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The identification of homogeneous regions representing the dynamic living habits of residents has long been a central focus in human activity research. Although extensive studies have been conducted in this area, the majority of these efforts have concentrated on static residential behaviors, neglecting the temporal fluctuations in urban residents’ activities throughout the day. This study introduces a novel model that integrates facility operation data with a time-series-based regionalization approach to detect residents’ dynamic living habits at the block scale and identify homogeneous regions. The model first transforms textual data into temporal Origin-Destination (OD) flows and introduces the concept of an “urban schedule” to represent the Temporal OD of various resident activities within a specific unit. Building on this foundation, the urban schedule is subsequently converted into operating probability curves over time, revealing the spatial structure of residents’ dynamic living habits. Our findings demonstrate that the homogeneous regions of residents’ dynamic living habits not only reflect the intensity of human activity but also show a significant correlation with distinct urban functional areas, highlighting their importance for urban planning and development.

Abstract Background To evaluate the changes of retinal and choroidal microvascular including the superficial retinal capillary plexus (SCP), deep retinal capillary plexus (DCP), choriocapillaris (CC), and central retinal thickness (CRT) in high myopic eyes after the implantable collamer lens with a central hole (ICL V4c) implantation using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA). Methods This retrospective study included 30 eyes of 30 patients (14 males and 16 females) who underwent ICL V4c implantation in Tianjin Aier Eye Hospital from October 2022 to May 2023. Uncorrected distant visual acuity (UDVA), best corrected distance visual acuity (BDVA), intraocular pressure (IOP), spherical equivalent (SE), axial length (AL), and optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) were measured and assessed before surgery, and 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months after surgery. OCTA was used to image and measure several key indicators: the foveal avascular zone (FAZ), vascular density (VD) of the SCP and DCP, blood flow density (BD) of the CC, and CRT. All measurement data were obtained utilizing the instrument’s proprietary software, ensuring accuracy and consistency. Results UDVA were significant improvements at the 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months after ICL V4c implantation surgery. BDVA, FAZ, and CRT maintained stable, however, IOP was higher at 1 week and 3 months post-operation compared to 1-month post-operation. The statistically significant difference was identified within the S3, S7, and S9 of SCP at each time point before and after the surgery (P 1 = 0.004; P 2 = 0.014; P 3 = 0.037). However, paired analyses showed that there was a significant decrease in VD of S3 at 1 week after ICL V4c implantation surgery (P 0.05), and the increase in VD of the S7 region at 1 month after ICL V4c implantation, which is significant compared to 1 week post-surgery, but not compared to preoperative levels. An overall comparison of the BD of the CC (2 mm) at each time point showed a statistically significant difference (P = 0.029). Conclusion ICL V4c implantation offers a safe and efficient therapy to the high myopic patients. However, the retinal and choroidal microvascular changes need to be paid attention to in post-ICL implantation patients.

Abstract Background Manual placement of cervical pedicle screws is risky, and robot-assisted placement of atlantoaxial pedicle screws has not been reported. Case report We describe a 74-year-old female patient with atlantoaxial fracture and dislocation combined with spinal cord injury caused by a car accident. The left lower limb muscle strength was grade 0, the right upper limb muscle strength was grade 1, and the right lower limb muscle strength was grade 2. Loss of sensation below the clavicle level, decreased superficial sensation in the extremities, loss of deep sensation in the left lower extremity, and incontinence were observed. We successfully placed atlas pedicle screws with the assistance of the Mazor X robot. One week after the operation, radiological imaging revealed that the reduction effect was good, the placement of the pedicle screws was satisfactory, the left upper limb and left lower limb muscle strength was level 2, the right upper limb and the muscle strength of the right lower limb were grade 3, and the sensory function was partially restored. No complications related to screw placement were found at the 3-month postoperative follow-up. Conclusions Mazor X robot-assisted descending pedicle screw fixation of the atlas is feasible and safe.

The electrochemical reaction mechanism of galvanized high-strength steel wires (GHSSWs) has not been fully elucidated. Scholars have observed a significant discrepancy between the theoretical mass loss rate calculated using the Faraday equation for electrochemical corrosion and the experimental values. To address this issue, this study conducted electrochemical corrosion tests on 195 sets of GHSSWs. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and non-contact 3D scanning systems were used to characterize the surface morphology and elemental composition of specimens before and after rust removal, revealing the reaction mechanism during electrochemical corrosion in GHSSWs. The correlation between corrosion length, current intensity, and electrolysis time with the corrosion rate was investigated, and a correction function for mass loss in GHSSWs under constant current electrochemical corrosion was established. The results indicate that during the initial stage of electrochemical corrosion in GHSSWs, internal stress between the corrosion products and the GHSSWs substrate leads to the formation of apparent cracks in the corroded wire, increasing the contact area between the specimen and the electrolyte and accelerating the corrosion process. In later stages, the formation of needle-like α-FeOOH corrosion products provides protective effects, leading to a decrease in the corrosion rate.

Abstract. Background:. Programmed death 1 (PD-1) blockade plus chemotherapy has become the new first-line standard of care for patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Yet not all NSCLC patients benefit from this regimen. This study aimed to investigate the predictors of PD-1 blockade plus chemotherapy in untreated advanced NSCLC. Methods:. We integrated clinical, genomic, and survival data from 287 patients with untreated advanced NSCLC who were enrolled in one of five registered phase 3 trials and received PD-1 blockade plus chemotherapy or chemotherapy alone. We randomly assigned these patients into a discovery cohort (n = 125), a validation cohort (n = 82), and a control cohort (n = 80). The candidate genes that could predict the response to PD-1 blockade plus chemotherapy were identified using data from the discovery cohort and their predictive values were then evaluated in the three cohorts. Immune deconvolution was conducted using transcriptome data of 1014 NSCLC patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas dataset. Results:. A genomic variation signature, in which one or more of the 15 candidate genes were altered, was correlated with significantly inferior response rates and survival outcomes in patients treated with first-line PD-1 blockade plus chemotherapy in both discovery and validation cohorts. Its predictive value held in multivariate analyses when adjusted for baseline parameters, programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression level, and tumor mutation burden. Moreover, applying both the 15-gene panel and PD-L1 expression level produced better performance than either alone in predicting benefit from this treatment combination. Immune landscape analyses revealed that tumors with one or more variation in the 15-gene panel were associated with few immune infiltrates, indicating an immune-desert tumor microenvironment. Conclusion:. These findings indicate that a 15-gene panel can serve as a negative prediction biomarker for first-line PD-1 blockade plus chemotherapy in patients with advanced NSCLC.

Abstract Background The prognostic potential of immune-related genes, particularly immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), is gaining attention for evaluating the prognosis of breast cancer patients. Methods We analyzed 23 datasets to identify 15 ICI-related mRNAs and 5 immune-related lncRNAs, creating a robust immune score (IS). This score was used to classify patients into high and low IS groups and assess their survival outcomes. Results Patients with high IS showed significantly poorer overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) compared to those with low IS. Multivariate Cox regression analysis confirmed IS as an independent prognostic factor. Additionally, high IS was associated with higher mutation loads and neoantigen profiles, while low IS correlated with enhanced immune cell infiltration. Conclusions The immune score developed from ICI-related mRNAs and lncRNAs effectively predicts the prognosis of breast cancer patients and highlights the differential immune and inflammatory responses between patients with varying levels of immune score. This underscores the relevance of IS in guiding therapeutic decisions and tailoring patient management strategies in clinical settings.

