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Abstract The flashover in vacuum is a rapid interfacial discharge across the insulator surface when subjected to high applied voltage. Here a theoretical model covering above‐surface processes is introduced. The model calculates the flashover threshold in vacuum, with revised secondary electron emission avalanche theory and improved desorbed neutral transport model. The model serves as the first part of an integrated flashover model, aiming for consistent treatment of both above‐surface and subsurface processes during the entire flashover development. The flashover threshold is obtained by combining the desorbed neutral pressure at given applied voltage and the gas breakdown criterion dictated by the Paschen's law. An analytical formula for threshold estimation containing physical parameters, and a simplified formula consisting of empirical coefficients are introduced, catering for both conceptual understanding and practical application. The derived formulae are validated by experimental data for a variety of insulator materials. The theory generalisation for non‐uniform electric field distribution is further discussed.

Abstract. Background:. With an increasing number of patients with hematological malignancies being treated with umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT), the correlation between immune reconstitution (IR) after UCBT and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) has been reported successively, but reports on double-negative T (DNT) cell reconstitution and its association with acute GVHD (aGVHD) after UCBT are lacking. Methods:. A population-based observational study was conducted among 131 patients with hematological malignancies who underwent single-unit UCBT as their first transplant at the Department of Hematology, the First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, between August 2018 and June 2021. IR differences were compared between the patients with and without aGVHD. Results:. The absolute number of DNT cells in the healthy Chinese population was 109 (70–157)/μL, accounting for 5.82 (3.98–8.19)% of lymphocytes. DNT cells showed delayed recovery and could not reach their normal levels even one year after transplantation. Importantly, the absolute number and percentage of DNT cells were significantly higher in UCBT patients without aGVHD than in those with aGVHD within one year (F = 4.684, P = 0.039 and F = 5.583, P = 0.026, respectively). In addition, the number of DNT cells in the first month after transplantation decreased significantly with the degree of aGVHD increased, and faster DNT cell reconstitution in the first month after UCBT was an independent protective factor for aGVHD (HR = 0.46, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.23–0.93; P = 0.031). Conclusions:. Compared to the number of DNT cells in Chinese healthy people, the reconstitution of DNT cells in adults with hematological malignancies after UCBT was slow. In addition, the faster reconstitution of DNT cells in the early stage after transplantation was associated with a lower incidence of aGVHD.

The 2D limit equilibrium method is widely used for slope stability analysis. However, with the advancement of dump engineering, composite slopes often exhibit significant 3D mechanical effects. Consequently, it is of significant importance to develop an effective 3D stability calculation method for composite slopes to enhance the design and stability control of open-pit slope engineering. Using the composite slope formed by the mining stope and inner dump in Baiyinhua No. 1 and No. 2 open-pit coal mine as a case study, this research investigates the failure mode of composite slopes and establishes spatial shape equations for the sliding mass. By integrating the shear resistance and sliding force of each row of microstrip columns onto the bottom surface of the strip corresponding to the main sliding surface, a novel 2D equivalent physical and mechanical parameters analysis method for the strips on the main sliding surface of 3D sliding masses is proposed. Subsequently, a comprehensive 3D stability calculation method for composite slopes is developed, and the quantitative relationship between the coordinated development distance and its 3D stability coefficients is examined. The analysis reveals that the failure mode of the composite slope is characterized by cutting-bedding sliding, with the arc serving as the side interface and the weak layer as the bottom interface, while the destabilization mechanism primarily involves shear failure. The spatial form equation of the sliding mass comprises an ellipsoid and weak plane equation. The analysis revealed that when the coordinated development distance is 1500 m, the error rate between the 3D stability calculation result and the 2D stability calculation result of the composite slope is less than 8%, thereby verifying the proposed analytical method of equivalent physical and mechanical parameters and the 3D stability calculation method for composite slopes. Furthermore, the 3D stability coefficient of the composite slope exhibits an exponential correlation with the coordinated development distance, with the coefficient gradually decreasing as the coordinated development distance increases. These findings provide a theoretical guideline for designing similar slope shape parameters and conducting stability analysis.

Abstract Objective To explore if switching intravesical chemotherapeutic agents is beneficial in short-term recurrences of high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) following the failure of preceding intravesical therapy. Materials and methods From June 2010 to October 2015, 205 patients with NMIBC who experienced tumor recurrence within a year after receiving first-line intravesical chemotherapy (IVC) were classified into two groups. After a second complete transurethral resection (TUR) process, we immediately altered the intravesical instillation agent for 107 patients (group A). In contrast, the remaining 98 patients (group B) continued using their original intravesical instillation agent. After transurethral resection of the bladder tumor (TURBT), all patients received either an immediate instillation of epirubicin (EPI), gemcitabine (GEM), or hydroxycamptothecin (HCPT), followed by regular induction and maintenance instillations. Recurrence and progression rates were evaluated using the Chi-square test, and recurrence-free survival (RFS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were calculated using the Kaplan–Meier method. Results In this study, there was no significant difference in either the 5-year tumor recurrence or progression rates between the two groups (p > 0.05) The Kaplan–Meier plot showed no difference in progression-free or recurrence-free survival between the two groups. Conclusion Switching IVC agents does not improve RFS and PFS for patients with short-term recurrent high-risk NMIBC.

Abstract Endometriosis (EMT) is an aggressive disease of the reproductive system, also called “benign cancer”. However, effective treatments for EMT are still lacking in clinical practice. Interestingly, immune infiltration is significantly involved in EMT pathogenesis. Currently, no studies have shown the involvement of cuproptosis-related genes (CRGs) in regulating immune infiltration in EMT. This study identified three CRGs such as GLS, NFE2L2, and PDHA1, associated with EMT using machine learning algorithms. These three CRGs were upregulated in the endometrium of patients with moderate/severe EMT and downregulated in patients with infertility. Single sample genomic enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) revealed that these CRGs were closely correlated with autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus. Furthermore, these CRGs were correlated with immune cells such as eosinophils, natural killer cells, and macrophages. Therefore, profiling patients based on these genes aid in a more accurate diagnosis of EMT progression. The mRNA and protein expression levels of GLS, NFE2L2 and PDHA1 were validated by qRT-PCR and WB studies in EMT samples. These findings provide a new idea for the pathology and treatment of endometriosis, suggesting that CRGs such as GLS, NFE2L2 and PDHA1 may play a key role in the occurrence and development of endometriosis.

The “3060” plan fully demonstrates the determination of China’s economic and social green and clean development. As an important secondary energy source, hydrogen has the advantages of high energy density, green and pollution-free, etc. As an ideal energy source in the future, green hydrogen is the final state of hydrogen energy prepared by electrical energy through electrolysis of water. The development of renewable energy hydrogen production will certainly help to achieve the goal of carbon peaking and carbon neutral. Therefore, the grid-connected control strategy of hydrogen production unit for weak grid is worthy of in-depth study. The research work in this paper is as follows: firstly, based on the analysis of the converter, a grid-connected control method of electric hydrogen production unit using virtual synchronization generator(VSG) control strategy is proposed. Secondly, a control method without phase-locked loop is adopted for the grid-connected phase synchronization part. Then, the stability of the proposed control strategy is demonstrated by using root locus plot. Finally, experimental verification is carried out. The experimental results show that the proposed control strategy makes the hydrogen production unit friendly to the weak grid with good adaptability, and at the same time, as a load, it can perform adaptive power regulation very well.

