Search

The total variation (TV) method favors solutions with the piece-wise constant assumption of the desired image from sparse-view sampling, for example, simple geometric images with flat intensity. When the phantoms become more complex and contain complicated textures, for example, high-resolution phantom and lung CT images, the images reconstructed by TV regularization may lose their contrast and fine structures. One of the optimally sparse transforms for images, the shearlet transform, has C2 without discontinuities on C2 curves, giving excellent sensitive directional information as compared with other wavelet transform approaches. Here, we developed a Shearlet-Sparse Regularization (SSR) algorithm solved with the Alternating Direction Method of Multipliers (ADMM) to overcome this limitation. With the strengthened characteristics of SSR, we performed one simulation experiment and two real experiments using a NeuViz 64 X-ray CT scanning system to measure the performance and properties of proposed algorithm. The results demonstrate that the SSR method exhibits the advantage of providing high-quality directional information and contrast as compared with TV.

Abstract Optical chemical structure recognition from scientific publications is essential for rediscovering a chemical structure. It is an extremely challenging problem, and current rule-based and deep-learning methods cannot achieve satisfactory recognition rates. Herein, we propose SwinOCSR, an end-to-end model based on a Swin Transformer. This model uses the Swin Transformer as the backbone to extract image features and introduces Transformer models to convert chemical information from publications into DeepSMILES. A novel chemical structure dataset was constructed to train and verify our method. Our proposed Swin Transformer-based model was extensively tested against the backbone of existing publicly available deep learning methods. The experimental results show that our model significantly outperforms the compared methods, demonstrating the model’s effectiveness. Moreover, we used a focal loss to address the token imbalance problem in the text representation of the chemical structure diagram, and our model achieved an accuracy of 98.58%.

Abstract Surgical robots have been widely used in different procedures to improve and facilitate the surgery. However, there is no robot designed for endometrial regeneration surgery, which is a new therapy for restoring fertility in women using stem cells. Endometrial regeneration surgery requires processing of the endometrium and transplantation of stem cells with minimal trauma to the uterus. In this paper, we introduce a surgical robotic system that consists of a dexterous hysteroscope, supporting arm, and additional novel instruments to facilitate the operation and decrease trauma to the uterus. Remote center of motion (RCM) constraint is required to protect the cervix of the uterus. First, the supporting arm and hysteroscope are controlled separately in kinematics to ensure that the RCM constraint and hysteroscope’s shape and posture are predictable. Then, a task-decoupled method is used to improve the robustness of the RCM constraint. Experiments confirm that the proposed method is more robust and achieves higher RCM accuracy. In addition, the master-slave control of a robot with RCM constraint is also verified. This study proposes the realization of a robot with robust RCM control for endometrial regeneration surgery.

Clonorchis sinensis is a zoonotic parasite associated with liver fibrosis and cholangiocarcinoma development. The role of toll-like receptors (TLRs) in C. sinensis infection has not yet been fully elucidated. Here, the TLR3 signaling pathway, cytokine expression and liver fibrosis were examined in C. sinensis-infected wildtype (WT) and TLR3-/- mice. Polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (Poly (I:C)) was used to treat C. sinensis infections. The results showed that TLR3 deficiency caused severe clonorchiasis with increased parasite burden, exacerbated proinflammatory cytokine expression and liver lesions, promoted the TGF-β1/Smad2/3 pathway and myofibroblast activation, exacerbated liver fibrosis (compared to WT mice). Poly (I:C) intervention increased the body weight, decreased mouse mortality and parasite burden, reduced liver inflammation, and alleviated C. sinensis-induced liver fibrosis. Furthermore, C. sinensis extracellular vesicles (CsEVs) promote the production of IL-6, TNF in WT biliary epithelial cells (BECs) via p38/ERK pathway, compared with control group, while TLR3 deletion induced much higher levels of IL-6 and TNF in TLR3-/- BECs than that in WT BECs. Taken together, TLR3 inhibit IL-6 and TNF production via p38/ERK signaling pathway, a phenomenon that resulted in the alleviation of C. sinensis-induced liver fibrosis. Poly (I:C) is a potential treatment for clonorchiasis.

Abstract Peripheral artery diseases (PAD) increases muscle afferent nerve‐activated reflex sympathetic nervous and blood pressure responses during exercise (termed as exercise pressor reflex). However, the precise signaling pathways leading to the exaggerated autonomic responses in PAD are undetermined. Considering that limb ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) is a feature of PAD, we determined the characteristics of acid‐sensing ion channel (ASIC) currents in muscle dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons under the conditions of hindlimb I/R and ischemia of PAD. In particular, we examined ASIC currents in two distinct subpopulations, isolectin B4‐positive, and B4‐negative (IB4+ and IB4−) muscle DRG neurons, linking to glial cell line‐derived neurotrophic factor and nerve growth factor. In results, ASIC1a‐ and ASIC3‐like currents were observed in IB4− muscle DRG neurons with a greater percentage of ASIC3‐like currents. Hindimb I/R and ischemia did not alter the distribution of ASIC1a and ASIC3 currents with activation of pH 6.7 in IB4+ and IB4− muscle DRG neurons; however, I/R altered the distribution of ASIC3 currents in IB4+ muscle DRG neurons with pH 5.5, but not in IB4− neurons. In addition, I/R and ischemia amplified the density of ASIC3‐like currents in IB4− muscle DRG neurons. Our results suggest that a selective subpopulation of muscle afferent nerves should be taken into consideration when ASIC signaling pathways are studied to determine the exercise pressor reflex in PAD.

