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Prediction of state of health (SOH), a crucial aspect of battery management systems, necessitates accurate and reliable estimations for lithium-ion batteries. However, achieving high-precision SOH estimation using the deep extreme learning machine (DELM) in complex environments is challenging due to the instability caused by its random key parameters. To address this, we propose a novel approach that combines the improved bald eagle search (IBES) algorithm with DELM. By utilizing the IBES algorithm, we can extract highly relevant health indicators from the battery's parameter curve during charging and discharging, as well as the incremental capacity curve. These indicators serve as inputs to the constructed estimation model, which predicts SOH under different working conditions. The proposed method has been validated using publicly available experimental data, with an overall error in SOH estimation of less than 1%. In comparison to the existing model, the proposed method achieves RMSE, MAE, and MAPE values lower than 0.35%, 0.26%, and 0.21%, respectively. These findings demonstrate that the proposed method excels in terms of both the speed and accuracy of SOH estimation, showcasing its enhanced robustness and reliability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. This study was designed to investigate the effect of endocrine metabolic factors on hemocyte parameters, tumor markers, and blood electrolytes in patients with hyperglycemia. Methods. In this study, 1791 patients with hyperglycemia were recruited and grouped according to different testing indexes, and their medical records and laboratory indexes were recorded and analyzed. Results. In adult patients with hyperglycemia, we found that high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) was negatively correlated with white blood cell (WBC) and could exert an effect on WBC; triglyceride (TG) level was positively associated with lymphocyte (LYM#); age, TG, and P affected the level of LYM#; and uric acid (UA) level was positively related to eosinophil (EO#). Besides, age was positively correlated with red blood cell distribution width-coefficient of variation (RDW-CV) level; fasting blood glucose (FBG) and serum phosphorus (P) were negatively correlated with RDW-CV level; and age, creatinine (Cre), FBG, HDL-C, and P were influencing factors of RDW-CV level in adult hyperglycemic patients. HDL-C was negatively correlated with fibrinogen (Fib) level, and age, HDL-C, serum kalium (K), serum sodium (Na), and body mass index (BMI) were the influencing factors of Fib levels. TG was positively associated with neuron-specific enolase (NSE) level and affected the NSE level. Serum magnesium (Mg) was negatively related to carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) level, and sex, age, FBG, Mg, and BMI could have an effect on CEA level. As well, age and FBG were positively associated with carbohydrate antigen 50 (CA50) levels, UA was negatively correlated with CA50 levels, and age, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), UA, and FBG were the influencing factors of CA50 levels. FBG was negatively related to Mg levels; K, serum zinc (Zn), and fasting C-peptide (C-P) were positively correlated with Mg levels; and FBG, K, Zn, and C-P had an effect on Mg levels. Conclusion. Endocrine metabolic factors are closely related to hemocyte parameters, tumor markers, and blood electrolytes in patients with hyperglycemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. To investigate the relationship between aqueous humor cytokines and structural characteristics based on optical coherence tomography (OCT) in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME). Methods. Forty eyes of 28 patients with DME diagnosed in the Affiliated Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University at Hangzhou were included. All patients collected aqueous humor during anti-VEGF treatment, and the IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, VEGF, VCAM-1, ICAM-1, TGF-β1, FGF, and MCP-1 concentrations were detected. OCT examination was performed before anti-VEGF treatment and 1 month after anti-VEGF operation. Central macular thickness (CMT), macular volume (MV), choroidal thickness (CT), and the number of hyperreflective foci (HRF) were obtained for analysis. Each eye was determined whether there is subretinal effusion (SRD), cystoid macular edema (CME), and diffuse retinal thickening (DRT). Results. The levels of IL-6 and FGF in DME patients with SRD were significantly higher than those without SRD (all P < 0.05). The level of VEGF in DME patients with CME was significantly higher than that in DME patients without CME (P = 0.005); IL-6, TGF-β1, and MCP-1 were significantly higher in DME patients with DRT than that without DRT (all P < 0.05). There was no significant correlation between aqueous humor cytokines and retinal thickness and retinal volume. However, the thinner the CT, the higher the level of aqueous humor cytokines IL-6 (r = −0.313, P = 0.049) and FGF (r = −0.361, P = 0.022). A multivariate linear regression analysis showed that IL-6 was significantly correlated with CT (P = 0.002) and SRD (P = 0.017), FGF was also significantly correlated with CT (P = 0.002) and SRD (P = 0.005), and TGF-β1 was correlated with triglycerides (P = 0.030) and HRF (P = 0.021). Conclusion. DME patients with significant macular cystoid edema changes may be related to high VEGF concentrations and thin CT; meanwhile, the presence of SRD or a high number of HRF on OCT macular scans in DME patients may indicate high levels of intraocular inflammatory factors. Thus, OCT morphology characteristics to some extent reflect intraocular inflammatory factors and VEGF levels and may guide treatment alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The power-voltage (P-V) characteristic curve of the centralized thermoelectric generation (TEG) system under nonuniform temperature distribution (NTD) exhibits multiple extreme point characteristics, and the traditional maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm is prone to fall into the local maximum power point (LMPP) and takes a long time to track. This paper designs a BP-IPSO algorithm based on back propagation neural network (BPNN) and improved particle swarm optimization (IPSO) for MPPT. The algorithm firstly utilizes the good nonlinear function fitting ability of BPNN to obtain the fitting curve of the relationship between system control input and power output to establish the TEG array power prediction model. Then, the dynamic learning factor and weight coefficient are introduced into the traditional particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm to search the output power prediction model and realize MPPT control. MATLAB/Simulink experiment results show that BP-IPSO algorithm can effectively avoid falling into LMPP, quickly and accurately track the global maximum power point (GMPP), and effectively suppress the oscillation of voltage and power during the tracking process. Especially in the start-up test experiment, compared with perturb and observe (P&O), PSO, and grey wolf optimizer (GWO), the energy generated by BP-IPSO increased by 12.84%, 3.18%, and 4.75%, respectively, which improved the system power generation efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sympathoadrenal system has been shown to stimulate the secretory activity of enteroendocrine cells, although the response is transient. Our aim was to investigate the effects of long-term catecholamine excess on circulating glucagon-likepeptide-1 (GLP-1) levels in patients with pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma (PPGL). Thirty patients diagnosed with PPGL were analyzed. A significant negative association was observed between fasting plasma GLP-1 levels and elevated plasma-free metanephrine (r = − 0.407 , p = 0.026). After adjustment for age, sex, body mass index (BMI), serum creatinine, and the presence of hyperglycemia, the negative association between plasma GLP-1 and metanephrine persisted by multiple linear regression analysis (β = − 0.493 , p = 0.013). Positive correlations between fasting glucose and plasma metanephrine (r = 0.380 , p = 0.038) and normetanephrine levels (r = 0.450 , p = 0.013) were also found. Mean fasting levels of total GLP-1 increased significantly from 25.81 to 39.01 pmol/L (p = 0.017) after PPGL resection. In conclusion, long-term overproduction of catecholamines appears to induce suppression of GLP-1 production compared to an acute response to a stress stimulus. Further studies are required to elucidate the mechanism of GLP-1 secretion with chronic exposure to catecholamine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. The diagnostic value of CT window width technique in primary omentum infarction was evaluated by this study. Methods. The abdominal CT data of 32 patients with clinically diagnosed abdominal omentum infarction were retrospectively selected and analyzed. The fixed window position was 50 HU, and the window width was 135 HU, 250 HU (abdomen), 350 HU (mediastinum), and 500 HU, respectively. The detection rate of lesions was analyzed and compared. Results. Window widths of 135 HU, 250 HU (abdomen), 350 HU (mediastinum), and 500 HU have a detection rate of 12.5% (4 cases), 62.5% (20 cases), 100% (32 cases), 100% (32 cases) for abdominal omental lesions, respectively. However, 500 HU showed worse abdominal bowel and parenchymal organs than 350 HU. Conclusion. According to the comprehensive image quality, the ideal window width for diagnosis of primary omentum infarction is 350HU (mediastinal) window width. