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Timely and accurate extraction of pavement crack information is crucial to maintain service conditions and structural safety for infrastructures and reduce further road maintenance costs. Currently, deep learning techniques for automated pavement crack detection are far superior to traditional manual approaches in both speed and accuracy. However, existing deep learning models may easily lose crack details when processing images containing complex background textures or other noises. Although many studies have alleviated this challenge by introducing attention mechanisms, especially the non‐local (NL) block, which has the ability to efficiently capture long‐range dependencies to facilitate crack pixel capture, the huge computational cost of NL makes the inference time of the model too long, which is not conducive to practical implementation. In this study, a new module, namely, the pyramid region attention module (PRAM), was developed by combining the pyramid pooling module in the pyramid scene parsing network and optimized NL, which can achieve global multi‐scale context integration and long‐range dependencies capture at a relatively lower computational cost. By applying PRAM to deep skip connections in the modified U‐Net, an effective crack segmentation model called CrackResU‐Net was developed. The test results on the existing CrackForest dataset showed that CrackResU‐Net not only achieved an F1 score of 0.9580 but also took only 25.89 ms to process an image with a resolution of 480 × 320, which had advantages in accuracy and speed, compared with several other state‐of‐the‐art crack segmentation approaches. It was fully demonstrated that this approach could realize automatic fast and high‐precision recognition of pavement cracks for engineering purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a retinal disease that arises from impaired glucose tolerance and leads to retinal microvascular leakages. Recent studies have indicated that DR pathogenesis is linked to dysfunctional retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells.Investigating the potential interplay between endothelial cells (ECs) and RPE cells by treating ECs with high glucose (HG) and evaluating the function of cytokines released from ECs on the growth of RPE cells.The results revealed that high glucose-stimulated Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells (HUVECs) activated the NF-κB signaling pathway, increased intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and expression of caspase 3 while also elevating HUVECs delivery of cytokines such as VEGF, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β.As a result of our study, cytokines released from HG-treated HUVECs impede the growth of ARPE-19 in vitro, highlighting the importance of functional ECs for exploring the underlying mechanisms of vascular-associated retinal dysfunction. Inflammatory factors secreted from endothelial cells induced by high glucose impair human retinal pigment epithelial cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disease severity grading is the primary decision-making basis for the amount of pesticide usage in vegetable disease prevention and control. Based on deep learning, this paper proposed an integrated framework, which automatically segments the target leaf and disease spots in cucumber images using different semantic segmentation networks and then calculates the area of disease spots and the target leaf for disease severity grading. Two independent datasets of leaves and lesions were constructed, which served as the training set for the first-stage diseased leaf segmentation and the second-stage lesion segmentation models. The leaf dataset contains 1140 images, and the lesion data set contains 405 images. The proposed TRNet was composed of a convolutional network and a Transformer network and achieved an accuracy of 93.94% by fusing local features and global features for leaf segmentation. In the second stage, U-Net (Resnet50 as the feature network) was used for lesion segmentation, and a Dice coefficient of 68.14% was obtained. After integrating TRNet and U-Net, a Dice coefficient of 68.83% was obtained. Overall, the two-stage segmentation network achieved an average accuracy of 94.49% and 94.43% in the severity grading of cucumber downy mildew and cucumber anthracnose, respectively. Compared with DUNet and BLSNet, the average accuracy of TUNet in cucumber downy mildew and cucumber anthracnose severity classification increased by 4.71% and 8.08%, respectively. The proposed model showed a strong capability in segmenting cucumber leaves and disease spots at the pixel level, providing a feasible method for evaluating the severity of cucumber downy mildew and anthracnose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Room layout estimation aims to predict the location and range of layout planes of interior spaces. Previous works treat each layout plane as an independent individual without considering the ordinal relation between walls, resulting the loss of the wall planes and the lack of integrity. This paper proposes a novel two‐branch neural networks model to estimate 3D layouts of cuboid and non‐cuboid room types. The model embeds the ordinal relation between layout planes into the layout segmentation branch through an proposed ordinal classification loss function, and outputs both pixel‐level layout segmentation maps and layout plane parameter maps. Then, the instance‐level plane parameters of each layout plane are determined by using an instance‐aware pooling layer. Finally, the sharpness of layout edges of the 2D layout semantic segmentation map is optimized by using an improved depth map intersection algorithm. Furthermore, we annotate a large‐scale 3D room layout estimation dataset, InteriorNet‐Layout, to obtain a steady model. Experiments on synthesized real‐world datasets show that the proposed method achieves faster calculation while maintaining high accuracy. Code is available at https://github.com/Hui‐Yao/3D‐ordinal‐layout‐estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Classic biphasic pulmonary blastoma (CBPB), a distinct type of lung cancer, is a dual‐phasic tumor characterized by the co‐existence of low‐grade fetal adenocarcinoma and primitive mesenchymal stroma. Accounting for less than 0.1% of surgically removed lung cancers, CBPB commonly presents in individuals during their fourth to fifth decades of life, with smoking as a significant risk factor. The optimal management strategy entails surgical resection, supplemented by chemotherapy to improve prognosis. The frontline chemotherapeutic agents typically include platinum agents and etoposide, with preoperative neoadjuvant chemotherapy potentially enabling operability for initially inoperable cases. In recent years, targeted therapies, such as antiangiogenic agents, have emerged as promising new treatment strategies for CBPB. For patients exhibiting brain metastases or deemed inoperable, radiation therapy proves to be a crucial therapeutic component. CBPB prognosis is adversely affected by factors such as early metastasis, tumor size exceeding 5 cm, and tumor recurrence. In this regard, serological markers have been identified as valuable prognostic indicators. To exemplify, we recount the case of a 44‐year‐old female patient with CBPB, wherein serum lactate dehydrogenase levels showed significant diagnostic value. This report further incorporates a comprehensive review of CBPB literature from the past 22 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Invasive fungal infections are on the rise among immunocompromised populations. • Using whole-genome sequencing, we identified a novel etiology of palatal perforation. • This novel pathomycete of palatal perforation was found in an immunocompetent adolescent. • Multidisciplinary treatment helps the prompt diagnosis and specific treatment of invasive fungal infections. Opportunistic oral mucosal fungal infection caused by Alternaria alternata is extremely rare. Herein, we present a rare palatal perforation as a result of oral infection caused by A. alternata in an immunocompetent adolescent. An 18-year-old boy, who had previously been healthy, was admitted to our institution with persistent pain in the palate for the past 12 months. Upon impression of palatal bone resorption based on computed tomography imaging and chronic granulomatous inflammation based on biopsy (hematoxylin-eosin staining), the patient was examined for commonly relevant causes such as potential tumor and Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. All test results were inconclusive. After a thorough diagnostic investigation, an unusual fungal infection, A. alternata infection, was confirmed by next-generation sequencing and biopsy (periodic acid-Schiff staining and immunofluorescence staining). The patient underwent surgical debridement and was subjected to voriconazole treatment postoperatively for over a period of 5 months. Thus, these findings highlight the importance of considering A. alternata as a potential pathogenic factor in an etiological palatal perforation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Layered composite hydrogels have been considered attractive materials for use in osteochondral