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Abstract Background Combined antihypertensive therapy has obvious advantages over single drug therapy. Hypertension guidelines fully affirm the efficacy of dual combination in initial antihypertensive therapy. Recent studies have also pointed out that the quadruple combination of very low-dose antihypertensive drugs is superior to single drugs. However, whether low-dose quadruple therapy is better than dual combination is unknown. Methods/design A randomized double-blind crossover clinical trial will be conducted to compare the efficacy and safety of low-dose quadruple antihypertensives (irbesartan 75 mg + metoprolol 23.75 mg + amlodipine 2.5 mg + indapamide 1.25 mg) with standard-dose dual antihypertensives (irbesartan 150 mg + amlodipine 5 mg) in the initial treatment of patients with mild to moderate hypertension (140–179/90–109 mmHg). Ninety patients are required and will be recruited and randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to two crossover groups. Two groups will receive a different combination therapy for 4 weeks, then switch to the other combination therapy for 4 weeks, with a 2-week wash-out. Antihypertensive effects and related adverse effects of the two antihypertensive combination treatments will be compared. The primary outcome, i.e., mean 24-h systolic blood pressure in ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, will be assessed via linear mixed-effects model. Discussion This statistical analysis plan will be confirmed prior to blind review and data lock before un-blinding and is sought to increase the validity of the QUADUAL trial. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05377203. Registered May 11, 2022, https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05377203 .

Abstract The key protein implicated in Parkinson’s disease and other synucleinopathies is α-synuclein, and a post-translationally modified form of the protein, phosphorylated at serine 129 (pS129), is a principal component in Lewy bodies, a pathological hallmark of PD. While altered proteostasis has been implicated in the etiology of Parkinson’s disease, we still have a limited understanding of how α-synuclein is regulated in the nervous system. The protein quality control protein Ubiquilin-2 (UBQLN2) is known to accumulate in synucleinopathies, but whether it directly regulates α-synuclein is unknown. Using cellular and mouse models, we find that UBQLN2 decreases levels of α-synuclein, including the pS129 phosphorylated isoform. Pharmacological inhibition of the proteasome revealed that, while α-synuclein may be cleared by parallel and redundant quality control pathways, UBQLN2 preferentially targets pS129 for proteasomal degradation. Moreover, in brain tissue from human PD and transgenic mice expressing pathogenic α-synuclein (A53T), native UBQLN2 becomes more insoluble. Collectively, our studies support a role for UBQLN2 in directly regulating pathological forms of α-synuclein and indicate that UBQLN2 dysregulation in disease may contribute to α-synuclein-mediated toxicity.

Abstract Background Cytoplasmic mislocalization and aggregation of TAR DNA-binding protein-43 (TDP-43) is a hallmark of the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia (ALS/FTD) disease spectrum, causing both nuclear loss-of-function and cytoplasmic toxic gain-of-function phenotypes. While TDP-43 proteinopathy has been associated with defects in nucleocytoplasmic transport, this process is still poorly understood. Here we study the role of karyopherin-β1 (KPNB1) and other nuclear import receptors in regulating TDP-43 pathology. Methods We used immunostaining, immunoprecipitation, biochemical and toxicity assays in cell lines, primary neuron and organotypic mouse brain slice cultures, to determine the impact of KPNB1 on the solubility, localization, and toxicity of pathological TDP-43 constructs. Postmortem patient brain and spinal cord tissue was stained to assess KPNB1 colocalization with TDP-43 inclusions. Turbidity assays were employed to study the dissolution and prevention of aggregation of recombinant TDP-43 fibrils in vitro. Fly models of TDP-43 proteinopathy were used to determine the effect of KPNB1 on their neurodegenerative phenotype in vivo. Results We discovered that several members of the nuclear import receptor protein family can reduce the formation of pathological TDP-43 aggregates. Using KPNB1 as a model, we found that its activity depends on the prion-like C-terminal region of TDP-43, which mediates the co-aggregation with phenylalanine and glycine-rich nucleoporins (FG-Nups) such as Nup62. KPNB1 is recruited into these co-aggregates where it acts as a molecular chaperone that reverses aberrant phase transition of Nup62 and TDP-43. These findings are supported by the discovery that Nup62 and KPNB1 are also sequestered into pathological TDP-43 aggregates in ALS/FTD postmortem CNS tissue, and by the identification of the fly ortholog of KPNB1 as a strong protective modifier in Drosophila models of TDP-43 proteinopathy. Our results show that KPNB1 can rescue all hallmarks of TDP-43 pathology, by restoring its solubility and nuclear localization, and reducing neurodegeneration in cellular and animal models of ALS/FTD. Conclusion Our findings suggest a novel NLS-independent mechanism where, analogous to its canonical role in dissolving the diffusion barrier formed by FG-Nups in the nuclear pore, KPNB1 is recruited into TDP-43/FG-Nup co-aggregates present in TDP-43 proteinopathies and therapeutically reverses their deleterious phase transition and mislocalization, mitigating neurodegeneration. Graphical Abstract

Novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-COV-2) is spreading rapidly around the world and has become a global pandemic. Meteorological factors have been recognized as one of the critical factors that influence the epidemiology and transmission of infectious diseases. In this context, the World Meteorological Organization and scholars at home and abroad have paid extensive attention to the relationships of environment and meteorology with COVID-19. This paper systematically collected and sorted out relevant domestic and foreign studies, and reviewed the latest research progress on the impact of environmental and meteorological factors on COVID-19, classifying them into typical meteorological factors (such as temperature, humidity, and wind speed), local environmental factors (such as indoor enclosed environment, ventilation, disinfection, and air conditioning), and air pollution. Current research evidence suggests that typical meteorological factors, local environmental factors, and air pollutants are closely related to the transmission of COVID-19. However, the results of different studies are still divergent due to uncertainty about the influencing mechanism, and differences in research areas and methods. This review elucidated the importance of environmental and meteorological factors to the spread of COVID-19, and provided useful implications for the control of further large-scale transmission of COVID-19 and the development of prevention and control strategies under different environmental and meteorological conditions.

Moringa oleifera seed protein was hydrolyzed with alkaline protease to prepare antioxidant peptides, which were purified by ultrafiltration, Sephadex G-15 dextran gel column chromatography. Antioxidant peptide sequence was identified by LC-MS/MS. The effects of pH, metal ions, and temperature on the activity of Moringa oleifera seed antioxidant peptides were analyzed. The results showed that when the concentration of the enzymatic hydrolysate, ultrafiltration product (

BackgroundGiven the continuing challenges frailty poses among people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (PLHIV), accumulating evidence suggests that frailty is linked to psychological factors. However, the mutual influences of resilience, depression, and frailty have not yet been clarified. This study aimed to identify the potential mechanistic pathway through which psychological factors mitigate frailty.MethodsData were collected from June to August 2019 by trained investigators through face-to-face interviews with 375 HIV-positive Chinese adults. Each participant completed structured questionnaires to collect data in respect of their socio-demographic characteristics, and levels of frailty, depression, and resilience. These assessment measures included a self-designed questionnaire, the Tilburg Frailty Indicator (TFI), the 10-item Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D-10), and the 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10). SPSS PROCESS macro was used to analyze the mediation and moderated mediation models.ResultsThe overall prevalence of frailty was 26.4%, and the prevalence of frailty among older and younger adults living with HIV was 22 and 31.4%, respectively. Mediation analysis showed that an association between resilience and frailty was mediated by depression, whereas resilience did not mediate the relationship between depression and frailty. Compared to physical frailty, depression was a stronger mediator of resilience to psychological frailty. We further found that age moderated the indirect effect of resilience on psychological frailty, with resilience being a stronger negative predictor of depression and depression being a stronger positive predictor of psychological frailty for older PLHIV than for younger PLHIV.ConclusionLower levels of resilience and greater levels of depression may be significant risk factors for frailty among PLHIV. Levels of resilience influenced frailty directly and frailty was indirectly affected by depression. Therefore, it is recommended that PLHIV, especially older patients, should be encouraged to establish positive psychological coping strategies to slow the progression of frailty.