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For patients with colorectal cancer, minimally invasive surgical methods, particularly laparoscopic methods, are now the preferred course of therapy. This research is performed to investigate the effects of laparoscopic radical resection on patients with colorectal cancer. A total of 100 colorectal cancer patients treated in our hospital from January 2017 to January 2019 were enrolled. The subjects were divided into observation (n = 50) and control (n = 50) groups and treated with laparoscopic surgery and laparotomy, respectively. As well as postoperative complications and survival rates, the levels of inflammatory substances, stress response, immunological function, and perioperative markers were compared between the two groups. There was no significant difference in the postoperative exhaust time between the two groups (P > 0.05). Compared with the control group, the observation group showed longer operation time, faster recovery of intestinal function, shorter hospital stay, and less intraoperative bleeding amount (P < 0.05). The serum contents of hs-CRP, TNF-α, IL-6, norepinephrine, adrenaline, and cortisol at 1 d, 3 d, and 5 d after surgery were significantly higher than before in both groups (P < 0.05). Moreover, the serum contents of hs-CRP, TNF-α, IL-6, norepinephrine, adrenaline, and cortisol in the observation group were significantly lower than that in the control group (P < 0.05). At 10 days following surgery, immune index levels had dramatically increased in both groups, with noticeably higher immune index levels in the observation group than in the control group (P < 0.05). There were no appreciable differences in the two groups' 2-year survival rates (P > 0.05), but the complication rate was much greater in the control group (P < 0.05). To sum up, after laparoscopic surgery, patients had fewer complications, shorter hospital stay, lower inflammatory factor expression, less stress response, better immune function, less trauma, faster recovery, and improved quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mining under the sea is a challenging task in China. Affected by blasting, tunneling, and other engineering disturbance, surrounding rock is often in a state of cyclic loading and unloading stress. In this study, in order to investigate the effect of cyclic loading and unloading on the deformation and damage characteristics of sandstone underneath the Bohai Sea, the GCTS test machine is used to conduct cyclic loading and unloading tests on sandstone. The results show that under cyclic loading and unloading compression, the stress-strain curves of sandstone form a hysteresis loop. The axial residual deformation first decreases, then increases with the increase of cycle number and unloading stress level. Both the circumferential residual strain and volumetric residual strain decrease with the increase of cycle number and unloading stress level. The axial elastic deformation increases with the increase of the cyclic number and cyclic load. The volume deformation first increases, then decreases, and the circumferential strain gradually decreases. In the process of cyclic loading and unloading, the loading elastic modulus gradually increases. Affected by damage, the unloading stress difference of sandstone initially increases with the increase of cycles. Next, the effects of cycle number and unloading stress level on the damage parameters of sandstone are analyzed. Before brittle failure of the specimen, the absolute damage parameters of axial, circumferential, and volume show an increasing trend, and the increase rates of circumferential damage parameters and volume damage parameters suddenly increase, which is also the precursor of the sandstone specimen's instability failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Occupying the same crucial position as land resources, ecological resources originate from the marine system nourish various aspects of human welfare and the world economy. It is significant to apply efficient decision-making approaches, which assist with the achievements of sustainable development and environmental protection. This paper aims to review decision-making approaches in marine management and present a comprehensive bibliometric study. To achieve this goal, bibliometric analysis is used to analyze the current status and emerging trends in this field, including the cluster network, the collaboration network, and burst detection. The results show that the number of publications in this field has increased rapidly, and it has become an increasing interdisciplinary research subject. Besides, marine conservation is the largest clusterand the USA is the most productive country in marine management research and the marine policy and NOAA are the most productive journal and institution, respectively. Furthermore, "Diversity," "Management," and "Population" are the most influential keywords, and "People" and "Public participation" are the emerging trends in decision-making and marine management. Our work clarifies where we are now in terms of marine management and decision-making and how do they serve each other to achieve sustainable development. More importantly, some deep insights could be given that motivate researchers to learn the connections and collaborations between natural science and social study, which is our effort to deal with the social-ecological obstacle as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bronchial asthma (BA) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airway. Previous research has shown that Yanghe Pingchuan granules (YPGs) exert a precise therapeutic effect on BA. In our previous work, we showed that YPGs improved inflammation of the airways in rat models of BA. Other studies have shown that the pathogenesis of BA is closely related to pyroptosis and that the TOLL-like receptor pathway plays a key role in the mediation of pyroptosis. Therefore, in the present study, we established a rat model of BA by applying the concept of pyroptosis and used the TLR4/NF-κB/NRLP3 signaling pathway as the target and YPGs as the treatment method. We evaluated the effects of YPGs on airway inflammation and pyroptosis in the model rats by HE staining, Masson's staining, AP-PAS staining, western blotting, and real-time quantitative PCR. The results showed that Yanghe Pingchuan granules could significantly improve the inflammatory response of bronchial tissue in BA rats, reduce the content of inflammatory factors IL-1β and IL-18, and inhibit the expression of pyroptosis factor. Meanwhile, YPG can block the TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway. These findings suggest that YPG may be an effective drug for the treatment of BA by blocking the TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway and inhibiting pyroptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) is a challenging and key issue in the mobile robotic fields. In terms of the visual SLAM problem, the direct methods are more suitable for more expansive scenes with many repetitive features or less texture in contrast with the feature-based methods. However, the robustness of the direct methods is weaker than that of the feature-based methods. To deal with this problem, an improved direct sparse odometry with loop closure (LDSO) is proposed, where the performance of the SLAM system under the influence of different imaging disturbances of the camera is focused on. In the proposed method, a method based on the side window strategy is proposed for preprocessing the input images with a multilayer stacked pixel blender. Then, a variable radius side window strategy based on semantic information is proposed to reduce the weight of selected points on semistatic objects, which can reduce the computation and improve the accuracy of the SLAM system based on the direct method. Various experiments are conducted on the KITTI dataset and TUM RGB-D dataset to test the performance of the proposed method under different camera imaging disturbances. The quantitative and qualitative evaluations show that the proposed method has better robustness than the state-of-the-art direct methods in the literature. Finally, a real-world experiment is conducted, and the results prove the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim. Patients in the hemodialysis stage are prone to psychological pressure of depression and anxiety and have resistance, which affects the clinical treatment effect. Effective psychological intervention plays a very important role in improving patients' psychological pressure and patients' compliance. The aim of this study is to explore the nursing effect of psychological intervention on uremic hemodialysis patients. Methods. There were 126 uremic hemodialysis patients admitted to the hospital from August 2020 to December 2021. The patients were randomly divided into the routine nursing care group (n = 63) and psychological intervention group (n = 63). The routine nursing care group received routine nursing care for uremia hemodialysis patients. The psychological intervention group implemented psychological intervention on uremia hemodialysis patients. The methods of psychological intervention mainly include establishing a good nurse-patient relationship, popularizing hemodialysis knowledge, timely psychological counseling for patients, and organizing patient communication meetings. The treatment compliance, Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) of the two groups were compared before and after nursing. SF-36 scale was used to evaluate the quality of life of patients. The incidence of complications and nursing satisfaction were compared between the two groups. Results. The treatment compliance rate and nursing satisfaction of hemodialysis uremic patients in the psychological intervention group were significantly higher than the routine nursing care group. The SAS and SDS of hemodialysis uremia patients in the psychological intervention group were significantly lower than the routine nursing care group after psychological intervention, and SF-36 scale was significantly higher than the routine nursing group. The main complications of uremic hemodialysis patients are hypotension, hyperkalemia, internal fistula occlusion, and infection. Compared with the routine nursing care group, the incidence of complications in the psychological intervention group was significantly reduced. Conclusion. The implementation of psychological nursing intervention for uremic hemodialysis patients have a very significant effect on reducing the incidence of complications and improving anxiety, depression, treatment compliance, and the quality of life and the nursing satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) has been recognized as one of the commonest aggressive malignant tumors occurring in humans. The transforming acidic coiled-coil-containing protein 3 (TACC3) seems to be a probable prognostic marker and treatment target for non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Nevertheless, there exist no reports on the association between TACC3 and immunotherapy or other therapeutic interventions in LUAD. Methods. Premised on the data accessed from The Cancer Genome