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Background: Disulfidptosis is a novel form of programmed cell death induced by high SLC7A11 expression under glucose starvation conditions, unlike other known forms of cell death. However, the roles of disulfidptosis in cancers have yet to be comprehensively well-studied, particularly in ccRCC. Methods: The expression profiles and somatic mutation of DGs from the TCGA database were investigated. Two DGs clusters were identified by unsupervised consensus clustering analysis, and a disulfidptosis-related prognostic signature (DR score) was constructed. Furthermore, the predictive capacity of the DR score in prognosis was validated by several clinical cohorts. We also developed a nomogram based on the DR score and clinical features. Then, we investigated the differences in the clinicopathological information, TMB, tumor immune landscapes, and biological characteristics between the high- and low-risk groups. We evaluated whether the DR score is a robust tool for predicting immunotherapy response by the TIDE algorithm, immune checkpoint genes, submap analysis, and CheckMate immunotherapy cohort. Results: We identified two DGs clusters with significant differences in prognosis, tumor immune landscapes, and clinical features. The DR score has been demonstrated as an independent risk factor by several clinical cohorts. The high-risk group patients had a more complicated tumor immune microenvironment and suffered from more tumor immune evasion in immunotherapy. Moreover, patients in the low-risk group had better prognosis and response to immunotherapy, particularly in anti-PD1 and anti-CTLA-4 inhibitors, which were verified in the CheckMate immunotherapy cohort. Conclusion: The DR score can accurately predict the prognosis and immunotherapy response and assist clinicians in providing a personalized treatment regime for ccRCC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior studies have revealed an increased susceptibility to epilepsy in hyperthyroid individuals, but the genetic basis of the hyperthyroidism–epilepsy relationship is not fully comprehended, prompting this study to explore this potential association. We conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomization (TSMR) study to explore the relationship between hyperthyroidism and epilepsy by utilizing aggregated statistics from Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS). Data for hyperthyroidism were derived from a GWAS encompassing 462,933 participants, while epilepsy data were sourced from the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) consortium. Five distinct methods were employed for TSMR analysis, which included the inverse variance weighting method, MR Egger method, weighted median method, simple model, and weighted model. In our sensitivity analysis, we employed the MR Egger and MR PRESSO methods to assess pleiotropy, and inverse variance weighting and MR Egger in Cochran's Q statistics to assess heterogeneity. In the IEU database, utilizing the MR-Egger method, we obtained an odds ratio (OR) of 2.631 (95% CI 0.608, 9.796) with a p-value of 0.122. Meanwhile, employing the Weighted Median method yielded an OR of 1.813 (95% CI 0.786, 4.181) with a p-value of 0.163. The IVW method exhibited an OR of 1.986 (95% CI 1.127, 3.502) with a p-value of 0.018. In the assessment of heterogeneity, the MR-Egger method produced a Q statistic of 65.205, accompanied by a p-value of 0.087, while the IVW method recorded a Q statistic of 66.668 with a p-value of 0.083. The multifactorial analysis results showed an intercept term with a standard error (SE) value of 0.009 and a p-value of 0.291. In the FinnGen database, employing the MR-Egger method for all epilepsy data, we observed an OR of 0.952 (95% CI 0.831, 1.093) with a p-value of 0.539. Simultaneously, the Weighted Median method produced an OR of 0.986 (95% CI 0.953, 1.021) with a p-value of 0.423. The IVW method indicated an OR of 0.992 (95% CI 0.965, 1.019) with a p-value of 0.541. The MR-Egger method's assessment of heterogeneity resulted in a Q statistic of 2.671, associated with a p-value of 0.445, while the IVW method generated a Q statistic of 3.011 with a p-value of 0.556. The multifactorial analysis results displayed an intercept term with a SE-value of 0.019 and a p-value of 0.601. Sensitivity analysis found no evidence of horizontal pleiotropy or heterogeneity. Hyperthyroidism was found to be causally related to all epilepsy but had no effect on other types of epilepsy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) has provided the guidelines for diagnosing a patient with periprosthetic joint infection including the use of positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT). Systematic evidence focussing on periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) of hip is limited, which also contains limited number of studies. Hence, the current study aims to perform a pooled analysis of all studies that have assessed the diagnostic accuracy of PET/CT for PJI of hip. Methods: Searches were done in PubMed Central, EMBASE, MEDLINE, SCOPUS and Cochrane library until December 2022. Meta-analysis was carried out using random-effects model. With 95% confidence intervals (CIs), pooled sensitivity and specificity were reported. Results: Twenty-six studies met the inclusion criteria. The pooled sensitivity of PET/CT was 89% (95% CI 84–93%), while the pooled specificity was 86% (95% CI 79–91%). The AUROC was 0.94 (95% CI 0.72–0.99). There was statistically significant heterogeneity (p < 0.001) with I2 value of 96%. The diagnostic odds ratio was 52 (95% CI 26–106). Likelihood ratio positive was 6.5 (95% CI 4.1–10.3) and negative was 0.13 (95% CI 0.08–0.19). Conclusion: Our study found that PET/CT was found to have higher level of accuracy in terms of sensitivity and specificity. Further large-scale research can help to find answers for such questions and provide final conclusive evidence on the inclusion of the imaging modality into the routine clinical practice guidelines for suspected periprosthetic joint infection patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are vesicular bodies (40-1000 nm) with double-layer membrane structures released by different cell types into extracellular environments, including apoptosis bodies, microvesicles, and exosomes. Exosomes (30-100 nm) are vesicles enclosed by extracellular membrane and contain effective molecules of secretory cells. They are derived from intracellular multivesicular bodies (MVBs) that fuse with the plasma membrane and release their intracellular vesicles by exocytosis. Research has shown that almost all human cells could secrete exosomes, which have a certain relationship with corresponding diseases. In chronic liver diseases, exosomes release a variety of bioactive components into extracellular spaces, mediating intercellular signal transduction and materials transport. Moreover, exosomes play a role in the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of various chronic liver diseases as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Previous studies have found that mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes (MSC-ex) could alleviate acute and chronic liver injury and have the advantages of high biocompatibility and low immunogenicity. In this paper, we briefly summarize the role of exosomes in the pathogenesis of different chronic liver diseases and the latest research progresses of MSC-ex as the clinical therapeutic targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spatial patterns of field arthropod communities are an essential part of ecology and can provide fundamental data regarding field ecological processes and reveal the mechanism of ecosystem biodiversity maintenance. This study investigated the spatial distribution pattern of field insect communities to detect the spatial relationships between insect communities in farmland. The study site was located at the Dehui Agro-ecological Experimental Station of Black Soil, Jilin, China. Insect communities and environmental factors were sampled at 121 uniformly distributed points in a 400 × 400 m plot in August, September, and October 2015. The analysis revealed that insect communities from June to October demonstrated significant spatial correlation, and 6085 samples of 47 species and 47 families in 11 orders were collected from the insect community in the farmland. The farmland insect community structure changes and dynamic changes of nutritional function groups occur with time. According to the 400 x 400 m plot, the diversity of farmland insect communities and functional groups is maintained at a relatively high and stable level. In this study, a total of 6085 samples of corn farmland insects were obtained using the fluke method and direct observation method, including 11 orders, 26 families and 47 species, 4 absolute dominant populations, 6 main dominant populations, and 37 other populations. These studies can provide help for pest control in the spring corn area of Northeast China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cooling systems provide a safe thermal environment for the reliable operation of IT equipment in data centers (DCs) while generating significant energy consumption. Therefore, to achieve energy savings in cooling system control under dynamic thermal distribution in DCs, this paper proposes a multi-setpoint cooling control approach based on deep reinforcement learning (DRL). Firstly, a thermal model based on the XGBoost algorithm is constructed to precisely evaluate the thermal distribution in the rack room to guide real-time cooling control. Secondly, a multi-set point cooling control approach based on the deep Q-network algorithm (DQN-MSP) is designed to finely regulate the supply air temperature of each air conditioner by capturing the thermal fluctuations to ensure the dynamic balance of cooling supply and demand. Finally, we adopt the extended CloudSimPy simulation tool and the real workload trace of the PlanetLab system to evaluate the effectiveness and performance of the proposed approach. The simulation results show that the proposed control solution effectively reduces the cooling energy consumption by over 2.4% by raising the average air supply temperature of the air conditioner while satisfying the thermal constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A correction to the article "Diagnostic Accuracy of Positron Emission Tomography/Computerized Tomography for Periprosthetic Joint Infection of Hip: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis," by Hongning Hua and Jinwen Liu, published on November 14, 2023 is presented.

