Search

Gastric cancer is one of the major types of cancer threatening human health worldwide. Its pathogenesis has not been fully elucidated, and patients are often diagnosed at an advanced stage. The oral cavity is the second largest microbial pool after the intestine in the human body, and thus the relationship between oral bacteria and human health is attracting increasing interest. Oral bacteria are closely related to gastric cancer and potentially serve as noninvasive diagnostic screening biomarkers for the disease. Imbalance in and displacement of these bacteria can promote the occurrence and development of gastric cancer. Hence, this article reviews the association between oral bacteria and gastric cancer, aiming to provide a basis for further elucidating the pathogenesis of gastric cancer and screening it early through noninvasive methods and serve as a reference for subsequent related research.

Prostate cancer (PCa) represents a substantial global health concern and a prominent contributor to male cancer-related mortality. The aim of this study is to explore the role of B-type endothelin receptor (EDNRB) in PCa and evaluate its therapeutic potential. The investigation employed predictive methodologies encompassing data acquisition from the GEO and TCGA databases, gene screening, enrichment analysis, in vitro experiments involving PCR, Western blotting, wound healing, and Transwell assays, as well as animal experiments. Analysis revealed a significant downregulation of EDNRB expression in PCa cells. Overexpression of EDNRB demonstrated inhibitory effects on tumor cell growth, migration, and invasion, likely mediated through activation of the cGMP-Protein Kinase G pathway. In vivo experiments further confirmed the tumor-suppressive properties of EDNRB overexpression. These findings underscore the prospect of EDNRB as a therapeutic target for PCa, offering novel avenues for PCa treatment strategies.

Objective: Improving the setting value adjustment ability of the speed control loop and temperature control loop of food entering the freezing tunnel. Methods: By treating the speed and temperature control circuits of the conveyor belt separately, a fuzzy control system for food freezing temperature control was designed. The control system included a proportional-integral-differential controller for the food conveyor roller speed, a proportional-integral controller for temperature regulation in the freezing tunnel, and a Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy controller to set the temperature set point of the temperature regulation proportional-integral controller. Results: When the mass flow rate of frozen food was increased from 650 kg/h to 700 kg/h, and the speed of the drive roller being increased from 1.62 r/min to 1.75 r/min, the final food temperature could be quickly restored to about -18 ℃. When a temperature disturbance of +5 ℃occurred at the food inlet, the fuzzy controller acts to keep the food outlet temperature near the expected value of -18 ℃. In summary, by selecting system parameters that allow fast response and relatively low overshoot, the designed control system can realize that the value of the output variable does not fluctuate greatly near the set value. Conclusion: The research results can be used to develop the food freezing temperature control system in the food processing plant of the cryogenic freezing tunnel, and improve the ability of food freezing temperature control.

Abstract Background Drought is one of the main reasons for low phosphorus (P) solubility and availability. Aims The use of low P tolerant cotton genotypes might be a possible option to grow in drought conditions. Methods This study investigates the tolerance to drought stress in contrasting low P-tolerant cotton genotypes (Jimian169; strong tolerant to low P and DES926; weak tolerant to low P). In hydroponic culture, the drought was artificially induced with 10% PEG in both cotton genotypes followed by low (0.01 mM KH2PO4) and normal (1 mM KH2PO4) P application. Results The results showed that under low P, PEG-induced drought greatly inhibited growth, dry matter production, photosynthesis, P use efficiency, and led to oxidative stress from excessive malondialdehyde (MDA) and higher accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and these effects were more in DES926 than Jimian169. Moreover, Jimian169 alleviated oxidative damage by improving the antioxidant system, photosynthetic activities, and an increase in the levels of osmoprotectants like free amino acids, total soluble proteins, total soluble sugars, and proline. Conclusions The present study suggests that the low P-tolerant cotton genotype can tolerate drought conditions through high photosynthesis, antioxidant capacity, and osmotic adjustment.

