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Composite mantle cell lymphoma and classical Hodgkin lymphoma is very rare and the actual origin of it is still unclear. Here we reported a new case of composite mantle cell lymphoma and classical Hodgkin lymphoma and analyzed its molecular changes. Eight mutations were identified in its Hodgkin component through next-generation sequencing. In addition, we reviewed the published cases of composite mantle cell lymphoma and classical Hodgkin lymphoma and summarized the molecular changes of reported cases as well as the current case to explore the possible pathway of histogenesis.

ObjectivePrecise monitoring of cotton leaves’ nitrogen content is important for increasing yield and reducing fertilizer application. Spectra and images are used to monitor crop nitrogen information. However, the information expressed using nitrogen monitoring based on a single data source is limited and cannot consider the expression of various phenotypic and physiological parameters simultaneously, which can affect the accuracy of inversion. Introducing a multi-source data-fusion mechanism can improve the accuracy and stability of cotton nitrogen content monitoring from the perspective of information complementarity.MethodsFive nitrogen treatments were applied to the test crop, Xinluzao No. 53 cotton, grown indoors. Cotton leaf hyperspectral, chlorophyll fluorescence, and digital image data were collected and screened. A multilevel data-fusion model combining multiple machine learning and stacking integration learning was built from three dimensions: feature-level fusion, decision-level fusion, and hybrid fusion.ResultsThe determination coefficients (R2) of the feature-level fusion, decision-level fusion, and hybrid-fusion models were 0.752, 0.771, and 0.848, and the root-mean-square errors (RMSE) were 3.806, 3.558, and 2.898, respectively. Compared with the nitrogen estimation models of the three single data sources, R2 increased by 5.0%, 6.8%, and 14.6%, and the RMSE decreased by 3.2%, 9.5%, and 26.3%, respectively.ConclusionThe multilevel fusion model can improve accuracy to varying degrees, and the accuracy and stability were highest with the hybrid-fusion model; these results provide theoretical and technical support for optimizing an accurate method of monitoring cotton leaf nitrogen content.

Memristors have been favored in artificial intelligence, neural networks, and chaotic circuits, especially in neural synapses because of their unique advantages such as resistance variability, nonvolatile nature, and nanometer size. Benefits such as integration scale and low power consumption contribute toward simulating the biological synaptic function. Compared with memory association circuits using traditional CMOS transistors, memristors will reduce the complexity of the circuit and the power consumption. Therefore, it is greatly promising to use memristors as synapses to construct neural networks to mimic human brain functions. This paper successfully establishes a recognition circuit based on memristors to recognize some characteristics (size, color, shape, and smooth) of fruits, which is a learning function. After a few seconds, the output signal voltage drops, and this is a forgetting function. Through the establishment of a recognition circuit, the neural network and human complex behavior were simulated. This work lays the foundation for further research of human neural networks.

