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Background: In the recent decade, there has been substantial progress in the technologies and philosophies associated with diagnosing and treating anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in China. The therapeutic efficacy of ACL reconstruction in re-establishing the stability of the knee joint has garnered widespread acknowledgment. However, the path toward standardizing diagnostic and treatment protocols remains to be further developed and refined. Objective: In this context, the Chinese Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons (CAOS) and the Chinese Society of Sports Medicine (CSSM) collaboratively developed an expert consensus on diagnosing and treating ACL injury, aiming to enhance medical quality through refining professional standards. Methods: The consensus drafting team invited experts across the Greater China region, including the mainland, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, to formulate and review the consensus using a modified Delphi method as a standardization approach. As members of the CSSM Lower Limb Study Group and the CAOS Arthroscopy and Sports Medicine Study Group, invited experts concentrated on two pivotal issues: “Graft Selection” and “Clinical Outcome Evaluation” during the second part of the consensus development. Results: This focused discussion ultimately led to a strong consensus on nine specific consensus terms. Conclusion: The consensus clearly states that ACL reconstruction has no definitive “gold standard” graft choice. Autografts have advantages in healing capability but are limited in availability and have potential donor site morbidities; allografts reduce surgical trauma but incur additional costs, and there are concerns about slow healing, quality control issues, and a higher failure rate in young athletes; synthetic ligaments allow for early rehabilitation and fast return to sport, but the surgery is technically demanding and incurs additional costs. When choosing a graft, one should comprehensively consider the graft's characteristics, the doctor's technical ability, and the patient's needs. When evaluating clinical outcomes, it is essential to ensure an adequate sample size and follow-up rate, and the research should include patient subjective scoring, joint function and stability, complications, surgical failure, and the return to sport results. Medium and long-term follow-ups should not overlook the assessment of knee osteoarthritis.

N6 adenosine methylation (m6A), one of the most prevalent internal modifications on mammalian RNAs, regulates RNA transcription, stabilization, and splicing. Growing evidence has focused on the functional role of m6A regulators on acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, the global m6A levels after azacytidine (AZA) plus venetoclax (VEN) treatment in AML patients remain unclear. In our present study, bone marrow (BM) sample pairs (including pre-treatment [AML] and post-treatment [complete remission (CR)] samples) were harvested from three AML patients who had achieved CR after AZA plus VEN treatment for Nanopore direct RNA sequencing. Notably, the amount of m6A sites and the m6A levels in CR BMs was significantly lower than those in the AML BMs. Such a significant reduction in the m6A levels was also detected in AZA-treated HL-60 cells. Thirteen genes with decreased m6A and expression levels were identified, among which three genes (HPRT1, SNRPC, and ANP32B) were closely related to the prognosis of AML. Finally, we speculated the mechanism via which m6A modifications affected the mRNA stability of these three genes. In conclusion, we illustrated for the first time the global landscape of m6A levels in AZA plus VEN treated AML (CR) patients and revealed that AZA had a significant demethylation effect at the RNA level in AML patients. In addition, we identified new biomarkers for AZA plus VEN-treated AML via Nanopore sequencing technology in RNA epigenetics.

Background Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell has revolutionary efficacy against relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (R/R MM). However, current CAR-T cell therapy has several limitations including long vein-to-vein time and limited viability.Methods A 4-1BB-costimulated B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) CAR-T integrating an independently-expressed OX40 (BCMA-BBZ-OX40) was designed and generated by a traditional manufacturing process (TraditionCART) or instant manufacturing platform (named InstanCART). The tumor-killing efficiency, differentiation, exhaustion, and expansion level were investigated in vitro and in tumor-bearing mice. An investigator-initiated clinical trial was performed in patients with R/R MM to evaluate the outcomes of both TraditionCART and InstanCART. The primary objective was safety within 1 month after CAR-T cell infusion. The secondary objective was the best overall response rate.Results Preclinical studies revealed that integrated OX40 conferred BCMA CAR-T cells with superior cytotoxicity and reduced exhaustion levels. InstanCART process further enhanced the proliferation and T-cell stemness of BCMA-BBZ-OX40 CAR-T cells. BCMA-BBZ-OX40 CAR-T cells were successfully administered in 22 patients with R/R MM, including 15 patients with TraditionCART and 7 patients with InstanCART. Up to 50% (11/22) patients had a high-risk cytogenetic profile and 36% (8/22) had extramedullary disease. CAR-T therapy caused grade 1–2 cytokine release syndrome in 19/22 (80%) patients, grade 1 neurotoxicity in 2/22 (9%) patients and led to ≥grade 3 adverse events including neutropenia (20/22, 91%), thrombocytopenia (15/22, 68%), anemia (12/22, 55%), creatinine increased (1/22, 5%), hepatic enzymes increased (5/22, 23%), and sepsis (1/22, 5%). The best overall response rate was 100%, and 64% (14/22) of the patients had a complete response or better. The median manufacturing time was shorter for InstanCART therapy (3 days) than for TraditionCART therapy (10 days). Expansion and duration were dramatically higher for InstanCART cells than for TraditionCART cells.Conclusions BCMA-BBZ-OX40 CAR-T cells were well tolerated and exhibited potent responses in patients with R/R MM. InstanCART shortened the manufacturing period compared to TraditionCART, and improved the cellular kinetics. Our results demonstrated the potency and feasibility of OX40-modified BCMA CAR-T cells using InstanCART technology for R/R MM therapy.Trial registration number This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT04537442.

The paper proposes a low-pass filter adaptive iterative learning control (LPF-AILC) strategy for unmatched, uncertain, time-varying, non-parameterized nonlinear systems (NPNL systems). To address the difficulty of nonlinear parameterization terms in system models, a new function approximator (FSE-RBFNN), which combines the radial basis function neural network (RBFNN) and Fourier series expansion (FSE), is introduced to model each time-varying nonlinear parameterized function. The adaptive backstepping method is used to design control laws and parameter adaptive laws. In the process of controller design, we may encounter the problem of too many derivatives, which can cause parameter explosions after derivatives. Therefore, we introduce a first-order low-pass filter to solve this problem and simplify the structure of the controller. As the number of iterations increases, the maximum tracking error gradually decreases until it converges to the nearby region, approaching zero within the entire given interval [0,T], according to the Lyapunov-like synthesis. To mitigate the impact of initial state errors, a dynamically changing boundary layer is introduced, along with a series to deal with the unknown error upper bounds. Finally, two simulation examples prove the correctness of the proposed control method.

