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Illegal construction poses a safety hazard to both cities and people and affects the social stability and long-term stability of the country. Therefore, it is important to detect illegal buildings as early as possible. However, current illegal building detection methods generally suffer from either detection cycles or low detection accuracies. To solve these challenges, this study adopts an unusual method that detects illegal building objects to prevent illegal building behavior. A detection model, CRMNet, which is based on the anchor-free detection model CenterNet, and dataset for illegal building objects are proposed. ResNet50 is selected as the backbone for extracting futures after weighing the computational cost and detection accuracy. Furthermore, Mish, a new activation function, is used to improve the identification accuracy of illegal building objects. Experimental results show that the mean average precision (mAP) of the proposed detector on the illegal building object dataset reached 88.16%, which is higher than that of other popular object detection methods. Additionally, in contrast to mainstream target detection methods, the proposed detection method has fewer parameters and a higher detection accuracy, which can be better applied to mobile devices and smart devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ignorance is commonly assumed to be a lack of knowledge in Plato's Socratic dialogues. I challenge that assumption. In the Protagoras , ignorance is conceived to be a substantive, structural psychic flaw—the soul's domination by inferior elements that are by nature fit to be ruled. Ignorant people are characterized by both false beliefs about evaluative matters in specific situations and an enduring deception about their own psychic conditions. On my interpretation, akrasia, moral vices, and epistemic vices are products or forms of ignorance, and a person who lacks knowledge is not necessarily ignorant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The two-dimensional guided filter is a linear time-varying filter that can filter the noise and retain the detailed information of the image better. It is widely used in image denoising. However, in its application process, it is necessary to calculate the parameters required by filtering in real time according to the data. The operation process involves complex floating point multiplication and division operations, which leads to the high complexity of hardware implementation and excessive resource overhead. It is also difficult to improve the comprehensive speed of the system, which is not good for real-time signal processing. Aiming at the above problems, based on the theory of guided filtering and taking full advantage of the parallelism of FPGA, we proposed a two-dimensional guided filter hardware optimization system based on FPGA. In the system, first, the original image data are cached in real time to reduce the occupation of other hardware resources. Then, the complex mean and variance operations are split into simple sum operations, which reduces the computational complexity. Finally, the system is designed by using serial and parallel flow operation methods, which effectively improve the operation speed of the system. The results show that the operating frequency of the optimized hardware system is up to 146.953 MHz, which is 28.322 MHz higher than that of the original guided filtering algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The catalyst with an ionic liquid layer (fct-PtCo/C@ILs) is prepared by modifying the chemically ordered platinum-cobalt catalyst (fct-PtCo/C) using hydrophobic ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium bis [(trifluoromethyl) sulfonyl] imide ([BMIM] [TFSI]) with high oxygen solubility. According to TEM, FTIR, XPS and TGA measurements, it is confirmed that the ionic liquid has modified the surface of chemically ordered PtCo/C catalyst. The results reveal that the mass activity and specific activity of fct-PtCo/C@ILs catalyst (ILs loading of 5 wt%) reaches 1.04 A mg Pt −1 and 1.4 mA cm Pt −2, respectively, which are about 8.7 and 7 times higher than that of the commercial Pt/C catalyst. Compared with the catalysts without ILs modification, fct-PtCo/C@ILs shows significantly enhanced electrochemical durability and a higher power density. The addition of ionic liquid can reduce the generation of oxygenated species and promote the release of catalytic active sites. Subsequently, the conductive layer of ionic liquid is formed on the catalyst surfaces, inhibiting the dissolution of metal nanoparticles and the corrosion of carbon supports in acidic electrolytes through physical protection. [Display omitted] • Chemically ordered PtCo/C catalysts were modified with [BMIM][TFSI]. • The addition of ionic liquid can promote the release of Pt catalytic active site. • Conductive ionic liquid layers protect metal nanoparticles and carbon carriers physically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Dietary sodium and potassium intake are associated with stroke, but the potential mechanisms are unclear. We aimed to study the association between sodium and potassium intake and subclinical cerebrovascular health in hypertensive older males using multimodal magnetic resonance imaging. Methods: A total of 189 hypertensive male subjects without previous cardiovascular or cerebrovascular disease were included. Daily urinary sodium and potassium excretion were estimated from a fasting spot urine sample using a formula approach. A dedicated cerebrovascular health imaging protocol including vessel wall imaging, angiography, arterial spin labeling imaging and T2-weighted fluid-attenuated inversion recovery imaging was performed to study intracranial atherosclerosis, vascular rarefaction (defined as fewer discernible vessels on angiography), brain perfusion and small vessel disease, respectively. Results: The mean age was 64.9 (± 7.2) years. The average daily urinary and potassium excretion was 4.7 (± 1.4) g/L and 2.1 (± 0.5) g/L, respectively. Increased urinary sodium excretion was associated with decreased cerebral blood flow and elevated urinary potassium excretion was associated with reduced prevalence of intracranial plaque. The associations remained significant after adjusting for covariates, even including blood pressure control. Quadratic regression analysis indicated a marginally significant U-shaped association between urinary sodium intake and white matter hyperintensity, which lost significance in fully adjusted models. No significant association of urinary sodium and potassium excretion with other cerebrovascular health measures was noted. Conclusion: We concluded that in hypertensive older males without overt cardiovascular disease, increased sodium intake and reduced potassium intake are associated with impaired subclinical cerebrovascular health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vascular dysfunctions, including arterial stiffness and endothelial dysfunction, are prevalent in hypertensive subjects. We aimed to study their relations to subclinical intracranial vascular health in this study. A total of 200 older hypertensive males without overt cardiovascular or cerebrovascular diseases were recruited. Arterial elasticity was measured as carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) and endothelial function was measured as digital reactive hyperemia index (RHI). Cerebrovascular health was evaluated using MRI in four aspects: intracranial atherosclerosis, brain perfusion as cerebral blood flow (CBF), vascular rarefaction analyzed as visible arterial branches on angiography using a custom-developed analysis technique and small vessel disease measured as white matter hyperintensity (WMH). There was a significant negative association between cfPWV and CBF, suggesting a link between arterial stiffness and CBF decline. Higher cfPWV was also associated with presence of intracranial stenotic plaque and greater WMH volume. RHI was positively related to CBF, indicating that endothelial dysfunction was associated with reduced CBF. All the associations remained significant after adjustment for confounding variables. Arterial stiffness and endothelial dysfunction are associated with reduced brain perfusion in older hypertensive males. Arterial stiffness is also associated with global cerebral vascular injury, affecting both small and medium-to-large arteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The study aimed to analyze the association between hypertension control and subclinical cerebrovascular health using a comprehensive multimodal imaging approach. Methods: The study included 200 hypertensive older males without previous cardiovascular diseases. Clinic blood pressure (BP) was measured using a standard approach. Cerebrovascular health was evaluated using magnetic resonance imaging in the following four aspects: Intracranial atherosclerosis as determined by vessel wall imaging; Vascular rarefaction (defined as less discernible vessels on angiography) was evaluated using a custom-developed technique. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) and white matter hyperintensity (WMH) were assessed using arterial spin-labeling imaging and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery imaging, respectively. Results: A total of 189 subjects had MRI scans. The mean age was 64.9 (± 7.2) years. For intracranial atherosclerosis, there was a significant association between uncontrolled hypertension and presence of intracranial plaque. When systolic and diastolic BP were analyzed separately, the association remained significant for both. For vascular rarefaction, uncontrolled hypertension was associated with less discernible vessel branches or shorter vessel length on angiography. Further analysis revealed that this is due to uncontrolled diastolic BP, but not uncontrolled systolic BP. There was an association between uncontrolled hypertension and reduced CBF, which was also mainly driven by uncontrolled diastolic BP. We also found that uncontrolled diastolic BP, but not uncontrolled systolic BP, was associated with increased WMH volume. Conclusions: Uncontrolled hypertension was associated with subclinical cerebrovascular injury globally, with both small and medium-to-large arteries being affected. Key Points: • In this study, we leveraged the advantage of a series of cutting-edge MR imaging and analysis techniques and found uncontrolled hypertension is associated with subclinical globally compromised cerebrovascular health. • The detrimental consequences of uncontrolled BP affect not only the small vessels but also the medium-to-large arteries, and uncontrolled systolic and diastolic BP are both independently associated with certain types of cerebrovascular injury. • Our data suggest that cerebrovascular health is impaired globally in uncontrolled hypertension before the onset of stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of fluorescent method to metal ions detection features high sensitivity, simple operation and real‐time monitoring. A 2,7‐dihydroxynaphthalene‐functionalized dimethyl glycoluril (called clip 1) was synthesized, using a relatively simple method. And it is fully characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, HR‐MS and single crystal X‐ray diffraction. The recognition properties of molecular clip 1 were analyzed systematically toward several metal ions using fluorescence spectroscopy, and it was found that molecular clip 1 is selective and sensitive to Fe3+. At the same time, the clip 1 shows good anti‐interference ability when other metal ions existed. The limit detection of Fe3+ is 3×10−7M. The fluorescence of clip 1 was quenched apparently by Fe3+, which was speculated to be caused by ligand–metal charge transfer mechanism (LMCT). As a new fluorescence probe for Fe3+ ion, it may expanded the application of glycoluril molecular clips. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the synthesis of a new acyclic CB[n]-type host (1) that features a central glycoluril trimer capped by triptycene sidewalls. Host 1 has good solubility in water (≈ 3 mM) and does not undergo strong self-association (Ks = 480 M−1). We probed the geometry of the complexes by analyzing the complexation induced changes in the 1H NMR spectra and measured the complexation thermodynamics by isothermal titration calorimetry. The conformation of 1 and its packing in the solid state was revealed by single crystal X-ray diffraction measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The binding ability of acyclic CB[n]-type receptors M1, M2 and macrocyclic CB[7] toward explosive materials was investigated. Acyclic M2 demonstrates an overall better binding and solubilizing ability, and lower fluorescence in the presence of aromatic explosive compounds, suggesting its future application for the detection of harmful explosive materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impaired orthostatic blood pressure (BP) stabilization is prevalent in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and is associated with adverse outcomes. We aimed to test the hypothesis that reduced hemoglobin is an important contributor to orthostatic intolerance in CKD in the present study. This study included 262 patients with non-dialysis-dependent CKD. Seated and standing BP was measured, and orthostatic BP reduction was calculated for both systolic BP (∆ SBP) and diastolic BP (∆ DBP). The association between orthostatic BP reduction and hemoglobin was determined by multiple linear regression models. We also performed mediation analysis to test to what extent the effect of renal dysfunction on impaired orthostatic BP stabilization can be explained by reduced hemoglobin. The mean age of the patients was 57.7 (±14.5) years, and 61.5% were male. Both ∆ SBP and ∆ DBP correlated negatively with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). With adjustment for age and sex, hemoglobin level was negatively associated with ∆ SBP (β = -1.4, SE = 0.4, P < .001) and ∆ DBP (β = -0.6, SE = 0.2, P = .009). The associations remained significant with further adjustment for additional covariates. When eGFR was introduced as a covariate, it did not eliminate the significance (both P < .05). The associations remained essentially unchanged in a sensitivity analysis excluding those with concurrent erythropoietin use. Mediation analysis demonstrated that reduced hemoglobin accounted for 35.4% (P = .004) of the effect of eGFR on ∆ SBP and 47.7% (P = .032) on ∆ DBP. Our study suggests that reduced hemoglobin is a potentially important contributor to the development of