Abstract Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have become important in an extensive range of fields such as surveillance, environmental monitoring, agriculture, infrastructure inspection, commercial applications, and many others. Ensuring stable flight and precise control of UAVs, especially in adverse weather conditions or turbulent environments, presents significant challenges. Developing control systems that can adapt to these environmental factors while ensuring safe and reliable operation is a main motivation. Considering the challenges, first, an adaptive model is identified using the input/output data sets. New adaptation laws are obtained for dynamic parameters. Then, a Type-3 (T3) Fuzzy Logic System (FLS) is used to compensate for the error of dynamic identification. T3-FLS is tuned by a sliding mode control (SMC) strategy. The robustness is analyzed considering the adaptation error using the SMC approach. The main idea is that the basic dynamics of UAVs are taken into account, and adaptation laws are designed to enhance the modeling accuracy. On the other hand, an optimized T3-FLS with SMC is introduced to eliminate the adaption errors and ensure robustness. Several simulations show that known parameters converge under uncertainty, and the stability is kept, well. Also, output signals follow the desired trajectories under dynamic perturbations, identification errors, and uncertainties.

Abstract Background Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) fusions are rare but potentially actionable oncogenic drivers across multiple solid tumors. However, the distribution and molecular characteristics of EGFR fusions in Chinese patients with solid malignancies have not been explored. Methods Panel-based next-generation sequencing (NGS) data of 35,023 patients with various types of solid tumors was collected and analyzed from the Simcere Diagnostics (Nanjing, China) database. A 9563-patient cohort was derived from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) to explore the relationship between EGFR fusion status and overall survival (OS). Results In this study, prevalence of functional EGFR fusions was 0.303% (106/35,023) in total across solid tumors, which occur more commonly in gastroesophageal junction cancer (1/61, 1.613%), followed by medulloblastoma (1/66, 1.515%) and glioma (33/2409, 1.370%). Analysis showed a prevalence for fusion partners in different tumor types. The top 3 co-mutant genes with EGFR fusion were TP53 (mutation frequency, MF: 65%), BRCA2 (MF: 43%), and ALK (MF: 41%). Furthermore, patients in the EGFR fusion group had a significantly shorter OS than those in the non-EGFR fusion group (p

The study of spatial social networks has evolved from identifying structures within single networks to analyzing spatial associations between multilayer networks. However, current research primarily focuses on many-to-many flow structures, neglecting the unique advantages of one-to-many flow in characterizing local and global interactions. To bridge this gap, this paper introduces flow sequences and flow structure curves to effectively represent and visualize structures of one-to-many flows. Building on this foundation, a similarity-based comparison strategy to analyze spatial associations of one-to-many flow structures within two different networks from a local perspective is proposed. This method can be utilized to examine associations across diverse scenarios, including between distinct networks, within a single network over different temporal intervals, and between the inflow and outflow of the same network. The effectiveness and robustness of the proposed method were validated using a synthetic dataset. Case studies on migration and attention flows demonstrated its diverse applications and potential. The proposed approach enhances convergent and divergent analysis in multi-semantic spatial networks by offering tools for investigating structural consistency across networks. It emphasizes the influence of individual nodes on the entire network and the reciprocal shaping of local interaction relationships by global patterns.

There are various types of initial defects in weld joints of orthotropic steel deck, which significantly impact the fatigue crack growth behavior of the welds. The traditional single-crack growth model is not appropriate to be utilized for the fatigue investigation of welds containing multiple defects. This study analyzed the dynamic evolution behavior of crack-inclusion interactions in the weld toe of rib-to-deck joints based on the fracture mechanics theory. The influence of defect-related parameters on crack fatigue life was discussed. Numerical simulations and fatigue test were conducted to investigate the dynamic interaction behavior of the crack-inclusion under fatigue loading. A merging criterion for multiple inclusions was proposed to simply the fatigue life analysis of coupled cracks. The numerical results show that the stiff inclusion has a shielding effect on the crack growth. The effect is affected by the relative depth of the crack and inclusion (a0/R), the interaction spacing of defects (S), and the burial depth of the inclusion (h). The shielding effect becomes negligible under the condition a0/R≥3. The fatigue life of the interactive crack increases by up to 23 % compared to single crack. Fully buried inclusions have a limited impact on crack growth. The fatigue life of the interactive crack shows a non-monotonic increase with the quantities of inclusions, with double inclusion clusters. It is demonstrated that the highest shielding effect will increase the fatigue life by 26 %. The proposed merging criterion simplifies the prediction of the fatigue life for welded joint containing multiple inclusions. The numerical result provides a referencing database for fatigue life evaluation of steel structures with multiple welding defects.

ABSTRACTLarge-scale epidemics, such as COVID-19, pose significant threats to human health and social stability due to their rapid and covert transmission, emerging as one of the main challenges to maintaining a well-functioning urban system. During the pandemic, the spatial transmission mechanisms and their influencing factors of infectious diseases have received as a central topic. Scholars concentrated on researching the phase of extensive dissemination and mandatory intervention, utilizing multiple datasets. However, there remains a notable gap in the investigation of virus spatial transmission mechanisms under normalized urban operations due to limitations in detection timeliness and data collection issues. Moreover, compared to various intervention strategies, the influence of human behavioral dynamics and spatial cognition remains understudied. The paper simulates invasion, incubation, and outbreak of the Omicron variant in Zhuhai City in 2022, validating the results against real-world epidemic data. By comparing spatial diffusion patterns under three levels of spatial cognition, it sheds light on the delayed impact of human spatial cognitive abilities on urban pandemic outbreaks and their influence on virus invasion orders. The simulation model and revealed diffusion mechanisms will provide important guidance for the proactive prevention and control of unpredictable large-scale epidemics in future urban systems.

Abstract This multicentre, two-arm, phase 2 study aimed to explore the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant camrelizumab plus chemotherapy or apatinib in patients with initially unresectable stage II–III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Eligible patients regardless of PD-L1 expression received neoadjuvant camrelizumab 200 mg and platinum-doublet chemotherapy every 3 weeks (arm A) or those with PD-L1-positive tumors received neoadjuvant camrelizumab and apatinib 250 mg once daily (arm B), for 2–4 cycles, followed by surgery. The primary endpoint was major pathological response (MPR) rate. Thirty patients in arm A and 21 in arm B were enrolled. Surgery rates were 50.0% (15/30) in arm A and 42.9% (9/21) in arm B, with all patients achieving R0 resections. Of these patients, the MPR and pathological complete response rates were both 20.0% (95% CI 4.3–48.1) in arm A and were 55.6% (95% CI 21.2–86.3) and 11.1% (95% CI 0.3–48.2) in arm B, respectively. The corresponding objective response rates were 33.3% (95% CI 11.8–61.6) and 55.6% (95% CI 21.2–86.3). With a median follow-up of 22.4 months (95% CI 19.0–26.0), the median event-free survival was not reached (NR; 95% CI 13.6-NR) in arm A and 16.8 months (95% CI 8.6-NR) in arm B. Grade 3 or above treatment-related adverse events occurred in eight (26.7%) patients in arm A and three (14.3%) in arm B. Biomarker analysis showed baseline TYROBP expression was predictive of treatment response in arm B. Neoadjuvant camrelizumab plus chemotherapy or apatinib exhibits preliminary efficacy and manageable toxicity in patients with initially unresectable stage II–III NSCLC.

Abstract Background Class III peroxidases (PODs) perform crucial functions in various developmental processes and responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. However, their roles in wheat seed dormancy (SD) and germination remain elusive. Results Here, we identified a wheat class III POD gene, named TaPer12-3A, based on transcriptome data and expression analysis. TaPer12-3A showed decreasing and increasing expression trends with SD acquisition and release, respectively. It was highly expressed in wheat seeds and localized in the endoplasmic reticulum and cytoplasm. Germination tests were performed using the transgenic Arabidopsis and rice lines as well as wheat mutant mutagenized with ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS) in Jing 411 (J411) background. These results indicated that TaPer12-3A negatively regulated SD and positively mediated germination. Further studies showed that TaPer12-3A maintained H2O2 homeostasis by scavenging excess H2O2 and participated in the biosynthesis and catabolism pathways of gibberellic acid and abscisic acid to regulate SD and germination. Conclusion These findings not only provide new insights for future functional analysis of TaPer12-3A in regulating wheat SD and germination but also provide a target gene for breeding wheat varieties with high pre-harvest sprouting resistance by gene editing technology.

