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Background This study aimed to explore the appropriate location of renal tumors for retroperitoneal approach. Materials and Methods We retrospectively analyzed 1040 patients with renal tumor who were treated at our institution from Janurary 2015 to June 2020 and had underwent retroperitoneal robotic assisted-laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (rRAPN). Clinical features and postoperative outcomes were evaluated. Results Patients with incomplete data were excluded, and we included 896 patients in total. The median tumor size was 3.0 (range: 0.8–10.0) cm. The median RENAL Nephrometry Score was 7 (range: 4–11), and the median PADUA Nephrometry Score was 8 (range: 6–14). The median surgical time was 120 min, and the median warm ischemia time was 18 min. The median estimated blood loss was 50 ml. The follow-up time was 20.2 (range: 12–69) months. The mean change of eGFR 1 year after operation was 14.6% ± 19.0% compared with preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). When compared the tumor at different locations, as superior or inferior pole, anterior of posterior face of kidney, there were no significant differences of intra- and post-operative outcomes such as surgical time, warm ischemia time, estimated blood loss, removal time of drainage tube and catheter, postoperative feeding time and hospital stay, and changes of eGFR one year after surgery. We also compared tumors at special locations as endophytic or exophytic, anterior of posterior hilus of kidney, there were no significant differences in surgical time, warm ischemia time, estimated blood loss and changes of eGFR. There was no significant difference in intraoperative features and postoperative outcomes when tumor larger than 4 cm was located at different positions of kidney. Though the surgical time was longer when BMI ≥ 28 (132.6 min vs. 122.5 min, p = 0.004), no significant differences were observed in warm ischemia time, estimated blood loss, changes in eGFR. Twenty-seven patients (3.0%) had tumor progression, including 8 (0.9%) recurrence, 19 (2.1%) metastasis, and 9 (1.0%) death. Conclusion Retroperitoneal approach for RAPN has confirmed acceptable intra- and postoperative outcomes and suits for renal tumors of all different locations. Large tumor size and obesity are not contraindications for rRAPN.

In this study, we synthesized a novel fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labeled prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) ligand (PSMA-FITC) via the Fmoc solid-phase synthesis method, and the application value of PSMA-FITC in targeted fluorescence imaging of PSMA-positive prostate cancer was evaluated. The PSMA ligand developed based on the Glu-urea-Lys structure was linked to FITC by aminocaproic acid (Ahx) to obtain PSMA-FITC. The new probe was evaluated in vitro and in vivo. Fluorescence microscopy examination of PSMA-FITC in PSMA(+) LNCaP cells, PSMA(−) PC3 cells, and blocked LNCaP cells showed that the binding of PSMA-FITC with PSMA was target-specific. For in vivo optical imaging, PSMA-FITC exhibited rapid 22Rv1 tumor targeting within 30 min of injection, and the highest tumor-background ratio (TBR) was observed 60 min after injection. The TBR was 3.45 ± 0.31 in the nonblocking group and 0.44 ± 0.13 in the blocking group, which was consistent with the in vitro results. PSMA-FITC is a promising probe and has important reference value for the development of PSMA fluorescent probes. In the future, it can be applied to obtain accurate tumor images for radical prostatectomy.

Developing highly efficient catalyst for selective oxidation of benzene to phenol (SOBP) with low H2O2 consumption is highly desirable for practical application, but challenge remains. Herein, we report unique single-atom Cu1-N1O2 coordination-structure on N/C material (Cu-N1O2 SA/CN), prepared by water molecule-mediated pre-assembly-pyrolysis method, can efficiently boost SOBP reaction at a 2:1 of low H2O2/benzene molar ratio, showing 83.7% of high benzene conversion with 98.1% of phenol selectivity. The Cu1-N1O2 sites can provide a preponderant reaction pathway for SOBP reaction with less steps and lower energy barrier. As a result, it shows an unexpectedly higher turnover frequency (435 h−1) than that of Cu1-N2 (190 h−1), Cu1-N3 (90 h−1) and Cu nanoparticle (58 h−1) catalysts, respectively. This work provides a facile and efficient method for regulating the electron configuration of single-atom catalyst and generates a highly active and selective non-precious metal catalyst for industrial production of phenol through selective oxidation of benzene.

