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The accurate perception and prediction of traffic parameters like vehicles is essential to transportation land planning and management. Video satellites launched in recent years have brought promising opportunities into this field, providing a wide perspective and high frame frequency for extracting moving vehicles. However, detecting moving vehicles remains a challenge due to their small size, which diminishes shape and texture details, often causing them to blend with noise or other objects. To address this issue, we propose an effective method for moving vehicle detection in video satellites by integrating road maps. Experiments conducted on videos sampled from Jilin-1 and Skysat satellites show that our approach achieves F-scores of 0.98 and 0.87, respectively, which are superior to the three traditional methods, Gaussian mixture model (GMM), improved frame difference (IFD), and visual background extractor (ViBe). Our method can be used for accurate parameter estimation in real traffic, which paves the way for the application of video satellites in transportation land planning and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate estimation of the distribution of POC in the sea surface is an important issue in understanding the carbon cycle at the basin scale in the ocean. This study explores the best machine learning approach to determine the distribution of POC in the ocean surface layer based on data obtained using satellite remote sensing. In order to estimate and verify the accuracy of this method, it is necessary to obtain a large amount of POC data from field observations, so this study was conducted in the Mediterranean Sea, where such data have been obtained and published. The research initially utilizes the Geographic Detector (GD) method to identify spatial correlations between POC and 47 environmental factors in the region. Four machine learning models of a Bayesian optimized random forest (BRF), a backpropagation neural network, adaptive boosting, and extreme gradient boosting were utilized to construct POC assessment models. Model validation yielded that the BRF exhibited superior performance in estimating sea-surface POC. To build a more accurate tuneRanger random forest (TRRF) model, we introduced the tuneRanger R package for further optimization, resulting in an R2 of 0.868, a mean squared error of 1.119 (mg/m3)2, and a mean absolute error of 1.041 mg/m3. It was employed to estimate the surface POC concentrations in the Mediterranean for May and June 2017. Spatial analysis revealed higher concentrations in the west and north and lower concentrations in the east and south, with higher levels near the coast and lower levels far from the coast. Additionally, we deliberated on the impact of human activities on the surface POC in the Mediterranean. This research contributes a high-precision method for satellite retrieval of surface POC concentrations in the Mediterranean, thereby enriching the understanding of POC dynamics in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction Liver transplantation has become a standard of care for various end-stage liver diseases and the number of recipients has rapidly increased in the past several years. Ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury [...], This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of ketamine against hepatic ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury by suppressing activation of Kupffer cells (KCs) in rat liver autotransplantation. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized into 3 groups (n = 10 each). Group I, the sham group, received saline. Group II received saline and underwent orthotopic liver autotransplantation (OLAT). Group III received 10 mg/kg ketamine and underwent OLAT. Blood samples were obtained at 3, 6, 12, and 24 h after I/R, and following ALT, AST, LDH, IL-6, TNF-[alpha], IL-1[beta], and IL-10 in serum were detected. Model rats were sacrificed at the indicated time points and the graft liver tissues were evaluated histologically. KCs were isolated from rat liver tissues, and inflammatory products and proteins of NF-[kappa]B signaling pathway were detected using quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting. Our results showed that ketamine significantly decreased ALT, AST, LDH, IL-6, TNF-[alpha], and IL-10 levels and increased IL-10 level. Furthermore, ketamine alleviated the histopathology changes, by less KC infiltration and lower hepatocyte apoptosis. Moreover, activity of NF-[kappa]B signaling pathway in KCs was suppressed. In addition, production of pro- and anti-inflammatory factors is consistent with the results in tissues. Ketamine ameliorated I/R injury after liver transplantation by suppressing activation of KCs in rats. Key words: ketamine, I/R injury, liver transplantation, KCs, inflammation. Ces travaux visaient a etudier les effets protecteurs de la ketamine contre les lesions d&apos;ischemie-reperfusion (I/R) hepatiques par l&apos;intermediaire de l&apos;inhibition de l&apos;activation des cellules de Kupffer (CK) dans un modele d&apos;autogreffe hepatique chez le rat. Nous avons reparti aleatoirement des rats Sprague-Dawley males dans les trois groupes de 10 sujets suivants : Groupe I : << sham >> (intervention factice) avec administration de solution saline. Groupe II : administration de solution saline avec greffe hepatique orthopique (OLAT). Groupe III : administration de ketamine a 10 mg/kg avec OLAT. Nous avons preleve des echantillons de sang 3, 6, 12 et 24 h apres l&apos;I/R, et subsequemment mesure l&apos;ALT, l&apos;AST, la LDH, l&apos;IL-6, le TNF- [alpha], l&apos;IL-1[beta] et l&apos;IL-10 dans le serum. Nous avons sacrifie les rats aux jalons temporels definis et evalue les tissus hepatiques greffes a l&apos;histologie. Nous avons isole les CK des tissus hepatiques de rat et mesure des produits de l&apos;inflammation et des proteines de la voie de signalisation du NF-[kappa]B a l&apos;aide des techniques de PCR quantitatif en temps reel et d&apos;immunobuvardage de Western. Nos resultats ont montre que la ketamine entrainait une diminution marquee des taux d&apos;ALT, d&apos;AST, de LDH, d&apos;IL-6, de TNF-[alpha] et d&apos;IL-1[beta] avec une augmentation des taux d&apos;IL-10. De plus, la ketamine permettait d&apos;attenuer les modifications histopathologiques, de diminuer l&apos;infiltration des CK et de diminuer l&apos;apoptose hepatocytaire. En outre, nous avons observe une inhibition de l&apos;activite de la voie de signalisation du NF-[kappa]B dans les CK. De plus, la production de facteurs pro- et anti-inflammatoires est consequente avec les resultats observes dans les tissus. En conclusion, la ketamine permet d&apos;attenuer les lesions d&apos;I/R apres la greffe hepatique par l&apos;intermediaire de l&apos;inhibition de l&apos;activation des CK chez le rat. [Traduit par la Redaction] Mots-cles : ketamine, lesions d&apos;I/R, greffe hepatique, cellules de Kupffer, inflammation.

