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Zhida Bian,1,2,&ast; Hui Li,3,4,&ast; Yanlong Liu,5,&ast; Yanjun Cao,2 Yanxia Kang,2 Yongjun Yu,2 Feng Zhang,1,2 Cunbao Li,1 Yimin Kang,1 Fan Wang2,4 1Psychosomatic Medicine Research Division, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Huhhot, 010110, People’s Republic of China; 2Beijing Hui-Long-Guan Hospital, Peking University, Beijing, 100096, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People’s Republic of China; 4Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Neurological Disorder Research, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Urumqi, 830063, People’s Republic of China; 5School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, 325035, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Fan WangBeijing Hui-Long-Guan Hospital, Peking University, Beijing, 100096, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 10 83024429; +86 991-4609006Fax +86 10 62716285; +86 991-4609100Email FanWang@bjmu.edu.cnYimin KangPsychosomatic Medicine Research Division, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Huhhot, 010110, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/Fax +86 471-6657548Email kangym@immu.edu.cnBackground: The occurrence of depression was related with a state of mild hypoxia for a long time. Hypoxia-inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α) modulates the process from acute to chronic hypoxia, consequently regulating changes in inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). Increasing levels of iNOS combined with major depressive disorder (MDD) have been associated with the concentration of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), which increase the severity of depression.Objective: The aim was to investigate whether depressive symptoms might be improved by regulating HIF-2α levels to decrease the degree of oxidative stress and inflammation using electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).Methods: In this observational study, 49 MDD patients were divided into the ECT group (n=32) and control group (n=17). The Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) was used to evaluate depressive symptoms of patients at enrollment and after 2 weeks of treatment. The levels of HIF-2α, NOS, IL-6, and TNF-α in plasma were analyzed accordingly.Results: The total score in each dimension of HAMD decreased more efficiently in the ECT group than in the control group (p < 0.05). The plasma levels of IL-6 in the ECT group were notably decreased after the 2-week treatment (t = 3.596, p = 0.001). The decreased trend to statistical significance of HIF-2α was observed after treatment in the ECT group (p = 0.091).Conclusion: The present study demonstrated that the therapeutic effects of long-term ECT therapy for MDD may further benefit from and contribute to the improvement of MDD-associated chronic hypoxia.Keywords: major depressive disorder, modified electroconvulsive therapy, hypoxia-inducible factor, neuroinflammation, oxidative stress

Aiming at the future satellites on-orbit service requirements, this paper researched the thermal control system for a micro-nano satellite. The micro-nano satellite can be attached on target satellite. The extreme temperature conditions of the micro-nano satellite has been determined by analyzing the complex space heat environment and power consumption, the thermal control system of micro-nano satellite has been designed, the finite element model (FEM) of the satellite is established, and the temperature fields about the extreme temperature conditions are calculated. The simulation results proves the feasibility of the thermal control system.

BACKGROUND Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) frequently occur in the gastrointestinal tract, lung, and pancreas, and the rectum and appendix are the sites with the highest incidence. Epidemiology statistics show that an estimated 8000 people every year in the United States are diagnosed with NETs occurring in the gastrointestinal tract, including the stomach, intestine, appendix, colon, and rectum. The pathological changes and clinical symptoms of NETs are not specific, and therefore they are frequently misdiagnosed. AIM To investigate the clinical symptoms, pathological characteristics, treatment, and prognosis of rectal neuroendocrine tumors (RNETs) by analyzing the clinical and pathological data of 132 RNET cases at our hospital. METHODS All RNETs were graded according to Ki-67 positivity and mitotic events. The tumors were staged as clinical stages I, II, III, and IV according to infiltrative depth and tumor size. COX proportional hazard model was used to assess the main risk factors for survival. RESULTS These 132 RNETs included 83 cases of G1, 21 cases of G2, and 28 cases of G3 (neuroendocrine carcinoma) disease. Immunohistochemical staining showed that 89.4% of RNETs were positive for synaptophysin and 39.4% positive for chromogranin A. There were 19, 85, 23, and 5 cases of clinical stages I, II, III, and IV, respectively. The median patient age was 52.96 years. The diameter of tumor, depth of invasion, and pathological grade were the main reference factors for the treatment of RNETs. The survival rates at 6, 12, 36, and 60 mo after operation were 98.5%, 94.6%, 90.2%, and 85.6%, respectively. Gender, tumor size, tumor grade, lymph node or distant organ metastasis, and radical resection were the main factors associated with prognosis of RNETs. Multivariate analysis showed that tumor size and grade were independent prognostic factors. CONCLUSION The clinical symptoms of RNETs are not specific, and they are easy to misdiagnose. Surgery is the main treatment method. The grade and stage of RNETs are the main indices to evaluate prognosis.

This study aimed to evaluate the colonic motility of slow transit constipation (STC) patients using high-resolution colonic manometry (HRCM) and classify the patients' subtypes to instruct treatment based on HRCM characteristics.This study enrolled one hundred and twenty-six STC patients and 35 volunteers (healthy controls, HCs). Ambulatory HRCM was performed in all participants by placing a 36-sensor water-perfused probe up to the cecum. Quantitative and qualitative manometric analysis was conducted in the state of rest, postprandial, during sleep, and wakefulness.The occurrence rate and times of high amplitude propagated contraction (HAPC) in STC patients were lower than HCs. As for the HAPC contraction characteristics, the mean velocity was similar, contraction length, amplitude, area under the curve (AUC) of pressure wave, and duration were reduced in STC patients compared with HCs. In addition, the occurrence rate and times of low amplitude propagated contraction (LAPC) in STC patients were similar compared to HCs. There was no difference in HAPC occurrence, LAPC occurrence, and most detailed HAPC characteristics between STC patients ≤60 years and STC patients60 years or between male STC patients and female STC patients. Based on the HRCM characteristics (including HAPC, neostigmine induced HAPC, LAPC, and waking/gastrocolic response), STC patients were classified into four types, respectively, with recommended treatment by clinical experience.HRCM serves as a valuable tool in characterizing, classifying the pathophysiology, and guiding clinical management for STC.

