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ABSTRACTThis paper studies whether the corporate governance of the parent company affects the executive compensation contract of its listed subsidiaries. Based on a quasi-natural experiment on the board reforms in the Chinese central state-owned enterprises (CSOEs), which improves the corporate governance in the ultimate parent company, we find the following: (1) The improved corporate governance of the parent company can effectively restrain the managerial power of listed subsidiaries and reduce excess managerial pay. (2) The above-documented effect is more pronounced when cash flow rights (the wedge between control rights and cash flow rights) of the ultimate parent company is low (high), or when the listed company is at the bottom of the pyramid, or when the managerial power of the subsidiary firm is higher. (3) The improved corporate governance of the parent company can also effectively alleviate managerial perk consumption and the executive–employee compensation gap at their listed subsidiaries. This study suggests that the governance improvement in ultimate parents has a spillover effect in that it enhances the governance at their listed subsidiaries.

Al/SiCp composite machining is considerably difficult owing to the presence of abrasive particles that results in weak synergetic deformation capacity during cutting. Therefore, to enhance the machinability of Al/SiCp composites, investigations on the cutting deformation behavior are imperative through finite element simulation. Aiming to address the limitations of conventional finite element models in accurately representing the actual microstructure of Al/SiCp composites, this study proposes a realistic microstructure-based finite element model to investigate the cutting deformation and damage behavior. The microstructural characteristics of the composites namely, particle feature distributions, including size distribution, aspect ratio distribution, and spatial aggregation of SiC particles, are analyzed and extracted based on the microstructure image of composite and the Gaussian stochastic model. Then, the particle feature distributions are incorporated into the microstructure-based model for the first time. Besides, all the failure mechanisms (i.e., the brittle fracture of SiC particles, the elastoplastic damage of Al matrix, as well as the particle-matrix decohesion) and the tool-chip contact behavior are comprehensively integrated into the modeling. The experimental results show that as the particle volume fraction and size increase, the chip radius and the number of chip curls decrease, the chips vary from little waviness to prominent saw-tooth type, and more particles are broken or debonded. According to the comparison with experimental results, the finite element model can effectively capture the deformation and failure process, as well as the characteristics of chip morphology, cutting force, and machined surface quality. In addition, the comparisons further demonstrate that SiC particles with large size, slender shape, and aggregation are prone to fracture and detachment in the cutting deformation. Finally, the influences of the particle feature distributions on the machinability of Al/SiCp composites are discussed in detail. It is found that decreasing the dispersion degree of particle size and aspect ratio distribution as well as minimizing the degree of particle clustering degree benefit the machinability of Al/SiCp composites.

ABSTRACTObjectiveThe aim of this study was to assess the association between the symptoms of temporomandibular disorder (TMD), sleep quality, and indicators of burnout syndrome in teachers.MethodsThis cross-sectional study included 330 teachers with an average age of 43 years. The Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and the questionnaire to assess burnout syndrome - teachers’ version were used for data collection. Simple and multiple logistic regression models were applied to analyze the independent variables at a 5% significance level.ResultsTeachers with poor sleep quality, indicators of burnout syndrome, female sex, and impact on the domains of psychological exhaustion and guilt were, respectively, 1.91,1.92, 2.66, 1.97, and 2.60 times more likely to present at least one TMD symptom (p < 0.05).ConclusionTeachers with indicators of burnout syndrome and impaired sleep quality were more likely to present with at least one TMD symptom.

PTENloss, one of the most frequent mutations in prostate cancer (PC), is presumed to drive disease progression through AKT activation. However, two transgenic PC models with Akt activation plus Rbloss exhibited different metastatic development: Pten/RbPE:−/−mice produced systemic metastatic adenocarcinomas with high AKT2 activation, whereas RbPE:−/−mice deficient for the Src-scaffolding protein, Akap12, induced high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasias and indolent lymph node dissemination, correlating with upregulated phosphotyrosyl PI3K-p85α. Using PC cells isogenic for PTEN, we show that PTEN-deficiency correlated with dependence on both p110β and AKT2 for in vitro and in vivo parameters of metastatic growth or motility, and with downregulation of SMAD4, a known PC metastasis suppressor. In contrast, PTEN expression, which dampened these oncogenic behaviors, correlated with greater dependence on p110α plus AKT1. Our data suggest that metastatic PC aggressiveness is controlled by specific PI3K/AKT isoform combinations influenced by divergent Src activation or PTEN-loss pathways.

With the development of 5 g, computing-intensive and complex applications in smart-city is growing rapidly. Due to the limited resources of mobile terminal devices in smart-city, new applications have higher requirements for delay, bandwidth, security, and energy consumption. Computation offloading in mobile edge computing (MEC) is effective to reduce delay and energy consumption of Real-time video analysis. An improved chaos quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization (ICQPSO) algorithm is proposed for multi-user and multi-MEC edge Computation offloading scenarios. Compared with other heuristic algorithms, the improved chaos quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization algorithm can effectively reduce the delay and energy consumption of edge computing offloading. Experimental results show that the improved chaotic quantum-behaved particle swarm optimization (ICQPSO) can effectively avoid premature convergence, has stronger global searchability, and can solve multi-dimensional complex NP-hard problems more efficiently.

