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Chloride solid electrolytes (SEs) have attracted widespread attention due to their high room-temperature ionic conductivity and excellent cathode compatibility. However, the conventionally selected central metal elements (e.g., In, Y and Ta) are usually rare and heavy, inevitably causing the high cost and high density of the obtained chloride SEs. Here, by choosing abundant and light Mg and Al as central metal elements, we develop a cheap and low density Li1.2Mg0.95Al0.3Cl4 SE for high active material ratio in all solid state cathode. Partial replacement of Mg2+ by Al3+ in the framework yields vacancies and lowers the non-lithium metal ions occupancy at Mg/Li co-occupied 16d site, effectively relieving the blocking effects by Mg2+ in the pristine spinel Li2−2xMg1+xCl4. Thus, a significantly improved room-temperature conductivity of 3.08 × 10−4 S·cm−1 is achieved, two orders of magnitude higher than that of Li1.2Mg1.4Cl4. More attractively, its low density of only 1.98 g·cm−3 enables low SE mass ratio in cathodes (only 16 wt.%) with still effective electrolyte/cathode contact and lithium-ion conduction inside. When charged to potential of 4.30 V, the asfabricated Li1.2Mg0.95Al0.3Cl4-based solid lithium battery with uncoated NCM523 cathode can be cycled for over 100 cycles with a capacity retention of 86.68% at room temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple myeloma (MM) stands as the second most prevalent hematological malignancy, constituting approximately 10% of all hematological malignancies. Current guidelines recommend upfront autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) for transplant-eligible MM patients. This study seeks to delineate factors influencing post–ASCT outcomes in MM patients. Our cohort comprised 150 MM patients from Taipei Veterans General Hospital, with progression-free survival (PFS) as the primary endpoint and overall survival (OS) as the secondary endpoint. A Cox proportional hazards model was employed to discern potential predictive factors for survival. ASCT age ≥ 65 (hazard ratio [HR] 1.94, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.08–3.47) and the presence of extramedullary disease (HR 2.53, 95% CI 1.53–4.19) negatively impacted PFS. Conversely, treatment response ≥ VGPR before ASCT (HR 0.52, 95% CI 0.31–0.87) and total CD34+ cells collected ≥ 4 × 106 cells/kg on the first stem cell harvesting (HR 0.52, 95% CI 0.32–0.87) were positively associated with PFS. For OS, patients with ISS stage III (HR 2.06, 95% CI 1.05–4.04), the presence of extramedullary disease (HR 3.92, 95% CI 2.03–7.58), light chain ratio ≥ 100 before ASCT (HR 7.08, 95% CI 1.45–34.59), post–ASCT cytomegalovirus infection (HR 9.43, 95% CI 3.09–28.84), and a lower conditioning melphalan dose (< 140 mg/m2; HR 2.75, 95% CI 1.23–6.17) experienced shorter OS. In contrast, post–ASCT day + 15 absolute monocyte counts (D15 AMC) > 500/µl (HR 0.36, 95% CI 0.17–0.79) and post–ASCT day + 15 platelet counts (D15 PLT) > 80,000/µl (HR 0.48, 95% CI 0.24–0.94) were correlated with improved OS. Significantly, early PLT and AMC recovery on day + 15 predicting longer OS represents a novel finding not previously reported. Other factors also align with previous studies. Our study provides real-world insights for post–ASCT outcome prediction beyond clinical trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the potential role of Tongxinluo (TXL) in attenuating myocardial fibrosis after myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI) in mice. Methods: A MIRI mouse model was established by left anterior descending coronary artery ligation for 45 min. According to a random number table, 66 mice were randomly divided into 6 groups (n=11 per group): the sham group, the model group, the LY-294002 group, the TXL group, the TXL+LY-294002 group and the benazepril (BNPL) group. The day after modeling, TXL and BNPL were administered by gavage. Intraperitoneal injection of LY-294002 was performed twice a week for 4 consecutive weeks. Echocardiography was used to measure cardiac function in mice. Masson staining was used to evaluate the degree of myocardial fibrosis in mice. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of endothelial mesenchymal transition (EndMT) after MIRI was performed by immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence staining and flow cytometry, respectively. The protein expressions of platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 (CD31), α-smoth muscle actin (α-SMA), phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) and phospho protein kinase B (p-AKT) were assessed using Western blot. Results: TXL improved cardiac function in MIRI mice, reduced the degree of myocardial fibrosis, increased the expression of CD31 and inhibited the expression of α-SMA, thus inhibited the occurrence of EndMT (P<0.05 or P<0.01). TXL significantly increased the protein expressions of PI3K and p-AKT (P<0.05 or P<0.01). There was no significant difference between TXL and BNPL group (P>0.05). In addition, the use of the PI3K/AKT pathway-specific inhibitor LY-294002 to block this pathway and combination with TXL intervention, eliminated the protective effect of TXL, further supporting the protective effect of TXL. Conclusion: TXL activated the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway to inhibit EndMT and attenuated myocardial fibrosis after MIRI in mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrating logical reasoning and machine learning by approximating logical inference with differentiable operators is a widely used technique in the field of Neuro-Symbolic Learning. However, some differentiable operators could introduce significant biases during backpropagation, which can degrade the performance of Neuro-Symbolic systems. In this paper, we demonstrate that the loss functions derived from fuzzy logic operators commonly exhibit a bias, referred to as Implication Bias. To mitigate this bias, we propose a simple yet efficient method to transform the biased loss functions into Reduced Implication-bias Logic Loss (RILL). Empirical studies demonstrate that RILL outperforms the biased logic loss functions, especially when the knowledge base is incomplete or the supervised training data is insufficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) have recently been suggested as potential functional modulators of cellular physiology processes in gastric cancer (GC). In this study, we demonstrated that circFOXP1 was more highly expressed in GC tissues. High circFOXP1 expression was positively associated with tumor size, lymph node metastasis, TNM stage, and poor prognosis in patients with GC. Cox multivariate analysis revealed that higher circFOXP1 expression was an independent risk factor for disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) in GC patients. Functional studies showed that increased circFOXP1 expression promoted cell proliferation, cell invasion, and cell cycle progression in GC in vitro. In vivo, the knockdown of circFOXP1 inhibited tumor growth. Mechanistically, we observed ALKBH5-mediated m6A modification of circFOXP1 and circFOXP1 promoted GC progression by regulating SOX4 expression and sponging miR-338-3p in GC cells. Thus, our findings highlight that circFOXP1 could serve as a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker and potential therapeutic target for GC. A study found that circFOXP1 was highly expressed in gastric cancer (GC) and demonstrated that ALKBH5-mediated m6A modification of circFOXP1 promoted GC progression by regulating SOX4 expression and sponging miR-338-3p. