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More emerging evidence showed that homologous recombination (HR) defect (HRD) may predict sensitivity to platinum agents in metastatic prostate cancer (PCa). Platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy for PCa with HRD has not been reported. Here, we reported a man diagnosed as locally advanced PCa with high Gleason Score (5 + 5) and low PSA level (5.2 ng/ml). Next-generation sequencing (NGS) demonstrated HRD. He received six cycles of platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy before radical prostatectomy (RP). Fifteen months after RP, his PSA level was still undetectable, and no imaging progression was found, indicating a potential role for platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy in locally advanced PCa with HRD. more...

PurposeGrowing evidence shows that circulating tumor cells (CTCs) become more aggressive after the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT), though the clinical significance of CTCs undergoing EMT in oligometastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (omHSPC) patients has not yet been reported. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to detect the CTC level and investigate the clinical significance of mesenchymal CTCs in omHSPC patients who underwent cytoreductive radical prostatectomy (CRP).Materials and MethodsBlood samples were drawn from 54 omHSPC patients who underwent CRP. The CanPatrol CTC enrichment technique was applied to isolate and identify different phenotypes of CTCs, which were classified as epithelial (E-CTCs), mesenchymal (M-CTCs), or biphenotypic epithelial/mesenchymal (Bi-CTCs). Univariable and multivariable Cox regression analyses were employed to investigate potential prognostic factors for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC)-free survival and cancer-specific survival (CSS). The prognostic value of CTCs for CSS and mCRPC-free survival was assessed using time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and Kaplan–Meier analysis.ResultsCTCs were detected in 51 of 54 patients (94%). E-CTC, M-CTC, and Bi-CTC detection rates were 56%, 67%, and 85%, respectively. A positive correlation was found between the M-CTC count and number of bone metastases (p = 0.012). Time-dependent ROC analysis showed that the M-CTC count had higher predictive power than E-CTC or Bi-CTC for mCRPC-free survival (3-year area under the curve [AUC] values: 0.64, 0.60, and 0.61) and CSS (3-year AUC: 0.86, 0.58, and 0.67). Additionally, time-dependent ROC analysis revealed total CTCs (T-CTCs) ≥5 and M-CTCs ≥2 to be the cutoff points with optimal specificity and sensitivity. Based on multivariable Cox regression, T-CTC and M-CTC counts were both independently associated with CSS and mCRPC-free survival (all p < 0.05), though E-CTCs and Bi-CTCs had no significant prognostic value (all p > 0.05). Patients with T-CTC ≥5 or M-CTC ≥2 had significantly worse mCRPC-free survival and CSS than those with T-CTC more...

Background. Traditionally, serum CEA and CA19-9 levels are good prognostic factors for gastric cancer. Many gastric cancer patients do not have elevated CEA or CA19-9 levels even at a very advanced stage. This study investigates the significance of the modified Glasgow prognostic score (mGPS) for the survival of gastric cancer patients with normal CEA and CA19-9. Methods. We retrospectively examined 488 curatively resected gastric cancer patients with normal preoperative serum levels of CEA and CA19-9 to evaluate the prognostic ability of mGPS for overall survival. The prognostic significance was analyzed by univariate and multivariate analyses. Results. Age, hemoglobin, white cell count, and neutrophils were each significantly correlated with the mGPS. Multivariate analyses showed that tumor location (HR, 0.803; 95% CI, 0.667–0.966; P=0.020), TNM stage (HR, 2.714; 95% CI, 2.250–3.275; P more...

The micro-mechanical state at the crack front is one of the key factors affecting the stress corrosion cracking (SCC) growth behavior. The mechanical heterogeneity and residual stress in the dissimilar metal welded joint (DMWJ) induce the micro-mechanical state at the crack front to become more complex. The sandwich model and dual-field model of the DMWJ with inner surface axial crack were established in this study. The stress and strain states at the crack front with different crack locations and lengths under the interaction of the mechanical property and the residual stress were investigated. The results show that a more accurate evaluation of stress and strain states can be obtained when using the dual-field model to describe the material mechanical property and residual stress of the DMWJ. The sandwich model overestimates the crack driving force including the stress and strain at the crack front. The tensile stress in the middle of shallow cracks is smaller than that at both ends, while the tensile stress in the middle of deep crack is larger than that at both ends. The variation trend of the tensile stress and normal strain at the crack apex is basically the same as that of the residual stress with the crack depth. However, there is almost no normal plastic strain in the initial stage of crack propagation due to the small residual stress in the initial stage. more...

The material mechanical properties and crack propagation behavior of dissimilar metal welded joint (DMWJ) of pressurized water reactor (PWR) was investigated. In this research, the mechanical parameters of the cladding layer materials (304L-SA508) of the DMWJ in PWRs were obtained by the continuous indentation test. Simultaneously, the user-defined (USDFLD) subroutine in ABAQUS was used to establish the heterogeneous materials model of the welded joint. On this basis, the local crack propagation path of DMWJs has been discussed based on the extended finite element method (XFEM). The result indicated that the strength value at the fusion boundary line (FB line) is the largest, and the yield strength reaches 689 MPa. The yield stress values of the cladding metal (304 L) and base metal (SA508) are 371 MPa and 501 MPa, respectively. Affected by the material constraint effect of the DMWJ, the crack will propagate through the FB line when the initial crack is perpendicular to the FB line. And when the initial crack parallels the FB line, the crack will deviate from it. Meanwhile, the crack propagation length is smaller as the initial crack tip is closer to the FB line when the load condition is constant. more...

The interaction between the mechanical heterogeneity and the residual stress in dissimilar metal welded joints (DMWJs) leads to a complex mechanical field of crack tips, which strongly affects stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behaviors. A dual-field coupling model was established by using the user-defined field (USDFLD) and the predefined stress field method based on the elastoplastic finite element method in this study. Thus, the mechanical heterogeneity and the residual stress of the DMWJ are realized. The influence of the interaction between the mechanical heterogeneity and the residual stress on the mechanical field of crack tips at different locations was investigated. The results show that the mechanical heterogeneity causes the stress and strain distribution on both sides of the crack tip asymmetry. And the residual stress affects the magnitude of the stress and strain around the crack tip. The variation trend of the stress and strain along the crack propagation with crack length is basically the same as that of the residual stress. However, the stress and strain distributions are slightly lagging behind the residual stress distribution due to the redistribution of the residual stress caused by the crack propagation. In addition, the stress and strain range of cracks at different positions with crack length are also different. more...

Introduction. Serine hydroxymethyltransferase 2 (SHMT2) has a critical role in serine-glycine metabolism to drive cancer cell proliferation. Yet, the function of SHMT2 in tumorigenesis, especially in human colorectal cancer (CRC) progression, remains largely unclear. Materials and Methods. CRC and paired normal samples were collected in the Department of Colorectal Surgery, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, and assessed by real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) analysis, western blot (WB), and immunohistochemistry (IHC). Moreover, SHMT2 expression in human CRC cells was identified by qPCR and WB. The CRC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion after SHMT2 knockdown were explored through in vitro and in vivo assays. mRNA-seq assays were used to investigate the underlying mechanisms behind the SHMT2 function. Results. It was found that SHMT2 mRNA and protein were overexpressed in CRC tissue compared to the levels in normal mucosa. Positive expression of SHMT2 was significantly correlated with TNM stage and lymph node metastasis, and elevated expression of SHMT2 resulted as an independent prognostic factor in patients with CRC. SHMT2 knockdown impaired the proliferation of CRC in vitro and in vivo and induced cell cycle arrest by regulating UHRF1 expression. Conclusion. Taken together, our findings reveal that UHRF1 is a novel target gene of SHMT2, which can be used as a potential therapeutic strategy for CRC therapy. more...