ABSTRACT Accurate and timely etiological diagnosis is crucial for bloodstream infections (BSIs) due to their high disability and mortality. We conducted a single-center prospective cohort study to compare the digital droplet PCR (ddPCR) assay with traditional blood culture. A total of 169 blood samples from 122 patients with suspected BSIs were collected, mostly from the department of infectious diseases, the emergency department, and the intensive care units, and the clinical data were also recorded. Nucleic acid was extracted from the blood samples, and a 5-fluorescent-channel droplet digital PCR assay was performed and then fed back with the pathogen and its copies. In BSI patients, ddPCR reported an overall 85.71% (12/14) (95% confidence interval [CI], 56.15 to 97.48%) sensitivity, 100% (7/7) (95% CI, 56.09 to 100.00%) and 71.43% (5/7) (95% CI, 30.26 to 94.89%) sensitivity in patients without empirical treatment and in empirically treated patients, respectively. Compared to traditional blood culture, the overall detection rate of ddPCR was significantly higher, 11.27% (16/142) (95% CI, 6.78 to 17.93%) versus 30.28% (43/142) (95% CI, 23.01 to 38.64%), and the extra detection rate of ddPCR was 19.01% (27/142) (95% CI, 13.11 to 26.63%). Of the ddPCR-positive culture-negative cases, 74.19% (23/31) (95% CI, 55.07 to 87.46%) were consistent with the final clinical diagnosis, including 10 bacteria and fungi. The detection rate of ddPCR was significantly higher in patients with white blood cell (WBC) counts of >10 · 109/L, C-reactive protein (CRP) of >70 mg/L, or procalcitonin (PCT) of >0.9 ng/L. Pathogen loads detected by ddPCR are correlated with WBC, CRP, and especially, PCT levels, precisely and rapidly reflecting clinical disease progression. ddPCR has an important guiding value for the clinical use of antibiotics to achieve the best pathogen coverage and the antibacterial effect. Collectively, ddPCR showed a great diagnostic performance in BSIs and had an overall higher detection rate than blood culture. In addition, ddPCR could be used to dynamically monitor the disease progression and provide medication guidance on antibiotic use. IMPORTANCE ddPCR is a promising method to address the current challenges of BSI diagnosis and precise treatment, as it is highly efficient in DNA detection. It shortens the identification of BSI-related pathogens from several days of traditional bacterial culture to 4 to 5 h. It is extremely sensitive and more tolerant to PCR inhibitors, which may facilitate the amplification and enable the detection of a meager amount of DNA fragments in detecting BSI-related pathogens and drug-resistant genes. It can identify almost 20 pathogens in one reaction, which reduces the usage of clinical blood samples to no more than 2 mL. Additionally, dynamic monitoring, assessment of pathogens, and antibiotic resistance genes in patients could be used to guide timely and precise adjustment of antimicrobial prescription. The short turnaround time of ddPCR may have the potential to guide antimicrobial treatment in the very early stage of sepsis and reduce the mortality and disability rate of sepsis.

ABSTRACT Pectin exists in a vast range of plants and has a long history of acting as a functional food additive with potential prebiotic effects on intestinal health. However, knowledge of how pectin regulates gut microbial communities is still insufficient and limited. Here, metatranscriptome sequencing revealed that a pectin-enriched diet (PEC) decreased the abundances of fungal keystone taxa (e.g., amino acid-producing Kazachstania spp.) and their genes involved in oxidative phosphorylation, while it increased the abundance of sulfate-reducing Desulfovibrio spp., and methane-producing Methanobrevibacter spp. in colon microbiomes. Furthermore, we first confirmed that PEC decreased fecal redox potential in a fistula pig model, which could be supported by the enrichment of antioxidants (e.g., inosine) in feces. Fecal metagenome analysis disclosed that certain microbial taxa promoted inosine biosynthesis from pectin degradation, including Prevotella, which plays an essential role in pectin biodegradation. Overall, these results demonstrate that pectin decreases the redox potential in pig hindgut to modulate microbial composition and functions, and specific microorganisms generate reducing agents in the course of pectin degradation to decrease redox potential of microbial ecosystem. IMPORTANCE Collective studies indicate that pectin degradation promotes extensive microorganisms that can be involved in pectin degradation directly or indirectly, or benefit from the altered physiological conditions caused by pectin ingestions. Our study focuses on effects of pectin on gut microbial taxa and functions, as well as its interactions with altered environmental features. Our results demonstrate pectin-induced proreducing shifts on colon microbial taxa and functions, and first confirm that pectin decreases hindgut redox potential, which is an important environmental feature that can modulate microbial communities. These results infer that there is bidirectional regulation between microbiota and redox potential during pectin degradation. In general, this investigation proposes new insights into the pectin-modulating gut microbial ecosystem and also provides new perspectives for targeting modulation of gut microbiota.

