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The mechanism underlying the co-occurrence of major depressive disorder (MDD) and gynecological diseases remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the familial co-aggregation and shared genetic loading between MDD and gynecological diseases, namely dysmenorrhea, endometriosis, uterine leiomyomas (UL), and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Overall, 2,121,632 females born 1970–1999 with parental information were enrolled from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD); 25,142 same-sex twins and 951,779 persons with full-sibling(s) were selected. Genome-wide genotyping data were available for 67,882 unrelated female participants from the Taiwan Biobank linked to the NHIRD. A generalized linear model with a logistic link function was used to examine the associations of individual history, family history in parents/full-siblings/same-sex twins, and polygenic risk scores (PRS) for MDD with the risk of gynecological diseases; generalized estimating equations were used to consider the non-independence of data. Both parents affected with MDD was associated with four gynecological diseases, and its magnitude of association was higher than either affected parent; maternal MDD showed a higher magnitude of association than paternal MDD. Full-siblings of patients with MDD had a higher risk of four gynecological diseases; same-sex twins of patients with MDD had a greater association with dysmenorrhea and PCOS. PRS for MDD was associated with dysmenorrhea and endometriosis. Familial co-aggregation was observed in the co-occurrence of MDD and four gynecological diseases. There exists a shared polygenic liability between MDD and dysmenorrhea and endometriosis. Individuals with MDD-affected relatives or a higher PRS for MDD should be monitored for gynecological diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To study a new method for establishing animal models of prenatal bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), we used lung ultrasound score (LUS) to semi-quantitatively assess the severity of lung lesions in model rats. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was injected into the right lung of the fetus of the rat under ultrasound-guided, and the right lung of the neonates were scanning for LUS. Specimens were collected for pathological scoring and detection of pulmonary surfactant-associated glycoprotein (SP)-C and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression quantity. The correlation between LUS and pathological scores was analyzed. (1) The animal models were consistent with the pathological manifestations of BPD. (2) It showed a strong positive correlation between LUS and pathological scores in animal models (r = 0.84, P < 0.005), and the expression quantity of SP-C and VEGF in lung tissue were decreased (both P < 0.05). Animal models established by ultrasound-guided puncture of the lung of rats and injection of LPS were consistent with the manifestation of BPD. This method could be used to establish animal models of BPD before birth, and the severity of BPD could be assessed by using LUS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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

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

Injury poses heavy burden on public health, accounting for nearly 8% of all deaths globally, but little evidence on the role of climate change on injury exists. We collect data during 2013-2019 in six provinces of China to examine the effects of temperature on injury mortality, and to project future mortality burden attributable to temperature change driven by climate change based on the assumption of constant injury mortality and population scenario. The results show that a 0.50% (95% confident interval (CI): 0.13%–0.88%) increase of injury mortality risk for each 1 °C rise in daily temperature, with higher risk for intentional injury (1.13%, 0.55%–1.71%) than that for unintentional injury (0.40%, 0.04%–0.77%). Compared to the 2010s, total injury deaths attributable to temperature change in China would increase 156,586 (37,654–272,316) in the 2090 s under representative concentration pathways 8.5 scenario with the highest for transport injury (64,764, 8,517–115,743). Populations living in Western China, people aged 15–69 years, and male may suffer more injury mortality burden from increased temperature caused by climate change. Our findings may be informative for public health policy development to effectively adapt to climate change. Injury poses heavy burden on public health, but little evidence on the potential role of climate change on injury exists. Here, the authors collect data during 2013-2019 in six provinces of China to estimate the associations between temperature and injury mortality, and to project future mortality burden attributable to temperature change driven by climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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