Introduction This aim of this study was to delineate current clinical scenarios of painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy (PDN) and associated anxiety and depression among patients in Mainland China, and to report current therapy and clinical practices. Methods A total of 1547 participants were enrolled in the study between 14 June 2018 and 11 November 2019. Recruitment was conducted using a multilevel sampling method. Participants’ demographics, medical histories, glucose parameters, Douleur Neuropathique 4 Questionnaire (DN4) scores, visual analogue scale (VAS) pain scores, Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) scores, Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7) scores and therapies were recorded. Results The male-to-female ratio was 1.09:1 (807:740), and the mean age at onset was 61.28 ± 11.23 years. The mean DN4 score (± standard deviation) was 4.91 ± 1.88. The frequencies of DN4 sub-item phenotypes were: numbness, 81%; tingling, 68.71%; pins and needles, 62.90%; burning, 53.59%; hypoaesthesia to touch, 50.16%; electronic shocks, 43.31%; hypoaesthesia to pinprick, 37.94%; brushing, 37.82%; painful cold, 29.61%; and itching, 25.86%. Age, diabetic duration, depression history, PHQ-9 score and GAD-7 score were identified as risk factors for VAS pain score. Peripheral artery disease (PAD) was a protective factor for VAS pain score. For all participants currently diagnosed with PDN and for those previously diagnosed PDN, fasting blood glucose (FBG) was a risk factor for VAS; there was no association between FBG and VAS pain score for PDN diagnosed within 3 months prior to recruitment. Utilisation rate of opium therapies among enrolled participants was 0.71% , contradiction of first-line guideline recommendation for pain relief accounted for 9.43% (33/350) and contradiction of second-line guideline recommendation for opium dosage form was 0.57% (2/350). Conclusion Moderate to severe neuropathic pain in PDN was identified in 73.11% of participants. Age, diabetic duration, depression history, PHQ-9 score, GAD-7 score and FBG were risk factors for VAS pain scores. PAD was protective factor. The majority of pain relief therapies prescribed were in accordance with guidelines. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier, NCT03520608, retrospectively registered, 2018-05-11. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40122-021-00281-w.

Lightweight composites with excellent electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption performance have attracted increasing attention from researchers. Among these composites, multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MCNTs) are considered as potential candidates, exhibiting excellent dielectric loss, but their magnetic loss is very weak. In our work, we synthesize a one-dimensional chain-like composite with Prussian blue (PB) derived Fe/C anchoring on MCNTs (MCNTs@Fe/C) by two facile processes. The MCNTs are successfully magnetically modified by Fe/C, the derivative of PB, forming an efficient EMW absorbent. The EMW absorption performance is related to complex permittivity and permeability, which can be adjusted by changing the content of PB and MCNTs and the annealing temperature; consequently great attenuation capability and favorable input impedance (Zin) was acquired. The minimum reflection loss (RL) reached − 44.26 dB at 8.32 GHz with a thickness of 2.4 mm, the corresponding absorption bandwidth (RL

In this paper, the lap joint of H62 copper alloy was carried out by pulsed laser welding. The effects of different powder interlayers on the microstructure, shear properties and corrosion properties of H62 copper alloy lap joints were studied. The results show that the welding joints with proper powder interlayer have achieved good welding forming. There are no defects such as pore and crack in the welding joints. The welding joints are fully penetrated with different powder interlayers except Ni powder interlayer. The grain size of weld is smaller than that of base metal. The maximum polar density of base metal is 6.46 in (001) [0–10] cubic texture, and there are two weaker (112) [111] Cu textures and (111) [1–21] textures. The maximum polar density of the weld is 5.39. The maximum position deflects, and (001) [0–10] cubic texture disappears. The weld is confused compared with the base metal, and the grain distribution is basically of random orientation. The addition of Zn powder reduces the welding stress. The shear strength of welding joints with Zn powder interlayer is the best, 82.27 MPa, which is 18% higher than that of welding joints without powder. The corrosion resistance of welding joints with different powder interlayers is as follows: no addition > Ni Powder > Zn Powder > Sn powder.

This paper is concerned with the H∞ controller design problem for a class of network-based nonlinear systems (NCSs) represented by the Takagi-Sugeno (T-S) fuzzy model. A multiple packets compensation scheme is developed which uses all the data stored in a finite memory buffer to compensate the negative effects of packet dropouts. This model contains the medium access constraint problem as a special case. The time-multiplexing mechanism may be used for such a case so that there are multiple packets arrive at the receiver side. By taking the stochastic cyber attacks into account, the desired controller in terms of linear matrix inequalities (LMIs) is designed by using fuzzy-rule-dependent Lyapunov method. The sufficient condition is obtained which makes the closed-loop system be asymptotically mean-square stable and achieve the prescribed H∞ disturbance-rejection-attenuation level. Finally, a mass-spring-damping system is given to show the effectiveness of the algorithm.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and intermittent theta-burst stimulation (iTBS) can be used to manage post-stroke spasticity, but a meta-analysis of the recent randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) is lacking. Our aim is to perform a meta-analysis of the RCTs that investigated the efficacy of rTMS in patients with post-stroke spasticity. PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases were searched for eligible papers published up to February 2020. The primary outcome was the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), measured as the effect of rTMS compared with controls and after rTMS (using a change score calculated separately in the active and sham treatment groups). Finally, five papers and eight data sets were included. rTMS had no significant benefit on MAS in patients with post-stroke spasticity compared to sham treatment (WMD = - 0.29, 95% CI - 0.58, 0.00; P = 0.051). When analyzing the change score in the treatment groups, a significant effect of rTMS was observed (WMD = - 0.27, 95% CI - 0.51, - 0.04; P = 0.024). When analyzing the change score in the sham treatment groups, no significant effect of sham treatment was observed, indicating no placebo effect (WMD = 0.32, 95% CI: - 0.40, 1.04; P = 0.387). We included the sample size, year of publication, percentage of male patients, and age difference in each study as covariates, and performed a meta-regression. The results showed no association between these variables and the MAS. Compared with sham stimulation, rTMS did not show a significant reduction in MAS for the patients who experienced post-stroke spasticity, but the patients reported a better outcome in MAS on a before-after scenario.

