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The S-box based on LUT is widely used in the reconfigurable block cipher. It is not efficient in area for the expended resources. In this paper, the Hierarchy LUT architecture based on 4R/1W memory unit is proposed to compose the reconfigurable S-box. The 4R/1W can reduce the numbers of the storage unit in the reconfigurable S-box. The proposed Hierarchy LUT is applicable for different sets of ciphers and it is implemented under 40 nm CMOS technology to compare with similar work. The comparison result shows that the proposed Hierarchy LUT gains 6.88% to 51.76% resource efficiency improvement.

The gearbox vibration signal contains nonlinear impact characteristics, and the significant feature information tends to be overwhelmed with other interference components. Aiming at the key issue of how to effectively extract its impact characteristics, a fault diagnosis method based on an improved extreme symmetric mode decomposition (ESMD) and support vector machine (SVM) as well as a dynamics model of spur bevel gear for investigating typically gearbox fault mechanism is proposed. In this method, the vibration signal is adaptively decomposed into multiple IMF components by the improved ESMD, and then a certain number of components are selected with the maximum kurtosis-envelope spectrum index. Meanwhile, the singular values of each selected IMF are extracted to construct the feature vector set, which is input into the SVM for the fault pattern recognition finally. Dynamic simulation and gearbox experimental research show that the improved ESMD-SVM method can extract and identify gearbox fault information effectively.

Background Hypertension is closely related to serum uric acid (SUA) level, and often accompanied by thyroid function changes. However, there are few reports on the relationship between thyroid hormone level and hyperuricemia (HUA) in euthyroid hypertensive patients. Objective To explore the correlation between serum thyroid hormone level and HUA in euthyroid individuals with essential hypertension (EH) . Methods Two hundred and sixty-seven euthyroid patients with EH were retrospectively selected from Department of Cardiology, Xianyang Hospital of Yan'an University from January 2019 to December 2020, including 101 with HUA (combined HUA group) and 166 without HUA (non-HUA group) . The general demographic data and laboratory examination indices of the two groups were compared, including gender, age, body mass index (BMI) , systolic blood pressure (SBP) , diastolic blood pressure (DBP) , smoking history, drinking history, total cholesterol (TC) , triacylglycerol (TG) , high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) , low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) , serum creatinine (Scr) , SUA, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) , free triiodothyronine (FT3) , and free thyroxine (FT4) . Multivariate Logistic regression analysis was used to explore factors associated with HUA. Pearson correlation was used to examine the correlation between thyroid hormone level and SUA level. Results There were significant intergroup differences in gender ratio, mean age, BMI, and DBP, as well as prevalence of smoking history and drinking history (P

ObjectiveTo understand the cooperative work and mechanism in the corona virus disease 2019 containment action by the support-to-Hebei epidemiological investigation group formed by five provinces， summarize the existing challenges， and discuss the relevant mechanism， so as to provide evidence for future support actions.MethodsA questionnaire survey was used to investigate the members from five provinces of the support-to-Hebei epidemiological investigation team. The content included basic information， work situation， problems in cooperative work， and suggestions in support mechanisms.ResultsA total of 104 questionnaires were issued， of which 101 valid questionnaires were collected with an effective response rate of 97.12%. The proportions of respondents who participated in the epidemic-related data preparation， case investigation， technical training， supervision of key venues， and specimen collection was 93.07%， 85.15%， 81.19%， 65.35%， and 44.55%， respectively. The respondents believed that information sharing channel of local epidemic situation was blocked （95.05%）， coordination mechanism among local departments was insufficient （84.16%）， communication and coordination mechanism among the dispatch institutions， support team， and local departments was unperfect （84.16%）， management of the dispatch institutions to the support team was relatively loose （79.21%）， dispatch institutions failed to make full use of professional advantages of the support team （72.28%）， and majority of the support team members engaged in a single profession （59.41%）. The respondents suggested that local departments should improve the information sharing mechanism （95.05%）， strengthen communication and coordination among the dispatch institutions， support team， and local departments （92.08%）， and dispatch institutions should clarify the tasks and responsibilities of the support team （91.09%）， formulate cross-regional emergency support plans （87.13%） and evaluation plans of support action （72.28%）.ConclusionIn order to ensure the efficiency and accuracy of future support actions， it is necessary to improve the mechanism of emergency coordination， communication and matching， response procedures， team management， and support evaluation.

In order to study the pressure relief effect of repeated mining on the cross-stacked protective layer working face, a FLAC3D numerical model was established by taking 15303 and 8123 cross-stacked protective layer working face in Lunan sub-district of Xinjing Mine as the object. The evolution law of plastic zone, in-situ stress and expansion deformation of 3# protected coal seam under the mining condition of 8# single protective layer and the mining condition of 8# and 15# coal seam overlapping protective layer is simulated, and the field test is carried out. The results showed that after the cross-stacked working face mining, the stress state of the protected layer presents a non-uniform distribution state, which can be divided into five areas on the plane, respectively: sufficient pressure relief area, insufficient pressure relief area, weak stress concentration area, strong stress concentration area and original rock stress area; the stress concentration of the protected layer decreases in the overlapping area of the two working faces, while the pressure relief degree increases in the pressure relief area; the stress concentration of the protected layer increases greatly in the four intersection areas where the two working faces cross vertically; the pressure relief effect of cross-stacked working face is obviously better than that of single protective layer mining.

