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Air traffic complexity indicators play an essential role in measuring operational performance and controller workload. However, current studies mainly depend on the manual scoring method to scale performance or workload. This paper focuses on arrival operations and presents a data-driven strategy to establish the correlation between complexity and performance to avoid the subjectivity of the currently used manual scoring method. Firstly, we present twenty-six indicators for describing air traffic complexity and two indicators for arrival operational performance. Secondly, the clustering method distinguishes peak and off-peak situations for arrival operation. Moreover, clustering results are compared to investigate the correlation between complexity and performance initially. Thirdly, the classification method is adopted to determine such correlation further. In addition, we also identify the affecting factors which could influence operational performance. Finally, trajectories of arrival aircraft landing at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (ZGGG) are used for case validation. The results indicate that there is a strong correlation between complexity and performance. The accuracy and precision of classification are approximately 90%. Furthermore, the number of aircraft significantly impacts the arrival operational performance within TMA.

Highlights The whole bamboo mere made directly into cellulose composites, which greatly reduced massive energy consumption from the mechanical pre-processing process. The wall thickness of transparent whole bamboo can reach 6.23 mm. The modified whole bamboo possesses excellent optical transmittance of about 60% at 6.23 mm, the illuminance of 1000 luminance (lux), water absorption stability (the mass change rate less than 4%), longitudinal tensile strength (46.40 MPa), and surface properties (80.2 HD). The combination of excellent transmittance, mechanical properties, surface properties, thermal performance, and electromagnetic shielding properties makes this composite attractive in areas such as transparent, energy-saving, and electromagnetic shielding buildings.

The transmembrane domains of mammalian cytochrome b5 (cyt b5), cyt b5 reductase (b5R), and stearoyl-CoA desaturase-1 (SCD1) form stable binary complexes between cyt b5/b5R or cyt b5/SCD1 and a ternary complex, which enhance electron transfer rates.

Mechanism of MFI film growth from seed crystals and evolution of defects during the film growth were investigated. The hydrothermal growth of colloidal silicalite-1 crystals of 50 nm on silicon substrate was used to reveal the MFI film formation mechanism at different time intervals using high resolution-transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) and extreme high resolution-scanning electron microscopy (XHR-SEM). It was found that the MFI seeds started to grow in the early stages of hydrothermal treatment from 50 nm to 75 nm in size and connect to the crystals in the vicinity, showing the onset of film formation. The film growth mechanism was led by the sub-colloidal particles in the synthesis solution arriving at the crystal surfaces contributing to the film growth. A continuous film with a thickness of 100 nm was formed after 12 h of hydrothermal treatment containing pinhole defects. Pinhole defects disappeared after 24 h of hydrothermal treatment with a film thickness of 200 nm and grain boundaries thickness of 2 nm were formed. Furthermore, mesoporous defects were found in the grains of the film, which appeared due to the film growth by sub-colloidal particles of synthesis solution. The growth rate of the MFI film was calculated to 0.007 (μm/h) and compared with the crystal growth inside the synthesis solution. Resumen: Se investigó el mecanismo de crecimiento de películas de MFI a partir de cristales semilla y la evolución de los defectos durante el crecimiento de dichas películas. La síntesis hidrotérmica a partir de cristales coloidales de silicalita-1 de 50 nm sobre sustrato de silicio se utilizó para revelar el mecanismo de formación de la película de MFI en diferentes intervalos de tiempo, utilizando microscopía electrónica de transmisión de alta resolución (HR-TEM) y microscopía electrónica de barrido de extrema alta resolución (XHR-SEM). Se observó que las semillas de MFI comenzaron a crecer en las primeras etapas del tratamiento hidrotérmico de 50 a 75 nm de tamaño y se conectaron a los cristales en las cercanías, evidenciando el inicio de la formación de la película. El mecanismo de crecimiento fue dirigido por las partículas subcoloidales en la solución de síntesis que llegaron a las superficies de los cristales, contribuyendo al crecimiento de la película. Se formó una película continua con un espesor de 100 nm después de 12 h de tratamiento hidrotérmico que contenía orificios. Estos desaparecieron después de 24 h de este mismo tratamiento, habiendo alcanzado un espesor de película de 200 nm, y se formaron límites de grano de 2 nm. Además, se encontraron defectos mesoporosos que aparecieron debido al crecimiento de la película a partir de partículas subcoloidales presentes en la solución de síntesis. La tasa de crecimiento de la película de MFI se calculó en 0,007 (μm/h) y se comparó con el crecimiento de cristales dentro de la solución de síntesis.

Abstract With the rapid development of re‐electrification, traditional load forecasting faces a significant increase of influencing factors. Existing literature focuses on examining the influencing factors related to load profiles in order to improve the prediction accuracy. However, a large number of redundant features may lead to the overfitting of the forecasting engine. To enhance the performance of extreme learning machine (ELM) under massive data scale, this paper presents a kernel extreme learning machine (KELM) based method which can be used for short‐term load prediction. First, a feature dimensionality reduction is performed using a kernelized principal component analysis, which aims to eliminate redundant input vectors. Then, the hyperparameters of KELM are optimized to improve the prediction accuracy and generalization. Case studies based on a province‐level power system in China demonstrate that the presented method can significantly improve the accuracy of load forecasting by 3.14% in contrast to traditional ELM.

Abstract Developing ultrabroad radar-infrared compatible stealth materials has turned into a research hotspot, which is still a problem to be solved. Herein, the copper sulfide wrapped by reduced graphene oxide to obtain three-dimensional (3D) porous network composite aerogels (CuS@rGO) were synthesized via thermal reduction ways (hydrothermal, ascorbic acid reduction) and freeze-drying strategy. It was discovered that the phase components (rGO and CuS phases) and micro/nano structure (microporous and nanosheet) were well-modified by modulating the additive amounts of CuS and changing the reduction ways, which resulted in the variation of the pore structure, defects, complex permittivity, microwave absorption, radar cross section (RCS) reduction value and infrared (IR) emissivity. Notably, the obtained CuS@rGO aerogels with a single dielectric loss type can achieve an ultrabroad bandwidth of 8.44 GHz at 2.8 mm with the low filler content of 6 wt% by a hydrothermal method. Besides, the composite aerogel via the ascorbic acid reduction realizes the minimum reflection loss (RLmin) of − 60.3 dB with the lower filler content of 2 wt%. The RCS reduction value can reach 53.3 dB m2, which effectively reduces the probability of the target being detected by the radar detector. Furthermore, the laminated porous architecture and multicomponent endowed composite aerogels with thermal insulation and IR stealth versatility. Thus, this work offers a facile method to design and develop porous rGO-based composite aerogel absorbers with radar-IR compatible stealth.