Purpose: The efficacy of the antioxidants vitamin E (VitE) and vitamin C (VitC) on male infertility is uncertain. Therefore, this research systematically assessed the influences of VitE and VitC on male infertility. Methods: We did a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to analyze semen parameters, pregnancy rate, and adverse effects (AEs) between VitE and VitC groups and control groups by searching Cochrane Library, Excerpta Medica Database (Embase), PubMed, China Biology Medicine disc (CBMdisc), and Web of Science up to June 2020. Results: We screened 11 studies (832 patients) that met the inclusion criteria. The evidence quality ranged from moderate to low. The pregnancy rate was obviously better in the VitE group than in the control group (relative risk (RR) 1.86, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02–3.41). Compared with the control group, VitE and VitC significantly improved progressive motility (standardized mean difference (SMD) 0.38, 95% CI 0.22–0.55), sperm concentration (SMD 0.21, 95% CI 0.09–0.34), sperm morphology (SMD 0.32, 95% CI 0.09–0.55), and total sperm number (SMD 0.28, 95% CI 0.12–0.43) without AEs. Conclusion: This study suggests that VitC and VitE can improve the spousal pregnancy rate and semen parameters in infertile men without AEs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the dynamic and open peer-to-peer task collaboration scenarios, such as collaborative operations or post-earthquake coordinated rescue scenarios, the performance of personnel nodes or machine nodes will decrease with the consumption of energy, and the types of tasks that the nodes can perform change dynamically. Therefore, each node needs to dynamically maintain its immediate neighbors to guarantee the performance of task collaboration. In view of this, this paper pioneers the problem of directed link prediction for peer-to-peer dynamic task collaboration networks. First of all, the paper proposes two new link prediction metrics based on the link state change history, change time and multiple types of directed relationships between nodes. Secondly, based on the current feature vector and sequence feature vectors of related metrics between nodes, this paper reasonably designs the use mechanism of hybrid deep learning algorithms, and proposes a novel deep link prediction model. A large number of experiments have shown that the link prediction metrics we proposed are more suitable for the evolution of collaboration links under the dynamic peer-to-peer task collaboration environment, and the CFSF model achieves better prediction performance than other models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims/hypothesis: Psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia (SCZ), major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorder (BPD), are highly comorbid with type 2 diabetes. However, the mechanisms underlying such comorbidity are understudied. This study explored the familial aggregation of common psychiatric disorders and type 2 diabetes by testing family history association, and investigated the shared genetic loading between them by testing the polygenic risk score (PRS) association. Methods: A total of 105,184 participants were recruited from the Taiwan Biobank, and genome-wide genotyping data were available for 95,238 participants. The Psychiatric Genomics Consortium-derived PRS for SCZ, MDD and BPD was calculated. Logistic regression was used to estimate the OR with CIs between a family history of SCZ/MDD/BPD and a family history of type 2 diabetes, and between the PRS and the risk of type 2 diabetes. Results: A family history of type 2 diabetes was associated with a family history of SCZ (OR 1.23, 95% CI 1.08, 1.40), MDD (OR 1.19, 95% CI 1.13, 1.26) and BPD (OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.15, 1.39). Compared with paternal type 2 diabetes, maternal type 2 diabetes was associated with a higher risk of a family history of SCZ. SCZ PRS was negatively associated with type 2 diabetes in women (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.88, 0.97), but not in men; the effect of SCZ PRS reduced after adjusting for BMI. MDD PRS was positively associated with type 2 diabetes (OR 1.04, 95% CI 1.00, 1.07); the effect of MDD PRS reduced after adjusting for BMI or smoking. BPD PRS was not associated with type 2 diabetes. Conclusions/interpretation: The comorbidity of type 2 diabetes with psychiatric disorders may be explained by shared familial factors. The shared polygenic loading between MDD and type 2 diabetes implies not only pleiotropy but also a shared genetic aetiology for the mechanism behind the comorbidity. The negative correlation between polygenic loading for SCZ and type 2 diabetes implies the role of environmental factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To explore the relationship between the Comprehensive Nutritional Index (CNI) and survival in older patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and to compare the prognostic performance of three nutritional indicators (CNI, Prognostic Nutritional Index (PNI), and Nutritional Risk Index (NRI)) for overall survival (OS). Methods: This retrospective study involved 309 older NPC patients in Guangzhou (China) from November 2006 to November 2017. The CNI comprised five parameters: the body mass index (BMI), usual body weight percentage (UBW%), hemoglobin (Hb) level, albumin level, and total lymphocyte count (TLC). All single nutritional indicators were evaluated before and immediately after treatment. The principal component analysis (PCA) was used for calculation of the CNI by single nutritional indicators after treatment. The cutoff point for the CNI was evaluated and logistic regression used to explore the risk factors for the CNI. Univariable, multivariable Cox regression, and Kaplan–Meier methods were applied for OS and disease-free survival (DFS) analyses. Cox proportional hazards models were used to compare the prognostic value of the CNI, PNI, and NRI for OS. Results: All single nutritional indicators decreased significantly after treatment (P < 0.05). The CNI cutoff point for mortality was 0.027, and the logistic regression indicated more complex treatments or higher cancer stage for NPC was associated with a low CNI (HR = 0.179; 95% CI: 0.037–0.856; 0.545, 0.367–0.811, respectively). In multivariable Cox regression, the CNI remained an independent prognostic factor of OS and DFS (HR = 0.468, 95% CI: 0.263–0.832; 0.527, 0.284–0.977, respectively). Kaplan–Meier curves showed that a low CNI was associated with worse OS and DFS (P = 0.001 and 0.013, respectively). The prognostic predictive performance of the CNI was superior to that of the PNI or NRI. Conclusions: The CNI can be recommended as an appropriate indicator reflecting the integrated nutritional status of older NPC patients. A low CNI predicted a poor survival outcome and the prognostic performance of CNI was superior to PNI or NRI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Many studies have revealed that statin therapy reduced mortality in cancer patients, especially in breast cancer, but the effect for second cancer was unclear. We, therefore, performed a comparable cohort study to determine the risk of second cancer in breast cancer patients with statin therapy. Methods: Using claims data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Program, this study enrolled newly diagnosed breast cancer patients from 2000 to 2007 with and without statin therapy as the statin (n = 1222) and nonstatin (n = 4888) cohorts, respectively. The nonstatin cohort was propensity score matched by cohort entry year, age, and randomly selected comorbidities. These two cohorts were followed up until the diagnosis of second cancer, death, or the end of 2011. Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate the hazard ratios. Results: The statin cohort had a lower incidence rate than the nonstatin cohort for second cancer (7.37 vs. 8.36 per 1000 person-years), although the difference was not significant (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.90, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.65–1.26). Compared with the nonstatin cohort, the second cancer risk was significantly higher for patients taking pravastatin (aHR 2.71, 95% CI 1.19–6.19) but lower for those receiving multiple statin treatment (aHR 0.45, 95% CI 0.25–0.81) and combined lipophilic and hydrophilic type of statin (aHR 0.42, 95% CI 0.20–0.89). The risk was lower for patients receiving a cumulative defined daily dose (cDDD) of > 430 (aHR 0.41, 95% CI 0.19–0.86). Conclusion: This study showed that there is little association between statin use and second cancer risk in breast cancer patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optical polyimide (PI) membrane is a promising substrate material for diffractive lens applied in future large-aperture space based imaging system because of its light weight, environmental adaptability and deployable feature. In this letter, we put forward a facile large-area uniform photolithography technique using vacuum assisted self contact method to fabricate large-aperture membrane diffractive lens. We fabricated a φ 400 mm aperture membrane off-axis 2-levels Fresnel Zone Lens (FZL) based on the method and achieved uniformly distributed photoresist morphology as well as over 36.6% average diffraction efficiency in full aperture. The results demonstrated that vacuum assisted self contact method effectively eliminates considerable air gaps caused by unevenness of large area photomask and substrate, thus facilitates uniform light field distribution in photoresist. This work provides reference