As the depth increases, the ratio of horizontal to vertical stress on the coal rock strata will gradually decrease, which affects the crack propagation behavior around hydro-fracture injection hole. In order to explore the characteristics of hydro-fracture crack turning behavior at different depths, based on the mechanical model and adsorption and desorption model of coal seam, COMSOL was used to analyze the stress distribution and crack initiation pressure around the injection hole at different depths. The results show that at shallow depths, the ratio of horizontal stress to vertical stress is greater than 1, the cracks extend mainly horizontally, and the fracture is more likely to turn when the stress ratio increases. At a deeper depth, the ratio of horizontal stress to vertical stress is less than 1, the cracks extend mainly vertically, and the fracture is more likely to turn when the stress ratio decreases.

In influenza vaccine development, Madin–Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells provide multiple advantages, including large-scale production and egg independence. Several cell-based influenza vaccines have been approved worldwide. We cultured H5N1 virus in a serum-free MDCK cell suspension. The harvested virus was manufactured into vaccines after inactivation and purification. The vaccine effectiveness was assessed in the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products BSL2 facility. The pre- and postvaccination mouse serum titers were determined using the microneutralization and hemagglutination inhibition tests. The immunological responses induced by vaccine were investigated using immunological cell classification, cytokine expression quantification, and immunoglobulin G (IgG) subtype classification. The protective effect of the vaccine in mice was evaluated using challenge test. Antibodies against H5N1 in rats lasted up to 8 months after the first dose. Compared with those of the placebo group, the serum titer of vaccinated mice increased significantly, Th1 and Th2 cells were activated, and CD8+ T cells were activated in two dose groups. Furthermore, the challenge test showed that vaccination reduced the clinical symptoms and virus titer in the lungs of mice after challenge, indicating a superior immunological response. Notably, early after vaccination, considerably increased interferon-inducible protein-10 (IP-10) levels were found, indicating improved vaccine-induced innate immunity. However, IP-10 is an adverse event marker, which is a cause for concern. Overall, in the case of an outbreak, the whole-virion H5N1 vaccine should provide protection.

Renewable energy is widely used in combined cooling, heating and power (CCHP) systems. This is important for building a low-carbon, flexible, multi-energy complementary energy system. However, coupling different renewable energy sources can have a somewhat differentiated impact on the performance of the system. In this study, an approach combining a long short-term memory (LSTM) network with multiple optimization algorithms is proposed. Comparative performance analysis of CCHP systems coupling solar and wind subsystems is conducted. Firstly, the renewable energy output is predicted by LSTM. Then, the Pareto frontiers of the coupled renewable energy CCHP system are generated by the Non-dominated Genetic Sorting Algorithm. The results are fed into the distance between superior and inferior solution methods to arrive at a decision, completing the multi-objective optimization of the system. Results show that the CCHP system coupling photovoltaic (PV) and solar collector (ST) is superior to the CCHP system coupling photovoltaic-photovoltaic-thermal integrated device. The system performance can be further improved by adding wind turbines to the integrated system coupling PV and ST.

Captive and free-living wildlife serve as significant hosts for Giardia duodenalis. Asiatic black bears, valued for their economic and medicinal importance, are extensively farmed in China and also prevalent in zoos. However, studies on G. duodenalis in these animals in China are limited. Here, 218 feces samples of Asiatic black bears were collected: 36 from a zoo in Heilongjiang Province, and 182 from a farm in Fujian Province. Nested PCR of the SSU rRNA gene, followed by sequencing, was employed to determine the frequency and assemblage distribution of G. duodenalis. Positive samples underwent further analysis through multilocus genotyping (MLG) by amplifying the genes for glutamate dehydrogenase (gdh), β-giardin (bg), and triosephosphate isomerase (tpi). Of the 218 samples, G. duodenalis was detected in 22 cases at the SSU rRNA gene locus, including three from Heilongjiang and 19 from Fujian. Three assemblages were identified: A (n = 1), B (n = 16), and E (n = 2) in Fujian; and B (n = 3) in Heilongjiang. Out of the 22 positive samples, 20, 19, and 9 were effectively amplified and sequenced across the tpi, gdh, and bg loci, respectively. Seven samples were genotyped successfully at all three loci, identifying MLG-B1 (n = 1), MLG-B2 (n = 1), and MLG-B3 (n = 1), MLG-B4 (n = 1), MLG-B5 (n = 2), and MLG-B6 (n = 1) as the six assemblage B MLGs. This study marks the first documentation of G. duodenalis in Asiatic black bears in captivity in Fujian and Heilongjiang. The identification of zoonotic assemblages A and B, along with E, underscores potential public health concerns.

Wild rodents serve as reservoirs for Cryptosporidium and are overpopulated globally. However, genetic data regarding Cryptosporidium in these animals from China are limited. Here, we have determined the prevalence and genetic characteristics of Cryptosporidium among 370 wild rodents captured from three distinct locations in the southern region of Zhejiang Province, China. Fresh feces were collected from the rectum of each rodent, and DNA was extracted from them. The rodent species was identified by PCR amplifying the vertebrate cytochrome b gene. Cryptosporidium was detected by PCR amplification and amplicon sequencing the small subunit of ribosomal RNA gene. Positive samples of C. viatorum and C. parvum were further subtyped by analyzing the 60-kDa glycoprotein gene. A positive Cryptosporidium result was found in 7% (26/370) of samples, involving five rodent species: Apodemus agrarius (36), Niviventer niviventer (75), Rattus losea (18), R. norvegicus (155), and R. tanezumi (86). Their respective Cryptosporidium positive rates were 8.3%, 5.3%, 11.1%, 7.1%, and 7.0%. Sequence analysis confirmed the presence of three Cryptosporidium species: C. parvum (4), C. viatorum (1), and C. muris (1), and two genotypes: Cryptosporidium rat genotype IV (16) and C. mortiferum-like (4). Additionally, two subtypes of C. parvum (IIdA15G1 and IIpA19) and one subtype of C. viatorum (XVdA3) were detected. These results demonstrate that various wild rodent species in Zhejiang were concurrently infected with rodent-adapted and zoonotic species/genotypes of Cryptosporidium, indicating that these rodents can play a role in maintaining and dispersing this parasite into the environment and other hosts, including humans.

