-((cychlopentylimino)methyl)phenol, 4-BrSal is the monoanionic form of 4-bromosalicylaldehyde, dca is dicyanamide anion, were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The structures of the complexes were further confirmed by single crystal X-ray structure determination. Complex 1 is a mononuclear copper(II) compound, with a crystallographic two-fold rotation axis symmetry. The Cu atom is in distorted square planar coordination. Complex 2 is a trinuclear nickel(II) compound, with an inversion center symmetry. The Ni atoms are in octahedral coordination. Complex 3 is a mononuclear zinc(II) compound, while complex 4 is a dca bridged polymeric zinc(II) compound. The Zn atoms are in tetrahedral coordination. The compounds were assayed for their antimicrobial activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past landslides from landslide inventory are essential for machine learning (ML)-based landslide susceptibility assessment (LSA). They determine not only the positive samples (characterized by the past landslides) but also the negative samples (randomly generated based on past landslides) for training and validating the ML models. However, the number of past landslides is often limited because of the constraints of time, budget, and resources available, etc. In other words, the available data for establishing landslide susceptibility ML models are limited, which indicates that the accuracy and reliability of the corresponding models are insufficient. This article, therefore, proposes using a new landslide susceptibility index-based sampling strategy to enhance the positive and negative samples for model training and validation to reach an improved ML-based LSA. To realize this idea, landslide susceptibility analysis based on initial datasets compiled from landslide inventory by using three ML models, i.e., random forest (RF), gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT) and support vector machine (SVM), are first conducted to obtain the initial landslide susceptibility indices at different space locations. Then, the landslide susceptibility indices are analyzed with the proposed sampling strategy which considers directly the grid units with very high and very low landslide susceptibility indices as potential positive and negative samples, respectively, to enrich the initial dataset; and the number of these positive/negative samples is determined by a Bayesian optimization algorithm. Thereafter, the ML models are updated with the enriched datasets. Finally, to verify the effectiveness of the proposed strategy, the improved models are applied to assess the landslide susceptibility of Taojiang County, China, and the results are compared with those from initial corresponding models without updating. The results show that compared with the initial RF, GBDT and SVM models, the corresponding improved models have a better performance in accuracy, precision, recall rate, and specificity. In particular, the AUC values of the three models are increased by 11.94%, 10.72% and 0.57%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the 2,2′-bipyridine-4,4′-dicarboxylic acid ligand (H2LZ), a heterometal–organic framework with a three-dimensional interpenetrating structure, namely [TbZn(LZ)2(HCOO)(H2O)3]n (1), was synthesized. Compound 1 exhibited stable luminescence in the pH range of 2–12 in an aqueous solution. It is noteworthy to mention that compound 1 could discern carmine (CM) in some food additives and trinitrophenol (TNP) in nitroaromatic explosives by the fluorescence quenching effect. In particular, compound 1 displayed high sensitivity, selectivity, recyclability, and anti-interference for sensing CM and TNP in aqueous solutions, and the detection limits of CM and TNP were 7.76 × 10−6 M and 1.35 × 10−4 M, respectively. In addition, the fluorescence mechanisms of compound 1 for sensing CM and TNP molecules are also discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Stroke is an illness with high morbidity, disability and mortality that presents a major clinical challenge. Sanhua decoction (SHD) has been widely used to treat ischaemic stroke in the clinic. However, the potential mechanism of SHD remains unknown. Objective: To elucidate the multitarget mechanism of SHD in ischaemic stroke through network pharmacology and bioinformatics analyses. Materials and methods: Network pharmacology and experimental validation approach was used to investigate the bioactive ingredients, critical targets and potential mechanisms of SHD against ischaemic stroke. Four herbal names of SHD, 'ischemic stroke' or 'stroke' was used as a keyword to search the relevant databases. SH-SY5Y cells were treated with various concentrations of SHD (12.5, 25, 50 or 100 μg/mL) for 4 h, exposed to oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD) for 1 h, then reoxygenation for 24 h. The cell viability was detected by MTT, the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) was evaluated by ELISA, and protein expression was detected by western blots. Results: SHD treatment increased the survival rate from 65.9 ± 4.3 to 85.56 ± 5.7%. The median effective dose (ED50) was 47.1 μg/mL, the LDH decreased from 288.0 ± 12.0 to 122.8 ± 9.1 U/L and the cell apoptosis rate decreased from 33.6 ± 1.8 to 16.3 ± 1.2%. Western