to fabrication techniques of large aperture membrane diffractive lens, and offers feasible methods for future large area flexible electronics manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To summarize the experience of retroperitoneal laparoscopic ureterolithotomy (RLU) in the treatment of upper ureteral calculi and long-term follow-up results and compare them with ureteroscopic lithotomy (URL) and percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL). Methods: The clinical data of 585 patients with complex upper ureteral calculi who met the inclusion criteria from January 2006 to December 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 206 cases treated with RLU, 201 cases treated with URL and 178 cases treated with PCNL. The operation time, hospitalization time, stone clearance rate, incidence of postoperative complications and recurrence rate were observed and compared among the three groups. Results: Among 585 eligible patients, 206 cases were treated with RLU, 201 cases were treated with URL and 178 cases were treated with PCNL. The stone clearance rate (98.54%), postoperative complication types and rate (0.97%) in the RLU group were superior to those in the URL group and the PCNL group (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the recurrence rate (3.88%) between the RLU group and the other two groups (P > 0.05). Conclusion: Retroperitoneal laparoscopic ureterolithotomy has many advantages in the treatment of upper ureteral calculi, including high stone clearance rate, less complications especially in ureteral stricture. Retroperitoneal laparoscopic ureterolithotomy is also safe to treat upper ureteral calculi accompanied with severe urinary tract infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene oxide (GO) membranes have great potential in separation technology. However, their instability under aqueous environments hinders their separation performance and practical application. Herein, we present a facile and environmentally friendly method to fabricate stable GO-based membranes via the intercalation of montmorillonite (MMT) nanoplatelets. The as-prepared membranes remain stable under water (neutral, acidic, and alkaline) in a fully hydrated state and exhibit a high pure-water flux up to 139.5 L·m−2·h−1 under 0.09 MPa. Furthermore, they also show high organic molecule rejection (98.75% for Congo red, 99.44% for rhodamine B, 99.90% for crystal violet, 99.94% for methylene blue, 96.26% for phenanthracene, and 51.32% for phenol) as well as good removal rate of heavy metal ions (100% for Ag(I), 100% for Cu(II), and 27.04% for Cr(VI)). Moreover, an outstanding recycling ability of the membranes also has been obtained. These significant performances make our membranes a good candidate in water purification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The novel g-C3N4 wrapped γ-Al2O3 microspheres heterojunction was successfully prepared by a simple hydrothermal process followed by calcination. The photocatalytic performances of the composite were evaluated by the degradation of methyl orange (MO) and rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light irradiation. The obtained Al2O3/g-C3N4 heterojunction exhibited much higher photocatalytic activity compared to pure g-C3N4. The enhanced performance may be mainly attributed to the tight contact between the components of the heterostructure as well as the efficient transfer of photoinduced electrons from the valence band (VB) of g-C3N4 to the defect sites of γ-Al2O3. The trapping experiment results indicated that the ·O2− radicals and holes (h+) are main active species in the decomposition of MO. This work will provide new ideas for manipulation of high-performance heterojunction for practical photocatalysis applications in water pollution controls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A superwetting three-dimensional (3D) nickel foam was prepared by a facile electrodeposition process. Wettability, surface morphology, and chemical composition were characterized with contact angle test, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectra, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, respectively. According to the results, the as-prepared 3D nickel foam presented robust superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity with good mechanical and chemical stability simultaneously. Furthermore, with the superwetting behavior, the nickel foam showed excellent oil/water separation capability with both high efficiency and lasting recyclability. Besides, the simple, low cost, and environmentally friendly fabrication process endows a scale-up of 3D nickel foam for oil/water separation and pollution disposal of leakage of organic solvents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) ultrafiltration membrane with photocatalytic and antibacterial properties was prepared by phase inversion. The in