Background Spinal anaesthesia is a common anaesthetic method for caesarean sections but often results in hypotension, posing potential risks to maternal and neonatal health. Norepinephrine, as a vasopressor, may be effective in preventing and treating this hypotension. This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of prophylactic norepinephrine infusion for the treatment of hypotension following spinal anaesthesia in caesarean sections.Methods Literature searches were conducted in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, CNKI, Wanfang, and VIP databases for relevant studies on prophylactic administration of norepinephrine for the treatment of hypotension after spinal anaesthesia in caesarean delivery. Reference lists of included articles were also searched. The latest search update was on March 20, 2024. Meta-analysis was conducted using R software. The methods recommended by the Cochrane Handbook, Begge’s and Egger’s tests were used for risk of bias evaluation of the included literature.Results Nine studies were finally included in this study. The results showed that prophylactic administration of norepinephrine was superior to the control group in four aspects of treating hypotension after spinal anaesthesia in caesarean delivery: the incidence of hypotension was reduced [RR = 0.34, 95%CI (0.27–0.43), P

BackgroundThe intricate interplay between dietary habits and the development of Parkinson’s Disease (PD) has long been a subject of scientific inquiry. Mendelian Randomization (MR) emerges as a potent tool, harnessing genetic variants to infer causality in observational data. While evidence links diet to Parkinson’s Disease (PD) etiology, a thorough MR exploration of dietary impacts on PD, particularly involving gut microbiota, is still emerging.MethodsThis research leverages the IEU Open GWAS project’s vast GWAS database1 to address the knowledge gap in understanding diet’s influence on PD, employing a diverse range of dietary variables. Our holistic dataset includes various foods like processed fava beans, bap, red wine, to cheese, reflecting a commitment to untangling dietary complexities in PD etiology. Advancing from initial dietary-PD associations, we innovatively explore the gut microbiota, focusing on Parabacteroides goldsteinii, in relation to bap intake and PD, employing MR. Utilizing weighted median, MR-Egger, and inverse variance weighting methods, we ensure rigorous causality assessments, meticulously mitigating pleiotropy and heterogeneity biases to uphold finding validity.ResultsOur findings indicate red wine (OR: 1.031; 95% CI 1.001–1.062; p = 0.044) and dried fruit consumption (OR: 2.019; 95% CI 1.052–3.875; p = 0.035) correlate with increased PD risk, whereas broad beans (OR: 0.967; 95% CI 0.939–0.996; p = 0.024) and bap intake (OR: 0.922; 95% CI 0.860–0.989; p = 0.023) show protective effects against PD. Employing MR, specifically the IVW method, revealed a significant inverse association between bap intake and gut microbiota, marked by an 8.010-fold decrease in Parabacteroides goldsteinii per standard deviation increase in bap intake (95% CI 1.005–63.818, p = 0.049). Furthermore, a connection between PD and Parabacteroides goldsteinii was observed (OR: 0.810; 95% CI 0.768–0.999; p = 0.049), suggesting a potential microbiota-mediated pathway in PD etiology.ConclusionOur study links dietary habits to PD risk, showing higher PD risk with red wine and dried fruit consumption, and a protective effect from broad beans and bap. Using MR, we found bap intake inversely correlates with Parabacteroides goldsteinii in the gut, suggesting bap influences microbiota. Further, higher Parabacteroides goldsteinii levels correlate with lower PD risk, highlighting a complex interplay of diet, gut microbiome, and neurological health. These insights shed light on potential dietary interventions for PD.

ABSTRACTPiezoelectric semiconductors (PSs) have widespread applications in semiconductor devices due to the coexistence of piezoelectricity and semiconducting properties. It is very important to conduct a theoretical analysis of PS structures. However, the present of nonlinearity in the partial differential equations (PDEs) that describe those multi-field coupling mechanical behaviors of PSs poses a significant mathematical challenge when studying these PS structures. In this paper, we present a novel approach based on machine learning for solving multi-field coupling problems in PS structures. A physics-informed neural networks (PINNs) is constructed for predicting the multi-field coupling behaviors of PS rods with extensional deformation. By utilizing the proposed PINNs, we evaluate the multi-field coupling responses of a ZnO rod under static and dynamic axial forces. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed PINNs exhibit high accuracy in solving both static and dynamic problems associated with PS structures. It provides an effective approach to predicting the nonlinear multi-field coupling phenomena in PS structures.

Pyrabactin resistance 1-like (PYL) proteins are abscisic acid (ABA) receptors that play a crucial role in the plant’s response to adverse environmental conditions. However, as of yet, there is limited research on the role of PYL proteins in potato. In this study, a potato PYL gene, StPYL8-like, was identified through transcriptome analysis under drought stress. Molecular characterization revealed that the StPYL8-like protein possesses a highly conserved PYL family domain. Evolutionary analysis demonstrated that StPYL8-like protein clusters with various PYL proteins are involved in stress responses across different species. Functional assays showed that StPYL8-like robustly responds to different abiotic stresses, including drought and ABA treatment. Furthermore, the transient and stable expressions of StPYL8-like in tobacco enhanced their drought resistance, leading to increased plant height, leaf number, and fresh weight, as well as an improved root system. Transgenic tobacco carrying the StPYL8-like gene exhibited lower malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and higher proline accumulation and antioxidant enzyme activity compared to wild-type plants under drought conditions. Moreover, StPYL8-like upregulated the expression of stress-responsive genes (NtRD29A, NtLEA5, NtP5CS, NtPOD, NtSOD, and NtCAT) in transgenic plants subjected to drought stress. Collectively, these findings highlight the positive regulatory role of the StPYL8-like gene in enhancing potato plants’ response to drought stress.

In this article, the synchronization of bidirectionally coupled fractional-order chaotic systems with unknown time-varying parameter disturbance in different dimensions is investigated. The scale matrices are designed to address the problem of the synchronization for fractional-order chaotic systems across two different dimensions. Congelation of variables is used to deal with the unknown time-varying parameter disturbance. Based on Lyapunov’s stability theorem, the synchronization controllers in different dimensions are obtained. At the same time, adaptive laws of the unknown disturbance can be designed. Benefiting from the proposed methods, we verify all the synchronization errors can converge to zero as time approaches infinity, regardless of whether in n-D or m-D synchronization, simultaneously ensuring that both control and estimation signals are bounded. Finally, simulation studies based on fractional-order financial systems are carried out to validate the effectiveness of the proposed synchronization method.

PYR/PYL/RCAR proteins are abscisic acid (ABA) receptors that play a crucial role in plant responses to abiotic stresses. However, there have been no research reports on potato PYL so far. In this study, a potato PYL gene named StPYL16 was identified based on transcriptome data under drought stress. Molecular characteristics analysis revealed that the StPYL16 protein possesses an extremely conserved PYL family domain. The tissue expression results indicated that the StPYL16 is predominantly expressed at high levels in the underground parts, particularly in tubers. Abiotic stress response showed that StPYL16 has a significant response to drought treatment. Further research on the promoter showed that drought stress could enhance the activation activity of the StPYL16 promoter on the reporter gene. Then, transient and stable expression of StPYL16 in tobacco enhanced the drought resistance of transgenic plants, resulting in improved plant height, stem thickness, and root development. In addition, compared with wild-type plants, StPYL16 transgenic tobacco exhibited lower malondialdehyde (MDA) content, higher proline accumulation, and stronger superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT) activities. Meanwhile, StPYL16 also up-regulated the expression levels of stress-related genes (NtSOD, NtCAT, NtPOD, NtRD29A, NtLEA5, and NtP5CS) in transgenic plants under drought treatment. These findings indicated that the StPYL16 gene plays a positive regulatory role in potato responses to drought stress.