The Tien Shan and its adjacent areas have been a prime place to understand the process of continental collision, the mechanism of mountain building and the interaction of tectonic blocks. In this study, we collect seismic data recorded by 74 broad-band stations from the China Provincial Digital Seismic Networks and the Regional Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan Networks between January, 2007 and September, 2009. A joint inversion technique that combines three types of datasets (receiver functions, phase velocities of Rayleigh wave measured from both ambient noise and teleseismic earthquake data) is applied to image the crustal and upper mantle structure beneath the Tien Shan and its adjacent areas. The average crustal thickness in the study area is about 50 km, however, the Moho depth extends to ∼70 km beneath the Kyrgyz Platform near the southwestern Tien Shan. Our velocity models show a good correlation with subsurface geological features at shallow depths: low velocities are predominantly observed beneath the basins due to thick sedimentary layer, whereas high velocities are mainly distributed beneath the mountain ranges due to crystalline basement rocks. In the upper mantle a low velocity zone is obviously observed beneath the western Tien Shan. Both the crust thickness and S wave velocity structure of the Tien Shan and its adjacent regions display obvious horizontal and vertical heterogeneities from west to east, which suggests that the far-field effects of the collision between Eurasian plate and Indian plate plays an important role in the tectonic activity of the Tien Shan. The apparent velocity heterogeneities beneath the northern Tarim Basin may indicate that the Tarim Basin may have been eroded and damaged by upwelling hot materials from the upper mantle.

Abstract Highly pathogenic coronavirus (CoV) infection induces a defective innate antiviral immune response coupled with the dysregulated release of proinflammatory cytokines and finally results in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). A timely and appropriate triggering of innate antiviral response is crucial to inhibit viral replication and prevent ARDS. However, current medical countermeasures can rarely meet this urgent demand. Here, an antiviral nanobiologic named CoVR‐MV is developed, which is polymerized of CoVs receptors based on a biomimetic membrane vesicle system. The designed CoVR‐MV interferes with the viral infection by absorbing the viruses with maximized viral spike target interface, and mediates the clearance of the virus through its inherent interaction with macrophages. Furthermore, CoVR‐MV coupled with the virus promotes a swift production and signaling of endogenous type I interferon via deregulating 7‐dehydrocholesterol reductase (DHCR7) inhibition of interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3) activation in macrophages. These sequential processes re‐modulate the innate immune responses to the virus, trigger spontaneous innate antiviral defenses, and rescue infected Syrian hamsters from ARDS caused by SARS‐CoV‐2 and all tested variants.

To understand the shallow structure and complex sedimentary environment of the 2017 Jinghe Ms6.6 earthquake focal area, we used one mouth of continuous sesimic data from a dense seismic array of 208 short period stations around the earthquake focal area, and applied the ambient noise tomography (ANT) method to image the three-dimensional Shear wave velocity structure at the depth less than 4 km. The shear wave velocity shown clear lateral variations and vertical variations from the surface to the deeper regions and has a tight correlation with surface geological and tectonic features in the study area. Obvious low-velocity anomalies has been presented throughout most of the Jinghe depression, whereas the Borokonu Mountains presented high-velocity anomalies. The thickness of the Cenozoic sedimentary basement in the study area is approximately 1–4 km, and the distribution of thickness is highly uneven. The crystalline basement in the study area has strong bending deformation, and the non-uniform Cenozoic sediments are related to the strong bending deformation of the crystalline basement. The Kusongmuchik piedmont fault is a high-angle thrust fault cutting through the base. There are also many medium low-angle faults, which do not penetrate the surface, which has indicated that they are in a concealed state at present. The results have provided a shallow high-resolution 3D velocity model that can be used in the simulation of strong ground motion and for evaluating potential seismic hazards.

Yin-Yang 1 (YY1) is a member of the GLI-Kruppel family of zinc finger proteins and plays a vital dual biological role in cancer as an oncogene or a tumor suppressor during tumorigenesis and tumor progression. The tumor microenvironment (TME) is identified as the “soil” of tumor that has a critical role in both tumor growth and metastasis. Many studies have found that YY1 is closely related to the remodeling and regulation of the TME. Herein, we reviewed the expression pattern of YY1 in tumors and summarized the function and mechanism of YY1 in regulating tumor angiogenesis, immune and metabolism. In addition, we discussed the potential value of YY1 in tumor diagnosis and treatment and provided a novel molecular strategy for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of tumors.

The pervasive uncertainty and dynamic nature of real-world environments present significant challenges for the widespread implementation of machine-driven Intelligent Decision-Making (IDM) systems. Consequently, IDM should possess the ability to continuously acquire new skills and effectively generalize across a broad range of applications. The advancement of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) that transcends task and application boundaries is critical for enhancing IDM. Recent studies have extensively investigated the Transformer neural architecture as a foundational model for various tasks, including computer vision, natural language processing, and reinforcement learning. We propose that a Foundation Decision Model (FDM) can be developed by formulating diverse decision-making tasks as sequence decoding tasks using the Transformer architecture, offering a promising solution for expanding IDM applications in complex real-world situations. In this paper, we discuss the efficiency and generalization improvements offered by a foundation decision model for IDM and explore its potential applications in multi-agent game AI, production scheduling, and robotics tasks. Lastly, we present a case study demonstrating our FDM implementation, DigitalBrain (DB1) with 1.3 billion parameters, achieving human-level performance in 870 tasks, such as text generation, image captioning, video game playing, robotic control, and traveling salesman problems. As a foundation decision model, DB1 represents an initial step toward more autonomous and efficient real-world IDM applications.

