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Programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PD-L1) is an important immunosuppressive molecule, which inhibits the function of T cells and other immune cells by binding to the receptor programmed cell death-1. The PD-L1 expression disorder plays an important role in the occurrence, development, and treatment of sepsis or other inflammatory diseases, and has become an important target for the treatment of these diseases. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are a kind of pluripotent stem cells with multiple differentiation potential. In recent years, MSCs have been found to have a strong immunosuppressive ability and are used to treat various inflammatory insults caused by hyperimmune diseases. Moreover, PD-L1 is deeply involved in the immunosuppressive events of MSCs and plays an important role in the treatment of various diseases. In this review, we will summarize the main regulatory mechanism of PD-L1 expression, and discuss various biological functions of PD-L1 in the immune regulation of MSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrospinning technology has demonstrated excellent prospects in the preparation of structurally controllable functional carbon nanofibers for vanadium flow batteries. However, traditional electrospinning carbon nanofibers used for vanadium flow batteries still suffer from defects in electrochemical activity. Herein, a highly active carbon nanofiber electrode based on metal-organic framework materials has been prepared. The introduction and carbonization of the metal-organic framework UiO-66 in the fibers increase the mesoporous structure of the electrode surface. Additionally, the carbonized UiO-66 forms catalytic ZrO2, which enhances the catalytic activity of the carbon nanofibers. Compared to traditional electrospinning carbon nanofibers, the carbon nanofiber electrode based on metal-organic framework exhibits significantly improved wettability and electrochemical properties, which enhance the mass transfer performance and electrochemical activity. The vanadium flow battery adopting active carbon nanofibers achieves an energy efficiency of 83.33% at 200 mA cm-2, and possesses excellent durability performance with unobvious decay after 1000 charge-discharge cycles at 200 mA cm-2. This study provides guidance for further synthesis of highperformance electrodes for vanadium flow batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Industria Textila is the property of Institutul National de Cercetare-Dezvoltare pentru Textile si Pielarie and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Brasileira de Medicina do Esporte is the property of Redprint Editora Ltda. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective: The cell division cycle associated 8 (CDCA8) gene is overexpressed in several cancers and has been associated with tumor progression. However, its expression and association with clinicopathological parameters and survival outcomes in patients with endometrial carcinoma (EC) remain obscure. Methods: We studied CDCA8 expression in EC patients utilizing data compiled by The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases. We examined CDCA8 expression concerning clinicopathological features and patient overall survival. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was performed to identify potential biological processes and signaling pathways involved. Results: CDCA8 was over-expressed in EC tumors compared to control tissues and was positively associated with worse tumor grade, FIGO stage, tumor (T) stage, nodal spread (N), and metastasis (M). High CDCA8 was associated with shorter overall survival but did not remain a significant independent predictor in multivariate analysis. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed important signaling pathways that may contribute to EC pathogenesis. Conclusion: CDCA8 was overexpressed in EC and positively correlated with poor clinicopathological features. CDCA8 warrants further investigation as a prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target in patients with EC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to investigate the defensible character of the Lahore railway station built in response to "the war of independence in 1857," which greatly impacted the location and design of the building. This study demonstrates the integral role played by the railway station in the development of the new colonial city, which the British wants to be defensive in every aspect. Railways were introduced in Pakistan (India) soon after their inauguration in Britain. Beginning from the mode of transportation, the multifaced contribution of railways toward the urban growth, new architectural style, mode of construction, and technology cannot be recanted. The research is based on the documentation and analysis of the history of Lahore railway station design. First, this study uses primary and secondary data to offer a history of the Lahore railway station from its inception to final execution. Second, it explores the criteria adopted by the British for its site selection to make the station a defensible post. The research finding includes the visual features that enhanced the architectural character of the building. Qualitative methods are used including several other approaches, namely, literature review, archival data collection, analysis of photographs, and study of architectural drawings and old maps, to achieve the objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heritage buildings are representative of culture, aesthetics, building techniques and lifestyle of a certain period. But with the change of time, it is difficult for heritage buildings to meet the demands of modern-day society, and as a result, they lose their original functionality. The colonial architecture of Lahore during the British era was its most distinguishing feature and Burt Hall, built in 1913, is a key example. It is an architecturally significant building which is not only reminiscent of the British colonial past but also reflects the lifestyle of the British Raj. Presently, owing to sheer negligence and callous disregard, it is losing its importance and deteriorating rapidly. The challenge today is to find the most appropriate function that modifies and offers new uses for the building, while keeping the historic essence of the area in which it is situated and allows it to play an important role in community revitalisation. This paper focuses on a historical study of the Burt Institute, devising strategies for its conservation and a methodology to achieve a sustainable future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Studies on the association of obesity with mortality in subjects with ARDS have yielded inconsistent