Vehicle-to-everything (V2X) is considered a key factor in driving the future development of intelligent transport, which requires high-quality communication and fast sensing of vehicle information in high-speed mobile scenarios. However, high-speed mobility makes the wireless channel change rapidly, which requires frequent channel estimation and channel feedback between a vehicle and the roadside unit (RSU), resulting in an increase in communication overhead. At the same time, the high maneuverability of vehicles leads to frequent switching and misalignment of communication beams, so the RSU must have better beam prediction and tracking capabilities. To address this problem, this paper proposes an adaptive frame structure design scheme for sensing-assisted downlink (DL) communication. The basic idea of the scheme involves analyzing the communication model during the vehicle’s movement. This analysis aims to establish a theoretical relationship between the Symbol Error Rate (SER) and the following two key factors: the vehicle’s starting position and the distance it travels across. Subsequently, the scheme leverages the vehicle’s position data, as detected by the RSU, to calculate the real-time SER for DL communication. The SER threshold is set based on the requirements of DL communication. If the real-time SER is below this threshold, channel estimation becomes unnecessary. This decreases the frequency of channel estimation and frees up time and frequency resources that would otherwise be occupied by channel estimation processes within the frame structure. The design of an adaptive frame structure, as detailed in the above scheme, is presented. Furthermore, the performance of the proposed method is analyzed and compared with that of the traditional communication protocol frame structure and the beam prediction-based frame structure. The simulation results indicate that the communication throughput of the proposed method can be improved by up to 6% compared with the traditional communication protocol frame structure while maintaining SER performance.

Abstract Background Umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT) is a curable therapy for hematological disease; however, the impact of nutritional status on UCBT outcomes remains controversial. To evaluate the joint effect of clinical characteristics and nutritional status on the prognosis of patients who underwent UCBT, we screened various factors to establish a predictive model of overall survival (OS) after UCBT. Methods We performed an integrated clinical characteristic and nutritional risk factor analysis and established a predictive model that could be used to identify UCBT recipients with poor OS. Internal validation was performed by using the bootstrap method with 500 repetitions. Results Four factors, including disease status, conditioning regimen, calf skinfold thickness and albumin level, were identified and used to develop a risk score for OS, which showed a positive predictive value of 84.0%. A high-risk score (≥ 2.225) was associated with inferior 3-year OS post-UCBT [67.5% (95% CI 51.1–79.4%), P = 0.001]. Then, we built a nomogram based on the four factors that showed good discrimination with a C-index of 0.833 (95% CI 0.743–0.922). The optimism-corrected C-index value of the bootstrapping was 0.804. Multivariate analysis suggested that a high calf skinfold thickness (≥ 20.5 mm) and a low albumin level (

As the scale of construction expanded and the number of prefabricated buildings increased, a single tower crane could no longer meet the construction requirements, necessitating the simultaneous operation of more tower cranes to improve construction efficiency. To optimize the efficiency and cost of lifting prefabricated concrete components and address the selection and layout optimization of dual tower cranes, this paper proposed a double tower crane selection and positioning optimization model that integrated feasible layout area solving and optimization based on different objectives. By analyzing the mathematical relationship between the layout positions of the tower cranes and the positions of the prefabricated component storage yard and installation sites, a mathematical model for the feasible layout area of double tower cranes was established and solved using a genetic algorithm. On this basis, optimization models were established with the objectives of minimizing cost, achieving the shortest total lifting time, and achieving the maximum value coefficient, and they were solved using a genetic algorithm. The model was verified and analyzed through a case study. The research results indicated that the double tower crane selection scheme could achieve more than twice the lifting efficiency of the same model single tower crane. When the total lifting time was similar, choosing based on the principles of value engineering could yield the optimal solution with lower costs. These research findings provided a reference for the selection of tower crane schemes and the cost reduction and efficiency improvement of on-site prefabricated concrete component lifting construction.

The paper proposed an adaptive iterative learning control (AILC) strategy for the unmatched uncertain time-varying nonparameterized nonlinear systems (NPNL systems). Addressing the difficulty of nonlinear parameterization terms in system models, a new function approximator (FSE-RBFNN) which is combined with radial basis function neural network (RBFNN) and Fourier series expansion (FSE) is introduced to model each time-varying nonlinear parameterization function. Using adaptive backstepping method to design control laws and parameter adaptive laws. As the number of iterations increases, the maximum tracking error gradually decreases until it converges to zero on the entire given interval 0,T according to the Lyapunov-like synthesis. A updated time-varying boundary layer is introduced to eliminating the impact of initial state errors. Introducing a series to deal with the unknown error upper bounds. Finally, two simulation examples demonstrate the correctness of the proposed control method.

The traditional ferromagnetic resonance model of the inductive voltage transformer in the IEC/TR 61869-102 transformer standard ignores the DC resistance of the transformer. The author believes that ignoring the damping effect of the transformer itself is not justified. Based on this, the model is modified, and the corresponding differential equation is derived. Through simulation and field testing, it is found that the DC resistance of the transformer has a damping effect on resonant overvoltage and resonant overcurrent. Moreover, with an increase in DC resistance, the ferromagnetic resonance region decreases. By increasing the DC resistance of the voltage transformer, it helps to reduce the ferromagnetic resonance interval as well as the inrush current.

In this study, we obtained the complete mitochondrial genome of Hypseleotris cyprinoides, which was 16520 bp in length. The mitogenome contained 37 genes, including the typical set of 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, and 2 Ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes. A, C, G, and T distribution was 28.57%, 29.91%, 16.99%, and 24.53%, respectively. The length of the total protein-coding genes was 11441 bp, which accounts for 66.80% of the whole mitochondrial genome. The Maximum Likelihood (ML) phylogenetic analysis based on the concatenated nucleotide sequences of 13 PCGs showed that H.cyprinoides as a sister species to Hypseleotris klunzingeri was clustered in the family Hypseleotris. The discovery of the complete mitochondrial genome of H.cyprinoides would help to conduct in-depth research on Hypseleotris.

Earthquakes are often followed by higher-intensity aftershocks, which tend to aggravate the accumulated and more severe damage to building structures. The seismic vulnerability of concrete-filled steel tube (CFST) structures under major aftershocks is more complex. In this paper, a CFST frame and a frame with buckling-restrained braces (BRBs) are studied, and the finite element analysis software Midas 2022 is used to analyze the seismic vulnerability of the two types of structures under main shock and main–aftershock. The results show that the structural vulnerability of the two structures is significantly higher under the main–aftershock sequences than under the main shock alone. Compared with the CFST structure, the structure with BRBs can effectively reduce the structural displacement and the hysteretic energy, decrease the plastic deformation risk of the structural components, and improve the seismic performance. The structure with BRBs can significantly reduce the probability of structural collapse under the main–aftershock sequence and can provide a reliable guarantee of the stability of the building.

The unprecedented coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is still raging (in year 2021) in many countries worldwide. Various response strategies to study the characteristics and distributions of the virus in various regions of the world have been developed to assist in the prevention and control of this epidemic. Descriptive statistics and regression analysis on COVID-19 data from different countries were conducted in this study to compare and evaluate various regression models. Results showed that the extreme random forest regression (ERFR) model had the best performance, and factors such as population density, ozone, median age, life expectancy, and Human Development Index (HDI) were relatively influential on the spread and diffusion of COVID-19 in the ERFR model. In addition, the epidemic clustering characteristics were analyzed through the spectral clustering algorithm. The visualization results of spectral clustering showed that the geographical distribution of global COVID-19 pandemic spread formation was highly clustered, and its clustering characteristics and influencing factors also exhibited some consistency in distribution. This study aims to deepen the understanding of the international community regarding the global COVID-19 pandemic to develop measures for countries worldwide to mitigate potential large-scale outbreaks and improve the ability to respond to such public health emergencies.