Atlas- (TCGA-) LUAD, we carried out bioinformatics analysis. The TACC3 expression in LUAD was analyzed utilizing the GEPIA. A survival module was constructed to evaluate the effect of TACC3 on the survival of patients with LUAD. Logistic regression was undertaken to examine the relationship between TACC3 expression and clinical factors. Protein-protein interaction analysis was performed in the GeneMANIA database, and enrichment analysis and identification of predicted signaling pathways were performed using Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes. Additionally, the Cox regression was used to assess the clinicopathologic features linked to the overall survival in TCGA patients. Lastly, we investigated the link between TACC3 and tumor-infiltrating immune cells (TIICs) through CIBERSORT and the "Correlation" module of GEPIA. The association between TACC3 gene expression and drug response was analyzed using the CellMiner database to predict drug sensitivity. Results. The outcomes illustrated that TACC3 was upregulated and considerably correlated with dismal prognosis in LUAD patients. Moreover, the multivariate Cox regression analysis depicted TACC3 as an independent prognostic marker in LUAD patients. It was also revealed that the expression of TACC3 was related to clinical stage (P = 0.014), age (P = 0.002), and T classification (P ≤ 0.018). Moreover, we discovered that the expression of TACC3 was considerably linked to a wide range of TIICs, especially the T cells and NK cells. Single-cell results found that TACC3 was mainly expressed in the immune cells (especially tprolif cells) and malignant cells. TACC3 gene expression was positively correlated with TMB and MSI, and TACC3 may provide a prediction of the efficacy of immunotherapy. Moreover, the correlation analysis between TACC3 gene expression and immune checkpoint gene expression revealed that TACC3 may coordinate the activities of these ICP genes in different signal transduction pathways. TACC3 is related to biological progress (BP), cellular component (CC), and molecular function (MF). The pathways involved in the interaction network involving TACC3 include nonhomologous end-joining, RNA transport, pantothenate and CoA biosynthesis, homologous recombination, and nucleotide excision repair. Furthermore, we investigated the association between the expression of TACC3 and the use of antitumor drugs, and TACC3 was positively correlated with response to most drugs. Conclusion. The findings from this research offer robust proof that the expression of TACC3 could be a prognostic marker correlated with TIICs in LUAD. TACC3 can also provide new ideas for immunotherapy as a potential therapeutic target. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To evaluate the efficacy of risk management in the nursing of critically ill patients on continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT). Methods. In this retrospective study, 80 critically ill patients on continuous renal replacement therapy in our hospital from February 2020 to February 2021 were recruited. They were randomly assigned to receive either the risk management treatment (risk management group) or the conventional management treatment (conventional management group) via the random number table method. Outcome measurements included the occurrence of adverse events, complications, psychological status, quality of life, treatment compliance, duration of CRRT, and nursing satisfaction. Results. Risk management treatment was associated with lower incidence of adverse events compared to conventional management treatment (P value < 0.05). The risk management group also resulted in a lower incidence of complications compared to the conventional management group (P value < 0.05). Patients who received risk management treatments demonstrated a significantly lower anxiety/depression level and a higher World Health Organization Quality of Life Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF) (P value < 0.05). The risk management group resulted in more cases with high compliance and fewer cases with moderate and poor compliance (P < 0.05). Risk management was associated with more cases with a CRRT duration less than 36 hours and 36–48 hours and fewer cases with a duration longer than 48 h (X2 = 2.999, P value < 0.05). Patients who were given a risk management treatment had a higher nursing satisfaction compared to conventional management treatment (X2 = 4.501, P value < 0.05). Conclusion. Risk management treatment in caring of critically ill patients on CRRT shows better efficacy than conventional management treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Influenza viruses have been posing a great threat to public health and animal industry. The developed vaccines have been widely used to reduce the risk of potential pandemic; however, the ongoing antigenic drift makes influenza virus escape from host immune response and hampers vaccine efficacy. Until now, the genetic basis of antigenic variation remains largely unknown. In this study, we used A/swine/Guangxi/18/2011 (GX/18) and A/swine/Guangdong/104/2013 (GD/104) as models to explore the molecular determinant for antigenic variation of Eurasian avian‐like H1N1 (EA H1N1) swine influenza viruses (SIVs) and found that the GD/104 virus exhibited 32‐ to 64‐fold lower antigenic cross‐reactivity with antibodies against GX/18 virus. Therefore, we generated polyclonal antibodies against GX/18 or GD/104 virus and a monoclonal antibody (mAb), named mAb102‐95, targeted to the haemagglutinin (HA) protein of GX/18 virus and found that a single amino acid substitution at position 158 in HA protein substantially altered the antigenicity of the virus. The reactivity of GX/18 virus containing G158E mutation with the mAb102‐95 decreased eightfold than that of the parental strain. Contrarily, the reactivity of GD/104 virus bearing E158G mutation with the mAb102‐95 increased by 32 times as compared with that of the parental virus. Structural analysis showed that the amino acid mutation from G to E was accompanied with the R group changing from ‐H to ‐(CH2)2‐COOH. The induced steric effect and increased hydrophilicity of HA protein surface probably jointly contributed to the antigenic drift of EA H1N1 SIVs. Our study provides experimental evidence that G158E mutation in HA protein affects the antigenic property of EA H1N1 SIVs and widens our horizon on the antigenic drift of influenza virus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Safflower is an annual herb used in traditional Chinese herbal medicine. It consists of the dried flowers of the Compositae plant safflower. It is found in the central inland areas of Asia and is widely cultivated throughout the country. Its resistance to cold weather and droughts and its tolerance and adaptability to salts and alkalis are strong. Safflower has the effect of activating blood circulation, dispersing blood stasis, and relieving pain. A natural pigment named safflower yellow (SY) can be extracted from safflower petals. Chemically, SY is a water-soluble flavonoid and the main active ingredient of safflower. The main chemical constituents, pharmacological properties, and clinical applications of SY are reviewed in this paper, thereby providing a reference for the use of safflower in preventing and treating human diseases. Methods. The literature published in recent years was reviewed, and the main chemical components of SY were identified based on chemical formula and structure. The pharmacological properties of hydroxysafflor yellow A (HSYA), SYA, SYB, and anhydrosafflor yellow B (AHSYB) were reviewed. Results. The main chemical constituents of SY included HSYA, SYA, SYB, and AHSYB. These ingredients have a wide range of pharmacological activities. SY has protective effects on the heart, kidneys, liver, nerves, lungs, and brain. Moreover, its effects include, but are not limited to, improving cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, abirritation, regulating lipids, and treating cancer and diabetic complications. HSYA is widely recognised as an effective ingredient to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Conclusion. SY has a wide range of pharmacological activities, among which improving cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases are the most significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To analyze the mechanism of LINC00461 regulating the recurrence of diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) through microRNA (miR)-411-5p/BCL2 interacting protein 3 (BNIP3) pathway. Methods. DLBCL samples in TCGA and GSE12453 were used for differential analysis to find long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) related to DLBCL recurrence. The 4 DLBCL data with the highest and lowest expression levels of LINC00461 in the TCGA database were selected for GSEA enrichment analysis. The targeting relationships of miR-411-5p with LINC00461 and BNIP3 were verified by the dual luciferase report. Blood samples from DLBCL patients were used to analyze the correlation between miR-411-5p and LINC00461 or BNIP3. LINC00461, miR-411-5p, or BNIP3 was overexpressed or silenced by transfection, and a tumor-bearing nude mice model was constructed to detect their effects on proliferation and apoptosis. Results. The level of LINC00461 in DLBCL was significantly higher than that in normal cases, and the level in recurrence DLBCL was significantly higher than that in nonrecurrence. The enrichment analysis results showed that the function of LINC00461 was closely related to apoptosis. The results shown that miR-411-5p bound to LINC00461 and BNIP3 and was negatively correlated with LINC00461 and BNIP3 mRNA in blood of DLBCL patients. Suppressing the level of LINC00461 inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis. The inhibition of LINC00461 or overexpression of miR-411-5p reduced the expression of BNIP3 protein, thereby inducing apoptosis at the in vivo and in vitro levels. Conclusion. LINC00461 may induce miR-411-5p to "sponge," thereby increasing the expression of BNIP3 protein, and exerting the function of inhibiting apoptosis and promoting DLBCL recurrence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in four Chinese freshwater fishes (i.e., Hypophthalmichthys molitrix (H), Aristichthys nobilis (A), Lateolabrax japonicus (L), Parabramis pekinensis (P)) were separated using gas chromatography‐ion mobility spectrometry (GC‐IMS) and ultrafast gas chromatography electronic‐nose (uf‐GC E‐nose). Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to distinguish the VOCs identified from the four freshwater fishes in both raw and cooked states. Twenty compounds were identified from the spectral database of GC‐IMS, including five aldehydes, eight alcohols, six ketones, and three esters. In addition, using GC E‐nose, 32 compounds were isolated by the first column MTX‐5, and 24 compounds were isolated by the second column MXT‐1701. PCA results showed that the four fishes could be well discriminated against. The odor profiles of raw and cooked fishes were clearly different. This study demonstrated that specific signals provided from GC‐IMS could differentiate freshwater fishes. GC‐IMS and uf‐GC E‐nose could be developed further to distinguish aquatic products based on VOCs. Practical applications: Two new methods, gas chromatography‐ion mobility spectrometry (GC‐IMS) and ultrafast gas chromatography electronic‐nose (uf‐GC E‐nose), were used to analyze the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in four Chinese freshwater fishes at raw and cooked status. GC‐IMS has the characteristics of fast detection speed and high sensitivity. The accuracy of the qualitative analysis of the compounds is better with GC‐IMS (larger data volume, leading to a better in‐depth statistical analysis). Uf‐GC E‐nose could provide a nondestructive, fast, relatively low cost, and trustworthy way for flavor analysis. According to the techniques, the established fingerprints of VOCs provided an additional tool for food analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the deepening of coal mining in China, dynamic disasters occur with the release of energy. In this study, in order to study the difference between shallow rock and deep rock, conventional triaxial compression tests were carried out on basalts with different overburden depths. The mechanical properties and energy evolution characteristics of basalts with different overburden depths were analyzed. The results show that the strength parameters increase with increasing depths, while the deformation parameters exhibit the opposite phenomenon. The strength and peak strain of basalt with the same depth increase with increasing confining pressure. However, the elastic modulus almost remains unchanged. The prepeak total input energy and dissipation energy decrease with increasing depths, and total elastic energy increases with increasing depths which indicates that the deep rock releases more energy than shallow rock when failure occurs. The input energy, elastic energy, and dissipation energy increase with increasing confining pressure. However, elastic energy ratio decreases with increasing confining pressure. The strength parameters and elastic energy increase with increasing density and deformation parameter, while the dissipation energy decreases. This phenomenon has the opposite law when clay mineral content is increased. The conclusions of this study may provide theoretical reference to dynamic disasters induced by energy in deep coal mines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to improve the accuracy and performance of traditional image threshold segmentation algorithm, this paper proposes a multithreshold segmentation method named improved Harris hawk optimization (IMHHO). Firstly, IMHHO adopts Tent map and elite opposition-based learning to initialize population and enhance the diversity. Secondly, IMHHO uses quadratic interpolation to generate new individuals and enhance the local search ability. Finally, IMHHO adopts improved Gaussian disturbance method to disturb optimal solution, which coordinates the local and global search ability. Then, the performance of IMHHO is tested based on 14 benchmark functions. In image segmentation, different algorithms are tested to compare the comprehensive performance based on Otsu and Renyi entropy. Experiments show that IMHHO performs better in the three kinds of benchmark functions; the segmentation effect is directly proportional to the number of thresholds; compared with other algorithms, IMHHO has better comprehensive performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aberrant 5-methylcytidine (m5C) modification plays an essential role in the progression of different cancers. More and more researchers are focusing on developing a lncRNA-based risk model to assess the clinical prognosis of cancer patients. However, the impact of m5C-related lncRNAs on the prognosis of patients with uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma (UCEC), as well as the immune microenvironment of UCEC, remains unclear. Here, we comprehensively analyzed the predictive value of m5C-associated lncRNAs in UCEC and their association with the tumor immune microenvironment, according to the information extracted from the TCGA-UCEC dataset. We identified a total of 32 m5C-associated lncRNAs that were significantly correlated with the prognosis of UCEC patients. Two molecular subtypes were determined by consensus clustering analysis of these 32 m5C-associated prognostic lncRNAs. Further data showed that cluster 1 was associated with poor clinical prognosis, advanced tumor grade, higher PD-L1 expression levels, higher ESTIMATEScore, and higher immuneScore, as well as the immune cell infiltration. Then, 17 m5C-associated lncRNAs with prognostic values were obtained using LASSO regression analysis. And a risk model was constructed based on these 17 lncRNAs. It was revealed that the risk model could be used as an independent factor for UCEC prognosis. In addition, patients with UCEC in the high-risk group had higher tumor grades and immune scores. The risk model based on m5C-related lncRNAs was also closely associated with infiltrating immune cells. In conclusion, our study elucidated the crucial roles of the identified m5C-related lncRNAs in the UCEC patients' prognoses, as well as in the immune microenvironment in UCEC. The results suggest that the components of risk models based on the m5C-related lncRNAs may serve as important mediators of the immune microenvironment in UCEC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. We aim to evaluate the clinical effect of combined topical 20% autologous serum eye drops (ASEs) along with silicone–hydrogel soft contact lenses (SCLs) in the treatment of chemical burn-induced bilateral corneal persistent epithelial defects (PEDs) and to review the literature of related studies. Methods. From January 1, 2017, to December 31, 2019, we conducted a retrospective chart review of 8 patients with chemical burn-induced bilateral corneal PEDs who were unsuccessfully treated with conventional medical therapy and were then treated with combined topical 20% (v/v) ASEs and silicone–hydrogel CLs. The clinical effects and effectiveness of the combined treatment were evaluated. Results. The bilateral corneal PEDs healed in all sixteen eyes of the eight patients within 2 weeks. The patients did not report any discomfort associated with the combined treatment. Improved ocular comfort/visual acuity and decreased conjunctival injection correlated with healing. No recurrent corneal epithelial breakdown was noted during the 3-month posttreatment follow-up. Conclusions. The combined treatment of silicone–hydrogel CLs and ASEs can help to stabilize the ocular surface and successfully treat chemical burn-induced bilateral corneal PEDs. It may be considered as an alternative treatment method for patients with bilateral chemical burn-induced corneal PEDs with potential corneal melting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Golden plaster is the preferred and most commonly used in China for pain reduction in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). However, there was no evidence-based medical evidence about its effect in relieving pain of knee OA patients. Here, a multicenter randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was performed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of golden plaster for the improvement of pain relief and function's obstacle in patients with knee OA. Methods. 320 patients with knee OA were enrolled at four hospitals and randomly divided into the treatment group and the control group with 160 subjects in each group. Patients in treatment group were treated with golden plaster, and those in control group with placebo plaster. The study cycle in both groups was 21 days. Patient visits were documented before treatment and 7-, 14-, and 21-day follow-ups after treatment. The outcomes included VAS score, WOMAC score, and adverse events. Results. Compared to the control group, the VAS score in the treatment group was significantly decreased after treatment with golden plaster for 7 days, 14 days, and 21 days. Compared to the control group, the WOMAC score in the treatment group was significantly decreased 14 days and 21 days. The incidence rate of adverse events had no statistical difference between both the groups. Conclusions. In conclusion, our study, for the first time by carrying on the double-blind and placebo-controlled randomized trial, showed that golden plaster can effectively alleviate the pain of knee and improve the physical function in the patients with knee OA. This trial is registered with ChiCTR-TRC-13003418. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between kinesin-like family 6 (KIF6) polymorphisms and hypertension in a northeast Chinese cohort. In this study, two single nucleotide polymorphisms of KIF6 (rs20456 and rs6930913) and their haplotype were analyzed in 382 hypertension patients and 378 controls with SHEsis analysis platform, and the gene-environmental interactions were evaluated with logistic regression analysis. After adjusting for confounding factors, significantly lower risk of hypertension was observed in participants with genotype TC (0.416 (CI 0.299–0.578), p < 0.001) and CC (0.577 (0.389–0.857), p = 0.007) of rs20456 compared with TT. For rs6930913, allele T (0.522 (0.386–0.704), p < 0.001), genotype TT (0.325 (0.205–0.515), p < 0.001), and genotype CT (0.513 (0.379–0.693), p < 0.001) were significantly associated with lower risk of hypertension than allele C and CC genotype, respectively. Gene-environment analyses confirmed the significant influence on hypertension by the interactions between genotypes distribution in rs20456 (CT: p = 0.036 , TT: p = 0.022) and smoking status. No interactions were found between smoking and rs6930913, except those with dominant or recessive genetic models (both P s = 0.006). There were no interactions between KIF6 and overweight (all P s > 0.05). Haplotype analyses showed that CC (p = 0.005) and TC (p = 0.001) of rs20456 and rs6930913 were significantly associated with a statistically increased risk of hypertension. The false-positive report probability (FPRP) analysis was used to verify significant findings. In conclusions, KIF6 might affect the susceptibility of hypertension. The allele C (rs20456) and allele T (rs690913) were inclined to protect individuals from hypertension both in genotype and haplotype analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of nitric oxide (NO) on microorganisms and quality of dried apricots during storage was investigated. The results showed that NO fumigation at various concentrations could effectively reduce natural disease and moth pest incidence, as well as decrease the total number of microorganisms on dried apricots during storage. Compared with the control (CK), NO fumigation maintained higher levels of total soluble solids, titratable acidity, ascorbic acid, and reducing sugar in dried apricots. Additionally, the fumigated apricots displayed lower levels of total color change, degree of browning, and decline of nutrients compared with control. Furthermore, although the concentrations of nitrate and nitrite ions in dried apricots after NO fumigation were higher than those of the CK group, their levels were in line with the standard limits. Among the different concentrations of NO, 1,500 μl/L showed the best results regarding natural diseases, moth pests, and microbial inhibition, while 900 μl/L maintained the best quality of dried apricots during storage. These findings demonstrated that NO fumigation has potential to be a safe and effective treatment method to control microbial contamination and preserve the storage quality of dried apricots. Practical applications: Nitric oxide (NO) fumigation can be used as a safe and effective storage method for dried fruits. This is the theoretical and technical foundation for the industrial application of NO fumigation technology, which provides new ideas and directions for the storage of dried fruits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tea is a worldwide popular drink with high nutritional and medicinal values as it is rich in nutrients, such as polyphenols, amino acids, vitamins, glycosides, and so on. Among them, tea polyphenols (TPs) are the current research hotspot. TPs are known to have multiple biological activities such as anti‐oxidation, anti‐tumor, anti‐inflammation, anti‐bacteria, lowering lipid, and liver protection. By reviewing a large number of literatures, we explained the mechanism of TPs exerting biological activity and a wide range of applications. We also discussed the deficiencies and development potential of TPs, in order to provide theoretical reference and scientific basis for the subsequent development and utilization of TPs. Practical applications: We summarized the bioactivity mechanisms of TPs in anti‐tumor, anti‐oxidation, antibacterial, anti‐inflammatory, lipid‐lowering, and liver protection, focused on its application fields in food and medicine, and discussed the deficiency and development potential of current research on TPs, so as to provide a certain convenient way for scholars studying TPs. It is expected to contribute to the subsequent discovery of biological activity and the broadening of the field of TPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. This study tends to assess the dose-dependent effects of spironolactone on TGF-β1 expression, atrial fibrosis, and the vulnerability to atrial fibrillation in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and tries to clarify the association of atrial fibrosis with the vulnerability to atrial fibrillation. Methods. Forty 20-week-old male SHRs were randomly divided into 4 groups (10 rats per group): 3 spironolactone groups were lower-dose group (10 mg·kg−1·d−1, dissolved in 2 ml saline solution, group SL), medium-dose group (40 mg·kg−1·d−1, dissolved in 2 ml saline solution, group SM), higher-dose group (80 mg·kg−1·d−1, dissolved in 2 ml saline solution, group SH) and one hypertension group (2 ml saline solution for stomach gavage, group H). Ten matched homologous WKY rats were set as the control group (group C). After 7 weeks of gavage, a multiple electroconductive physiological recorder was used to detect atrial electrical parameters, including P-wave duration, PR interval, and atrial effective refractory period (AERP), the inducibility, and duration of atrial fibrillation. HE staining was used to determine myocardial cell size. Masson staining was used to detect the deposition of the interstitial collagen fibers in atrial muscle. The expression of TGF-β1 was detected by immunohistochemistry and western blot. Results. Compared with group C, the myocardial cell size, atrial fibrosis, TGF-β1 expression, P-wave duration, PR interval, AERP, inducibility, and duration of atrial fibrillation in group H were conspicuously increased (p < 0.05); compared with group H, there was no significant difference in the myocardial cell size, atrial fibrosis, TGF-β1 expression, and electrophysiological indexes in group SH upon spironolactone intervention (p > 0.05); compared with group H, the myocardial cell size, atrial fibrosis, the expression of TGF-β1, P-wave duration, PR interval, the inducibility, and duration of atrial fibrillation in the group SL and group SM were all decreased (p < 0.05); compared with group SM, the effect in the group SL was more prominent (p < 0.01). Conclusion. Hypertension can lead to cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, deposition of interstitial fibrosis in myocardial tissue, and an increase in the vulnerability to atrial fibrillation. Spironolactone showed a certain dose-dependent effect in SHRs. Lower-dose spironolactone was superior to higher-dose spironolactone in the aspect of reducing hypertensive atrial fibrosis and TGF-β1 expression, as well as preventing the occurrence of atrial fibrillation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growth and evolvement features of crack are of great significance to study the failure mechanism of rock mass and valuate the stability of the cavity. In this study, in order to obtain the mechanics parameters and external macroscopic crack propagation characteristics of red sandstone, triaxial compression tests were carried out. Based on the experimental results, a numerical model was established through the reasonable parameter calibration by the PFC3D software. The internal and external crack propagation processes of red sandstone under triaxial compression were simulated. Moreover, to verify the simulation results, the CT scanning and three-dimensional reconstruction technologies were used to observe the internal crack state of the specimens. The results showed that the internal crack failures occurred first at the end of the rock specimen. Then, the microcracks continued to accumulate and expand under the combined action of axial stress and confining pressure. The accumulated microcracks finally converged to form a macroscopic oblique shear failure. Based on the homogenizing treatment and reasonable parameter calibration, the internal and external crack expansion and evolution processes of the rock were simulated by the PFC3D model and the simulation results are consistent with the results obtained from the triaxial compression test and the CT scanning. The macro- and microfailure mode of crack propagation of the specimen deepens the understanding of rock failure mechanism. The PFC3D homogenization simulation method provides a new feasible method to study the macro- and microfailure mode of internal and external crack propagation of rock under compression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. This work aimed to study the application of iterative reconstruction algorithm-based computed tomography (CT) imaging in the diagnosis of gastric cancer (GC). Methods. 40 cases of GC patients diagnosed by gastroscopy biopsy and pathology in hospital were retrospectively analyzed. Scanning images of the upper abdomen were obtained after plain scanning and double-phase enhanced scanning. Then, the image was reconstructed by the iterative reconstruction algorithm, and the CT value under the algorithm was analyzed statistically. Results. It was revealed that the detection rate of both spiral CT and iterative reconstruction algorithm-based CT was 100%. After the iterative reconstruction algorithm, the image quality, image information, and image mean square error (MSE) were notably improved. The degree of tumor invasion (T) staging accuracy was 82.6%, lymph node metastasis (N) staging accuracy was 73.2%, and tumor node metastasis (TNM) staging accuracy was 79.1%. The accuracy of the iterative reconstruction algorithm-based CT was 90% for T staging, 83% for N staging, and 85.5% for TNM staging. Conclusion. Iterative reconstruction algorithm can effectively improve the spatial resolution of CT images in GC diagnosis, with high accuracy. It can provide reliable and objective imaging data for the diagnosis of GC clinically, which was worthy of further application in clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise overexposure leads to hair cell loss, synaptic ribbon reduction, and auditory nerve deterioration, resulting in transient or permanent hearing loss depending on the exposure severity. Oxidative stress, inflammation, calcium overload, glutamate excitotoxicity, and energy metabolism disturbance are the main contributors to noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) up to now. Gene variations are also identified as NIHL related. Glucocorticoid is the only approved medication for NIHL treatment. New pharmaceuticals targeting oxidative stress, inflammation, or noise-induced neuropathy are emerging, highlighted by the nanoparticle-based drug delivery system. Given the complexity of the pathogenesis behind NIHL, deeper and more comprehensive studies still need to be fulfilled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. Inflammation is one of the key mechanisms involved in functional impairment after stroke. Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) is an important inflammatory molecule in the body. The purpose of our study was to determine the correlation between ICAM-1 and the prognosis of acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Methods. 