Abstract Background Umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT) is a curable therapy for hematological disease; however, the impact of nutritional status on UCBT outcomes remains controversial. To evaluate the joint effect of clinical characteristics and nutritional status on the prognosis of patients who underwent UCBT, we screened various factors to establish a predictive model of overall survival (OS) after UCBT. Methods We performed an integrated clinical characteristic and nutritional risk factor analysis and established a predictive model that could be used to identify UCBT recipients with poor OS. Internal validation was performed by using the bootstrap method with 500 repetitions. Results Four factors, including disease status, conditioning regimen, calf skinfold thickness and albumin level, were identified and used to develop a risk score for OS, which showed a positive predictive value of 84.0%. A high-risk score (≥ 2.225) was associated with inferior 3-year OS post-UCBT [67.5% (95% CI 51.1–79.4%), P = 0.001]. Then, we built a nomogram based on the four factors that showed good discrimination with a C-index of 0.833 (95% CI 0.743–0.922). The optimism-corrected C-index value of the bootstrapping was 0.804. Multivariate analysis suggested that a high calf skinfold thickness (≥ 20.5 mm) and a low albumin level (

Abstract Background Accurate assessment of the clinical staging is crucial for determining the need for radical prostatectomy (RP) in prostate cancer (PCa). However, the current methods for PCa staging may yield incorrect results. This study aimed to comprehensively analyze independent predictors of postoperative upstaging of intraprostatic cancer. Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of data from intraprostatic cancer patients who underwent radical surgery between March 2019 and December 2022. Intraprostatic cancer was defined as a lesion confined to the prostate, excluding cases where multiparameter magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) showed the lesion in contact with the prostatic capsule. We assessed independent predictors of extraprostatic extension (EPE) and analyzed their association with positive surgical margin (PSM) status. In addition, based on the distance of the lesion from the capsule on mpMRI, we divided the patients into non‐transition zone and transition zone groups for further analysis. Results A total of 500 patients were included in our study. Logistic regression analysis revealed that biopsy Gleason grade group (GG) (odds ratio, OR: 1.370, 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.093–1.718) and perineural invasion (PNI) (OR: 2.746, 95% CI: 1.420–5.309) were predictive factors for postoperative EPE. Both biopsy GG and PNI were associated with lateral (GG: OR: 1.270, 95% CI: 1.074–1.501; PNI: OR: 2.733, 95% CI: 1.521–4.911) and basal (GG: OR: 1.491, 95% CI: 1.194–1.862; PNI: OR: 3.730, 95% CI: 1.929–7.214) PSM but not with apex PSM (GG: OR: 1.176, 95% CI: 0.989–1.399; PNI: OR: 1.204, 95% CI: 0.609–2.381) after RP. Finally, PNI was an independent predictor of EPE in the transition zone (OR: 11.235, 95% CI: 2.779–45.428) but not in the non‐transition zone (OR: 1.942, 95% CI: 0.920–4.098). Conclusion PNI and higher GG may indicate upstaging of tumors in patients with intraprostatic carcinoma. These two factors are associated with PSM in locations other than the apex of the prostate. Importantly, cancer in the transition zone of the prostate is more likely to spread externally through nerve invasion than cancer in the non‐transition zone.

Colletotrichum fructicola shows morphological and genetic differences in plus and minus strains. However, the mechanism of the differentiation between two types of strains is still largely unclear. Our early transcriptome analysis revealed that CfHMG expression differed in plus and minus strains. To define the functions of the CfHMG gene, we constructed gene deletion mutants by homologous recombination. We found that a CfHMG deletion mutant of the minus strain, CfHMG-M, could lead to a reduction in perithecium sizes and densities on media and sterile perithecium formation compared with the minus wild type (WT), whereas there was no effect for the plus mutant CfHMG-P. In co-cultures between CfHMG-P and minus WT, CfHMG-M and plus WT, or CfHMG-P and CfHMG-M, the quantities of perithecia were all reduced significantly. When conidial suspensions were inoculated on non-wounded apple fruit, it was found that the virulence of the minus mutant decreased significantly but not for the plus one. Further, we found that the virulence decrease in minus mutants was caused by a decrease in the conidium germination rate. Our results indicate that CfHMG of C. fructicola plays an important role in the mating line formation between the plus and minus strain for both strains and differentially regulates the perithecium size, density, fertilization, and virulence of the minus strain. The results are significant for further detecting the differentiated mechanisms between the plus and minus strains in Colletotrichum fungi.

Feature selection plays a crucial role in classification tasks as part of the data preprocessing process. Effective feature selection can improve the robustness and interpretability of learning algorithms, and accelerate model learning. However, traditional statistical methods for feature selection are no longer practical in the context of high-dimensional data due to the computationally complex. Ensemble learning, a prominent learning method in machine learning, has demonstrated exceptional performance, particularly in classification problems. To address the issue, we propose a three-stage feature selection algorithm framework for high-dimensional data based on ensemble learning (EFS-GINI). Firstly, highly linearly correlated features are eliminated using the Spearman coefficient. Then, a feature selector based on the F-test is employed for the first stage selection. For the second stage, four feature subsets are formed using mutual information (MI), ReliefF, SURF, and SURF* filters in parallel. The third stage involves feature selection using a combinator based on GINI coefficient. Finally, a soft voting approach is proposed to employ for classification, including decision tree, naive Bayes, support vector machine (SVM), k-nearest neighbors (KNN) and random forest classifiers. To demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed algorithm, eight high-dimensional datasets are used and five feature selection methods are employed to compare with our proposed algorithm. Experimental results show that our method effectively enhances the accuracy and speed of feature selection. Moreover, to explore the biological significance of the proposed algorithm, we apply it on the renal cell carcinoma dataset GSE40435 from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. Two feature genes, NOP2 and NSUN5, are selected by our proposed algorithm. They are directly involved in regulating m5c RNA modification, which reveals the biological importance of EFS-GINI. Through bioinformatics analysis, we shows that m5C-related genes play an important role in the occurrence and progression of renal cell carcinoma, and are expected to become an important marker to predict the prognosis of patients.

Abstract Vacuum‐dielectric interface is the most vulnerable part of vacuum insulation systems where surface electrical breakdown is prone to happen, hence severely restricts the development of advanced electro‐vacuum devices with large capacity and its miniaturisation. Generally, a direct and effective way to improve vacuum surface insulation is to alleviate the initiation and development of multipactor phenomena. Inspired by this approach, the authors report a 3D‐printed insulation structure designed with a millimetre‐scale surface cavity covered by periodic through‐pore array via stereolithography, exhibiting remarkable multipactor suppression and flashover threshold improvement, well outperforming the conventional flashover mitigation strategies. Experiments and simulations demonstrate that electrons in the multipactor region pass through‐pores and are unlikely to escape from the cavity, hence no longer participate in the above‐surface multipactor process, and eventually improve flashover threshold. The proposed approach provides new inspiration for the design of advanced insulators featuring ultra‐high electrical withstanding capability and brings up new insight into pertinent industrial applications.

Abstract Background Accumulating studies have reported indispensable functions of circular RNAs (circRNA) in tumor progression through regulation of gene expression. However, circRNA expression profiles and functions in human ovarian carcinoma (OC) are yet to be fully established. Methods In this research, deep sequencing of circRNAs from OC samples and paired adjacent normal tissues was performed to establish expression profiles and circ-PHC3 levels between the groups further compared using RT-qPCR. The effects of ectopic overexpression of miR-497-5p and SOX9 and siRNA-mediated knockdown of circ-PHC3 and an miR-497-5p inhibitor were explored to clarify the regulatory mechanisms underlying circ-PHC3 activity in OC proliferation and metastasis. Information from public databases and the luciferase reporter assay were further utilized to examine the potential correlations among circ-PHC3, miR-497-5p and SOX9. Results Our results showed significant upregulation of circ-PHC3 in both OC cell lines and tissues. In the luciferase reporter assay, downregulation of circ-PHC3 led to suppression of metastasis and proliferation, potentially through targeted effects on the miR-497-5p/SOX9 axis in OC. SOX9 overexpression or miR-497-5p suppression rescued OC cell proliferation and invasion following silencing of circ-PHC3. Moreover, SOX9 inhibition induced restoration of OC cell invasion and proliferation under conditions of overexpression of miR-497-5p. Thus, circ-PHC3 appears to exert effects on cancer stem cell differentiation through regulation of the miR-497-5p/SOX9 axis. Conclusion Taken together, our findings suggest that circ-PHC3 enhances OC progression through functioning as an miR-497-5p sponge to promote SOX9 expression, supporting its potential as a promising candidate target for OC therapy.

