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• The quantified interpretability of belief rule base is defined. • Strategies are proposed to construct the model with good readability. • A new optimization method is proposed to guarantee the rule consistency. Belief rule base (BRB) expert system has been widely used in complex system modeling. Readability and consistency are the primary characteristics and advantages of BRB. However, these two characteristics may be lost in BRB establishment and optimization. Aiming at this problem, a novel hierarchical BRB (H-BRB) expert system is proposed. To quantify the interpretability of BRB, the definition of interpretability of BRB is proposed from the readability and the consistency. Two strategies are proposed to construct the H-BRB expert system with good readability. A new optimization method is proposed to guarantee the consistency of H-BRB, including a new optimization mechanism, a new objective function with interpretability constraints, and a modified optimization algorithm. With all the above, an H-BRB expert system with good readability and consistency can be established. A case study of the health state assessment of the aerospace relay is implemented to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LncRNAs can be transported to tumor cells where they exert regulatory effects by bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSC)-derived exosomes. Here, we aimed to investigate the functional mechanism of BMSC-derived exosomal lncRNA PTENP1 in the progression of bladder cancer (BC). Methods of BMSC were identified by detecting surface markers through flow cytometry. Exosomes from BMSC were identified by transmission electron microscopy, nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), and western blot analysis of exosome markers. Cellular internalization of BMSC-derived exosomes (BMSC-Exo) into BC cells was detected by confocal microscopy. CCK-8, colony formation, flow cytometry, wound healing, and transwell assays were adopted to estimate cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion abilities, respectively. Interplay between miR-17 and lncRNA PTENP1 or SCARA5 was verified by dual-luciferase reporter, RNA pull down, and/or RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assays. Tumor xenograft assay was conducted in nude mice to study the role of exosomal lncRNA PTENP1 in BC progression in vivo. We showed exosomal lncRNA PTENP1 can be delivered into and suppress the malignant phenotypes of BC cells. LncRNA PTENP1 was identified as a sponge of miR-17, and SCARA5 was identified as a target gene of miR-17. The exosomes derived from PTENP1-overexpressing BMSC (BMSCOE-PTENP1-Exo) abolished the promotive effects of miR-17 overexpression or SCARA5 knockdown on the malignant phenotypes of BC cells. Moreover, exosomal lncRNA PTENP1 was demonstrated to inhibit BC tumor growth in nude mice by miR-17/SCARA5 axis. In conclusion, BMSC-derived exosomal PTENP1 suppressed the BC progression by upregulating the expression of SCARA5 via sponging miR-17, offering a potential novel therapeutic target for BC therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wolfberry Lycium, an economically important genus of the Solanaceae family, contains approximately 80 species and shows a fragmented distribution pattern among the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Although several herbaceous species of Solanaceae have been subjected to genome sequencing, thus far, no genome sequences of woody representatives have been available. Here, we sequenced the genomes of 13 perennial woody species of Lycium, with a focus on Lycium barbarum. Integration with other genomes provides clear evidence supporting a whole-genome triplication (WGT) event shared by all hitherto sequenced solanaceous plants, which occurred shortly after the divergence of Solanaceae and Convolvulaceae. We identified new gene families and gene family expansions and contractions that first appeared in Solanaceae. Based on the identification of self-incompatibility related-gene families, we inferred that hybridization hotspots are enriched for genes that might be functioning in gametophytic self-incompatibility pathways in wolfberry. Extremely low expression of LOCULE NUBER (LC) and COLORLESS NON-RIPENING (CNR) orthologous genes during Lycium fruit development and ripening processes suggests functional diversification of these two genes between Lycium and tomato. The existence of additional flowering locus C-like MADS-box genes might correlate with the perennial flowering cycle of Lycium. Differential gene expression involved in the lignin biosynthetic pathway between Lycium and tomato likely illustrates woody and herbaceous differentiation. We also provide evidence that Lycium migrated from Africa into Asia, and subsequently from Asia into North America. Our results provide functional insights into Solanaceae origins, evolution and diversification. Cao, Li, et al. sequence 13 perennial woody plant species of Lycium, and specifically provide a draft assembly of L. ruthenicum and a chromosome-level assembly of L. barbarum, the wolfberry or Goji berry. From a phylogenetic tree the authors identify an ancient hexaploidization event, and report the evolution of gene families including fruit ripening, fruit coloration, polysaccharide synthesis and self-incompatibility within Solanaceae and the general biogeography of L. barbarum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to identify the role of the port backup service elements in the development of the container port, the paper puts forward a system dynamics model between the container port and the port backup service. Firstly, the system dynamics causal relationship path between the container port and the port backup service was established, and the interaction effects of the units in the system were analyzed qualitatively. Then, the empirical analysis based on system dynamics was implemented. Results show that the system dynamics model of the container port and the port backup service is effective; the port backup service elements have positive effects on the development of the container port. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the application of inverse finite element model in analysis of material characterization by small punch test. A novel inverse methodology based on Least squares-support vector machine (LS-SVM) model was presented. Tensile constitutive behavior analysis was performed on Incoloy800H by LS-SVM model, which was trained by simulation results with varied parameters. The predicted results show that material parameters can be related to small punch curves successfully by an iterative analysis of LS-SVM model. In the aspect of single parameter evaluation, the initial yield stress of Incoloy800H was investigated by means of three different inverse models which were established based on gold section, LS-SVM and enumeration, respectively. Compared to enumeration, gold section algorithm can narrow the prediction range quickly as only one parameter is required to be calculated. The predicted error is about 2.55%, however, the calculation time is apparently less than that of enumeration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate prediction of photovoltaic (PV) output power is of great significance for reasonable scheduling and development management of power grids. In PV power generation prediction system, there are two problems: the uncertainty of PV power generation and the inexplicability of the prediction result. The belief rule base (BRB) is a rule-based modeling method and can deal with uncertain information. Moreover, the modeling process of BRB has a certain degree of interpretability. However, rule explosion and the inexplicability of the optimized model limit the modeling ability of BRB in complex systems. Thus, a PV output power prediction model is proposed based on a deep belief rule base with interpretability (DBRB-I). In the DBRB-I model, the deep BRB structure is constructed to solve the rule explosion problem, and inefficient rules are simplified by a sensitivity analysis of the rules, which reduces the complexity of the model. Moreover, to ensure that the interpretability of the model is not destroyed, a new optimization method based on the projection covariance matrix adaptation evolution strategy (P-CMA-ES) algorithm is designed. Finally, a case study of the prediction of PV output power is conducted to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate prediction of photovoltaic (PV) output power is of great significance for reasonable scheduling and development management of power grids. In PV power generation prediction system, there are two problems: the uncertainty of PV power generation and the inexplicability of the prediction result. The belief rule base (BRB) is a rule-based modeling method and can deal with uncertain information. Moreover, the modeling process of BRB has a certain degree of interpretability. However, rule explosion and the inexplicability of the optimized model limit the modeling ability of BRB in complex systems. Thus, a PV output power prediction model is proposed based on a deep belief rule base with interpretability (DBRB-I). In the DBRB-I model, the deep BRB structure is constructed to solve the rule explosion problem, and inefficient rules are simplified by a sensitivity analysis of the rules, which reduces the complexity of the model. Moreover, to ensure that the interpretability of the model is not destroyed, a new optimization method based on the projection covariance matrix adaptation evolution strategy (P-CMA-ES) algorithm is designed. Finally, a case study of the prediction of PV output power is conducted to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the feasibility of laparoscopic high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) ablation in the treatment of patients with uterine localized adenomyosis. Design: A prospective clinical trial. Setting: University teaching hospital. Patient(s): Seven patients with uterine localized adenomyosis. Intervention(s): Using a hand-held focused ultrasound transducer, the HIFU procedure was performed by the same gynecologist for the treatment of a targeted adenomyosis during the surgical procedure, followed by hysterectomy. Main Outcome Measure(s): Feasibility and effectiveness of HIFU treatment of localized adenomyomas. Result(s): Macroscopic and microscopic examinations showed that HIFU induced thermal ablation of a targeted adenomyosis in all patients. The treated adenomyosis presented typical characteristics of coagulation necrosis, and the margin between the treated and untreated regions was clear in 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining. By using electronic microscopy and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-diaphorase stain, complete loss of cellular viability was identified in the treated tissue. Conclusion(s): The HIFU treatment is feasible and effective in the treatment of patients with uterine localized adenomyosis. It may provide a promising laparoscopic treatment for localized adenomyosis. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

To prevent adverse consequences for performance deterioration, it is of great importance to evaluate performance promptly and implement precautions at the right time. Therefore, aiming at the performance evaluation problem of complex systems, a model based on the hierarchical evidential reasoning (HER) rule is proposed to integrate multi-layer uncertain information. The multi-layer indicators collected from complex systems are integrated into a belief structure, considering adaptive weights and adaptive reliability. Besides, complex systems are susceptible to both internal and external disturbances, resulting in performance fluctuations. Therefore, a disturbance analysis method for the HER rule is introduced to measure the influence of disturbance on the system. Finally, a bearing system is examined as a case study to assess the rationality of the HER rule and the effect of disturbances on the whole system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The effect of arginine vasopressin (AVP) on rat antinociception was investigated. Intraventricular injection of 50 or 100ng AVP dose-dependently increased the pain threshold; in contrast, intraventricular injection of 10μl anti-AVP serum decreased the pain threshold; both intrathecal injection of 200ng AVP or 10μl anti-AVP serum and intravenous injection of 5μg AVP or 200μl anti-AVP serum did not influence the pain threshold. Pain stimulation reduced AVP concentration in hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN), and elevated AVP concentration in hypothalamic supraoptical nucleus (SON) and periaqueductal gray (PAG), but no change in AVP concentration was detected in pituitary, spinal cord and serum. The results indicated that AVP regulation of antinociception was limited to the brain nuclei. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• A highly interpretable health state assessment method. • The reliability calculation of expert knowledge. • Two interpretable optimization methods for improving the interpretability. • A generalized parameter training method to achieve bimetric balance. Health state assessment is an important way to maintain system safety. The belief rule base (BRB) is a rule-based model that embeds expert knowledge and has the advantage of interpretability. However, BRB-based models face two problems in interpretability: Lack of reasonable methods to improve the interpretability of the optimization phase and BRB that only considers accuracy tends to favor black-box models. To address the above two problems for developing a highly interpretable model, this paper proposes a new health state assessment method based on interpretable BRB with bimetric balance (IBRB-b). First, interpretability criteria for health state assessment are proposed, and based on the fact that some interpretability criteria may be broken in the optimization process, two interpretable maintenance strategies were developed. Second, the reliability calculation method of expert knowledge is given and considered in the interpretable optimization methods. In addition, the bimetric-oriented population selection method is proposed to balance the accuracy and interpretability of the BRB model. In the case study, the effectiveness and superiority of the IBRB-b method were analyzed and verified through the health state assessment experiments of NASA lithium-ion batteries and milling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lycium genus (Goji berry) is recognized as a good source of homology of medicine and food, with various nutrients and phytochemicals. Lately, numerous studies have focused on the chemical constituents and biological functions of the L. barbarum L., covering phytochemical and pharmacological aspects. We aim to provide exclusive data on the nutrients of L. barbarum L. fruits and phytochemicals, including their structural characterization, the evolution of extraction, and purification processes of different phytochemicals of L. barbarum L. fruit while placing greater emphasis on their wide-ranging health effects. This review also profitably offers innovative approaches for the food industry and industrial applications of L. barbarum L. and addresses some current situations and problems in the development of L. barbarum L. in deep processing products, which can provide clues for the sustainable development of L. barbarum L. industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A new micro belief rule and corresponding belief rule network model are proposed. • The cautious conjunctive rule is used for the non-independent evidence combination. • The structure and parameter learning strategies of the proposed model are given. • The effectiveness of the proposed model is verified in a relay experiment. A belief rule base (BRB) expert system provides a generic inference framework for approximating the complicated nonlinear relationships between inputs and outputs. Such systems have been widely applied in the system health management community. However, limited by the method of construction rules, existing methods encounter the combinatorial explosion problem in the modeling of complex systems. Thus, determining how to effectively use the collected signals, system mechanism, and expert knowledge to realize the health evaluation of complex systems has become a key issue limiting the development of BRB systems. To solve this problem, a modified micro belief rule structure is proposed, and a new belief rule network (BRN) model is developed. Then, the cautious conjunctive rule is introduced to realize the fusion and reasoning of the nonindependent nodes in the BRN. In addition, the structure and parameter learning strategies of the proposed BRN are given, thereby providing a systemic mechanism to enhance the capability of the BRN when both expert knowledge and observed data are available. The effectiveness of the BRN model is verified in an aerospace relay experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lyciumruthenicum Murray (L. ruthenicum) has been used both as traditional Chinese medicine and food. Recent studies indicated that anthocyanins are the most abundant bioactive compounds in the L. ruthenicum fruits. The purpose of this study was to investigate the preventive effects and the mechanism of the anthocycanins from the fruit of L. ruthenicum (ACN) in high-fat diet-induced obese mice. In total, 24 male C57BL/6J mice were divided into three groups: control group (fed a normal diet), high-fat diet group (fed a high-fat diet, HFD), and HFD +ACN group (fed a high-fat diet and drinking distilled water that contained 0.8% crude extract of ACN). The results showed that ACN could significantly reduce the body weight, inhibit lipid accumulation in liver and white adipose tissue, and lower the serum total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels compared to that of mice fed a high-fat diet. 16S rRNA gene sequencing of bacterial DNA demonstrated that ACN prevent obesity by enhancing the diversity of cecal bacterial communities, lowering the Firmicutes-to-Bacteroidota ratio, increasing the genera Akkermansia, and decreasing the genera Faecalibaculum. We also studied the inhibitory effect of ACN on pancreatic lipase. The results showed that ACN has a high affinity for pancreatic lipase and inhibits the activity of pancreatic lipase, with IC50 values of 1.80 (main compound anthocyanin) and 3.03 mg/mL (crude extract), in a competitive way. Furthermore, fluorescence spectroscopy studies showed that ACN can quench the intrinsic fluorescence of pancreatic lipase via a static mechanism. Taken together, these findings suggest that the anthocyanins from L. ruthenicum fruits could have preventive effects in high-fat-diet induced obese mice by regulating the intestinal microbiota and inhibiting the pancreatic lipase activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intrusion detection in industrial control systems (ICS) is crucial for maintaining the security of physical information systems. However, the existing models predominantly rely on black-box approaches, which exhibit limitations in result credibility and the ability to adapt to complex and dynamic environments. Consequently, this paper proposes an online updatable extended belief rule base model (O-EBRB) for intrusion detection in ICS. Firstly, an industrial intrusion detection model rooted in the extended belief rule base (EBRB) is established. This model excels in concurrently processing both quantitative and qualitative data, ensuring the reliability of its outcomes. Subsequently, a novel domain-based rule update methodology for integrating new observation data is proposed. By incorporating or merging fresh data into the original model, it enhances the model’s adaptability in dynamic settings. Finally, employing the domain-based rule weight calculation approach, the model continues to effectively compute model parameters even with the continuous expansion of rules. Through extensive experimentation on two real-world industrial intrusion detection datasets, the results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model