286 AIS patients treated at Beijing Tiantan Hospital were continuously included in the study. The demographic data of the patients were collected, and the fasting blood within 24 hours of admission was collected to detect the clinical indicators. The functional prognosis was measured using the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) 3 months after stroke. The poor prognosis is defined as mRS ≥ 3. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to determine the serum ICAM-1 levels. Results. The serum ICAM-1 levels of patients with poor prognosis were significantly higher than that of patients with good prognosis (144.2 ± 14.8 vs 117.5 ± 12.1 pg/ml). Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis showed that the sensitivity and specificity of serum ICAM-1 for predicting the prognosis of AIS were 74% and 76%, respectively. In logistic regression analysis, the serum ICAM-1 level is still an independent predictor of poor prognosis (odds ratio [OR]: 0.52; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.318-0.839). Conclusions. Higher serum ICAM-1 levels on admission in AIS patients might increase the risk of poor prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid growth of Internet technology, the blockchain has been developed fast in recent years with the wide expansions in finance, medicine, public welfare, and other fields. At the same time, the blockchain technology has also attracted researchers' increasing attention, leading to a large number of scientific outputs that made significant contributions to blockchain research. However, few attempts can be found to investigate the development of blockchain based on the literature in this area. Therefore, this paper focuses on blockchain research by introducing bibliometric methods and comprehensively analyzes its status quo, emerging trends, and development path. Based on the above research, this paper draws two main conclusions. First, we made a comprehensive investigation of blockchain research in the past five years and then found that the main research directions in this area are Bitcoin, digital currency, and Fintech. Second, the development of blockchain research generally presents a trend of π-transformation based on the main path analysis. The above studies provide a brief view for beginners who want to learn blockchain research in a direct way and contribute to extend the theoretical foundation of blockchain research by giving a comprehensive bibliometric analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Esophageal cancer (EC) is the eighth most prevalent cancer and the sixth leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. As an antiapoptotic and a proapoptotic protein, respectively, survivin and Bad play an important role in carcinogenesis of the most human cancers including EC. However, the regulatory relationships between them remain unclear. We sought to investigate the effects of survivin knockdown and overexpression on the expression of Bad gene, cell cycle progression, and apoptosis of esophageal carcinoma cell. The mRNA expression levels of survivin and Bad were determined in EC tissue samples. The knockdown and overexpression experiments were performed in ECA109 and KYSE450 cells via transfection with survivin overexpression and shRNA plasmids. A Bad overexpression experiment was conducted to confirm the biological effect on knockdown of survivin via modulating Bad expression. RT-qPCR and Western blot analysis were used to detect mRNA and protein expression, respectively. Cell cycle and apoptosis were analyzed by flow cytometry. The chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) was conducted to determine the binding sites of survivin on the promoter of Bad gene. By analyzing the mRNA expression of survivin and Bad in 40 ESCC patient specimens, we found that the positive expression rate of survivin in tumor tissues (88%, 35/40) was remarkably high, compared with the distal nontumor tissues (48%, 19/40, p < 0.01). On the other hand, the positive expression rate of Bad in tumor tissues (70%, 28/40) was remarkably low, compared with the distal nontumor tissues (95%, 38/40, p < 0.01). Overexpression of survivin decreases Bad mRNA and protein expression and promotes transformation of cell cycle to S phase. Conversely, knockdown of survivin increases Bad mRNA and protein expression and induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Bad overexpression inducing apoptosis of esophageal carcinoma cell shows the similar apoptotic effect with survivin knockdown. ChIP assays indicate that survivin directly binds to the Bad promoter region, diminishing the transcriptional activity of Bad. In conclusion, the result suggested that survivin regulates Bad gene expression by binding to its promoter and modulates cell cycle and apoptosis in esophageal carcinoma cell. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to identify the molecular mechanism and prognosis-related genes of Jianpi Jiedu decoction in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods. The gene expression data of hepatocellular carcinoma samples and normal tissue samples were downloaded from TCGA database, and the potential targets of drug composition of Jianpi Jiedu decoction were obtained from TCMSP database. The genes were screened out in order to obtain the expression of these target genes in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. The differential expression of target genes was analyzed by R software, and the genes related to prognosis were screened by univariate Cox regression analysis. Then, the LASSO model was constructed for risk assessment and survival analysis between different risk groups. At the same time, independent prognostic analysis, GSEA analysis, and prognostic analysis of single gene in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma were performed. Results. 174 compounds of traditional Chinese medicine were screened by TCMSP database, corresponding to 122 potential targets. 39 upregulated genes and 9 downregulated genes were screened out. A total of 20 candidate prognostic related genes were screened out by univariate Cox analysis, of which 12 prognostic genes were involved in the construction of the LASSO regression model. There was a significant difference in survival time between the high-risk group and low-risk group (p < 0.05). Among the genes related to prognosis, the expression levels of CCNB1, NQO1, NUF2, and CHEK1 were high in tumor tissues (p < 0.05). Survival analysis showed that the high expression levels of these four genes were significantly correlated with poor prognosis of HCC (p < 0.05). GSEA analysis showed that the main KEGG enrichment pathways were lysine degradation, folate carbon pool, citrate cycle, and transcription factors. Conclusions. In the study, we found that therapy target genes of Jianpi Jiedu decoction were mainly involved in metabolism and apoptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma, and there was a close relationship between the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma and the genes of CCNB1, NQO1, NUF2, and CHEK1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To analyze the impact of the added value of primary, secondary, and tertiary industry on public attention to air pollution in Handan, Xingtai, and Shijiazhuang, Baidu index is used to build the air pollution attention index. Taking the added value of the primary, secondary, and tertiary industry as the influencing factors, fractional grey multivariable convolution model is used to predict and analyze the public attention to air pollution in these three cities from 2020 to 2024. The results show that the secondary industry has the greatest impact on the public's attention to air pollution compared with the primary industry and the tertiary industry. And the added value of the secondary industry with faster increase will cause a faster increase in the public's air pollution attention from 2020 to 2024, especially in Handan. It is not only helpful to air pollution control, but also helpful in solving the public psychological problems caused by air pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the aging of the population and the extension of life expectancy, osteoporosis is becoming a global epidemic. Although there are several drugs used to treat osteoporosis in clinical practice, such as parathyroid hormone or bisphosphonates, they all have some serious side effects. Therefore, a safer drug is called for osteoporosis, especially for the prevention in the early stage of the disease, not only the treatment in the later stage. Panax notoginseng saponin (PNS), a traditional Chinese herb, has been used as anti-ischemic drug due to its function on improving vascular circulation. In order to verify whether Panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) could be used to prevent osteoporosis, ovariectomy (OVX) was induced in female C57BL/C6J mice, followed by orally administration with 40 mg/kg/d, 80 mg/kg/d, and 160 mg/kg/d of three different dosages of PNS for 9 weeks. Serum biochemical analysis, micro-CT, histological evaluation, and immunostaining of markers of osteogenesis and angiogenesis were performed in the sham, osteoporotic (OVX), and treatment (OVX+PNS) groups. Micro-CT and histological evaluation showed that compared to sham group, the bone mass of OVX group reduced significantly, while it was significantly restored in the moderate-dose PNS (40 mg/kg and 80 mg/kg) treatment groups. The expression of CD31 and osteocalcin (OCN) in the bone tissue of treatment group also increased, suggesting that PNS activated osteogenesis and angiogenesis, which subsequently increased the bone mass. These results confirmed the potential function of PNS on the prevention of osteoporosis. However, in the high dose of PNS (160 mg/kg) group, the antiosteoportic effect had been eliminated, which also suggested the importance of proper dose of PNS for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the aging of the population and the extension of life expectancy, osteoporosis is becoming a global epidemic. Although there are several drugs used to treat osteoporosis in clinical practice, such as parathyroid hormone or bisphosphonates, they all have some serious side effects. Therefore, a safer drug is called for osteoporosis, especially for the prevention in the early stage of the disease, not only the treatment in the later stage. Panax notoginseng saponin (PNS), a traditional Chinese herb, has been used as anti-ischemic drug due to its function on improving vascular circulation. In order to verify whether Panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) could be used to prevent osteoporosis, ovariectomy (OVX) was induced in female C57BL/C6J mice, followed by orally administration with 40 mg/kg/d, 80 mg/kg/d, and 160 mg/kg/d of three different dosages of PNS for 9 weeks. Serum biochemical analysis, micro-CT, histological evaluation, and immunostaining of markers of osteogenesis and angiogenesis were performed in the sham, osteoporotic (OVX), and treatment (OVX+PNS) groups. Micro-CT and histological evaluation showed that compared to sham group, the bone mass of OVX group reduced significantly, while it was significantly restored in the moderate-dose PNS (40 mg/kg and 80 mg/kg) treatment groups. The expression of CD31 and osteocalcin (OCN) in the bone tissue of treatment group also increased, suggesting that PNS activated osteogenesis and angiogenesis, which subsequently increased the bone mass. These results confirmed the potential function of PNS on the prevention of osteoporosis. However, in the high dose of PNS (160 mg/kg) group, the antiosteoportic effect had been eliminated, which also suggested the importance of proper dose of PNS for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

