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[Display omitted] In this work, the nanocables of few-layered ReS 2 nanosheets sandwiched between carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and nitrogen-doped amorphous carbon (NC) coating (i.e., CNT@ReS 2 @NC) are synthesized as high-performance anodes of both potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) and sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). The CNT@ReS 2 @NC nanocables with dual carbon modifications have the several advantages for efficient K+/Na+ storage. The few-layered ReS 2 nanosheets with a wide interlayer spacing of 0.64 nm contribute to accelerated reaction kinetics for fast K+/Na+ intercalation/extraction. The carbon nanotube skeleton with a hollow interior can effectively relieve the volume change and serve as a robust conductive network to boost structural stability. The NC layer provides rich defects as active sites and suppresses the shuttle effect of polysulfides produced in discharge/charge processes. Consequently, the CNT@ReS 2 @NC nanocables possess outstanding electrochemical performance in both PIBs and SIBs owing to the synergistic effect from the different components. A long cycling lifespan of 3500 cycles with a maintained discharge capacity of 125 mAh/g is achieved for CNT@ReS 2 @NC at 1 A/g in PIBs. In SIBs, it can keep a high capacity of 202 mAh/g over 3000 cycles at 5 A/g. Moreover, the CNT@ReS 2 @NC||Na 3 V 2 (PO 4) 3 full cell can exhibit remarkable cycling performance, yielding a low capacity decay rate of 0.019 % per cycle over 1000 cycles at 2C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mechanical properties of metastable β-titanium alloys are highly susceptible during the thermal mechanical processing (TMP). In this process, the recrystallization process plays an important role in determining the microstructure and texture evolution. The implementation of dynamic recrystallization (DRX), a process for achieving β-grain refinement, is considered of great significance for the improvement of the properties of metastable β-titanium alloys and their industrial production. Along these lines, in this work, an isothermal compression test of TB8 titanium alloy was carried out by using a Gleeble-3500 thermal simulator. As a result, the rheological stress behavior was analyzed, the thermal processing map was accurately established based on the stress–strain curve, and the optimal processing interval was determined. The DRX kinetic and the DRX grain size models were developed, on the basis of which a new DRX intrinsic model was established to improve the material parameters. Therefore, the actual situation in the working process could be better predicted. The microstructural evolution of TB8 titanium alloy during thermal deformation was comprehensively investigated using the electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique. The obtained results demonstrate a close correlation between the diversity of DRX mechanisms in TB8 alloy and the distribution of dislocation density. Four microstructural textures during thermal deformation were identified, in which the cube texture of (001) <010> and the R-Gorss Nd texture of (110) <110> dominate. Due to the random orientation of the dynamically recrystallized grains, the strength of the R-Gorss Nd texture of (110) <110> increases with the increase in the volume fraction of DRX. On the contrary, it was verified that the dynamic recrystallization behavior has a significant weakening impact on the cube texture of (001) <010>. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social interaction anxiety has become increasingly problematic among individuals who relocate to major urban areas for work, which can adversely affect their personal health and career development, leading to severe social conflicts. We used a cross-sectional survey to explore the relationship between physical activity and social interaction anxiety, by obtaining data from 453 Beijing drifters through snowball and purposeful sampling, and used Amos 26.0 to test our hypotheses by constructing a structural equation model. Results showed that physical activity was negatively correlated with social interaction anxiety. Additionally, interpersonal competence and perceived stress mediated this relationship. Drifters who frequently engaged in sports exhibited high levels of interpersonal competence and low perceived stress, and they were less likely to experience social interaction anxiety than those who did not exercise. Countries and organizations should prioritize the health status of these individuals and provide more opportunities for them and other individuals to exercise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we evaluated the association between the PPAT volume and the prognosis of PCa patients after LRP. We retrospectively analysed data of 189 PCa patients who underwent LRP in Beijing Chaoyang Hospital. Volumes of PPAT and prostate were measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and normalized PPAT volume was computed (PPAT volume divided by prostate volume). Patients were then stratified into the high-PPAT group (n = 95) and low-PPAT group (n = 94) by the median of normalized PPAT volume (73%). The high-PPAT group had significantly higher Gleason score (total score 8 or more, 39.0% vs. 4.3%, p < 0.001) and pathological stage (stage T3b, 28.4% vs. 13.8%, p = 0.048). No significant correlation between normalized PPAT volume and body mass index (ρ = −0.012, p = 0.872) was observed. Kaplan-Meier curve analysis showed the high-PPAT group had significantly shorter biochemical recurrence (BCR) interval (median progression-free survival time 15.9 months vs. 32.7 months, p = 0.001). Univiarate and multivariate Cox regression analyses showed high normalized PPAT volume (>73%) (hazard ratio 1.787 [1.075–3.156], p = 0.002) were independent risk factors for BCR post-operatively. In conclusion, MRI-measured PPAT volume is of significant prognostic value for PCa patients undergoing LRP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background We aimed to evaluate whether coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination was associated with stroke. Methods We conducted a systematic meta-analysis of studies using cohort, self-controlled case series (SCCS), and case-crossover study (CCOS) designs to evaluate incidence risk ratios (IRRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of ischemic stroke (IS), hemorrhagic stroke (HS), and cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) following COVID-19 vaccination. Risks of stroke were pooled among subpopulations categorized by vaccine type, dose, age, and sex. Sensitivity analysis was performed by different defined risk periods. Results Fourteen studies involving 79 918 904 individuals were included. Cohort studies showed decreased risks of IS (IRR, 0.82 [95% CI,.75–.90]) and HS (IRR, 0.75 [95% CI,.67–.85]) postvaccination, but not CVST (IRR, 1.18 [95% CI,.70–1.98]). SCCS identified increased risks 1–21 days postvaccination (IRRIS, 1.05 [95% CI, 1.00–1.10]; IRRHS, 1.16 [95% CI, 1.06–1.26]) or 1–28 days postvaccination (IRRIS, 1.04 [95% CI, 1.00–1.08]; IRRHS, 1.37 [95% CI, 1.15–1.64]), similar to CVST (IRR, 1.58 [95% CI, 1.08–2.32]). CCOS reported an increased risk of CVST after ChAdOx1 vaccination (IRR, 2.9 [95% CI, 1.1–7.2]). Conclusions Although different study designs yielded inconsistent findings, considering the relatively low background incidence of stroke and benefits of vaccination, even a potentially increased risk of stroke postvaccination should not justify vaccine hesitancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was conducted to understand the influencing factors for home peritoneal dialysis patients choosing APD and to provide a scientific basis for improving the completion rate of APD treatment and the follow-up of peritoneal dialysis patients.Methods: The study was a cross-sectional questionnaire-based study. A total of 588 patients on peritoneal dialysis were randomly selected from 6 regions in Fujian Province in southern China using a stratified cluster sampling method.Results: The mean age of the patients were 56.5 ± 14.73 years. In the univariate analysis, knowledge, user experience and family support were the factors that affected patients' choice of APD (all P < 0.05) and were positively correlated with the treatment utilization rate. In the multivariate analysis, 3 factors (treatment with APD, knowledge of APD, and family support) remained significantly associated not choosing APD. The selection rate for APD was 2.594 times higher among patients who had received APD than among patients who had never received APD. The selection rate for patients with "a lot of knowledge" about APD was 10.75 times that of patients with "no knowledge".Conclusion: Patients' knowledge of APD, experience in application and family support were the main factors affecting the choice of APD as a treatment mode (P < 0.05) and were positively correlated with the treatment utilization rate. Further studies are needed to improve the APD treatment completion rates by modulation the above-mentioned factors.Relevance to Clinical Practice: This study provides scientific evidence for improving APD treatment completion rates and improving patient quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is a primary limitation of breast cancer chemotherapy. The common mechanism of MDR is various anticancer drugs can be effluxed by the cell membrane protein P‐glycoprotein (P‐gp). Here, we found that ectopic overexpression of Shc3 was detected specifically in drug‐resistant breast cancer cells, consequently reducing sensitivity to chemotherapy and promoting cell migration by mediating P‐gp expression. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the interplay between P‐gp and Shc3 in breast cancer is unknown. We reported an additional resistance mechanism involving an increase in the active form of P‐gp after Shc3 upregulation. MCF‐7/ADR and SK‐BR‐3 cells can be sensitive to doxorubicin after knockdown of Shc3. Our results indicated that the interaction between ErbB2 and EphA2 is indirect and regulated by Shc3, and also, this complex is essential for activation of the MAPK and AKT pathways. Meanwhile, Shc3 promotes ErbB2 nuclear translocation, followed by a subsequent increase of the COX2 expression through ErbB2 binding to the COX2 promoter. We further demonstrated that COX2 expression was positively correlated with P‐gp expression and the Shc3/ErbB2/COX2 axis upregulates P‐gp activity in vivo. Our results show the crucial roles of Shc3 and ErbB2 in modulating P‐gp efficacy in breast cancer cells and suggest that Shc3 inhibition may enhance the sensitivity to chemotherapeutic drugs that target oncogene addiction pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study presented here aimed to establish a predictive model for heart failure (HF) and all-cause mortality in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients with machine learning (ML) algorithm. We retrospectively included 1006 patients who initiated PD from 2010 to 2016. XGBoost, random forest (RF), and AdaBoost were used to train models for assessing risk for 1-year and 5-year HF hospitalization and mortality. The performance was validated using fivefold cross-validation. The optimal ML algorithm was used to construct the models to predictive the risk of the HF and all-cause mortality. The prediction performance of ML methods and Cox regression was compared. Over a median follow-up of 49 months. Two hundred and ninety-eight patients developed HF required hospitalization; 199 patients died during the follow-up. The RF model (AUC = 0.853) was the best performing model for predicting HF, and the XGBoost model (AUC = 0.871) was the best model for predicting mortality. Baseline moderate or severe renal disease, systolic blood pressure (SBP), body mass index (BMI), age, Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) score were strongly associated with HF hospitalization, whereas age, CCI score, creatinine, age, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), total cholesterol, baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were the most significant predictors of mortality. For all the above endpoints, the ML models demonstrated better discrimination than Cox regression. We developed and validated a novel method to predict the risk factors of HF and all-cause mortality that integrates readily available clinical, laboratory, and electrocardiographic variables to predict the risk of HF among PD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tunable full‐color room temperature phosphorescence (RTP) is charming due to its potentials in multiple anticounterfeitings, all‐color displays, and multichannel biomarkers. However, it is a huge challenge to achieve excitation‐dependent continuously adjustable full‐color RTP from a single‐component compound. Herein, two Zn(II)‐based organic coordination polymers are reported, which are the first examples characterized by blue, cyan, green, yellow, orange, and red continuously tunable phosphorescence with decent quantum efficiencies in response to variation of excitation energy at ambient conditions. The unique photoluminescence behavior is induced by the selective formation and decay of multiple triplet excited states, i.e., ligand‐centered 3π–π*, 3(ligand‐to‐ligand charge transfer), 3(halogen‐to‐ligand charge transfer), etc., in the coordination network based on the varying excitations. The population and stabilization of the unusual triplet excitons of Zn(II)‐based organic coordination polymers benefit from heavy atom effect of Br− ions and the restriction of molecular motion by crystallization. Here an insight is contributed for the construction of full‐color RTP materials, and metal‐organic coordination polymers are endowed with fresh features for extensive applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness and feasibility of patient empowerment through the PBL model in health continuing education of peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Methods: From March 2017 to April 2017, a total of 94 participants were randomly assigned to the PBL group and the traditional group, with 47 patients in each group. Patients of the PBL group were divided into 5 study groups; and six PBL health education activities were held. The basic knowledge, self-management behavior, quality of life, anxiety, and depression were assessed among the traditional group and the PBL group. The average follow-up duration was 10.6± 1.5 months. Results: Compared with patients in the traditional group, patients in the PBL group had higher scores of basic knowledges for PD (84.33± 3.55 vs 91.19± 3.07; P< 0.001), higher scores of self-management (61.19± 3.71 vs 71.47± 2.89; P< 0.001), better scores of quality of life (85.99± 14.33 vs 102.64± 9.43; P < 0.001), and better scores of satisfaction (90.78± 1.32 vs 98.21± 1.25; P < 0.001). Furthermore, the scores of anxieties (52.39± 4.55 vs 46.46± 4.63; P < 0.001) and the scores of depressions were lower (49.95± 6.76 vs 45.80± 8.77; P =0.01) in patients who participated in the PBL mode of education than in the traditional educational group. Conclusion: The empowerment model of PBL health education can effectively improve the knowledge, skills and quality of life of PD patients. Relevance to Clinical Practice: The findings identified in this study will help to improve the quality of nursing care and health education for PD patients. Patient or Public Contribution: The study design involved patients on PD training. The knowledge and skills of PD and quality of life will improve after they participate the PBL health education activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recovery of copper from circuit boards is currently a hot topic. However, recycling copper from circuit boards economically and environmentally is still a considerable challenge. In this study, a simple hydrothermal method was used to synthesize MoS2 with nano-flower-like morphology using sodium molybdate dihydrate and thiourea as molybdenum and sulfur sources. The metal copper in the chip was successfully dissolved under the action of free radicals produced by ultrasound. The results show that under the catalytic action of hydrothermal synthesis MoS2, the concentration of Cu2+ dissolved by ultrasonic treatment for 10 h is 39.46 mg/L. In contrast, the concentration of Cu2+ dissolved by commercial MoS2 is only 2.20 mg/L under the same condition. The MoS2 is polarized by external mechanical forces and reacts with water to produce H+ and free electrons e−, which can combine with O2 and OH− to produce ·OH and ·O2− free radicals. Elemental Cu is converted to Cu2+ by the attack of these two free radicals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we retrospectively evaluated the data of 901 men undergoing ultrasonography-guided systematic prostate biopsy between March 2013 and May 2022. Adipose features, including periprostatic adipose tissue (PPAT) thickness and subcutaneous fat thickness, were measured using MRI before biopsy. Prediction models of all PCa and clinically significant PCa (csPCa) (Gleason score higher than 6) were established based on variables selected by multivariate logistic regression and prediction nomograms were constructed. Patients with PCa had higher PPAT thickness (4.64 [3.65–5.86] vs. 3.54 [2.49–4.51] mm, p < 0.001) and subcutaneous fat thickness (29.19 [23.05–35.95] vs. 27.90 [21.43–33.93] mm, p = 0.013) than those without PCa. Patients with csPCa had higher PPAT thickness (4.78 [3.80–5.88] vs. 4.52 [3.80–5.63] mm, p = 0.041) than those with non-csPCa. Adding adipose features to the prediction models significantly increased the area under the receiver operating characteristics curve for the prediction of all PCa (0.850 vs. 0.819, p < 0.001) and csPCa (0.827 vs. 0.798, p < 0.001). Based on MRI-measured adipose features and clinical parameters, we established two nomograms that were simple to use and could improve patient selection for prostate biopsy in Chinese population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inspired by sanguinarine and chelerythrine, various 2‐phenylphthalazin‐2‐ium salts as simple analogues were designed according to the structure of natural products. On the basis of previous research, this study evaluated the inhibition activity of these compounds on tumor cells, apoptosis induction as well as their structure‐activity relationship (SAR). The results indicated that the compounds showed IC50 values of 1.21–14.77 μM against NB4 cells and 4.68–17.44 μM against MKN‐45 cells, respectively, superior to positive control cis‐platinum with IC50 values of 2.39 and 11.36 μM or their model compound chelerythrine with IC50 values of 1.49 and 12.70 μM. Acridine orange/ethidium bromide and ultrastructure observation of cells suggested that these compounds could induce apoptosis of tumor cells. Meanwhile, 2‐(3,4‐Dichlorophenyl)phthalazin‐2‐ium Bromide‐induced apoptosis was dependent on the excessive formation of ROS and amplified by the mitochondrial pathway. The preliminary SAR indicated that substitution pattern on the N‐aromatic ring remarkably influenced the cytotoxicity of the compounds. The trend showed that the presence of electron‐donating groups caused a significant improvement