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Bacteria-mediated cancer therapeutic strategies have attracted increasing interest due to their intrinsic tumor tropism. However, bacteria-based drugs face several challenges including the large size of bacteria and dense extracellular matrix, limiting their intratumoral delivery efficiency. In this study, we find that hyperbaric oxygen (HBO), a noninvasive therapeutic method, can effectively deplete the dense extracellular matrix and thus enhance the bacterial accumulation within tumors. Inspired by this finding, we modify Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN) with cypate molecules to yield EcN-cypate for photothermal therapy, which can subsequently induce immunogenic cell death (ICD). Importantly, HBO treatment significantly increases the intratumoral accumulation of EcN-cypate and facilitates the intratumoral infiltration of immune cells to realize desirable tumor eradication through photothermal therapy and ICD-induced immunotherapy. Our work provides a facile and noninvasive strategy to enhance the intratumoral delivery efficiency of natural/engineered bacteria, and may promote the clinical translation of bacteria-mediated synergistic cancer therapy. Delivering bacteria-based drug for cancer therapy is limited by their penetration into extracellular matrix (ECM). Here the authors report effective depletion of ECM with hyperbaric oxygen therapeutic strategy to enhance bacterial accumulation within tumors and to induce immunogenic cell death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is one of the sole causes of death in lung cancer patients. This study combined with single-cell RNA-seq analysis to identify tumor stem-related prognostic models to predict the prognosis of lung adenocarcinoma, chemotherapy agents, and immunotherapy efficacy. mRNA expression-based stemness index (mRNAsi) was determined by One Class Linear Regression (OCLR). Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected by limma package. Single-cell RNA-seq analysis in GSE123902 dataset was performed using Seurat package. Weighted Co-Expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) was built by rms package. Cell differentiation ability was determined by CytoTRACE. Cell communication analysis was performed by CellCall and CellChat package. Prognosis model was constructed by 10 machine learning and 101 combinations. Drug predictive analysis was conducted by pRRophetic package. Immune microenvironment landscape was determined by ESTIMATE, MCP-Counter, ssGSEA analysis. Tumor samples have higher mRNAsi, and the high mRNAsi group presents a worse prognosis. Turquoise module was highly correlated with mRNAsi in TCGA-LUAD dataset. scRNA analysis showed that 22 epithelial cell clusters were obtained, and higher CSCs malignant epithelial cells have more complex cellular communication with other cells and presented dedifferentiation phenomenon. Cellular senescence and Hippo signaling pathway are the major difference pathways between high- and low CSCs malignant epithelial cells. The pseudo-temporal analysis shows that cluster1, 2, high CSC epithelial cells, are concentrated at the end of the differentiation trajectory. Finally, 13 genes were obtained by intersecting genes in turquoise module, Top200 genes in hdWGCNA, DEGs in high- and low- mRNAsi group as well as DEGs in tumor samples vs. normal group. Among 101 prognostic models, average c-index (0.71) was highest in CoxBoost + RSF model. The high-risk group samples had immunosuppressive status, higher tumor malignancy and low benefit from immunotherapy. This work found that malignant tumors and malignant epithelial cells have high CSC characteristics, and identified a model that could predict the prognosis, immune microenvironment, and immunotherapy of LUAD, based on CSC-related genes. These results provided reference value for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of LUAD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To evaluate the clinical and non-contrast computed tomography (CT) features of patients with benign pulmonary subsolid nodules (SSNs) with a solid component ≤ 5 mm and their development trends via follow-up CT. Methods: We retrospectively collected 436 data from patients who had SSNs with a solid component ≤ 5 mm, including 69 with absorbable benign SSNs (AB-SSNs), 70 with nonabsorbable benign SSNs (NB-SSNs), and 297 with malignant SSNs (M-SSNs). Models 1, 2, and 3 for distinguishing the different types of SSNs were then developed and validated. Results: Patients with AB-SSNs were younger and exhibited respiratory symptoms more frequently than those with M-SSNs. The frequency of nodules detected during follow-up CT was in the following order: AB-SSNs > NB-SSNs > M-SSNs. NB-SSNs were smaller than M-SSNs, and ill-defined margins were more frequent in AB-SSNs than in NB-SSNs and M-SSNs. Benign SSNs exhibited irregular shape, target sign, and lower CT values more frequently compared to M-SSNs, whereas the latter demonstrated bubble lucency more commonly compared to the former. Furthermore, AB-SSNs showed more thickened interlobular septa and satellite lesions than M-SSNs and M-SSNs had more pleural retraction than AB-SSNs (all p < 0.017). The three models had AUCs ranging 0.748–0.920 and 0.790–0.912 in the training and external validation cohorts, respectively. A follow-up CT showed nodule progression in four benign SSNs. Conclusions: The three SSN types have different clinical and imaging characteristics, with some benign SSNs progressing to resemble malignancy. Critical relevance statement: A good understanding of the imaging features and development trends of benign SSNs may help reduce unnecessary follow-up or interventions. This retrospective study explores the CT characteristics of benign SSNs with a solid component ≤ 5 mm by comparing AB-SSNs, NB-SSNs, and M-SSNs and delineates their development trends via follow-up CT. Key points: 1. Different subsolid nodule types exhibit distinct clinical and imaging features. 2. A miniscule number of benign subsolid nodules can progress to resemble malignancy. 