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Purpose Association of SIX1-SIX6 variants with peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer (p-RNFL) thickness had been reported in adults. This study aimed to investigate these associations in children, with further explorations by spatial, age and sex stratifications. Methods 2878 school children aged between 6 and 9 years were enrolled from the Hong Kong Children Eye Study. Three single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at the SIX1-SIX6 locus were genotyped. The association of each SNP with p-RNFL thickness (including global and sectoral thickness) were evaluated using multiple linear regression. Results SNPs rs33912345 (p=7.7×10-4) and rs10483727 (p=0.0013) showed significant associations with temporal-inferior p-RNFL thickness. The C allele of rs33912345 was associated with a thinner temporal-inferior p-RNFL by an average of 2.44 µm, while rs10483727-T was associated with a thinner temporal-inferior p-RNFL by 2.32 µm. The association with temporal-inferior p-RNFL was the strongest in the 8-9 year-old group for rs33912345 (p=5.2×10-4) and rs10483727 (p=3.3×10-4). Both SNPs were significantly associated with temporal-inferior p-RNFL thickness in boys (p<0.0017), but not in girls (p>0.05). In contrast, rs12436579-C (ß=1.66; p=0.0059), but not rs33912345-C (ß=1.31; p=0.052) or rs10483727-T (ß=1.19; p=0.078), was nominally associated with a thicker nasal-inferior p-RNFL. Conclusions Both rs33912345 and rs10483727 at SIX1-SIX6 were associated with p-RNFL thickness in children, especially at the temporal-inferior sector, with age-dependent and sex-specific effects. SNP rs12436579 was associated with nasal-inferior p-RNFL thickness. Our findings suggested a role of SIX1-SIX6 in RNFL variation during neural retina development in childhood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) leads to death and disability. This study developed an effective prognostic nomogram for assessing the risk factors for TBI mortality. Method: Data were extracted from an online database called "Multiparameter Intelligent Monitoring in Intensive Care IV" (MIMIC IV). The ICD code obtained data from 2,551 TBI persons (first ICU stay, >18 years old) from this database. R divided samples into 7:3 training and testing cohorts. The univariate analysis determined whether the two cohorts differed statistically in baseline data. This research used forward stepwise logistic regression after independent prognostic factors for these TBI patients. The optimal variables were selected for the model by the optimal subset method. The optimal feature subsets in pattern recognition improved the model prediction, and the minimum BIC forest of the high-dimensional mixed graph model achieved a better prediction effect. A nomogram-labeled TBI-IHM model containing these risk factors was made by nomology in State software. Least Squares OLS was used to build linear models, and then the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted. The TBI-IHM nomogram model's validity was determined by receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs), correction curve, Hosmer-Lemeshow test, integrated discrimination improvement (IDI), net reclassification improvement (NRI), and decision-curve analysis (DCA). Result: The eight features with a minimal BIC model were mannitol use, mechanical ventilation, vasopressor use, international normalized ratio, urea nitrogen, respiratory rate, and cerebrovascular disease. The proposed nomogram (TBI-IHM model) was the best mortality prediction model, with better discrimination and superior model fitting for severely ill TBI patients staying in ICU. The model's receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was the best compared to the seven other models. It might be clinically helpful for doctors to make clinical decisions. Conclusion: The proposed nomogram (TBI-IHM model) has significant potential as a clinical utility in predicting mortality in TBI patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The shock response has a great influence on the design, synthesis, and application of energetic materials in both industrial and military areas. Therefore, the initial decomposition mechanism of bond scission at the atomistic level of condensed-phase α-RDX under shock loading has been studied based on quantum molecular dynamics simulations in combination with a multi-scale shock technique. First, based on the frontier molecular orbital theory, our calculated result shows that the N-NO2 bond is the weakest bond in the α-RDX molecule in the ground state, which may be the initial bond for pyrolysis. Second, the changes of bonds under shock loading are investigated by the changes of structures, kinetic bond lengths, and Laplacian bond orders