PIRADS v2 stipulates that dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) imaging be used to categorize diffusion-weighted-imaging (DWI) score 3 (DWI 3) peripheral zone (PZ) lesions as PIRADS score 3 (PIRADS 3; DCE −) or PIRADS 4 (DCE +). It’s controversial for the value of DCE in improving clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) detection. We aimed to figure out whether DCE improves csPCa detection and explore new available measures to improve csPCa detection. We retrospectively enrolled 375 patients who underwent mp MRI before MRI/ultrasound (US) fusion-targeted biopsy (TB) with transperineal systematic biopsy (SB). All lesions were classified as DWI 3/DCE −, DWI 3/DCE +, DWI 4/PIRADS 4 lesions. Detection rates of csPCa for each lesion group were analyzed. The diagnostic performance of each approach was analyzed by receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis and decision curve analysis. Totally, 109 DWI 3 or DWI 4 single lesions in PZ were analyzed (n = 109). The rates of csPCa detection for Group A, Group B, Group C is 10.3%, 13.9%, 55.9%, respectively (A vs. B, p = 0.625; B vs. C, p

Adopting effective strategies to control the solidification structure of Ni-based superalloys is a very interesting subject for metallurgists. Despite the achievement of developing and applying the continuous unidirectional solidification process in simple alloys, the utilization of this process for K418 alloys has been ignored. The microstructure and mechanical properties of a K418 alloy ingot produced by the continuous unidirectional solidification process were investigated. We found that the γ dendrites were typically cross-shaped in the transverse section. The orientation of surviving grains along the casting direction was during competitive growth. The secondary dendrite arm spacing was 32.3 ± 2.5 μm at a cooling rate of 1.75 ± 0.35 °C/s from the surface to the center of the K418 alloy ingot. Due to the higher cooling rate than that of the conventional casting process, a more uniform microstructure and finer γ′ precipitation were obtained in the ingot. Thus, compared with the conventional casting, the tensile strength and the elongation are increased by 8.4 and 21.3%, respectively, at 25 °C. The tensile strength and elongation increased by 15.2 and 49.3%, respectively, at 800 °C. In addition, the fracture surfaces exhibited numerous typical dimples and dendritic fracture characteristics.

The incidence of fractures in pregnancy and lactation-associated osteoporosis (PLO) is very low. Some fracture cases of PLO are associated with vertebral compression fractures, while malleolar fractures in patients with PLO are rarely reported before. A 31-year-old Han Chinese patient presented with a malleolar fracture 3 months after delivery, while she was still breastfeeding. Temporary closed reduction and plaster external fixation were performed in the emergency room. Then the patient was admitted to the orthopedic trauma ward for surgery and diagnosed as PLO by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). After preoperative evaluation, the patient underwent open reduction and internal fixation. With the diagnosis of PLO, the patient was treated with weaning, bisphosphonate, and supplementation of calcium carbonate and vitamin D. During the 12-month follow-up period, the results of DEXA and laboratory examination improved gradually, and the internal fixation was removed 12 months after surgery. Orthopedic doctors should not ignore the possibility of PLO to avoid misdiagnosis of perinatal women with fractures. Improvement of functional recovery of fractures can be achieved with accurate diagnosis and individual treatment.

Versatile tools for gene expression regulation are vital for engineering gene networks of increasing scales and complexity with bespoke responses. Here, we investigate and repurpose a ubiquitous, indirect gene regulation mechanism from nature, which uses decoy protein-binding DNA sites, named DNA sponge, to modulate target gene expression in Escherichia coli. We show that synthetic DNA sponges can be designed to reshape the response profiles of gene circuits, lending multifaceted tuning capacities including reducing basal leakage by >20-fold, increasing system output amplitude by >130-fold and dynamic range by >70-fold, and mitigating host growth inhibition by >20%. Further, multi-layer DNA sponges for decoying multiple regulatory proteins provide an additive tuning effect on the responses of layered circuits compared to single-layer sponges. Our work shows synthetic DNA sponges offer a simple yet generalizable route to systematically engineer the performance of synthetic gene circuits, expanding the current toolkit for gene regulation with broad potential applications., Decoy binding sites are natural regulators of gene expression. Here the authors design synthetic DNA sponges that fine tune the performance of synthetic gene circuits in a simple yet systematic manner, expanding the synthetic biology toolkit for gene regulation.