3. Knowing the clinical and imaging features and development trends of benign subsolid nodules can improve management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development of insecticide resistance in insect populations is a major challenge to sustainable agriculture and food security worldwide. Buprofezin, one of the commonly used chitin synthesis inhibitors, has severely declined its control efficacy against the brown planthopper (BPH, Nilaparvata lugens), a devastating rice insect species. To date, however, mechanism of buprofezin resistance in target pests remains elusive. We conducted a long-term (25 years from 1996 to 2020) and large geographical scale (11 provinces and cities in China) resistance monitoring program for buprofezin in BPH, a notorious pest of rice crop in East and Southeast Asia. BPH rapidly developed resistance with > 1,000-fold resistance being detected in nearly all the field populations after 2015. Using the bulk segregant mapping method, we uncovered a novel mutation (G932C) in chs1 gene encoding chitin synthase 1 from a near isogeneic buprofezin-resistant (> 10,000-fold) strain harboring recessive, monogenic resistance. Using CRISPR/Cas9-based genome-modified Drosophila melanogaster possessing the same mutation as a model, we found that the G932C mutation was not only responsible for buprofezin resistance but also conferred a cross-resistance to cyromazine, an insect molting disruptor, on which the mode of action is largely unknown. Taken together, our study for the first time revealed the molecular mechanism conferring buprofezin resistance in BPH and implicated that cyromazine also targets chitin biosynthesis to confer its toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resting-state fMRI has been widely used in investigating the pathophysiology of late-life depression (LLD). Unlike the conventional linear approach, cross-sample entropy (CSE) analysis shows the nonlinear property in fMRI signals between brain regions. Moreover, recent advances in deep learning, such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), provide a timely application for understanding LLD. Accurate and prompt diagnosis is essential in LLD; hence, this study aimed to combine CNN and CSE analysis to discriminate LLD patients and non-depressed comparison older adults based on brain resting-state fMRI signals. Seventy-seven older adults, including 49 patients and 28 comparison older adults, were included for fMRI scans. Three-dimensional CSEs with volumes corresponding to 90 seed regions of interest of each participant were developed and fed into models for disease classification and depression severity prediction. We obtained a diagnostic accuracy > 85% in the superior frontal gyrus (left dorsolateral and right orbital parts), left insula, and right middle occipital gyrus. With a mean root-mean-square error (RMSE) of 2.41, three separate models were required to predict depressive symptoms in the severe, moderate, and mild depression groups. The CSE volumes in the left inferior parietal lobule, left parahippocampal gyrus, and left postcentral gyrus performed best in each respective model. Combined complexity analysis and deep learning algorithms can classify patients with LLD from comparison older adults and predict symptom severity based on fMRI data. Such application can be utilized in precision medicine for disease detection and symptom monitoring in LLD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complexity and concealment of the goaf environment hinder the understanding of the types of ignition sources in goaf gas explosions. Therefore, this study constructed a mechanical-electrical test system for rocks; the generation of pressure stimulated currents (PSCs) and its discharge-induced ignition mechanism of roof sandstone under uniaxial compression were explored, and the real ignition source of the gas explosion accident in Babao Coal Mine was revealed. The experimental results reveal that the intensity of PSCs of sandstone is higher than that of marble in the loading stage because the piezoelectric effect of quartz in sandstone enhances its mechanical-electrical sensitivity and leads to an increase in the discharge intensity. During the whole loading stage, the PSCs signals generated by sandstone are mainly attributable to the piezoelectric effect of quartz, while the PSCs of marble are mainly caused by the sliding friction between mineral particles. When the samples are in the compaction and elastic stages, PSCs are proportional to strain rate and stress rate respectively; when the samples enter the stage of plastic deformation and failure, the peak values of PSCs are positively correlated with the uniaxial compressive strength. Sparks can be seen in sandstone during the failure stage, which mainly results from electron avalanche caused by the damage of quartz grains under loading. The ignition source of the gas explosion accident in Babao Coal Mine is more likely to be sparks generated by the combined discharge of the extrusion friction and piezoelectric effect of roof sandstone, rather than coal spontaneous combustion. [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.)

Cancer vaccine, which can promote tumor-specific immunostimulation, is one of the most important immunotherapeutic strategies and holds tremendous potential for cancer treatment/prevention. Here, we prepare a series of nanoparticles composed of doxorubicin- and tyrosine kinase inhibitor-loaded and hyaluronic acid-coated dendritic polymers (termed HDDT nanoparticles) and find that the HDDT nanoparticles can convert various cancer cells to micrometer-sized vesicles (1.6−3.2 μm; termed HMVs) with ~100% cell-to-HMV conversion efficiency. We confirm in two tumor-bearing mouse models that the nanoparticles can restrain tumor growth, induce robust immunogenic cell death, and convert the primary tumor into an antigen depot by producing HMVs in situ to serve as personalized vaccines for cancer immunotherapy. Furthermore, the HDDT-healed mice show a strong immune memory effect and the HDDT treatment can realize long-term protection against tumor rechallenge. Collectively, the present work provides a general strategy for the preparation of tumor-associated antigen-containing vesicles and the development of personalized cancer vaccines. Autologous tumor cell vaccines can elicit anti-tumor immune responses. Here, the authors report the design of dendritic polymer-based nanoparticles loaded with doxorubicin and the tyrosine kinase inhibitor apatinib that can induce immunogenic cell death and the in situ production of immuno-stimulatory micrometer-sized vesicles, promoting anti-tumor immune responses in preclinical models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neuropeptides are the most diverse messenger molecules in metazoans and are involved in regulation of daily physiology and a wide array of behaviors. Some neuropeptides and their cognate receptors are structurally and functionally well conserved over evolution in bilaterian animals. Among these are peptides related to gastrin and cholecystokinin (CCK). In mammals, CCK is produced by intestinal endocrine cells and brain neurons, and regulates gall bladder contractions, pancreatic enzyme secretion, gut functions, satiety and food intake. Additionally, CCK plays important roles in neuromodulation in several brain circuits that regulate reward, anxiety, aggression and sexual behavior. In invertebrates, CCK-type