The p-y curve method can be used to describe the stress–strain relationship of soil under elastic, elastoplastic, and plastic states, and is more accurate than other methods in dealing with the nonlinearity of pile–soil interaction. However, the p-y curve method also has several limitations. First, when constructing the p-y curve, undrained shear strength Cu is taken to be constant, and the diversity of soil layers around the pile side are also not considered. Second, in the analysis of the internal forces and deformation of the pile, the influence of the vertical load from the top of the pile and the self-weight of the pile, are both ignored. Third, in the analysis of internal forces and deformation, the pile side soil is set equivalent to a homogeneous soil layer, and the layering of the soil is not considered at all. In order to study the nonlinear problem of internal forces and deformation of a single pile in layered soil in greater detail, this paper analyzes a calculation model based on Wang’s calculation model, and compares several commonly used p-y curve calculation models. An internal force and deformation analysis model for a laterally loaded single pile, that explicitly considers the second-order effect is then established, by considering the differences between p-y curves of different soil types, as well as the change in Cu with depth. The differential equation of pile deflection for a single pile in layered soil is also presented, together with the corresponding finite differential solution algorithm program. This model was validated using a horizontal load test of a pile, and comparison of the calculated results with the measured results shows that the method outperforms existing p-y curve methods for deformation and internal force analysis of horizontally loaded piles. more...

The human tibiofibular complex has undergone a long evolutionary process, giving its structure a high bearing-capacity. The distinct tibiofibular shape can be used in engineering to acquire excellent mechanical properties. In this paper, four types of bionic tubes were designed by extracting the dimensions of different cross-sections of human tibia–fibula. They had the same outer profiles, but different inner shapes. The concept of specific stiffness was introduced to evaluate the mechanical properties of the four tubes. Finite-element simulations and physical bending-tests using a universal testing machine were conducted, to compare their mechanical properties. The simulations showed that the type 2 bionic tube, i.e., the one closest to the human counterpart, obtained the largest specific-stiffness (ε = 6.46 × 104), followed by the type 4 (ε = 6.40 × 104) and the type 1 (ε = 6.39 × 104). The type 3 had the largest mass but the least stiffness (ε = 6.07 × 104). The specific stiffness of the type 2 bionic tube increased by approximately 25.8%, compared with that of the type 3. The physical tests depicted similar findings. This demonstrates that the bionic tube inspired by the human tibiofibular shape has excellent effectiveness and bending properties, and could be used in the fields of healthcare engineering, such as robotics and prosthetics. more...

Remote-vision-based image processing plays a vital role in the safety helmet and harness monitoring of construction sites, in which computer-vision-based automatic safety helmet and harness monitoring systems have attracted significant attention for practical applications. However, many problems have not been well solved in existing computer-vision-based systems, such as the shortage of safety helmet and harness monitoring datasets and the low accuracy of the detection algorithms. To address these issues, an attribute-knowledge-modeling-based safety helmet and harness monitoring system is constructed in this paper, which elegantly transforms safety state recognition into images’ semantic attribute recognition. Specifically, a novel transformer-based end-to-end network with a self-attention mechanism is proposed to improve attribute recognition performance by making full use of the correlations between image features and semantic attributes, based on which a security recognition system is constructed by integrating detection, tracking, and attribute recognition. Experimental results for safety helmet and harness detection demonstrate that the accuracy and robustness of the proposed transformer-based attribute recognition algorithm obviously outperforms the state-of-the-art algorithms, and the presented system is robust to challenges such as pose variation, occlusion, and a cluttered background. more...

Background and Purpose: An endovascular recanalization is an alternative option for symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic steno-occlusive disease (ICAD). Accurate non-invasive alternatives to digital subtraction angiography (DSA) for follow-up imaging after endovascular treatment are desirable. We aimed to evaluate the image quality and diagnostic performance of high-resolution magnetic imaging in follow-up using DSA as a reference.Materials and Methods: From January 2017 to June 2021, data from 35 patients with 40 intracranial steno-occlusive lesions who underwent endovascular recanalization and received high-resolution magnetic resonance (HR-MR) follow-up were retrospectively collected in our prospective database. Studies were evaluated for the quality of visualization of the vessel lumen, restenosis rate, and accuracy of high-resolution magnetic resonance (HR-MR) with DSA used as the reference standard. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) analyses were performed to assess the agreement between the two different readers.Results: In total, 40 intracranial steno-occlusive lesions in 35 patients, with 34 lesions undergoing balloon angioplasty [including 16 drug-coated balloons (DCBs)] and 8 lesions undergoing stenting were enrolled. The median age was 63.6 years (IQR 58.5–70.0 years), and the mean imaging follow-up time was 9.5 months (IQR 4.8–12.5 months). The median degrees of preprocedural and residual stenosis were 85.0% (IQR 75.0–99.0%) and 32.8% (IQR 15.0–50.0%), respectively. Intracranial periprocedural complications occurred in 1 (3.6%) patient. In the case of a stainless-steel stent (n = 1), there was a signal drop at the level of the vessel, which did not allow evaluation of the vessel lumen. However, this was visible in the case of nitinol stents (n = 7) and angioplasty (n = 34). The overall restenosis rate was 25.8% (n = 9). The DCB subgroup showed a lower rate of restenosis than the percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) subgroup [5.3% (2/13) vs. 35.7% (5/14)].Conclusion: High-resolution magnetic resonance may be a reliable non-invasive method for demonstrating the vessel lumen and diagnostic follow-up after endovascular recanalization for ICAD. Compared with MR angiography (MRA), HR-MR showed a higher inter-reader agreement and could provide more information after endovascular recanalization, such as enhancement of the vessel wall. more...

With the advent of population aging, aging-related diseases have become a challenge for governments worldwide. Sarcopenia has defined as a clinical syndrome associated with age-related loss such as skeletal muscle mass, strength, function, and physical performance. It is commonly seen in elderly patients with chronic diseases. Changes in lean mass are common critical determinants in the pathophysiology and progression of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Sarcopenia may be one of the most important causes of poor physical function and decreased cardiopulmonary function in elderly patients with CVDs. Sarcopenia may induce CVDs through common pathogenic pathways such as malnutrition, physical inactivity, insulin resistance, inflammation; these mechanisms interact. In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between sarcopenia and CVDs in the elderly. Further research is urgently needed to understand better the relationship, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnostic criteria, and mechanisms of sarcopenia and CVDs, which may shed light on potential interventions to improve clinical outcomes and provide greater insight into the disorders above. more...

Although many efforts have been made to explore the genetic basis of divergent thinking (DT), there is still a gap in the understanding of how these findings relate to the neurobiology of DT. In a combined sample of 1,682 Chinese participants, by integrating GWAS with previously identified brain-specific gene co-expression network modules, this study explored for the first time the functional brain-specific gene co-expression networks underlying DT. The results showed that gene co-expression network modules in anterior cingulate cortex, caudate, amygdala and substantia nigra were enriched with DT association signals. Further functional enrichment analysis showed that these DT-related gene co-expression network modules were enriched for key biological process and cellular component related to myelination, suggesting that cortical and sub-cortical grey matter myelination may serve as important neurobiological basis of DT. Although the underlying mechanisms need to be further refined, this exploratory study may provide new insight into the neurobiology of DT. more...