Background: As a novel type of the prevalent post-transcriptional modifications, N7-methylguanosine (m7G) modification is essential in the tumorigenesis, progression, and invasion of many cancers, including bladder cancer (BCa). However, the integrated roles of m7G-related lncRNAs in BCa remain undiscovered. This study aims to develop a prognostic model based on the m7G-related lncRNAs and explore its predictive value of the prognosis and anti-cancer treatment sensitivity. Methods: We obtained RNA-seq data and corresponding clinicopathological information from the TCGA database and collected m7G-related genes from previous studies and GSEA. Based on LASSO and Cox regression analysis, we developed a m7G prognostic model. The Kaplan–Meier (K-M) survival analysis and ROC curves were performed to evaluate the predictive power of the model. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was conducted to explore the molecular mechanisms behind apparent discrepancies between the low- and high-risk groups. We also investigated immune cell infiltration, TIDE score, TMB, the sensitivity of common chemotherapy drugs, and the response to immunotherapy between the two risk groups. Finally, we validated the expression levels of these ten m7G-related lncRNAs in BCa cell lines by qRT-PCR. Results: We developed a m7G prognostic model (risk score) composed of 10 m7G-related lncRNAs that are significantly associated with the OS of BCa patients. The K-M survival curves revealed that the high-risk group patients had significantly worse OS than those in the low-risk group. The Cox regression analysis confirmed that the risk score was a significant independent prognostic factor for BCa patients. We found that the high-risk group had higher the immune scores and immune cell infiltration. Furthermore, the results of the sensitivity of common anti-BCa drugs showed that the high-risk group was more sensitive to neoadjuvant cisplatin-based chemotherapy and anti-PD1 immunotherapy. Finally, qRT-PCR revealed that AC006058.1, AC073133.2, LINC00677, and LINC01338 were significantly downregulated in BCa cell lines, while the expression levels of AC124312.2 and AL158209.1 were significantly upregulated in BCa cell lines compared with normal cell lines. Conclusion: The m7G prognostic model can be applied to accurately predict the prognosis and provide robust directions for clinicians to develop better individual-based and precise treatment strategies for BCa patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: An amplified graphene oxide (GO) based fluorescence aptasensor based on target-triggered aptamer hairpin switch and strand-displacement polymerization recycling is developed for bioassays. The dye-labeled single-strand DNA (aptamer hairpin) was adsorbed on the surface of GO, which result in the fluorescence quenching of dye, and exhibiting minimal background fluorescence. Upon the target, primer and polymerase, the stem of the aptamer hairpin was opened, and binds with the primer to triggers the circular target strand-displacement polymerization reaction, which produces huge amounts of duplex helixes DNA and lead to strong fluorescence emission due to shielding of nucelobases within its double-helix structure. During the polymerization reaction, the primer was extended, and target was displaced. And the displaced target recognizes and hybridizes with another hairpin probe, triggering the next round of polymerization reaction, and the circle process induces fluorescence signal amplification for the detection of analyte. To test the feasibility of the aptasensor systems, interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) was employed as a model analyte. A detection limit as low as 1.5fM is obtained based on the GO aptasensor with a linear range of three orders of magnitude. The present method was successfully applied for the detection of IFN-γ in human plasma. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are among the strongest materials known, making their use in composites, a field with very high commercial potential for structural applications. Many of the methods reported to date to form metal composites have an excessive number of steps. Here, a facile chemical vapor deposition method to infiltrate multiwalled carbon nanotubes directly into pure stainless steel pellets and pellets from stainless steel mixed with iron particles is reported. The iron powder was dry-coated before vapor filtration with nanosized iron oxide catalyst precursor, a critical step to increase catalytic activity. This CVD method results in a substantial increase in the elastic modulus, yield strength, and hardness by 47, 104, and over 93 %, respectively, for composites made from mixed, dry-coated particles compared with corresponding control samples without nanotubes. This is the highest enhancement reported, to the best of our knowledge, of the mechanical properties for a metal-nanotube composite prepared using a metal other than copper. The addition of CNTs results in a relatively small increase in corrosion rate which can be mitigated to