peptides (sulfakinins, SKs) are, with a few exceptions, produced by brain neurons only. Common among invertebrates is that SKs mediate satiety and regulate food ingestion by a variety of mechanisms. Also regulation of secretion of digestive enzymes has been reported. Studies of the genetically tractable fly Drosophila have advanced our understanding of SK signaling mechanisms in regulation of satiety and feeding, but also in gustatory sensitivity, locomotor activity, aggression and reproductive behavior. A set of eight SK-expressing brain neurons plays important roles in regulation of these competing behaviors. In males, they integrate internal state and external stimuli to diminish sex drive and increase aggression. The same neurons also diminish sugar gustation, induce satiety and reduce feeding. Although several functional roles of CCK/SK signaling appear conserved between Drosophila and mammals, available data suggest that the underlying mechanisms differ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the process of tunnel construction, there is a high probability of encountering fault fracture zones. Tunnel deformation, water-inrush, and mud-inrush accidents easily occur in these sections. There is an urgent need for tunnel engineering to accurately predict the geological characteristics and spatial locations of water-bearing faults in front of tunnels. Based on the analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of various prediction technologies, a comprehensive water-bearing fault forecasting system is proposed, and the application process of this system is introduced in-depth for the Bifeng Temple high-speed railway tunnel project. First, the geological and hydrological conditions of the Bifeng Temple high-speed tunnel are analysed, and the orientations of the fault fracture zone and dense joint zone in the tunnel site area are determined. Then, tunnel seismic prediction (TSP) is applied to detect the spatial relationship and geological characteristics between the water-bearing faults and tunnel. To improve the forecasting accuracy, ground penetrating radar (GPR) is applied synthetically when approaching the fault. According to the comprehensive physical forecast results, the target area is verified by fixed-point advancing holes. The forecast results are consistent. Finally, the curtain-grouting method and three-step temporary inverted arch method are used to control the water-rich fault zone, and water inrush is successfully prevented. The monitoring and measurement results of the rock surrounding the tunnel in the fault zone verify the reliability of the control measures. This comprehensive forecasting system has been successfully put into practise in the water-bearing fault tunnel in Fujian, and it can play a guiding role in similar projects. [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.)

However, the value of crack closure stress ( I i SB cc sb ) and crack initiation stress ( I i SB ci sb ) will be clearly changed by small fluctuations of Poisson's ratio. If the stress level is higher than the crack damage stress ( I i SB cd sb ) but lower than peak strength ( I i SB f sb ), cracks will propagate continuously and coalescence to reach macroscopic failure. 6 Curves of lateral strain difference for a siliceous siltstone and b limestone Moving Point Regression Method (MPR) Eberhardt et al. ([4]) proposed a new method to obtain the crack closure stress ( I i SB cc sb ) and the crack initiation stress ( I i SB ci sb ). If the stress level is higher than crack initiation stress ( I i SB ci sb ) but lower than crack damage stress ( I i SB cd sb ), cracks randomly initiated but they will cease at a certain length without coalescence. [Extracted from the article]

Flexible, lightweight and high conductivity substrates are required for the development of next-generation flexible Li-ion batteries (LIBs). In addition, the interfacial strength between the active material and flexible substrate should be optimized for high-performance LIBs. Herein, cotton cloth (CC) is employed as a flexible substrate, and electroless plating is utilized to deposit a layer of Cu nanoparticles, which enhances the conductivity of CC and acts as a precursor for the active material, i.e., CuO. The results reveal that the in situ etching and subsequent heat treatment converted Cu film into CuO nanowires on CC substrate. Moreover, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are introduced to enhance the connectivity of CuO nanowires. Consequently, the CuO/CNT/CC electrode rendered a high areal capacity of > 700 μAh·cm−2 after 100 charge/discharge cycles as well as excellent rate capability. The current work presents a novel route to develop desirable substrates for next-generation flexible Li-ion batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Binary relevance (BR) is one of the most popular frameworks in multi-label learning. It constructs a group of binary classifiers, one for each label. BR is a simple and intuitive way to deal with multi-label problem, but fails to utilize label correlations. To deal with this problem, dependent binary relevance (DBR) and other works employ stacking learning paradigm for BR, in which all labels are viewed as additional features. Those works may be suboptimal as each label has its own most related label subset. In this paper, a novel two-layer stacking based approach, which is named a Stacking Model with Label Selection (SMLS), is induced to exploit proper label correlations for improving the performance of DBR. At the first layer, we construct several binary classifiers in the way of BR. At the second layer, we find the specific label subset through label selection for each labels , and expand them into feature space. The final binary classifiers are constructed based on their corresponding augmented feature space. Comprehensive experiments are conducted on a collection of benchmark data sets. Comparison results with the state-of-the-art approaches validate the competitive performance of our proposed approach. Comparison results with DBR shows that our approach is not only more time efficient but also more robust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Executive dysfunctions are common in individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). However, change in functional neural coupling of default and executive networks in the post-acute phase (≥ 1 month after injury) patients over time has yet to be understood. During a 5-week observation period, we examined changes in the goal-oriented executive function networks in 20 TBI participants, using a face/scene matching 1-back fMRI task (Chen et al. 2011). We conducted multivariate pattern analysis to assess working memory and visual selective attention, followed by a repeat-measures ANOVA