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Understanding the mechanical properties of rocks under high temperature thermal cycles is critically important for deep geotechnical engineering construction. In this study, the mechanical properties and fracture evolution characteristics of Beishan granite after different temperatures of 25–800 °C and thermal cycles were investigated through multiple experiments. The results show that the tensile strength (σt) decreased from 7.49 MPa to 0.47 MPa as the temperature increased from 25 ℃ to 800 ℃, and further decreased to 0.43 MPa after thermal cycling. Incremental temperatures led to more active AE events, with AE cumulative events increasing from 25,250 at 25 °C to 99,389 at 800 °C, but AE cumulative events decreased in thermal cycles. The b-value presented higher level fluctuations at T ≤ 400 °C. When T ≥ 600 °C, the b-value before failure decreased and maintained small dramatic fluctuations, but fluctuated upward in the post-peak failure stage, indicating that rock failure changed from brittle failure to plastic failure. The proportion of shear cracks increased substantially with temperature and thermal cycles, from 14.22% at 25 °C to 23.11% at 800 °C. It can be also found that the damage variable (DAE) increased with temperature under the same condition of stress. The physical and chemical reactions within granite at high temperature led to the initiation, development, and connectivity of numerous microcracks, especially when T ≥ 600 °C. The alternating thermal stress generated by cyclic heating will further promote the increase and propagation of microcracks, thereby exacerbating the damage to granite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hippo pathway is commonly altered in cancer initiation and progression; however, exactly how this pathway becomes dysregulated to promote human cancer development remains unclear. Here we analyze the Hippo somatic mutations in the human cancer genome and functionally annotate their roles in targeting the Hippo pathway. We identify a total of 85 loss-of-function (LOF) missense mutations for Hippo pathway genes and elucidate their underlying mechanisms. Interestingly, we reveal zinc-finger domain as an integral structure for MOB1 function, whose LOF mutations in head and neck cancer promote tumor growth. Moreover, the schwannoma/meningioma-derived NF2 LOF mutations not only inhibit its tumor suppressive function in the Hippo pathway, but also gain an oncogenic role for NF2 by activating the VANGL-JNK pathway. Collectively, our study not only offers a rich somatic mutation resource for investigating the Hippo pathway in human cancers, but also provides a molecular basis for Hippo-based cancer therapy.The Hippo signalling pathway is commonly mutated across cancer types. Here, the authors identify 85 loss-of-function missense mutations within Hippo signalling genes and highlight the mechanisms underpinning mutations in MOB1 and NF2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we study the approximate controllability problem for a system of nonlocal integro-differential equations with impulsive effects. We start by investigating the existence and uniqueness of solutions for this system. The results are derived using the theory of resolvent operators combined with fixed point theory in a generalized Banach space. Next, we examine approximate controllability without necessarily requiring the nonlinear terms to be uniformly bounded. In particular, we do not impose here the compactness condition for either the resolvent operator or the state-dependent function in the nonlocal condition, as is commonly found in the literature. Finally, we provide an example to demonstrate the abstract results of this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to explore the glycolytic remodeling under high-selenium (Se) stress. Three groups of male C57BL/6J mice were fed on diets with different Se contents (0.03, 0.15, and 0.30 mg Se/kg). Glucose tolerance test (GTT) and insulin tolerance test (ITT) were measured at the third month. Mice were killed at the fourth month. Plasma, liver, and muscle tissues were fetched for biochemistry and Se analysis. The expressions of insulin signaling pathway (PI3K-AKT-mTOR), glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPX1), selenoprotein N (SELENON), 3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH), serine hydroxymethyltransferases 1 (SHMT1), 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR), and methionine synthase (MS) were analyzed by western blotting (WB) in liver and muscle tissues. The results of GTT and ITT showed that glucose tolerance and insulin tolerance were both abnormal in the 0.03 mg Se/kg and 0.3 mg Se/kg groups. Se concentrations in plasma, liver, and muscle of 0.03 mg Se/kg group were significantly lower than that of 0.15 mg Se/kg and 0.30 mg Se/kg groups (p < 0.05 or p < 0.01). The expressions of P-Akt (Thr-308) in muscle (p < 0.05) and PI3K and mTOR in liver (p < 0.001) of 0.30 mg Se/kg group were downregulated. The expressions of GPX1 in liver and muscle (p < 0.05 and p < 0.001), SELENON in muscle (p < 0.05), PHGDH in liver and muscle (p < 0.05), and SHMT1 (p < 0.05), MTHFR (p < 0.001), and MS (p < 0.001) in muscle of 0.3 mg Se/kg group were upregulated. The de novo serine synthesis pathway (SSP) was found to be activated in liver and muscle tissues of mice with a high-Se diet for the first time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thyroid hormones (THs) may affect chronic thyrotoxic myopathy (CTM). The relationship between TH sensitivity and CTM is inconsistent. We aimed to investigate the associations between TH sensitivity and the risk of CTM and to screen potential CTMs with strength and function tests. A total of 162 Chinese patients (36.58% men) with Graves' disease were enrolled and divided into CTM and non-CTM groups. TH and sensitivity indices were measured. Muscle power and function were assessed by grip, upper-limb fatigue (ULFT), lower-limb fatigue (LLFT), and squat-up (SUT) tests, and walking pace. Association between sensitivity to TH indices and the risk of developing CTM was assessed via multivariate logistic regression. The diagnostic effectiveness of muscle power and function for predicting CTM was evaluated via receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Thyroid feedback quantile-based index FT3 (TFQIFT3) and the parametric TFQIFT3 (PTFQIFT3), TFQIFT4, and PTFQIFT4 were positively associated with CTM risk by using inverse probability of treatment weighting multivariate logistic regression. For each 1-SD increase in TFQIFT3 and PTFQIFT3, TFQIFT4 and PTFQIFT4, the odds ratios for CTM were 1.67 (95% CI = 1.17–2.48) ,1.64 (95% CI = 1.51–2.93), 1.60 (95%CI = 1.12–2.32), 1.58 (95%CI = 1.11–2.30), respectively. LLFT and SUT best predicted male/female CTM, respectively (AUC = 0.89/0.85). In Graves' disease patients, TH sensitivity is associated with CTM development, which can be predicted by SUT and LLFT results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, Ag/TiO2 NH3-SCO catalyst was prepared by impregnation-rotary evaporation method with different calcination temperature and Ag loading content. The results of performance evaluation and characterization showed that the 10 wt% Ag/TiO2 catalyst calcined at 500 °C showed the best comprehensive performance, with T99 reaching 175 °C and N2 selectivity reaching 80% at high temperatures. High-temperature calcination will lead to a significant decline in catalyst activity, accompanied by the transformation of TiO2 from anatase to rutile phase and the obvious change and loss of Ag active sites, which greatly reduces the NH3 adsorption and redox ability, but it can still maintain a high N2 selectivity due to unchanged reaction mechanism. In addition, with the increase of Ag loading, excess Ag on Ag/TiO2 will form metal clusters due to the lack of sufficient anchor points, which helps to improve NH3-SCO activity. However, excessive Ag loading will reduce the specific surface area and acidic sites, and the Ag species on the catalyst surface will also change to the form of larger particles of Ag2O, which will lead to the decline of catalytic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bioaerosols in public transportation systems raise critical environmental concerns, seriously threatening passenger health and safety. In this study, we investigate the spread characteristics of bioaerosols in a standard type-B subway compartment using both air sampling and sediment sampling methods. Additionally, without compromising indoor passenger comfort, two self-designed air purification devices, based on intense field dielectric (IFD) and dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) technologies, respectively, are successfully applied for the improvement of the subway air quality. The results show that bioaerosols can propagate rapidly throughout the entire compartment in 5 min via airborne transmission. Under the effect of the symmetric air ducts and compartment structure, the difference in bioaerosol concentration in the air is less than 