repair and regeneration. These hydrogel materials should be mechanically strong, elastic, and tough besides fulfilling some basic requirements such as biocompatibility and biodegradability. A novel type of bilayered composite hydrogel with multi-network structures and well-defined injectability was thus developed for osteochondral tissue engineering using chitosan (CH), hyaluronic acid (HA), silk fibroin (SF), CH nanoparticles (NPs), and amino-functionalized mesoporous bioglass (ABG) NPs. CH was combined with HA and CH NPs to build the chondral phase of the bilayered hydrogel, and CH, SF, and ABG NPs were used together to construct the subchondral phase of the bilayer hydrogel. Rheological measurements showed that the optimally achieved gels assigned to the chondral and subchondral layers had their elastic moduli of around 6.5 and 9.9 kPa, respectively, with elastic modulus/viscous modulus ratios higher than 36, indicating that they behaved like strong gels. Compressive measurements further demonstrated that the bilayered hydrogel with an optimally formulated composition had strong, elastic, and tough characteristics. Cell culture revealed that the bilayered hydrogel had the capacity to support the in-growth of chondrocytes in the chondral phase and osteoblasts in the subchondral phase. Results suggest that the bilayered composite hydrogel can act as an injective biomaterial for osteochondral repair applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The decay width of the D s ∗ meson is dominated by the electromagnetic mode D s ∗ → D s γ , and it is thus the longest-lived charged vector meson. In light of this point, we perform the first QCD LCSRs calculation of D s ∗ → ϕ helicity form factors and discuss the experiment potential of discovering exclusive D s ∗ weak decays. The main result is the partial decay widths, which read as Γ D s ∗ → l ν = 2.44 × 10 - 12 GeV , Γ D s ∗ → ϕ l ν = (3. 28 - 0.71 + 0.82) × 10 - 14 GeV , Γ D s ∗ → ϕ π = (3. 81 - 1.33 + 1.52) × 10 - 14 GeV and Γ D s ∗ → ϕ ρ = (1. 16 - 0.39 + 0.42) × 10 - 13 GeV . We show that these channels are promising in the near future, serving as the first experimental observation of weak decays of a vector meson, and would open up a new playground for precision test of the standard model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider the problem of estimating tail probabilities of random sums of scale mixture of phase-type distributions—a class of distributions corresponding to random variables which can be represented as a product of a non-negative but otherwise arbitrary random variable with a phase-type random variable. Our motivation arises from applications in risk, queueing problems for estimating ruin probabilities, and waiting time distributions, respectively. Mixtures of distributions are flexible models and can be exploited in modelling non-life insurance loss amounts. Classical rare-event simulation algorithms cannot be implemented in this setting because these methods typically rely on the availability of the cumulative distribution function or the moment generating function, but these are difficult to compute or are not even available for the class of scale mixture of phase-type distributions. The contributions of this paper are that we address these issues by proposing alternative simulation methods for estimating tail probabilities of random sums of scale mixture of phase-type distributions which combine importance sampling and conditional Monte Carlo methods, showing the efficiency of the proposed estimators for a wide class of scaling distributions, and validating the empirical performance of the suggested methods via numerical experimentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The key to China's regional high-quality development lies in county-level coordination and promotion. Therefore, based on 2847 county-level administrative units in China, this paper uses empirical analysis methods such as dynamic spatial panel Dobbin model and intermediary effect model to study.Then we test the relationship between the industrial structure of county innovation capacity and regional development of high quality. The results showed that (1) the regional development of high quality at the county level in China was generally distributed in clusters, and the agglomeration had a further trend of strengthening. (2) The innovation ability and industrial structure also had a positive effect on the regional development of high quality at the county level, and the result was significant. (3) Innovation had both direct and indirect effects on regional development of high quality. Industrial structure and regional development of high quality had strong spatial and temporal dependence effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Depression is a mental disease involving complex pathophysiological mechanisms, and there are many ways to establish depressive mouse models. The purpose of this study is to comprehensively compare the behavioral changes and its mechanism induced by two different models. This study established two depressive mouse models by maternal separation (MS) or lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administration, and added fluoxetine treatment group respectively for comparison. MS induced more apparent anxiety-like behavior while LPS induced more apparent depressive-like behavior. LPS increased peripheral inflammatory factors more apparent, which were mitigated by fluoxetine. MS inhibited the 5-HT system more obviously and was relieved by fluoxetine. LPS triggered stronger immune response in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex (PFC). MS significantly reduced the expression of neurotrophic proteins and was alleviated by fluoxetine. Overall, LPS induced stronger system inflammation, while MS impaired the function of HPA axis and 5-HT system. Our results will contribute to a deeper understanding of the pathophysiology of different stress-induced depression and will also help researchers select appropriate models of depression for their own needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethanol, also known as alcohol, is one of the most common drinks in the world. Chronic ethanol exposure has been reported to induce mental disorders. Ethanol also has a strong effect on the gut microbiota. The gut microbiota has been reported to affect the brain via multiple pathways, including changes in γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) system, and cause a variety of mental disorders. The GABA system in the cortex is associated with anxiety. However, the role of gut microbiota played in ethanol exposure-induced changes in the GABA system and anxiety is still not clear. We established a 30-day ethanol exposure mouse model and investigated the effects of microbiota using the antibiotic minocycline. Minocycline alleviated ethanol-induced anxiety-like behaviour, dysbiosis of microbiota, intestinal barrier disruption, increased serum endotoxin and interleukin (IL)-6. Minocycline also attenuated ethanol-induced apoptosis and decreased expression of glutamate decarboxylases (GADs) and GABRA1 in the prefrontal cortex. Our results indicated that gut microbiota plays an important role in ethanol-induced anxiety-like behaviour by altering the function of GABA system. In addition, causal mediation analysis showed that endotoxin and IL-6 may mediate the connection between the gut microbiota and the expression of GABAA receptor in the prefrontal cortex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To achieve highly efficient extraction of phosphorus (P) and comprehensive utilization of phosphate tailings, a two-stage leaching-precipitation method was proposed. Phosphate tailings primarily consisted of dolomite, fluorapatite, and quartz. During the first-stage leaching, the large majority of dolomite was selectively dissolved and the leaching efficiency of Mg reached 93.1 % at pH 2.0 and 60 °C. The subsequent second-stage leaching of fluorapatite was performed and the P leaching efficiency was 98.8 % at pH 1.5 and 20 °C, while the quartz remained in the residue. Through two-stage leaching, a stepwise leaching of dolomite and fluorapatite was achieved. After chemical precipitation, calcium phosphate with a high purity of 97.9 % was obtained; and the total recovery efficiency of P exceeded 98 %. The obtained calcium phosphate can be a raw material in the phosphorus chemical industry, while the Mg-rich leachate and the final quartz-rich residue have the potential for Mg extraction and the production of mortars or geopolymers, respectively. The two-stage leaching-precipitation process could significantly reduce the leaching costs, and enhance the reaction rates. It is expected to realize a volume reduction and efficient resource utilization of the phosphate tailings by using this sustainable and promising solution. • A new method of P extraction and utilization of phosphate tailings was proposed. • A stepwise dissolution of dolomite and fluorapatite was achieved. • High-grade calcium phosphates were recovered from the phosphate tailings. • CaHPO 4 and Ca 10 (PO 4) 6 (OH) 2 were obtained at pH 6.0 and 8.0, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemical oxo-precipitation (COP) is an enhanced precipitation method for boron removal