Abstract Background B-box (BBX) proteins are a type of zinc finger proteins containing one or two B-box domains. They play important roles in development and diverse stress responses of plants, yet their roles in wheat remain unclear. Results In this study, 96 BBX genes were identified in the wheat genome and classified into five subfamilies. Subcellular localization prediction results showed that 68 TaBBXs were localized in the nucleus. Protein interaction prediction analysis indicated that interaction was one way that these proteins exerted their functions. Promoter analysis indicated that TaBBXs may play important roles in light signal, hormone, and stress responses. qRT-PCR analysis revealed that 14 TaBBXs were highly expressed in seeds compared with other tissues. These were probably involved in seed dormancy and germination, and their expression patterns were investigated during dormancy acquisition and release in the seeds of wheat varieties Jing 411 and Hongmangchun 21, showing significant differences in seed dormancy and germination phenotypes. Subcellular localization analysis confirmed that the three candidates TaBBX2-2 A, TaBBX4-2 A, and TaBBX11-2D were nuclear proteins. Transcriptional self-activation experiments further demonstrated that TaBBX4-2A was transcriptionally active, but TaBBX2-2A and TaBBX11-2D were not. Protein interaction analysis revealed that TaBBX2-2A, TaBBX4-2A, and TaBBX11-2D had no interaction with each other, while TaBBX2-2A and TaBBX11-2D interacted with each other, indicating that TaBBX4-2A may regulate seed dormancy and germination by transcriptional regulation, and TaBBX2-2A and TaBBX11-2D may regulate seed dormancy and germination by forming a homologous complex. Conclusions In this study, the wheat BBX gene family was identified and characterized at the genomic level by bioinformatics analysis. These observations provide a theoretical basis for future studies on the functions of BBXs in wheat and other species.

BackgroundPregnancy and gestation information is routinely recorded in electronic medical record (EMR) systems across China in various data sets. The combination of data on the number of pregnancies and gestations can imply occurrences of abortions and other pregnancy-related issues, which is important for clinical decision-making and personal privacy protection. However, the distribution of this information inside EMR is variable due to inconsistent IT structures across different EMR systems. A large-scale quantitative evaluation of the potential exposure of this sensitive information has not been previously performed, ensuring the protection of personal information is a priority, as emphasized in Chinese laws and regulations. ObjectiveThis study aims to perform the first nationwide quantitative analysis of the identification sites and exposure frequency of sensitive pregnancy and gestation information. The goal is to propose strategies for effective information extraction and privacy protection related to women’s health. MethodsThis study was conducted in a national health care data network. Rule-based protocols for extracting pregnancy and gestation information were developed by a committee of experts. A total of 6 different sub–data sets of EMRs were used as schemas for data analysis and strategy proposal. The identification sites and frequencies of identification in different sub–data sets were calculated. Manual quality inspections of the extraction process were performed by 2 independent groups of reviewers on 1000 randomly selected records. Based on these statistics, strategies for effective information extraction and privacy protection were proposed. ResultsThe data network covered hospitalized patients from 19 hospitals in 10 provinces of China, encompassing 15,245,055 patients over an 11-year period (January 1, 2010-December 12, 2020). Among women aged 14-50 years, 70% were randomly selected from each hospital, resulting in a total of 1,110,053 patients. Of these, 688,268 female patients with sensitive reproductive information were identified. The frequencies of identification were variable, with the marriage history in admission medical records being the most frequent at 63.24%. Notably, more than 50% of female patients were identified with pregnancy and gestation history in nursing records, which is not generally considered a sub–data set rich in reproductive information. During the manual curation and review process, 1000 cases were randomly selected, and the precision and recall rates of the information extraction method both exceeded 99.5%. The privacy-protection strategies were designed with clear technical directions. ConclusionsSignificant amounts of critical information related to women’s health are recorded in Chinese routine EMR systems and are distributed in various parts of the records with different frequencies. This requires a comprehensive protocol for extracting and protecting the information, which has been demonstrated to be technically feasible. Implementing a data-based strategy will enhance the protection of women’s privacy and improve the accessibility of health care services.

Background Bleeding risk brought by intensive lipid‐lowering therapy and low low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol is concerning, while evidence regarding the relationship between remnant cholesterol and bleeding is frightening. This study aimed to investigate the association between remnant cholesterol at admission and an in‐hospital bleeding event after acute ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA). Methods and Results A total of 3222 eligible patients admitted to Shanghai Huashan Hospital between 2015 and 2021 with complete lipid data were analyzed. Patients were classified into low (

The deflection control of the main girder in suspension bridges, as flexible structures, is critically important during their operation. To predict the vertical deflection of existing suspension bridge girders under the combined effects of stochastic traffic loads and environmental temperature, this paper proposes an integrated deflection interval prediction method based on a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM), a probability density estimation layer, and bridge monitoring data. A time-series training dataset consisting of environmental temperature, vehicle load, and deflection monitoring data was built based on bridge health monitoring data. The CNN-LSTM combined layer is used to capture both local features and long-term dependencies in the time series. A Gaussian distribution (GD) is adopted as the probability density function, and its parameters are estimated using the maximum likelihood method, which outputs the optimal deflection prediction and probability intervals. Furthermore, this paper proposes a method for identifying abnormal deflections of the main girder in existing suspension bridges and establishes warning thresholds. This study indicates that, for short time scales, the CNN-LSTM-GD model achieves a 47.22% improvement in Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) and a 12.37% increase in the coefficient of determination (R2) compared to the LSTM model. When compared to the CNN-LSTM model, it shows an improvement of 28.30% in RMSE and 6.55% in R2. For long time scales, the CNN-LSTM-GD model shows a 54.40% improvement in RMSE and a 10.22% increase in R2 compared to the LSTM model. Compared to the CNN-LSTM model, it improves RMSE by 38.43% and R2 by 5.31%. This model is instrumental in more accurately identifying abnormal deflections and determining deflection thresholds, making it applicable to bridge deflection early-warning systems.

Abstract Background Our study aimed to analyze the characteristics of ultrasound images corresponding to each histological stage of primary biliary cholangitis (PBC). Methods We prospectively analyzed 75 confirmed cases of PBC and used liver biopsy as the gold standard to determine the disease stage. Results The typical ultrasound images of patients with PBC were characterized by a thickening of the portal vein wall (PVW) and periportal hypoechoic band (PHB) width with increasing histological stages, and significant increases in the left hepatic lobe diameter (LHLD) in stage II (by 64.0%) and stage III (by 69.2%). PHB width (r = 0.857, p

Abstract Cyclic GMP–AMP synthase (cGAS), initially identified as a cytosolic DNA sensor, detects DNA fragments to trigger an innate immune response. Recently, accumulating evidence reveals the presence of cGAS within the nucleus. However, the biological functions of nuclear cGAS are not fully understood. Here, we demonstrate that nuclear cGAS represses LINE-1 (L1) retrotransposition to preserve genome integrity in human cells. Mechanistically, the E3 ligase TRIM41 interacts with and ubiquitinates ORF2p to influence its stability, and cGAS enhances the association of ORF2p with TRIM41, thereby promoting TRIM41-mediated ORF2p degradation and the suppression of L1 retrotransposition. In response to DNA damage, cGAS is phosphorylated at serine residues 120 and 305 by CHK2, which promotes cGAS-TRIM41 association, facilitating TRIM41-mediated ORF2p degradation. Moreover, we show that nuclear cGAS mediates the repression of L1 retrotransposition in senescent cells induced by DNA damage agents. We also identify several cancer-associated cGAS mutations that abolish the suppressive effect on L1 retrotransposition by disrupting the CHK2-cGAS-TRIM41-ORF2p regulatory axis. Together, these findings indicate that nuclear cGAS exhibits an inhibitory function in L1 retrotransposition which could provide avenues for future interventions in both aging and tumorigenesis.