Objectives The aims of the study were to assess the management of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and the goal achievement, as well as to investigate the association between baseline LDL-C level, lipid-lowering treatment (LLT), and stroke recurrence in patients with ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA).Design Our study was a post hoc analysis of the Third China National Stroke Registry (CNSR-III).Setting We derived data from the CNSR-III - a nationwide clinical registry of ischaemic stroke and TIA based on 201 participating hospitals in mainland China.Participants 15,166 patients were included in this study with demographic characteristics, etiology, imaging, and biological markers from August 2015 to March 2018.Primary and secondary outcome measures The primary outcome was a new stroke, LDL-C goal (LDL-C

IntroductionVaccination against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is an effective way of protecting individuals from severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, immune responses to vaccination vary considerably. This study dynamically assessed the neutralizing antibody (NAb) responses to the third dose of the inactivated COVID-19 vaccine administered to people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV; PLWH) with different inoculation intervals.MethodsA total of 171 participants were recruited: 63 PLWH were placed in cohort 1 (with 3-month interval between the second and third doses), while 95 PLWH were placed in cohort 2 (with 5-month interval between the second and third doses); 13 individuals were enrolled as healthy controls (HCs). And risk factors associated with seroconversion failure after vaccination were identified via Cox regression analysis.ResultsAt 6 months after the third vaccination, PLWH in cohort 2 had higher NAb levels (GMC: 64.59 vs 21.99, P < 0.0001) and seroconversion rate (68.42% vs 19.05%, P < 0.0001). A weaker neutralizing activity against the SARSCoV-2 Delta variant was observed (GMT: 3.38 and 3.63, P < 0.01) relative to the wildtype strain (GMT: 13.68 and 14.83) in both cohorts. None of the participants (including HCs or PLWH) could mount a NAb response against Omicron BA.5.2. In the risk model, independent risk factors for NAb seroconversion failure were the vaccination interval (hazed ration [HR]: 0.316, P < 0.001) and lymphocyte counts (HR: 0.409, P < 0.001). Additionally, PLWH who exhibited NAb seroconversion after vaccination had fewer initial COVID-19 symptoms when infected with Omicron.DiscussionThis study demonstrated that the third vaccination elicited better NAb responses in PLWH, when a longer interval was used between vaccinations. Since post-vaccination seroconversion reduced the number of symptoms induced by Omicron, efforts to protect PLWH with risk factors for NAb seroconversion failure may be needed during future Omicron surges.Clinical trial registrationhttps://beta.clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05075070, identifier NCT05075070.

Objective To study the annual financial expenditure in blood stations with different scales, and to establish the regression equation between blood collection units and total expenditure. Methods The annual total expenditure, the per capita cost of serving population, as well as the collection units of whole blood and apheresis platelet of 24 blood stations were collected. The financial expenditure required for collecting 10 000U blood was calculated.The statistical analysis was carried out with SPSS statistical software. Results From 2017 to 2020, the total annual financial expenditure of 24 blood stations showed an upward trend. The total expenditure among blood stations was different. The per capita cost of servicing population in the areas where the 24 blood stations were located had been increasing year by year. The 24 blood stations were divided into two grades according to the blood collection volume as 50 000 U, and the relationship equation between the blood collection volume and the annual total expenditure had been established. After testing, each equation was effective(P

Abstract Introduction Blood–brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction may occur at the onset of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Pericytes are a vital part of the neurovascular unit and the BBB, acting as gatekeepers of the BBB. Amyloid β (Aβ) deposition and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain are the central pathological features of AD. CD36 promotes vascular amyloid deposition and leads to vascular brain damage, neurovascular dysfunction, and cognitive deficits. However, the molecular mechanism by which pericytes of the BBB are disrupted remains unclear. Objectives To investigate the effect of low-dose Aβ1-40 administration on pericyte outcome and the molecular mechanism of BBB injury. Methods We selected 6-month-old and 9-month-old APP/PS1 mice and wild-type (WT) mice of the same strain, age, and sex as controls. We assessed the BBB using PET/CT. Brain pericytes were extracted and cocultured with endothelial cells (bEnd.3) to generate an in vitro BBB model to observe the effect of Aβ1-40 on the BBB. Furthermore, we explored the intracellular degradation and related molecular mechanisms of Aβ1-40 in cells. Results BBB permeability and the number of pericytes decreased in APP/PS1 mice. Aβ1-40 increased BBB permeability in an in vivo model and downregulated the expression of CD36, which reversed the Aβ-induced changes in BBB permeability. Aβ1-40 was uptaked in pericytes with high CD36 expression. We observed that this molecule inhibited pericyte proliferation, caused mitochondrial damage, and increased mitophagy. Finally, we confirmed that Aβ1-40 induced pericyte mitophagy-dependent ferroptosis through the CD36/PINK1/Parkin pathway. Conclusion PDGFRβ (a marker of pericytes), CD36, and Aβ colocalized in vitro and in vivo, and Aβ1-40 caused BBB disruption by upregulating CD36 expression in pericytes. The mechanism by which Aβ1-40 destroys the BBB involves the induction of pericyte mitophagy-dependent ferroptosis through the CD36/PINK1/Parkin pathway.