with the conversion of boric acid to perborate anions. When using barium-based precipitant, the boron can be effectively precipitated as barium perborates (BaPBs). The phase transformation of BaPBs from amorphous (A-BaPB, Ba(B(OH) 3 OOH) 2) to crystalline (C–BaPB, BaB 2 (OO) 2 (OH) 4) form is crucial for effective boron removal. However, scaling up this phase transformation of BaPBs is hindered by poor diffusion. This study aims to promote the growth of C–BaPB through seed-induced crystal growth, eliminating the need for phase transformation. By examining the relationship between crystal growth rate and supersaturation, surface spiral growth was identified as the rate-limiting step of the growth of micron-sized seeds near pH pzc. To enable continuous crystal growth, granular seeds of C–BaPB were prepared and employed as the medium for fluidized-bed crystallization (FBC). The system reached steady state 3 hydraulic retention times, achieving 90% boron removal. The effect of surface loading, ionic strength, and dosages on steady-state crystal growth rate was studied, revealing a shift of the rate-limiting step in FBC to diffusion. Lastly, the system that constituted of two FBCs in-series for sequential crystallization of A-BaPB and C–BaPB was demonstrated. The integrated system provided 97.8% of boron removal from synthetic wastewater containing 500 mg-B/L, with 92.3% of boron crystallized on the granular seeds of BaPBs. [Display omitted] • Seed-induced crystal growth of C–BaPB enabled rapid boron removal. • Spiral surface growth was the rate-limiting step near pH pzc. • Continuous crystal growth of granular C–BaPB seeds removed 90% boron in FBC. • Two FBCs in-series eliminated boron from 500 to 8 mg-B/L, >92% on granular seeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In latent heat storage, certain non phase change materials (non-PCMs) with high thermal conductivity are incorporated into the phase change materials (PCMs) with the aim of enhancing the efficiency of heat/cold storage. We term this type of non-PCMs as 'enhancer', which includes materials like graphite and copper foam, usually with a complex skeleton structure (He et al., 2023 [1] ; Yang et al., 2018 [2]).In this article, we propose a phase field model to describe the solidification and melting phenomena of PCMs with enhancer from a microscopic point of view. Our model is governed by the energy equation coupled with the Allen–Cahn equation. A penalty technique is applied in the Allen–Cahn equation to describe the complex structure of the non-PCMs. We use the concept of thermal resistance to define the boundary condition on the contact interface of two materials to ensure the temperature jump. Thanks to the hybrid dual formulation, the temperature can be solved as a monolithic function while satisfying the temperature jump on the material interface. In temporal discretization, a numerical scheme is developed to decouple the phase field from the temperature. In the spatial discretization, the hybrid finite element method, the Raviart–Thomas (RT0) and P0 elements are used to solve the temperature, to satisfy the temperature jump on the interface. Simulations are performed using the open source finite element software FreeFem++. To improve computational efficiency, under the framework of FreeFem++, the mesh refinement is conducted by the Mmg module, and the parallelization is performed by the domain decomposition library ffddm. 2D and 3D simulations are carried out for both melting and solidification processes of a fossil-based organic PCM, CRODATHERM60 in the graphite skeleton on different porous structures to validate our model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This population-based cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of oral mucosal lesions (OMLs) in children in a rural area in China as epidemiological data on these conditions from such areas are insufficient. Methods: A total of 3145 children in Xiangyun of Yunnan were enrolled. A socio-economic questionnaire and a field survey of OMLs were administered. We gathered information on factors (sex, age, caregiver, parental education, and last-month household income) that might be associated with OMLs in these children. Results: OMLs in children in Xiangyun of Yunnan had a prevalence of 1.8% (95% CI; 1.3–2.3%). The most prevalent OML was oral ulcer (n = 11; 18.3%), followed by linea alba (n = 10; 16.7%), whereas the least prevalent OMLs were frenal tag (n = 1; 1.7%) and herpes labialis (n = 1; 1.7%). On unadjusted or adjusted regression, school-aged children had about 50% lower risk of OMLs than preschoolers. Conclusions: These findings indicate that the prevalence of OMLs in Xiangyun of Yunnan is lower than previously reported. Additionally, the age might be associated with the occurrence of OMLs in children in Xiangyun of Yunnan, China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colorectal cancer (CRC), a common malignant tumor of the digestive tract, has a high incidence and mortality rate. Several recent studies have found that aging is associated with the increasing risk of cancer. Nevertheless, the expression status and function of age-related genes in CRC is still not well understood. In the study, we comprehensively analyzed the gene expression data of CRC patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Age-related differential expression genes (age-related DEGs) in tumor tissues compared with normal tissues of CRC were further identified. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses of age-related DEGs were performed by clusterProfiler of R. Afterwards, we used the STRING database to map the protein–protein interaction network of DEGs. We constructed prognostic model through univariate and multivariate COX regression analyses, and further evaluated their predictive power. The prognostic gene signature-related functional pathways were explored by gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). The weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was used to identify key module associated with two prognostic gene signatures. Finally, we used the Metascape to perform functional enrichment analysis of genes in the key module. A total of 279 age-related DEGs were identified from the TCGA database. GO and KEGG enrichment analysis showed that the age-related DEGs were enriched in the Modulation of chemical synaptic transmission and Neuroactive ligand–receptor interaction. Moreover, we established a novel age-related gene signature (DLX2 and PCOLCE2) for overall survival in CRC, which was further predicted in both the training and validation sets. The results of GSEA demonstrated that numerous disease-related pathways were enriched in the high-risk group. We identified 43 genes related to the DLX2 and PCOLCE2 by the WGCNA co-expression network. We also found that these 43 genes were enriched in the cancer-related pathways. To sum up, the study identified an age-related gene signature for predicting the prognosis of CRC patients, which is conducive to the identification of novel prognostic molecular markers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Asphalt binder is the main material for road pavement and building construction. It is a complex mixture composed of a large number of hydrocarbons with different molecular weights. The study of asphalt binders and asphalt concretes from a molecular perspective is an important means to understand the intricate properties of asphalt. Molecular dynamics simulation is based on Newton's law and predicts the microscopic performance of materials by calculating the intra- and intermolecular interactions. The asphalt binder can be divided into four components: saturates, aromatics, resins, and asphaltenes (SARA). A new molecular model of asphalt was proposed and verified in this study. Eight molecules selected from the literature were used to represent the four components of asphalt. The AMBER Cornell Extension Force Field was applied in this study to model building and the calculation of properties. The density of the asphalt model was calculated and compared with experimental results for validity verifications. The results show that the purposed model can be used to calculate the microscopic properties of the asphalt binder because the density of the model is close to the real value in the field. Besides, the proportions of different molecules in the model were adjusted to predict the relationship between the asphalt binder density and the hydrocarbon ratios and heteroatom contents of the molecular model. Moreover, the glass transition temperature of the asphalt binder model is predicted by the simulation of the heating process. The range of the glass transition temperature is determined by calculating the relationship between specific volume and temperature, and the calculated range is close to the experimental value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Osteosarcoma is a relatively rare malignant tumor with a high incidence in young people. The development of tyrosine kinase inhibitors has brought the treatment of osteosarcoma into a new stage. Apatinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor specifically targeting VEGFR2, has been increasingly reported as a treatment for osteosarcoma with promising outcome