Justify that the use of selenium has been shown to promote seed germination and seedling growth of some crops under salt stress but the physiological mechanisms in sorghum remain poorly understood. Herein, grain sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] variety Jinza 2002 was used to explore the effects and mechanisms of seed priming with 25 μmol/L sodium selenite [Se(IV)] on seed germination, seedling growth, antioxidant enzyme activity and osmotic regulatory substances under 120 mmol/L NaCl. The results showed that soaking sorghum seeds in Se(IV) effectively alleviated the harm of salt stress. Compared with the Na group, Se(IV) application increased germination percentage (by 23.8%), while facilitating the elongation of radicles (by 4.2%) and plumules (by 18.4%) under salt stress. Salt-stressed seedlings showed increased levels of leaf chlorophyll, soluble sugar, soluble protein and proline contents, and antioxidant enzyme activities, as well as root activity, and total biomass following Se(IV) application, along with decreased relative electrical conductivity and malondialdehyde content in the leaves. Findings of this study indicate that seed priming with Se(IV) facilitates sorghum seed germination and seedling growth under salt stress by improving root activity, enhancing leaf photosynthesis and antioxidant responses, and reducing cell membrane damage.

This is an essay in the field of ceramics and composites. Lithium slag is the solid waste produced in the process of extracting lithium and its compounds from spodumene and lepidolite, in which the content of SiO2 and Al2O3 is as high as 70%. The stacking and landfilling of lithium slag threaten the surrounding environment due to the residual chemicals, and result in the waste of aluminosilicate mineral resources as well. Lithium slag has high specific surface energy and some pozzolanic activity, as enduring high temperature roasting, mechanical grinding and chemical leaching, which make it possible to be used as construction materials. This paper summarizes the latest research results on the application of lithium slag as building materials at home and abroad, focuses on the following aspects: (1) Substituting part of cement as concrete admixture, and the affects on the mechanical properties, carbonization resistance, abrasion resistance, chloride ion penetration and crack resistance of concrete; (2) Substituting clay to produce cement, and its influence on the flexural and compressive strength of cement clinker age; (3) Preparation of architectural ceramics and its impact on mechanical properties and structure; (4) The influence of lithium slag formula on ceramic quality and process performance. Finally, the application research of lithium slag in building materials is summarized and prospected, for the purpose of providing references for the development of lithium slag in building materials with high dosage and good economic benefits.

The use of an altered immunoglobulin G (IgG) N-glycan pattern as an inflammation metric has been reported in subclinical atherosclerosis and metabolic disorders, both of which are important risk factors in cardiovascular health. However, the usable capacity of IgG N-glycosylation profiles for the risk stratification of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remains unknown. This study aimed to develop a cardiovascular aging index for tracking cardiovascular risk using IgG N-glycans. This cross-sectional investigation enrolled 1465 individuals aged 40–70 years from the Busselton Healthy and Ageing Study. We stepwise selected the intersection of altered N-glycans using feature-selection methods in machine learning (recursive feature elimination and penalized regression algorithms) and developed an IgG N-glycosylation cardiovascular age (GlyCage) index to reflect the deviation from calendar age attributable to cardiovascular risk. The strongest contributors to GlyCage index were fucosylated N-glycans with bisecting N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) (glycan peak 6 (GP6), FA2B,) and digalactosylated N-glycans with bisecting GlcNAc (GP13, A2BG2). A one-unit increase of GlyCage was significantly associated with a higher Framingham ten-year cardiovascular risk (odds ratio (OR), 1.09; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 1.05–1.13) and probability of CVDs (OR, 1.07; 95% CI: 1.01–1.13) independent of calendar age. Individuals with excessive GlyCage (exceeding a calendar age > 3 years) had an increased cardiovascular risk and probability of CVDs, with adjusted ORs of 2.22 (95% CI: 1.41–3.53) and 2.71 (95% CI: 1.25–6.41), respectively. The area under curve (AUC) values of discriminating high cardiovascular risk and events were 0.73 and 0.65 for GlyCage index, and 0.65 and 0.63 for calendar age. The GlyCage index developed in this study can thus be used to track cardiovascular health using IgG N-glycosylation profiles. The distance between GlyCage and calendar age independently indicates the cardiovascular risk, suggesting that IgG N-glycosylation plays a role in the pathogenesis of CVDs. The generalization of the observed associations and the predictive capability of GlyCage index require external and longitudinal validation in other populations.

Abstract Background Impaired sensitivity to thyroid hormones is a newly proposed clinical entity associated with hyperuricemia in the subclinical hypothyroid population. However, it is unknown whether the association exists in the euthyroid population. This study aimed to explore the association of impaired sensitivity to thyroid hormones (assessed by the thyroid feedback quantile-based index [TFQI], parametric thyroid feedback quantile-based index [PTFQI], thyrotrophic thyroxine resistance index [TT4RI] and thyroid-stimulating hormone index [TSHI]) with hyperuricemia and quantify the mediating effect of body mass index BMI in the euthyroid population. Methods This cross-sectional study enrolled Chinese adults aged ≥ 20 years who participated in the Beijing Health Management Cohort (2008–2019). Adjusted logistic regression models were used to explore the association between indices of sensitivity to thyroid hormones and hyperuricemia. Odds ratios [OR] and absolute risk differences [ARD] were calculated. Mediation analyses were performed to estimate direct and indirect effects through BMI. Results Of 30,857 participants, 19,031 (61.7%) were male; the mean (SD) age was 47.3 (13.3) years; and 6,515 (21.1%) had hyperuricemia. After adjusting for confounders, individuals in the highest group of thyroid hormone sensitivity indices were associated with an increased prevalence of hyperuricemia compared with the lowest group (TFQI: OR = 1.18, 95% CI 1.04–1.35; PTFQI: OR = 1.20, 95% CI 1.05–1.36; TT4RI: OR = 1.17, 95% CI 1.08–1.27; TSHI: OR = 1.12, 95% CI 1.04–1.21). BMI significantly mediated 32.35%, 32.29%, 39.63%, and 37.68% of the associations of TFQI, PTFQI, TT4RI and TSHI with hyperuricemia, respectively. Conclusions Our research revealed that BMI mediated the association between impaired sensitivity to thyroid hormones and hyperuricemia in the euthyroid population. These findings could provide useful evidence for understanding the interaction between impaired sensitivity to thyroid hormone and hyperuricemia in euthyroid individuals and suggest the clinical implications of weight control in terms of impaired thyroid hormones sensitivity.

ObjectiveTo establish a radiomics model based on intratumoral and peritumoral features extracted from pre-treatment CT to predict the major pathological response (MPR) in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) receiving neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy.MethodsA total of 148 NSCLC patients who underwent neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy from two centers (SRRSH and ZCH) were retrospectively included. The SRRSH dataset (n=105) was used as the training and internal validation cohort. Radiomics features of intratumoral (T) and peritumoral regions (P1 = 0-5mm, P2 = 5-10mm, and P3 = 10-15mm) were extracted from pre-treatment CT. Intra- and inter- class correlation coefficients and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator were used to feature selection. Four single ROI models mentioned above and a combined radiomics (CR: T+P1+P2+P3) model were established by using machine learning algorithms. Clinical factors were selected to construct the combined radiomics-clinical (CRC) model, which was validated in the external center ZCH (n=43). The performance of the models was assessed by DeLong test, calibration curve and decision curve analysis.ResultsHistopathological type was the only independent clinical risk factor. The model CR with eight selected radiomics features demonstrated a good predictive performance in the internal validation (AUC=0.810) and significantly improved than the model T (AUC=0.810 vs 0.619, p

Background Prior studies have reported the cross‐sectional relationship between lung function and arterial stiffness, while the longitudinal association remains unclear to date. This study aimed to investigate whether abnormal lung function and its subtypes at baseline are associated with increased arterial stiffness using a cohort. Methods and Results This was a secondary analysis extracting 2461 participants from Beijing Health Management Cohort as baseline and annually followed for development of arterial stiffness. Abnormal lung function was defined by forced expiratory volume in 1s

Abstract Temporal action localisation is a challenging task, and video context is crucial to localisation actions. Most existing cases that incorporate temporal and semantic contexts into video features suffer from single contextual representation and blurred temporal boundaries. In this study, a multi‐temporal resolution pyramid structure model is proposed. Firstly, a temporal‐semantic context aggregation module (TSCF) is designed to assign different attention weights to temporal contexts and combine them with multi‐level semantics into video features. Secondly, for the problem of large differences in the time span between different actions in the video, a local‐global attention module is designed to combine local and global temporal dependencies for each temporal point to obtain a more flexible and robust representation of contextual relations. The redundant representation of the convolution kernel is reduced by modifying the convolution and the arithmetic power is redeployed at a microscopic granularity. To verify the effectiveness of the model, extensive experiments on three challenging datasets are performed. On THUMOS14, the best performance is obtained in IoU@0.3–0.6 with an average mAP of 47.02%. On ActivityNet‐1.3, an average mAP of 34.94% was obtained. On HACS, an average mAP of 28.46% was achieved.