to examine longitudinal changes, with a cluster FDR at p =.001. Results showed that task accuracy significantly improved after follow-up. Significantly increased activity patterns over time were observed in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and right insula. Decreased activity patterns were seen in the left posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), bilateral precuneus, right inferior occipital gyrus and right temporo-occipital junction. Improvement in task accuracy correlated with decreased activity patterns in the PCC (r = −0.478, p = 0.031) and temporo-occipital junction (r = −0.592, p = 0.006), which were interpreted as neural plastic changes. However, we did not observe the default mode network (DMN)-executive network decoupling during task performance that is found in other studies. These results suggest that fMRI of attentional task performance could serve as a potential biomarker for neural plasticity of selective attention in TBI patients in the post-acute phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rutile titania (TiO2) was successfully prepared via hydrolysis of TiCl4 in the presence of AlCl3. The powders were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis. In the present system, AlCl3 functions as a nucleating agent and induces the formation of rutile TiO2. The influences of HCl and isopropanol concentrations on the purity and morphology of the rutile TiO2 were investigated. The purity of the rutile TiO2 increased with increasing concentration of HCl. Evenly dispersed rutile TiO2 particles with a spherical morphology were obtained when the HCl and isopropanol concentrations were 0.5 and 1 mol·L−1, respectively. Furthermore, the prepared TiO2 powders were used in adsorption tests of the heavy metal pollutant Cr(VI). Rutile TiO2 sample S-9 demonstrated greater adsorption performance and a removal efficiency that was greater than 99.95% after 60 min of adsorption when the Cr(VI) concentration was 200 mg·L−1 The maximum adsorption capacity on rutile TiO2 was 28.9 mg·g−1. This work provides an easy path to prepare a high-performance rutile TiO2 adsorbent with potential applications in water pollution treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-frequency oscillations (HFOs) in intracranial electroencephalograms of patients with epilepsy are regarded as promising biomarkers of epileptogenic zones. Their detection and classification can be achieved by visual assessment or automated approaches, although manual processing of large recordings can be laborious. As a result, an automated analysis scheme is indispensable to enable the clinical use of HFOs. In this paper, we present a two-stage strategy to detect and classify HFOs, which starts with a threshold-based approach to detect plausible HFO events followed by an event classification to discriminate different oscillations. Unlike existing approaches, the detection process in the proposed schemes starts by calculating various multi-channel features that allow interrelations among electrodes to be exploited for detection. On this basis, the detection thresholds are set epoch-by-epoch, relying on a two-component Gaussian mixture model to avoid threshold overestimation. The events deemed to be plausible HFOs are then subjected to classification. By simultaneously examining the raw data and time-frequency maps of these events, they are ultimately sorted into the following categories: HFOs, spikes, and spikes with HFOs, so that the oscillations solely caused by filtering sharp transients can be discriminated. Experimental results using simulated data and intracranial recordings from three epileptic patients demonstrate that our proposed schemes achieve promising sensitivity and precision, especially when the noise level is high. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a new graphene allotrope named HOT graphene containing carbon hexagons, octagons, and tetragons. A corresponding series of nanotubes are also constructed by rolling up the HOT graphene sheet. Ab initio calculations are performed on geometric and electronic structures of the HOT graphene and the HOT graphene nanotubes. Dirac cone and high Fermi velocity are achieved in a non-hexagonal structure of HOT graphene, implying that the honeycomb structure is not an indispensable condition for Dirac fermions to exist. HOT graphene nanotubes show distinctive electronic structures depending on their topology. The (0,1) n (n ≥ 3) HOT graphene nanotubes reveal the characteristics of semimetals, while the other set of nanotubes (1,0) n shows continuously adjustable band gaps (0~ 0.51 eV) with tube size. A competition between the curvature effect and the zone-folding approximation determines the band gaps of the (1,0) n nanotubes. Novel conversion between semimetallicity and semiconductivity arises in ultra-small tubes (radius < 4 Å, i.e., n < 3). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along with slurry concentration and particle density, particle size distribution (PSD) of tailings also exerts a significant influence on the yield stress of cemented paste, a non-Newtonian fluid. In this work, a paste stability coefficient (PSC) was proposed to characterize paste gradation and better reveal its connection to yield stress. This coefficient was proved beneficial to the construction of a unified rheological model, applicable to different materials in different mines, so as to promote the application of rheology in the pipeline transportation of paste. From the results, yield stress showed an exponential growth with increasing PSC, which reflected the proportion of solid particle concentration to the packing density of granular media in a unit volume of slurry, and could represent the properties of both slurry and granular media. It was found that slurry of low PSC contained extensive pores, generally around 20 μm, encouraging free flow of water, constituting a relatively low yield stress. In contrast, slurry of high PSC had a compact and quite stable honeycomb structure, with pore sizes generally < 5 μm, causing the paste to overcome a higher yield stress to flow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of electrocardiograms (ECGs) as a modality for biometric recognition has received increasing interest. Whereas ECGs are capable of providing a complete insight into the spatiotemporal nature of the cardiac electrical activity, the large volume of multi-lead recordings makes it challenging to elicit discriminant information therein. Typically, for biometric data to be of use in a recognition task, feature extraction must be performed to remove redundant information and noise from the data and enable the subsequent matching algorithms to work efficiently. In this paper, several feature extraction algorithms for ECG