SiCp/Al composites are used in the aerospace, automotive, and electronics fields, among others, due to their excellent physical and mechanical properties. However, as they are hard-to-machine materials, poor surface quality has become a major limitation to their wider applications. To effectively control the quality of machined surfaces, it is necessary to accurately detect and characterize defects. Based on the YOLOv4 object detection algorithm, a SiCp/Al composite machined surface defect detection model has been developed for the accurate and fast detection of machined surface defects. OpenCV is used to process images of detected defects and extract defect feature parameters. The number of defects and the total defect area in the same machining area are used as evaluation criteria to assess the quality of the machined surface, and the effect of the machining parameters on the quality of the machined surface is analyzed. The results show that the number and total area of surface defects that occur when grinding SiCp/Al composites are positively correlated with the feed rate, tool diameter, and size of the abrasive, while they are negatively correlated with the spindle speed and ultrasonic vibration amplitude. When the grinding depth is greater than 20 microns, the quality of the machined surface is greatly affected.

Intraductal carcinoma of the prostate (IDC-P) is a distinct tumor type characterized by an expansile growth of atypical glandular epithelial cells within pre-existing prostate glands and ducts and has significant implications on clinical outcomes and patient management. There is an agreement that isolated IDC-P should not be graded, and IDC-P should be reported with a comment on its clinical significance. However, whether IDC-P should be factored into Grade Group (GG) in the presence of concurrent prostate cancer (PCa) has been debated vigorously. The contradicting opinions were promulgated when the Genitourinary Pathology Society (GUPS) and the International Society of Urological Pathologists (ISUP) published their recommendations for this issue. When IDC-P is present with PCa, the ISUP recommends incorporating it in the GG for the entire case, whereas the GUPS recommends excluding it from the final GG. Consequently, pathologists and clinicians are faced with the conundrum of conflicting recommendations. In this review article, the authors evaluate the magnitude of discrepant GG between the two grading methods, explore the rationales behind the differing views of the two urological societies, present the current reporting practices for IDC-P, and propose a provisional and pragmatic guide to alleviate the dilemma of which recommendation to follow.

Heat shock factor 1 (HSF1) is a transcription factor crucial for regulating heat shock response (HSR), one of the significant cellular protective mechanisms. When cells are exposed to proteotoxic stress, HSF1 induces the expression of heat shock proteins (HSPs) to act as chaperones, correcting the protein-folding process and maintaining proteostasis. In addition to its role in HSR, HSF1 is overexpressed in multiple cancer cells, where its activation promotes malignancy and leads to poor prognosis. The mechanisms of HSF1-induced tumorigenesis are complex and involve diverse signaling pathways, dependent on cancer type. With its important roles in tumorigenesis and tumor progression, targeting HSF1 offers a novel cancer treatment strategy. In this article, we examine the basic function of HSF1 and its regulatory mechanisms, focus on the mechanisms involved in HSF1′s roles in different cancer types, and examine current HSF1 inhibitors as novel therapeutics to treat cancers.

Abstract Age-related hearing loss (ARHL) represents the frequently occurring disability that affects the elderly worldwide. The recent evidence has calculated ARHL to be most potential risk factor to predict dementia. β-amyloid plaques and tau accumulation in brain are hallmarks pathologic feature of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), which is a leading cause resulting in dementia. However, the potential mechanistic associations between ARHL and dementia remains unknown. We performed the present cross-sectional cohort study by enrolling 72 patients from research on hearing as well as the pathologic hallmarks of AD in brain. The exposure of hearing was measured by either word recognition score or mean pure-tone of the superior ear. The brain β-amyloid and tau standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) were measured by positron emission tomography (PET). The covariates included gender, age, cardiovascular disease, education and hearing aid use. To analyze the association between hearing and β-amyloid/tau, linear regression was used and adjusted for potentially confounding covariates. Our data showed that the mean age was 67.1 ± 2.9 years. After adjusted for all the covariates, SUVR of β-amyloid showed an increase of 0.028 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.004–0.061; P = 0.026], while that of tau exhibited an increase of 0.026 (95% CI 0.003–0.056; P = 0.033) per mean pure-tone increase by 10 dB (worsening). Likewise, per mean word-recognition score increase by 10%, the SUVR of β-amyloid showed an increase of 0.060 (95% CI 0.008–0.113; P = 0.023), while that of tau exhibited an increase of 0.059 (95% CI 0.009–0.111; P = 0.031). Taken together, our data demonstrates that hearing worsening was related to the increased burdens of β-amyloid as well as tau detected by PET, which were the AD pathological markers.

Abstract Ferroptosis is a type of cell death that depends on iron and reactive oxygen species (ROS). The accumulation of iron and lipid peroxidation primarily initiates oxidative membrane damage during ferroptosis. The core molecular mechanism of ferroptosis includes the regulation of oxidation and the balance between damage and antioxidant defense. Tumor cells usually contain a large amount of H2O2, and ferrous/iron ions will react with excessive H2O2 in cells to produce hydroxyl radicals and induce ferroptosis in tumor cells. Here, we reviewed the latest studies on the regulation of ferroptosis in tumor cells and introduced the tumor-related signaling pathways of ferroptosis. We paid particular attention to the role of noncoding RNA, nanomaterials, the role of drugs, and targeted treatment using ferroptosis drugs for mediating the ferroptosis process in tumor cells. Finally, we discussed the currently unresolved problems and future research directions for ferroptosis in tumor cells and the prospects of this emerging field. Therefore, we have attempted to provide a reference for further understanding of the pathogenesis of ferroptosis and proposed new targets for cancer treatment.

The friction stir welding (FSW) joints of CNT/Al-Cu-Mg composites have severe flash defects and softening phenomena due to the excessive heat input. In this paper, underwater friction stir welding (UFSW) was used to transfer the heat input and increase the cooling rate of the joint, which was beneficial to suppress the coarsening of the strengthening precipitates in the thermal mechanically affected zone (TMAZ) and narrow the range of TMAZ. The DIC results demonstrate that the joints obtained by UFSW alleviate the strain concentration in the TMAZ. The nugget zone (NZ) with outstanding performance could synergistically engage in plastic deformation. Thus, the mechanical properties of the UFSW joint increase to 523 MPa, reaching 94.7% of the CNT/Al-Cu-Mg composites, providing further improvement of the FSW joints. Additionally, the flash defects have been improved due to the descent of the thermal cycle, which alleviates the difficulty of post-weld processing and promotes welding efficiency.