While auxin has been implicated in the development of tomato fruit with pointed tips, the mechanism are largely unknown. Here, the authors report variation of a C2H2-type zinc finger transcription factor affects transcription of FUL2, which consequently regulates auxin transport and distribution to determine tomato fruit shape.

Abstract Background CONSTANS (CO) and CONSTANS-LIKE (COL) transcription factors have been known to regulate a series of cellular processes including the transition from the vegetative growth to flower development in plants. However, their role in regulating fruit yield in tomato is poorly understood. Result In this study, the tomato ortholog of Arabidopsis CONSTANS, SlCOL1, was shown to play key roles in the control of flower development and fruit yield. Suppression of SlCOL1 expression in tomato was found to lead to promotion of flower and fruit development, resulting in increased tomato fruit yield. On the contrary, overexpression of SlCOL1 disturbed flower and fruit development, and significantly reduced tomato fruit yield. Genetic and biochemical evidence indicated that SlCOL1 controls inflorescence development by directly binding to the promoter region of tomato inflorescence-associated gene SINGLE-FLOWER TRUSS (SFT) and negatively regulating its expression. Additionally, we found that SlCOL1 can also negatively regulate fruit size in tomato. Conclusions Tomato SlCOL1 binds to the promoter of the SFT gene, down-regulates its expression, and plays a key role in reducing the fruit size.

Summary: Sequence variation resulting from the evolution of IGH clones and immunophenotypic drift makes it difficult to track abnormal B cells in children with precursor B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (pre-B-ALL) by flow cytometry, qPCR, or next-generation sequencing (NGS). The V-(D)-J regions of immunoglobulin and T cell receptor of 47 pre-B-ALL samples were sequenced using the Illumina NovaSeq platform. The IGH rod-like tracer consensus sequence was extracted based on its rod-like alpha-helices structural similarity predicted by AlphaFold2. Additional data from published 203 pre-B-ALL samples were applied for validation. NGS-IGH (+) patients with pre-B-ALL had a poor prognosis. Consistent CDR3-coded protein structures in NGS-IGH (+) samples could be extracted as a potential follow-up marker for pre-B-ALL children during treatment. IGH rod-like tracer from quantitative immune repertoire sequencing may serve as a class of biomarker with significant predictive values for the dynamic monitoring of MRD in pre-B-ALL children.

Abscisic acid (ABA) is an important stress hormone that affects plants’ tolerance to stress. Changes in the content of abscisic can have an impact on plant responses to abiotic stress. The abscisic acid aldehyde oxidase (AAO) plays a crucial role in the final step in the synthesis of abscisic acid; therefore, understanding the function of the AAO gene family is of great significance for insight into plants’ response to abiotic stresses. In this study, Solanum tuberosum AAO (StAAO) members were exhaustively explored using genome databases, and nine StAAOs were identified. Chromosomal location analysis indicated that StAAO genes mapped to 4 of the 14 potato chromosomes. Further analyses of gene structure and motif composition showed that members of the specific StAAO subfamily showed relatively conserved characteristics. Phylogenetic relationship analysis indicated that StAAOs proteins were divided into three major clades. Promoter analysis showed that most StAAO promoters contained cis-elements related to abiotic stress response and plant hormones. The results of tissue-specific expression analysis indicated that StAAO4 was predominantly expressed in the roots. Analysis of transcriptome data revealed that StAAO2/4/6 genes responded significantly to drought treatments. Moreover, further qRT-PCR analysis results indicated that StAAO2/4/6 not only significantly responded to drought stress but also to various phytohormone (ABA, SA, and MeJA) and abiotic stresses (salt and low temperature), albeit with different expression patterns. In summary, our study provides comprehensive insights into the sequence characteristics, structural properties, evolutionary relationships, and expression patterns of the StAAO gene family. These findings lay the foundation for a deeper understanding of the StAAO gene family and offer a potential genetic resource for breeding drought-resistant potato varieties.

Highlights We developed a low-cost and improved method of acellular bovine bone matrix with NaOH and the biological evaluation in vitro and in vivo was performed. Our work may provide a novelty thought and a modified method to applicate the acellular bovine bone matrix clinically better.

Objective: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is primarily a malignant disorder affecting the elderly. We aimed to compare the outcomes of different treatment patterns in elderly AML patients and to propose a prognostic scoring system that could predict survival and aid therapeutic decisions. Methods: Patients aged ≥ 60 years who had been diagnosed with AML at 7 hospitals in China were enrolled (n = 228). Treatment patterns included standard chemotherapy, low intensity therapy, and best supportive care (BSC). Results: The early mortality rates were 31%, 6.8%, and 6.3% for the BSC, low intensity therapy, and standard chemotherapy groups, respectively. The complete remission rate of the standard chemotherapy group was higher than that of the low intensity therapy group. The median overall survival (OS) was 561 days and 222 days for the standard chemotherapy and low intensity therapy groups, respectively, and were both longer than that of the BSC group (86 days). Based on multivariate analyses, we defined a prognostic scoring system that enabled classification of patients into 3 risk groups, in an attempt to predict the OS of patients receiving chemotherapies and low intensity therapies. Low and intermediate risk patients benefited more from standard chemotherapies than from low intensity therapies. However, the median OS was comparable between standard chemotherapies and low intensity therapies in high risk patients. Conclusions: Our prognostic scoring system could predict survival and help select appropriate therapies for elderly AML patients. Standard chemotherapy is important for elderly AML patients, particularly for those categorized into low and intermediate risk groups.

Abstract Radix Puerariae (RP), a dry root of Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi, is used to treat a variety of diseases, including cancer. Several in vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated the efficacy of RP in the treatment of colon cancer (CC). However, the biological mechanism of RP in the treatment of colon cancer remains unclear. In this study, the active component of RP and its potential molecular mechanism against CC were studied by network pharmacology and enrichment analysis. The methods adopted included screening active ingredients of Chinese medicine, predicting target genes of Chinese medicine and disease, constructing of a protein interaction network, and conducting GO and KEGG enrichment analysis. Finally, the results of network pharmacology were further validated by molecular docking experiments and cell experiments. Eight active constituents and 14 potential protein targets were screened from RP, including EGFR, JAK2 and SRC. The biological mechanism of RP against CC was analysed by studying the relationship between active components, targets, and enrichment pathways. These findings provide a basis for understanding the clinical application of RP in CC.