Along with the development of Internet of Vehicles (IoV) and wireless technology, the usage of applications that require low latency, such as autonomous driving and intelligent navigation, is increasing rapidly, and the demand for content is increasing greatly. This paper proposes an edge caching approach for the IoV based on multi-agent deep reinforcement learning (ECSMADRL) so as to resolve the problem of excessive response delay due to the large increase of data traffic in the IoV. The approach jointly considers content distribution and caching in dynamic environments. In other words, each moving vehicle in the IoV can be seen as an agent, and it can make decisions about content caching and content access adaptively according to the changing environment to minimize the delay in the process of content distribution. It is proved by experiments that compared with other methods, the proposed edge caching (EC) approach has better performance in reducing content distribution delay, improving content hit rate and success rate.

This article takes into account some of the most relevant studies investigating the transmissibility of anti-vibration (AV) gloves. AV gloves are almost useless at the palm level in the low frequencies (<31.5 Hz), while they generally start to have an appreciable reduction of the vibration over 400 Hz. In their use with impact tools, having a low dominant vibration frequency usually between 25 and 60 Hz for chipping hammers and drills, and less than 30 Hz for pneumatic breakers, the average transmissibility reduction at the palm level is 13% (minimum 2%; maximum 26%) when used with hammers, and 1% (increment of 4% and reduction of 6%) when used with breakers. The transmissibility at the finger level, especially in the low frequencies, is almost nothing or produces an increase of the vibration. Other problems related to the increase of the applied force and the reduction of dexterity are reported.

ABSTRACTObjectiveTo investigate the association between temporomandibular disorder (TMD) symptoms and women’s oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL).Methods: An observational case-control study was performed with 765 adult women aged 21.5 years on average. Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) assessed OHRQoL and determined the selection of cases and controls matched by age and marital status at a ratio of 1:4 (153 cases: 612 controls). American Academy of Orofacial Pain’s self-explanatory questionnaire assessed the TMD symptoms. The TMD symptoms’ impact on OHRQoL was analyzed, estimating the odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval.ResultsOf the women, 86.9% in the case group, and 69.6% in the control group presented some TMD symptoms (p< 0.05). Women with an impacted OHRQoL are 2.95 (95% CI:1.79–4.86) times more likely to report some TMD symptoms (p< 0.05).DiscussionWomen with a negative impact on OHRQoL are more likely to report TMD symptoms.

AbstractA palliative approach to care aims to meet the needs of patients and caregivers throughout a chronic disease trajectory and can be delivered by non-palliative specialists. There is an important gap in understanding the perspectives and experiences of primary care providers on an integrated palliative approach in dementia care and the impact of existing programs and models to this end. To address these, we undertook a scoping review. We searched five databases; and used descriptive numerical summary and narrative synthesizing approaches for data analysis. We found that:(1) difficulty with prognostication and a lack of interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaboration are obstacles to using a palliative approach in primary care; and (2) a palliative approach results in statistically and clinically significant impacts on community-dwelling individuals, specifically those with later stages of dementia. There is a need for high-quality research studies examining the integrated palliative approach models and initiation of these models sooner in the care trajectory for persons living with mild and moderate stages of dementia in the community.

Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) is a promising approach. Dynamic service migration is a key technology in MEC. In order to maintain the continuity of services in a dynamic environment, mobile users need to migrate tasks between multiple servers in real time. Due to the uncertainty of movement, frequent migration will increase delays and costs and non-migration will lead to service interruption. Therefore, it is very challenging to design an optimal migration strategy. In this paper, we investigate the multi-user task migration problem in a dynamic environment and minimizes the average service delay while meeting the migration cost. In order to optimize the service delay and migration cost, we propose an adaptive weight deep deterministic policy gradient (AWDDPG) algorithm. And distributed execution and centralized training are adopted to solve the high-dimensional problem. Experiments show that the proposed algorithm can greatly reduce the migration cost and service delay compared with the other related algorithms.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the on-demand food delivery (ODFD) riders' safety and delivery efficiency under the influence of individual well-being. Applying the conservation of resources (COR) theory, we develop our direct, mediation, and moderation hypotheses. Structural equation modeling with partial least square analysis is used to test the hypotheses. We find that stress mediates the relationship between well-being and risky driving behaviors as well as delivery efficiency. Regarding the monitoring algorithms, interactional monitoring is found to strengthen the effect of stress on risky driving behaviors and delivery efficiency. On the other hand, observational monitoring is found to reduce the effect of stress on risky driving behaviors. This study offers practical insights into ODFD companies that riders' well-being is influential on their risky driving behaviors and delivery efficiency. ODFD firms can manage observational monitoring to reduce risky driving behaviors but should be concerned about the role of interactional monitoring.