during the simulation. Also, the variation of thermodynamic properties with time in shocked α-RDX at 10 km/s along the lattice vector a for a timescale of up to 3.5 ps is presented. By analyzing the detailed structural changes of RDX under shock loading, we find that the shocked RDX crystal undergoes a process of compression and rotation, which leads to the C-N bond initial rupture. The time variation of dynamic bond lengths in a shocked RDX crystal is calculated, and the result indicates that the C-N bond is easier to rupture than other bonds. The Laplacian bond orders are used to predict the molecular reactivity and stability. The values of the calculated bond orders show that the C-N bonds are more sensitive than other bonds under shock loading. In a word, the C-N bond scission has been validated as the initial decomposition in a RDX crystal shocked at 10 km/s. Finally, the bond-length criterion has been used to identify individual molecules in the simulation. The distance thresholds up to which two particles are considered direct neighbors and assigned to the same cluster have been tested. The species and density numbers of the initial decomposition products are collected according to the trajectory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With helps of advancing CMOS technology, ISFETs have achieved great success. However, CMOS-based ISFETs are also suffering problems of scaling attenuation and threshold voltage offset. These problems mainly result from the architecture used to adapt standard CMOS process. To deal with these, we developed a novel CMOS ISFET configuration, namely, 3D-T-ISFET, by building a truncated architecture to expose CMOS process-inherent TiN thin film as the sensing interface. Due to the electrical conductivity of TiN, the signal from the environment can bypass the sensing dielectric and couple to the transistor effectively through the electrical double layer capacitance. Based on our experiments, as the footprint of $8.5^{2} {\mu } \text{m}$ 2, a 3.21-fold ${\Delta } \text{I}_{D}$ /pH improvement can be achieved by developed 3D-T-ISFET. At the same time, the 3D-T-ISFET has an about 1.65-fold improvement in SNR compared to the traditional 2D-ISFET. Compared to the 2D-ISFET in a state-of-the-art design, therefore, 3D-T-ISFET exhibits a scaling attenuation-free behavior and becomes less vulnerable to the non-idea effects brought by trapped charges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work shows a differential rotational thermal piezoresistive resonator (DR-TPR) design, fabrication, and characterization. The resonator uses silicon on insulator (SOI) microelectromechanical systems (SOI MEMS) technology. The sensing of carboxyl-polystyrene beads requires estimating the variation in the frequency of the resonator. It can serve as an alternative enabling technology to detect small molecules having wide implementations in clinical and industrial applications. The resonator uses a negative frequency shift to find the change in the mass due to the chemical absorption of the carboxyl-polystyrene beads on the DR-TPR surface. The method of using DR-TPR can attain label-free detection for many future biomarkers. The use of carboxyl-polystyrene beads to showcase the potential of DR-TPR as a mass sensor for future chemical/biosensing applications is the highlight of the paper. It includes the characterization in different concentrations of immobilization on the resonator surface. The work shows the operation of the resonator in an ionic buffer solution which is crucial for its future applications. The Q value of 80 with differential feedthrough cancellation is measured in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) using DR-TPR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The standard treatment for advanced gastric/gastroesophageal junction cancer (AGC/GEJC) is palliative chemotherapy combined with targeted therapy. The SOX regimen (S-1 plus oxaliplatin) is recommended as neoadjuvant or palliative first-line chemotherapy in Asian patients. Apatinib, an oral VEGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is associated with additional survival benefit as third- or subsequent-line therapy. However, the median overall survival time of AGC/GEJC is only 8– 11 months in the West and 13– 17 months in East Asia/Japan, even with the application of anti-angiogenic agents. Hence, the multimodal and individual management of patients is challenging standards to improve prognosis, including the preferential use of low-dose anti-angiogenic drugs and immunotherapy, as well as the application of multi-disciplinary treatment (MDT)-directed conversion therapy. Methods/Design: This single-center study was designed to combine low-dose apatinib with camrelizumab plus the SOX regimen in