The protective activity of scopoletin (SPT) against glucose-induced cataract has been attributed to attenuation of aldose reductase activity and oxidative stress in a rat model. The present investigation was aimed to study the protective effect and mechanism of SPT in retinal ganglia cells (RGC) under oxidative stress and apoptosis induced by hyperglycemia. The RGC-5 cells were pre-conditioned with variable SPT concentrations for 6 hours and then subjected to hyperglycemia for 48 hours. The cell viability, mito- chondrial membrane potential (MMP) and oxidative stress markers were quantified. Western blotting was employed to screen the expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and various apoptosis related proteins. SPT blocked the high-glucose induced cell injury and normalized the mitochondrial functioning via lowering the loss of MMP and release of cytochrome c. Pretreatment with SPT suppressed the enhanced ROS, malondialdehyde, and protein carbonyl content triggered by high-glucose exposure in RGC-5 cells. SPT normalized the apoptotic proteins in RGC-5 cells. The phosphorylation of c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNK) and p38 MAPK in RGC-5 due to hyperglycemia was attenuated by SPT. Overall, SPT exhibited a protective effect in RGC-5 cells exposed to a high-glucose environment via its antioxidant efficacy, inhibition of apoptosis and modulation of the ROS-dependent p38/JNK signaling cascade.

The implementation of an energy management strategy plays a key role in improving the fuel economy of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). In this article, a bi-level energy management strategy with a novel speed prediction method leveraged by reinforcement learning is proposed to construct the optimization scheme for the inner energy allocation of PHEVs. First, the powertrain transmission model of the PHEV in a power-split type is analyzed in detail to obtain the energy routing and its crucial characteristics. Second, a Q-learning (QL) algorithm is applied to establish the speed predictor. Third, the double QL algorithm is introduced to train an effective controller offline that realizes the optimal power distribution. Finally, given a reference battery's state of charge (SOC), a model predictive control framework solved by the reinforcement learning agent with a novel speed predictor is proposed to build the bi-level energy management strategy. The simulation results show that the proposed method performs with a satisfying fuel economy in different driving scenarios while tracking the corresponding SOC references. Moreover, the calculation performance also implies the potential online capability of the proposed method.

The applicability potential of correlation methods (damage correlation indexes) based on frequency domains in the impact damage detection fields of reinforced concrete columns were examined in the present study. In the current study’s experiments, four reinforced concrete bridge pier members of reduced scale were impacted by a new type of ultra-high drop hammer experiment system in order to simulate the processes of medium-sized trucks impacting bridge piers. The frequency response functions of the members before and after damages occurred were measured using an acceleration acquisition system. The experimental results revealed that the damage correlation indexes (DCI) taken into account the multi-order modal frequencies could be used to accurately identify the degrees of damage to the piers. In addition, an impact finite element model and a modal analysis method were matched with the experiments and were established using the commercial program LS-DYNA. Finally, the setting of the finite element parameters matching the experimental results was applied for the purpose of simulating the impact processes between the medium-sized trucks and the reinforced concrete piers. In order to meet the structural design requirements, a peak impact force (PIF) formula under vehicle impact conditions was proposed based on the damage indexes.

Although mass spectrometry (MS) has its unique advantages in speed, specificity and sensitivity, its application in quantitative chiral analysis aimed to determine the proportions of multiple chiral isomers is still a challenge. Herein, we present an artificial neural network (ANN) based approach for quantitatively analyzing multiple chiral isomers from their ultraviolet photodissociation mass spectra. Tripeptide of GYG and iodo-L-tyrosine have been applied as chiral references to fulfill the relative quantitative analysis of four chiral isomers of two dipeptides of L/DHisL/DAla and L/DAspL/DPhe, respectively. The results show that the network can be well-trained with limited sets, and have a good performance in testing sets. This study shows the potential of the new method in rapid quantitative chiral analysis aimed at practical applications, with much room for improvement in the near future, including selecting better chiral references and improving machine learning methods.

BackgroundProspective studies on the association between Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and subclinical hyperthyroidism are limited. We, therefore, designed a large-scale cohort study to explore the association between H. pylori infection and the risk of subclinical hyperthyroidism in women.MethodsThis prospective cohort study investigated 2,713 participants. H. pylori infection was diagnosed with the carbon 13 breath test. Subclinical hyperthyroidism was defined as serum thyroid-stimulating hormone levels are low or undetectable but free thyroxine and tri-iodothyronine concentrations are normal. Propensity score matching (PSM) analyses and Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate the association between H. pylori infection and subclinical hyperthyroidism.ResultsA total of 1,025 PS-matched pairs of H. pylori infection women were generated after PSM. During 6 years of follow-up, the incidence rate of subclinical hyperthyroidism was 7.35/1,000 person-years. After adjusting potential confounding factors (including iodine intake in food and three main dietary patterns score), the multivariable hazard ratio (HR; 95% confidence intervals) of subclinical hyperthyroidism by H. pylori infection was 2.49 (1.36, 4.56). Stratified analyses suggested a potential effect modification by age, the multivariable HR (95% confidence intervals) was 2.85 (1.45, 5.61) in participants aged ≥ 40 years and 0.70 (0.08, 6.00) in participants aged < 40 years (P for interaction = 0.048).ConclusionOur prospective study first indicates that H. pylori infection is significantly associated with the risk of subclinical hyperthyroidism independent of dietary factors among Chinese women, especially in middle-aged and older individuals.Clinical Trial Registration:https://upload.umin.ac.jp/cgi-open-bin/ctr_e/ctr_view.cgi?recptno=R000031137, identifier UMIN000027174.

Introduction Postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) occur after up to 60% of non-cardiac thoracic surgery (NCTS), especially for multimorbid elderly patients. Nevertheless, current risk prediction models for PPCs have major limitations regarding derivation and validation, and do not account for the specific risks of NCTS patients. Well-founded and externally validated models specific to elderly NCTS patients are warranted to inform consent and treatment decisions.Methods and analysis We will develop, internally and externally validate a multivariable risk model to predict 30-day PPCs in elderly NCTS patients. Our cohort will be generated in three study sites in southern China with a target population of approximately 1400 between October 2021 and December 2023. Candidate predictors have been selected based on published data, clinical expertise and epidemiological knowledge. Our model will be derived using the combination of multivariable logistic regression and bootstrapping technique to lessen predictors. The final model will be internally validated using bootstrapping validation technique and externally validated using data from different study sites. A parsimonious risk score will then be developed on the basis of beta estimates derived from the logistic model. Model performance will be evaluated using area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, max-rescaled Brier score and calibration slope. In exploratory analysis, we will also assess the net benefit of Probability of PPCs Associated with THoracic surgery in elderly patients score in the complete cohort using decision curve analysis.Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval has been obtained from the Institutional Review Board of the Affiliated Cancer Hospital and Institute of Guangzhou Medical University, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the University of Hongkong—Shenzhen Hospital, respectively. The final risk prediction model will be published in an appropriate journal and further disseminated as an online calculator or nomogram for clinical application. Approved and anonymised data will be shared.Trial registration number ChiCTR2100051170.

