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Purpose: An MRI-based risk calculator (RC) has been recommended for diagnosing clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa). PSMA PET/CT can detect lesions that are not visible on MRI, and the addition of PSMA PET/CT to MRI may improve diagnostic performance. The aim of this study was to incorporate the PRIMARY score or SUVmax derived from [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT into the RC and compare these models with MRI-based RC to assess whether this can further reduce unnecessary biopsies. Methods: A total of 683 consecutive biopsy-naïve men who underwent both [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT and MRI before biopsy were temporally divided into a development cohort (n = 552) and a temporal validation cohort (n = 131). Three logistic regression RCs were developed and compared: MRI-RC, MRI-SUVmax-RC and MRI-PRIMARY-RC. Discrimination, calibration, and clinical utility were evaluated. The primary outcome was the clinical utility of the risk calculators for detecting csPCa and reducing the number of negative biopsies. Results: The prevalence of csPCa was 47.5% (262/552) in the development cohort and 41.9% (55/131) in the temporal validation cohort. In the development cohort, the AUC of MRI-PRIMARY-RC was significantly higher than that of MRI-RC (0.924 vs. 0.868, p < 0.001) and MRI-SUVmax-RC (0.924 vs. 0.904, p = 0.002). In the temporal validation cohort, MRI-PRIMARY-RC also showed the best discriminative ability with an AUC of 0.921 (95% CI: 0.873–0.969). Bootstrapped calibration curves revealed that the model fit was acceptable. MRI-PRIMARY-RC exhibited near-perfect calibration within the range of 0–40%. DCA showed that MRI-PRIMARY-RC had the greatest net benefit for detecting csPCa compared with MRI-RC and MRI-SUVmax-RC at a risk threshold of 5–40% for csPCa in both the development and validation cohorts. Conclusion: The addition of the PRIMARY score to MRI-based multivariable model improved the accuracy of risk stratification prior to biopsy. Our novel MRI-PRIMARY prediction model is a promising approach for reducing unnecessary biopsies and improving the early detection of csPCa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The level of transforming growth factor-beta2 (TGFβ2) is elevated in aqueous humor of partial glaucoma patients, and induced trabecular meshwork (TM) fibrosis, which could cause TM cells dysfunction and lead to intraocular pressure (IOP) elevation. Autophagy is a dynamic process of bulk degradation of organelles and proteins under stress condition, while its functions in fibrotic development remain controversial. Meanwhile, it is still unclear if activation of autophagy could ameliorate TGFβ2-induced fibrosis in TM cells. In this study, we demonstrated that autophagy activation with Rapamycin or Everolimus could ameliorate TM fibrosis induced by TGFβ2. We also proved that activation of autophagy may decrease TM cells fibrosis and reduce elevated IOP induced by TGFβ2 in vivo, while Rapamycin or Everolimus has no effect on TGFβ/Smad3 pathway activity and fibrotic genes expression. However, when Chloroquine phosphate blocks autophagy-lysosome pathway, the protective effect of Rapamycin or Everolimus on fibrosis was weakened. We established that autophagy activation ameliorates TM fibrosis through promoting fibrotic proteins degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proximity-dependent biotinylation coupled with mass spectrometry enables the characterization of subcellular proteomes. This technique has significantly advanced neuroscience by revealing sub-synaptic protein networks, such as the synaptic cleft and post-synaptic density. Profiling proteins at this detailed level is essential for understanding the molecular mechanisms of neuronal connectivity and transmission. Despite its recent successful application to various neuronal types, proximity labelling has yet to be employed to study the serotonin system. In this study, we uncovered an unreported inhibitory mechanism of serotonin on horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-based biotinylation. Our result showed that serotonin significantly reduces biotinylation levels across various Biotin-XX-tyramide (BxxP) concentrations in HEK293T cells and primary neurons, whereas dopamine exerts minimal interference, highlighting the specificity of this inhibition. To counteract this inhibition, we demonstrated that Dz-PEG, an aryl diazonium compound that consumes serotonin through an azo-coupling reaction, restores biotinylation efficiency. Label-free quantitative proteomics confirmed that serotonin inhibits biotinylation, and that Dz-PEG effectively reverses this inhibition. These findings highlight the importance of accounting for neurotransmitter interference in proximity-dependent biotinylation studies, especially for cell-type specific profiling in neuroscience. Additionally, we provided a potential strategy to mitigate these challenges, thereby enhancing the accuracy and reliability of such studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Streaming perception is a crucial task in the field of autonomous driving, which aims to eliminate the inconsistency between the perception results and the real environment due to the delay. In high-speed driving scenarios, the inconsistency becomes larger. Previous research has ignored the study of streaming perception in high-speed driving scenarios and the robustness of the model to object's speed. To fill this gap, we first define the full-speed domain streaming perception problem and construct a real-time meta-detector, StreamTrack. Second, to perform motion trend extraction, Swift Multi-Cost Tracker (SMCT) is proposed for fast and accurate data association. Meanwhile, the Direct-Decoupled Prediction Head (DDPH) is introduced for predicting future locations. Furthermore, we introduce the Uniform Motion Prior Loss (UMPL), which ensures stable learning of the model for rapidly moving objects. Compared with the strong baseline, our model improves the SAsAP (Speed-Adaptive steaming Average Precision) by 15.46 %. Extensive experiments show that our approach achieves state-of-the-art performance in the full-speed domain streaming perception task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endothelial-mesenchymal transition (EndMT) disrupts vascular endothelial integrity and induces atherosclerosis. Active integrin β1 plays a pivotal role in promoting EndMT by facilitating TGFβ/Smad signaling in endothelial cells. Here, we report a novel anthraquinone compound, Kanglexin (KLX), which prevented EndMT and atherosclerosis by activating MAP4K4 and suppressing integrin β1/TGFβ signaling. First, KLX effectively counteracted the EndMT phenotype and mitigated the dysregulation of endothelial and mesenchymal markers induced by TGFβ1. Second, KLX suppressed TGFβ/Smad signaling by inactivating integrin β1 and inhibiting the polymerization of TGFβR1/2. The underlying mechanism involved the activation of FGFR1 by KLX, resulting in the phosphorylation of MAP4K4 and Moesin, which led to integrin β1 inactivation by displacing Talin from its β-tail. Oral administration of KLX effectively stimulated endothelial FGFR1 and inhibited integrin β1, thereby preventing vascular EndMT and attenuating plaque formation and progression in the aorta of atherosclerotic Apoe−/− mice. Notably, KLX (20 mg/kg) exhibited superior efficacy compared with atorvastatin, a clinically approved lipid-regulating drug. In conclusion, KLX exhibited potential in ameliorating EndMT and retarding the formation and progression of atherosclerosis through direct activation of FGFR1. Therefore, KLX is a promising candidate for the treatment of atherosclerosis to mitigate vascular endothelial injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between different antiplatelet therapy regimens and the functional outcomes and bleeding complications among mild-to-moderate ischaemic stroke patients based on real-world data. Methods: We used data from the SEACOAST trial (Safety and efficacy of aspirin–clopidogrel in acute noncardiogenic minor ischaemic stroke) to analyse the data of patients with mild-to-moderate stroke within 72 h after onset who were treated with aspirin or clopidogrel alone or a combination of clopidogrel and aspirin from September 2019 to November 2021. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to balance the differences between groups. We performed an analysis to evaluate the association of different antiplatelet regimens and 90-day disability, which was defined as a modified Rankin Scale score ≥2, as well as disability ascribed to index or recurrent stroke by the local investigator. In terms of safety, we then compared the bleeding events between the two groups. Results: A total of 2822 mild-to-moderate ischaemic stroke patients were treated with either clopidogrel plus aspirin (n = 1726, 61.2%) or aspirin/clopidogrel (n = 1096, 38.8%). Of 1726 patients in the dual antiplatelet group, 1350 (78.5%) received less than or equal to 30 days of combined therapy. At 90 days, 433 (15.3%) patients were disabled. Patients who received combined therapy had a lower overall disability rate (13.7% versus 17.9%; OR 0.78 (0.6–1.01); P = 0.064). However, investigators found that index stroke was the reason for significantly fewer patients in the dual antiplatelet group having disability (8.4% versus 12%; OR, 0.72 (0.52–0.98); P = 0.038). There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of moderate to severe bleeding complications between the dual and mono antiplatelet drug regimens (0.4% versus 0.2%; HR 1.5 (0.25, 8.98); P = 0.657). Conclusion: Aspirin plus clopidogrel was associated with a reduction in the incidence of disability attributed to index stroke. There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of moderate to severe bleeding complications between the two antiplatelet drug regimens. Trial Registration Number: ChiCTR1900025214. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plant volatile organic compounds are an abundant resource that can be used to explore natural gaseous fungicides. Recently, we found that (E)-2-heptenal, a green leaf volatile, could effectively inhibit the growth of Aspergillus flavus, showing promise for application as a biofumigant to prevent grain spoilage by A. flavus. In this study, the inhibitory effects of (E)-2-heptenal on A. flavus spore germination and mechanisms underlying these effects were investigated through morphological, biochemical, and transcriptomic analyses. The minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum fungicidal concentration of (E)-2-heptenal for spore germination of A. flavus were 4.0 and 6.0 µL/mL, respectively. (E)-2-heptenal treatment resulted in irregularly deformed, collapsed, and ruptured surface morphology of A. flavus spores, as well as destroyed cell wall integrity and reduced ergosterol content in A. flavus spores. Transcriptomic analysis revealed 4,312 differentially expressed genes in A. flavus spores exposed to (E)-2-heptenal, including 1,913 upregulated and 2,399 downregulated genes; these genes were mainly involved in ribosome biogenesis, cell cycle, linoleic acid metabolism, MAPK signaling, nucleoplasmic transport, meiosis, lipoic acid metabolism, DNA replication, and pyruvate metabolism pathways. (E)-2-heptenal can induce reactive oxygen species accumulation and mitochondrial dysfunction in A. flavus spores in a dose-dependent manner. Besides, DNA damage and autophagy was observed in (E)-2-heptenal-treated A. flavus spores with 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole and monodansylcadaverine fluorescence staining. The findings of the present study provide insights into the underlying inhibitory mechanisms of (E)-2-heptenal on A. flavus spore germination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study carried out work that investigates the relationships that exist between the facts of Visual Attention (VA), demographic influences, and the perceived landscape values collected from the historic and cultural districts by means of employing a combination of Eye-Tracking (ET) technology along with the Semantic Differential (SD) scale. The study focused on historical locations in China, mainly two regions: Lijiang Old Town and Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. With these two regions as the study area, the research aims to understand and identify how different the visitor demographics could probably perceive the Aesthetic Value (AV) and Cultural Value (CV) elements of these landscapes; using a dual-method approach, this study attempts to correlate the objective Visual Attention (VA) data that are being collected from the ET process along with that of the subjective assessments of landscape value from the SD scale score from a questionnaire. The research presents four hypotheses and proposes that VA elements correlate more with higher AV, CV, and demographic factors assessments. The experimental design structured in this work includes a detailed analysis with respect to eye movement and the corresponding subjective ratings from 387 participants who were classified by age, gender, nationality, and expertise in heritage conservation. Findings from the study have revealed that the natural features have primarily attracted immediate VA and have been rated as higher scores in terms of AV, whereas the cultural features, even attracting less immediate attention, have also been appreciated for their historical and cultural remotest area. The study further emphasises the impact of demographic factors on landscape perception by contributing visions to tailor-made conservation and tourism management policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uracil (U) in DNA plays an important role in numerous biological processes. It can be introduced through two primary mechanisms, cytosine deamidation and misincorporation of dUMP during DNA replication. The misincorporation of U in DNA is associated with various diseases, especially cancer. Here, we developed an electrochemical method utilizing a modified electrode with self-assembled gold nanoparticles on covalent organic frameworks (COF-V-AuNPs) for the direct detection of U. The COF-V-AuNP composite offers numerous advantages, such as exceptional stability, abundant π-functional sites, excellent conductivity, a high specific surface area, a porous structure, and a strong non-covalent affinity, all of which facilitate sensitive detection of U. This electrochemical method achieves a detection limit of 1.92 μM for U. Furthermore, the method was successfully applied to the detection of U using human serum samples as matrices, indicating its potential for clinical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ananthakrishna model, seeking to explain the Portevin-Le Chatelier effect, is studied with or without non-synchronous perturbations. For the unperturbed model, Bogdanov-Takens bifurcation and zero-Hopf bifurcation are detected. For the perturbed model, rich dynamical behaviors are given by researching the Poincaré map, including solutions of different periods, quasi-periodic solutions, chaotic solutions, and bistability. Moreover, an augmented temperature-dependent perturbation amplitude induces a transition from non-serrated to serrated flow on the stress-time curve. Notably, on the stress-strain curve, the phenomenon of repeated yielding diminishes with an increase in the value of a temperature-dependent parameter, while it persists with an increase in the value of a temperature-independent parameter. Sensitivity analysis sheds light on the factors exerting the most significant influence on dislocation density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of hollow VOx/SiO2 nanofiber catalysts (nV/S-f) with vanadium content ranging from 0.25 wt% to 4.0 wt% were prepared by electrospinning-calcination, and characterized by ICP-MS, XRD, N2 adsorption–desorption, SEM, XPS, UV–Vis-DRS and H2-TPR. Subsequently, the performance of these catalysts in the oxidative dehydrogenation of propane (ODHP) was evaluated. It was found that vanadium species with high dispersivity were obtained when the V content was less than 1.5 wt%. By comparison, 1.0V/S-f catalyst had the best catalytic performance, especially in terms of the propylene selectivity at high-temperature: ~ 77% at 550 °C and ~ 74% at 575 °C. In contrast to the conventional impregnation technique, the catalyst with one-dimensional nanostructure has more catalytic advantages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate whether peritumoral edema (PE) could enhance deep learning radiomic (DLR) model in predicting axillary lymph node metastasis (ALNM) burden in breast cancer. Invasive breast cancer patients with preoperative MRI were retrospectively enrolled and categorized into low (< 2 lymph nodes involved (LNs+)) and high (≥ 2 LNs+) burden groups based on surgical pathology. PE was evaluated on T2WI, and intra- and peri-tumoral radiomic features were extracted from MRI-visible tumors in DCE-MRI. Deep learning models were developed for LN burden prediction in the training cohort and validated in an independent cohort. The incremental value of PE was evaluated through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, confirming the improvement in the area under the curve (AUC) using the Delong test. This was complemented by net reclassification improvement (NRI) and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) metrics. The deep learning combined model, incorporating PE with selected radiomic features, demonstrated significantly higher AUC values compared to the MRI model and the DLR model in the training cohort (n = 177) (AUC: 0.953 vs. 0.849 and 0.867, p < 0.05) and the validation cohort (n = 111) (AUC: 0.963 vs. 0.883 and 0.882, p < 0.05). The complementary analysis demonstrated that PE significantly enhances the prediction performance of the DLR model (Categorical NRI: 0.551, p < 0.001; IDI = 0.343, p < 0.001). These findings were confirmed in the validation cohort (Categorical NRI: 0.539, p < 0.001; IDI = 0.387, p < 0.001). PE improved preoperative ALNM burden prediction of DLR model, facilitating personalized axillary management in breast cancer patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To develop an innovative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based PUMCH (Peking Union Medical College Hospital) classification system aimed at standardising the diagnosis of congenital cervical malformations (CCMs) by identifying their distinctive MRI features. Methods: Seventy-nine consecutive patients with CCM underwent pre-treatment pelvic MRI; three experienced gynaecological radiologists retrospectively analysed these images. Qualitative assessments included Rock et al's classification; PUMCH classification; haematometra; cervical signal features; ovarian endometriosis; haematosalpinx; and uterine, vaginal, urinary, and musculoskeletal malformations. Quantitative assessments involved the uterine volume, sagittal cervical length, and maximum ovarian cross-sectional area. The surgical treatment types were also recorded. Statistical methods were used to incorporate differences in clinical features and surgical methods into our classification. Results: Morphologically, CCMs were categorised into three types: type I (53%) was characterised by the presence of a cervix with visible cervical canals; type II (23%) featured an existing cervix with concealed cervical canals; and type III (24%) indicated cervical aplasia, which involves a blind end in the lower part of the uterine corpus. Haematometra was significantly more prevalent in patients with type I CCM than in those with type II (p < 0.001). There were three cervical signal patterns: no signal (27%), no evident layer differentiation (21%), and multi-layer differentiation with haematocele (52%). Most patients (94%) had complete vaginal atresia. Type I CCM patients had a higher likelihood of regaining normal uterovaginal anatomy compared to types II and III. Conclusions: Our proposed PUMCH classification system has a high potential for enhancing the efficiency of clinical diagnosis among patients with CCM. Critical relevance statement: The proposed new PUMCH classification promised to elevate the conventional diagnostic trajectory for congenital cervical malformations, offering a valuable framework to refine the selection and planning of surgical interventions, thereby enhancing overall clinical efficacy. Key Points: Effective classification of congenital cervical malformations is desirable to optimise the diagnostic process. We presented a PUMCH classification of congenital cervical malformations using pelvic MRI. The new classification significantly aids clinical triage for congenital cervical malformations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wind gusts play an important role in the modulation of wind stress and have remarkable influence on surface waves. The response of wind stress and surface wave to wind gusts is investigated under wind-wave and swell dominated conditions through direct flux measurements on two coastal towers in the Bohai Sea and South China Sea. Observations show that wind stress significantly increases under gusty conditions compared to non-gusty conditions whether dominated by wind-waves or swells. The stronger the gusts, the greater the increase in wind stress. However, surface waves show different responses to the gusts under wind-wave and swell dominated conditions. When wind-waves dominate, the stronger the gust, the higher the significant wave height, while when swells dominate, the relatively lower the significant wave height. The separation of wind-wave and swell spectra indicates gusts can increase the wind-wave energy and decrease the swell energy. The weakening of swell and the strengthening of wind-wave may lead to an increase in wind stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding how different mechanisms act and interact in shaping communities and ecosystems is essential to better predict their future with global change. Disturbance legacy, abiotic conditions, and biotic interactions can simultaneously influence tree growth, but it remains unclear what are their relative contributions and whether they have additive or interactive effects. We examined the separate and joint effects of disturbance intensity, soil conditions, and neighborhood crowding on tree growth in 10 temperate forests in northeast China. We found that disturbance was the strongest driver of tree growth, followed by neighbors and soil. Specifically, trees grew slower with decreasing initial disturbance intensity, but with increasing neighborhood crowding, soil pH and soil total phosphorus. Interestingly, the decrease in tree growth with increasing soil pH and soil phosphorus was steeper with high initial disturbance intensity. Testing the role of species traits, we showed that fast-growing species exhibited greater maximum tree size, but lower wood density and specific leaf area. Species with lower wood density grew faster with increasing initial disturbance intensity, while species with higher specific leaf area suffered less from neighbors in areas with high initial disturbance intensity. Our study suggests that accounting for both individual and interactive effects of multiple drivers is crucial to better predict forest dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accumulating evidence indicates that exosomal proteins are critical in diagnosing malignant tumors. To identify novel exosomal biomarkers for lung cancer diagnosis, we isolated plasma exosomes from 517 lung cancer patients and 168 healthy controls (NLs)—186 lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients (screening (SN): 20, validation (VD): 166), 159 lung squamous carcinoma (LUSC) patients (SN: 20, VD: 139), 172 benign nodules (LUBN) patients (SN: 20, VD: 152) and 168 NLs (SN: 20, VD: 148)—and randomly assigned them to the SN or VD group. Proteomic analysis by LC–MS/MS and PRM were performed on all groups. The candidate humoral markers were evaluated and screened by a machine learning method. All selected biomarkers were identified in the VD groups. For LUAD, a 7-protein panel had AUCs of 97.9% and 87.6% in the training and test sets, respectively, and 89.5% for early LUAD. For LUSC, an 8-protein panel showed AUCs of 99.1% and 87.0% in the training and test sets and 92.3% for early LUSC. For LUAD + LUSC (LC), an 8-protein panel showed AUCs of 85.9% and 80.3% in the training and test sets and 87.1% for early LC diagnosis. The characteristics of the exosomal proteome make exosomes potential diagnostic tools. Highlights: This study aimed to identify plasma exosomal proteins by proteomics for the diagnosis of lung cancer. Machine learning predicted more than 85% AUC in early lung cancer diagnosis. The diagnostic markers differences existed between LUAD and LUSC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epigenetic mechanisms bridge genetic and environmental factors that contribute to the pathogenesis of major depression disorder (MDD). However, the cellular specificity and sensitivity of environmental stress on brain epitranscriptomics and its impact on depression remain unclear. Here, we found that ALKBH5, an RNA demethylase of N6-methyladenosine (m6A), was increased in MDD patients' blood and depression models. ALKBH5 in astrocytes was more sensitive to stress than that in neurons and endothelial cells. Selective deletion of ALKBH5 in astrocytes, but not in neurons and endothelial cells, produced antidepressant-like behaviors. Astrocytic ALKBH5 in the mPFC regulated depression-related behaviors bidirectionally. Meanwhile, ALKBH5 modulated glutamate transporter-1 (GLT-1) m6A modification and increased the expression of GLT-1 in astrocytes. ALKBH5 astrocyte-specific knockout preserved stress-induced disruption of glutamatergic synaptic transmission, neuronal atrophy and defective Ca2+ activity. Moreover, enhanced m6A modification with S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe) produced antidepressant-like effects. Our findings indicate that astrocytic epitranscriptomics contribute to depressive-like behaviors