Tumor-infiltrating B cells and tertiary lymphoid structures have been identified to predict the responses to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in cancer immunotherapy. Considering the feasibility of sample collection, whether peripheral B cell signatures are associated with the responses to ICI therapy remains unclear. Herein, we have defined peripheral B cell signatures in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients receiving anti-PD-1 monotherapy and investigated their associations with clinical efficacy. It was found that the percentages of B cells before the treatment (baseline) were significantly higher (P = 0.004) in responder (R, n = 17) than those in non-responder (NonR, n = 33) NSCLC patients in a discovery cohort. Moreover, the percentages of baseline IgM+ memory B cells were higher (P < 0.001) in R group than those in NonR group, and associated with a longer progression free survival (PFS) (P = 0.003). By logistic regression analysis peripheral baseline IgM+ memory B cells were identified as an independent prognostic factor (P = 0.002) for the prediction of the responses to anti-PD-1 monotherapy with the AUC value of 0.791, which was further validated in another anti-PD-1 monotherapy cohort (P = 0.011, n = 70) whereas no significance was observed in patients receiving anti-PD-L1 monotherapy (P = 0.135, n = 30). Therefore, our data suggest the roles of peripheral IgM+ memory B cells in predicting the responses to anti-PD-1 treatment in Chinese advanced NSCLC patients. more...

Objectives: To compare the efficacy of parameters from multiple diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) for prediction of isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) genotype and assessment of cell proliferation in gliomas.Methods: Ninety-one patients with glioma underwent diffusion weighted imaging (DWI), multi-b-value DWI, and diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI)/neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) on 3.0T MRI. Each parameter was compared between IDH1-mutant and IDH1 wild-type groups by Mann–Whitney U test in lower-grade gliomas (LrGGs) and glioblastomas (GBMs), respectively. Further, performance of each parameter was compared for glioma grading under the same IDH1 genotype. Spearman correlation coefficient between Ki-67 labeling index (LI) and each parameter was calculated.Results: The diagnostic performance was better achieved with apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), slow ADC (D), fast ADC (D∗), perfusion fraction (f), distributed diffusion coefficient (DDC), heterogeneity index (α), mean diffusivity (MD), mean kurtosis (MK), and intracellular volume fraction (ICVF) for distinguishing IDH1 genotypes in LrGGs, with statistically insignificant AUC values from 0.750 to 0.817. In GBMs, no difference between the two groups was found. For IDH1-mutant group, all parameters, except for fractional anisotropy (FA) and D∗, significantly discriminated LrGGs from GBMs (P < 0.05). However, for IDH1 wild-type group, only ADC statistically discriminated the two (P = 0.048). In addition, MK has maximal correlation coefficient (r = 0.567, P < 0.001) with Ki-67 LI.Conclusion: dMRI-derived parameters are promising biomarkers for predicting IDH1 genotype in LrGGs, and MK has shown great potential in assessing glioma cell proliferation. more...

Alternative splicing (AS) event is a novel biomarker of tumor tumorigenesis and progression. However, the comprehensive analysis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) is lacking. Differentially expressed analysis was used to identify the differentially expressed alternative splicing (DEAS) events between HCC or ICC tissues and their normal tissues. The correlation between DEAS events and functional analyses or immune features was evaluated. The cluster analysis based on DEAS can accurately reflect the differences in the immune microenvironment between HCC and ICC. Forty-five immune checkpoints and 23 immune features were considered statistically significant in HCC, while only seven immune checkpoints and one immune feature in ICC. Then, the prognostic value of DEAS events was studied, and two transcripts with different basic cell functions (proliferation, cell cycle, invasion, and migration) were produced by ADHFE1 through alternative splicing. Moreover, four nomograms were established in conjunction with relevant clinicopathological factors. Finally, we found two most significant splicing factors and further showed their protein crystal structure. The joint analysis of the AS events in HCC and ICC revealed novel insights into immune features and clinical prognosis, which might provide positive implications in HCC and ICC treatment. more...

Tumor-infiltrating immune cells, associated with tumor progression, are promising prognostic biomarkers. However, the relationship between levels of gene expression and that of immune cell infiltration in cervical cancer prognosis is unknown. In this study, three cervical cancer gene expression microarrays (GSE6791, GSE63678 and GSE55940) were obtained from the GEO database. The IDO1 gene was identified by differentially expressed gene screening. The gene expression profiles of TCGA and GTEx databases along with comprehensive bioinformatics analysis identified that the IDO1 gene was upregulated in cervical cancer with significant difference in expression at different N stages. In addition, it was also upregulated in HPV16 positive sample. The pan-cancer analysis identified that IDO1 was highly expressed in most cancers. TIMER analysis revealed that the expression of IDO1 in CESC shows positive correlation with CD8+ T cells, CD4+ T cells, neutrophils, dendritic cells. IDO1 expression showed remarkable positive correlation with all immune cell markers except M1 macrophages. CD8+ T cell infiltration GSEA results showed that IDO1 was mainly associated with tumor immune-related signaling pathways. more...

Maternal gut microbiota play an important role in the modulation of offspring disease susceptibility and gut microbiota dysbiosis has been proposed as a mechanism through which toxic environmental chemicals exert their adverse impacts on health. The brominated flame retardants polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are developmental toxicants and induce dysbiotic gut microbiota in offspring. Yet, whether and how PBDEs impact the maternal gut microbiota remain unclear. Here, we sought to investigate the effect of 2,2′,4,4′-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (PBDE-47) exposure from preconception through lactation cessation on maternal gut microbiota and its link to host serum metabolic consequences. Female Sprague-Dawley rats were daily exposed to 10 mg/kg PBDE-47 via oral gavage from ten days before conception until offspring were weaned on postnatal day 21, then maternal fecal and blood samples were collected for microbiome and metabolome analyses by using 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, respectively. Maternal exposure to PBDE-47 showed a distinct profile in gut microbiota compared to control dams, as evidenced by increased Actinobacteria phylum and genera Blautia, Gemella and Phascolarctobacterium, and decreased genera AF12 and Oscillospira. Additionally, global metabolomics analysis identified 26 differential serum metabolites to distinguish PBDE-47 from controls, which were mainly involved in amino acid, lipid, carbohydrate and energy metabolism, further confirmed by pathway analysis. Importantly, the differential serum metabolites are closely correlated with the disturbed gut microbiota in response to PBDE-47. Collectively, our results suggest that maternal gut microbial dysbiosis may serve as a potential mechanism underlying PBDE-47-elicited health hazards to mothers or even offspring. more...

Background: Excessive fluoride exposure has been associated with intelligence loss, but little is known about gene-fluoride interactions on intelligence at SNP-set, gene and pathway level. Objectives: Here we conducted a population-based study in Chinese school-aged children to estimate the associations of fluoride from internal and external exposures with intelligence as well as to explore the gene-fluoride interactions on intelligence at SNP-set, gene and neurodevelopmental pathway level. Methods: A total of 952 resident children aged 7 to 13 were included in the current study. The fluoride contents in drinking water, urine, hair and nail were measured using the ion-selective electrode method. LASSO Binomial regression was conducted to screen the intelligence-related SNP-set. The gene-fluoride interactions at gene and pathway levels were detected by the Adaptive Rank Truncated Product method. Results: The probability of high intelligence was inversely correlated with fluoride contents in water, urine, hair and nail (all P more...

