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The orogenic process and crustal growth of the Changning–Menglian Palaeo-Tethys orogenic belt in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau is not fully understood. Triassic Caojian rhyolites and granites occur extensively in this orogenic belt and represent important constraints for this issue. This study aims to examine the relationships between the Triassic Caojian rhyolites and granites and to gain a better understanding of their possible petrogenesis. The study used zircon U–Pb geochronology, trace element analyses and Sr–Nd–Hf isotope data to better understand the relationships and possible origin of the rhyolites and granites. Recent zircon U–Pb ages indicated that the Caojian rhyolites were emplaced at 227.2 Ma, whereas age estimates for Caojian granites were slightly older (233.4–236.9 Ma). The Caojian rhyolites are enriched in large-ion lithophile elements and high-field-strength elements, with elevated FeOtot/MgO and Ga/Al ratios. However, they are significantly depleted in Ba, Sr, Eu, P and Ti. These geochemical characteristics indicate that they have an A-type affinity. Furthermore, the Caojian granites comprise biotite monzogranites and granodiorites and show unfractionated composition. Mineralogically, the Caojian granites were found to contain diagnostic I-type minerals such as hornblende. Geochemical data suggest that the petrogenesis of the Triassic Caojian rhyolites is characterized by rejuvenation of crystal mush represented by the Triassic Caojian granites. The necessary thermal input was supplied by mafic magma. This magmatic evolution was likely related to lithospheric delamination and upwelling of the asthenosphere during the Mid- to Late Triassic, forming post-collisional I-type granites and A-type volcanics in the Changning–Menglian Palaeo-Tethys orogenic belt.

Background The EXTREME regimen (chemotherapy [CT; cisplatin/carboplatin and 5-fluorouracil]) plus cetuximab is a standard-of-care first-line (1L) treatment for patients with recurrent and/or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (R/M SCCHN), as supported by international guidelines. The phase III CHANGE-2 trial assessed the efficacy and safety of a modified CT regimen (with a reduced dose of both components) and cetuximab versus CT for the 1L treatment of Chinese patients with R/M SCCHN. Methods Patients were randomised to receive up to six cycles of CT plus cetuximab followed by cetuximab maintenance until progressive disease or CT alone. The primary end-point was the progression-free survival (PFS) time assessed by the independent review committee (IRC). Results Overall, 243 patients were randomised (164 to CT plus cetuximab; 79 to CT). The hazard ratios for PFS by IRC and overall survival (OS) were 0.57 (95% CI: 0.40–0.80; median: 5.5 versus 4.2 months) and 0.69 (95% CI: 0.50–0.93; median: 11.1 versus 8.9 months), respectively, in favour of CT plus cetuximab. The objective response rates (ORR) by IRC were 50.0% and 26.6% with CT plus cetuximab and CT treatment, respectively. Treatment-emergent adverse events of maximum grade 3 or 4 occurred in 61.3% (CT plus cetuximab) and 48.7% (CT) of patients. Conclusions CHANGE-2 showed an improved median PFS, median OS and ORR with the addition of cetuximab to a modified platinum/5-fluorouracil regimen, with no new or unexpected safety findings, thereby confirming CT plus cetuximab as an effective and safe 1L treatment for Chinese patients with R/M SCCHN. Clinical trial registration number NCT02383966.

Summary Background The addition of camrelizumab to gemcitabine and cisplatin showed promising activity as first-line therapy in patients with recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma in a phase 1 trial. We therefore compared camrelizumab plus gemcitabine and cisplatin with placebo plus gemcitabine and cisplatin in a randomised phase 3 trial. Methods In this randomised, double-blind, phase 3 trial done at 28 hospitals in China, patients were eligible if they were aged 18–75 years, had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0–1, and had previously untreated recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1; using an interactive web-response system with a block size of four) to receive either camrelizumab (200 mg on day 1) or matching placebo intravenously, plus gemcitabine and cisplatin (gemcitabine 1000 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8; cisplatin 80 mg/m2 on day 1) intravenously every 3 weeks for four to six cycles, followed by maintenance therapy with camrelizumab or placebo, until radiographic progression, unacceptable toxicity, start of new anticancer treatment, investigator decision, or withdrawal of consent. Stratification factors used in randomisation were liver metastases, previous radical concurrent chemoradiotherapy, and ECOG performance status. The allocation sequence was generated by an independent randomisation group. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival per independent review committee. The significance threshold for independent review committee-assessed progression-free survival was p=0·0086 (one-sided) at the interim analysis. Efficacy and safety analyses included all patients who received at least one dose of study drug. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT03707509 , and is closed for enrolment but is ongoing. Findings Between Nov 13, 2018, and Nov 29, 2019, 343 patients were screened and 263 were eligible and were randomly assigned to the camrelizumab group (n=134) or placebo group (n=129). At the prespecified interim analysis (June 15, 2020), independent review committee-assessed progression-free survival was significantly longer in the camrelizumab group (median 9·7 months [95% CI 8·3–11·4]) than in the placebo group (median 6·9 months [5·9–7·3]; hazard ratio 0·54 [95% CI 0·39–0·76]; one-sided p=0·0002). As of Dec 31, 2020, the most common grade 3 or worse adverse events of any cause were decreased white blood cell count (89 [66%] of 134 patients in the camrelizumab group vs 90 [70%] of 129 patients in the placebo group), decreased neutrophil count (86 [64%] vs 85 [66%]), anaemia (53 [40%] vs 57 [44%]), and decreased platelet count (53 [40%] vs 52 [40%]). Serious adverse events were reported in 59 (44%) of 134 patients in the camrelizumab group and 48 (37%) of 129 patients in the placebo group. Treatment-related deaths occurred in five (4%) patients in the camrelizumab group (two unknown cause of death, one multiple organ dysfunction syndrome, one pharyngeal haemorrhage, and one arrhythmia) and one ( Interpretation Our findings suggest that camrelizumab plus gemcitabine and cisplatin could be a new standard of care for patients with recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma in the first-line setting. Longer follow-up is needed to confirm this conclusion. Funding Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals (formerly Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine). Translation For the Chinese translation of the abstract see Supplementary Materials section.