10% between both ends of the compartment. Concurrent substantial bioaerosol deposition on the ground, seats, and windows underscores the risk of contact transmission. Furthermore, the real-time purification rates of the two devices integrated into the air conditioning system reach 59.40% and 44.98%, respectively. With their demonstrated high efficiency in purifying bioaerosols and modular design featuring low energy consumption, easy cleaning, and reusability, these devices stand out as viable long-term solutions for large traffic vehicles. These research findings provide practical equipment recommendations and installation strategies for optimizing indoor air quality in subways and are applicable to other similar transportation systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of present work is to evaluate pyrolysis characteristics of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and its blends with sugarcane bagasse (SB) contents of 10 and 20 mass % for the purpose of exploring the effect of SB on pyrolysis of PMMA. Non-isothermal pyrolysis determinations of three PMMA samples were performed thermogravimetrically and the initial pyrolysis temperatures of two PMMA blends are significantly lower than that of pure PMMA while the main pyrolysis shifts to higher temperature range. Using model-free isoconversional methods, pyrolysis activation energies calculated are varying within 71.7 ~ 154.0, 107.8 ~ 192.0 and 121.3 ~ 171.0 kJ·mol−1 for PMMA and its 10 or 20 mass % SB blends, respectively. The added SB turns to increase the activation energy of PMMA and thus make pyrolysis of PMMA become more arduous to accomplish. With the model-fitting method, the order-based F2/3, F3 and F3 chemical reaction models are found to be the most appropriate pyrolysis mechanisms for PMMA and its 10 or 20 mass % SB blends, respectively. Accordingly, their pre-exponential factor values are estimated to separately span in the range of 3.23 × 104 ~ 1.76 × 1011, 3.52 × 108 ~ 7.63 × 1016 and 1.55 × 1010 ~ 1.13 × 1015 min−1. The findings acquired from present work can provide necessary information for performing potential pyrolysis designs of PMMA and its biomass blended wastes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a highly debilitating disorder of the central nervous system that can severely impact an affected patient's quality of life. This study aimed to examine how adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cell exosomes (ADSC-exos) can be used to treat spinal cord injury. We analysed differentially expressed mRNAs in SCI using bioinformatics data, gene expression profiles in inflammatory cell models, RT-qPCR and WB. Apoptosis was detected with flow cytometry. Starbase provides the control mechanism for FDFT1. Target interactions were detected with dual-luciferase reporter and RIP assays. Exosomes were isolated from adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells and subsequently characterized with western blot analysis, transmission electron microscopy and nanoparticle tracking analysis. By analysing the GSE102964 database, we found that FDFT1 was significantly downregulated as SCI progressed. Overexpression of FDFT1 can significantly reverse the inflammatory response and apoptosis of BV2 cells induced by hemin. Mechanically, ADSC-exos can affect the expression of FDFT1 through the ceRNA mechanism mediated by LRRC75A-AS1 and in an RBP-dependent manner mediated by IGF2BP2. The overexpression of LRRC75A-AS1 significantly enhances BV2 apoptosis and can be reversed by FDFT1 knockdown. ADSC-exos LRRC75A-AS1 inhibits inflammation and reduces SCI by increasing the expression and stability of FDFT1 mRNA in a ceRNA and RBP-dependent manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To control the transition process in a laminar separation bubble (LSB) over an ultra-high load compressor blade at a Re of 1.5×105, the effects of wall heat transfer were considered and numerically investigated by large eddy simulations (LES). Compared with the adiabatic wall condition, the local kinematic viscosity of airflow was reduced by wall cooling; thus the effects of turbulent dissipation on the growth of fluctuations were weakened. As such, the transition occurred much earlier, and the size of LSB became smaller. On the cooled surface, the spanwise vortices deformed much more rapidly and the size of hairpin vortex structures was decreased. Furthermore, the rolling-up of 3D hairpin vortices and the ejection and sweeping process very close to the blade surface was weakened. Correspondingly, the aerodynamic losses of the compressor blade were reduced by 18.2% and 38.4% for the two cooled wall conditions. The results demonstrated the feasibility of wall cooling in controlling the transition within an LSB and reducing the aerodynamic loss of an ultra-highly loaded compressor blade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Joints are the weak parts of the prefabricated frame tunnels, and their mechanical behavior under high temperature conditions is not clear. In this research, a thermal-mechanical coupling numerical model of the tunnel joint is established with reference to an actual assembled frame tunnel. The flexural and shear performance of the joint at room temperature and high temperature are investigated. The effects of axial force, steel plate thickness, steel box thickness, bolt diameter, concrete strength and steel bar diameter on the mechanical properties of the joint are analysed, and the importance of these parameters is evaluated by grey relational analysis. The results show that the flexural and shear bearing capacities of this type of joint decrease significantly at high temperature. The longitudinal rebar diameter and concrete strength play a leading role in the bending capacity of the joint. The concrete strength and steel plate thickness play a dominant role in the shear capacity of the joint. The combination of steel plates and bolts limits the dislocation displacement of the joint, especially when the steel plate thickness is 30 mm, and the shear capacity of the joint significantly improves. The study results can support the fire resistance design of prefabricated tunnels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photo-thermal-coupling ammonia decomposition presents a promising strategy for utilizing the full-spectrum to address the H2 storage and transportation issues. Herein, we exhibit a photo-thermal-catalytic architecture by assembling gallium nitride nanowires-supported ruthenium nanoparticles on a silicon for extracting hydrogen from ammonia aqueous solution in a batch reactor with only sunlight input. The photoexcited charge carriers make a predomination contribution on H2 activity with the assistance of the photothermal effect. Upon concentrated light illumination, the architecture significantly reduces the activation energy barrier from 1.08 to 0.22 eV. As a result, a high turnover number of 3,400,750 is reported during 400 h of continuous light illumination, and the H2 activity per hour is nearly 1000 times higher than that under the pure thermo-catalytic conditions. The reaction mechanism is extensively studied by coordinating experiments, spectroscopic characterizations, and density functional theory calculation. Outdoor tests validate the viability of such a multifunctional architecture for ammonia decomposition toward H2 under natural sunlight.The author report a Ru NPs/GaN NWs nanoarchitecture on Si for utilizing full spectrum to drive efficient and robust photothermal H2 production from NH3 with a high turnover number of >3,400,750 over 400 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rising incidences of atherosclerosis have necessitated efforts to identify novel targets for therapeutic interventions. In the present study, we observed increased expression of the mechanosensitive calcium channel Piezo1 transcript in mouse and human atherosclerotic plaques, correlating with infiltration of PIEZO1-expressing macrophages. In vitro administration of Yoda1, a specific agonist for PIEZO1, led to increased foam cell apoptosis and enhanced phagocytosis by macrophages. Mechanistically, PIEZO1 activation resulted in intracellular F-actin rearrangement, elevated mitochondrial ROS levels and induction of mitochondrial fragmentation upon PIEZO1 activation, as well as increased expression of anti-inflammatory genes. In vivo, ApoE−/− mice treated with Yoda1 exhibited regression of atherosclerosis, enhanced stability of advanced lesions, reduced plaque size and necrotic core, increased collagen content, and reduced expression levels of inflammatory markers. Our findings propose PIEZO1 as a novel and potential therapeutic target in atherosclerosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If progress is to be made toward improving geohazard management and emergency decision-making, then lessons need to be learned from past geohazard information. A geologic hazard report provides a useful and reliable source of information about the occurrence of an event, along with detailed information about the condition or factors of the geohazard. Analyzing