Abstract The algorithm for cord blood (CB) unit selection is still somewhat ambiguous. We retrospectively analyzed 620 cases of acute leukemia between 2015 and 2020, who were treated with myeloablative single‐unit umbilical CB transplantation (UCBT). We found that, when human leukocyte antigen (HLA) mismatch was ≤3/10, CD34+ cell dosage

Abstract Gastric signet ring cell carcinoma (GSRC) is a special subtype of gastric cancer (GC) associated with poor prognosis, but an in-depth and systematic study of GSRC is lacking. Here, we perform single-cell RNA sequencing to assess GC samples. We identify signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC) cells. Microseminoprotein-beta (MSMB) can be used as a marker gene to guide the identification of moderately/poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma and signet ring cell carcinoma (SRCC). The upregulated differentially expressed genes in SRCC cells are mainly enriched in abnormally activated cancer-related signalling pathways and immune response signalling pathways. SRCC cells are also significantly enriched in mitogen-activated protein kinase and oestrogen signalling pathways, which can interact and promote each other in a positive feedback loop. SRCC cells are shown to have lower cell adhesion and higher immune evasion capabilities as well as an immunosuppressive microenvironment, which may be closely associated with the relatively poor prognosis of GSRC. In summary, GSRC exhibits unique cytological characteristics and a unique immune microenvironment, which may be advantageous for accurate diagnosis and treatment.

The high salt content in saline–alkaline land leads to insufficient nutrients, thereby reducing agricultural productivity. This has sparked widespread interest in improving saline–alkaline soil. In this investigation, 16S rRNA gene high-throughput sequencing was employed to examine the impacts of three cropping systems (monoculture, rotation, and mixture) on soil bacterial communities. It was found that cropping rotations and mixtures significantly increased soil bacterial α-diversity. Random forest analysis showed a significant linear relationship between AK and EC and bacterial α-diversity. In addition, principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) further confirmed the significant differences in β-diversity between different soil layers. Through co-occurrence network analysis, it was found that cropping rotations and mixtures increased the stability and complexity of co-occurrence networks. By calculating NST to analyze the assembly process of soil bacterial communities in different cropping systems, it was found that the assembly process of soil bacterial communities was dominated by a stochastic process. Functional prediction results showed that a large number of C, N, and S cycling microbes appeared in soil bacterial communities. Our study aims to establish a fresh perspective on the improvement and recovery of saline–alkaline soil.

Objective: To analyze the perioperative outcomes of neoadjuvant hormone therapy (NHT) before laparoscopic and robot-assisted surgery for localized high-risk prostate cancer in a Chinese cohort. Methods: The clinical data of 385 patients with localized high-risk prostate cancer who underwent radical prostatectomy (RP) in our hospital from January 2019 to June 2021 were analyzed retrospectively, including 168 patients with preoperative NHT and 217 patients with simple surgery. Clinical characteristics were compared in the above two groups, the laparoscopic RP (LRP) cohort (n = 234) and the robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALP) cohort (n = 151), respectively. Results: In the overall cohort, compared with the control group, the NHT group had a shorter operative time, less blood loss, a lower positive surgical margin rate, and a higher proportion of Gleason score (GS) downgrading after the operation (p < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference in hospitalization time, biochemical recurrence, urine leakage, urinary continence, or prostate-specific antigen (PSA) progression-free survival (p > 0.05). In the LRP cohort, it was found that the NHT group also had shorter operative time, less blood loss, lower positive surgical margin rate, a higher proportion of GS downgrading after the operation, and faster recovery of urinary control than the control group (p < 0.05). There was no marked difference in hospitalization time, biochemical recurrence, urinary leakage, or PSA progression-free survival. However, in the RALP cohort, the NHT group had a significant difference in the GS downgrading after the operation compared with the control group (p < 0.05). In the overall cohort, multiple analyses showed that initial PSA level, GS at biopsy, clinical T stage, lymph node invasion, use of NHT, and surgical methods were significantly associated with positive surgical margin (p < 0.05) while NHT did not account for biochemical recurrence (p > 0.05). Conclusions: NHT can lower the difficulty of surgery, reduce positive surgical margin rate, and help recovery in short-term urinary control in patients with high-risk prostate cancer after LRP. However, we do not have evidence on the benefit of NHT in high-risk PCa patients treated with RALP. For these patients, surgery can be performed as early as possible.

Abstract Background Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is an important curative therapy for adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). For patients who lack a human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-matched sibling donor, unrelated cord blood (UCB) is an alternative graft option. Previous studies have focused mainly on all T- and B-cell ALL (B-ALL) patients, while data related specifically to adult B-ALL patients after UCB transplantation (UCBT) are scarce. Methods We retrospectively compared the outcomes of UCBT and HLA-matched sibling transplantation (MST) in the treatment of adult B-ALL patients in complete remission (CR) at our center. From June 2006 to December 2020, 156 adult B-ALL patients who achieved CR before transplantation were enrolled. The main clinical outcomes of UCBT and MST were analyzed. Results Hematopoietic recovery was significantly faster in MST recipients than in UCBT recipients. Higher incidences of grades II-IV and III-IV acute graft-versus host disease (aGVHD) were found in UCBT recipients (P

Abstract Glomerella leaf spot (GLS) is a devastating fungal disease that damages the leaves and fruits and reduces tree vigor of apple (Malus domestica). The pathogen infection mechanism, however, remains elusive. Histone-modifying enzymes, which regulate eukaryotic chromatin conformation and gene expression, are key epigenetic factors controlling fungal development, virulence, and secondary metabolism. To dissect the epigenetic regulation of GLS pathogenesis, we characterized a histone deacetylase gene Cfhos2 in Colletotrichum fructicola, the causing agent of GLS. Cfhos2 deletion mutants were mildly reduced in vegetative growth rate, but almost lost pathogenicity on apple leaves. Cfhos2 deletion mutants induced strong plant defense responses manifested by epidermal cell browning, granulation, and distortion of pathogen invasive hyphae. The mutants also showed defect in appressorial development on cellophane, but not on parafilm or on apple leaf surface, suggesting that the defect in appressorial development is surface-dependent. RNA-seq based transcriptome analysis highlighted that Cfhos2 regulates secondary metabolism-related virulence genes during infection. Moreover, the expression of an apple defense-related F-box protein was strongly induced by infection with Cfhos2 deletion mutants. Taken together, we demonstrate that Cfhos2 is a key epigenetic factor regulating appressorium development, virulence gene expression, and GLS pathogenesis in C. fructicola. The results provide important information for understanding the virulence mechanisms of C. fructicola.

Umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT) and peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT) are effective allogeneic treatments for patients with malignant and non-malignant refractory hematological diseases. However, the differences in the immune cell reconstitution and the immune reactions during initial stages post-transplantation are not well established between UCBT and PBSCT. Therefore, in this study, we analyzed the differences in the immune reactions during the early stages (days 7-100 post-transplantation) such as pre-engraftment syndrome (PES), engraftment syndrome (ES), and acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) and the immune cell reconstitution between the UCBT and the PBSCT group of patients. We enrolled a cohort of patients that underwent UCBT or PBSCT and healthy controls (n=25 each) and evaluated their peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) samples and plasma cytokine (IL-10 and GM-CSF) levels using flow cytometry and ELISA, respectively. Our results showed that the incidences of early immune reactions such as PES, ES, and aGVHD were significantly higher in the UCBT group compared to the PBSCT group. Furthermore, in comparison with the PBSCT group, the UCBT group showed higher proportion and numbers of naïve CD4+ T cells, lower proportion and numbers of Tregs, higher proportion of CD8+ T cells with increased activity, and higher proportion of mature CD56dim CD16+ NK cells during the early stages post-transplantation. Moreover, the plasma levels of GM-CSF were significantly higher in the UCBT group compared to the PBSCT group in the third week after transplantation. Overall, our findings demonstrated significant differences in the post-transplantation immune cell reconstitution between the UCBT and the PBSCT group of patients. These characteristics were associated with significant differences between the UCBT and the PBSCT groups regarding the incidences of immune reactions during the early stages post transplantation.