orthostatic hypotension in CKD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new glycoluril derivative‐1H, 4H, 5H, 8H‐2, 3a, 4a, 6, 7a, 8a‐hexaazacyclopenta[def]fluorene‐4, 8‐dione, hexahydro‐2, 6‐bis(phenylmethyl) (3) is strategically designed and synthesized through the reaction between glycoluril, formaldehyde and benzylamine with the optimized molar ratio of 1:6:2. Compound 3 is fully characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, IR, MS and X‐ray single crystal diffraction. Reduction of compound 3 delivers a potential precursor‐imidazo[4, 5‐d]imidazole, octahydro‐hexahydro‐2, 6‐bis(phenylmethyl) (4) for the synthesis of novel nitramine explosives (i.e. bicyclo‐HMX and bi‐RDX). The nitration and hydrolysis of compound 4 are investigated in detail and three ring‐opened molecules N, 2, 4‐trinitro‐benzenemethanamine (8a), N, 2‐dinitro‐benzenemethanamine (8b) and N‐methylene‐benzenemethanamine (9) are obtained. The synthesis, X‐ray crystal structure, hydrolysis, nitrolysis of two potential precursors for the preparation of nitramine explosives (bicycle‐HMX and bi‐RDX) are reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We designed and synthesized a “hybrid” molecular container 1, which is structurally related to both cucurbit[n]uril (CB[n]) and pillar[n]arene type receptors. Receptor 1 was fully characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, IR, MS and X‐ray single crystal diffraction. The self‐association behavior, host–guest recognition properties of 1, and the [salt] dependence of Ka were investigated in detail by 1H NMR and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC). Optical transmittance and TEM measurements provide strong evidence that receptor 1 undergoes co‐assemble with amphiphilic guest C10 in water to form supramolecular bilayer vesicles (diameter 25.6±2.7 nm, wall thickness ≈3.5 nm) that can encapsulate the hydrophilic anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOX) and the hydrophobic dye Nile red (NR). The release of encapsulated DOX or NR from the vesicles can be triggered by hexamethonium (8 c) or spermine (10) which leads to the disruption of the supramolecular vesicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Illegal construction should be detected as early as possible as it can damage the environment and economy. However, the existing methods for detecting illegal construction can be improved in terms of their detection cycles, accuracy, and speed. Moreover, there are relatively few valuable real-world image datasets for detecting illegal construction. To address these issues, a high-precision real-time detection model named YEMNet and a new large-scale dataset for detection of illegal construction objects (ICOS) are proposed herein. Our YEMNet is based on the You Only Look Once v3 object detection model; this model adopts a lightweight convolutional neural network called "EfficientNet" as the backbone for feature extraction. Then, YEMNet employs a new activation function Mish outside the backbone to achieve efficient optimization and strong generalization, thereby improving the recognition accuracy for ICOS in complicated scenes. Our proposed dataset comprises 15 categories and 13,701 photographs of ICOS captured under different conditions concerning weather, lighting, and natural scenes. Extensive experiments on the proposed dataset show that YEMNet achieves a mean average precision of 91.41% with fewer parameters, thereby outperforming state-of-the-art object detectors. Our dataset and code are available at https://github.com/king-king-king/ICOS-Dataset. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring (ABPM) is often considered to have an advantage over dialysis unit blood pressure (BP) in dialysis patients, the exact relationship between these two measurements of BP has not been well determined. In a cohort of 90 Chinese dialysis patients, agreement between dialysis unit BP (predialysis and postdialysis BP) and interdialytic ABP was evaluated using Bland-Altman plots and Lin's concordance correlation coefficient for quantitative analysis, and inter-rater agreement (κ) for qualitative analysis. Limits of agreement between dialysis unit BP and ABP were wide (predialysis systolic BP: -33.5 to 20.9 mm Hg; predialysis diastolic BP: -22.2 to 11.9 mm Hg; postdialysis systolic BP: -25.4 to 26.5 mm Hg; postdialysis diastolic BP: -18.4 to 12.3 mm Hg). Lin's concordance correlation coefficient exhibited a poor agreement with concordance correlation coefficients of 0.75, 0.81, 0.64, and 0.75 for predialysis systolic BP, postdialysis systolic BP, predialysis diastolic BP, and postdialysis diastolic BP, respectively. When BP level was classified into quartiles, an increasing trend for incorrect classification rate was observed with deleterious hypertension, with the highest value in grade 3 hypertension (100% and 75.0% for predialysis and postdialysis BP, respectively). Therefore, these data suggest that agreement between dialysis unit BP and interdialytic ABP is poor in Chinese dialysis patients, and the bias for patients with higher degree of hypertension is more prominent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring ( ABPM) is often considered to have an advantage over dialysis unit blood pressure ( BP) in dialysis patients, the exact relationship between these two measurements of BP has not been well determined. In a cohort of 90 Chinese dialysis patients, agreement between dialysis unit BP (predialysis and postdialysis BP) and interdialytic ABP was evaluated using Bland-Altman plots and Lin's concordance correlation coefficient for quantitative analysis, and inter-rater agreement (κ) for qualitative analysis. Limits of agreement between dialysis unit BP and ABP were wide (predialysis systolic BP: −33.5 to 20.9 mm Hg; predialysis diastolic BP: −22.2 to 11.9 mm Hg; postdialysis systolic BP: −25.4 to 26.5 mm Hg; postdialysis diastolic BP: −18.4 to 12.3 mm Hg). Lin's concordance correlation coefficient exhibited a poor agreement with concordance correlation coefficients of 0.75, 0.81, 0.64, and 0.75 for predialysis systolic BP, postdialysis systolic BP, predialysis diastolic BP, and postdialysis diastolic BP, respectively. When BP level was classified into quartiles, an increasing trend for incorrect classification rate was observed with deleterious hypertension, with the highest value in grade 3 hypertension (100% and 75.0% for predialysis and postdialysis BP, respectively). Therefore, these data suggest that agreement between dialysis unit BP and interdialytic A BP is poor in Chinese dialysis patients, and the bias for patients with higher degree of hypertension is more prominent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The catalyst of PtCu bimetallic nanoparticles anchored on hierarchical porous N-doped carbon (PtCu/NHPC) is successfully fabricated through a simple pyrolysis synthesis. The high surface area (827 m2 g−1) of N-doped porous carbon (NHPC) can effectively favor the high distribution of PtCu particles on carbon. The high mesopore ratio of NHPC helps to reduce mass transfer resistance. Furthermore, homogeneously distributed nitrogen in carbon can not only uniformly disperse nanoparticles but also optimize catalyst oxygen affinity, significantly improving catalytic efficiency for oxygen reduction reaction. PtCu/NHPC