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although numerous studies have analyzed the ways in which migration influences the life chances of adult immigrants and social inequalities, the association of parental migration with the equality of life chances of left-behind children is unclear. These explorations are important for understanding how opportunity inequalities may evolve into health inequalities and how to promote the equal development of children. This study examined the association between the left-behind experience and the equality of life chances in emerging adulthood among a rural Chinese population. A total of 849 rural Chinese young adults completed questionnaires about the migration of their parents and their living conditions and were assigned to several groups according to gender and type of parents' migration. With non-left-behind children as a reference group, the chance of first marriage was significantly higher for women in the absence of their fathers (HR = 2.56, 95% CI = 1.28–5.13; HR = 2.03, 95% CI = 1.01–4.12) than for men (HR = 0.50, 95% CI = 0.28–0.90; HR = 0.52, 95% CI = 0.28–0.98). Both men (HR = 2.88, 95% CI = 1.39–5.93; HR = 1.80, 95% CI = 8.76) and women (HR = 1.55, 95% CI = 1.09–2.20) had a significantly higher chance of achieving upward educational mobility in the absence of a mother. The chance of finding the first job remained statistically non-significant during the whole analysis. This study found that the childhood left-behind experience was partially associated with life chances in emerging adulthood among the Chinese rural population. These findings linked left-behind experiences in childhood to unequal chances in emerging adulthood. Thus, policy-makers should be encouraged to create an equal and fair social environment. Highlights: The migration of fathers changed the chance of children's marriage, which was manifested in advancing the marriage time of women and delaying the marriage time of men. The migration of mothers can increase the chances of upward educational mobility for both women and men. This study suggested that the Chinese government should create a fair growth environment and reduce socioeconomic inequalities in emerging adulthood for left-behind children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an important forestry pest, Coronaproctus castanopsis (Monophlebidae) has caused serious damage to the globally valuable Gutianshan ecosystem, China. In this study, we assembled the first chromosome-level genome of the female specimen of C. castanopsis by merging BGI reads, HiFi long reads and Hi-C data. The assembled genome size is 700.81 Mb, with a scaffold N50 size of 273.84 Mb and a contig N50 size of 12.37 Mb. Hi-C scaffolding assigned 98.32% (689.03 Mb) of C. Castanopsis genome to three chromosomes. The BUSCO analysis (n = 1,367) showed a completeness of 91.2%, comprising 89.2% of single-copy BUSCOs and 2.0% of multicopy BUSCOs. The mapping ratio of BGI, second-generation RNA, third-generation RNA and HiFi reads are 97.84%, 96.15%, 97.96%, and 99.33%, respectively. We also identified 64.97% (455.3 Mb) repetitive elements, 1,373 non-coding RNAs and 10,542 protein-coding genes. This study assembled a high-quality genome of C. castanopsis, which accumulated valuable molecular data for scale insects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Central South University is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study compared the sentence hyperbole comprehension performance of Chinese poor readers with various levels of arithmetic proficiency. A total of 168 Chinese poor readers in Grade 1 were recruited, and their nonverbal intelligence, verbal working memory, Chinese receptive vocabulary, Chinese grammatical knowledge, character reading and morphological awareness were controlled. The reaction times of these students in correctly answering literal and inferential questions was selected for further comparison. Results of a mixed-effect model analysis show that the participants with good and poor arithmetic proficiency levels demonstrated similar levels of literal information comprehension, regardless of the presentation form of the quantifier construction that was built by the quantifier location of the sentences, the number of numeric characters in a single quantifier and the hyperbole function applied in the sentence quantifier. Students with good arithmetic proficiency also demonstrated faster response in comprehending quantifier inferential information. Primary school students with good arithmetic proficiency outperformed those with poor proficiency in the inferential reading of verbal numeric information. In addition, differences in arithmetic proficiency did not significantly affect the students' word/character semantic representation cognition and shallow literal information processing. Overall, the results distinguish the interaction and independent numerical information processes at the literal and inferential levels of text quantifier comprehension for young primary school students with poor reading proficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at the requirement of autonomous navigation capability of the underwater unmanned vehicle (UUV), a novel bionic method for underwater navigation based on polarization pattern within Snell's window is proposed. Inspired by creatures, polarization navigation is a satellite-free navigation scheme and has great potential to be used in the water. However, because of the complex underwater environment, whether UUV polarization navigation can be realized is doubtful. To illustrate the feasibility of underwater polarization navigation, we firstly establish the model of underwater polarization patterns to prove the stability and predictability of the underwater polarization pattern within Snell's window. Then, we carry out static and dynamic experiments of underwater heading determination based on developed polarization information detection equipment. Finally, we obtain underwater polarization patterns and conduct the tracking experiment at different water depths. The experimental results of the underwater polarization patterns are consistent with the simulation, which proves the correctness of the proposed model. At the water depth of 5 m, the average angle and position error of the tracking experiment are 14.3508° and 4.0812 m, respectively. It is illustrated that underwater polarization navigation is realizable and the precision can meet the real-time navigation requirements of UUV. This study promotes the improvement of underwater navigation ability and the development of marine equipment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cognitive flexibility (CF) is an executive function component related to the ability to flexibly shift amongst multiple incompatible perspectives or descriptions of an object task. However, whether CF enhances the narrative discourse comprehension of students with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) during surface semantic meaning identification remains unclear. This study aimed to examine the impacts of CF on central word (CW) identification amongst primary school students with ADHD and reading comprehension difficulties (i.e. scores in the ≤ 25th percentile of discourse comprehension but with adequate decoding skills and average decoding performance score within one standard deviation). In addition, the association of CF with CW identification performance, when the CW was located in either the first or second half of sentences, was tested with and without the interference of playing music. This study recruited 104 low-CF and 103 high-CF first grade students with ADHD and reading difficulties. Participants received measures of nonverbal intelligence, working memory, Chinese receptive vocabulary, Chinese word reading, CF and a music preference questionnaire. Additionally, participants completed the entire CW identification experiment (about 7 min) individually in a silent classroom located within the school campus. After controlling nonverbal intelligence, working memory, music preference, Chinese receptive vocabulary and Chinese word reading, the results showed that high-CF students had similar poetry discourse comprehension performance with low-CF students when the CWs were at the second half of a sentence. Moreover, high-CF students showed significantly better performance than low-CF students when the CWs were at the first half of the poetry sentences in both conditions with and without music, especially if the poetry sentence structure was more complicated than the typical 'subject-verb-object' sequence. All students with ADHD performed significantly worse in poetry discourse comprehension with music interference than without it. The results highlight the importance of CF in poetry discourse comprehension tasks, particularly when a poetry sentence uses a non-typical structure format. The possible effects of CF on poetry discourse comprehension are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Central South University is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