BackgroundThe nebulin-related-anchoring protein (NRAP) gene encodes actin-associated ankyrin. Few studies reported the association of the NRAP gene with cardiomyopathy. Thus, the genetic role of this gene in cardiomyopathy remains to be investigated.MethodsThe clinical data of the rare case of left ventricular non-compaction (LVNC) were collected and analyzed. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed on related family members. Western blot was used to detect the effect of mutation on the NRAP protein expression. The effect of the c.259delC variant on myocardial development was further evaluated in a zebrafish model.ResultsA novel homozygous frameshift mutation c.259delC of NRAP was found in the proband with LVNC. It was found that c.259delC decreased the expression of NRAP by Western blot. In the zebrafish model, the heart development was affected while knocking out the NRAP gene, which showed pericardial edema. The pathological manifestations were uneven hypertrophy, disordered arrangement of cardiomyocytes, enlarged intercellular space, and loose muscle fibers. RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) showed that the expression of genes related to heart development decreased significantly, and the NRAP gene mutation could participate in biological processes (BPs) such as myocardial contraction, cell adhesion, myosin coarse filament assembly of striated muscle, myosin complex composition, and muscle α-actin binding.ConclusionWe identified a rare case of LVNC associated with a novel homozygous NRAP frameshift variant. This study further strengthened the evidence linking mutations in the NRAP gene with LVNC, providing a new clue for further study of LVNC. NRAP may be one of the pathogenic genes of cardiomyopathy.

Compared with most dynamic tests, point load test is widely used in engineering practice because of its wide requirements for test conditions. In offshore mining engineering, the surrounding rock is affected by dynamic load impact and corrosion of various aqueous solutions for a long time. Therefore, it is of great significance to study the influence of hydrochemical corrosion on dynamic mechanical properties of rock to ensure the stability of surrounding rock. In this paper, a large number of dynamic point load and dynamic uniaxial compression tests were carried out on the granite mined from a large mine by using the Split Hopkinson pressure bar test device after the corrosion of pH values of 2, 5, and 7 solutions, respectively. Based on the energy theory, the crushing energy consumption in the test process is analyzed, and finally the fitting formula of the dynamic compressive strength and the crushing energy consumption in the dynamic point load test is obtained through fitting analysis. The results show that when the crushing energy consumption in the dynamic point load test is used to estimate the dynamic compressive strength, a certain crushing energy consumption (the final value of this test is 70 J in this paper) is more accurate, and it can estimate the dynamic compressive strength under various corrosion conditions under this crushing energy consumption. However, with the change of crushing energy consumption in the dynamic point load test, this transformation relationship is no longer accurate, and it is necessary to modify this transformation relationship with corrosion condition as the influencing factor. This conclusion can provide reference for obtaining the dynamic compressive strength of rocks under different corrosion conditions in engineering field in the future.

BackgroundNOP2/Sun RNA methyltransferase 2 (NSUN2), an important methyltransferase of m5C, has been poorly studied in cancers, and the relationship between NSUN2 and immunity remains largely unclear. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the expression and prognostic value of NSUN2 and the role of NSUN2 in immunity in cancers.MethodsThe TIMER, CPTAC and other databases were used to analyze the expression of NSUN2, its correlation with clinical stage and its prognostic value across cancers. Moreover, the TISIDB, TIMER2.0 and Sangerbox platform were used to depict the relationships between NSUN2 and immune molecular subtypes, tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), immune checkpoints (ICPs) and immunoregulatory genes. Furthermore, the NSUN2-interacting proteins and related genes as well as the coexpression networks of NSUN2 in LIHC, LUAD and HNSC were explored with the STRING, DAVID, GEPIA2 and LinkedOmics databases. Finally, the subcellular location and function of NSUN2 in HepG2, A549 and 5-8F cells were investigated by performing immunofluorescence, CCK-8 and wound healing assays.ResultsOverall, NSUN2 was highly expressed and related to a poor prognosis in most types of cancers and was also significantly associated with immune molecular subtypes in some cancer types. Furthermore, NSUN2 was significantly associated with the levels of ICPs and immunoregulatory genes. In addition, NSUN2 was found to be involved in a series of immune-related biological processes, such as the humoral immune response in LIHC and LUAD and T-cell activation and B-cell activation in HNSC. Immunofluorescence and CCK-8 assays also confirmed that NSUN2 was widely expressed in the nucleus and cytoplasm, and overexpression of NSUN2 promoted the proliferation and migration of HepG2, A549 and 5-8F cells. NSUN2 was also confirmed to positively regulate the expression of PD-L1.ConclusionNSUN2 serves as a pan-cancer prognostic biomarker and is correlated with the immune infiltration of tumors.

Dysregulation of miRNAs in chondrocytes has been confirmed to participate in osteoarthritis (OA) progression. Previous study has screen out several key miRNAs may play crucial role in OA based on bioinformatic analysis. Herein, we identified the downregulation of miR-1 in OA samples and inflamed chondrocytes. The further experiments revealed that miR-1 played an essential role in maintaining chondrocytes proliferation, migration, antiapoptosis, and anabolism. Connexin 43 (CX43) was further predicted and confirmed to be the target of miR-1, and mediated the promotion effects of miR-1 in regulating chondrocyte functions. Mechanistically, miR-1 maintained the expression of GPX4 and SLC7A11 by targeting CX43, attenuated the accumulation of intracellular ROS, lipid ROS, MDA, and Fe2+ in chondrocytes, thereby inhibiting the ferroptosis of chondrocytes. Finally, experimental OA model was constructed by anterior cruciate ligament transection surgery, and Agomir-1 was injected into the joint cavity of mice to assess the protective effect of miR-1 in OA progression. Histological staining, immunofluorescence staining and Osteoarthritis Research Society International score revealed that miR-1 could alleviate the OA progression. Therefore, our study elucidated the mechanism of miR-1 in OA in detail and provided a new insight for the treatment of OA.