of the cytotoxicity. And in many cases that the 3' site was the most advantageous substitution position for the enhancement of the cytotoxicity. Hence, the results demonstrated that the title compounds werea class of potential compounds for the development of novel antitumor drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which causes severe respiratory illness, was first reported in Wuhan, China. The etiology of the disease is a new novel coronavirus named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which was reported to share the same origin as SARS-CoV, causing severe public health events in 2002. Unlike the SARS-CoV, which was conquered in the early summer of 2003, this virus was still contagious widely and reached a pandemic level. It can still spread fast even if the season's temperature is raised. Here, we made a model of pneumonia of human coronavirus 229E (HCoV-229E) with damp-heat syndrome treated by Xiangqin Kanggan granules to find a new medicine for treating these kinds of infectious diseases coronaviruses induced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Power conversion efficiency (PCE) and long‐term stability are two vital issues for perovskite solar cells (PSCs). However, there is still a lack of suitable hole transport layers (HTLs) to endow PSCs with both high efficiency and stability. Here, NiOx nanoparticles are promoted as an efficient and 85 °C/85%‐stable inorganic HTL for high‐performance n‐i‐p PSCs, with the introduction of perovskite quantum dots (QDs) between perovskite and NiOx as systematic interfacial engineering. The QD intercalation enhances film morphology and assembly regulation of NiOx HTLs. Due to structure–function correlations, hole mobility within NiOx HTL is improved. And the hole extraction from perovskite to NiOx is also facilitated, resulting from reduced trap states and optimized energy level alignments. Hence, the promoted NiOx‐based n‐i‐p PSCs exhibit high PCE (21.59%) and excellent stability (sustaining 85 °C aging in air without encapsulation). Furthermore, encapsulated solar modules with QDs‐promoted NiOx HTLs show impressive stability during 85 °C/85% aging test for 1000 hours. With high transparency, QDs‐promoted NiOx is also demonstrated to be an advanced HTL for semitransparent PSCs. This work develops promising NiOx inorganic HTL in n‐i‐p PSCs for manufacturing next‐generation photovoltaic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What is known and objective: Anti‐CD19 CAR‐T cell therapy is effective in B‐cell lymphoma. However, it is rarely used in lymphoma combined with other malignant tumours. Case description: A relapsed/refractory follicular lymphoma (r/r FL) patient underwent anti‐CD19 CAR‐T cell therapy and achieved complete response to lymphoma. However, gastric adenocarcinoma (GAC) was diagnosed during the cellular therapy. After infusion of CAR‐T cells, he received curative treatment for GAC, and maitained complete response in both r/r FL and GAC after the treatment. What is new and conclusion: Anti‐CD19 CAR‐T therapy is an effective treatment for r/r FL, also provided opportunity for the sequential therapy of GAC, and remained significant quality of life afterwards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an inorganic hole transport material (HTM), nickel oxide (NiOx) is widely used in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) due to its low cost and intrinsic stability. However, on account of its poor film formation on perovskite, the low power conversion efficiency (PCE) and stability of regular NiOx‐based PSCs is a main obstacle for commercialization. Here, a solution‐processed inorganic/organic hybrid hole transporting system is developed to resolve this issue, thereby improving the PCE from 16.0% to 21.2%. Poly(3‐hexylthiophene) (P3HT) is studied as the typical case, revealing that the performance improvement mainly lies in the synergistic interaction between NiOx and P3HT: 1) the introduction of P3HT improves assembly regularity and film uniformity of NiOx; 2) electron redistribution between P3HT and NiOx increases the Ni3+/Ni2+ ratio for higher hole mobility; 3) the feed‐back impact of NiOx on P3HT enhances molecular orientation of polymer chains in P3HT for better hole transport through polymer framework. Finally, the encapsulated solar cell modules with P3HT‐promoted NiOx maintains 91% of the initial efficiency after 1000 h aging at a harsh 85 °C/85% relative humidity condition. This finding provides a feasible approach for using NiOx‐based HTMs to realize high‐performance regular PSCs, paving the way for their commercialization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work introduces a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) sensor chip integrated with vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs). Using VCSEL as the light source, the hexagonal gold nanoparticle array was integrated with anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) as the mask on the light-emitting end face. The sensitivity sensing test of the refractive index solution was realized, combined with microfluidic technology. At the same time, the finite-difference time- domain (FDTD) algorithm was applied to model and simulate the gold nanostructures. The experimental results showed that the output power of the sensor was related to the refractive index of the sucrose solution. The maximum sensitivity of the sensor was 1.65 × 106 nW/RIU, which gives it great application potential in the field of biomolecular detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The evolution of EIS of zinc-rich coatings is explained in detail. • The corrosion product layer causes the shielding effect of zinc-rich coatings. • Semi-logarithmic relationships suggest that t1/2 axis is useful for impedance studies. • Linear correlations help in designing equivalent circuits (EE). • Linear correlations help in elucidating the physical meaning of EE components. This paper focuses on elucidating the variation rules of equivalent circuit elements of electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) of two different thicknesses of epoxy zinc-rich coatings (EZRCs) and silicate ethyl zinc-rich coatings (ZRCs). The correlation between the circuit elements and the low-frequency impedance modulus (|Z| 0.01 Hz) and the open-circuit potential (OCP) is investigated, and an explanation of the barrier effect and the evolution law of corrosion potential (E corr) is given. The results show that there is a linear or piecewise linear relationship between the logarithm of |Z| 0.01 Hz and the circuit elements with a square root of time (t1/2), and the piecewise linear relationship between the OCP and t1/2. Further, there is a large amount of linear correlation between circuit elements. The semi-logarithmic linear relationship suggests that the square root axis can be a conventional choice for coating impedance studies. Linear correlations help in designing equivalent circuits and elucidating the physical significance of components in equivalent circuits. The barrier effect of ZRCs mainly refers to the blocking effect of the corrosion product layer on the outer surface of the coating. The barrier effect of ZRCs can be neglected. Designing equivalent circuits: location of circuit elements and current assignments, fitting accuracy, trends in model parameters, linear correlation of elements. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Waste activated sludge (WAS) and meat processing waste (MPW) were acted as co-substrates in anaerobic co-digestion (AcD), and biochemical methane potential (BMP) test was carried out to investigate the methane production performances. Microbial community structure and metabolic pathways analyses were conducted by 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing and functional prediction analysis. BMP test results indicated that AcD of 70% WAS+30% MPW and 50% WAS+50% MPW (VS/VS) could significantly improve methane yield to 371.05 mL/g VS and 599.61 mL/g VS, respectively, compared with WAS acting as sole substrate (191.87 mL/g VS). The results of microbial community analysis showed that Syntrophomonas and Petrimonas became the dominant bacteria genera, and Methanomassiliicoccus and Methanobacterium became the dominant archaea genera after MPW addition. 16S functional prediction analysis results indicated that genes expression of key enzymes involved in syntrophic acetate oxidation (SAO), hydrogenotrophic and methylotrophic methanogenesis were up-regulated, and acetoclastic methanogenesis was inhibited after MPW addition. Based on these analyses, it could be inferred that SAO combined with hydrogenotrophic and methylotrophic methanogenesis was the dominant pathway for organics degradation and methane production during AcD. These findings provided systematic insights into the microbial community changes and metabolic pathways during AcD of WAS and MPW. [Display omitted] • Meat processing waste could improve methane yield during anaerobic digestion. • 16S rRNA sequencing and PICRUSt2 function prediction analysis were applied. • Meat processing waste addition could enrich Syntrophomonas and Petrimonas. • Acidogenesis and methanogenesis processes were enhanced due to MPW addition. • Hydrogenotrophic and methylotrophic methanogenesis were enhanced with MPW addition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Adenosquamous carcinoma (ASC)with concurrent gastric carcinoma with lymphoid stroma (GCLS) are extremely rare tumors. There are only limited cases reported in the literature. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection was found in the concomitant GCLS, but none in the ASC. Here, we report the first case of gastric cancer with EBV infection detected in both ASC and GCLS.Case Presentation: A 59-year-old man complained of intermittent upper abdominal pain. The gastric endoscopy revealed a type IIc tumor located in the gastric body near the fundus of the stomach. Histological examination of the gastric tumor showed the coexistence of ASC and GCLS. Both components were positive for EBV-encoded RNA (EBER) in situ hybridization. Neoplastic nests of the former were positive for p63, p40 and CK5/6. The glandular components showed positive acid mucus in the Alcian-blue periodic-acid-schiff (AB-PAS) staining. There was significant difference in the expression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) between adenocarcinoma and squamous carcinoma, but not in other proteins such as human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), p53 and mismatch repair proteins. The role of EGFR signaling pathway needs to be further explored in the differentiation of squamous carcinoma in the gastric ASC. Finally, a diagnosis of early EBV associated gastric ASC with concurrent GCLS (pT1bN1) was made. The patient took a single-drug S1 periodically for half a year after the surgery and has been disease free during 8 months of medical follow-up.Conclusions: This is the first case of EBV associated gastric ASC with concurrent GCLS, and pathologists and clinicians should recognize and pay attention to this type of tumor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: HIV oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) was approved by the Chinese National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in 2020. However, the experiences of PrEP use among Chinese men who have sex with men (MSM) remain unclear. We purposefully sampled MSM with various PrEP use history from a PrEP demonstration project in Guangzhou, China, to their PrEP use experiences and perspectives on PrEP related stigma. Methods: Based on the self-reported PrEP use history and current adherence in quarterly follow-up surveys, we conducted one-to-one semi-structured in-depth interviews with a purposeful sample of MSM on daily PrEP in Guangzhou, China. We recruited MSM who 1) completely discontinued, 2) continuously using PrEP with different levels of selfreported adherence, 3) intermittently using PrEP. We also sampled MSM using an on-demand dosing strategy. The interview guide included questions on PrEP using experience, perceived barriers, and facilitators to PrEP initiation, continuation, and discontinuation. All interviews were conducted in Chinese by native speakers, in-person or online. We then conducted a thematic analysis with an iterative inductive and deductive coding process using Dedoose. Results: Participants mainly viewed PrEP as an additional protection to using condoms. Positive experiences include reducing HIV-related anxieties and concerns about irrational behaviors such as unplanned sex. However, participants expressed doubts about PrEP regarding how it was commercialized in social media and that PrEP is not 100% efficacious. Some participants viewed PrEP as a class status for those with higher socioeconomic status due to its financial barrier, while others weighed on the importance of official approval of the drug to trust it. Experiences of stigma included 1): PrEP is linked to promiscuity; 2): PrEP is mistaken for ART; 3): PrEP could lead to the disclosure of sexual orientation. Participants also reported concealment of PrEP in response to stigma and hopes for a more stable form of PrEP such as long acting injectables. Conclusion: Patient education, especially when provided by credible organizations, about PrEP efficacy and side effects management is key to reducing misinformation and doubts about PrEP. Structural interventions, including destigmatizing HIV, PrEP, and minority groups, are highly needed to achieve the sustainability of PrEP implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Falls in patients with cancer harbor potential for serious sequelae. Patients with brain metastases (BrM) may be especially susceptible to falls but supporting investigations are lacking. We assessed the frequency, etiologies, risk factors, and sequelae of falls in patients with BrM using 2 data sources. Methods We identified 42 648 and 111 patients with BrM utilizing Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare data (2008-2016) and Brigham and Women's Hospital/Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (BWH/DFCI) institutional data (2015), respectively, and characterized falls in these populations. Results Among SEER-Medicare patients, 10 267 (24.1%) experienced a fall that prompted medical evaluation, with cumulative incidences at 3, 6, and 12 months of 18.0%, 24.3%, and 34.1%, respectively. On multivariable Fine/Gray's regression, older age (≥81 or 76-80 vs 66-70 years, hazard ratio [HR] 1.18 [95% CI, 1.11-1.25], P <.001 and HR 1.10 [95% CI, 1.04-1.17], P <.001, respectively), Charlson comorbidity score of >2 vs 0-2 (HR 1.08 [95% CI, 1.03-1.13], P =.002) and urban residence (HR 1.08 [95% CI, 1.01-1.16], P =.03) were associated with falls. Married status (HR 0.94 [95% CI, 0.90-0.98], P =.004) and Asian vs white race (HR 0.90 [95% CI, 0.81-0.99], P =.03) were associated with reduced fall risk. Identified falls were more common among BWH/DFCI patients (N = 56, 50.4% of cohort), resulting in emergency department visits, hospitalizations, fractures, and intracranial hemorrhage in 33%, 23%, 11%, and 4% of patients, respectively. Conclusions Falls are common among patients with BrM, especially older/sicker patients, and can have deleterious consequences. Risk-reduction measures, such as home safety checks, physical therapy, and medication optimization, should be considered in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The overexpression of somatostatin receptor type 2 (SSTR2) is a unique characteristic of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (GEP-NENs), which establishes the basis for both diagnosis and therapy. The SSTR status can be evaluated by immunohistochemical staining (IHC) and 68Ga-DOTATATE positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging. This study attempted to determine the relationship between IHC and 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT imaging and to explore the optimal cutoff value for SSTR IHC reading. Patients and Methods: A total of 100 GEP-NENs with SSTR PET/CT and pathological data were retrospectively analyzed, which consisted of neuroendocrine tumor (NET) G1 (n = 9), NET G2 (n = 64), NET G3 (n = 13), neuroendocrine carcinoma (n = 10), and mixed neuroendocrine-non-NENs (n = 4). SSTR2-IHC results were interpreted by 4 well-established semiquantitative scoring systems, including human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) score, Volante score, H score, and immunoreactive score. Results: In the homogeneous SSTR2 expression group (accounting for 57% of all cases), the 4 scoring systems were highly concordant with each other (Kendall's Tau-b coefficient range: 0.80–0.96, p < 0.001) and also highly correlated with the 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT imaging results (Spearman's rank correlation coefficients: 0.71, 0.86, 0.80, and 0.71, p < 0.001). In the heterogeneous group (43%), the 4 scoring systems revealed a lower level of concordance (the Kendall Tau-b coefficient range: 0.40–0.75, p < 0.01), and the correlation with 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT imaging was also lower, albeit statistically significant (Spearman's rank correlation coefficients: 0.53, 0.38, 0.36, and 0.33, p < 0.05). Heterogeneous SSTR2 expression was mainly observed in the HER2 2+ cases, for which the combination with H score could help identify positive cases with increased sensitivity and specificity. The highest sensitivity and specificity of H scores in predicting the imaging results were achieved at 86.10 and 89.30% when defining the cutoff value as 160, indicating that 80% of the tumor cells were moderately positive or 55% were strongly positive. Conclusions: SSTR2 IHC was found to predict 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT imaging accurately, especially in the homogeneous expression group. According to the positive 68Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT outcomes, 80% of the tumor cells moderately positive or 55% strongly positive was the cutoff values for SSTR2-IHC reading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spatiotemporal organization of distinct biological processes in cytomimetic compartments is a crucial step towards engineering functional artificial cells. Mimicking controlled bi‐directional molecular communication inside artificial cells remains a considerable challenge. Here we present photoswitchable molecular transport between programmable membraneless organelle‐like DNA coacervates in a synthetic microcompartment. We use droplet microfluidics to fabricate membraneless non‐fusing DNA coacervates by liquid‐liquid phase separation in a water‐in‐oil droplet, and employ the interior DNA coacervates as artificial organelles to imitate intracellular communication via photo‐regulated uni‐ and bi‐directional transfer of biomolecules. Our results highlight a promising new route to assembly of multicompartment artificial cells with functional networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spatiotemporal organization of distinct biological processes in cytomimetic compartments is a crucial step towards engineering functional artificial cells. Mimicking controlled bi‐directional molecular communication inside artificial cells remains a considerable challenge. Here