Search

Backgrounds: Deficiency of autophagy causes alterations in articular cartilage that lead to intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) and osteoarthritis. In China, conservative treatment with traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is a reasonably preferred choice for ruptured lumbar disc herniation (LDH). It has been reported that autophagy was activated by Yiqi Huoxue decoction (YHD) treatment. However, the role of YHD-induced autophagy in the prevention and treatment of IDH remains to be clarified. Methods: The effect of YHD treatment on IDH rats was evaluated by hematoxylin and eosin staining. Western blot and immunohistofluorescence (IHF) assay were used to detect the relative expressions of the autophagy-related proteins, and the changes of VPS34 mRNA were detected by quantitative real-time PCR. Results: The YHD treatment significantly improved the resorption of interverbral disc along with the increased expression of autophagy related proteins, including VPS34, Beclin1 and LC3II/LC3I in IDH rats. Western blot and IHF analyses showed increased level of USP13 in YHD treatment groups. In contrast, inhibition of USP13 by autophagy inhibitor spautin-1 promoted the ubiquitination of Beclin1, decreased the expressions of VPS34, Beclin1 and LC3II/LC3I, which in turn blocked facilitative effect of YHD on discresorption. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that YHD activates autophagy by regulating the deubiquitination activity of USP13 to Beclin1, thereby promoting the resorption of interverbral disc.

In order to obtain the mechanism of the effect of CO2 on the NO heterogeneous reduction, density functional theory (DFT) was adopted to investigate the interactions between char and NO with the participation of CO2. The armchair configuration composed with several aromatic ring clusters was selected as the carbonaceous surfaces. Geometric optimizations were carried out at the B3LYP-D3/6-31G(d) level. Energies of optimized geometries were calculated at the B3LYP-D3/def2-TZVP level. The results show that, the surface carbonyl groups produced by the adsorption of CO2 combine with the adsorbed NO to desorb CO2, thereby providing adjacent carbon active sites for subsequent NO adsorption and N2 desorption. Thermodynamic studies show that the exothermic heat of this reaction is 853.9 kJ/mol, and the highest energy barrier is 297.0 kJ/mol without the participation of CO2, but the exothermic heat of this reaction is 593.7 kJ/mol, and the highest energy barrier is 214.1 kJ/mol with the participation of CO2. Kinetic studies show that over the temperature range of 298.15–1800 K, the reaction rate constants of rate-limiting steps are calculated with conventional transition state theory. The rate constant with the participation of CO2 is higher than that without the participation of CO2. In summary, CO2 plays a promoting role in interacting with NO and char and reducing energy barrier to form N2 directly.

Waxy crude oil emulsion has thixotropic properties at the temperature near gel point, which is a macro-mechanical characterization of the structure failure and recovery of waxy crude oil emulsion. In this paper, the thixotropic behaviors of waxy crude oil emulsion near gel point were studied using hysteresis loop formed by stress linear increase and decrease, as well as the structural recovery characteristics. The influence of the loading conditions and water content on the thixotropy of waxy crude oil emulsion were analyzed with hysteresis loop area. The concept of “structural recovery” was introduced to study the degree of structural recovery after different stewing, and influencing factors were taken into account. Results have shown that for waxy crude oil emulsion, the failure to fully restore of the structure after lysis is the cause of the formation of hysteresis loop, and the loading conditions will not affect the strength of thixotropy and the degree of structural recovery. Additionally, the dispersed phase droplets weaken the thixotropy and structure recovery characteristics of waxy crude oil emulsion, and the greater the water content, the weaker the thixotropy. The findings can help to better understand the safe and economic operation of waxy crude oil-water pipeline transportation.