biometric recognition are proposed. Based on the idea of block projection, the proposed algorithms allow the temporal information used by existing single-lead-based techniques to be exploited while taking advantage of the structural information contained in multi-lead ECGs. Besides, these algorithms are applicable to ECGs regardless of their number of leads even to single-lead ones. Like most nonfiducial approaches, they require only one fiducial point (i.e., R peaks) to be determined. Detailed experiments with real data are presented to illustrate the performance of the proposed algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Predictions of subgrade settlement are important in engineering construction. However, current settlement prediction methods are often unsatisfactory; therefore, the Richards model, which is widely used in the biological field, is introduced in this paper to predict subgrade settlement. To improve the prediction accuracy of soft soil subgrade settlement, the settlement properties of soft soil subgrade and the characteristics of the Richards model are analyzed, and a form of the Richards model based on the bidirectional difference-weighted least-squares (BD-WLS) method is proposed. The performance of the BD-WLS method is verified via comparison with traditional methods of parameter estimation. Moreover, a case study is used to evaluate the predictive effectiveness of the Richards model based on the optimal parameter estimation method. The results show that the Richards model can reduce the mean absolute error by 2.15% on average and improve the prediction accuracy by 22.14% on average compared to other available models. Thus, the Richards model is considered suitable for simulating and predicting the settlement of soft soil subgrade, and it has excellent application potential for settlement prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with the study of the nonlinear damped wave equation utt+Δ2u−Δu−ωΔut+α(t)ut=up−2u, in a bounded domain with smooth boundary. The blow-up of solutions are investigated under some conditions. Both lower and upper bounds for the blow-up time are derived when blow-up occurs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Epicanthoplasty combined with double-eyelid blepharoplasty is one of the most popular cosmetic procedures in Asians. However, the postoperative medial canthal scar is a concerned issue. Here the authors adopted some modifications of Z-epicanthoplasty to minimize the canthal scar. Methods: Modifications of Z-epicanthoplasty were mainly in three aspects. First, supratarsal creases were created before epicanthoplasty to prevent the impact of tension variation on epicanthal incisions, caused by elevating and tightening of the upper eyelid skin. Second, one triangle flap was determined according to the transposition of another one in Z-plasty, and hence, it can be guaranteed that the incisions were closed free of tension with more accuracy and less injury to surrounding tissues. Third, linear scar contracture was avoided by adopting discontinuous incisions, and the resulting skin bulge was eliminated by making an additional stitch to anchor the pretarsal skin on the tarsal plate. The follow-up interval was 1 month to 2 years, with a median of 6.5 months. Results: From January 2012 to December 2015, 237 female and 4 male patients received the surgery. Except five (2.07%) patients, who were not satisfied with the color of incision scars in medial canthal area, none complained about scars 6 months after surgery. The appearance of the supratarsal crease was natural, and the medial canthal scar was inconspicuous in close observation at 2 years. Conclusion: The modifications of Z-epicanthoplasty are safe and effective. It is potentially helpful to minimize postoperative medial canthal scars. Level of Evidence IV: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors describe an electrochemical sandwich immunoassay for the human epididymis-specific protein 4 (HE4). A commercially available electromagnetic detector device and a screen-printed electrode (SPE) modified with graphene sheets and gold nanoparticles were used to fabricate the detector. First, a nanocomposite suspension consisting of graphene sheets and gold nanoparticles was deposited onto the SPE. This results in an enlarged electrochemically active area and improves electron transfer. Next, biotinylated monoclonal antibody against HE4 (anti-HE4) was bound to streptavidin-modified magnetic beads via biotin-avidin binding. Nonspecific binding sites were blocked with bovine serum albumin. Stepwise changes in the microscopic features of the surfaces and electrochemical properties upon the formation of each layer were studied by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and cyclic voltammetry. After magnetic separation and washing, the biotinylated anti-HE4 beads were deposited on the SPE, which then was inserted into the electromagnetic modular detector. Following the immunoreaction with HE4, a sandwich-type immunoassay was performed on the SPE using horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-labeled HE4 as a tracer label. Electrochemical detection was carried out after addition of HO as a substrate for HRP. Under optimal conditions, differential pulse voltammetry can detect HE4 in the 0 to 400 pM concentration range with a detection limit of 0.5 pM (at an S/N ratio of 3). The system was applied to the determination of HE4 with good accuracy and selectivity. [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we investigate the growth and the exponent of convergence of the sequence of φ-points of meromorphic solutions of the linear differential equations and with entire coefficients $A_{j}(z)$, $j=0,1,\ldots,k$ and $F(z)$, where $k\geq2$, $A_{0}(z)A_{k}(z)\not\equiv0$, $\varphi(z)$ is a meromorphic function of finite order, and there is only one dominant coefficient $A_{k}(z)$ of the maximal order, which is also a Fabry gap series. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An improved multidirectional velocity model was proposed for more accurately locating micro-seismic events in rock engineering. It was assumed that the stress wave propagation velocities from a micro-seismic source to three nearest monitoring sensors in a sensor's array arrangement were the same. Since the defined objective function does not require pre-measurement of the stress wave propagation velocity in the field, errors from the velocity measurement can be avoided in comparison to three traditional velocity models. By analyzing 24 different cases, the proposed multidirectional velocity model iterated by the Simplex method is found to be the best option no matter the source is within the region of the sensor's array or not. The proposed model and the adopted iterative algorithm are verified by field data and it is concluded that it can significantly reduce the error of the estimated source location. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cancer stem cell (CSC) theory states that many types of cancer, including nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC), are initiated from and maintained by CSCs, which may be responsible for tumor relapse and resistance to therapy. It is imperative that nasopharyngeal cancer stem cells (NPCSCs) be specifically targeted to eradicate NPC and prevent recurrence. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) inhibits cancer progression by attenuating NF-κB p65 activity, which is upregulated in CSCs and plays an important role in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). The purpose of this study is to confirm the self-renewal and migration inhibitory effects of EGCG toward NPCSCs and to clarify its mechanism of activity. We enriched and characterized NPCSCs by collecting spheroid-derived cells grown in serum-free medium (SFM) and examined the effects of EGCG on the characteristics of NPCSCs and studied the underlying mechanisms using soft agar colony assays, transwell migration assays, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Western blot analysis, immunofluorescence staining, and xenograft studies. NPC spheroids enriched from NPC cell lines acquired CSC traits and underwent EMT. EGCG inhibited the NPCSCs' self-renewal and migration and reversed EMT, and combined treatment with EGCG and cisplatin reduced the growth of CSC tumor xenografts. Moreover, EGCG inhibited NF-κB p65 activity by modulating the cellular localization of p65 and decreasing the transcriptional regulation of NF-κB p65 on Twist1 expression. NF-κB p65 is a novel therapeutic target in NPCSCs, and the inhibition of activated NF-κB p65 in CSCs by EGCG may offer an effective treatment for NPC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of long-chain fatty alcohols (LFAs) on the enzymatic hydrolysis of crystalline cellulose by two commercial Trichoderma reesei cellulase cocktails (CTec2 and Celluclast 1.5L) were studied. It was found that n-butanol inhibited the enzymatic hydrolysis, but n-octanol, n-decanol and n-dodecanol had strong enhancement on enzymatic hydrolysis of crystalline cellulose in the buffer pH range from 4.0 to 6.0. LFAs can increase the hydrolysis efficiency of crystalline cellulose from 37 to 57 % at Celluclast 1.5L loading of ten filter paper units (FPU)/g glucan. LFAs have similar enhancement on the enzymatic hydrolysis of crystalline cellulose mixed with lignin or xylan. The enhancement of LFAs increased with the decrease of the crystallinity index. LFAs not only enhanced the high-solid enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulose, but also improved the rheological properties of high-solid lignocellulosic slurries by decreasing the yield stress and complex viscosity. Meanwhile, LFAs can improve the enzymatic hydrolysis of cellobiose to glucose, especially at low cellulase loading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stress state around circular openings, such as boreholes, shafts, and tunnels, is usually needed to be evaluated. Solutions for stresses, strains and ultimate bearing capacities of pressurized hollow cylinder are common cases. Stress analytical method for plane problem of a double-layered thick-walled cylinder subjected to a type of non-uniform pressure on the outer surface and uniform radial pressure on the inner surface is given. The power series method of complex function is used. The stress analytical solution is obtained with the assumption that two layers of a cylinder are fully contacted. The distributions of normal and tangential contact stress along the interface, tangential stress on the inner boundary and stresses in the radial direction at θ=0°, 45° and 90°, are obtained. An example indicates that, when the elastic modulus of the inner layer of a double-layered thick-walled cylinder is smaller than that of the outer layer, the tangential stress is smaller than that in the corresponding point for a traditional cylinder composed of homogeneous materials. In that way, stress concentration at the inner surface can be alleviated and the stress distribution is more uniform. This is a capable way to enhance the elastic ultimate bearing capacity of thick-walled cylinder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this paper is to investigate the finite time blow-up of solutions with supercritical boundary/interior sources and nonlinear boundary/interior damping. First, we prove that if the interior and boundary sources dominate their corresponding damping terms, then every weak solution blows up in finite time with positive initial energy. Second, without any restriction on the boundary source, we prove the finite time blow-up of solutions, provided that the interior sources dominate both interior and boundary damping and the initial energy is nonnegative. A similar result has been shown when the boundary source is absent. Moreover, in the absence of the interior sources, we prove that the solution grows as an exponential function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methods that can efficiently model the effects of rock joints on rock mass behavior can be beneficial in rock engineering. The suitability of equivalent rock mass (ERM) technique based upon particle methods is investigated. The ERM methodology is first validated by comparing calculated and experimental data of lab triaxial compression test on a set of cylindrical rock mass samples, each containing a single joint oriented in various dip angles. The simulated results are then used to study the stress-strain nonlinearity and failure mechanism as a function of the joint dip angle and confining stress. The anisotropy and size effects are also investigated by using multi-scale cubic ERM models subjected to triaxial compression test. The deformation and failure behavior are found to be influenced by joint degradation, the micro-crack formation in the intact rock, the interaction between two joints, and the interactions of micro-cracks and joints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zinc concentrate with high gallium content is one of the main resources of gallium. The gallium presents in the form of isomorphism in tetrahedron coordination with sulfur in sphalerite. The research was to investigate the amenability of zinc concentrate with high gallium to pressure oxygen leaching. The particle size, sulfuric acid concentration, oxygen partial pressure, additive amount, and time of reaction were studied. The extraction yields of gallium and zinc are 86 % and 98 %, respectively. The optimal condition is 100 g of zinc concentrate with particle size smaller