blot analysis revealed that SHD increased the levels of p-PI3k, p-Akt and p-CREB1, and decreased the expression of TNF-α and IL-6. Discussion and conclusions: This study suggests that SHD protects against cerebral ischaemic injury via regulation of the PI3K/Akt/CREB1 and TNF pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aims to analyze the structural characterization and antioxidant activity of a novel exopolysaccharide from Rhizopus nigricans (EPS2-1). For this purpose, EPS2-1 was purified through DEAE-52, Sephadex G-100, and Sephadex G-75 chromatography. The structural characterization of EPS2-1 was analyzed using high-performance gel permeation chromatography (HPGPC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), methylation analysis, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra, transmission electron microscope (TEM), and atomic force microscope (AFM). The results revealed that EPS2-1 is composed of mannose (Man), galactose (Gal), glucose (Glc), arabinose (Ara), and Fucose (Fuc), and possesses a molecular weight of 32.803 kDa. The backbone of EPS2-1 comprised →2)-α-D-Manp-(1→ and →3)-β-D-Galp-(1→, linked with the O-6 position of (→2,6)-α-D-Manp-(1→) of the main chain is branch α-D-Manp-(1→6)-α-D-Manp-(1→, linked with the O-6 positions of (→3)-β-D-Galp-(1→) of the main chain are branches →4)-β-D-Glcp-(1→ and →3)-β-D-Galp-(1→, respectively. Finally, we demonstrated that EPS2-1 also shows free radical scavenging activity and iron ion reducing ability. At the same time, EPS2-1 could inhibit the proliferation of MFC cells and increase the cell viability of RAW264.7 cells. Our results suggested that EPS2-1 is a novel polysaccharide, and EPS2-1 has antioxidant activity. In addition, EPS2-1 may possess potential immunomodulatory and antitumor activities. This study promoted the application of EPS2-1 as the functional ingredients in the pharmaceutical and food industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mitochondrial anchor syntaphilin (SNPH) is a key mitochondrial protein normally expressed in axons to maintain neuronal health by positioning mitochondria along axons for metabolic needs. However, in 2019 we discovered a novel form of excitotoxicity that results when SNPH is misplaced into neuronal dendrites in disease models. A key unanswered question about this SNPH excitotoxicity is the pathologic molecules that trigger misplacement or intrusion of SNPH into dendrites. Here, we identified two different classes of pathologic molecules that interact to trigger dendritic SNPH intrusion. Using primary hippocampal neuronal cultures from mice of either sex, we demonstrated that the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-1β interacts with NMDA to trigger SNPH intrusion into dendrites. First, IL-1β and NMDA each individually triggers dendritic SNPH intrusion. Second, IL-1β and NMDA do not act independently but interact. Thus, blocking NMDAR by the antagonist MK-801 blocks IL-1β from triggering dendritic SNPH intrusion. Further, decoupling the known interaction between IL-1β and NMDAR by tyrosine inhibitors prevents either IL-1β or NMDA from triggering dendritic SNPH intrusion. Third, neuronal toxicity caused by IL-1β or NMDA is strongly ameliorated in SNPH−/− neurons. Together, we hypothesize that the known bipartite IL-1β/NMDAR crosstalk converges to trigger misplacement of SNPH in dendrites as a final common pathway to cause neurodegeneration. Targeting dendritic SNPH in this novel tripartite IL-1β/NMDAR/SNPH interaction could be a strategic downstream locus for ameliorating neurotoxicity in inflammatory diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cangshan Glacier is one of the southernmost mountains in the Northern Hemisphere (Asian Continent) during the last Quaternary glaciation, and is a standard area with well-preserved and abundant traces of Quaternary Dali glaciation. In this study, the geological heritage resources of Cangshan Mountain are evaluated in terms of condition indicator and value indicator. Through the determination of quantitative evaluation indicators and evaluation factor weights of geological heritage landscapes, the geological heritage resources of Cangshan Mountain are identified and classified. The results show that there are two world-class geological heritage landscapes, 14 national geological heritage landscapes, 54 provincial geological heritage landscapes and 55 geological relic landscapes below the provincial level in the park. Cangshan Mountain's geological heritage resources are compared with glacial heritage resources, Quaternary glaciation resources and tectonic geomorphic heritage resources both at home and abroad, so as to form a complete evaluation of the geological heritage landscape resources of Cangshan Mountain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: NutritionDay is a yearly global point-prevalence study of malnutrition or nutritional risk in hospitals. We aimed to provide a comprehensive nutritional survey of hospitalized patients and analyze the risk factors of malnutrition and prolonged hospitalization in Chinese inpatients. Methods and Study Design: The international daylong cross-sectional survey was performed on November 07th, 2019. Ten hospitals were invited to participate in this NutritionDay survey. Nutritional