To observe the radiological change and curative effect of cervical spondylosis treated with cervical vertebra pulling therapy in young people.A total of 65 patients(shedding in 5 patients and final inclusion in 60 patients) with cervical spondylosis who were treated from January 2018 to September 2019 were randomly divided into treatment group and control group according to the digital table method. There were 30 patients in treatment group, including 14 males and 18 females, aged from 20 to 44 years old with an average of(29.83±6.99) years, who were treated with cervical vertebra pulling therapy(once a week, 4 times in total). The control group consisted of 30 cases, 12 males and 18 females, aged from 18 to 43 years old with an average of (31.77±5.93) years, who received sitting traction therapy(once a week, 4 times in total). The changes of CSixty patients were followed up for (3.2±0.3) months. There were no significant differences in NRS, CCervical vertebra pulling method and cervical vertebra sitting traction can relieve the pain symptoms of patients with cervical spondylosis, but the effect of cervical vertebra pulling method is more durable;cervical vertebra pulling method can correct abnormal cervical sagittal parameters.

Introduction Fifteen to twenty-five percent of patients with colorectal cancer have combined liver metastases at the time of diagnosis, whereas an additional fifteen to twenty-five percent will develop liver metastases after curative resection of primary colorectal cancer, with the vast majority (80% − 90%) of liver metastases unresponsive to curative resection at first. Colorectal cancer liver metastasis is also the leading cause of death in patients with colorectal cancer. In recent years, several studies have demonstrated that intestinal flora, especially Fusobacterium nucleatum, plays a crucial role in the development of colorectal cancer liver metastasis, so we hypothesized that long-term metronidazole use could effectively reduce the incidence of postoperative liver metastasis in colorectal cancer patients. Methods/design This study is a prospective, single-centre, randomized, double-blind controlled study in which 300 patients will be randomly assigned to the test group or the control group in a 1:1 allocation ratio. The aim of this trial is to demonstrate that long-term oral antibiotics can effectively reduce the incidence of postoperative liver metastasis in patients with colorectal cancer. Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee at the Chinese Ethics Committee of Registering Clinical Trials (ChiECRCT20210229). The results of this study will be disseminated at several research conferences and as published articles in peer-reviewed journals. Trial registration . ChiCTR2100046201. Registered on July 05, 2021, http://www.chictr.org.cn/edit.aspx?pid=125730&htm=4

Huge volumes of wastewater containing organic flotation reagents such as xanthates have been released into the environment via mining activities, greatly threatening the eco-environment safety. A simple and fast method is urgently needed for accurate analysis of various xanthates in mining and environmental water. Here, a robust method is realized for simultaneous determination of three trace xanthates (i.e., potassium ethyl xanthate, potassium butyl xanthate, and potassium isopropyl xanthate) in environmental water samples, including eutrophic water and flotation wastewater using solid phase extraction (SPE) and HPLC-MS/MS. HPLC-MS/MS parameters, SPE cartridges and eluting solvents, pH values, and SPE procedures were optimized. The new method had an excellent linearity in the range of 1-1000 μg/L (R

Background Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS) is a rare disease with clinical manifestations of pigmented spots on the lips, mucous membranes and extremities, scattered gastrointestinal polyps, and susceptibility to tumors. The clinical heterogeneity of PJS is obvious, and the relationship between clinical phenotype and genotype is still unclear. Aim To investigate the mutation status of hereditary colorectal tumor-associated genes in hamartoma polyp tissue of PJS patients and discuss its relationship with the clinicopathological data of PJS. Methods Twenty patients with PJS were randomly selected for this study and were treated in the Air Force Medical Center (former Air Force General Hospital) PLA between 2008 and 2017. Their hamartoma polyp tissues were used for APC, AXIN2, BMPR1A, EPCAM, MLH1, MLH3, MSH2, MSH6, MUTYH, PMS1, PMS2, PTEN, SMAD4, and LKB1/STK11 gene sequencing using next-generation sequencing technology. The correlations between the sequencing results and clinical pathological data of PJS were analyzed. Results Fourteen types of LKB1/STK11 mutations were detected in 16 cases (80.0%), of which 8 new mutations were found (3 types of frameshift deletion mutations: c.243delG, c.363_364delGA, and c.722delC; 2 types of frameshift insertions: c. 144_145insGCAAG, and c.454_455insC; 3 types of splice site mutations: c.464+1G>T, c.464+1G>A, and c.598-1G>A); 9 cases (45.0%) were found to have 18 types of heterozygous mutations in the remaining 13 genes except LKB1/STK11. Of these, MSH2: c.792+1G>A, MSH6: c.3689C>G, c.4001+13C>CTTAC, PMS1: c.46C>t, and c.922G>A were new mutations. Conclusion The genetic mutations in hamartoma polyp tissue of PJS are complex and diverse. Moreover, other gene mutations in PJS hamartoma polyp tissue were observed, with the exception of LKB1/STK11 gene, especially the DNA mismatch repair gene (MMR). Colorectal hamartoma polyps with LKB1/STK11 mutations were larger in diameter than those with other gene mutations.