negligible levels by coating with a thin epoxy-carbon nanotube composite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Analytical solutions of contaminant transport in multi-dimensional media are significant for theoretical and practical purposes. However, due to the problems for which the solutions are sought which are complex in most of the cases, most available analytical solutions in multi-dimensional media are not given in their closed forms. Integrals are often included in the solution expressions, which may limit the practitioners to use the solutions. In addition, available multi-dimensional solutions for the third-type sources in bounded media are fairly limited. In this paper, a stepwise superposition approach for obtaining approximate multi-dimensional transport solutions is developed. The approach is based on the condition that the one-dimensional solution along the flow direction is known. The solutions are expressed in their closed forms without integrals. The transport media to the solutions are flexible and can be finite, semi-infinite, or infinite in the transverse directions. The solutions subject to the first- and third-type boundary conditions at the inlet with a distributed source over the domain are obtained. The integrals in some known solutions can also be evaluated by the approach if they can be derived to include known longitudinal integrals with respect to time. The accuracy and efficiency of the solutions proposed in this paper are verified through test problems and calculation examples. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The photodegradation of organic pollutants and photocatalytic hydrogen generation from water by semiconductor catalysts are regarded as the of the most promising strategies to resolve the crisis of global environmental issues. Herein, we successfully designed and prepared a series of silver-decorated CeO2(Ag/CeO2) photocatalysts with different morphologies by a facile hydrothermal route. The physical properties, charge transfer behavior and photocatalytic performances (degradation and hydrogen evolution) over diverse catalysts with nanocubes, nanoparticles and nanorods shapes were comprehensively studied. It was found that the Ag-decorated CeO2 nanorods (Ag/R-CeO2) demonstrate the best activity for both photocatalytic methyl orange (MO) degradation and photocatalytic H2 production reaction with attractive stability during cycling tests, suggesting its desirable practical potential. The superior performance of Ag/R-CeO2 can be ascribed to (1) the facilitated light absorption due to enriched surface oxygen vacancies (OVs) and plasmonic Ag nanoparticles on nanorods, (2) the facilitated photo-excited charge carrier (e−-h+) separation efficiency on a metal/oxide hybrid structure and (3) the promoted formation of active reaction intermediates on surface-enriched Ag and oxygen vacancies reactive sites on Ag/CeO2 nanorods. This study provides a valuable discovery of the utilization of abundant solar energy for diverse catalytic processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ground‐dwelling invertebrates are vital for soil biodiversity and function maintenance. Contemporary biodiversity assessment necessitates novel and automatic monitoring methods because of the threat of sharp reductions in soil biodiversity in farmlands worldwide. Using infrared camera traps (ICTs) is an effective method for assessing richness and abundance of ground‐dwelling invertebrates. However, the influence that the shooting area of ICTs has on the diversity of ground‐dwelling invertebrates has not been strongly considered during survey design. In this study, data from six ICTs with two shooting areas (A1, 38.48 cm2; A2, 400 cm2) were used to investigate ground‐dwelling invertebrates in a farm in a city on the Eastern Coast of China from 20: 00 on July 31 to 00:00 on September 29, 2022. Over the course of 59 days and 1420 h, invertebrates within 9 taxa, 2447 individuals, and 112,909 ind./m2 were observed from 222,912 images. Our results show that ICTs with relatively large shooting areas recorded relatively high taxonomic richness and abundance of total ground‐dwelling invertebrates, relatively high abundance of the dominant taxon, and relatively high daily and hourly abundance of most taxa. The shooting areas of ICTs significantly affected the recorded taxonomic richness and abundance of ground‐dwelling invertebrates throughout the experimental period and at fine temporal resolutions. Overall, these results suggest that the shooting areas of ICTs should be considered when designing experiments, and ICTs with relatively large shooting areas are more favorable for monitoring the diversity of ground‐dwelling invertebrates. This study further provides an automatic tool and high‐quality data for biodiversity monitoring and protection in farmlands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Understanding diel variations in ground-dwelling invertebrates is an important issue for agricultural ecology, which has been extensively studied at the population level. However, contemporary studies on hourly variations in the field are scarce at the community level owing to the lack of an effective method for collecting hourly data. Therefore, this