Background: The intratumoral heterogeneity of oxygen metabolism and angiogenesis are core hallmarks of glioma, unveiling that genetic aberrations associated with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) phenotypes may aid in the diagnosis and treatment of glioma.Objective: To explore the predictability of MRI-based oxygen extraction fraction (OEF) mapping using cluster analysis of time evolution (CAT) for genetic profiling and glioma grading.Methods: Ninety-one patients with histopathologically confirmed glioma were examined with CAT for quantitative susceptibility mapping and quantitative blood oxygen level–dependent magnitude-based OEF mapping and dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI. Imaging biomarkers, including oxygen metabolism (OEF) and angiogenesis [volume transfer constant, cerebral blood volume (CBV), and cerebral blood flow], were investigated to predict IDH mutation, O6-methylguanine-DNA-methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation status, receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) subgroup, and differentiation of glioblastoma (GBM) vs. lower-grade glioma (LGG). The corresponding DNA sequencing was also obtained. Results were compared with DCE-MRI using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.Results: IDH1-mutated LGGs exhibited significantly lower OEF and hypoperfusion than IDH wild-type tumors (all p < 0.01). OEF and perfusion metrics showed a tendency toward higher values in MGMT unmethylated GBM, but only OEF retained significance (p = 0.01). Relative prevalence of RTK alterations was associated with increased OEF (p = 0.003) and perfusion values (p < 0.05). ROC analysis suggested OEF achieved best performance for IDH mutation detection [area under the curve (AUC) = 0.828]. None of the investigated parameters enabled prediction of MGMT status except OEF with a moderate AUC of 0.784. Predictive value for RTK subgroup was acceptable by using OEF (AUC = 0.764) and CBV (AUC = 0.754). OEF and perfusion metrics demonstrated excellent performance in glioma grading. Moreover, mutational landscape revealed hypoxia or angiogenesis-relevant gene signatures were associated with specific imaging phenotypes.Conclusion: CAT for MRI-based OEF mapping is a promising technology for oxygen measurement and along with perfusion MRI can predict genetic profiles and tumor grade in a non-invasive and clinically relevant manner.Clinical Impact: Physiological imaging provides an in vivo portrait of genetic alterations in glioma and offers a potential strategy for non-invasively selecting patients for individualized therapies. more...

Crop segmentation is a fundamental step of extracting the guidance line for an automated agricultural machine with a visual navigation system. However, the segmentation quality of green crop is seriously affected by the outdoor lighting conditions. To improve the accuracy of crop segmentation under complex lighting conditions, a color-index-based crop segmentation method with luminance partition correction and adaptive thresholding is proposed in this article. The method extracts the luminance component from the given RGB image and employs two adaptive thresholds to divide the luminance image into the dark, normal and bright areas. Then, a partition Gamma function is adaptively selected to improve the brightness levels of the dark and bright regions in which the Gamma correction parameter is adaptively determined based on the local distribution characteristics of illumination, and the corrected image is converted to the RGB counterpart through color saturation restoration. Finally, the ExG (excess green index) color index with Otsu thresholding is used to perform pre-segmentation in order to calculate the segmentation threshold for the final segmentation. Experimental results show that the proposed approach can effectively increase the brightness levels of the dark region and decrease the brightness levels in the bright region. In addition, compared with the traditional Otsu method employed in before and after luminance correction, the proposed method can achieve better segmentation results. more...

Rotation-invariant feature extraction is crucial for object detection in Very High Resolution (VHR) optical remote sensing images. Although convolutional neural networks (CNNs) are good at extracting the translation-invariant features and have been widely applied in computer vision, it is still a challenging problem for CNNs to extract rotation-invariant features in VHR optical remote sensing images. In this paper we present a novel Double-Net with sample pairs from the same class as inputs to improve the performance of object detection and classification in VHR optical remote sensing images. Specifically, the proposed Double-Net contains multiple channels of CNNs in which each channel refers to a specific rotation direction and all CNNs share identical weights. Based on the output features of all channels, multiple instance learning algorithm is employed to extract the final rotation-invariant features. Experimental results on two publicly available benchmark datasets, namely Mnist-rot-12K and NWPU VHR-10, demonstrate that the presented Double-Net outperforms existing approaches on the performance of rotation-invariant feature extraction, which is especially effective under the situation of small training samples. more...

Bimetallic catalysts (Ni-Co/AC and Ni-Fe/AC) supported on activated carbon (AC) were prepared via one-step method from coal as AC precursor with the addition of metal salts by KOH activation. The effects of the introduction of second metal (Co or Fe) into Ni/AC on the textural structure of the resultant bimetallic catalysts and their catalytic performances for methane decomposition were investigated. The results showed that active metals can be directly supported on AC by the reaction of metal species with carbon during the activation. The addition of Co or Fe to Ni/AC resulted in the decrease of specific surface area and pore volume. With increasing the loading of Co or Fe, metal alloys were formed and total surface area and pore volume declined, but the mesoporosity was increased. Bimetallic Ni-Co/AC and Ni-Fe/AC catalysts exhibited better catalytic activity and stability for methane decomposition compared than Ni/AC. The introduction of Co mainly improved initial catalytic activity; however, Ni-Fe/AC catalyst showed better behaviors in terms of reducing the deactivation rate of Ni-based catalyst than Ni-Co/AC catalyst, which is relative with the formation of Ni-Fe alloy and carbon fibers over Ni-Fe/AC. This work provides a simple and efficient approach to improve catalytic performances of Ni-based catalyst for methane decomposition. more...

Abstract Background SMAD4 is frequently inactivated and associated with a poor prognosis in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Abnormal SMAD4 expression also plays an important role in the malignant progression of PDAC. Methods We investigated SMAD4 status in PDAC by immunohistochemical methods to explore the relationships between SMAD4 expression and clinicopathological features and then detected SMAD4 mutations by Sanger sequencing in 95 patients with PDAC to identify new mutation sites in PDAC. We further evaluated the effects of a missense mutation, Y353C, in the SMAD4 MH2 domain, on cell proliferation and migration in vitro. Results Immunohistochemistry showed that the expression of SMAD4 in PDAC carcinoma tissue was significantly lower than that in normal pancreatic tissue, and negative SMAD4 expression was closely related to tumour diameter, staging, lymph node metastasis and differentiation. Sanger sequencing analysis showed that the rate of SMAD4 mutation was 11.8% in 85 PDAC cases, and the novel SMAD4 Y353C missense mutation identified in this study promoted cell migration and invasion without affecting cell proliferation in vitro. Furthermore, SMAD4 Y353C resulted in reduced expression of E-cadherin and increased expression of Vimentin compared with wild-type SMAD4 overexpression. Conclusion This study supports the key role of SMAD4 as a tumour suppressor gene in PDAC and shows that SMAD4 Y353C is associated with poor progression of PDAC. more...

Abstract Background Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) causes serious infections in hospitals. Penthorum chinense Pursh (PCP), employed by the Miao ethnic minority in China, presents antibacterial activities. In this study, the anti-Staphylococcus aureus activities in the pinocembrin-7-O residue-rich fraction from PCP (PGF) were evaluated and characterized. Methods The PGF was prepared with 70% ethanol reflux extraction followed by fractional extraction and column chromatography. Pinocembrin-7-O residue components were identified with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). Anti-S. aureus activities of the fraction and the main components were evaluated in vitro with serially diluted microbroth assays. Cytotoxicity was evaluated with 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) chromogenic assays using the NCTC 1469 cell line. Results This study indicated that the PGF and three components (S1, S2, and S3) presented anti-S. aureus activities, including against clinically isolated MRSA strains. The molecular masses of S1, S2, and S3 were identical to those of pinocembrin-7-O-[4″,6″-hexahydroxydiphenoyl (HHDP)]-β-D-glucose, pinocembrin-7-O-[3″-O-galloyl-4″,6″-(s)-HHDP]-β-D-glucose, and Thonningianin A, respectively. The PGF, S1, S2, and S3 all presented an identical minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against S. aureus ATCC 25923 and ATCC 43300, which was 62.5 μg/mL. The minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBCs) of the PGF and S3 against ATCC 25923 were 125 and 250 μg/mL, and the MBCs of the PGF, S2, and S3 against ATCC 43300 were 250, 500, and 250 μg/mL, respectively. A time-kill assay consistently indicated that none of the bacterial clones of ATCC 25923 and ATCC 43300 could survive under 2× and 4× MIC PGF treatment for 24 h, respectively. In contrast, 104 CFU (colony-forming units) of ATCC 25923 and ATCC 43300 were killed by 8× and 4× MIC S3 within 24 h, respectively. Additionally, 1×, 2×, and 4× MIC the PGF presented similar postantibiotic effects (PAEs) on the strain ATCC 25923. However, the PAE of the PGF on the strain ATCC 43300 was concentration dependent (1× more...