Background: With a rapidly aging population, the need for endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) is increasing. The commonly used sedation anesthesia in ERCP is a combination of propofol and fentanyl, even though fentanyl may cause some adverse reactions such as respiratory depression. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of oxycodone combined with propofol versus fentanyl combined with propofol for sedation anesthesia during ERCP. Methods: A total of 193 patients aged from 65 to 80 years undergoing ERCP were enrolled and randomized into two groups: an "oxycodone combined with propofol" group (group OP, n = 97) and a "fentanyl combined with propofol" group (group FP, n = 96). The rate of perioperative adverse events as well as the recovery time, patients' satisfaction, and endoscopists' satisfaction were noted. Results: There was no difference in the frequency of hypotension or bradycardia between the two groups, but there were more episodes of desaturation (SpO2 <90% for >10 s in 8.3%), postoperative nausea (7.3%), and vomiting (5.2%) in group FP than in group OP. Patients' satisfaction in group FP was lower than that in group OP. The recovery time was longer in group FP than in group OP. Conclusions: Oxycodone combined with propofol was effective in ERCP, with a low incidence of perioperative adverse events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a common complication of sepsis to which patients often succumb due to poor effective pharmacological interventions. Recent studies have focused on the potential application of circulating microRNAs (miRs or miRNAs) as novel prognostic and therapeutic biomarkers. The present study focuses mainly on miR-140, the role of which is poorly understood in the progression of ALI. The results of the present study revealed that toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) expression was upregulated the lungs of rats with ALI. Meanwhile, serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-β, interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-1β were significantly increased in rats with ALI compared with normal control rats. These data indicated the successful establishment of LPS-induced ALI. Furthermore, miR-140 was decreased in the peripheral blood of patients with ALI compared with control subjects. Receiver operator characteristic analysis indicated that miR-140 could be used to screen ALI patients and distinguish them from healthy controls. MiR-140 was demonstrated to be downregulated in the plasma and lungs of rats with ALI compared with the normal control group. A dual luciferase reporter assay indicated that TLR4 was a target gene of miR-140. To investigate whether miR-140 exerted its role via TLR4, a specific TLR4-targeting small interfering RNA was selected. It was revealed that TLR4 silencing was able to suppress the phosphorylation of NF-κB even in cells transfected with miR-140 inhibitor. In summary, reduced miR-140 expression and increased TLR4 signaling activation may serve a key role in the progression of ALI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reperfusion therapy after cerebral ischemia often leads to reperfusion injury which may cause brain edema and blood-brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction. As a natural bioflavonoid, quercetin may exert protective effects on BBB dysfunction. This study aimed to investigate effects of quercetin in a rat model of global cerebral ischemia reperfusion (I/R) injury and explore the potential mechanism. Male rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: sham group, I/R group, quercetin-treated group (25 μmol/kg twice daily for 3 consecutive days before I/R), and quercetin/DKK-1-treated group. Global cerebral I/R was induced by bilateral common carotid artery occlusion combined with hypotension for 20 min and reperfusion for 24 h. Neurological function was scored, and then rats were sacrificed. The brain was harvested for HE staining, NeuN staining, and detection of brain water content. The BBB structure and permeability were examined by transmission electron microscopy and Evans blue extravasation, respectively. The protein expression of MMP-9, ZO-1, Claudin-5, β-catenin, and GSK-3β, and the mRNA expression of Axin and LEF1 were detected in either the absence or presence of Wnt/β-catenin inhibitor DKK-1. Results showed that quercetin reduced brain edema and BBB leakage, and improved BBB dysfunction. Quercetin could increase the expression of ZO-1, Claudin-5, β-catenin, and LEF1, and decrease the expression of MMP-9, GSK-3β and Axin. And all these protective effects of quercetin could be reversed by DKK-1. Thus, quercetin can alleviate BBB dysfunction after global cerebral I/R in rats and the mechanism may be related to the activation of canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway., Competing Interests: None.

The aim of the present study was to observe the efficacy of neoadjuvant trastuzumab combined with docetaxel and carboplatin (TCH), and docetaxel, epirubicin and cyclophosphamide (TEC) chemotherapy in human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2)-overexpressing breast cancer. The total cohort of 64 cases of HER-2-overexpressing breast cancer patients was divided into two groups according to their treatment preferences: The TCH group, consisting of 39 patients, and the TEC group, consisting of 25 patients. The neoadjuvant chemotherapy was continued for six cycles prior to comparison of the treatment efficacy. The TCG and TEC groups exhibited an overall response rate of 94.9 and 72.0% (37/39 and 18/25 cases; P<0.05), respectively, and a pathological complete response (pCR; defined as the presence of no invasive or in situ residual tumors in the breast) rate of 69.2 and 32.0% (27/39 and 8/25 cases; P<0.05), respectively. Furthermore, no significant differences were identified between the two groups of patients in terms of adverse reactions, such as cardiac dysfunction, bone marrow suppression and liver function impairment. In the present study, the treatment of HER-2-overexpressing breast cancer patients with TCH neoadjuvant chemotherapy demonstrated more favorable efficacy and a higher pCR rate when compared with the TEC-treated group.