Vibration dampers are widely used in power transmission line vibration reduction. In order to use them for wind-induced vortex-induced vibration (VIV) suppression of jacket pipes, the effect of the vibration dampers on the vortex-induced force is studied using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method. The range of Reynolds numbers in simulations is in the critical interval, and the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations and shear stress transport (SST) k-ω turbulence model are used to calculate the pipe with vibration dampers. The lift coefficient of the pipe is reduced by about 65% after the vibration dampers are installed. The effect of vibration dampers on the lift force and drag force is little affected by the change of wind speed. The same number of vibration dampers are installed in two rows, and the vortex shedding frequency is reduced by about 16% compared with that for one row. The vibration dampers destroy the wake vortex of the high-velocity areas around the pipe, thereby reducing the pipe’s lift coefficient and the vortex-induced force. The vibration dampers have no obvious influence on the vortex far from the pipe.

Shale gas is a crucial unconventional natural gas; carbon dioxide is a serious greenhouse gas. Therefore, using supercritical carbon dioxide as a fracturing fluid can fracture shale reservoirs and ...

Hydraulic fracturing is an effective treatment technology to improve reservoir permeability. In this paper, the dual effective stress was introduced into the theoretical analysis of water pressure during crack initiation, and the theoretical analysis results are about 37% more accurate than Hubbert and Willis theory based on the numerical results. Moreover, the artificial-macrocrack effects on fracturing crack propagation and direction changes have been analyzed and compared to hydraulic fracturing without the artificial-macrocrack. The water pressure required for crack initiation with the artificial-macrocracks is less than that without the artificial-macrocracks. When α (α is defined as the angle between the artificial-macrocrack and the horizontal direction) reached or exceeded π/4, crack growth began at the tip of the macrocrack with a higher box counting dimension than that at a lower values of α. Furthermore, a series of simulations have been conducted to obtain the point of fracturing crack direction change when α = 0. The fracturing crack starts to propagate at the artificial-macrocrack tip when λ = 0.95 (λ is defined as the ratio of horizontal stress to vertical stress), and the crack propagation direction becomes vertical when λ = 0.9625. By extracting the crack morphology from the simulation results, it was determined that the box-counting dimension, the crack perimeter, and the crack area proportion reach maximal values at λ = 0.95, λ = 0.9625 and λ = 0.975, respectively. Using image segmentation technology, the impact area proportion reached a maximum at λ = 0.9625 with a more effective treatment than at other values of λ. Finally, beddings and cracks in natural strata were taken into account for fracturing crack propagation, and beddings and cracks could guide the fracturing cracks. More microcracks could be generated along the beddings with the artificial-macrocrack effect at λ = 0.9. Case study indicated that the gas extraction achieved high production in the first 40 days, and the field data with fracturing treatment show that the average pure gas flux is about 4 times greater than that without fracturing. This research also provides a new idea to mine intact rock of construction aggregate.

BACKGROUND Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), which has a very high tendency of progression to colorectal cancer, is mainly caused by mutations of the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene. This study systematically screened the APC mutations and observed the correlation of APC mutations with clinical manifestations of FAP. MATERIAL AND METHODS Eighty subjects (probands and their family members of 22 FAP pedigrees) were enrolled, underwent abdominal ultrasound, computed tomography, and colonoscopic examinations, and were assessed for APC mutations between January 2010 and June 2015 at Tianjin Union Medical Center. Peripheral blood was collected from subjects, and DNA was extracted and screened for APC mutations using multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification for large-fragment deletions or PCR-denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography with DNA sequencing for micromutations. RESULTS Nineteen of 22 FAP pedigrees were found to have mutations of APC, and 17 types APC mutations were identified. All the mutations were heterozygosity with autosomal dominant inheritance. APC mutations included 8 caused by frameshift, 3 by aberrant splicing, 2 by missense mutation, 2 by nonsense mutation, and 2 by large-fragment deletion. Frameshift mutation was the most common type of APC mutation, and Coding DNA Sequence 15 was the most common mutation site. Five novel APC mutations, including 1 with large-fragment deletion, were identified. CONCLUSIONS We systematically screened 17 mutations of APC from 22 Chinese pedigrees with FAP. This study will broaden the spectrum of known APC germline mutations and help understand the types and distribution of APC mutations among Chinese patients with FAP.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignant tumor, it is necessary to conduct in-depth research on the pathogenesis, early diagnosis, and prognosis evaluation. The assessment of postoperative prognosis is beneficial to the accurate treatment for patients. Metabolomics can explore the metabolic changes in the process of cancer, to find new markers that can be used for early diagnosis of cancer and evaluation of efficacy. Method: In this study, ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography quarter time of fly mass spectrometer (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) technology was used to screen the metabolomics markers of blood samples from 24 CRC patients who underwent surgery and 24 healthy people. To verify the potential markers found above, At the same time, 8 CRC patients and normal control group were included. Results: UDP-D-galactose, which shown significant concentration changed 2 ~ 3 days after surgery was screened after statistical analysis. Moreover, the analysis of metabolic pathways in tissue samples also fully verified the correlation between UDP-D-galactose and CRC. Conclusion: UPLC-Q-TOF-MS is a practical method for screening metabolic markers. Accurate monitoring the concentration of UDP-D-galactose in blood can provide important assistance for the treatment of CRC patients.