than 38 μm, sulfuric acid concentration 150 g·L, leaching temperature 150 °C, leaching time 120 min, oxygen partial pressure 0.7 MPa, additive amount of 0.2 wt%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Thyroid disorders, such as the emergence of thyroid autoantibodies (TAs) and thyroid dysfunction (TD), are not uncommon in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients. The study aimed to investigate the impact of TAs and dysfunction on the treatment response to pegylated interferon-α plus ribavirin (PegIFN/RBV) combination therapy in CHC patients. The association between interleukin-28B (IL-28B) genetic variants and occurrence of TAs and dysfunction was also analyzed. Methods: A total of 449 treatment-naive Taiwanese CHC patients with euthyroid status were consecutively enrolled. They received PegIFN/RBV combination therapy with current recommendation. TAs, TD, and IL-28B genetic variants were measured before treatment. Monitoring of TD was done at 3-month intervals during treatment, at end of treatment, and at end of follow-up (EOF). Results: The development of TAs was detected in 42 (9.4%) patients before treatment, and the incidence of TD during or at EOF was 20%. Of 287 patients with IL-28B rs8099917 TT genotype, 29 (10.1%) had TAs before treatment, whereas the patients with other genotypes did not have TAs ( P = 0.04). There was no significant difference of TD incidence during treatment or at EOF between the patients with different IL-28B genotypes. There was also no significant difference of sustained virologic response according to the presence of TAs, TD, or different manifestations of TD. Conclusion: Taiwanese CHC patients with rs8099917 TT genotype had a higher incidence of TAs. The development of TAs and TD did not impact the treatment efficacy of PegIFN/RBV combination therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studies the Cauchy problem for the coupled nonlinear Klein-Gordon equations with damping terms. By introducing a family of potential wells, we derive the invariant sets and the vacuum isolating of solutions. Furthermore, we show the global existence, finite time blow-up, as well as the asymptotic behavior of solutions. In particular, we establish a sharp criterion for global existence and blow-up of solutions when E(0)< d. Finally, a blow-up result of solutions with E(0)= d is also proved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a viscoelastic equation with nonlinear boundary damping and source terms of the form is considered in a bounded domain Ω. Under appropriate assumptions imposed on the source and the damping, we establish both existence of solutions and uniform decay rate of the solution energy in terms of the behavior of the nonlinear feedback and the relaxation function g, without setting any restrictive growth assumptions on the damping at the origin and weakening the usual assumptions on the relaxation function g. Moreover, for certain initial data in the unstable set, the finite time blow-up phenomenon is exhibited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proportion of B-HCC cases in Taiwan has progressively decreased over the last 20 years. It was not really due to an overall decrease in B-HCC but due to an increase in HCV-related HCC. The identification of potential HCV endemic areas in Taiwan has consequently become important. Data were collected retrospectively from eight Taiwan medical centers from 1981 to 2001, the geographical variations of male C-HCC townships in Taiwan were illustrated on maps. Goodness of fit was used to compare the anti-HCV prevalence in townships and cities, with the mean anti-HCV prevalence for Taiwan as a whole. Township-, city-, and county-specific prevalence of anti-HCV was presented as the median, ranges, and SMRs. Geographic variation can be analyzed in only 263 townships and cities. The maps were designed on the basis of different SMRs. The mean anti-HCV prevalence for male HCC patients in Taiwan was 31.9% (95% confidence interval: 30.7–33.0). Twenty-five townships distributed throughout central-western and south-western Taiwan have significantly higher prevalence ( P < 0.05) (12 townships SMR ≥ 2; 13 townships 1.5 ≤ SMR < 2). Twenty-two townships have significantly lower prevalence ( P < 0.05) (6 townships 0.5 ≤ SMR<1; 16 townships SMR < 0.5). Four different patterns of geographic variation in different counties were also noted and demonstrated. We successfully highlighted some potential high HCV endemic townships in Taiwan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the incidence, predisposing factors, early diagnosis and treatment options of heterotopic pregnancy (HP) following in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET) procedure. Methods: A retrospective review study was performed to identify the HP cases after IVF-ET at the Reproductive Centre in Guangdong Women and Children's Hospital in China between the years of 2002-2007. Results: Twelve out of 1,476 pregnancies (0.81%) were diagnosed for HP, of which nine patients elected for exploratory salpingectomy, two patients received selective fetal reduction by embryo aspiration under ultrasound guidance, and one patient opted for expectant treatment. Postoperatively, four intrauterine pregnancies were continued to develop until term while two were delivered at 35 weeks of gestation. The achievement ratio of continuous pregnancy was 66.7% (6/9). Conclusion: The incidence of HP is increasing due to the widespread use of assisted reproductive technology. An early transvaginal sonography performed by experienced radiologist/radiographer is considered to be essential and beneficial in establishing early diagnosis of HP. Both salpingectomy and selective fetal reduction by embryo aspiration can be administered as one of the effective therapies for HP with the optimal outcome of intrauterine pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twelve samples derived from different locations in south central area of China are treated by enrichment and spread-plate technique for initial screening. Seven chitinase-producing strains are isolated. The chitinase present in the culture supernatant of strain CS-01 possesses the maximum activity of 0.118 U/mL. Analysis of the morphological feature and the ITS rDNA sequence reveals that strain CS-01 belongs to Aspergillus fumigatus. Production of the chitinase is regulated by a inducible way and the maximum activity appears at 36 h in colloidal chitin culture. Purification of the chitinase is carried out by salting out, gel filtrate chromatography and anion exchange chromatography sequentially. Native-PAGE and SDS-PAGE indicate that the chitinase from A. fumigatus CS-01 is a monomer with the relative molecular mass estimated to be 4.50×104. Its maximum activity appears at pH 