Purpose: Administration of questionnaires to assess the diffusion of disordered eating behaviours via the web is becoming common today. The aim of this study is to assess whether two different approaches of administering a test to assess traits of eating disorders (EDs), orthorexia nervosa (ON) and muscle dysmorphia (MD) by email recruitment and online completion (web-based survey—WBS) and by in person recruitment and paper-and-pencil completion (paper-based survey—PBS), gives different results. Methods: During 2 consecutive academic years, a self-reported questionnaire consisting of questions about personal characteristics and three tests for the evaluation of ON (ORTO-15), MD (MDDI-ITA), and EDs (EAT-26) were administered to two groups of undergraduates, respectively, as a WBS and a PBS. Results: The WBS response rate was 6.7% (N= 137), and the PBS response rate was 86.5% (N= 372). The WBS group showed a statistically significant higher prevalence of students with eating disordered behaviours (21.2% vs 5.4%) and registered a higher mean score on the EAT-26 test (13.5 ± 11.1 vs 6.0 ± 8.0); no differences between the two groups emerged for ON and MD prevalence and test scores. Moreover, in the WBS group, the number of students with one or more tests with test scores above the cut-off values was significantly higher (46.0% vs 32.3%). Conclusion: The choice of the approach to administer a questionnaire to assess the diffusion of EDs and related issues must take into account all the factors that can result in selection bias and that can affect the reliability of the results. Level of evidence: Level V, descriptive cross-sectional survey.

Vor dem Hintergrund stark steigender Boden- und Wohnraumpreise in attraktiven deutschen Großstädten werden seit einigen Jahren intensive Debatten über die Eigentumsverhältnisse an innerstädtischen Grundstücken geführt. Zunehmend mehr Gehör konnten sich zuletzt jene Stimmen verschaffen, die sich über eine Neuorganisation urbaner Böden als Gemeineigentum für eine „Wiederaneignung des Urbanen“ aussprechen. Die mit diesen Forderungen verbundene Leitidee der „Stadt als Allmende“ beleuchten wir in unserem Beitrag aus wirtschaftsethischer Perspektive. Zunächst stellen wir anhand der katholischen Eigentumsethik die Sozialpflichtigkeit von Privateigentum dar und konkretisieren sie am Beispiel des Eigentums an städtischen Böden. Anschließend blicken wir aus den Perspektiven der ökonomischen Güterlehre und der von den Arbeiten Elinor Ostroms inspirierten Commons-Forschung auf das Leitbild der „Stadt als Allmende“ und beziehen darauf eine ethische Reflexion auf Städte als Kooperationszusammenhänge. Wir begründen, weshalb diese Kooperationszusammenhänge von zu starken ökonomischen Partikularinteressen geschützt werden muss, und stellen schließlich eine knappe bodenpolitische Handlungsskizze vor.

IMPORTANCE: Most older patients with esophageal cancer cannot complete the standard concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT). An effective and tolerable chemoradiotherapy regimen for older patients is needed. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and toxic effects of CCRT with S-1 vs radiotherapy (RT) alone in older patients with esophageal cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: A randomized, open-label, phase 3 clinical trial was conducted at 23 Chinese centers between June 1, 2016, and August 31, 2018. The study enrolled 298 patients aged 70 to 85 years. Eligible participants had histologically confirmed esophageal cancer, stage IB to IVB disease based on the 6th edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (stage IVB: only metastasis to the supraclavicular/celiac lymph nodes) and an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 to 1. Data analysis was performed from August 1, 2020, to March 10, 2021. INTERVENTIONS: Patients were stratified according to age (&lt;80 vs ≥80 years) and tumor length (&lt;5 vs ≥5 cm) and randomly assigned (1:1) to receive either CCRT with S-1 or RT alone. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary end point was the 2-year overall survival rate using intention-to-treat analysis. RESULTS: Of the 298 patients enrolled, 180 (60.4%) were men. The median age was 77 (interquartile range, 74-79) years in the CCRT group and 77 (interquartile range, 74-80) years in the RT alone group. A total of 151 patients (50.7%) had stage III or IV disease. The CCRT group had a significantly higher complete response rate than the RT group (41.6% vs 26.8%; P = .007). Surviving patients had a median follow-up of 33.9 months (interquartile range: 28.5-38.2 months), and the CCRT group had a significantly higher 2-year overall survival rate (53.2% vs 35.8%; hazard ratio, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.47-0.85; P = .002). There were no significant differences in the incidence of grade 3 or higher toxic effects between the CCRT and RT groups except that grade 3 or higher leukopenia occurred in more patients in the CCRT group (9.5% vs 2.7%; P = .01). Treatment-related deaths were observed in 3 patients (2.0%) in the CCRT group and 4 patients (2.7%) in the RT group. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In this phase 3 randomized clinical trial, CCRT with S-1 was tolerable and provided significant benefits over RT alone in older patients with esophageal cancer. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02813967