ObjectiveIn this work, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and sodium alginate (SA) were used as entrapped carriers and Artemisia argyi stem biochar (ABC) was used as an absorption carrier to immobilize aerobic denitrifying bacteria screened from landfill leachate, thus a new carbon-based functional microbial material (PVA/SA/ABC@BS) was successfully prepared.MethodsThe structure and characteristics of the new material were revealed by using a scanning electron microscope and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and the performance of the material for treating landfill leachate under different working conditions was studied.ResultsABC had abundant pore structures and that the surface contained many oxygen-containing functional groups, carboxyl groups, and amide groups, etc. and it had good absorbing performance and strong acid and alkali buffering capacity, which was beneficial to the adhesion and proliferation of microorganisms. After adding ABC as a composite carrier, the damage rate of immobilized particles was decreased by 1.2%, and the acid stability, alkaline stability, and mass transfer performance were increased by 9.00, 7.00, and 56%, respectively. When the dosage of PVA/SA/ABC@BS was 0.017g/ml, the removal rates of nitrate nitrogen (NO3−-N) and ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N) were the highest, which were 98.7 and 59.4%, respectively. When the pH values were 11, 7, 1, and 9, the removal rates of chemical oxygen demand (COD), NO3−-N, nitrite nitrogen (NO2−-N) and NH4+-N reached the maximum values, which were 14.39, 98.38, 75.87, and 79.31%, respectively. After PVA/SA/ABC@BS was reused in 5 batches, the removal rates of NO3−-N all reached 95.50%.ConclusionPVA, SA and ABC have excellent reusability for immobilization of microorganisms and degradation of nitrate nitrogen. This study can provide some guidance for the great application potential of immobilized gel spheres in the treatment of high concentration organic wastewater.

Background The hospital environment, particularly the intensive care unit (ICU), contributes to the transmission of several nosocomial pathogens, which can survive in this setting for a longer period of time and, in turn, contaminate the surfaces or the medical tools. Thus, appropriate disinfection of these areas and devices are crucial for controlling and preventing further infection. In this study, we examined the effect of different concentrations of chlorine-containing disinfectants (500mg/L, 1000mg/L, and 2000mg/L) on the ICU environment. Methods This quasi-experimental study was based on a convenient sampling method. In this study, High-frequency objects were selected as subjects in ICU, with a total sample of 216.A hall including 6 beds was examined,selecting 4 high-frequency surfaces per bed unit:a bed gear, infusion system, bed end table, and monitor were disinfected with 500, 1000, and 2000 mg/L of chlorine (as Cl2), respectively.The surface dissection was performed at 21:00 o’clock daily, after which ATP fluorescence monitoring and bacterial count detection were performed. Results There was no significant difference in ATP bioluminescence (F = 2.03, P > 0.05) and bacterial counting (χ2 = 2.03, P > 0.05) when using different concentrations of chlorine-containing disinfectant in the ICU. Yet, compared with high concentration (2000mg/L), a low concentration disinfectant reduced the hospital cost. Conclusion By reducing the concentration of ICU high-frequency contact table disinfectants, it is possible to reduce the risk of long-term contamination with chlorine-containing disinfectants and reduce the cost of using ICU chlorine-containing disinfectants.

BackgroundGliomas are the most common and invasive malignant tumors that originate in the central nervous system. Currently, the primary treatment modality for gliomas is maximum surgical resection, supplemented by radiotherapy and chemotherapy. However, the long-term survival rate has not signifificantly increased. Pyroptosis is a new form of programmed lytic death that has been recently discovered. Caspase 4 (CASP4) plays a key role in pyroptosis. Many studies have shown that pyroptosis is not only related to inflflammation but is also closely related to the occurrence and development of most tumors. This study aimed to prove that CASP4 has a key role in the mechanism of gliomas.MethodsWe used expression data from The Cancer Genome Atlas and the Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas to explore the relationship between CASP4 expression and glioma prognosis. The differential expression of CASP4 in gliomas and normal tissues was fifirst tested, and then the connection between CASP4 and tumor prognosis was explored. The relationship between CASP4 expression and immune cell infifiltration was also investigated. Finally, the possible pathways were analyzed using Gene Ontology, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis.ResultsCASP4 was highly expressed and associated with a signifificantly lower survival rate in patients with glioma. It could also inflfluence immune cell infifiltration by releasing cytokines.ConclusionCASP4 can be a diagnostic biomarker and is a promising therapeutic target for gliomas.