results. METHODS: In a sub-analysis of the Oscillation for ARDS Treated Early (OSCILLATE) randomized controlled trial, 451 subjects were divided into 5 strata based on their body mass index (BMI) using the World Health Organization definitions: underweight < 18.5 kg/m²; normal weight 18.5-24.99 kg/m²; overweight 25-29.99 kg/m²; obese 30-39.99 kg/m²; severely obese>40 kg/m². The primary outcome was all-cause hospital mortality across BMI strata for all subjects and for the 2 study arms (high-frequency oscillatory ventilation [HFOV] vs conventional ventilation) separately using multivariable logistic regression adjusting for potential confounding variables. RESULTS: Hospital mortality was not different across the BMI strata for all subjects (P = .86), for the HFOV arm (P = .94) or for the conventional ventilation arm (P = .59). After risk adjustment, BMI was not associated with increased risk for hospital mortality (odds ratio 1.01, 95% CI 0.97-1.04, P = .67), whereas HFOV was independently associated with increased mortality (odds ratio 1.74, 95% CI 1.11-2.72, P = .02) with no effect modification by BMI strata (for this interaction, P = .56). Although there was no difference in the use of rescue therapies or in the number of days on sedation or analgesia, higher daily doses of fentanyl and midazolam were administered as BMI increased. CONCLUSION: There was no difference in adjusted hospital mortality across BMI strata in subjects with moderate to severe ARDS. Processes of care were not different across BMI strata except for higher daily doses of fentanyl as BMI increased. (ClinicalTrials.gov registration NCT0150640) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are a large number of real-world engineering design problems that are multi-objective and multiconstrained, having uncertainty in their inputs. Robust optimization is developed to obtain solutions that are optimal and less sensitive to uncertainty. Since most of complex engineering design problems rely on time-consuming simulations, the robust optimization approaches may become computationally intractable. To address this issue, an advanced multi-objective robust optimization approach based on Kriging model and support vector machine (MORO-KS) is proposed in this work. First, the main problem in MORO-KS is iteratively restricted by constraint cuts formed in the subproblem. Second, each objective function is approximated by a Kriging model to predict the response value. Third, a support vector machine (SVM) classifier is constructed to replace all constraint functions classifying design alternatives into two categories: feasible and infeasible. The proposed MORO-KS approach is tested on two numerical examples and the design optimization of a micro-aerial vehicle (MAV) fuselage. Compared with the results obtained from other MORO approaches, the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed MORO-KS approach are illustrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fe-Al-Si-B in situ composite coating was prepared with plasma arc cladding on Q235 steel substrate. Moreover, rare earth oxide Y 2 O 3 powder was added to the cladding powder in order to improve the microstructure and properties of the coating. The effect of Y 2 O 3 on the microstructure and properties of the Fe-Al-Si-B cladding by plasma transferred arc was investigated. The microstructure, phase constituent, microhardness and wear property of the coating were examined by optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), micro hardness tester, friction and wear tester, respectively. The result indicates that the addition of Y 2 O 3 can purify the grain boundaries and homogenize the inclusions, and thus the shape and distribution of the inclusions are improved significantly. Furthermore, a dense, uniform, defect-free and significantly refined coating is then formed. When the content of Y 2 O 3 reaches 0.9wt%, the hardness of the coating reaches 5.10 GPa, and the optimum wear resistance is obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the effects and mechanisms of telmisartan in hypertensive patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF). Hypertensive patients with PAF (n=120) were randomized into test (telmisartan) and control (amlodipine besilate) groups. The pretreatment and post treatment left atrial dimension (LAD), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels, heart rate, blood pressure (BP), and recurrence times of atrial fibrillation (AF) were recorded. The pretreatment and post treatment heart rates and BPs did not differ in either group (P>0.05). The post treatment systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) did not differ between the groups (SBP: test, 132±5mmHg; control, 133±6 mmHg; DBP: test, 82±4 mmHg; control, 83±4mmHg). The LAD (test, 36.7±5.1 mm; control, 31.3±4.1mm) and hs-CRP (test, 5.6±2.6mg/L; control, 3.1±1.9mg/L) levels declined significantly (P>0.05) after treatment in the telmisartan group but not in the control group. After treatment, the LAD (test, 31.3±4.1mm; control, 36.2±4.6mm), hs- CRP (test, 3.1±1.9 mg/L; control, 5.2±2.3mg/L) levels, and AF recurrence times were markedly lower in the test group (22) compared with the control group (44). Thus, telmisartan reduced the AF recurrence rates, LAD, and hs-CRP levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the basis of setting up the evaluation standard of safety levels, it adopts the membership function and gets the quantized evaluation index of traffic safety of the expressway. In this paper, the rating of each alternative is described by interval numbers. According to the concept of the TOPSIS, a closeness coefficient is defined to determine the ranking order of all alternatives by calculating the distances to both the interval ideal solution and interval anti-ideal solution. The comprehensive evaluation model of traffic safety of the expressway is set up by using TOPSIS. The new model is proposed to calculate the distance between interval numbers and membership function. And it carries a comprehensive evaluation on the existing expressway safety for four provinces in China. Finally, it was applied to the practical evaluation and some positive results were obtained. Applied results indicate that the method is feasible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a clinical study which examined the use of high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU)-based renal denervation (RDN) for the management of resistant hypertension. Topics discussed include the blood pressure (BP) lowering effect of noninvasive RDN using extracorporeal HIFU, the good safety profile of the procedure as there was no significant injuries seen in the renal arteries, and complications observed in the patients which include transient edema and skin allergy.