Abstract Background A growing body of studies have investigated the association between air pollution exposure during early pregnancy and the risk of orofacial clefts, but these studies put more emphasis on particulate matter and reported inconsistent results, while research on the independent effects of gaseous air pollutants on orofacial clefts has been quite inadequate, especially in China. Methods A case–control study was conducted in Changsha, China from 2015 to 2018. A total of 446 cases and 4460 controls were included in the study. Daily concentrations of CO, NO2, SO2, O3, PM2.5 and PM10 during the first trimester of pregnancy were assigned to each subject using the nearest monitoring station method. Multivariate logistic regression models were applied to evaluate the associations of monthly average exposure to gaseous air pollutants with orofacial clefts and its subtypes before and after adjusting for particulate matter. Variance inflation factors (VIFs) were used to determine if the effects of gaseous air pollutants could be independent of particulate matter. Results Increase in CO, NO2 and SO2 significantly increased the risk of cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL/P) in all months during the first trimester of pregnancy, with aORs ranging from 1.39 to 1.48, from 1.35 to 1.61 and from 1.22 to 1.35, respectively. The risk of cleft palate only (CPO) increased with increasing NO2 exposure levels in the first trimester of pregnancy, with aORs ranging from 1.60 to 1.66. These effects sustained and even exacerbated after adjusting for particulate matter. No significant effect of O3 was observed. Conclusions Our study suggested that maternal exposure to CO, NO2, and SO2 during the first trimester of pregnancy might contribute to the development of orofacial clefts, and the associations were potentially independent of particulate matter.

The modeling of traffic dynamics under intelligent transportation system (for short, ITS) is an important and interesting topic in traffic flow theory. In this paper, a novel lattice hydrodynamic model is presented to describe dynamic features of traffic flow with consideration of multi-anticipative average flux effect under ITS environment. The corresponding stability condition is obtained by using the linear stability analysis theory. The analytical results show that the stable region can be significantly widened on the phase diagram when the multi-anticipative average flux effect is considered, and the anticipating average flux information of more sites ahead can further lead to the stability of traffic flow. The mKdV equation near the critical point during the nonlinear analysis is derived to describe the evolution properties of traffic density waves by applying the reductive perturbation method. Numerical simulation results are consistent with the theoretical results, which further confirm that the traffic jam can be effectively alleviated by taking into account multi-anticipative average flux effect in the traffic system.

Abstract Background In upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.), genotypes with the same mature fiber length (FL) might possess different genes and exhibit differential expression of genes related to fiber elongation at different fiber developmental stages. However, there is a lack of information on the genetic variation influencing fiber length and its quantitative trait loci (QTLs) during the fiber elongation stage. In this study, a subset of upland cotton accessions was selected based on a previous GWAS conducted in China and grown in multiple environments to determine the dynamic fiber length at 10, 15, 20, and 25 days post-anthesis (DPA) and maturity. The germplasm lines were genotyped with the Cotton 63 K Illumina single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array for GWAS. Results A total of 25, 38, 57, 89 and 88 SNPs showed significant correlations with fiber length at 10, 15, 20 and 25 DPA and maturity, respectively. In addition, 60 more promising SNPs were detected in at least two tests and two FL developmental time points, and 20 SNPs were located within the confidence intervals of QTLs identified in previous studies. The fastest fiber-length growth rates were obtained at 10 to 15 DPA in 69 upland cotton lines and at 15 to 20 DPA in 14 upland cotton accessions, and 10 SNPs showed significant correlations with the fiber-length growth rate. A combined transcriptome and qRT-PCR analysis revealed that two genes (D10G1008 and D13G2037) showed differential expression between two long-fiber genotypes and two short-fiber genotypes. Conclusions This study provides important new insights into the genetic basis of the time-dependent fiber-length trait and reveals candidate SNPs and genes for improving fiber length in upland cotton.

In this paper, we present a collision model to stroboscopically simulate the dynamics of information in dissipative systems. In particular, an all-optical scheme is proposed to investigate the information scrambling of bosonic systems with Gaussian environmental states. Varying the states of environments, in the presence of dissipation, transient tripartite mutual information of system modes may show negative value, signaling the appearance of information scrambling. We also find that dynamical indivisibility based non-Markovianity plays dual roles in affecting the dynamics of information.