The Triassic Lincang granites make up the largest peraluminous granitic batholith in the Changning-Menglian Paleo-Tethys orogenic belt, southeastern Tibetan Plateau. It is undoubtedly very importan...

International audience; Ni–Mn-based shape memory alloy is a promising candidate as the solid-state elastocaloric refrigerant in the micro- or nano-refrigeration fields owing to the required small driving force. In this letter, we report a multielement alloying strategy, i.e., the co-substitution of non-magnetic element and boron for Mn, to improve the elastocaloric refrigeration efficiency and mechanical properties simultaneously. Under Cu and B co-substitution, a large adiabatic temperature change of –12.8 K and a giant specific adiabatic temperature change of 41.0 K/GPa were obtained in the directionally solidified Ni50(Mn31.7Cu2.5B0.3)In15.5 alloy. The proposed alloying manner is also favorable to enhance fracture resistance and cyclability.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third and second most common type of cancer diagnosed in males and females, respectively, and is the fourth leading cause of cancer-associated mortality worldwide. Liver metastasis is the primary cause of mortality in patients with CRC, and therefore requires therapeutic focus. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) and hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) are potentially involved in regulating the immune response during liver metastasis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the influence of CD4+ forkhead box p3 (Foxp3)+ Tregs and the HGF/c-Met signaling pathway in the liver metastasis of CRC. A model of the latter was established using Balb/c mice via splenic injection of human CRC cells (CT-26 line). The mice were monitored for 3 weeks after being injected, and the spleens and livers were removed on day 22 for further analysis. Moreover, the single-cell suspensions were labeled with CD4 and Foxp3 antibodies, and were analyzed using flow cytometry. Expression levels of α-smooth muscle actin (SMA), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and hepatocyte growth factor receptor (c-Met) were analyzed using immunohistochemistry. Mice injected with CT-26 cells exhibited signs of illness and significant weight loss, compared with the control mice (P=0.013), and they also developed liver metastases, at an average of 20.5 tumors per mouse. Pathological evaluation using hematoxylin and eosin staining confirmed the tumors as liver metastases of CRC. The numbers of CD4+ T cells were significantly decreased in the spleen (P

RAS-driven colorectal cancer relies on glucose metabolism to support uncontrolled growth. However, monotherapy with glycolysis inhibitors like 2-deoxy-D-glucose causes limited effectiveness. Recent studies suggest that anti-tumor effects of glycolysis inhibition could be improved by combination treatment with inhibitors of oxidative phosphorylation. In this study we investigated the effect of a combination of 2-deoxy-D-glucose with lovastatin (a known inhibitor of mevalonate pathway and oxidative phosphorylation) on growth of KRAS-mutant human colorectal cancer cell lines HCT116 and LoVo. A combination of lovastatin (3.75 μM) and 2-deoxy-D-glucose (1.25 mM) synergistically reduced cell viability, arrested cells in the G

Background The tumor immune microenvironment is one of the most important prognostic factors in liver metastasis from colorectal cancer. Low-dose cyclophosphamide (CTX) is widely believed to be involved in the modulation of the immune system. However, the underlying mechanism of low-dose CTX remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate the antitumor immunity of low-dose CTX in the treatment of colon-cancer liver metastasis. Methods Thirty mice were randomly divided into five groups. After liver metastasis was established in colon-cancer models, mice in the treatment groups were injected with low-dose CTX (20 mg/kg) at different time points. Liver and spleen tissues were examined for T-cell markers via flow cytometry. Interleukin (IL)-10 and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 expression levels in liver tissues were analysed by immunohistochemistry. Serum interferon (IFN)-γ and IL-10 levels were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. An additional 20 mice were randomly allocated into two groups and the survival times were recorded. Results The expression levels of CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, and IFN-γ were down-regulated, whereas those of IL-10 and TGF-β1 were up-regulated in liver metastasis from colon cancer in mice. Furthermore, the local and systemic microenvironments of the liver were altered, which led to reduced antitumor immune responses and subsequently liver metastasis. However, treatment with low-dose CTX reversed these effects. The survival times of mice treated with low-dose CTX were significantly longer than those of the other groups. Conclusions Low-dose CTX exerts its antitumor activity by changing the systemic and local immune microenvironments and enhancing immune regulation in mice. CTX could be used as a drug to prevent and treat liver metastasis from colon cancer.