IntroductionPhytoremediation is an effective strategy for saline land restoration. In the Western Songnen Plain, northeast China, soil fungal community recovery for saline phytoremediation has not been well documented among different cropping patterns. In this study, we tested how rotation, mixture, and monoculture cropping patterns impact fungal communities in saline-alkali soils to assess the variability between cropping patterns.MethodsThe fungal communities of the soils of the different cropping types were determined using Illumina Miseq sequencing.ResultsMixture and rotation promoted an increase in operational taxonomic unit (OTU) richness, and OTU richness in the mixture system decreased with increasing soil depth. A principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) showed that cropping patterns and soil depths influenced the structure of fungal communities, which may be due to the impact of soil chemistry. This was reflected by soil total nitrogen (TN) and electrical conductivity (EC) being the key factors driving OTU richness, while soil available potassium (AK) and total phosphorus (TP) were significantly correlated with the relative abundance of fungal dominant genus. The relative abundance of Leptosphaerulina, Alternaria, Myrothecium, Gibberella, and Tetracladium varied significantly between cropping patterns, and Leptosphaerulina was significantly associated with soil chemistry. Soil depth caused significant differences in the relative abundance of Fusarium in rotation and mixture soils, with Fusarium more commonly active at 0–15 cm deep soil. Null-model analysis revealed that the fungal community assembly of the mixture soils in 0–15 cm deep soil was dominated by deterministic processes, unlike the other two cropping patterns. Furthermore, fungal symbiotic networks were more complex in rotation and mixture than in monoculture soils, reflected in more nodes, more module hubs, and connectors. The fungal networks in rotation and mixture soils were more stable than in monoculture soils, and mixture networks were obviously more connected than rotations. FUNGuild showed that the relative proportion of saprotroph in rotation and mixture was significantly higher than that in monocultures. The highest proportion of pathotroph and symbiotroph was exhibited in rotation and mixture soils, respectively.DiscussionOverall, mixture is superior to crop rotation and monocultures in restoring fungal communities of the saline-alkali soils of the Western Songnen Plain, northeast China.

Ubiquitination-mediated protein degradation plays important roles in ABA signal transduction and delivering responses to chloroplast stress signals in plants, but additional E3 ligases of protein ubiquitination remain to be identified to understand the complex signaling network. Here we reported that ZEITLUPE (ZTL), an F-box protein, negatively regulates abscisic acid (ABA) signaling during ABA-inhibited early seedling growth and ABA-induced stomatal closure in Arabidopsis thaliana. Using molecular biology and biochemistry approaches, we demonstrated that ZTL interacts with and ubiquitinates its substrate, CHLH/ABAR (Mg-chelatase H subunit/putative ABA receptor), to modulate CHLH stability via the 26S proteasome pathway. CHLH acts genetically downstream of ZTL in ABA and drought stress signaling. Interestingly, ABA conversely induces ZTL phosphorylation, and high levels of ABA also induce CHLH proteasomal degradation, implying that phosphorylated ZTL protein may enhance the affinity to CHLH, leading to the increased degradation of CHLH after ABA treatment. Taken together, our results revealed a possible mechanism of reciprocal regulation between ABA signaling and the circadian clock, which is thought to be essential for plant fitness and survival.

Abstract Soil methanogenic microorganisms are one of the primary methane‐producing microbes in wetlands. However, we still poorly understand the community characteristic and metabolic patterns of these microorganisms according to vegetation type and seasonal changes. Therefore, to better elucidate the effects of the vegetation type and seasonal factors on the methanogenic community structure and metabolic patterns, we detected the characteristics of the soil methanogenic mcrA gene from three types of natural wetlands in different seasons in the Xiaoxing'an Mountain region, China. The results indicated that the distribution of Methanobacteriaceae (hydrogenotrophic methanogens) was higher in winter, while Methanosarcinaceae and Methanosaetaceae accounted for a higher proportion in summer. Hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis was the dominant trophic pattern in each wetland. The results of principal coordinate analysis and cluster analysis showed that the vegetation type considerably influenced the methanogenic community composition. The methanogenic community structure in the Betula platyphylla–Larix gmelinii wetland was relatively different from the structure of the other two wetland types. Indicator species analysis further demonstrated that the corresponding species of indicator operational taxonomic units from the Alnus sibirica wetland and the Betula ovalifolia wetland were similar. Network analysis showed that cooperative and competitive relationships exist both within and between the same or different trophic methanogens. The core methanogens with higher abundance in each wetland were conducive to the adaptation to environmental disturbances. This information is crucial for the assessment of metabolic patterns of soil methanogenic archaea and future fluxes in the wetlands of the Xiaoxing'an Mountain region given their vulnerability.

BackgroundProstate cancer is the most common tumor in men worldwide, seriously threatening the health of older men, and 5-methylcytosine (m5C) RNA modification has been shown to have a significant impact on the development and progression of various tumors. However, as the most critical methyltransferase for m5c RNA modification, the role of the NSUN members (NSUN1-7) in prostate cancer is unclear.MethodsWe obtained sequencing data of genes and related clinical data of prostate cancer from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and analyzed the correlation between NSUN members’ expression and prognosis. we found that NSUN2 was closely implicated in the prognosis of prostate cancer, then verified the expression of NSUN2 in clinical samples, and obtained the correlation between NSUN2 and immune cell infiltration through CIBERSORT algorithm and ESTIMATE method. The relationship between NSUN2 copy number variation and immune cell infiltration was further analyzed in the TIMER database and identified signaling pathways associated with NSUN2 expression by GO, KEGG, and GSEA analysis. Finally, we verified the expression of NSUN2 in prostate cancer cell lines and confirmed the role of NSUN2 on the biological behavior of prostate cancer cells by proliferation and migration-related assays.ResultsNOP2 and NSUN2 were upregulated in prostate tumor tissues. NSUN2 expression is closely associated with tumor prognosis. NSUN2 high expression implies poor clinical features, and the NSUN family is significantly associated with tumor stromal score and immune score. Besides, NSUN2 is associated with a variety of immune infiltrating cells (B cells memory, T cells CD4 memory resting, T cells CD4 memory activated, NK cells resting, and so on). High NSUN2 expression lowers the sensitivity of many chemotherapy drugs, such as docetaxel, doxorubicin, fluorouracil, cisplatin, and etoposide. In prostate cancer, the most common type of mutation in NSUN2 is amplification, and NSUN2 copy number variation is closely associated with NSUN2 expression and immune cell infiltration. GSEA analysis showed that the related genes were mainly enriched in ubiquitin-mediated protein hydrolysis, cell cycle, RNA degradation, endometrial cancer, prostate cancer, p53 signaling pathway, and NSUN2 potentiated the proliferation and migration of prostate cancer cells.ConclusionsNSUN2 is highly expressed in prostate cancer, which contributes to the progression of prostate cancer, and is closely implicated in immune cell infiltration and chemotherapy drugs. NSUN2 is expected to be a prospective marker and a new treatment target for prostate cancer.