study used a novel, automatic method using infrared camera traps to photograph a ground-dwelling invertebrate community at 5 min intervals from 31 July to 29 September in farmland in Ningbo City, China. In total, 9 taxa and 1147 individuals were identified across 42 d in 217,728 photographs. The taxonomic richness and abundance of the ground-dwelling invertebrate community did not show significant hourly variations within each day nor significantly preferred active hours. Only millipedes had significant hourly variations within each day, with a significant preference for activity between 1:00 and 4:00. Additionally, slugs, beetles, and grasshoppers showed preferred active hours around sunset and midnight. This study provides a useful method for monitoring hourly changes in ground-dwelling invertebrate communities in farmlands as well as fine temporal resolution data to understand the responses of ground-dwelling invertebrate communities to climate change and human management. We evaluated the hourly dynamics of ground-dwelling invertebrate communities in farmland using infrared camera traps between August and September 2022. No significant variations within 24 h nor between any two time points of each day were observed in the taxonomic richness and abundance of the entire community. However, the periods from 4:00 to 7:00 and 13:00 to 20:00 showed relatively high taxonomic richness, while those from 2:00 to 6:00 and 16:00 to 21:00 showed relatively high abundance. Millipede abundance varied significantly in a 24 h period, with higher abundance from 3:00 to 4:00 and 1:00 to 2:00. Additionally, slug, beetle, and grasshopper abundances were significantly higher from 22:00 to 23:00, 17:00 to 18:00, and 23:00 to 24:00, respectively. The abundance of other taxa did not show significant variations between any two time points of a day. Predominant generalist predators showed positive correlation in their activity times. These results suggest that significant variations within each 24 h period are uncommon at either community or taxa (except for millipedes) levels in farmland ground-dwelling invertebrates. Further, while most taxa had significantly preferred active hours, the total community did not. Therefore, hourly dynamics should be considered to understand biodiversity maintenance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the harsh space environment, burdensome tasks, and complex structure, space manipulators are vulnerable to joint failure, especially the free-swing joint failure during on-orbit operation. The unactuated units, including free-swing joint and free-floating base, lack driving source and need to be controlled by actuated joints. To determine the control input while executing the task, it is necessary to analyze the controllable degree of system input to the unactuated unit. In this paper, comprehensively considering the coupling effects of velocity and acceleration between free-floating base, fault joint, and actuated joint, the kinematic and dynamic coupling relationship of the space manipulator with free-swing joint failure is established first. Then, the controllability of the space manipulator is analyzed. Considering the factors affecting the coupling motion between the actuated joint and the unactuated unit, the controllable degree index of the actuated joint to the unactuated unit is constructed. Finally, taking a space manipulator with seven degrees of freedom as the object, the numerical simulation is carried out to analyze the influence of joint configuration, actuated joint combination, and joint velocity on the controllability of the space manipulator, so as to provide guidance for the subsequent fault-tolerant motion control of the space manipulator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spatial distribution is an important topic in community ecology and a key to understanding the structure and dynamics of populations and communities. However, the available information related to the spatial patterns of soil mite communities in long-term tillage agroecosystems remains insufficient. In this study, we examined the spatial patterns of soil mite communities to explain the spatial relationships between soil mite communities and soil parameters. Soil fauna were sampled three times (August, September and October 2015) at 121 locations arranged regularly within a 400 m × 400 m monitoring plot. Additionally, we estimated the physical and chemical parameters of the same sampling locations. The distribution patterns of the soil mite community and the edaphic parameters were analyzed using a range of geostatistical tools. Moran’s I coefficient showed that, during each sampling period, the total abundance of the soil mite communities and the abundance of the dominant mite populations were spatially autocorrelated. The soil mite communities demonstrated clear patchy distribution patterns within the study plot. These patterns were sampling period-specific. Cross-semivariograms showed both negative and positive cross-correlations between soil mite communities and environmental factors. Mantel tests showed a significant and positive relationship between soil mite community and soil organic matter and soil pH only in August. This study demonstrated that in