We construct the four-derivative supersymmetric extension of (1, 0), 6D supergravity coupled to Yang-Mills and hypermultiplets. The hypermultiplet scalars are taken to parametrize the quaternionic projective space Hp(n) = Sp(n, 1)/Sp(n) × Sp(1)R. The hyperscalar kinetic term is not deformed, and the quaternionic Kähler structure and symmetries of Hp(n) are preserved. The result is a three parameter Lagrangian supersymmetric up to first order in these parameters. Considering the case of Hp(1) we compare our result with that obtained from the compactification of 10D heterotic supergravity on four-torus, consistently truncated to N = (1, 0), in which the hyperscalars parametrize SO(1, 4)/SO(4). We find that depending on how the Sp(1) is embedded in the SO(4), the results agree for a specific value of the parameter that governs the higher derivative hypermultiplet couplings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In all species, ribosomes synthesize proteins by faithfully decoding messenger RNA (mRNA) nucleotide sequences using aminoacyl-tRNA substrates. Current knowledge of the decoding mechanism derives principally from studies on bacterial systems1. Although key features are conserved across evolution2, eukaryotes achieve higher-fidelity mRNA decoding than bacteria3. In human, changes in decoding fidelity are linked to ageing and disease and represent a potential point of therapeutic intervention in both viral and cancer treatment4–6. Here we combine single-molecule imaging and cryogenic electron microscopy methods to examine the molecular basis of human ribosome fidelity to reveal that the decoding mechanism is both kinetically and structurally distinct from that of bacteria. Although decoding is globally analogous in both species, the reaction coordinate of aminoacyl-tRNA movement is altered on the human ribosome and the process is an order of magnitude slower. These distinctions arise from eukaryote-specific structural elements in the human ribosome and in the elongation factor eukaryotic elongation factor 1A (eEF1A) that together coordinate faithful tRNA incorporation at each mRNA codon. The distinct nature and timing of conformational changes within the ribosome and eEF1A rationalize how increased decoding fidelity is achieved and potentially regulated in eukaryotic species.The reaction coordinate of aminoacyl-tRNA movement is altered on the human ribosome and the process is an order of magnitude slower compared with bacteria due to eukaryote-specific structural elements in the human ribosome and in the elongation factor eEF1A. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescents and children play an important role in SARS-CoV-2 transmission and epidemiology. MVC-COV1901 is a subunit SARS-CoV-2 vaccine based on stabilized spike protein adjuvanted with CpG 1018 and aluminum hydroxide that has received emergency use approval (EUA) for adults in Taiwan. In this study, we have investigated the safety and immunogenicity of two doses of MVC-COV1901 in adolescents. Healthy adolescents from the age of 12–17 years were randomly assigned to receive two intramuscular doses of either MVC-COV1901 or placebo at 28 days apart. Adverse events were mostly mild and were similar in MVC-COV1901 and placebo groups, with the most commonly reported adverse events being pain/tenderness and malaise/fatigue. All immunogenicity endpoints in the adolescent group were non-inferior to the endpoints seen in the young adult and placebo groups. The results here advocate the use of MVC-COV1901 in adolescents in the ongoing efforts to control the pandemic. ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT04951388. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decreased loading of the paretic lower limb and impaired weight transfer between limbs negatively impact balance control and forward progression during gait in individuals post-stroke. However, the biomechanical and neuromuscular control mechanisms underlying such impaired limb loading remain unclear, partly due to their tendency of avoiding bearing weight on the paretic limb during voluntary movement. Thus, an approach that forces individuals to more fully and rapidly load the paretic limb has been developed. The primary purpose of this study was to compare the neuromechanical responses at the ankle and knee during externally induced limb loading in people with chronic stroke versus able-bodied controls, and determine whether energy absorption capacity, measured during induced limb loading of the paretic limb, was associated with walking characteristics in individuals post-stroke. Results revealed reduced rate of energy absorption and dorsiflexion velocity at the ankle joint during induced limb loading in both the paretic and non-paretic side in individuals post-stroke compared to healthy controls. The co-contraction index was higher in the paretic ankle and knee joints compared to the non-paretic side. In addition, the rate of energy absorption at the paretic ankle joint during the induced limb loading was positively correlated with maximum walking speed and negatively correlated with double limb support duration. These findings demonstrated that deficits in ankle dorsiflexion velocity may limit the mechanical energy absorption capacity of the joint and thereby affect the lower limb loading process during gait following stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There exist two four-derivative extensions of N = (1, 0) supergravity in six dimensions. A particular combination of them is known to dualize to the analog of the Bergshoeff-de Roo (BdR) action in 10D. Here we first show that the two extensions are not related to each other by any field redefinitions. Next, we dualize them separately thereby obtaining a two parameter dual theory. This is done directly at the level of the action, thus avoiding the laborious method of integrating equations of motion of the dualized theory into an action. To explore whether a similar phenomenon exists in 10D, we study the dualization of the BdR action in 10D in detail. We find an obstacle in the separation of the result into a sum of two independent invariants because of the presence of terms which do not lift from 6D to 10D. We also compare the dual of the BdR action with an existing result obtained in superspace. We find that the bosonic actions agree modulo field redefinitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ceramic cores are widely used in investment casting, and ideal properties of cores are essential for high-quality castings. Under the circumstances requiring thick cores, solid cores are likely to encounter deformation and cracking defects due to the accumulation of shrinkage. Therefore, with the superiority of ceramic stereolithography in producing complex ceramic parts, hollow cores with lattice structures were designed and fabricated. The dimensional accuracy and properties of the green and sintered bodies were evaluated. Results show the dimensional accuracy of sintered cores is controlled within ±0.25 mm benefited from the precise green bodies. The mechanical properties are not obviously deteriorated. The bending strength reaches 11.94 MPa at room temperature and 12.87 MPa at 1,500 °C with a creep deformation of 0.345 mm. Furthermore, casting verifications prove that the hollow cores meet the requirements of investment casting. Smooth casting surfaces are obtained, at the same time, the core-removal efficiency is improved by over 3 times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydraulic simulation is one of the critical methods to research the filling mechanism of molten metal in the casting process. However, it