Abstract Low phosphorus (P) is one of the limiting factors in sustainable cotton production. However, little is known about the performance of contrasting low P tolerant cotton genotypes that might be a possible option to grow in low P condition. In the current study, we characterized the response of two cotton genotypes, Jimian169 a strong low P tolerant, and DES926 a weak low P tolerant genotypes under low and normal P conditions. The results showed that low P greatly inhibited growth, dry matter production, photosynthesis, and enzymatic activities related to antioxidant system and carbohydrate metabolism and the inhibition was more in DES926 as compared to Jimian169. In contrast, low P improved root morphology, carbohydrate accumulation, and P metabolism, especially in Jimian169, whereas the opposite responses were observed for DES926. The strong low P tolerance in Jimian169 is linked with a better root system and enhanced P and carbohydrate metabolism, suggesting that Jimian169 is a model genotype for cotton breeding. Results thus indicate that the Jimian169, compared with DES926, tolerates low P by enhancing carbohydrate metabolism and by inducing the activity of several enzymes related to P metabolism. This apparently causes rapid P turnover and enables the Jimian169 to use P more efficiently. Moreover, the transcript level of the key genes could provide useful information to study the molecular mechanism of low P tolerance in cotton.

Objective To investigate the associations between imaging markers of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) and global cognition and cognitive domains in the community elderly people. Methods From August 2016 to October 2019, 933 healthy community elderly subjects were enrolled from three districts in Shanghai. We used MRI to assess imaging markers of CSVD, including lacunar infarct (LACI), white matter hyperintensity (WMH), cerebral microbleeds (CMBs), enlarged perivascular space (EPVS) and total CSVD score. These subjects underwent Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) to assess global cognition, Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT) to assess memory function, Trial Making Test (TMT) to assess executive function, Stick Test (ST) to assess visuospatial function, adapted Common Objects Sorting Test (COST) to assess language function. We performed Spearman rank correlation and partial correlation analyses to investigate the association between imaging markers and cognition, and multiple linear regression analysis to validate the relationships. Results A total of 863 subjects underwent head MRI and cognitive assessment. In Spearman rank correlation analysis, LACI (rs=⁃0.076, P=0.025) and periventricular WMH (rs=⁃0.070, P=0.044) was correlated with MoCA. LACI (rs=⁃0.086, P=0.022), basal ganglia EPVS (rs=⁃0.078, P=0.038) and total CSVD score (rs=⁃0.090, P=0.023) were correlated with AVLT. LACI was correlated with TMT (rs=0.099, P=0.004). Periventricular WMH (rs=⁃0.113, P=0.029) and strictly lobar CMB (rs=⁃0.107, P=0.041) were correlated with ST. Centrum semiovale EPVS was correlated with COST (rs=⁃0.150, P=0.004). In partial correlation analysis, LACI was associated with TMT (r=0.072, P=0.038). Deep WMH was associated with ST (r=0.105, P=0.047). Periventricular WMH (r=⁃0.111, P=0.001), CMBs (r=⁃0.088, P=0.015) and total CSVD score (r=⁃0.087, P=0.015) were associated with MoCA. In multiple linear regression analysis, after adjusting sex, age, education, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia and smoking history factors, periventricular WMH (βstandardized=⁃0.088, PFDR=0.020) and CMBs at any position (βstandardized=⁃0.078, PFDR=0.040) were independently correlated with MoCA. Conclusions In the elderly community population in China, CSVD may already have an impact on cognition. Periventricular WMH and CMBs are early imaging markers for CSVD⁃related global cognitive impairment.

The wave resistance caused by a point load steadily moving on an infinitely extended viscoelastic plate floating on an inviscid fluid is analytically studied, which can be used to describe the response due to the motion of amphibious air-cushion vehicles on the continuous ice sheet on the ocean. The action of concentrated and distributed point loads are both considered. Under the assumptions that the fluid is incompressible and homogeneous and the motion of the fluid is irrotational, the Laplace equation is taken as the governing equation. For the floating plate, the Kelvin–Voigt viscoelastic model is employed. At the plate–fluid interface, linearized boundary conditions are used when the wave amplitude generated is less than its wavelength. The Fourier integral transform is performed to achieve the formal solution. The residue theorem is applied to derive the response of flexural–gravity wave resistance. It is indicated that for a point load with a uniform rectilinear motion, the wave resistance shows a sharp decrease with the increase in the moving speed when the load velocity is greater than the minimum phase velocity. There is no steady wave resistance when the load velocity is smaller than the minimum phase velocity. The effects of different parameters are obtained. Wave resistance decreases with the increasing plate thickness, viscoelastic parameter, and Poisson’s ratio, especially for a small value of viscoelastic parameter.