Sharaf-AG Low Uplift is located in the central area of Nugara Depression in Muglad Basin, Sudan. It has similar faulted system as the other oil and gas rich sub-basin but it doesn’t have much discovery in oil and gas. So the study of tectonic characteristics has been carried. After detailed seismic interpretation and analysis, the traps controlled by the northwest normal fault have a ‘beaded’ distribution characteristic from southwest to northeast under an extensional- torsional stress. And maybe it destroyed the storage of oil and gas in this area.

Fula Sub-Basin, located in NE of Muglad Basin, is the most important production base for block 6, which is one of the important overseas project of CNPC. With the progress of exploration and development for more than 20 years’, remained traps are limited with small area, deep targets, and complex structure and the difficulty increased for exploration and development. More challenges come out for: when the traps were formed? how did the faults and structures control the reservoirs? what’s the relationship between complex reservoir and fault blocks? All these questions need answers for fault system and paleostructure restoration. Horizon flatten technology is a new technology for structure restoration, but it has not been generally used for overseas projects because of the complexity of the technology. Some new applications of horizon flattening technology with seismic data have been tried for deep study of structure and reservoirs in Fula sub-basin. Horizon flattening technology can be used for not only paleo-structure restoration but also seismic interpretation, fault analysis and reservoir analysis of lower targets. Some cases have been provided and new understandings have been given. These applications are effective and can be popularized to exploration and development in similar sub-basin with complex fault system.

DFACTS device is used in the distribution network to compensate for reactive power, harmonics and negative sequence currents. If simple current limiting measures are adopted in the condition of DFACTS with insufficient capacity, the compensation current waveform will be distorted, which will have adverse effects on the system. In order to solve this problem, this paper proposes three kinds of compensation strategies: reactive power priority, harmonic priority and adaptive comprehensive compensation strategies. The reactive power priority or harmonic priority compensation strategy uses the limited capacity of DFACTS to compensate reactive power or harmonics, the residual capacity of DFACTS compensates the specified harmonics or reactive power. The adaptive comprehensive compensation strategy is to set firstly the compensation weight coefficients of reactive power, harmonics and negative sequence current, and to consider comprehensively the deviation of the compensation quantity, finely to allocate adaptively the three kinds of compensation quantity. Simulation results verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed compensation strategies and control algorithms.

Interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) has pleiotropic effects on cancer immune checkpoint blockade (ICB), including roles in ICB resistance. We analyzed gene expression in ICB-sensitive versus ICB-resistant tumor cells and identified a strong association between interferon-mediated resistance and expression of Ripk1, a regulator of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily receptors. Genetic interaction screening revealed that in cancer cells, RIPK1 diverted TNF signaling through NF-κB and away from its role in cell death. This promoted an immunosuppressive chemokine program by cancer cells, enhanced cancer cell survival, and decreased infiltration of T and NK cells expressing TNF superfamily ligands. Deletion of RIPK1 in cancer cells compromised chemokine secretion, decreased ARG1

The load terminal voltage at the low voltage side of the distribution network will drop when the user load increases. Thereby affecting the normal operation of the electrical appliance. Currently, the treatment approach to the voltage deviation at the low voltage side of the distribution network is using the Parallel reactive power compensation technology. However, the compensation effect will decrease with the load increases. To solve the above problems, this paper proposes a method for applying series capacitor compensation to the low voltage side of the distribution network. Firstly, the principle of low voltage generation on the low-voltage side of the distribution network is derived. Then introduce the principle of series reactive power compensation method. And according to the actual parameters of the project, simulate the terminal voltage amplitudes and the line current under the different wire types and load rates. Finally, the improvement effect of series reactive power compensation on the low-voltage side power quality of distribution network is analyzed with simulation calculation. The results show that the proposed method has a good control effect on the power quality of the low-voltage side of the distribution network.

With the development of living and production standard, the power load is increasing continuously, and the distribution network needs to be expanded to meet the expectation, meantime, low user voltage problem frequently appears. Flexible AC Transmission Technology (FACTS) provides a new method for power flow control in grid. Thyristor controlled series capacitor (TCSC) is used in (or above) 10kV transmission and distribution lines to solve the problem of power transmission. In the low-voltage distribution network, it can improve the terminal voltage. But for now, in the practical application of engineering, its control method is not mature enough, some problems like Inaccurate control or complex control steps still exist. In this paper, two possible improvement measures are put forward aiming at TCSC's traditional table check control schemes. more applicable functional relationships are proposed by using mathematical analysis, and the application conditions of the two improvement schemes are compared and analyzed. After theoretical analysis and practical verification, the improved scheme can make up for the shortcomings of the traditional control mode to a certain extent, and can play a better effect in practical application.