BackgroundAppropriate gastrointestinal reconstruction after proximal gastrectomy can effectively reduce the incidence of postoperative complications in patients with proximal early gastric cancer. However, there is still great controversy about the choice of digestive tract reconstruction after proximal gastrectomy, and there is no clinical consensus on the choice of digestive tract reconstruction after proximal gastrectomy. Currently, there is a lack of large-sample, prospective, randomized controlled studies to compare the efficacy of Kamikawa, double-tract reconstruction, and tube-like stomach reconstruction after proximal gastrectomy.Methods/designThis study will investigate the efficacy of three reconstruction methods after proximal gastrectomy in a prospective, multicenter, randomized controlled trial, which will enroll 180 patients with proximal early gastric cancer. Patients will be randomly divided into three groups: Group A (Kamikawa, n = 60), Group B (double-tract reconstruction, n = 60), and Group C (tube-like stomach, n = 60). The general information, past medical history, laboratory findings, imaging findings, and surgical procedures of the patients will be recorded and analyzed. The incidence of reflux esophagitis will be recorded as the primary endpoint. The incidence of anastomotic leakage, anastomotic stenosis, operative time and intraoperative blood loss will be recorded as secondary endpoints.DiscussionThis study will establish a large-sample, prospective, randomized controlled trial to compare the efficacy of Kamikawa, double-tract reconstruction, and tube-like stomach reconstruction after proximal gastrectomy.Trial registrationThis study was approved by the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry and registered on April 30, 2021. The registration number is ChiCTR2100045975.

Histone methylation plays a crucial role in the regulation of gene transcriptional expression, and aberration of methylation-modifying enzyme genes can lead to a variety of genetic diseases, including human cancers. The histone modified protein KMT2 (lysin methyltransferase) family are involved in cell proliferation, growth, development and differentiation through regulating gene expression, and are closely related with many blood cancers and solid tumors. In recent years, several studies have shown that mutations in the KMT2 gene occur frequently in a variety of human cancers and the mutation status of the KMT2 gene may be correlated with the occurrence, development and prognosis of some tumors. Research uncovering the clinical characteristics and molecular mechanisms of KMT2 mutation in human tumors will be helpful for early diagnosis and prognosis of tumors as well as drug development for targeted therapies.

Autophagy has been proved to occur in rats with intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD). Yiqi Huoxue recipe (YQHXR), an effective therapy of traditional Chinese medicine, was widely used for ruptured lumbar disc herniation under clinical observation. More importantly, YQHXR positively regulated the expression of autophagy-related proteins. However, little is known about the significance of YQHXR in the pathologic process of IVDD. Therefore, this study explored the protective effect of YQHXR based on IVDD rat model through magnetic resonance imaging and histopathologic analysis. Then we evaluated the formation of autophagosomes in the degenerated intervertebral disc by transmission electron microscope. Real-time PCR was used to detect the changes of autophagy-related genes. Western blot and immunoprecipitation were used to assess the protein expression of the autophagy-related pathway. We found that YQHXR-induced autophagy attenuated the release of inflammatory factors. In addition, YQHXR promoted the formation of Beclin1-VPS34 complex to activate autophagy through not only activation of the upstream protein AMPK and upregulation of the deubiquitinase USP13, thus in turn alleviating the development of IVDD. We proposed the potential molecular mechanism of YQHXR on autophagy for the first time, so as to provide a theoretical and experimental basis for the clinical application of YQHXR in the treatment of IVDD-related diseases.