Acid sphingomyelinase (ASM) promotes atherogenesis and acute cardiovascular events. We previously demonstrated ASM inhibitor desipramine attenuated oxidized-LDL-induced macrophage apoptosis in vitro. Here, we aim to determine whether ASM-mediated apoptosis in plaque improves stability in vivo. In this study, rabbits with abdominal aorta balloon injury and a 12-week high-cholesterol diet (HCD) were used to simulate an atherosclerotic plaque model. Atherosclerotic rabbits received oral administration of saline (Control group), atorvastatin (Ator group), or desipramine (DES group). ASM activity and ceramide level were measured by ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC). Plaque morphology was assessed by histochemistry and immunohistochemistry. Apoptosis was evaluated by SPECT/CT imaging of 99mTc-duramycin uptake and TUNEL. We found that increasing ASM activity and ceramide level in atherosclerotic rabbits was abated by additional atorvastatin and desipramine treatment. Meanwhile, the DES and Ator groups were similar in plaque stability, with smaller plaque size, areas of macrophages, higher smooth muscle cell content, and decreased apoptosis and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activities relative to the Control group. 99mTc-duramycin uptake of rabbit aorta was significantly higher in Control than in the Normal group, while it was reduced by desipramine and atorvastatin administration. Moreover, the uptake of 99mTc-duramycin positively correlated with apoptotic cell number, macrophage infiltration, and plaque instability. The present study demonstrated that desipramine exerted plaque-stabilizing effects partially by suppressing apoptosis and MMP activity in a rabbit model. And 99mTc-duramycin SPECT/CT imaging allowed noninvasively monitoring of atherosclerotic disease and evaluation of anti-atherosclerotic therapy.

Ferroportin (Fpn) is the only known iron exporter in humans and is essential for maintaining iron homeostasis. Fpn activity is suppressed by hepcidin, an endogenous peptide hormone, which inhibits iron export and promotes endocytosis of Fpn. Hepcidin deficiency leads to hemochromatosis and iron-loading anemia. Previous studies have shown that small peptides that mimic the first few residues of hepcidin, i.e., minihepcidins, are more potent than hepcidin. However, the mechanism of enhanced inhibition by minihepcidins remains unclear. Here, we report the structure of human ferroportin in complex with a minihepcidin, PR73 that mimics the first 9 residues of hepcidin, at 2.7 Å overall resolution. The structure reveals novel interactions that were not present between Fpn and hepcidin. We validate PR73-Fpn interactions through binding and transport assays. These results provide insights into how minihepcidins increase inhibition potency and will guide future development of Fpn inhibitors.

Ferroportin (Fpn) is a transporter that releases ferrous ion (Fe2+) from cells and is important for homeostasis of iron in circulation. Export of one Fe2+ by Fpn is coupled to import of two H+ to maintain charge balance. Here, we show that human Fpn (HsFpn) binds to and mediates Ca2+ transport. We determine the structure of Ca2+-bound HsFpn and identify a single Ca2+ binding site distinct from the Fe2+ binding sites. Further studies validate the Ca2+ binding site and show that Ca2+ transport is not coupled to transport of another ion. In addition, Ca2+ transport is significantly inhibited in the presence of Fe2+ but not vice versa. Function of Fpn as a Ca2+ uniporter may allow regulation of iron homeostasis by Ca2+.

Machine learning has been leveraged for image analysis applications throughout a multitude of subspecialties. This position paper provides a perspective on the evolutionary trajectory of practical deep learning tools for genitourinary pathology through evaluating the most recent iterations of such algorithmic devices. Deep learning tools for genitourinary pathology demonstrate potential to enhance prognostic and predictive capacity for tumor assessment including grading, staging, and subtype identification, yet limitations in data availability, regulation, and standardization have stymied their implementation.

Wire and arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) technology is a promising method for fabricating high-performance protective materials and structural parts from high-nitrogen steel (HNS). However, owing to the complicated thermal fields generated by the process, it may produce some undesirable precipitates, such as the intermetallic σ phase or chromate nitrides, especially when the fabricated part is large. This study focused on the precipitation features of WAAM-produced high-nitrogen Cr-Mn steel containing 0.7 wt% nitrogen. When the isothermal post-heat treatment was conducted at approximately 900 °C, the σ phase dominated the original inter-dendritic ferrite (Inter-F) region. And, there were some secondary austenite precipitates (γ2) along with a small amount of Cr2N. The oxide inclusions (especially the MnO particles) provided excellent nucleation sites for the σ phase in the Inter-F region or at the Inter-F and γ matrix interface due to the high interface energy and lattice matching index. Further, when aging above 1000 °C, no σ phase was found, and the decomposition of the Inter-F to γ matrix was dominated by element diffusion. With the precipitation of the σ phase, a typical brittle fracture was observed in the samples aged at low temperatures of 800 °C and 900 °C.

Abstract Membrane Fenton-like process with cobalt–copper spinel catalyst is proposed to degrade nitrogenous organic hazardous in wastewater. Cu-auxiliary cobalt oxide (Cu x Co3–x O4) was synthesized with the dispersion co-precipitation method. As-prepared CuCo2O4 performed as the best catalyst for Fenton degradation on nitrogen-containing organic compound as methylene blue (C16H18N3ClS) in water and N,N-dimethylacetamide [CH3CON(CH3)2] in industrial wastewater. Lattice substation of Cu2+ to Co2+ ion increased the oxygen vacancies and catalytic activity. The catalyst stability was improved owing to hybrid polarization confinement (total metal elution less than 0.8 mg/L). Methylene blue in water (C 0 = 100 mg/L) was completely decolorized in 50 min using 0.6 g/L CuCo2O4 and 0.09 M H2O2 at intrinsic pH 6.7. Degradation reaction rate constant was increased by two folds as k = 0.076 min−1 catalyzed by CuCo2O4 over k = 0.039 min−1 by Co3O4. DMAc-contaminant wastewater of high CODs 19,080 mg/L was treated using 2.4 g/L CuCo2O4 and 2.4 M H2O2 at intrinsic pH = 7.6. Removal rate of DMAc was enhanced from 81 to 99% in the ceramic membrane reactor when H2O2 was activated, and self-sweeping effect was suppressed. As a result, Total Organic Nitrogen (2900 mg/L) in the wastewater was mineralized by 99.9% with a fast transformation to inorganic NO3 − ion. Biodegradability of the resistant organic wastewater was remarkably improved, and BOD/COD was increased by 18 folds.