Fula Sub-Basin, located in NE of Muglad Basin, is the most important production base for block 6, which is one of the important overseas project of CNPC. After more than 20 years’ exploration and development, big and shallower traps such as Bentiu/Aradeiba reservoir have been discovered and drilled for most area, remained traps are limited with small area, deep targets, and complex structure which are difficult to identify. How to exploring deeper targets as Abu Gabra has become more and more urgent. Many challenges are faced for detailed exploration of Abu Gabra such as poor data quality in deep parts and complex fault system identification etc. Some specific techniques and methods have been tried and tested to identify new traps, including target filter processing for deep parts, well-controlled fault point identification integrated with detailed well correlation, fault polygon generation with multiple attributes etc., and finally a combined work flow for detailed exploration of complex faulted trap has been generated. These techniques have been applied in Fula and other Sub-basin in block 6 and a series of new faulted traps have been discovered. Drilling candidates are selected from them through detailed trap appraisal and good results come out, with 11 successful wells from 12 candidates, which indicate that integrated fault identification techniques are effective for detailed exploration and development of rifting sub-basins in Muglad basin and similar basin.

Power quality evaluation is the precondition of power quality management. In this paper, the expert scoring method’s weight distribution process has changed from average distribution to weighting distribution according to critic method to better reflect the opinions of most experts. At the same time, the critic method, which can reduce the sensitivity of weight distribution process, is introduced to obtain the objective weights. To get a more reasonable combination weights, the improved expert scoring method is combined with critic method to calculate the combinatorial weight. Then a comprehensive evaluation method based on combination weighting method and TOPSIS is established to sort the evaluation points. Finally, taking a typical case as an example, the power quality indexes’ data is simulated to verify the effectiveness of the algorithm. The results show that this model is in good agreement with the actual conditions.

Background and aim Different clinical treatments are available to treat patients with constipation. We aimed to study the etiology and direct treatment in a case series of patients with constipation by the use of high-resolution colonic manometry (HRCM). Methods High-resolution colonic manometry was used to record the colorectal peristaltic contractions of the entire colon in patients. Based on the results of HRCM, 151 patients with constipation were classified into groups and received different clinical treatment such as a total or subtotal colectomy, local excision, or conservative treatment. Paraffin-embedded samples obtained after resection were studied using hematoxylin and eosin, as well as immunohistochemical staining. Results All patients underwent HRCM over 24 h. Based on the amplitude, intensity, and trends in peristaltic contractions recorded by HRCM, we observed 117 patients with slow-transit constipation and 34 with functional outlet obstruction constipation. After an overall evaluation of the results of HRCM and anorectal function, 26, 23, 27, and 75 patients were treated with total colectomy, subtotal colectomy, local excision, and conservative treatment, respectively. Furthermore, histological examination of surgical samples showed vacuolar degeneration of nerve plexuses as well as of the muscularis propria, which also showed fibrosis in its outer layers in patients with constipation. Conclusion Different types of constipation showed different colonic motility patterns and morphological changes in the colonic wall. HRCM plays an important role in the diagnosis and classification of patients with constipation. Furthermore, HRCM can accurately identify the diseased colonic segments and help to choose the appropriate treatment.

Background and Aim Progesterone receptor, inflammation, neurotransmitter expression, and fibrosis are involved in slow-transit constipation. The aim of the present study was to examine whether patients with slow-transit constipation have an overexpression of progesterone receptor and serotonin which may impair the fibrosis of muscularis propria in colorectal wall. Methods High resolution colon manometry was used to record the colorectal peristaltic contractions of the proximal ascending and sigmoid colon in patients. Protein samples prepared from frozen sigmoid colon tissue and the proximal margin of the ascending colon of four female patients were compared using iTRAQ labeling technique coupled to 2D LC–MS/MS analysis. Immunohistochemical staining of progesterone receptor, serotonin, and fibronectin was performed in paraffin-embedded sigmoid colon tissues and the proximal margin of the ascending colon or ileum from 43 patients with slow-transit constipation. Results Among these differentially regulated proteins based on iTRAQ and LC–MS/MS analysis, 56 proteins involved in the response to progesterone, inflammation, matrix remodeling, fibrosis, and muscle metabolism. Immunohistochemical staining confirmed that there was significantly higher expression of progesterone receptor (t = 19.19, P = 0.000) and serotonin (t = 13.52, P = 0.004) in sigmoid colon than in the proximal margin of the ascending colon and ileum. Progesterone receptor and fibronectin expression in the outer layer of muscularis propria was higher than in the middle layer. Conclusions These results demonstrate that progesterone receptor, along with inflammation and fibrosis may take part in slow-transit constipation development.

In this work, we have studied the surface waves propagating on the interface of graphene-covered metamaterial in GHz range. We have used the equations of electromagnetic field and impedance boundary condition approach to obtain the characteristic equation. The surface waves are not supported in all frequency ranges, and the dispersive curves of TM and TE polarized wave do not overlap in same wave vector spaces. The numerical solution can explain the propagation behavior of electromagnetic waves very well. The results show that it is able to tune surface waves through changing the chemical potential of graphene. We also have discussed the effective wavenumber and the propagation length as the chemical potential is changed. TM polarized waves is more sensitive when changing the chemical potential.