Abstract In peripheral artery disease (PAD), the metaboreceptor and mechanoreceptor in muscle afferent nerves contribute to accentuated sympathetic outflow via a neural reflex termed exercise pressor reflex (EPR). Particularly, lactic acid and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) produced in exercising muscles respectively stimulate acid sensing ion channel subtype 3 (ASIC3) and P2X3 receptors (P2X3) in muscle afferent nerves, inducing the reflex sympathetic and BP responses. Previous studies indicated that those two receptors are spatially close to each other and AISC3 may have a regulatory effect on the function of P2X3. This inspired our investigation on the P2X3‐mediated EPR response following AISC3 abolished, which was anticipated to shed light on the future pharmacological and genetic treatment strategy for PAD. Thus, we tested the experimental hypothesis that the pressor response to P2X3 stimulation is greater in PAD rats with 3 days of femoral artery occlusion and the sensitizing effects of P2X3 are attenuated following ASIC3 knockout (KO) in PAD. Our data demonstrated that in wild type (WT) rats femoral occlusion exaggerated BP response to activation of P2X3 using α,β‐methylene ATP injected into the arterial blood supply of the hindlimb, meanwhile the western blot analysis suggested upregulation of P2X3 expression in dorsal root ganglion supplying the afferent nerves. Using the whole cell patch‐clamp method, we also showed that P2X3 stimulation enhanced the amplitude of induced currents in muscle afferent neurons of PAD rats. Of note, amplification of the P2X3 evoked‐pressor response and expression and current response of P2X3 was attenuated in ASIC3 KO rats. We concluded that the exaggerated P2X3‐mediated pressor response in PAD rats is blunted by ASIC3 KO due to the decreased expression and activities of P2X3 in muscle afferent neurons.

Abstract Purpose This study sought to identify the prevalence and factors associated with atrial fibrillation (AF) in older patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in China. Methods This was an explorative cross-sectional study. Between January 2015 and October 2017, we continuously recruited 1285 older patients with OSA who underwent overnight polysomnography from sleep centers of multiple hospitals. They were assessed using 12-lead ECG or 24-h dynamic ECG, and their baseline demographics, clinical characteristics, sleep parameters, and medical history were determined. Multivariate binary logistic regression analysis was used to investigate the factors related to AF in these older patients with OSA. Results The clinician classified 122 (9.5%) patients as having AF. The prevalence of AF significantly increased with age (P

As a typical pullout foundation, the uplift pile has been widely used in ocean projects or geotechnical engineering, but the accurate prediction of its ultimate pullout capacity has always been a difficulty in engineering design. This study focused on a single pile in rock formation, and constructed a curved uplift failure mechanism in the case that the whole rock mass around the pile was damaged. In this mechanism, the rock mass failure was assumed to comply with the Hoek–Brown failure criterion. Then, the theoretical prediction formulas for the rock failure surface and the ultimate pullout capacity of the pile were derived by using the upper bound theorem. The influence laws of factors such as different rock mass parameters, pile parameters and additional surface load on the pile capacity and failure range were analyzed. Further, the proposed method was validated by comparing with the numerical simulation results. The results show that the ultimate pullout capacity of the pile increases with the increase in the length/diameter ratio, rock empirical parameter A, tensile strength, compressive strength, unit weight and additional surface load, but decreases with the increase in rock empirical parameter B. Empirical parameters A and B are key factors affecting the pile capacity and rock failure range, and should be attached importance to in engineering design. The research work in this study can provide some theoretical reference for the design of the uplift pile in rock formation.

Pedestrian detection models in autonomous driving systems heavily rely on deep neural networks (DNNs) to perceive their surroundings. Recent research has unveiled the vulnerability of DNNs to backdoor attacks, in which malicious actors manipulate the system by embedding specific triggers within the training data. In this paper, we propose a tailored camouflaged backdoor attack method designed for pedestrian detection in autonomous driving systems. Our approach begins with the construction of a set of trigger-embedded images. Subsequently, we employ an image scaling function to seamlessly integrate these trigger-embedded images into the original benign images, thereby creating potentially poisoned training images. Importantly, these potentially poisoned images exhibit minimal discernible differences from the original benign images and are virtually imperceptible to the human eye. We then strategically activate these concealed backdoors in specific scenarios, causing the pedestrian detection models to make incorrect judgments. Our study demonstrates that once our attack successfully embeds the backdoor into the target model, it can deceive the model into failing to detect any pedestrians marked with our trigger patterns. Extensive evaluations conducted on a publicly available pedestrian detection dataset confirm the effectiveness and stealthiness of our camouflaged backdoor attacks.