situ formed silver (Ag) nanoparticles were immobilized with titanium dioxide (TiO) nanoparticles. And the modified PVDF membranes were fabricated by adding Ag-TiO into the casting solution. Results showed that the surface contamination of membrane can be degraded effectively by photocatalysis method. Compared with the pristine membrane, the hydrophilicity of modified membrane was improved. Besides, the modified membrane had an excellent antibacterial property. Therefore, the novel Ag-TiO-PVDF membrane has a very promising application perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel hydrophilic PVDF composite membrane based on ZrO-multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) hybrid was prepared by a simple phase-inversion method. ZrO nanoparticles were firstly loaded on the surface of MWCNTs via hydrothermal route, which was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analyzer, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy. It was found that the ZrO-MWCNTs hybrid formed network structures within the PVDF matrix, avoiding the aggregation of nanofillers. Then, the effects of ZrO-MWCNTs hybrid on the performances of ultimate PVDF membrane were systematically investigated. The microstructure and surface morphology of novel membranes were observed by SEM and atomic force microscopy. The results indicated that ZrO were dispersed homogeneously on the surface of MWCNTs. The as-prepared membrane exhibited enhanced pure water flux and a lower contact angle than those of pure PVDF membrane. Furthermore, the as-prepared membranes processed also improved separation efficiency against oil/water emulsions and achieved better rejection ratio and good durable antifouling performance. In general, ZrO-MWCNTs/PVDF membrane may provide a potential application against complex oil/water systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To analyze the clinical evaluation of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients receiving integrated Chinese and Western medicine therapy. Methods: One hundred and twenty patients were enrolled and randomly allocated to a control group or treatment group. Patients in the two groups received placebo and Bushen Huoxue Granule (补肾活血颗粒, BHG), respectively. Both groups received baseline levodopa and benserazide (Madopar). The effects of treatment were assessed monthly during the 9-month treatment. Means of evaluation included Unified PD Rating Scale (UPDRS) scores (II and III), sleep scale score, 10 m turn back test (getting up time, 10 m×2 times, and turning time), timing motor test (TMT)-left and TMT-right, which were treated as the dependent variables; and age, sex, duration of PD, Hoehn and Yahr (H-Y) stage and Madopar dosage of admitted PD patients were as the independent variables. Multiple linear regression was used to analyze these factors. Results: H-Y stage significantly affected UPDRS II score, UPDRS III score, and getting up time ( P<0.01). Madopar dosage and H-Y stage significantly affected the 10 m×2 times ( P<0.05 or <0.01). Madopar dosage significantly affected the sleep scale score ( P<0.05). There were also significant correlations between age and TMT-left or TMT-right ( P<0.01), and duration of PD and TMT-right ( P<0.05). Conclusions: The six assessed means of clinical evaluation (including UPDRS II and UPDRS III scores, sleep scale score, getting up time, 10 m×2 times, and turning time) are sensitive indexes in all PD patients. H-Y stage and Madopar dosage are the major factors influencing means of clinical assessment of PD treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The refractive index resolution of a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor has been significantly improved these years; however, higher sensing performance is always desired. In this work, we propose a line-monitoring, long-range SPR sensor whose resolution is much better than conventional SPR sensors. Also, in contrast to mono-channel detection, multichannel detection, using line-monitoring technique, can detect multiple channels concurrently. In this way, this system achieves a refractive index resolution of 4.0 × 10 refractive index units and can monitor multiple molecular interactions simultaneously. Finally, a model experiment detecting the Escherichia coli bacteria has demonstrated the potential for biomedical applications of this system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We process ambient noise data from seismic stations deployed in central Asia to determine the crustal shear wave velocity structure beneath the Tianshan Mountians and surrounding area. About 748 inter-station Rayleigh wave empirical Green's functions have been recovered to estimate the phase velocity dispersions over periods from 6 to 50 s using the image transformation technique. Results show that for short periods (6-20 s), the distribution of Rayleigh wave phase