Background A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to compare the clinicopathological features and survival outcomes between sarcomatoid variant (SV)-urothelial carcinoma of the bladder (UCB) and conventional UCB (C-UCB). Methods A comprehensive search of PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library was performed. Endpoints included clinicopathological features and survival outcomes (overall survival [OS], cancer-specific survival [CSS], and progression-free survival [PFS]). The survival benefits of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) or adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) for SV-UCB also have been studied. Results A total of 8 observational studies were included. Patients with SV-UCB had a higher rate of ≥ stage pT3 (odds ratio [OR], 2.06; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.64–2.59; p Conclusions Compared to C-UCB, SV-UCB was associated with more advanced disease and more inferior OS and CSS. NAC and AC had no survival benefit for SV-UCB.

The number of patients with adrenal aldosterone-producing adenomas (APAs) has gradually increased. However, even after adenoma resection, some patients still suffer from high systolic blood pressure (SBP), which is possibly due to great arterial remodeling. Moreover, mineralocorticoid receptors (MRs) were found to be expressed in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). This study aims to determine whether MR antagonism protects the aorta from aldosterone-induced aortic remolding. Male rats were subcutaneously implanted with an osmotic minipumps and randomly divided into four groups: control; aldosterone (1 μg/h); aldosterone plus a specific MR antagonist, eplerenone (100 mg/kg/day); and aldosterone plus a vasodilator, hydralazine (25 mg/kg/day). After 8 weeks of infusion, aortic smooth muscle cell proliferation and collagen deposition, as well as the MDM2 and TGF-β1 expression levels in the aorta, were examined. Model rats with APAs were successfully constructed. Compared with the control rats, the model rats exhibited (1) marked SBP elevation, (2) no significant alteration in aortic morphology, (3) increased VSMC proliferation and MDM2 expression in the aorta, and (4) enhanced total collagen and collagen III depositions in the aorta, accompanied with up-regulated expression of TGF-β1. These effects were significantly inhibited by co-administration with eplerenone but not with hydralazine. These findings suggested that specific MR antagonism protects the aorta from aldosterone-induced VSMC proliferation and collagen deposition.

Metal–organic framework material MOF-199 is a new type of adsorption material for removal toxic H2S. In this work, the effects of temperature and pressure on the performance of H2S adsorption in MOF-199 were studied by using the grand canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulation; the interaction mechanism between framework atoms of MOF-199 and guest H2S molecules were further discussed through density functional theory (DFT) calculations. It is found that the MOF-199 adsorption capacity towards H2S decreases with increasing temperature and increases with increasing pressure. At low pressures, the frameworks containing the binding sites of copper dimers and trimesic acid are the main factor affecting the adsorption performance of MOF-199. While at high pressures, the free volume of MOF-199 contributes to the adsorption capacity as well. The adsorptive interactions between H2S and the organic ligand are weak (>− 14.469 kJ/mol). When H2S adsorption on the Cu–Cu bridge, the binding energies of the modes where hydrogen is put inward of the copper dimer are generally smaller than that where hydrogen is outward, whereas the adsorption on the top of copper ion shows the smallest BEs value (

The effect of primary dendrite orientation on stray grain formation in a cross-section change region during the directional solidification of Ni-based superalloy is investigated through both experimental observations and numerical simulation. The results clearly show that the orientation of primary dendrite affects the formation of stray grains in the cross-section change region. It is observed that, for the primary dendrite without misorientation, no stray grain is formed in the cross-section change region; for the primary dendrite with a moderate misorientation (15 deg), stray grains are formed only on the side converging from the mold wall in the cross-section change region. When the misorientation is 25 deg, stray grains are formed on both the side converging from the mold wall and the side diverging from the mold wall in the cross-section change region (the converging side and the diverging side for short). The simulation results are in accordance with experimental results. Furthermore, the correlation among factors such as stray grain formation, primary dendrite orientation, and withdrawal velocity has been analyzed. The mechanism of stray grain formation in various oriented primary dendrites is discussed.

InP-based photonic integrated circuits (PICs) have aroused great interest in recent years to meet the needs of future high-capacity and high-performance optical systems. With the advantages of small size, low power consumption, low cost, high reliability, InP-based PICs are promising solutions to replace the multiple discrete devices used in various systems. In this paper, we will review the design, fabrication, key integration technology and performance of several kinds of InP-based monolithically integrated transmitters developed in our group in recent years. Particular attention will be paid to the electro-absorption modulated laser (EML), multi-wavelength distributed feedback (DFB) laser arrays, widely tunable distributed reflector (DBR) lasers and their arrays, integrated amplified feedback lasers (AFL), and few-mode transmitters.