only performs on test pieces with relatively simple structures due to the limitation of the preparation method. In this study, the method of photocuring additive manufacturing was used to prepare the complex casting mould from transparent photosensitive resin. The pouring test was carried out under different centrifugal conditions, and the filling process of the gating system, support bars and other positions in the vertical direction was recorded and analyzed. The experimental results show that the internal liquid level and the filling process of the test piece prepared by this method can be observed clearly. The angle between the liquid surface and the horizontal plane in the test piece gradually increases as the centrifugal rotational speed increases, which means the filling process is carried out from outside to inside at high rotational speed. The velocity of the fluid entering the runner increases with the increase of rotational speed, but the filling speeds is less affected by the centrifugal speed at other positions. The liquid flow is continuous and stable during the forward filling process, without splashing or interruption of liquid droplets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Rare Metals is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Severe viral pneumonia caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is characterized by a hyperinflammatory state typified by elevated circulating pro-inflammatory cytokines, frequently leading to potentially lethal vascular complications including thromboembolism, disseminated intracellular coagulopathy and vasculitis. Though endothelial infection and subsequent endothelial damage have been described in patients with fatal COVID-19, the mechanism by which this occurs remains elusive, particularly given that, under naïve conditions, pulmonary endothelial cells demonstrate minimal cell surface expression of the SARS-CoV-2 binding receptor ACE2. Herein we describe SARS-CoV-2 infection of the pulmonary endothelium in postmortem lung samples from individuals who died of COVID-19, demonstrating both heterogeneous ACE2 expression and endothelial damage. In primary endothelial cell cultures, we show that SARS-CoV-2 infection is dependent on the induction of ACE2 protein expression and that this process is facilitated by type 1 interferon-alpha (IFNα) or -beta(β)—two of the main anti-viral cytokines induced in severe SARS-CoV-2 infection—but not significantly by other cytokines (including interleukin 6 and interferon γ/λ). Our findings suggest that the stereotypical anti-viral interferon response may paradoxically facilitate the propagation of COVID-19 from the respiratory epithelium to the vasculature, raising concerns regarding the use of exogenous IFNα/β in the treatment of patients with COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patch exploitation strategies have received considerable attention since the development of the marginal value theorem. As an excellent biological research object, parasitoids have been extensively studied in regard to patch exploitation, including the effect of parasitoid states. Longevity and fecundity are state-dependent traits that may affect foraging decisions, oviposition behavior and patch residence time. We investigated the impact of Trichopria drosophilae (Hymenoptera: Diapriidae) states on patch exploitation. As an important endoparasitic wasp in the Drosophila pupal stage, T. drosophilae has potential as a biological control agent. Our results demonstrate that female age, food availability and mating state modulated the patch residence time of T. drosophilae. In addition, the time taken for females to enter a patch was changed by oviposition experience, age, and food availability. Our results are consistent with models that predict that the patch exploitation strategy must be fundamentally dynamic in parasitoids. Differences between patch foraging behavior in wasps with different internal state can be explained by the maximum fitness they achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher derivative couplings of hypermultiplets to 6D, N = (1, 0) supergravity are obtained from dimensional reduction of 10D heterotic supergravity that includes order α′ higher derivative corrections. Reduction on T4 is followed by a consistent truncation. In the resulting action the hyperscalar fields parametrize the coset SO(4, 4)/(SO(4) × SO(4)). While the SO(4, 4) symmetry is ensured by Sen’s construction based on string field theory, its emergence at the field theory level is a nontrivial phenomenon. A number of field redefinitions in the hypermultiplet sector are required to remove several terms that break the SO(4) × SO(4) down to its SO(4) diagonal subgroup in the action and the supersymmetry transformation rules. Working with the Lorentz Chern-Simons term modified 3-form field strength, where the spin connection has the 3-form field strength as torsion, is shown to simplify considerably the dimensional reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypertension or angiotensin II (Ang II) induces cardiac inflammation and fibrosis, thus contributing to cardiac remodeling. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are considered crucial regulators of cardiac homeostasis and remodeling in response to various types of stress. It has been reported that miR-451a is involved in regulating ischemic heart injury. However, its role in Ang II-induced cardiac fibrosis remains unknown. Cardiac remodeling was induced in mice by infusion of low-dose Ang II (490 ng/kg/min) with a minipump for 2 weeks. Echocardiography and histological examinations were performed to evaluate cardiac function and pathological changes. We observed that miR-451a expression was the most significantly downregulated in the hearts of Ang II-infused mice and in both primary cardiac myocytes and fibroblasts. Overexpression of miR-451a in mice significantly attenuated Ang II–induced cardiac fibrosis and inflammation. Conversely, knockdown of miR-451a in mice aggravated this effect. Bioinformatics analysis and a luciferase reporter assay revealed that TBX1 was a direct target of miR-451a. Mechanistically, miR-451a directly targeted TBX1 expression, which inhibited TGF-β1 production in both cardiac myocytes and fibroblasts, inactivating of TGF-β1/SMAD2/3 signaling, inhibiting myofibroblast differentiation and proinflammatory cytokine expression, and leading to attenuation of cardiac fibrosis and inflammation. In conclusion, these results indicate that miR-451a acts as a novel regulator of Ang II–induced cardiac fibrosis and inflammation by directly targeting TBX1, and may be a promising therapeutic target for treating hypertensive cardiac diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a malignancy all over the world. WD repeat domain 5 (WDR5) is involved in cancer progression. In addition, it was reported that WDR5 is upregulated in head and neck cancer, while its role in OSCC is unknown. First, the expression of WDR5 in oral cancer tissues and cells was examined by qRT-PCR, IHF and western blot. CCK-8 assay was performed to test the cell viability. Cell migration was assessed by transwell assay. Knocking down WDR5 or CARM1 in oral cancer cells to detect its function on cancer growth, WDR5 and CARM1 were significantly upregulated in OSCC. Silencing WDR5 suppressed OSCC cell viability and migration. CARM1 level in OSCC cells was significantly inhibited by WDR5 downregulation, and CARM1 elevation could rescue the effect of WDR5 knockdown on tumorigenesis of OSCC. Moreover, silencing of WDR5 notably inactivated β-catenin signaling pathway, while this phenomenon was restored by CARM1 overexpression. Silencing of WDR5 attenuated the tumorigenesis of OSCC via CARM1/β-catenin axis. Thus, WDR5 might be a target for OSCC treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When a fluid system is subject to strong rotation, centrifugal fluid motion is expected, i.e., denser (lighter) fluid moves outward (inward) from (toward) the axis of rotation. Here we demonstrate, both experimentally and numerically, the existence of an unexpected