STAT3 is highly expressed in aGVHD CD4+ T cells and plays a critical role in inducing or worsening aGVHD. In our preceding studies, DNA hypomethylation in STAT3 promoter was shown to cause high expression of STAT3 in aGVHD CD4+ T cells, and the process could be modulated by HMGB1, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. TET2, AID, and TDG are indispensable in DNA demethylation; meanwhile, TET2 and AID also serve extremely important roles in immune response. So, we speculated these enzymes involved in the STAT3 promoter hypomethylation induced by HMGB1 in aGVHD CD4+ T cells. In this study, we found that the binding levels of TET2/AID/TDG to STAT3 promoter were remarkably increased in CD4+T cells from aGVHD patients and were significantly negatively correlated with the STAT3 promoter methylation level. Simultaneously, we revealed that HMGB1 could recruit TET2, AID, and TDG to form a complex in the STAT3 promoter region. Interference with the expression of TET2/AID/TDG inhibited the overexpression of STAT3 caused by HMGB1 downregulation of the STAT3 promoter DNA methylation. These data demonstrated a new molecular mechanism of how HMGB1 promoted the expression of STAT3 in CD4+ T cells from aGVHD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Several efforts have been made to find out a valuable marker to assist the diagnosis and differentiation of gangrenous/perforated appendicitis. We aimed to determine the diagnostic capacity of soluble B7H3 (sB7H3) in acute appendicitis (AA) and its accuracy as a predictor of the severity of appendicitis.Methods: 182 children were allocated into four groups as follows: control group (CG, 90), simple appendicitis (SA, 12), purulent appendicitis (PA, 49), and gangrenous appendicitis (GA, 31). Prior to appendectomy, blood was collected and sent for analysis of routine examination and cytokines (sB7H3 and TNF-α). We compared values of all measured parameters according to histological findings. Furthermore, we assigned AA patients into the nonperforated appendicitis group and the perforated appendicitis group. The diagnostic effects of significant markers were assessed by ROC curves.Results: Only the levels of CRP, FIB, and sB7H3 had a remarkable rising trend in AA-based groups, while differences in the levels of CRP and FIB between simple appendicitis and purulent appendicitis were not statistically significant. In addition, sB7H3 was found as the only marker in children with AA, which was markedly associated with the degree of histological findings of the appendix. Furthermore, sB7H3 had a high diagnostic value in predicting AA and complex appendicitis (PA+GA) in children. However, the diagnostic performance of sB7H3 for distinguishing PA from GA was not remarkable. Additionally, only the levels of CRP and sB7H3 were statistically different between the nonperforated appendicitis group and the perforated appendicitis group. The diagnostic performance of CRP and sB7H3 could not merely predict perforation of AA in children; however, the diagnostic performance was improved after combination.Conclusions: sB7H3 could be used as a valuable marker to predict the presence of AA and complex AA in children. However, the diagnostic value of sB7H3 to predict gangrenous/perforated appendicitis was not found to be remarkable. The combination of sB7H3 and CRP might improve the prediction of perforated appendicitis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The output values for agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery are important indicators of agricultural economic development. Therefore, accurately predicting the output values for agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery can capture the developmental trend and the optimize the structure. Agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery are typical seasonal industries, and thus their output values vary greatly among different seasons. To accurately estimate the seasonal variations in the observed sequence and obtain better prediction results, the output values for agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery in different quarters from 2018 to 2021 are predicted and analyzed by using the grey seasonal model (GSM). The results indicated that the prediction accuracy of GSM is relatively high. The output values for the agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery as well as their total output value will increase gradually. It is an important achievement of structural reform under the new normal economic situation. In addition, the GSM provides a new method for predicting seasonal data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To provide a theoretical basis for the prevention and control of COVID-19 in China, confirmed cases, deaths, and recoveries from COVID-19 in China were predicted using a fractional grey model. The results indicated that the grey model has high forecasting accuracy in the prediction of disease spread. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Risk measures based on the trading option prices in the market are forward-looking, such as VIX. We propose a new method combining distorted lognormal distribution with interpolation to price options accurately and then estimate tail risk. Our method can price the option of any strikes between the maximum and the minimum value of strikes in the real market, which reduces the instability and inaccuracy of using the limited option to measure the risk. In addition, our novel method treats the underlying asset price as a stochastic indicator rather than a fixed indicator as described in previous research studies for risk measurement. Moreover, even if the available sample size is very small, we can measure the risk stably and precisely after interpolation. Finally, the empirical test results of SP500 market show that this method has good performance, especially for the option markets with sparse strikes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the delayed doubly stochastic linear quadratic optimal control problem is discussed. It deduces the expression of the optimal control for the general delayed doubly stochastic control system which contained time delay both in the state variable and in the control variable at the same time and proves its uniqueness by using the classical parallelogram rule. The paper is concerned with the generalized matrix value Riccati equation for a special delayed doubly stochastic linear quadratic control system and aims to give the expression of optimal control and value function by the solution of the Riccati equation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Progranulin (PGRN), which plays an anti-inflammatory role in acute lung injury (ALI), is promising as a potential drug. Studies have shown that regulatory T cells (Tregs) and interleukin- (IL-) 10 can repress inflammation and alleviate tissue damage during ALI. In this study, we built a lipopolysaccharide- (LPS-) induced ALI mouse model to illustrate the effect of PGRN on regulation of Treg differentiation and modulation of IL-10 promoting macrophage polarization. We found that the proportion of Tregs in splenic mononuclear cells and peripheral blood mononuclear cells was higher after treatment with PGRN. The increased proportion of Tregs after PGRN intratracheal instillation was consistent with the decreased severity of lung injury, the reduction of proinflammatory cytokines, and the increase of anti-inflammatory cytokines. In vitro, the percentages of CD4+CD25+FOXP3+ Tregs from splenic naïve CD4+ T cells increased after PGRN treatment. In further research, it was found that PGRN can regulate the anti-inflammatory factor IL-10 and affect the polarization of M1/M2 macrophages by upregulating IL-10. These findings show that PGRN likely plays a protective role in ALI by promoting Treg differentiation and activating IL-10 immunomodulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. Inflammation plays an extremely considerable role in the development and progression of malignancies. Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) and mean platelet volume (MPV) in blood are associated with various inflammatory conditions and resulted in independent prognostic factors for lung cancer. However, whether ANC and MPV can be diagnostic markers for lung cancer remains unknown. This retrospective study investigated the roles of ANC and MPV, either alone or combined, in diagnosing lung cancer. Methods. This study analyzed data from lung cancer patients and healthy individuals in Wuxi People's Hospital Affiliated with Nanjing Medical University. The Mann–Whitney U -test was performed to compare differences between lung cancer patients and healthy individuals. Spearman's correlation analysis was used to assess correlations. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were performed to determine diagnostic accuracy. Results. 