The nanosilica is first treated with 3-mercaptopropyl trimethoxysilane (MPTMS) to introduce mercapto groups as growth points, and then hyperbranched polymer is grafted on the nanosilica surface via repeated step of thiol-ene click reaction between the acrylate double bond of trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA) and mercapto groups of trimethylolpropane tris 3-mercaptopropionate (Trithiol). FTIR results confirm that the grafting procedure is feasible, and TGA results indicate the grafting ratio is as high as 45.0 %. The curing kinetic, monitored by photo-DSC, shows that both terminal acrylate double bonds and mercapto groups can accelerate the curing speed of the UV-curing organic–inorganic hybrid coatings. The mechanical and physical properties of UV-curable hybrid coatings containing modified nanosilica at different generations are also investigated.

A serious of waterborne hydroxyl-functional polyurethane/acrylic (PUA) emulsions for two-component coatings was prepared by copolymerizing different weight ratios of hydroxyethyl acrylate (HEA)/butyl acrylate (BA) with methyl methacrylate and acrylic-terminated polyurethane dispersion via an emulsion process. The results showed that increasing the weight ratio of HEA/BA led to a decrease in the average particle sizes and a narrowing in the particle size distribution, but an increase in the viscosity of their emulsions. Meanwhile, their films showed increased thermal resistance, adhesion on substrate, tensile strength, and hardness, but decreased water resistance and enhanced wettability. When the emulsions were applied in two-component coatings, their water resistance was greatly improved and the wettability was reduced; in addition, their glass transition temperature, thermal stability, adhesion on substrate, tensile strength, and hardness were further increased. It was suggested that hydroxyl groups of PUA can not only engage in the intramolecular and/or intermolecular hydrogen bonding, but also form covalently crosslinked networks with polyisocyanate in their films.

Background Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), an epidemic disease around world, has recently been identified as a risk factor for osteoporosis-associated fracture. However, there is no consensus on the best method of assessing fracture risk in patients with T2DM. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of the Osteoporosis Self-Assessment Tool for Asians (OSTA) and the Singh Index (SI) in hip fracture risk assessment in patients with T2DM. Methods We enrolled 261 postmenopausal women with T2DM: 87 had hip fracture resulting from low-energy trauma and 174 age-matched controls had no fracture (two controls per fracture case). Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry in the lumbar spine and hip region. The SI was obtained from standard antero-posterior radiographs of the pelvis. The OSTA was calculated with a formula based on weight and age. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and tests of difference. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to determine optimum cutoff values, sensitivity, and specificity of screening methods. Discriminative abilities of different screening tools were compared with the area under the curve (AUC). Results There were significant differences in BMD at all sites (lumbar spine, femoral neck, trochanter, and total hip) and in SI between the fracture and non-fracture groups (P 0.05). The area under the curve was 0.747 (95% CI: 0.680–0.813) for lumbar spine BMD, 0.699 (95% CI: 0.633–0.764) for total hip BMD, 0.659 (95% CI: 0.589–0.729) for femoral neck BMD, 0.631 (95% CI: 0.557–0.704) for trochanter BMD, 0.534 (95% CI: 0.459–0.610) for OSTA, 0.636 (95% CI: 0.564–0.709) for SI, and 0.795 (95% CI: 0.734–0.857) for OSTA plus SI. The AUC for combined OSTA plus SI was significantly superior to other parameters besides BMD of the lumbar spine. Conclusions The combination of OSTA plus SI could be a clinical alternative tool for screening of hip fracture risk in large diabetic populations. These tests are inexpensive and simple to perform and could be especially useful in areas where BMD measurement is not accessible.

