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To provide applications with the ability to analyze fresh data and eliminate the time-consuming ETL workflow, hybrid transactional and analytical (HTAP) systems have been developed to serve online transaction processing and online analytical processing workloads in a single system. In recent years, HTAP systems have attracted considerable interest from both academia and industry. Several new architectures and technologies have been proposed. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of these HTAP systems. We review recently published papers and technical reports in this field and broadly classify existing HTAP systems into two categories based on their data formats: monolithic and hybrid HTAP. We further classify hybrid HTAP into four sub-categories based on their storage architecture: row-oriented, column-oriented, separated, and hybrid. Based on such a taxonomy, we outline each stream's design challenges and performance issues (e.g., the contradictory format demand for monolithic HTAP). We then discuss potential solutions and their trade-offs by reviewing noteworthy research findings. Finally, we summarize emerging HTAP applications, benchmarks, future trends, and open problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single Ni layer is often inserted as diffusion barrier between Cu pillar and Sn-based solder to avoid excessive growth of brittle intermetallic compounds (IMCs) and consequent Kirkendall voids (KVs) in microbumps. However, with shrinking size of microbumps, Ni layer cannot maintain the inhibition performance as its thickness is reduced as well. In this work, Ni/Cu bi-layer barrier was employed at Cu-Sn interface, which was expected to reduce diffusion by rapidly generated Cu-Sn IMC retarding the diffusion of Ni. IMC growth behavior and interfacial reaction during isothermal aging were investigated. The self-healing phenomenon of KVs was detected during aging at 150 °C. It's attributed to the transformation from Cu3Sn to Cu6Sn5. The novel barrier exhibited excellent inhibition property compared with single Ni layer with slower IMC growth rate and less Cu substrate diffusion. Moreover, during 170 °C aging test, the Ni/Cu bi-layer barrier showed no sign of depletion until 600 h, while the single Ni barrier was completely depleted after 144 h. Such excellent inhibition property is beneficial to the future application of ultra-thin barrier layer in microbumps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, as more and more lung-cancer patients have been treated with immunotherapeutic agents, their survival has been prolonged compared to before. It is well known that BTK (Bruton's tyrosine kinase) is predominantly found in cells of the hematopoietic system. However, there is a distinct lack of literature on BTK expression in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients and its effect on the immune microenvironment. Consequently, the main goal of this investigation was to analyze how BTK expression in lung adenocarcinoma affects its progression, along with its prognostic significance, through the utilization of bioinformatics online resources and publicly available databases. Data on the sequencing results and clinical records of lung adenocarcinoma patients were gathered from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Based on the expression level of BKT, TCGA categorized lung adenocarcinoma patients into BTK high-expression and low-expression groups. We investigated the effects of BKT on clinicopathologic, genomic, and immunologic characteristics of lung adenocarcinoma patients. We analyzed BTK mRNA expression in tumors and normal tissues using two key resources: Tumor Immuno Estimation Resource 2.0 (TIMER 2.0) and Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis 2 (GEPIA 2). We analyzed the prognosis of the patients using GEPIA2 and validated the results using univariate and multivariate analyses. In addition, we assessed BTK protein expression by Human Protein Atlas (HPA). We sought to elucidate the clinical prognostic significance of BTK in The TCGA using the online tool GEPIA 2. Furthermore, to clarify the biologic roles and pathways linked to BTK, we conducted a genomic enrichment analysis of the information. To predict the proportion of various immune cell infiltrations in the immune microenvironment of lung adenocarcinoma patients diagnosed in the TCGA database, we performed an analysis using the TIMER online tool. Using TIMER and CIBERSORT, the correlation between genes co-expressed with BTK and the corresponding tumor-infiltrating immune cells was explored; finally, the relationship between BTK expression and immune infiltration and immune checkpoints in the TMB group and the high and low groups was analyzed by R language analysis using the TCGA database. The expression of BTK provides some hints about the prognosis of the patients. The high expression of BTK is involved in immune response regulation signaling pathways, leukocyte-mediated immunity, leukocyte intercellular adhesion, graft rejection, and complement. Analysis of the GEPIA 2 database showed that BTK was co-expressed with the genes FGD2, SASH3, NCKAP1L, CD53, ARHGAP30 and LPXN. Increased expression of the above-mentioned genes resulted in increased proportions of CD8 + T cells, memory CD4 + T cells, B cells, macrophages, and dendritic cells, and decreased proportions of Treg cells and TH2 cells. In addition, our study revealed a strong positive correlation between various key immune checkpoints (e.g., PDCD1, CD274, PDCD1LG2, CTLA4, HAVCR2, LAG3, TIGIT, and SIGLEC15) and BTK expression. In conclusion, increased BTK expression in lung adenocarcinoma is closely associated with prolonged survival of lung-cancer patients. Moreover, the genes classified under the BTK high-expression group exhibit significant enrichment in immune-related pathways, suggesting a potential impact on the tumor microenvironment. We investigated the potential of BTK as a tumor suppressor gene in predicting prolonged patient survival. In addition, we further investigated the possibility that BTK further affects the immunotherapeutic response of patients by influencing the microenvironment of tumor immune infiltration, but the relevant mechanisms remain to be further studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Camellia oleifera, a significant woody edible oil species, was examined using 48 germplasm resources from high-altitude regions in East Guizhou Province, China, to analyze fruit quality. The analysis aimed to identify high-performance germplasm, providing theoretical and research foundations for selecting and cross-breeding superior C. oleifera varieties in these regions. Fifteen primary traits of mature fruits were measured and analyzed, including four phenotypic traits (single fruit weight, transverse diameter, longitudinal diameter, peel thickness) and eleven quality traits (fresh seed yield rate, dry seed yield rate, dry kernel yield rate, seed kernel oil content, palmitic acid, palmitoleic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, α-linolenic acid, cis-11-eicosenoic acid). A comprehensive evaluation employing cluster and principal component analyses (PCA) was conducted. The cluster analysis categorized the germplasms into five groups at a squared Euclidean distance of 14, with the first category comprising 17 germplasms, the second 28, and the third, fourth, and fifth each containing one. PCA reduced the 15 traits to five principal components (PCs), with PC1 having the