BackgroundIn reference to previous studies, necroptosis played an important role in cancer development. Our team decided to explore the potential prognostic values of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) associated with necroptosis in bladder urothelial carcinoma (BLCA) and their relationship with the tumor microenvironment (TME) and the immunotherapeutic response for accurate dose.MethodsTo obtain the required data, bladder urothelial carcinoma transcriptome data were searched from Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) (https://portal.gdc.cancer.gov/). We used co-expression analysis, differential expression analysis, and univariate Cox regression to screen out prognostic lncRNAs associated with necroptosis in BLCA. Then the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) was conducted to construct the necroptosis-associated lncRNAs model. Based on this model, we also performed the Kaplan–Meier analysis and time-dependent receiver operating characteristics (ROC) to estimate the prognostic power of risk score. Multivariate and univariate Cox regression analysis were performed to build up a nomogram. Calibration curves, and time-dependent ROC were also conducted to evaluate nomogram. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed a difference between high- and low-risk groups. In addition, we explored immune analysis, gene set enrichment analyses (GSEA), and evaluation of the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) in constructed model. Finally, the entire samples were divided into three clusters based on model of necroptosis-associated lncRNAs to further compare immunotherapy in cold and hot tumors.ResultsA model was built up based on necroptosis-associated lncRNAs. The model revealed good consistence between calibration plots and prognostic prediction. The area of 1-, 3-, and 5-year OS under the ROC curve (AUC) were 0.707, 0.679, and 0.675. Risk groups could be helpful for systemic therapy due to the markedly diverse IC50 between risk groups. To our delight, clusters could effectively identify cold and hot tumors, which would be beneficial to accurate mediation. Clusters 2 and 3 were considered the hot tumor, which was more sensitive to immunotherapeutic drugs.ConclusionsThe outcomes of our study suggested that necroptosis-associated lncRNAs could effectively predict patients with BLCA prognosis, which may be helpful for distinguishing the cold and hot tumors and improving individual treatment of BLCA.

MYB transcription factors (TFs) mediate plant responses and defenses to biotic and abiotic stresses. The effects of overexpression of MYB37, an R2R3 MYB subgroup 14 transcription factors in Arabidopsis thaliana, on chlorophyll content, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, reactive oxygen species (ROS) metabolism, and the contents of osmotic regulatory substances were studied under 100 mM NaCl stress. Compared with the wild type (Col-0), MYB37 overexpression significantly alleviated the salt stress symptoms in A. thaliana plants. Chlorophyll a (Chl a) and chlorophyll b (Chl b) contents were significantly decreased in OE-1 and OE-2 than in Col-0. Particularly, the Chl a/b ratio was also higher in OE-1 and OE-2 than in Col-0 under NaCl stress. However, MYB37 overexpression alleviated the degradation of chlorophyll, especially Chl a. Salt stress inhibited the activities of PSII and PSI in Arabidopsis leaves, but did not affect the activity of PSII electron donor side oxygen-evolving complex (OEC). MYB37 overexpression increased photosynthesis in Arabidopsis by increasing PSII and PSI activities. MYB37 overexpression also promoted the transfer of electrons from QA to QB on the PSII receptor side of Arabidopsis under NaCl stress. Additionally, MYB37 overexpression increased Y(II) and Y(NPQ) of Arabidopsis under NaCl stress and decreased Y(NO). These results indicate that MYB37 overexpression increases PSII activity and regulates the proportion of energy dissipation in Arabidopsis leaves under NaCl stress, thus decreasing the proportion of inactivated reaction centers. Salt stress causes excess electrons and energy in the photosynthetic electron transport chain of Arabidopsis leaves, resulting in the release of reactive oxygen species (ROS), such as superoxide anion and hydrogen peroxide, leading to oxidative damage. Nevertheless, MYB37 overexpression reduced accumulation of malondialdehyde in Arabidopsis leaves under NaCl stress and alleviated the degree of membrane lipid peroxidation caused by ROS. Salt stress also enhanced the accumulation of soluble sugar (SS) and proline (Pro) in Arabidopsis leaves, thus reducing salt stress damage to plants. Salt stress also degraded soluble protein (SP). Furthermore, the accumulation of osmoregulation substances SS and Pro in OE-1 and OE-2 was not different from that in Col-0 since MYB37 overexpression in Arabidopsis OE-1, and OE-2 did not significantly affect plants under NaCl stress. However, SP content was significantly higher in OE-1 and OE-2 than in Col-0. These results indicate that MYB37 overexpression can alleviate the degradation of Arabidopsis proteins under NaCl stress, promote plant growth and improve salt tolerance.

Background: Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) accounts for 80% of all kidney cancers and has a poor prognosis. Recent studies have shown that copper-dependent, regulated cell death differs from previously known death mechanisms (apoptosis, ferroptosis, and necroptosis) and is dependent on mitochondrial respiration (Tsvetkov et al., Science, 2022, 375 (6586), 1254–1261). Studies also suggested that targeting cuproptosis may be a novel therapeutic strategy for cancer therapy. In ccRCC, both cuproptosis and lncRNA were critical, but the mechanisms were not fully understood. The aim of our study was to construct a prognostic profile based on cuproptosis-associated lncRNAs to predict the prognosis of ccRCC and to study the immune profile of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC).Methods: We downloaded the transcriptional profile and clinical information of ccRCC from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Co-expression network analysis, Cox regression method, and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) method were used to identify cuproptosis-associated lncRNAs and to construct a risk prognostic model. In addition, the predictive performance of the model was validated and recognized by an integrated approach. We then also constructed a nomogram to predict the prognosis of ccRCC patients. Differences in biological function were investigated by GO, KEGG, and immunoassay. Immunotherapy response was measured using tumor mutational burden (TMB) and tumor immune dysfunction and rejection (TIDE) scores.Results: We constructed a panel of 10 cuproptosis-associated lncRNAs (HHLA3, H1-10-AS1, PICSAR, LINC02027, SNHG15, SNHG8, LINC00471, EIF1B-AS1, LINC02154, and MINCR) to construct a prognostic prediction model. The Kaplan–Meier and ROC curves showed that the feature had acceptable predictive validity in the TCGA training, test, and complete groups. The cuproptosis-associated lncRNA model had higher diagnostic efficiency compared to other clinical features. The analysis of Immune cell infiltration and ssGSEA further confirmed that predictive features were significantly associated with the immune status of ccRCC patients. Notably, the superimposed effect of patients in the high-risk group and high TMB resulted in shorter survival. In addition, the higher TIDE scores in the high-risk group suggested a poorer outcome for immune checkpoint blockade response in these patients.Conclusion: The ten cuproptosis-related risk profiles for lncRNA may help assess the prognosis and molecular profile of ccRCC patients and improve treatment options, which can be further applied in the clinic.