Wild rodents are key carriers of various human pathogens, including Blastocystis spp. Our study aimed to assess the prevalence and genetic characteristics of Blastocystis among wild rodents in the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region and Liaoning Province of China. From November 2023 to February 2024, 486 rodents were captured in these regions. Fresh feces were collected from the intestines of each rodent for the isolation of DNA and PCR amplification of the vertebrate cytochrome b (cytb) gene to identify rodent species. Subsequently, PCR analysis and sequencing of the partial small subunit of the ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene were utilized to detect Blastocystis in all fecal samples. Of the total samples, 27.4% (133/486) were found to be Blastocystis positive. The results revealed the presence of four species of rodents infected with Blastocystis, 32.3% (63/195) in Rattus norvegicus, 15.1% (16/106) in Mus musculus, 20.2% (18/89) in Apodemus agrarius, and 37.5% (36/96) in Cricetulus barabensis. Sequence analysis confirmed the existence of five Blastocystis subtypes: ST1 (n = 4), ST2 (n = 2), the ST4 (n = 125, the dominant subtype), ST10 (n = 1), and a novel ST (n = 1). The identified zoonotic subtypes (ST1, ST2, ST4, and ST10) highlight the possible role played by wild rodents in the transmission of Blastocystis to humans, thereby elevating the chances of human infection. Meanwhile, the discovery of novel sequences also provides new insights into the genetic diversity of this parasite.

The combustion of biomass fuel boilers not only produces inorganic pollutants such as carbon oxides, nitrogen oxides, sulfur compounds, but also organic pollutants such as VOCs and PAHs, which directly affect the global biogeochemical cycle and atmospheric changes. Compared with foreign countries, there is relatively less research and related standards on the emission of organic pollutants from biomass fuel boilers in China. Therefore, it is necessary to study the emission characteristics of organic pollutants from biomass boilers, which can provide reference for the establishment of organic pollutant emission standards for biomass fuel boilers in China.The emission characteristics of volatile organic compounds(VOCs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) organic pollutants in the flue gas of three typical biomass-fired boilers in Chongqing were studied, and the emission concentrations of particulate matter, sulfur dioxides(SO2), and nitrogen oxides(NOX) were measured.The results show that the sulfur dioxide emissions from the three types of biomass-fired boilersrs are lower than the local standards in Chongqing, while nitrogen oxides and particulate matter have a phenomenon of exceeding the emission limits of the local standards in Chongqing. The main components of VOCs emitted from biomass powder and biomass particle combustion are OVOCs and aromatic hydrocarbons, while the main components of VOCs emitted from wood biomass combustion are alkynes. The gas-solid distribution pattern of PAHs during the combustion of three types of biomass is basically consistent. Low ring PAHs are mainly enriched in the gas phase, while medium and high ring PAHs are mainly enriched in particulate matter.

In order to improve air quality and reduce haze, Chongqing has raised the nitrogen oxide emission requirements of gas industrial boilers, reduced the emission limits, and promoted a large number of low-nitrogen transformations of industrial boilers in Chongqing. In this paper, the main generation mechanism of nitrogen oxides and different technical schemes of low nitrogen transformation were introduced. Six representative industrial boilers were selected to carry out low nitrogen transformation based on FGR technology, and nitrogen oxide emission under the reference oxygen content, smoke exhaust temperature, thermal efficiency and actual output of boilers before and after the transformation were compared and tested. The test results show that the actual output of industrial boilers can be reduced and the energy consumption of boilers can be increased by using FGR low nitrogen technology.

Blastocystis sp., a significant zoonotic parasite with a global distribution, was the focus of this study, which aimed to investigate its prevalence and genetic diversity among diarrheic and asymptomatic children in Wenzhou, China. We collected 1,032 fecal samples from Yuying Children’s Hospital, Wenzhou, China, comprising 684 from children with diarrhea and 348 from asymptomatic children. Genomic DNA extracted from these samples was used to detect Blastocystis spp. by PCR, targeting the small subunit ribosomal RNA gene. Subsequently, a phylogenetic tree was constructed, applying the maximum likelihood method. Blastocystis spp. were detected in 67 (6.5%) of the fecal samples. The prevalence rate of Blastocystis spp. in diarrheic children (8.8%; 60/684) was significantly higher than that in asymptomatic children (2.0%; 7/348) (χ 2 = 17.3, p

Tailings from gold mines gradually approach ultra-fine, making mine backfill costs higher and strength lower, which poses a serious threat to the safety of underground personnel and equipment. It is well known that suitable chemical admixtures can enhance the working properties of mortar materials. Therefore, in order to achieve the purpose of reducing the cost of ultra-fine tailings backfill and improving the working performance of ultra-fine tailings filling slurry, this paper provides a study on the effect of sodium silicate and calcium chloride on the properties of ultra-fine tailings cemented backfill materials. The results of experimental studies through rheology, strength, and microstructural tests, etc., showed that the optimal proportioning parameters of cementitious materials are 76.92% blast furnace slag, 19.24% carbide slag, and admixtures of 2.88% sodium silicate and 0.96% calcium chloride. The 3, 7, and 28-day uniaxial compressive strength of the ultra-fine tailings cemented paste backfill with the newly formulated blast furnace slag-based cementitious material increased by 124%, 142%, and 14%, respectively, compared to that of the ultra-fine tailings cemented paste backfill with the P. O42.5 cement. The setting time for ultra-fine tailings cemented backfill slurry is shortened by the addition of admixtures, and the shear stress of the slurry is correlated with the amount of hydration product generation and its formation of flocculating structure. Moreover, the cost of the newly prepared cementitious material is much lower than that of traditional cement, which lays a good foundation for the cemented filling of ultra-fine tailings.