Background Different types of pathogenic mutations may produce different clinical phenotypes, but a correlation between Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS) genotype and clinical phenotype has not been found. Not all patients with PJS have detectable mutations of the STK11/LKB1 gene, what is the genetic basis of clinical phenotypic heterogeneity of PJS? Do PJS cases without STK11/LKB1 mutations have other pathogenic genes? Those are clinical problems that perplex doctors. Aim The aim was to investigate the specific gene mutation of PJS, and the correlation between the genotype and clinical phenotype of PJS. Methods A total of 24 patients with PJS admitted to the Air Force Medical Center, PLA (formerly the Air Force General Hospital, PLA) from November 1994 to January 2020 were randomly selected for inclusion in the study. One hundred thirty-nine common hereditary tumor-related genes including STK11/LKB1 were screened and analyzed for pathogenic germline mutations by high-throughput next-generation sequencing (NGS). The mutation status of the genes and their relationship with clinical phenotypes of PJS were explored. Results Twenty of the 24 PJS patients in this group (83.3%) had STK11/LKB1 gene mutations, 90% of which were pathogenic mutations, and ten had new mutation sites. Pathogenic mutations in exon 7 of STK11/LKB1 gene were significantly lower than in other exons. Truncation mutations are more common in exons 1 and 4 of STK11/LKB1, and their pathogenicity was significantly higher than that of missense mutations. We also found SLX4 gene mutations in PJS patients. Conclusion PJS has a relatively complicated genetic background. Changes in the sites responsible for coding functional proteins in exon 1 and exon 4 of STK11/LKB1 may be one of the main causes of PJS. Mutation of the SLX4 gene may be a cause of genetic heterogeneity in PJS.

The effective deployment of an intelligent reflecting mirror array (IRMA) can enhance channel quality and improve the system performance in visible light communications (VLC) systems. This paper focuses on the performance analysis and parameter optimization of an IRMA-aided VLC system. Initially, the channel gains of both line-of-sight (LoS) link and non-LoS links are analyzed. Then, considering the blockage probability of a LoS link, a theoretical expression of the average bit error rate (ABER) is derived. To further improve the system performance, the optimization problems about the parameters of the IRMA are formulated, and schemes are proposed to solve these problems. Moreover, a kind of hardware implementation of the IRMA is provided. Numerical results verify the accuracy of the derived ABER expression and the effectiveness of the proposed schemes.

Background: Contrast-enhanced lumbar spine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to predict the efficacy of conservative treatment of giant lumbar disc herniation.Methods: From June 2017 to June 2019, 30 patients with giant lumbar disc herniation with positive and negative bull’s eye signs on contrast-enhanced lumbar spine MRI were assessed to measure differences in the rate of intervertebral disc herniation, rate of protrusion absorption, treatment effect, protrusion rate, and curative effect according to the lumbar Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) score before and after treatment.Results: Thirty patients with positive and negative bull’s eye signs (36 men and 24 women) aged 19 to 58 years (mean, 36.37 ± 9.56 years) were included. All patients were followed up for more than 1 year, and at least one MRI review was conducted within 1 year of treatment. The results of the first and final MRI examinations were compared. The protrusion rate was 82.16% ± 14.58% before treatment and 32.20% ± 30.80% after treatment, and the absorptivity of the protrusion was 59.48% ± 38.62%. There was no statistically significant difference in the general data before treatment between the positive and negative groups (P > 0.05). After treatment, the protrusion rate in the positive and negative bull’s eye sign groups was 14.41% ± 14.37% and 49.99% ± 32.70%, respectively (P < 0.05). The absorptivity in the positive and negative bull’s eye sign groups was 83.09% ± 15.54% and 35.87% ± 40.49%, respectively (P < 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the JOA score between the two groups before treatment (P > 0.05); however, there was a statistically significant difference in the JOA score between the two groups at 3 months (P < 0.05) and 1 year (P < 0.05) after treatment.Conclusions: Conservative treatment of giant lumbar disc herniation has a satisfactory clinical effect. Contrast-enhanced MRI can be used to predict the resorption of giant lumbar disc herniation. Protrusion resorption is more likely to occur in patients with than without a bull’s eye sign.Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (No. ChiCTR1900022377). Retrospectively registered 08 April 2019.