Tumor necrosis factor-α-induced protein 8-like 3 (TNFAIP8L3 or TIPE3) functions as a transfer protein for lipid second messengers. TIPE3 is highly upregulated in several human cancers and has been established to significantly promote tumor cell proliferation, migration, and invasion and inhibit the apoptosis of cancer cells. Thus, inhibiting the function of TIPE3 is expected to be an effective strategy against cancer. The advancement of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven drug development has recently invigorated research in anti-cancer drug development. In this work, we incorporated DFCNN, Autodock Vina docking, DeepBindBC, MD, and metadynamics to efficiently identify inhibitors of TIPE3 from a ZINC compound dataset. Six potential candidates were selected for further experimental study to validate their anti-tumor activity. Among these, three small-molecule compounds (K784-8160, E745-0011, and 7238-1516) showed significant anti-tumor activity in vitro, leading to reduced tumor cell viability, proliferation, and migration and enhanced apoptotic tumor cell death. Notably, E745-0011 and 7238-1516 exhibited selective cytotoxicity toward tumor cells with high TIPE3 expression while having little or no effect on normal human cells or tumor cells with low TIPE3 expression. A molecular docking analysis further supported their interactions with TIPE3, highlighting hydrophobic interactions and their shared interaction residues and offering insights for designing more effective inhibitors. Taken together, this work demonstrates the feasibility of incorporating deep learning and MD simulations in virtual drug screening and provides inhibitors with significant potential for anti-cancer drug development against TIPE3−.

Effective riverine ecosystem management and restoration are predicated upon comprehending the relationship between land use patterns, the aquatic environment, and macroinvertebrates. However, the processes by which land use affects riverine ecosystems are exceedingly complex, influenced by factors across varying special scales. To explore these multi-scale relationships, we centered our study on the Taizi River Basin (TRB) in northeastern China, encompassing data on land use, macroinvertebrates, physical habitats, and water quality. We employed a synergy of correlation analysis, multiple stepwise regression, and redundant analysis techniques to discern these relationships at diverse spatial extents. This approach led to the development of 24 structural equation models (SEMs) that delineate the pathways bridging land use patterns to various biological indices. Remarkably, the interpretive capacity of SEM-Benthic Index of Biotic Integrity (SEM-BIBI), SEM-Shannon Wiener index (SEM-H’), and SEM-Average Score Per Taxon (SEM-ASPT) models was 76%, 70%, and 66% respectively. Within the TRB, the primary pathway from land use pattern to biological index consisted of: land use (predominantly rural and agricultural) feeding into physical habitat (habitat complexity, combined characteristic of speed and depth), which in turn affected benthic indicators. A secondary pathway charts a course from land use, through water quality (electrical conductivity and total dissolved solids) and culminating in benthic variations. Furthermore, our findings indicated that inverse-distance-weighted (IDW) metrics, specifically the IDW distance based on flow length to the stream outlet and the nearest stream (iFLO_m and iFLS_m, respectively) could provide more accurate interpretations of the river’s ecological health status. Given the effects of rural areas and agriculture on macroinvertebrates, we recommend establishing 100-m wide riparian buffers. The optimal buffer range should be determined by evaluating various biological needs and considerations.

Background High mortality rates are prevalent among patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and effective therapeutic targets are key prognostic factors. Fascin actin-bundling protein 1 (FSCN1) promotes NSCLC; however, its role as an RNA-binding protein in NSCLC remains unexplored. Therefore, we aimed to explore FSCN1 expression and function in A549 cells. Method We screened for alternative-splicing events and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) after FSCN1 silence via RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq). FSCN1 immunoprecipitation followed by RNA-seq were used to identify target genes whose mRNA expression and pre-mRNA alternative-splicing levels might be influenced by FSCN1. Results Silencing FSCN1 in A549 cells affected malignant phenotypes; it inhibited proliferation, migration, and invasion, and promoted apoptosis. RNA-seq analysis revealed 2,851 DEGs and 3,057 alternatively spliced genes. Gene ontology-based functional enrichment analysis showed that downregulated DEGs and alternatively splicing genes were enriched for the cell-cycle. FSCN1 promoted the alternative splicing of cell-cycle-related mRNAs involved in tumorigenesis (i.e., BCCIP, DLGAP5, PRC1, RECQL5, WTAP, and SGO1). Combined analysis of FSCN1 RNA-binding targets and RNA-seq data suggested that FSCN1 might affect ACTG1, KRT7, and PDE3A expression by modulating the pre-mRNA alternative-splicing levels of NME4, NCOR2, and EEF1D, that were bound to long non-coding RNA transcripts (RNASNHG20, NEAT1, NSD2, and FTH1), which were highly abundant. Overall, extensive transcriptome analysis of gene alternative splicing and expression levels was performed in cells transfected with FSCN1 short-interfering RNA. Our data provide global insights into the regulatory mechanisms associated with the roles of FSCN1 and its target genes in lung cancer.

In GIScience, the regionalization method is widely used for geographical data mining, spatiotemporal pattern discovery, and regional studies. An ideal regionalization method should consider spatial contiguity, temporal contiguity, and attribute similarity. Existing regionalization approaches mostly focus on spatial contiguity and attribute similarity while ignoring the temporal contiguity characteristics of geographic phenomena. We propose a multivariate spatiotemporal regionalization (STR) method that considers spatiotemporal contiguity and attribute similarity. We design a bottom – up unsupervised multivariate hierarchical clustering algorithm with constraints using spatiotemporal proximity rules, enabling the automatic regionalization of spatiotemporal data. To test the performance of the STR method, we applied it to a synthetic dataset and a real-world dataset (Chinese air pollutant data) and achieved ideal results. Such a method offers a spatiotemporal perspective to address regionalization or clustering problems, potentially supporting other applications in spatiotemporal data analysis, remote sensing, urban planning, and social science.

One of the most crucial topics in spatial interaction studies is mining patterns from extensive origin-destination (OD) flow data to capture interregional associations. However, prevailing methodologies tend to disregard the importance of using the relative closeness of interregional connections as weights, treat spatial and temporal dimensions independently, or overlook the temporal dimension completely. Consequently, the identified patterns are susceptible to inaccuracies, and the precise identification of pattern occurrence time and duration, despite their fundamental importance, remains elusive. In light of these challenges, this study proposes a strategy to calculate and combine the strength of weighted spatiotemporal flows, and develops a clustering method and evaluation metrics based on this framework. Compared to alternative density-based methods, the strength-based calculation approach demonstrates a capacity to identify flow patterns characterized by relatively high interregional closeness. Thus, the identification of flow patterns expands beyond density-based approaches, encompassing strength-based considerations and a shift from absolute to relative closeness between regions. Experiments using synthetic datasets conducted in this research demonstrate the effectiveness, efficiency, and extraction accuracy of the proposed method. Furthermore, a case study using real Chinese population migration data demonstrates the efficacy of the method in revealing implicit spatiotemporal association patterns between regions. The present study implements an interaction strength-based flow clustering and evaluation method that considers spatiotemporal continuity, making it applicable to spatial flow data analysis involving interaction volume and time attributes. As a result, this method holds promise for facilitating the modeling of intricate spatial flows within various contexts of study.