The dynamic disturbance is one of the major reasons to trigger rock block sliding along the discontinuities of roof rock mass during the mining excavation. A self-developed test machine was used in this study to investigate the sliding instability of an isosceles trapezoid rock block triggered by dynamic disturbance. The sliding displacement, strain, and impact energy were monitored during the hammer impact under different lateral clamping load conditions. The experimental results show that the typical vertical displacement of key blocks can be divided into three modes post-disturbance depending on the clamping load and impact energy. Two distinct instability processes were observed once the key block began to lose stability and fall: Immediate falling and delayed falling. The difference between them involves the instantaneous slide distance and pendulum-type wave propagating on the sliding interface. The critical impact energy causing the key block to fall shows a nearly logarithmical increment with the gradually ascending lateral clamping load. Based on the energy analysis , an analytical solution to key block sliding displacement under dynamic disturbance is proposed, which accounts for the influence of clamping load, disturbance energy, interface friction coefficient, and key block incline angle. By comparison with the experimental results, the theoretical calculation is shown to effectively estimate the sliding distance of the key block under dynamic disturbance. This work may provide some sound guidance for the real-time assessment of key rock block stability via displacement monitoring.

In this paper we propose a new design for an ultra-wideband microwave metamaterial absorber. This metamaterial absorber has a sandwich structure, and the top metal pattern is periodically arranged on the copper background. This metamaterial absorber is combined with Fe–Co composites and metamaterials, which solves the narrow-band problem of microwave absorption. We realize an absorptivity of more than 90% in the 2.16–18 GHz frequency band for normal incidence. The thickness of the structure is 0.61 mm (about 1/48.8 wavelength at the central frequency). The performance of the proposed absorber is not sensitive to the polarization of incident waves.

At present, it is difficult to detect the photovoltaic (PV) hot spots and the recognition efficiency is low. In this paper, an improved Single Shot MultiBox Detector (SSD) algorithm was designed for PV hot spot detection. The algorithm used the MobileNet network to replace the VGG16 convolutional neural network structure in the original SSD. This network is a depthwise separable convolution structure. Using it for feature extraction can reduce the number of parameters in the structure and achieve the purpose of speeding up the network. The experimental results show that the improved algorithm can detect the hot spots of PV array with good confidence, low detection rate and good robustness. Compared with the You Only Look Once(YOLO) algorithm and the original SSD algorithm, the detection speed is significantly improved, which verifies the effectiveness of the algorithm.

Cooperative Positioning (CP) is considered to be a promising method for close formation flight, which can fully exploit the navigation information in a network. This work proposes a new CP framework based on relative position estimation and optimized belief propagation (BP), aiming to enhance the absolute positioning accuracy for low-cost UAVs. Relative estimation is used to augment the BP estimation, which can fully exploit the onboard sensors. For BP, it is widely used as a CP estimator. This work proposes an optimized BP based on vectorized message passing and message evaluation, which can make an effective balance between computational load and estimation accuracy. Simulation results show that the proposed CP framework has better estimation accuracy than traditional CP methods, and has lower computational load than the best existing non-parametric BP (NBP) method with equivalent accuracy.

Rock is a typical porous and heterogeneous geological medium, and water imbibition has a great influence on its mechanical properties. The degree of water imbibition in rock heavily depends on the internal fissures of rock and the soaking time. Here, sandstone specimens were soaked in a red ink solution for different amounts of time, and then cross sections were photographed to obtain RGB images of the water distribution in the rock. Next, the correlation between the water distribution in the rock specimens and the RGB values of the images was established to characterize the water distribution in the sandstone specimens. Finally, the water imbibition in rock was quantified with the diffusion equation, which was applied to determine the diffusivity of rock when the quantitated water distribution was matched to the observed wetted ring in the laboratory. This study quantifies the evolution of unsaturated moisture distribution in sandstone with soaking time and the variation of uniaxial compression strength as it is affected by the water distribution. The results from this study can be used as the scientific bases to study the rock weakening mechanism in a water environment.

Cement hydration is a volume reduction reaction which can result in negative pore water pressure while strengthening the structural stiffness of cemented paste backfill (CPB). Both sulphate and temperature significantly affect the hydration process and thus influence the internal volume change and mechanical properties of CPB. The expansive hydration products produced in sulphated CPB may create an increase in volume which subsequently weakens the CPB. This paper presents an experimental study conducted to evaluate the coupled effects of sulphate and curing temperature on the internal strain evolution of early aged CPB. CPB samples of various initial sulphate concentrations (0, 5000 and 25,000 ppm) were prepared and cured at various temperature (20 °C and 35 °C) at early ages (≤7 days). Mechanical tests were conducted on the samples as internal strain was monitored by Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors. The results indicate that the FBG sensor is sufficiently sensitive to detect the internal strain development of sulphated CPB mixtures during the hydration process. At sulphate concentration of 25,000 ppm, the expansive strain occurred at curing temperature of 35 °C due to the internal expansive force of the expansive materials. The final internal strain value corresponds closely to the strength of the sulphated CPB. As the internal strain of sulphated CPB decreased, the uniaxial compressive strength and tensile strength showed similar trends throughout the experiment. When expansive strain emerged after the initial thermal strain stage, however, there was a higher ratio of uniaxial compressive strength to tensile strength. This phenomenon merits careful consideration in the stability analysis of exposed CPB in underground mines.

To solve the problem that traditional local stereo matching algorithm is susceptible to illumination and environmental noise, ADCensus transformation is used to calculate the initial matching cost, and adaptive window algorithm is used to construct different aggregation windows for regions with different texture degrees to improve the matching accuracy. A regional voting optimization algorithm based on confidence map is proposed. Combined with multiple optimization steps, the mis-matching point and the matching error rate of the disparity map is effectively reduced. The proposed algorithm is tested using the Middlebury standard image set. The results show that the algorithm can calculate the disparity value accurately.