risk was identified by nutritional risk screening 2002, and malnutrition was identified by the ESPEN criteria. We measured the incidence of malnutrition and nutritional risk. And we analysed risk factors for malnutrition and length of stay in Chinese hospitalized patients. Results: 875 hospitalized patients from 6 departments were included in the analysis. The malnutrition rate was 11.6% and the incidence of nutritional risk was 17.8%. It was analyzed that tumor load, end-stage disease, motility, self-rated health, types of oral medicine, and food intake during the past week were independent risk factors for malnutrition or nutritional risk. 56.2% (118/210) of patients at nutritional risk or malnutrition received extra nutritional support, whereas 22.5% (88/391) well-nourished patients did. Moreover, nutrition status, ever stayed in ICU and self-rated health were associated with prolonged length of stay. Conclusions: In a word, the prevalence of malnutrition or nutritional risk was about 29.4%. Patients with malnutrition or nutritional risk had a higher transfer rate, lower rehabilitation rate and longer hospital stays. The attention to malnutrition patients needs to be further strengthened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feature selection is an indispensable step in the data preprocessing stage of data mining and pattern recognition. In some numerical small sample data, it is often high dimensional in nature. Some traditional information-theoretic-based feature selection algorithms, however, neglect to judge the dependency correlation and redundancy among these high-dimensional features. How to dynamically find the dependent correlated features among features becomes an urgent problem to be solved. This paper proposes a feature selection algorithm using dynamic weighted conditional mutual information (DWCMI). Firstly, the algorithm uses the interaction information to calculate the coefficient for determining the interaction redundancy between features and between features and class labels. Secondly, the value of this coefficient is used to dynamically adjust the size of the weights of the maximum classification information and to find the dependency-related features between features. Finally, DWCMI is validated against six other feature selection algorithms on two classifiers using 12 different datasets with classification accuracy metrics (Precision_macro, Recall_macro and F1_macro). The experimental results show that the DWCMI method can effectively select relevant features and interaction features in small sample data, thus improving the quality of the feature subset and increasing the classification accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Tween 80/85 could induce formation of naturally-occurring gold nanoparticles. • Superoxide radicals played a key role in reduction of gold ions to nanoparticles. • Tween 80/85-induced gold nanoparticles showed a high colloidal stability. • Surface coating of Tween 80/85 decreased ecotoxicity of gold nanoparticles. The induced-formation of natural nanoparticles by photosensitive chemicals in aquatic environment may be a ubiquitous process, however, we still know very little on this issue. Here, we reported a potential original pathway for naturally-occurring gold nanoparticles (N-AuNPs) via the reduction of Au ions by photosensitive surfactant Tween 80/85 under light irradiation in the aquatic environment. The heterolytic reaction of hydroxyl groups in Tween 80/85 with the aid of UV light yielded radical anions (Tween 80/85-O•−) and subsequently transferred electrons to oxygen to generate superoxide radicals (O 2 •−), which reduced Au(III) to Au(0). The negatively charged Tween 80/85-O•− could bind to the surface of Au with coordinate bonds to form the surface coating of N-AuNPs. Due to the enhanced negative charge density, the Tween 80/85-induced N-AuNPs showed a higher colloidal stability than other N-AuNPs (induced by humic acid) or engineered AuNPs (E-AuNPs). The surface coating of Tween 80/85 might hinder the attachment and internalization of N-AuNPs into bacterial cells, and bacteria could also extend the utilization range of carbon sources substrates to mitigate the adverse effects of N-AuNPs. Therefore, Tween 80/85-induced N-AuNPs exhibited relative lower ecotoxicity but could stay in water for long periods of time. This study makes us more aware of the role of anthropogenic organic pollutants in the geochemical process of metal elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A pair of structurally similar dicyanamide bridged copper(II) and zinc(II) complexes [CuL(dca)]n (1) and [ZnL(dca)] n (2), were prepared from the fluorine containing Schiff base 5-fluoro-2-(((2-hydroxyethyl)imino)methyl)phenol (HL). The compounds were characterized by physico-chemical methods. Structures of the complexes were confirmed by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The Cu atom in complex 1 is in square pyramidal coordination, whereas the Zn atom in complex 2 is in trigonal bipyramidal coordination. The copper complex has effective Jack bean urease inhibitory activity, with IC50 value of 0.14 ± 0.12 µmol L-1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda, is a new and dangerous invasive pest in many