in handling information and its robust performance in dynamic environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidential reasoning (ER) rule has been widely used in addressing uncertainty, ignorance, and vagueness information. To explore its performance measure (PM), the perturbation analysis (PA) for the ER rule (ER rule-PA) is conducted, with perturbation taken into consideration. This article aims to analyze the robustness and stability of the ER rule, serving as theoretical basis and technical support for applied research and applications. The combination of two pieces of independent evidence is discussed, and perturbation is added to one piece of evidence. To represent the expected utility of evidence combination under perturbation, perturbation utility is introduced. The novel concept of perturbation coefficient is proposed to characterize the PM of the ER rule (ER rule-PM). The properties of perturbation coefficient are explored to demonstrate the impact of perturbation. The maximum permissible error (MPE) of perturbation coefficient is defined to characterize the acceptability of perturbation. A numerical study is examined to illustrate the implementation process of ER rule-PA. Moreover, a case study of reliability evaluation of aerospace relay is conducted to show the potential applications of ER rule-PA, which makes the proposed method more practical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The "chimney rain" problem can effectively be solved by adding a secondary dehydration device inside the chimney with wet flue gas desulfurization (FGD) direct-discharged measures in coal fired power station. In order to analyze the changes of outlet moisture content and internal flow field, and to optimize the structure of device to match the dehydration capacity and working resistance, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method was adopted to simulate the internal flow field of the chimney. Results show that after installing a secondary dehydration device the outlet moisture ratio decreases from 111 mg/m³ to 52 mg/m³; the working resistance increases in an allowable range, from 195 Pa to 699 Pa, which is below 1 200 Pa;the outlet velocity raises from 17.3 m/s to 17.6 m/s. The smoke spirals up along in wall, not along central zone ; the optimum angle of the whirl board is 42 degrees. Through the comparative analysis of actual and simulation results, the effectivity of the device and the feasibility of optimum angle were verified, and the basic laws and characteristics curves of internal flow field were also obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper we describe conjugacy classes of a Renner monoid R with unit group W, the Weyl group. We show that every element in R is conjugate to an element ue where and e is an idempotent in a cross section lattice. Denote by and the centralizer and stabilizer of in W, respectively. Let act by conjugation on the set of left cosets of in W. We find that ue and ve () are conjugate if and only if and are in the same orbit. As consequences, there is a one-to-one correspondence between the conjugacy classes of R and the orbits of this action. We then obtain a formula for calculating the number of conjugacy classes of R, and describe in detail the conjugacy classes of the Renner monoid of some -irreducible monoids. We then generalize Munn conjugacy on a rook monoid to any Renner monoid and show that Munn conjugacy coincides with semigroup conjugacy, action conjugacy, and character conjugacy. We also show that the number of inequivalent irreducible representations of R over an algebraically closed field of characteristic zero equals the number of Munn conjugacy classes in R. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objectives: To evaluate the use of a multiprobe fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assay for predicting the residual tumor load after transurethral resection (TUR) of bladder urothelial carcinoma (UC). Methods: Voided urine specimens were collected from 125 consecutive patients with suspected UC who had been admitted for TUR. Of the 125 patients, 89 with UC diagnosed underwent a second procedure (repeated TUR or cystectomy) 4-6 weeks after the initial TUR and were included in the present study. Using the pathologic findings from the second procedure, the patients were divided into those with (n = 38) and those without (n = 51) residual tumor. Urine samples were taken both before and after the initial TUR. The multiprobe FISH assay was performed to detect aneuploidy of chromosomes 3, 7, and 17 and the loss of the 9p21 locus. Results: Before the first TUR, no significant difference was found in the FISH-positive percentage between those with and without residual tumor. After the first TUR, the FISH-positive percentage in those with residual tumor was significantly greater than in those without residual tumor (42.2% vs 17.6%, P = .003). Moreover, before and after the initial TUR, the percentage of conversion from FISH positive to FISH negative in those with residual tumor was significantly lower than in those without residual tumor (28.9% vs 58.9%, P < .001). No patients were observed with a FISH result of conversion from negative to positive in those with and without residual tumor after the initial TUR. Conclusions: FISH appears to be useful for the prediction of the presence of the residual tumor load after TUR of bladder UC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: High-intensity–focused ultrasound (HIFU) is a noninvasive thermal ablation technique. This study reports the use of histological techniques for the pathological assessment of HIFU effects in patients with breast cancer. Methods: Twenty-three patients with biopsy-proven breast cancer underwent HIFU treatment for primary breast lesion. Mastectomy was performed on all patients after HIFU. By using histological examinations, the surgical specimens were assessed to explore HIFU effects on breast cancer. Results: Coagulation necrosis of targeted tumors was confirmed by microscopy in 23 patients. Tumor cells presented typical characteristics of coagulation necrosis in the peripheral region of the ablated tumor in all patients. However, in 11 of 23 patients, hematoxylin and eosin staining showed normal cellular structure in the central ablated tumor. By using electronic microscopy and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-diaphorase stain, those who had normal-appearing cancer cells were not viable. Conclusions: HIFU can cause the heat fixation of ablated tumor through thermal effect. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Our previous study proved that hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVH) plays an important role in acupuncture analgesia. The effect of acupuncture on the concentrations of arginine vasopressin (AVP), oxytocin (OXT), leucine-enkephaline (L-Ek), β-endorphin (β-Ep) and dynorphinA1–13 (DynA1–13) was investigated in rat PVH. Electrical acupuncture of “Zusanli” points (St. 36) 30min increased the AVP, not OXT, L-Ek, β-Ep and DynA1–13 concentrations in PVH tissue using micropunch and radioimmunoassay, which showed a negative relationship between the pain threshold and AVP concentrations in PVH tissue. Electrical acupuncture could elevate the AVP concentrations in PVH perfuse liquid during acupuncture, and then reduce the AVP concentrations in PVH perfuse liquid after acupuncture. But no change in OXT, L-Ek, β-Ep and DynA1–13 concentrations was detected in PVH perfuse liquid. Electrical acupuncture decreased the number of AVP, not OXT, L-Ek, β-Ep and DynA1–13 immunoreactive cells in PVH using immunocytochemistry. The results suggested that only AVP, not OXT and endogenous opiate peptides in PVH involved acupuncture analgesia in the rat. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Our previous study has proven that hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) played a role in the antinociception. The central bioactive substances involving in the PVN regulating antinociception were investigated in the rat. The results showed that electrical stimulation of the PVN increased the pain threshold, and l-glutamate sodium injection into the PVN elevated the pain threshold, but the PVN cauterization decreased the pain threshold; pain stimulation raised the arginine vasopressin (AVP), not oxytocin (OXT), leucine-enkephalin (L-Ek), β-endorphin (β-Ep) and DynorphinA1–13 (DynA1–13) concentrations in the PVN tissue using micropunch method, heightened AVP, L-Ek, β-Ep and DynA1–13, not OXT concentrations in the PVN perfuse liquid, and reduced the number of AVP-, not OXT, L-Ek, β-Ep and DynA1–13-immunoreactive neurons in the PVN especially in the posterior magnocellular part of the PVN using immunocytochemistry. There was a negative relationship between the PVN AVP concentration and the pain threshold; pain stimulation enhanced the AVP, not OXT mRNA expression in the PVN using in situ hybridization and RT-PCR; intraventricular injection of anti-AVP serum completely reversed l-glutamate sodium injection into the PVN-induced antinociception, and administration of naloxone — the opiate peptide antagonist, partly blocked this l-glutamate sodium effect, but anti-OXT serum pretreatment did not influence this l-glutamate sodium effect; l-glutamate sodium injection into the PVN-induced analgesia was inhibited by V2 receptor antagonist — d(CH2)5[D-Ile2, Ile4, Ala–NH2 9]AVP, not V1 receptor antagonist — d(CH2)5Tyr(Me)AVP. The data suggested that the PVN was limited to the central AVP, not OXT, which was through V2, not V1 receptors influencing the endogenous opiate peptide system, to regulate antinociception. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Our previous study proved that the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVH) plays an important role in acupuncture analgesia. The neuropeptides involving in the PVH regulation of acupuncture analgesia was investigated in the rat. The changes of pain threshold, which was induced by electrical acupuncture of “Zusanli” points (St. 36), were measured as acupuncture analgesia. Microinjection of l-glutamate sodium into the PVH, which only excites the PVH neurons, could dose-dependently enhance the acupuncture analgesia, but microinjection of l-glutamate sodium into the area nearby the PVH did not alter acupuncture analgesia. Removing pituitary did not influence this effect of l-glutamate sodium. Microinjection of l-glutamate sodium into the PVH only increased the arginine vasopressin (AVP), not oxytocin (OXT), leucine enkephaline (L-Ek), β-endorphine (β-Ep) and dynorphinA1–13 (DynA1–13) concentrations in the PVH perfuse liquid using radioimmunoassay. Intraventricular injection of anti-arginine vasopressin serum (AAVPS) could completely reverse the effect of microinjection of l-glutamate sodium into the PVH enhancing acupuncture analgesia. Intraventricular injection of naloxone, one opiate peptide antagonist, partly attenuated this effect of l-glutamate sodium, and intraventricular of anti-oxytocin serum (AOXTS) did not change this effect of l-glutamate sodium. The results suggested that l-glutamate sodium induces the PVH enhancing acupuncture analgesia only through AVP, not OXT and endogenous opiate peptides in central nervous system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Proliferation, invasion, immortalization and metastasis are the main malignant characteristics of cancer. Previous studies have shown that high-intensity focused ultrasound (US), or HIFU, can induce irreversible damage both to breast cancer cells and to tumor blood vessels. However, light microscopy alone may not always show this clearly. In this study, molecular biologic techniques were used to examine any changes in molecular markers associated with malignant behavior after exposure to HIFU. A total of 48 women with breast cancer were randomized to a control group (mastectomy) and a HIFU group (HIFU followed by mastectomy). Immunohistochemical staining, messenger RNA (mRNA) in situ hybridization and telomere-repeat amplification protocol–enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (TRAP-ELISA) techniques were used to detect tumor expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), cell adhesion molecule CD44v6, matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), erbB2 mRNA, and to measure telomerase activity in both groups. The results demonstrated that there were significant alterations in expression of PCNA, CD44v6, MMP-9, erbB2 mRNA, and a dramatic decrease in telomerase activity in the HIFU group. It is concluded that malignant tumor characteristics are arrested by HIFU, and that biologic factors are potential markers for assessing HIFU efficacy. (E-mail: mfengwu@yahoo.com or clinical@haifu.com.cn) [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a common acute abdominal disease characterized by pancreatic aseptic inflammation, with ~20% of patients progressing to severe AP (SAP) with a high mortality rate. The aim of this study was to explore the protective effects of Pim-3 proto-oncogene, serine/threonine kinase (Pim-3) on rat pancreatic acinar AR4-2J cells damaged by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The recombinant plasmid p-enhanced green fluorescent protein (pEGFP)-N2/Pim-3 was transiently transfected into AR42J cells and the AR42J cells were then treated with 2 µg/ml LPS. Subsequently, the proliferation of AR42J cells was detected using MTT assay. The cell cycle progression