Supercapacitors have emerged as promising electrochemical storage, offering advantages such as rapid charge/discharge rates and environmental friendliness. Nevertheless, their practical applications have been limited due to their lower energy density, and selecting electrode materials with superior energy storage properties remains a critical factor. NiCo2S4 nanomaterials have gained significant attention due to their high theoretical specific capacitance, narrow band gap, and abundant redox reaction active sites, but challenges such as poor cyclic stability and volumetric effects associated with prolonged charging and discharging persist. This paper reviews the recent research progress on NiCo2S4 nanomaterials and comprehensively discusses various strategies to improve the electrochemical performance of NiCo2S4, including morphology control, design and development of NiCo2S4-based composite electrode nanomaterials, doping of different elements, utilization of defect engineering and phase engineering strategies, and exploration of theoretical studies. Finally, the prospects and challenges for the development of NiCo2S4 electrode nanomaterials in the field of supercapacitors are also suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vitamin E, a potent antioxidant, is a necessary and complex micronutrient for cows. During the transition period, vitamin E deficiency (VED) is among the highest prevalent micronutrient deficits in dairy cows. It may eventually result in oxidative stress and immunological malfunction, and it increases the risk of peripartum disorders. At present, detailed data on blood metabolites in VED cows are limited. Consequently, the purpose of this research was to examine the alterations in the serum metabolic profile of VED cows throughout the early postpartum period. Using comprehensive 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR), the alterations in serum metabolic activities of VED cows were analyzed. In total, 28 multiparous Holstein cows were assigned according to serum α-tocopherol (α-Toc) concentrations into normal (α-Toc ≥ 4 μg/mL, n = 14) and VED (α-Toc < 3 μg/mL, n = 14) groups at 21 days postpartum, and their blood samples were collected for biochemical and 1H NMR analyses. A t-test on independent samples as well as multivariate statistics were used to assess the findings. In comparison with normal cows, VED cows showed significantly worse body condition scores, milk yield, and dry matter intake (p < 0.05). Significantly higher levels of serum non-esterified fatty acids, aspartate aminotransferase, low-density lipoprotein, and malonaldehyde were found in VED-affected cows, as well as lesser concentrations of serum albumin, high-density lipoprotein, and total antioxidant capacity in comparison with normal cows (p < 0.01), while other vitamins and minerals concentrations showed no distinction between the groups (p > 0.05). Furthermore, 24 upregulated serum metabolites were identified under VED conditions. The metabolomics pathway analysis of these metabolites demonstrated that a global metabolic response to VED in cows was represented by changes in 11 metabolic pathways, comprising energy, carbohydrate, and amino acid metabolism. From these results, we conclude that VED cows were more likely to experience a negative energy balance characterized by alterations of common systemic metabolic processes and develop oxidative stress, inflammation, and ultimately liver injury. This study provides the first evidence of metabolic changes in cows with VED.

The prominence of participating in outdoor leisure activities has gained significance in individuals’ lives as a result of the rapid growth of the economy and the rise in available leisure time. The present study employed structural equation modeling to examine the relationships among leisure involvement, the three distinct dimensions of leisure benefits (physiological benefits, psychological benefits, and social benefits), and subjective well-being of bicycle riders. Moreover, the moderating effect of age was also investigated. A field survey was undertaken within an urban forest park, Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, China, in order to gather data, resulting in the collection of 512 questionnaires that were deemed usable. The results suggest that leisure involvement has a significant and positive impact on bicycle riders’ physiological, psychological, and social benefits, as well as their overall subjective well-being. The subjective well-being of individuals is positively influenced by the physiological, psychological, and social benefits. Additionally, the results of the analysis on the moderating effects suggest that age significantly moderates the relationships between leisure involvement and leisure benefits. The present study also addresses the theoretical and practical implications, limitations, and potential avenues for future research.

