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The effects of quenching and tempering temperatures on the microstructure and mechanccal properties of H13 hot work die steel were rnvestigated by using metallograplic microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, microhardness tesiing,and tensle testing. The findings revealed that secondary tempering treatment and appropriate reduction in tempering temperature result in the effective precipitation of iiner and more dispersed carbides and the complete release of quenching stress. As a resutt, the hardness and toughness of H13 hot work de steel were significantly improved. Notably,when the quenching temperature was 1 000 C and the tempering temperature was 520 C, the mechanical properties are superior, characterized by smaler tempering martenstte size and more uniform structural dsstribution. Under these cond!tions, the hardness measureed 487 HV, the tenslle strength reached 1 779 MPa,and the elongation was 11. 5%. The analysis of the tenslle fracture morphology reveals the presence of numerous dimples in the specimen after the tempering process, indccative of typca! ducile fracture charac t eris i ccs. Fur t hermore,a model was developed to describe t he soft ening behavior of H13 s t eel during t empering n t he t empera t ure range of 520 C to 600 C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current investigation delves into the influence of varying cooling rates, encompassing water, rapid quenching oil, and air, on the quench crack susceptibility (QCS) of disc springs. The assessment reveals that the average martensite lath width under water, oil, and air cooling conditions measures 0.61 μm, 0.66 μm, and 1.12 μm, respectively. Correspondingly, the residual austenite content amounts to 6.9%, 8.7%, and 12.3%. Notably, cracks are observed at the disc spring's perimeter during water cooling, whereas oil and air cooling effectively preclude such occurrences. Simulations demonstrate that residual stresses of up to 1011 MPa can arise at the disc spring cross-section corners under water cooling, significantly surpassing the stresses encountered under oil and air cooling, at 440 MPa and 73 MPa respectively. As the microstructure evolves, these residual stresses critically impact the grain boundaries of the original austenite, compromising the buffering capabilities of the martensite phase and residual austenite, thereby enhancing susceptibility to quench cracking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the potential use of Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi) in treating SAPHO syndrome, a rare autoinflammatory disease that affects the skin and skeletal system. JAKi can block the action of various cytokines involved in inflammation, making them potentially more effective than biologics that only target one cytokine. The article presents case reports of SAPHO syndrome patients who experienced symptom improvement after treatment with JAKi, specifically tofacitinib, baricitinib, and upadacitinib. However, more research is needed to validate the efficacy of JAKi in treating SAPHO syndrome, including studies on tapering or discontinuation of JAKi and potential relapses or treatment failures. [Extracted from the article]

The commonly used criteria for SAPHO syndrome were proposed by Kahn in 1997 and revised in 2003:[1] (1) bone-joint involvement associated with PPP and psoriasis vulgaris; (2) bone-joint involvement associated with SA; (3) isolated sterile hyperostosis/osteitis; and (4) chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis (children). Upadacitinib effectively relieved bone pain and skin damage in patients, and no significant adverse effects were found; thus, it may be a potential treatment option for SAPHO syndrome. Keywords: autoinflammatory disease; SAPHO syndrome; treatment option; upadacitinib EN autoinflammatory disease SAPHO syndrome treatment option upadacitinib 2335 2337 3 11/03/23 20231101 NES 231101 SAPHO syndrome (synovitis, acne, pustulosis, hyperostosis, osteitis) is a rare autoinflammatory disease which may manifest clinically as aseptic osteomyelitis and aseptic joint inflammation, with or without cutaneous manifestations.[1] Osteoarticular symptoms occur mainly in the anterior chest wall (ACW) and may also involve the spine and peripheral joints. [Extracted from the article]

Synovitis, acne, pustulosis, hyperostosis, and osteitis (SAPHO) syndrome is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by osteoarticular and cutaneous involvement as its main manifestations.[1] Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disease that mainly includes Crohn disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Additionally, when patients develop SAPHO syndrome coexisting with IBD, we need to differentiate IBD-related arthritis and SAPHO syndrome. [Extracted from the article]

Synovitis, acne, pustulosis, hyperostosis, osteitis (SAPHO) syndrome is a rare autoinflammatory disease that mainly involves bones, joints, and skin, characterized by sterile osteitis and neutrophilic dermatosis. SAPHO syndrome and PG may be different variations of the spectrum of autoinflammatory diseases. [Extracted from the article]

Polyoxometalate-based metal-organic frameworks (POMOFs) with bifunctional Lewis-Brønsted acid were designed by confining polyoxometalates (POMs: phosphotungstic acid (PW), phosphomolybdic acid (PMo) or silicotungstic acid (SiW)) within the Zr-MOFs. The confined POMs not only have their own Brønsted acid, but can also regulate the Lewis acid strength of the POMOFs via charge regulation, ultimately allowing the POMOFs to display superior catalytic performance in the tandem catalysis of furfural (FAL) to γ-valerolactone (GVL). Among the three catalysts (POMOF-PW, POMOF-PMo and POMOF-SiW), a complete conversion of FAL was achieved, while POMOF-PW exhibited the highest GVL yield (58.1 %) at 160 °C within 23 h. The leaching experiment and structural characterization of the catalyst before and after recycling confirmed the stability of the catalyst structure. The humin originates from the polymerization of furan ring-containing compounds driven by Brønsted acid. The adsorption configuration of the substrate molecules on the catalyst offers a new explanation for the tandem reaction process, i.e. that perpendicular adsorption performs only the first step of the tandem reaction, while the coexistence of perpendicular and horizontal adsorption permits the entire reaction process. This work gives unique insights into the tandem reaction of FAL and can guide the design of efficient tandem reaction catalysts. A synthetic strategy has been developed to construct polyoxometalate-based metal-organic framework (POMOF) with bifunctional Lewis-Brønsted acid sites by chemically confining polyoxometalates (POM) in metal-organic framework (MOF) channels. Confined POM not only endows the catalyst with Brønsted acid sites, but also enhances the acid strength of the catalyst through charge regulation, which finally promotes the catalyst to exhibit excellent catalytic performance in the multi-step cascade catalysis from furfural (FAL) to γ-valerolactone (GVL). This work also provides insight into the origin and driving sites of the by-product humin, as well as the role of the adsorption configuration in the catalytic process. A look into the future of the multi-step tandem reaction of FAL to GVL is presented. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Four acid-modified MOF-808 were synthesized by a post-synthesis approach. • The acidity and electron acceptor capacity of the acid groups affect B/L acidity. • Zr-808-TF has the strongest Lewis and Brønsted acidity and the highest B/L ratio. • Zr-808-TF gave 83 % GVL yield (160 °C, 8 h) in the tandem conversion of FUR to GVL. The one-pot tandem conversion of furfural (FUR) to γ-valerolactone (GVL) is desirable due to the high value of GVL and the efficiency of the synthesis process. While MOF-808 presented a good catalytic potential among Zr-MOFs, it lacked the necessary Brønsted acidity for the tandem conversion. In this study, Zr-based metal–organic framework (MOF-808) was modified with acids of different strengths (triflic acid, sulfuric acid, sulfamic acid, and trifluoroacetic acid) using a two-step post-synthesis impregnation method. EPR results revealed the appearance of coordinatively unsaturated sites of Zr (Zr-CUS) in the first step of HCl-treated Zr-808-HCl and their disappearance in the subsequent acid-modified catalysts, clarifying the impregnation process. These modified frameworks (Zr-808-TF, Zr-808-S, Zr-808-SN, and Zr-808-CF) were employed as catalysts for the tandem conversion of FUR to GVL. Zr 3d XPS and solid-state 31P MAS NMR spectra of TMPO adsorbed on the catalysts proved that Zr-808-TF outperformed other catalysts in terms of both Brønsted/Lewis acid strength and ratio. With such catalytic active sites, Zr-808-TF exhibited