Background: The alteration of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) content contributes to many diseases, however, little is known about its effect on the prevalence of dental fluorosis (DF). Objectives: We conducted a cross-sectional study to investigate the association of low-to-moderate fluoride exposure with relative mtDNA levels in relation to DF in children. Methods: We recruited 616 resident children, aged 7–13 years, randomly from low-to-moderate fluoride areas in Tianjin, China. We measured the fluoride concentrations in drinking water and urine using the national standardized ion selective electrode method, and determined the relative levels of mtDNA using a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction assay. The association among fluoride exposure, relative mtDNA levels, and the prevalence of DF were examined using multivariable linear and logistic regression models. We also performed stratified and mediation analyses. Results: The relative mtDNA levels of participants in the DF group were significantly lower than in the non-DF group (0.95 ± 0.44 vs. 1.12 ± 0.45, P more...

The pore characteristics of shale reservoirs in the lower submember of Member 3 to upper submember of Member 4 of Shahejie Formation in Dongying sag are analyzed, influences of mineral content and organic matter content on porosity and pore size are also investigated, and through the diagenetic thermal simulation experiment, the main pore evolution is further discussed. The results show that the pore structure of shale reservoirs is complex, the micron-nanometer pores can storage liquid hydrocarbons, and the free-phase crude oil is mainly distributed in intergranular dissolution pores of calcite, recrystallized intergranular pores, intergranular shrinkage fractures of clay mineral which have large pore size. Framework minerals and organic matter content directly influence porosity and pore size of shale reservoirs, relationship between porosity and content of felsic mineral as well as content of organic matter content is linear and positive, while relationship between content of carbonated mineral is negative. At the buried depth from 2500 to 3500 m, concentration of organic acid from hydrocarbon generation and expulsion of organic matter, increasing range of pressure coefficient, are well corresponding to high-porosity intervals; pore formation in shale oil reservoirs are almost controlled by diagenetic evolution of clay minerals; framework storage spaces formed by carbonate grain crystals as well as intergranular and intergranular dissolution pores of carbonate increases porosity of shale oil reservoirs; local increase of porosity at the depth of 3500–3800 m is mainly caused by coupling of hydrocarbon-generating overpressure and dissolution, and size, distribution and connectivity of pores are enhanced obviously. Keywords: Shale oil, Pore and fracture, Diagenesis, Clay mineral transformation, Dissolution, Recrystallization, Hydrocarbon-generation and acid expulsion, Paleogene, Dongying sag more...

Molecular characterizations, including microsatellite instability (MSI) and the CpG island methylator phenotype (CIMP) showed strong associations in colorectal carcinoma (CRC) and provided a deeper understanding of the etiology of disease. However, the global relationship between epigenetic alternations and changes in mRNA expression in CRC remains largely undefined, especially regarding the roles of DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs). Here, we conducted a systematic network comparison to explore the global conservation between co-expressed and co-methylated modules. We successfully identified immune-related modules that were regulated by DNMTs and had strong associations with immune-infiltrating neutrophils and dendritic cells in CRC. Moreover, we found that genes in those modules were prognostic for CRC, with 97.1% (168/173) being significantly influenced by DNMTs. Thus, this study resolved an interaction between DNA methylation and mRNA expression through DNMTs. Additionally, we provided evidence that DNMTs control the global hypomethylation of oncogenes, including ALOX5AP and CSF3R that otherwise have high methylation in normal colons. Such genes were also more sensitive to DNMT changes, such as in CRC. Collectively, our analyzes provided a systems biology approach to investigate the association among different molecular phenotypes in diseases. more...

Updated concrete construction robots are designed to optimize equipment operation, improve safety, enhance workspace awareness, and further ensure a proper working environment for construction workers. The importance of concrete construction robots has been constantly highlighted, as they have a profound impact on construction quality and efficiency. Autonomous vehicle driving monitoring has been widely employed in concrete construction robots; however, they lack clear relevance to the key functions in the building process. This paper aims to bridge this knowledge gap by systematically classifying and summarizing the existing concrete construction robots, analyzing their existing problems, and providing direction for their future development. The prescription criteria and selection of robots depend on the concrete construction process, which includes six common functional levels: distribution, leveling and compaction, floor finishing, surface painting, 3D printing, and surveillance. Misunderstood functions and the improper adjustment of construction robots may lead to increased cost, reduced effectiveness, and restricted application scenarios. Our review identifies current commercial and recently studied concrete construction robots to facilitate the standardization and optimization of robotic construction design. Moreover, this study may be able to guide future research and technology development efforts for autonomous robots in concrete construction. more...

In the existing research on prosthetic footplates, rehabilitation insoles, and robot feet, the cushioning parts are basically based on simple mechanisms and elastic pads. Most of them are unable to provide adequate impact resistance especially during contact with the ground. This paper developed a bioinspired heel pad by optimizing the inner structures inspired from human heel pad which has great cushioning performance. The distinct structures of the human heel pad were determined through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology and related literatures. Five-layer pads with and without inner structures by using two materials (soft rubber and resin) were obtained, resulting in four bionic heel pads. Three finite element simulations (static, impact, and walking) were conducted to compare the cushioning effects in terms of deformations, ground reactions, and principal stress. The optimal pad with bionic structures and soft rubber material reduced 28.0% peak vertical ground reaction force (GRF) during walking compared with the unstructured resin pad. Human walking tests by a healthy subject wearing the 3D printed bionic pads also showed similar findings, with an almost 20% decrease in peak vertical GRF at normal speed. The soft rubber heel pad with bionic structures has the best cushioning performance, while the unstructured resin pad depicts the poorest. This study proves that with proper design of the inner structures and materials, the bionic pads will demonstrate distinct cushioning properties, which could be applied to the engineering fields, including lower limb prosthesis, robotics, and rehabilitations. more...

The Annual Conference and International Conference of the Chinese Association of Micro-NanoTechnology is a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary, high-level academic conference that has been held annually since 1994 and has become an important academic event in the field of micro- and nanotechnology [...] more...