The feeding and weighing of oxidizer agents is the key process of solid rocket motor propellant preparation, and its accuracy directly affects the burning performance of solid rocket motors. At present, the existing multi-batch feeding methods have the problem of low accuracy and high time consumption of the oxidizer agent. In this paper, an improved mass flow rate regulation method based on variable frequency control is proposed to improve accuracy and reduce time consumption. The nonlinear variation process of the mass flow rate during the opening and closing process of the air-operated pinch valve is analyzed. The periodic opening and closing frequency of the air-operated pinch valve is introduced to establish the mathematical model of the mass flow rate and frequency, and then, the model parameters are obtained through the discrete element method. The plan of the method of variable frequency regulation and the frequency parameters were determined using the multi-objective optimization method. The experiments are carried out, and the results show that compared to the existing multi-batch feeding method, optimized with the improved mass flow rate regulation methods based on the variable frequency control method, improved the feeding and weighing accuracy by 0.37% and reduced time consumption by 25.6%.

Abstract Background Accumulating studies have revealed that aberrant expression of circular RNAs (circRNAs) is widely involved in the tumorigenesis and progression of malignant cancers, including colorectal cancer (CRC). Nevertheless, the clinical significance, levels, features, biological function, and molecular mechanisms of novel circRNAs in CRC remain largely unexplored. Methods CRC-related circRNAs were identified through bioinformatics analysis and verified in clinical specimens by qRT–PCR and in situ hybridization (ISH). Then, in vitro and in vivo experiments were performed to determine the clinical significance of, functional roles of, and clinical characteristics associated with circIL4R in CRC specimens and cells. Mechanistically, RNA pull-down, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), luciferase reporter, and ubiquitination assays were performed to confirm the underlying mechanism of circIL4R. Results CircIL4R was upregulated in CRC cell lines and in sera and tissues from CRC patients and was positively correlated with advanced clinicopathological features and poor prognosis. Functional experiments demonstrated that circIL4R promotes CRC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion via the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Mechanistically, circIL4R was regulated by TFAP2C and competitively interacted with miR-761 to enhance the expression of TRIM29, thereby targeting PHLPP1 for ubiquitin-mediated degradation to activate the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway and consequently facilitate CRC progression. Conclusions Our findings demonstrate that upregulation of circIL4R plays an oncogenic role in CRC progression and may serve as a promising diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for CRC detection and as a potential therapeutic target for CRC treatment.

Abstract Background Vascular endothelial dysfunction, arteriosclerosis and atherosclerotic plaque are well-known risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Studies on vascular health markers have been well-established, however, there is still a lack of related research on combined vascular structure and function indicators. Method Beijing vascular health stratification (BVHS) is an evaluation system aiming at vascular health, combined the endothelial function, arteriosclerosis, atherosclerotic plaque and vascular lumen stenosis to comprehensively assess the vascular health and grade it. This study will explore the predictive value of the combined evaluation of vascular structure and function for cardiovascular events and assess the predictive value of BVHS and compare it with the existing risk assessment systems. A total of 1500 subjects will be enrolled into the prospective cohort study from a community and will be followed up for at least 3 years from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2023. Subjects aged 40 or above, without coronary heart disease, stroke or peripheral artery disease, with written informed consent will be included; subjects with end-stage hepatorenal diseases (uremia, renal failure, cirrhosis, liver failure), mental disorders or cognitive disorders, with any other factors that the researcher thinks are not suitable for the study will be excluded. Traditional cardiovascular risk factors will be collected as adjusted confounders. Discussion BVHS is a potential and scientific vascular health evaluation system. The study will be the first to grade vascular health by combing various vascular indicators and explore the prediction value and compare with other risk prediction system in general Chinese population. Trial registration: The trial is registered on http://www.chictr.org.cn/ (ChiCTR2000034085).

IntroductionDuring the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the early detection and isolation of individuals infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus disease 2 (SARS-CoV-2) through mass testing can effectively prevent disease transmission. SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid rapid detection based on loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) may be appropriate to include in testing procedures.MethodsWe used 860 nasopharyngeal specimens from healthcare workers of Huashan Hospital and COVID-19 patients collected from April 7th to 21st, 2022, to assess the clinical diagnostic performance of the LAMP assay marketed by Shanghai GeneSc Biotech and compared it to the result of a rapid antigen test (RAT) head-to-head.ResultsOverall, the diagnostic performance of LAMP assay and RAT were as follows. The LAMP assay represented higher sensitivity and specificity than RAT, especially in the extracted RNA samples. The sensitivity was 70.92% and 92.91% for direct LAMP and RNA-LAMP assay, respectively, while the specificity was 99.86% and 98.33%. The LAMP assay had overall better diagnostic performance on the specimens with relatively lower Ct values or collected in the early phase (≤7 days) of COVID-19. The combination of LAMP assay and RAT improved diagnostic efficiency, providing new strategies for rapidly detecting SARS-CoV-2.ConclusionThe LAMP assay are suitable for mass screenings of SARS-CoV-2 infections in the general population.