highest eigenvalue of 3.57 and a contribution rate of 23.8%, mainly representing phenotypic traits. PC2, contributing 20.44%, represented linoleic acid, while PC3, PC4, and PC5, with contribution rates of 12.99%, 9.13%, and 7.45% respectively, predominantly represented seed kernel oil content, fresh seed yield, and palmitoleic acid. Employing a weighted sum method, a comprehensive evaluation function was developed to calculate total scores for each superior individual, forming the basis for rankings and selections. Notable variability was detected in single fruit weight, peel thickness, and fresh and dry seed yields, while oleic acid exhibited the lowest coefficient of variation. Dry seed yield showed a robust positive correlation with seed kernel oil content and the concentrations of palmitic and linoleic acids, whereas seed kernel oil content was inversely correlated with cis-11-eicosenoic acid levels. Five PCs with eigenvalues > 1 were identified, highlighting the top ten superior individuals: QD (Qian Dong: the code of eastern Guizhou Province)-33 > QD-34 > QD-48 > QD-38 > QD-27 > QD-15 > QD-35 > QD-5 > QD-14 > QD-36. Thus, the 48 C. oleifera germplasms from East Guizhou's high-altitude areas demonstrate significant potential for enhancing traits such as single fruit weight, peel thickness, and fresh and dry seed yields. Specifically, QD-33, QD-34, and QD-48 exhibited superior comprehensive performance, designating them as prime candidates for variety selection and breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sub-trajectory clustering is a fundamental problem in many trajectory applications. Existing approaches usually divide the clustering procedure into two phases: segmenting trajectories into sub-trajectories and then clustering these sub-trajectories. However, researchers need to develop complex human-crafted segmentation rules for specific applications, making the clustering results sensitive to the segmentation rules and lacking in generality. To solve this problem, we propose a novel algorithm using the clustering results to guide the segmentation, which is based on reinforcement learning (RL). The novelty is that the segmentation and clustering components cooperate closely and improve each other continuously to yield better clustering results. To devise our RL-based algorithm, we model the procedure of trajectory segmentation as a Markov decision process (MDP). We apply Deep-Q-Network (DQN) learning to train an RL model for the segmentation and achieve excellent clustering results. Experimental results on real datasets demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed RL-based approach over state-of-the-art methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to high cutting speed and intermittent impact load, there exists significant friction and cutting vibration in milling process, which would lead to the mesoscopic friction damages. The friction damages and wear state thus become difficult to predict. In this work, the variation of instantaneous mechanical behavior of the milling cutter flank under vibration was studied. The structural deformation and friction damages of milling cutter flank in macro/mesoscopes were analyzed by conducting both thermal stress coupling field and molecular dynamic analysis. The multi-scale characterization method of instantaneous friction damage on cutter flank was proposed. The super-cell model of the tool-workpiece on the tool flank was developed. The variation of super-cell configuration was obtained. The nucleation and propagation of friction damages were identified; the evolution of mesoscopic friction damages on tool flank were revealed. The mesoscopic friction damage evolution of different positions on tool flank was researched; the coupling and competition mechanisms between the nucleation and propagation process of friction damages were unveiled. The cross-scale identification method of the friction damages of tool flank was validated by experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study establishes an indicator system encompassing economic, social, and environmental dimensions to assess the level of green development in animal husbandry from 2010 to 2020. It further examines the coupling coordination degree within each dimension. The Dagum Gini coefficient is employed to scrutinize the regional disparities in coupling coordination degree of the economic benefit, social benefit, and environmental benefit of the green development in Chinese animal husbandry. Additionally, Moran's I is utilized to identify the degree of spatial autocorrelation and aggregation types. The results demonstrate the following: (1) From 2010 to 2020, the level of green development in the animal husbandry in China has steadily improved. Among the three dimensions, economic benefits exhibit the highest performance, followed by environmental benefits and social benefits. There are obvious regional disparities in the green development of animal husbandry, which are "strong in north and weak in south" and "strong in west and weak in east." The Gini coefficient for green development in the animal husbandry in China experienced a fluctuating upward trend. (2) From 2010 to 2020, the overall coupling coordination degree of the economic benefit, social benefit, and environmental benefit of green development in the animal husbandry in China remains at a rudimentary level and demonstrates a steady upward trend. Spatially, it manifests an agglomeration pattern primarily centered around Beijing, with the northeastern region being the main focus. (3) The Gini coefficient for the coupling coordination degree experienced a slight fluctuating upward trend. In terms of inter-regional disparities, significant differences are observed between the northeastern region and the central region, as well as between the northeastern region and the eastern region. In terms of contribution to disparities, inter-regional contributions were the most substantial, followed by super-variable density, with intra-regional contributions being the smallest. (4) The coupling coordination degree displayed spatial autocorrelation, with "high-high" aggregation areas predominantly concentrated in the northeastern region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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As the aging population continues to grow rapidly, age-related diseases are becoming an increasing burden on the healthcare system and a major concern for the well-being of elderly individuals. While aging is an inevitable process for all humans, it can be slowed down and age-related diseases can be treated or alleviated. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) is a critical coenzyme or cofactor that plays a central role in metabolism and is involved in various cellular processes including the maintenance of metabolic homeostasis, post-translational protein modifications, DNA repair, and immune responses. As individuals age, their NAD levels decline, and this decrease has been suggested to be a contributing factor to the development of numerous age-related diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative diseases. In pursuit of healthy aging, researchers have investigated approaches to boost or maintain NAD levels. Here, we provide an overview of NAD metabolism and the role of NAD in age-related diseases and summarize recent progress in the development of strategies that target NAD metabolism for the treatment of age-related diseases, particularly neurodegenerative diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medical image segmentation is a critical component in clinical practice, facilitating accurate diagnosis, treatment planning, and disease monitoring. However, existing methods, often tailored to specific modalities or disease types, lack generalizability across the diverse spectrum of medical image segmentation tasks. Here we present MedSAM, a foundation model designed for bridging this gap by enabling universal medical image segmentation. The model is developed on a large-scale medical image dataset with 1,570,263 image-mask pairs, covering 10 imaging modalities and over 30 cancer types. We conduct a comprehensive evaluation on 86 internal validation tasks and 60 external validation tasks, demonstrating better accuracy and robustness than modality-wise specialist models. By delivering accurate and efficient segmentation across a wide spectrum of tasks, MedSAM holds significant potential to expedite the evolution of diagnostic tools and the personalization of treatment plans.Segmentation is an important fundamental task in medical image analysis. Here the authors show a deep learning model for efficient and accurate segmentation across a wide range of medical image modalities and anatomies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the basic psychological needs theory, career calling, a high self-determinating and flourishing state, would be closely associated with basic psychological needs. However, extant studies only linked need satisfaction to the presence of career calling, paying limited attention to the effect of need frustration and the links of need satisfaction/frustration to searching for and living a calling. The current study employed a person-centered method to explore how need satisfaction and frustration jointly related to different types of career calling (i.e., searching for, perceiving, and living a career calling). Participants were Chinese kindergarten teachers (n = 547). Latent profile analysis revealed three need profiles: (1) high need satisfaction and low need frustration, (2) low need satisfaction and slightly above average need frustration, and (3) high need satisfaction and high need frustration. There exist notable differences across these three need profiles on the levels of searching for, perceiving, and living a career calling. These findings indicate that high need satisfaction and low need frustration are the optimal combinations to help teachers actively search for, perceive, and live out their career calling. Furthermore, high need satisfaction can protect teachers' career calling from the harm of need frustration, but high need frustration can damage teachers' benefits (i.e., perceiving and living a career calling) from need satisfaction. These results provide empirical evidence for the distinction and interplay between need satisfaction and frustration, and contribute to a deeper understanding of the associations between need satisfaction/frustration and career calling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catalyst calcination temperature is regarded as one of the vital factors affecting its performance in the heterogeneous catalysis reactions. In this work, the effect of calcination temperature was investigated in detail to design an optimalSiO2@Co@CeO2 catalyst with core–shell structure for CO2 reforming with ethanol reaction. Meanwhile, the structure–activity relationship was also depicted via XRD, TEM, Raman, H2-TPR characterization technique etc. In particular, the catalyst calcined at 550 °C presented the stronger metal-support interaction, the relatively larger specific surface area as well as the smaller grain sizes. Indeed, these structural properties could guarantee the better activity/stability in ethanol dry reforming, due to the enhanced ability to prevent coke deposition and the sintering of active metal. In contrast, the exposure to higher calcination temperature (850 °C) could lead to the aggregation of active species and the weaker Co-Ce interaction, which corresponded to the continuous deactivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lack of standard substances is a bottleneck for quality control in natural plants. In this study, a novel and accurate method for the determination of four gingerol components in ginger extracts was developed and validated by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) combined with a single marker (ASM) using a new calculation of relative response factor (nRRF, fox). The contents of four analytes in ginger extracts were determined by the single marker of nonivamide used as the internal reference which did not exist in the sample and was similar to gingerol in structure and performance. The four analytes showed a good linear relationship within a certain concentration range, and the correlation coefficients (R) were all greater than 0.999. The LOD and LOQ obtained for each standard were 2.14–5.50 ng/mL and 7.15–18.35 ng/mL, respectively. The average recoveries at three spiked levels ranged from 89.53 to 100.01% for ginger extract samples with relative standard deviations of 1.03 to 3.61%. The method was evaluated by a comparison of the quantitative results between the external standard method (ESM) and ASM. The results showed that no significant differences were found in the quantitative results of the four contents of essential oil extract of ginger from three different extraction methods determined by ESM and ASM. The sum contents of four analytes were highest in the sample obtained from subcritical extraction method. The proposed approach could serve as an accurate and convenient method in determining the gingerol components in the ginger extracts and its processed products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs compose one of the most widely used classes of medications, but the risks for early development remain controversial, especially in the nervous system. Here, we utilized zebrafish larvae to assess the potentially toxic effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and found that sulindac can selectively induce apoptosis of GABAergic neurons in the brains of zebrafish larvae brains. Zebrafish larvae exhibit hyperactive behaviour after sulindac exposure. We also found that akt1 is selectively expressed in GABAergic neurons and that SC97 (an Akt1 activator) and exogenous akt1 mRNA can reverse the apoptosis caused by sulindac. Further studies showed that sulindac binds to retinoid X receptor alpha (RXRα) and induces autophagy in GABAergic neurons, leading to activation of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway. Finally, we verified that sulindac can lead to hyperactivity and selectively induce GABAergic neuron apoptosis in mice. These findings suggest that excessive use of sulindac may lead to early neurodevelopmental toxicity and increase the risk of hyperactivity, which could be associated with damage to GABAergic neurons. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are widely used but their risks for early neurodevelopment remain controversial. Here, the authors showed in zebrafish larvae that sulindac induces GABAergic neuron apoptosis through autophagy activation that leads to hyperactive behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Topologically protected photonic edge states offer unprecedented robust propagation of photons that are promising for waveguiding, lasing, and quantum information processing. Here, we report on the discovery of a class of hybrid topological photonic crystals that host simultaneously quantum anomalous Hall and valley Hall phases in different photonic band gaps. The underlying hybrid topology manifests itself in the edge channels as the coexistence of the dual-band chiral edge states and unbalanced valley Hall edge states. We experimentally realize the hybrid topological photonic crystal, unveil its unique topological transitions, and verify its unconventional dual-band gap topological edge states using pump-probe techniques. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the dual-band photonic topological edge channels can serve as frequency-multiplexing devices that function as both beam splitters and combiners. Our study unveils hybrid topological insulators as an exotic topological state of photons as well as a promising route toward future applications in topological photonics. Owing to the nonequilibrium nature, photonic topological phenomena can involve multiple band gaps. Here the authors report on the discovery of a class of hybrid topological photonic crystals that host quantum anomalous Hall and valley Hall phases simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher requirements for the accuracy of relevant models are put throughout the transformation and upgrade of the iron and steel sector to intelligent production. It has been difficult to meet the needs of the field with the usual prediction model of mechanical properties of hot-rolled strip. Insufficient data and difficult parameter adjustment limit deep learning models based on multi-layer networks in practical applications; besides, the limited discrete process parameters used make it impossible to effectively depict the actual strip processing process. In order to solve these problems, this research proposed a new sampling approach for mechanical characteristics input data of hot-rolled strip based on the multi-grained cascade forest (gcForest) framework. According to the characteristics of complex process flow and abnormal sensitivity of process path and parameters to product quality in the hot-rolled strip production, a three-dimensional continuous time series process data sampling method based on time-temperature-deformation was designed. The basic information of strip steel (chemical composition and typical process parameters) is fused with the local process information collected by multi-grained scanning, so that the next link's input has both local and global features. Furthermore, in the multi-grained scanning structure, a sub sampling scheme with a variable window was designed, so that input data with different dimensions can get output characteristics of the same dimension after passing through the multi-grained scanning structure, allowing the cascade forest structure to be trained normally. Finally, actual production data of three steel grades was used to conduct the experimental evaluation. The results revealed that the gcForest-based mechanical property prediction model outperforms the competition in terms of comprehensive performance, ease of parameter adjustment, and ability to sustain high prediction accuracy with fewer samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approximate nearest neighbor search (ANNS) is a fundamental problem that has attracted widespread attention for decades. Multi-probe ANNS is one of the most important classes of ANNS methods, playing crucial roles in disk-based, GPU-based, and distributed scenarios. The state-of-the-art multi-probe ANNS approaches typically perform in a fixed-configuration manner. For example, each query is dispatched to a fixed number of partitions to run ANNS algorithms locally, and the results will be merged to obtain the final result set. Our observation shows that such fixed configurations typically lead to a non-optimal accuracy–efficiency trade-off. To further optimize multi-probe ANNS, we propose to generate efficient configurations for each query individually. By formalizing the per-query optimization as a 0–1 knapsack problem and its variants, we identify that the kNN distribution (the proportion of k nearest neighbors of a query placed in each partition) is essential to the optimization. Then we develop LEQAT (LEarned Query-Aware OpTimizer), which leverages kNN distribution to seek optimal configurations for each query. LEQAT comes with (i) a machine learning model to learn and estimate kNN distributions based on historical or sample queries and (ii) efficient query optimization algorithms to determine the partitions to probe and the number of searching neighbors in each partition. We apply LEQAT to three state-of-the-art ANNS methods IVF, HNSW, and SSG under clustering-based partitioning, evaluating the overall performance on several real-world datasets. The results show that LEQAT consistently reduces the latency by up to 58% and improves the throughput by up to 3.9 times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The alloy-type anodes such as P and Sn with high specific capacities are the rising stars for developing advanced sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). However, the low initial coulombic efficiency (ICE) due to the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) formation and the large volume variation during sodiation/desodiation cycling still limit their practical application. This study reports a facile chemical presodiation method for P and Sn anodes using the sodium biphenyl/tetrahydrofuran (Na-Bp/THF) solution as the presodiation reagent. With a low redox potential of 0.095 V vs. Na/Na+, the Na-Bp/THF reagent is capable of preinserting Na+ into these anodes and compensating for the initial capacity loss. Through adjusting the treatment duration, the degree of presodiation could be feasibly controlled, and the initial CE of a P/C electrode could be significantly increased from 64 to 94%. Surface morphology characterization reveals a more robust NaF-rich SEI layer formed on the presodiated P/C electrode after cycling, which helps to preserve the integrity of the P/C electrode and enables a better cycling performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to examine whether life meaning mediates the effect of trait gratitude on career calling in a Chinese sample. Further, we explored the moderating role of moral elevation on trait gratitude's direct and indirect effect on career calling. Using a cross-sectional design, a sample of five hundred and twelve Chinese undergraduates participated and completed measures of trait gratitude, life meaning, moral elevation, and career calling. The results showed that trait gratitude positively predicted a career calling, and life meaning mediated this pathway from trait gratitude to career calling. Moral elevation significantly moderated the mediation effect of life meaning and the direct effect of trait gratitude on career calling. Among undergraduates with low moral elevation, the indirect effect via life meaning and the direct effect of trait gratitude on career calling were significantly positive but weaker than those with high moral elevation. These results offer implications for experiencing a career calling and highlight the importance of moral elevation for grateful people to perceive their career calling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Plantaginaceae flowering plant, Chelone glabra, is different from Arabidopsis thaliana and cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), as it produces fibers on the anther surface. However, the evolutionary molecular mechanism of how fiber development is controlled in the stamen is unclear. MYB genes are essential transcription factors for trichome and fiber development in plants. In this study, we isolated 29 MYB domain-containing sequences using early-stage anthers and several sets of degenerated primers conserved in the R2R3 domain of the MYB transcription factor. Among them, CgMYB4 is an R2R3-MYB gene encoding 281 amino acids. Phylogenetic analysis showed that CgMYB4 is closely related to GhMYB25L/AmMIXTA, which controls fiber initiation and development in cotton and epidermal cell differentiation in the petals of Antirrhinum. Semiquantitative RT-PCR analysis showed that CgMYB4 is strongly expressed at the stamens and carpels. Overexpression of CgMYB4 significantly enhanced root hair formation in transformed hairy roots, contrary to the root hair numbers, which were reduced in silenced CgMYB4 hairy roots. Moreover, overexpression of CgMYB4 also evidently promoted fiber development at filaments and conical cell-like epidermal cell increases at the anther wall. Our results showed that CgMYB4 is an R2R3-MYB gene and is positively involved in regulating cell division and fiber differentiation in the early stages of stamen development in C. glabra. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, metal–organic framework (MOF) has become a hot electrode material for electrochemistry. However, it has rarely been studied in uric acid detection. In this paper, cubic Ni-based MOF has been synthesized by Ni(NO3)2·6H2O and H3BTC in room temperature; then, Au nanoparticles (Au NPs) were decorated on Ni-MOF by in situ synthesis method. This electrochemical sensor can response to uric acid (UA) in solution and enhance response signal of UA detection. Next, some experiment conditions including pH, scan rate, and proportion between Au NPS and Ni-MOF have been optimized with cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). And then, the Au/Ni-MOF has been charactered with scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Experiment finding, this electrochemical sensor has a wide linearity range from 15 to 500 μM with a low detection limit of 5.6 μM (S/N = 3). Besides, the sensor constructed also has excellent selectivity and stability. Finally, the Au/Ni-MOF sensor was successfully applied in uric acid detection in the body's serum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cyromazine, a symmetrical triazine insecticide, is used to control dipteran larvae in chicken manure by feeding to the poultry, flies on animals, and leafminers in vegetables. Its extensive use has resulted in the widespread contamination in the environment. In the current study, a cyromazine degrading bacterium (designated strain ZX01) was isolated and characterized from a Chinese ginger cultivated soil by selective enrichment culture method. On the basis of morphological, biochemical characteristics, and 16S rRNA gene sequence, this bacterium showed strong similarity to the Pseudomonadales members and was closely related to the Acinetobacter baumannii group. Spectrophotometric and HPLC analyses revealed that strain ZX01 degraded cyromazine and utilized it as the sole carbon source for its growth. This process hydrolyzes cyromazine to melamine. Strain ZX01 degraded most of the cyromazine in 60 h. Besides, its substrate specificity against four symmetrical triazine herbicides, one triazinone herbicide, as well as 10 insecticides and its antibiotic sensitivity towards eight commercial antibiotics were also tested. At the concentration of 100 µg/mL for 60 h, it could effectively degrade a variety of different pesticides, including atrazine, prometon, simazine, prometryn, enitrothion, diazinon, cypermethrin, and acetamiprid, and the degradation was in the range of 71–87%. In particular, melamine, the main degradation product of cyromazine, was degraded by 47.3%. This microorganism was sensitive to chloramphenicol and tetracycline and intermediate to amoxicillin and trimethoprim. These results highlight that strain ZX01 can be used as a potential biological agent for the remediation of soil, water, or crop contaminated with cyromazine and other symmetrical triazine insecticides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medicinal applications of gold complexes have recently attracted attention due to their innovative antitumor mechanisms. In this work, two hypercoordinated carbon-centered gold clusters PAA4 and PAA5 are quantitatively synthesized by an intramolecular 6-exo-dig cyclization of polymetalated precursors. The on-bench and in vitro experimental studies demonstrate that the characteristic hypercarbon-tetragold(I) multi-center bonding in PAA4 and PAA5 not only guarantees their stability under common physiological conditions, but also facilitates a glutathione (GSH)-triggered prompt and synergetic release of active Au(I) ions in the GSH-overexpressed and acidic microenvironment of human bladder cancer EJ cells. The instantly massive release of coordination unsaturated Au(I) ions causes the efficient inhibition of thioredoxin reductases and then induces a rapid pro-oxidant response, consequently causing the occurrence of accelerated ferroptosis of EJ cells. As a result, these hypercarbon-centered gold(I) cluster prodrugs show high cytotoxicity to bladder cancer cell lines and thus exhibit a significant inhibition effect towards bladder tumors in vivo. Correlation of the synergetic domino dissociation of carbon-polymetal multi-center bonding in metal clusters with the accelerated ferroptosis of cancer cells provides a strategy for metallo-prodrugs and opens a broader prospect for the biological application of metal cluster compounds. Several strategies have been developed in recent years for therapeutic induction of ferroptosis in cancer. Here the authors report the design of two hypercarbon-centered gold(I) cluster prodrugs that induce ferroptosis of cancer cells, showing anti-tumor activity in preclinical bladder cancer models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Lunar Mineralogical Spectrometer (LMS) is one of the main payloads on the Chang'E-5 (CE-5) lunar probe, belonging to the China Lunar Exploration Program. The scientific objective of the LMS is to explore the mineralogical composition and search for evidence of -OH/H2O in the sampling area. The LMS consists of an optomechanism unit, a dustproof calibration unit (DPCU) and an electronic unit. The LMS is installed on the lander about 1.4-m above the lunar surface, the field of view (FOV) is 4.17 × 4.17 ∘ , the instant FOV of the visible imaging channel is 0.28 mrad, and the typical spatial resolution is 0.56 mm/pixel @ 2 m distance. The rotation range of the 2D scanner is ± 22.5 ∘ along the azimuth axis and 0 ∼ 30 ∘ along the elevation axis, making it possible to observe the sampling area or to select important observing targets. The dispersing beam uses acousto-optic tunable filters, and target detection is performed with a 2D scanner. The LMS acquires spectral imaging information covering 480–950 nm, and reflectance spectra of 900–3,200-nm, both at a 5-nm/band sampling interval. The spectral resolution is 2.4 ∼ 9.4 nm in the visible and near-infrared channels and 7.6 ∼ 24.9 nm in the short–medium-wave infrared channel. The LMS has a 588-band detection capability designed for fine spectral observation of sampling points and wields a 20-band full-view multi-spectral mode to observe candidate areas prior to sampling. The DPCU of the LMS is integrated with a calibration diffuser that is used for in-flight calibration on the lunar surface using solar irradiation, thus improving the quantitative level of scientific