such reports, however, can be a challenging process because these texts are often presented in unstructured long text formats, and contain rich specialized and detailed information. Automatically text classification is commonly used to mine disaster text data in open domains (e.g., news and microblogs). But it has limitations to performing contextual long-distance dependencies and is insensitive to discourse order. These deficiencies are most obviously exposed in long text fields. Therefore, this paper uses the bidirectional encoder representations from Transformers (BERT), to model long text. Then, utilizing a softmax layer to automatically extract text features and classify geohazards without manual features. The latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) model is used to examine the interdependencies that exist between causal variables to visualize geohazards. The proposed method is useful in enabling the machine-assisted interpretation of text-based geohazards. Moreover, it can help users visualize causes, processes, and other geohazards and assist decision-makers in emergency responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The burgeoning growth of the new energy vehicles and aviation industry has escalated the need for energy storage capacitors capable of stable operation in harsh environments. The advent of metal-polyimide complexes has illuminated a novel approach for preparing temperature-resistant capacitors. However, the general application of these metal-polyimide complexes is impeded by the high dielectric loss and low breakdown strength, consequences of main-chain coordination and excessive metal ions content. Herein, our study proposes a novel polyimide-Cu complex material (POP-Cu) predicated on side-chain-type pyridine-Cu coordination, utilizing the structural backbone PMDA-ODA of mature commercial PI (Kapton) with reliable performance. Owing to the high degree of freedom afforded by the side chain with suppressed relaxation activation energy and the long-range electron delocalization formed by d-π coordination, the dielectric constant of this material containing merely 2.7 mol% Cu increases from 3.25 (POPI) to 5.58, while maintaining a remarkably low dielectric loss of 0.0066. Meanwhile, this material exhibits a substantial DC breakdown strength of 436.2 MV·m−1 and a high energy density of 5.42 J·cm−3, coupled with superior mechanical and thermal properties. Even at 150 °C, it retains over 90% of its room-temperature energy density, demonstrating notable dielectric stability under high temperatures. These attributes underscore its promising application for capacitors operating in harsh environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leveraging the synergy between causal knowledge graphs and a large language model (LLM), our study introduces a groundbreaking approach for computational hypothesis generation in psychology. We analyzed 43,312 psychology articles using a LLM to extract causal relation pairs. This analysis produced a specialized causal graph for psychology. Applying link prediction algorithms, we generated 130 potential psychological hypotheses focusing on "well-being", then compared them against research ideas conceived by doctoral scholars and those produced solely by the LLM. Interestingly, our combined approach of a LLM and causal graphs mirrored the expert-level insights in terms of novelty, clearly surpassing the LLM-only hypotheses (t(59) = 3.34, p = 0.007 and t(59) = 4.32, p < 0.001, respectively). This alignment was further corroborated using deep semantic analysis. Our results show that combining LLM with machine learning techniques such as causal knowledge graphs can revolutionize automated discovery in psychology, extracting novel insights from the extensive literature. This work stands at the crossroads of psychology and artificial intelligence, championing a new enriched paradigm for data-driven hypothesis generation in psychological research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Breast cancer metastasis significantly impacts women's health globally. This study aimed to construct predictive models using clinical blood markers and ultrasound data to predict distant metastasis in breast cancer patients, ensuring clinical applicability, cost-effectiveness, relative non-invasiveness, and accessibility of these models. Analysis was conducted on data from 416 patients across two centers, focusing on clinical blood markers (tumor markers, liver and kidney function indicators, blood lipid markers, cardiovascular biomarkers) and maximum lesion diameter from ultrasound. Feature reduction was performed using Spearman correlation and LASSO regression. Two models were built using LightGBM: a clinical model (using clinical blood markers) and a combined model (incorporating clinical blood markers and ultrasound features), validated in training, internal test, and external validation (test1) cohorts. Feature importance analysis was conducted for both models, followed by univariate and multivariate regression analyses of these features. The AUC values of the clinical model in the training, internal test, and external validation (test1) cohorts were 0.950, 0.795, and 0.883, respectively. The combined model showed AUC values of 0.955, 0.835, and 0.918 in the training, internal test, and external validation (test1) cohorts, respectively. Clinical utility curve analysis indicated the combined model's superior net benefit in identifying breast cancer with distant metastasis across all cohorts. This suggests the combined model's superior discriminatory ability and strong generalization performance. Creatine kinase isoenzyme (CK-MB), CEA, CA153, albumin, creatine kinase, and maximum lesion diameter from ultrasound played significant roles in model prediction. CA153, CK-MB, lipoprotein (a), and maximum lesion diameter from ultrasound positively correlated with breast cancer distant metastasis, while indirect bilirubin and magnesium ions showed negative correlations. This study successfully utilized clinical blood markers and ultrasound data to develop AI models for predicting distant metastasis in breast cancer. The combined model, incorporating clinical blood markers and ultrasound features, exhibited higher accuracy, suggesting its potential clinical utility in predicting and identifying breast cancer distant metastasis. These findings highlight the potential prospects of developing cost-effective and accessible predictive tools in clinical oncology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rechargeable magnesium-metal batteries (RMBs) have gained much attention due to their abundant resources as well as high safety. However, the high charge density of Mg2+ is one of the main reasons for the slow kinetics performance of RMBs, and modulation of the charge density is an important strategy to improve the kinetics and electrochemical performance of RMBs. Herein, we report on the conductive polymer polyaniline (PANI) for RMBs, which is found to have excellent kinetics and high discharge voltage when storing MgCl+. In the storage of MgCl+, PANI exhibits a high average discharge voltage platform is 2.3 V vs. Mg2+/Mg, which is higher than that in storage of Mg2+. We demonstrated the reversible intercalation/de-intercalation of MgCl+ in PANI accompanying with the reversible transformation between the quinone ring (C–C,–N=) and the benzene ring (C=C,–NH–) during charging and discharging. Density functional theory calculation reveals that PANI exhibit higher voltages (2.25 V vs. 1.82 V) along with lower diffusion energy barriers (1.27 eV vs. 1.55 eV) for MgCl+ storage compared to Mg2+ storage. This work refines the storage mechanism of PANI in RMBs and provides new guidelines for the application of PANI in RMBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ignition tendency of diesel fuels is highly sensitive to ambient conditions and fuel properties. In this study, the ignition characteristics of different diesel surrogate fuels with the same derived cetane numbers (DCN) were measured and compared in varied thermodynamic and oxidizing environments. The combustion pressures, heat release rates, ignition delays, and combustion delays of the test fuels were compared. The experimental results showed that the diesel surrogate fuels with the same DCNs exhibit similar ignition propensity at standard DCN test conditions. Further, for the test conditions of high cetane fuels, high ambient temperatures, and sufficient oxygen concentrations, surrogate fuels with the same DCN have similar ignition behaviors, and using the DCN to evaluate fuel ignition tendency is appropriate. However, for the test conditions of low cetane fuels, low ambient temperatures, and reduced oxygen concentrations, different ignition behaviors are observed for the surrogate fuels with the same DCN, so at these conditions using DCN as the evaluation index for fuel ignition tendency may lead to higher uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To evaluate the usefulness of porta hepatis lymph nodes (PHLNs) on ultrasonography (US) scans in diagnosing