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Abstract Recent demonstrations of moiré magnetism, featuring exotic phases with noncollinear spin order in the twisted van der Waals (vdW) magnet chromium triiodide CrI3, have highlighted the potential of twist engineering of magnetic (vdW) materials. However, the local magnetic interactions, spin dynamics, and magnetic phase transitions within and across individual moiré supercells remain elusive. Taking advantage of a scanning single-spin magnetometry platform, here we report observation of two distinct magnetic phase transitions with separate critical temperatures within a moiré supercell of small-angle twisted double trilayer CrI3. By measuring temperature-dependent spin fluctuations at the coexisting ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic regions in twisted CrI3, we explicitly show that the Curie temperature of the ferromagnetic state is higher than the Néel temperature of the antiferromagnetic one by ~10 K. Our mean-field calculations attribute such a spatial and thermodynamic phase separation to the stacking order modulated interlayer exchange coupling at the twisted interface of moiré superlattices.

Abstract Objective This study aimed to verify the feasibility of 2D measurement of full-layer thickness of vaginal wall and evaluation of its elasticity by shear wave elastic imaging using transrectal linear array high-frequency ultrasound and to investigate the differences of vaginal wall indexes in premenopausal versus postmenopausal women. Method From September to November 2022, a total of 87 women in the Department of Gynecology, Nanjing First Hospital were examined by a sonographer using transrectal linear array high-frequency ultrasound, including 34 women of reproductive age and 53 postmenopausal women. The vagina was divided into upper, middle, and lower segments, and the full-layer thickness of each part was measured. Then shear wave elastography (SWE) was used, and the average value of Young's modulus was used to evaluate the degree of vaginal elasticity. Results Transrectal linear array high-frequency ultrasound can clearly display structures of vaginal wall; measurement of the full thickness of the vaginal wall and evaluation of the degree of vaginal elasticity were feasible. There was a statistically significant difference in the thickness of each part of the vaginal wall between pre- and postmenopausal women (P

PurposeTo assess the utility of fat fraction quantification using quantitative multi-echo Dixon for evaluating tumor proliferation and microvascular invasion (MVI) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).MethodsA total of 66 patients with resection and histopathologic confirmed HCC were enrolled. Preoperative MRI with proton density fat fraction and R2* mapping was analyzed. Intratumoral and peritumoral regions were delineated with manually placed regions of interest at the maximum level of intratumoral fat. Correlation analysis explored the relationship between fat fraction and Ki67. The fat fraction and R2* were compared between high Ki67(>30%) and low Ki67 nodules, and between MVI negative and positive groups. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used for further analysis if statistically different.ResultsThe median fat fraction of tumor (tFF) was higher than peritumor liver (5.24% vs 3.51%, P=0.012). The tFF was negatively correlated with Ki67 (r=-0.306, P=0.012), and tFF of high Ki67 nodules was lower than that of low Ki67 nodules (2.10% vs 4.90%, P=0.001). The tFF was a good estimator for low proliferation nodules (AUC 0.747, cut-off 3.39%, sensitivity 0.778, specificity 0.692). There was no significant difference in tFF and R2* between MVI positive and negative nodules (3.00% vs 2.90%, P=0.784; 55.80s-1 vs 49.15s-1, P=0.227).ConclusionWe infer that intratumor fat can be identified in HCC and fat fraction quantification using quantitative multi-echo Dixon can distinguish low proliferative HCCs.

Abstract Moiré magnetism featured by stacking engineered atomic registry and lattice interactions has recently emerged as an appealing quantum state of matter at the forefront of condensed matter physics research. Nanoscale imaging of moiré magnets is highly desirable and serves as a prerequisite to investigate a broad range of intriguing physics underlying the interplay between topology, electronic correlations, and unconventional nanomagnetism. Here we report spin defect-based wide-field imaging of magnetic domains and spin fluctuations in twisted double trilayer (tDT) chromium triiodide CrI3. We explicitly show that intrinsic moiré domains of opposite magnetizations appear over arrays of moiré supercells in low-twist-angle tDT CrI3. In contrast, spin fluctuations measured in tDT CrI3 manifest little spatial variations on the same mesoscopic length scale due to the dominant driving force of intralayer exchange interaction. Our results enrich the current understanding of exotic magnetic phases sustained by moiré magnetism and highlight the opportunities provided by quantum spin sensors in probing microscopic spin related phenomena on two-dimensional flatland.