diagnosed potentially resectable and initially unresectable AGC/GEJC. This a prospective, open-label, single-arm, dose escalation and extension phase Ib clinical trial, conducted in Jiangsu Province Hospital, beginning from June 2020. All patients will first receive this combined regimen (3 weeks/cycle) for at most eight cycles, then apatinib and camrelizumab in maintenance therapy until disease progression, intolerable toxicity, death, a maximum 2 years of treatment or discontinuation for any reason. Follow-up and evaluation will be carried out regularly. If surgery is allowed by MDT discussions, oral apatinib will be discontinued during the last preoperative cycle. The primary endpoints are the objective response rate and maximum tolerated dose according to the Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumors (RECIST) criteria (version 1.1) and the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) criteria (version 5.0). Discussion: This study will assess the response and side effects of AGC/GEJC patients in the use of low-dose apatinib combined with camrelizumab and the SOX regimen, and this combined therapy is expected to be a feasible and optimized first-line treatment option. In addition, this study will provide robust evidence and novel ideas for conversion therapy. Trial Registration: ChiCTR.gov.cn: ChiCTR2000034109. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims To determine the prevalence and predictors of myopic macular degeneration (MMD) in a consortium of Asian studies. Methods Individual-level data from 19 885 participants from four population-based studies, and 1379 highly myopic participants (defined as axial length (AL) >26.0 mm) from three clinic-based/school-based studies of the Asian Eye Epidemiology Consortium were pooled. MMD was graded from fundus photographs following the meta-analysis for pathologic myopia classification and defined as the presence of diffuse choroidal atrophy, patchy chorioretinal atrophy, macular atrophy, with or without 'plus' lesion (lacquer crack, choroidal neovascularisation or Fuchs' spot). Area under the curve (AUC) evaluation for predictors was performed for the population-based studies. Results The prevalence of MMD was 0.4%, 0.5%, 1.5% and 5.2% among Asians in rural India, Beijing, Russia and Singapore, respectively. In the population-based studies, older age (per year; OR=1.13), female (OR=2.0), spherical equivalent (SE; per negative diopter; OR=1.7), longer AL (per mm; OR=3.1) and lower education (OR=1.9) were associated with MMD after multivariable adjustment (all p<0.001). Similarly, in the clinic-based/school-based studies, older age (OR=1.07; p<0.001), female (OR=2.1; p<0.001), longer AL (OR=2.1; p<0.001) and lower education (OR=1.7; p=0.005) were associated with MMD after multivariable adjustment. SE had the highest AUC of 0.92, followed by AL (AUC=0.87). The combination of SE, age, education and gender had a marginally higher AUC (0.94). Conclusion In this pooled analysis of multiple Asian studies, older age, female, lower education, greater myopia severity and longer AL were risk factors of MMD, and myopic SE was the strongest single predictor of MMD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the CMOS-based ion-sensitive field-effect transistor (ISFET) is scaling down to achieve a compact sensing array with high spatial resolution, reduction of sensing layer capacitance attenuates capacitive coupling efficiency of environmental input signals and decreases sensitivity performance. To address this issue, a concept of three-dimensional (3D) sensing structure is proposed and examined in this study. This can increase the sensing layer capacitance for a given footprint area. Based on our designs, a series of 3D sensing structures can be implemented with a standard CMOS foundry service and CMOS-compatible post processes. Our experimental results show that an $8.5^{2}\mu \text{m}^{2}$ footprint design of the 3D sensing structure can obtain approximately 2-fold increase in transconductance compared with a traditional ISFET with the same footprint. This enables pH sensitivity to be improved 1.5-fold in current response and 1.15-fold in voltage response. Therefore, the proposed 3D-structure ISFET can pave the way toward an ISFET sensing array with high sensitivity and high spatial resolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study aimed to investigate the clinical and pathological characteristics, and the recurrence and prognostic factors of borderline ovarian tumors (BOTs).Methods: The data of 286 patients admitted to hospital and followed up for more than ten months were analyzed retrospectively to study the clinicopathological characteristics and related factors of recurrence.Results: The median age of the patients was 42.06 ± 14.97 