and that astrocytic ALKBH5 may be a therapeutic target for depression. The regulatory mechanism and function of astrocytic epigenetic effects on depression remain to be explored. Here, the authors show astrocytic ALKBH5 contributes to depressive-like behaviors via the m6A RNA methylation of GLT-1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We aimed to systematically assess the methodological quality and clinical potential application of published magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based radiomics studies about endometrial cancer (EC). Methods: Studies of EC radiomics analyses published between 1 January 2000 and 19 March 2023 were extracted, and their methodological quality was evaluated using the radiomics quality score (RQS) and Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 (QUADAS-2). Pairwise correlation analyses and separate meta-analyses of studies exploring differential diagnoses and risk prediction were also performed. Results: Forty-five studies involving 3 aims were included. The mean RQS was 13.77 (range: 9–22.5); publication bias was observed in the areas of 'index test' and 'flow and timing'. A high RQS was significantly associated with therapy selection-aimed studies, low QUADAS-2 risk, recent publication year, and high-performance metrics. Raw data from 6 differential diagnosis and 34 risk prediction models were subjected to meta-analysis, revealing diagnostic odds ratios of 23.81 (95% confidence interval [CI] 8.48–66.83) and 18.23 (95% CI 13.68–24.29), respectively. Conclusion: The methodological quality of radiomics studies involving patients with EC is unsatisfactory. However, MRI-based radiomics analyses showed promising utility in terms of differential diagnosis and risk prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The CuO anode prepared by the traditional slurry coating method still suffers from limited lithium-ion transport kinetics due to the long diffusion lengths and tortuous transport paths resulting from the addition of conductive agents and binders. In this study, we have prepared the integrated CuO@Cu electrode with the porous CuO nanosheets in situ vertically grown on Cu current collector using a chemical etching method. The integrated electrode design improves the electrical conductivity of the electrode, and the porous nanosheets increase the contact area of the electrolyte and buffer the volume variation of CuO during cycling. Moreover, the vertically grown CuO nanosheets can shorten the lithium ion diffusion path and reduce the tortuosity of lithium ion transport pathways, thus realizing fast lithium ion storage kinetics. While the slurry coating CuO powder electrode shows a capacity of 13.3 mAh g−1 at 20 A g−1, our integrated CuO@Cu electrode still delivers a capacity of 181.6 mAh g−1 at 20 A g−1. This study demonstrates that rational structural design can significantly improve Li-ion storage kinetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, we have prepared carbon-coated cadmium sulfide nanowires with sulfur defect (Vs-CdS NWs@C) anode by a polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-assisted solvothermal method. Vs-CdS NWs@C anode not only increases the wettability of the electrode material and the electrolyte but also exposes more active sites, which can effectively alleviate the volume expansion during the charging and discharging process, accelerate the reaction kinetics, and maintain the stability of the electrode structure. At the same time, the surface defects engineered to construct unsaturated active sites on the surface contribute to the conductivity and introduce active sites for binding lithium ions. Finally, the conductivity of the carbon layer can effectively improve the electrode conductivity. Therefore, the synergistic regulation strategy of nanostructures, sulfur defect engineering, and carbon coating is expected to construct new and efficient anode materials for LIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atypical Rho GTPases are a subtype of the Rho GTPase family that are involved in diverse cellular processes. The typical Rho GTPases, led by RhoA, Rac1 and Cdc42, have been well studied, while relative studies on atypical Rho GTPases are relatively still limited and have great exploration potential. With the increase in studies, current evidence suggests that atypical Rho GTPases regulate multiple biological processes and play important roles in the occurrence and development of human cancers. Therefore, this review mainly discusses the molecular basis of atypical Rho GTPases and their roles in cancer. We summarize the sequence characteristics, subcellular localization and biological functions of each atypical Rho GTPase. Moreover, we review the recent advances and potential mechanisms of atypical Rho GTPases in the development of multiple cancers. A comprehensive understanding and extensive exploration of the biological functions of atypical Rho GTPases and their molecular mechanisms in tumors will provide important insights into the pathophysiology of tumors and the development of cancer therapeutic strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the scarcity of simultaneous observations on global-scale wind and wave spectra, there has been limited research on the characteristics of global wave-induced stress and wind stress with wave effects using observed wave spectra, particularly their seasonal variations. The China France Oceanography Satellite (CFOSAT) for the first time can simultaneously observe global sea surface wind and wave spectra, providing a solid data basis for investigating this difficult issue. In this study, the seasonal characteristics of global sea surface wave-induced stress and wind stress were analyzed by combining one-year simultaneous wind and wave observations from CFOSAT with a wave boundary layer model. Wave-induced stress was divided into wind-wave-induced stress and swell-induced stress based on different wave forms. The results showed that the wave-induced stress presented a significant inverse correlation with swell index. A higher swell index corresponded to a larger proportion of swell-induced stress, resulting in a decrease in wind stress, and vice versa, wind-wave-induced stress was dominant, resulting in an increase in wind stress. From spring to winter in the Northern Hemisphere (NH), wind-wave-induced stress predominated in the westerly belt of the Southern Hemisphere (SH), while swell-induced stress predominated near the equator. Further analysis revealed that the seasonal variation in wind-wave-induced stress in the SH was not significant, however, wind-wave-induced stress during the boreal summer was significantly lower than that in other seasons. The absolute value of swell-induced stress in the SH showed a trend of decrease and then increase from spring to winter. The percentage of increase or decrease in wind stress after considering the wave-induced stress showed a roughly symmetrical pattern between the NH and SH during the spring and autumn seasons, while the summer and winter seasons showed an asymmetrical feature. Wave-induced stress significantly modulated wind stress, resulting in zonal mean variations by up to ±30%. This finding further highlights the important modulation of surface waves on wind stress at the global scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The trait of solution, bifurcation mechanism, and stability of delayed BAM neural network models have attracted great attention from many scholars. But the exploration about the stability aspect and bifurcation mechanism of fractional delayed BAM neural network models is relatively few. This work will focus on the stability aspect and bifurcation mechanism of fractional delayed BAM neural network models. Lipschitz condition, Laplace transform, construction of a proper function, stability criterion, and bifurcation principle of fractional delayed dynamical system, delayed feedback controller, dislocated feedback controller, and Matlab simulation technique are exploited. The criteria on the boundedness, existence, and uniqueness of solutions to fractional delayed BAM neural network models are gained. A new delay-independent bifurcation criterion and stability of the formulated neural network models is acquired. Delayed feedback controller and dislocated feedback controller are effectually utilized to dominate the time of generation of bifurcation and stability domain of the formulated neural network models. MATLAB simulation experiments are provided to substantiate the acquired primary outcomes. The gained theoretical outcomes of this article possess tremendous theoretical significance in devising and running the fractional delayed BAM neural network