Summary: Detecting visual features in the environment is crucial for animals’ survival. The superior colliculus (SC) is implicated in motion detection and processing, whereas how the SC integrates visual inputs from the two eyes remains unclear. Using in vivo electrophysiology, we show that mouse SC contains many binocular neurons that display robust ocular dominance (OD) plasticity in a critical period during early development, which is similar to, but not dependent on, the primary visual cortex. NR2A- and NR2B-containing N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors play an essential role in the regulation of SC plasticity. Blocking NMDA receptors can largely prevent the impairment of predatory hunting caused by monocular deprivation, indicating that maintaining the binocularity of SC neurons is required for efficient hunting behavior. Together, our studies reveal the existence and function of OD plasticity in SC, which broadens our understanding of the development of subcortical visual circuitry relating to motion detection and predatory hunting.

This paper presents a novel approach to addressing the challenges associated with energy storage capacity allocation in high-permeability wind and solar distribution networks. The proposed method is a two-phase distributed robust energy storage capacity allocation method, which aims to regulate the stochasticity and volatility of net energy output. Firstly, an energy storage capacity allocation model is established, which considers energy storage's investment and operation costs to minimize the total cost. Then, a two-stage distributed robust energy storage capacity allocation model is established with the confidence set of uncertainty probability distribution constrained by 1-norm and ∞-norm. Finally, a Column and Constraint Generation (C&CG) algorithm is used to solve the problem. The validity of the proposed energy storage capacity allocation model is confirmed by examining different wind and solar penetration levels. Furthermore, the model's superiority is demonstrated by comparing it with deterministic and robust models.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) Keratitis (HSK) is a highly prevalent eye disease worldwide, characterized by lifelong recurrent episodes and a major risk of leading to blindness. Detecting HSV-1 promptly and accurately can initiate a timely and appropriate therapeutic regimen, minimizing tissue damage and preventing vision impairment. Currently, PCR is the most reliable method for identifying HSV-1, but its utilization for point-of-care (POC) HSV-1 detection is limited due to the need for sophisticated equipment, particularly in areas with limited resources. Here, we propose a new method for on-site HSV detection by using LAMP-Cas12 diagnostic technology and gold nanoparticles. This technique possesses comparable sensitivity to qPCR, and its detection results could be easily read and interpreted without the need for complex equipment. In detecting HSV in clinical tear specimens, this strategy achieved a 93.9 % consistency in positive detection and a 100 % consistency in negative detection compared to qPCR. Our strategy innovates the technique of current HSV-1 detections and is expected to play a crucial role in POC diagnosis of HSK in the future.

Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) has been used extensively to encapsulate other van der Waals materials, protecting them from environmental degradation, and allowing integration into more complex heterostructures. Here, the authors make use of boron vacancy spin defects in h-BN using them to image the magnetic properties of a Fe3GeTe2 flake.

Abstract Bilateral ovarian epithelial neoplasms in adolescents are rare. Moreover, borderline mucinous neoplasms with local intraepithelial carcinoma with anaplastic carcinoma are even more infrequent. Herein, we presented a single case (a 17-year-old female) with regular menstrual cycles and stomach pain when eating who was diagnosed with a left ovarian tumor accompanied by mural nodules. The right ovarian cyst, the left ovary, and the fallopian tube were removed by surgery. Intraoperative diagnosis suggested a bilateral ovarian tumor with mural nodules, which include three different pathological types: sarcomatoid transformation, anaplastic carcinoma, and sarcoma. Paclitaxel combined with carboplatin was given for 6 cycles after an operation, and gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist (GnRHa) was given at the beginning of chemotherapy for 3 cycles for ovarian function protection. Regular follow-up (the last follow-up was performed 48 months after the operation) of gynecological ultrasound and tumor indicators did not indicate recurrence. In clinical practice, it is necessary to pay attention to the symptoms such as abdominal pain in adolescent females. Routine non-invasive pelvic ultrasound is recommended to fully evaluate the nature of the tumor before surgery, and decide the operation mode. Also, intraoperative frozen pathology of the tissue should be performed as soon as possible.