outward motion of warm and lighter vortices in rotating thermal convection. This anomalous vortex motion occurs under rapid rotations when the centrifugal buoyancy is sufficiently strong to induce a symmetry-breaking in the vorticity field, i.e., the vorticity of the cold anticyclones overrides that of the warm cyclones. We show that through hydrodynamic interactions the densely distributed vortices can self-aggregate into coherent clusters and exhibit collective motion in this flow regime. Interestingly, the correlation of the vortex velocity fluctuations within a cluster is scale-free, with the correlation length being proportional (≈ 30%) to the cluster length. Such long-range correlation leads to the counterintuitive collective outward motion of warm vortices. Our study brings insights into the vortex dynamics that are widely present in nature. Ding et al. study the collective motion of densely packed vortices in rotating thermal convection. They uncover the counterintuitive effect of warmer and thus lighter vortices moving outward from the central axis of rotation, driven by long range, scale-free vortex correlations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we consider the following two-coupled fractional Laplacian system with two or more isolated singularities where s ∈ (0, 1), n > 2s and n ≥ 2. μ1, μ2 and β are all positive constants. p1, p2 > 1 and . Λ ⊂ ℝn contains finitely many isolated points. By the method of moving plane, we obtain the symmetry results for positive solutions to above system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Multiple myeloma (MM), a clonal plasma cell malignancy, composes around 10% of hematologic malignancies. Though recent advances in treatment have dramatically improved MM survival, some aggressive courses of disease and dismal outcomes still exist. Low body weight, undernutrition, and cachexia are noted at MM diagnosis. We aim to evaluate the impact of low body mass index (BMI) and undernutrition in MM patients. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed MM patients at Taipei Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan between January 1, 2006 and October 31, 2018. Being underweight is defined as having a BMI of under 18.5 kg/m2. The patient's baseline characteristics, including BMI, serum albumin level, and comorbidities, etc., were recorded. The primary endpoint of the study was all-cause mortality. A Cox regression model was used to estimate the risk factors of mortality. Results: A total of 378 newly diagnosed MM patients were enrolled in this study. The median age of the patients was 69. Thirty patients (7.9%) were underweight at diagnosis. The median overall survival was 1.3 years (95% CI 0.3–5.7) and 5.0 years (95% CI 3.1–5.9) for patients with low BMI and for patients with normal or higher BMI, respectively. In the multivariate analysis, low BMI (95% CI 1.07–4.44), ECOG ≥2 (95% CI 1.02–2.89), hypoalbuminemia (95% CI 1.21–4.01), high LDH (95% CI 1.22–3.49), and light chain ratio > 100 (95% CI 1.06–2.77) were independent risk factors of mortality. Conclusion: MM patients who were underweight, with hypoalbuminemia, poor performance status, higher LDH, and light chain ratio > 100 were associated with poor overall survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies indicated that miRNA plays an important role in human biological processes especially in the field of diseases. However, constrained by biotechnology, only a small part of the miRNA-disease associations has been verified by biological experiment. This impel that more and more researchers pay attention to develop efficient and high-precision computational methods for predicting the potential miRNA-disease associations. Based on the assumption that molecules are related to each other in human physiological processes, we developed a novel structural deep network embedding model (SDNE-MDA) for predicting miRNA-disease association using molecular associations network. Specifically, the SDNE-MDA model first integrating miRNA attribute information by Chao Game Representation (CGR) algorithm and disease attribute information by disease semantic similarity. Secondly, we extract feature by structural deep network embedding from the heterogeneous molecular associations network. Then, a comprehensive feature descriptor is constructed by combining attribute information and behavior information. Finally, Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) is adopted to train and classify these feature descriptors. In the five-fold cross validation experiment, SDNE-MDA achieved AUC of 0.9447 with the prediction accuracy of 87.38% on the HMDD v3.0 dataset. To further verify the performance of SDNE-MDA, we contrasted it with different feature extraction models and classifier models. Moreover, the case studies with three important human diseases, including Breast Neoplasms, Kidney Neoplasms, Lymphoma were implemented by the proposed model. As a result, 47, 46 and 46 out of top-50 predicted disease-related miRNAs have been confirmed by independent databases. These results anticipate that SDNE-MDA would be a reliable computational tool for predicting potential miRNA-disease associations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although HHIP locus has been consistently associated with the susceptibility to COPD including airway remodeling and emphysema in genome-wide association studies, the molecular mechanism underlying this genetic association remains incompletely understood. By utilizing Hhip+/- mice and primary human airway smooth muscle cells (ASMCs), here we aim to determine whether HHIP haploinsufficiency increases airway smooth muscle mass by reprogramming glucose metabolism, thus contributing to airway remodeling in COPD pathogenesis. The mRNA levels of HHIP were compared in normal and COPD-derived ASMCs. Mitochondrial oxygen consumption rate and lactate levels in the medium were measured in COPD-derived ASMCs with or without HHIP overexpression as readouts of glucose oxidative phosphorylation and aerobic glycolysis rates. The proliferation rate was measured in healthy and COPD-derived ASMCs treated with or without 2-DG. Smooth muscle mass around airways was measured by immunofluorescence staining for α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) in lung sections from Hhip+/- mice and their wild type littermates, Hhip+/+ mice. Airway remodeling was assessed in Hhip+/- and Hhip+/- mice exposed to 6 months of cigarette smoke. Our results show HHIP inhibited aerobic glycolysis and represses cell proliferation in COPD-derived ASMCs. Notably, knockdown of HHIP in normal ASMCs increased PKM2 activity. Importantly, Hhip+/- mice demonstrated increased airway remodeling and increased intensity of α-SMA staining around airways compared to Hhip+/+ mice. In conclusion, our findings suggest that HHIP represses aerobic glycolysis and ASMCs hyperplasia, which may contribute to the increased airway remodeling in Hhip+/- mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three-dimensional (3D) printing1–9 has revolutionized manufacturing processes for electronics10–12, optics13–15, energy16,17, robotics18, bioengineering19–21 and sensing22. Downscaling 3D printing23 will enable applications that take advantage of the properties of micro- and nanostructures24,25. However, existing techniques for 3D nanoprinting of metals require a polymer–metal mixture, metallic salts or rheological inks, limiting the choice of material and the purity of the resulting structures. Aerosol lithography has previously been used to assemble arrays of high-purity 3D metal nanostructures on a prepatterned substrate26,27, but in limited geometries26–30. Here we introduce a technique for direct 3D printing of arrays of metal nanostructures with flexible geometry and feature sizes down to hundreds of nanometres, using various materials. The printing process occurs in a dry atmosphere, without the need for polymers or inks. Instead, ions and charged aerosol particles are directed onto a dielectric mask containing an array of holes that floats over a biased silicon substrate. The ions accumulate around