This study aimed to evaluate the difference in wall shear stress (WSS) (axial, circumferential, and 3D) between high-risk and low-risk plaques in patients with moderate carotid artery stenosis and to identify which time points and directions play the dominant roles in determining the risk associated with plaques. Forty carotid arteries in 30 patients were examined in this study. All patients underwent high-resolution vessel wall (HRVW) imaging, diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), and 4D flow MRI; HRVW imaging and DWI were used to separate low- and high-risk plaque. Twenty-four high-risk plaques and 16 low-risk plaques were enrolled. An independent-sample t-test was used to compare WSS between low- and high-risk plaques in the whole cardiac cycle and at 20 different time points in the cardiac cycle. The study found that patients with high-risk plaques had higher WSS than those with low-risk plaques throughout the entire cardiac cycle (p < 0.05), but the changes varied at the 20 different time points. The number of non-significant differences (p > 0.05) was less in diastole than in systole across different time points. The axial WSS values were higher than the circumferential WSS values; the difference in axial WSS values between high- and low-risk plaques was more significant than the difference in circumferential WSS, whereas 3D WSS values best reflected the difference between high-risk and low-risk plaques because they showed significant differences at every time point. In conclusion, increased WSS, especially during the diastolic period and in the axial direction, may be a signal of a high-risk plaque and may cause cerebrovascular events in patients with moderate carotid artery stenosis. Additionally, WSS can provide hemodynamic information and help clinicians make more appropriate decisions for patients with plaques. more...

PurposeThis study aimed to assess the spatiotemporal evolution of oxygen extraction fraction (OEF) in ischemic stroke with a newly developed cluster analysis of time evolution (CAT) for a combined quantitative susceptibility mapping and quantitative blood oxygen level-dependent model (QSM + qBOLD, QQ).MethodOne hundred and fifteen patients in different ischemic stroke phases were retrospectively collected for measurement of OEF of the infarcted area defined on diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI). Clinical severity was assessed using the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS). Of the 115 patients, 11 underwent two longitudinal MRI scans, namely, three-dimensional (3D) multi-echo gradient recalled echo (mGRE) and 3D pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (pCASL), to evaluate the reversal region (RR) of the initial diffusion lesion (IDL) that did not overlap with the final infarct (FI). The temporal evolution of OEF and the cerebral blood flow (CBF) in the IDL, the RR, and the FI were assessed.ResultsCompared to the contralateral mirror area, the OEF of the infarcted region was decreased regardless of stroke phases (p < 0.05) and showed a declining tendency from the acute to the chronic phase (p = 0.022). Five of the 11 patients with longitudinal scans showed reversal of the IDL. Relative oxygen extraction fraction (rOEF, compared to the contralateral mirror area) of the RR increased from the first to the second MRI (p = 0.044). CBF was about 1.5-fold higher in the IDL than in the contralateral mirror area in the first MRI. Two patients showed penumbra according to the enlarged FI volume. The rOEF of the penumbra fluctuated around 1.0 at earlier scan times and then decreased, while the CBF decreased continuously.ConclusionThe spatiotemporal evolution of OEF and perfusion in ischemic lesions is heterogeneous, and the CAT-based QQ method is feasible to capture cerebral oxygen metabolic information. more...

Tetrastigma hemsleyanum Diels & Gilg (T. hemsleyanum) has attracted much attention due to its ability on pneumonia, bronchitis, and immune-related diseases, while its functional components and underlying mechanism of action on pneumonia have not been fully elucidated. Herein, we used a systematic network pharmacology approach to explore the action mechanism of T. hemsleyanum leaf in the treatment of pneumonia. In this study, the results of network pharmacology demonstrated that there were 34 active components and 80 drug–disease targets in T. hemsleyanum leaf, which were strongly in connection with signal transduction, inflammatory response, and the oxidation–reduction process. Subsequently, a mouse model of pneumonia induced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) was established to validate the predicted results of network pharmacology. In the animal experiments, aqueous extract of T. hemsleyanum leaf (EFT) significantly attenuated the histopathological changes of lung tissue in P. aeruginosa–induced mice and reduced the number of bacterial colonies in BALFs by 96.84% (p < 0.01). Moreover, EFT treatment suppressed the increase of pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-17, IL-6, and TNF-α in lung tissues triggered by P. aeruginosa, which led to the increase of Th17 cells (p < 0.05). High concentration of EFT treatment (2.0 g/kg) obviously increased the anti-inflammatory cytokine levels, accompanied by the enhancement of Treg proportion in a dose-dependent manner and a notable reversal of transcription factor RORγt expression. These findings demonstrated that network pharmacology was a useful tool for TCM research, and the anti-inflammatory effect of EFT was achieved by maintaining Th17/Treg immune homeostasis and thereby suppressing the inflammatory immune response. more...

Aging generally coincides with a gradual decline in mass and strength of muscles and bone mineral density (BMD). Sarcopenia is closely linked to osteoporosis in the elderly, which can lead to abnormal gait, balance disorders, and dysfunctions, as well as increase in the risks of falls, fractures, weakness, and death. MicroRNAs (miRNAs, miRs) are a kind of short and non-coding RNA molecules but can regulate posttranscriptional protein expression. However, we have known little about their participation in age-associated osteoporosis and sarcopenia. The current study aims to confirm those miRNAs as biomarkers for age-related reduction in muscular atrophy associated with human blood fractures. In our study, 10 fracture-risk-related miRNAs (miR-637, miR-148a-3p, miR-125b-5p, miR-124-3p, miR-122-5p, miR-100-5p, miR-93-5p, miR-21-5p, miR-23a-3p, and miR-24-3p) were analyzed. For the initial screening, we determined the abundance of fracture-risk-associated miRNAs by RT-PCR most frequently detected in enrolled 93 elderly with sarcopenia and non-sarcopenia, respectively. Statistically, the relative expression levels of plasma miR-23a-3p, miR-93-5p, and miR-637 in the sarcopenia group were significantly lower than that in the non-sarcopenia group, while the levels of other miRNAs did not change significantly. Moreover, we showed that the levels of ASM/height2, handgrip strength, and 4-m velocity in the sarcopenia group were significantly lower than in the non-sarcopenia group. Whereafter, we expanded the sample for further detection and analysis and revealed that the levels of plasma miR-23a-3p, miR-93-5p, and miR-637 in the sarcopenia group were significantly lower than that in the non-sarcopenia group, which is consistent with the initial screening experiment. From our analysis, changes in levels of plasma miR-93-5p and miR-637 were dramatically related to ASM/height2. Furthermore, changes in miR-23a and miR-93-5p were significantly affected by ASM/height2 in female individuals, with no significant correlations between miRNAs changes and these diagnostic indexes in male individuals after adjusting sex. The study showed that plasma miRNAs changed in an aging-related sarcopenia manner and were associated with increased fracture risk. In aging patients, plasma miR-23a-3p, miR-93-5p, and miR-637 have the potential as biomarkers of sarcopenia, which can affect the development of physiological dysfunction and may be also used in the fracture risk assessment of these patients. more...

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers are known to be toxic and impair thyroid function. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are not well understood. We constructed a female Sprague-Dawley rat model to evaluate the role of endoplasmic reticulum stress, apoptosis and autophagy in 2,2′,4,4′-tetrabromodiphenylether (PBDE-47) induced thyroid toxicity. In the brain development spurt period (postnatal day 10), rats were treated with PBDE-47 (0, 1, 5, 10 mg/kg bw, i.g). Two addition groups were administered with 4-Phenylbutyric acid, an endoplasmic reticulum stress modulator, to reverse PBDE-47-induced thyroid toxicity. Our results demonstrated that PBDE-47 significantly decreased serum thyroid stimulating hormone levels, induced histologic changes in thyroid tissues, increased the percentage of cell apoptosis and expression levels of C/EBP-homologous protein, caspase 3, glucose-regulated protein 78, inositol-requiring enzyme 1, and autophagy-related proteins Beclin1 and 1A/1B-light chain 3. Besides of decreased serum thyroid stimulating hormone levels, all these changes were reversed by 4-Phenylbutyric acid. Taken together, these data indicate that, PBDE-47 damages the thyroid tissues by triggering endoplasmic reticulum stress, apoptosis and autophagy. more...