Background: Ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCCC) is a special pathological type of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). Due to its low incidence rate, there is a lack of real-world studies at present. The purpose of the study is to construct a nomogram model for predicting postoperative cancer-specific survival (CSS) of patients with OCCC and analyze in detail the risk factors associated with OCCC. To construct a nomogram model for predicting postoperative CSS of patients with OCCC and analyze in detail the risk factors associated with OCCC. Methods: The clinical pathological data of 596 OCCC patients were collected from the surveillance, epidemiology, and end results (SEER) database from 2010 to 2015. Of these patients, 420 were allocated to the training group and 176 patients to the validation group using bootstrap resampling. The nomogram was developed based on the Cox regression model for predicting the cancer-specific survival probability of patients at 3 and 5 years after the operation. The model was evaluated in both the training and validation groups using consistency index, receiver operating characteristic (ROC), and calibration plots. Results: The independent risk factors for CSS in OCCC patients included International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage, race, age, tumor laterality, and the log odds of positive lymph nodes (LODDS). The nomograms were established for predicting the 3-year and 5-year CSS of patients after operation. The c-index of the nomogram for CSS was 0.786 in the training group and 0.742 in the verification group. Area under the curve (AUCs) of the 3-year and 5-year ROC curves were 0.818, 0.824 in the training group; and 0.816, 0.808 in the verification group, respectively. Conclusions: Based on the real population data, the construction of the CSS prediction model after OCCC surgery has high prediction efficiency, can identify postoperative high-risk OCCC patients, and can be a valuable aid for the tumor staging system.

Simple methods for attaching polynucleotides to gold nanoparticles are of interest for simplifying conjugation in a range of applications. Here, the authors report a microwave heating-based method for the fast, one-step attachment of a range of thiolated or non-thiolated DNA and RNA to gold nanoparticles.

Abstract Background Glycolysis is a pivotal process in metabolic reprogramming of tumorigenesis. Previous research has indicated that lncRNAs might play crucial roles in glycolysis of various tumors. However, the function of lncRNAs in glycolysis of pancreatic cancer has not been fully elucidated. Methods Bio-information analyses were applied to reveal the potential glycolysis-associated lncRNA. RT-PCR and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assays were applied to detect the expression of antisense RNA1 of DICER1 (DICER1-AS1) in pancreatic cancer tissues and cell lines. Gain- and loss-of-function experiments were performed to evaluate the roles of DICER1-AS1 in glycolysis and tumorigenesis of PC. Mechanistic experiments including luciferase reporter assay, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP), and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) were employed to uncover the downstream targets and regulatory mechanism of DICER1-AS1 in glycolysis of PC. Results Bio-information analysis indicated that DICER1-AS1 was downregulated in PC and negatively correlated with glycolytic genes expression. Meanwhile, overexpression of DICER1-AS1 inhibited glycolysis, proliferation, and metastasis of PC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, DICER1-AS1 promoted transcription of its sense gene DICER1 by recruiting transcriptional factor YY1 to the DICER1 promoter. Meanwhile, DICER1 promoted maturation of miR-5586-5p which consequently inhibited glycolytic gene expression including LDHA, HK2, PGK1, and SLC2A1. Notably, enhanced interaction between N6-methyladenosine (m6A) reader YTHDF3 and DICER1-AS1 led to degradation of DICER1-AS1 in response to glucose depletion. Moreover, our data revealed that YTHDF3 was a critical target for miR-5586-5p, by which forming a negative feedback with DICER1-AS1 to regulate glycolysis of PC. Conclusion Our results implicate a negative feedback of m6A reader YTHDF3 and glycolytic lncRNA DICER1-AS1 is involved in glycolysis and tumorigenesis of PC.