An ultra-wideband vertically polarized monopole antenna having excellent omnidirectional radiation pattern is proposed. It consists of a four-sector monopole, dual metal loops and a metal reflector. The four-sector monopole is employed as radiator and excited by a 50 Ω coaxial cable to realize vertical-polarized omnidirectional radiation pattern and good impedance matching. Then two metal loops surrounding the monopole are used to further enhance the impedance matching and improve the gain variation. The antenna has an ultrawide bandwidth of 103% (1.63–5.1 GHz) for return loss > 15 dB. It also obtains a steady gain of 3.25 ± 1.35 dBi and a very small gain variation of less than 0.9 dBi within the ultrawide band. These performances indicate that the proposed antenna is competitive for 2G/3G/4G/5G indoor mobile communications.

Nitrogen (N) plays an important role in various plant physiological processes, but studies on the photosynthetic efficiency and enzymatic activities in the cotton subtending leaves and their contribution to yield are still lacking. This study explored the influence of low, moderate, and high N levels on the growth, photosynthesis, carbon (C) and N metabolizing enzymes, and their contribution to yield in CCRI-69 (N-efficient) and XLZ-30 (N-inefficient). The results showed that moderate to high N levels had significantly improved growth, photosynthesis, and sucrose content of CCRI-69 as compared to XLZ-30. The seed cotton yield and lint yield of CCRI-69 were similar under moderate and high N levels but higher than XLZ-30. Similarly, moderate to high N levels improved the C/N metabolizing enzymatic activities in the subtending leaf of CCRI-69 than XLZ-30. A strong correlation was found between subtending leaf N concentration with C/N metabolizing enzymes, photosynthesis, sucrose contents, boll weight, and seed cotton yield of N-efficient cotton genotype. These findings suggest that subtending leaf N concentration regulates the enzymatic activities and has a key role in improving the yield. These parameters may be considered for breeding N-efficient cotton genotypes, which might help to reduce fertilizer loss and improve crop productivity.

The present study discusses an analytical simulation of the head-on collision between a pair of hydroelastic solitary waves propagating in the opposite directions in the presence of a uniform current. An infinite thin elastic plate is floating on the surface of water. The mathematical modeling of the thin elastic plate is based on the Euler–Bernoulli beam model. The resulting kinematic and dynamic boundary conditions are highly nonlinear, which are solved analytically with the help of a singular perturbation method. The Poincaré–Lighthill–Kuo method is applied to obtain the solution of the nonlinear partial differential equations. The resulting solutions are presented separately for the left- and right-going waves. The behavior of all the emerging parameters are presented mathematically and discussed graphically for the phase shift, maximum run-up amplitude, distortion profile, wave speed, and solitary wave profile. It is found that the presence of a current strongly affects the wavelength and wave speed of both solitary waves. A graphical comparison with pure-gravity waves is also presented as a particular case of our study.

The utilization of modeling tools has gained significant attention recently. These models typically involve a series of partial differential equations, which can be challenging for novice modelers. This paper presented an approach in practical teaching of modeling tools for ion-exchange chromatography with three parts: model introduction, model calibration through group learning using different calibration strategies, and model applications. This approach was integrated into the traditional bioseparation engineering curriculum as an activity, using the separation of monomer-dimer mixtures of monoclonal antibodies as an example. Results of competitive group learning and the Wilcoxon test revealed that the parameter-by-parameter method was more user-friendly than the Yamamoto method for novice modelers to obtain reasonable model parameters quickly. Then, students used the well-fitted model for process optimization and explored the effects of process parameters and material input variation on the chromatography process, which helped students appreciate the critical role of time and material savings achieved through modeling tools. Finally, the student questionnaire results revealed that over two-thirds of the students gave positive feedback on the activity. Through this practical teaching, students became familiar with chromatography modeling tools, moving away from the tedious formulaic descriptions found in traditional modeling courses. This well-designed activity can be expanded from academia to industry, transforming the novice modelers into experienced modelers who can meet the high demands of the modern biopharmaceutical industry.

This paper proposed a hydraulically-driven adjustable concentration of wetting agent adding device applied in underground of coal mine. A 3D model of the reversing mechanism of adding device was built by using Solidworks, and then imported to the Adams to build a virtual prototype model. The reversing mechanism was optimized by setting the model parameters, adding constraints and drive. The dynamic characteristics of the reversing mechanism were analysed under different length l of the driven rocker arm. The results show that the value of l (l=17mm) can realize automatic reversing. The simulation results provide a basis for trial-manufacture of physical prototyping and optimized design.