Medulloblastoma, as the most common malignant brain tumor in children, exhibits highly dysregulated DNA methylation. The novel epigenetic marker—5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) plays essential role in gene regulation during brain development and in brain tumors. However, the biological and clinical implications of 5hmC in medulloblastoma are still unclear. Here, we detected global 5hmC levels in two independent medulloblastoma patient cohorts (discovery cohort: n = 81; validation cohort: n = 171) using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analysis. Immunohistochemistry was used to identify the cell proliferation and expression of Ten-eleven translocation 1 and 2 (TET1/2). The prognostic impacts of covariates on progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were evaluated using multivariate Cox hazards regression models. We observed that global 5hmC levels were decreased in medulloblastomas compared to normal cerebellums (P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that low global 5hmC levels correlated with poor PFS and OS rates (discovery cohort: PFS: P = 0.003, OS: P = 0.002; validation cohort: PFS: P = 0.0002, OS: P = 0.001). Immunohistochemistry showed an inverse correlation between 5hmC score and Ki-67 index (r = -0.747, P < 0.0001). Moreover, 5hmC score in MB samples was associated with nuclear expression of TET1 (r = -0.419, P = 0.003) and TET2 (r = -0.399, P = 0.005) proteins. Our study demonstrates that loss of 5hmC is an epigenetic biomarker in medulloblastomas. Our results indicate that 5hmC could be a candidate prognostic indicator for improving survival prediction of risk stratification in patients with medulloblastoma. more...

We introduce the first-ever statistical framework for estimating the age of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) lesions from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Estimating lesion age is an important step when studying the longitudinal behavior of MS lesions and can be used in applications such as studying the temporal dynamics of chronic active MS lesions. Our lesion age estimation models use first order radiomic features over a lesion derived from conventional T1 (T1w) and T2 weighted (T2w) and fluid attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR), T1w with gadolinium contrast (T1w+c), and Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM) MRI sequences as well as demographic information. For this analysis, we have a total of 32 patients with 53 new lesions observed at 244 time points. A one or two step random forest model for lesion age is fit on a training set using a lesion volume cutoff of 15 mm3 or 50 mm3. We explore the performance of nine different modeling scenarios that included various combinations of the MRI sequences and demographic information and a one or two step random forest models, as well as simpler models that only uses the mean radiomic feature from each MRI sequence. The best performing model on a validation set is a model that uses a two-step random forest model on the radiomic features from all of the MRI sequences with demographic information using a lesion volume cutoff of 50 mm3. This model has a mean absolute error of 7.23 months (95% CI: [6.98, 13.43]) and a median absolute error of 5.98 months (95% CI: [5.26, 13.25]) in the validation set. For this model, the predicted age and actual age have a statistically significant association (p-value more...

The mechanical characteristic at the crack tip is one of the main factors affecting the stress corrosion cracking (SCC) in dissimilar metal welded joints (DMWJs). In this research, to evaluate the effect of heterogeneous material properties on the mechanical characteristic at the crack tip of DMWJs accurately, a heterogeneous material model of the SA508 Cl.3-Alloy 52M DMWJ was established based on USDFLD subroutine in ABAQUS. The comparison of the traditional “Sandwich” material model with the heterogeneous material properties, stress-strain conditions, and the plastic zone around the crack tip at the interference zone has been analyzed by the finite element method (FEM). The results indicated that the heterogeneous material model could characterize the mechanical properties of the SA508 Cl.3-Alloy 52M DMWJs accurately. In addition, the crack at the interface zone between materials will deflect along with the weld metal in two material models. more...

BackgroundEarly prediction of recurrence and death risks is significant to the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. We aimed to develop and validate prognosis nomogram models based on the gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT)-to-platelet (PLT) ratio (GPR) for HCC and to explore the relationship between the GPR and inflammation-related signaling pathways.MethodsAll data were obtained from 2000 to 2012 in the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University. In the training cohort, factors included in the nomograms were determined by univariate and multivariate analyses. In the training and validation cohorts, the concordance index (C-index) and calibration curves were used to assess predictive accuracy, and receiver operating characteristic curves were used to assess discriminative ability. Clinical utility was evaluated using decision curve analysis. Moreover, improvement of the predictive accuracy of the nomograms was evaluated by calculating the decision curve analysis, the integrated discrimination improvement, and the net reclassification improvement. Finally, the relationship between the GPR and inflammation-related signaling pathways was evaluated using the independent-samples t-test.ResultsA larger tumor size and higher GPR were common independent risk factors for both disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) in HCC (P < 0.05). Good agreement between our nomogram models’ predictions and actual observations was detected by the C-index and calibration curves. Our nomogram models showed significantly better performance in predicting the HCC prognosis compared to other models (P < 0.05). Online webserver and scoring system tables were built based on the proposed nomogram for convenient clinical use. Notably, including the GPR greatly improved the predictive ability of our nomogram models (P < 0.05). In the validation cohort, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (P38MAPK) expression was significantly negatively correlated with the GPR (P < 0.01) and GGT (P = 0.039), but was not correlated with PLT levels (P = 0.063). And we found that P38MAPK can regulate the expression of GGT by quantitative real-time PCR and Western blotting experiments.ConclusionsThe dynamic nomogram based on the GPR provides accurate and effective prognostic predictions for HCC, and P38MAPK-GGT may be a suitable therapeutic target to improve the prognosis of HCC patients. more...

To detection of pathogens DNA is considered a promising strategy in sick fish. The current standard for enumeration of pathogens to obtain colony forming units by plate counts has several drawbacks: long time to results, high variability. While qPCR can target genetic identity, its limitations require enumeration to be calculated from a relative standard curve. There is a growing interest in techniques that allows an absolute quantification of pathogens DNA which could be useful for early diagnosis. Recently, digital PCR mainly based on droplets generation, emerged as an affordable technology for precise and absolute quantification of nucleic acids. In this work, we described a new interesting approach for profiling Streptococcus agalactiae DNA in tilapia different tissues samples using a chip-based platform, the Quant Studio 3D digital PCR. A total of 120 tissue samples were analyzed by plant count, qPCR and chip-based dPCR. The cdPCR method had a 5% relative standard deviation (RSD), marking it more precise than plate counts and qPCR with an RSD of 15 % and 10 %. Given its reproducibility and reliability, our approach could be potentially applied for the identification and quantification of pathogens DNA in infected fish. As chip-digital PCR becomes more established, it would be a robust tool for quantitative assessment of S. agalactiae DNA copy number for diagnosis of Streptococcosis. more...

MRI-based oxygen extraction fraction imaging has a great potential benefit in the selection of clinical strategies for ischemic stroke patients. This study aimed to evaluate the performance of a challenge-free oxygen extraction fraction (OEF) mapping in a cohort of acute and subacute ischemic stroke patients. Consecutive ischemic stroke patients (a total of 30 with 5 in the acute stage, 19 in the early subacute stage, and 6 in the late subacute stage) were recruited. All subjects underwent MRI including multi-echo gradient echo (mGRE), diffusion weighted imaging (DWI), and 3D-arterial spin labeling (ASL). OEF maps were generated from mGRE phase + magnitude data, which were processed using quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) + quantitative blood oxygen level-dependent (qBOLD) imaging with cluster analysis of time evolution. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps were reconstructed from 3D-ASL and DWI, respectively. Further, cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO2) was calculated as the product of CBF and OEF. OEF, CMRO2, CBF, and ADC values in the ischemic cores (absolute values) and their contrasts to the contralateral regions (relative values) were evaluated. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare OEF, CMRO2, CBF, and ADC values and their relative values among different stroke stages. The OEF value of infarct core showed a trend of decrease from acute, to early subacute, and to late subacute stages of ischemic stroke. Significant differences among the three stroke stages were only observed in the absolute OEF (F = 6.046, p = 0.005) and relative OEF (F = 5.699, p = 0.009) values of the ischemic core, but not in other measurements (absolute and relative CMRO2, CBF, ADC values, all values of p > 0.05). In conclusion, the challenge-free QSM + qBOLD-generated OEF mapping can be performed on stroke patients. It can provide more information on tissue viability that was not available with CBF and ADC and, thus, may help to better manage ischemic stroke patients. more...