biliary atresia (BA) and predicting the outcomes after Kasai portoenterostomy (KPE) surgery. Methods: A total of 668 patients from one hospital were enrolled in the study (542 non-BA and 126 BA). The independent and combined diagnostic efficacy of PHLNs, triangular cord (TC) thickness, and gallbladder morphology were assessed by drawing the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and counting the area under the ROC curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV). The US features, histopathological findings of PHLNs, and serum total bilirubin (TBIL) levels 3 months post-KPE were correlated. Results: The AUC, sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV of PHLNs with hyperechogenicity and a maximum length larger than 8.4 mm were 0.898, 81.8%, 97.8%, 89.6%, and 95.8%, respectively. The combination of PHLNs, TC thickness, and gallbladder morphology achieved the best overall diagnostic efficacy among all indicators with an AUC of 0.927 and a sensitivity of 99.2%. The germinal center number and bile particle number of PHLNs were positively correlated with pathological size and US echogenicity intensity of PHLNs, respectively (r = 0.591, 0.377, p = 0.001, 0.004). The pathological size of PHLNs in BA patients was negatively correlated with jaundice clearance status 3 months after KPE surgery (r = −0.385, p = 0.047). Conclusion: PHLNs with hyperechogenicity and a maximum length > 8.4 mm are useful US indicators for BA diagnosis. Additionally, the enlargement of PHLNs might play a role in predicting outcomes of KPE surgery. Critical relevance statement: The article proposed for the first time that PHLNs with hyperechogenicity and a maximum length > 8.4 mm are a useful US indicator for diagnosing BA. Key Points: PHLNs may be helpful in diagnosing BA and predicting outcomes after surgery. Enlarged hyperechoic PHLNs are a useful diagnostic indicator for BA, and play a role in predicting surgical outcomes. These findings can assist clinicians in more accurately diagnosing BA, enabling more timely treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lateral predictive coding is a recurrent neural network that creates energy-efficient internal representations by exploiting statistical regularity in sensory inputs. Here, we analytically investigate the trade-off between information robustness and energy in a linear model of lateral predictive coding and numerically minimize a free energy quantity. We observed several phase transitions in the synaptic weight matrix, particularly a continuous transition that breaks reciprocity and permutation symmetry and builds cyclic dominance and a discontinuous transition with the associated sudden emergence of tight balance between excitatory and inhibitory interactions. The optimal network follows an ideal gas law over an extended temperature range and saturates the efficiency upper bound of energy use. These results provide theoretical insights into the emergence and evolution of complex internal models in predictive processing systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cu/SSZ-13 is considered to be a promising material for NH3-SCR catalysts. However, in practical applications, Cu/SSZ-13 is inevitably exposed to alkali metal deposition. In this paper, Cu/SSZ-13 molecular sieve catalysts were prepared by the ion exchange method, catalysts with different degrees of alkali metal K/Na poisoning were prepared by the wet-impregnation method, and the SCR activity and N2 selectivity of fresh and poisoned catalysts were compared. The effects of alkali ion (Na+ and K+) poisoning on the comprehensive properties of Cu/SSZ-13 were studied. The distribution and quantity of Cu2+ active components in the catalyst before and after poisoning and the change of acidic sites were explored using NH3-TPO, NH3-TPD, H2-TPR, BET, and XRD. The characteristics of crystal structure, specific surface area, and pore structure revealed the influence of the loading of alkali metal K/Na on the adsorption performance, weakened redox characteristics, and a certain degree of structural damage of Cu/SSZ-13 molecular sieve catalyst. It explains that the reason for the decline in catalyst performance after poisoning is due to the decrease in the number of active sites caused by the ion-exchange between alkali metal ions and Cu2+ and H+, the increase of CuxOy species, the decrease of acidic sites, and pore blockage. This provides data support and theoretical basis for the design of highly resistant Cu/SSZ-13 catalysts. [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.)

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.)

In recent years, climate change has increasingly become one of the major challenges facing mankind today, seriously threatening the survival and sustainable development of mankind. Dramatically increasing carbon dioxide concentrations are thought to cause a severe greenhouse effect, leading to severe and sustained global warming, associated climate instability and unwelcome natural disasters, melting glaciers and extreme weather patterns. The treatment of flue gas from thermal power plants uses carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technology, one of the most promising current methods to accomplish significant CO2 emission reduction. In order to implement the technological and financial system of CO2 capture, which is the key technology of CCUS technology and accounts for 70–80% of the overall cost of CCUS technology, it is crucial to create more effective adsorbents. Nowadays, with the development and application of various carbon dioxide capture materials, it is necessary to review and summarize carbon dioxide capture materials in time. In this paper, the main technologies of CO2 capture are reviewed, with emphasis on the latest research status of CO2 capture materials, such as amines, zeolites, alkali metals, as well as emerging MOFs and carbon nanomaterials. More and more research on CO2 capture materials has used a variety of improved methods, which have achieved high CO2 capture performance. For example, doping of layered double hydroxides (LDH) with metal atoms significantly increases the active site on the surface of the material, which has a significant impact on improving the CO2 capture capacity and performance stability of LDH. Although many carbon capture materials have been developed, high cost and low technology scale remain major obstacles to CO2 capture. Future research should focus on designing low-cost, high-availability carbon capture materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although patients with alpha-fetoprotein-negative hepatocellular carcinoma (AFPNHCC) have a favorable prognosis, a high risk of postoperative recurrence remains. We developed and validated a novel liver fibrosis assessment index, the direct bilirubin-gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase-to-platelet ratio (DGPRI). DGPRI was calculated for each of the 378 patients with AFPNHCC who underwent hepatic resection. The patients were divided into high- and low-score groups using the optimal cutoff value. The Lasso-Cox method was used to identify the characteristics of postoperative recurrence, followed by multivariate Cox regression analysis to determine the independent risk factors associated with recurrence. A nomogram model incorporating the DGPRI was developed and validated. High DGPRI was identified as an independent risk factor (hazard ratio = 2.086) for postoperative recurrence in patients with AFPNHCC. DGPRI exhibited better predictive ability for recurrence 1–5 years after surgery than direct bilirubin and the gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase-to-platelet ratio. The DGPRI-nomogram model demonstrated good predictive ability, with a C-index of 0.674 (95% CI 0.621–0.727). The calibration curves and clinical decision analysis demonstrated its clinical utility. The DGPRI nomogram model performed better than the TNM and BCLC staging systems for predicting recurrence-free survival. DGPRI is a novel and effective predictor of postoperative recurrence in patients with AFPNHCC and provides a superior assessment of preoperative liver fibrosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Pelvic X-ray (PXR) is widely utilized in clinical decision-making associated with the pelvis, the lower part of the trunk that supports and balances the trunk. In particular, PXR-based landmark detection facilitates downstream analysis and computer-assisted diagnosis and treatment of pelvic diseases. Although PXR has the advantages of low radiation and reduced cost compared to computed tomography (CT), it characterizes the 2D pelvis-tissue superposition of 3D structures, which may affect the accuracy of landmark detection in some cases. However, the superposition nature of PXR is implicitly handled by existing deep learning-based landmark detection methods, which mainly design the deep network structures for better detection performances. Explicit handling of the superposition nature of PXR is rarely done. Methods: In this paper, we explicitly focus on the superposition of X-ray images. Specifically, we