data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-year El Niño events induce severe and persistent floods and droughts worldwide, with significant socioeconomic impacts, but the causes of their long-lasting behaviors are still not fully understood. Here we present a two-way feedback mechanism between the tropics and extratropics to argue that extratropical atmospheric variability associated with the North Pacific Oscillation (NPO) is a key source of multi-year El Niño events. The NPO during boreal winter can trigger a Central Pacific El Niño during the subsequent winter, which excites atmospheric teleconnections to the extratropics that re-energize the NPO variability, then re-triggers another El Niño event in the following winter, finally resulting in persistent El Niño-like states. Model experiments, with the NPO forcing assimilated to constrain atmospheric circulation, reproduce the observed connection between NPO forcing and the occurrence of multi-year El Niño events. Future projections of Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phases 5 and 6 models demonstrate that with enhanced NPO variability under future anthropogenic forcing, more frequent multi-year El Niño events should be expected. We conclude that properly accounting for the effects of the NPO on the evolution of El Niño events may improve multi-year El Niño prediction and projection. The causes of long-lasting behaviors of multi-year El Niño are still not fully understood. Here, the authors find that persistent two-way teleconnections between the North Pacific Oscillation and the tropical Pacific constitute a key source of multi-year El Niño. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work is mainly concerned with the synthesis of Co-Zn nanocomposites by employing MCM-41 silica as hard template (CoZnO-HT) and its catalytic behavior toward to CO2 reforming with ethanol. The physicochemical features of the as-prepared catalysts were probed through various characterization techniques, including XRD, TEM, BET, H2-TPR, and XPS. Indeed, CoZnO-HT catalyst possessed a highly ordered mesostructure with similarity to MCM-41 template and a higher specific surface area (304 m2/g) compared to the reference CoZnO-C sample (4.75 m2/g) prepared by the conventional impregnation method. Consequently, CoZnO-HT exhibited good performance at low temperature, and full ethanol conversion could be achieved at 550 °C as well as the negligible formation of byproduct acetone. In addition, this catalyst depicted good stability and no obvious deactivation was observed after 40 h time on stream tests under the stoichiometric feed ratio. Indeed, superior specific surface area and efficient mass transport within the mesopores might be critical factors assigned to better activity and stability for CoZnO-HT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional (2D) multiferroics have attracted increasing interests in basic science and technological fields in recent years. However, most reported 2D magnetic ferroelectrics are based on the d-electron magnetism, which makes them rather rare due to the empirical d0 rule and limits their applications for low magnetic phase transition temperature. In this work, we demonstrate that the ferroelectricity can coexist with the p-electron-induced ferromagnetism without the limitation of d0 rule and metallicity in a family of stable 2D MXene-analogous oxynitrides, X2NO2 (X = In, Tl). Remarkably, the itinerant character of p electrons can lead to the strong ferromagnetic metallic states. Furthermore, a possible magnetoelectric effect is manifested in a Tl2NO2/WTe2 heterostructure through the interface engineering. Our findings provide an alternative possible route toward 2D multiferroics and enrich the concept of ferroelectric metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aimed to distinguish different hypertriglyceridemic waist phenotypes and relevant risks of developing fatty liver and abnormal glycometabolic profiles in overweight/obese adults. A total of 1221 Chinese adults with mean (standard deviation [SD]) age of 37 (9) years, 37.3% males and 62.7% females, body mass index (BMI) of 29.0 (4.0) kg/m2, triglyceride (TG) 2.04 (1.45) mmol/L, and waist circumference (WC) 95.8 (10.7) cm were included and classified into four phenotypes: normal TG & normal WC (N-N); normal TG & high WC (N-WC); high TG & normal WC (TG-N); high TG & high WC (TG-WC). Participants in TG-WC group had the highest BMI, WC, blood pressure (BP), insulin, Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL), and fatty liver. Participants within N-WC group had a significantly higher risk of fatty liver (adjusted OR 3.50 [95% CI 2.05–5.97]), as well as TG-N (adjusted OR 2.59 [95% CI 1.61–4.16]) and TG-WC (adjusted OR 4.12 [95% CI 2.28–7.46]). The risk of elevated HOMA-IR was significantly higher in TG-N (adjusted OR 2.16 [95% CI 1.33–3.50]) and TG-WC (adjusted OR 2.04 [95% CI 1.22–3.40]). The risk of elevated HbA1c was significantly higher in the TG-WC (adjusted OR 2.79 [95% CI 1.47–5.31]). Hypertriglyceridemic waist phenotype can be a potential and cost-effective method to identify individuals with a high risk of fatty liver and glycometabolic disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of Dy80Fe20 (wt%) powder doping on the magnetic properties and thermal stability of the hot-deformed (HD) Nd-Fe-B magnets are studied. The coercivity (Hcj) greatly increases from 12.55 kOe for the original magnet to 18.23 kOe by doping 2 wt% Dy80Fe20 powder, which shows an increase of 45.3%. Interdiffusion occurs between the Dy80Fe20 additive and matrix phase. Dy diffuses from the Dy80Fe20 additive to the matrix phase and replaces Nd around the Nd2Fe14B grains. Nd migrates into the grain boundary (GB) phase. The formation of (Nd, Dy)2Fe14B regions improves the magnetic anisotropy field (HA) and effectively suppresses the nucleation of reverse magnetic domains. The magnetic isolation is strengthened by the improved GB phase. This explains the Hcj enhancement of the Dy80Fe20 doped magnet. The thermal stability of the Dy80Fe20 doped magnet is improved due to the high Curie temperature (TC) of (Nd, Dy)2Fe14B hard magnetic phase. The relationship between recoil loops and demagnetization of the HD magnets is also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Introduction: Currently, there is no clinical prediction model for young patients (≤ 45 years old) with epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) based on large samples of clinical data. The purpose of this study was to construct nomograms using data extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program to predict the overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) of patients and to further guide the choice of clinical treatment options. Methods: Data from a total of 6376 young patients with EOC collected from 1998 to 2016 were selected from the SEER database. These patients were randomly divided (7:3) into a training cohort (n = 4465) and a validation cohort (n = 1911). Cox and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) analyses were used to select the prognostic factors affecting OS and CSS, and the nomograms of OS and CSS were established. The performance of the nomogram models was assessed by C-index, area under the curve (AUC), calibration curves, and decision curve analysis (DCA). Sample were chosen from patients who underwent surgery in Shengjing Hospital to set external validation. Kaplan–Meier curves were plotted to compare survival outcomes between subgroups. Results: Nomograms