The power grid security risk assessment is of great significance for preventing catastrophic failures. Due to the shortcomings of the existing security risk assessment methods in comparability and understandability of severity index, a security risk assessment method based on fuzzy cluster analysis is put forward. The method uses operational reliability theory, to build the grid failure model. based on the entropy theory, building system state entropy overcomes the shortage of traditional severity model which consider state homogeneity insufficiently. Refer to the comparability of index, using the fuzzy cluster method calculate global system severity index. Through analyzing the IEEE30 system simulation, it proves that the method can effectively identify N-1 and N-k contingency risks.

Different clinical treatments are available to treat patients with constipation. We aimed to study the etiology and direct treatment in a case series of patients with constipation by the use of high-resolution colonic manometry (HRCM).High-resolution colonic manometry was used to record the colorectal peristaltic contractions of the entire colon in patients. Based on the results of HRCM, 151 patients with constipation were classified into groups and received different clinical treatment such as a total or subtotal colectomy, local excision, or conservative treatment. Paraffin-embedded samples obtained after resection were studied using hematoxylin and eosin, as well as immunohistochemical staining.All patients underwent HRCM over 24 h. Based on the amplitude, intensity, and trends in peristaltic contractions recorded by HRCM, we observed 117 patients with slow-transit constipation and 34 with functional outlet obstruction constipation. After an overall evaluation of the results of HRCM and anorectal function, 26, 23, 27, and 75 patients were treated with total colectomy, subtotal colectomy, local excision, and conservative treatment, respectively. Furthermore, histological examination of surgical samples showed vacuolar degeneration of nerve plexuses as well as of the muscularis propria, which also showed fibrosis in its outer layers in patients with constipation.Different types of constipation showed different colonic motility patterns and morphological changes in the colonic wall. HRCM plays an important role in the diagnosis and classification of patients with constipation. Furthermore, HRCM can accurately identify the diseased colonic segments and help to choose the appropriate treatment.

Background: rectal cancer (RC) is one of the most prevalent malignancies worldwide and different preoperative radiotherapies may lead to different outcomes. This meta-analysis aimed to compare the effectiveness of long-course (LC) and short-course radiotherapy (SC), with or without chemotherapy, for locally advanced rectal cancer. Methods: studies published up to March 31st 2018 were retrieved from PubMed, Medline, Cochrane and EMABSE. Randomized control or consort control trials that reported the outcomes of short or long course radiotherapy were eligible. Either a fixed or random effects model was used to access the overall combined risk estimates. Results: sixteen studies with a total of 2,773 RC patients were included in the analysis. There were no significant differences between LC and SC therapies with regard to the following: pathological complete response (PCR) (I2 = 78%, p < 0.05, RR = 0.54, 95% CI: 0.26-1.10); tumor downstaging (I2 = 79%, p < 0.05, RR = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.58-1.17); local recurrences (I2 = 22%, p = 0.27, RR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.26-1.16); distant metastases (I2 = 29%, p = 0.22, RR = 1.03, 95% CI: 0.77-1.37); mortality (I2 = 0%, p = 0.78, RR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.78-1.15) and serious late toxicity (I2 = 74%, p = 0.01, RR = 1.10, 95% CI: 0.37-3.26). In the subgroup analysis, LC had a better PCR and tumor downstaging rate compared with SC in the RCT subgroup. Besides, LC also presented a better PCR rate compared with SC without chemotherapy. Conclusions: LC and SC are both effective in the preoperative treatment of RC with regard to PCR, tumor downstaging, local recurrences, distant metastases, mortality and serious late toxicity. Furthermore, chemotherapy may enhance the efficacy of preoperative treatment.

A grouting model is developed for use during the grouting of the complex foundation of a super high arch dam. The purpose as to determine the optimal grouting timing and appropriate grouting pressure involved in controlling the uplift deformation of the dam. The model determines the optimal grouting time as the height of the arch dam increases with the concrete pouring, by checking the tensile stresses in the dam against standard specifications. The appropriate grouting pressures are given on the basis of the actual grouting pressures monitored during the upstream riverbed foundation grouting. An engineering procedure, applying the model, was then proposed and used during foundation grouting under the toe block of the Xiluodu super high-arch dam in south-western China. The quality of the foundation grouting was evaluated against the results from pressurized water permeability tests, acoustic wave velocity tests, elastic modulus tests and panoramic photographing of the rockmass on completion of the foundation grouting. The results indicated that the proposed grouting model can be applied to effectively reduce the uplift deformation and associated cracking risk for super high arch dams, and it can be concluded that the proposed engineering grouting procedure is a valuable tool for improving foundation grouting under the toe blocks of a super high arch dam.

