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Cable structures are widely used in large-span constructions due to their flexible shapes, high strength, and lightweight. However, the high-temperature performance of cable-clamped joints affects the overall fire resistance of cable structures. Moreover, the galvanized layer of cable may melt at high temperatures, which decreases the anti-slip capacity. But, the influence of the galvanized layer on the high-temperature anti-slip capacity has not been studied. In this study, the high-temperature anti-slip capacity of a commonly used type of galvanized cable-clamped joints is investigated by various high-temperature experiments. It is found that the anti-slip bearing capacity of the new cable-clamped joint at 300 °C is 60.30%, which is lower than that at the normal temperature. Compared with existing studies, the results at normal temperature are in good agreement with the theoretical values obtained from literature, which validates the correctness of the experimental system. The difference between the high-temperature test results and the theoretical formula calculations is significant, with the minimum difference reaching 28.5%. Furthermore, the anti-slip bearing capacity of the cable-clamp joint decreases as the thickness of the zinc coating at high temperatures. Therefore, galvanized layer thickness and high temperature should be considered in the assessment of the high-temperature performance of cable structures. Compared with the research conclusions of domestic scholars, it can be seen that the test results in this paper are more reliable, which can provide a useful reference for the design of cable structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Breast cancer is the leading cause of death and morbidity among women. A major challenge for clinical management of breast cancer is the dissemination of breast cancer cells from the primary tumor site via lymphatic drainage, resulting in metastatic tumor spread. Recent studies have found that high expression of the microRNA miR‐146a‐5p is associated with better survival outcomes for breast cancer patients. However, the mechanisms for this prognostic benefit are not fully elucidated, including whether or not miR‐146a‐5p plays a role in suppression of lymphatic dissemination. In this study, we investigated the role and uncovered functional mechanisms of miR‐146a‐5p in breast cancer. We found that high expression of miR‐146a‐5p is associated with better clinical outcomes, specifically in the patients with N0 breast cancer. In culture, miR‐146a‐5p overexpression in MCF‐7 breast cancer cells suppressed cell migration and lymphangiogenesis in lymphatic endothelial cells. When implanted in the mammary fat pad of mice, we observed that miR‐146a‐5p overexpressing MCF‐7 suppressed lymphatic dissemination but had no effect on tumor progression in the primary site. This suppression was associated with fewer disseminated cancer cells and reduced lymphangiogenesis in the draining and distal lymph nodes. In conclusion, these results suggest that miR‐146a‐5p can exhibit a protective role against breast cancer metastasis, and it can be a therapeutic target for breast cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the autonomous and intelligent operation of robots in unknown environments, simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) is essential. Since the proposal of visual odometry, the use of visual odometry in the mapping process has greatly advanced the development of pure visual SLAM techniques. However, the main challenges in current monocular odometry algorithms are the poor generalization of traditional methods and the low interpretability of deep learning-based methods. This paper presented a hybrid self-supervised visual monocular odometry framework that combined geometric principles and multi-frame temporal information. Moreover, a post-odometry optimization module was proposed. By using image synthesis techniques to insert synthetic views between the two frames undergoing pose estimation, more accurate inter-frame pose estimation was achieved. Compared to other public monocular algorithms, the proposed approach showed reduced average errors in various scene sequences, with a translation error of 2.211 % and a rotation error of 0.418 ∘ / 100 m. With the help of the proposed optimizer, the precision of the odometry algorithm was further improved, with a relative decrease of approximately 10 % intranslation error and 15 % in rotation error. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cr doped ZnAl2O4 spinel samples were prepared by the traditional solid state reaction and co-precipitation synthetic route, and the results suggest that the co-precipitation method has some superiority in contrast to the solid state reaction method. XRD, FT-IR, and XPS spectra confirmed that the well-crystallized spinel cubic phase of ZnAl2O4: Cr3+ samples were successfully formed. The morphology of the samples was investigated by FE-SEM and FE-TEM, and the results show that the samples by the co-precipitation route can generate a smaller size of particles compared to the solid state reaction. Photoluminescence excitation spectra monitored at 686 nm are comprised of two broad excitation bands near 530 nm and 395 nm, and the emission spectra show emissions ranging from 640 to 780 nm, due to the 2E → 4A2 spin-forbidden transition of Cr3+ ions in spinel lattices. The optimized concentration monitored at 686 nm is 1%, while at 693 nm is 3.5%. Compared with the samples by solid state reaction method, the samples by co-precipitation method show preferable luminescent