superior catalytic activity, achieving 83% GVL yield over an 8-hour reaction period. The four acid-modified catalysts not only differed in Lewis/Brønsted acid sites, but also exhibited different catalytic performances in the tandem conversion. The in-depth insight into the relationship between the modified functional groups and the acid-base sites provides a new avenue to optimize the acid-base sites and expands the application of MOFs in cascade catalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stabilization of transition metal species (like Zr>4+) with increasingly positive charge density at oxide surfaces is highly important for intrinsically improving catalytic performance for many uses like catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) reaction, which however remains inaccessible. Here, we showcase a water-quenching strategy that stably achieves Zr>4+ species at surfaces of prototype spinel oxide NiFe 2 O 4. Systematic investigation unveils that these Zr>4+species were precisely incorporated into surface octahedral Ni sites of NiFe 2 O 4. The local electronic structure was thus regulated. As a consequence, there simultaneously appear electron depletion (Zr>4+) and accumulation (O2-) at the resulted sites, which play the distinct roles as Lewis acid-base sites in (i) facilitating O-H bond dissociation and C O bond activation, (ii) enhancing the interaction and bonding with substrate molecules, and (iii) reducing the energy barrier for hydrogen transfer process. The resulting catalysts exhibit superior catalytic performance and stability in the CTH reaction of biomass-derived carbonyls and representative aldehydes/ketones, especially the reduction of furfural to furfuryl alcohol with a yield of 90.7% under 120 ℃ for 3 h. This work provides new insights into optimizing catalytic activity in metal oxides by stabilizing transition metal species with unexpectedly positive charge density. [Display omitted] • An innovative quenching strategy precisely incorporates Zr>4+ ions onto the surface octahedral Ni sites of NiFe 2 O 4. • Regulating electronic structure creates Lewis acid-base sites with electron depletion (Zr>4+) and accumulation (O2-). • Catalysts exhibit superior and universal performance in the CTH reaction under mild conditions. • The unique surface chemistry reduces the energy barrier for hydrogen transfer. • Direct hydrogen transfer prevailsin catalytic reaction over NiFe 2 O 4 -Zr catalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A complete Co doping range up to its solid solubility limit in FeSe have been successfully grown. • The typical lateral size of Fe 1-x Co x Se single crystals is 1–5 mm. • All the samples show metalic behaviour in contrast to a metal insulator transition of Cu doped FeSe. A series of tetragonal Fe 1-x Co x Se single crystals with a complete Co doping range (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.52) up to its solid solubility limit in FeSe have been grown by an eutectic AlCl 3 /KCl molten salt method. The typical lateral size of as-grown Fe 1-x Co x Se single crystals is 1–5 mm. The chemical composition and homogeneity of the crystals was examined by both inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy and energy dispersive spectrometer. X-ray diffraction analysis demonstrates that the crystal lattice parameters a and c are both linearly decreased with increasing Co doping level x. In the whole doping range, all the samples show metallic behaviour in contrast to a metal insulator transition of Cu-doped FeSe according to the resistivity measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both one‐pot catalytic conversion of furfural (FAL) to isopropyl levulinate (PL) and carbonization of by‐product (humins) for electromagnetic wave absorption are discussed, which provides inspiration that humins can be applied to electromagnetic wave absorption. In the former, phosphotungstic acid (PW) is employed as a homogeneous catalyst to convert FAL to PL via a tandem reaction in one pot, with the formation of a vast amount of humins. With FAL and various intermediates as substrates, it was found that humins was a polymerization product of FAL, furfuryl alcohol (FOL) and furfuryl ester (FE) with furan rings. In addition, the in situ attenuated total reflection infrared (ATR‐IR) spectra also provided a basis for the proposed reaction route. In the latter, with the humins as raw material, P species and WO3 doped nano‐porous carbon (Humins‐700) platform formed after high‐temperature annealing is used for electromagnetic wave absorption and manifests desirable absorption performance. The minimum reflection loss (RLmin) value is −47.3 dB at 13.0 GHz with a thickness of 2.0 mm and the effective absorption bandwidth reaches 4.5 GHz (11.2–5.7 GHz). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A hollow core–shell magnetic zirconium hydroxide catalyst was synthesized and employed for the catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) ofnumerous biomass-derived platform molecules (furfural and other carbonyl compounds). 93.9% conversion of furfural and 97.3% selectivity of furfuryl alcohol was achieved under mild reaction conditions (160 °C, 4 h, 0.1 g catalyst) with 2-propanol as the H-donor. After 7 times of reaction cycles, the catalyst retained excellent conversion (91.1%) and selectivity (97.8%) and no structural damage was found. Furthermore, a scale-up experiment was carried out, and the results proved that the catalyst has a prospect for industrial applications in the CTH reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The composition homogeneous CuFeSe 2 single crystals with 1.6 × 1.2 × 1.0 mm3 in size are successfully grown. • The intrinsic ferrimagnetic transition occurs below T C = 146 K without other magnetic impurity interference. • An abrupt increase of resistivity below T C revealing a semiconducting behavior. An eutectic AlCl 3 /KCl molten salt method in a horizontal configuration was employed to grow millimeter-sized and composition homogeneous CuFeSe 2 single crystals due to the continuous growth process in a temperature gradient induced solution convection. The typical as-grown CuFeSe 2 single crystals in cubic forms are nearly 1.6 × 1.2 × 1.0 mm3 in size. The chemical composition and homogeneity of the crystals was examined by both inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy and energy dispersive spectrometer with Cu:Fe:Se = 0.96:1.00:1.99 consistent with the stoichiometric composition of CuFeSe 2. The magnetic measurements suggest a ferrimagnetic or weak ferromagnetic transition below T C = 146 K and the resistivity reveals a semiconducting behavior and an abrupt increase below T C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complexity of climate system dynamics calls for more elaborate drought evaluation and trend projection under different future climate scenarios. In this study, the meteorological drought stress over the Yellow River basin (YRB) of China for the next forty years (2021–2060) is comprehensively evaluated based on meteorological simulations of eight climate models from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) with three representative concentration pathway scenarios (RCP2.6, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5). The standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) is used as a metric of drought magnitude at multiple temporal scales, while the multi‐threshold run analysis is conducted for the definition of drought events and derivation of drought characteristics (e.g., frequency, duration and severity). The Mann–Kendall test is adopted as a universal tool to analyse the trends in climate variables (precipitation and temperature), multi‐temporal SPEI drought indices and drought characteristics (duration and severity). Our preliminary conclusions include that partially increasing precipitation and generally rising temperature are likely to be seen in the YRB from 2021 to 2060. More importantly, a warmer YRB may undergo either a nearly regular atmospheric regime (e.g., comparable to the baseline period of 1961–2000) with RCP2.6 scenario or significantly drying processes with RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios. Meanwhile, the enhanced spatiotemporal variability/heterogeneity of meteorological forcing (e.g., precipitation and temperature) and drought characteristics (e.g., magnitude, frequency, duration and severity) would also increase future uncertainty of meteorological drought stress over the YRB, such as the encounter of drought with long duration and/or high severity and relevant increasing trends. Understanding the spatiotemporal influences of specific climate and emission scenarios on projected drought vulnerability might help improving our knowledge of climate‐human interactions and selecting rational development strategy (like the low emission scenario of RCP2.6 or so) for regional adaptation to future climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a simple and economical process, the reduction preparation of the Cu/ZrOCO3 catalyst and the catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH)reaction of methyl levulinate (ML)were carried out simultaneously in one pot providing 89.79% product yield at 180 ° C for 7 h. Different from direct hydrogen transfer reaction catalyzed by ZrOCO3 with only valerolactone (GVL) produced, the introduction of Cu/Cu+ on ZrOCO3 carrier not only enhances the activity of the reaction, but also further converts GVL into 1,4‐pentanediol (1,4‐PDO)by indirect hydrogen transfer. In addition, we also found the copper‐loaded amphoteric carrier has better catalytic activity than the basic carrier. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A simple basic zirconium carbonate (BZC), which can be produced on a large scale in industry, was studied for hydrogen transfer of biomass-derived carboxides and exhibited excellent catalytic properties at low temperatures, especially for the conversion of furfural (FUR) to furfuryl alcohol (FFA). With the catalyst, the reduction reaction of FUR was efficiently performed at low temperatures (below 100 °C) and an FFA yield of 98.66% was obtained even at room temperature. When the temperature reached 180 °C, the yield of FFA quickly reached 90.29% within 15 minutes. During the reaction, the changes of the functional groups of the reactants and products were monitored by in situ ATR-IR spectroscopy in real time, which provided a basis for the proposed reaction mechanism. Further, the ATR-IR spectroscopy and XPS results of the different catalysts showed that BZC has the strongest acidity among all the comparative catalysts, which is consistent with its best catalytic performance. In addition, reaction kinetics were also studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought projection is of critical significance for designing long-term drought adaptation strategies to cope with changing climate. This study presents an application of multi-class models for characterizing future droughts in the Yellow River basin (YRB). Using meteorological observations and simulations of three CMIP5 climatic models as input into VIC hydrologic model, the standardized Palmer drought index-based joint drought index (SPDI-JDI) is calculated to investigate spatiotemporal patterns and possible changes of future drought in the YRB, through an approach of bivariate modeling and analysis. It is concluded that moderate drought will be alleviated with decreased duration and severity, but extreme drought risk is likely to increase for future climate scenarios (2021–2050) relative to baseline period (1961–2000). From the perspective of bivariate analyses, the concurrence probability of drought events with extreme duration and severity might rise in the future, while increasing variability and heterogeneity of duration, severity and bivariate joint/concurrent return period would also increase the stochastic occurrence of extreme drought over time and space. These findings can provide insights into projection of climate change impacts on drought trends for the next 30 years, and help to preparations for strict control of socio-economic water consumption as well as eco-environmental protection and restoration in the YRB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work has presented gas sensors based on indium tin oxide (ITO) for the detection of SO2 and NO2. The ITO gas-sensing material was deposited by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The properties of gas sensing could be improved by increasing the ratio of SnO2. The response characteristics of the gas sensor for detecting different concentrations of NO2 and SO2 were investigated. In the detection of NO2, the sensitivity was significantly improved by increasing the SnO2 ratio in ITO by 5%, and the response and recovery time were reduced significantly. However, the sensitivity of the sensor decreased with increasing SO2 concentration. From X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis, the gas-sensitive response mechanisms were different in the atmosphere of NO2 and SO2. The NO2 was adsorbed by ITO via physisorption but the SO2 had a chemical reaction with the ITO surface. The gas selectivity, temperature dependence, and environmental humidity of ITO-based gas sensors were systematically analyzed. The high detection sensitivity for acidic gas of the prepared sensor presented great potential for acid rain monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Holey layered HEO nanocrystals with surface FLP sites have been synthesized via a temperature-variable topological transition. Merits of high-entropy oxides and nanoscale effects are favored yielding a superior catalytic performance toward the transfer hydrogenation (CTH) reaction of biomass-derived carbonyl compounds at mild conditions. Mechanistic investigation indicates that the formation of active regions between FLPs provides a stronger driving force for dissociating alcohols and activating the carbonyl groups of substrates, accounting for the enhanced catalytic activity. [Display omitted] • Holey layered high entropy oxide (HEO) nanocrystals with abundant frustrated Lewis pairs (FLPs) have been synthesized. • Combination of HEO properties and nanoscale effect drives FLPs concentrations of as-obtained catalyst up to 585.4 μmol/g. • Catalysts display superior catalytic activity and cycling performance toward the CTH reaction under mild conditions. • FLPs provide stronger driving forces for dissociating alcohols and activating the carbonyl groups of substrates. • Direct hydrogen transfer dominates the catalytic reaction over holey lamellar HEO catalysts. Creating frustrated Lewis pairs (FLPs) on stable high-entropy oxides (HEOs) is a new challenge, and also an uncultivated field in catalysis. Herein, holey layered HEO spinel nanocrystals with rich FLPs were synthesized via a temperature-driven topological transition. The FLPs on the surface of HEO spinel nanocrystals are created by oxygen vacancies (Lewis acid sites) and proximal surface hydroxyls or surface lattice oxygen (Lewis base sites). Rich FLPs furnish HEO nanocrystals a superior activity towards the catalytic transfer hydrogenation reaction of biomass-derived carbonyl compounds at mild conditions. The active regions in between FLPs provide a strong driving force for dissociating alcohols and activating carbonyl groups of substrates, as evidenced by the attenuated total reflectance-infrared spectroscopy (ATR-IR) analysis, which enhances the catalytic activity. This work develops a new kind of hydrogenation catalysts and provides a perspective for creating solid FLPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the catalytic transfer hydrogenation of biomass-derived ML into γ-GVL, we propose a one-step strategy for catalyst preparation and the CTH reaction. Using the strategy, the production of γ-GVL was performed with 2-PrOH as solvent over in situ reduced nano-Cu/AlOOH catalyst from Cu 2 (OH) 2 CO 3 /AlOOH. Meanwhile, the catalyst is heterogeneous and of high catalytic activity and stability due to the stability of the zero-valent copper in the catalyst and the nanosized catalyst. [Display omitted] • In situ reduction Cu/AlOOH catalystsefficiently participated in the CTH reaction from ML to γ-GVL with 2-PrOH as solvent. • In situ reduced Cu/AlOOH showed high catalytic activity and stability. • The excellent nature is attributed to the stability of the zero-valent copper and the nanosized particles of the catalyst. • The catalysts show general applicability to other carbonyl compounds. Catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) of carbonyl compounds is considered as one of the most promising processes in the synthesis of fuels and chemicals. In this work, we propose a one-step strategy for catalyst preparation and CTH. Using the strategy, the production of γ-valerolactone (γ-GVL) was performed with isopropanol (2-PrOH) as solvent over in situ reduced nano-Cu/AlOOH catalyst from Cu 2 (OH) 2 CO 3 /AlOOH and the optimal reaction conditions for γ-GVL are 180 °C for 5 h using the in situ reduced catalyst with Cu/Al molar ratio 3/1 (90.51% yields of γ-GVL). Furthermore, it has been confirmed by different characterization methods (such as: SEM, TEM, XPS, etc.) that the catalyst is heterogeneous and exhibits high catalytic activity and stability which is attributed to the stability of the zero-valent copper in the catalyst and the nanosized particles of the catalyst. In addition, the catalysts also show general applicability to other carbonyl compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract We prepared the catalysts through the ion-exchange of natural calcium montmorillonite with an aqueous aluminum trichloride solution. Al3+ was a good Lewis acid catalyzing the isomerization of glucose to fructose, and the