Background: The phenomenon of lumbar disc herniation resorption is increasingly being reported, but the occurrence of this phenomenon cannot currently be accurately predicted.Methods: We acquired magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of patients with giant lumbar disc herniation from January 2018 to December 2019, and analyzed the prognostic value of measurements performed on the images. The patients underwent conservative treatment according to the doctor’s decision. The imaging assessments included Komori points, MSU type, Iwabuchi type, the presence of a “bull’s eye” sign on contrast-enhanced MRI, Modic type classification, initial imaging prominence rate, and maximum level projection area. Post-treatment MRI was reviewed to evaluate the outstanding prominence rate and the maximum level projection area, thereby allowing calculation of the intervertebral disc absorption rate after treatment. The rate of patients undergoing later surgery was also recorded.Results: Seventy-six patients (46 males and 30 females, aged 14–65 years [mean 37.79 ± 10.60]) were included in this study, 12 of whom underwent surgery, giving a surgical rate of 15.79%. All patients were followed up for more than 9 months. The outburst rate was 84.41% ± 14.72%. The absorptivity rate of the 64 patients under conservative treatment was 38.35% ± 40.64%, with the absorptivity of the patients with Iwabuchi type 1 and a bull’s eye sign being significantly higher than the average rate (P < 0.01).Conclusions: The resorption of giant lumbar disc herniation is a natural process. Imaging findings showed Iwabuchi type 1 and a positive bull’s eye sign on contrast-enhanced MRI to be associated with an increased probability of resorption.

Introduction: Bosworth fracture-dislocation is an unusual variant of ankle joint fracture and dislocation, which has a high clinically missed diagnosis rate due to poor visibility on X-ray. At the same time, successful closed manipulations in an ankle joint fracture and dislocation are difficult because of the fibula attachment at the posterolateral ridge of the tibia or at the fractured end of the posterior tibia.Patient concerns: A 56-year-old man visited the hospital for further evaluation of a swollen, deformed right ankle resulting from a tumble 4 hours ago. There were no obvious complications such as skin damage or blood vessel and nerve damage at the time of treatment.Diagnosis: The patient was diagnosed with Bosworth fracture-dislocation according to clinical history and X-ray examination and computed tomography (CT), which indicated posterolateral talus dislocation; the distal end of the proximal fibular fragment was inserted behind the tibia.Interventions and outcomes: The patient initially failed to receive twice manipulative reductions. After the first attempt, roentgenograms and CT scan still showed a dislocated ankle and the proximal end of the fibula fracture was still inserted at the fractured end of the posterior tibia although the sound of the joint mounted into the acetabulum was heard. Then the inferior tibiofibula joint was fully exposed and locked with an inferior tibiofibula screw. Review roentgenograms and CT suggested that the ankle was manipulated successfully, and the broken end achieved perfect alignment, leading to a satisfactory function restoration.Lessons: Early diagnosis and reduction of Bosworth fracture-dislocation is recommended, which can significantly decrease complications. The characteristic clinical manifestations of Bosworth fracture-dislocation are worthy of attention, including extreme external rotation of the ankle and difficulty in reduction. Simultaneously, the axilla sign on mortise roentgenograms, posterior dislocation of the talus on the lateral roentgenogram and fibular position relative to the talus on the external oblique roentgenogram are intrinsically valuable. During the surgery, the floating position can better expose the broken fracture end and allow standard lateral roentgenograms. For the reduction of Bosworth fracture-dislocation, it is important to avoid repeated attempts at closed reduction. Intraoperative reduction of the fibula is the key.