ABSTRACT Artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) resistance has emerged and could be diffusing in Africa. As an offshore island on the African continent, the island of Bioko in Equatorial Guinea is considered severely affected and resistant to drug-resistant Plasmodium falciparum malaria. However, the spatial and temporal distribution remain unclear. Molecular monitoring targeting the Pfcrt, Pfk13, Pfpm2, and Pfmdr1 genes was conducted to provide insight into the impact of current antimalarial drug resistance on the island. Furthermore, polymorphic characteristics, haplotype network, and the effect of natural selection of the Pfk13 gene were evaluated. A total of 152 Plasmodium falciparum samples (collected from 2017 to 2019) were analyzed for copy number variation of the Pfpm2 gene and Pfk13, Pfcrt, and Pfmdr1 mutations. Statistical analysis of Pfk13 sequences was performed following different evolutionary models using 96 Bioko sequences and 1322 global sequences. The results showed that the prevalence of Pfk13, Pfcrt, and Pfmdr1 mutations was 73.68%, 78.29%, and 75.66%, respectively. Large proportions of isolates with multiple copies of Pfpm2 were observed (67.86%). In Bioko parasites, the genetic diversity of Pfk13 was low, and purifying selection was suggested by Tajima’s D test (−1.644, P > 0.05) and the dN/dS test (−0.0004438, P > 0.05). The extended haplotype homozygosity analysis revealed that Pfk13_K189T, although most frequent in Africa, has not yet conferred a selective advantage for parasitic survival. The results suggested that the implementation of continuous drug monitoring on Bioko Island is an essential measure. IMPORTANCE Malaria, one of the tropical parasitic diseases with a high transmission rate in Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea, especially caused by P. falciparum is highly prevalent in this region and is commonly treated locally with ACTs. The declining antimalarial susceptibility of artemisinin-based drugs suggested that resistance to artemisinin and its derivatives is developing in P. falciparum. Copy number variants in Pfpm2 and genetic polymorphisms in Pfk13, Pfcrt, and Pfmdr1 can be used as risk assessment indicators to track the development and spread of drug resistance. This study reported for the first time the molecular surveillance of Pfpm2, Pfcrt, Pfk13, and Pfmdr1 genes in Bioko Island from 2017 to 2019 to assess the possible risk of local drug-resistant P. falciparum.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection has placed health systems under excessive pressure and especially elderly people with cancer. Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a malignant brain tumor with an increasing incidence in elderly individuals, and thereby GBM patients are a vulnerable population during the COVID-19 outbreak. Accumulating studies have implied that SARS-CoV-2 might invade the brain directly via coronavirus receptors. However, little is known about SARS-CoV-2 infection in the clinical development of GBM. Here, we explored the oncogenic roles of six coronavirus receptors (ACE2, DPP4, ANPEP, AXL, TMPRSS2, and ENPEP) in GBM using bioinformatics and experimental approaches. We found that ANPEP and ENPEP were significantly increased at both the mRNA and protein levels in GBM compared with normal brain tissue. Kaplan–Meier survival curves and Cox regression analysis demonstrated that high expressions of ANPEP and ENPEP are associated with poor prognosis and survival. Moreover, all receptors are positively correlated with the immune infiltration levels of monocyte. Furthermore, we identified 245 genes between COVID-19 and coronavirus receptors–correlated genes in GBM and performed a thorough analysis of their protein–protein interaction network, functional signaling pathway and molecular process. Our work explores for the first time the association of coronavirus receptors with GBM and suggests ANPEP and ENPEP as potential therapeutic targets of GBM irrespective of COVID-19.

Background and Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate whether the addition of hypomethylating agents (HMA) to low-intensity chemotherapy can enhance the clinical efficacy of induction treatment for elderly acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients who are unsuitable for standard induction therapy. Materials and Methods: This study retrospectively analyzed 117 patients over 60 years old who were initially diagnosed with AML and received low-intensity induction treatment in the Department of Hematology in Anhui provincial hospital from January 2015 to December 2020. Twenty-three patients were excluded, and the remaining 94 patients were divided into two groups according to the selection of induction regimens. Results: Forty-four patients received HMA combined with low-intensity chemotherapy, and the other 50 patients received only low-intensity induction chemotherapy. Forty-three patients (45.7%) obtained complete remission (CR) after the initial induction treatment. The CR rate in the HMA plus low-intensity chemotherapy group was 34.1% (15/44), and in the single low-intensity chemotherapy group was 56.0% (28/50) (p = 0.04). The 30 days cumulative early death rates were 9.1% (95% CI: 3.5–22.4%) in the HMA plus low-intensity chemotherapy group and 6.0% (95% CI: 2.0–17.5%) in the single low-intensity chemotherapy group, respectively (p = 0.59), and the one-year cumulative relapse rates were 21.1% (95% Cl: 9.8–41.9%) and 33.3% (95% Cl: 20.3–51.5%), respectively (p = 0.80). The one-year overall survival (OS) rates for patients in the HMA plus low-intensity chemotherapy group and the single low-intensity chemotherapy group were 37.3% (95% Cl: 23.1–51.5%) and 55.4% (95% Cl: 40.5–67.9%), respectively (p = 0.098), and the one-year event-free survival (EFS) rates were 8.5% (95% Cl: 2.2–20.6%) and 20.6% (95% Cl: 9.1–35.3%), respectively (p = 0.058). Conclusions: This study showed that the addition of HMA to low-intensity induction chemotherapy does not improve prognosis in elderly AML patients who are unsuitable for standard induction chemotherapy.

Umbilical cord blood (UCB) transplants (UCBTs) are becoming increasingly common in the treatment of a variety of hematologic and nonhematologic conditions. The T cells from UCB are naïve T cells, which have not yet been exposed to antigens and therefore do not contain T cells with specific immune functions against viruses. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections occur in more than 80% of patients after UCBT compared to other types of transplantation. Anti-CMV medications are currently restricted, with ganciclovir, foscarnet, and valganciclovir being the most common in China; however, with limited efficacy and considerable side effects, all these drugs are susceptible to viral resistance. In recent years, cytomegalovirus-specific T cells (CMVST) have advanced the treatment of viral infections in immunodeficient patients. CMVST usually uses the same donor as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. CMVST should be administered to UCBT patients because of the absence of donors after UCBT. In China, there is no report on the use of CMVST to treat CMV infection after UCBT, and foreign reports are also limited. This paper reported a 20-year-old male patient with acute myeloid leukemia who developed cytomegalovirus retinitis (CMVR) after umbilical cord blood transplantation. After ineffective viral treatment, he was treated with a third-party donor CMVST and was successfully transformed into CMV nucleic acid negative.

Colletotrichum fructicola is a plant-pathogenic fungus with a broad host range. It causes significant losses to important crops, including apple, pear, strawberry, and other Rosaceae and non-Rosaceae species. To date, two short read–based C. fructicola genomes are publicly available, but both are fragmented. In this study, we re-sequenced the genome of C. fructicola using nanopore long-read technology and refined the assembly with Hi-C map data. The resulting high-quality assembly is an important resource for further comparative and experimental studies with C. fructicola.

Abstract Background The wide variation in the size of fungal genomes is well known, but the reasons for this size variation are less certain. Here, we present a chromosome-scale assembly of ectophytic Peltaster fructicola, a surface-dwelling extremophile, based on long-read DNA sequencing technology, to assess possible mechanisms associated with genome compaction. Results At 18.99 million bases (Mb), P. fructicola possesses one of the smallest known genomes sequence among filamentous fungi. The genome is highly compact relative to other fungi, with substantial reductions in repeat content, ribosomal DNA copies, tRNA gene quantity, and intron sizes, as well as intergenic lengths and the size of gene families. Transposons take up just 0.05% of the entire genome, and no full-length transposon was found. We concluded that reduced genome sizes in filamentous fungi such as P. fructicola, Taphrina deformans and Pneumocystis jirovecii occurred through reduction in ribosomal DNA copy number and reduced intron sizes. These dual mechanisms contrast with genome reduction in the yeast fungus Saccharomyces cerevisiae, whose small and compact genome is associated solely with intron loss. Conclusions Our results reveal a unique genomic compaction architecture of filamentous fungi inhabiting plant surfaces, and broaden the understanding of the mechanisms associated with compaction of fungal genomes.

Due to the volatility and randomness of the photovoltaic power generation, it is difficult for traditional models to predict it accurately. To solve the problem, we established a model based on the self-attention mechanism and multi-task learning to predict the ultra-short-term photovoltaic power generation. First, we selected the data with the optimal timing length and input the data into the Encoder-Decoder network based on the self-attention. The validity of features extracted by the encoder was checked by the decoder. Then, we added a restriction to the middle layer of the Encoder-Decoder network to prevent the autoencoder from copying the input to the output mechanically. This condition is used to predict the photovoltaic power generation, so a multi-task learning model was established. Finally, to take full advantage of the features that are efficiently expressed and allow our main task, the prediction task, to learn some unique features autonomously, we proposed a step-by-step training method and have validated the effectiveness of this view in experiments. Through experimental contrast, it is found that compared with the Encoder-Decoder network based on CNN and LSTM, the performance of the proposed method has been increased by 14.82% and 8.09% respectively. The RMSE and MAE of the Encoder-Decoder model based on the self-attention mechanism using step-by-step training are 0.071 and 0.040 respectively.