Objectives To determine the prevalence of possible sarcopenia and its association with other conditions in older adults in Bengbu, China.Design, setting and participants A cross-sectional study of 1082 community-dwelling Chinese people aged at least 60 years from March to June 2022.Methods Handgrip strength and information regarding associated conditions were collected. Possible sarcopenia was estimated based on handgrip strength with cut-off values (

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of veno-arterial (VA) ECMO cannulation on hemodynamic distribution and organ perfusion within aorta under differential blood perfusion conditions. The total blood flow volume supplied by failure heart and ECMO keep constant, flow volume ratio of heart output (FVR-HO) increases from 0% to 100% and correspondingly flow volume ratio of ECMO (FVR-ECMO) decreases from 100% to 0%. The flow patterns within aorta, wall shear stress (WSS), oscillatory shear index (OSI), relative retention time (RRT) were analyzed. The locations of oxygenated and de-oxygenated blood mixing region (BMR) was influenced by FVR-HO. With FVR-HO increasing, BMR moves from proximal to distal side of heart. When FVR-HO was 0%, oxygenated blood supplied by ECMO completely perfuses the aortic vessels. High WSS appears in the iliac artery and abdominal aorta vessel walls closed to cannula position. When FVR-HO was in the range of 10%–30%, the BMR was in aortic arch. The higher OSI and RRT were exhibited in ascending aorta and aorta arch. When FVR-HO was 40% and 50%, the BMR was in ventral trunk for systolic period and in aortic arch for diastolic period. The higher OSI and RRT regions enlarge and metastasize to the descending aorta. When FVR-HO was larger than 50%, the BMR was in the downstream region of the renal artery. Of note, when FVR-HO increases from 0% to 100%, the flow ratios in the two renal arteries change from significant different to be closed at systolic period. Peripheral VA-ECMO with various perfusion levels from cardiac output and ECMO has significant effect on aortic flow surrounding. Partial recovery of heart function can impel BMR moves from proximal to distal side of the heart, which may lead to inadequate supply of oxygenated blood to the upper limb and cephalic vessels.

Thrombosis is one of the main complications in patients implanted with ventricular assist device (VAD). The complicated structure and disturbed flow field within failure heart and blood pump play an important role in thrombosis formation. In this study, the influence of Left ventricular (LV) volumes on flow field contributing to thrombosis formation within failure heart and VAD was investigated. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) methods were employed to investigate the effect of different LV volumes on the thrombogenic potential of failure heart and VAD. Lagrangian methods were utilized to obtain information on platelet voyage trajectories. The concepts of mean and threshold of stress accumulation and residence time were introduced to accurately assess the likelihood of thrombus. Eulerian methods were used to identify thrombus-prone locations. CFD results showed that residence time (RT) was the main cause of thrombus formation in the failure heart, and the percentage of platelet trajectories above the RT threshold increased significantly with increasing LV volume. The RT in the left atrial appendage and LV increased significantly with LV volume increasing, which indicated that thrombus is prone to form there. Compared with the failure heart, non-physiological shear stress (NPSS)-caused platelet activation is the main reason for thrombus formation within VAD. The narrow zones (top clearance and secondary flow passage) within VAD have a high incidence of thrombus generation. In VAD patients, the LV volume has an important impact on thrombosis probability within failure heart, in which the larger size of the LV volume is, the higher risk of thrombosis will be. The size of LV volume has little effect on the thrombosis formation probability of VAD, where the NPSS plays the leading role in thrombosis formation. The finding of this study can be utilized to guild the clinical treatment and VAD structure optimization design for reducing the thrombosis risk.