Background Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) is mainly caused by annular fiber disruption with a discrete leakage of nucleus pulposus pressing on a nerve, resulting in back pain and radiating pain. Most patients with LDH can be treated conservatively, but there are many different conservative treatments. Furthermore, most previous studies did not evaluate the long-term efficacy of these treatments and the prognosis. Therefore, an effective and safe therapeutic strategy is lacking for patients with LDH. In this study, we evaluated Xiao Sui Hua He decoction (XSHHD) in the treatment of LDH. Methods This was a rigorous prospective observational 3-year follow-up study. We recruited 69 participants with ruptured lumbar disc herniation (RLDH) between February 2014 and February 2016. Patients took XSHHD orally twice a day for 6 months. The primary outcome measurements were visual analogue scale (VAS) pain score, Oswestry disability index (ODI) and straight leg raising test (SLRT). The secondary outcome measurements was nucleus pulposus protrusion volume on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Clinical outcomes were measured at baseline (Visit 1), and at 3, 6, 12, and 36 months (Visit 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively).. Results Sixty-three patients were followed-up for 3 years after treatment. SLRT and ODI after non-surgical treatment improved significantly compared with baseline (P P 3, and the volume decreased significantly to 996.51 ± 387.42 mm3 at 36 months (t = 12.863; P Conclusions This study showed that non-surgical treatment with XSHHD was effective, and the study clarified the natural outcomes in LDH.

Ubiquitous Power IoT is an important part of smart grid or energy internet. Edge network is a key component of smart grid and future energy Internet. IoT contains various terminals, diverse access networks and equipment. The allocation of energy-efficient resources under QoS guarantee is an effective means to ensure the reliable operation of the network. Due to the heterogeneity of the services carried and in order to reduce business operation risks and impact on the power grid, it is necessary to provide highly reliable resource allocation method to the ubiquitous power IoT business for the energy Internet. Edge network can reduce end-to-end latency and reduce backhaul link traffic. However, mobile edge networks moving the function of storage and computing down to the edge nodes of network, which makes resource management more complex. Moreover, the computing resources in the edge network is limited and the effect to the ecological environment and economic cost should also be considered. So how to allocate resources such as bandwidth and power more effectively while meeting the needs of users becomes an important issue. Even if the Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) algorithm has been used to a lot of the work which are correlated to edge networks, there lacks the applications for green resource allocation. In this paper, a mechanism based on Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) for the resource allocation problem is proposed oriented to edge networks. The mechanism aims at how to allocate resources more efficiently and energy-saving while satisfying the requirements of each user. The simulation results show that the energy efficiency value could be obtained when the algorithm converges and stabilizes. The Energy Efficiency (EE) of the proposed mechanism and the productiveness in satisfying user requirements and implementing green resource allocation are validated.

Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS) is an autosomal dominant inherited disease, which is characterized by mucocutaneous pigmentation and multiple gastrointestinal hamartoma polyps. The germline mutation of LKB1/STK11 gene on chromosome 19p13.3 is considered to be the hereditary cause of PJS. However, must a patient with PJS have the LKB1/STK11 gene mutation? We here report a case of a male patient who had typical manifestations of PJS and a definite family history, but did not have LKB1/STK11 gene mutation. By means of high-throughput sequencing technology, only mutations in APC gene (c.6662T > C: p.Met2221Thr) and MSH6 gene (c.3488A > T: p.Glu1163Val) were detected. The missense mutations in APC and MSH6 gene may lead to abnormalities in structure and function of their expression products, and may result in the occurrence of PJS. This study suggests that some other genetic disorders may cause PJS besides LKB1/STK11 gene mutation.