propose a pelvis extraction (PELE) module that consists of a decomposition network, a domain adaptation network, and an enhancement module, which utilizes 3D prior anatomical knowledge in CT to guide and well isolate the pelvis from PXR, thereby eliminating the influence of soft tissue for landmark detection. The extracted pelvis image, after enhancement, is then used for landmark detection. Results: We conduct an extensive evaluation based on two public and one private dataset, totaling 850 PXRs. The experimental results show that the proposed PELE module significantly improves the accuracy of PXRs landmark detection and achieves state-of-the-art performances in several benchmark metrics. Conclusion: The design of PELE module can improve the accuracy of different pelvic landmark detection baselines, which we believe is obviously conducive to the positioning and inspection of clinical landmarks and critical structures, thus better serving downstream tasks. Our project has been open-sourced at https://github.com/ECNUACRush/PELEscores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since it is difficult to control tunnel construction in weak and broken surrounding rock, the large deformation of tunnel surrounding rock has always been a great danger to construction safety. In this study, the characteristics of a tunnel collapse deformation and its causal factors are analysed as an example of a large deformation accident in a tunnel with granite residual soil in the surrounding rock. First, a support vector regression algorithm optimized by the genetic annealing algorithm (GASA-SVR) is used to construct a back-analysis model of the surrounding rock mechanical parameters. Then, based on the field measured data, the surrounding rock mechanical parameters of the tunnel are inverted. Finally, the finite element method is used to simulate different surrounding rock deformation control schemes, and the optimal deformation control measures are obtained. The results show that the simulated annealing algorithm (SA) enhances the local search capability of the genetic algorithm (GA) so that the hyperparameter optimization solution of the support vector regression (SVR) is the global optimal solution. The parameters obtained from the inversion of the GASA-SVR model are simulated in PLAXIS3D within 4.0% of the measured values in the field. With the application of optimized support measures at the site, the deformation of the surrounding rock has been effectively controlled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The KangDuo surgical robot (KD-SR-01) was recently developed in China. This study aims to evaluate the short-term outcomes of KD-SR-01 for colorectal cancer surgery. Methods: This is a multicentre randomised controlled noninferiority trial conducted in three centers in China. Enrolled patients were randomly assigned at a 1:1 ratio to receive surgery using the KD-SR-01 system (KD group) or the da Vinci Xi (DV) robotic system (DV group). The primary endpoint was the success rate of operation. The second endpoints were surgical outcomes, pathological outcomes, and postoperative outcomes. Results: Between July 2022 and May 2023. A total of 100 patients were included in the trial and randomly assigned to the KD group (50 patients) and the DV group (50 patients). All cases were completed successfully without conversion to laparoscopic surgery. The time to flatus and the incidence of postoperative complications of Clavien-Dindo grade II or higher grade were comparable between the two groups. Surgeons reported a high level of comfort with the KD-SR-01 system. In the subgroup analysis of different operative procedures, there were no significant differences in docking time, console time, blood loss, and the length of the incision for extraction between the two groups. There were no differences in pathological outcomes including maximum tumor diameter, circumferential resection margin, distal resection margin, and number of harvested lymph nodes. Conclusions: The KD-SR-01 system was a viable option for colorectal cancer robotic surgery, with acceptable short-term outcomes comparable to the da Vinci Xi robotic system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To assess the therapeutic response of HCC to antiangiogenic therapy plus immunotherapy by integrating RECIST 1.1 and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) response at the 6th week to predict overall survival (OS). Methods: This retrospective study included 150 and 214 patients with HCC who received combination therapy in training and validation cohorts. The medical images and AFP levels obtained at baseline and 6th week were collected. AFP response stratification: partial response (PR): AFP% ≥ 75% decline; stable disease (SD): AFP% < 75% decline and ≤ 10% elevation; progressive disease (PD): AFP% > 10% elevation. The alpha-RECIST was: PR: RECIST 1.1-PR or AFP-PR; PD: AFP-PD or RECIST 1.1-PD and does not satisfy AFP-PR; SD: neither PR nor PD. OS was compared using Kaplan–Meier curves. The predictive ability of various criteria was evaluated using the concordance index and time-dependent area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve. Results: RECIST 1.1 achieved significant OS stratification (p = 0.020) for AFP < 20 ng/mL. For AFP ≥ 20 ng/mL, alpha-RECIST showed better performance than RECIST 1.1, mRECIST, and AFP response according to C-index (0.73 vs 0.66 vs 0.68 vs 0.69). The National Cancer Center (NCC) strategy utilized RECIST 1.1 for AFP < 20 ng/mL and alpha-RECIST for AFP ≥ 20 ng/mL and showed better performance than RECIST 1.1, mRECIST and AFP response according to C-index (0.73 vs 0.67 vs 0.69 vs 0.64). The performances of alpha-RECIST and NCC Strategy were confirmed in the validation cohort (C-index = 0.77 and 0.74). Conclusions: The alpha-RECIST and NCC Strategy achieved better survival stratification in patients with HCC under combination therapy in the AFP ≥ 20 ng/mL group and the whole cohort compared to the RECIST 1.1, mRECIST, and AFP response. Clinical translational relevance: The alpha-RECIST and National Cancer Center strategy are optimal methods for determining therapeutic response to a combination of anti-angiogenic therapy plus immunotherapy and facilitating accurate prognostic stratification for HCC in the AFP ≥ 20 ng/mL group and the whole cohort, which may help oncologists for early identification of responders and progression at 6 weeks and clinical decision-making. Key Points: • RECIST 1.1 is indicated for patients with baseline alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) < 20 ng/mL. • For patients with baseline AFP ≥ 20 ng/mL, integrating RECIST 1.1 and AFP response (alpha-RECIST) may aid in the early identification of survival benefits and progression definition prior to the administration of additional efficacious drugs. • The National Cancer Center strategy is an optimal stratified strategy for determining therapeutic response to a combination of anti-angiogenic therapy and immunotherapy for HCC based on baseline AFP levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the variations of the physical-mechanical properties of the surrounding rock in coupled thermal and acidic groundwater erosion environment, from the perspective of its micro-structure, is crucial for ensuring the safety and long-term sustainability of rock engineering (e.g., tunnels, slopes, shafts). In this study, the relationship between the mechanical behavior and microstructure evolutions of red sandstone from the southern part of Jiangxi Province, China, under thermal and chemical erosion treatments is experimentally investigated. The results show that the micro-structure of red sandstone is dominated by micropores, accounting for about 60% when the heating temperature is lower than 700 °C. 700-800 °C is the temperature range in which the internal pore structure of red sandstone is remarkably changed, and the proportion of macropores, mesopores, and cracks grows gradually, whereas the proportion of micropores shows a declining trend. Both tensile strength and P-wave velocity show a significant decrease subjected to high temperatures beyond 700 °C and acid solution erosion. The internal microstructure of red sandstone shows a large number of trans-granular cracks due to thermal stress and mineral reaction, while the erosion by acid solution causes a large increase of secondary pores. In addition, the micro-structural changes were further elaborated by the variations of mineral element (Si and O) content tested by the Energy Dispersive Spectrometer (EDS). To sum up, the fundamental mechanism governing the degradation of macroscopic physical properties and tensile strength involves mineral phase transitions and ion exchanges induced by the combined effects of temperature and acid solution erosion, leading to the damage of the microstructure and the development of cracks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The acoustic characteristics of the rock failure process can reflect the evolution of crack development and expansion. To study the evolution of different types of internal cracks