BACKGROUND Complications of Crohn's disease such as intestinal obstruction, fistula or perforation often need surgical treatment. Nearly 70%-80% patients with Crohn's disease would receive surgical treatment during the lifetime. However, surgical treatment is incurable for Crohn's disease. The challenge of recurrence postoperatively troubles both doctors and patients. Over 50% patients would suffer recurrence postoperatively. Some certain risk factors are associated with recurrence of Crohn's disease. AIM To evaluate the risk factors for endoscopic recurrence and clinical recurrence after bowel resection in Crohn's disease. METHODS Patients diagnosed Crohn's disease and received intestinal resection between April 2007 and December 2013 were included in this study. Data on the general demographic information, preoperative clinical characteristics, surgical information, postoperative clinical characteristics were collected. Continuous data are expressed as median (inter quartile range), and categorical data as frequencies and percentages. Kaplan-Meier method was applied to estimate the impact of the clinical variables above on the cumulative rate of postoperative endoscopic recurrence and clinical recurrence, then log-rank test was applied to test the homogeneity of those clinical variables. Multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analysis was performed to identify the risk factors of postoperative endoscopic recurrence and clinical recurrence. RESULTS A total of 64 patients were included in this study. The median follow-up time for the patients was 17 (9.25-25.75) mo. In this period, 41 patients (64.1%) had endoscopic recurrence or clinical recurrence. Endoscopic recurrence occurred in 34 (59.6%) patients while clinical recurrence occurred in 28 (43.8%) patients, with the interval between the operation and recurrence of 13.0 (8.0-24.5) months and 17.0 (8.0-27.8) mo, respectively. In univariate analysis, diagnosis at younger age (P < 0.001), disease behavior of penetrating (P = 0.044) and preoperative use of anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) (P = 0.020) were significantly correlated with endoscopic recurrence, while complication with perianal lesions (P = 0.032) and preoperative use of immunomodulatory (P = 0.031) were significantly correlated with clinical recurrence. As to multivariate analysis, diagnostic age (P = 0.004), disease behavior (P = 0.041) and preoperative use of anti-TNF (P = 0.010) were independent prognostic factors for endoscopic recurrence, while complication with perianal lesions (P = 0.023) was an independent prognostic factor for clinical recurrence. CONCLUSION Diagnostic age, disease behavior, preoperative use of anti-TNF and complication with perianal lesions were independent risk factors for postoperative recurrence in Crohn's disease.

Background Caroli syndrome (CS) is a rare congenital disorder without pathognomonic clinical symptoms or laboratory findings; therefore, the diagnosis is often delayed. The objective of this study was to investigate the diagnostic delay and associated risk factors in CS patients. Methods This was a retrospective analysis of 16 CS patients admitted to a single tertiary medical center on mainland China. The diagnostic timelines of CS patients were reviewed to demonstrate the initial findings of CS at diagnosis, the risk factors associated with diagnostic delay, and potential clues leading to early diagnosis. Results The median diagnostic delay was 1.75 years (range: 1 month to 29 years, interquartile range: 6.2 years) in 16 enrolled CS patients. Sex, age, and initial symptoms were not associated with diagnostic delay. 87.5% of CS patients were diagnosed by imaging, and the accuracies of ultrasonography, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography were 25, 69.2, and 83.3%, respectively. The median diagnostic delays for patients with or without CT performed at the first hospital visited according to physician and radiologist suspicion of the diagnosis were 7.4 months and 6 years, respectively (p = 0.021). Hepatic cysts with splenomegaly were detected by ultrasound in over half of CS patients. Conclusions The majority of CS patients were not diagnosed until complications of portal hypertension had already developed. Recognition and early suspicion of the disease were important factors influencing diagnostic delay of CS. Hepatic cysts plus splenomegaly detected by US might raise the clinical suspicion to include CS in the differential diagnosis.

Orbital venous malformation results from the aberrant angiogenesis in the orbit; however, the detailed molecular mechanism is still not clear. In this study, tissue samples from 27 patients with orbital venous malformation were collected and subjected to whole exome sequencing. Melanocortin 4 receptor was the gene with highest incidence (7/27) of mutation identified in this series. A total of four types of mutations were found in the coding region and the 5ʹ-untranslated region of melanocortin 4 receptor. All these mutations resulted in the upregulation of melanocortin 4 receptor expression. In vitro assays using human umbilical vein endothelial cells demonstrated that the endothelial properties including cell proliferation, cell cycle, cell migration, and tube formation are positively correlated with the expression level of melanocortin 4 receptor. Melanocortin 4 receptor mutations resulted in increased cAMP production in a cell-based assay. By RNA sequencing technique, melanocortin 4 receptor was found to modulate the downstream genes of PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, including p21, cyclin B1, ITGA10, and ITGA11, which are known to regulate the endothelial properties. These data demonstrated that mutations in melanocortin 4 receptor modulate the downstream signaling pathway, facilitate the angiogenic activity of endothelial cells, and therefore is one potential mechanism of orbital venous malformation pathogenesis.Impact statementThe detailed molecular mechanism of orbital venous malformation (OVM) is still not clear. Using whole exome sequencing, 4 types of melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) mutation were detected in 7 of 27 patients with OVM, and all types of MC4R mutations resulted in the upregulation of MC4R expression. In vitro study indicated that MC4R has impacts on the proliferation, cell cycle, migration, and tube formation of the endothelial cells. Moreover, MC4R mutations altered the downstream signaling, including cAMP concentration and the expression levels of several PI3K/AKT/mTOR downstream genes, including p21, cyclin B1, ITGA10, and ITGA11. MC4R mutations may lead to the pathogenesis of OVM through modulating the downstream signaling to alter the angiogenic activity of endothelial cells.