S100A6 (calcyclin), functions in cell cycle progression and differentiation, has been reported to promote the tumorigenesis and malignancy of many types of cancers. Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is the most common subtype of RCC, lacking both promising prognostic markers and effective therapeutic targets. In our previous study, we have found the elevated S100A6 in the ccRCC tumor tissues, and the differentially expressed genes determined by microarray analysis were found to be strongly related to tumor metastasis after S100A6 knockdown and overexpression in the ccRCC cell line 786-O. The mRNA expression of S100A6 detected by RT-PCR in 6 cell lines and 174 tumor tissues, including 58 metastatic ccRCC and 116 clinicopathological features paired non-metastatic ccRCC (1:2), indicated S100A6 was elevated in the metastatic cells and tumor tissues. The protein expression was consistent with mRNA expression. The biological function of S100A6 in promoting metastasis was determined through overexpression and knockdown of S100A6 in the ccRCC cell lines 786-O, caki-1, and ACHN. In the scratch wound migration assay as well as migration and invasion assays, S100A6 knockdown significantly suppressed the migratory and invasive abilities of tumor cells, whereas overexpression enhanced the malignancy. Further research with the follow-up data of 129 ccRCC patients were analyzed by the Cox regression and survival analysis. The expression of S100A6 was up-regulated in metastatic ccRCC cells. In the metastatic tumor tissues, the expression of S100A6 was also higher than in the non-metastatic tissues. High S100A6 expression might be crucial to promote metastasis in ccRCC by enhancing the ability of tumor cells migration and invasion. In addition, the quantitative mRNA expression of S100A6 in the tumor tissues was an independent risk factor and might be used as a prognostic marker for the metastatic risk of the localized T1-T2 stage ccRCC.

Nanosilica was modified and functionalized with acrylsilane by the “grafting to” method via different grafting steps, i.e., prepared-grafting step and step-wise propagation. The prepared-grafting step was achieved by grafting the nanosilica surface with the prepared acrylsilane, which was obtained by thiol-ene click reaction between 3-mercaptopropyl trimethoxysilane (MPTMS) and trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA). The step-wise propagation was achieved by first grafting MPTMS onto the nanosilica surface and then using the mercapto groups as initiators to react with TMPTA. The acrylsilane was characterized by FTIR. The modified nanosilica was characterized by FTIR, TGA, and contact angle analysis. It was demonstrated that the thiol-ene click reaction can easily occur between MPTMS and TMPTA. The grafting ratio of modified nanosilica via prepared-grafting step was higher than that of step-wise propagation. The SEM images of fractured films containing modified nanosilica also indicated that the former is more effective than the latter in reducing the self-aggregation of nanosilica. The effects of modified nanosilica on the viscosity and hardness of UV-curable coatings were also investigated.

A novel water-soluble porphyrin[5,10,15,20-tetra(3-ethoxy-4-hydroxy-5-sulfonate)phenyl porphyrin, H2TEHPPS]_was designed and synthesized, which could be used as a potential fluorescence sensor to detect temperature changes. The studies were performed in solution phase and the concentration of H2TEHPPS was 2.0×10−5 mol/L. The optical properties of H2TEHPPS were investigated based on the UV and fluorescence spectra. The results show that the fluorescence intensity of H2TEHPPS is directly proportional to temperature in the range of 293–353 K. So H2TEHPPS can be used as a molecular temperature sensor in biomedical and other fields.

In order to improve the dispersion of nanosilica and the mechanical properties of UV-curable coating, nanosilica was modified with acrylsilane-containing tertiary amine structure, which was synthesized by the Michael addition reaction between 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane and tripropylene glycol diacrylate. The prepared acrylsilane was characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR, and FTIR. The modified nanosilica was characterized by FTIR, TGA, and SEM. The TGA analysis showed that the grafting percentage of acrylsilane based on nanosilica was 72.4 wt%. The SEM results showed that the agglomeration of nanosilica was reduced and the dispersion was improved due to the acrylsilane modification. The viscosities of UV-curable coatings with modified nanosilica were determined and it was found that the viscosities of the coatings decreased in comparison with the viscosities of coatings with unmodified nanosilica. The photo-DSC results indicated that both nanosilica and modified nanosilica also decreased the UV-curing speed and final percentage conversion, while the conversion of the coatings containing modified nanosilica was faster than that with unmodified nanosilica owing to the tertiary amine structure and acrylate structure on the surface of the modified nanosilica.

This paper describes surface modification of commercial nanosilica with 3-mercaptopropyl trimethoxysilane (MPTMS) and its effect on the properties of UV curable coatings. The mercapto groups were grafted onto nanosilica surface by a condensation of the surface Si–OH with the hydrolysized Si–OH of MPTMS. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermal gravimetric analysis, and particle size distribution were employed to characterize nanosilica and modified nanosilica. It was demonstrated that the mercapto groups were successfully grafted onto the nanosilica surface with the grafting ratio of 16.8% and the mercapto groups content of 0.9 mmol/g. The dispersion and self-aggregation of nanosilica in UV curable coatings were improved significantly. The photopolymerization kinetics of UV curable coatings, containing various amounts of nanosilica and modified nanosilica, were evaluated by the photo differential scanning calorimetry technique. This indicated that nanosilica both before and after modification decreased UV curing speed and ultimate percentage conversion; however, in comparison with the coatings containing unmodified nanosilica, the coatings containing modified nanosilica exhibited higher curing speeds and conversion ratios. It can be ascribed that the mercapto groups on the nanosilica surface reduced oxygen inhibition during the UV curing process via the thiol–ene click reaction. The mechanical properties of UV curable coatings were also compared.