showed good predictive power and clinical practicality. The internal and external validation indicated better performance of the nomograms than the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging system and tumor grade system. Significant differences were observed in the survival curves of different risk subgroups. Conclusions: We constructed predictive nomograms to evaluate the OS and CSS of young patients with EOC. The nomograms will provide an individualized evaluation of OS and CSS for suitable treatment of young patients with EOC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recovery of blood circulation following cerebral infarction-associated thrombolysis brings new damage to the brain, which is cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury (CIRI). Inflammation is the main pathological mechanism of CIRI. The inflammatory response triggered by cerebral ischemia-reperfusion provides neutrophils with a special opportunity to facilitate drug delivery to the site of ischemic penumbra through the chemotaxis of inflammatory factors by neutrophils. Puerarin is an isoflavone derivative with a significant neuroprotective effect in vitro. But the blood-brain barrier (BBB) impedes its therapeutic efficacy on CIRI within the brain. Inspired by the pathological process, we have used neutrophils as carriers to enhance the BBB penetration of liposomes loaded with puerarin and improve the concentration of puerarin in the brain parenchyma in this study. These results showed that puerarin-containing liposomes were released in response to inflammatory conditions associated with brain injury to enhance the neuroprotection effect at the ischemic penumbra. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research suggests that genetic variants linked to monoaminergic neurotransmitter function moderate the association between stress and anxiety symptoms, but examining gene-environment (G × E) interactions with individual genes limits power. As one of polygenetic approaches, the multilocus genetic profile score is derived theoretically from combining the effects of multiple candidate genes based on the "biological plausibility". Using this approach, the current study examined the interaction between monoaminergic multilocus genetic variants and stressful life events on the changes in adolescent anxiety symptoms across a one-year timespan. In a Chinese Han adolescent sample which was derived from three vocational high schools (N = 587; T1: Mage = 16.47 ± 1.53 years; 50.8%, girls), the monoaminergic multilocus genetic profile score was calculated using 5-HTR2C rs6318, TPH2 rs4570625 and DRD2 rs1800497 polymorphisms. Results showed that this monoaminergic multilocus genetic profile score interacted with stressful life events in predicting changes in anxiety symptoms. Consistent with the G×E hypothesis of differential susceptibility, adolescents with more monoaminergic plasticity alleles not only suffered more from high levels of stressful life events, which increased the risk for anxiety symptoms, but also benefited more from low levels of stressful life events, which decreased the risk for anxiety symptoms. There were no significant G × E interactions when individual polymorphisms were examined in isolation. The results highlight the importance of examining aggregated influences of multiple genes in G × E interactions underlying the longitudinal development of adolescent anxiety symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, congruent and near-stoichiometric LiNbO3:Fe (CLN:Fe and SLN:Fe) crystals are prepared through Czochralski and Vapour-transport-equilibration techniques, and the temporal evolution of the photoinduced light scattering (PILS) in both crystals are studied at different temperatures by using an in-situ dynamic angular spectrum technique. It is found from a series of in-situ dynamic angular spectra that, the PILS angular distribution becomes narrow with the time elapsed in both crystals but the narrowing extent and its temperature dependence are quite different in the congruent and near-stoichiometric LiNbO3:Fe crystals. The narrowing of the PILS angular distribution is suggested to be connected with the competition between the noise gratings with the different wave vectors, and the distinct PILS characteristics in the two crystals are explained by the crystal conductivity varying with both the temperate and Li composition of the crystal. In particular, at the high temperatures above 170 °C two columns of PILS distributing in the angular regions of − 7° ~ − 17° and − 17° ~ − 25° are found in the congruent LiNbO3:Fe crystal but none in the near-stoichiometric LiNbO3:Fe crystal. The prolonged temporal evolution of these two columns of PILS are attributed to the competition between the two groups of noise gratings formed by the high-concentration protons with low mobility in the congruent LiNbO3:Fe crystal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disease in the older adults. Although much effort has been made in the analyses of diagnostic biomarkers, such as amyloid-β, tau, and neurofilament light chain, identifying peripheral blood-based biomarkers is in extremely urgent need for their minimal invasiveness and more convenience. Here we characterized the miRNA profile by RNA sequencing in human serum exosomes from AD patients and healthy controls (HC) to investigate its potential for AD diagnosis. Subsequently, Gene Ontology analysis and pathway analysis were performed for the targeted genes from the differentially expressed miRNAs. These basic functions were differentially enriched, including cell adhesion, regulation of transcription, and the ubiquitin system. Functional network analysis highlighted the pathways of proteoglycans in cancer, viral carcinogenesis, signaling pathways regulating pluripotency of stem cells, and cellular senescence in AD. A total of 24 miRNAs showed significantly differential expression between AD and HC with more than ± 2.0-fold change at p value < 0.05 and at least 50 reads for each sample. Logistic regression analysis established a model for AD prediction by serum exosomal miR-30b-5p, miR-22-3p, and miR-378a-3p. Sequencing results were validated using quantitative reverse transcription PCR. The data showed that miR-30b-5p, miR-22-3p, and miR-378a-3p were significantly deregulated in AD, with area under the curve (AUC) of 0.668, 0.637, and 0.718, respectively. The combination of the three miRs gained a better diagnostic capability with AUC of 0.880. This finding revealed a miR panel as potential biomarker in the peripheral blood to distinguish AD from HC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The available spatial data are rapidly growing and also diversifying. One may obtain in large quantities information such as annotated point/place of interest (POIs), check-in comments on those POIs, geo-tagged microblog comments, and demarked regions of interest (ROI). All sources interplay with each other, and together build a more complete picture of the spatial and social dynamics at play in a region. However, building a single fused representation of these data entries has been mainly rudimentary, such as allowing spatial joins. In this paper, we extend the concept of semantic embedding for POIs (points of interests) and devise the first semantic embedding of ROIs, and in particular ones that captures both its spatial and its semantic components. To accomplish this, we develop a multipart network model capturing the relationships between the diverse components, and through