during the rock failure process, the acoustic emission (AE) signal of the yellow sandstone under uniaxial compression was collected with AE monitoring technology, and the acoustic characteristics, crack types and evolution of the correlation dimension of the rock failure process were studied. The parameter analysis of RA (rise time/amplitude) and AF (counts/duration) for classifying different cracking modes during loading revealed that tensile cracks are dominated in the crack closure stage and linear elastic deformation stage, and the proportion of shear cracks increased in the plastic deformation stage and the post-peak failure stage. High-energy events were more widely distributed in the areas of shear cracks. The average AE energy of shear cracks is higher than that of tensile cracks, and the AE energy ratio for shear cracks and tensile cracks is within the range of 4.29–4.78. The correlation between stress and AE data was calculated using fractal theory methods and Grassberger–Procaccia (G–P) algorithms to study the evolution of different types of internal cracks. The correlation dimension displayed a stable stage, a descending stage and a fluctuating low value stage. The descending stage and the fluctuating low value stage appeared during the plastic deformation stage and the post-peak failure stage, respectively, indicating that the type of rock internal micro-crack changed greatly in the above two stages. The findings in this study contribute to better understanding of the rock failure mechanism. Highlights: The evolution of proportion of tensile and shear cracks during the rock failure process were analyzed. The average AE energy of shear cracks is higher than that of tensile cracks, and the AE energy ratio for within the range of 4.29–4.78. The evolution of the type of micro-cracks in rock failure process is analyzed by Grassberger–Procaccia (G–P) algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To investigate MR features associated with prognosis of unresectable HCC receiving immunotherapy and establish a MR feature-based scoring system to predict efficacy of immunotherapy. Methods: This retrospective study included patients with unresectable HCC who received immunotherapy at 2 hospitals between August 2018 and February 2022. The last follow-up was October 2022. Clinical variables and MR features were assessed using univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses. A new scoring system was constructed based on independent risk factors and the CRAFITY score consisting of AFP (≥ 100 ng/ml) and CRP (≥ 1 mg/dl). And the predictive performance of CRAFITY core and new score were compared by receiver-operating-characteristics curves (ROCs), area under ROCs (AUCs), and calibration curves. Results: A total of 166 patients (55.6 ± 10.4 years) were included in training cohort and 77 patients (55.4 ± 10.7 years) were included in validation cohort. There were significant differences in BCLC stage, max size, macrovascular invasion, intratumoral artery, and enhancing capsule between the 2 groups. Based on independent risk factors (gross GRowtH type, intratumoral fAt, enhancing tumor caPsule, Sex and CRAFITY score), a novel efficacy predictive tool named the GRAPHS-CRAFITY score was developed to predict OS. The OS was significantly different among the 3 groups according to GRAPHS-CRAFITY score (p value < 0.001). The GRAPHS-CRAFITY score could predict tumor response and disease control (p value < 0.001, p value < 0.001). Conclusions: The GRAPHS-CRAFITY score is a reliable and easily applicable tool to predict the efficacy of unresectable HCC receiving immunotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a hematologic disease associated with genetic abnormalities. This study aimed to explore the role of leucine-rich repeat-containing protein 1 (LRRC1) in the malignant activities of AML and to reveal the molecular mechanism related to microtubule actin cross-linking factor 1 (MACF1). GEPIA database was used to analyze the expression of LRRC1 in bone marrow tissues of AML patients and the correlation between LRRC1 expression and survival analysis. LRRC1 was knocked down to assess the change of AML cell proliferation, cell cycle and apoptosis using CCK-8 assay and flow cytometry. Besides, the contents of extracellular acidification and oxygen consumption rates were measured to evaluate the glycolysis. Additionally, the interaction between LRRC1 and MACF1 predicted by MEM database and was verified by co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP) assay. Then, MACF1 was overexpressed to conduct the rescue experiments. Expression of proteins in β-catenin/c-Myc signaling was detected by western blot. Finally, AML xenograft mouse model was established to observe the impacts of LRRC1 silencing on the tumor development. Notably upregulated LRRC1 expression was observed in bone marrow tissues of AML patients and AML cells, and patients with the higher LRRC1 expression displayed the lower overall survival. LRRC1 depletion promoted cell cycle arrest and apoptosis and inhibited the glycolysis. Co-IP confirmed the interaction between LRRC1 and MACF1. MACF1 upregulation relieved the impacts of LRRC1 knockdown on the malignant activities of AML cells. Moreover, LRRC1 silencing inhibited the development of xenograft tumor growth of HL-60 cells in nude mice, suppressed MACF1 expression and inactivated the β-catenin/c-Myc signaling. Collectively, LRRC1 knockdown suppressed proliferation, glycolysis and promoted apoptosis in AML cells by downregulating MACF1 expression to inactivate β-catenin/c-Myc signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fire accidents in tunnels occur periodically and seriously affect the performance of tunnel structures. For prefabricated frame tunnels spliced by joints, the tunnel bearing performance may be more easily degraded under fire conditions. Accurate assessment of the damage and load-bearing performance of such tunnels under high-temperature conditions is crucial for fire protection design and safety maintenance. This study takes a fabricated frame tunnel connected by shear steel box joints as an example. First, a three-dimensional finite element solid model is established, and the reliability of the modelling process and the thermal coupling simulation method is verified by comparing the test results. Then, the temperature distribution law of the joint under fire is analysed, and based on the principle of the least squares method, a temperature prediction formula for the steel plate surface of the fabricated frame tunnel joint under fire is proposed. Finally, the deformation law of the tunnel lining after the fire is discussed, and the damage degree of the tunnel is evaluated. At the same time, the influence of load changes on tunnel displacement and damage is discussed. The research results show that the temperature at the top plate of the tunnel is the highest after a fire exposure of 120 min, reaching 1087°C. Since the temperature of the tensile reinforcement reaches 786°C, the maximum deformation of the tunnel occurs at the midspan of the top plate. The damage area under fire is mainly distributed within 10 cm of the inner surface of the fire area, and the cracks are mainly concentrated in the left corner and the partition wall. The steel plate is warped, and the connection fails. The ultimate bearing capacity reduction rate η can be used to quantitatively evaluate the damage degree of the tunnel. The research results can provide valuable information for the fire resistance design of fabricated tunnels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cognitive diagnosis is an important issue of intelligent education systems, which aims to estimate students' proficiency on specific knowledge concepts. Most existing studies rely on the assumption of static student states and ignore the dynamics of proficiency in the learning process, which makes them unsuitable for online learning scenarios. In this paper, we propose a unified temporal item response theory (UTIRT) framework, incorporating temporality and randomness of proficiency evolving to get both accurate and interpretable diagnosis results. Specifically, we hypothesize that students' proficiency varies as a Wiener process and describe a probabilistic graphical model in UTIRT to consider temporality and randomness factors. Furthermore, based on the relationship between student states and exercising answers, we hypothesize that the answering result at time k contributes most to inferring a student's proficiency at time k, which also reflects the temporality aspect and enables us to get analytical maximization (M-step) in the expectation maximization (EM) algorithm when estimating model parameters. Our UTIRT is a framework containing unified training and inferencing methods, and is general to cover several typical traditional models such as Item Response Theory (IRT), multidimensional IRT (MIRT), and temporal IRT (TIRT). Extensive experimental results on real-world datasets show the effectiveness of UTIRT and prove its superiority in leveraging temporality theoretically and practically over