A variety of rodent ceca are parasitized by Tritrichomonas muris (T. muris), a flagellated protozoan. To date, there are no ideal methods for the detection of T. muris infections in laboratory mice; thus, new molecular methodologies for its specific detection need to be developed. In this study, using staining and SEM, it was observed that T. muris has a pear-shaped body and contains three anterior flagella. A nested PCR system with novel specific primers was designed based on the conserved regions of the SSU rRNA gene of T. muris. The nested PCR system for T. muris showed good specificity and high sensitivity for at least 100 T. muris trophozoites/mL and 0.1 ng/μL of fecal genomic DNA, which means that 176 trophozoites per gram of mouse feces could be detected. When using this nested PCR system, the detection rate was 18.96% (58/306), which was higher than the detection rate of 14.05% (43/306) detected via smear microscopy in fecal samples from five mouse strains. The sensitivity and specificity of nested PCR in detecting T. muris was found to be 100%, and it demonstrated a 26% increase in diagnostic sensitivity compared to the smear microscopy method in the present study. In conclusion, the nested PCR developed with novel primers based on the SSU rRNA gene of T. muris has good accuracy, specificity, and sensitivity for the detection of T. muris infections in laboratory mice.

In battery management systems, state of charge (SOC) estimation is important for ensuring the safety and reliability of batteries. Currently, there are various methods for estimating SOC, and the neural network method is the most popular. However, when the battery’s SOC is low (below 20%), the uncertainty in neural network parameters can lead to significant bias in SOC estimation. To address these problems, this study proposes a method based on genetic algorithm (GA) optimization of a time-serialization convolutional neural network (TSCNN) model. First, the population is initialized according to the optimized hyperparameters of the TSCNN model, whereby the experimental data are converted into time-series data. Subsequently, neural network models are built based on the population, thereby using the effect of the network as the fitness function for GA optimization. Finally, an optimized network structure is obtained for accurate SOC estimation. During the optimization process, the optimized data exhibited abnormal phenomena, usually manifested as exceeding the data limits or being zero. In the past, abnormal data were discarded and new data were regenerated; however, this reduces the correlation between data. Therefore, this study proposes a check function to enhance the correlation between the data, converting abnormal data into normal data by limiting the data range. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first time that a GA is being proposed to optimize the time-series length of a convolutional neural network (CNN) while the neural network parameters are optimized so that the time-series length and neural network parameters achieve the best match. In the experimental results, the maximum error was 4.55% for the dynamic stress test (DST) dataset and 2.58% for the urban dynamometer driving schedule (UDDS) dataset. When the battery SOC was below 20%, the estimation error did not incur a huge error. Therefore, the optimization method proposed for the TSCNN model in this study can effectively improve the accuracy and reliability of SOC estimation in the low-battery state.

Heavy metal pollution of groundwater will not only destroy the ecological environment but also negatively affect the functioning of the human liver. Tracing the source of groundwater pollution is an important way to protect groundwater resources. FloPy is promoting the use of big data in the groundwater field, especially in groundwater resource planning and management and contaminant traceability. This paper takes Mn as an example and codes a simulation-optimization model for solving the groundwater pollutant traceability problem using FloPy. The Bayesian optimization and strengthen elitist genetic algorithm (SEGA) algorithms are then used to optimize the hydraulic conductivity and pollutant sources in the study area. The results show that the model runs in 411 s, which is an acceptable amount of time spent, the slope of the fitted curve between the model-calculated water level and the actual observed water level is 0.914, and the contaminant traceability results can successfully locate the contaminant sources in real engineering problems. The numerical groundwater flow model and solute transport model can be quickly built, modified, and run by writing code, and can be easily and efficiently coupled with various optimization algorithms with FloPy.

In the face of increasingly abundant knowledge resources, low-cost, high-precision knowledge transfer mechanisms can support knowledge service organizations to provide good knowledge services for knowledge users, realize effective allocation of knowledge resources, and improve the utilization of knowledge resources. This paper takes tacit knowledge as the research object, and proposes a model of tacit knowledge transfer based on three-way decision aiming at the characteristics of knowledge itself. The model mainly includes three parts: matching the user’s knowledge needs with existing knowledge resources; determining the decision threshold $\left( \alpha,\beta \right)$ based on the transfer cost; determining the region of “transfer” “non-transfer” and “delayed transfer” based on decision threshold. The empirical results show that, compared with the existing methods, the implicit knowledge transfer model based on three-way decision proposed in this paper reduces the cost of knowledge transfer due to misclassification by subdividing the transfer area. Meanwhile, the decision area is determined according to the similarity of views, improving the accuracy of knowledge transfer.