the cornfield, the soil mite distribution exhibited strong or moderate spatial dependence, and the mites formed patches with sizes less than one hundred meters. In addition, in this long-term tillage agroecosystem, soil factors had less influence on the observed pattern of soil mite communities. Further experiments that take into account human activity and spatial factors should be performed to study the factors that drive the spatial distribution of soil microarthropods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Bladder cancer is a type of malignant tumor. Eighty percent of patients are diagnosed with non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), which has a good prognosis, but it reoccurs often. The other patients are diagnosed with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC), which is associated with high mortality and metastasis rates. We urgently need to explore novel early diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Our study reveals the anti-cancer role of EPHA3 and its potential value in immunotherapy. Purpose: To assess the mechanism of EPH receptor A3 (EPHA3) and its potential value for immunotherapy in BLCA. Materials and Methods: The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) bladder cancer (BLCA) database and the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were used for assessing whether EHPA3 could be used to predict BLCA prognosis. This work carried out in vitro and in vivo assays for exploring how EPHA3 affected the biological behaviors. The downstream pathway was explored using a Western blotting technique. The CIBERSORT, ESTIMATE, TIMER, and TIDE tools were used to predict the immunotherapy value of EPHA3 in BLCA. Results: EPHA3 was poorly expressed in BLCA (p < 0.05), its high expression is related to a good survival prognosis (p = 0.027 and p = 0.0275), and it has a good predictive ability for the histologic grade and status of BLCA (area under curve = 0.787 and 0.904). Overexpressed EPHA3 could inhibit BLCA cell biological behaviors, and it be associated with the downregulation of the Ras/pERK1/2 pathway. EPHA3 was correlated with several immune-infiltrating cells and the corresponding marker genes. Conclusions: EPHA3 could be regarded as an acceptable anti-cancer biomarker in BLCA. EPHA3 plays an inhibiting role in BLCA, and it could be the candidate immunotherapeutic target for BLCA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Steel casing pipes used in the construction of deep oil wells usually require both high strength and corrosion-resistant behavior. Due to the exploration of deep H2S-bearing oil reservoirs, sulfide stress cracking (SSC) is becoming an increasingly serious concern for casing steel. The nonmetallic inclusions in the steel are among the key reasons for its service failure. The rare earth element Ce can be used to modify the inclusions in casing steel and improve its SSC resistance. Here, taking C110 grade casing steel (the highest class currently in service) as the investigated object, the modification behavior of Ce inclusions in the steel and the effect of the addition of Ce in varying amounts (0.01, 0.024, and 0.042 wt.%) on the modified products were studied through high-temperature tube furnace experiments and thermodynamic calculations. The results showed that Ce had an obvious modification effect on the CaO·Al2O3 inclusions in casing steel, and the diffusion of dissolved Ce in the steel was the limiting step of the modification reaction. With the extension of reaction time, the sequence describing the modification of inclusions in the steel was determined as follows: CaO·Al2O3 → CeAlO3 → Ce2O3/Ce2O2S. The final stable product after modification depended on the amount of Ce added. With 0.01 wt.% Ce, the stable phase in molten steel was Ce2O3; on the other hand, upon adding ≥0.024 wt.% Ce, the stable phase became Ce2O2S. In addition, the thermodynamic stability of Ce2O3 decreased, and it was transformed into CeAlO3, Ce2O2S, Ce2S3, and CeS during solidification. On the basis of our results and the considerations for smooth casting, the addition of a proper amount of a rare earth element is suggested for industrial trials, following the achievement of a significant and surprising improvement in the qualified rate of SSC resistance for the final steel products. The relevant mechanism is also analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for approximately 85% of all lung cancer cases and is the leading cause of cancer-related death. Despite advances in chemotherapy and immunotherapy, the prognosis for advanced patients remains poor. The discovery of oncogenic driver mutations, such as anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) mutations, means that a subset of patients has opportunities for targeted therapy. With the improvement of genetic testing coverage, more and more ALK fusion subtypes and ALK partners have been discovered, and more than 90 rare ALK fusion subtypes have been found in NSCLC. However, unlike the common fusion, echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4 (EML4)-ALK, some rare ALK fusions such as striatin (STRN)-ALK and huntingtin interacting protein 1 (HIP1)-ALK, etc., the large-scale clinical data related to its