The techniques used for the fabrication of photonic integrated circuit (PIC) chip are introduced briefly. Then a four channel DFB laser array integrated with MMI coupler and semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) fabricated with butt-joint technique, varied ridge width and holographic exposure techniques is reported.

The heat island effect in urban meteorology has received significant attention in the recent years. In order to investigate the heat island effect on urban soil, two observation stations were built, respectively, in an urban area and a rural area of Nanjing city, China. The temperatures of underground soil (0–300 cm depth) were recorded continuously for 1 year from June 2009 to June 2010. The data show that the urban soil temperature is generally higher than the rural soil temperature, and reveal an obvious heat island effect in urban soil with average intensity of 2.02°C over the 1-year period. The intensity varies between days, months and seasons: the daily urban heat island intensity (UHII) of soil ranges from 0.37°C to 3.98°C; the monthly UHII of soil ranges from 1.34°C (November) to 3.05°C (July); the order of seasonal UHII is summer (2.45°C) > winter (2.03°C) > spring (1.63°C) > autumn (1.53°C). The temperature data indicate that the maximum influence depth of daily synoptic events on the subsurface temperature is approximately 60 cm; the UHII generally increases with increasing depth. In addition to soil temperature, the temporal–spatial variation of soil moisture in a 100 cm profile depth was also investigated in this study. It is found that the moisture content of urban soil is generally lower than that of rural soil, which reveals an obvious dry island effect with average intensity of −7.2% over the 1-year period; the maximum single-day urban dry island intensity (UDII) in soil is −28.0%; the maximum average monthly UDII is −19.1%, observed in July; the seasonal UDII shows a tendency of summer (−13.8%) > spring (−6.3%) > autumn (−5.2%) > winter (−3.7%). In profile, soil moisture content generally increases with increasing depth, and the maximum UDII is −25.8% at 40 cm depth. In addition, the large-scale measurement results of 600 general points also confirm that the heat island and dry island effects are exist in urban soil.

The hydrolysis mechanism of CS(2) was studied using density functional theory. By analyzing the structures of the reactant, transition states, intermediates, and products, it can be concluded that the hydrolysis of CS(2) occurs via two mechanisms, one of which is a two-step mechanism (CS(2) first reacts with an H(2)O, leading to the formation of the intermediate COS, then COS reacts with another H(2)O, resulting in the formation of H(2)S and CO(2)). The other is a one-step mechanism, where CS(2) reacts with two H(2)O molecules continuously, leading to the formation of H(2)S and CO(2). By analyzing the thermodynamics and the change in the kinetic function, it can be concluded that the rate-determining step involves H and OH in H(2)O attacking S and C in CS(2), respectively, causing the C=S double bond to change into a single bond. The two mechanisms are competitive. When performing the hydrolysis of CS(2) with a catalyst, the optimal temperature is below 252°C.

The interaction processes of trace amounts of N-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP), CS(2)/NMP (1:1 by volume) and pure NMP solvent with the hydrogen bond of OH⋯N in coal were constructed and simulated by density functional theory methods. The distances and bond orders between the main related atoms, and the hydrogen bond energy of OH⋯N were calculated. The calculated results show that pure NMP solvent does not weaken the hydrogen bond of OH⋯N in coal. However, trace amounts of NMP and CS(2)/NMP (1:1 by volume) have a strong capacity to weaken the hydrogen bond of OH⋯N in coal. The H2-N3 distances are elongated from 1.87 A to 3.80 A and 3.44 A, the bond orders of H2-N3 all disappear, and the corresponding hydrogen bond energies of OH⋯N in coal decrease from 45.72 kJ mol(-1) to 7.06 and 11.24 kJ mol(-1), respectively. These results show that CS(2) added to pure NMP solvent plays an important role in releasing the original capacity of NMP to weaken the hydrogen bond of OH⋯N in coal, in agreement with experimental observations.

This study aimed to determine whether aldosterone could induce vascular cell apoptosis in vivo. Thirty-two male rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: vehicle (control), aldosterone, aldosterone plus eplerenone or hydralazine. They were then implanted with an osmotic mini-pump that infused either aldosterone or the vehicle. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was measured weekly by the tail-cuff method. After 8 weeks, plasma aldosterone concentration (PAC) and renin activity (PRA) were determined by radioimmunoassay. Aortic apoptosis was examined by TUNEL assay. The levels of cytochrome c and caspase-3 were determined by Western blotting and the expression of Bax and Bcl-2 was detected by immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. The results showed that as compared with control group, aldosterone-infused rats exhibited: (1) an increase in SBP; (2) significantly elevated PAC with depressed PRA; (3) elevated aortic vascular cell apoptosis accompanied with higher levels of cytochrome c and activated caspase-3; and (4) significantly up-regulated Bax protein with down-regulated Bcl-2. These effects of aldosterone were significantly inhibited after co-administration with eplerenone but not with hydralazine. It was concluded that aldosterone induced vascular cell apoptosis by its direct effect on the aorta via mineralocorticoid receptors and independently of blood pressure, which may contribute to aldosterone-mediated vascular injury.