Salted duck egg is one of the most popular products, and China is one of the major countries consuming salted duck egg products. However, due to the high salt content of salted egg white and low physical and chemical properties such as gel, many factories generally only use salted egg yolk and discard salted duck egg white (SDEW) as a waste liquid when processing. This is not only a waste of resources, but also a pollution to the environment. In this paper, protein powder was prepared from salted egg white. Then xanthan gum (XG) was added to make it co-gel with ovalbumin to achieve the purpose of preparing high gelatinous salted egg white protein powder. The results showed that the optimum conditions of SDEW-XG composite gel were as follows: the xanthan gum content was 0.08% (w/w), the reaction pH was 6.5, and the heating temperature was 100°C. Under these conditions, the gel strength reaches the maximum value. Meanwhile, compared with the protein powder without xanthan gum, the addition of xanthan gum significantly affected the secondary structure of the protein powder of SDEW and improved the water holding capacity of the gel. In conclusion, the addition of xanthan gum can significantly improve the gel quality of SDEW protein powder, which provides a theoretical basis for the quality improvement of salted egg white.

The start-up and power-up processes of the heat pipe cooled reactor are essential parts of the autonomous operations. The rapid power fluctuation in the processes can affect the safety of the heat pipe reactor. The fast and accurate prediction of the peak power is significant for the safe operation of the heat pipe cooled reactor. This paper generates the peak power datasets of heat pipe cooled reactor start-up and power-up processes by coupling Monte Carlo sampling, and system analysis program with heat pipe cooled reactor MegaPoweras the research object. A fast prediction model of peak power was developed based on the artificial neural network and evaluated in terms of cost, accuracy, and interpretability. The results show that the artificial neural network model has high prediction accuracy and is suitable for large datasets with complex non-linear relations. However, the training cost is high, and the interpretability is weak. The above characteristics are explained by theoretical analysis, and the ability of ensemble algorithms to improve the accuracy of the artificial neural networks is discussed.

Abstract The majority of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been discovered to be overexpressed in pancreatic cancer (PC) and served as promoters in the tumorigenesis of PC, while the inhibitory functions of lncRNAs in the development of PC have not been fully elucidated yet. LncRNA microarray was adopted to analyze the differential expression of lncRNAs in PC tissues and that in normal peritumoral (NP) tissues. Functional role of lncRNA BM466146.1 on PC was evaluated by gain- and loss-of-function experiments in vivo and in vitro. RNA pull-down, RNA immunoprecipitation, luciferase reporter, and Chromatin-immunoprecipitation assays were performed to assess the mechanism of ZNFTR, respectively. The correlation between the expression of ZNFTR and various clinicopathological characteristics was accessed in PC specimens. This study displayed lncRNA BM466146.1 was downregulated in PC tissues and functioned as a suppressor through regulating the expression of adjacent gene Zinc finger protein 24 (ZNF24), which was assigned as ZNFTR. Mechanistically, ZNFTR interacted with activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3) and sequestered ATF3 away from the ZNF24 promoter, which consequently increased the expression of ZNF24. Further, ZNF24 inhibited the proliferative, metastatic, and pro-angiogenic abilities of PC cells by suppressing transcription of vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA). Therefore, the downregulation of ZNFTR in PC led to the decreased expression of ZNF24, which further resulted in the upregulation of VEGFA to facilitate the development of PC. Meanwhile, ZNFTR was transcriptionally inhibited by the HIF-1α/HDAC1 complex-mediated deacetylation. Clinical results further demonstrated that the low expression of ZNFTR was associated with poor overall survival time. Taken together, our results implicated that ZNFTR was a hypoxia-responsive lncRNA, and functioned as an inhibitor by modulating ATF3/ZNF24/VEGFA pathway in PC.

Myofibroblasts drive fibrosis in systemic sclerosis (SSc), but the cellular progenitors are unknown. Utilizing single cell RNA-sequencing, the authors show that SSc dermal myofibroblasts arise in a two-step process from SFRP2/DPP4-expressing progenitors and implicate upstream transcription factors.