This paper addresses the issue of underutilized software test data in current aerospace software quality management. Through analyzing the current third-party software evaluation process, the paper proposes to optimize software evaluation process and management to enhance software development quality and software test quality. The paper proposes an aerospace software quality improvement framework based on software test data analysis, which provides a reference scheme for aerospace software quality management. Overall, the paper emphasizes the importance of software test data analysis in improving aerospace software quality and provides a comprehensive solution for addressing problems identified in aerospace software quality management.

Germination can improve the level of the free amino acid, and further improve the nutritious value of the foxtail millet. However, the effect of germination temperature and time on them is still unclear. The free amino acid of the germinated foxtail millet has been analyzed at different germination temperatures (20, 25, 30, 35, and 40 ℃) and time (0, 6, 12, 18, 24, and 30 h). Results reveal that 21 components of free amino acids increased. The lower temperature or higher temperature is not suitable for the accumulation of the free amino acid. The free amino acids increase to the maximum at the germination temperature of 30 ℃ for 30 h. The total free amino acids and total essential free amino acids can reach (810.7±69.0) and (367.8± 30.2) mg/100g, respectively. Among the amino acids, the contents of alanine and threonine increase to the highest level. The alanine has increased to (120.0±12.0) and (115.0±14.0) mg/100g at the temperature of 30 and 35 ℃, respectively. The threonine has increased to (106.0±1.0) mg/100g at the temperature of 35 ℃. The γ-aminobutyric acid reaches the maximum level at the germination temperature of 35 ℃ and reaches (60.1±1.8) mg/100g. In conclusion, the germination can promote the increase of the free amino acid and adjust the nutrition of the foxtail millet, and the germinated foxtail millet is a potential source for functional food.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can improve plant tolerance to heavy metal stress in terrestrial ecosystems. However, in wetland ecosystems, AMF can improve the tolerance of wetland plants to heavy metals by changing the structure and composition of rhizosphere bacterial communities, which is still rarely studied. In this study, we investigated the effects of AMF on the structure and composition of bacterial communities in the rhizosphere of plants under different chromium concentrations. The results showed that Cr(Ⅵ) concentration in Acorus calamus. rhizosphere soil decreased by 12.6 % (5.6–21.7 %) on average after AMF inoculation, At the same time, it promoted the uptake of nutrients by A. calamus and increased soil carbon input. In addition, Cr stress decreased the bacterial community diversity and abundance index by 9.8 % (1.6–18.1 %) and 24.5 % (17.3–27.6 %) on average. On the contrary, the rhizosphere soil bacterial diversity and abundance index increased by 7.3 % (2.2–19.1 %) and 13.9 % (6.0–20.9 %) on average after AMF inoculation. Moreover, compared with the non-inoculated AMF group, the bacterial community structure of A. calamus rhizosphere changed by 24.6 % under Cr stress, The common number of species increased by 6.4 %. In addition, after inoculation of AMF significantly promote the growth of a large number of bacteria related to organic degradation, plant growth, and oxidative stress, increased soil carbon input improved the soil microenvironment. Meanwhile, After AMF inoculation, the Number of edges, Number of Nodes, Average degree, and Average Path length in the symbiotic network of rhizosphere soil bacterial community increased by 34.6 %, 10 %, 44.3 %, and 26.4 %, respectively. Therefore, it offers a possibility that AMF can enhance the tolerance of wetland plants to soil Cr pollution by improving the structure and composition of bacterial communities in the rhizosphere soils of wetland plants, which provide a basis for wetland plants to repair soil Cr pollution.

BACKGROUND Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) have been extensively studied in recent years due to their persistence, bioaccumulation and toxicity. However, most of the studies are concentrated in surface water with high concentration of PFCs in rivers, sewage and lakes, while few studies explore the status of PFCs pollution in groundwater. OBJECTIVES To investigate the content, distribution and ecological risk of typical PFCs compounds in groundwater in the reclaimed water irrigation area of Beijing. METHODS 52 groundwater samples were collected from the reclaimed water irrigation area in May to June 2020 and were analyzed by solid phase extraction and high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). RESULTS The results showed that 10 target PFCs including perfluorocarboxylic acid (PFCAs) and perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSAs) were detected in groundwater in Beijing, with a concentration of 1.07-24.19ng/L. Among them, the highest detected concentration of perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and perfluorobutane sulfonate (PFBS) averaged 2.94ng/L, 2.88ng/L and 1.15ng/L, respectively. The concentration of ∑PFCs in this study was relatively low compared to the groundwater from the fluorochemical industrial park, which was related to the mostly farmland location of the observation wells in the study area. After observing the performance of PFCs in shallow wells (< 50m) and deep wells (>50m), it was found that the concentration of PFCs decreased significantly with increasing well depth. In addition, in view of the spatial distribution of groundwater PFCs in the whole region, the concentration of groundwater PFCs around the landfill was significantly high and decreased with increasing distance from the landfill, indicating that the landfill had a certain contribution to the pollution of surrounding groundwater PFCs. CONCLUSIONS By calculating the risk quotient of PFOA, perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and PFBA, the landfill has not posed an ecological risk to the surrounding environment. However, in view of the concealment and persistence of groundwater PFCs, it is recommended to carry out continuous regular monitoring and evaluation.