209 patients diagnosed with lung cancer and 236 healthy subjects were enrolled in this study. Levels of ANC and MPV increased in lung cancer patients compared with healthy individuals (P < 0.001). ANC had statistically significant negative weak correlation with albumin concentrations (r = ‐ 0.154 , P = 0.026), and MPV had statistically significant negative weak correlation with total protein concentrations (r = ‐ 0.153 , P = 0.027) in lung cancer patients. ANC and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio had statistically significant positive correlation in both lung cancer patients (r = 0.756 , P < 0.001) and healthy subjects (r = 0.639 , P < 0.001). MPV and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio had statistically significant negative weak correlation in both lung cancer patients (r = ‐ 0.242 , P < 0.001) and healthy subjects (r = ‐ 0.325 , P < 0.001). ANC had sensitivity (SEN) and specificity (SPE) of 0.512 and 0.809, respectively, and the area under the curve (AUC) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was 0.656 (0.603-0.710). SEN and SPE of MPV were 0.928 and 0.708, respectively, and the AUC (95% CI) was 0.913 (0.889-0.938). When ANC and MPV were combined, SEN and SPE became 0.842 and 0.835, respectively, and the AUC (95% CI) became 0.919 (0.895-0.943). Conclusions. Compared with ANC or MPV alone, the combination of ANC and MPV can improve diagnostic ability to distinguish lung cancer patients from healthy subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim. To evaluate the clinical impact of β-blocker in patients with adequate left ventricular ejection function (LVEF) who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Methods. A total of 10,724 consecutive patients who underwent PCI throughout 2013 were prospectively enrolled in the study. Among these, we analyzed 5,631 ACS patients who were discharged with LVEF ≥ 40 %. Patients were then compared according to the β-blocker prescription at discharge. Results. During a 2-year follow-up, no significant association was observed of β-blocker use with all-cause mortality (with β-blockers 47/5,043 (0.9%) vs. without β-blocker use 8/588 (1.4%); hazard ratio (HR) 0.762, 95% confidence interval 0.36 to 1.64; P = 0.485), cardiac death, myocardial infarction (MI), or major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events. Subgroup analysis demonstrated that the β-blocker use at discharge reduced the 2-year mortality in patients with unstable angina (UA) (HR 0.42, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.94, P = 0.034). Landmark analysis at 1 year showed that patients with UA who were discharged with β-blockers had lower mortality (HR 0.17, 95% CI 0.04-0.65, P = 0.010) and cardiac death (HR 0.12, 95% CI 0.01-0.99, P = 0.049) than those discharged without β-blockers. However, the benefit was lost beyond 1 year. No differences in outcomes were recorded in the AMI or overall population. Conclusions. We present that β-blocker significantly lowers the rate of all-cause death up to 1 year, in UA patients who have undergone PCI and have adequate LVEF. Its role in patients with AMI also deserves further exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. Inflammation plays an extremely considerable role in the development and progression of malignancies. Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) and mean platelet volume (MPV) in blood are associated with various inflammatory conditions and resulted in independent prognostic factors for lung cancer. However, whether ANC and MPV can be diagnostic markers for lung cancer remains unknown. This retrospective study investigated the roles of ANC and MPV, either alone or combined, in diagnosing lung cancer. Methods. This study analyzed data from lung cancer patients and healthy individuals in Wuxi People's Hospital Affiliated with Nanjing Medical University. The Mann–Whitney U -test was performed to compare differences between lung cancer patients and healthy individuals. Spearman's correlation analysis was used to assess correlations. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were performed to determine diagnostic accuracy. Results. 209 patients diagnosed with lung cancer and 236 healthy subjects were enrolled in this study. Levels of ANC and MPV increased in lung cancer patients compared with healthy individuals (P < 0.001). ANC had statistically significant negative weak correlation with albumin concentrations (r = ‐ 0.154 , P = 0.026), and MPV had statistically significant negative weak correlation with total protein concentrations (r = ‐ 0.153 , P = 0.027) in lung cancer patients. ANC and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio had statistically significant positive correlation in both lung cancer patients (r = 0.756 , P < 0.001) and healthy subjects (r = 0.639 , P < 0.001). MPV and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio had statistically significant negative weak correlation in both lung cancer patients (r = ‐ 0.242 , P < 0.001) and healthy subjects (r = ‐ 0.325 , P < 0.001). ANC had sensitivity (SEN) and specificity (SPE) of 0.512 and 0.809, respectively, and the area under the curve (AUC) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was 0.656 (0.603-0.710). SEN and SPE of MPV were 0.928 and 0.708, respectively, and the AUC (95% CI) was 0.913 (0.889-0.938). When ANC and MPV were combined, SEN and SPE became 0.842 and 0.835, respectively, and the AUC (95% CI) became 0.919 (0.895-0.943). Conclusions. Compared with ANC or MPV alone, the combination of ANC and MPV can improve diagnostic ability to distinguish lung cancer patients from healthy subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the field of neighborhood rough set, attribute reduction is considered as a key topic. Neighborhood relation and rough approximation play crucial roles in the process of obtaining the reduct. Presently, many strategies have been proposed to accelerate such process from the viewpoint of samples. However, these methods speed up the process of obtaining the reduct only from binary relation or rough approximation, and then the obtained results in time consumption may not be fully improved. To fill such a gap, a combined acceleration strategy based on compressing the scanning space of both neighborhood and lower approximation is proposed, which aims to further reduce the time consumption of obtaining the reduct. In addition, 15 UCI data sets have been selected, and the experimental results show us the following: (1) our proposed approach significantly reduces the elapsed time of obtaining the reduct; (2) compared with previous approaches, our combined acceleration strategy will not change the result of the reduct. This research suggests a new trend of attribute reduction using the multiple views. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Accumulating evidence from prospective epidemiological studies has showed that depression disorder (DD) is a risk factor for cancer. The aim of this study is to explore the association of DD and the overall occurrence risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and the mechanism. Methods. In this study, 60 mice were randomly divided into four groups: Control group, DD group, HCC group, HCC-DD group. Mice received a chronic dose of reserpine to establish depression model, followed by Diethylnitrosamine and Carbon tetrachloride administration to establish HCC models. Behavioral depression was assessed by sucrose preference test (SPT) and the expression of Serotonin 1A (5-HT1A) receptor in the hippocampal. The expression of Oatp2a1 and Oatp2b1 in the digestive system tissues was detected by PCR and western blotting. Results. Reserpine-administrated mice had a reducing sucrose preference at Day 14 compared with blank mice (P<0.05). The expression of 5-HT1A receptor in the hippocampal was decreased in DD mice compared with blank mice. The survival analysis indicated that the HCC mice with DD have poorer survival rate compared with the HCC mice. Compared with HCC mice, the expression of Oatp2a1 and Oatp2b1 was lower in liver and stomach tissue and higher in hepatic carcinoma and colon tissue of HCC-DD mice (P<0.05), and the expression of Oatp2a1 was higher in the spleen tissue of HCC-DD mice while the expression of Oatp2b1 was lower (P<0.05). However, no difference was found in the expression of Oatp2a1 and Oatp2b1 in the small intestine tissue between HCC group and HCC-DD group. Conclusions. DD was the adverse factors for the overall occurrence risk of HCC. Mechanistically, be the downregulation of Oatp2a1 and Oatp2b1 in liver tissue induced by DD might be involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In parallel with the prevalence metabolic syndrome, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become the most common chronic liver disease in most countries. It features a constellation of simple steatosis, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), fibrosis, cirrhosis, and even hepatocellular carcinoma. There are no approved drugs for effective management of NAFLD and NASH. Jianpi Huoxue formula (JPHX) mainly consists of Atractylodes macrocephal (Baizhu), Salvia miltiorrhiza (Danshen), Rasux Paeonia Alba (Baishao), Rhizoma Alismatis (Zexie), and Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis (Wuweizi), which may have beneficial effects on NAFLD. The aim of the study was to identify the effect of JPHX on NAFLD. A NAFLD model was induced by methionine-choline-deficient food (MCD) in Wistar rats and orally administered with simultaneous JPHX, once a day for 8 weeks. Hepatocellular injury, lipid profile, inflammation, fibrosis, and apoptosis were evaluated. The results showed that JPHX significantly decreased the abnormal serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels compared with the MCD model (P<0.05). Furthermore, JPHX protected MCD diet-fed rats from accumulation of hepatic triglycerides (TG) and total cholesterol (TC). Histological examination demonstrated that JPHX noticeably normalized the NAFLD activity score (NAS). Moreover, JPHX ameliorated liver inflammation by decreasing TNF-α levels and reduced collagen and matrix metalloproteinases in MCD diet-fed rats. In addition, JPHX prevented rats from MCD-induced cellular apoptosis, as suggested by TUNEL staining, and suppressed the activation of caspase 3 and 7 proteins. JPHX also inhibited the phosphorylation of JNK. In conclusion, JPHX exhibited a hepatoprotective effect against NAFLD in an MCD experimental model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]