partially hydrolyzed Al−OH groups acted as Brønsted acid for the dehydration of fructose to HMF, which can be extracted by THF with a high yield. Highlights • A series of Al-mont-n were prepared with ion-exchange method for conversion of carbohydrates to HMF. • The catalytic activity is dependent on the concentrations of Al3+ ion. • A high yield of HMF (80.4%) was produced from glucose. • 60.1% and 81.6% yield of HMF were obtained from the dehydration of starch and inulin, respectively. Abstract Aluminum ion-exchanged Ca-montmorillonite with different concentrations of aluminum ion were prepared and applied in the conversion of carbohydrates to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF). It was found that two types of acid sites were present in the catalyst, Lewis acid sites for isomerization of glucose and Brønsted acid sites for dehydration of fructose. With Al-mont-10 as catalyst, the yield of HMF converted from glucose was 80.4% in a biphase system (THF: NaCl solution) at 180 °C for 2.5 h. Further, the catalyst also shows excellent catalytic performance in the conversion of starch and inulin, and the yield of HMF reached 60.1% and 81.6% under identical conditions, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Zirconium ion-intercalated montmorillonite was synthesized by a facile method. • The amount of Lewis and Bronsted acids could be altered by changing the concentration of zirconium ions. • One-pot cascade conversion of FAL to GVL was achieved under mild conditions. • Over 99% furfural conversion and 50.4% GVL yield were attained. A series of ultrathin metal intercalated montmorillonite (Mont) nanosheet materials were prepared and characterized for the one-pot cascade conversion of furfural (FAL) to obtain γ-valerolactone (γ-GVL). The coordination of the intercalated metal ions and the hydroxyl groups between the montmorillonite layers leads to an increase in the specific surface area and pore volume of the material, which coupled with the acidity of the metal ions themselves improves the catalytic performance of the material. Thus Zr-Mont-0.1 exhibited optimal catalytic performance with 100% conversion of FAL and 50.4% yield of GVL under mild conditions, and more importantly, the catalyst maintained its good catalytic performance after the fourth use. Meanwhile the number of Lewis and Brønsted acid sites in the Zr-Mont catalyst can be varied by adjusting the zirconium ion concentration. The proposed reaction mechanism provides initial insights into the role of metal-functionalized montmorillonite in catalyzing the reaction. In addition, the ten-fold magnification reaction confirmed the potential industrial application of the catalyst. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Palmer indices (PIs) that have been most widely used for drought monitoring and assessment are criticized for two main drawbacks: coarse hydrological accounting processes with a simplified two-stage bucket soil water balance model and arbitrary rules for defining drought properties and standardizing index values through limited calibration and comparison. In this study, we introduce a new proposal of the VIC hydrologic model-based Palmer drought scheme, where traditional PIs (e.g. PDSI) can readily be calculated on the basis of distributed finescale hydrologic simulations. Moreover, recent variants of PI (i.e., SPDI and SPDI-JDI) also provide a preferable standardization strategy that allows probabilistic invariability and better spatio-temporal comparability of computed drought indices. Using gridded meteorological forcing, soil and vegetation data to drive the three-layer VIC model, both non-VIC and VIC-based PIs are investigated to examine their performances for drought characterization and detection. Results indicate that VIC hydrologic model would allow for adjustments in statistical properties of computed PDSI and VIC-based SPDI is also preferable to PDSI for better statistical robustness and spatio-temporal consistency/comparability. Moreover, the joint SPDI-JDI has the strength of integrating multi-scale probabilistic properties and drought information released by individual SPDI, providing overall drought conditions that take into account the onset, persistence and termination of droughts. At proposed 0.25° grid scale, the VIC-based SPDI-JDI indicates high frequency and long total time of drought condition in the Yellow River basin (YRB), China. Although no significant temporal trends are found in identified drought duration and severity, both the seasonal and annual drought index values demonstrate a downward trend (higher drought intensity) for considerable proportions of the YRB. These findings imply high drought risk and potential drying stress for this region. The new framework of hydrologic model-based PIs can help to strengthen our knowledge and/or practices in regional drought monitoring and assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantitative evaluation of future climate change impacts on hydrological drought characteristics is one of important measures for implementing sustainable water resources management and effective disaster mitigation in drought-prone regions under the changing environment. In this study, a modeling system for projecting the potential future climate change impacts on hydrological droughts in the Weihe River basin (WRB) in North China is presented. This system consists of a large-scale hydrological model driven by climate outputs from three climate models (CMs) for future streamflow projections, a probabilistic model for univariate drought assessment, and a copula-based bivariate model for joint drought frequency analysis under historical and future climates. With the observed historical climate data as the inputs, the Variable Infiltration Capacity hydrological model projects an overall runoff reduction in the WRB under the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change A1B scenario. The univariate drought assessment found that although fewer hydrological drought events would occur under A1B scenario, drought duration and severity tend to increase remarkably. Moreover, the bivariate drought assessment reveals that future droughts in the same return period as the baseline droughts would become more serious. With these trends in the future, the hydrological drought situation in the WRB would be further deteriorated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel series of benzophenone oxime ether derivatives with tertiary amine groups were synthesized and their herbicidal activities of 24 compounds against Oryza sativa, Sorghum sudanense, Brassica chinensis, and Amaranthus mangostanus L. were also evaluated. Most of these compounds exhibited significant inhibitory effect on root growth at 20 ppm. Based on the herbicidal activity data, computational Three-Dimensional Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship (3D-QSAR) analysis and molecular docking were undertaken. CoMFA contour maps were generated for the design of benzophenone oxime ether analogues with enhancing activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Intratumoral hypoxia is an essential feature of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Herein, we investigated the hypoxia-based heterogeneity and relevant clinical implication in HCC. Methods: Three HCC cohorts: TCGA-LIHC, LICA-FR, and LIRI-JP were retrospectively gathered. Consensus clustering analysis was utilized for hypoxia-based classification based upon transcriptome of hypoxia genes. Through LASSO algorithm, a hypoxia-relevant prognostic signature was built. Immunotherapeutic response was inferred through analyzing immune checkpoints, T cell inflamed score, TIDE score, and TMB score. RNF145 expression was measured in normoxic or hypoxic HCC cells. In RNF145-knockout cells, CCK-8, TUNEL, and scratch tests were implemented. Results: HCC patients were classified into two hypoxia subtypes, with more advanced stages and poorer prognosis in cluster2 than cluster1. The heterogeneity in tumor infiltrating immune cells and genetic mutation was found between subtypes. The hypoxia-relevant prognostic model was proposed, composed of ANLN, CBX2, DLGAP5, FBLN2, FTCD, HMOX1, IGLV1-44, IL33, LCAT, LPCAT1, MKI67, PFN2, RNF145, S100A9, and SPP1). It was predicted that high-risk patients presented worse prognosis with an independent and reliable manner. Based upon high expression of immune checkpoints (CD209, CTLA4, HAVCR2, SIRPA, TNFRSF18, TNFRSF4, and TNFRSF9), high T cell inflamed score, low TIDE score and high TMB score, high-risk patients might respond to immunotherapy. Experimental validation showed that RNF145 was upregulated in hypoxic HCC cells, RNF145 knockdown attenuated proliferation and migration, but aggravated apoptosis in HCC cells. Conclusion: Altogether, the hypoxia-based classification and prognostic signature might be useful for prognostication and guiding treatment of HCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Prostate cancer is a significant clinical issue, particularly for high Gleason score (GS) malignancy patients. Our study aimed to engineer and validate a risk model based on the profiles of high-GS PCa patients for early identification and the prediction of prognosis. Methods: We conducted differential gene expression analysis on patient samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and enriched our understanding of gene functions. Using the least absolute selection and shrinkage operator (LASSO) regression, we established a risk model and validated it using an independent dataset from the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC). Clinical variables were incorporated into a nomogram to predict overall survival (OS), and machine learning was used to explore the risk factor characteristics' impact on PCa prognosis. Our prognostic model was confirmed using various databases, including single-cell RNA-sequencing datasets (scRNA-seq), the Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia (CCLE), PCa cell lines, and tumor tissues. Results: We identified 83 differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Furthermore, WASIR1, KRTAP5-1, TLX1, KIF4A, and IQGAP3 were determined to be significant risk factors for OS and progression-free survival (PFS). Based on these five risk factors, we developed a risk model and nomogram for predicting OS and PFS, with a C-index of 0.823 (95% CI, 0.766–0.881) and a 10-year area under the curve (AUC) value of 0.788 (95% CI, 0.633–0.943). Additionally, the 3-year AUC was 0.759 when validating using ICGC. KRTAP5-1 and WASIR1 were found to be the most influential prognosis factors when using the optimized machine learning model. Finally, the established model was interrelated with immune cell infiltration, and the signals were found to be differentially expressed in PCa cells when using scRNA-seq datasets and tissues. Conclusions: We engineered an original and novel prognostic model based on five gene signatures through TCGA and machine learning, providing new insights into the risk of scarification and survival prediction for PCa patients in clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary The Palmer drought model that was developed half a century ago has often been used for monitoring and decision making. It has gained wide-spread familiarity and acceptance, together with numerous complaints, criticisms and improvements. This study first introduces a recent variation of Palmer’s model, i.e. the standardized Palmer drought index (SPDI) as a hybrid of a Palmer drought index (PI) and a standardized drought index (SI). Then, a more complicated methodology is employed to propose an SPDI-based joint drought index (SPDI-JDI), which is also physically based on the Palmer drought model and is a multivariate SI in nature. Using meteorological observations from twelve WMO gauges from all around the globe, empirical and parametric copula-based approaches are adopted and compared for the construction of SPDI-JDI. The findings in this study indicate that the SPDI-JDI derived from parametric copulas can provide an overall measure of the joint probability-based drought status by combining the probabilistic properties and dependence structure of multi-temporal scale marginals of SPDI. Meanwhile, the SPDI-JDI shows high coherence and correlation with individual PIs and performs well in drought detection when compared to the integration of Palmer drought severity index, Palmer modified drought index, Palmer hydrologic drought index and Palmer Z index as well as to the U.S. Drought Monitor observations. Taken together, new variations of the SPDI-JDI and/or SPDI are expected to bring new vigor and vitality into Palmer’s drought model, making it more up-to-date for drought monitoring and prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A stable and easily separable Fe 3 O 4 -12 nanoparticles exhibited the desired catalytic performance in the catalytic transfer hydrogenation reaction of furfural to furfuryl alcohol with 2-propanol as the hydrogen source. Moreover, a feasible flowchart from xylose to FOL was designed. Utilizing the process can realize the regeneration of biomass resources, the reuse and recycling of catalysts and solvents, and minimize the amount of solvents and pollutant emissions. • Magnetic Fe 3 O 4 -12 nanoparticles exhibited excellent catalytic performance for the CTH reaction of FAL to FOL. • A feasible flowchart from xylose to FOL was designed, which can realize the valorization of biomass resources. • Fe 3 O 4 -12 nanoparticles have good recyclability and universality for different carbonyl compounds. Magnetic Fe 3 O 4 -12 nanoparticles, an easily separable heterogeneous catalyst, exhibits high catalytic performance in the catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) reaction of biomass-derived furfural (FAL) to furfuryl alcohol (FOL) with 2-propanol (2-PrOH) as the hydrogen source (90.1 % FOL yield at 160 °C for 5 h). Comparing Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles with different particle sizes found that the smaller the nanoparticles, the larger the BET surface area, pore volume and pore diameter, resulting in more acid-base active sites through BET, SEM, TEM, NH 3 -/CO 2 -TPD and other characterizations. Moreover, a scaled-up CTH experiment of FAL and a stepwise reaction from xylose to FOL verified that the catalytic system has great industrial application prospects. A feasible flowchart of the chemical process from xylose to FOL was designed, which can realize the regeneration of biomass resources (xylose derived from corncob), the reuse and recycling of catalysts and solvents, and minimize the amount of solvents and pollutant emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gastric cancer (GC) remains a malignant tumor with high morbidity and mortality, accounting for approximately 1,080,000 diagnosed cases and 770,000 deaths worldwide annually. Disulfidptosis, characterized by the stress-induced abnormal accumulation of disulfide, is a recently identified form of programmed cell death. Substantial studies have demonstrated the significant influence of immune clearance on tumor progression. Therefore, we aimed to explore the intrinsic correlations between disulfidptosis and immune-related genes (IRGs) in GC, as well as the potential value of disulfidptosis-related immune genes (DRIGs) as biomarkers. Methods: This study incorporated the single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) dataset GSE183904 and transcriptome RNA sequencing of GC from the TCGA database. Disulfidptosis-related genes (DRGs) and IRGs were derived from the representative literature on both cell disulfidptosis and immunity. The expression and distribution of DRGs were investigated at the single-cell level in different GC cell types. Pearson correlation analysis was used to identify the IRGs closely related to disulfidptosis. The prognostic signature of DRIGs was established using Cox and LASSO analyses. We then analyzed and evaluated the differences in long-term prognosis, Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA), immune infiltration, mutation profile, CD274 expression, and response to chemotherapeutic drugs between the two groups. A tissue array containing 63 paired GC specimens was used to verify the expression of 4 DRIGs and disulfidptosis regulator SLC7A11 through immunohistochemistry staining. Results: The scRNA-seq analysis found that SLC7A11, SLC3A2, RPN1 and NCKAP1 were enriched in specific cell types and closely related to immune infiltration. Four DIRGs (GLA, HIF-1α, VPS35 and CDC37) were successfully identified to establish a signature to potently predict the survival time of GC patients. Patients with high risk scores generally experienced worse prognoses and exhibited greater resistant to classical chemotherapy drugs. Furthermore, the expression of GLA, HIF-1α, VPS35, CDC37 and SLC7A11 were elevated in GC tissues. A high expression of GLA, HIF-1α, VPS35 or CDC37 was associated with more advanced clinical stage of GC and increased SLC7A11 expression. Conclusion: Current study first highlights the potential value of DRIGs as biomarkers in GC. We successfully constructed a robust model incorporating four DRIGs to accurately predict the survival time and clinicopathological characteristics of GC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the co-combustion of coal and biomass, and the tri-combustion of coal, biomass, and oil sludge in a 130 t h−1 circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boiler are investigated via the computational particle fluid dynamics (CPFD) approach. Furthermore, the effect of biomass feeding position is also comprehensively evaluated. The results show that for the co-combustion of coal and biomass, the O2 mole fraction at the furnace outlet rises from 0.0541 to 0.0640 as the biomass blending ratio enhances from 40% to 100%, while the CO2 mole fraction reduces from 0.1357 to 0.1267. The mole fraction of NOx and SO2 at the furnace outlet decreases from 4.5867 × 10−5 to 3.9096 × 10−5 and 2.8253 × 10−4 to 4.6635 × 10−5, respectively. For the tri-combustion of three fuels, the average NOx mole fraction initially grows quickly and then declines gradually, ranging from 4.1173 × 10−5 to 4.2556 × 10−5. The mole fraction of SO2 at the furnace outlet increases from 3.5176 × 10−4 to 4.7043 × 10−4 when the ratio of oil sludge rises from 10% to 20%. The uniformity of temperature and gas components distribution is "new inlet > secondary air inlet > feed inlet". As for the three inlet positions, the mole fractions of NOx at the furnace outlet are between 3.9096 × 10−5 and 5.1537 × 10−5, while those for SO2 are between 2.5978 × 10−4 and 2.5278 × 10−4. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To develop a biological dose prediction model considering tissue bio‐reactions in addition to patient anatomy for achieving a more comprehensive evaluation of tumor control and promoting the automatic planning of bulky lung cancer. Methods: A database containing images and partial stereotactic ablation boost radiotherapy (P‐SABR) plans of 94 bulky lung cancer patients was studied. Patient‐specific parameters of gross tumor boost volume (GTVb), planning gross target volume (PGTV), and identified organs at risk (OARs) were extracted via Numpy and simple ITK. The original dose and structure maps for P‐SABR patients were resampled to have a voxel resolution of 3.9 × 3.9 × 3 mm3. Biological equivalent dose (BED) distributions were reprogrammed based on physical dose volumes. A developed deep learning architecture, Nestnet, was adopted as the training framework. We utilized two approaches for data organization to correlate the structures and BED: (a) BED programming before training model (B‐Nestnet); (b) BED programming after the training process (D‐B Nestnet). The early‐stop mechanism was adopted on the validation set to avoid overfitting. The evaluation criteria of predictive accuracy contain the minimum BED of GTVb and PGTV, the maximum and the mean BED of all targets, BED‐volume metrics. For comparison, we also used the original Unet for BED prediction. The absolute differences were statistically analyzed with the paired‐samples t test. Results: The statistical outcomes demonstrate that D‐B Nestnet model predicts biological dose distributions accurately. The average absolute biases of [max, mean] BED for GTVb, PGTV are [2.1%, 3.3%] and [2.1%, 4.7%], respectively. Averaging across most of OARs, the D‐B Nestnet model is capable of predicting the errors of the max and mean BED within 6.3% and 6.1%, respectively. While the compared models performed worse with averaged max and mean BED prediction errors surpassing 10% on some specific OARs. Conclusions: The study developed a D‐B Nestnet model capable of predicting BED distribution accurately for bulky lung cancer patients in P‐SABR. The predicted BED map enables a quick intuitive evaluation of tumor ablation, modification of the ablation range to improve BED of tumor targets, and quality assessment. It represents a major step forward toward automated P‐SABR planning on bulky lung cancer in real clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gastric cancer (GC) is a malignant tumour, with high morbidity and mortality rates worldwide. The occurrence and development of GC is a complex process involving genetic changes in tumour cells and the influence of the surrounding tumour microenvironment (TME). Accumulative evidence shows that tumour‐associated macrophages (TAMs) play a vital role in GC, acting as plentiful and active infiltrating inflammatory cells in the TME. Main body: In this review, the different functions and mechanisms of TAMs in GC progression, including the conversion of phenotypic subtypes; promotion of tumour proliferation, invasion and migration; induction of chemoresistance; promotion of angiogenesis; modulation of immunosuppression; reprogramming of metabolism; and interaction with the microbial community are summarised. Although the role of TAMs in GC remains controversial in clinical settings, clarifying their significance in the treatment selection and prognostic prediction of GC could support optimising TAM‐centred clinicaltherapy. Conclusion: In summary, we reviewed the the phenotypic polarisation, function and molecular mechanism of TAMs and their potential applications in the treatment selection and prognostic prediction of GC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transformation of lignocellulosic biomass to platform compounds (γ-valerolactone, GVL) was a significant component in biomass development. Herein, sulfonated Zr-based metal-organic frameworks (MOF-808), a bifunctional heterogeneous catalyst with Lewis and Bronsted acid sites, were prepared to catalyze the one-pot cascade reaction of furfural (FUR) to GVL. The successful modification of the sulfonic group on MOF-808 was substantiated by multiple characterization methods. By adjusting the sulfuric acid concentration to balance the Lewis acid and Bronsted acid sites of the catalyst, S-808–2.37 was confirmed as the preferred catalyst and a 60.4 % GVL yield was achieved with 99.1 % carbon balance under the optimal conditions. Moreover, the 72.8 % GVL yield reached in the 40x magnification experiment also boded well for the catalyst's application potential. The work in this paper opened up new perspectives for the application of MOF-808 porous materials in the field of selective catalytic conversion of biomass involving multi-step reactions. [Display omitted] • Strong interaction between Zr and OH of H 3 BDC led to the formation of strong Lewis acidic/basic sites in the frameworks. • The cooperative role of strong Lewis acidic/basic sites in the S-808–2.37 contributed to the excellent catalytic performance. • This work provided a promising strategy to modulate the acid-base properties of MOF-808 without affecting its structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Synovitis, acne, pustulosis, hyperostosis and osteitis (SAPHO) syndrome is a rare autoinflammatory disease; its primary manifestation includes osteoarthropathy with skin involvement. Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors, such as tofacitinib, were used for rheumatoid arthritis; however, due to its downregulation of immune cytokines including interleukin (IL)‐6 and IL‐8, it might be effective for SAPHO patients. Case summary: We report the 1st case of mandibular‐related SAPHO syndrome treated with tofacitinib. The patient underwent mandibular resection surgery twice and postoperative pathology showed "osteomyelitis". The patient developed sclerosing osteomyelitis in the left wrist 9 months after surgery and SAPHO syndrome was diagnosed. The patient was administered nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs and corticosteroids therapy without much remission. A 3‐month tofacitinib therapy provided remission from both systemic inflammation status and peripheral osteoarticular symptoms and no significant recurrence was observed during follow‐up in this case. Conclusion: Mandibular involvement in SAPHO syndrome is easily misdiagnosed due to its rarity. Mandibular resection surgery should be applied carefully; after systemic treatment with tofacitinib, the patient had remission. We provide a successful experience for the treatment of mandibular‐related SAPHO syndrome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is a significant force influencing catchment hydrological processes, such as baseflow, i.e., the contribution of delayed pathways to streamflow in drought periods and is associated with catchment drought propagation. The Weihe River Basin is a typical arid and semi-arid catchment on the Loess Plateau in northwest China. Baseflow plays a fundamental role in the provision of water and environmental functions at the catchment scale. However, the baseflow variability in the projected climate change is not well understood. In this study, forcing meteorological data were derived from two climate scenarios (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5) of three representative general circulation models (CSIRO-Mk3-6-0, MIROC5, and FGOALSg2) in CMIP5 and then were used as inputs in the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) hydrological model to simulate future streamflow. Finally, a well-revised baseflow separation method was implemented to estimate the baseflow to investigate long-term (historical (1960–2012) and future (2010–2054) periods) baseflow variability patterns. We found (1) that baseflow showed a decreasing trend in some simulations of future climatic conditions but not in all scenarios (p < 0.05), (2) that the contribution of baseflow to streamflow (i.e., baseflow index) amounted to approximately 45%, with a slightly increasing trend (p ≤ 0.001), and (3) an increased frequency of severe hydrological drought events in the future (2041–2053) due to baseflows much lower than current annual averages. This study benefits the scientific management of water resources in regional development and provides references for the semi-arid or water-limited catchments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the drawbacks of the original Palmer drought severity index (PDSI) in terms of its simplified hydrologic algorithm and spatio-temporal inconsistency, we compare six variants of PDSI derived from different combinations of two hydrologic algorithms and three standard processes so as to provide deep insights into the individual impacts of hydrological processing and standardization on final PDSI values as well as their combined effects. Investigations are conducted in whole Yellow River basin. On basis of 52 years' (1961-2012) hydro-meteorological data, comprehensive analysis on multiple drought characteristics are carried out for each PDSI variant, combined with comparison of three crucial intermediate variables of PDSI. Results show that variable infiltration capacity (VIC) model based modification in the hydrologic accounting section significantly improve drought trends with more reasonable spatial distributions presented. For the statistical characteristics of drought areas and frequency, comparable performance is found between VIC-based modification and self-calibrating standard procedure-based modification, though they are derived from different mechanisms. However, in case of the coupling of these two modifications, indices derived from combined modifications perform poorly than single modification-based indices with unexpected high frequency of extreme events detected in certain regions. This reflects the complicated mechanism of PDSI and it is essential to propose an appropriate standardization to match the hydrological algorithm and further improve the performance of relevant drought index. With the crucial findings mentioned above, this study is promising to provide some theoretical supports and serve as a competent reference for future PDSI based researches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) is known to be suitable for hypofractionated radiotherapy due to the very low α/β ratio (about 1.5–3 Gy). However, several randomized controlled trials have not shown the superiority of hypofractionated radiotherapy over conventionally fractionated radiotherapy. Besides, in vivo and in vitro experimental results show that the linear-quadratic (LQ) model may not be appropriate for hypofractionated radiotherapy, and we guess it may be due to the influence of fractionation schedules on the α/β ratio. Therefore, this study attempted to estimate the α/β ratio in different fractionation schedules and evaluate the applicability of the LQ model in hypofractionated radiotherapy. Methods: The maximum likelihood principle in mathematical statistics was used to fit the parameters: α and β values in the tumor control probability (TCP) formula derived from the LQ model. In addition, the fitting results were substituted into the original TCP formula to calculate 5-year biochemical relapse-free survival for further verification. Results: Information necessary for fitting could be extracted from a total of 23,281 PCa patients. A total of 16,442 PCa patients were grouped according to fractionation schedules. We found that, for patients who received conventionally fractionated radiotherapy, moderately hypofractionated radiotherapy, and stereotactic body radiotherapy, the average α/β ratios were 1.78 Gy (95% CI 1.59–1.98), 3.46 Gy (95% CI 3.27–3.65), and 4.24 Gy (95% CI 4.10–4.39), respectively. Hence, the calculated α/β ratios for PCa tended to become higher when the dose per fraction increased. Among all PCa patients, 14,641 could be grouped according to the risks of PCa in patients receiving radiotherapy with different fractionation schedules. The results showed that as the risk increased, the k (natural logarithm of an effective target cell number) and α values decreased, indicating that the number of effective target cells decreased and the radioresistance increased. Conclusions: The LQ model appeared to be inappropriate for high doses per fraction owing to α/β ratios tending to become higher when the dose per fraction increased. Therefore, to convert the conventionally fractionated radiation doses to equivalent high doses per fraction using the standard LQ model, a higher α/β ratio should be used for calculation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synovitis, acne, pustulosis, hyperostosis, and osteitis (SAPHO) syndrome is a rare chronic inflammatory disease with osteoarticular and cutaneous involvements as its main manifestations. Acne conglobata as a severe acne form may affect adolescent patients. Tumor necrosis factor inhibitors are usually used as a second-line therapy for refractory SAPHO syndrome and has been reported to treat acne conglobata successfully. We herein report three cases of adolescent patients with SAPHO syndrome associated with acne conglobata who were successfully treated with TNFi therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The angular-dependent magnetoresistance (AMR) of the ab plane is measured on the single crystals of iron-chalcogenide FeSe1–xSx (x = 0, 0.07, 0.13 and 1) and FeSe1–yTey (y = 0.06, 0.61 and 1) at various temperatures under fields up to 9 T. A pronounced twofold-anisotropic carrier-scattering effect is identified by AMR, and attributed to a magnetic-field-induced spin nematicity that emerges from the tetragonal normal-state regime below a characteristic temperature Tsn. This magnetically polarized spin nematicity is found to be ubiquitous in the isoelectronic FeSe1–xSx and FeSe1–yTey systems, no matter whether the sample shows an electronic nematic order at Ts ≲ Tsn, or an antiferromagnetic order at TN < Tsn, or neither order. Importantly, we find that the induced spin nematicity shows a very different response to sulfur substitution from the spontaneous electronic nematicity: The spin-nematic Tsn is not suppressed but even enhanced by the substitution, whereas the electronic-nematic Ts is rapidly suppressed, in the FeSe1–xSx system. Furthermore, we find that the superconductivity is significantly suppressed with the enhancement of the induced spin nematicity in both FeSe1–xSx and FeSe1–yTey samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Keywords: leflunomide; nail; SAPHO syndrome EN leflunomide nail SAPHO syndrome 156 157 2 02/17/23 20230201 NES 230201 Synovitis, acne, pustulosis, hyperostosis and osteitis (SAPHO) syndrome is a rare autoimmune disease characterized by osteoarticular and dermatological manifestations.[1] Nail involvement is a common manifestation of SAPHO syndrome and often disrupts patients' daily activities and quality of life. We herein describe a patient with SAPHO syndrome with nail involvement that exhibited a complete response to single-agent treatment with leflunomide. [Extracted from the article]

Graphical abstract Abstract Chemical substitution during growth is a well-established method to manipulate electronic states of quantum materials, and leads to rich spectra of phase diagrams in cuprate and iron-based superconductors. Here we report a novel and generic strategy to achieve nonvolatile electron doping in series of (i.e. 11 and 122 structures) Fe-based superconductors by ionic liquid gating induced protonation at room temperature. Accumulation of protons in bulk compounds induces superconductivity in the parent compounds, and enhances the T c largely in some superconducting ones. Furthermore, the existence of proton in the lattice enables the first proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) study to probe directly superconductivity. Using FeS as a model system, our NMR study reveals an emergent high- T c phase with no coherence peak which is hard to measure by NMR with other isotopes. This novel electric-field-induced proton evolution opens up an avenue for manipulation of competing electronic states (e.g. Mott insulators), and may provide an innovative way for a broad perspective of NMR measurements with greatly enhanced detecting resolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water scarcity causes conflicts among natural resources, society and economy and reinforces the need for optimal allocation of irrigation water resources in a sustainable way. Uncertainties caused by natural conditions and human activities make optimal allocation more complex. An intuitionistic fuzzy multi-objective non-linear programming (IFMONLP) model for irrigation water allocation under the combination of dry and wet conditions is developed to help decision makers mitigate water scarcity. The model is capable of quantitatively solving multiple problems including crop yield increase, blue water saving, and water supply cost