years, and the duration of the follow-up ranged from 10-109 months. During the follow-up period, 40 patients had a recurrence. Of these patients, 36 were ≤ 40 years, and patients with premenopausal recurrence accounted for 20.5% (36/176). In patients undergoing conservative treatment or radical operations, the recurrence rates were 21.3% and 1.8%, respectively, and they were 13.4% (36/268) in patients at Federation International of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage I, and 22.2% (4/18) in patients at an advanced stage. Postoperative pathology revealed that 40 patients had micropapillary tumors, among whom ten patients (25%) had a recurrence, and 19 patients had complications with interstitial infiltration. Of these 19 patients, six had a recurrence (31.5%). Another 22 patients had complications with calcified sand bodies; among these, eight patients (36.4%) had a recurrence. All the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). There were four cancer-related deaths during the follow-up period. Late FIGO stage, conservative operation, and a high level of carbohydrate antigen 125 (CA125) were independent risk factors for the recurrence of BOTs.Conclusion: BOTs usually occur in women under 40 years, have an occult onset, and half of the patients have no obvious clinical manifestations. Serum CA125 level can be used as a tumor marker to detect BOTs and the risk of its recurrence. Operation mode and FIGO stage are important independent factors for the recurrence of BOTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims To evaluate the distributions of quantitative optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) metrics and its associated factors in children. Methods 1059 children aged 6-8 years were recruited from the Hong Kong Children Eye Study. All the participants underwent OCT-A with a swept-source OCT. Retinal microvasculature on superficial capillary plexus was assessed and quantified by a customised automated image analysis programme. Univariable and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to determine systemic (body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, head circumference and blood pressure), demographic and ocular (axial length (AL), macular thickness and volume, retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness and visual acuity) variables (independent variables) associated with OCT-A metrics (dependent variables). Results In multiple linear regression analyses, enlarged foveal avascular zone area was associated with female gender (β=0.110, p<0.001), decreased AL (β=-0.097, p<0.001) and decreased central macular thickness (β=-0.008, p<0.001). Decreased vessel density was associated with increased BMI (β=-4.12×10-4, p=0.006), decreased AL (β=0.003, p<0.001) and decreased central macular thickness (β=7.87×10-5, p=0.001). Increased vessel diameter index was associated with female gender (β=0.020, p=0.007) and decreased AL (β=-0.020, p<0.001). Decreased fractal dimension was associated with older age (β=-0.001, p=0.008). There were no significant correlations between OCT-A metrics with visual acuity, RNFL thickness, central corneal thickness, waist circumference, head circumference and blood pressure (all p>0.05). Conclusion Our findings provides new information on baseline morphology of retinal microvasculature and its associated factors in school children, which will be useful for interpreting OCT-A metrics and for identifying and characterising pathological changes in retinal microvasculature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, two kinds of cohesive zone models (CZMs; exponential and bilinear) are used to evaluate the delamination behaviors of a composite T-stiffener integrated structure. First, based on the analysis of the bilinear CZM using maximum nominal stress damage initiation criterion and power law energy criterion, both the macroscopic mechanical response and the failure process are predicted, which analyzed the influences of the various cohesive zone parameters on the failure load and the damage patterns. Second, both the strength and the fracture characterizations about various T-stiffener integrated composite structures are studied in the experiment, which have a good agreement between the numerical result and the experimental data. Finally, the relationships among the failure load and the thickness of the skin, and the clamp distance are established; also, the energy release rates of the T-stiffeners for the failure process are predicted. These results will play an important role for designing and evaluating the strength and reliability of composite T-stiffener integrated structures. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A new intelligent model to simulate evacuation behavior in ships called neighborhood particle swarm optimization is proposed. This model determines the rules of behavior and velocity updating formulas to solve staff conflicts. The individuals in evacuation are taken as particles in PSO and update their behaviors by individual attributes, neighborhood attributes, and social attributes. Putting the degree of freedom movement of ships into environment factor and using the real Ro-Ro ship information and IMO test scenarios to simulate the evacuation process, the model in this paper can truly simulate the behavior of persons in emergency and provide a new idea to design excellent evacuation model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The aims of this study were to evaluate the antioxidant activity and to identify the antioxidant components of a traditional Chinese medicine formula consisting of a combination of Shanzha (the fruit of Crataegus pinnatifida Bge. var. major N.E.Br., SZ) and Danshen (the root of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge., DS). This medicine is extensively used to treat cardiovascular disease. Methods: Twelve samples extracted and fractionated from SZ, DS and the formula (SZ+DS) were analyzed. The concentrations of eight phenolic compounds were determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl assay were conducted to explore the antioxidant activities of the samples and of the 15 phenolic compounds detected. Correlation analysis of the antioxidant activity of herb samples and their phenolic components was performed. Results: The main phenolic component in all SZ+DS samples was salvianolic acid B, which exhibited strong antioxidant activity (ORAC value: 16.73 ± 2.53, IC50 value: 8.80 ± 0.06 μM) compared with the other phenolic compounds. For all samples, there was a positive relationship between their total phenolic components and their antioxidant activities. Conclusions: Phenolic compounds were the bioactive components of the herb samples, and salvianolic acid B was identified as the main bioactive compound in the SZ+DS formula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The regulation of neurite outgrowth is crucial in developing strategies to promote neurite regeneration after nerve injury and in degenerative diseases. In this study, we demonstrate that overexpression of an adaptor/scaffolding protein SH2B1β promotes neurite re-growth of differentiated PC12 cells, an established neuronal model, using wound healing (scraping) assays. Cell migration and the subsequent remodeling are crucial determinants during neurite regeneration. We provide evidence suggesting that overexpressing SH2B1β enhances protein kinase C (PKC)-dependent cell migration and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-AKT-, mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK)/extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK) kinase (MEK)-ERK-dependent neurite re-growth. Our results further reveal a cross-talk between pathways involving PKC and ERK1/2 in regulating neurite re-growth and cell migration. We conclude that temporal regulation of cell migration and neurite outgrowth by SH2B1β contributes to the enhanced regeneration of differentiated PC12 cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known regarding the role of inter-cellular interaction during neuronal differentiation. Homophilic N-cadherin engagement between cells contributes to neuronal migration. However, its function in neurite initiation is not clear. In this study, we provide the first evidence that the adaptor protein SH2B1β regulated N-cadherin levels and neurite initiation. Overexpression of SH2B1β reduces N-cadherin levels and increased phosphotyrosine 654 β-catenin, leading to increased nerve growth factor-induced neurite initiation in PC12 cells, an established model for neuronal differentiation. In contrast, overexpression of the dominant-negative mutant SH2B1β(R555E) increases N-cadherin expression, cell-cell aggregation, and reduces neurite initiation. Moreover, SH2B1β binds directly or indirectly to N-cadherin indicative of its involvement in regulating the levels of N-cadherin. Taken together, these findings provide significant new insights into how N-cadherin-mediated inter-cellular interactions may influence neurite initiation and how SH2B1β may regulate these processes. J. Cell. Physiol. 226: 2063-2074, 2011. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some construct characteristics and composing material of the new Gyro's rotor are introduced. Some factors resulting in deformation of the rotor surface are analyzed. Under different loads such as the force of deflecting center, the change of temperature, the force of pressure and couple factors, the deformation of rotor is analyzed with the wavelet finite element simulation software. The vector distributing map of rotor reformation is given. The deformation resulting from the pressure force of photon is studied. Finally, the influence on Gyro's performance because of anomalous surface of rotor due to deformation of rotor is researched and the result is useful to forecast the performance of the drift of gyroscope. The disturbing moment resulting from the deformation of rotor can be compensated using the mathematic method, and provides an important reference for both design and optimization of the rotor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Granular materials consisting of macroscopic grains have commercial applications and their flow behavior plays key role in geophysics. However, flow characteristics of nanogranules differ significantly from those of granules. The former can form low-volume fraction (5%) particle gels in air and do not exhibit gravity-driven granular flow easily. It is found that although dry nanogranules possess a high compressibility, close to gases, they are less susceptible to flow than granules due to high yield stress and viscosity. Such differences can be attributed to van der Waals attractions, which support the weight of nanoparticles to form aerogels and resist shearing deformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle gels are usually formed by density matching or Brownian motion against gravity. However, the suspended state of non-Brownian particles is essential in applications, such as Si-wafer wire sawing. By the addition of alkyl amine, micron-sized SiC suspensions are shown to form particle gel in ethylene glycol. The ratio of storage to loss modulus is about 3, indicating a weak gel. The structure by particle-particle attraction is demonstrated through existing yield stress. With increasing surfactant concentration, the gel forms easier, the sediment layer swells more significantly, and the yield stress is greater accordingly. A gelling mechanism has been proposed and examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hepatitis and hepatocellular carcinoma are serious human diseases. Here, we examined the in vivo and in vitro inhibitory effect of extracts of Qizhu decoction (a traditional Chinese medicine) on hepatitis caused by diethylnitrosamine or hepatitis B virus and on diethylnitrosamine-induced hepatocellular carcinoma. The results showed that both the aqueous and ethanol extracts (QC and QS, respectively) of Qizhu decoction significantly inhibited hepatic inflammation and liver cancer induced by diethylnitrosamine or hepatitis B virus by suppressing NF-κB signaling and decreasing the levels of TNF-α and IL-1β. Both QC and QS inhibited the proliferation and migration of primary cancer hepatocytes by reducing cyclin B1, cyclin D1 and N-cadherin expression and increasing E-cadherin expression. QC and QS also promoted the apoptosis of primary cancer hepatocytes by upregulating caspase-3 and downregulating BCL-2 expression. The knockdown of p65 in NF-κB signaling inhibited the ability of QC and QS to significantly reduce the colony formation ability of liver cancer cells. Additionally, QC and QS might significantly inhibit the DNA replication of hepatitis B virus in vivo and in vitro, and we found that corilagin and polydatin were the active compounds of QC and QS. Taken together, our in vitro findings and our results in C57BL/6 mice showed that extracts of Qizhu decoction might inhibit hepatitis and hepatocellular carcinoma by suppressing NF-κB signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel type of aqueous fluorescent carbon dot (CD) was synthesized using citric acid as the only carbon source via an ammonium hydroxide modulated method, providing a blue color gamut. The amino group is considered to be the key factor in the high fluorescence of CDs and a model is established to investigate the mechanism of fluorescence. In addition, white light-emitting diodes (WLEDs) are fabricated by utilizing the prepared CDs and rare earth luminescent materials (SrSi2O2N2:Eu and Sr2Si5N8:Eu) as color conversion layers and UV-LED chips as the excitation light source. The WLEDs produce bright white light with attractive color rendering properties including a color rendering index of up to 95.1, a CIE coordinate of (0.33, 0.37), and a Tc of 5447 K under a 100 mA driven current, indicating that the CDs are promising in the field of optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Criticizes the book 'The Bad Earth,' by Vaclav Smil which deals with the environmental disasters in China. Role of reporting and interpretation of natural disasters in China's political history; Failure of the book to evaluate facts in the political context in which they occurred or were reported; Failure to evaluate the scientific validity of facts about environmental degradation.