DHX37, a member of the DEAD/H-box RNA helicase family, has been implicated in various diseases, including tumors. However, the biological characteristics and prognostic significance of DHX37 in HCC remain unclear. In this study, we use R software 3.6.3 and multiple bioinformatics analysis tools, such as GDSC, HPA, STRING, TISCH, and TIMER2, to analyze the characterization and function of DHX37 in HCC. In addition, Western blot (WB) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) based on clinical samples validated some of the findings. DHX37 was more highly expressed in HCC samples compared to adjacent non-tumor tissues. Higher DHX37 expression is correlated with various clinicopathological characteristics in HCC, including AFP, adjacent hepatic tissue inflammation, histologic grade, T stage, and pathologic stage. Survival analysis revealed that the high DHX37 group had significantly shorter overall survival (OS), progress-free interval (PFI), and disease-specific survival (DSS) compared to the low DHX37 group. By analyzing the correlation between DHX37 and the IC50 of chemotherapeutic drugs, the results showed that DHX37 expression level was negatively correlated with the IC50 of 11 chemotherapeutic drugs. Further analysis indicated that DHX37 and its co-expressed genes may play important roles in activating the cell cycle, DNA repair, chemokine signaling pathways, and regulating the immune response, which leads to a poor prognosis in HCC. High expression of DHX37 is an independent risk factor for poor prognosis in HCC, and DHX37 is expected to be a potential target to inhibit tumor progression. Targeting DHX37 may enhance chemotherapeutic drug sensitivity and immunotherapeutic efficacy in HCC.

As an important hormone response gene, Gretchen Hagen 3 (GH3) maintains hormonal homeostasis by conjugating excess auxin with amino acids during plant stress-related signaling pathways. GH3 genes have been characterized in many plant species, but they are rarely reported in potato. Here, 19 StGH3 genes were isolated and characterized. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that StGH3s were divided into two categories (group I and group III). Analyses of gene structure and motif composition showed that the members of a specific StGH3 subfamily are relatively conserved. Collinearity analysis of StGH3 genes in potato and other plants laid a foundation for further exploring the evolutionary characteristics of the StGH3 genes. Promoter analysis showed that most StGH3 promoters contained hormone and abiotic stress response elements. Multiple transcriptome studies indicated that some StGH3 genes were responsive to ABA, water deficits, and salt treatments. Moreover, qRT-PCR analysis indicated that StGH3 genes could be induced by phytohormones (ABA, SA, and MeJA) and abiotic stresses (water deficit, high salt, and low temperature), although with different patterns. Furthermore, transgenic tobacco with transient overexpression of the StGH3.3 gene showed positive regulation in response to water deficits by increasing proline accumulation and reducing the leaf water loss rate. These results suggested that StGH3 genes may be involved in the response to abiotic stress through hormonal signal pathways. Overall, this study provides useful insights into the evolution and function of StGH3s and lays a foundation for further study on the molecular mechanisms of StGH3s in the regulation of potato drought resistance.

Ship-radiated noise (SN) is one of the most critical signals in the complex marine environment; however, it is inevitably contaminated by the marine environment’s noise as well as noise from other equipment. Thus, the feature extraction and identification of SN becomes very arduous. This paper proposes a denoising method for SN based on successive variational mode decomposition (SVMD), the dual-threshold analysis based on fuzzy dispersion entropy (FuDE) and wavelet packet denoising (WPD), termed SVMD-FuDE-WPD. First, SVMD adaptively decomposes SN into certain intrinsic mode functions (IMFs), which can solve the parameter selection problem of variational mode decomposition (VMD) and suppress the mode mixing of empirical mode decomposition (EMD). After that, the FuDE-based dual-threshold analysis is used to accurately classify IMFs into signal IMFs, noise–signal IMFs and noise IMFs. Finally, the denoised signal could be obtained by reconstructing the signal IMFs and noise–signal IMFs that were denoised using WPD. The classical simulation experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed denoising method, which performs better than the other four existing denoising methods. And the measured SN experiments show that the attractor trajectories of the proposed method are smoother and more regular, which verifies the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Abstract Background Dietary patterns and symptoms research among Chinese with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and its precursor lesions is limited, especially as it relates to multiple food consumption and multiple co-occurring symptoms. The aim of our study was to identify the dietary patterns and severity of symptom classes with the risk of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and its histological precursor lesions, and develop a risk prediction model for different stages of esophageal disease. Methods We analyzed data from a multicenter cross-sectional study carried out in ESCC high incidence areas between 2017 and 2018, which included 34,707 individuals aged 40–69 years. Dietary patterns and severity of symptom classes were derived by applying a latent class analysis (LCA). A multiple logistic regression model was used to derive the odds ratio (ORs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for ESCC and the different stages of esophageal disease according to the dietary patterns and severity of symptom classes identified. We built the risk prediction model by using a nomogram. Results We identified five dietary patterns and three severity of symptom classes. The dietary patterns were classified as follows: “Healthy”, “Western”, “Lower consumers-combination”, “Medium consumers-combination” and “Higher consumers-combination” patterns based on the intake of foods such as red meat, vegetables and fruits. The severity of symptoms was categorized into “Asymptomatic”, “Mild symptoms” and “Overt symptoms” classes based on health-related symptoms reported by the participants. Compared to the “Healthy” pattern, the other four patterns were all associated with an increased risk of esophageal disease. Similarly, the other two symptom classes present different degrees of increased risk of esophageal disease compared to the “Asymptomatic”. The nomograms reflect the good predictive ability of the model. Conclusion Among individuals aged 40–69 years in high incidence regions of upper gastrointestinal cancer, the results supplied that subjects with diets rich in livestock and poultry meat and low in fruits and vegetables and subjects with typical symptoms were at increased ESCC risk. The findings highlight the importance of considering food and symptom combinations in cancer risk evaluation.

In this paper, the longitudinal model of an uncertain aircraft is taken as the research object, and the aircraft path inclination is controlled by controlling the input rudder deflection angle. An adaptive iterative learning control (AILC) scheme is proposed to solve the accurate tracking control problem of the flight path inclination on a finite time interval. The aircraft track angle system is abstractly modeled to obtain a triangular model in the form of strict feedback. For the abstracted strict feedback model, the fuzzy logic is used to approximate the uncertain part of the model. A command filter and an error compensation mechanism are introduced to prevent the computational bloat problem caused by excessive system order, and a convergent series sequence is used to deal with the truncation error caused by the approximation of the fuzzy logic. Based on the Lyapunov stability theorem, all signals of the closed-loop system are bounded on the finite time interval 0,T, and the output of the system can track the desired trajectory accurately. Finally, the feasibility and effectiveness of the method are verified by MATLAB simulation results.

Based on the Kirchhoff thin plate theory, a three-dimensional spatial mechanical model of the subgrade pavement with an infinite elastic plate on the orthotropic saturated foundation in the rectangular coordinate system is established, and the differential equations under a moving harmonic load are derived. The partial differential equations are solved by using coordinate transform and Fourier transform, and the analytical solutions of the dynamic responses of the plate and foundation are obtained. A three-dimensional spatial finite element model of subgrade-pavement is established by ABAQUS finite element software. The correctness of the method is verified by comparing the theoretical solution with the finite element solution. The influence of foundation parameters on plate displacement and vertical normal stress of soil is further studied. The results show that considering the orthogonal anisotropy of saturated soil, the dynamic response of subgrade-pavement slab interaction can be described more accurately.

A new adaptive iterative learning control (AILC) scheme is proposed to solve the finite-time hybrid function projective synchronization (HFPS) problem of chaotic systems with unknown periodic time-varying parameters. Fourier series expansion (FSE) is introduced to deal with the problem of uncertain time-varying parameters. The bound of the expanded remaining items is unknown. A typical convergent series is used to deal with the unknown bound in the design process of the controller. The adaptive iterative learning synchronization controller and parameter update laws are designed. Two different chaotic systems are synchronized asymptotically according to different proportional functions on a finite time interval by Lyapunov stability analysis. The simulation example proves the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method.