parameters, but there has been no systematic analysis of the treatment of osteosarcoma by apatinib.Methods: A single-arm meta-analysis was performed, and published literature from PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, CNKI and Wan Fang databases as of March 1, 2021 was systematically retrieved. Quality assessment is carried out in accordance with a 20 item checklist form prepared by the Institute of Health Economics (IHE). Double arcsine transformation is performed to stabilize the variance of the original ratio. When I2 > 50%, the random effect model is used to calculate the pooled parameters; otherwise, the fixed effect model is used. We conducted subgroup analysis according to age and apatinib dose.Results: This meta-analysis included 11 studies of 356 Chinese patients with osteosarcoma. The pooled objective remission rate (ORR) of advanced or metastatic osteosarcoma treated by oral apatinib in Chinese patients was 0.27(95%CI = 0.18-0.38). The pooled disease control rate (DCR) was 0.57 (95%CI = 0.42-0.72). The pooled median progression-free survival (mPFS) and median total survival (mOS) were 5.18 months (95%CI = 4.03-6.33) and 10.87 months (95% CI = 9.40-12.33), respectively. More than 70% of adverse reactions were mild, the most common adverse reaction was hand-foot syndrome (HFMD), with an incidence of 0.46 (95%CI = 0.35-0.58), the second was hypertension, with an incidence of 0.40 (95%CI = 0.29-0.51).Conclusions: The efficacy of apatinib in the treatment of osteosarcoma is competitive with current evidence, and it is worth noting that its low cost can significantly improve patient compliance and increase therapeutic value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • A co-treatment of steelmaking slag and steel pickling waste liquor was proposed. • FePO 4 was prepared during the collaborative treatment. • After leaching, the residue can be reused as flux within the steel plant. • Comprehensive utilization of metallurgical wastes can be achieved. To prepare FePO 4 and to achieve resource utilization of metallurgical wastes, a collaborative treatment of P-bearing steelmaking slag and steel pickling waste liquor (SPWL) was proposed. The utilization of SPWL as a leachant for P separation from steelmaking slag facilitates P-removal residue recycling within steel plants, while also serving as a Fe source for the FePO 4 preparation. In this study, the effects of synthetic SPWL with various Fe2+ (or Fe3+) contents and leaching parameters on the dissolution behavior of steelmaking slag were investigated. Moreover, the impacts of H 2 O 2 oxidation and pH on the precipitation behavior of FePO 4 from leachate were studied. It was found that increasing Fe2+ concentration in SPWL resulted in a marginal reduction in the P dissolution ratio; however, it was significantly influenced by the pH and solid/liquid ratio. Furthermore, the change in Fe3+ concentration within SPWL exhibited a conspicuous impact on the P dissolution ratio. After leaching, the residue containing massive Fe 2 O 3 , MgO, and MnO could be reused as a flux within the steelmaking process. The FePO 4 precipitated predominantly at pH 2.0 ∼ 3.0, and the crude FePO 4 product containing 42.6 % Fe 2 O 3 and 35.8 % P 2 O 5 was obtained, providing a new solution for the utilization of metallurgical wastes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphate tailing is an extremely fine by-product during phosphate ore flotation. Due to the large quantities and relatively higher P 2 O 5 content, the phosphate tailings have been considered as a potential P resource, compared to other P-bearing wastes. Besides, phosphate tailings also contain a large amount of available components, such as Ca, Mg, and Si. To explore a low-cost and efficient process for the utilization of phosphate tailings, the hydrochloric acid leaching-precipitation method was employed to recover phosphorus. The P in phosphate tailings can be selectively dissolved into leaching liquor, followed by the precipitation of calcium phosphates from the leaching liquor through pH adjustment. The results showed that P was predominantly concentrated in fluorapatite and its dissolution ratio increased with the decrease in pH. At pH 1.0, the P dissolution efficiency from phosphate tailings reached 96.3%, along with the majority of Mg and Ca. However, Si was hardly dissolved. It demonstrated that almost all the fluorapatite and dolomite were dissolved while the quartz was difficult to dissolve. Dolomite was more preferentially dissolved than fluorapatite. Increasing temperature contributed to the dissolution of dolomite while suppressing fluorapatite dissolution. The residue containing 87.9% SiO 2 (quartz) and only 0.25% P 2 O 5 has the potential as a building material. As the pH increased to 7.0, the collected precipitate consisted of 34.18% P 2 O 5 and 56.10% CaO, which can serve as a source of a slow-released phosphate fertilizer. The highly efficient utilization of phosphate tailings was achieved via this process. • Selective leaching of P from phosphate tailings can be achieved by HCl solution. • Calcium phosphates are obtained from leachate by the precipitation method. • The obtained precipitate can be used as a slow-released phosphate fertilizer. • The residue mainly composed of quartz has the potential to be a building material. • A method for resource utilization of phosphate tailings was proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neutrophils are the most abundant leukocytes and usually the first immune cell-type recruited to a site of infection or tissue damage. In asphyxiated neonates, elevated peripheral neutrophil counts are associated with poorer neurological outcomes. Induced neutropenia provides brain protection in animal models of neonatal hypoxic-ischemic (HI) injury, but the anti-neutrophil serum used in past studies heavily cross-reacts with monocytes, thus complicating the interpretation of results. Here we examined neutrophil influx and extravasation, and used a specific anti-Ly6G antibody for induced neutropenia against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-pretreated HI injury in murine neonates, a model for inflammation-sensitized hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). As early as 6 h after the LPS/HI insult, the mRNAs for neutrophil-recruiting and mitogenic chemokines ascended in the ipsilateral hemisphere, coinciding with immuno-detection of neutrophils. However, neutrophils mainly resided within blood vessels, exhibiting signs for neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), before 48 h post-LPS/HI. Prophylactic anti-Ly6G treatment blocked the brain infiltration of neutrophils, but not monocytes or lymphocytes, and markedly decreased LPS/HI-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines, matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9), and brain tissue loss. In contrast, anti-Ly6G treatment at 4 h post-LPS/HI failed to prevent the influx of neutrophils and brain damage. Together, these results suggest important pathological functions for early-arriving neutrophils in inflammation-sensitized HIE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle flow numerical simulation software (PFC3D) was utilized to establish the consolidated-undrained triaxial compression test numerical models of mine tailings with different dry densities to deeply investigate the macroscopic and microscopic characteristics of mine tailings in a tailing pond in Hunan Province. Comparing the results of the simulation and the laboratory experiment, the mesoscopic parameters of the particle flow numerical simulation were obtained through continuously adjusting the mesoscopic parameter with the higher degree of agreement between the stress-strain curve, the peak strength, and the elastic modulus as the determining standard. The macroscopic and microscopic characteristics of mine tailings were studied from the perspectives of stress-strain, axial strain-volume strain, coordination number, particle velocity vector, and contact force between particles. After numerous numerical tests, it was found that the PFC3D simulation results are consistent with experiment results of the dry density tailing samples under different confining pressures; compared with the high confining pressure, the simulation test results at lower confining pressures were more with that of the laboratory tests; low density and high confining pressure both have inhibitory effect on the dilatancy characteristics of triaxial samples; with the same confining pressure, the dilatancy tendency of low dry density samples is suppressed comparing with the high dry density samples. The initial coordination number of the numerical model is large, which proves that the contact degree of the model is good to some extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to prepare a liposomal temperature-sensitive gel able to slowly release resveratrol after local intramuscular injection. The best formulation of resveratrol liposomes was based on the highest encapsulation efficiency and drug loading designed by Box-Behnken. The prepared liposomes were approximately circular, with a mean particle diameter of 161.5 ± 0.12 nm and zeta potential of -6.9 mV. The optimized liposomes were dispersed in a polymer gel (PLGA-PEG-PLGA) for preparation of an in situ-formed gel at 35 ± 2 ° C. In vitro release of the prepared liposome temperature-sensitive gel was studied and compared with ordinary drug-releasing gels, revealing a significantly longer drug release time. Finally, a rat sciatic nerve injury model was used to evaluate the pharmacological activity of the liposome temperature-sensitive gels for the repair of damaged nerves. The results indicate that the gel was able to promote recovery of damaged nerves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Life history theory predicts that animals often produce fewer offspring of larger size and indicate a stronger trade-off between the number and size of offspring to cope with increasing environmental stress. In order to evaluate this prediction, we tested the life history characteristics of Bufo minshanicus at eight different altitudes on the eastern Tibetan Plateau, China. Our results revealed a positive correlation between female SVL and clutch size or egg size, revealing that larger females produce more and larger eggs. However, high-altitude toads seem to favor more offspring and smaller egg sizes when removing the effect of female SVL, which is counter to theoretical predictions. In addition, there was an overall significantly negative relationship between egg size and clutch size, indicative of a trade-off between egg size and fecundity. Therefore, we suggest that higher fecundity, rather than larger egg size, is a more effective reproductive strategy for this species of anuran living at high-altitude environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Response surface methodology (RSM) is an effective tool for process optimization with multi-complex operational factors. The present work aims to model and optimize the photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) parameters of Reactive Red 195 (RR195) dye decoloration with the SiO 2 -supported Fe–Co catalyst (FCS) derived from a novel catalyst synthesis method, fluidized-bed crystallization (FBC) process, using Box-Behnken design (BBD) as the RSM statistical model. The Fe–Co@SiO 2 catalyst was successfully fabricated using the FBC process, and it showed good catalytic activity and performance toward the degradation of RR195. The extent of the effects of pH, H 2 O 2 dosage (HD), catalyst loading (CL), and operating time (t) on the decoloration of RR195 was studied. Hence, the order of variable significance follows the sequence: pH > t > CL > HD. pH has the most significant effect among the variables for RR195 decoloration. The decoloration efficiency predicted by the BBD model was 88.3% under the optimized operation conditions of initial pH of 3.15, 0.76 mM H 2 O 2 , 1.18 g L−1 FCS and 59.4 min of operating time. The actual decoloration efficiency was very close to the predicted value indicating that BBD can efficiently be utilized to optimize RR195 degradation with FCS under the PCO system. [Display omitted] • FBC-derived Fe–Co catalyst exhibited good catalytic activity toward RR195 degradation. • pH has the most significant effect among the variables for RR195 decoloration. • BBD can be efficiently utilized to optimize the degradation of RR195 with FCS under the PCO process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding cellular and molecular processes underlying the human early post-implantation development represents one of the most fundamental questions in development and stem cell biology. As embryos implant into the uterus a week after fertilization, human development beyond the blastocyst stage is extremely difficult to study due to the inaccessibility of embryos and ethical concerns. The advents in the human embryo in vitro culture system provide an easily accessible, tractable, and perturbable platform to dissect key developmental events of human early embryonic development. However, these studies stopped around gastrulation to technical and ethical limitations, and our understanding of human gastrulation and early organogenesis remains poor. As closely related species to humans, non-human primates (NHPs) are suitable surrogate species to interrogate mechanisms underpinning human embryonic development. Here, we review the most recent advances in embryo in vitro culture systems of NHP and discuss their potential optimization strategies and applications. • The similarities and differences between the mouse, human and non-human primates (NHPs) in vitro embryo culture systems are compared. • Further optimization strategies of the NHP's embryo in vitro culture system are proposed. • The potential applications of the embryo culture system are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate prediction of TCR-pMHC binding is important for the development of cancer immunotherapies, especially TCR-based agents. Existing algorithms often experience diminished performance when dealing with unseen epitopes, primarily due to the complexity in TCR-pMHC recognition patterns and the scarcity of available data for training. We have developed a novel deep learning model, 'TCR Antigen Binding Recognition' based on BERT, named as TABR-BERT. Leveraging BERT's potent representation learning capabilities, TABR-BERT effectively captures essential information regarding TCR-pMHC interactions from TCR sequences, antigen epitope sequences and epitope-MHC binding. By transferring this knowledge to predict TCR-pMHC recognition, TABR-BERT demonstrated better results in benchmark tests than existing methods, particularly for unseen epitopes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sesquiterpanes are ubiquitous components of crude oils and ancient sediments. Liquid saturated hydrocarbons from simulated pyrolysis experiments on immature organic-rich mudstone collected from the Lower Cretaceous Hesigewula Sag were analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). C14 bicyclic sesquiterpanes, namely, 8β(H)-drimane, 8β(H)-homodrimane, and 8α(H)-homodrimane were detected and identified on basis of their diagnostic fragment ions (m/z 123, 179, 193, and 207), and previously published mass spectra data, and these bicyclic sesquiterpanes presented relatively regular characteristics in their thermal evolution. The ratios 8β(H)-drimane/8β(H)-homodrimane, 8β(H)-homodrimane/8α(H)-homodrimane, and 8β(H)-drimane/8α(H)-homodrimane all show a clear upward trend with increasing temperature below the temperature turning point. Thus, all these ratios can be used as evolution indexes of source rocks in the immature–low-maturity stage. However, the last two ratios may be more suitable than the first ratio as valid parameters for measuring the extent of thermal evolution of organic matter in the immature–low-maturity stage because their change amplitude with increasing temperature is more obvious. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we simulate the tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance (TAMR) in a single-molecule-magnet (SMM) dimer tunnel-junction with metal and ferromagnetic (FM) electrodes. The non-collinear polarization of electrode with respect to the uniaxial anisotropy-axis of magnet results in both the FM and anti-ferromagnetic (AFM) TAMR respectively for the FM and AFM inter-molecule couplings. In terms of the spin coherent state representation of electron spin the non-collinear tunneling is able to be analyzed with the usual rate equation approach in a sequential tunneling regime. The ferromagnetic TAMR varies with the non-collinear angle and the tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) is just a special case of the angle θ = π. With the FM dimer we obtain the higher TMR up to 400% and the high polarization rate (79%) of spin current as well. The angle dependence of TAMR for the AFM dimer is also presented along with the spin current. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renal inflammation can result in renal injury. Uric acid (UA) is the final product of purine metabolism in humans and because of the lack of urate oxidase, UA may accumulate in tissues, including kidney, causing inflammation. Galangin was isolated from a traditional Chinese medicine plant and possesses several beneficial effects, working as an anti-oxidant, anti-mutagenic, anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, and anti-viral agent. Therefore, this study aimed at investigating the molecular mechanism of galangin in the attenuation of UA induced renal inflammation in normal rat kidney epithelial cells NRK-52E. Our findings suggested that galangin treatment efficiently protected NRK-52E cells against UA induced renal inflammation by decreasing tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-18, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and nitric oxide (NO) release, and it inhibited nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2), TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-18 mRNA expression. In addition, galangin was not exerting any cytotoxicity at the concentrations that were effective against inflammation as assessed by CCK8 assay. Moreover, western blotting showed that galangin treatment effectively inhibited nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT) and nucleotide-binding domain- (NOD-) like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) signaling pathway