shows excellent electrocatalytic activity with a high half-wave potential (0.915 V vs. RHE) compared with commercial Pt/C (0.864 V) in half-cell test. In the single-cell system, PtCu/NHPC also behaves good performance, and its initial current density is 595 mA cm−2 at 0.85 V. PtCu/NHPC shows better durability (only 6.6% mass activity loss) after 10,000 potential cycles compared to JM Pt/C catalyst (30%). The research provides a simple preparation strategy for improving the oxygen reduction reaction activity and stability of fuel cell platinum-based catalysts. • Hierarchical porous N-doped carbon was prepared through a simple method. • NHPC aids in exposing more active sites and dispersing metal nanoparticles. • The Cu, and N atoms synergistically tune electronic structure of Pt. • Nitrogen doping could enhance the interaction between Pt and NHPC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of silica-pillared zirconium phosphate materials with ordered structure were synthesized using hexadecylamine (HDA) as expanding agent, dodecyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride (DDBAC) as template agent and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as silica source. The textural properties of the materials can be effectively controlled by adjusting the dosage of HDA, DDBAC and TEOS. Furthermore, a template-directing self-assembly mechanism was proposed based on the synthesis. In the epoxidation of methyl soyate, the prepared materials showed excellent performance with 95.9 % conversion of double bonds and 84.7 % epoxy selectivity. This result is determined by the large surface area and the ordered interlayer structure. Graphical Abstract: Series silica-pillared zirconium phosphate materials with ordered structure were synthesized. The textural properties of the materials can be effectively controlled by adjusting the dosage of each reaction species. A template-directing self-assembly mechanism was proposed based on the synthesis. The materials show excellent catalytic performance on the epoxidation of methyl soyate.[Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The two most commonly used strategies to evaluate dialysis patients' blood pressure ( BP) level are 44-hour and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring ( ABPM). The objective of this study was to find an appropriate 24-hour period that correlated well with the 44-hour BP level and determine the differences between these strategies. In a group of 51 dialysis patients, the authors performed 44-hour ABPM and extracted data for a fixed 24-hour ABPM. The fixed 24-hour ABPM started at 6 am on the nondialysis day. A strong correlation was found between all parameters of 44-hour and the fixed 24-hour ABPM, with paired sample t test showing only small magnitude changes in a few parameters. Both 24-hour ABPM and 44-hour ABPM were superior to clinic BP in predicting left ventricular mass index ( LVMI) by multiple regression analysis. It was found that 44-hour ambulatory arterial stiffness index ( AASI), but not 24-hour AASI, had a positive association with LVMI ( r=0.328, P=.021). However, after adjustment for 44 -hour systolic blood pressure, this association disappeared. Fixed 24 -hour ABPM is a good surrogate of 44-hour ABPM to some extent, while 44-hour ABPM can provide more accurate and detailed information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Germline mutations in LKB1 (STK11) are associated with the Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS), which includes aberrant mucocutaneous pigmentation, and somatic LKB1 mutations occur in 10% of cutaneous melanoma. By somatically inactivating Lkb1 with K-Ras activation (±p53 loss) in murine melanocytes, we observed variably pigmented and highly metastatic melanoma with 100% penetrance. LKB1 deficiency resulted in increased phosphorylation of the SRC family kinase (SFK) YES, increased expression of WNT target genes, and expansion of a CD24+ cell population, which showed increased metastatic behavior in vitro and in vivo relative to isogenic CD24− cells. These results suggest that LKB1 inactivation in the context of RAS activation facilitates metastasis by inducing an SFK-dependent expansion of a prometastatic, CD24+ tumor subpopulation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Misalignment of a laser cavity would result in the displacement of beam location on the cavity mirrors. We present a simple method for automatic cavity alignment of a solid-state laser through detecting the location of the laser beam on the rear mirror, with which neither external alignment beams nor modifications to the cavity are required. The rear mirror of the laser cavity is replaced by a tip/tilt mirror to compensate for the misalignment. Experiments show that this method could effectively correct the misalignment of the laser cavity and restore the output power to almost the original value when the resonator is well aligned. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Iron oxide nanoparticles have been produced on the top surface of aligned multi-walled carbon nanotubes by CO2 laser processing. They were characterized to be Fe2O3 nanoparticles by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and high resolution scanning electronic microscopy. Absorption bands in the visible region were found to be redshifted compared with the absorption of Fe2O3 nanoparticles prepared by traditional chemical methods. Photoluminescence from these Fe2O3 nanoparticles shows a broad emission band in the near infrared region for both excitations at 514 and 633nm. Particle size is considered to be responsible for the unique optical properties of the Fe2O3 nanoparticles. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: WC/Ni coating was formed by laser cladding of a W/C/Ni powder blend. The formed WC crystals have rectangular or quadrangle cross-section shapes with size of 2–30μm. Step, twist and cross growth morphologies of WC formation were observed. The coating contains WC, CW3, WNi, FeW3C, Fe6W6C, W3O, W, C, and (Fe,Ni) phases. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Twirler mutation arose spontaneously and causes inner ear defects in heterozygous and cleft lip and/or cleft palate in homozygous mutant mice, providing a unique animal model for investigating the molecular mechanisms of inner ear and craniofacial development. Here, we report the identification of a novel homeobox gene, Iroquois-related homeobox like-1 (Irxl1), from the Twirler locus. Irxl1 encodes a TALE-family homeodomain protein with its homeodomain exhibiting the highest amino acid sequence identity (54%) to those of invertebrate Iroquois and vertebrate Irx subfamily members. The putative Irxl1 protein lacks the Iro-box, a conserved motif in all known members of the Irx subfamily. Searching the databases showed that Irxl1 orthologs exist in Xenopus, chick, and mammals. In situ hybridization analyses of mouse embryos at various developmental stages showed that Irxl1 mRNA is highly expressed in the frontonasal process and palatal mesenchyme during primary and secondary palate development. In addition, Irxl1 mRNA is strongly expressed in mesenchyme surrounding the developing inner ear, in discrete regions of the developing mandible, in the dermamyotome during somite differentiation, and in a subset of muscular structures in late embryonic stages. The developmental expression pattern indicates that Irxl1 is a good candidate gene for the Twirler gene. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In order to improve wear resistance of aluminum alloy, the in situ synthesized TiB2 and Ti3B4 peritectic composite particulate reinforced metal matrix composite formed on the 2024 aluminum alloy by laser cladding with a powder mixture of Fe coated Boron, Ti and Al was successfully achieved using 3 kW CW CO2 laser. The laser cladding coating present excellent bonding with aluminum alloy substrate. The chemical composition, microstructure and phase structure of the composite clad coating were analyzed by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), SEM and XRD. The typical microstructure of composite coating is composed of TiB2, Ti3B4, Al3Ti, Al3Fe and α-Al. The surface hardness of cladding coating is increased with the amount of added Fe coated B and Ti powder which determines the amount of TiB2 and Ti3B4 peritectic composite particulate, and obviously higher than that of substrate. The wear tests were carried out using a FALEX-6 type pin-on-disc machine. The test results show that the composite coatings with the in situ synthesized TiB2 and Ti3B4 peritectic improve wear resistance when compared with the as-received Al substrate. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: To reduce the mixed fuel induced excessive wear of the cast iron engine cylinder liners, research on laser alloying of NiCr alloy with powder feeding was performed to locally change both the composition and the microstructure of the liner. The research indicated that laser alloying of 75Ni25Cr on grey cast iron liner demonstrates sound alloying layers free of cracks and porosities. The microstructure of the alloyed layer is composed of pre-eutectic austenite and ledeburite. The alloying element Ni is mainly located in the austenite, while Cr is mainly in cementite. The average hardness is HV0.2500. The corrosion resistance of the alloyed layers in diluted H2SO4 solution and NaOH solution is dramatically improved compared to the grey cast iron. The relative wear resistance of the laser-alloyed 75Ni25Cr layer is 4.34 times of that of the grey cast iron. The improvements on the corrosion and wear resistance of the cast iron are attributed to the composition and microstructure change by laser alloying of 75Ni25Cr. Laser alloying can be a good solution to improve wear and corrosion resistance of the grey iron liners in mixed fuel environment. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A PRC-3 kW continuous wave CO2 laser was used to clad a MoS2/TiC/Ni coatings on the surface of a 1045 low carbon steel substrate. The microstructure and phase composition of the composite coating were studied. The typical microstructure of the composite coating is composed of multi-sulfide phases including binary element sulfides, ternary element sulfides, Ni, TiC and Mo2C. Wear tests were carried out using a FALEX-6 type pin-on-disc machine. The results showed that the MoS2/Ni coating (as a contrasted sample) exhibited the lowest friction coefficient and the largest weight loss in comparison to other investigated specimens. The friction coefficient of the MoS2/TiC/Ni coating is lower than that of quenched 45 steel and weight loss is only one-sixth of that of 45 steel. The worn surface of MoS2/TiC/Ni laser cladding coating is so clean and smooth (no noticeable groove and scratches visible) that the microstructure of coating is identified after dry wear test of 40 min. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In order to improve the wear resistance of an aluminum alloy, an in situ synthesized TiB2 particulate-reinforced metal matrix composite coating was formed on a 2024 aluminum alloy by laser cladding with a powder mixture of Fe-coated boron, Ti and Al was successfully achieved using a 3-kW CW CO2 laser. The chemical composition, microstructure and phase structure of the composite clad coating were analyzed by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), SEM, TEM and XRD. The nanohardness and the elastic modulus of the phases of the coating have been examined. The dry sliding wear behaviour of the coating was investigated using a pin-on-ring machine under four loads, namely 8.9, 17.8, 26.7, and 35.6N. It has been found that the wear characteristics of cladding were completely dependent on the content and morphology of the TiB2 particulate and intermetallic in the microstructure and the applied load. At the lowest load (8.9N), with increasing content of TiB2 particulate and intermetallic, the wear weight loss of the laser cladding was decreased. At higher loads (17.8, 26.7, and 35.5N), the 2024 Al alloy exhibited superior wear resistance to the particle-reinforced metal matrix composite cladding. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The high temperature wear behavior of Ni–W–Co/SiC composite brush plated coatings deposited on a hot work die steel has been investigated using a plate-on-ring test rig. The microstructure and wear characteristics of coating have been analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that typical microstructure of Ni–W–Co/SiC composite coating consists of Ni-based solid solution and SiC particles. The TEM observation of Ni–W–Co/SiC composite coating has revealed the fine SiC particles of nano-size in the brush plated coatings and the matrix of Ni–W–Co plated coating is composed of a mixed crystalline and amorphous structure. The worn surface morphology of the plated coating is observed by SEM and laser profile analysis. In the temperature range 400–600 °C, wear rate and average friction coefficient of the Ni–W–Co/SiC brush plated composite coatings are lower than that of the 3Cr2W8V (ASTM H21) hot work die steel. Abrasive and adhesive wears are the major wear mechanisms of brush plated composite coating at high temperature. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Detailed experiments have been conducted to produce a nickel-based alloy composite coating reinforced with TiC particles on medium carbon steel substrate by powder feeding laser cladding using a coaxial nozzle. The chemical compositions, microstructures and surface morphology of the coatings were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy disperse X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffractometry (XRD). Composite coatings with TiC particles of various shapes and sizes embedded in nickel-based alloy were synthesized in-situ during laser processing. An excellent bonding between the coating and the carbon steel substrate was obtainable. The coatings were uniform, continuous and free from cracks. The microstructure of the coating was mainly composed of γ-Ni dendrites, a small amount of CrB, Ni3B, M23C6 and dispersed TiC particles. The maximum microhardness of the coating was about HV0.21200. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Cyclin D3 protein is a member of the D-type cyclins. Besides serving as cell cycle regulators, D-type cyclins have been reported to be able to interact with several transcription factors and modulate their transcriptional activations. Here we report that human activating transcription factor 5 (hATF5) is a new interacting partner of Cyclin D3. The interaction was confirmed by in vivo coimmunoprecipitation and in vitro binding analysis. Neither interaction between Cyclin D1 and hATF5 nor interaction between Cyclin D2 and hATF5 was observed. Confocal microscopy analysis showed that Cyclin D3 could colocalize with hATF5 in the nuclear region. Cyclin D3 could potentiate hATF5 transcriptional activity independently of its Cdk4 partner. But Cyclin D1 and Cyclin D2 had no effect on hATF5 transcriptional activity. These data provide a new clue to understand the new role of Cyclin D3 as a transcriptional regulator. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Laser direct manufacturing (LDM) has been intensively developed in recent years to directly and flexibly manufacture metallic components with full metal density, functions and properties, especially for some specific materials or geometry. This paper presents a project work on laser direct manufacturing a novel designed collimation component for an out-space hard X-ray modulation telescope. The research work contained the characteristics of overlap multi-pass laser cladding of tungsten or tungsten nickel alloys, microstructure analyses, technique stability of laser direct manufacturing, and the final direct manufacturing of tungsten nickel collimation component. The results proved that laser direct manufacturing could be well used to manufacture specific material and geometry component of good quality, which are very difficult or even impossible by conventional manufacturing methods. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The microstructural evolution in high power CO2 laser cladding of steel with Stellite 6+WC powder mixture was investigated, among which the WC vol.% was, respectively, 0, 9, 18, 27, 36, 45, 54, 72 and 100% by dual powder feeding Stellite 6 and WC powders with different feeding rates. Two significantly different solidification characteristics were found in the microstructural evolution in laser clads of Stellite 6+WC. The first one was characterized by the dendrites and interdendritic eutectics from 0 to 36% WC, in which the added WC was completely melted into the melt pool and the re-solidified structure contained α-Co,σ-CoCr and various carbides such as M7C3. The second one was characterized by various faceted dendrites in block, flower, butterfly, star shapes and the matrix from 45 to 100% WC, in which most of the WC was melted, the microstructure contained re-solidified WC, Co and various Co–W–C/Fe–W–C complex carbides. Maximum 26 and 64 wt.% W were, respectively, dissolved into the matrix and the faceted dendrites. When laser cladding WC powder with severe dilution from the substrate, a microstructure with different composition appeared within the faceted dendrites with interior approximately 90 wt.% of W and exterior approximately 70 wt.% of W. Such a structure was probably the frozen result of the peritectic reaction during laser cladding rapid solidification. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The dysfunction of E3 ubiquitin ligases is important in the pathogenesis of many human diseases, as they play important roles in multiple cellular processes. In this review, we evaluated the structures, functions and clinical significance of two RING-type E3 ubiquitin ligases from the same subfamily, ring-finger protein 126 (RNF126) and breast cancer associated gene 2 (BCA2). Interestingly, the expression of RNF126 and BCA2 are regulated by multiple signaling pathways, including EGFR, ERK, AKT, and NF-κB. RNF126 and BCA2 appear to be functional mediators for not only DNA damage repair but also cancer development. Due to their significant functions in cell proliferation and DNA damage repair, RNF126 and BCA2 may be two potential diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for cancers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, social media has increasingly become popular platforms for information dissemination and increasing incidents of cyber violence also have followed. In order to investigate the characteristics of cyber violence spreading and heterogeneity of online social networks, an SRCFE (susceptible–reader–commentator–forwarder–educatee) model is presented on scale-free networks. The spreading dynamics of cyber violence is analyzed in detail by using the mean-field theory. The basic reproductive number R 0 is calculated by the next generation matrix method and two equilibriums are derived. The theoretical analysis indicates that the basic reproductive number depends mainly on the educated degree and the topology of the underlying networks. The relationships between the basic reproductive number and human cognitive behaviors are studied. Furthermore, the global stability of the cyber violence free equilibrium is proved. The permanence of cyber violence spreading and the global attractivity of cyber violence prevailing equilibrium are also studied in detail. Finally, numerical simulations confirm the analytical results. • Present a novel SRCFE cyber violence spreading model on scale-free networks. • The basic reproductive number is calculated by the next generation matrix method. • Study the stability of equilibrium and the permanence of cyber violence spreading. • The networks' heterogeneity, educated degree and cognitive behavior can affect spreading dynamical behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the traditional dark channel prior (DCP) algorithm is used for image defogging, it faces some problems such as unsatisfactory restoration of the target edge details, distortion in large‐scale and high‐brightness sky regions. To solve these problems, this paper proposes an improved dark channel defogging algorithm based on the HSI colour space, named the IDCP algorithm. First, an asymmetric mean filter window is used to obtain the modified dark channel image to improve the grey value mutation in the traditional dark channel image. Based on this work, an improved global atmospheric transmittance calculation method is proposed, which effectively improves the inapplicability of the dark channel prior in large‐scale and high‐brightness sky regions. Finally, the Laplacian operator is used to sharpen the image to enhance the target edge information. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm can effectively solve the distortion phenomenon caused by the traditional DCP algorithm when handling large‐scale and high‐brightness sky regions, improve the target edge details, and restore the true colour of the image scene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mechanoluminescence (ML) is a fascinating phenomenon with diverse applications in pressure sensing, damage detection, and stress distribution visualization. However, most ML materials exhibit instantaneous photon emission that requires real‐time recording with a photodetector, and thereby circumscribing their applicability predominantly to real‐time stress‐sensing scenarios. In this work, a novel method is introduced for non‐real‐time stress sensing utilizing Li0.1Na0.9NbO3:Pr3+ phosphor, which allows for the retrieval of pressure location and intensity even 20 days after the event. The influence of heat and pressure on the trap depth distribution is analyzed using thermoluminescence (TL) and ML measurements, and it is proved that both heat and pressure release the captured electrons in the same traps. Leveraging