Progesterone receptor, inflammation, neurotransmitter expression, and fibrosis are involved in slow-transit constipation. The aim of the present study was to examine whether patients with slow-transit constipation have an overexpression of progesterone receptor and serotonin, which may impair the fibrosis of muscularis propria in colorectal wall.High-resolution colon manometry was used to record the colorectal peristaltic contractions of the proximal ascending and sigmoid colon in patients. Protein samples prepared from frozen sigmoid colon tissue and the proximal margin of the ascending colon of four female patients were compared using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification labeling technique coupled to 2D liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analysis. Immunohistochemical staining of progesterone receptor, serotonin, and fibronectin was performed in paraffin-embedded sigmoid colon tissues and the proximal margin of the ascending colon or ileum from 43 patients with slow-transit constipation.Among these differentially regulated proteins based on isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analysis, 56 proteins involved in the response to progesterone, inflammation, matrix remodeling, fibrosis, and muscle metabolism. Immunohistochemical staining confirmed that there was significantly higher expression of progesterone receptor (t = 19.19, P = 0.000) and serotonin (t = 13.52, P = 0.004) in sigmoid colon than in the proximal margin of the ascending colon and ileum. Progesterone receptor and fibronectin expression in the outer layer of muscularis propria were higher than in the middle layer.These results demonstrate that progesterone receptor, along with inflammation and fibrosis, may take part in slow-transit constipation development.

Recent studies have shown that human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) can induce a robust increase in lipid synthesis which is critical for the success of infection. In mammalian cells the central precursor for lipid biosynthesis, cytosolic acetyl CoA (Ac-CoA), is produced by ATP-citrate lyase (ACLY) from mitochondria-derived citrate or by acetyl-CoA synthetase short-chain family member 2 (ACSS2) from acetate. It has been reported that ACLY is the primary enzyme involved in making cytosolic Ac-CoA in cells with abundant nutrients. However, using CRISPR/Cas9 technology, we have shown that ACLY is not essential for HCMV growth and virally induced lipogenesis. Instead, we found that in HCMV-infected cells glucose carbon can be used for lipid synthesis by both ACLY and ACSS2 reactions. Further, the ACSS2 reaction can compensate for the loss of ACLY. However, in ACSS2-KO human fibroblasts both HCMV-induced lipogenesis from glucose and viral growth were sharply reduced. This reduction suggests that glucose-derived acetate is being used to synthesize cytosolic Ac-CoA by ACSS2. Previous studies have not established a mechanism for the production of acetate directly from glucose metabolism. Here we show that HCMV-infected cells produce more glucose-derived pyruvate, which can be converted to acetate through a nonenzymatic mechanism.

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to evaluate the curative effect of transvaginal mesh repair (TVMR) and stapled transanal rectal resection (STARR) in treating outlet obstruction constipation caused by rectocele. MATERIAL AND METHODS Patients who had outlet obstruction constipation caused by rectocele were retrospectively analyzed and 39 patients were enrolled the study. Patients were assigned to either the TVMR or STARR group. Postoperative factors such as complications, pain, recurrence rate, and operative time were compared between the 2 groups. RESULTS Total effective rate was 100% in both groups. No long-term chronic pain occurred and discomfort rate of tenesmus was higher in the STARR group than in the TVMR group. Postoperative defecography showed that the rectocele depth was significantly reduced, and the prolapse of the rectal mucosa and the lower rectal capacity was also decreased. Four cases had mesh exposure in the TVMR group and 2 cases in the STARR group had anastomotic bleeding after the surgery. CONCLUSIONS For outlet obstruction constipation caused by rectocele, TVMR and STARR both obtained satisfactory results. Although TVMR is complex with longer operative time and hospitalization period, its long-term effect is better than that of STARR.

Carbohydrate-response element binding protein (ChREBP) plays a key role in regulating glucose metabolism and de novo lipogenesis in metabolic tissues and cancer cells. Here we report that ChREBP is also a critical regulator of the metabolic alterations induced during human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection. The expression of both ChREBP-α and ChREBP-β is robustly induced in HCMV-infected human fibroblasts; this induction is required for efficient HCMV infection. Depletion of ChREBP in HCMV-infected cells results in reduction of HCMV-induced glucose transporter 4 and glucose transporter 2 expression, leading to inhibition of glucose uptake, lactate production, nucleotide biosynthesis, and NADPH generation. We previously reported that HCMV infection induces lipogenesis through the activation of sterol regulatory element binding protein 1, which is mediated by the induction of PKR-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase. Data from the present study show that HCMV-induced lipogenesis is also controlled by the induction of ChREBP, in a second mechanism involved in the regulation of HCMV-induced de novo lipogenesis. These results suggest that ChREBP plays a key role in reprogramming glucose and lipid metabolism in HCMV infection.

To better understand the interaction between hydraulic fracture and oriented perforation, a fully coupled finite element method (FEM)-based hydraulic-geomechanical fracture model accommodating gas sorption and damage has been developed. Damage conforms to a maximum stress criterion in tension and to Mohr&ndash, Coulomb limits in shear with heterogeneity represented by a Weibull distribution. Fracturing fluid flow, rock deformation and damage, and fracture propagation are collectively represented to study the complexity of hydraulic fracture initiation with perforations present in the near-wellbore region. The model is rigorously validated against experimental observations replicating failure stresses and styles during uniaxial compression and then hydraulic fracturing. The influences of perforation angle, in situ stress state, initial pore pressure, and properties of the fracturing fluid are fully explored. The numerical results show good agreement with experimental observations and the main features of the hydraulic fracturing process in heterogeneous rock are successfully captured. A larger perforation azimuth (angle) from the direction of the maximum principal stress induces a relatively larger curvature of the fracture during hydraulic fracture reorientation. Hydraulic fractures do not always initiate at the oriented perforations and the fractures induced in hydraulic fracturing are not always even and regular. Hydraulic fractures would initiate both around the wellbore and the oriented perforations when the perforation angle is &gt, 75&deg, For the liquid-based hydraulic fracturing, the critical perforation angle increases from 70&deg, to 80&deg, with an increase in liquid viscosity from 10&minus, 3 Pa&middot, s to 1 Pa&middot, s. While for the gas fracturing, the critical perforation angle remains 62&deg, to 63&deg, This study is of great significance in further understanding the near-wellbore impacts on hydraulic fracture propagation and complexity.