Background Huaier extract has been a part of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for roughly 1600 years and may serve as a potential anti-cancer drug as it is associated with good efficacy and low toxicity. Individuals with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are at a higher chance of being diagnosed with colorectal cancer (CRC) and as Huaier extract may potentially influence tumorigenesis, we set out to determine the effect of Huaier extract on colitis-associated CRC. Methods The CRC mouse model, established through azoxymethane (AOM) and dextran sulfate sodium (DSS), was administered Huaier extract. Weight loss, colon length, tumor number and tumor size were evaluated macroscopically. Pro-inflammatory cytokine expression and STAT3 phosphorylation were assessed in the colon using ELISA, Western blot and/or immunohistochemistry. Results Huaier extract improved the severity of colitis-associated tumorigenesis compared with control group, with attenuated weight loss and longer colons. Tumor number, size and load were drastically decreased in mice treated with Huaier. Histological assessment suggested that Huaier could decrease histological injury of the colon tissue. Additionally, Huaier extract treatment led to reduced pro-inflammatory cytokine levels (TNF-α, IL-6, IFN-γ and IL-1β) and a decrease of STAT3 phosphorylation in colon tissue. Additionally, present findings demonstrated that Huaier extract inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in CRC cells HCT116 and HCT8. The migration and invasion of CRC cells were markedly inhibited upon exposure to Huaier treatment. The apoptosis-associated protein levels (P53, Bax, Bcl-2, pro-caspase-3 and cleavage caspase-3) showed significant differences after the administration of Huaier extract in HCT116 and HCT8 cells. In vivo, the administration of Huaier extract to mice inhibited tumor growth and yielded a similar profile of apoptotic proteins expression p53, Bcl-2, pro-caspase-3 and cleaved caspase-3 while no significant differences in Bax were observed. Moreover, the ratio of TUNEL-positive/apoptotic cells was markedly increased in the Huaier-treated mice. Conclusion Huaier extract may reduce the IBD-associated tumor development by suppressing pro-inflammatory cytokine levels and STAT3 stimulation.

Objective: To study the effects of octreotide combined with gabexate on related cytokines in patients with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP). Methods: A total of 92 patients with SAP from January 2014 to December 2017 in our hospital were enrolled in this study. According to random number table method, the patients were divided into the control group and the treatment group, each groups has 46 patients. The control group were treated with octreotide, the treatment group were treated with octreotide combined with gabexate. To compare the serum B7-H3, PCT, sICAM-1, NF-κB, sTREM-1, BAFF, SAA, NGAL, ghrelin, hs-CRP, MDA and SOD of the two groups before and after treatment. Results: The serum B7-H3, PCT, sICAM-1, NF-κB, sTREM-1, BAFF, SAA, NGAL, ghrelin, hs-CRP, MDA and SOD of the two groups before treatment have no no significantly differences. The serum B7-H3, PCT, sICAM-1, NF-κB, sTREM-1, BAFF, SAA, NGAL, ghrelin, hs-CRP, MDA of the two groups after treatment were significantly lower than before treatment, the serum SOD of the two groups after treatment were significantly better than before treatment, and that of the treatment group were significantly better than the control group after treatment. Conclusion: Octreotide combined with gabexate for patients with SAP can reduce the serum B7-H3, PCT, sICAM-1, NF-κB, sTREM-1, BAFF, SAA, NGAL, ghrelin, hs-CRP, MDA levels, improve serum SOD levels, and it was worthy clinical application.

Ni–Mn–Z (Z = In, Sn, and, Sb) metamagnetic shape memory alloys exhibit plenty of state-of-the-art magnetoresponsive effects owing to the magnetic-field-induced reversible martensitic transformation. For this compound, achieving high magnetization difference, large transformation entropy change, strong field dependence of transformation temperature, and low thermal hysteresis is essential to obtain significant magnetoresponsive functional properties. In this work, starting from the Ni45Co5Mn36In14 alloy, the substitution of Cu for In is introduced to optimize these properties simultaneously, giving rise to the substantial improvement in the magnetoresponsive effects. By composition design, a second-phase freed Ni45Co5Mn36In13.2Cu0.8 alloy with the phase temperature just below room temperature was selected. Using the directionally solidified technique, a strong -textured sample is prepared to enhance magnetoresponsive behaviors. Measurements show that the reversible magnetoresistance and magnetic-field-induced strain of the prepared sample reach −79% and 0.24%, respectively. Moreover, a maximum isothermal magnetic entropy change of 16.0 J kg−1 K−1 and the maximum adiabatic temperature change of −3.4 K are measured under a field change of 1.5 T, showing excellent low-field magnetocaloric response. The work is expected to supply a prototype alloy of NiMn-based alloy to promote the development of magnetic shape memory alloy.