A single dual thin-film titanium-zirconium as selective layers membrane for divalent and monovalent ions removal was fabricated. Both dioxide of titanium (TiO2) and dioxide of zirconium (ZrO2) have been co-deposited on an ultrafiltration polyacrylonitrile membrane using information given by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) combined with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The important insights provided by SEM associated with EDS on the arrangement and potential functions of nanoparticles (NPs) due to their unambiguous chemical signal were used for characterization and modification of membrane surface at an atomic scale. Thus, a novel thin-film composite-nanofiltration membrane (TFC-NFM) has been performed for the first time. The new-born organic–inorganic membrane NF-TiZr exhibited excellent performance rejection towards monovalent ions and its rejection rate for multivalent ions reached 95%. The order of salts rejection was CaCl2> MgSO4~ MgCl2> NaCl > Na2SO4. The permeate flux of the NF-TiZr membrane is as high as 58 L m–2h–1. 180 h-continuous exploitation of NF-TiZr showed a slight variation of permeate flux less than 1.2% and the salt rejection remained high than 92.5% at the end of the operation. To our best knowledge, it is the first time SEM was combined with EDS to help for optimal co-deposition of nanoparticles on the membrane surface. This study may provide useful insights to design next-generation NFMs.

ABSTRACTObjective: The aim of this study was to associate the presence of oral habits with anxiety and malocclusion.Methods: Cross-sectional observational study with 199 schoolchildren 6–14 years old. Malocclusion was evaluated by using the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN). Oral Habits Questionnaire and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were used to assess oral habits and anxiety. The schoolchildren were divided into two groups: mixed and permanent dentition. The associations between the outcome variable (oral habits) and the independent variables (anxiety and malocclusion) were evaluated using the Exact Fischer test and the Chi square test.Results: Of the individuals with malocclusion in permanent dentition, 77.4% reported some deleterious oral habit, and 55% of those with no malocclusion at this stage had deleterious habits.Discussion: Oral habits may be associated with the presence of malocclusion in different stages of occlusal development (mixed and permanent dentition) and may be influenced by anxiety.

Soil erosion on agricultural land is associated with deleterious off-site impacts including the siltation and the pollution of the receiving water bodies. To better manage this situation, local/regional water agencies need spatially-distributed information to compare the sensitivity to erosion of the areas draining into these water bodies and supplying the vast majority of sediment and associated pollutants leading to this water quality impairment. These soil erosion hazard maps are now often included in the latest versions of the basin management plans that must be designed to meet the water quality objectives of the EU Framework Directive. However, the resolution of these maps is often too coarse to meet the practical needs of these agencies. Accordingly, the current research used the latest input databases to improve the MESALES model outputs in one of the largest French River basins (Loire, 117,000 km2), with the implementation of three main modifications. First, the seasonal variations of land cover were incorporated into the model through a revised set of expert rules based on the agricultural census data. Second, the discrimination of the soil textures was improved within the infiltration and erodibility module of the model. Third, variations in rainfall erosivity across the study area were described taking into account the latest erosivity map available at the European scale. Then, the model results obtained with the updated model version were compared with those generated by the previous version. Overall, the simulated soil erosion hazard changed for 35% of the pixels of the Loire River basin, with a significant increase of the lowest hazard classes during all seasons except summer. When aggregating the results at the scale of water bodies, the simulated erosion hazard changed for 49% of these management units. Although 28% of these water bodies were associated with a lower hazard, 23% of the river systems were attributed a higher erosion risk. The implications of these model/map revisions for the local decision makers were discussed, taking the strategy of concentrating the management budget on those water bodies associated with the highest erosion risk as an example. In the future, this model could be used to compare the soil erosion hazard in contrasted regions of Europe and to simulate the impact of management plans designed to decrease this risk to support the decisions of water agencies.

Background: Asthma is an airway disease characterized by airflow limitation and various additional clinical manifestations. Repeated inflammatory stimulation of the airways leads to epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) which aggravates subepithelial fibrosis during the process of airway remodelling and enhances resistance to corticosteroids and bronchodilators in refractory asthma. There is growing evidence that IL-27 modulates airway remodelling, however, the molecular mechanisms involving IL-27 and EMT are poorly understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of IL-27 on ovalbumin (OVA)-challenged asthmatic mice in vivoand TGF-β1-induced EMT in 16HBE cells in vitro. Methods: Airway inflammation, mucus secretion, and collagen deposition were analysed by conventional pathological techniques. The ratio of Th17 and Th9 cells in the spleen of mice was measured using flow cytometry, ELISA was performed for cytokine analysis to identify EMT-related molecules and signalling pathways, and other molecular and cellular techniques were used to explore the functional mechanism involving IL-27 and EMT. Results: Airway inflammation in asthmatic mice was significantly alleviated by IL-27, with downregulation of RhoA and ROCK, upregulation of E-cadherin, and a decrease of vimentin and α-SMA expression, compared to asthmatic mice. Moreover, the frequency of Th17 and Th9 cells in the spleen of asthmatic mice decreased following treatment with IL-27. In TGF-β1-induced 16HBE cells, the addition of IL-27 was shown to inhibit EMT, based on the expression of E-cadherin, vimentin, and α-SMA. Conclusion: Intranasal administration of IL-27 attenuates airway inflammation and EMT in a murine model of allergic asthma possibly by downregulating the RhoA/ROCK signalling pathway.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of temperature variation on surface microhardness and resistance to flexion of different materials used for making a temporary dental disocclusion.