Background and Aims: Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) is associated with a range of outcomes, and existing prediction models for death among patients with CDI are imprecise. Peripheral eosinopenia has been proposed as a novel risk factor for death among patients with CDI but has not been incorporated into prediction models. This study aimed to develop and validate a prediction model for death among patients hospitalized with CDI that incorporated peripheral eosinopenia. Methods: Eosinopenia was defined as 0 eosinophils/μL on the soonest peripheral blood drawn within the 48-hour window of the CDI test (before or after). Adults were eligible for the study if they were hospitalized at any one of 3 large, unaffiliated hospital networks, tested positive for CDI by stool polymerase chain reaction, and received appropriate anti-CDI treatment. Patients were followed for all-cause death for up to 30 days. Results: There were 4518 unique hospitalized adults with CDI included (2142 in the derivation cohort and 2376 in the validation cohort). All-cause 30-day mortality was 9% and 10% in the cohorts. In the validation cohort, the factors most strongly associated with death were eosinopenia (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 2.49, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.77–3.50), albumin 1.5 mg/dL (aOR 2.55, 95% CI 1.86–3.49). A 6-variable clinical prediction model was developed that improved on existing classification schemes for CDI severity (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.75 vs 0.68). Conclusion: Among adults hospitalized with CDI, peripheral eosinopenia was associated with increased risk of all-cause 30-day mortality. A prediction model incorporating peripheral eosinopenia was developed to improve care for hospitalized patients with CDI through risk stratification.

Ultraviolet (UV) networks are important approaches to modern wireless communications owing to their unique characteristics, such as non-line-of-sight communication, strong anti-interference ability, and all-weather working mode. Given the lack of media access control (MAC) protocols suitable for UV networks at present, a novel UV lossless contention MAC (UVLLC-MAC) protocol is proposed herein based on UV physical properties. A fully connected finite-population multinode UV model is adopted, and its network performance is systematically derived and mathematically analyzed under the UVLLC-MAC protocol. Compared with the time-slot ALOHA protocol, the UVLLC-MAC protocol achieves 36.7% better throughputs, with 13.2% drop in packet loss rates, and the excellent performance of the protocol is obtained and fully verified. The UVLLC-MAC protocol can provide guidance for multinode and multiservice UV networking.

ABSTRACT Parasite infections affect human and animal health significantly and contribute to a major burden on the global economy. Parasitic protozoan viruses (PPVs) affect the protozoan parasites’ morphology, phenotypes, pathogenicity, and growth rates. This discovery provides an opportunity to develop a novel preventive and therapeutic strategy for parasitic protozoan diseases (PPDs). Currently, there is greater awareness regarding PPVs; however, knowledge of viruses and their associations with host diseases remains limited. Parasite-host interactions become more complex owing to PPVs; however, few studies have investigated underlying viral regulatory mechanisms in parasites. In this study, we reviewed relevant studies to identify studies that investigated PPV development and life cycles, the triangular association between viruses, parasites, and hosts, and the effects of viruses on protozoan pathogenicity. This study highlights that viruses can alter parasite biology, and viral infection of parasites may exacerbate the adverse effects of virus-containing parasites on hosts or reduce parasite virulence. PPVs should be considered in the prevention of parasitic epidemics and outbreaks, although their effects on the host and the complexity of the triangular association between PPVs, protozoans, and hosts remain unclear. IMPORTANCE PPVs-based regulation of parasitic protozoa can provide a theoretical basis and direction for PPD prevention and control, although PPVs and PPV regulatory mechanisms remain unclear. In this review, we investigated the differences between PPVs and the unique properties of each virus regarding virus discovery, structures, and life cycles, focused on the Trichomonas vaginalis virus, Giardia lamblia virus, Leishmania RNA virus, and the Cryptosporidium parvum virus 1. The triangular association between PPVs, parasitic protozoa, and hosts reveals the “double-edged sword” property of PPVs, which maintains a balance between parasitic protozoa and hosts in both positive and negative respects. These studies discuss the complexity of parasitic protozoa and their co-existence with hosts and suggest novel pathways for using PPVs as tools to gain a deeper understanding of protozoal infection and treatment.

ObjectivesTo evaluate the embryonic developments and clinical outcomes of different sperm sources with cycles of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and in vitro maturation (IVM).MethodsThis retrospective study was approved by the hospital ethics committee and conducted in the hospital in vitro fertilization (IVF) clinic. From January 2005 to December 2018, 239 infertile couples underwent IVM–ICSI cycles and were divided into three groups according to different sperm sources. Group 1 comprised patients with percutaneous epididymal sperm aspiration (PESA; n = 62, 62 cycles), group 2 comprised patients with testicular sperm aspiration (TESA; n = 51, 51 cycles), and group 3 comprised patients with ejaculated sperm (n = 126, 126 cycles). We calculated the following outcomes: 1) outcomes per IVM–ICSI cycle: fertilization rate, cleavage rate, and embryo quality; 2) outcomes per embryo transfer cycle: endometrial thickness, implantation rate, biochemical pregnancy rate, clinical pregnancy rate, and live birth rate.ResultsThere was no difference in basic characteristics among the three groups, such as the female partner’s age, basal follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), basal luteinizing hormone (LH), and antral follicle count (p > 0.1). There were no statistically significant differences according to the IVM–ICSI cycle among the three groups in fertilization rate, cleavage rate, and rate of good-quality embryos (p > 0.05). The results were similar among cycles regarding the number of transfer embryos and endometrial thickness per embryo transfer cycle among the three groups (p > 0.05). There were also similar clinical outcomes per embryo transfer cycle among the three groups, such as the biochemical pregnancy rate, clinical pregnancy rate, and live birth rate (p > 0.05).ConclusionsDifferent sperm sources, percutaneous epididymal sperm aspiration, testicular sperm aspiration, and ejaculated sperm, do not affect the embryo and clinical outcomes after IVM–ICSI cycles.