efficacy are still immature. The clinical application of ALK-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (ALK-TKIs) mainly depends on the positivity of the ALK gene, regardless of the molecular characteristics of the fusion partner. Recent clinical studies in the ALK-positive NSCLC population have demonstrated differences in progression-free survival (PFS) among patients based on different ALK fusion subtypes. This article will introduce the biological characteristics of ALK fusion kinase and common detection methods of ALK fusion and focus on summarizing the differential responses of several rare ALK fusions to ALK-TKIs, and propose corresponding treatment strategies, so as to better guide the application of ALK-TKIs in rare ALK fusion population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The microgravity environment of spaceflight expeditions has been associated with altered microbial responses. This study explores the characterization of Serratia marcescensis grown in a spaceflight environment at the phenotypic, transcriptomic and proteomic levels. From November 1, 2011 to November 17, 2011, a strain of S. marcescensis was sent into space for 398h on the Shenzhou VIII spacecraft, and ground simulation was performed as a control (LCT-SM213). After the flight, two mutant strains (LCT-SM166 and LCT-SM262) were selected for further analysis. Although no changes in the morphology, post-culture growth kinetics, hemolysis or antibiotic sensitivity were observed, the two mutant strains exhibited significant changes in their metabolic profiles after exposure to spaceflight. Enrichment analysis of the transcriptome showed that the differentially expressed genes of the two spaceflight strains and the ground control strain mainly included those involved in metabolism and degradation. The proteome revealed that changes at the protein level were also associated with metabolic functions, such as glycolysis/gluconeogenesis, pyruvate metabolism, arginine and proline metabolism and the degradation of valine, leucine and isoleucine. In summary S. marcescens showed alterations primarily in genes and proteins that were associated with metabolism under spaceflight conditions, which gave us valuable clues for future research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The environment in space could affect microorganisms by changing a variety of features, including proliferation rate, cell physiology, cell metabolism, biofilm production, virulence, and drug resistance. However, the relevant mechanisms remain unclear. To explore the effect of a space environment on Bacillus cereus, a strain of B. cereus was sent to space for 398h by ShenZhou VIII from November 1, 2011 to November 17, 2011. A ground simulation with similar temperature conditions was simultaneously performed as a control. After the flight, the flight and control strains were further analyzed using phenotypic, genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic techniques to explore the divergence of B. cereus in a space environment. The flight strains exhibited a significantly slower growth rate, a significantly higher amikacin resistance level, and changes in metabolism relative to the ground control strain. After the space flight, three polymorphic loci were found in the flight strains LCT-BC25 and LCT-BC235. A combined transcriptome and proteome analysis was performed, and this analysis revealed that the flight strains had changes in genes/proteins relevant to metabolism. In addition, certain genes/proteins that are relevant to structural function, gene expression modification and translation, and virulence were also altered. Our study represents the first documented analysis of the phenotypic, genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic changes that occur in B. cereus during space flight, and our results could be beneficial to the field of space microbiology. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Prior experiments have demonstrated that the pole in a magnetically shielded Hall thruster sputters and erodes visibly, in contrast with that in an unshielded thruster. To determine the reason for this, a particle-in-cell simulation was conducted, and the difference between shielded and unshielded thrusters in terms of plasma behavior near the exit plane was studied. The results show that in the case of the magnetically shielded thruster, the ion flux peak is on the magnetic pole face with higher ion energy, indicating severer erosion at the pole. By contrast, the flux peak of the unshielded thruster is on the head face of the channel wall, indicating severer bombardment at the wall and milder erosion at the pole. Therefore, pole erosion occurs in the magnetically shielded thruster, and channel head face erosion can be observed in the unshielded thruster. In addition, the simulation results indicate that the greater the outward shift of the magnetic field, the severer the pole erosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Treatments for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) are limited; intermediate-conductance calcium-activated potassium (SK4) channels are closely involved in tumor progression, but little is known about these channels in TNBC. We aimed to