countries. Entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) have been considered as potential biological control agents against the FAW. In this study, eight natural fungal strains were isolated from diseased larvae of FAW, and identified as Cladosporium cladosporioides (EFNL‐1), Metarhizium rileyi (EFNL‐2 and EFNL‐8), Fusarium proliferatum (EFNL‐3 and EFNL‐6), F. equiseti (EFNL‐4 and EFNL‐5) and F. tricinctum (EFNL‐7), using the morphological and molecular tools or methods. The instantaneous death risk and mortality of 3rd‐instar larvae inoculated with EFNL‐8 (1 × 108 conidia/ml) were significantly higher than for any other fungal isolates and for the control group. Thereafter, we tested the pathogenicity of EFNL‐8 (1 × 107 conidia/ml) against 1st‐ to 4th‐larvae, pupae, and eggs of FAW. The instantaneous death risk and mortality of 1st‐instar (Median lethal time = 9.02 days; Corrected motality = 88.68%), 2nd‐instar (12.00 days; 62.50%) and 3rd‐instar larvae (13.79 days; 56.67%) inoculated with EFNL‐8 were significantly higher than that of larvae in the control groups. When the eggs of FAW were inoculated with EFNL‐8 (1 × 107 conidia/ml), EFNL‐8 caused eggs (56.62%), and newly hatched neonates after 3 days (68.75%) and 6 days (80.60%) mortality, compared with the control groups. However, the mortality of the EFNL‐8 isolate to 4th‐instar larvae (5.00%) and pupae (14.81%) was low and did not differ from the control groups. This study identified M. rileyi EFNL‐8 as a pathogenic isolate against eggs and 1st‐ to 3rd‐instar larvae of FAW. However, further studies including field validation of this EPF biopesticide candidate should be undertaken in newly invaded areas by the pest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Viral myocarditis (VMC) is a type of cardiovascular disease caused by viral infection of myocardial cells characterized by myocardial interstitital inflammatory cell infiltration, myocardial fiber necrosis or figrinolysis. Ivabradine (IVA) is a commonly known drug used to control heart rate, resist inflammation and oxidative stress, particularly in VMC. Here, we have tried to evaluate the protective effects of IVA on mice with VMC and understand the possible mechanism behind this process. Eighty male mice aged 6 weeks old were randomly divided into normal control, VMC model, low-dose IVA (L-IVA) and high-dose IVA (H-IVA) groups. Half an hour after modeling, IVA aqueous solution was administered intragastrically into L-IVA and H-IVA groups at 5 mg·kg-1·d-1 and 20 mg·kg-1·d-1, respectively for 14 consecutive days. Another 120 mice of the same batch were grouped and treated as described above. At 7 and 14 d, 6 mice in each group were sacrificed to obtain blood and heart samples. Body wt./heart wt. (BW/HW) was calculated, hematoxylin-eosin staining was performed to observe the pathological changes of myocardium, and the level of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) was measured by ELISA. Related kits were employed to measure superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and catalase (CAT) activities in myocardial homogenate, and the levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-18, IL-1ß and tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-a) were determined by double-antibody sandwich ELISA. TUNEL assay was performed to detect the apoptosis of myocardial cells. The protein expressions of Bcl-2, Bax and Caspase-3 in myocardial cells were measured by Western blotting. Compared to the VMC model group, the heart/body weight ratio, myocardial pathological score, cTnI level, MDA activity, and levels of IL-6, IL-18, IL-1ß and TNF-a were found decreased, while survival rate and activity of SOD, GSH-Px and CAT increased in L-IVA and H-IVA groups (P <0.05). The apoptosis rate of myocardial cells declined in L-IVA and HIVA groups (P <0.05), especially in H-IVA group. IVA downregulated the protein expressions of Bax and Caspase-3 and upregulated that of Bcl-2 (P <0.05). Thus, it has been found that IVA elevates the survival rate of VMC mice and relieves myocardial damage possibly by enhancing antioxidant capacity and modulating apoptosis-related proteins to suppress apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Programmed cell death protein-1 and programmed death ligand-1 pathway activation play a vital role that can be modulated by tumor cells to blunt host immune surveillance. Periphery programmed cell death protein-1 expression level on cluster of differentiation 4+ and cluster of differentiation 8+ T lymphocytes of 185 female patients first diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer in Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital were analyzed by multicolor flow cytometry prior to any anti-tumor treatment. Patients who received chemotherapy alone for 2-8 cycles and received sequential samples were assessed with response evaluation criteria in solid tumors 1.1. Peripherally, the rate of cluster of differentiation 4+ programmed cell death protein-1+ and cluster of differentiation 8+ programmed cell death protein-1+ lymphocytes in general group were significantly higher than in the control group (p<0.0001). Post treatment programmed cell death protein-1 expression level on cluster of differentiation 4+ T lymphocytes and cluster of differentiation 