the intricate competition between mechanical and thermal detrapping processes, stress information can be accessed through TL imaging. Furthermore, an algorithm is proposed based on this phenomenon to authenticate the stress information. This research not only advances the fundamental understanding of ML phenomena but also introduces a novel approach for applications such as mechano‐history indicators, security papers, and advanced data storage systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growth differentiation factor 15(GDF15) is a distant member of the superfamily of the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β). It has been established that increased GDF15 levels are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. However, the detail effect of GDF15 on cardiovascular system in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) needs detail analysis. Patients with CKD who did not need dialysis were enrolled in the study. Blood pressure (BP), endothelial function, pulse wave velocity (PWV) and heart rate variability (HRV) were taken in all subjects. Plasma GDF15 concentration was measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Among the 355 participants, the mean age was 57.4 (±14.2) years old and the mean estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was 50.1 (±33.2) mL/min/1.73m2. The average plasma GDF15 level was 1394.7 (±610.1) pg/mL. Higher GDF15 concentrations were significantly associated with decreased eGFR and increased urine protein-to-creatinine ratio (uPCR). In multivariable models, after adjusting for potential confounders, plasma GDF15 has negative concerning with HRV parameters including the standard deviation of the normal-to-normal (NN) interval (SDNN), the square root of the mean of the sum of the squares of differences between adjacent NN intervals (RMSSD) and Triangular Index. We observed there was a link between increased plasma of GDF15 and decreased HRV. The mechanisms and prediction of GDF15 in the cardiovascular disease with CKD needs further discussion and study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The degradation of lignin-carbohydrate complex (LCC) esters has been proven to be crucial for the selective separation of lignocellulosic components. This study utilized Raman microspectroscopy to image the preferential degradation of lignin and LCC esters from the bamboo wall during successive NaOH (0.2 to 5.0 % w /w), H 2 SO 4 (1 to 8 % v /v), and NaClO 2 (5 to 20 min) treatments. Raman imaging showed that lignin and LCC esters were selectively removed from the middle lamella of fibers and the secondary wall of parenchyma during NaOH and NaClO 2 treatments. In contrast, H 2 SO 4 primarily caused the simultaneous removal of lignin and LCC esters from the fiber wall under harsh conditions (8 %), while the middle lamella of parenchyma was less affected, both morphologically and topochemically. Raman spectral analysis indicated that the band intensity at 1605 cm−1 for lignin and at 1173 cm−1 for LCC esters decreased by >87.0 % in the highly lignified parenchyma secondary wall after a 5.0 % NaOH treatment, while the decrease was <67 % in the fiber wall. Interestingly, a strong linear correlation was observed between LCC esters and carbohydrates in the parenchyma (R2 > 0.912). These findings provide important insights into the graded and classified utilization of bamboo resources. [Display omitted] • Preferential degradation of lignin and LCC esters. • Recalcitrant fiber secondary wall and P-Cml. • Strong correlation between LCC esters and carbohydrates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) is a unique genomic status in many cancers. However, its role in the genomic features and immunotherapy in cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is unclear. This study aimed to systematically investigate the genomic characterization and immunotherapy efficacy of MSI-H patients with CCA. Methods: We enrolled 887 patients with CCA in this study. Tumor samples were collected for next-generation sequencing. Differences in genomic alterations between the MSI-H and microsatellite stability (MSS) groups were analyzed. We also investigated the survival of PD-1 inhibitor-based immunotherapy between two groups of 139 patients with advanced CCA. Results: Differential genetic alterations between the MSI-H and MSS groups included mutations in ARID1A, ACVR2A, TGFBR2, KMT2D, RNF43, and PBRM1 which were enriched in MSI-H groups. Patients with an MSI-H status have a significantly higher tumor mutation burden (TMB) (median 41.7 vs. 3.1 muts/Mb, P < 0.001) and more positive programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression (37.5% vs. 11.9%, P < 0.001) than those with an MSS status. Among patients receiving PD-1 inhibitor-based therapy, those with MSI-H had a longer median overall survival (OS, hazard ratio (HR) = 0.17, P = 0.001) and progression-free survival (PFS, HR = 0.14, P < 0.001) than patients with MSS. Integrating MSI-H and PD-L1 expression status (combined positive score ≥ 5) could distinguish the efficacy of immunotherapy. Conclusions: MSI-H status was associated with a higher TMB value and more positive PD-L1 expression in CCA tumors. Moreover, in patients with advanced CCA who received PD-1 inhibitor-based immunotherapy, MSI-H and positive PD-L1 expression were associated with improved both OS and PFS. Trial registration: This study was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov on 07/01/2017 (NCT03892577). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lake-level changes can significantly affect paleoenvironmental evolution, resource occurrence, terrestrial carbon budget, and biodiversity in continental basins. Climate is one of the most critical factors controlling lake-level changes. Paleoclimate of the Early Jurassic has been evidenced by oscillating icehouses to (super) greenhouses with interrupted intermittent extreme climatic events (hyperthermal and cooling), e.g., the Toarcian oceanic anoxic event (~183 Ma) and the late Pliensbachian cooling event (~185 Ma). Lake-level evolution and hydrologic cycling on Earth's surface during the Early Jurassic icehouses-to-(super)greenhouses are thus far poorly understood due to a lack of continuous high-resolution nonmarine evidence. Here we present a super-long nonmarine lake level record for this pivotal interval from the early Pliensbachian to Toarcian by sedimentary noise modeling, and construct a 16.7-Myr-long astronomical time scale (174.2 Ma to 190.9 Ma) based on cyclostratigraphy analysis of rock color datasets (CIE b*) of the Qaidam Basin. Our results document lake-level oscillations on a 5-to 10-million-year (Myr) scale which shows a pronounced correlation with long-term climate variation and extreme climatic events, and 1- to 2.5-Myr-scale lake-level changes that are prominently paced by the 2.4-Myr long-eccentricity forcing and the 1.2-Myr obliquity forcing. At the Pliensbachian Stage, the 1.2-Myr-scale lake-level changes are in phase with the coeval sea-level variations. Orbitally forced growth and decay of the ephemeral or permanent ice sheets in polar regions are interpreted to control the synchronous ups-and-downs of continental lake level and global sea level. However, during the Toarcian ice-free greenhouses to (super)greenhouses, the 1.2-Myr-scale