Automatic defect detection of steel infrastructures in structural health monitoring (SHM) is still challenging because of complicated background, non-uniform illumination, irregular shapes and interference in images. Conventional defects detection mainly relies on manual inspection which is time-consuming and error-prone. In this study, a deep learning-based fine crack segmentation network, termed as FCS-Net was proposed in light of ResNet-50 and fully convolutional network (FCN). Structural modifications including Batch Normalization (BN) and Atrous Spatial Pyramid Pooling (ASPP) were made. In full-scale steel girder images with complicated background and fine foreground, the proposed FCS-Net achieves a MIoU of 0.7408, outperforming benchmark algorithms such as LinkNet, DeepLab V3, and CrackSegNet. Moreover, the ablation experiments were performed that justified the contribution and necessity of each modification.

Excessive emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases have seriously affected the ecological environment and the normal operation of the social economy, and low-carbon city policy (LCCP) is one of China’s main policies to achieve carbon emission reduction goals. This study focused on the 280 cities in China, and used the difference-in-differences (DID) model and nighttime light data to evaluate the impact and mechanisms of LCCP on carbon emissions from 2003 to 2016. The results show that: 1) The implementation of LCCP can reduce carbon emissions by 16.2%; 2) Mechanism analysis shows that LCCP can achieve carbon reduction through the guidance of government behaviors, improvements of industrial structure and innovation capabilities, reductions of energy consumption, and the optimization of the ecological environment; 3) Heterogeneity analysis shows that the effect of the LCCP in suppressing carbon emissions is more effective in eastern cities with better economic and industrial bases, and large cities with more population. Furthermore, the effect of LCCP shows an inverted U-shaped trend as carbon emissions increase. This study enriches the research on assessing policy effects of China’s low-carbon city construction, and provides some inspiration for the goal of carbon neutrality and other developing countries with high carbon emission.

Abstract Background Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with hilar bile duct tumor thrombus (HBDTT) often mimic hilar cholangiocarcinoma (hilar CC). The purpose of this study is to analyze the Computed Tomography (CT) characteristics of HCC with HBDTT and to identify imaging features to aid its differentiation from hilar CC on enhanced CT. Methods We retrospectively identified 58 cases with pathologically proved HCC with HBDTT between 2011 and 2018. Seventy-seven cases of pathologically proven hilar CCs were selected during the same period. The clinical features and CT findings of the two groups were reviewed and compared. Results HCC with HBDTTs are more commonly found in men (87.9% vs 63.6%, p = 0.001) with lower age of onset (49.84 vs 58.61 years; p

Abstract Background Our aim of the study is to investigate the feasibility of preoperative prediction for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) histological grading using gadoxetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Methods This study included one hundred and fifty-six patients with solitary HCC. Preoperative gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI findings were retrospectively analyzed. MRI qualitative features such as tumor size, margin, capsule status, signal homogeneity, intratumoral vessels, peritumoral enhancement during mid-arterial phase, peritumoral hypointensity during the hepatobiliary phase (HBP) were investigated. Apparent diffusion coefficients (ADCs), T1 reduction ratio of pre- and post-contrast enhanced images of the tumors were calculated. HCC histological grading in surgical specimens were confirmed by Edmonson’s criteria. Correlations between these MRI features and HCC histological grading were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to assess the predictive efficacy of the model. Results Univariate analysis showed that maximum tumor diameter (p = 0.004), tumor margin (p = 0.006), intratumoral vessels (p = 0.001) and peritumoral hypointensity during HBP (p = 0.000), were significantly correlated with HCC histological grading. There was no relationship between capsule, tumor signal, venous thrombosis, peritumoral enhancement during mid-arterial phase, ADC value, T1 reduction ratio, and HCC histological grading. Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the maximum tumor diameter (p = 0.012, odds ratio = 1.002, 95% confidence interval: 1.007–1.046)) was an independent risk factor for high grade HCC. Conclusions Greater tumor size, a more irregular margin, presence of intratumoral vessels, and peritumoral hypointensity during HBP were indicators for high grade HCC. The maximum tumor diameter was an independent risk factor for high grade HCC.