BACKGROUND Complications of Crohn’s disease such as intestinal obstruction, fistula or perforation often need surgical treatment. Nearly 70%-80% patients with Crohn’s disease would receive surgical treatment during the lifetime. However, surgical treatment is incurable for Crohn’s disease. The challenge of recurrence postoperatively troubles both doctors and patients. Over 50% patients would suffer recurrence postoperatively. Some certain risk factors are associated with recurrence of Crohn’s disease. AIM To evaluate the risk factors for endoscopic recurrence and clinical recurrence after bowel resection in Crohn’s disease. METHODS Patients diagnosed Crohn’s disease and received intestinal resection between April 2007 and December 2013 were included in this study. Data on the general demographic information, preoperative clinical characteristics, surgical information, postoperative clinical characteristics were collected. Continuous data are expressed as median (inter quartile range), and categorical data as frequencies and percentages. Kaplan-Meier method was applied to estimate the impact of the clinical variables above on the cumulative rate of postoperative endoscopic recurrence and clinical recurrence, then log-rank test was applied to test the homogeneity of those clinical variables. Multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analysis was performed to identify the risk factors of postoperative endoscopic recurrence and clinical recurrence. RESULTS A total of 64 patients were included in this study. The median follow-up time for the patients was 17 (9.25-25.75) mo. In this period, 41 patients (64.1%) had endoscopic recurrence or clinical recurrence. Endoscopic recurrence occurred in 34 (59.6%) patients while clinical recurrence occurred in 28 (43.8%) patients, with the interval between the operation and recurrence of 13.0 (8.0-24.5) months and 17.0 (8.0-27.8) mo, respectively. In univariate analysis, diagnosis at younger age (P < 0.001), disease behavior of penetrating (P = 0.044) and preoperative use of anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) (P = 0.020) were significantly correlated with endoscopic recurrence, while complication with perianal lesions (P = 0.032) and preoperative use of immunomodulatory (P = 0.031) were significantly correlated with clinical recurrence. As to multivariate analysis, diagnostic age (P = 0.004), disease behavior (P = 0.041) and preoperative use of anti-TNF (P = 0.010) were independent prognostic factors for endoscopic recurrence, while complication with perianal lesions (P = 0.023) was an independent prognostic factor for clinical recurrence. CONCLUSION Diagnostic age, disease behavior, preoperative use of anti-TNF and complication with perianal lesions were independent risk factors for postoperative recurrence in Crohn’s disease.

Due to the existence of the magnetic-field-induced reverse martensitic transformation, the Ni–Mn–Z alloys where Z is the p-block element of In, Sn or Sb exhibit several state-of-the-art magnetoresponsive properties. From the perspective of practical application, a major challenge of this compound is to strengthen the ferromagnetism and reduce the transitional hysteresis ΔTHys simultaneously. In this work, we report an alloying strategy to this issue, i.e., the partial substitutions of Co and Cu for Ni and the p-block element, respectively, by a combined study of experiment and ab-initio calculation in the Ni45Co5Mn36In14–xCux (x = 0–1.5) alloys. Results show that the Cu replacement for the p-block element (In) can effectively reduce ΔTHys owing to the improved geometrical compatibility between austenite and martensite. Moreover, the adopted alloying strategy of Cu hardly weakens the strong ferromagnetism of Ni(Co)–Mn–In, since the magnetism exhibits a weak dependence on the p-block element compared with Mn and Ni. The maximum reversible magnetic entropy change Δ S M M a x of the Ni45Co5Mn36In13.3Cu0.7 directionally solidified sample at a magnetic field of 5 T is 13.8 J·kg−1·K−1. The refrigeration capacity RC and effective refrigeration capacity RCeff equal to 473.7 J·kg−1 and 270.2 J·kg−1, respectively. Both values belong to the highest one in the Ni–Mn-based alloys. Additionally, the working temperature window of the magnetocaloric effect is as wide as ~40 K. This work is expected to promote the design of advanced metamagnetic shape memory alloys.

The impact of Mg substitution for Ga on the crystal structure, phase stability, magnetism, and electronic structures in the Ni2MnGa1-xMgx (x = 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1) alloys were studied by first-principles calculation. Unlike the elemental substitutions by the transition metals or the main-group elements of III, IV, and V (sp elements) in NiMnGa alloys, very rare knowledge is available on the effect of substitution by the main-group elements of I and II (e.g., Mg) characterized by only s valence electrons. Results show that the substituted Mg prefers to occupy the Ga site directly, and the magnetic atoms tend to be ferromagnetically coupled with each other. The appearance of the minimum global energy with the lattice tetragonality (c/a) larger than one suggests their possibility of being magnetic shape memory alloys. Mg substitution can enhance the austenite stability due to the reduced minority-spin states near the Fermi energy (EF). c/a of martensite decreases linearly when Mg substitutes Ga, which could be meaningful for optimizing transitional hysteresis. For the ferromagnetism, both austenite and martensite are enhanced with Mg substitution, which arises due to the increased moment of Ni owing to its increased eg states above EF. Elastic constant investigations show that Ni2MnGa1-xMgx (x 0.94) alloys are elastically stable. Mg replacement for Ga tends to decrease bulk modulus, Young’s modulus and shear modulus. By contrast, Mg substitution is favorable to improve the ductility of NiMnGa owing to the weaker covalent hybridization of Ni–Mg compared with Ni‒Ga.