Bitter rot and Glomerella leaf spot (GLS) of apples, caused by Colletotrichum species, are major diseases of apples around the world. A total of 98 isolates were obtained from apple fruits with bitter rot, and 53 isolates were obtained from leaves with leaf spot in the primary apple production regions in China. These isolates were characterized morphologically, and five gene regions (ITS, ACT, GAPDH, CHS-1 and TUB2) were sequenced for each isolate. A phylogenetic analysis, combined with a comparison of the morphological, cultural and pathogenic characters, sorted bitter rot isolates into six species: C. alienum, C. fructicola, C. gloeosporioides sensu stricto, C. nymphaeae, C. siamense and one new species, C. orientalis Dandan Fu & G.Y. Sun. Among these, C. siamense was the predominant pathogen associated with bitter rot. Isolates from leaf spot were identified as two species, C. aenigma and C. fructicola. This is the first report of C. orientalis as an apple bitter rot pathogen worldwide, and the results provide important insights into the diversity of Colletotrichum species in China.

Colletotrichum siamense causes fruit or foliar disease called anthracnose on a variety of plant hosts such as vegetables, fruits, ornamental plants, and others, including chili pepper, apple, American cranberry, mango, orange, papaya, guava, rubber plant, jasmine, coffee berry, and tea plants. Here, we report the first Illumina-sequenced draft genome assembly of C. siamense strain ICMP 18578 and its annotation. This genome sequence provides a unique resource that will be useful for future research on the evolution of Colletotrichum spp. and improvement of anthracnose management strategies.

The volatility and uncertainty of wind power often affect the quality of electric energy, the security of the power grid, the stability of the power system, and the fluctuation of the power market. In this case, the research on wind power forecasting is of great significance for ensuring the better development of wind power grids and the higher quality of electric energy. Therefore, a lot of new forecasting methods have been put forward. In this paper, a new forecasting model based on a convolution neural network and LightGBM is constructed. The procedure is shown as follows. First, we construct new feature sets by analyzing the characteristics of the raw data on the time series from the wind field and adjacent wind field. Second, the convolutional neural network (CNN) is proposed to extract information from input data, and the network parameters are adjusted by comparing the actual results. Third, in consideration of the limitations of the single-convolution model in predicting wind power, we innovatively integrated the LightGBM classification algorithm at the model to improve the forecasting accuracy and robustness. Finally, compared with the existing support vector machines, LightGBM, and CNN, the fusion model has better performance in accuracy and efficiency.

In this paper, a novel low voltage ride-through (LVRT) technique for three-phase grid-connected inverters is proposed. The proposed technique consists of two parts: a nonlinear phase locked loop based on complex-coefficient filters (NLCCF-PLL) and an LVRT control scheme. Generally, the synchronization process of three-phase grid-connected inverters is performed via PLL with a relatively low bandwidth, which delays the detection of voltage sag and recovery during the LVRT process. To accelerate the synchronization process, the NLCCF-PLL with adaptive controller gains is proposed to improve both the filtering capability and dynamic performance of PLL at the same time. The stability of the NLCCF-PLL is validated by the second method of Lyapunov in the nonlinear model, and the superiority of its operating performance is verified. The proposed LVRT control scheme consists of a reference current calculation block to effectively suppress the power ripples and an inner loop controller with strong robustness as well as fast dynamic response. By comparing the proposed LVRT technique with the existing LVRT technique on the basis of experimental results, the superiority of the proposed LVRT technique is confirmed.

Abstract Ring rot, one of the most destructive diseases of apple worldwide, is caused primarily by Botryosphaeria dothidea and 8. kuwatsukai. Here, we sequenced the genomes of 8. dothidea strain PG45 (44.3 Mb with 5.12 % repeat rate) and 8. kuwatsukai epitype strain PG2 (48.0 Mb with 13.02 % repeat rate), and conducted a comparative analysis of these two genomes, as well as other sequenced fungal genomes, in order to understand speciation and distinctive patterns of evolution of pathogenicity-related genes. Pair-wise genome alignments revealed that the two species are highly syntenic (96.74 % average sequence identity). Both species encode a significant number of pathogenicity-related genes, e.g.carbohydrateactive enzymes (CAZYs), plant cell wall degrading enzymes (PCWDEs), secondary metabolites (SMs) biosynthetic enzymes, cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYPs), and secreted peptidases, in comparison to all additional sequenced fungal species involved in various life-styles. The number of pathogenicity-related genes in 8. dothidea and 8. kuwatsukai is higher than other genomes of Botryosphaeriaceae pathogens (Macrophomina phaseolina and Neofusicoccum parvum), suggesting a secondary round of Botryosphaeria-lineage expansion in the family. There were, however, also significant differences in the genomes of the two Botryosphaeria species. Botryosphaeria kuwatsukai, which infects only apple and pear, apparently lost a set of SMs genes, CAZYs and PCWDEs, possibly as a result of host specialization. Botryosphaeria kuwatsukai contained significantly more transposable elements and higher value of repeat induced point (RIP) index than B. dothidea. Our results will be instrumental in understanding how both phytopathogens interact with their plant hosts and in designing efficient strategies for disease control and molecular breeding to help ensure global apple production and food security.

Abstract Background Bloodstream infection (BSI) is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality for patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). The unrelated cord blood transplantation (UCBT) can provided opportunities for patients without suitable donors for bone marrow transplantation (BMT) and peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT), while few studies have addressed BSI after UCBT. The aim of this study was to analyse the incidence and risk factors of BSI, causative organisms, microbial resistance, and its impact on the clinical outcomes and survival of patients. Methods There are 336 patients, were divided into two groups depending on whether developing BSI. Demographic characteristics, laboratory data, and clinical outcome were compared between different groups. The risk factors of BSI was examined using logistic regression and the survival was examined using the Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test. Results Ninety-two patients (27.4%) developed early BSI with 101 pathogenic bacteria isolated, and the median day of developing initial BSI was 4.5 d. Gram-negative bacteria were the most common isolate (60, 59.4%), followed by Gram-positive bacteria (40, 39.6%) and fungi (1, 1.0%). Thirty-seven (36.6%) isolates were documented as having multiple drug resistance (MDR). Myeloid malignancies, conditioning regimens including total body irradiation (TBI), and prolonged neutropenia were identified as the independent risk factors for early BSI. The 3-year OS was 59.9% versus 69.2% in the BSI group and no-BSI group (P = 0.0574), respectively. The 3-year OS of the MDR group was significantly lower than that of the non-BSI group (51.1% versus 69.2%, p = 0.013). Conclusions Our data indicate that the incidence of early BSI after UCBT was high, especially in patients with myeloid disease and a conditioning regimen including TBI and prolonged neutropenia. Early BSI with MDR after UCBT had a negative impact on long-term survival.

Abstract Background Colletotrichum is a fungal genus in Ascomycota that contain many plant pathogens. Among all Colletotrichum genomes that have been sequenced, C. fructicola contains the largest number of candidate virulence factors, such as plant cell wall degrading enzymes, secondary metabolite (SM) biosynthetic enzymes, secreted proteinases, and small secreted proteins. Systematic analysis of the expressional patterns of these factors would be an important step toward identifying key virulence determinants. Results In this study, we obtained and compared the global transcriptome profiles of four types of infection-related structures: conidia, appressoria, infected apple leaves, and cellophane infectious hyphae (bulbous hyphae spreading inside cellophane) of C. fructicola. We also compared the expression changes of candidate virulence factors among these structures in a systematic manner. A total of 3189 genes were differentially expressed in at least one pairwise comparison. Genes showing in planta-specific expressional upregulations were enriched with small secreted proteins (SSPs), cytochrome P450s, carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZYs) and secondary metabolite (SM) synthetases, and included homologs of several known candidate effectors and one SM gene cluster specific to the Colletotrichum genus. In conidia, tens of genes functioning in triacylglycerol biosynthesis showed coordinately expressional upregulation, supporting the viewpoint that C. fructicola builds up lipid droplets as energy reserves. Several phosphate starvation responsive genes were coordinately up-regulated during early plant colonization, indicating a phosphate-limited in planta environment immediately faced by biotrophic infectious hyphae. Conclusion This study systematically analyzes the expression patterns of candidate virulence genes, and reveals biological activities related to the development of several infection-related structures of C. fructicola. Our findings lay a foundation for further dissecting infection mechanisms in Colletotrichum and identifying disease control targets.