Sterol regulatory element binding proteins (SREBPs) are essential transcriptional factors that control expression of lipogenic genes and adipocyte differentiation. Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection has been shown to require the induction of lipogenesis. Here we show that the induction of lipogenesis and expression of key lipogenic enzymes in human fibroblasts occurs by 24 h post-HCMV infection. This activation correlates with increased cleavage of the SREBP1 precursors to form the mature active transcription factors that enter the nucleus to transcriptionally activate lipogenic genes. SREBP1 cleavage is normally inhibited by increased sterol levels; however, our data show that this level of control is overridden in infected cells to allow constitutive activation of lipogenesis. This process requires viral protein synthesis, since UV-irradiated HCMV cannot activate SREBP cleavage. The cleavage of SREBP1 requires it to be in complex with SREBP cleavage activation protein (SCAP). Depleting SCAP using short hairpin RNA (shRNA) showed that SREBP1 cleavage and the induction of lipogenic genes and lipid synthesis are all inhibited in HCMV-infected cells. As a result, production of infectious virions is reduced in SCAP-depleted cells. Thus, the SCAP-mediated mechanism for SREBP cleavage is utilized by HCMV during infection. Our studies suggest that HCMV induces adipocyte-like lipogenesis and overrides normal sterol feedback controls in order to maintain high levels of constitutive lipid synthesis during infection.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection causes dramatic alterations of intermediary metabolism, similar to those found in tumor cells. In infected cells, glucose carbon is not completely broken down by the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle for energy; instead it is used biosynthetically. This process requires increased glucose uptake, increased glycolysis and the diversion of glucose carbon, in the form of citrate, from the TCA cycle for use in HCMV-induced fatty acid biosynthesis. The diversion of citrate from the TCA cycle (cataplerosis) requires induction of enzymes to promote glutaminolysis, the conversion of glutamine to -ketoglutarate in order to maintain the TCA cycle (anaplerosis) and ATP production. Such changes could result in heretofore uncharacterized pathogenesis, potentially implicating HCMV as a subtle co-factor in many maladies, including oncogenesis. Recognition of the effects of HCMV, and other viruses, on host cell metabolism will provide new understanding of viral pathogenesis and novel avenues for antiviral therapy.

Recent reports indicate that hypoxia influences the circadian clock through the transcriptional activities of hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) at clock genes. Unexpectedly, we uncover a profound disruption of the circadian clock and diurnal transcriptome when hypoxic cells are permitted to acidify to recapitulate the tumor microenvironment. Buffering against acidification or inhibiting lactic acid production fully rescues circadian oscillation. Acidification of several human and murine cell lines, as well as primary murine T cells, suppresses mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) signaling, a key regulator of translation in response to metabolic status. We find that acid drives peripheral redistribution of normally perinuclear lysosomes away from perinuclear RHEB, thereby inhibiting the activity of lysosome-bound mTOR. Restoring mTORC1 signaling and the translation it governs rescues clock oscillation. Our findings thus reveal a model in which acid produced during the cellular metabolic response to hypoxia suppresses the circadian clock through diminished translation of clock constituents.

With the development of industrial and information technology, the power users increasingly demand better power quality. Therefore, the power department needs to monitor power quality in real time, and timely take appropriate measures to adjust the power quality. To overcome the shortcomings of wired monitoring networks, based on wireless sensor networks technology, this paper presents a real-time monitoring system scheme. Experimental results show that the system is capable to remotely real-time monitor the grid power quality and conveniently provide reliable basis for optimizing grid operation.

Signaling mediated by the mammalian target of rapamycin kinase (mTOR) is activated during human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection. mTOR is found in two complexes differing by the binding partner, rictor or raptor. Activated mTOR-raptor promotes cap-dependent translation through the hyperphosphorylation of the eIF4E-binding protein (4E-BP). This activity of the raptor complex is normally inhibited by cell stress responses or the drug rapamycin. However, we previously showed that this inhibition of mTOR signaling can be circumvented during HCMV infection such that hyperphosphorylation of 4E-BP is maintained. Here we show that HCMV infection also activates the rictor complex, as indicated by increased phosphorylation of Akt S473; this phosphorylation is insensitive to rapamycin but sensitive to caffeine in both uninfected and infected cells. By using short-hairpin RNAs to deplete rictor and raptor, we find that rictor is more significant than raptor for the viral infection. Surprisingly, the inhibitory effects of rapamycin on viral growth are primarily due to the presence of rictor, not raptor. Raptor and rictor depletion experiments show that in HCMV-infected cells, both raptor- and rictor-containing complexes can mediate the hyperphosphorylation of 4E-BP and the phosphorylation of p70S6 kinase. Under these conditions, the rictor complex is rapamycin-sensitive for the hyperphosphorylation of 4E-BP, but the raptor complex is not. These data suggest that, during HCMV infection, the rictor- and raptor-containing complexes are modified such that their substrate specificities and rapamycin sensitivities are altered. Our data also suggest that the present understanding of rapamycin's inhibitory effects is incomplete.