and apoptosis rate of the AR42J cells were examined using flow cytometry. AR42J cell migration was assessed using wound healing assays. Additionally, RT-semi quantitative PCR and western blot analyses were used to detect the mRNA and protein expression levels, respectively, of Pim-3, interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1β, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 and Occludin in AR42J cells. The results revealed that proliferation of AR42J cells was significantly enhanced and cell apoptosis was markedly reduced in the pEGFP-N2/Pim-3 + LPS group. The proportion of AR42J cells in G1 phase in the pEGFP-N2/Pim-3 + LPS group was decreased, whereas the proportion of cells in the G2 and S phases was increased. The wound healing assays demonstrated that AR42J cell migration was significantly increased in the pEGFP-N2/Pim-3 + LPS group. Finally, the expression levels of IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α and ICAM-1 were significantly decreased in the pEGFP-N2/Pim-3 + LPS group, whereas the expression of Occludin was significantly increased. The present study demonstrated that raised expression levels of Pim-3 can protect AR42J cells from LPS-induced injury by modifying the inflammatory microenvironment, suggesting that Pim-3 may be a potential target for AP or SAP therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Tumors with high mutation load tend to have a stronger immune response in some tumors. The correlation between expression of programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1), a biomarker of immune response in tumors, and p53, accepted as the most frequently mutated gene in many cancers, in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has not been fully investigated in cancer patients. Materials and methods: 132 cases of TNBC and 32 cases of non-TNBC paraffin-embedded tissue sections were selected to detect the expression of PD-L1 and p53 by immunohistochemistry, and results were correlated with clinical data and survival outcomes. The staining of PD-L1 in tumor cells (TCs) and tumor-associated immune cells (TAICs) was assessed separately. Results: Strong positive correlations were observed between expression of p53 and PD-L1 both in TCs (r=0.338, P=0.000) and TAICs (r=0.186, P=0.033). The same positive correlation was found in the expression of PD-L1 in TCs and TAICs (r=0.764, P=0.000). Like p53 (P=0.024), positive rate of PD-L1 in TCs was significantly higher in TNBC than in non-TNBC (P=0.02). PD-L1 and p53 in TCs staining were significantly associated with histological grade, tumor size and Ki67 index (P<0.05). PD-L1 in TCs staining was also associated with lymphatic metastasis status (P=0.000). However, PD-L1 in TAICs was only related to histological grade in statistically (P=0.012). Kaplan–Meier survival analysis showed that positive groups of p53, PD-L1 in TCs and TAICs had a worse overall survival and a worse progression-free survival as compared with the negative groups, but marginal significance was found only in overall survival of PD-L1 in TCs and TAICs, and progression-free survival of PD-L1 in TAICs (P=0.074, 0.097, 0.068, respectively). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that positive correlation between p53 and PD-L1 in TNBC and the higher expression rates are closely correlated with some key prognostic factors and worse survival outcomes. These findings would lay the foundation for further study on the relationship of p53 and PD-L1 and the combination of mutated p53 inhibitors and PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies in TNBC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An interpretable fault diagnosis method for inertial platform is proposed. • The qualitative data and quantitative data are used in a unified way. • The interpretability of the BRB is quantified. As a key component of navigation equipment, the inertial platform needs high reliability, so an accurate and interpretable method for fault diagnosis is necessary. The belief rule base (BRB) has strong interpretability and its ability to process semi-quantitative information. However, the high complexity of inertial platforms leads to the existence of multiple indicators for use in fault diagnosis, which leads to the combinatorial explosion of rules problem in BRB. Considering this problem, an interpretable method for inertial platform fault diagnosis based on combination BRB is proposed here. This paper provides two main contributions: 1) A BRB optimization method considering the correlation coefficient is proposed, which maintains the interpretability of sub-BRBs in the combination BRB, and 2) a method is proposed to calculate the sub-BRB weights based on the precision of the sub-BRBs and the occurrence times of repeated indicators, thus ensuring that the fusion process is explainable when the ER algorithm is used for the fusion of sub-BRBs. The proposed method ensures the interpretability of the final result during fault diagnosis while maintaining the reliability of the inertial platform. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified against state-of-the-art methods using actual operation data from an inertial platform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Lower respiratory tract illness is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in children worldwide, however, information about the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of LRTIs caused by HMPV and HBoV in China is limited. Objectives: Human bocavirus (HBoV) and human metapneumovirus (HMPV) are two important viruses for children with lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI). We aimed to assay the correlation between viral load and clinical characteristics of HBoV and HMPV with LRTI in Changsha, China. Methods: Nasopharyngeal aspirates (NPAs) from children with LRTI were collected. Real‐time PCR was used to screen HBoV and HMPV. Analyses were performed using SPSS 16.0 software. Results: Pneumonia was the most frequent diagnosis. There was no significant difference between HBoV‐ and HMPV‐positive patients in age (P = .506) or hospitalization duration (P = .280); 24.1% and 18.2% were positive for HBoV and HMPV. HBoV infections peaked in summer (32.2%), and HMPV infections peaked in winter (28.9%). The HBoV‐positive patients had a shorter hospitalization duration than the HBoV‐negative patients (P = .021), and the HMPV‐positive patients had a higher prevalence of fever than the HMPV‐negative patients (P = .002). The HBoV viral load was significantly higher among patients aged <1 year (P = .006). The mean HBoV and HMPV viral loads were not significantly different between patients with single infections and coinfections. Patients infected with HBoV only were