Adenovirus type 7 (HAdV7) is one of the most pathogenic human adenoviruses (HAdVs) and can cause severe illness and even death, particularly in people with weakened immune systems. Many countries worldwide have experienced epidemics of this highly contagious pathogen, including China and Sierra Leone; however, studies describing the seroprevalence of anti-HAdV7 neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) are still lacking. Herein, we established an efficient neutralization assay based on a recombinant luciferase-expressing HAdV7 virus (HAd7-Luc) to monitor historical HAdV7 infections and predict outbreak distributions. Among the 2,350 serum samples collected from eight sites in China and Sierra Leone in this cross-sectional serological survey, the overall proportion of anti-HAdV7-seropositive individuals was nearly 60%, with higher seroprevalence rates in Sierra Leone than in China. Regionally, HAdV7 nAb titers were higher in China than in Sierra Leone and showed a geographic variation across different regions. Regardless of the location, the seropositive rate of HAdV7 nAb was lower than that of HAdV5 nAb, as was the nAb titer. The prevalence rates of antibodies against HAdV7 and HAdV5 were both related to age but not to sex. In addition, serologic cross-reactions were rarely observed among people infected with HAdV7 and HAdV5. These results indicate a humoral immune response acquired through endemic HAdV7 infection and enrich the understanding of not only the epidemiological prevention and control of HAdV7 but also the clinical application of HAdV7-based vaccines or gene therapy tools.

Clonorchis sinensis is an important food-borne zoonotic parasite which has been linked to biliary fibrosis and cholangiocarcinoma. However, the details of the pathogenesis of C. sinensis were unclear. To explore the role and regulatory mechanism of toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) in C. sinensis-induced biliary fibrosis, we established the C. sinensis-infected C57BL/6 mouse model with TLR2-/- and wild type (WT) mice. The mortality rate, liver lesions, TLR2 and TGF-β1 expression, phosphorylation of Smad2/3, AKT, p38, ERK and p65, and cytokine productions were analyzed. Furthermore, similar parameters were examined in mouse biliary epithelial cells (BECs) co-cultured with C. sinensis excretory/secretory proteins (ESPs). The results showed that TLR2 expression was enhanced significantly in C. sinensis-infected WT mice and mouse BECs. C. sinensis-infected TLR2-/- mice exhibited an increased weight and a decreased mortality rate; significantly alleviated liver lesions and biliary fibrosis, reduced numbers of myofibroblasts; decreased expression of TGF-β1 and phosphorylation level of AKT, p38 and Smad2/3; significantly decreased production of IL-6, TNF-α and IL-4, while increased production of IFN-γ compared with C. sinensis-infected WT mice. Furthermore, C. sinensis ESPs could activate TLR2-mediated AKT and p38 pathways to increase the production of IL-6 in mouse BECs. In conclusion, these data indicate that C. sinensis infection activated TGF-β1-Smad2/3 through TLR2-mediated AKT and p38 pathways to promote IL-6 production, which resulted in myofibroblast activation and aggravating biliary fibrosis in mice.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of ginseng-containing traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF).Methods: Seven databases were included from establishment until 10 July 2022. Pooled data were analyzed with random-effects model. The risk of bias was measured by the risk of bias tool for randomized trials (RoB 2). Modified Jadad scale score was used to assess the quality of including studies. The meta-analysis was performed with RevMan 5.3. Trial sequential analysis was assessed to avoid type I errors. We have registered our protocol in PROSPERO (CRD42021267742).Results: Twenty-eight articles were included. The results demonstrated that compared with conventional western therapy (WT), ginseng-containing TCM combined with WT further improved clinical efficacy (RR: 1.25, 95% CI: 1.20–1.29, p < 0.00001, I2 = 8%), left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (MD: 5.80, 95% CI: 4.86–6.74, p < 0.00001, I2 = 89%), stroke volume (MD: 13.80, 95% CI: 12.66–14.95, p < 0.00001, I2 = 93%), 6-min walk test (MD: 53.03, 95% CI: 20.76–85.29, p = 0.001, I2 = 97%), decreased 6-month rehospitalization (RR: 0.44, 95% CI: 0.18–1.11, p = 0.08, I2 = 0%), brain natriuretic peptide (MD: 188.12, 95% CI: 248.13 to -128.11, p < 0.00001, I2 = 94%), N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (MD = -503.29; 95% CI: 753.18 to -253.40, p < 0.0001, I2 = 89%) and Minnesota living heart failure questionnaire scores (MD: 9.68, 95% CI: 13.67 to -5.70, p < 0.00001, I2 = 83%). The ROB2 assessment and modified Jaded scores showed most studies included were with some concerns.Conclusion: Compared with WT alone, ginseng-containing TCM is a possible way to benefit ADHF patients. However, limited by the quality of including trials, more high-quality studies are needed to provide reliable evidence.