Abstract Background Small auxin-up RNA (SAUR) gene family is the largest family of early auxin response genes in higher plants, which have been implicated in the regulation of multiple biological processes. However, no comprehensive analysis of SAUR genes has been reported in cotton (Gossypium spp.). Results In the study, we identified 145, 97, 214, and 176 SAUR homologous genes in the sequenced genomes of G. raimondii, G. arboreum, G. hirsutum, and G. barbadense, respectively. A phylogenetic analysis revealed that the SAUR genes can be classified into 10 groups. A further analysis of chromosomal locations and gene duplications showed that tandem duplication and segmental duplication events contributed to the expansion of the SAUR gene family in cotton. An exon-intron organization and motif analysis revealed the conservation of SAUR-specific domains, and the auxin responsive elements existed in most of the upstream sequences. The expression levels of 16 GhSAUR genes in response to an exogenous application of IAA were determined by a quantitative RT-PCR analysis. The genome-wide RNA-seq data and qRT-PCR analysis of selected SAUR genes in developing fibers revealed their differential expressions. The physical mapping showed that 20 SAUR genes were co-localized with fiber length quantitative trait locus (QTL) hotspots. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were detected for 12 of these 20 genes between G. hirsutum and G. barbadense, but no SNPs were identified between two backcross inbred lines with differing fiber lengths derived from a cross between the two cultivated tetraploids. Conclusions This study provides an important piece of genomic information for the SAUR genes in cotton and lays a solid foundation for elucidating the functions of SAUR genes in auxin signaling pathways to regulate cotton growth.

Cotton is an economically important crop grown for natural fiber and seed oil production. Cottonseed oil ranks third after soybean oil and colza oil in terms of edible oilseed tonnage worldwide. Glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase (GPAT) genes encode enzymes involved in triacylglycerol biosynthesis in plants. In the present study, 85 predicted GPAT genes were identified from the published genome data in Gossypium. Among them, 14, 16, 28, and 27 GPAT homologs were identified in G. raimondii, G. arboreum, G. hirsutum, and G. barbadense, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that a total of 108 GPAT genes from cotton, Arabidopsis and cacao could be classified into three groups. Furthermore, through comparison, the gene structure analyses indicated that GPAT genes from the same group were highly conserved between Arabidopsis and cotton. Segmental duplication could be the major driver for GPAT gene family expansion in the four cotton species above. Expression patterns of GhGPAT genes were diverse in different tissues. Most GhGPAT genes were induced or suppressed after salt or cold stress in Upland cotton. Eight GhGPAT genes were co-localized with oil and protein quantitative trait locus (QTL) regions. Thirty-two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were detected from 12 GhGPAT genes, sixteen of which in nine GhGPAT genes were classified as synonymous, and sixteen SNPs in ten GhGPAT genes non-synonymous. Two SNP markers of the GhGPAT16 and GhGPAT26 genes were significantly correlated with cotton oil content in one of the three field tests. This study shed lights on the molecular evolutionary properties of GPAT genes in cotton, and provided reference for improvement of cotton response to abiotic stress and the genetic improvement of cotton oil content.

Cotton (Gossypium spp.) is the most important natural fiber crop and the source of cottonseed oil, a basic by-product after ginning. AtWRI1 and its orthologs in several other crop species have been previously used to increase triacylglycerols in seeds and vegetative tissues. In the present study, we identified 22, 17, 9, and 11 WRI-like genes in G. hirsutum, G. barbadense, G. arboreum, and G. raimondii, respectively. This gene family was divided into four subgroups, and a more WRI2-like subfamily was identified compared with dicotyledonous Arabidopsis. An analysis of chromosomal distributions revealed that the 22 GhWRI genes were distributed on eight At and eight Dt subgenome chromosomes. Moreover, GhWRI1a was highly expressed in ovules 20–35 days after anthesis and was selected for further functional analysis. Ectopic expression of GhWRI1a rescued the seed phenotype of a wri1-7 mutant and increased the oil content of Arabidopsis seeds. Our comprehensive genome-wide analysis of the cotton WRI-like gene family lays a solid foundation for further studies.