lake-level variations show an anti-phase relationship with global sea level, indicating a 'seesaw' interaction between continental reservoirs (lakes and groundwater) and global oceans. The 2.4-Myr long-eccentricity cycles mainly regulate variations of lake level and sea level by controlling the growth and decay of small-scale continental ice sheets, which is especially notable during the Pliensbachian Stage. These findings indicate a remarkable transition of hydrological cycling pattern during the Pliensbachian-Toarcian icehouses to (super)greenhouses, which provides new perspectives and evidence for investigating the hypothesis of global sea-level changes (e.g., glacio-eustasy and aquifer-eustasy) and long-period astronomical forcing in nonmarine stratigraphy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Invited for the cover of this issue are the groups of Lyle Isaacs at the University of Maryland and Zihui Meng at the Beijing Institute of Technology. The image depicts the structures of a hybrid water soluble acyclic receptor and bilayer vesicles while CB[6] and PA[5] are fitted in the background to indicate the conceptional relationship between the receptor and CB[n] and PA[n]. Read the full text of the article at 10.1002/chem.201802981. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies suggested that the reactive hyperemia index (RHI) is a promising cardiovascular risk predictor. We aimed to evaluate clinical determinants of RHI and its association with circulating endothelial injury and cardiac markers in hemodialysis patients. Among 368 patients recruited, RHI was evaluated by peripheral arterial tonometry (PAT) on a midweek nondialysis day. Clinical determinants of RHI were explored by multiple stepwise regression analysis and associations between RHI and circulating markers were evaluated by general linear models. The major cause of a failed PAT test was poor signal (82.1%). Intraclass correlation coefficient for reproducibility evaluation was 0.74. Multiple regression analysis showed traditional clinical factors only explained 7% of the variance of natural logarithm RHI (LnRHI) in the patients. In association analyses, LnRHI showed significant positive associations with Von Willebrand factor (vWF) (p = 0.04) and tissue factor (p = 0.047). It also associated positively with troponins (p ≤ 0.02 for both). In conclusion, performance of the PAT test was acceptable in dialysis patients and traditional clinical variables had very limited influence on RHI in these subjects. Among a panel of conventional endothelial injury markers, RHI showed very modest associations with only vWF and tissue factor. RHI associated positively with troponins in the patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) alloy has the ability to quickly transform between the amorphous phase and the crystalline phase; therefore, it can be used in non-volatile phase change storage. First-principles molecular dynamics was used to simulate the reversible phase change process of GST alloy, namely, amorphization and crystallization. The amorphous state was obtained by melting (∼3000 K) and cooling, and the amorphization process was characterized by the pair correlation function and bond angle distribution. The bond angles of amorphous GST were mainly distributed around 60°, 90°, and 110°, indicating the existence of octahedral and tetrahedral bonding configurations. The crystalline state was obtained by annealing at a temperature of 600 K, and the crystallization process was characterized by the pair correlation function, component disordered number, bond angle distribution, and dynamic atomic structure change. The results show that the bond angle of GST in crystallization is mainly distributed around 90°, and the structure mainly contains four-membered rings formed by Ge–Te and Sb–Te. By analyzing the optical properties, with the growth of crystallization time, the absorption coefficient, reflectivity, and conductivity of GST were significantly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on the phenomena of senescence escape in melanoma cells. It reflects on the oncogenic activation of B-RAF which results in reduced level of PI3K signaling and increased level of p16INK4a expression. It shows that the loss of either PTEN or p16INK4a or both results in senescence-escape and melanoma progression, and also informs about the oncogene-induced senescence (OIS) that results from the expression of mutant either B-RAF or N-RAS genes.

• A model is proposed for short-term power demand forecasting. • The method is a hybrid of ELM and ANFIS networks. • The weight coefficients of the procedure are determined by an enhanced bioinspired algorithm. • The algorithm is called Developed Parasitism-Predation Algorithm. One of the most crucial steps in comprehensively planning the proper and efficient use of energy (optimisation of consumption) and appropriate management of resources to fulfil the power demand is accurately forecasting the energy demand (optimisation of production). This study presents the modelling of an ideal technique for short-term power demand prediction as a novel hybrid approach comprising two distinct methods, namely the Elman neural network (ELM) and adaptive network–based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS). The hybrid approach outperforms the conventional individual methods because it can eliminate the drawbacks of the individual methods while retaining their advantages, particularly considering that ELM and ANFIS can handle non-linear data. The weight coefficients of the procedures in the proposed hybrid approach were determined using a novel, enhanced bioinspired algorithm, called the improved parasitism–predation algorithm, to achieve better accuracy. The simulation results demonstrated the superiority of the proposed approach over other state-of-the-art approaches including the independent ELM and ANFIS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mechanisms underlying elevated blood pressure in dialysis patients are complex as a variety of non-traditional factors are involved. We sought to explore the association of circulating betaine, a compound widely distributed in food, with blood pressure in dialysis patients. We used baseline data of an ongoing cohort study involving patients on hemodialysis. Plasma betaine was measured by high performance liquid chromatography in 327 subjects. Blood pressure level was determined by intradialytic ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. The mean age of the patients was 52.6 ± 11.9 years, and 58.4% were male. Average interdialytic ambulatory systolic and diastolic blood pressure were 138.4 ± 22.7 mm Hg and 84.4 ± 12.5 mm Hg, respectively. Mean plasma betaine level was 37.6 μmol/L. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed significant associations of betaine with both systolic blood pressure (β = -3.66, P = .003) and diastolic blood pressure (β = -2.00, P = .004). The associations persisted even after extensive adjustment for cardiovascular covariates. Subgroup analysis revealed that the association between betaine and blood pressure was mainly limited to female patients. Our data suggest that alteration of circulating betaine possibly contributes to blood pressure regulation in these patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]