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Background: Anaemia (low haemoglobin [Hb]) is well known to be associated with high mortality and adverse cardiac events following surgical treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). However, little is known about the relationship of AAA volume and Hb level alterations with endovascular repair of AAA. This study aimed to examine the changes in the Hb level and aneurysm volume before and after endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) for AAA and determine the relationship between the post-operative Hb level and the volume loss of AAA. Methods: This retrospective study reviewed patients with AAA who underwent EVAR between January 2020 and February 2021 at a tertiary medical centre. The clinical features and medical history of the patients were analysed. Alterations in the Hb level were recorded, and the AAA volume was calculated from computed tomography angiography images before and after EVAR to infer the association between the post-operative Hb level and alterations in AAA volume. Moreover, AAA volume, pre-operative Hb level and medical history were studied to identify the risk factors for anaemia 24 h after EVAR. Results: A total of 74 patients (mean age, 67 ± 7.9 years) were included in this study. The Hb level decreased significantly 24 h after EVAR, and the post-operative Hb level was negatively correlated with AAA volume loss (r = -0.252, p = 0.041). No relationship was observed between AAA volume loss and decrease in the Hb level (r = 0.072, p = 0.571) or between pre-operative AAA volume and decrease in the Hb level (r = 0.072, p = 0.566). Furthermore, 59.5% of the patients (n = 44) developed anaemia 24 h after EVAR. The odds ratio (OR) of anaemia 24 h after EVAR was 5.3 times higher in those with hypertension (OR, 5.304; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.024-27.424) than in those without the condition. The pre-operative Hb level (or normal Hb level) was a protective factor (OR = 0.909; 95% CI, 0.853-0.969). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.840. The post-operative Hb level declined significantly, and AAA volume loss contributed to it. Moreover, hypertension was identified to be a risk factor for anaemia 24 h after EVAR, and pre-operative Hb level was discerned to be a protective factor. Conclusions: The findings suggest that decrease in the Hb level in the early post-EVAR stage warrants the attention of surgeons, especially in patients with a history of hypertension or a low pre-operative Hb level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the two nucleic acids used by extant biochemistry, RNA is of great importance for cellular function and development, and its expression can affect cell homeostasis. Therefore, accurate detection of RNA is the key contributor to disease diagnosis, including tumor detection. Compared with conventional RNA detection methods, molecular beacons (MBs) have high selectivity for target molecules detection, which have been widely used in RNA detection. However, the background fluorescence of typical MBs will seriously affect the detection sensitivity and accuracy. In addition, the poor affinity and weak resistance to the nuclease digestion of MBs also limit its applications. With the development of nanotechnology, many nanomaterials with fluorescence quenching ability have been widely used as quenchers and carriers for MBs to construct nanoprobes (Nano-MBs). In this review, we summarize the recent developments of Nano-MBs in RNA detection and imaging over the past decade. First, the structure, working principle, and classification of MBs are discussed. Then, we introduce several typical Nano-MBs based on gold nanoparticles, polydopamine, graphene oxide, molybdenum disulfide, and quantum dots. Particular emphasis is placed on the application of Nano-MBs in mRNA and miRNA detection and imaging in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, as well as in cancer. Finally, the current challenges and future perspectives are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Layer 1 Virtual Private Network (L1VPN) technology supports multiple user networks over a common carrier transport network. Emerging L1VPN services allow: L1VPNs to be built over multiple carrier networks; L1VPNs to lease or trade resources with each other; and users to reconfigure an L1VPN topology, and add or remove bandwidth. The trend is to offer increased flexibility and provide management functions as close to users as possible, while maintaining proper resource access right control. In this article two aspects of the L1VPN service and management architectures are discussed: management of carrier network partitions for L1VPNs, and L1VPN management by users. We present the carrier network partitioning at the network element (NE) and L1VPN levels. As an example, a Transaction Language One (TL1) proxy is developed to achieve carrier network partitioning at the NE level. The TL1 proxy is implemented without any modifications to the existing NE management system. On top of the TL1 proxy, a Web Services (WS)-based L1VPN management tool is implemented. Carriers use the tool to partition resources at the L1VPN level by assigning resources, together with the WS-based management services for the resources, to L1VPNs. L1VPN administrators use the tool to receive resource partitions from multiple carriers and partner L1VPNs. Further resource partitioning or regrouping can be conducted on the received resources, and leasing or trading resources with partner L1VPNs is supported. These services offer a potential business model for a physical network broker. After the L1VPN administrators compose the use scenarios of resources, and make the use scenarios available to the L1VPN end users as WS, the end users reconfigure the L1VPN without intervention from the administrator. The tool accomplishes L1VPN management by users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The all-optical network (AON) demonstrator is a trial system-level testbed for the validation and verification of key network building blocks, scalable architectures, as well as control and management solutions for next-generation wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) networks. Developed at the Communications Research Centre (CRC) in Ottawa, ON, Canada, the AON testbed has already validated certain system-level concepts at the physical and upper layers. The paper describes the crucial role of the AON testbed in research, development, and "proof of concept" for both emerging optical technologies at the physical layer (performance characterization) and customer-managed networks at the upper layer (network management). Moreover, it is expected that the AON testbed will continue to be a valuable playground for future developments of emerging technologies, solutions, and applications. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]