investigate whether SK4 channels affect TNBC. First, by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and western blotting (WB), increased SK4 protein expression in breast tumor tissues was detected relative to that in non-tumor breast tissues, but there was no apparent expression difference between various subtypes of breast cancer (p>0.05). Next, functional SK4 channels were detected in the TNBC cell line MDA-MB-231 using WB, real-time PCR, immunofluorescence and patch-clamp recording. By employing SK4 specific siRNAs and blockers, including TRAM-34 and clotrimazole, in combination with an MTT assay, a colony-formation assay, flow cytometry and a cell motility assay, we found that the suppression of SK4 channels significantly inhibited cell proliferation and migration and promoted apoptosis in MDA-MB-231 cells (p<0.05). Further investigation revealed that treatment with epidermal growth factor (EGF)/basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) caused MDA-MB-231 cells to undergo the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and to show increased SK4 mRNA expression. In addition, the down-regulation of SK4 expression inhibited the EMT markers Vimentin and Snail1. Collectively, our findings suggest that SK4 channels are expressed in TNBC and are involved in the proliferation, apoptosis, migration and EMT processes of TNBC cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

N doped and N, S co-doped TiO 2 hollow spheres photocatalysts have been successfully synthesized by a simple hydrothermal method with water as the only solvent. The XRD results show that the all samples are crystalline without further sintering treatment. The measured photocatalytic activity under simulated solar light, monitored by the decomposition of Rhodamine-B, demonstrated that N or N, S loading could significantly enhance the photocatalytic activity of TiO 2 . UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectra indicate that N-doping or N, S-codoping into a TiO 2 crystal lattice can result in the shift of the valence band of TiO 2 to a positive direction. It may lead to its higher oxidative ability than pure TiO 2 , which is important for organic pollutant degradation under visible-light irradiation. This work provides some insights into the rational design and development of high-performance photocatalysts using sunlight as an energy source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the island-reef engineering construction background in the South China Sea, the research studied the preparation technology, mechanical properties and chloride ion diffusion behavior of coral aggregate seawater concrete and discussed the steel bars corrosion behavior of coral aggregate seawater concrete (CASC) and reliability analysis of service life, which provide a low cost, high durability CASC and its application technology for island-reef engineering. The results showed that: according to the theory of grout concrete and the design principle of high-performance concrete, the cube compressive strength (f cu) of CASC can reach C80. Uniaxial compression whole stress-strain curve of CASC with different strength grades and constitutive relation were obtained. The "three high" Cl− diffusion characteristics, high initial chloride ion content (C 0), high surface chloride ion content (C s) and high apparent chloride ion diffusion coefficient (D a) in CASC, were established, which easily result in steel bars corrosion. It suggests to choose organic newly coated steel bars, which the thickness of the concrete protective cover is greater than 5.5 cm, concrete strength grade is greater than C50 and use "slow-release effect of micropump" of coral aggregate to pre-absorb and incorporate the amino alcohols inhibitor, which can significantly reduce steel bars corrosion of CASC structures. Finally, the study determined the durability design methods of CASC structures that meet the 20–100 years of service life requirement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A novel label-free DNAzyme molecular beacon (MBzyme) strategy was for the first time developed for colorimetric amplification detection of target nucleic acids. The MBzyme, which is designed to contain peroxidase-mimicking DNAzyme that is locked by a common hairpin, was engineered to form a catalytically active MBzyme through hybridizing with the target p53 DNA. The MBzyme is a multifunctional label-free probe that can act as the target recognition element, catalytic DNAzyme and the primer of polymerization. The target p53 DNA hybridization can induce the isothermal circular strand-displacement polymerization even without any chemical modification and other DNA sequences. This unique amplifying strategy leads to the generation of multiple numbers of active MBzyme molecules even if one hybridization event occurs, achieving a dynamic range of seven orders of magnitude and giving a detection limit down to 25fM which is 3–5 orders of magnitude lower than those of related literature reports. These achievements might be helpful in the design of highly efficient enhancers for G-quadruplex–hemin DNAzymes to be applied on the fundamental research, biotechnology, and biomedical diagnosis. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]