Phenol is a biotoxic organic compound and found in large quantities in ammonia-rich wastewater discharged from coking and petrochemical industries. In this work, phenol was fed to the system of anaerobic ammonia oxidation (anammox), and the possible inhibitory mechanism was speculated using the characterization of granular sludge, analysis of microbial community and molecular docking simulations. The results showed that phenol (0-300 mg/L) did not significantly inhibit anammox. However, phenol did activate denitrification, which increased the nitrogen removal rate (NRR) by 0.94 kg N/(m

High waxy crude oil occupies an important proportion in oil resources, and its output is increasing year by year. At the temperature below the wax precipitation point, the wax in crude oil will precipitate and cross-link to form a spatial network structure, resulting in the gelation of crude oil. Once crude oil is gelled, it will exhibit viscoelastic-thixotropic characteristics, which will seriously affect the safety of crude oil pipeline transportation. In this paper, based on the principle of mechanical analogy, the elasticity, viscosity and structural strength of the gelled crude oil are characterized by springs, viscous pots, and structural parameters, respectively. On this basis, the viscoelastic-thixotropic model of waxy crude oil with 9 parameters is established. Meanwhile, the model applicability is verified by experimental data using two waxy crude oils under constant shear stress, shear stress step increase and shear stress hysteresis. Compared with the models in literatures, our model has clear physical meaning, relatively few parameters and high prediction accuracy.

Y2O3 has a great application potential at reaction barrier coating of high-temperature composites due to its high thermodynamic stability and high melting point, and the phase structure stability at high temperature and structure dependent mechanical property are key parameters for this application. Y2O3 thin films were deposited on silicon (100) wafers by DC magnetron sputtering with various oxygen partial pressure and substrate bias, and then vacuum annealing at 1000°C was performed to investigate the phase structure stability. The microstructure, stress and hardness of as-deposited and annealed Y2O3 thin films were explored by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscope, and nanoindenter. The result showed that as-60 bias voltage was applied to substrate, cubic-c phase formed regardless of variation of oxygen partial pressure, and the cubic-c phase remains stability and crystallinity became better after annealing at 1000 °C.In addition, the hardness and modulus also just had minor changes as a function of oxygen partial pressure. As oxygen partial pressure was kept at 0.043 Pa, phase transition from cubic-c to monoclinic-b phase took place with increasing substrate bias, accompanying by the increment of hardness and modulus, and 1000 °Chigh-temperature annealing resulted in that as-deposited monoclinic-b phase transforms to cubic-c phase.

To establish the in vitro study model of osteoclasts induced by RANKL, to elaborate the effect of formononetin (FO) , an effective component of Caulis Spatholobi, on the differentiation and function of bone marrow mononuclear macrophages (BMMs) into osteoclasts, and to explore the molecular mechanism of its inhibition.The BMMs in femur and tibia were isolated from 20 clean C57/BL6 mice of 4 to 6 weeks old, 10 males and 10 females, each weighing (20± 2) g. The BMMs in femur and tibia were cultured and proliferated in vitro with α-MEM medium. BMMs were cultured with MCSF and different concentrations of anthocyanin (5 to 50 μm) respectively for 4 days, and CCK8 of cell proliferation and toxicity was detected. BMMs in good growth condition were added to M-CSF and RANKL to induce osteoclast differentiation in turn. There was no special treatment in the control group. DMSO was added to the control group with DMSO solvent. Each observation group was added with different concentrations of awnasin (1 to 20 μm) . After 6 days of culture, the osteoclasts were counted and statistically analyzed. The expression of NFATc1, cCCK8 test results showed that awnstein could inhibit the activity of BMMs in a dose-dependent manner, and had no significant toxic effect on the growth of bmms within the safe concentration range of ≤20 μM (The effective component of Caulis Spatholobi can inhibit the proliferation and differentiation of primary mononuclear macrophages into osteoclasts, and down regulate the expression of osteoclast bone resorption related proteins and genes, which may be one of the mechanisms of its prevention and treatment of bone destruction and collapse in osteonecrosis of femoral head.