ABSTRACTIn this work, we studied the linear stability analyses of thermal convection, in a viscoelastic fluid saturated rotating anisotropic porous layer heated from below. The influence of hydrodynamic anisotropy and of rotation on the convective phenomenon are considered and investigated by extending the modified Darcy-Maxwell-Jeffrey model to include the Coriolis force term. It is shown that the anisotropic permeability ratio , the inclination angle of the principal axes () of the porous medium, the relaxation time (), the retardation time () and the Taylor Darcy number () have a strong influence on the convective flow.

The present study aimed to compare the force of aesthetic wires and their non-aesthetic equivalents from two commercial brands at different displacement points, during the unloading phase at 36°C.

AbstractBackground:Patient-centered care is strongly advocated as a key for improving the quality of healthcare. Research examining the impact of patient-centered care in healthcare has concluded that there are demonstrable albeit inconsistent relationships between patient experience, quality of care, and healthcare outcomes. Knowledge of the impact of patient-centered care in the treatment of substance use disorder is limited. The aim of this review was to assess relationships between indicators of patient-centered care (satisfaction and patient-reported experience measures) and patient outcomes (substance use, psychological wellbeing, and service use) among people attending treatment for substance use disorder. Methods:A systematic electronic literature search of a range of databases was conducted with variations of the search terms ‘patient-centered care’, ‘substance use disorders’, and residential or community specialist ‘treatment’. The populations, interventions and outcomes were summarized and described according to the PRISMA statement. Results:A total of 25 articles were identified, of which only five included a patient-centered indicator other than satisfaction. Indicators of patient-centered care showed a generally positive association with improved outcomes, particularly between satisfaction with treatment and substance use. Nonetheless, mixed and contradictory results were not uncommon, more so for psychological wellbeing outcomes. Conclusions:There were demonstrable relationships between patient-centered indicators and outcomes for people receiving treatment for substance use disorder. However, conclusions are limited due to underrepresentation of patient-reported experience measures. Further research in the area is needed involving comparisons of patient centered indicators with outcomes and use of patient-reported experience measures together with satisfaction.Registration number: CRD42018092829

The phylogenetic position of hyoliths has long been unsettled, with recent discoveries of a tentaculate feeding apparatus (‘lophophore’) and fleshy apical extensions from the shell (‘pedicle’) suggesting a lophophorate affinity. Here, we describe the first soft parts associated with the feeding apparatus of an orthothecid hyolith, Triplicatella opimusfrom the Chengjiang biota of South China. The tuft-like arrangement of the tentacles of T. opimusdiffers from that of hyolithids, suggesting they collected food directly from the substrate. A reassessment of the feeding organ in hyolithids indicates that it does not represent a lophophore and our analysis of the apical structures associated with some orthothecids show that these represent crushed portions of the shell and are not comparable to the brachiopod pedicle. The new information suggests that hyoliths are more likely to be basal members of the lophotrochozoans rather than lophophorates closely linked with the Phylum Brachiopoda.

Outer retinal degenerations, including age-related macular degeneration (AMD), are characterized by photoreceptor and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) atrophy. In these blinding diseases, macrophages accumulate at atrophic sites, but their ontogeny and niche specialization remain poorly understood, especially in humans. We uncovered a unique profile of microglia, marked by galectin-3 upregulation, at atrophic sites in mouse models of retinal degeneration and human AMD. In disease models, conditional deletion of galectin-3 in microglia led to phagocytosis defects and consequent augmented photoreceptor death, RPE damage, and vision loss, indicating protective roles. Mechanistically, Trem2 signaling orchestrated microglial migration to atrophic sites and induced galectin-3 expression. Moreover, pharmacologic Trem2 agonization led to heightened protection but in a galectin-3–dependent manner. In elderly human subjects, we identified this highly conserved microglial population that expressed galectin-3 and Trem2. This population was significantly enriched in the macular RPE-choroid of AMD subjects. Collectively, our findings reveal a neuroprotective population of microglia and a potential therapeutic target for mitigating retinal degeneration.

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a cross-sectional, micrometre-scale imaging modality with widespread clinical application. Typical OCT systems sacrifice lateral resolution to achieve long depths of focus for bulk tissue imaging, and therefore tend to have better axial than lateral resolution. Such anisotropic resolution can obscure fine ultrastructural features. Furthermore, conventional OCT suffers from refraction-induced image distortions. Here, we introduce optical coherence refraction tomography (OCRT), which extends the superior axial resolution to the lateral dimension, synthesizing undistorted cross-sectional image reconstructions from multiple conventional images acquired with angular diversity. In correcting refraction-induced distortions to register the OCT images, OCRT also achieves spatially resolved refractive index imaging. We demonstrate greater than threefold improvement in lateral resolution as well as speckle reduction in imaging the tissue ultrastructure, consistent with histology. With further optimization in optical designs to incorporate angular diversity into clinical instruments, OCRT could be widely applied as an enhancement over conventional OCT.