Several frequent polymorphisms in the CYP11B2 gene are suggested to be associated with essential hypertension and aldosterone secretion. In this study, we investigated the association of polymorphisms in CYP11B2 and CYP11B1 genes with the risk of primary hyperaldosteronism (PH). Three polymorphisms in the CYP11B2 gene (intron 2 conversion, rs1799998 and rs4539) and two polymorphisms in the CYP11B1 gene (rs6410 and rs6387) were analyzed in patients with PH and in the normal population. The rs6410 allelic frequencies in patients with aldosterone-producing adenoma (APA) and idiopathic hyperaldosteronism (IHA) were significantly different from those in controls at P=1.09 x 10(-5) and 0.015, respectively. There was a relative excess of AA homozygotes and AG heterozygotes of the rs6410 allele in the APA group as compared with the control group (P=2.19 x 10(-4)). There were significantly different genotypes, AA and AG, of the rs6410 allele between the patients with IHA and the controls only after adjustments for age, gender and body mass index (odds ratio (OR)=4.06, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.31-12.66; OR=2.41, 95% CI 1.02-5.72). One susceptible haplotype, AAAWT, was identified to be significantly associated with APA (OR=1.44, 95% CI 1.19-1.76), and three susceptible haplotypes, AAAWT, AGGWT and AGAWC, were identified to be significantly associated with IHA (OR=1.55, 95% CI 1.23-1.96; OR=1.49, 95% CI 1.17-1.89; OR=1.40, 95% CI 1.04-1.88). In contrast, one protective haplotype, GGAWT, showed a significant difference between the patients with APA and controls (OR=0.73, 95% CI 0.55-0.97). Several haplotypes were associated with ARR in both the controls and cases. Our data demonstrated that there was a significant association between polymorphisms in the CYP11B2 and CYP11B1 genes and a genetic predisposition to PH. The association with IHA seemed closer compared with APA.

The reaction mechanisms of H2 with OCS have been investigated theoretically by using density function theory method. Three possible pathways leading to major products CO and H2S, as well as two possible pathways leading to by-product CH4 have been proposed and discussed. For these reaction pathways, the structure parameters, vibrational frequencies and energies for each stationary point have been calculated, and the corresponding reaction mechanism has been given by the potential energy surface, which is drawn according to the relative energies. The calculated results show that the corresponding major products CO and H2S as well as by-product CH4 are in agreement with experimental findings, which provided a new illustration and guidance for the reaction of H2 with OCS.

Brillouin optical time-domain reflectometer (BOTDR), a newly developed distributed fiber optic sensing technique, has been proved to be a very suitable and useful technique for monitoring and early warning of structural engineering by laboratory tests and practical projects due to its unique functions, such as distributing, long distance, anti-electromagnetic interference, waterproof, etc. However, its application to geotechnical engineering, especially soil-slope engineering, has been less carried out due to the complexity of the characteristics of geotechnical materials in the field. In this paper, BOTDR technique is applied to monitor the deformation of a laboratory soil-slope model in small scale in order to test the feasibility and early-warning characteristics of this technique with monitoring the deformation of soil slope. Different types of optical fibers are planted directly in the soil-slope model or bonded to geotextiles and geogrids that are planted in the fillings of the test model. Strain measurements of the model slope under various loads are obtained by BOTDR. By data processing and analysis, the abnormal strains can be obtained distributively, and the position of the abnormal strains can be located as well. The results show much valuable information for applications of BOTDR technique into soil-slope engineering. The test proves that the BOTDR technique can be used to ensure the stability of artificial soil slope and is useful for monitoring and early warning of the artificial soil-slope engineering.

We thank Picarelli and Zeni for their discussion on our paper.We are also very glad to find so many researchers who are interested in this field. As the writers listed in their discussion paper, the optical fiber is born for monitoring of structures and had been successfully applied in structure monitoring. Before the lab test described in our paper, there have beenmany researches and engineering practices of optical fiber applied in civil engineering in China, including tunnel monitoring (Shi et al. 2003), anchor bolts strain monitoring (Sui et al. 2008), structural damage identification (Zhang et al. 2007a), and temperature monitoring of frozen soil (Zhang et al. 2007b). Recently, an optical fiber technique based on BOTDR was successfully applied in monitoring piles by embedding optical fiber sensors in reinforced concrete beams of piles (Piao et al. 2008; Wei et al. 2008). However, when the optical fiber was applied in soil mass, such as soil landslides, there were new problems that should be faced