models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigated the composition, abundance, and diversity of gut microbes in full-term and late-preterm infants from a medical center in eastern China. A total of 144 genomes of stool samples were captured for 16S rRNA metagenomic analyses. A high abundance of commensal intestinal bacteria was detected in these samples such as Phocaeicola vulgatus, Escherichia coli, and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, indicating a relatively consistent diversity of gut microbes in the present full-term infants aged 38–40 weeks. However, late preterm infants (n = 50) with mandatory antimicrobials feeding exhibited lower diversity but a higher composition of opportunistic pathogens such as Enterococcus species. Centralized on the situation, we explored the regulatory effect of Clostridium butyricum as probiotics on these late preterm infants. The consumption of C. butyricum did not restore the composition of gut microbes altered by antimicrobials to normal levels, although several opportunistic pathogens decreased significantly after probiotic therapy including Staphylococcus aureus, Sphingomonas echinoides, and Pseudomonas putida. We also compared the effects of day-fed versus night-fed probiotics. Intriguingly, the nighttime feeding showed a higher proportion of C. butyricum compared with probiotic day-feeding. Finally, fecal metabolome and metabolites were analyzed in late preterm infants with (n = 20) or without probiotic therapy (n = 20). The KEGG enrichment analysis demonstrated that vitamin digestion and absorption, synaptic vesicle cycle, and biotin metabolism were significantly increased in the probiotic-treated group, while MSEA indicated that a series of metabolism were significantly enriched in probiotic-treated infants including glycerolipid, biotin, and lysine, indicating the complex effects of probiotic therapy on glutathione metabolism and nutrients digestion and absorption in late preterm infants. Overall, this study provided metagenomic and metabolomic profile of the gut microbes in full-term newborns and late preterm infants in eastern China. Further studies are needed to support and elucidate the role of probiotic feeding in late preterm infants with mandatory antimicrobial treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: A humanoid intelligent display platform (HIDP) is created using stretchable and resilient ionotronic materials, and can be applicable in extreme environments and complex mechanical stimulations. HIDP links sound amplitude and brightness through machine learning for audiovisual interaction. HIDP identifies and displays animal species and corresponding frequencies in real-time. This study proposes a rational strategy for the design, fabrication and system integration of the humanoid intelligent display platform (HIDP) to meet the requirements of highly humanized mechanical properties and intelligence for human–machine interfaces. The platform's sandwich structure comprises a middle light-emitting layer and surface electrodes, which consists of silicon elastomer embedded with phosphor and silk fibroin ionoelastomer, respectively. Both materials are highly stretchable and resilient, endowing the HIDP with skin-like mechanical properties and applicability in various extreme environments and complex mechanical stimulations. Furthermore, by establishing the numerical correlation between the amplitude change of animal sounds and the brightness variation, the HIDP realizes audiovisual interaction and successful identification of animal species with the aid of Internet of Things (IoT) and machine learning techniques. The accuracy of species identification reaches about 100% for 200 rounds of random testing. Additionally, the HIDP can recognize animal species and their corresponding frequencies by analyzing sound characteristics, displaying real-time results with an accuracy of approximately 99% and 93%, respectively. In sum, this study offers a rational route to designing intelligent display devices for audiovisual interaction, which can expedite the application of smart display devices in human–machine interaction, soft robotics, wearable sound-vision system and medical devices for hearing-impaired patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Brain metastasis (BM) is a common event during the development of many cancers, and is also one of the main causes of death of patients. Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is an effective treatment for BM. The prognostic effects of various clinical factors on local control (LC) and overall survival (OS) after SRS treatment are still unclear. The purpose of this study is to retrospectively analyze the intracranial progression free survival (iPFS) and OS of patients receiving SRS treatment, and explore the relationship between various clinical characteristics and patient prognosis. Materials and methods: We collected the clinical information of patients who were diagnosed with BM and received SRS treatment in our center between 2018 and 2021. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis and KM analysis for iPFS and OS were conducted in R software to investigate the prognostic effects of clinical characteristics. Results: In total, 183 patients that received SRS in our center were enrolled in the cohort. The median iPFS for all patients was 8.87 months (95% CI 6.9–10.6), and the median OS was 16.5 months (95% CI 12.9–20.7). BM number > = 5 (HR 1.965 [95% CI 1.381–2.796], p < 0.001, FDR-corrected p < 0.001) was found to be strong predictor for shorter iPFS and OS. Subgroup analysis showed that patients with cumulative intracranial tumor volume (CITV) > = 2.14 cm3 and number > = 5 had shortest iPFS (P < 0.001) and OS (P = 0.007), compared with other subgroups. For patients with more than 5 BMs, SRS plus whole brain radiotherapy (WBRT) could achieve better local control, compared with SRS alone group (P = 0.0357). Peripheral blood inflammation indicators were associated with the prognosis of BM patients in univariate Cox analysis, but not in multivariate Cox analysis. Conclusions: BM number is an independent prognostic factor for BM patients. The prognosis of patients in the subgroup with larger CITV and more BM is the worst. For patients with more than 5 BM, the combination of SRS and WBRT can improve the local control, but cannot prolong the OS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The optimum prophylactic regimen against hepatitis B virus (HBV) recurrence after liver transplantation (LT) in HBV-infected patients is uncertain but of great clinical relevance. New evidence suggests that hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIG)-free approach would become a reasonable choice in the era of high-potency nucleos(t)ide analogues (HPNAs). We aimed to provide robust estimates for long-term survival and HBV recurrence in patients receiving different HBV-prophylaxis strategies after LT. Methods: We did a systematic review and meta-analysis using both pseudo-individual patient data recovered from included studies (IPDMA) and conventional trial-level aggregate data meta-analysis (ADMA). Hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated using different Cox proportional hazard models accounting for inter-study heterogeneity. ADMA was conducted to pool outcomes at specific time points. Results: A total of 16 studies involving 7897 patients and 41 studies involving 9435 were eligible for IPDMA and AMDA, respectively. Cumulative HBV recurrence rate and overall survival (OS) at 1, 3, 5 and 10 years post-LT were 0.3%, 0.9%, 1.2%, 1.7% and 95.6%, 89%, 86.4%, 86.4% in the HPNAs (i.e., entecavir and tenofovir) + HBIG combination group vs. 0.6%, 0.6%, 1.2%, 1.7% and 94.5%, 86.8%, 84.8%, 81.2% in the HPNAs monotherapy group (HR 1.20, 95% CI 0.56–2.60, p = 0.64; HR 1.09, 95% CI 0.70–1.69, p = 0.72), respectively. The results were compatible with AMDA. Conclusion: A similar HBV recurrence and overall survival were found in patients who used HPNAs (mainly entecavir) monotherapy as in those who received a combination of HPNAs and HBIG. These findings address concerns regarding the safety and effectiveness of HPNAs monotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Our purpose was to compare the performance of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-positron emission tomography (PET) traditional fixed threshold (FT) and newly established Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System (PI-RADS)-based segmented threshold (ST) for diagnosing clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa). Methods: The study retrospectively included 218 patients who underwent multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) and PSMA-PET examination for suspected