Objective To investigate the effects of hypoxia inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) on the brain injury of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) mice. Methods Eighty-one C57BL/6 mice aged 5 d were randomly divided into 4 groups: Control group (CON, n=15, breastfed, in cages with their mothers), NEC group (n=24, fed in an incubator, with formula milk+hypoxia+oral lipopolysaccharide to induce NEC mouse model), DMOG group (n=19, given HIF-1α stabilizer DMOG on the base of NEC model), and 2ME2 group (n=23, given HIF-1α inhibitor 2ME2 on the base of NEC model). The mortality of mice was recorded during modeling. All mice were sacrificed in 4 d after modeling, and the intestinal pathological features of mice were observed by HE staining. Western blotting and immunohistochemical assay were performed respectively to detect the expression of HIF-1α protein in brain tissue and the numbers of activated microglia, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes in the hippocampus. The mRNA levels of inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and TNF-α were determined by RT-qPCR in brain tissue. Results As compared with the CON group, the mice of the NEC group showed intestinal tract damage, increased activated microglia (0.80±0.75 vs 4.00±0.63, P < 0.05) and astrocytes (P < 0.05) in the hippocampus, decreased number of oligodendrocytes (64.40±7.26 vs 45.60±2.80, P < 0.05), and higher levels of TNF-α, IL-1β and HIF-1α (P < 0.05). After intraperitoneal injection of HIF-1α stabilizer DMOG, the survival rate of mice in the DMOG group was increased (66.67% vs 84.21%, P < 0.05), and the intestinal injury was reduced. The activation of microglia (4.00±0.63 vs 1.60±0.49, P < 0.05) and astrocytes (P < 0.05) was inhibited, while the number of oligodendrocytes was elevated (45.60±2.80 vs 56.00±5.22, P < 0.05), and the expression of TNF-α and IL-1β was down-regulated (P < 0.05). However, intraperitoneal injection of HIF-1α inhibitor 2ME2 resulted in opposite outcomes. Conclusion HIF-1α is protectively up-regulated in the brain of NEC mice, and its stable and high expression reduces the neuroinflammation in the brain of NEC mice, exerting a protective effect on the brain.

Echinococcus granulosus causes echinococcosis, an important zoonotic disease worldwide and a major public health issue. Vaccination is an economical and practical approach for controlling E. granulosus. We have previously revealed that a recombinant protein P29 (rEg.P29) is a good vaccine candidate against E. granulosus. However, T cell immunogenic epitopes have not been identified. In the present study, we use rEg.P29-immunized mice as models to screen immunogenic epitopes for the construction of a novel multi-epitope vaccine. We search for immunodominant epitopes from an overlapping peptide library to screen the peptides of rEg.P29. Our results confirm that rEg.P29 immunization in mice elicits the activation of T cells and induces cellular immune responses. Further analyses show that a T cell epitope within amino acids 86–100 of rEg.P29 elicits significant antigen-specific IFN-γ production in CD4+ and CD8+ T cells and promotes specific T-cell activation and proliferation. Collectively, these results provide a reference for the construction of a novel vaccine against broad E. granulosus genotypes based on epitopes of rEg.P29.

The streak tubes are widely used in National Ignition Facility (NIF), Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF), and streak tube imaging lidar (STIL) as radiation or imaging detectors. The spatial resolution and effective photocathode area of the streak tube are strongly dependent on its operating and geometry parameters (electron optical structure and applied voltage). Studies about this dependence do not cover the full range of the parameters. In this paper, 3-D models are developed in Computer Simulation Technology Particle Studio (CST-PS) to comprehensively calculate the spatial resolution for various parameters. Monte Carlo Sampling method (M-C method) and spatial modulation transfer function method (SMTF) are employed in our simulation. Simulated results of the optimized spatial resolution are validated by the experimental data. Finally, the radii of the photocathode (Rc) and phosphor screen (Rs) are optimized. Geometry parameters of Rc=60 mm and Rs=80 mm are proposed to optimize the streak tube performances. Simulation and experimental results show that the spatial resolution and effective photocathode area of this streak tube are expected to reach 16 lp/mm and 30 mm-length while the voltage between cathode and grid (Ucg) is 150 V.

Three-dimensional (3D) printing technology has the advantages of fast design and fabrication in clinical orthopedics. This study proposed the application of 3D-printed personalized reverse shoulder prosthesis in a reverse total shoulder arthroplasty for a patient with tuberculosis of the shoulder joint. Traditional and personalized shoulder prostheses were compared and studied. The mechanical simulation analysis was conducted on the individualized prosthesis and scapula. A personalized reverse total shoulder prosthesis was fabricated by 3D printing technology. Finite element analyses were conducted for implantation of traditional and personalized prostheses. The numerical results show that the maximum equivalent stress of screws inserted into bone tissue is 43.23 MPa in the personalized prosthesis. But in traditional prostheses, the maximum equivalent stress of screws performing the same function is 246.50 MPa. The structural advantages of the personalized prosthesis effectively reduce the local pressure of the screws to ensure the safety and effectiveness of the material during service. At the same time, the scapula paired with the personalized prosthesis also shown a smaller mean equivalent stress that can reduce patient stress. The postoperative evaluation of implant stability and patient status was good. The results indicated that 3D printing technology has important application value in orthopedic surgery.