older than those coinfected with HBoV and other respiratory viruses (P = .005). No significant difference was found in the clinical characteristics of patients infected with HMPV only and those coinfected with HMPV and other respiratory viruses. Conclusion: Pneumonia was the most frequent diagnosis caused by HBoV and HMPV. Neither HBoV nor HMPV viral load was correlated with disease severity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To ensure safety of satellite operation in orbit, it is important to estimate the capacity of lithium-ion battery in time. However, the battery capacity cannot be measured directly in space, and it is continually changing due to the usage that changes with the space environment. Because of the complex electrochemical side reactions inside battery, it is difficult to establish an accurate model. To solve the above problems, eight features from battery usage of three processes are selected to comprehensively depict the change of battery capacity. Taking the battery capacity as hidden state, an online estimation model is proposed based on approximate belief rule base and hidden Markov model by using historical data and expert knowledge. Based on the performance test data of a certain type of satellite battery, the effectiveness of the proposed model is verified. The capacity of an in-orbit satellite battery is estimated and analyzed by using the telemetry data. • Battery usage features are extracted to depict the influence on capacity change. • An iterative estimation model based on ABRB-HMM is proposed. • Battery performance test data is used to verify the effectiveness of the model. • Battery capacity of an in-orbit satellite is estimated by telemetry data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is vital to predicting the hidden behavior of complex systems, which is associated with the operation state of the system and cannot be directly observed. In recent research of hidden behavior prediction, one effective method called the semi-quantitative information-based method has received wide applications and become the main stream, where both the qualitative knowledge and the quantitative data are involved. Although some methods have been effectively applied to predict the hidden behavior, only the single behavior prediction has been achieved. It is shown that multiple hidden behaviors are not considered, which may not meet actual requirements of the system. Besides, the influence of perturbations on the system is not considered, which can indirectly affect the system's hidden behavior and reduce the hidden behavior prediction accuracy. As such, a new hidden behavior prediction model based on the evidential reasoning (ER) rule considering perturbations is proposed in this paper, which is typically a semi-quantitative information-based method and can deal with multiple hidden behaviors. A parameter estimation algorithm is proposed based on the expectation maximization (EM) to obtain more accurate model parameters. A case study is conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human bocavirus ( HBo V), a recently identified pathogen with a worldwide distribution is closely related to paediatric acute respiratory infection and gastroenteritis. The present study was performed to evaluate the immunogenicity of HBo V1 and HBo V2 virus-like particles ( VLPs) as vaccine candidates in mice. Both HBo V1 and HBo V2 VLPs were expressed in the bacmid virus- SF9 cell system. Mice were inoculated three times at 3-week intervals with HBo V VLPs at one dose intramuscular (i.m.) or intradermal (i.d.) with or without the addition of the alum adjuvant. ELISA was used to detected antibody, and ELISPOT was used to test cellular immune responses. HBo V-specific Ig G antibodies were induced and alum adjuvant improved the antibody titres and avidity, while the inoculation pathway had no influence. T helper type 1/ type 2 immune responses were balanced induced by HBo V1 VLPs but not HBo V2 VLPs. Serum Ig G antibody cross-reactivity rates of the two subtypes were similar, but cross-reactions of HBo V1 immunization groups were higher. The single i.m. group had more interferon- γ-secreting splenocytes. These data indicate that HBo V VP2 VLPs have good immunogenicity with induction of strong humoral and cellular immune responses, and they may be potential candidate vaccines for HBo V infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) in nociception was investigated in the rat. Electrical stimulation of the PVN increased pain threshold, and microinjection of L-glutamate sodium into the PVN also elevated pain threshold in a dose-dependent manner, whereas cauterization of the PVN decreased pain threshold. Stimulation or cauterization of the area located within 1.0 mm of the outer perimeter of the PVN did not change pain threshold. Pituitary removal could not influence the effect of L-glutamate sodium microinjection into PVN-induced pain threshold increase. The data suggest that PVN plays a role in antinociception through the central nervous system rather than peripheral organs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A rice mutant with rolling leaf, namely γ- rl, was obtained from M2 progenies of a native indica rice stable strain Qinghuazhan (QHZ) from mutagenesis of dry seeds by γ-rays. Genetic analysis using the F2 population from a cross between this mutant and QHZ indicated the mutation was controlled by a single recessive gene. In order to map the locus for this mutation, another F2 population with 601 rolling leaf plants was constructed from a cross between γ- rl and a japonica cultivar 02428. After primary mapping with SSR (simple sequence repeats) markers, the mutated locus was located at the short arm of chromosome 3, flanked by RM6829 and RM3126. A number of SSR, InDel (insertion/deletion) and SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) markers within this region were further developed for fine mapping. Finally, two markers, SNP121679 and InDel422395, were identified to be flanked to this locus with genetic distances of 0.08 cM and 0.17 cM respectively, and two SNP markers, SNP75346 and SNP110263, were found to be co-segregated with this locus. These results suggested that this locus was distinguished from all loci for the rolling leaf mutation in rice reported so far, and thus renamed rl10(t). By searching the rice genome database with closely linked markers using BLAST programs, an e-physical map covering rl10(t) locus spanning about a 50 kb region was constructed. Expression analysis of the genes predicted in this region showed that a gene encoding putative flavin-containing monooxygenase (FMO) was silenced in γ- rl, thus this is the most likely candidate responsible for the rolling leaf