As an airborne electromagnetic method induced by natural sources, the Z-axis tipper electromagnetic (ZTEM) system can primarily recover near-surface shallow structures, due to band-limited frequencies (usually 30–720 Hz) of the airborne survey and high sample rate acquisition along the terrain. In contrast, traditional ground magnetotellurics (MT) allows better recovery of deep structures as the data acquired are typical of large site intervals (usually higher than 1 km) and lower frequencies (usually lower than 400 Hz). High-resolution MT surveys allow for shallow small and deep large anomalies to be adequately interpreted but need large site intervals and broadband frequency range, which are seldom used as they are quite costly and laborious. ZTEM data are tippers that relate local vertical to orthogonal horizontal fields, measured at a reference station on the ground. As the 1D structures produce zero vertical magnetic fields, ZTEM is not sensitive to background resistivity. Thus, in general, ZTEM can only reveal relative resistivities and not real resistivities. A combination of the ZTEM and MT methods can be an effective technique, alleviating the shortcomings of the individual methods. At present, complex underground structures and topography introduce difficulties for data inversion and interpretation, as conventional ZTEM and MT forward modeling are generally used on structured grids with limited accuracy. To effectively recover complex underground structures with topography, we developed a 3D framework for joint MT and ZTEM inversion with unstructured tetrahedral grids. The finite element method is used for the forward problem because of its flexibility with unstructured tetrahedral meshes. The limited-memory quasi-Newton algorithm (L-BFGS) for optimization is used to solve the joint inverse problem, which saves memory and computational time by avoiding the explicit calculation of the Hessian matrix. To validate our joint inversion algorithm, we run numerical experiments on two synthetic models. The first synthetic model uses two conductive anomalous bodies of different sizes and depths. At the same time, a simple quadrangular is used for comparing the inversions with and without topography. In contrast, the second synthetic model represents a realistic topography with two different conductivities and the same depth. Both single-domain and joint inversions of the ZTEM and MT data are carried out for the two synthetic models to demonstrate the complementary advantages of joint inversion, while the second model is also used to test the adaptability of the joint inversion to complex topography. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the finite element method with unstructured tetrahedral grids and the L-BFGS method for joint MT and ZTEM inversion. In addition, the inversion results prove that joint MT and ZTEM inversion can recover deep structures from the MT data and small near-surface structures from the ZTEM data by alleviating the weaknesses of the individual methods.

ObjectiveThis study aims to explore the association between the frailty index and chronic heart failure (CHF).MethodsWe collected data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) (1998–2018) database to assess the association between CHF and frailty. Demographic, inquiry, laboratory examinations, and characteristics were gathered to compare CHF and non-CHF groups. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to explore the relationship between frailty and CHF. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for mortality from all causes and cardiovascular disease (CVD).ResultsA total of 16,175 participants with cardiac and cerebrovascular disease were categorized into CHF (n = 1,125) and non-CHF (n = 15,050) groups. In patients with CHF, the prevalence of frailty, pre-frailty, and non-frailty were 66.31, 30.93, and 2.75%, respectively. In multiple logistic regression, patients with CHF who were male (OR = 0.63, 95% CI: 3.11–5.22), whose annual family income was over $20,000 (OR = 0.52, 95% CI: 0.37–0.72, p < 0.001), or with normal hemoglobin level (OR = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.68–0.88, P < 0.001) had a lower likelihood of frailty. CHF patients with hypertension (OR = 3.60, 95% CI: 2.17–5.99, P < 0.0001), coronary heart disease (OR = 1.76, 95% CI: 1.10–2.84, P = 0.02), diabetes mellitus (OR = 1.89, 95% CI: 1.28–2.78, P < 0.001), and stroke (OR = 2.52, 95% CI: 1.53–4.15, P < 0.001) tended to be frail. Survival analysis suggested that pre-frailty and frailty were related to poor all-cause deaths (HR = 1.48, 95% CI: 1.36–1.66; HR = 2.77, 95% CI: 2.40–3.18) and CVD mortality (HR = 1.58, 95% CI: 1.26–1.97; HR = 2.55, 95% CI: 2.02–3.21). CHF patients with frailty were strongly connected with all-cause death (HR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.27–3.62).ConclusionFrailty was positively associated with CHF. Patients with CHF who were male, whose annual family income was over $20,000, or with normal hemoglobin level were negatively correlated to frailty. For patients with cardiac and cerebrovascular disease as well as CHF, frailty was strongly connected with all-cause death.