each hole, generating electrostatic lenses that focus the charged aerosol particles into nanoscale jets. These jets are guided by converged electric-field lines that form under the hole-containing mask, which acts similarly to the nozzle of a conventional 3D printer, enabling 3D printing of aerosol particles onto the silicon substrate. By moving the substrate during printing, we successfully print various 3D structures, including helices, overhanging nanopillars, rings and letters. In addition, to demonstrate the potential applications of our technique, we printed an array of vertical split-ring resonator structures. In combination with other 3D-printing methods, we expect our 3D-nanoprinting technique to enable substantial advances in nanofabrication.A 3D-printing strategy involving jets of charged aerosol particles guided by electric-field lines allows direct deposition of various metal nanostructures, including helices, letters and vertical split-ring resonator structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pedestrian detection is widely applied in surveillance, autonomous robotic navigation, and automotive safety. However, there are many occlusion problems in real life. This paper summarizes the research progress of pedestrian detection technology with occlusion. First, according to different occlusion, it can be divided into two categories: inter-class occlusion and intra-class occlusion. Second, it summarizes the traditional method and deep learning method to deal with occlusion. Furthermore, the main ideas and core problems of each method model are analyzed and discussed. Finally, the paper gives an outlook on the problems to be solved in the future development of pedestrian detection technology with occlusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structural evolutions of LLDPE-LMW/HMW blend during uniaxial deformation at temperatures of 80 and 120 °C were investigated by the in situ synchrotron radiation small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SR-SAXS/WAXS). The magic sandwich echo (MSE) sequence was used to detect a virtually dead-time-free induction decay (FID) for solid-state NMR analysis. The thermal property of the blend was first checked by DSC, and the temperature dependence of the overall crystallinity was obtained by MSE-FID. The onset melting temperature is determined to be 116 °C (DSD), and the enhanced π-flip motions in the crystalline domains are clearly observed at T > 60 °C by MSE-FID. For deformation at 80 °C, the lamellae become staggered in the strain-softening region as shown by the four-point SAXS pattern, whereas further deformation leads to the melting-recrystallization in the strain-hardening region. For deformation at 120 °C, the six-point SR-SAXS signal appears just after the four-point SR-SAXS signal, which indicates the formation of new lamellae along deformation direction. In addition, no phase transition occurs in the whole deformation process at both temperatures. Current work shows the detailed temperature dependence microstructural evolution of LLDPE-LMW/HMW blend. This is expected to provide more structural information for correlating microscopic structure with macroscopic mechanical performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During underground mining, accurate revelation on the deformation and failure mechanisms of a high-steep slope under multi-layer mining conditions facilitates the prevention and control of geological disasters in mines. Numerical simulation based on discrete element theory can be used to explore the characteristics and mechanism of action of deformation and failure of a slope under complex geological and multi-layer mining conditions. By utilising PFC2D (particle flow code) software, the deformation and failure characteristics of a high-steep slope in Faer Coal Mine in Guizhou Province, China were investigated. Additionally, the mechanism of influence of different numbers of mining layers on the deformation and failure of the high and steep slope was elucidated. The result showed that after the goaf passed by the slope toe, multi-layer mining aggravated the subsidence and deformation of the slope toe: the slope toppled forward as it sank. The toppling of the slope changed the slope structures: the strata in the front of the slope were transformed from anti-dip to down-dip features. Extruded by collapsed–toppled rock mass, the slope toe and the rock mass located in the lower part of the slope toe generally exhibited a locking effect on the slope. Multi-layer mining degraded the overall stability of the slope, in that the total displacement of the slope was much greater than the total mining thickness of the coal seams. Based on the aforementioned research, ideas for preventing and controlling geological disasters during mining operations under a high-steep slope were proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infection is associated with great morbidity and mortality in patients with multiple myeloma (MM), but evidence for invasive fungal infections (IFIs) is lacking. We aimed to investigate risk factors for IFI in MM patients and to determine its impact on patients' survival. We retrospectively analyzed MM patients at Taipei Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan between January 2002 and October 2018. MM was diagnosed according to the International Myeloma Working Group criteria. IFI was defined according to the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer/Mycoses Study Group criteria. All risk factors of IFI in MM patients were estimated using Cox regression models in the univariate and multivariate analyses. Of the 623 patients recruited, 22 (3.5%) were diagnosed with proven or probable IFI. Light chain disease (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 6.74, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.10-21.66), hemoglobin less than 8 g/dl (adjusted HR 3.34, 95% CI 1.32-8.42), serum albumin < 3.5 g/dl (adjusted HR 3.24, 95% CI 1.09-9.68), and having received allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) (adjusted HR 5.98, 95% CI 1.62-22.03) were significantly associated with IFI in the multivariate analysis. Contracting IFI was in turn associated with early mortality (adjusted HR 11.60, 95% CI 1.26-106.74). Light chain disease, anemia, hypoalbuminemia, and receiving allo-SCT were independent predictors of IFI in MM patients. The early mortality risk is much higher in those encountering IFI. Physicians must be aware of the rare but potentially lethal infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dynamic origin-destination (OD) demand estimation and prediction (DODE) and drivers' route diversion behavior (DRDB) are two fundamental determinants in the development of effective group route guidance (GRG) strategies for balancing traffic loads and enhancing system performance. This work presents a unified approach to incorporate DRDB into a DODE model. This model accounts for the influence of route diversion on DODE and predicts the OD demand in information provision environment. This study also develops a dynamic aggregate DRDB model based on the traffic data obtained through online detection and integrates this model with the DODE model. The test results of the case study show that the maximum deviation between the real OD volumes and the proposed DODE model under information provision, mean absolute percentage error, and normalized root mean square error is approximately 11.46%, 4.53%, and 5.29%, respectively. The integrated demand-diversion prediction model can accurately estimate and predict possible DRDB and the effect of traffic information on OD demand prediction using real-time traffic detected data. The model can also enhance the accuracy of OD demand and traffic state prediction under information provision, consequently increasing the effectiveness of the proposed GRG strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The non-physiologic turbulent flows in centrifugal rotary blood pumps (RBPs) may result in complications such as the hemolysis and the platelet activation. Recent researches suggest that the turbulent