Objective: Serum magnesium (Mg2+) levels are associated with insulin resistance, hypertension, lipid abnormalities, and inflammation. However, limited studies have indicated the relationship between Mg2+ and multiple system indexes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between Mg2+ and allostatic load (AL) in hemodialysis patients.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on hemodialysis patients from different centers in Anhui Province, China, between January and December 2020. A total of 3,025 hemodialysis patients were recruited. Their clinical data were measured before hemodialysis. Information was collected by an online self-reported questionnaire and medical record. Serum Mg2+ was divided into three groups by tertiles. A score of AL greater than or equal to 3 was defined as high AL. A binary logistic regression model was applied to examine the relationship between serum Mg2+ and AL.Results: A total of 1,222 patients undergoing hemodialysis were included, 60% of whom were males (733/1,222). The mean (standard deviation) age of patients was 55.90 (12.75). The median level of serum Mg2+ was 1.22 mmol/L. The rate of high AL levels was 23.4%. Serum Mg2+ was negatively correlated with body mass index, fasting blood glucose (Glu), and C-reactive protein and positively correlated with high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, total cholesterol, diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and serum phosphorus. After adjusting for gender, anxiety, diabetes, family residence, lipid-lowering agents, antihypertensive medications, albumin, and Glu, the binary logistic regression model showed that patients with lower levels of serum Mg2+ were more likely have high AL (OR for the T1 group of serum Mg2+:1.945, 95% CI: 1.365–2.773, and OR for the T2 group of serum Mg2+:1.556, 95% CI: 1.099–2.201).Conclusion: Our data support the hypothesis that higher serum Mg2+ concentrations may contribute to lower health risk in hemodialysis populations. Further randomized controlled trials and cohort studies are warranted to verify whether Mg2+ supplementation could be part of routine examinations in hemodialysis populations.

Abstract Accompanying its rapid urban development, prevalent urban flooding incidents have been occurring in China in the past two decades with increasing frequency. Through a comparison with generally accepted urban flooding management practices, we (the authors) identified that a lack of surface water runoff management considerations (i.e., missing a major drainage system in urban stormwater system) and inadequate local mitigation are the primary causes of urban flooding problems in China, which in turn is rooted in the planning stage of a city's development. Following identification of the primary causes for the problems, we propose the development of master drainage plans (MDPs) for the concerned cities or regions as the first effective step to mitigate the serious urban flooding problems facing many cities today. An MDP would provide necessary elements to develop a major drainage system for the city's stormwater system and allow for an accurate calculation of parameters necessary for installation of adequate local mitigations. Lessons learned in this study should be useful for China's administrative agencies and professionals while they try to find solutions to their urban flooding problems and beneficial to other nations facing rapid urban development in the future or with existing urban flooding threats.

Iliac vein compression syndrome (IVCS) is a common venous disease caused by joint compression of the right common iliac artery and the lumbosacral vertebrae. The compression of iliac vein not only causes venous hypertension in the lower extremities, but also induces venous valve dysfunction and superficial varicose veins in lower extremities. Moreover, the compression of iliac vein is an important potential factor for iliofemoral vein thrombosis. Currently, open surgery and stent implantation are the main treatment for IVCS. Due to the advantages of minimally invasive and postoperative patency, stent implantation for IVCS has gradually become the standard treatment. However, when the stent is implanted into the iliac vein to treat IVCS, the complications, such as restenosis, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) appear, which affect the patency of stent and hamper the patient recovery. Up to now, the mechanism how the stent implantation induces the restenosis and DVT is still unclear. In this review, we summarized the clinical symptoms, treatment methods of IVCS and the complications after stent implantation, and analyzed the mechanism of stent restenosis and DVT, and finally discuss the iliac vein stent design specifically for treating IVCS.