The crustal generation of the Paleo-Tethys orogenic belt in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau is a major unresolved geological problem. The Changning-Menglian suture in the southeastern Tibetan Plateau represents a remnant of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean. The Lincang batholith and associated volcanic rocks (the Manghuai rhyolites and Xiaodingxi basalts) are located to the east of the Changning-Menglian suture, and represent important constraints for the abovementioned geological problem. New zircon U Pb ages, together with previously published results, indicate that the Manghuai rhyolites were emplaced at 229–239 Ma and the Lincang batholith yielded longer age span (211–239 Ma). Broad age span of zircons (to 28 million years) from these rocks record a long-lived crustal magmatic system in the Changning-Menglian Paleo-Tethys orogenic belt. These intrusive and associated volcanic rocks have significant differences between them in terms of geochemistry. In this study, these rocks are geochemically classified into three groups: (1) Group 1 comprises biotite granite and granodiorite rocks; (2) Group 2 includes alkali feldspar granite, two-mica granite, and rhyolite, which are high-silica (generally >70 wt%) rocks that have low TiO2, Al2O3, FeOtot, MgO, CaO, P2O5, Eu, and Sr contents, compared to those of Group 1. Based on their geochemical relationships and mineral textures, Groups 1 and 2 include cumulative- and fractionated-type granitoids, respectively; (3) while Group 3 is comprised of dioritic enclaves and the Xiaodingxi basalts. Based on more robust evidence, dioritic enclaves are derived from a mantle source magma. The Lincang granites have high and variable initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.703122–0.728476), significantly negative eNd (t = 220 Ma) values (−13.4 to −7.5), negative eHf (t) values (−17.7 to −6.8), and old TDM2 ages. The Manghuai rhyolites and Xiaodingxi basalts have lower initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.695970–0.709398), and higher eNd (t) values (−3.4 to −0.6) and eHf (t) values (−1.2 to +3.7) than those of the Lincang granites. Geochemical data suggest that the Manghuai rhyolites could be seen as fractionated and erupted melts from crystal mush reservoirs, which later crystallized to form the Lincang granites. The Manghuai rhyolites provide an instantaneous snapshot of the state of the crystal mush at the time of eruption. The Lincang granites are interpreted to record prolonged histories of open-system magmatic evolution, involving magma mixing, wall-rock assimilation, and multiple cycles of crystallization from the crystal mush reservoirs. Magmatic evolution was likely related to mantle upwelling in a post-collisional setting, forming large-volume granites and volcanics in the Changning-Menglian Paleo-Tethys orogenic belt. Thus, this crystal mush model provides an integrated picture of the Triassic silicic magmatism, linking the evolution of the Lincang batholith and Manghuai rhyolites before storage in the Changning-Menglian Paleo-Tethys orogenic belt.

The Changning-Menglian suture in the Sanjiang region of SW China, the Chiang Rai line in Thailand, and the Bentong-Raub suture in Peninsular Malaysia are marked by remnants of the Paleo-Tethys oceanic lithosphere in Mainland Southeast Asia. We present U-Pb ages and Hf isotopic compositions of zircon from Luyingtang granites east of the Changning-Menglian suture, with the aim of identifying their sources and petrogenesis, which are significant for understanding the crustal evolution of the Mainland Southeast Asia. The Luyingtang granitic pluton is located in the northernmost SE Asian granite Province, SW China. New zircon U-Pb ages indicate that the granites were emplaced in the Late Cretaceous, in accordance with the regional scale inland magmatic event in Mainland Southeast Asia. Petrographically, the samples range from granodiorite, biotite granite, two-mica granite to pegmatite. The biotite granite, two-mica granite and pegmatite have low contents of TiO2, Al2O3, FeO*, MgO, CaO and P2O5, but high values of SiO2 and K2O, compared to the granodiorite. The granodiorite, biotite granite and two-mica granite invariably show enrichment in light rare earth elements (LREE). The biotite granite and two-mica granite show negative Eu anomalies, but the granodiorite displays weak Eu anomaly. The pegmatites show a clear tetrad effect and contain pronounced negative Eu anomalies. All the rocks demonstrate characteristic negative Nb, Ta, Sr and Ti anomalies, and a positive Pb anomaly, when plotted on spidergrams. Most of the granites are characterized by positive eHf (t) values (0.3–8) and fairly young TDM2 ages (612–1094 Ma), suggesting they contain a significant proportion of juvenile component. Hf isotopic modelling shows that the Luyingtang granites are likely to have been produced by partial melting of mixed sources, which were probably of basalts in proportions of 50–70% and Precambrian continental crust. The emplacement of granites with such a large proportion of mantle-derived component indicates crustal growth in Mainland Southeast Asia during Mesozoic. In contrast, one of the two-mica granite samples displays negative eHf (t) values (−7.6 to −3) and older TDM2 ages (1305–1599 Ma), which suggest a more crustal affinity. The arc-continent collision during the Cretaceous may have induced foundering of an over-thickened lithospheric mantle keel beneath the Paleo-Tethys orogenic belt, and then resulted to localized upwelling of asthenosphere mantle and basaltic underplating. The parental magmas of the hinterland I-type granites formed by melting of a mixed source, containing both Precambrian crust and mantle-derived basalt, followed by extensive magmatic differentiation.