we present photoswitchable molecular transport between programmable membraneless organelle‐like DNA coacervates in a synthetic microcompartment. We use droplet microfluidics to fabricate membraneless non‐fusing DNA coacervates by liquid‐liquid phase separation in a water‐in‐oil droplet, and employ the interior DNA coacervates as artificial organelles to imitate intracellular communication via photo‐regulated uni‐ and bi‐directional transfer of biomolecules. Our results highlight a promising new route to assembly of multicompartment artificial cells with functional networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent decades, numerous perceptual authentication hashing schemes have been proposed for image content authentication. However, most of these schemes are based on a single spatial or transform domain, and they fail to provide satisfactory robustness and discrimination capability when facing complex image manipulations in real scenarios. In this work, we present a perceptual authentication hashing scheme based on Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) that leverages both spatial and frequency domains. Specifically, we construct two separate streams for spatial and transform domains. Then, we introduce a feature fusion module to merge the features of these two domains to generate a hash sequence. Besides, we design a frequency domain channel filter and a frequency attention module for the frequency domain, and introduce a frequency domain loss function to optimize model training. Based on large-scale testing datasets, our scheme demonstrates superior performance compared to state-of-the-art schemes, as evidenced by Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves. • A new robust perceptual hashing scheme for image authentication is proposed. • Multi-domain feature fusion strategy is exploited for hash sequence generation. • The channel filter and attention module are designed in frequency domain. • An integrated loss function including hash loss and frequency loss is introduced. • Theoretical analysis and experiments are given to show the superiority of our scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the demand for Internet services continues to rise, large-scale Internet companies have expanded their data center infrastructure across multiple global regions. The inherent spatial-temporal flexibility in scheduling workloads allows data center clusters to dynamically adjust their power consumption without overloading the transmission network. In this work, we introduce a novel approach for treating a geo-distributed data center cluster as a non-wire alternative resource and explore its potential role in the energy balancing market. Our methodology manages a geographically distributed data center cluster as a balance-responsible entity by employing optimal workload scheduling that considers its inherent spatial-temporal flexibility and market arbitrage opportunities. To achieve this, we develop a two-layer stochastic receding horizon control optimization algorithm to formulate a strategic bidding strategy for the data center cluster. To validate the effectiveness of our proposed approach, we conduct numerical experiments using real-world data center production traces and data from the Nordic balancing market, demonstrating its practical applicability and performance. • Explored spatial-temporal flexibility of data center cluster as non-wire alternative. • Applied a two-layer SRHC algorithm for online biddings and workload schedules. • Applied real-world data traces to illustrate the effectiveness and accuracy. • Real-world data showed the scheme's impact on cost reduction in balancing markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a universal screen-shooting robust image watermarking scheme, which can be used to embed extractable information into on-screen images for copyright protection or additional information acquisition. Specifically, to obtain higher robustness and watermarked image quality, we introduce the channel-attention mechanism into DCT domain and exploit the noise layer to guide the watermarking model, which integrates simulated distortions and screen-shooting distortions. After training, the universal watermark mask can be directly added on arbitrary cover image to produce a watermarked image that effectively resists multiple distortions. Experimental results show that the proposed scheme can achieve better performance than some state-of-the-art (SOTA) schemes in terms of the watermark embedding invisibility and the watermark extraction accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unpredictability of microbial growth and subsequent localized corrosion of steel can cause significant cost for the oil and gas industry, due to production downtime, repair, and replacement. Despite a long tradition of academic research and industrial experience, microbial corrosion is not yet fully understood and thus not effectively controlled. In particular, biomarkers suitable for diagnosing microbial corrosion which abstain from the detection of the classic signatures of sulfate-reducing bacteria are urgently required. In this study, a natural microbial community was enriched anaerobically with carbon steel coupons and in the presence of a variety of physical and chemical conditions. With the characterization of the microbiome and of its functional properties inferred through predictive metagenomics, a series of proteins were identified as biomarkers in the water phase that could be correlated directly to corrosion. This study provides an opportunity for the further development of a protein-based biomarker approach for effective and reliable microbial corrosion detection and monitoring in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a type of serious clinical syndrome leading to morbidity and mortality. However, the precise pathogenesis of ALI remains elusive. Here, we implemented an integrative meta-analysis of six GEO microarray studies with 76 samples in the ALI mouse model. A total of 958 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in LPS relative to normal samples. Then, a network-based meta-analysis was used to mine core DEGs and to unfold the interactions among these genes. We found that Ebi3 was the top upregulated genes in the LPS-induced ALI. GO, KEGG, and GSEA analyses were performed for functional annotation. qRT-PCR revealed augmented expression of six candidate genes (Stat1, Syk, Jak3, Rac2, Ripk1, and Traf6) in the established ALI mouse model with LPS exposure. Taken together, our study investigated comprehensively hub DEGs and their networks for LPS-stimulated ALI, which might afford an additional approach to determine biomarkers and therapeutic targets and explore the molecular pathophysiology toward ALI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, a framework of privacy-preserving inpainting for outsourced image and an encrypted-image inpainting scheme are proposed. Different with conventional image inpainting in plaintext domain, there are two entities, that is, content owner and image restorer, in our framework. Content owner first encrypts his or her damaged image for privacy protection and outsources the encrypted, damaged image to image restorer, who may be a cloud server with powerful computation capability. Image restorer performs inpainting in encrypted domain and sends the inpainted and encrypted image back to content owner or authorized receiver, who can acquire final inpainted result in plaintext domain through decryption. In our encrypted-image inpainting scheme, with the assist of Johnson–Lindenstrauss transform that can preserve Euclidean distance between two vectors before and after encryption, the best-matching block with the smallest distance to current block can be found and utilized for patch filling in Paillier-encrypted image. To eliminate mosaic effect after decryption, weighted mean filtering in encrypted domain is conducted with Paillier homomorphic properties. Experimental results show that our privacy-preserving inpainting framework can be effectively applied in secure cloud computing, and the proposed encrypted-image inpainting scheme achieves comparable visual quality of inpainted results with some typical inpainting schemes in plaintext domain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the key link connecting the earth's spheres, continental weathering plays an important role in regulating the global biogeochemical cycle and long-term climate change. Siliciclastic sediments derived from large river basins can record continental weathering and erosion signals, and are thus widely used to investigate weathering processes. However, sediment grain size, hydrodynamic sorting and sedimentary recycling complicate the interpretation of sediment weathering proxies. This study presents elemental and lithium isotope compositions of estuarine surface sediments (SS) and suspended particulate matters (SPM) collected from the Changjiang (Yangtze River) Estuary. Based on a simple mass balance model, the proportions of different end-members (i.e., igneous rocks, modern weathering products and inherited weathering products) in sediments were quantitatively calculated and thus the silicate weathering process can be estimated. Overall, the sediments in the Changjiang Estuary are mainly eroded from un-weathered rock fragments (>60%), while modern weathering products account for less than 40%. The fine-grained SPM contain more shale components (52–66%), and the modern weathering products account for 21–40%. Comparatively, the coarse-grained surface sediments contain more un-weathered igneous rock fragments (63–84%) and less modern weathering