Pyroptosis is a kind of cell necrosis mediated by inflammasomes. The caspase 1-induced cleavage of gasdermin D (GSDMD) is a canonical pathway to cause membrane pores and eventually cell pyroptosis. Poly-l-lysine (PLL) is widely used to enhance cell adhesion during experiments. Human THP-1 cells are a typical cell line used to study pyroptosis due to their monocytic and macrophage-like characteristics. However, it was found that THP-1 cells seeded on the PLL-coated slides died. To figure out the reason, we observed the morphology of THP-1 cells on PLL-coated slides, which showed obvious pore forming on the cell membranes and cell swelling. The indicated pyroptosis-related protein expression was evaluated and it showed that the conventional caspase-1 pathway of pyroptosis was activated through the NLRP3 inflammasome in THP-1 monocytes on the PLL-coated slides. Hence, PLL-guided cell adhesion induces cell pyroptosis in THP-1 monocytes, which calls for THP-1 dominant studies of pyroptosis to avoid the use of PLL-coated slides or PLL-related drugs.

Abstract Background Risk perception among nurses after the COVID-19 pandemic is a crucial factor affecting their attitudes and willingness to work in clinics. Those with poor psychological status could perceive risks sensitively as fears or threats that are discouraging. This article aimed to determine whether psychological outcomes, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, and insomnia, following the COVID-19 pandemic were differentially related to the risk perceptions of nurses working in clinics and increased perceived risk. Method The participants were 668 nurse clinicians from five local hospitals. Risk perceptions and psychological outcomes were measured by adapted questionnaires via the Internet. Latent profile analysis (LPA) identified subgroups of individuals who showed similar profiles regarding the perceived risks in nursing. Multinomial regression and probit regression were used to examine the extent to which sociodemographic and psychological outcomes predicted class membership. Results LPA revealed four classes: groups with low-, mild-, moderate-, and high-level risk perceptions. Membership of the high-level risk perception class was predicted by the severity of psychological outcomes. Anxiety significantly accounted for a moderate increase in risk perceptions, while the symptoms of insomnia, depression, and PTSD accelerated the increase to the high level of risk perception class. Conclusions By classifying groups of nurse clinicians sharing similar profiles regarding risk perceptions and then exploring associated predictors, this study shows the psychological outcomes after COVID-19 significantly impacted pandemic-associated risk perceptions and suggests intervening in nurses' psychological outcomes while simultaneously focusing on work-related worries is important following the outbreak of COVID-19.

Abstract Background Automated ICD coding on medical texts via machine learning has been a hot topic. Related studies from medical field heavily relies on conventional bag-of-words (BoW) as the feature extraction method, and do not commonly use more complicated methods, such as word2vec (W2V) and large pretrained models like BERT. This study aimed at uncovering the most effective feature extraction methods for coding models by comparing BoW, W2V and BERT variants. Methods We experimented with a Chinese dataset from Fuwai Hospital, which contains 6947 records and 1532 unique ICD codes, and a public Spanish dataset, which contains 1000 records and 2557 unique ICD codes. We designed coding tasks with different code frequency thresholds (denoted as $$f_s$$ f s ), with a lower threshold indicating a more complex task. Using traditional classifiers, we compared BoW, W2V and BERT variants on accomplishing these coding tasks. Results When $$f_s$$ f s was equal to or greater than 140 for Fuwai dataset, and 60 for the Spanish dataset, the BERT variants with the whole network fine-tuned was the best method, leading to a Micro-F1 of 93.9% for Fuwai data when $$f_s=200$$ f s = 200 , and a Micro-F1 of 85.41% for the Spanish dataset when $$f_s=180$$ f s = 180 . When $$f_s$$ f s fell below 140 for Fuwai dataset, and 60 for the Spanish dataset, BoW turned out to be the best, leading to a Micro-F1 of 83% for Fuwai dataset when $$f_s=20$$ f s = 20 , and a Micro-F1 of 39.1% for the Spanish dataset when $$f_s=20$$ f s = 20 . Our experiments also showed that both the BERT variants and BoW possessed good interpretability, which is important for medical applications of coding models. Conclusions This study shed light on building promising machine learning models for automated ICD coding by revealing the most effective feature extraction methods. Concretely, our results indicated that fine-tuning the whole network of the BERT variants was the optimal method for tasks covering only frequent codes, especially codes that represented unspecified diseases, while BoW was the best for tasks involving both frequent and infrequent codes. The frequency threshold where the best-performing method varied differed between different datasets due to factors like language and codeset.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to explore the effect and mechanism of Si-Miao-Yong-An decoction (SMYAD) on diabetic foot by simulating the microenvironment of diabetic foot in vitro, and further verify these results using bioinformatics analysis technology, in order to provide a basis for the treatment of diabetic foot with traditional Chinese medicine. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were cultured under hypoxia to simulate the microcirculation of diabetic foot. Then, these were administered with SMYAD for intervention. Afterward, the cell viability was detected by MTT assay, the apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry, and the STAT3 signaling pathway and Bcl-2 and Bax protein expression were detected by Western blot. Next, TCMSP was used to determine the chemical composition and target gene information of the SMYAD, and the GeneCards database was used to search for the disease-related target gene information of diabetic foot. Furthermore, the Venny 2.1 online software was used to screen and obtain the drug–disease common target genes for the SMYAD and diabetic foot. The common target genes were entered into the STRING database for retrieval, in order to construct the network diagram for protein-related action, and the R software was used to analyze the pathway enrichment, in order to explore the mechanism of the SMYAD in the treatment of diabetic foot microcirculation. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the SMYAD increased the activity of HUVECs cultured in the hypoxia state but decreased the apoptosis rate. Furthermore, the protein expression of p-STAT3 and Bcl-2 increased, and the protein expression of Bax decreased (P < 0.05). A total of 235 drug-related target genes were found by screening, and 4553 target genes related to diabetic foot were obtained. The Venny software analysis revealed that there were 171 drug–disease interaction target genes. The STRING database and the GO and KEGG functional enrichment analysis revealed that STAT3, AKT, MAPK, and other proteins were involved, and that these may be correlated to the mechanism of the SMYAD in the treatment of diabetic foot microcirculation. CONCLUSION: SMYAD can affect the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax genes by regulating the activity of the STAT3 signaling pathway, playing a role in the treatment of diabetic foot.