Abstract Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is the malignant tumor arising from the nasopharynx epithelium with ethnic and geographical distribution preference. Y-box binding protein-1 (YB1) is the highly expressed DNA/RNA-binding protein with cold shock domain, and enhanced YB1 expression was proved to be associated with many kinds of malignant tumors. There is no systematic study about the regulation of YB1 and cell proliferation, migration, invasion and stress granules (SGs) in NPC, and the relationship between YB1 expression and clinical characteristics and prognosis of NPC patients. We analyzed the mRNA expression of YBX1 in head and neck squamous carcinoma (HNSC) and NPC in databases, investigated the functions of YB1 in cell proliferation, migration and invasion and SGs formation of NPC cells, and detected expression of YB1 protein in a large scale of NPC samples and analyzed their association with clinicopathological features and prognostic significance of NPC patients. YBX1 mRNA was significantly high expression in HNSC and NPC by bioinformatic analysis, and higher expression of YBX1 mRNA indicated poorer prognosis of HNSC patients. Clinically, the expression of YB1 in NPC tissues was significantly higher than these in the control nasopharyngeal epithelial tissues. We further found that the expression of YB1 had an evidently positive relation with advanced clinical stages of patients with NPC. The overall survival rates (OS) were significantly lower for NPC patients with positive expression of YB1. Multivariate analysis confirmed that positive expression of YB1 was the independent poorer prognostic factor for patients with NPC. Moreover, compared with the immortalized nasopharyngeal epithelial cell line (NP69), the basal level of YB1 in NPC cell lines was significantly higher. Knocking down YB1 may inhibit Akt/mTOR pathway in NPC cells. Knocking down YB1 by small interfering RNAs can reduce the ability of proliferation, migration, invasion and SGs formation of NPC cells. The expression of YB1 in NPC cell lines or patients with NPC was significantly higher. The high expression of YB1 protein may act as one valuable independent biomarker to predict poor prognosis for patients with NPC. Knocking down YB1 may release the malignant phenotype of NPC cells.

Abstract Background The Bletilla genus of Orchidaceae includes plants with great economic value, among which B. striata is the main traditional medicinal plant, and its pseudobulb, known as BaiJi, was first recorded in Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica. However, there has been little systemic evaluation of the germplasm quality of Bletilla plants in China. In order to comprehensive evaluate the Bletilla resources in China and screen out the candidate phenotypic traits determining yield and/or quality of Bletilla, the variation of phenotypic indicators (pseudobulb, leaf, stem, inflorescence, flower) and active ingredients contents (polysaccharide, total phenolics and militarine) in different populations of B. striata and B. ochracea were investigated through 4 years’ common-garden experiment. Results There were abundant phenotypic variations and significant differences among different populations in the morphological phenotypes, pseudobulb weight and main active ingredient contents. AHBZ, HBLT and HBSN populations showed good prospects for industrial development, presenting higher quality in terms of yield and main active ingredient content. Pseudobulb yield, polysaccharide and total phenol content are positively correlated with phenotypic traits. Militarine content is negatively correlated with almost all indexes. Plant height, leaf width and stem diameter may be important indicators of potential excellent germplasms. Conclusions Bletilla is not strictly geoauthentic medicinal plants. B. ochracea could be accepted as an alternative resource to B. striata. The best harvest period of Bletilla is the third year after cultivation. Plant height, leaf width and stem diameter may be important indicators of potential excellent germplasms. These results provide important information required for the efficient screening and utilization of Bletilla germplasm resources.

Abstract Background To investigate and understand the determinants of decisions not to attempt resuscitation following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, to contribute to establishing rules that are appropriate to China. Methods We recruited participants through directors of emergency medical services across China. A 28-question web survey was available between February 5 and March 6, 2021 that targeted demographic information and views on emergency work and cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Each question was assigned a value between 1 and 7 based on the level of importance from low to high. T-tests, one-way analysis of variance, and Kruskal–Wallis H-tests were used to compare continuous variables. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors influencing when people considered it suitable to initiate cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Results The study involved 4289 participants from 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in mainland China, of whom 52.8% were male. The top three reasons for not attempting cardiopulmonary resuscitation were decomposition/hypostasis/rigor mortis (6.39 ± 1.44 points), massive injury (4.57 ± 2.08 points) and family members’ preference (4.35 ± 1.98 points). In total, 2761 (64.4%) thought emergency services should not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation when cardiac arrest had happened more than 30 min before, and there had been no bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Gender (OR 1.233, p = 0.002), religion (OR 1.147, p = 0.046), level (OR 0.903, p = 0.028) or classification of city (OR 0.920, p = 0.049), years of work experience (OR 0.884, p = 0.004), and major (OR 1.032, p = 0.044) all influenced how long after cardiac arrest was considered suitable for initiating cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Conclusions Chinese emergency physicians have different perceptions of when not to attempt resuscitation to those practicing elsewhere. The existing guidelines for resuscitation are not suitable for China, and China-specific guidelines need to be established.

Abstract Purpose To assess 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT for detection of low- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer (PCa), high-risk PCa in comparison with mpMRI, respectively, and to determine which of low- and intermediate-risk PCa are more likely to be detected by 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT. Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of patients who had undergone a prostate biopsy and/or radical prostatectomy and who were scanned with 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT and mpMRI between June 2019 and March 2021. The mpMRI images were scored with the Prostate Imaging-Reporting and Data System Version 2.1 (PI-RADS) and were classified as either negative (PI-RADS 1–3) or positive (PI-RADS 4–5). Suspicious 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT lesions were reviewed for each relevant patient and classified by double-trained board-certified nuclear medicine physicians. The results were evaluated with the histopathological outcome. All patients were classified according to the D’Amico classification, and the clinical data were combined for stratified analysis. Result A total of 101 patients who were pathologically diagnosed with PCa were analyzed. Of the 101 patients, 88 (80.6%) patients presented with a pathologic mpMRI, and 85 (79.1%) with a pathologic 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT. In the high-risk PCa cohort, 68Ga-PSMA PET/CT was positive in 64/66 (97.0%) patients and yielded a higher detection rate than that for the mpMRI patients (58/66, 87.9%; p

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-encoded latent genes are reported to regulate PD-L1 expression to promote immune escape. Here, the authors show that EBV-encoded miRNAs EBV-miR-BART11 and EBV-miR-BART17-3p upregulate PD-L1 expression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma and gastric cancer by targeting FOXP1 and PBRM1.