The present study systematically investigated if genetic variations in the DRD2 and COMT interacted with parenting style to predict individual differences in creativity. In a sample of young adults, we first examined the interaction of each individual polymorphism and parenting style on creativity. Then, we aggregated the contribution of these susceptibility polymorphisms into a Cumulative Genetic Score (CGS) which combines the plasticity conferred by two or more single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of DRD2 and COMT into a single score. When polymorphisms were examined in isolation, the results indicated there were only two polymorphisms from COMT (rs5993882 and rs5993883), which were found to interact with mother authoritativeness to predict creativity. However, a CGS comprising of several potential susceptibility polymorphisms from DRD2 and COMT genes did indeed interact with parenting style to explain a significant amount of variance in the creativity. Furthermore, the analysis of regions of significance (Ros) showed supporting evidences for differential susceptibility model, such that the individuals with high CGS were more likely to be affected by their both negative and positive parenting style, demonstrating higher and lower creativity. These results further provide evidence for the involvement of dopaminergic genes in the relationship between parenting style and creativity and suggest individuals with the greater susceptibility are the ones who are more susceptible to environmental influences. more...

This study aimed to determine the correlation between amino acid profiling of a 3-day-old embryo culture medium and embryo implantation potential in women undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF). The data of 98 patients who received IVF treatment in our hospital from December 2015 to February 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. The 98 patients were grouped into a pregnant group (gemellary pregnancy), a non-pregnant group (non-pregnancy), and a blank control group. The amino acids from a 3-day-old embryo culture medium and blank control medium were collected and were analyzed using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The HPLC results showed that amino acids including aspartate (ASP), serine (SER), glycine (GLY), histidine (HIS), taurine (TAU), arginine (ARG), threonine (THR), alanine (ALA), and proline (PRO) were detected in the 3-day-old embryo culture medium and blank control medium. There are significant differences between the pregnant group and non-pregnant group in peak height (H)-SER, surface area (S)-ASP, S-SER, S-HIS, and S-ALA. The discrimination analysis according to the peak height and peak area of amino acids revealed that the prediction rate of the pregnant group, non-pregnant group, and blank control group were 82.7, 95.7, and 100%. Further, by using the principal component analysis, we found that the prediction rate in these three groups were 90.4, 91.3, and 100%. Our data may suggest that using amino acid concentrations for principal component analysis and discriminant analysis has high accuracy in predicting the relationship between amino acid fingerprint and embryo implantation potential. more...

Deep learning (DL) is increasingly used to solve ill-posed inverse problems in medical imaging, such as reconstruction from noisy and/or incomplete data, as DL offers advantages over conventional methods that rely on explicit image features and hand engineered priors. However, supervised DL-based methods may achieve poor performance when the test data deviates from the training data, for example, when it has pathologies not encountered in the training data. Furthermore, DL-based image reconstructions do not always incorporate the underlying forward physical model, which may improve performance. Therefore, in this work we introduce a novel approach, called fidelity imposed network edit (FINE), which modifies the weights of a pre-trained reconstruction network for each case in the testing dataset. This is achieved by minimizing an unsupervised fidelity loss function that is based on the forward physical model. FINE is applied to two important inverse problems in neuroimaging: quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) and under-sampled image reconstruction in MRI. Our experiments demonstrate that FINE can improve reconstruction accuracy. more...

The incorporation of the cognitive radio (CR) technology as a spectrum management tool in satellite communication has attracted considerable research attention because the CR allows the coexistence of the primary and secondary networks using the same resources. In this paper, satellites and their users are considered as a primary network, and the terrestrial base stations (BSs) and their users are considered as a secondary network. Besides, it is considered that terrestrial users cause interference to satellite users due to technical and environmental constraints. This interference reduces satellite users' satisfaction with downloads rate. In such a cognitive satellite network environment, content placement may also cause a decrease in user satisfaction. The successful download probability (SDP) is analyzed in this work based on different terrestrial user density. To utilize the satellite cache resources effectively, we propose two transmission strategies based on the terrestrial user density, namely, the multi-point cooperative transmission strategy (CT) and the parallel transmission strategy (PT). In addition, based on the cache service probability we determine the ratio of content distribution most popular content (MPC) and general popular content (GPC) and optimize the content placement process using the utility function in CT mode. Through computer simulation, we give numerical results of our method. The obtained numerical results show that the proposed strategies are effective in content placement. more...

The software trustworthiness measurement is one of the hot topics. Software component technology is the mainstream technology of software development. How to get the trustworthy degree of software component efficiently and accurately is a challenging issue for the component-based software development. Getting the trustworthy degree of software component needs many users' success cases. In this paper, we propose an updating model of software component trustworthiness. First, the trustworthy degree of the software component is computed based on users' feedback. Then, the weight of updating is determined by the number of users. Finally, the method of cluster different companies is based on the Euler distance. A case study shows that the method is reasonable and effective. more...

In this paper, we propose a new space-frequency adaptive equalization (SFAE) method for single carrier frequency domain equalization (SC-FDE) systems that can deal with multipath interference from the highly delay-dispersive channel as well as the multiuser interference. Based on the minimum mean square error (MMSE) criterion, we derive the adaptive weights by combining the received multi-antenna signals in the frequency domain. The main computation burdens of the proposed SFAE and the conventional space-time adaptive equalization (STAE) lie in the calculation of the autocorrelation matrix R and its inversion. The autocorrelation matrix in the SFAE is exactly a block Toeplitz matrix whose calculation can be efficiently implemented by the fast Fourier transformation (FFT) and its inversion also has fast algorithms. Compared with the conventional STAE method, the proposed SFAE method has comparable interference suppression performance, but with a lower order computational complexity. Hence, the proposed SFAE should be more attractive from a practical point of view. The numerical results are provided to corroborate the proposed studies. more...

Due to the high dynamic characteristics of the low-orbit satellite networks, the frequent handovers of the users led to heavy mobility management load and large handover delay. To solve these problems, one mobility management mechanism based on the virtual agent domain (VAD) is proposed. In this mechanism, a virtual agent cluster (VAC) is designed to co-manage the network architecture of users in the corresponding VAD. With the on-board processing and switching capabilities, the architecture of the distributed mobility management mechanism is adopted to support the information sharing between the VACs, which reduces the performance requirements for single satellite and improves the system scalability. Then, we construct the home mobile-agent-anchor (HMAA) and the local MAA. In this way, the MN triggers a binding update to the HA only when the home MAA is lost, and the MN's switching within the VAD only needs to update its intra-domain relations, which reduces the overhead of mobility management and switching delay. Furthermore, the proposed scheme is theoretically evaluated in terms of the signaling overhead and handover latency. Finally, the numerical simulation results are presented to verify the efficacy of our scheme. The experimental platform also demonstrates the availability and efficiency of the new mechanism. more...