Uterine leiomyoma (ULM) is a kind of gene-involved benign tumor, which is located in the front of female reproductive tract. It is one of the most common reproductive tract tumors in women, which leads to abnormal menstruation, repeated pregnancy loss, and other serious gynecological diseases. Recently, microRNAs (miRNAs) have attracted much more attention in the process of exploring the molecular mechanisms of tumorigenesis. Furthermore, the deregulated miRNAs had been reported to play important roles in ULM pathology.

Severely chronic dermal wounds with irregular rupture shapes or even cavities are calling for injectable and self-biodegradable wound dressings for skin lesion with complex contours remain a great challenge. Here, we report an injectable, self-biodegradable poly(aspartic acid)-l-poly(aspartyl hydrazide) (PASP-l-PAHy) hydrogel to address these issues. The starting materials were cheap, and the new strategy for fabrication of self-biodegradable poly(aspartic acid) based hydrogel was facile, efficient, mild and environmentally friendly, which is consistent with the concept of green chemistry. The hydrogel possesses the comprehensive merits of injectability, self-biodegradability, shape-adaptability, transparence, biocompatibility, and adhesion, and shows specific autolytic biodegradation. The hydrogel was generated by in-situ gelation of poly(aspartic acid) (PASP) and poly(aspartyl hydrazide) (PAHy) polymers based on dual chemical (amide bond) and physical (hydrogen bond and ionic bond) crosslinks. The acceleration of wound healing could be observed in a rat skin full-thickness wound model for repairing skin tissue defects via hydrogel injection and autolytic biodegradation, highlighting great potential applications in wound dressing for the irregular dermal lesions without secondary skin damage. The injectable and self-biodegradable hydrogel augments formation of blood vessels and mature granulation tissue, thus enabling faster skin tissue restoration outcomes.

IntroductionAbscisic acid (ABA) is an important sesquiterpene compound that regulates the stress resistance of plants. Botrytis cinerea can synthesize ABA via the mevalonic acid pathway. To identify the functional genes that are involved in the biosynthesis of ABA, we performed insertion mutagenesis into B. cinerea TB-31.MethodsWe obtained the ABA-reduced mutant E154 by insertion mutagenesis, and we identified the insertion site was located upstream of the gene bcfrp1 by Thermal asymmetric interlaced PCR. We performed a detailed phenotypic characterization of the bcfrp1 knockout and complementation mutants in TB-31. Furthermore, transcriptome and proteome analyses were conducted to explore how bcfrp1 affects the level of the ABA biosynthesis.ResultsThe bcfrp1 gene encodes an F-box protein. The phenotypic results confirmed the positive contribution of bcfrp1 to the biosynthesis of ABA and growth. Between TB-31 and ΔBcfrp1, we obtained 4,128 and 1,073 differentially expressed genes and proteins, respectively. The impaired ABA biosynthesis in the ΔBcfrp1 mutants was primarily affected by the different levels of expression of the ABA biosynthetic gene cluster and the genes involved in the mevalonic acid pathway. In addition, we further characterized the differentially expressed genes and proteins that participated in the growth, secondary metabolism, and signal transduction in B. cinerea based on the transcriptome and proteome data.DiscussionThis research based on the transcriptome and proteome analyses to display the changes after the deletion of bcfrp1 in B. cinerea TB-31, will help us to explore the molecular mechanism of ABA biosynthesis in B. cinerea.

Streak tubes with large-format and high spatial resolution are central to mm-spatial-resolved STIL detection system and hyperspectral resolved ICF experiment. In this paper, we established a large-format streak tube with a three-coaxial-cylindrical single-lens focusing system, a spherically curved photocathode and phosphor screen model in CST Particle Studio. The temporal and spatial resolution were calculated and mimicked based on the Monte-Carlo sampling method in static and dynamic mode. The simulated results show that the static spatial resolution reaches 50 lp/mm over the whole 50 mm effective photocathode length, and the physical temporal resolution is better than 45 ps. Furthermore, in dynamic working mode, the streak tube can achieve spatial resolution of 10 lp/mm and temporal resolution of 60 ps. The simulation results will be used to guide the design and production for large-format with high spatial resolution streak tube development.

Androgen receptor in prostate cancer (PCa) transcriptionally represses multiple genes including MYC. Here, the authors suggest that increased MYC in response to androgen deprivation contributes to castration-resistant PCa, while decreased MYC may contribute to responses to supraphysiological androgen therapy.