8+ T lymphocytes was significantly lower than the baseline level in better response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy group (all p<0.05). In the contrary, programmed cell death protein-1 expression on both cluster of differentiation 4+ T lymphocytes and cluster of differentiation 8+ T lymphocytes showed no difference between pretreatment and post treatment in triple negative breast cancer patients with poor response to neoadjuvant treatment (all p>0.05). Peripheral cluster of differentiation 4+ programmed cell death protein-1+ and cluster of differentiation 8+ programmed cell death protein-1+ T lymphocytes of patients with triple negative breast cancer are associated with clinical response to neoadjuvant treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the effects of polyphyllin D on the proliferation and apoptosis of human colon cancer SW480 cell lines and to reveal whether this process is mediated by the micro ribonucleic acid-21/phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 pathway. Human colon cancer SW480 cells were transfected with micro ribonucleic acid-21-mimic or mimic-negative control and treated with polyphyllin D at different concentrations (control, 0.25, 0.5, 1 and 2 µM) for 24 h or 48 h. Compared with control polyphyllin D group, the viability of human colon cancer SW480 cells significantly declined but the apoptosis rate significantly rose in 0.5 µM polyphyllin D group and the colony number of SW480 cells significantly decreased in 0.25 µM polyphyllin D group (p<0.05). Compared with control group, 2 µM polyphyllin D group had significantly increased protein expressions of Bcl-2 associated X protein and cleaved caspase-3, but decreased protein expression of B-cell lymphoma-2 in SW480 cells (p<0.001). The protein levels of micro ribonucleic acid-21 and phosphorylated-protein kinase B in SW480 cells were significantly lower, while the phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 messenger ribonucleic acid and protein levels were higher in 2 µM polyphyllin D group than those in control group (p<0.001). However, the protein expression of protein kinase B was not changed in 2 µM polyphyllin D group (p>0.05). After transfection with micro ribonucleic acid-21-mimic, the level of micro ribonucleic acid-21 in SW480 cells was significantly higher, while the phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 messenger ribonucleic acid and protein levels were significantly lower than those in control group (p<0.001). Compared with control group, the antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of polyphyllin D on SW480 cells were reversed by transfection with micro ribonucleic acid-2-mimic (p<0.001). Polyphyllin D inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis of human colon cancer SW480 cells via the micro ribonucleic acid-21/phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study enhances the conventional English-Chinese bilingual teaching mode by incorporating the continuous digital twin technology into its design. In addition to the typical video and audio transmission teaching functions, the English-Chinese bilingual distant education system also includes a number of interactive capabilities. The approach described in this study is mostly utilized for bilingual instruction in colleges and universities, and the instruction is enhanced by digital twin technology. In this work, the system performance test focuses primarily on the evaluation of teaching quality and teaching satisfaction. Among these are the evaluation of teaching quality by questionnaires, the evaluation of this paper's system by a number of senior teachers, and the calculation of student satisfaction through teaching experiments. The results of the study indicate that the strategy described in this work has a particular effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the real-time recording of the health care system, real-time monitoring of user trajectory data can effectively protect the health and health of the body. In order to accurately establish the spatial position trajectory data prediction model, a space trajectory data prediction model based on variable space chaotic particle swarm optimization (CPSO)-optimized least squares support vector machine (LSSVM) is proposed. Firstly, aiming at the problem that particle swarm optimization (PSO) is easy to fall into local optimum, the global optimization performance of PSO algorithm is improved by using variable space chaos search strategy and particle out-of-bounds mirror processing strategy. Numerical simulation experiments verify the superiority of improved particle swarm optimization algorithm. Based on the CPSO algorithm, the hyper parameters of the CPSO-optimized least squares support vector machine (CPSO-LSSVM) are proposed to improve the prediction accuracy of the model. Finally, using GeoLife and T-Drive dataset as the research object, the CPSO-LSSVM spatial position prediction model is established by using the trajectory data of the dataset. The simulation experiment verifies that the CPSO-LSSVM positional space prediction model has higher prediction accuracy and more strong generalization ability to accurately and effectively predict spatial location. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]