The theory of frequency-dependent amplitude versus offset (AVO) was developed for patchy-saturated model. In this work, we consider this theory in the case of an anisotropic medium based on a fractured-sandstone model. Thus, building on viscoelastic theory, we introduce a method for the computation of frequency-dependent AVO that is suitable for use in the case of an anisotropic medium. We use both analytical methods and numerical simulations to study P-P and P-S reflection coefficients, and results suggest that dispersion and anisotropy should not be neglected in AVO analysis. Indeed, for class I AVO reservoirs, the reflection magnitude of P-wave increases with frequency, while the responses of class II AVO reservoirs suggest that phase reversal occurs as frequency increases positively. In the case of class III AVO reservoirs, reflection magnitude decreases as frequency increases positively, while in the offset domain, the presence of anisotropy can distort or even reverse AVO responses. Thus, when compared to reflection coefficients for P-wave, reflection magnitude features of S-wave are more complex. The frequency-dependent AVO responses reported in this study provide insights for the interpretation of seismic anomalies in vertical transverse isotropy (VTI) dispersive reservoirs.

A growing number of researches believes that Dry Centrifugal Granulation (DCG) process is the most promising process in deal with the molten slag to raw material in cement produced on account of the no water consumes, no harmful gas emissions and efficient recovery of waste heat. Apparently, some obstacles, like every new technology, are on its way to industrialization. In this paper a new liquid slag feeding mode is present with a new way to control the flow rate of molten slag in order to gain fine particle diameter and high glassy phase.

Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) is a common, disabling musculoskeletal disorder. Magnetic resonance imaging has clarified the natural history of lumbar disc lesions and has documented that disc lesions can become smaller and can even be completely resorbed. Previous studies have confirmed that some traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) therapies can promote resorption of the protrusion. However, high-quality research evidence is needed to support the effectiveness of the protocol. Objective: This clinical trial aims to establish whether TCM can promote the resorption of LDH and to assess the efficacy of such therapy for LDH, thereby evaluating its clinical effect. Methods: The present study design is for a single-center, 2-arm, open-label randomized controlled trial. A total of 150 eligible LDH patients will be randomly assigned to either a TCM treatment group or a control group in a 1:1 ratio. Patients in the TCM group will be administered a TCM decoction for 4 weeks. Patients in the conventional drug control group will be instructed to take a specific daily dose of celecoxib. The primary outcome measure is the change from baseline in the volume of the protrusion, as assessed using MR images. Secondary outcome measures include visual analog scale pain scores and Japanese Orthopaedic Association scores assessed at 3 and 6 months. Discussion: The design and methodological rigor of this trial will allow evaluation of the basic clinical efficacy and safety data for TCM in the treatment of patients with LDH. The trial will also assess whether TCM can promote the resorption of LDH. This research will therefore help provide a solid foundation for the clinical treatment of LDH and for future research in TCM therapy. Trial registration: ChiCTR1900022377.

Objective The optimal surgical approach for Siewert type II adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction (AEG) is controversial. In this study, we evaluated the outcomes of total gastrectomy for Siewert type II/III AEG via the left thoracic surgical approach that is used at our center. Methods We identified 41 patients with advanced AEG in our retrospective database and analyzed their 3-year survival rate, upper surgical margin, postoperative complications, and index of estimated benefit from lymph node dissection. Results The 3-year overall survival rate of the whole group was 63%, but no difference was observed between Siewert type II and III AEGs. Esophageal exposure and lymphadenectomy were sufficient. Eight patients developed postoperative complications, but none of the patients developed anastomotic leakage. Dissection of lymph node station Nos. 19 and 110 may be necessary for patients with Siewert type II AEG. Multivariate analysis revealed that the cT category was the only independent risk factor. Conclusions Total gastrectomy via an approach from the abdominal cavity into the thoracic cavity may be an optimal surgical technique for advanced Siewert type II AEG.