reduction to obtain a balanced water allocation scheme using a multi-objective non-linear programming technique. Moreover, it can deal with uncertainty as well as hesitation based on the introduction of intuitionistic fuzzy numbers. Consideration of the combination of dry and wet conditions for water availability and precipitation makes it possible to gain insights into the various irrigation water allocations, and joint probabilities based on copula functions provide decision makers an average standard for irrigation. A case study on optimally allocating both surface water and groundwater to different growth periods of rice in different subareas in Heping irrigation area, Qing’an County, northeast China shows the potential and applicability of the developed model. Results show that the crop yield increase target especially in tillering and elongation stages is a prevailing concern when more water is available, and trading schemes can mitigate water supply cost and save water with an increased grain output. Results also reveal that the water allocation schemes are sensitive to the variation of water availability and precipitation with uncertain characteristics. The IFMONLP model is applicable for most irrigation areas with limited water supplies to determine irrigation water strategies under a fuzzy environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • An in-situ electrochemical oxidation of tunnel-like V 2 O 3 to layered V 5 O 12 ·6H 2 O upon initial cycling takes place. • V 5 O 12 ·6H 2 O provides substantial active sites for zinc ion storage and accelerates Zn2+ diffusion kinetics. • Co-embedding of Zn2+ and H 2 O molecules during cycling enlarges the layer spacing. • The carbon layer covering on the electrode improves electrode stability and enhances electron conductivity. • The oxidized V 2 O 3 -C electrode presents excellent rate performance and cycling performance at low current density. In-situ electrochemical activation can bring about unexpected improvement for electrode materials, while the nature behind the structural evolution during this activation remains unclear, which to a great extent limits the applications in searching for efficient cathodes for rechargeable zinc-ion battery (ZIB) with outstanding rate performance. Herein, we report on in-situ electrochemical oxidation of V 2 O 3 -C cathode for boosted zinc-ion storage performance. A solvothermal method is implemented to directly synthesize V 2 O 3 nanoparticles coated with a carbon layer. Detailed characterizations reveal that due to co-embedding of H 2 O and Zn2+, tunnel-like V 2 O 3 undergoes an in-situ electrochemical oxidation to generate layered V 5 O 12 ·6H 2 O upon initial cycling. The intercalation of H 2 O molecules results in an expansion of layer spacing, accelerating the Zn2+ diffusion kinetics. As a consequence, a symmetric cell equipped with activated V 2 O 3 -C electrode delivers a high-rate capability (349 mA h g−1 at 1000 mA g−1) and superior specific capacity (260 mA h g−1 at 100 mA g−1 after 100 cycles). The strategy of in-situ electrochemical oxidation delivers the guidance to tunnel-like materials as cathode for rechargeable ZIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) is a parameter reflecting inflammatory responses in patients with cancer. Several studies have investigated the prognostic value of PLR in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC); however, the results are controversial. Thus, we carried out a meta-analysis to evaluate the association between PLR and CRC prognostication. Relevant articles were retrieved through PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science, and pooled hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were computed by using STATA V.12.0. Both the random-effects model and fixed-effects model were utilized. A total of 13 studies (14 cohorts) with 8,601 patients were included in the meta-analysis. Pooled HRs and 95% CIs demonstrated that increased PLR predicted poor overall survival (OS) (HR = 1.81, 95%CI:1.42–2.31, p<0.001; I2 = 65%, Ph = 0.002), disease-free survival (DFS) (HR = 1.84, 95%CI:1.22–2.76, p = 0.003; I2 = 78.3%, Ph<0.001) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) (HR = 1.84, 95%CI:1.41–2.41, p<0.001; I2 = 0, Ph = 0.686), although this was not the case for cancer-specific survival (CSS) (HR = 1.75, 95%CI:0.59–5.17, p = 0.309; I2 = 66.2%, Ph = 0.085) or time to recurrence (TTR) (HR = 1.21 95%CI:0.62–2.36, p = 0.573;I2 = 58.4%, Ph = 0.121). Subgroup analysis showed that PLR enhanced the prognostic value for OS in Caucasian patients, in small sample studies and for metastatic disease; however, this was not the case with rectal cancer. Furthermore, elevated PLR predicted reduced DFS in Caucasians and not in Asians. In conclusion, our meta-analysis showed that high PLR was a significant biomarker for poor OS, DFS, and RFS in patients with CRC; however, it had no association with CSS or TTR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are two kinds of uncertainty factors in modeling the bivariate distribution of hydrological droughts: the alteration of predefined critical ratios for pooling droughts and excluding minor droughts and the temporal variability of univariate and/or bivariate characteristics of droughts due to the impact of human activities. Daily flow data covering a period of 56 hydrological years from two gauging stations from a humid region in South China are used. The influences of alterations of threshold values of flow and critical ratios of pooling droughts and excluding minor droughts on drought properties are analyzed. Six conventional univariate models and three Archimedean copulas are employed to fit the marginal and joint distributions of drought properties, the Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Anderson-Darling methods are used for testing the goodness-of-fit of the univariate model, and the Cramer-von Mises method based on Rosenblatt's transform is applied for the test of the bivariate model. The change point analysis of the copula parameter of bivariate distribution of droughts is first made. Results demonstrate that both the statistical characteristics of each drought property and their bivariate joint distributions are sensitive to the critical ratio of excluding minor droughts. A model can be selected to fit the marginal distribution for drought deficit volume or maximum deficit, but it is not determined for drought duration with the lower ratios of the pooling and excluding droughts. The statistical uncertainty of drought duration makes the modeling of bivariate joint distribution of drought duration and deficit volume or of drought duration and maximum deficit undermined. Change points significantly occurred in the period from the late 1970s to the middle 1980s for a single drought property and the copula parameter of their joint distribution due to the impact of human activities. The difference between two subseries separated by the change point is remarkable in the magnitudes of drought properties and the joint return periods. A copula function can be selected to optimally fit the bivariate distribution, provided that the critical ratios of pooling and excluding droughts are great enough such as the optimal value of 0.4 in the case study. It is valuable that the modeling and designing of the bivariate joint correlation and distribution of drought properties can be performed on the subseries separated by the change point of the copula parameter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A case study on the evolution of hydrological drought in nonstationary environments is conducted over the Laohahe catchment in northern China. Using hydrometeorological observations during 1964–2009, meteorological and hydrological droughts are firstly analyzed with the threshold level method. Then, a comprehensive analysis on the changes within the catchment is conducted on the basis of hydrological variables and socioeconomic indices, and the whole period is divided into two parts: the undisturbed period (1964–1979) and the disturbed period (1980–2009). A separating framework is further introduced to distinguish droughts induced by different causes, that is, the naturalized drought and human-induced drought. Results showed that human activities are more inclined to play a negative role in aggravating droughts. Drought duration and deficit volume in naturalized conditions are amplified two to four times and three to eight times, respectively, when human activities are involved. For the two dry decades 1980s and 2000s, human activities have caused several consecutive drought events with rather long durations (up to 29 months). These results reflect the considerable impacts of human activities on hydrological drought, which could provide some theoretical support for local drought mitigation and water resources management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]