mutation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: ERF transcription factors can bind GCC boxes or non-GCC cis elements to regulate biotic and abiotic stress responses. Here, we report that an ERF transcription factor gene (GbERF2) was cloned by suppression subtraction hybridization from sea-island cotton after Verticillium dahliae attack. The GbERF2 cDNA has a total length of 1143 bp with an open reading frame of 597 bp. The genomic sequence of GbERF2 contains an intron of 515 bp. The gene encodes a predicated polypeptide of 198 amino acids with a molecular weight of 22.5 kDa and a calculated pI of 9.82. The GbERF2 protein has a highly conserved ERF domain while the nucleotide and amino acid sequences have low homology with other ERF plant proteins. An RNA blot revealed that GbERF2 is constitutively expressed in different tissues, but is higher in the leaves. High levels of GbERF2 transcripts rapidly accumulated when the plants were exposed to exogenous ethylene treatment and V. dahliae infection, while there was only a slight accumulation in response to salt, cold, drought and water stresses. In contrast, GbERF2 transcripts declined in response to exogenous abscisic acid (ABA) treatment. GbERF2 transgenic tobacco plants constitutively accumulated higher levels of pathogenesis-related gene transcripts, such as PR-1b, PR2 and PR4. The resistance of transgenic tobacco to fungal infection by Alternaria longipes was enhanced. However, the resistance to bacterial infection by Pseudomonas syringae pv. tabaci was not improved. These results show that GbERF2 plays an important role in response to ethylene stress and fungal attack in cotton. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Our previous work has shown that arginine vasopressin (AVP) regulates antinociception through brain nuclei rather than the spinal cord and peripheral organs. The present study investigated the nociceptive effect of AVP in the caudate nucleus (CdN) of the rat. Microinjection of AVP into the CdN increased pain threshold in a dose-dependent manner, while local administration of AVP-receptor antagonist-d(CH2)5Tyr(Et)DAVP decreased pain threshold. Pain stimulation elevated AVP concentration in CdN perfuse liquid. CdN pretreatment with AVP-receptor antagonist completely reversed AVP''s effect on pain threshold in the CdN. The data suggest that AVP in the CdN is involved in antinociception. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Previous work has shown that arginine vasopressin (AVP) regulates antinociception through brain nuclei rather than the spinal cord and peripheral organs. The present study investigated the nociceptive effect of AVP in the nucleus raphe magnus (NRM) of the rat. Microinjection of AVP into the NRM increased pain threshold in a dose-dependent manner, while local administration of AVP-receptor antagonist-d(CH2)5Tyr(Et)DAVP decreased the pain threshold. Pain stimulation elevated AVP concentration in the NRM perfuse liquid. NRM pretreatment with AVP-receptor antagonist completely reversed AVP''s effect on pain threshold in the NRM. The data suggest that AVP in the NRM is involved in antinociception. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this paper, it is predicted that the wavelength corresponding to the long wavelength photoemission, \max, of the LSPR is highly dependent on the size of the metal nanoparticles. The red shifts in the peak position are caused by an increase in silver nanoparticles, when silver nanoparticles rang from 1 to 4nm; but red shifts are not showed when silver nanoparticles are larger than 6nm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Because of a lack of markers for predicting prognosis and an underlying mechanism, patients with primary brainstem hemorrhage (PBH) are currently treated with multiple strategies, but most of them have poor outcomes in a comparison with patients with supratentorial intracranial hemorrhage. Recently, it has been reported that the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) represents a novel composite inflammatory marker to predict the prognosis of patients with intracranial hemorrhage, a majority of whom have supratentorial hemorrhage. In this report, we aim to assess the potential predictive value of NLR in patients with PBH. In addition, other available laboratory parameters, including platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and admission blood glucose level (ABG), will be also investigated as markers for prognosis in patients with PBH. Methods This study retrospectively enrolled 225 patients with acute PBH who were admitted West China Hospital from January 2012 to December 2016. ABG and absolute numbers of neutrophils, lymphocytes, white blood cells, and platelets were extracted from electronic medical records. ABG, NLR, and PLR were calculated and further assessed using multivariable logistic regression analysis for understanding the associations of treatment outcomes. The comparison of predictive power of independent predictors was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic. Results Of 225 inpatients, NLR (odds ratio [OR], 1.82; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.24–2.62, P < 0.01), PLR (OR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.11–2.36; P = 0.013), and ABG (OR, 6.57; 95% CI, 2.78–15.52; P < 0.01) were independently associated with 90-day status in 112 patients with unfavorable outcomes. All 3 parameters also correlated with admission Glasgow Coma Scale score ( r = −0.244, P < 0.001; r = −0.292, P < 0.001; r = −0.661, P < 0.01) and absolute neutrophil counts ( r = 0.645, P < 0.001; r = 0.347, P < 0.001; r = 0.695, P < 0.01). Meanwhile, NLR exhibits a comparable predictive power by comparing with PLR (area under the curve [AUC], 0.694; 95% CI, 0.626–0.764; P < 0.001; versus AUC, 0.662; 95% CI, 0.596–0.724; P < 0.001). In addition, ABG shows a positive predictive value (AUC, 0.784; 95% CI, 0.725–0.832; P < 0.001). The best independent predictive cutoff points were 6.65, 59.3, and 7.81 mmol/L for NLR, PLR, and ABG, respectively. Nevertheless, a combination of 3 parameters shows the best predictive ability (AUC, 0.835; 95% CI, 0.781–0.883; P < 0.001). Conclusions NLR, PLR, and ABG can be used to independently predict 90-day functional outcome in patients after PBH. When combined, they have better predictive power in identifying PBH patients with a poor prognosis. To our knowledge, this study is the first to reveal the associations between NLR, PLR, and hyperglycemia and the functional outcomes of patient with PBH. In associating with previously studies on hemorrhage site, our results provide a good opportunity to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of PBH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]