viscous dissipation in the smallest eddies is the main factor of the blood trauma caused by the turbulent flow. The turbulent viscous shear stress (TVSS) was taken as the realistic physical force acting on the cells. However, limited by the temporal and spatial resolutions of the instrumentation currently available, very limited studies are available for the TVSS in the RBPs. In this paper, the large eddy particle image velocimetry (PIV) method is used to estimate the turbulent dissipation rate in the sub-grid scale, to investigate the effect of the TVSS on the blood trauma. Detailed flow characteristics, such as the relative velocity vectors, the estimated TVSS levels and the Kolmogorov length scales, are analyzed in three impeller phases at three constant flow rates (3 L/min, 5 L/min and 7 L/min). Over the measures range in this study, the maximum TVSS in the investigated RBP is lower than the reported critical value of stress. This study demonstrates that the large eddy PIV method is effective to evaluate the flow-dependent force on the cells. On the other hand, it is found that the TVSS is highly dependent on the flow behavior. Under severe off-design conditions, the complex flow characteristics, such as the flow separation and the vortical structures, will increase the TVSS. Thus, in order to reduce the hemolysis in the RBPs, the flow disturbance, induced by the departure of the incidence angle, should be avoided during the design of the RBPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alpine meadows, comprising the main ecosystem of the Three-River Source Region, play an important role in the economic development of western pastoral areas. To determine whether the grazing level was too intense or the nutrient-carrying capacity of the meadows was overloaded, and to offer solutions in Maqin County, Qinghai Province, China, the meadows carrying capacity was determined by combining grass-yield and nutrients data for different seasons across different meadows. The results showed that the levels of crude protein (CP), ether extract (EE), ash, soluble sugars (SS), gas production, and energy value of forage in the summer–autumn grazing meadows were higher than those of the winter–spring meadows. Neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) of forage in the summer–autumn grazing meadows were lower than those of the winter–spring meadows. We found that no pastures were overloaded with metabolizable energy (ME) for the whole year but digestible crude protein (DCP) was overloaded in winter–spring. And there were differences in the amount carrying capacity (forage yield) of seasonal grazing meadows for the different herds, the overload types were annual overloading (herd A), overloaded in summer–autumn (herd B), overloaded in winter–spring (herd C), and not overloaded (herd D). Compared with the previous grazing mode, theoretical carrying capacity, DCP carrying capacity, and ME carrying capacity of herd A increased by 20, 19, and 27 sheep units, respectively, after optimization; herd B: 36, 31, and 45 sheep units, respectively; herd C: 28, 23, and 44 sheep units, respectively; and herd D: 43, 40, and 61 sheep units, respectively. In the Three-River Source Region and similar alpine pastoral areas, the grassland-livestock structure should be optimized to improve grassland vegetation status and increase the theoretical carrying capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The aim of this study was to prospectively quantify the rate of myocardial glucose uptake (MRGlu) in myocardium with different perfusion-metabolism patterns and determine its prognostic value in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy.Methods and Results: 79 patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy were prospectively enrolled for dynamic cardiac FDG PET, and then followed for at least 6 months. Perfusion-metabolism patterns were determined based on visual score analysis of 201Tl SPECT and FDG PET. MRGlu was analyzed using the Patlak kinetic model. The primary end-point was cardiovascular mortality. Significantly higher MRGlu was observed in viable compared with non-viable areas. Negative correlations were found between MRGlu in transmural match and a history of hyperlipidemia, statin usage, and triglyceride levels. Diabetic patients receiving dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP4i) had a significantly lower MRGlu in transmural match, mismatch, and reverse mismatch. Patients with MRGlu in transmural match ≥ 23.40 or reverse mismatch ≥ 36.90 had a worse outcome.Conclusions: Myocardial glucose utilization was influenced by substrates and medications, including statins and DPP4i. MRGlu could discriminate between viable and non-viable myocardium, and MRGlu in transmural match and reverse mismatch may be prognostic predictors of cardiovascular death in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Dynamic 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET can be used to quantitatively assess the rate of myocardial glucose uptake (MRGlu). The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical significance and prognostic value of right ventricular (RV) MRGlu in patients with coronary artery disease and heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. Methods: Patients with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤ 40% were consecutively enrolled for FDG PET between November 2012 and May 2017. Global LV and RV MRGlu (μmol/min/100 g) were analyzed. Outcome events were independently assessed using electronic medical records to determine hospitalization for revascularization, new-onset ischemic events, heart failure, cardiovascular, and all-cause death. Differences between LV and RV MRGlu and associations with clinical characteristics and echocardiographic data were evaluated. Associations among FDG PET findings and outcomes were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Results: Seventy-five patients (mean age 62.2 ± 12.7 years, male 85.3%, LVEF 19.3 ± 8.6%) were included for analysis. The mean glucose utilization ratio of RV-to-LV (RV/LV MRGlu) was 89.5 ± 264.9% (r = 0.77, p < 0.001). Positive correlations between RV MRGlu and maximal tricuspid regurgitation peak gradient (r = 0.28, p = 0.033) and peak tricuspid regurgitation jet velocity (r = 0.29, p = 0.021) were noted. LVEF was positively correlated with LV MRGlu (r = 0.27, p = 0.018), but negatively correlated with end-diastolic volume (r = − 0.37, p = 0.001), end-systolic volume (r = − 0.54, p < 0.001), and RV/LV MRGlu (r = − 0.40, p < 0.001). However, RV MRGlu was not well correlated with LVEF. Forty-three patients received revascularization procedures after FDG PET, and 13 patients died in a mean follow-up period of 496 ± 453 days (1–1788 days), including nine cardiovascular deaths. Higher RV and LV MRGlu values, LVEF ≤ 16% and LV end-diastolic volume ≥ 209 ml of gated-PET were associated with poor overall survival and cardiac outcomes. Conclusions: In patients with coronary artery disease and ischemic cardiomyopathy, RV glucose utilization was positively correlated with RV pressure overload, but not LVEF. Global LV and RV MRGlu, LVEF, and LV end-diastolic volume showed significant prognostic value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pain due to oral mucositis (OM) is a major problem during concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients.Methods: We enrolled 56 NPC patients receiving CCRT and allocated them into two groups: moderate pain group (n = 27) and a severe pain group (n = 29) according to the degree of pain reported (moderate = numerical rating scale (NRS) score 4-6 or severe = NRS score 7-10) at initiation of controlled-release oxycodone (CRO) treatment.Results: Total dose of CRO was significantly higher in severe pain patients than in moderate pain patients (791.60 ± 332.449 mg vs. 587.27 ± 194.940 mg; P = 0.015). Moderate pain patients had significantly better quality of life (P = 0.037), lower weight loss (P = 0.030) and more active CCRT response (90.9% vs. 64.0%; P = 0.041). Although 24-h pain control rate was comparable in the two groups (85.2% vs. 