Keywords: Natural convection, anisotropic porous medium, inversion of density.Abstract. The natural convection in the porous medium has attracted considerable attention with its applications in various industrial sectors, such as the agro-alimentary, the pharmaceutical and oil processing industries. The present work is about the study of the phenomenon of natural convection at 4°C on the vertical plate lining in an anisotropic porous medium in permeability. The wall of the vertical surface is subjected to a constant temperature with defined hydrodynamic conditions and thermal limits. Generalized Darcy’s law was used to establish the governing equations of the system. The control parameters governing the system are respectively the permeability ratio K*, the angle ϴ of the major axis and the inversion parameter R. The general basic equations were solved numerically using Runge-Kutta and shooting method. There was validated against previous work. The effect of these parameters on the heat transfer was highlighted. From the analysis result, it comes out the following conclusions: The convective flow is significantly affected by the anisotropic parameter; heat transfer along the vertical surface is maximum (minimum) when the main shaft having the high permeability is oriented parallel (perpendicular) to the gravitational field; the rate of heat transfer is depending on the inversion parameter R. The convective transfer rate illustrated by the local Nusselt number is symmetric with respect to R=0.45, where it reaches its smallest value. It is inversely proportional to the distribution of the thickness of boundary layer. A high convective transfer rate corresponds to a low boundary layer thickness and this inversely.

Introduction:There is a worrying upward trend in alcohol consumption by women during the middle of life stages. Alcohol consumption can have negative health consequences, some of which women are particularly susceptible. To address this alarming trend, it is necessary to understand the antecedents of alcohol consumption among women. The purpose of this longitudinal study is to examine the predictors of alcohol consumption between 2009 and 2018, in a sample of women in their 40s at the final time point. Methods:Data were drawn from four waves of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health over 9 years at four time points (2009–2018; N?=?6900). Women were between 31 and 36 years old in 2009 and between 40 and 45 years old in 2018. Results:There was a 3% increase in the proportion of women drinking at risk levels between 2009 and 2018. A multinominal logistic mixed effects model found that, after adjusting for covariates, depression (relative risk ratio [RR]?=?1.04, p< 0.001), high social support (RR?=?1.17, p< 0.001) and employment relative to not working (RR?=?2.32, p< 0.001), working in management compared to a professional role (RR?=?1.51, p< 0.001) and no dependent child at home (RR?=?0.80 [0.07], p?=?0.017) were predictors of risky drinking compared to not drinking. Discussion:These findings underscore the importance of peer influence, mental health and stress associated with managing multiple responsibilities as key factors to address in targeting high-risk drinking behaviors among women. There is a clear need for more opportunities for women to assess their relationships with alcohol and seek help in the process. Addressing this issue is paramount, especially considering its increasing prevalence.

Conventional graphite flakes(GFs)/Cu composites suffer from severe anisotropy in terms of their thermal conductivity (TC) and coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) between the in-plane and through-plane directions, which as thermal management materials (TMMs) play crucial roles in the overall heat dissipation performance of electronic components. To address this issue, a radial structural design for the reinforcement phase of GFs was developed. In this study, conventional stacked structured GFs/Cu composites and newly designed radial structured GFs/Cu composites were prepared by electroless plating of Cu on the surface of GFs followed by fast hot-pressing technology. The GFs content was varied from 30-70 vol%. The spatial orientation of the GFs was determined via X-ray computed tomography. For the radial structured GFs/Cu composites, the CTE were 11.52 and 14.42 ppm·K-1in the in-plane direction through-plane direction when the GFs content was 50 vol%, and the TC reached maximum values of 681 and 590 W·m-1·K-1in the in-plane direction and through-plane direction when the GFs content was 50 vol%. The TC in the through-plane direction was nine times greater than that of the stacked structured GFs/Cu composites (65 W·m-1·K-1) at the same GFs content, demonstrating overall isotropy. Although radial structured GFs/Cu composites have more defects that can affect their thermal properties due to process factors, they have better heat dissipation abilities in practical applications; this indicates their great potential as a new generation of TMMs.

Identification of risk factors for recurrent diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) in patients with type 1 diabetes could help target those at high risk so as to implement preventive measures. The main objective of this study was to identify factors associated with recurrent DKA in adult Canadian patients with type 1 diabetes.

Introduction. Expression of the CD49d integrin chain has prognostic impact on ibrutinib (IB)-treated CLL patients (Tissino et al, J Exp Med, 2018; Tissino et al, Blood 2020). In addition, a 4-factor (4-f) score, based on TP53 aberration, β2-microglobulin (β2M), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and previous therapy lines was proposed to identify patients at a higher risk of treatment failure or death during IB therapy (Ahn et al, J Clin Oncol, 2020; Morabito et al, Am J Hematol, 2021). The clinical impact of TP53 disruption was recently refined by demonstrating that only the co-presence of TP53 deletion and mutations, and not the single aberrations, has prognostic value in the IB setting (Bomben et al, Leukemia 2022). The aim here is to integrate these observations in a comprehensive scoring for the management of IB-treated patients.