5 and 55 °C. The chitinase is stable at pH 4.0–7.5 and below 45 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the structural, electronic, and optical properties of MoS2 multilayers are investigated by employing the first-principles method. Up to six-layers of MoS2 have been comparatively studied. The covalency and ionicity in the MoS2 monolayer are shown to be stronger than those in the bulk. As the layer number is increased to two or above two, band splitting is significant due to the interlayer coupling. We found that long plateaus emerged in the imaginary parts of the dielectric function ε 2 xx ω and the joint density of states (JDOS) of MoS2 multilayers, due to the Van Hove singularities in a two-dimensional material. One, two and three small steps appear at the thresholds of both the long plateau of ε 2 xx ω and JDOS, for monolayer, bilayer, and trilayer, respectively. As the number of layers further increased, the number of small steps increases and the width of the small steps decreases accordingly. Due to interlayer coupling, the longest plateau and shortest plateau of JDOS are from the monolayer and bulk, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The parallel bond model (PBM), one type of basic bonded particle model (BPM), has been diffusely studied in natural rock and rock-like material. It is well-known that BPMs yield unrealistically low ratios of compressive to tensile strength (UCS/TS), friction angles and linear strength envelopes. The flat-joint model (FJM) overcomes those intrinsic deficiencies with a special structure. Thus, FJM can provide satisfactory replication of the mechanical behavior of rock-like materials. In this paper, rock-like material samples containing a single flaw were constructed with flaw angles of 0°, 30°, 45°, 60°, and 90° measured from the horizontal. The PBM and FJM were used to simulate this rock-like material. The results of the numerical simulations were compared with observations from physical tests, including strength, main types of microcracks, macroscopic fracture zones, and location and sequence of the first and secondary cracks. The results demonstrate that (1) the flaw inclination angle had a significant effect on strength; (2) the FJM results showed better agreement with respect to the main types of microcracks and macroscopic fracture zones, reproducing vertical tension failure dominance over shear failure in the rock-like material, contrary to the PBM results; and (3) using the FJM to capture the initiation location, direction, and sequence of the first and secondary cracks is recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The physical and mechanical indices of soft soils have regional characteristics, and the engineering properties are very different under diverse geological conditions. Empirical equations provide a quick and effective method to calculate the compression index using other physical indices that are easily obtained. However, it is often unsatisfactory to calculate the compression index for a special region using the existing empirical equations. Hence, there is a need to propose regional empirical equations on the basis of a special research data for calculating the compression index. The validity of existing empirical equations for the soft soil in the Jiangmen region was evaluated using measured data. The results show that the equations proposed by Gao et al. (Rock Soil Mech 38(09):2713-2720, 2017) and Al-Khafaji and Andersland (J Geotech Eng 118(1):148-153, 1992) are superior to other existing single-variable and multi-variable empirical equations for the Jiangmen region; the values of ranking distance are 0.432 and 0.430, respectively. In addition, a new regional empirical equation for Jiangmen is proposed, utilizing a regression analysis of the measured data. The corresponding value of ranking distance is 0.320. The new equation is proven to be more accurate than the existing single- and multi-variable empirical equations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electronic properties of vanadium atoms adsorbed on clean and graphene-covered Cu(111) surface have been systematically studied using ab initio theoretical method. Two coverages (1/9 ML and 1 ML) of vanadium adsorption are considered in this work. Our calculations indicate that V staying underneath the Cu surface is found to be the most stable adsorption site at the aforementioned two coverages for V/Cu(111). However, such adsorption may lead to undesired properties. Therefore, we introduce graphene as a buffer layer to effectively alleviate the direct interaction between V and Cu surface. The calculations show that electronic properties of the original graphene layer are significantly affected by the interactions of C atoms with the V adatoms; the Dirac point of graphene is “destroyed” as a consequence at both coverages. In the V/Gra/Cu(111) system, the interaction between graphene layer and the substrate Cu atoms remains weak as in the Gra/Cu(111) system. Moreover, a relatively low coverage of 1/9 ML gives rise to a spin-polarized system while a non-spin-polarized system is observed at the coverage of 1 ML. This finding offers a new way for the application of vanadium-based materials in reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dopamine (DA) is a signal moiety bridging the nervous and immune systems. DA dysregulation is linked to serious human diseases, including addiction, schizophrenia, and Parkinson's disease. However, DA actions in the immune system remain incompletely understood. In this study, we found that DA modulates insect hemocyte phagocytosis using hemocytes prepared from the rice stem borer (RSB), Chilo suppressalis. We investigated whether insect hemocytes are capable of de novo DA production. Here we show that exposing hemocytes to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) led to induction of DA-generating enzymes. Exogenous DA induced rapid phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) in naïve hemocytes. Activation of ERK was inhibited by preincubating with a DOP1 receptor antagonist. Thus, DA signaling via the DOP1 receptor may contribute to early hemocyte activation. DA synthesized and released from hemocytes may act in an autocrine mechanism to stimulate or maintain phagocytic activity. Consistent with this hypothesis, we found that inhibition of DA synthesis with α-methyl-DL-tyrosine methyl ester hydrochloride or blockage of DOP1 receptor with antagonist SCH23390 impaired hemocyte phagocytosis. Topical DA application also significantly decreased RSB mortality following challenge with the insect pathogenic fungus, Beauveria bassiana. We infer that a DA-dependent signaling system operates in hemocytes to mediate phagocytotic functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]