86.2%; P = 0.508), the moderate pain group score eventually stabilized at ~ 2 vs. 3 in the severe pain group (P < 0.001); the titration time to reach bearable pain (NRS ≤ 3) was also significantly shorter in moderate pain patients (2.45 ± 0.60 days vs. 3.60 ± 1.98 days; P = 0.012). Incidence of adverse events was comparable in both groups.Conclusions: The study findings suggest that early introduction of low-dose CRO at the moderate pain stage could help reduce the total dose required, provide better pain control, improve quality of life, and enhance CCRT response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cerebrovascular complications after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) cause serious morbidity and often contribute to mortality. The incidence, risk factors, and outcome of cerebrovascular disease (CVD) after allogeneic HSCT remain poorly defined. We retrospectively evaluated 459 adult patients who underwent allogeneic HSCT at a tertiary medical center between January 2003 and December 2015. A total of 20 patients (4.4%) developed post-transplant CVD. All cerebrovascular accidents occurred in the first two years post-transplant. The two-year incidences of post-transplant CVD, intracranial hemorrhage, and cerebrovascular infarction were 6.1%, 3.2%, and 3.2%, respectively. The incidence rate of CVD within two years after HSCT was 34.7 (95% CI 22.3 to - 53.7) per 1000 person-years, which was about tenfold higher than the general Taiwanese population. The only significant risk factor associated with post-transplant CVD is prior exposure to three or more courses of high-dose cytarabine. Post-transplant CVD is associated with dismal outcome and early mortality. The median overall survival of patients with post-transplant CVD was markedly reduced compared with those without CVD (8.0 vs. 60.6 months). Most patients with post-transplant CVD died within two months after the CVD events. Our study demonstrates that CVD remains a devastating complication after allogeneic HSCT in the modern era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subcutaneous panniculitis-like T-cell lymphoma (SPTL) is a rare form of cytotoxic T-cell lymphoma. It is believed that SPTL in patients without hemophagocytic syndrome (HPS) follows an indolent course; in contrast, SPTL in patients with HPS has been associated with unfavorable survival. To provide more clinical data on SPTL in Asian populations and to identify optimal therapeutic strategies for SPTL, we assessed the clinicopathological features and long-term follow-up data of 10 Taiwanese SPTL patients diagnosed at a single center. Our study demonstrates a group of patients with high incidence of HPS (50%), rather aggressive courses, and early progression. A total of eight patients underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT), including one autologous HSCT and seven allogeneic HSCT. Seven of eight patients receiving HSCT achieved durable remission and maintained in remission for over 30 months (range 30-132 months). There was no difference in 3-year survival of patients with HPS (80%) compared with patients without HPS (80%). Of long-term survivors in the HPS group, three of four received HSCT (autologous HSCT, n = 1; allogeneic HSCT, n = 2). Our study indicated that HSCT is a curative option for eligible SPTL patients with HPS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The corrosion behavior of 16Mn steel was studied in saturated H2S or H2S/CO2 solutions containing different Cl− concentrations at 80 °C. The microstructure and chemical composition of the corrosion products were investigated through scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, EPMA, and X-ray diffraction. Results showed that the corrosion rate decreased with increasing Cl− concentration in saturated H2S or H2S/CO2 solution at pH 4. Conversely, the corrosion rate increased with increasing Cl− concentration in saturated H2S solution at pH 6. The relative H+ concentration decreased because of the increase of Cl− concentration at pH 4, and Cl− acted as a catalyst in the corrosive medium at pH 6 because the net H+ concentration decreased obviously compared with the condition at pH4. Cl− promoted the formation of Fe-deficient iron sulfide at pH 4, and the opposite effect was observed in the nearly neutral solution. The corrosion rate increased firstly with increasing Cl− concentration and then decreased in the saturated H2S/CO2 solution at pH 6. The corrosion products were mainly composed of two kinds of iron sulfide. Sulfide FeS1−x was a kind of tetragonal crystal, whereas the other was the hexagonal/monoclinic iron sulfide Fe1−xS. The corrosion film that was mainly composed of FeS1−x did not confer a protective effect on the base metal. The atomic ratio of Fe/S was more than 1 for FeS1−x. The appearance of sulfide FeS1−x resembled a square block or small, needle-like, flocculent particles. The atomic ratio of Fe/S was less than 1 for Fe1−xS, and the corrosion film mainly composed of Fe1−xS conferred some protective property on the base metal. The sulfide FeS1−x exhibited a long claviform morphology with a hexagonal or quadrilateral cross-sectional shape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An operational storm surge forecasting system aimed at providing warning information for storm surges has been developed and evaluated using four typhoon events. The warning system triggered by typhoon forecasts from Taiwan Cooperative Precipitation Ensemble Forecast Experiment (TAPEX) has been executed with two storm surge forecasting scenarios with and without tides. Three numerical experiments applying different meteorological inputs have been designed to assess the impact of typhoon forcing on storm surges. One uses synthetic wind fields, and the others use realistic wind fields with and without adjustments to the initial wind fields for the background circulation. Local observations from Central Weather Bureau (CWB) weather stations and tide gauge stations are used to evaluate the wind fields and storm surges from our numerical experiments. The comparison results show that the accuracy of the storm surge forecast is dominated by the track, the intensity, and the driving flow of a typhoon. When the structure of a typhoon is disturbed by Taiwan’s topography, using meteorological inputs from real wind fields can result in a better typhoon simulation than using inputs from synthetic wind fields. The driving flow also determines the impact of topography on typhoon movement. For quickly moving typhoons, storm forcing from TAPEX is reliable when a typhoon is strong enough to be relatively unaffected by environmental flows; otherwise, storm forcing from a sophisticated typhoon initialization scheme that better simulates the typhoon and environmental flows results in a more accurate prediction of storm surges. Therefore, when a typhoon moves slowly and interacts more with the topography and environmental flows, incorporating realistic wind fields with adjustments to the initial wind fields for the background circulation in the warning system will obtain better predictions for a typhoon and its resultant storm surges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Networks of natural protein nanofibrils, such as cytoskeletal filaments, control the shape and the division of cells, yet mimicking this functionality in a synthetic setting has proved challenging. Here, we demonstrate that artificial networks of protein nanofibrils can induce controlled deformation and division of all-aqueous emulsion droplets with budding-like morphologies. We show that this process is driven by the difference in the immersional wetting energy of the nanofibril network, and that both the size and the number of the daughter droplets formed during division can be controlled by modulating the fibril concentration and the chemical properties of the fibril network. Our results demonstrate a route for achieving biomimetic division with synthetic self-assembling fibrils and offer an engineered approach to regulate the morphology of protein gels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]