Abstract Background Arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis are closely related with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Remnant cholesterol (RC) could predict CVD. However, its effect on joint arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis progression remains unclear. This study aims to evaluate the association of RC with joint arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis progression trajectories in the general population. Methods This study collected data across five biennial surveys of the Beijing Health Management Cohort from 2010 to 2019. Multi-trajectory model was used to determine the joint arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis progression patterns by brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) and ankle brachial index (ABI). We also performed discordance analyses for RC vs. low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) using ordinal logistics model. Results A total of 3186 participants were included, with three clusters following distinct arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis progression patterns identified using a multi-trajectory model. In the multivariable-adjusted ordinal logistics analyses, RC was significantly associated with baPWV and ABI progression (OR: 1.20; 95% CI: 1.13–1.28, per 10 mg/dL). For the discordance analyses, the discordant low RC group was associated with decreased risk compared to the concordant group (OR: 0.73; 95% CI: 0.60–0.89). People with a high RC level were at an increased risk of joint arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis progression, even with optimal LDL-C. Conclusions RC is independently associated with joint arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis progression beyond LDL-C. RC could be an earlier risk factor than LDL-C of arteriosclerosis and atherosclerosis in the general population.

As the scale of telecommunication networks continues to grow, the structure of network elements becomes increasingly complex. Consequently, the data service has experienced a significant boom, leading to a substantial increase in network failures and equipment alarms. Effectively detecting hidden anomalies within massive network time series presents a significant challenge for network operators during their operation and maintenance tasks. This paper proposes a multi-dimensional sequence anomaly detection method named TransKS that integrates Transform and K-SIGMA on dynamic variable thresholds and applies it on the VoLTE and 5G core network. By designing the Transform multi-dimensional time series predictor, the method carries out parallel modeling and forecasting of the index sequence. It may thoroughly investigate the time dimension correlation relationship of the indicators as well as the linking effect of the indicators. And then we designed an adaptive sliding window approach on validation score by dynamically updating the value K and the threshold interval to detect context abnormalities and evaluate the abnormality of network element indicators quantitatively and reasonably. Experiments show that compared the performance with other algorithms, the TransKS has a higher accuracy rate of anomaly detection. When MAPE=0.01 and k is 4, the accuracy rate is the highest, up to 96.92%, which is at least 2.10% higher than other combined models, and its false positive rate and false positive rate have decreased, only 3.06% and 3.25%.

Dynamic process simulation and prediction of crowd movement are effective approaches to understanding the complex human behavior system in GIScience. At present, obtaining full-sample individual trajectory data still faces challenges because of privacy and cost constraints, thereby resulting in difficulty solving geographic modeling problems that require full-sample individual data. In this paper, a general model for crowd movement simulation is proposed by taking the dynamic evaluation of tourist carrying capacity as an example. Such method is a multi-granularity coupling model, which considers behavioral process and spatiotemporal heterogeneity of tourists. First, a secrete event-based logic model of tourist behavior is proposed. Second, a social force-based inference method of tourist path is designed. Finally, the simulation and evaluation model of remaining spatial carrying capacity of tourists based on a behavioral dynamic system is achieved. In addition, the correctness and applicability of the model are demonstrated through a case study. The proposed model will positively affect time- and space-sharing analysis and assessment of crowd flow within a specific area of activity.

Abstract Background This trial aimed to analyse the safety, effectiveness and transcriptomic characteristics of neoadjuvant toripalimab plus chemotherapy in II–III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods Patient eligibility mainly involved treatment-naive, clinical stage II–III and wild-type EGFR/ALK NSCLC. The patients received 2–4 cycles of toripalimab (240 mg q3w) plus carboplatin-based chemotherapy. After the second treatment cycle, all patients were re-evaluated by a multidisciplinary team. Candidates eligible for surgery underwent surgery; otherwise, patients received the remaining treatment cycles. The primary endpoints were safety and major pathological response (MPR). Secondary endpoints were R0 resection rate, progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). RNA sequencing of baseline and post-treatment samples was conducted to explore the transcriptomic characteristics of the therapeutic response. Results In total, 50 eligible patients were enrolled, including 12 (24.0%) with resectable disease (RD) and 38 (76.0%) with potentially resectable disease (PRD). Treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) were recorded in 48 cases (96.0%). Severe TRAEs occurred in 3 (6.0%) cases, including myelosuppression, drug-induced liver injury and death related to haemoptysis. The objective response rate (ORR) was 76.0%, with 8 (16.0%) patients having a complete response (CR), 30 (60.0%) partial response (PR), 10 (20.0%) stable disease (SD) and 2 (4.0%) progressive disease (PD). Surgery could be achieved in 12 (100%) patients with RD and 25 (65.8%) with PRD; 1 (2.0%) with PRD refused surgery. Therefore, R0 resection was performed for all 36 (100%) patients who underwent surgery; 20 (55.6%) achieved MPR, including 10 (27.8%) with a complete pathological response (pCR). The CHI3L1 (chitinase-3-like protein 1) immunohistochemistry (IHC) expression of baseline tumour samples could predict the therapeutic response (AUC=0.732), OS (P=0.017) and PFS (P=0.001). Increased PD-1 expression, T cell abundance and immune-related pathway enrichment were observed in post-treatment samples compared to baseline in the response group (CR+PR) but not in the non-response group (SD+PD). Conclusions Neoadjuvant toripalimab plus chemotherapy was safe and effective, with a high MPR and manageable TRAEs for II–III NSCLC, even converting initially PRD to RD. Disparate transcriptomic characteristics of therapeutic efficiency were observed, and CHI3L1 expression predicted therapeutic response and survival. Trial registration ChiCTR1900024014, June 22, 2019.

Abstract Background Arterial stiffness, glycemic control and blood pressure are risk factors of macrovascular complications in type 2 diabetes. This study aimed to investigate the combined association of arterial stiffness, glycemic control and hypertension status with the occurrence of diabetic macrovascular complication. Methods A total of 1870 patients of diabetes were enrolled from Beijing Health Management Cohort between 2008 and 2018 as baseline, and then followed for macrovascular complication onset. We proposed a composite risk score (0–4) by arterial stiffness severity, pool glycemic control and hypertension status. Cox model was used to estimate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Results The mean age (SD) of this population was 59.90 (12.29) years. During a median follow-up of 4.0 years, 359 (19.2%) patients developed macrovascular complication. Compared to the normal arterial stiffness and good glycemic control group, patients with severe arterial stiffness and pool glycemic control had the highest risk of macrovascular complications (HR: 2.73; 95% CI: 1.42–5.25). Similarly, those of severe arterial stiffness and hypertension had the highest risk (HR: 2.69; 95% CI: 1.61–4.50). Patients of the composite score > 2 had a significantly increased risk of macrovascular complication. Conclusion This study suggested the clinical importance of combined evaluation of arterial stiffness, glycemic control and hypertension status for the risk stratification and management of macrovascular complication of type 2 diabetes.

BackgroundThe causal relationship between blood pressure variability (BPV) and arterial stiffness remains debated. ObjectiveThis study aimed to explore the temporal and bidirectional associations between long-term BPV and arterial stiffness using a cohort design with multiple surveys. MethodsParticipants from the Beijing Health Management Cohort who underwent health examinations from visit 1 (2010-2011) to visit 5 (2018-2019) were enrolled in this study. Long-term BPV was defined as intraindividual variation using the coefficient of variation (CV) and SD. Arterial stiffness was measured by brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV). The bidirectional relationship between BPV and arterial stiffness was explored using cross-lagged analysis and linear regression models, with records before and after visit 3 categorized as phase 1 and phase 2, respectively. ResultsOf the 1506 participants, who were a mean of 56.11 (SD 8.57) years old, 1148 (76.2%) were male. The cross-lagged analysis indicated that the standardized coefficients of BPV at phase 1 directing to the baPWV level at phase 2 were statistically significant but not vice-versa. The adjusted regression coefficients of the CV were 4.708 (95% CI 0.946-8.470) for systolic blood pressure, 3.119 (95% 0.166-6.073) for diastolic pressure, and 2.205 (95% CI 0.300-4.110) for pulse pressure. The coefficients of the SD were 4.208 (95% CI 0.177-8.239) for diastolic pressure and 4.247 (95% CI 0.448-8.046) for pulse pressure. The associations were predominant in the subgroup with hypertension, but we did not observe any significant association of baPWV level with subsequent BPV indices. ConclusionsThe findings supported a temporal relationship between long-term BPV and arterial stiffness level, especially among people with hypertension.