products (only 4–18%). The comparison of δ7Li values with the weathering proxy (Chemical Index of Alteration, CIA) suggests that sediment weathering intensity declines with increasing proportion of un-weathered igneous rock fragments. Additionally, the occurrence of inherited weathering products (i.e., shale) in modern sediments makes it a challenge to simply use CIA and δ7Li as indicators of weathering intensity. This study confirms that fine-grained particles are more suitable for tracing contemporary weathering process, albeit with the influence of sedimentary recycling. Lithium isotopes combining with the mass balance model can quantitatively constrain the continental weathering processes in large river basins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common and fatal gastrointestinal cancers worldwide. Considering their diversity, the establishment of new continuous CRC cell lines with clear genetic backgrounds will provide useful tools for exploring molecular mechanisms, screening and evaluating antitumor drugs in CRC studies. Our de novo CRC cell line, PUMC-CRC1 (Peking Union Medical College Colorectal Cancer 1) was derived from a 47-year-old Chinese female patient diagnosed with moderately to poorly differentiated colon adenocarcinoma. Multiple experiments were used for full characterization. The new cell line was epithelial-like and was passaged for more than 40 times, with a population doubling time of 44 h in vitro, detected by cell counts. The cells exhibited complicated chromosomal abnormalities. The tumor formation rate in SCID mice was 100%. The xenograft tumor was adenocarcinoma with poor to moderate differentiation by Haematoxylin and Eosin staining (H&E) sections. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) analysis and next-generation sequencing (NGS) revealed microsatellite stable (MSS), APC (p.T1493fs) inactivation, KRAS (p.G12V) activation, and SMAD4 (p.V506A) mutation. Quality control of the cell line proved mycoplasma negative and identical STR profile with that of the original tissue, and no interspecific or intraspecific cross contamination was detected. In conclusion, PUMC-CRC1 was a newly established and well characterized human colon cancer cell line, which might be a good model for both in vitro and in vivo studies of the mechanism of colon cancer progression and the treatment strategies for MSS CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, reversible data hiding in encrypted image (RDHEI) has attracted extensive attention, which can be used in secure cloud computing and privacy protection effectively. In this paper, a low-complexity RDHEI scheme based on MSB hierarchical coding and LSB compression is proposed. Content owner first utilizes a specific encryption method, including pixel encrypting, block, and pixel scrambling, to encrypt original image, which not only can reserve the redundancy, but also can mask image contents securely. Through hierarchical encoding MSBs of different types of image blocks and compressing LSBs, data hider can embed additional data into encrypted image effectively. Separable operations of data extraction, image decryption, and image recovery can be conducted on the receiver side based on encryption key and data-hiding key. Experimental results demonstrate that our scheme can achieve better rate-distortion performance than some of state-of-the-art schemes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Recent researches have suggested that long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) is involved in the tumorigenesis and development of stomach cancer (SC). This meta-analysis aimed to identify the diagnostic performance of circulating lncRNAs in SC. Methods: All relevant studies were systematically searched through PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and EMBASE databases. The diagnostic values of lncRNAs were mainly assessed by pooled sensitivity, specificity, and summary receiver operating characteristic area under the curve (SROC AUC). Meta-DiSc 1.4, Review Manager 5.3, and STATA 12.0 were used for statistical analysis. The protocol for this systematic review was registered on INPLASY (INPLASY202120079) and is available in full on the inplasy.com (https://doi.org/10.37766/inplasy2021.2.0079). Results: A total of 42 eligible studies were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, and SROC AUC were 0.78 (95%CI 0.75–0.81), 0.75 (95%CI 0.71–0.78), and 0.83 (95%CI 0.80–0.86), respectively, suggesting that the lncRNAs test had a high accuracy for the diagnosis of SC. Obvious heterogeneity might come from the type of lncRNA through subgroup and meta-regression analysis. Fagan diagram shows the clinical value of lncRNAs test in SC. Conclusions: Abnormal expression of circulating lncRNAs exhibits a high efficacy for diagnosing SC, which is promising in clinical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, the spherical Ti p was introduced into Mg-7Gd-2Y–3Zn (GWZ723) alloy by semi-solid stir casting process, then the Ti p /GWZ723 composites were prepared and subjected to extrusion at 380–450 °C. After that, the aspect ratio of the Ti p was adjusted according to the extrusion temperature. The effects of the Ti p aspect ratio on microstructure, mechanical properties, and work-hardening behavior of Ti p /GWZ723 composites were investigated. The results revealed that after hot extrusion, the Ti p elongated along the extrusion direction (ED), and its aspect ratio increased as the decrease of extrusion temperature. When the extrusion temperature decreased to 380 °C, the aspect ratio of the Ti p reached to 12:1. With the increasing Ti p aspect ratio, the hardness of the Ti p decreased while the Mg matrix increased. Moreover, both the recrystallized grains and LPSO phase were also refined simultaneously. The yield strength (YS), ultimate tensile strength (UTS), work hardening rate and dynamic recovery rate of the Ti p /GWZ723 composites increased with the increasing of Ti p aspect ratio. During the tensile process, strain concentration tended to occur at the sharp corner of the elongated Ti p , nevertheless, the strain distribution in the matrix became more uniform accompanied with the increasing Ti p aspect ratio, which was conducive to suppress crack initiation and delay fracture. It was the laminar-like configuration formed by the elongated Ti p and the Mg matrix along the ED contributed to the excellent comprehensive mechanical properties of the Ti p /GWZ723 composites. When the Ti p aspect ratio was 12:1, the YS and UTS reached as high as 454.3 MPa and 492.2 MPa, respectively. [Display omitted] • The aspect ratio of the Ti p elongates from 1:1 to 12:1 after extrusion. • The elongated Ti p weakens its hardness but strengthens the Mg matrix. • The elongated Ti p makes the strain distribution more uniform. • Laminar-like Ti p /GWZ723 composites exhibits YS of 454.3 MPa and UTS of 492.2 MPa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand the influences of continental emissions on marine aerosols from East Asia, the total suspended particle (TSP) samples were collected from the Yellow Sea (YS) and Bohai Sea (BS) of China through a cruise campaign during the spring of 2018. >100 individual organic compounds were identified and determined in the samples, and they were classified into 6 major groups according to the functionality and sources. The mass concentrations of total quantified organic compounds in BS (307.6 ± 268.3 ng m−3) was approximately 3 times those of YS (111.0 ± 97.3 ng m−3). Organic compounds from biomass burning (23.2 ± 34.2 ng m−3), marine/microbial source (23.1 ± 6.2 ng m−3) and fossil fuel combustion (21.4 ± 11.3 ng m−3) were the most abundant in the YS samples, whereas primary biological origins (90.0 ± 107.1 ng m−3), biomass burning (52.1 ± 39.1 ng m−3) and fossil fuel combustion (41.9 ± 20.1 ng m−3) were the most important organic species in BS marine aerosols. The concentrations of total biogenic secondary organic aerosol (BSOA) tracers including six isoprene SOA (SOA I), three monoterpene SOA (SOA M), and one β -caryophyllene SOA (SOA C) were 2.4 ± 1.5 ng m−3 and 7.3 ± 4.4 ng m−3 in the YS and BS samples, respectively. A strong correlation between BSOA tracers and levoglucosan was shown in the marine aerosol samples, indicating that biomass burning emissions could also promote BSOA formations. The spatial distribution of chemical and source characteristics suggests a relatively large impacts of continental emissions to the BS aerosols. Based on the tracer-based method, the biomass burning (YS: 4.9 ± 6.8%; BS: 8.8 ± 8.0%) was the largest contributor to OC, followed by primary biogenic OC (YS: 0.59 ± 0.44%; BS: 2.9 ± 3.0%) and biogenic secondary OC (YS: 0.45 ± 0.23%; BS: 1.0 ± 0.59%). This study suggests important contributions of biomass burning emissions to organic aerosols in the YS and BS marine atmosphere, although marine source, fossil fuel combustion and secondary formation was also substantial. [Display omitted] • Chemical and source characteristics of marine organic aerosols over the Bohai Sea and Yellow Sea were studied. • Biomass burning is a major contributor of marine organic aerosols over the Bohai Sea and Yellow Sea. • Biogenic primary emission contribution to organic carbon is higher than biogenic-derived secondary formation. • The Bohai Sea is more receptive to the input of continental emissions than the Yellow Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colorectal cancer is a prevalent malignant tumor with a complex and diverse pathogenesis. In recent years, natural products have shown promising application prospects as sources of anticancer drugs. BBR, a class of benzoquinoline