Surra, one of the most important animal diseases with economic consequences in Asia and South America, is caused by Trypanosoma evansi. However, the mechanism of immune evasion by T. evansi has not been extensively studied. In the present study, T. evansi extracellular vesicles (TeEVs) were characterized and the role of TeEVs in T. evansi infection were examined. The results showed that T. evansi and TeEVs could activate TLR2-AKT pathway to inhibit the secretions of IL-12p40, IL-6, and TNF-α in mouse BMDMs. TLR2−/- mice and mice with a blocked AKT pathway were more resistant to T. evansi infection than wild type (WT) mice, with a significantly lower infection rate, longer survival time and less parasite load, as well as an increased secretion level of IL-12p40 and IFN-γ. Kinetoplastid membrane protein-11 (KMP-11) of TeEVs could activate AKT pathway and inhibit the productions of IL-12p40, TNF-α, and IL-6 in vitro. TeEVs and KMP-11 could inhibit the productions of IL-12p40 and IFN-γ, promote T. evansi proliferation and shorten the survival time of infected mice in vivo. In conclusion, T. evansi could escape host immune response through inhibiting the productions of inflammatory cytokines via secreting TeEVs to activate TLR2-AKT pathway. KMP-11 in TeEVs was involved in promoting T. evansi infection. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) secreted by Trypanosoma evansi (T. evansi) activate the TLR2-AKT signaling pathway to inhibit the production of inflammatory cytokines, thereby escaping the host’s immune response. Kinetoplastid membrane protein-11 (KMP-11) in EVs is related to the promotion of T.evansi infection via AKT pathway.

ObjectiveMirror movements (MMs) are common abnormal motor performance in patients with poststroke hemiparesis. The study aimed to utilize the Electromyography (EMG) characterization of MMs in stroke patients and explore the relationship between MMs and the motor function of affected limbs.MethodsSixty patients with stroke who had used to undergo clinical assessment and surface Electromyography (sEMG) were selected in this study. We investigated the standardized net excitation (SNE) and overflow percentage (OF) as a measure of mirror activities on bilateral muscles of stroke patients.ResultsIn stroke patients, mirror activities occurred in both affected and unaffected muscles during maximal contractions. We found that OF at unilateral contraction on the affected side (UCA) was significantly greater than that at unilateral contraction on the unaffected side (UCU). Additionally, a negative correlation between OF at UCA and Brunnstrom stages on admission and discharge. However, there were no significant correlations between OF and disease duration, Barthel Index, or the degree of improvement in all clinical evaluations. We still found a positive correlation between SNE at UCA and the improvement of the Brunnstrom stage of the hand. But we could not find any significant correlation between SNE and other clinical evaluation scores.ConclusionIn conclusion, the study found mirror activities in both affected and unaffected muscles, confirming an asymmetry between them. Although the mechanisms are still unclear, we confirmed a significant correlation between MMs at UCA and the motor function of the affected upper extremity, which might provide further evidences for understanding MMs in stroke patients and a new research direction on evaluation for motor function and outcomes of stroke patients.

Peripheral artery disease (PAD) reduces the blood flow supply in the affected limbs as one of the significant cardiovascular concerns. Revascularization surgery in the femoral artery plays a central role in treating PAD. Exercise is also a rehabilitation strategy suggested for PAD patients to improve vascular functions. However, the effects of limb ischemia-reperfusion (IR), one of the most predominant complications in revascularization surgery, on exercise-induced arterial blood pressure (BP) response are poorly understood. In the present study, we determined 1) the blood flow status in the hindlimb muscles of rats (plantar muscle, red and white portions of gastrocnemius) with different time points of the hindlimb IR; and 2) the BP response to static muscle contraction in rats at different time points after the blood flow reperfusion procedure. Results of this study indicated that, compared with the Sham group, the blood flow in the hindlimb muscles evaluated by Evans blue concentration was significantly reduced at 6 h of femoral artery occlusion (FAO 6 h) (vs. sham control, p < 0.05). The decreased blood flow was gradually recovered after the blood flow reperfusion for 18 (IR 18 h), 66 (IR 66 h), and 114 (IR 114 h) hours (p < 0.05 vs. FAO 6 h for all IR groups). The response of mean arterial pressure was 20 ± 4 mmHg in Sham rats (n = 7); 32 ± 10 mmHg in IR 18 h rats (n = 10); 27 ± 7 mmHg in IR 66 h rats (n = 13); 26 ± 4 mmHg in IR 114 h rats (n = 9) (p < 0.05 vs. Sham for all groups). No significant difference was observed in the peak-developed tension during muscle contraction among all the groups (p > 0.05). In conclusion, static exercise-induced BP response is exaggerated following IR. Whereas the BP response is not statistically significant but tends to decrease with a prolonged IR time, the exaggerated BP response remains through time points from post-IR 18 h–114 h.