random-walk-based approaches, use this to embed the ROIs. We demonstrate the effectiveness of this embedding at simultaneously capturing both the spatial and semantic relationships between ROIs through extensive experiments. Applications like popularity region prediction demonstrate the benefit of using ROI embedding as features in comparison with baselines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tibetan Plateau (TP) summer precipitation, whose first leading mode presents a dipole oscillation between the northeastern and southeastern TP, plays important roles in the water cycle and atmospheric circulation. Using a weakly coupled data assimilation (WCDA) system to constrain the atmospheric component in a coupled model with a global atmospheric reanalysis product, this study demonstrates significant improvements in predicting the interannual variation of summer precipitation over the eastern TP, capturing the strong reversal mode between the northeastern and southeastern TP. These improvements are mainly attributed to the strong air–sea coupling over the North Atlantic (NA) and its remote impacts on the TP precipitation. This coupling allows observation-constrained atmosphere to significantly influence initial conditions (ICs) of sea surface temperature (SST) in the NA area and then obviously affect predictions of both NA SST and summer North Atlantic Oscillation (SNAO), which affects the downstream TP atmospheric circulation through the wave train of Eliassen-Palm (EP) stationary wave flux. This study highlights the importance of NA air–sea coupling in the interannual predictability of TP precipitation and suggests a new source of interannual predictability of TP precipitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Mars Mineralogical Spectrometer (MMS) is a hyperspectral imager onboard the Mars orbiter of Tianwen-1, China's first Mars exploration mission. MMS consists of 4 subassemblies: an Optical Sensor Unit (OSU), an Electronics Unit (EU), a Calibration Unit (CU), and a Thermal Control Accessories (TCA). With a 0.5 mrad IFOV and a 416-sample cell array for nadir observation, MMS can map the spectral and spatial information of the Martian surface through push-broom scanning, and it can transmit scientific data by hyperspectral mode or multispectral imaging mode through spatial and spectral combination. MMS can perform multi-sample hyperspectral imaging at full spectral resolution (0.379–1.076 μm with 2.73 nm/band, 1.033–3.425 μm at 7.5 nm/band, both spectral ranges at 2.1 km/pixel at 265 km). For the wavelength region of interest, the multispectral mapping mode provides additional options, a subset of 72 bands that are binned to minimum pixel footprints of 265 m/pixel. The major objective of the MMS is to analyze the compositions and distributions of the minerals on Martian surface, in order to characterize its evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iron is a major impurity in quartz sand and must be strictly removed in many applications. However, the iron removal rate in most of the conventional purification process is not high enough. In this study, a fast, low-energy consuming, environment-friendly and simple process for purifying quartz is demonstrated by a combination of microwave heating and ultrasound-assisted acid leaching treatment. Using the characteristics of selective heating of microwave, the micro-inclusions burst and generate cracks in the surrounding quartz matrix far below the α/β phase transition temperature, which enables removal of the impurities in the subsequent processing steps and reduces iron diffusion into the quartz matrix. Microwave process sequence, time, and temperature are all important factors, and appropriate parameters need to be explored. Ultrasound can assist acid leaching removal of Fe impurities through the cracks. Under optimized conditions, the iron content can be reduced to below 0.167 ppmw with one single purification pass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metamemory refers to the metacognitive awareness of one's own memory status. Previous research has shown that item value plays a dominant role in self-regulated study (e.g., strategic choices regarding when, what, and how to study). In spite of extensive research on the effects of item value on in learners' study behaviour, less is known about the effects of item value on judgments of learning (JOLs; i.e., metacognitive predictions about the likelihood that a given item can be remembered at a future occasion), especially when item value and item difficulty conflict. Three experiments were conducted in the present study to examine whether the effect of item-value can override the effect of item difficulty on JOLs. In each trial, three word pairs, associated with varying difficulty levels, were presented simultaneously, and the three pairs were all associated with a single point value in the constant-value condition, but with different point values in the tradeoff condition. Point values were presented alongside the word pairs. After the learning phase, participants made item-by-item JOLs. Experiment 1 demonstrated that JOLs systematically decreased with the increase of item difficulty in the constant value condition. Critically, item-value eliminated (but failed to reverse) people's preference for easy items in the 1–3-6 tradeoff condition. Experiment 2 expanded the value gradient and found a full reversal, such that JOLs were primarily influenced by item value. Experiment 3 measured study time allocation to explore the mechanisms underlying learners' metacognitive monitoring process. A mediation analysis showed that the direct effect of value on JOLs was apparent only when value was highly salient; with lower value salience, the effect of value on JOLs was entirely mediated by changes in study time. The findings of the present study further complement the agenda-based regulation (ABR) model on value-directed metacognitive monitoring. An analytic method to examine the function of a particular cue on JOLs for the cue-utilization hypothesis is also provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The liver is the central organ for cholesterol homoeostasis, and its dysfunction might cause liver pathological alterations including hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs). 3β-hydroxysteroid-Δ24 reductase (DHCR24), a crucial enzyme of cholesterol biosynthetic pathway, is involved in lipid rafts formation. Genkwadaphnin (GD) is a daphnane diterpene isolated from the flower buds of Daphne genkwa Siebold et Zuccarini (Thymelaeaceae).Methods: We evaluated in vitro and in vivo effect of GD using HCC cells and BALB/c nude mice. Microarray assays were used to identify the differential genes by GD. DHCR24 expression and activity, cholesterol level, lipid rafts structure and the role of DHCR24 in human HCC specimens were tested by various molecular biology techniques.Results: High expression of DHCR24 in human HCC specimens was correlated with poor clinical outcome. Interfering DHCR24 altered growth and migration of HCC cells. GD inhibited growth and metastasis of HCC cells both in vivo and in vitro. GD suppressed DHCR24 expression and activity, as well as DHCR24-mediated cholesterol biosynthesis and lipid rafts formation, then further inhibited HCC cell invasion and migration.Conclusions: Our data suggest that DHCR24-mediated cholesterol metabolism might be an effective therapeutic strategy in HCC, and natural product GD might be a promising agent for HCC therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]