TIRT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the main structural bodies of underground facilities such as subway stations, frame tunnel structures play an important role in urban development and construction. In recent years, with the frequent occurrence of explosions after vehicle impacts in tunnels, which have caused severe damage to frame tunnels, the lack of relevant papers makes it necessary to develop a dynamic response analysis of frame tunnels. In this paper, by optimizing the design of an original frame tunnel structure, a dynamic response numerical model of the frame tunnel considering the impact effect of a 3D solidified vehicle and the joint effect is investigated. The deformation trend and damage evolution of the frame tunnel are analysed under different collision masses (1.4, 2.4, 6 and 15 t), collision angles (5, 10, 15 and 75°), collision speeds (60, 80 and 100 km/h), blast delay times (10, 20 and 30 ms) and blast equivalents (50, 100 and 200 kg TNT). This paper improves the active and passive robustness of frame tunnels using both improved operational management and the optimal design of the tunnel structure as a way to ensure the structural safety and functional resilience of frame tunnels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Body composition parameters (BCPs) are associated with mortality in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Our purpose was to develop a practical scoring model by BCP and the CRAFITY score to predict the overall survival (OS) and tumor response of patients with HCC who received targeted therapy plus immunotherapy. Methods: This retrospective study included 265 patients with HCC who received targeted therapy plus immunotherapy at 2 centers in China from August 2018 to February 2022. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were applied to analyze clinical factors and BCP. A scoring model based on independent risk factors was developed to predict OS and tumor response. Moreover, the model's prediction was further validated by an external cohort. Results: A total of 150 patients (55.5 ± 10.8 years) and 115 patients (55.0 ± 8.9 years) treated with lenvatinib or bevacizumab biosimilar plus anti-programmed death-1 (PD-1) antibody were included in training and validation cohorts, respectively. In the training cohort, independent predictive factors for OS included macrovascular invasion (p = 0.016), Child‒Pugh class (A vs. B, p = 0.001; A vs. C, p < 0.001), sarcopenia (p = 0.034), and the CRAFITY score (p = 0.011). Based on independent risk factors (MAcrovascular invasion, Child‒Pugh class, Sarcopenia, and the CRAFITY score) identified by multivariate analysis, a novel efficacy predictive tool named the MAPS-CRAFITY score was developed to predict OS. In all the training and validation cohorts, the OS differed significantly across the three groups based on the MAPS-CRAFITY score (< 2.1, 2.1–2.3, ≥ 2.4; p < 0.001). Moreover, the C-index of the MAPS-CRAFITY score was 0.720 and 0.761 in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. In both the validation and training cohorts, the MAPS-CRAFITY score was predictive of tumor response and disease control (p < 0.001). The AUCs of the MAPS-CRAFITY score for predicting disease control were 0.752 in the training cohort and 0.836 in the validation cohort. Conclusions: The MAPS-CRAFITY score based on sarcopenia and the CRAFITY score is a reliable and practical tool for predicting the efficacy of targeted therapy plus immunotherapy in patients with unresectable HCC, and may help hepatologists and oncologists in clinical decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Free-piston engine generators (FPEGs) can be applied as decarbonized range extenders for electric vehicles because of their high thermal efficiency, low friction loss, and ultimate fuel flexibility. In this paper, a parameter-decoupling approach is proposed to model the design of an FPEG. The parameter-decoupling approach first divides the FPEG into three parts: a two-stroke engine, an integrated scavenging pump, and a linear permanent magnet synchronous machine (LPMSM). Then, each of these is designed according to predefined specifications and performance targets. Using this decoupling approach, a numerical model of the FPEG, including the three aforementioned parts, was developed. Empirical equations were adopted to design the engine and scavenging pump, while special considerations were applied for the LPMSM. A finite element model with a multi-objective genetic algorithm was adopted for its design. The finite element model results were fed back to the numerical model to update the LPMSM with increased fidelity. The designed FPEG produced 10.2 kW of electric power with an overall system efficiency of 38.5% in a stable manner. The model provides a solid foundation for the manufacturing of related FPEG prototypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Expansive soil exhibits remarkable characteristics of water absorption expansion and water loss shrinkage, rendering it susceptible to cracking under the alternating dry–wet environments of nature. The generation and development of cracks in expansive soil can result in catastrophic engineering accidents such as landslides. Vegetation protection is an important approach to stabilizing expansive soil slopes and fulfilling ecological protection requirements. In this study, through indoor experiments and theoretical analysis methods, the effects of Cynodon dactylon roots on the crack development and shear strength of expansive soil subjected to dry–wet cycles were analyzed, and the relationship between the crack development and shear strength decay in root-doped expansive soil was explored. Furthermore, the mechanism of vegetative root system action was elucidated. The results show that the Cynodon dactylon root system exerts a significant inhibitory effect on crack development in expansive soil. The crack indexes of root-doped expansive soil exhibit significant phase characteristics during the process of dry–wet cycles. The crack-blocking and reinforcing effect of the root system becomes pronounced as the root-to-soil mass ratio increases and the root diameter decreased. Moreover, the process of crack development in expansive soil is accompanied by a decrease in soil shear strength. The quantitative relationship between crack development and shear strength decay can serve as a basis for predicting the stability of slope soil. Overall, the results highlight the potential of vegetation-based approaches in protecting slopes with expansive soils and have practical implications for ecological protection and engineering design in areas with expansive soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gas drainage is an effective technology for gas control in coal mines. A high borehole-sealing quality is the fundamental precondition for efficient gas drainage. The expansibilities of cement pastes used in borehole-sealing processes are critical for the borehole-sealing effect. Nanosized magnesia expansive agents are used to improve the expansibilities of cement pastes and improve the borehole-sealing effect. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry and scanning electron microscopy were adopted to study the effects of nanosized magnesia on the hydration of borehole-sealing cements used with different preparation methods. The results showed that an increase in the mass fraction of the nanosized magnesia promoted cement hydration, and the mass fraction was positively correlated with the promotion effect. The use of different preparation methods did not change the water-phase distribution in the cement. When using the wet-mixing preparation method, nanosized magnesia promoted the induction, acceleration, and deceleration periods of hydration; when using the dry-mixing preparation method, the nanosized magnesia promoted the induction period of cement hydration, and the promotion effect was less obvious than that seen when using the wet-mixing method. When using the wet-mixing preparation method, the nanosized magnesia was uniformly dispersed, thus enlarging the surface area of the reaction, which provided more nucleation sites for the hydration products of the cement and therefore accelerated the hydration reaction. When using the dry-mixing preparation method, the nanosized magnesia powders were dispersed nonuniformly and aggregated. Under these conditions, only a few nanosized magnesia particles on the surfaces of the aggregated clusters took part in hydration, so only a small number of nucleation sites were provided for the hydration products of cement. This led to inconsistent hydration of cement pastes prepared using the dry-mixing method. The surface porosity of the cement prepared with the wet-mixing preparation method first decreased and then increased with increases in the mass fraction of the nanosized magnesia. The cement surface exhibited compact hydration products and few pores, and the surface was relatively smooth. In comparison, the surface porosity of the cement prepared using the dry-mixing method fluctuated with increasing