Based on a neural network, this paper presents a new adaptive iterative learning control method for the finite-time tracking control problem of an uncertain aircraft track angle system, which can control the aircraft track inclination through the designed control input rudder deflection angle, so that it can track the preset trajectory in a finite time interval. First, the flight path angle system of the aircraft is abstractly modeled by variable substitution to obtain a triangular model in the form of strict feedback. Second, radial basis function neural network approximation is used to model the uncertain part of the system, aiming at the abstract strict feedback model, and two virtual quantities are designed through the three-layer inversion design method, and then, Lyapunov functions are designed for each subsystem to derive virtual control laws, the actual control law, and the neural network weight adaptive laws. Through Lyapunov stability analysis, it can be seen that the designed controller and adaptive laws can make the whole closed-loop system tend to be stable and realize the tracking of a target trajectory in a finite time interval. Finally, the feasibility and effectiveness of the theory are verified by a simulation example.

IntroductionAnxiety and depression are common psychological problems in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. However, few effective nursing intervention models have been designed specifically to improve anxiety and depression in RA patients. Solution-focused approach (SFA) is an effective intervention method for psychosocial issues. There have been no studies involving SFA yet in RA patients. This study investigated the effects of SFA-based nursing intervention on anxiety and depression in RA patients.MethodsA quasi-experimental study using a convenience sampling of RA patients was conducted. The 48 RA patients were divided into the control group (n = 24) and the experimental group (n = 24). The control group received routine nursing intervention, while the experimental group received SFA-based nursing intervention. The scores on the self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), self-rating depression scale (SDS), arthritis self-efficacy scale-8 (ASES-8), and questionnaire on patient satisfaction with nursing care were collected before and after nursing interventions.ResultsBetween-Group Comparison: Before the nursing intervention, there was no statistically significant difference in the SDS, SAS, and ASES-8 scores between the two groups (p > 0.05). However, after the nursing intervention, the SDS and SAS scores of the experimental group were statistically significantly lower than those of the control group (p 0.05). Within-Group Comparison: There was no statistically significant difference in the SDS, SAS, and ASES-8 scores in the control group before and after routine nursing intervention (p > 0.05). However, in the experimental group, the SDS and SAS scores before SFA-based nursing intervention were statistically significantly higher than those after SFA nursing intervention (p

Abstract Background Despite research efforts, the causative factors that contribute to esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in high-risk areas have not yet been understood. In this study, we, therefore, aimed to describe the risk factors associated with ESCC and its precursor lesions. Methods We performed an endoscopic examination of 44,857 individuals aged 40–69 years from five high incidence regions of China in 2017–2018. Participants were classified as 4 groups of normal control, esophagitis, low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia (LGIN) and high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia/esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (HGIN/ESCC) using an unconditional logistic regression determine risk factors. Results We identified 4890 esophagitis, 1874 LGIN and 437 HGIN/ESCC cases. Crude odds ratios (ORs) and adjusted odds ratios were calculated using unconditional logistic regression. Drinking well and surface water, salty diet, and positive family history of cancer were the common risk factors for esophagitis, LGIN and HGIN/ESCC. History of chronic hepatitis/cirrhosis was the greatest risk factor of esophagitis (adjusted OR 2.96, 95%CI 2.52–3.47) and HGIN/ESCC (adjusted OR 1.91, 95%CI 1.03–3.22). Pesticide exposure (adjusted OR 1.20, 95%CI 1.05–1.37) was essential risk factor of LGIN. Conclusions Among individuals aged 40–69 years in high incidence regions of upper gastrointestinal cancer, the results provided important epidemiological evidence for the prevention of different precancerous lesions of ESCC.

Abstract Background COVID-19 has spread widely worldwide, causing millions of deaths. We aim to explore the association of immunological features with COVID-19 severity. Methods We conducted a meta-analysis to estimate mean difference (MD) of immune cells and cytokines levels with COVID-19 severity in PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, the Cochrane Library and the grey literature. Results A total of 21 studies with 2033 COVID-19 patients were included. Compared with mild cases, severe cases showed significantly lower levels of immune cells including CD3+ T cell (× 106, MD, − 413.87; 95%CI, − 611.39 to − 216.34), CD4+ T cell (× 106, MD, − 203.56; 95%CI, − 277.94 to − 129.18), CD8+ T cell (× 106, MD, − 128.88; 95%CI, − 163.97 to − 93.79), B cell (× 106/L; MD, − 23.87; 95%CI, − 43.97 to − 3.78) and NK cell (× 106/L; MD, − 57.12; 95%CI, − 81.18 to − 33.06), and significantly higher levels of cytokines including TNF-α (pg/ml; MD, 0.34; 95%CI, 0.09 to 0.59), IL-5 (pg/ml; MD, 14.2; 95%CI, 3.99 to 24.4), IL-6 (pg/ml; MD, 13.07; 95%CI, 9.80 to 16.35), and IL-10 (pg/ml; MD, 2.04; 95%CI, 1.32 to 2.75), and significantly higher levels of chemokines as MCP-1 (SMD, 3.41; 95%CI, 2.42 to 4.40), IP-10 (SMD, 2.82; 95%CI, 1.20 to 4.45) and eotaxin (SMD, 1.55; 95%CI, 0.05 to 3.05). However, no significant difference was found in other indicators such as Treg cell (× 106, MD, − 0.13; 95%CI, − 1.40 to 1.14), CD4+/CD8+ ratio (MD, 0.26; 95%CI, − 0.02 to 0.55), IFN-γ (pg/ml; MD, 0.26; 95%CI, − 0.05 to 0.56), IL-2 (pg/ml; MD, 0.05; 95%CI, − 0.49 to 0.60), IL-4 (pg/ml; MD, − 0.03; 95%CI, − 0.68 to 0.62), GM-CSF (SMD, 0.44; 95%CI, − 0.46 to 1.35), and RANTES (SMD, 0.94; 95%CI, − 2.88 to 4.75). Conclusion Our meta-analysis revealed significantly lower levels of immune cells (CD3+ T, CD4+ T, CD8+ T, B and NK cells), higher levels of cytokines (TNF-α, IL-5, IL-6 and IL-10) and higher levels of chemokines (MCP-1, IP-10 and eotaxin) in severe cases in comparison to mild cases of COVID-19. Measurement of immunological features could help assess disease severity for effective triage of COVID-19 patients.