The non-linear influence of urbanization on the PM2.5 concentration and the driving mechanism is an important research topic for ensuring high-quality development of eco-economic zones. Based on the urban panel data for the Yellow River Ecological and Economic Zone from 2010 to 2019, spatial analysis and other methods were used to investigate the temporal and spatial differences, spatial evolution characteristics, and spatial correlation of the PM2.5 concentration in the Yellow River Ecological and Economic Zone. In addition the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) model was used to test the possible EKC relationships. The results showed that ① the PM2.5 concentration in the Yellow River Ecological and Economic Zone varied widely from 2010 to 2019, and the annual average PM2.5 concentration exhibited an overall fluctuating decreasing trend during the study period; ② the PM2.5 concentration in the Yellow River Ecological and Economic Zone exhibited a spatial distribution that was high in the southeastern region and low in the other regions; ③ a positive spatial correlation existed between the PM2.5 concentration and urbanization in the Yellow River Ecological and Economic Zone from 2010 to 2019; and ④ there was an N-type EKC relationship between the PM2.5 pollution and urbanization in the Yellow River Ecological and Economic Zone. This study provides a new perspective for exploring the relationship between the PM2.5 concentration and urbanization, an important reference for achieving environmental protection and sustainable urban development in the Yellow River Ecological and Economic Zone, and guidance for relevant departments to formulate PM2.5 reduction policies.

Cyclopentanone from lignocelluloses is a promising renewable biofuel and can be used as diesel alternative fuel. Cyclopentanone has excellent fuel properties and high intramolecular oxygen content, which has the potential in promoting combustion and reducing emissions. In this study, the effects of blending cyclopentanone with diesel on the combustion and emission of common rail diesel engine were investigated. The novelty of this study is to figure out which blending ratio is the most promising for diesel engine. Cyclopentanone is blended with diesel with 10% and 20% ratio by vol., noted as C10 and C20, respectively. Double injection strategy (pre-injection and main-injection) was adopted in this study. Compared with pure diesel, blending cyclopentanone can prolong the ignition delay, increase the peak heat release rate and increase the peak in-cylinder temperature. The emission tests indicate that blending cyclopentanone can effectively reduce the particle number concentrations (PNC) and particle volume concentrations (PVC) compared to diesel. Further, the number geometric mean diameters (NGMD) of cyclopentanone diesel blend fuels are lower than those of diesel and the reduction increases with cyclopentanone blending ratio. However, a little increase in NOx emission is observed. With the increase of EGR ratio, the NOx emissions of all test fuels decrease obviously, the PNCs and PVCs of diesel and C10 increase. PNCs and PVCs of C20 almost remain unchanged when the EGR ratio is no higher than 8%. Consequently, with 8% EGR ratio, C20 has the best effect in reducing both particle and NOx emissions and it has great potential for application on diesel vehicles.

In order to reveal the fracture development and damage evolution law of marble under the influence of temperature, the deformation and failure characteristics and acoustic emission activity of marble under the conditions of 30, 60, 90, 120 ℃ and 150 ℃ were studied by using triaxial servo testing machine and acoustic emission testing system. The results show that the triaxial compression failure of marble under high temperature goes through four stages: compaction and elastic deformation stage, plastic deformation stage, ductile failure stage and instability failure stage. The higher the test temperature is, the longer the compaction deformation stage and ductile failure stage are, and the rock gradually transforms from elastic brittle failure to elastic-plastic failure. The peak strength, elastic modulus and internal friction angle of marble decrease with the increase of temperature. The acoustic emission activity of rock and the correspondence between AE location and macroscopic crack decrease with the increase of test temperature. By analyzing the characteristics of acoustic emission signal amplitude, impact, ring down count, acoustic emission energy, peak frequency and b value in the damage evolution process of marble, it is found that the amplitude fluctuation of acoustic emission is small and the temperature sensitivity is poor, but the peak frequency and b value parameters can better characterize the crack development inside the rock. The peak frequency has the highest temperature sensitivity, which is favorable as the prediction index of rock failure and instability. In the process of triaxial compression failure, tension-shear composite cracks appear in marble, of which shear cracks are dominant. High temperature inhibits the initiation of internal cracks in rock mass. The higher the test temperature is, the weaker the tensile failure and the stronger the shear failure are. The test results shed light on the study of rock thermal damage mechanism and engineering thermal damage monitoring and prediction.

The surge of negative sequence component of current affects the waveform quality of grid side current and endangers the normal operation of the system when the three-phase voltage of solid state transformer (SST) in the distribution network is unbalanced and harmonic pollution occurs. In order to solve this problem,a new dual-sequence control strategy is proposed to effectively suppress the negative sequence component of current at the input level of SST. In this paper,the operation principle and input level mathematical model of modular multilevel converter-solid-state transformer (MMC-SST) are introduced firstly. The positive and negative sequence components of voltage and current signals at grid side are separated and extracted by improved second-order generalized integral-quadrature signal generator (SOGI-QSG). The mathematical model of proportional complex integral (PCI) controller is established by introducing orthogonal intermediate variables. A new dual-sequence control strategy based on PCI is proposed under the positive and negative sequence model in the two-phase static coordinate system (αβ coordinate system) to control the positive and negative sequence components of the current at grid side. Finally,the simulation system of MMC-SST is built in Matlab/Simulink. Compared with traditional proportional integral (PI) control and improved PI dual-sequence control,the results verify the feasibility and superiority of the proposed dual-sequence control strategy.