This paper proposes a small-signal stability analysis method for the three-phase multifunctional grid-connected inverter (MFGCI) system with an unbalanced local load based on impedance modeling. To attenuate the imbalance introduced by the local load, a modified power quality-compensation algorithm for the MFGCI based on the conservative power theory is proposed and incorporated into the stability analysis. The impedance model of the three-phase system is developed by adopting the complex space vector method to simplify the stability analysis process in this paper. In addition, based on the proposed impedance model and stability analysis, it is proven that the unbalanced local load can affect the stability of the system when the grid-impedance is not negligible. Furthermore, the adoption of the active imbalance compensation can reshape the impedance characteristics of the unbalanced system and improve the stability. The accuracy of the proposed impedance model, and the stability analysis results are verified by the simulation and experimental results.

Sorghum variety Longza 17 was used as the experimental organism in a study of the effects of different types of sodium salt (two neutral salts, NaCl and Na2SO4; and two alkaline salts, NaHCO3 and Na2CO3), at an equivalent Na+ concentration (100 mmol·L−1) on leaf growth parameters and PSII and PSI function by using the Fast Chlorophyll Fluorescence Induction Dynamics technique and 820 nm light reflectance curves. The results showed that at Na+ concentration of 100 mmol·L−1, different types of sodium salt stress significantly inhibited the growth of sorghum plants. Different types of sodium salt stress showed significant inhibition on the activities of PSII and PSI in sorghum leaves, the impact of different types of sodium salt on the activities of PSII and PSI in sorghum leaves was consistent, listed from greatest to least impact as Na2CO3 > NaHCO3 > Na2SO4 > NaCl. The effects of alkaline salt stress on the growth and photosynthetic properties of sorghum were greater than those under the neutral salt stress, therefore, in addition to considering the impact of Na+ concentration in the sorghum planting area, emphasis should also be given to the influence of the degree of alkalization, especially the higher alkalinity of Na2CO3.

The various fungal communities that adhere to apple fruit are influenced by agricultural practices. However, the effects of fruit bagging-based management practice on the fungal microbiota are still unknown, and little is known about the fungal communities of bagged apple fruit. We conducted a study using apple fruit grown in a conventionally managed orchard where pesticide use is an indispensable practice. Fungal communities were collected from the calyx-end and peel tissues of bagged and unbagged fruit and characterized using barcode-type next-generation sequencing. Fruit bagging had a stronger effect on fungal richness, abundance, and diversity of the fungal microbiota in comparison to non-bagging. In addition, bagging also impacted the compositional variation of the fungal communities inhabiting each fruit part. We observed that fruit bagging had a tendency to maintain ecological equilibrium since Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were more distributed in bagged fruit than in unbagged fruit. These fungal communities consist of beneficial fungi rather than potentially harmful fungi. Approximately 50 dominant taxa were detected in bagged fruit, for example, beneficial genera such as Articulospora, Bullera, Cryptococcus, Dioszegia, Erythrobasidium, and Sporobolomyces, as well as pathogenic genera such as Aureobasidium and Taphrina. These results suggested that fruit bagging could significantly increase fungal richness and promote healthy fungal communities, especially the harmless fungal communities, which might be helpful for protecting fruit from the effects of pathogens. This study provides a foundation for understanding the impacts of bagging-based practice on the associated fungal microbiota.

Abstract Background Ectophytic fungi occupy the waxy plant surface, an extreme environment characterized by prolonged desiccation, nutrient limitation, and exposure to solar radiation. The nature of mechanisms that facilitate adaptation to this environment remains unclear. In this study, we sequenced the complete genome of an ectophytic fungus, Ramichloridium luteum, which colonizes the surface of apple fruit, and carried out comparative genomic and transcriptome analysis. Results The R. luteum genome was 28.18 Mb and encoded 9466 genes containing 1.85% repetitive elements. Compared with cell-penetrating pathogens, genes encoding plant cell wall degrading enzymes (PCWDEs), PTH11-like G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and effectors were drastically reduced. In contrast, genes encoding cutinases and secretory lipases were strikingly expanded, and four of nine secretory lipases were probably acquired by horizontal gene transfer from Basidiomycota. Transcriptomic analysis revealed elevated expression of genes involved in cuticle degradation (cutinase, secretory lipase) and stress responses (melanin biosynthesis, aquaporins, lysozymes and HOG pathway). Conclusions Taken together, our results highlight genomic features associated with evolution of surface niche adaptation by the ectophytic fungus R. luteum, namely the contraction of PCWDEs, PTH11-like GPCRs and effectors, and the expansion of cuticle degradation and stress tolerance.

Three-phase phase-locked loops (PLLs) are the most widely used synchronization components in power systems. For common PLL algorithms, there is a tradeoff between the filtering capability and dynamic response. In this paper, a nonlinear PLL (NLADRC-PLL) based on a linear active disturbance rejection controller (LADRC) is proposed to largely improve this tradeoff, thus simultaneously enhancing the filtering capability and dynamic response. With LADRC adopted in PLL structures (LADRC-PLL), good dynamic response and disturbance rejection capability can be achieved. To pursue further improvements in both filtering capability and dynamic response, the NLADRC-PLL derived from the LADRC-PLL is proposed, which adjusts the controller gains adaptively according to the disturbance. It is commonly known that there are stability problems for PLLs with adaptive controller gains, which are highly nonlinear systems. Thanks to the great robustness of LADRC structures, the stability of the proposed NLADRC-PLL is certified by the second method of Lyapunov in the nonlinear model. By comparing its PLL performance with the existing PLL algorithms, the superiority of the NLADRC-PLL in both filtering capability and dynamic response is verified through experimental results.

Light quality can influence the photosynthetic characteristics, morphology and physiological processes of plants. To investigate the effects of different light qualities (white light, W; red light, R; blue light, B; mixture of red and blue light, RB) of light emitting diodes (LEDs) and white cold fluorescent lamp on the growth and morphology of fruiting mulberry plants (Morus alba L. cv. ‘Longsang No.1’), fruiting mulberry plants were grown under different light qualities: W, R, B and RB of the same photosynthetic photo flux density (PPFD; 100 μmol m-2 s-1) for 20 d. Our results showed that stem length and leaf area of plants grown under R were the highest. However, stem length and leaf area of plants grown under B were lowest. Dry weights (DW), leaf mass per area (LMA), chlorophyll a/b ratio, soluble protein content, sucrose and starch content, and total leaf nitrogen (N) content of plants grown under R were the lowest. Net photosynthetic rate (Pn), stomatal conductance (gs), and actual photochemical efficiency of PSII (ΦPSII) of plants grown under RB were similar to plants grown under W. Net photosynthetic rate (Pn) and ΦPSII of plants grown under R and B were lower than plants grown under W and RB. Antioxidant enzymes activity of plants grown under R, RB and B were higher than plants grown under W. The number of leaf stomata, leaf thickness, palisade tissue length and spongy tissue length were the lowest in plants grown under R. The number of leaf stomata, leaf thickness and palisade tissue length of plants grown under RB and B were higher than plants grown under R. The results of this study indicate that a certain ratio of mixed red and blue LEDs light can reduce adverse effects of monochromatic red and blue LEDs light on fruiting mulberry growth and development.