BackgroundHypoxia and angiogenesis, as prominent characteristics of malignant tumors, are implicated in the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the role of hypoxia in the angiogenesis of liver cancer is unclear. Therefore, we explored the regulatory mechanisms of hypoxia-related angiogenic genes (HRAGs) and the relationship between these genes and the prognosis of HCC.MethodsThe transcriptomic and clinical data of HCC samples were downloaded from public datasets, followed by identification of hypoxia- and angiogenesis-related genes in the database. A gene signature model was constructed based on univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses, and validated in independent cohorts. Kaplan-Meier survival and time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated to evaluate the model’s predictive capability. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was performed to explore signaling pathways regulated by the gene signature. Furthermore, the relationships among gene signature, immune status, and response to anti-angiogenesis agents and immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) were analyzed.ResultsThe prognostic model was based on three HRAGs (ANGPT2, SERPINE1 and SPP1). The model accurately predicted that low-risk patients would have longer overall survival than high-risk patients, consistent with findings in other cohorts. GSEA indicated that high-risk group membership was significantly associated with hypoxia, angiogenesis, the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and activity in immune-related pathways. The high-risk group also had more immunosuppressive cells and higher expression of immune checkpoints such as PD-1 and PD-L1. Conversely, the low-risk group had a better response to anti-angiogenesis and ICB therapy.ConclusionsThe gene signature based on HRAGs was predictive of prognosis and provided an immunological perspective that will facilitate the development of personalized therapies.

A multiscale analysis and computational method based on the Second-Order Two-Scale (SOTS) approach are proposed for the elastic quadratic eigenvalue problems in the periodic composite domain. Two typical quadratic eigenvalue problems with different damping effects are considered, and by the asymptotic expansions of both the eigenfunctions and eigenvalues, the first- and second-order cell functions, the microscale features of this heterogeneous materials are defined successively. Then, the homogenized quadratic eigenvalue problems are derived and the second-order expansions of the eigenfunctions are formed. The eigenvalues are also broadened to the second-order terms by introducing proper auxiliary elastic functions defined in the composite structure, and the nonlinear expressions of the correctors of the eigenvalues are derived. The finite element procedures are established, linearized methods are discussed for solving the quadratic eigenvalue problems and the second-order asymptotic computations are performed. Effectiveness of the asymptotic model is demonstrated by both the qualitative and quantitative comparisons between the computed SOTS approximations and the reference solutions, and the converging behavior of the eigenfunctions are numerically verified. It is also indicated that the second-order correctors are of importance to reconstruct the detailed information of the original eigenfunctions within the micro cells.

Doxycycline (DOX), a typical antibiotic, is harmful to aquatic ecosystems and human health. This study presents DOX removal by potassium ferrate (Fe(VI)) and montmorillonite and investigates the effect of Fe(VI) dosage, reaction time, initial pH value, montmorillonite dosage, adsorption pH, time and temperature on DOX removal. The results show that DOX removal increases when increasing the Fe(VI) dosage, with the optimal condition for DOX removal (~97%) by Fe(VI) observed under a molar ratio ([Fe(VI)]:[DOX]) of 30:1 at pH 7. The reaction of DOX with Fe(VI) obeyed second-order kinetics with a rate constant of 10.7 ± 0.45 M−1 s−1 at pH 7. The limited promotion (~4%) of DOX adsorption by montmorillonite was observed when the temperature increased and the pH decreased. Moreover, the synergetic effect of Fe(VI) and montmorillonite on DOX removal was obtained when comparing the various types of dosing sequences (Fe(VI) oxidation first and then adsorption; adsorption first and then Fe(VI) oxidation; simultaneous oxidation and adsorption). The best synergistic effect of DOX removal (97%) was observed under the simultaneous addition of Fe(VI) and montmorillonite, maintaining the Fe(VI) dosage (from 30:1 to 5:1). Five intermediates were detected during DOX degradation, and a plausible DOX degradation pathway was proposed.

Using asymmetric topology cryptography to encrypt networks on the basis of topology coding is a new topic of cryptography, which consists of two major elements, i.e., topological structures and mathematical constraints. The topological signature of asymmetric topology cryptography is stored in the computer by matrices that can produce number-based strings for application. By means of algebra, we introduce every-zero mixed graphic groups, graphic lattices, and various graph-type homomorphisms and graphic lattices based on mixed graphic groups into cloud computing technology. The whole network encryption will be realized by various graphic groups.