activation. Taken together, these findings suggested that galangin plays a pivotal role in renal inflammation by suppressing inflammatory responses, which might be closely associated with the inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome, NF-κB and PI3K/AKT signaling pathway activation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Galangin has been reported to have many pharmacological effects including being anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antifungal and a suppressor of vitiligo, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer. The purpose of this research was to characterize and determine the efficacy of the antitumor activity and pharmacokinetics of galangin-loaded PEGylated liposomes compared with free galangin. Galangin-loaded liposomes and galangin-loaded PEGylated liposomes were prepared using thin-film dispersion prior to ultrasonication. The mean particle size of the galangin-loaded PEGylated liposomes was approximately 120 nm, the polydispersity index was 0.212, the zeta potential was -2.24 mV, and the entrapment efficiency was 76.31%. The release of galangin from galangin-loaded PEG-modified liposomes was slowest as gauged by dynamic dialysis in vitro. In the apoptosis experiment, galangin-loaded PEG-modified liposomes demonstrated cytotoxicity to hepatoma cells by apoptosis that was greater than the two other forms of drug carrier. In vivo experiments demonstrated that the half-life of galangin in PEG-modified liposomes was 4 hours in the plasma of rats, significantly longer than that of free galangin. The experimental results suggest that the PEG modification of liposomes effectively increases the solubility of galangin and alters its pharmacokinetic parameters, such that it may be effective in the treatment of liver cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The hyper-activation of PI3K/AKT signaling is common in many kinds of malignant tumors and promotes cell growth. Moreover, FBXL5 is reported to play an important role in the progression of gastric cancer and cervical cancer. In this view, this study aims to explore the function of FBXL5 in the progression of colon cancer and determine if PI3K/AKT signaling pathway involves in this process. Western blotting, RT-PCR, and immunohistochemistry were used to detect the expression pattern of FBXL5 in colon cancer tissues and cell lines. Immunofluorescence, Duolink, and immunoprecipitation (IP) assays were performed to evaluate the interaction between FBXL5 and PI3K/AKT signaling. Results showed that FBXL5 was elevated in colon cancer tissues and cells, which had physical interaction with PTEN protein and negatively regulated its expression, whereas positively modulated PI3K, AKT and mTOR expression and their phosphorylation. Besides, FBXL5 promoted cell proliferation and tumorigenesis and inhibited apoptosis by modulating PTEN/PI3K/AKT signaling. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that FBXL5 functioned as an oncogene in the progression of colon cancer through regulating PTEN/PI3K/AKT signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) can only analyze volatile molecular compounds, and it has limitations when applied to determine the complex components of crude oils and hydrocarbon source rocks. Based on Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR-MS) and GC/MS analyses, the molecular compositions of NSO compounds in extracts from the Permian Dalong Formation, Sichuan Basin and the Permian Lucaogou Formation, Junggar Basin in China were compared. Analyses of types of heteroatoms present (S1, S2, S3, OS, OS2, O2S, NS, and NOS compounds) suggest that marine shales from the Dalong Formation are mainly composed of carboxylic acids (O2 compounds) with a high abundance of fatty acids, indicating a marine phytoplankton organic source. However, lacustrine shales from the Lucaogou Formation are dominated by pyrrolic compounds (N1 compounds) with abundant dibenzocarbazole. It suggests that the organic source materials may be derived from lower aquatic organisms and lacustrine algae. Overall, FT-ICR-MS has potential for applications in analyses and determination of depositional environments and organic sources in petroleum geology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aims: An adequate matrix production of nucleus pulposus (NP) cells is an important tissue engineering-based strategy to regenerate degenerative discs. Here, we mainly aimed to investigate the effects and mechanism of mechanical compression (i.e., static compression vs. dynamic compression) on the matrix synthesis of three-dimensional (3D) cultured NP cells in vitro. Methods: Rat NP cells seeded on small intestinal submucosa (SIS) cryogel scaffolds were cultured in the chambers of a self-developed, mechanically active bioreactor for 10 days. Meanwhile, the NP cells were subjected to compression (static compression or dynamic compression at a 10% scaffold deformation) for 6 hours once per day. Unloaded NP cells were used as controls. The cellular phenotype and matrix biosynthesis of NP cells were investigated by real-time PCR and Western blotting assays. Lentivirus-mediated N-cadherin (N-CDH) knockdown and an inhibitor, LY294002, were used to further investigate the role of N-CDH and the PI3K/Akt pathway in this process. Results: Dynamic compression better maintained the expression of cell-specific markers (keratin-19, FOXF1 and PAX1) and matrix macromolecules (aggrecan and collagen II), as well as N-CDH expression and the activity of the PI3K/Akt pathway, in the 3D-cultured NP cells compared with those expression levels and activity in the cells grown under static compression. Further analysis showed that the N-CDH knockdown significantly down-regulated the expression of NP cell-specific markers and matrix macromolecules and inhibited the activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway under dynamic compression. However, inhibition of the PI3K/Akt pathway had no effects on N-CDH expression but down-regulated the expression of NP cell-specific markers and matrix macromolecules under dynamic compression. Conclusion: Dynamic compression increases the matrix synthesis of 3D-cultured NP cells compared with that of the cells under static compression, and the N-CDH-PI3K/Akt pathway is involved in this regulatory process. This study provides a promising strategy to promote the matrix deposition of tissue-engineered NP tissue in vitro prior to clinical transplantation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we study the generation of spin-current in a single-molecule magnet (SMM) tunnel junction with Coulomb interaction of transport electrons and external magnetic field. In the absence of field the spin-up and -down currents are symmetric with respect to the initial polarizations of molecule. The existence of magnetic field breaks the time-reversal symmetry, which leads to unsymmetrical spin currents of parallel and antiparallel polarizations. Both the amplitude and polarization direction of spin current can be controlled by the applied magnetic field. Particularly when the magnetic field increases to a certain value the spin-current with antiparallel polarization is reversed along with the magnetization reversal of the SMM. The two-electron occupation indeed enhances the transport current compared with the single-electron process. However the increase of Coulomb interaction results in the suppression of spin-current amplitude at the electron-hole symmetry point. We propose a scheme to compensate the suppression with the magnetic field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we demonstrate a coating-etching strategy to directly synthesize hollow Prussian blue (PB) nanocubes with well-dispersed Ag nanoparticles (denoted as Ag-HPB). The method is accomplished by introduction of PB precursors, K 3 Fe(CN) 6 and Fe 3+ into a reaction system containing AgNO 3 and ascorbic acid, in which a series reactions contain formation of Ag nanoparticles, coating of PB on the nanoparticles, and diffusion of Ag into the PB frameworks occur. The strategy for preparation of the hollow structured Ag-HPB is intrinsically simple and does not require pre-preparation of any sacrificial templates or toxic etching agents. The obtained Ag-HPB nanocubes possess uniform size (69 nm), well-defined hollow structure, strong near-infrared photothermal conversion capacity, and excellent photoacoustic and magnetic resonance imaging abilities. Furthermore, an injectable photothermal implants are prepared for the first time by mixing the Ag-HPB nanocubes with clinically used biological glue, which significantly enhance photothermal anti-tumor efficacy, showing great potential for clinical tumor treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To study the correlation between Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) constitution and dyslipidemia. Methods. CNKI, VIP, Wanfang database, CBMdisc, PubMed, and Embase were searched, and meta-analysis was performed by Review Manager 5.2 software. Results. Altogether 11 studies were included with 12890 individuals. The results showed that balanced constitution was a protective factor of dyslipidemia (OR = 0.62, 95% CI 0.47~0.82) while phlegm-dampness constitution was a risk factor of it (OR = 2.50, 95% CI 2.22~2.80), and the effect of phlegm-dampness constitution in South China (OR = 3.31, 95% CI 1.71~6.43) was more obvious than that in East (OR = 2.40, 95% CI 2.06~2.80) and North China (OR = 2.24, 95% CI 1.81~2.78). Conclusion. This study provides evidence for the prevention and treatment of dyslipidemia in TCM. However, most of the studies included are of moderate quality; more high quality, multicenter, large-sample studies are expected to provide higher level evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of 5-methylcytosine (m5C) in tumor initiation and progression has been increasingly recognized. However, the precise association between the regulation of m5C and the progression, metastasis, and prognosis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) has not yet been fully explored. Data from 545 HNSCC patients obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database were analyzed. Unsupervised cluster analysis was conducted using the expression levels of m5C regulatory genes. Additionally, gene set variation analysis (GSVA), single-sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA), and Cox regression analysis were utilized. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), colony formation assay, transwell experiments and western blots were performed in the HNSCC cell line UM-SCC-17B to assess the expression and functional role of one of the novel signatures, CNFN. Significant expression differences were found in m5C regulatory genes between tumor and normal tissues in HNSCC. Two distinct m5C modification patterns, characterized by substantial prognostic differences, were identified. Cluster-2, which exhibited a strong association with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), was found to be associated with a poorer prognosis. Based on the m5C clusters and EMT status, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. Using DEGs, an 8-gene signature (CAMK2N1, WNT7A, F2RL1, AREG, DEFB1, CNFN, TGFBI, and CAV1) was established to develop a prognostic model. The performance of this signature was validated in both the training and external validation datasets, demonstrating its promising efficacy. Furthermore, additional investigations using RT-qPCR on clinical specimens and experimental assays in cell lines provided compelling evidence suggesting that CNFN, one of the genes in the signature, could play a role in HNSCC progression and metastasis through the EMT pathway. This study highlighted the role of m5C in HNSCC progression and metastasis. The relationship between m5C and EMT has been elucidated for the first time. A robust prognostic model was developed for accurately predicting HNSCC patients' survival outcomes. Potential molecular mechanisms underlying these associations have been illuminated through this research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objectives of this paper are to use Direct Coal Liquefaction Residue (DLCR) to modify the asphalt binders and mixtures and to evaluate the performance of modified asphalt mixtures. The dynamic modulus and phase angle of DCLR and DCLR-composite modified asphalt mixture were analyzed, and the viscoelastic properties of these modified asphalt mixtures were compared to the base asphalt binder SK-90 and Styrene-Butadiene-Styrene (SBS) modified asphalt mixtures. The master curves of the asphalt mixtures were shown, and dynamic and viscoelastic behaviors of asphalt mixtures were described using the Christensen-Anderson-Marasteanu (CAM) model. The test results show that the dynamic moduli of DCLR and DCLR-composite asphalt mixtures are higher than those of the SK-90 and SBS modified asphalt mixtures. Based on the viscoelastic parameters of CAM models of the asphalt mixtures, the high- and low-temperature performance of DLCR and DCLR-composite modified asphalt mixtures are obviously better than the SK-90 and SBS modified asphalt mixtures. In addition, the DCLR and DCLR-composite modified asphalt mixtures are more insensitive to the frequency compared to SK-90 and SBS modified asphalt mixtures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrocoagulation (EC) using metallic Ni foam as electrodes was studied for the removal of boron from solution. The electrolytic parameters were pH (4–12), current density (0.6–2.5 mA cm −2 ), and initial concentration of boron (10–100 mg L −1 ). Experimental results revealed that removal efficiency was maximized at pH 8–9, and decreased as the pH increased beyond that range. At particular onset potentials (0.5–0.8 V vs. Hg/HgO), the micro-granular nickel oxide that was created on the surface of the nickel metal substrate depended on pH, as determined by cyclic voltammetry. Most of the crystallites of the precipitates comprised a mixed phase of β-Ni(OH) 2 , a theophrastite phase, and NiOOH, as revealed by XRD and SEM analyses. A current density of 1.25 mA cm −2 was effective in the EC of boron, and increasing the concentration of boric acid from 10 to 100 mg L −1 did not greatly impair removal efficiency. A kinetic investigation revealed that the reaction followed a pseudo-second order rate model. The optimal conditions under which 99.2% of boron was removed from treated wastewater with 10 mg L −1 -B, leaving less than 0.1 mg L −1 -B in the electrolyte, were pH 8 and 1.25 mA cm −2 for 120 min. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensively industrial applications and ever-accelerated anthropogenic activities have resulted in the dramatic accumulation of Sb 2 O 3 contaminant in the environment, leading to adverse health effects on humans and ecosystems. Although arsenite has been subjected to numerous studies and ArsR-based whole-cell biosensors have been successfully applied in field testing of arsenite, there is limited information on the biological recognition element of Sb 2 O 3 and its actual application in biosensor construction and environmental monitoring. In this study, we identified a specific recognition element of Sb 2 O 3 , SxArsR, in Sphingobium xenophagum C1 by the induced bioluminescent signal analysis of gene expression in response to Sb 2 O 3 exposure. Compared to the other four groups of characterized ArsRs, the novel SxArsR lacks the third cysteine residue for binding of arsenite and has a conserved histidine-cysteine "HCXC" binding site that directly and specifically binds for Sb 2 O 3. Sb 2 O 3 can remove SxArsR from the core operator/promoter binding sequence in the −79 region upstream of the start codon of sxarsR. Based on the specificity of SxArsR protein and the sensitivity of SxArsR-binding DNA sequence, SxArsR-based whole-cell biosensor was constructed and showed a linear relationship (R 2 = 0.99) from 0.01 to 6.0 μM of Sb 2 O 3 with a detection limit of 0.01 μM. The novel bacterial biosensor also exhibited a good performance in the detection of Sb 2 O 3 in environmental water and sediment samples. Overall, SxArsR-based biosensor represents a promising strategy for Sb 2 O 3 detection and may have a profound impact on further practical application of ArsR biosensor in the dual-signal simultaneous detection of arsenite and Sb 2 O 3. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Animal and human studies have suggested that phthalate alters thyroid hormone concentrations. This study investigated the associations between phthalate exposure during the first trimester and thyroid hormones in pregnant women and their newborns. Pregnant women were enrolled from the prospective Ma’anshan Birth Cohort study in China. A standard questionnaire was completed by the women at the first antenatal visit. Seven phthalate metabolites were measured in one-spot urine at enrolment (10.0 ± 2.1 gestational weeks), as were thyroid hormone levels in maternal and cord sera. Multivariable linear regression showed that 1-standard deviation (SD) increase in natural log (ln)-transformed mono(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP) and mono(2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (MEHHP) was associated with 0.163 μg/dL ( p = 0.001) and 0.173 μg/dL ( p = 0.001) decreases in maternal total thyroxine (TT 4 ). Both MEHP and MEHHP were negatively associated with maternal free thyroxine (FT 4 ; β: −0.013, p < 0.001 and β: −0.011, p = 0.001, respectively) and positively associated with maternal thyroid-stimulating hormone (β: 0.101, p < 0.001; β: 0.132, p < 0.001, respectively). An inverse association was observed between monobenzyl phthalate and maternal TT 4 and FT 4 . A 1-SD increase in ln-transformed monoethyl phthalate was inversely associated with maternal TT 4 (β: −0.151, p = 0.002). By contrast, the concentrations of phthalate metabolites in urine were not associated with those of thyroid hormone in cord serum. Our analysis suggested that phthalate exposure during the first trimester disrupts maternal thyroid hormone levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the consideration of energy conservation and emission reduction, Warm Mix Asphalt (WMA) is used in construction and foamed asphalt is a common agent in WMA. The objective of this paper is to explore the foaming mechanism and distribution law of asphalt and its components, as well as its basic properties. The expansion rate and half-life were used to describe the foaming properties of the foamed asphalt and to determine the optimum water content. The microscopic images were aided to study morphological changes in the foamed asphalt. Moreover, Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations were widely used in the study of asphalt materials such as self-healing, interfacial behaviors, and mechanical properties. Based on intermolecular interactions, energies, and trajectories, the mechanism and performance of foamed asphalt can also be investigated. The molecular model of the foamed asphalt was established, and the foaming process of the foamed asphalt was discussed based on the perspectives of the energy, density, and intermolecular agglomerations. The simulation results can be a valuable reference for industry and fundamental research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