properties, such as the higher photoluminescence intensity and higher quantum efficiency. Several phosphor-converted LEDs were to investigate the applicability of the prepared samples. The results confirm that the phosphor has potential applications in plant growth and supplementing the red region in white-LEDs and the phosphors prepared by co-precipitation are more suitable to be used in phosphor-converted LED devices due to their preferable luminescent properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gallstones represent a prevalent health issue globally, resulting in significant annual healthcare costs. While tobacco exposure is recognized for its association with numerous diseases, its correlation with gallstones remains contentious. Serum cotinine, a metabolite of nicotine, serves as a widely utilized indicator for assessing tobacco exposure. Crucially, no research has yet examined the association between serum cotinine levels and the gallstones., Methods: This study is designed as a cross-sectional analysis, utilizing data from the NHANES public database. The relationship between serum cotinine levels and gallstones was analyzed using multinomial logistic regression models and smooth curve fitting. Subgroup analyses and interaction tests were performed to examine the potential contributions of different populations and covariates to the findings., Results: A total of 5,856 participants were included in this study. After adjusting for relevant covariates, the multiple logistic regression model results indicated that for each unit increase in serum cotinine concentration above 0.29 ng/mL, there was a 29% increase in the prevalence of gallstones. Furthermore, smooth curve fitting analysis revealed a positive correlation between these variables. These findings underscore the impact of tobacco exposure on gallstone prevalence., Conclusion: This study demonstrates a positive correlation between tobacco exposure, as measured by serum cotinine levels, and the prevalence of gallstones, thus adding to the body of existing research on this relationship., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Liu, Zhang, Wang, Faisal, He, Tai and Lin.)

Background: RNA plays an important role in tumorigenesis. Changes in RNA may cause changes in the biological function. The N7-methylguanosine (m7G) methylation modification performs an integral function in tumor progression as the most widely existed RNA modification. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the greatest threats to human health worldwide. Low detection rates remain the main cause of advanced disease progression. Therefore, finding significant biomarkers for prognosis prediction and immune therapy response in HCC is valuable and urgently needed., Methods: RNA expression and clinical data were acquired from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Different subtypes screening was finished by consensus cluster. Different expression was performed by R software. The results were validated by western blot (WB) methods. Genes with HCC prognostic potential were identified utilizing least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) analyses. A prognosis model was established with the help of the risk score that we calculated. Related genes screening and protein-protein interactions (PPI) network construction were performed using the GeneMANIA database. Functional annotation was performed using the Database for Annotation, Visualization and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) databases. In addition, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) of key genes and immune infiltration status were both done by R software. Finally, the immune infiltration was performed by cibersort method and single sample GSEA (ssGSEA) method. The response of immune therapy was validated by Tumor Immune Dysfunction and Exclusion database (TIDE) and the immune therapy cohort in GEO database., Results: We found that two different subtypes related with m7G RNA modification and four genes associated with m7G RNA modification were differentially expressed in the TCGA-Liver Hepatocellular Carcinoma (TCGA-LIHC) database. Additionally, to examine the value of these four genes in the HCC patients' prognoses according to the LASSO, we selected three genes, including WDR4, AGO2, and NCBP2, as prognostic related genes. Premised on the expression of these three genes, a risk score model and nomogram were constructed to provide a prediction of the HCC patients' prognoses. We performed functional annotation and created a PPI network based on the three genes (WDR4, NCBP2, and AGO2). Using R software, we performed the GSEA and immune regulation analyses. Finally, we predicted the relationship between the gene expression and the response of immune therapy., Conclusions: Our study suggests that high expression of m7G RNA modification subtype is related with poor prognosis and immune response. WDR4, AGO2, and NCBP2 are key regulators of m7G RNA modification which can be clinically promising biomarkers that can be used to treat HCC. In addition, our risk score model was shown to have a strong link to OS in patients with HCC., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at https://tcr.amegroups.com/article/view/10.21037/tcr-24-22/coif). Y.L. reports the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NO.81901576) and the Health Commission of Heilongjiang Province (NO.2018348); S.T. reports the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.81972724) has been used for this article. The other authors have no conflicts of interest to declare., (2024 Translational Cancer Research. All rights reserved.)