Abstract Silver nanowire (Ag NW) has been considered as the promising building block for the fabrication of transparent electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding films. However, the practical application of Ag NW-based EMI shielding films has been restricted due to the unsatisfactory stability of Ag NW. Herein, we proposed a reduced graphene oxide (rGO) decorated Ag NW film, which realizes a seamless integration of optical transparency, highly efficient EMI shielding, reliable durability and stability. The Ag NW constructs a highly transparent and conductive network, and the rGO provides additional conductive path, showing a superior EMI shielding effectiveness (SE) of 33.62 dB at transmittance of 81.9%. In addition, the top rGO layer enables the hybrid film with reliable durability and chemical stability, which can maintain 96% and 90% EMI SE after 1000 times bending cycles at radius of 2 mm and exposure in air for 80 days. Furthermore, the rGO/Ag NW films also possess fast thermal response and heating stability, making them highly applicable in wearable devices. The synergy of Ag NW and rGO grants the hybrid EMI shielding film multiple desired functions and meanwhile overcomes the shortcomings of Ag NW. This work provides a reference for preparing multifunctional integrated transparent EMI shielding film.

Abstract The increasing penetration of distributed energy resources (DERs) has led to increasing research interest in the cooperative control of multi‐prosumers in a transactive energy (TE) paradigm. While the existing literature shows that TE offers significant grid flexibility and economic benefits, few studies have addressed the incorporation of security constraints in TE. Herein, a market‐based control mechanism in real‐time markets is proposed to economically coordinate the TE among prosumers while ensuring secure system operation. Considering the dynamic characteristics of batteries and responsive demands, a model predictive control (MPC) method is used to handle the constraints between different time intervals and incorporate the following generation and consumption predictions. Owing to the computational burden and individual privacy issues, an efficient distributed algorithm is developed to solve the optimal power flow problem. The strong coupling between prosumers through power networks is removed by introducing auxiliary variables to acquire locational marginal prices (LMPs) covering energy, congestion, and loss components. Case studies based on the IEEE 33‐bus system demonstrated the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed method and model.

Density peaks clustering has become a nova of clustering algorithm because of its simplicity and practicality. However, there is one main drawback: it is time-consuming due to its high computational complexity. Herein, a density peaks clustering algorithm with sparse search and K-d tree is developed to solve this problem. Firstly, a sparse distance matrix is calculated by using K-d tree to replace the original full rank distance matrix, so as to accelerate the calculation of local density. Secondly, a sparse search strategy is proposed to accelerate the computation of relative-separation with the intersection between the set of $k$ nearest neighbors and the set consisting of the data points with larger local density for any data point. Furthermore, a second-order difference method for decision values is adopted to determine the cluster centers adaptively. Finally, experiments are carried out on datasets with different distribution characteristics, by comparing with other six state-of-the-art clustering algorithms. It is proved that the algorithm can effectively reduce the computational complexity of the original DPC from $O(n^{2}K)$ to $O(n(n^{1-1/K}+k))$ . Especially for larger datasets, the efficiency is elevated more remarkably. Moreover, the clustering accuracy is also improved to a certain extent. Therefore, it can be concluded that the overall performance of the newly proposed algorithm is excellent.

Large-scale integration of variable renewable resources (such as wind power) not only leads to the reduction of inertia, but also changes the spatial distribution of inertia in the power system, which raises spatial-related dynamic frequency instability risk. Therefore, it poses a novel problem how to reasonably schedule the inertia on the premise of the spatial distribution characteristics of dynamic frequency in the power system operation. In addition, with increasing importance of inertia and the difference in inertia provision at different nodes by a variety of regulation resources, it is important to analyze nodal inertia economic value and compensate units accordingly. In this paper, we propose an approach on pricing the nodal inertia. First, we infer the node-related rate of change of frequency (RoCoF) considering the network constraint according to disturbance power; then establish inertia demand constraints of RoCoF for each node and the frequency nadir for the whole system, which are then introduced into establishing the optimal inertia scheduling model. Accompanied by generation scheduling scheme, the nodal inertia price is also given based on the concept of marginal price according to the duality theory. Case studies on the modified IEEE-39 system and Northwest power grid of China demonstrate the proposed inertia scheduling model can enhance the ability of the system to maintain frequency stability, in the same time with good economy. The proposed node-related inertia pricing approach can be used to guide properly planning the inertia resources.

When the density peak clustering algorithm deals with complex datasets and the problem of multiple density peaks in the same cluster, the subjectively selected cluster centers are not accurate enough, and the allocation of non-cluster centers is prone to joint and several errors. To solve the above problems, we propose a new density peak clustering algorithm based on cluster fusion strategy. First, the algorithm screens out the candidate cluster centers by setting two new thresholds to avoid the influence of noise points and outliers. Second, the remaining data points are allocated according to the density peak clustering algorithm to obtain the initial clusters. Third, considering the structural characteristics and spatial distribution of datasets, the new definitions of boundary points, inter-cluster intersection density and inter-cluster boundary density are provided. To correctly classify the clustering problems with multiple density peaks in the same cluster, a new cluster fusion strategy is proposed, which not only corrects the joint and several errors in the allocation of data points, but also correctly selects the cluster centers. Finally, to test the effectiveness of the proposed clustering algorithm, which is compared with DPC-KNN, DPC, K-means and DBSCAN on nine synthetic datasets and six real datasets. The experimental results demonstrate that the clustering performance of the proposed algorithm outperforms that of other algorithms.

Light-triggered thyristor (LTT) has attracted considerable interest in power conversion and control systems because of its strong anti-interference ability and large power capacity. In this work, we propose a monolithic LTT that can be light-triggered directly without an amplifying gate (AG) design, to improve the device reliability and operating speed. The cathode structure is redesigned into an interdigitated structure with a relatively large light-incident area. The cathode shorts are re-arranged to balance the trigger intensity and the light incident depth, so as to ensure optimal $\text{d}{V}/\text{d}{t}$ capability. Devices are fabricated and adequate performances are obtained, verifying the feasibility of our design.

CLASSY (CLSY) proteins regulate DNA methylation at specific loci in the Arabidopsis genome. Here the authors show that the CLSYs also control tissue-specific DNA methylation, including at siren loci in ovules, and that the lack of an individual CLSYs can shift the epigenetic landscape between tissues.