Abstract Objective: To study the bone induction and defect repair of true bone ceramics (TBC) combined with rhBMP-2 and Sr. Methods: MC3T3-E1 cells were used to evaluate the bioactivity of the composite. Cell proliferation activity was detected by CCK-8, ALP activity was detected by p-nitrophenyl phosphate (PNPP), and the differences of material surface topography were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Bone induction was verified by the implantation in nude mice. The rabbit femoral condyle defect model was achieved to verify the bone defect repair ability of the material. Results: SEM results showed nearly the same surface morphology and cell proliferation quantified by CCK-8 showed that compared with TBC, both TBC&Sr and TBC&BMP-2&Sr had a significant promoting effect (P

Previous studies have shown that nanoplastics (NPs) are harmful pollutants that threaten aquatic organisms and ecosystems, however, less research has been conducted on the hazards of NPs for aquaculture animals. In this study, Cherax quadricarinatus was used as an experimental model to evaluate the possible effects of three concentrations (25, 250 and 2500 μg/L) of NPs on red crayfish. The toxicological effects of NPs on this species were investigated based on transcriptomics and microbiome. A total of 67,668 genes were obtained from the transcriptome. The annotation rate of the four major libraries (Nr, KEGG, KOG, Swissprot) was 40.17 %, and the functions of differential genes were mainly related to antioxidant activity, metabolism and immune processes. During the experiment, the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in the high concentration group were significantly decreased, while the concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA) increased after nanoplastics (NPs) exposure, and SOD1, Jafrac1 were significantly reduced at high concentrations. expression is inhibited. The immune genes LYZ and PPO2 were highly expressed at low concentrations and suppressed at high concentrations. After 14 days of exposure to NPs, significant changes in gut microbiota were observed, such as decreased abundances of Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes. NPs compromise host health by inducing changes in microbial communities and the production of beneficial bacterial metabolites. Overall, these results suggest that NPs affect immune-related gene expression and antioxidant enzyme activity in red crayfish and cause redox imbalance in the body, altering the composition and diversity of the gut microbiota.

BackgroundChronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) can progress to gastric cancer (GC) thus requiring endoscopic surveillance. Here, we analyze various aspects of CAG progression, time, and mucosal background, to guide reasonable surveillance.MethodsCAG patients with three or more endoscopies from 2010–2021 were included. All cases were analyzed for rate and time of progression, and cases with operative link on gastritis assessment (OLGA) staging, operative link on gastric intestinal metaplasia assessment (OLGIM) staging, and Kimura-Takemoto classification were further analyzed. Additional investigation of guideline-defined low-risk patients by reviewing endoscopy in the short-term (1–2 years) after baseline identified several patients as high-risk.ResultsNinety-seven (10.4%) of the 929 CAG patients progressed to low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia (LGIN), high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia (HGIN), or GC, during the observation period of 36–129 months (median 53, IQR=24), including 75 (8.1%) cases of LGIN, eight (0.9%) of HGIN, and 14 (1.5%) of GC. Among 170 patients with OLGA/OLGIM at baseline, two (2/2, 100%) GC cases occurred in patients with OLGA/OLGIM III and IV. Of the 236 patients with Kimura-Takemoto classification at baseline, 5/7 (71.4%) cases of GC occurred in patients with C3–O3. Ten, 11, and 25 patients classified as low-risk on the European, British, and Chinese Guidelines, underwent additional endoscopy within 1–2 years, resulting in three (30.0%), four (36.4%), and eight (32.0%) patients being classified as high-risk on these guidelines, respectively.ConclusionA minority of CAG patients can progress to GC. OLGA/OLGIM III and IV staging are closely associated with progression. Disease-associated risk may be underestimated in one-third of patients classified as low-risk by initial endoscopy.

In orange-spotted grouper (E. coioides), the transcription factors foxl2 and foxl3 are thought to play an important role in ovarian and testicular development, but how they do so remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the regulatory effect of foxl2 and foxl3 on the sex steroid genes cyp19a1a and cyp11b, and then we explored the function of foxl2 and foxl3 in the sex hormone synthesis pathway in teleost fish. First, we used FOXL2 and FOXL3 recombinant proteins to investigate the regulatory mechanism of foxl2/foxl3 on aromatase in E. coioides and found that the recombinant proteins can enter gonad cells and be expressed in the nucleus. The expression levels of cyp19a1a and cyp11b were detected by real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR when FOXL2 or FOXL3 recombinant proteins were used to stimulate primary ovarian cells of orange-spotted grouper. The FOXL2 recombinant protein significantly increased the expression of cyp19a1a mRNA, which is related to estrogen production, in a dose-dependent manner. The FOXL3 recombinant protein significantly down-regulated the expression of cyp19a1a mRNA and significantly up-regulated the expression of cyp11b mRNA, which is related to androgen synthesis. Dual luciferase analysis in vitro revealed that foxl2 directly acted on the promoter region of cyp19a1a and foxl3 directly acted on the promoter regions of both cyp19a1a and cyp11b. The FOXL2 and FOXL3 recombinant protein injection experiments in vivo by surgery further showed that foxl2 promoted ovarian differentiation by directly up-regulating the expression of the aromatase gene cyp19a1a, whereas foxl3 directly inhibited the expression of the aromatase gene cyp19a1a and up-regulated the expression of cyp11b to promote testicular differentiation.

Abstract Background The outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019(COVID-19) caused psychological stress in Chinese adults population. But we are unaware of whether the pandemic causes psychological stress on children. Methods We used the Children’s Impact of Event Scale questionnaire (CRIES-13) to investigate the degree of Post-traumatic Stress (PTSD) symptoms caused by the pandemic in students selected from schools in Sichuan, Jiangsu, Henan, Yunnan, and Chongqing provinces of China. Results A total of 7769 students(3692 male and 4077 female), aged 8–18 years, were enrolled in the study, comprising 1214 in primary schools, 2799 in junior high schools and 3756 in senior high schools. A total of 1639 students (21.1%) had severe psychological stress reactions. A large proportion of senior high school students (23.3%) experienced severe psychological stress, and they had the highest median total CRIES-13 score. Female students were more likely to experience severe psychological stress and had higher median CRIES-13 total scores than males. Conclusion COVID-19 has placed psychological stresses on primary and secondary school students in China. These stresses are more likely to reach severe levels among female students and senior high school students.

• A novel netted-cracking fruit phenotype was discovered in tomato introgression line IL4-4. • A single dominant gene (FNC) determined the fruit netted-cracking phenotype. • The high transcript level of FNC results in the functional gain of fruit netted-cracking and it was found to be a common mechanism in a diverse range of plant species. Fruit cracking is a major disorder that affects the integrity of fruit and reduces the commercial value of tomato and other fleshy fruit. Here, we have found a novel fruit ‘netted-cracking’ (FNC) phenotype in tomato introgression line IL4-4 which is present in neither the donor parent (LA0716) nor the receptor parent (M82). An F2 population was generated by crossing IL4-4 with M82 to genetically characterize the FNC gene and this showed that a single dominant gene determined fruit netted-cracking. Further map-based cloning narrowed down the FNC locus to a 230 kb region on chromosome 4. Sequencing and annotation analysis show that FNC (Solyc04 g082540) was the most likely candidate gene. Functional characterization of FNC by overexpressing FNCAC and FNCIL4-4 resulted in the fruit netted-cracking phenotype, suggesting that the FNC transcript level results in the functional gain of fruit netted-cracking. These findings were further confirmed by FNC ortholog in netted-cracking pepper and melon, indicating a common regulatory mechanism in different plant species. Furthermore, cytoplasm and nucleus-localized FNC indicates increased expression of genes involved in suberin, lignin, lipid transport and cell wall metabolism. These findings provide novel genetic insights into fruit netted-cracking and offer a way to promote molecular improvement toward cracking resistant cultivars.