Background We aimed to examine separate and joint associations of remnant cholesterol (RC) accumulation and variability with the risk of carotid atherosclerosis (CAS) in the general population. Methods and Results A total of 6213 participants who underwent 3 sequential health examinations during 2010 to 2015 were enrolled and were followed up until December 31, 2021. Cumulative RC (cumRC) and RC variability among the 3 visits were the exposure of interest in our study. Adjusted Cox models were performed to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% CI. C‐statistics, integrated discrimination improvement, and the net reclassification index were used to estimate the incremental predictive ability. During a median follow‐up of 4.00 years, 2613 participants developed CAS. Higher cumRC (HR, 1.33 [95% CI, 1.17–1.52]) and greater RC variability (HR, 1.22 [95% CI, 1.08–1.39]) were significantly associated with elevated risk of CAS, independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors and low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol. Participants were divided into 4 groups according to the median of cumRC and RC variability to assess their joint associations. Compared with “low cumRC and low variability,” “high cumRC and high variability” had the highest risk of CAS, followed by “high cumRC and low variability” and “low cumRC and high variability.” Finally, joint assessment of RC accumulation and variability had the significantly highest incremental effect on the predictive value of CAS versus single‐time‐point measures of RC. Conclusions Excessive cumRC levels and greater RC variability were each independently associated with higher incidence of CAS, and their coexistence could further yield significantly higher risks.

Abstract Background Butyrate is a major subgingival microbial metabolite that is closely related to periodontal disease. It affects the proliferation and differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. However, the mechanisms by which butyrate affects the osteogenic differentiation of periodontal ligament stem cells (PDLSCs) remain unclear. Here, we investigated the effect of sodium butyrate (NaB) on the osteogenic differentiation of human PDLSCs. Methods PDLSCs were isolated from human periodontal ligaments and treated with various concentrations of NaB in vitro. The cell counting kit-8 assay and flow cytometric analysis were used to assess cell viability. The osteogenic differentiation capabilities of PDLSCs were evaluated using the alkaline phosphatase activity assay, alizarin red staining, RT-PCR, western blotting and in vivo transplantation. Results NaB decreased PDLSC proliferation and induced apoptosis in a dose- and time-depend manner. Additionally, 1 mM NaB reduced alkaline phosphatase activity, mineralization ability, and the expression of osteogenic differentiation-related genes and proteins. Treatment with a free fatty acids receptor 2 (FFAR2) antagonist and agonist indicated that NaB inhibited the osteogenic differentiation capacity of PDLSCs by affecting the expression of Smad1. Conclusion Our findings suggest that NaB inhibits the osteogenic differentiation of PDLSCs by activating FFAR2 and decreasing the expression of Smad1.

To investigate the effects of glucose oxidase (GOD) induced oxidation on the gel properties of silver carp surimi, the changes of elastic modulus (G'), loss modulus (G''), gel strength, whiteness, microstructure, water holding capacity, moisture distribution and protein crosslinking of surimi added with different GOD contents (0, 0.1‰, 0.3‰, 0.5‰, 0.7‰, 0.9‰) were analyzed. The results showed that G', G'', gel strength, whiteness and water holding capacity increased firstly and then decreased with the increase of GOD addition, and all of them reached the maximum when the addition was 0.5‰. When GOD addition was in the range of 0.1‰~0.5‰, the free water and bound water content of gelatin decreased, the content of immobile water increased, and the gel network of surimi was denser with the increase of GOD addition. While adding excessive GOD (0.7‰~0.9‰), the pore size of surimi gel increased and gel network was destroyed. As indicated by SDS-PAGE patterns, appropriate addition of GOD could promote the formation of disulfide bonds and non-disulfide covalent bonds between protein molecules, thus the gel properties of silver carp surimi were improved.

Objective: To investigate the CT findings of pulmonary infarction (PI) secondary to acute pulmonary embolism (APE). Method: The clinical and CT data of 41 patients with PI secondary to APE were analyzed retrospectively. The number, location, shape, margin of PI, pleural effusion and dynamic changes were summarized. Results: CT features of PI: (1) Number and location: Among the total 79 PI lesions, 18 patients had single lesion and 23 patients had multiple lesions. All lesions were located under the pleura and connected to the pleura with a broad base, 46.8% (37/79) were located in the lower lobe of the right lung, 36.7% (29/79) in the lower lobe of the left lung, 3.8% (3/79) in the upper lobe, 6.3% (5/79) in the middle lobe of the right lung, and 6.3% (5/79) in the lingual segment of the upper lobe of the left lung. (2) Shape: 45.6% (36/79) of the lesions showed Reversed Halo Sign (RHS), 36.7% (29/79) displayed consolidation of oval, wedge or hump, 17.7% (14/79) revealed ground glass opacity. (3) Bronchovascular bundles in PI: Bronchovascular bundles were found in 79.7% (63/79) of PI. In 21.3% (16/79) of the cases, there was no bronchovascular bundle in the lesion because of its small size; (4) After enhancement, there was no enhancement shown in the 79 PI lesions. (5) All 79 lesions changed into patchy or linear during the end of the treatment period. (6) Pleural effusion: 63.4% (26/41) of patients had pleural effusion, among whom 42.3% (11/26) had bilateral pleural effusion, and 57.7% (15/26) had unilateral pleural effusion. Conclusion: The imaging manifeatations of PE secondary to API hole certain characteristics. For single or multiple lesions under the pleura, with RHS, consolidation of wedge or hump, bronchovascular bundles, APE secondary to API should be considered. In addition, pleural effusion is helpful for diagnosis.

Abstract Background Seed dormancy and germination determine wheat resistance to pre-harvest sprouting and thereby affect grain yield and quality. Arabidopsis VQ genes have been shown to influence seed germination; however, the functions of wheat VQ genes have not been characterized. Results We identified 65 TaVQ genes in common wheat and named them TaVQ1–65. We identified 48 paralogous pairs, 37 of which had Ka/Ks values greater than 1, suggesting that most TaVQ genes have experienced positive selection. Chromosome locations, gene structures, promoter element analysis, and gene ontology annotations of the TaVQs showed that their structures determined their functions and that structural changes reflected functional diversity. Transcriptome-based expression analysis of 62 TaVQ genes and microarray analysis of 11 TaVQ genes indicated that they played important roles in diverse biological processes. We compared TaVQ gene expression and seed germination index values among wheat varieties with contrasting seed dormancy and germination phenotypes and identified 21 TaVQ genes that may be involved in seed dormancy and germination. Conclusions Sixty-five TaVQ proteins were identified for the first time in common wheat, and bioinformatics analyses were used to investigate their phylogenetic relationships and evolutionary divergence. qRT-PCR data showed that 21 TaVQ candidate genes were potentially involved in seed dormancy and germination. These findings provide useful information for further cloning and functional analysis of TaVQ genes and introduce useful candidate genes for the improvement of PHS resistance in wheat.