With rapid developments in science and technology, mankind is faced with the dual severe challenges of obtaining needed resources and protecting the environment. The need for sustainable development strategies has become a global consensus. As the most abundant biological resource on Earth, cellulose is an inexhaustible, natural, and renewable polymer. Microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) offers the advantages of abundant raw materials, high strength, and good degradability. Simultaneously, MFC prepared from natural materials has high practical significance due to its potential application in nanocomposites. In this study, we reported the preparation of MFCs from discarded cotton with short fibers by a combination of Fe2+ catalyst-preloading Fenton oxidation and a high-pressure homogenization cycle method. Lignin was removed from the discarded cotton with an acetic acid and sodium chlorite mixed solution. Then, the cotton was treated with NaOH solution to obtain cotton cellulose and oxidized using Fenton oxidation to obtain Fenton-oxidized cotton cellulose. The carboxylic acid content of the oxidized cotton cellulose was 126.87 μmol/g, and the zeta potential was −43.42 mV. Then, the Fenton-oxidized cotton cellulose was treated in a high-speed blender under a high-pressure homogenization cycle to obtain the MFC with a yield of 91.58%. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) indicated that cotton cellulose was effectively oxidized by Fe2+ catalyst-preloading Fenton oxidation. The diameter of the MFC ranged from several nanometers to a few micrometers as determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the crystallinity index (CrI) of the MFC was 83.52% according to X-ray diffraction (XRD), and the thermal stability of the MFC was slightly reduced compared to cotton cellulose, as seen through thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The use of catalyst-preloading Fenton oxidation technology, based on the principles of microreactors, along with high-pressure homogenization, was a promising technique to prepare MFCs from discarded cotton.

Abstract MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been widely investigated as potential biomarkers for early clinical diagnosis of cancer. Developing an miRNA detection platform with high specificity, sensitivity, and exploitability is always necessary. Electrochemiluminescence (ECL) is an electrogenerated chemiluminescence technology that greatly decreases background noise and improves detection sensitivity. The development of a paper‐based ECL biosensor further makes ECL suitable for point‐of‐care detection. Recently, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/Cas13a as high‐fidelity, efficient, and programmable CRISPR RNA (crRNA) guided RNase has brought a next‐generation biosensing technology. However, existing CRISPR/Cas13a based detection often faces a trade‐off between sensitivity and specificity. In this research, a CRISPR/Cas13a powered portable ECL chip (PECL‐CRISPR) is constructed. Wherein target miRNA activates Cas13a to cleave a well‐designed preprimer, and triggers the subsequent exponential amplification and ECL detection. Under optimized conditions, a limit‐of‐detection of 1 × 10−15 m for miR‐17 is achieved. Through rationally designing the crRNA, the platform can provide single nucleotide resolution to dramatically distinguish miRNA target from its highly homologous family members. Moreover, the introduction of “light‐switch” molecule [Ru(phen)2dppz]2+ allows the platform to avoid tedious electrode modification and washing processes, thereby simplifying the experimental procedure and lower testing cost. Analysis results of miRNA from tumor cells also demonstrate the PECL‐CRISPR platform holds a promising potential for molecular diagnosis.

The role of ESG is not confined to investments, but extends to the influence it exerts on capital markets. This study investigates the impact of corporate ESG performance on the information environment. Our results show that as companies demonstrate higher ESG performance, there is a significant increase in analyst coverage, an enhancement in the accuracy of public information, and a reduction in the precision of private information. Further analysis reveals that the impact of ESG performance on the capital market information environment is significantly higher in state-owned companies, non-heavily polluting industries, and the eastern regions. This study not only examines the economic consequences of corporate ESG performance from the perspective of the capital market’s information environment, but also provides practical guidelines for policymakers and professionals in finance and sustainability to optimize the capital market environment through the development of corporate ESG.