β-thalassemia is associated with multiple hematological and cerebrovascular symptoms linked to a hypercoagulable state that has not been fully replicated in animal models for the development of stroke treatments. Herein we compared the physiological properties and responses to transient cerebral hypoxia-ischemia (tHI) between six-month-old wildtype and heterozygous Th3/+ mice, a model of non-transfusion-dependent β-thalassemia intermedia (β-TI). We found that Th3/+ mice developed microcytic anemia, splenomegaly, higher platelet counts, and increased platelet-erythrocyte plus erythrocyte-leukocyte aggregates. Furthermore, Th3/+ mice showed diminished cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) and cortical oxygen saturation under repetitive hypercapnic challenges. When subjected to a sub-threshold tHI insult, platelets and leukocytes in Th3/+ mice adhered to the cerebrovascular wall or formed aggregates, while their counterparts flew through smoothly in wildtype mice. Subsequently, Th3/+ mice showed increased fibrin deposition around cerebral blood vessels and larger infarction than wildtype mice, especially in female Th3/+ mice. Collectively these results showed that Th3/+ mice mimic key clinical features and a propensity to thromboembolism in β-TI patients. The hypercoagulable state in Th3/+ mice is likely caused by multiple hematological and CVR anomalies that are similar, but are not identical to those in the mouse model of sickle cell anemia. As such, we suggest that Th3/+ mice are a useful model to study the pathological mechanisms and prophylactic stroke treatments in thalassemia patients. • Th3/+ mice show platelet- and erythrocyte-aggregation and a hypercoagulable state. • Th3/+ mice show hematological anomalies typical for β-thalassemia intermedia. • Th3/+ mice show accelerated cerebral blood flow and impaired CVR to hypercapnia. • Th3/+ mice show increased sensitive to cerebral hypoxia/ischemia-induced thrombosis. • Th3/+ mice are a useful model to develop therapies of thrombosis in thalassemia patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objectives of this research are to use micro- and nanomaterials to modify the asphalt mixture and to evaluate the mechanical performance of asphalt mixtures. These micro- and nanomaterials, including carbon microfiber, Nanomer material, nanosilica, nonmodified nanoclay, and polymer modified nanoclay, were selected to blend with the control asphalt to improve the overall performance of the modified asphalt binders and mixtures. The microstructures of original materials and asphalt binders were observed by the field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM). The mixture performance tests were employed to evaluate the resistance to rutting and permanent deformation of the modified asphalt mixtures. Test results indicate that (1) the dynamic modulus of micro- and nanomodified asphalt mixtures improved significantly; (2) the rutting susceptibility of the modified asphalt mixtures was reduced significantly compared to that of the control asphalt mixture; (3) the microstructures of modified asphalt binders were different from the control asphalt, and the structures determine the improvement in the performance of modified asphalt mixtures. These results indicate that the addition of micro- and nanomaterials enhanced the rutting performance and strength of asphalt mixtures. In addition, the analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze the modifying effects of micro- and nanomaterials on the performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Induced neural stem cells (iNSCs) can be directly transdifferentiated from somatic cells. One potential clinical application of the iNSCs is for nerve regeneration. However, it is unknown whether iNSCs function in disease models. We produced transdifferentiated iNSCs by conditional overexpressing Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, c-Mycin mouse embryonic fibroblasts. They expanded readily in vitro and expressed NSC mRNA profile and protein markers. These iNSCs differentiated into mature astrocytes, neurons and oligodendrocytes in vitro. Importantly, they reduced lesion size, promoted the recovery of motor and sensory function as well as metabolism status in middle cerebral artery stroke rats. These iNSCs secreted nerve growth factors, which was associated with observed protection of neurons from apoptosis. Furthermore, iNSCs migrated to and passed through the lesion in the cerebral cortex, where Tuj1+ neurons were detected. These findings have revealed the function of transdifferentiated iNSCs in vivo, and thus provide experimental evidence to support the development of personalized regenerative therapy for CNS diseases by using genetically engineered autologous somatic cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The risk of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infection is often affected by polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) metabolism which is strongly influenced by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the PUFA metabolic pathway. Given this, we designed this study to determine the relationship between specific polymorphisms within fatty acid desaturase 2 (FADS2), a key enzyme in PUFA metabolism, and CHB infection. We completed this evaluation using a case–control study comprising 230 CHB patients and 234 unrelated healthy controls in which the genetic relationships between three previously identified SNPs, isolated via mass spectrometry, and CHB infection. Our data revealed that none of these three SNPs (rs174568, rs174601, and rs2727270) were significantly associated with susceptibility to CHB infection when compared to healthy controls. However, when we stratified our cohort by sex, male subjects with the TC genotype for FADS2 exhibited a decreased risk for CHB infection (OR = 0.62, 95%CI = 0.39–0.96; OR = 0.64, 95%CI = 0.41–1.00; OR = 0.57, 95%CI = 0.36–0.90). Furthermore, age stratification revealed that both the T allele and the TC genotypes for each of the three target SNPs were less common in Chinese CHB cases in people younger than 50 years old. Correlation analysis also revealed that there was no statistically significant relationship between these three SNPs and HBV-DNA replication or hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) levels. Thus, our data suggests that rs174568, rs174601, and rs2727270 may affect the CHB outcomes in various age or sex subgroups, suggesting that they may be useful predictive or diagnostic biomarkers of CHB infection in some populations. • 3 SNPs in FADS2 (rs174568, rs174601 and rs2727270) were associated with the risk of CHB in Chinese male population. • 3 SNPs in FADS2 were associated with the risk of CHB in Chinese people younger than 50 years old. • 3 SNPs in FADS2 and HBV-DNA load or HBsAg levels in CHB patients was no significant correlation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to explore cervical carcinoma and screen a suitable gene as the biomarker used for prognosis evaluation as well as pain therapy. Low expression levels of solute carrier family 24 member 3 (SLC24A3) was involved in the appearance and development of numerous malignancies. Nevertheless, the prognostic value of SLC24A3 expression with cervical squamous cell carcinoma and endocervical adenocarcinoma (CESC) patients remains uncertain. During the present study, SLC24A3 expression in CESC was retrieved from TCGA, GEO, and MSigDB databases. Based on TCGA and GEO profiles, we performed survival and difference analyses about SLC24A3 both in two GEO (GSE44001 and GSE63514) and TCGA-CESC cohorts (all p < 0.05), indicating that SLC24A3 was low expressed in tumors and associated with higher overall survival in CESC patients. Additionally, we programmed a series of analyses, including genomic profiling, enrichment analysis, immune infiltration analysis, and therapy-related analysis to identify the mechanism of the SLC24A3 in the process of cancer in CESC. Meanwhile, qRT-PCR was used to validate that the expression of SLC24A3 mRNA in Hela and SiHa cell lines was significantly lower than in PANC-1 and HUCEC cell lines. Our finding elucidated that the SLC24A3, a sodium-calcium regulator of cells, is an indispensable factor which can significantly influence the prognosis of patients with CESC and could provide novel clinical evidence to serve as a potential biological indicator for future diagnosis and pain therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]