It is important to mitigate urban water-logging because it has become a kind of urban disease that often occurs in many cities in China. This paper proposes a new approach to control urban water-logging by building the LID-type road greenbelt, a sunken greenbelt along city roads. Three field grasslands were selected to test their infiltration capacities. The possible reduction in runoff volume was calculated for the scenario when the proposed LID-type road greenbelt is applied to all of roads in Xiamen island. The study results indicate that the mean value of steady infiltration capacity of these test grasslands is 2.61 mm/min. The calculated reduction in runoff volume is about 8.86 million m3 for the storm of 15th-16th May, 2013 that caused a serious water-logging problem in Xiamen island. The study result proves that the LID-type road greenbelt may have a great potential to mitigate urban water-logging.

The paper aims to provide a theoretical method of multi-parameter optimization collocation for sealing structure design. Based on the tightness analysis method, the paper analyzed the effects of several major influence factors on the maximal gasket contact stress. Some sensitive parameters were chosen according to the tightness analysis results. Orthogonal experiment method was applied in the current work to find the optimum combination of parameters which will contribute to a better sealing performance of the connections. The theoretical way proposed in this paper can effectively shorten the design period and is helpful to improve the quality of the design and reduce the design cost.

To investigate the influence of the roughness characteristics of the metallic gasket on the gas leakage rate, a mathematical model of a rough surface based on the Gauss distribution function and exponential auto-correlation function was built. According to this model, a 3D geometrical model of a sealing clearance with two rough surfaces was configured. Effect of the roughness parameters on the gas sealing performance was numerical analyzed, and through the comparison with the classical smooth parallel plate leakage model, the relationship between the leakage rate and the roughness parameters of the sealing surfaces was built. Furthermore, the relationship between contact pressure and the leakage rate for the different roughness surfaces was studied based on the current model. The results show the methodology proposed in current work is effective in predicting the actual sealing performance of static seal structure.

High density of PM2.5 that has an insignificant contribution to the increasing dusty weather threats the physicaland mental health of approximate six hundred millions Chinese recently. In this paper, we investigate thediffusion and attenuation of PM2.5 and give a prediction of its density in Xi’an city, which is based on nonstationarytwo-dimensional multi-box model, while considering the effect of seasons and wind direction. Asimulation is conducted with data from thirteen random selected stations. Furthermore, by comparing the realmeasured value and numeric value, we evaluate the validity of our proposed model as well as giving the relativeerror.Keywords: Two-Dimensional Multi-Box model, PM2.5, Diffusion, Attenuation.

Based on mass real data with the method of statistical experiment, this paper attempts to take the winning rate, annual rate of return and net profit margin as the management objectives for the comparative analysis on the strengths and weaknesses of the four systems of RSI, BIAS, KDJ and W&R among the securities trading software through testing, the results of which show that RSI expert system is the best one with its overall testing results superior to other anti-trend expert systems (MA, MACD, MTM). So it is suggested that investors should choose only RSI expert system.

Microstructure is a crucial parameter to affect elastocaloric effect in the Ni–Mn-based alloys. However, the specific influence of different microstructural parameters on elastocaloric effect remains unclear. In the present work, the effect and underlying mechanism of microstructure, including grain size and texture, on the martensitic transformation, mechanical properties and elastocaloric effect in Ni50Mn34.8In15.2 alloy were studied. Three fabrication techniques including the arc-melting, suction casting and directional solidification were utilized to obtain different microstructures. Results show that the phase transition temperature and transformation entropy change are insensitive to the microstructure. While, the microstructure has an obvious influence on phase transition interval ΔTInt. The suction casting sample has the widest ΔTInt. Moreover, we observed that the adiabatic temperature change ΔTad largely depended on the feature of microstructure. The grain boundary is disadvantageous to ΔTad. On the one hand, it would interact with habit plane and bring about energy consumption. On the other hand, due to the enhanced energy for full transformation, it would reduce the volume fraction of phase transition under certain external strain or force. The fracture mechanism of the Ni–Mn-based alloy is independent of microstructure, i.e. brittle fracture with intergranular pattern. It is attributed to the strong p-d covalent hybridization between Ni and main-group element (In). Strong texture and coarse grain are favorable to improve the mechanical properties. This study may provide some guidance for microstructure design to improve the elastocaloric effect for the Ni–Mn-based alloys.

This paper presents tests and comparisons between SAR and BOLL, tow security transaction expert systems, through statistical experiments, with the wining rate, annual rate of return and net profit rate as the management objectives, on basis of the mass data generated by the security market; the results suggest a ratio among the wining rate, annual return rate and net profit rate of the two as 0.876, 0.936 and 0.936 respectively, and the yearly numbers of transactions of SAR is 3.7 times more than that of BOLL. The lower rate of SAR is, as believed, a result of the higher transaction cost of it comparing with BOLL.