Abstract Collagen, characteristic in biomimetic composition and hierarchical structure, boasts a huge potential in repairing cartilage defect due to its extraordinary bioactivities and regulated physicochemical properties, such as low immunogenicity, biocompatibility and controllable degradation, which promotes the cell adhesion, migration and proliferation. Therefore, collagen-based biomaterial has been explored as porous scaffolds or functional coatings in cell-free scaffold and tissue engineering strategy for cartilage repairing. Among those forming technologies, freeze-dry is frequently used with special modifications while 3D-printing and electrospinning serve as the structure-controller in a more precise way. Besides, appropriate cross-linking treatment and incorporation with bioactive substance generally help the collagen-based biomaterials to meet the physicochemical requirement in the defect site and strengthen the repairing performance. Furthermore, comprehensive evaluations on the repair effects of biomaterials are sorted out in terms of in vitro, in vivo and clinical assessments, focusing on the morphology observation, characteristic production and critical gene expression. Finally, the challenge of biomaterial-based therapy for cartilage defect repairing was summarized, which is, the adaption to the highly complex structure and functional difference of cartilage. Graphical abstract

Accurate evaluating the service quality of public living facilities in a community by quantitative method is significant to urban planning. However, the performances of existing methods are usually limited for service quality evaluation due to single data source or single index. To solve the above problems, we propose a service quality evaluation model of public living facilities in a community. Firstly, POI data and subjective residents' satisfaction evaluation data was pre-processed for data preparation. Then, the four evaluation indicators included in the model were established, namely, accessibility, diversity, selectivity, and satisfaction. Finally, after the completion of the calculation of the four indexes, standardized processing of the calculation results was performed, and the entropy method was used to assign different weights to the indexes, thereby achieving the quantitative evaluation of the service quality of community public living facilities. We chose the central urban area of Chengdu, China, as a case study for modeling analysis, and the case study successfully estimated the service quality and spatial difference of community living facilities. The results of this model can provide a reliable basis for future urban planning and the location of commercial facilities.

IntroductionAltered Immunoglobulin G (IgG) N-glycosylation is associated with aging, inflammation, and diseases status, while its effect on esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains unknown. As far as we know, this is the first study to explore and validate the association of IgG N-glycosylation and the carcinogenesis progression of ESCC, providing innovative biomarkers for the predictive identification and targeted prevention of ESCC.MethodsIn total, 496 individuals of ESCC (n=114), precancerosis (n=187) and controls (n=195) from the discovery population (n=348) and validation population (n=148) were recruited in the study. IgG N-glycosylation profile was analyzed and an ESCC-related glycan score was composed by a stepwise ordinal logistic model in the discovery population. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve with the bootstrapping procedure was used to assess the performance of the glycan score.ResultsIn the discovery population, the adjusted OR of GP20 (digalactosylated monosialylated biantennary with core and antennary fucose), IGP33 (the ratio of all fucosylated monosyalilated and disialylated structures), IGP44 (the proportion of high mannose glycan structures in total neutral IgG glycans), IGP58 (the percentage of all fucosylated structures in total neutral IgG glycans), IGP75 (the incidence of bisecting GlcNAc in all fucosylated digalactosylated structures in total neutral IgG glycans), and the glycan score are 4.03 (95% CI: 3.03-5.36, P

Abstract Background To evaluate the association of physical activity (PA) intensity with cognitive performance at baseline and during follow-up. Methods A total of 4039 participants aged 45 years or above from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study were enrolled in visit 1 (2011–2012) and followed for cognitive function in visit 2 (2013–2014), visit 3 (2015–2016), and visit 4 (2017–2018). We analyzed the association of PA intensity with global cognition, episodic memory, and mental intactness at baseline using adjusted regression methods and evaluated the long-term effect of PA intensity using multiple measures of cognition scores by mixed effect model. Results In cross-sectional analysis, mild and moderate PA, rather than vigorous PA, was associated with better cognitive performance. The results remained consistent in multiple sensitivity analyses. During the follow-up, participant with mild PA had a 0.56 (95% CI 0.12–0.99) higher global cognition, 0.23 (95% CI 0.01–0.46) higher episodic memory, and 0.33 (95% CI 0.01–0.64) higher mental intactness, while those with moderate PA had a 0.74 (95% CI 0.32–1.17) higher global score, 0.32 (95% CI 0.09–0.54) higher episodic memory, and 0.43 (95% CI 0.12–0.74) higher mental intactness, compared with individuals without PA. Vigorous PA was not beneficial to the long-term cognitive performance. Conclusions Our study indicates that mild and moderate PA could improve cognitive performance, rather than the vigorous activity. The targeted intensity of PA might be more effective to achieve the greatest cognition improvement considering age and depressive status.

Spatial autocorrelation analysis is essential for understanding the distribution patterns of spatial flow data. Existing methods focus mainly on the origins and destinations of flow units and the relationships between them. These methods measure the autocorrelation of gravity or the positional and directional autocorrelations of flow units that are treated as objects. However, the intrinsic complexity of actual flow data necessitates the consideration of not only gravity, positional, and directional autocorrelations but also the autocorrelations of the variables of interest. This study proposes a global spatial autocorrelation method to measure the variables of interest of flow data. This method mainly consists of three steps. First, the proximity constraints of the origin and destination of a flow unit are defined to ensure similarity of flow units in terms of direction, distance, and position. This undertaking aims to determine the neighborhood of flow units and generate their adjacent matrices. Second, a spatial autocorrelation measurement model for flow data is constructed on the basis of the adjacent matrix generated. Artificial data sets are also employed to test the validity of the model. Finally, the proposed method is applied to the flow data analysis of population migration in central and eastern China to prove the practical application value of the model. The proposed method is universal and can be generalized to the global spatial autocorrelation analysis of any type of flow data.

We present two-dimensional (2D) optical Thomson scattering measurements of electron density and temperature in laser-produced plasmas. The novel instrument directly measures ne(x,y) and Te(x,y) in two dimensions over large spatial regions (cm2) with sub-mm spatial resolution, by automatically translating the scattering volume while the plasma is produced repeatedly by irradiating a solid target with a high-repetition-rate laser beam (10 J, ∼1012 W/cm2, 1 Hz). In this paper, we describe the design and motorized auto-alignment of the instrument and the computerized algorithm that autonomously fits the spectral distribution function to the tens-of-thousands of measured scattering spectra, and captures the transition from the collective to the non-collective regime with distance from the target. As an example, we present the first 2D scattering measurements in laser-driven shock waves in ambient nitrogen gas at a pressure of 0.13 mbar.

Temporal action detection is a very important and challenging task in the field of video understanding, especially for datasets with significant differences in action duration. The temporal relationships between the action instances contained in these datasets are very complex. For such videos, it is necessary to capture information with a richer temporal distribution as much as possible. In this paper, we propose a dual-stream model that can model contextual information at multiple temporal scales. First, the input video is divided into two resolution streams, followed by a Multi-Resolution Context Aggregation module to capture multi-scale temporal information. Additionally, an Information Enhancement module is added after the high-resolution input stream to model both long-range and short-range contexts. Finally, the outputs of the two modules are merged to obtain features with rich temporal information for action localization and classification. We conducted experiments on three datasets to evaluate the proposed approach. On ActivityNet-v1.3, an average mAP (mean Average Precision) of 32.83% was obtained. On Charades, the best performance was obtained, with an average mAP of 27.3%. On TSU (Toyota Smarthome Untrimmed), an average mAP of 33.1% was achieved.

Weld defects such as porosity, inclusion, burn-through, and lack of penetration are difficult to detect and control effectively in an orthotropic steel deck (OSD), which will be a fatigue crack initiation site and lead to several fatigue cracking. The crack growth behavior in defective welded joints is different from that of defect-free joints. This study investigates crack–inclusion interaction for rib-to-deck welded joints in OSDs based on numerical simulation and linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM). A refined finite element model of a half U-rib with cracks and inclusions was established by using the FRANC3D-ABAQUS interactive technology. The full processes of the crack–inclusion interaction from approaching and penetrating were accurately simulated. Critical parameters, including the stress intensity factor (SIF), the shape factor, the growth rate, and the growth direction were analyzed. The stiff and soft inclusions amplify and shield the SIF of cracks when the crack grows to the local area of inclusions. During the entire process of crack growth, the soft and stiff inclusion accelerate and inhibit the crack growth, respectively. The stiff inclusion will lead to asymmetric growth of the crack shape, where the portion of the crack away from the inclusions has a higher growth rate. The soft and stiff inclusions will attract and repel the direction of crack growth at the proximal point, respectively.