Scoring systems designed to improve the accuracy of prognostication in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) usually rely on discretized/dichotomic values of the clinical and biological variables. Here we analyzed the immunophenotypic and (immuno)genetic profiles of 2,243 CLL patients with Rai stage 0-I-II, by applying unsupervised machine learning methods, elaborating prognostic factors as continuous variables, to identify novel relationships and interactions likely missed in conventional hierarchical models. The study included an internal training cohort (n=863) and two external validation cohorts provided from Cardiff University/Brighton Medical School (n=455) and the Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN; n=925). Primary endpoint was Time to First Treatment (TTFT).

Décrire les connaissances techniques et réglementaires des médecins radiologues et nucléaires sur la télé-imagerie médicale en Afrique subsaharienne Francophone.

Defects in Cockayne syndrome type A(CSA), a gene involved in nucleotide excision repair, cause an autosomal recessive syndrome characterized by growth failure, progressive neurological dysfunction, premature aging, and skin photosensitivity and atrophy. Beyond its role in DNA repair, the CSA protein has additional functions in transcription and oxidative stress response, which are not yet fully elucidated. Here, we investigated the role of CSA protein in primary human keratinocyte senescence. Primary keratinocytes from three patients with CS-A displayed premature aging features, namely premature clonal conversion, high steady-state levels of reactive oxygen species and 8-OH-hydroxyguanine, and senescence-associated secretory phenotype. Stable transduction of CS-A keratinocytes with the wild-type CSAgene restored the normal cellular sensitivity to UV irradiation and normal 8-OH-hydroxyguanine levels. Gene correction was also characterized by proper restoration of keratinocyte clonogenic capacity and expression of clonal conversion key regulators (p16 and p63), decreased NF-κB activity and, in turn, the expression of its targets (NOX1 and MnSOD), and the secretion of senescence-associated secretory phenotype mediators. Overall, the CSA protein plays an important role in protecting cells from senescence by facilitating DNA damage processing, maintaining physiological redox status and keratinocyte clonogenic ability, and reducing the senescence-associated secretory phenotype-mediated inflammatory phenotype.

Craniofacial growth pattern has been correlated with variations in size of the upper airway spaces. The objective of this study was to evaluate the nasopharyngeal, oropharyngeal, and hypopharyngeal airway spaces variations according to the craniofacial growth pattern, by comparing brachyfacial, mesofacial, and dolichofacial in Angle Class I individuals. To measure the spaces, 45 lateral teleradiographs were used and divided into 3 groups per the craniofacial growth pattern, determined by the Tweed cephalometry angular measurements: FMA and Y-axis. To evaluate the airways, sleep apnea cephalometry was used, containing 28 points that compose 14 factors. Three groups were compared relative to each of the 14 sleep apnea cephalometry measurements. Adherence test to the normal curve was performed. For the non-normally distributed data—measurement of the inferior pharyngeal space—the Kruskal-Wallis test was used for comparison between the groups. For the remaining data, the distribution was normal and ANOVA test was used. Statistically significant difference was verified among the groups for the measurement of the median posterior-palatal space, with the difference being pointed out by the post hoc test between the brachyfacial and dolichofacial groups. For the other measurements, there was no statistically significant difference. It could be concluded that there was difference in the median posterior-palatal space measurement, in the oropharynx region, which was reduced for individuals with a dolichofacial pattern.

In chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), the mechanisms controlling cell growth and proliferation in the presence of NOTCH1mutations remain largely unexplored. By performing a gene expression profile of NOTCH1-mutated (NOTCH1-mut) versus NOTCH1wild-type CLL, we identified a gene signature of NOTCH1-mut CLL characterized by the upregulation of genes related to ribosome biogenesis, such as nucleophosmin 1 (NPM1) and ribosomal proteins (RNPs). Activation of NOTCH1 signaling by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid or by coculture with JAGGED1-expressing stromal cells increased NPM1expression, and inhibition of NOTCH1 signaling by either NOTCH1-specific small interfering RNA (siRNA) or γ-secretase inhibitor reduced NPM1expression. Bioinformatic analyses and in vitroactivation/inhibition of NOTCH1 signaling suggested a role of MYCas a mediator of NOTCH1 effects over NPM1 and RNP expression in NOTCH1-mut CLL. Chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments performed on NOTCH1 intracellular domain (NICD)-transfected CLL-like cells showed the direct binding of NOTCH1 to the MYCpromoter, and transfection with MYC-specific siRNA reduced NPM1expression. In turn, NPM1 determined a proliferation advantage of CLL-like cells, as demonstrated by NPM1-specific siRNA transfection. In conclusion, NOTCH1mutations in CLL are associated with the overexpression of MYCand MYC-related genes involved in protein biosynthesis including NPM1, which are allegedly responsible for cell growth and/or proliferation advantages of NOTCH1-mut CLL.

AbstractObjectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between symptoms of temporomandibular disorders (TMD), quality of life, and malocclusion.Methods: A cross-sectional observational design study was utilized among 248 schoolchildren aged 12 years old. Symptoms of TMD were assessed using the Orofacial Pain and Temporomandibular Disorders Triage Questionnaire, and subjects were further evaluated as oral-health-related quality of life (CPQ11-14), tooth clenching/grinding and malocclusion (Dental Aesthetic Index). Chi-square for independence, Odds Ratio and Mann–Whitney test were used (p = 0.05) statistically.Results: Statistically, association was detected between TMD symptoms with pain and worse quality of life (p < 0.0138), and pain with quality of life and clenching/grinding (p = 0.0120 and 0.0007).Discussion: The symptoms of TMD are associated with pain and teeth clenching, causing a negative impact on schoolchildren’s quality of life; thus, a study of the TMD impact on quality of life is justified.

Proportioning based on the principles of absolute volume method was used to obtain specific properties of lightweight concrete of oil palm kernel shells (OPKS). The sand content was determined depending on the cement content and OPKS/sand ratio. The trapped air volume of 5% and Water/cement ratio of 0.45 were fixed according to previous authors' works. The cement content ranged from 400 to 550kg/m3, and the OPKS/sand ratio ranged from 0.4 to 0.75. The mixture proportions of C:S:OPKS in weight of 1:1.60:0.96 and 1:1.53:0.99 with cement content of 450kg/m3resulted in values for workability (≥20mm), density (1800≤d≤1900kg/m3) and cylindrical compressive strength (≥15MPa), which are recommended by ACI and British Code for structural lightweight concrete. This study, as part of efforts toward a structured method of proportioning of eco-friendly composite, demonstrates the possibility of linking mix proportions to properties of lightweight OPKS concrete.

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text.

Saccorhytus coronariusare millimetric fossils from the early Cambrian period in China that are proposed to represent the most basal known deuterostomes.

Loss of function of KIND1, a cytoskeletal protein involved in β1-integrin function, causes Kindler syndrome, a genetic disease characterized by skin fragility, photosensitivity, and increased risk of squamous cell carcinoma. Dysregulation of β1-integrin underlies Kindler syndrome skin fragility. However, the mechanisms underlying squamous cell carcinoma susceptibility are unclear. Here, we demonstrate that gene silencing of KIND1 decreased keratinocyte proliferation and increased apoptosis in vitro and in skin grafts regenerated on mice, which was correlated with reduced cyclinB1. In addition, KIND1 loss sensitized keratinocytes to cytokine and UV-induced NF-κB and c-Jun N-terminal kinase activation and upregulation of CXCL10 and tumor necrosis factor-α. Moreover, KIND1 loss impaired DNA repair, as indicated by the increased detection of γH2AX and cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers 24 hours after UVB radiation. Genetic or pharmacological c-Jun N-terminal kinase inhibition and NF-κB inhibition markedly reduced cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers-positive cells. Further, we show that KIND1 was regulated by JunB at the transcriptional level and, like JunB, it was downregulated in human squamous cell carcinoma cells. Together, these results indicate that KIND1 is important not only for keratinocyte proliferation but also for the suppression of UV-induced inflammation and DNA damage. These latter findings support a tumor suppressor function for KIND1, and identify c-Jun N-terminal kinase and NF-κB as potential therapeutic targets for prevention of squamous cell carcinoma in patients with Kindler syndrome.

ABSTRACTInherited bone marrow failure syndromes (BMFS) are rare, distressing, inherited blood disorders of children. Although the genetic origin of these pathologies involves genes with different functions, all are associated with progressive haematopoietic impairment and an excessive risk of malignancies. Defects in energy metabolism induce oxidative stress, impaired energy production and an unbalanced ratio between ATP and AMP. This assumes an important role in self-renewal and differentiation in haematopoietic stem cells (HSC) and can play an important role in bone marrow failure. Defects in energetic/respiratory metabolism, in particular in FA and SDS cells, have been described recently and seem to be a pertinent argument in the discussion of the haematopoietic defect in BMFS, as an alternative to the hypotheses already established on this subject, which may shed new light on the evolution of these diseases.

CD49d, the alpha-chain of the integrin heterodimer a4ß1, was identified among the strongest predictors of overall survival (OS) in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), along with IGHVmutational status and deletion of the 17p chromosome involving TP53. In addition to TP53, the clinical relevance of NOTCH1, SF3B1and BIRC3gene mutations has been recently emphasized. By analyzing a cohort of 778 unselected CLL patients, we assessed the clinical relevance of CD49d as an OS predictor in subgroups defined by mutation/deletion of the TP53, NOTCH1, SF3B1and BIRC3genes. In this context, CD49d emerged as an independent predictor of OS in multivariate Cox analysis (Hazard ratio =1.88, P<0.0001). Consistently, high CD49d expression identified CLL subsets with inferior OS in the context of each category of a previously reported hierarchical risk stratification model. Moreover, by evaluating the relative importance of biological prognosticators by random survival forests, CD49d was selected among the top-ranked OS predictor (variable importance =0.0410), along with IGHVmutational status and TP53abnormalities. These results confirmed CD49d as an independent negative OS prognosticator in CLL also in comprehensive models comprising the novel recurrent mutations. In this context, TP53disruption and NOTCH1mutations retained prognostic relevance, in keeping with their roles in CLL cell immuno-chemoresistance.