BACKGROUND: The goal of this study was to evaluate the effects of resistance training on subjects with COPD. METHODS: We performed a systematic search in MEDLINE, PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, Elsevier ScienceDirect, EBM Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and ClinicalTrials.gov and also of leading respiratory journals for randomized controlled trials on COPD treatment for > 4 weeks with resistance training compared with non-exercise control or with combined resistance and endurance training compared with endurance training alone. Data from these studies were pooled to calculate odds ratio and weighted mean differences (WMDs) with 95% Cl. RESULTS: Eighteen trials with 750 subjects with advanced COPD met the inclusion criteria. There were 2 primary and 5 secondary outcomes. Compared with non-exercise control, resistance training led to significant improvements in the dyspnea domain of the Chronic Respiratory Disease Questionnaire (WMD of 0.59,95% Cl 0.26-0.93,12 = 0%, P < .001), skeletal muscle strength, and percent-of-predicted FEVj (WMD of 6.88%, 95% Cl 0.41-13.35%, I2 = 0%, P = .04). The combination of resistance and endurance training significantly improved the St George Respiratory Questionnaire total score (WMD of —7.44, 95% Cl -12.62 to -2 .2 5 ,12 = 0%, P = .005), each domain score, and skeletal muscle strength. There were no significant differences in 6-min walk distance, 6-min pegboard and ring test, maximum exercise work load, and maximum oxygen consumption between the 2 groups. There were no reports of adverse events related to resistancetraining intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Resistance training can be successfully performed alone or in conjunction with endurance training without increased adverse events during pulmonary rehabilitation in COPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on limitation of mandatory rules of contract law of Northern Ireland citing an example of commercial agency law. Topics discussed include description of Article 17 of Commercial Agent Regulation 1993, how Article 17 is not beneficial for commercial agent and mandatory rule in contract law controls abuse of bargaining power.

As a new type of wireless network, Ad hoc network does not depend on any pre-founded infrastructure, and it has no centralized control unit. The computation and transmission capability of each node are limited. In this paper, a self-updating one-time password mutual authentication protocol for Ad hoc network is proposed. The most significant feature is that a hash chain can update by itself smoothly and securely through capturing the secure bit of the tip. The updating process does not need any additional protocol or re-initialization process and can be continued indefinitely to give rise to an infinite length hash chain, that is, the times of authentication is unlimited without reconstructing a new hash chain. Besides, two random variable are added into the messages interacted during the mutual authentication, enabling the protocol to resist man-in-the-middle attack. Also, the user's identity information is introduced into the seed of hash chain, so the scheme achieves anonymity and traceability at the same time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving spectrum utilization efficiency is a fundamental goal of dynamic spectrum access technology. The definition of spectrum holes determines how to detect and exploit them. Current definitions of spectrum holes are ineffective in exploiting spatial-temporal spectrum holes. In this paper, a novel definition of spectrum holes is proposed, in which throughput loss indicates the impact of secondary users on primary users. The definition specifies spectrum holes, unifies the impact of secondary users on primary users and is effective exploiting spatial-temporal spectrum holes. Theoretical analysis and numerical simulations show that the new definition proposed in this paper significantly improves the spectrum utilization efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study regarding the use of a tracking-learning-detection (TLD) framework in addressing problem associated with ship identification and tracking in the inland waterway closed circuit television (CCTV) system.

Abstract: AZ31B magnesium alloy and 6061 aluminum alloy were joined in stable welding process by cold metal transfer welding with ER4043 as filler metal. The microstructure, morphology and phase composition of the welded joints were studied by OM, SEM, EDX and XRD. The results show that weld metal and aluminum substrate are combined with a good interface, while weld metal and Mg substrate are combined with a epitaxial solidification area where the intermetallic compounds of Mg2Al3, Mg17Al12 and Mg2Si are generated. The micro-hardness distribution shows a decreasing trend from Mg side to Al side in the weld. The joint is brittle fractured in the fusion zone of Mg side, where plenty of Mg2Si, Mg2Al3 and Mg17Al12 are distributed continuously. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]