To compare the gut microbiota of healthy infants based on specific interactions of delivery modes and feeding types, we recruited 62 healthy babies who were followed up for 2 years from our previous cohort study of 91 infants (the rest were lost to follow-up). They were exclusively fed breast milk or specific formulas for more than 4 months after birth. The fecal bacterial composition was tested at 40 days, 3 months, and 6 months of age. Solid foods were introduced from 4 to 6 months of age and thus did not affect the microbiota before 4 months of age. According to the different delivery modes (i.e., vaginal delivery, VD, or cesarean section delivery, CS) and feeding types (i.e., breast-fed, br, or formula-fed, fo), the infants were assigned to four different groups, namely, the VD-br, VD-fo, CS-br, and CS-fo groups. We found that at 40 days of age, the α diversity (reported as the Shannon index) was lower in the br infants than in the fo infants. At 3 months of age, the α diversity was significantly lower in the CS-br group, although significant differences were not observed after solid food introduction. Bifidobacterium represented the most predominant genus in all groups at all time points, followed by Enterobacteriaceae. At 40 days of age, the abundance of Bifidobacterium was much higher in the CS-br group than in the CS-fo group but did not differ between the VD-br and VD-fo groups. The differences in Bifidobacterium disappeared at 3 and 6 months of age among the different groups. At 40 days of age, the abundance of Streptococcus and Enterococcus was much lower in the br infants than in the CS-fo group. At 3 months of age, Enterococcus was significantly lower in the CS-br group than in the fo infants, although for infants delivered by VD, the difference between feeding types was not significant. The specific interaction of delivery modes and feeding types has a large impact on the infants' gut microbiota. Breastfeeding and VD may decrease the potential adverse effects of formula feeding or CS delivery on gut microbiota, thus leading to a more stable and beneficial gut environment for infants.

In this article, a terahertz metamaterial biaxial strain pressure sensor structure is proposed, which can address the problems of the low sensitivity, the narrow pressure measurement range, and the uniaxial-only detection of existing terahertz pressure sensors. The performance of the pressure sensor was studied and analyzed using the time-domain finite-element-difference method. By changing the substrate material and optimizing the structure of the top cell, the size of the structure that can simultaneously improve the range and sensitivity of the pressure measurements was determined. The simulation results show that the sensor has a pressure-sensing effect in the frequency range of 1.0–2.2 THz under the conditions of transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) polarization, and the sensitivity can reach up to 346 GHz/μm. The proposed metamaterial pressure sensor has significant applications in the remote monitoring of target structure deformation.

In order to investigate the relationship between hydraulic lift and drought tolerance in potato, four cultivars differing in drought susceptibilities were selected, and a pot experiment with three different irrigation conditions was carried out in a randomized complete block design. Under irrigation conditions (WW), hydraulic lift of soil water was not observed in the upper pots. Under half-irrigation (DW) and drought (DD) conditions, the water content increased in the upper pots, along with a change in root-related traits, higher biomass, and lower proline (Pro) and malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations observed in the drought-tolerant cultivars (Longshu NO.3 and Xindaping), whereas the drought-sensitive cultivars (Favorita and Atlantic) had contrary results. As the degree of drought stress increased, the phenomenon of hydraulic lift was inhibited completely, along with a reduction in soil water content and biomass and an increase in Pro and MDA accumulation. Genotypes of Longshu NO.3 and Xindaping exhibited higher tolerance to drought stress than Favorita and Atlantic under drought conditions. In addition, similar results were also obtained for the determination of plant height, leaf water content, root activity, and root–shoot ratio. This study revealed that there was a phenomenon of hydraulic redistribution among different potato cultivars, along with hydraulic lift strongly associated with the root growth, biomass allocation, and other physiological traits that potentially confer drought resistance.

Abstract Background The relationship between malnutrition-inflammation-atherosclerosis syndrome (MIAS) and self-management ability has not been previously revealed even though both play an important role in the management of peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Methods In total, 93 patients were enrolled in this study. A self-management questionnaire was used for the evaluation of self-management ability. The identification of MIAS was based on one or more of the following three conditions: C-reactive protein (CRP)≥10 mg/L, malnutrition–inflammation score (MIS)> 7, and the presence of atherosclerosis-related medical records. The possible association between different self-management abilities and MIAS was analyzed with a Spearman correlation analysis. Results There were 40 (43.0%) patients in the atherosclerosis group, and 38 (40.9%), 38 (40.9%), 10 (10.8%), and 7 (7.5%) patients in the MIAS0, MIAS1, MIAS2, and MIAS3 groups, respectively. The group with a score above the mean score of the Dialysis Effect Evaluation and Monitoring dimension had a fewer number of hospitalizations, higher albumin levels, lower MIS scores, a lower level of IL-6, and a lower number of MIAS factors. The Pearson and Spearman correlation analyses also revealed that this dimension was negatively correlated with the MIAS, MIS, IL-6, BNP, number of hospitalizations, and age and positively associated with albumin and prealbumin. Conclusion The Dialysis Effect Evaluation and Monitoring dimension of the self-management scale for PD patients is closely linked to the MIAS, and a better dialysis effect evaluation and monitoring capacity results in a decreased likelihood of exposure to malnutrition and inflammation. Trial registration Chinese Clinical Trial Registry: ChiCTR2000035525 ( http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=58110 ), registered August 13, 2020.

Abstract In this study, water soluble CuO nanostructures having nanobelt, nanorod, or spindle morphologies were synthesized using aqueous solutions of Cu(NO3)2·3H2O and NaOH by adjusting the type of surface modifier and reaction temperature. The effect of morphologies of these various CuO nanostructures as water-based lubricant additives on tribological properties was evaluated on a UMT-2 micro-friction tester, and the mechanisms underlying these properties are discussed. The three different morphologies of CuO nanostructures exhibited excellent friction-reducing and anti-wear properties. Tribological mechanisms differed in the initial stage of frictional interactions, but in the stable stage, a tribochemical reaction film and adsorbed lubricious film on the rubbing surfaces played important roles in hindering direct contact between friction pairs, leading to improved tribological properties.

Objective: The objective of this study is to investigate the expression of Vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and very late appearing antigen-4 (VLA-4) cytokines in MM (multiple Myeloma). Method: Forty patients with MM are selected as the experimental group and 30 healthy persons as the control group. Flow cytometry is used to detect the expression of VCAM-1 (CD106), VLA-4 (CD49d), CD38 and CD138 antigens in experimental group and control group. ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay) is used to detect the concentration of VCAM-1 in serum of experimental group and control group. RT-PCR is used to detect the expression of VCAM-1. Results: The positive rate and antigen expression rate of VACM-1 antigen in the experimental group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P

Objective: Obesity, dyslipidemia and diabetes have been recognized as risk factors of hypertension in the general population. This study focused on college students and correlations between serum lipids, serum uric acid, fasting plasma glucose, serum creatinine, body mass index, brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity and hypertension. The results suggested that there was no relevance between serum lipids and hypertension. However, it came out that hypertension is associated with normal fasting plasma glucose, BMI (thinness and normal weight), normal serum creatinine. Methods: A total of 5185 students were enrolled, and their blood pressure, height and weight were measured. 285 of the students were selected to take physical examinations including serum uric acid, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose, serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, ankle-brachial index and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity measured. Results: The values of systolic blood pressure(SBP), diastolic blood pressure(DBP), serum uric acid, fasting plasma glucose(FPG), serum creatinine, body mass index(BMI), and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity(baPWV) were higher in hypertension group than those in non-hypertension group (P