This paper focus on overvoltage protection and insulation coordination in Modular Multilevel Converter based HVDC system planning. An overvoltage protection scheme, which bases on the topology used inTransbay project by Siemens, is proposed in this paper. Thescheme draws fromthe characteristics of MMC-HVDC systems and the research results in classic HVDC systems, byplacing arresters at some key locations in the MMC-HVDC converter station.With this scheme, the overvoltage at those key pointscan be limitedto an acceptable range and hence protect the key equipment concerned. Since all the DC lines of the project are undersea cables, no lighting overvoltage is considered and 14 faults which could happen are carefully selected to serve as the verification conditions for the insulation design. Based on the PSCAD/EMTDC simulations and the deterministic method, the specified withstand voltage levels of the critical equipment in the converter station is calculated.

Thyroidectomy can be performed in a variety of ways, and gasless video-assisted approaches have recently become more popular. We performed a study of thyroidectomy on 77 patients with bilateral thyroid lesions carried out using a gasless video-assisted unilateral anterior chest wall approach. Seventy-seven patients underwent bilateral thyroidectomy by the gasless video-assisted unilateral anterior chest wall approach, whereas 64 patients underwent conventional surgery during the same time frame and were considered to be the control group. The eligibility criteria for thyroid surgery by gasless video-assisted unilateral anterior chest wall approach were: no previous neck surgical history, no radiotherapy history, a diagnosis of benign thyroid tumor according to preoperative computed tomographic scan, no inflammation-related diseases or thyroid hyperfunction, no lymphadenectasis, and bilateral tumors ≤ 4 cm in diameter (1 side ≤ 2 cm, located in the lower part of the thyroid and near the surface of the thyroid). The 2 groups were compared by surgical style, complications, operative time, cosmetic result, and postoperative pain. The 2 groups were matched in terms of age and sex; the scoring for operative procedure (P=0.443), postoperative drainage (P=0.686), and postoperative pain (P=0.294) were not significantly different. The gasless video-assisted group had less bleeding during surgery than the conventional group and had better cosmetic results (P

Based on the equivalence principle of bending deflection and torsional displacement, the concentrated vertical load which acts on the center of a continuously reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP) is translated into an equivalent half-wave sine load by Fourier transform. On the basis of this transform and deformation harmony condition of crack, the equations of load transfer are established. According to the translation principle of the force, the equations of load transfer of adjacent slabs are worked out. With the small deflection theory of elastic thin slabs, the bending deflection and torsional displacement formulas of CRCP under the concentrated vertical load with hollow foundation are deduced, which is verified by the results of finite element(FE). The results show that the characteristic of CRCP after cracking is related to the rigidity factor which is proportional to the spacing of adjacent cracks and the width of CRCP.

The moisture aging effect and mechanism of asphalt binder during the in-service life of pavement were investigated by laboratory simulating tests. Pressure aging vessel (PAV) test simulating the long-term aging of binder during the in-service life of pavement was modified to capture the long-term moisture aging effect of binder. Penetration grade tests including penetration test, soften point test, and ductility test as well as Superpave™ performance grade tests including viscosity test, dynamic shear rheometer test, and bending beam rheometer test were conducted to fully evaluate the moisture aging effect of binder. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy test and Gel-permeation chromatography test were applied to provide a fundamental understanding of the moisture aging mechanism of binder. The results indicate that moisture condition can accelerate the aging of asphalt binder and shorten the service life of asphalt binder. The modified PAV test with moisture condition can well characterize the moisture aging properties of asphalt binder.

Commercial farming of anuran species that are declining in the wild raises a need to discriminate wild from farmed frogs. We hypothesized wild frogs might have extended hindlimbs due to greater frequency or intensity of jumping relative to farmed frogs, highlighting a morphometric approach to discrimination of wild from farmed frogs using hindlimb length. In the present study, Dybowski’s frog (Rana dybowskii) was used to test this hypothesis. We measured body mass (Mb) and hindlimb length (Lh) of 2-year old farmed frogs and wild frogs aged 2 to 5 years. Dybowski’s frog demonstrated significant dimorphism in Mb and Lh. Mb was significantly greater among farmed 2-year old frogs in both sexes (p=0.000), while only among females was Lh significantly greater for wild frogs (p=0.000). Lh/Mb was used as an index for origin discrimination to eliminate the influence of Mb due to variation of husbandry conditions among farms. Mean Lh/Mb for farmed frogs was significantly lower than for wild frogs (p=0.000) in the 2-year old age class. Discrimination correctly classified 84.4% of farmed and 96.3% of wild male frogs. Among females, 92.9% of farmed frogs and 90.1% wild frogs were correctly classified. The overall correctness of classification was 92.1% and 90.8% for males and females, respectively. However, Lh/Mb revealed variation with age, resulting in reduced discriminative power for frogs ≥3 years old. We introduced a coefficient Ce to adjust the Lh/Mb of frogs ≥3 years to the level equivalent to 2-year frogs. The adjustment achieved 89.5% for overall correctness of origin for wild males and 92.4% for wild females ≥3 years old. These results show that Lh/Mb is an effective index to discriminate wild from farmed Dybowski’s frog. Since the physical demands of jumping are common among anurans, this index is also potentially applicable to other anuran species.