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The purpose of this paper is to endow the fuzzy pseudo-norm in the sense of Morsi with many-valued topological structures. It is shown that there exists a one-to-one correspondence between any fuzzy pseudo-norm given by Morsi and a family of left continuous and non-ascending pseudo-norms. Then a fuzzifying topology induced by Morsi fuzzy pseudo-norms is introduced, it is proved that this fuzzifying topology is compatible with the vector structure. Based on this many-valued topological structure, the degree to fuzzy normed space which is Hausdorff, the degree to a sequence which is convergent, and the degree to a set which is bounded are studied. The layered characterizations of them are presented. Finally, the conclusion which a linear operator is fuzzy continuous if and only if it is fuzzy bounded is proved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents information on a study which determined the anisotropic dielectric functions of sapphire by both reflection and transmission variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry. Experimental details; Results and discussion.

The main purpose of this study is to discuss the uniform boundedness principle in fuzzifying topological linear spaces. At first the concepts of uniformly boundedness principle and fuzzy equicontinuous family of linear operators are proposed, then the relations between fuzzy equicontinuous and uniformly bounded are studied, and with the help of net convergence, the characterization of fuzzy equicontinuous is proved. Finally, the famous theorem of the uniform boundedness principle is presented in fuzzifying topological linear spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background In this study, we aimed to evaluate the prognostic factors associated with and treatments for late-onset severe pneumonia ( LOSP) in patients who underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo- HSCT). Methods Fifty consecutive patients who underwent non-T-cell-depleted allo- HSCT at the Peking University Institute of Hematology and met the criterion of LOSP after allo- HSCT were enrolled. Results The median time from allo- HSCT to the occurrence of LOSP was 231 (90-1487) days. Twenty-eight patients harbored 1 or more pathogens (infectious LOSP, I- LOSP), whereas 22 did not harbor any pathogens (non-infectious LOSP, NI- LOSP). The 100-day survival rate of LOSP patients was 31.1%. Patients smoking before allo- HSCT (0% vs. 35.4%, P = 0.002) and male gender (20.0% vs. 61.9%, P = 0.026) had lower 100-day survival rate. Patients with a lower bronchoalveolar lavage fluid ( BALF) neutrophil percentage had higher 100-day survival rate relative to those with higher BALF neutrophil percentage (45.5% vs. 16.7%, P = 0.012). The 100-day survival rate of patients with I- LOSP was lower than that of patients with NI- LOSP (19.1% vs. 46.9%, P = 0.043). Patients given late (≥1 week after LOSP diagnosis) and low-dose methylprednisolone ( MP) therapy (≤2 mg/kg/day) had the best 100-day survival rate. In the multivariate analysis, nonsmoking before allo- HSCT and late and low-dose MP therapy were significantly associated with a better survival after LOSP. Conclusion LOSP is a severe complication after allo- HSCT. The correct timing and corticosteroid dosage in the context of broad-spectrum antimicrobial therapy might further improve the outcomes of patients with LOSP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The quantification of ammonia (NH3/ emissions is essential to the more accurate quantification of atmospheric nitrogen deposition, improved air quality and the assessment of ammonia-related agricultural policy and climate mitigation strategies. The quantity, geographic distribution and historical trends of these emissions remain largely uncertain. In this paper, a new Chinese agricultural fertilizer NH3 (CAF_NH3/ emissions inventory has been compiled that exhibits the following improvements: (1) a 1-1 km gridded map on the county level was developed for 2008; (2) a combined bottom-up and top-down method was used for the local correction of emission factors (EFs) and parameters; (3) the temporal patterns of historical time trends for 1978- 2008 were estimated and the uncertainties were quantified for the inventories; and (4) a sensitivity test was performed in which a province-level disaggregated map was compared with CAF_NH3 emissions for 2008. The total CAF_NH3 emissions for 2008 were 8.4 TgNH3 yr-1 (a 6.6-9.8 Tg interquartile range). From 1978 to 2008, annual NH3 emissions fluctuated with three peaks (1987, 1996 and 2005), and total emissions increased from 3.2 to 8.4 Tg at an annual rate of 3.0 %. During the study period, the contribution of livestock manure spreading increased from 37.0 to 45.5% because of changing fertilization practices and the rapid increase in egg, milk, and meat consumption. The average contribution of synthetic fertilizer, which has a positive effect on crop yields, was approximately 38.3% (minimum: 33.4 %; maximum: 42.7 %). With rapid urbanization causing a decline in the rural population, the contribution of the rural excrement sector varied widely between 20.3% and 8.5 %. The average contributions of cake fertilizer and straw returning were approximately 3.8 and 4.5 %, respectively, thus small and stable. Collectively, the CAF_NH3 emissions reflect the nation's agricultural policy to a certain extent. An effective approach to decreasing PM2:5 concentrations in China would be to simultaneously decrease NOx, SO2, and NH3 emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent and deliberating joint disorder, which acts as the leading cause for the disability and poor quality of life of the middle-age and elderly people. It is generally believed that OA is degeneration of articular cartilage. However, the debate remains on the role of subchondral bone in pathogenesis of OA. In this study, the nanostiffness of collagen fibrils from articular cartilage in patients with entirely different bone metabolism, that is, OA, osteoporosis (OP), and health, was quantitatively measured with AFM nanoindentation technique. It was found that the stiffness of individual collagen fibril from healthy cartilage was 2.67 ± 0.12GPa under ambient condition and 11.24 ± 0.74MPa in hydrated state respectively. The collagen fibrils were softer in osteoporosis (OP) group (ambient: 1.64 ± 0.12GPa; hydrated: 8.59 ± 0.59MPa). By contrast, the extracted fibrils from OA cartilages were stiffer (ambient: 4.65 ± 0.25GPa; hydrated: 17.26 ± 1.77MPa). The results obtained demonstrated that the collagen fibrils extracted from OA patients are stiffer than those from healthy patients, and therefore the nanomechanical characterization of extracted collagen fibrils may be a promising way for early diagnosis of OA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wheat stalk was pyrolyzed under microwave irradiation and different dilute acids pretreatment, and the pyrolytic mixture were extracted with tetrahydrofuran. The effects of dilute acids pretreatment on the yield of tetrahydrofuran-extractable fraction and the selective conversion of wheat stalk under microwave irradiation were investigated. Compositions of extractable fraction were analyzed with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The results indicated that acids can remarkably improve the formation of furfural, pyran-2-one, and 2-butenal, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Summary: Objective: This study aimed to investigate the spatial and temporal subchondral bone change of Dunkin–Hartley (DH) strain guinea pigs spontaneous osteoarthritis (OA) model at early stage with three-dimensional Microfocal Computed Tomography (Micro-CT) analysis, histology and immunohistochemistry. Materials and methods: Knee joints of DH and Bristol Strain 2 (BS2) guinea pigs were analyzed at 1, 2 and 3 months of age for early staged subchondral bone ultrastructure change of OA by Micro-CT and histology. And cartilage degeneration was monitored by histological examination. In addition, expression of Osterix was quantified by immunohistochemistry. Results: Microscopic cartilage degeneration was not found at first 3 months in both DH and BS2 guinea pigs. Subchondral bone sclerosis with trabecular ultrastructure turnover was characterized in subchondral bone of DH guinea pigs. Increased thickness, bone mineral density with decreased porosity were defined in subchondral plate of DH guinea pigs. Subchondral trabecular bone was found to be plate-like, convex and isotropy with higher bone volume. Histology confirmed the finding of lower porosity at osteochondral junction and increased bone volume. Immunohistochemistry revealed that the early OA subchondral bone change may be due to elevated level of osteoblast differentiation. Conclusions: Subchondral bone ultrastructure change occurred at early stage of OA ahead of microscopic cartilage degeneration, which may further impair articular cartilage. It was possibly related to elevated level of osteoblast differentiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this paper is to introduce a concept of L-fuzzifying topological groups (here L is a completely distributive lattice) and discuss some of their basic properties and the structures. We prove that its corresponding L-fuzzifying neighborhood structure is translation invariant. A characterization of such topological groups in terms of the corresponding L-fuzzifying neighborhood structure of the unit is given. It is shown that the category of L-fuzzifying topological groups L-FYTPG is topological over the category of groups GR.P with respect to the forgetful functor. As an application, the conclusion that the product of L-fuzzifying topological groups is also an L-fuzzifying topological group is proved. Finally, it is proved the forgetful functor preserves the product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), an oxidized nucleoside of DNA, not only is a widely used biomarker for the measurement of endogenous oxidative DNA damage but might also be a risk factor for many diseases including cancer. Metal exposure may play an important role in oxidative DNA damage among children. However, few studies on urinary 8-OHdG and metals have been conducted in children with acute leukemia. In the present study, urinary Ni and 8-OHdG were examined in 116 children with acute leukaemia (94 acute lymphoid leukaemia [ALL] and 22 acute myeloid leukaemia [AML]) and 51 healthy child controls. Our result showed that urinary Ni in acute leukaemia patients (ALL: 68.40 ± 133.98, AML: 41.48 ± 76.31 ng/mg creatinine) was significantly higher than that in controls (62.47 ± 124.90 vs 17.63 ± 46.17 ng/mg creatinine, P < 0.05). Similarly, the pretherapy level of urinary 8-OHdG in patients (ALL: 11.83 ± 16.23, AML: 12.36 ± 11.36 ng/mg creatinine) was significantly elevated compared with controls (11.92 ± 15.42 vs 4.03 ± 4.70 ng/mg creatinine, P < 0.05). Moreover, urinary 8-OHdG and urinary Ni showed a weak but significant association with increased risk of childhood leukaemia. The present study suggests that Ni may be an etiologic factor for childhood acute leukaemia by oxidative DNA damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

InGaN/GaN multiple-quantum-well green light-emitting diodes (LEDs) were grown on freestanding GaN and sapphire substrates. The density of microstructural defects in the LED on GaN was substantially reduced, leading to a significant reduction in defect-assisted tunneling currents and an improved injection efficiency under low bias. The LED on GaN outperformed the LED on sapphire at low injection currents and exhibited a ∼65% peak internal quantum efficiency. However, it suffered from even more dramatic efficiency roll-off, which occurs at a current density as low as 0.3 A/cm2. This behavior is explained as the combined result of efficient current injection and significant carrier overflow in a high-quality LED. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The correlation between magnetic spin structure and geometry in nanoscale chemically synthesized Fe3O4 rings has been investigated by transmission electron microscopy. We find primarily the flux closure vortex states but in rings with thickness variations, an effective stray field occurs. Using tomography, we determine the complete three-dimensional geometries of thicker rings. A direct correlation between the geometry and the magnetization which points out of plane in the thickest parts of the ring yielding an intermediate magnetic state between the vortex state and the tube state is found. The interaction between exchange coupled rings leads to antiparallel vortex states and extended onion states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]