mass fraction of the nanosized magnesia, resulting in a rough cement surface and microfractures on some surfaces. The two preparation methods both reduced the surface porosity of the cement. The wet-mixing preparation was more effective and consistent in improving the compactness of the cement than the dry-mixing preparation. These results provide important guidance on the addition of nanosized magnesia in borehole-sealing engineering and the selection of cement preparation methods, and they also lay a solid foundation for realizing safe and efficient gas drainage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To predict the tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) status and recurrence-free survival (RFS) of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) patients using preoperative CT radiomics. Patients and methods: A total of 116 ICC patients were included (training: 86; external validation: 30). The enhanced CT images were performed for the radiomics model. The logistic regression analysis was applied for the clinical model. The combined model was based on the clinical and radiomics models. Results: A total of 107 radiomics features were extracted, and after being eliminated and selected, six features were combined to establish a radiomics model for TLSs prediction. Arterial phase diffuse hyperenhancement and AJCC 8th stage were combined to construct a clinical model. The combined (radiomics nomogram) model outperformed both the independent radiomics model and clinical model in the training cohort (AUC, 0.85 vs. 0.82 and 0.75, respectively) and was validated in the external validation cohort (AUC, 0.88 vs. 0.86 and 0.71, respectively). Patients in the rad-score no less than −0.76 (low-risk) group showed significantly better RFS than those in the less than −0.76 (high-risk) group (p < 0.001, C-index = 0.678). Patients in the nomogram score no less than −1.16 (low-risk) group showed significantly better RFS than those of the less than −1.16 (high-risk) group (p < 0.001, C-index = 0.723). Conclusions: CT radiomics nomogram could serve as a preoperative biomarker of intra-tumoral TLSs status, better than independent radiomics or clinical models; preoperative CT radiomics nomogram achieved accurate stratification for RFS of ICC patients, better than the postoperative pathologic TLSs status. Critical relevance statement: The radiomics nomogram showed better performance in predicting TLSs than independent radiomics or clinical models and better prognosis stratification than postoperative pathologic TLSs status in ICC patients, which may facilitate identifying patients benefiting most from surgery and subsequent immunotherapy. Key points: • The combined (radiomics nomogram) model consisted of the radiomics model and clinical model (arterial phase diffuse hyperenhancement and AJCC 8th stage). • The radiomics nomogram showed better performance in predicting TLSs than independent radiomics or clinical models in ICC patients. • Preoperative CT radiomics nomogram achieved more accurate stratification for RFS of ICC patients than the postoperative pathologic TLSs status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many detailed data on past geological hazard events are buried in geological hazard reports and have not been fully utilized. The growing developments in geographic information retrieval and temporal information retrieval offer opportunities to analyse this wealth of data to mine the spatiotemporal evolution of geological disaster occurrence and enhance risk decision making. This study presents a combined NLP and ontology matching information extraction framework for automatically recognizing semantic and spatiotemporal information from geological hazard reports. This framework mainly extracts unstructured information from geological disaster reports through named entity recognition, ontology matching and gazetteer matching to identify and annotate elements, thus enabling users to quickly obtain key information and understand the general content of disaster reports. In addition, we present the final results obtained from the experiments through a reasonable visualization and analyse the visual results. The extraction and retrieval of semantic information related to the dynamics of geohazard events are performed from both natural and human perspectives to provide information on the progress of events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combining the strategies of introducing larger heteroatom, regio-regular backbone and extended branching position of side-chain, we developed polymer semiconductors (PPCPD) with narrow band-gap to construct the photosensing layer of thin-film photodiodes and image arrays. The spectral response of the resulting organic photodiodes spans from the near ultra-violet to short-wavelength infrared region. The performance of these short-wavelength infrared photodiodes in 900–1200 nm range achieved a level competitive with that of indium gallium arsenide-based inorganic crystalline detectors, exhibiting a specific detectivity of 5.55×1012 Jones at 1.15 µm. High photodetectivity and quantum efficiency in photodiode with amorphous/nanocrystalline thin-films of 100–200 nm thickness enabled high pixel-density image arrays without pixel-level-patterning in the sensing layer. 1 × 256 linear diode arrays with 25 µm × 25 µm pixel pitch were achieved, enabling high pixel-density short-wavelength infrared imaging at room temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To improve the soil and water stability of expansive soil slopes and reduce the probability of slope failure, novel protection systems based on polymer waterproof coatings (PWC) were used in this study. Herein, three groups of expansive soil slope model tests were designed to investigate the effects of polyester nonwovens and PWC (P-PWC) composite protection system, three-dimensional vegetation network and PWC (T-PWC) composite protection system, and non-protection on the soil and water behavior in the slopes under precipitation–evaporation cycles. The results showed that the moisture change of P-PWC and T-PWC composite protected slopes was significantly smaller than that of bare slope, which reduced the sensitivity of slope moisture to environmental changes and improved its stability. The soil temperature of the slope protected by the P-PWC and T-PWC systems at a depth of 70 cm increased by 5.6°C and 2.7°C, respectively. Using PWC composite protection systems exhibited better thermal storage performance, which could increase the utilization of shallow geothermal resources. Moreover, the maximum average crack widths of the bare slopes were 7.89 and 3.17 times those of the P-PWC and T-PWC protected slopes, respectively, and the maximum average crack depths were 6.87 and 3 times those of the P-PWC and T-PWC protected slopes, separately. The P-PWC protection system weakened the influence of hydro–thermal coupling on the slopes, inhibited the development of cracks on the slopes, and reduced the soil erosion. The maximum soil erosion of slopes protected by P-PWC and T-PWC systems was 332 and 164 times lower than that of bare slope, respectively. The P-PWC and T-PWC protection systems achieved excellent "anti-seepage and moisture retention" and anti-erosion effects, thus improving the soil and water stability of slopes. These findings can provide important guiding reference for controlling rainwater infiltration and soil erosion in expansive soil slope projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The combustion characteristics and emission behaviors of RP-3 jet fuel were studied and compared to commercial diesel fuel in a single-cylinder compression ignition (CI) engine. Engine operational parameters, including engine load (0.6, 0.7, and 0.8 MPa indicating the mean effective pressure (IMEP)), the exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) rate (0%, 10%, 20%, and 30%), and the fuel injection timing (- 20, - 15, - 10, and - 5° crank angle (CA) after top dead center (ATDC)) were adjusted to evaluate the engine performances of RP-3 jet fuel under changed operation conditions. In comparison to diesel fuel, RP-3 jet fuel shows a retarded heat release and lagged combustion phase, which is more obvious under heavy EGR rate conditions. In addition, the higher premixed combustion fraction of RP-3 jet fuel leads to a higher firststage heat release peak than diesel fuel under all testing conditions. As a result, RP-3 jet fuel features a longer ignition delay (ID) time, a shorter combustion duration (CD), and an earlier CA50 than diesel fuel. The experimental results manifest that RP-3 jet fuel has a slightly lower indicated thermal efficiency (ITE) compared to diesel fuel, but the ITE difference becomes less noticeable under large EGR rate conditions. Compared with diesel fuel, the nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions of RP-3 jet fuel are higher while its soot emissions are lower. The NOx emissions of RP-3 can be effectively reduced with the increased EGR rate and delayed injection timing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]