prostate cancer (PCa) from January 2018 to November 2021. Lesions with Gleason score ≥ 3 + 4 were diagnosed as csPCa. In PSMA-PET maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax), the FT for all the lesions and STs for lesions with different PI-RADS score for diagnosing csPCa were determined by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves analysis and compared with Z test. The McNemar test was used to compare sensitivity and specificity. Results: Among the 218 patients, there were 113 csPCa and 105 non-csPCa. The PSMA-PET FT was SUVmax > 5.3 (area under the curve, AUC = 0.842) and STs for PI-RADS 3/4/5 were SUVmax > 4.2/5.7/6.0 (AUCs = 0.870/0.867/0.882), respectively. The AUC of PSMA-PET ST was higher than that of PSMA-PET FT (0.872 vs. 0.842), especially for PI-RADS 3 (0.870 vs. 0.653). Multimodality diagnostic criteria combining PSMA-PET ST and PI-RADS scores of mpMRI was established and its AUC was higher than that of PSMA-PET ST (0.893 vs. 0.872) and significantly higher than that of PSMA-PET FT (0.893 vs. 0.842) with an improvement in sensitivity (93% vs. 78%, p < 0.05) without significantly sacrificing specificity (86% vs. 91%, p > 0.05). Conclusions: For diagnosing csPCa, PI-RADS-based PSMA-PET segmented threshold achieved better performance than traditional fixed threshold, especially for PI-RADS 3 lesions. Multimodality diagnostic criteria demonstrated higher diagnostic performance than segmented threshold and significantly better than PSMA-PET fixed threshold for detecting csPCa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Omega-3 has been proposed as an antitumor substance that suppresses the growth and metastasis of multiple types of tumor cells, including lung cancer, but the specific mechanisms involved remain obscure. Our previous studies showed that the expression of chemokine ligand 18 was related to the migration and metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer. Here, we aim to explore whether omega-3 inhibits invasion and metastasis of NSCLC by regulating the expression of CCL18. The expression of CCL18, metastasis- and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related genes at mRNA and protein levels in NSCLC cell lines were detected by RT-qPCR and Western blot, respectively. The metastatic and invasive capability of NSCLC cells were evaluated by scratch wound healing and Transwell assays, respectively. Our results showed that the level of CCL18 is positively associated with metastatic ability of NSCLC cells. Docosahexaenoic acid, an important long-chain, polyunsaturated omega-3 (n−3) fatty acid, significantly inhibited invasion and metastasis of NSCLC cells, and concomitantly downregulated the expression of metastasis- and EMT-related genes and p-STAT3 signaling pathway. Additionally, we found that DHA inhibited CCL18 expression in lung cancer cells, while overexpression of CCL18 effectively reversed DHA-mediated downregulation in the expression of metastasis- and EMT-related genes and p-STAT3 signaling as well as DHA-mediated inhibitory effect on metastasis and invasion of NSCLC cells. DHA inhibits NSCLC cell invasion and metastasis possibly through targeted inhibition of CCL18/ STAT3 signaling pathway and EMT process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-throughput sequencing allows for the comprehensive analysis of the human intestinal microbiota. However, extensive association analyses between the microbiome and lifestyle differences in the Chinese population are limited. Here, we carried out an independent cohort study—the Chinese Healthy Gut Project (n = 483)—where correlations between the gut microbiota and dietary and lifestyle variables in a healthy Chinese population are defined. We collected both questionnaire data, including basic information and lifestyle and dietary variables, and fecal stools from the enrolled volunteers. We then performed 16S rRNA sequencing on the microbial DNA isolated from the stools to assess the composition of the intestinal microbiota. We found that Prevotella and Bacteroides were the most abundant genera in the healthy Chinese gut microbiome. Additionally, 9 out of 29 clinical and questionnaire-based phenotype covariates were found to be associated with the variation in the composition of the gut microbiota. Among these lifestyle phenotypes, sleep procrastination, negative mood, and drinking habits had the largest effect size. Additionally, an appreciable effect of urbanization was observed, resulting in decreased intra-individual diversity, increased inter-individual diversity, and an increased abundance of the Bacteroides enterotype. The results of this study provide a foundation for assessing the healthy Chinese gut microbiota community structure at baseline in a healthy Chinese population. Furthermore, this study also provides insights into understanding how distinctive living habits influence the relationships between the Chinese gut microbiome and systemic health state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To develop and validate a model that can preoperatively identify the ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCCC) subtype in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) using CT imaging radiomics and clinical data. Material and methods: We retrospectively analyzed data from 282 patients with EOC (training set = 225, testing set = 57) who underwent pre-surgery CT examinations. Patients were categorized into OCCC or other EOC subtypes based on postoperative pathology. Seven clinical characteristics (age, cancer antigen [CA]-125, CA-199, endometriosis, venous thromboembolism, hypercalcemia, stage) were collected. Primary tumors were manually delineated on portal venous-phase images, and 1218 radiomic features were extracted. The F-test-based feature selection method and logistic regression algorithm were used to build the radiomic signature, clinical model, and integrated model. To explore the effects of integrated model-assisted diagnosis, five radiologists independently interpreted images in the testing set and reevaluated cases two weeks later with knowledge of the integrated model's output. The diagnostic performances of the predictive models, radiologists, and radiologists aided by the integrated model were evaluated. Results: The integrated model containing the radiomic signature (constructed by four wavelet radiomic features) and three clinical characteristics (CA-125, endometriosis, and hypercalcinemia), showed better diagnostic performance (AUC = 0.863 [0.762–0.964]) than the clinical model (AUC = 0.792 [0.630–0.953], p = 0.295) and the radiomic signature alone (AUC = 0.781 [0.636–0.926], p = 0.185). The diagnostic sensitivities of the radiologists were significantly improved when using the integrated model (p = 0.023–0.041), while the specificities and accuracies were maintained (p = 0.074–1.000). Conclusion: Our integrated model shows great potential to facilitate the early identification of the OCCC subtype in EOC, which may enhance subtype-specific therapy and clinical management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microglia mediated inflammation plays a crucial role in cellular events and functional recovery post ischemic stroke. In the current study, we profiled the proteome changes of microglia treated with oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD). Bioinformatics analysis identified that differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were enriched in pathways associated with oxidate phosphorylation and mitochondrial respiratory chain at both 6h and 24h post OGD. We next focused on one validated target named endoplasmic reticulum oxidoreductase 1 alpha (ERO1a) to study its role in stroke pathophysiology. We showed that over-expression of microglial ERO1a exacerbated inflammation, cell apoptosis and behavioral outcomes post middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). In contrast, suppression of microglial ERO1a significantly reduced activation of both microglia and astrocyte, along with cell apoptosis. Furthermore, knocking down microglial ERO1a improved the efficacy of rehabilitative training and enhanced the mTOR activity in spared corticospinal neurons. Our study provided novel insights into the identification of therapeutic targets and the design of rehabilitative protocols to treat ischemic stroke and other traumatic CNS injuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are various internal fixation methods in treating lumbosacral spinal tuberculosis. The study compared the stability and stress distribution in surrounding tissues/implants, such as discs, endplates and screw-rod internal fixation system, etc. when applying three different lumbar internal fixation methods to treat lumbosacral