alkaloids extracted from various plants, is widely used in disease treatments owing to its pharmacological activities, including antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anticancer, and anti-angiogenesis properties. Research has demonstrated that BBR exerts an anti- Salmonella and - Escherichia coli infection effect, attenuating inflammatory reactions by inhibiting harmful bacteria. During the stage of colorectal precancerous lesions, BBR inhibits the activity of cell cyclin by regulating the PI3K/AKT, MAPK, and Wnt signaling pathways, thereby decelerating the cell cycle progression of polyp or adenoma cells. Moreover, the inhibitory effect of BBR on colorectal cancer primarily occurs through the regulation of the cancer cell cycle, anti-angiogenesis, gut microbiota, and antioxidant pathways. The specific involved pathways include the MPK/ERK, NF-kB, and EGFR signaling pathways, encompassing the regulation of Bcl-2 family proteins, vascular endothelial growth factor, and superoxide dismutase. This study reviews and summarizes, for the first time, the specific mechanisms of action of BBR in the carcinogenesis process of colorectal cancer, providing novel insights for its clinical application in intestinal diseases. [Display omitted] • The beneficial effects of berberine on the multi-step and phenotypic regulation of CRC occurrence and development. • The pharmacological mechanism of berberine in different studies involving various intestinal diseases. • BBR antagonizes colorectal cancer through five pathways. • BBR has shown the potential for effective treatment of colorectal diseases through multiple channels and targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been reported that loss of Hugl‐2 contributes to tumour formation and progression in vitro and in vivo. However, whether Hugl‐2 levels decrease during kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC) and the mechanism involved remain unknown. This study aimed to investigate whether DNA methylation of Hugl‐2 reduces its expression, leading to the progression and poor prognosis of KIRC. Hugl‐2 methylation and mRNA expression and KIRC clinicopathological data were extracted from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), and relationships among these factors were analyzed using UALCAN, MethHC, Wanderer and LinkedOmics web tools. We found that Hugl‐2 mRNA and protein levels were reduced in KIRC tissues. Moreover, Hugl‐2 mRNA levels were related to tumour grade and overall survival, and Hugl‐2 methylation was increased in KIRC. According to the results of methylation‐specific PCR, KIRC cells had higher Hugl‐2 DNA methylation levels than HKC cells. Moreover, Hugl‐2 DNA methylation correlated negatively with Hugl‐2 mRNA and was also related to the pathology and T stage of KIRC patients. KIRC patients with high Hugl‐2 DNA methylation also had shorter overall survival. Additionally, methylation of cg08827674, a Hugl‐2 probe, was related to pathologic stage, T stage, neoplasm histologic grade, serum calcium level without laterality, M stage, N stage, and ethnicity. Furthermore, treatment with the DNA methylation inhibitor decitabine resulted in upregulation of Hugl‐2 mRNA and protein levels in KIRC cell lines. These results indicate that Hugl‐2 DNA methylation may be both a prognostic marker and a therapeutic target in KIRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) has become pandemic. It brings serious threat to hemodialysis (HD) patients. Therefore, we carried out a study on the clinical characteristics of HD patients with COVID-19. We retrospectively analyzed the data of 31 HD patients with COVID-19. The clinical features of patients include epidemiology, clinical symptoms, laboratory and imaging test, treatment and prognosis. 61.3% were severe, and 38.7% were mild. 83.9% had a close contact history with COVID-19 patients. The average age was 62.3 years comprising of 58.1% men and 41.9% women. Ninety percent had chronic diseases except ESRD. Clinical symptoms include cough (85%), fever (43%), and shortness of breath (48.4%), etc. Complications included ARDS (25.8%), AHF (22.6%), and septic shock (16.1%), etc. 64.5% of patients had remission, and 35.5% of patients had no remission with 6.5% deaths. Compared with the baseline before infection, HD patients with COVID-19 had lower lymphocytes, albumin and glucose, and higher D-dimer, albumin, phosphorus, lactate dehydrogenase, and CRP. There was no significant correlation between the neutrophils/lymphocytes ratio and the severity of the disease. Compared with the reported general population, the HD patients are susceptible to COVID-19 infection, especially older men and those with other underlying diseases. Moreover, HD patients have more severe infection and inflammation with less symptoms and worse outcome. COVID-19 infection can cause dialysis patients lower immunity, stronger inflammation, malnutrition, and internal environment disorder. Neutrophils/lymphocytes ratio does not reflect the severity of the HD patients with COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aimed to discriminate fat-poor angiomyolipoma (fp-AML) from clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) by constructing radiomics-based logistic classifiers in comparison with conventional computed tomography (CT) analysis at three CT phases. Materials and methods: Twenty-two fp-AML patients and 62 ccRCC patients who were pathologically identified were enrolled in this study, and underwent three-phase (unenhanced phase, UP; corticomedullary phase, CMP; nephrographic phase, NP) CT examinations. Whole-tumor regions of interest (ROIs) were contoured in ITK software by two radiologists. Radiomic features were dimensionally reduced by means of ANOVA + MW, correlation analysis, and LASSO. Four radiomics logistic classifiers including the UP group, CMP group, NP group, and sum group were built, and the radiomic scores (rad-scores) were calculated. After collecting the qualitative and quantitative conventional CT characteristics, the conventional CT analysis logistic classifier and the radiomics-based logistic classifier were constructed. The receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was constructed to evaluate the validity of each classifier. Results: The area under curve (AUC) of the conventional CT analysis logistic classifier including angular interface, cyst degeneration, and pseudocapsule was 0.935 (95% CI 0.860–0.977). Regarding logistic classifiers for radiomics analysis, the AUCs of the UP group were 0.950 (95% CI 0.895–1.000) and 0.917 (95% CI 0.801–1.000) in the training set and testing set, respectively, which were higher than those of the CMP and NP groups. The AUCs of the sum group were observed to be the highest. The top three selected features for the UP and sum groups belonged to GLCM parameters and histogram parameters. The radiomics-based logistic classifier encompassed cyst degeneration, pseudocapsule, and sum rad-score, and the AUC of the model was 0.988 (95% CI 0.935–1.000). Conclusion: Whole-tumor radiomics-based CT analysis is superior to conventional CT analysis in the differentiation of fp-AML from ccRCC. Cyst degeneration, pseudocapsule, and sum rad-score are the most significant factors. The radiomics analysis of the UP group shows a higher AUC than that of the CMP and NP groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the leading causes of cancer‐related death globally. This study aimed to disclose the role of circular RNA circ_0072088 in NSCLC and illustrate its potential mechanism. Methods: Quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (qRT‐PCR) was applied to detect the expression of circ_0072088, zinc finger RNA binding protein (ZFR), microRNA‐377‐5p (miR‐377‐5p) and NOVA alternative splicing regulator 2 (NOVA2). The viability, colony formation, cell cycle, migration and invasion of NSCLC cells were measured by cell counting kit‐8 (CCK8) assay, colony formation assay, flow cytometry, wound healing assay and transwell invasion assay. Western blot assay was employed to examine the protein levels of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), Cyclin D1, matrix metallopeptidase 2 (MMP2), MMP9 and NOVA2. The downstream targets of circ_0072088 and miR‐377‐5p were searched through using circular RNA Interactome and TargetScan databases, and the interaction between miR‐377‐5p and circ_0072088 or NOVA2 was confirmed by dual‐luciferase reporter assay and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay. in vivo tumor growth assay was used to evaluate the functions of circ_0072088 in the progression of NSCLC in vivo. Results: GSE101586 dataset and the analysis of tissue specimens showed that circ_0072088 was aberrantly upregulated in tumor tissues of lung cancer and NSCLC. Circ_0072088 interference caused marked suppression on the proliferation and motility of NSCLC cells. Circ_0072088 could negatively regulate miR‐377‐5p through direct combination. Circ_0072088 contributed to the progression of NSCLC through sponging miR‐377‐5p. MiR‐377‐5p could directly interact with NOVA2, and the overexpression of NOVA2 overturned miR‐377‐5p‐mediated influence on NSCLC cells. Circ_0072088 facilitated the progression of NSCLC in vivo. Conclusions: Circ_0072088 facilitated the proliferation and metastasis of NSCLC cells through upregulating NOVA2 via functioning as a competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR‐377‐5p. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The prognostic significance of beta(β)-blocker therapy in patients at end-stage renal disease, specifically those receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD) and presenting with heart failure, remains inadequately elucidated due to limited research conducted thus far. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on a cohort comprising 608 patients receiving PD between September 2007 and March 2019, with a subsequent follow-up period extending until December 2020. Cox regression and propensity score matching weighted analysis was used to model adjusted hazard ratios for β-blocker use with heart failure-related mortality. Competing risk analysis and subgroup analysis were carried out to further elucidate the correlation. Results β-blockers were prescribed for 56.1% of the peritoneal dialysis patients. Heart failure occurred in 43.4% of the total population and 15.5% of deaths were due to heart failure. The prescription of β-blockers was associated with a 43% lower adjusted hazard ratio (HR) for heart failure death within the cohort (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.36–0.89; P  = 0.013). Even after accounting for competing risk events, patients in the group using β-blockers demonstrated a significantly lower cumulative risk of heart failure-related mortality compared to those not using β-blockers (P  = 0.007). This protective effect of β-blockers was also observed in subgroup analyses. Conversely, β-blocker use had no statistically significant associations with all-cause mortality. Conclusion The use of β-blockers was associated with a reduced risk of heart failure-related mortality in the PD population. Future randomized clinical trials are warranted to confirm the beneficial effect of β-blockers in the context of PD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sympathetic innervation plays a crucial role in maintaining energy balance and contributes to metabolic pathophysiology. Recent evidence has begun to uncover the innervation landscape of sympathetic projections and sheds light on their important functions in metabolic activities. Additionally, the immune system has long been studied for its essential roles in metabolic health and diseases. In this review, the aim is to provide an overview of the current research progress on the sympathetic regulation of key metabolic organs, including the pancreas, liver, intestine, and adipose tissues. In particular, efforts are made to highlight the critical roles of the peripheral nervous system and its potential interplay with immune components. Overall, it is hoped to underscore the importance of studying metabolic organs from a comprehensive and interconnected perspective, which will provide valuable insights into the complex mechanisms underlying metabolic regulation and may lead to novel therapeutic strategies for metabolic diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Axonal injury results in long‐term neurological deficits in traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients. Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) has been reported to activate intracellular adaptor protein Disabled‐1 (Dab1) phosphorylation via its interaction with ApoE receptors. The Dab1 pathway acts as a regulator of axonal outgrowth and growth cone formation in the brain. Aims: We hypothesized that ApoE may alleviate axonal injury and regulate axonal regeneration via the Dab1 pathway after TBI. Results: In this study, we established a model of controlled cortical impact (CCI) to mimic TBI in vivo. Using diffusion tensor imaging to detect white matter integrity, we demonstrated that APOE‐deficient mice exhibited lower fractional anisotropy (FA) values than APOE+/+ mice at 28 days after injury. The expression levels of axonal regeneration and synapse plasticity biomarkers, including growth‐associated protein 43 (GAP43), postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD‐95), and synaptophysin, were also lower in APOE‐deficient mice. In contrast, APOE deficiency exerted no effects on the levels of myelin basic protein (MBP) expression, oligodendrocyte number, or oligodendrocyte precursor cell number. Neurological severity score (NSS) and behavioral measurements in the rotarod, Morris water maze, and Y maze tests revealed that APOE deficiency caused worse neurological deficits in CCI mice. Furthermore, Dab1 activation downregulation by the ApoE receptor inhibitor receptor‐associated protein (RAP) or Dab1 shRNA lentivirus attenuated the beneficial effects of ApoE on FA values, GAP43, PSD‐95, and synaptophysin expression, and neurological function tests. Additionally, the effects of ApoE on axonal regeneration were further validated in vitro. In a mechanical scratch injury model of primary cultured neurons, recombinant ApoE protein treatment enhanced axonal outgrowth and growth cone formation in injured neurons; however, these effects were attenuated by Dab1 shRNA, consistent with the in vivo results. Conclusion: Collectively, these data suggest that ApoE promotes axonal regeneration partially through the Dab1 pathway, thereby contributing to functional recovery following TBI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mitochondrial creatine kinase (Mt-CK) is a major determinant of cardiac energetic status and is down-regulated in chronic heart failure, which may contribute to disease progression. We hypothesised that cardiomyocyte-specific overexpression of Mt-CK would mitigate against these changes and thereby preserve cardiac function. Male Mt-CK overexpressing mice (OE) and WT littermates were subjected to transverse aortic constriction (TAC) or sham surgery and assessed by echocardiography at 0, 3 and 6 weeks alongside a final LV haemodynamic assessment. Regardless of genotype, TAC mice developed progressive LV hypertrophy, dilatation and contractile dysfunction commensurate with pressure overload-induced chronic heart failure. There was a trend for improved survival in OE-TAC mice (90% vs 73%, P = 0.08), however, OE-TAC mice exhibited greater LV dilatation compared to WT and no functional parameters were significantly different under baseline conditions or during dobutamine stress test. CK activity was 37% higher in OE-sham versus WT-sham hearts and reduced in both TAC groups, but was maintained above normal values in the OE-TAC hearts. A separate cohort of mice received in vivo cardiac 31P-MRS to measure high-energy phosphates. There was no difference in the ratio of phosphocreatine-to-ATP in the sham mice, however, PCr/ATP was reduced in WT-TAC but preserved in OE-TAC (1.04 ± 0.10 vs 2.04 ± 0.22; P = 0.007). In conclusion, overexpression of Mt-CK activity prevented the changes in cardiac energetics that are considered hallmarks of a failing heart. This had a positive effect on early survival but was not associated with improved LV remodelling or function during the development of chronic heart failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the IT sector is rapidly growing all over the world, more and more energy is consumed by data centers, which leads to the continuous increase of operating costs. Among other factors, the load management among uninterruptible power supply (UPS) nodes should be considered in the energy management model of the data center since its energy efficiency is correlated with the load ratio. In this article, an energy management scheme of the data center, which focuses on the workload scheduling among UPS nodes, is proposed to improve its operation efficiency. The flexible service requirement of batch workloads is also modeled in the proposed scheme to illustrate the cost of flexibility. In the proposed scheme, the efficiency of the UPS node is modeled as a function of the load ratio. Meanwhile, the cost of inconvenience is introduced to represent the flexible service requirements of batch workloads. A stochastic formulation is established to address the uncertainties involved in the scheduling process. Simulated case studies are provided, and the results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Our previous study found that 2-aryl-1-cyano-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines (CATHIQs) have excellent anti-cancer activity and obvious apoptosis induction phenomenon. As our continuing research, this study further explored their underlying molecular mechanism of apoptosis induction in cancer cells. Flow cytometry analysis showed that the NB4 cells treated by 1-cyano-2-(2-fluorophenyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline or the MKN-45 cells treated by 1-cyano-2-(4-trifluoromethylphenyl)-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline for 48 h were at early stage of apoptosis, and the cell cycle arrest was only slightly affected. Apoptosis rates of the cells significantly increase with the treatment concentration of the compounds. The compounds could significantly decrease the activities of SOD, raise the MDA level and promote the LDH leakage, suggesting that the excessive formation of ROS should be involved in the cell apoptosis. Western blot analysis showed that the compounds improved both Bax/Bcl-2 ratio and cleavages of procaspase-3, promoted efflux of cytochrome c to cytosol and phosphorylation of p38 and JNK, and attenuated phosphorylations of Akt and ERK. Together, inhibitions of PI3K/Akt and ERK and activation of p38 mediated the compounds-induced apoptosis through modulating the mitochondrial pathway and/or ROS production. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • The title compounds were able to induce apoptosis of the cancer cells NB4 and MKN-45. • The cell apoptosis was related with the excessive formation of ROS. • The cell apoptosis involved mitochondria pathway, MAPK pathway and PI3K/Akt pathway. • The title compounds are promising QBAs-like anticancer candidates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]