velocities is generally consistent with surface geology, with high velocities corresponding to mountain ranges and low velocities to sedimentary basins. Along two profiles, which trend from NE-SW and NW-SE, the shear wave velocity shows a pair of high velocity anomalies dipping in opposite directions beneath the Tianshan Mountains. At shallow depths, those high velocity anomalies roughly correlate with areas where the mountain front and the surrounding basin are connected. The profiles also show a narrow zone beneath the Tianshan Mountains, which may represent a route for the upwelling from upper mantle. Those observations suggest that the underthrusting of the Tarim Basin and Kazakh Shield combine with the weakness of the crust, which is heated by the upwelling from upper mantle, may play an important role on the reactivation of the Tianshan Mountains associated with the India-Eurasia collision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ORF135 of Helicoverpa armigera single nucleocapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (HearSNPV)( Ha135) is one of the 20 genes that are unique to HearSNPV. Computer-assisted analysis revealed that four potential post translation modification sites, four transcription factor associated domains and a DNA binding protein domain were found in Ha135 amino acid sequence. Northern blot analysis of Ha135 indicated that Ha135 transcript was detected at 12 h.p.i. and remained detectable at up to 122 h.p.i. RT-PCR method was used to understand the temporal regulation of the transcript at earlier stages, the result showed that the Ha135 transcript was detected as early as 3 h p.i. suggesting that Ha135 was an early gene, which is in agreement with the early promoter motifs. The Ha135 protein was also detected at 12 h.p.i and remained detectable until 122 h.p.i. by western blot using an anti-Ha135 antiserum. The product of Ha135 was found to be about 29 kDa, bigger than the predicted 24 kDa molecular weight, suggesting that post translational modification of the Ha135 protein occur in host cells. The subcellular location was studied using EGFP-Ha135, which suggested that the Ha135 protein is primarily localized in the nucleus, which is compatible with several functional domains present in Ha135 amino acid sequence. Together, these results suggest the possibility that HearSNPV ORFI35 might be involved in viral DNA transcription and/or replication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A mesh-free method is presented to investigate the static bending properties of functionally graded carbon nanotube-reinforced composite (FG-CNTRC) plates. The curvature of the plate is directly interpolated with the nodal deflections due to the higher-order continuity property of the moving least-squares approximation, establishing a mesh-free computational scheme where the nodal deflections are the only unknowns. The convergence and efficiency of the proposed method are studied based on a homogeneous square plate. The FG-CNTRC plates are modeled with continuously varying Young’s moduli along the I thickness direction according to the volume fraction of the carbon nanotubes (CNTs). Detailed studies have been conducted on the effects of different boundary conditions, CNT volume fractions, geometric shapes, and width-to-thickness ratios on bending behavior. CNT efficiency parameters are introduced to account for load transfer between the nanotubes and the matrix, treating the nanocomposites as orthotopic materials. However, in the actual structure, arranging the CNTs in the desired direction is more difficult compared to other fibers. Therefore, in the present study, CNTs in the composites are considered to be arranged randomly, resulting in the composite properties being treated as isotropic. The study includes second-order derivatives of deflections, and the finite element method typically requires C1 continuity for interpolation, which introduces challenges in building elements and constructing interpolation functions. The distinct advantage of the mesh-free method is that it requires only C0 weight functions. A mesh-free computational scheme based on moving least-squares approximations for composite plates using Kirchhoff plate theory is established. Bending analyses of homogeneous and FG-CNTRC plates are conducted using the proposed method. Aspects such as boundary conditions, CNT volume fractions, geometric shapes, and width-to-thickness ratios are also discussed. Regular node arrangements and background meshes are adopted in the present study. Results are computed using different scalar parameters and numbers of nodes. Convergence properties for the central deflection of isotropic plates are analyzed in terms of the number of nodes and different scalar parameters. The normalized central deflection is defined and examined under various boundary conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]