spinal tuberculosis. A finite element model was constructed and validated. The spinal stability was restored using three methods: a titanium cage with lateral double screw-rod fixation (group 1), autologous bone with posterior double screw-rod fixation (group 2), and a titanium cage with posterior double screw-rod fixation (group 3). For comparison, group 4 represented the intact L3-S1 spine. Finally, a load was applied, and the ranges of motion and Von Mises stresses in the cortical endplates, screw-rod internal fixation system and cortical bone around the screws in the different groups were recorded and analyzed. All six ranges of motion (flexion, extension, left/right lateral bending, left/right rotation) of the surgical segment were substantially lower in groups 1 (0.53° ~ 1.41°), 2 (0.68° ~ 1.54°) and 3 (0.55° ~ 0.64°) than in group 4 (4.48° ~ 10.12°). The maximum stress in the screw-rod internal fixation system was clearly higher in group 2 than in groups 1 and 3 under flexion, left/right lateral bending, and left/right rotation. However, in extension, group 1 had the highest maximum stress in the screw-rod internal fixation system. Group 2 had the lowest peak stresses in the cortical endplates in all directions. The peak stresses in the cortical bone around the screws were higher in group 1 and group 2 than in group 3 in all directions. Thus, titanium cage with posterior double screw-rod fixation has more advantages in immediate reconstruction of lumbosacral spinal stability and prevention of screw loosening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: We aimed to present the state of the art of CT- and MRI-based radiomics in the context of ovarian cancer (OC), with a focus on the methodological quality of these studies and the clinical utility of these proposed radiomics models. Methods: Original articles investigating radiomics in OC published in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library between January 1, 2002, and January 6, 2023, were extracted. The methodological quality was evaluated using the radiomics quality score (RQS) and Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 (QUADAS-2). Pairwise correlation analyses were performed to compare the methodological quality, baseline information, and performance metrics. Additional meta-analyses of studies exploring differential diagnoses and prognostic prediction in patients with OC were performed separately. Results: Fifty-seven studies encompassing 11,693 patients were included. The mean RQS was 30.7% (range − 4 to 22); less than 25% of studies had a high risk of bias and applicability concerns in each domain of QUADAS-2. A high RQS was significantly associated with a low QUADAS-2 risk and recent publication year. Significantly higher performance metrics were observed in studies examining differential diagnosis; 16 such studies as well as 13 exploring prognostic prediction were included in a separate meta-analysis, which revealed diagnostic odds ratios of 25.76 (95% confidence interval (CI) 13.50–49.13) and 12.55 (95% CI 8.38–18.77), respectively. Conclusion: Current evidence suggests that the methodological quality of OC-related radiomics studies is unsatisfactory. Radiomics analysis based on CT and MRI showed promising results in terms of differential diagnosis and prognostic prediction. Critical relevance statement: Radiomics analysis has potential clinical utility; however, shortcomings persist in existing studies in terms of reproducibility. We suggest that future radiomics studies should be more standardized to better bridge the gap between concepts and clinical applications. Key points: The methodological quality of current radiomics studies concerning ovarian cancer was unsatisfactory. Meta-analyses showed high diagnostic odds ratios regarding differential diagnosis and prognostic prediction. Radiomics analysis in ovarian cancer holds promise for clinical applications. More standardization should be required for radiomics studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The high cost of feed and nitrogen pollution caused by high-protein diets have become major challenges restricting sustainable development in China's animal husbandry sector. Properly reducing protein levels and improving protein utilization in feed are effective approaches to solving this problem. To determine the optimal dose of methionine hydroxyl analogue chelated zinc (MHA-Zn) in broiler diets with a 1.5% reduction in crude protein (CP), a total of 216 1-day-old broilers were randomly assigned into 4 groups (each group consisted of 3 replications with 18 broilers per replicate), and growth and development indexes were assessed after 42 days. The broilers in control group were fed a basic diet, whereas those in the three test groups were fed diets with a 1.5% reduction in CP. The results showed no significant difference in the edible parts of broilers between low-protein (LP) diet group (90 mg/kg MHA-Zn) and normal diet group (p > 0.05), and adding 90 mg/kg MHA-Zn to LP diet significantly improved ileum morphology and apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of nutrient (p < 0.01; p < 0.05). A 16S rRNA sequencing analysis indicated that supplementing the LP diet with 90 mg/kg MHA-Zn was adequate for production performance of broilers and promoted beneficial bacteria in the cecum (Lactobacillus, Butyricoccus, Oscillospira, etc.) (p < 0.01). In summary, adding an optimal dose of organic zinc (90 mg/kg MHA-Zn) in low protein diets led to enhanced production performance of broilers and optimized cecum microbiota. Additionally, the reduction of crude protein consumption in broiler production proved to be a cost-effective measure, while also mitigated nitrogen pollutant emissions in the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polygonatum Miller belongs to the tribe Polygonateae of Asparagaceae. The horizontal creeping fleshy roots of several species in this genus serve as traditional Chinese medicine. Previous studies have mainly reported the size and gene contents of the plastomes, with little information on the comparative analysis of the plastid genomes of this genus. Additionally, there are still some species whose chloroplast genome information has not been reported. In this study, the complete plastomes of six Polygonatum were sequenced and assembled, among them, the chloroplast genome of P. campanulatum was reported for the first time. Comparative and phylogenetic analyses were then conducted with the published plastomes of three related species. Results indicated that the whole plastome length of the Polygonatum species ranged from 154,564 bp (P. multiflorum) to 156,028 bp (P. stenophyllum) having a quadripartite structure of LSC and SSC separated by two IR regions. A total of 113 unique genes were detected in each of the species. Comparative analysis revealed that gene content and total GC content in these species were highly identical. No significant contraction or expansion was observed in the IR boundaries among all the species except P. sibiricum1, in which the rps19 gene was pseudogenized owing to incomplete duplication. Abundant long dispersed repeats and SSRs were detected in each genome. There were five remarkably variable regions and 14 positively selected genes were identified among Polygonatum and Heteropolygonatum. Phylogenetic results based on chloroplast genome strongly supported the placement of P. campanulatum with alternate leaves in sect. Verticillata, a group characterized by whorled leaves. Moreover, P. verticillatum and P. cyrtonema were displayed as paraphyletic. This study revealed that the characters of plastomes in Polygonatum and Heteropolygonatum maintained a high degree of similarity. Five highly variable regions were found to be potential specific DNA barcodes in Polygonatum. Phylogenetic results suggested that leaf arrangement was not suitable as a basis for delimitation of subgeneric groups in Polygonatum and the definitions of P. cyrtonema and P. verticillatum require further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-performance reservoir computing has to rely on its highly rich internal dynamic. Chaotic systems based on memristors are widely employed in reservoir computing because of their wealthy nonlinear dynamic behaviors, but there are few studies and applications related to discrete memristor models compared to continuous memristor models. This paper proposes a brand new discrete memristor model, and a two-dimensional hyper chaotic maps is constructed by coupling the discrete memristor model and a sinusoidal function. The map has rich nonlinear dynamic behaviors which cater to the need for RC, therefore, we apply this map to enhance the richness of the state of the reservoir, and test the reservoir's computing capability by the emulation of NARMA and Santa Fe time series prediction task. For this purpose, using the method of the single node with delayed feedback, the proposed reservoir can avoid the selection of meta-parameters, and fully exploits the time dependence of the map states to replace the interactions between the internal nodes. As far as we know, this is the first time that time series analysis using the discrete memristive map, and the experimental results demonstrate that the hyperchaotic map based on the discrete memristor can effectively optimize the performance of the reservoir computing. Moreover, the proposed reservoir shows several attractive features including simple design, ease to calculate, and robustness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the relationship between unambiguous radiologic extranodal extension (rENE) and M1 staging in patients with metastatic PCa. Methods: A respective analysis of 1073 patients of PCa N1 staging from January 2004 to May 2022 was retrospectively enrolled. They were divided into rENE + and rENE − groups and retrospectively analyzed the M staging with nuclear medicine data. The correlation index between unambiguous rENE and M1b staging was calculated. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the predictive performance of unambiguous rENE in M1b staging. ROC curves were used to investigate the relationship between unambiguous rENE and M staging in patients who underwent 68 Ga-PSMA PET/CT. Results: A total of 1073 patients were included. Seven hundred and eighty patients were classified into the rENE + group (mean age, 69.6 years ± 8.7 [standard deviation]), and 293 were classified into rENE − group (mean age, 66.7 years ± 9.4 [standard deviation]). Relationship between unambiguous rENE and M1b existed (r = 0.58, 95%CI: 0.52–0.64, P < 0.05). Unambiguous rENE could be an independent predictor for M1b (OR = 13.64, 95%CI: 9.23–20.14, P < 0.05). The AUC of unambiguous rENE in predicting M1b and M staging was 0.835 and 0.915, respectively, in patients who underwent 68 Ga-PSMA PET/CT. Conclusions: Unambiguous rENE could be a strong biomarker to predict M1b and M staging in patients with PCa. When rENE came up, patients should perform nuclear medicine immediately, and a systematic treatment should be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To construct a radiomic model of low-dose CT (LDCT) to predict the differentiation grade of invasive non-mucinous pulmonary adenocarcinoma (IPA) and compare its diagnostic performance with quantitative-semantic model and radiologists. Methods: A total of 682 pulmonary nodules were divided into the primary cohort (181 grade 1; 254 grade 2; 64 grade 3) and validation cohort (69 grade 1; 99 grade 2; 15 grade 3) according to scanners. The radiomic and quantitative-semantic models were built using ordinal logistic regression. The diagnostic performance of the models and radiologists was assessed by the area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic curve and accuracy. Results: The radiomic model demonstrated excellent diagnostic performance in the validation cohort (AUC, 0.900 (95%CI: 0.847–0.939) for Grade 1 vs. Grade 2/Grade 3; AUC, 0.929 (95%CI: 0.882–0.962) for Grade 1/Grade 2 vs. Grade 3; accuracy, 0.803 (95%CI: 0.737–0.857)). No significant difference in diagnostic performance was found between the radiomic model and radiological expert (AUC, 0.840 (95%CI: 0.779–0.890) for Grade 1 vs. Grade 2/Grade 3, p = 0.130; AUC, 0.852 (95%CI: 0.793–0.900) for Grade 1/Grade 2 vs. Grade 3, p = 0.170; accuracy, 0.743 (95%CI: 0.673–0.804), p = 0.079), but the radiomic model outperformed the quantitative-semantic model and inexperienced radiologists (all p < 0.05). Conclusions: The radiomic model of LDCT can be used to predict the differentiation grade of IPA in lung cancer screening, and its diagnostic performance is comparable to that of radiological expert. Key Points: • Early identifying the novel differentiation grade of invasive non-mucinous pulmonary adenocarcinoma may provide guidance for further surveillance, surgical strategy, or more adjuvant treatment. • The diagnostic performance of the radiomic model is comparable to that of a radiological expert and superior to that of the quantitative-semantic model and inexperienced radiologists. • The radiomic model of low-dose CT can be used to predict the differentiation grade of invasive non-mucinous pulmonary adenocarcinoma in lung cancer screening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The flea beetle, Altica cirsicola, escapes predators by jumping and landing in a dense maze of leaves. How do they land on such varied surfaces? In this experimental study, we filmed the take-off, flight, and landing of flea beetles on a configurable angled platform. We report three in-flight behaviors: winged, wingless, and an intermediate winged mode. These modes significantly affected take-off speed, acceleration, and the duration that wings were deployed. When wings were closed, flea beetles rolled or pitched up to five times in the air. This work may help to understand how insects can jump and right themselves onto variable surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Poorly differentiated invasive non-mucinous pulmonary adenocarcinoma (IPA), based on the novel grading system, was related to poor prognosis, with a high risk of lymph node metastasis and local recurrence. This study aimed to build the radiomic and quantitative-semantic models of low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) to preoperatively predict the poorly differentiated IPA in nodules with solid component, and compare their diagnostic performance with radiologists. Materials and methods: A total of 396 nodules from 388 eligible patients, who underwent LDCT scan within 2 weeks before surgery and were pathologically diagnosed with IPA, were retrospectively enrolled between July 2018 and December 2021. Nodules were divided into two independent cohorts according to scanners: primary cohort (195 well/moderate differentiated and 64 poorly differentiated) and validation cohort (104 well/moderate differentiated and 33 poorly differentiated). The radiomic and quantitative-semantic models were built using multivariable logistic regression. The diagnostic performance of the models and radiologists was assessed by area under curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity. Results: No significant differences of AUCs were found between the radiomic and quantitative-semantic model in primary and validation cohorts (0.921 vs. 0.923, P = 0.846 and 0.938 vs. 0.911, P = 0.161). Both the models outperformed three radiologists in the validation cohort (all P < 0.05). Conclusions: The radiomic and quantitative-semantic models of LDCT, which could identify the poorly differentiated IPA with excellent diagnostic performance, might provide guidance for therapeutic decision making, such as choosing appropriate surgical method or adjuvant chemotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The genus Veronicastrum Heist. ex Fabr. are mainly distributed in East Asia, and only Veronicastrum virginicum (L.) Farw. is disjunctively distributed in eastern North America. The south area of China (extending to Taiwan Island) is the richest in Veronicastrum species. It is of medicinal importance in China as traditional herbs used to treat ascites diseases that caused by schistosomiasis. During field investigation of plant resources in Pingbaying National Forest Park, Southwestern Hubei, China, an unknown flowering population of Veronicastrum was discovered from thick humus layers adjacent to rocks under broad-leaved forests by walkways. They were collected and morphological characters assesed for further taxonomic treatment. Molecular analysis was also conducted to ascertain its phylogenetic position in the genus Veronicastrum. Results: This species is similar to Veronicastrum liukiuense (Ohwi) T.Yamaz. from the Ryukyu Islands, but can be distinctly differed by its axillary inflorescences (versus terminal on short leafy branches), pedicels up to 2.5 mm (versus sessile), corollas purple to purple-red (versus white tinged with pale purple) and florescence June to July (versus September to October). Also, phylogenetic studies showed the species was an independent clade in the genus Veronicastrum based on the maximum likelihood (ML) analyses using two different matrix sequences of concatenated molecular markers. The plastid genome of this new species is also reported in this study for the first time. Conclusion: The morphological and molecular evidences support the recognition of Veronicastrum wulingense as a new species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]