Abnormalities in nucleic acid processing are associated with the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Mutations in Matrin 3 (MATR3), a poorly understood DNA- and RNA-binding protein, cause familial ALS/FTD, and MATR3 pathology is a feature of sporadic disease, suggesting that MATR3 dysfunction is integrally linked to ALS pathogenesis. Using a rat primary neuron model to assess MATR3-mediated toxicity, we noted that neurons were bidirectionally vulnerable to MATR3 levels, with pathogenic MATR3 mutants displaying enhanced toxicity. MATR3’s zinc finger domains partially modulated toxicity, but elimination of its RNA recognition motifs had no effect on survival, instead facilitating its self-assembly into liquid-like droplets. In contrast to other RNA-binding proteins associated with ALS, cytoplasmic MATR3 redistribution mitigated neurodegeneration, suggesting that nuclear MATR3 mediates toxicity. Our findings offer a foundation for understanding MATR3-related neurodegeneration and how nucleic acid binding functions, localization, and pathogenic mutations drive sporadic and familial disease.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease characterized by selective loss of motor neurons with inclusions frequently containing the RNA/DNA binding protein TDP-43. Using a yeast model of ALS exhibiting TDP-43 dependent toxicity, we now show that TDP-43 overexpression dramatically alters cell shape and reduces ubiquitin dependent proteolysis of a reporter construct. Furthermore, we show that an excess of the Hsp40 chaperone, Sis1, reduced TDP-43's effect on toxicity, cell shape and proteolysis. The strength of these effects was influenced by the presence of the endogenous yeast prion, [PIN+]. Although overexpression of Sis1 altered the TDP-43 aggregation pattern, we did not detect physical association of Sis1 with TDP-43, suggesting the possibility of indirect effects on TDP-43 aggregation. Furthermore, overexpression of the mammalian Sis1 homologue, DNAJB1, relieves TDP-43 mediated toxicity in primary rodent cortical neurons, suggesting that Sis1 and its homologues may have neuroprotective effects in ALS.

The dumps in the open-pit mining area in the eastern grassland are prone to landslides due to the fragile ecological environment, so it is inevitable to reshape the dump slopes. In order to explore a more scientific method for slope shaping of open-pit mine dump, slope stability analysis were used to compare effect of three types of slope-type (wave-shaped, slope-shaped and step-shaped slope shaping method)in outside dumping site of Baori Hiller open-pit mine. The results show that the slope stability is negatively correlated with the slope angle, and the stability of different shaping slopes is realized as wave-shaped slope (F=2.711)> Slope-shaped slope(F=2.513)>Step-shaped slope(F=1.047), in which the wave type and slope type are all within the safe range, but the step type slope is unstable; in consideration of cost, stability and erosion resistance, it is better to set the slope angle of the dump to 15°.The wave-shaped shaping method of the natural dumping of the excavation field outside the Baori Hiller open-pit mine has the best effect and is worth promoting.

SUMMARY Myotubular myopathy (MTM) is a severe congenital muscle disease characterized by profound weakness, early respiratory failure and premature lethality. MTM is defined by muscle biopsy findings that include centralized nuclei and disorganization of perinuclear organelles. No treatments currently exist for MTM. We hypothesized that aberrant neuromuscular junction (NMJ) transmission is an important and potentially treatable aspect of the disease pathogenesis. We tested this hypothesis in two murine models of MTM. In both models we uncovered evidence of a disorder of NMJ transmission: fatigable weakness, improved strength with neostigmine, and electrodecrement with repetitive nerve stimulation. Histopathological analysis revealed abnormalities in the organization, appearance and size of individual NMJs, abnormalities that correlated with changes in acetylcholine receptor gene expression and subcellular localization. We additionally determined the ability of pyridostigmine, an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, to ameliorate aspects of the behavioral phenotype related to NMJ dysfunction. Pyridostigmine treatment resulted in significant improvement in fatigable weakness and treadmill endurance. In all, these results describe a newly identified pathological abnormality in MTM, and uncover a potential disease-modifying therapy for this devastating disorder.

Upland cotton (Gossypium hirstum L.), which produces more than 95% of the world natural cotton fibers, has a narrow genetic base which hinders progress in cotton breeding. Introducing germplasm from exotic sources especially from another cultivated tetraploid G. barbadense L. can broaden the genetic base of Upland cotton. However, the breeding potential of introgression lines (ILs) in Upland cotton with G. barbadense germplasm integration has not been well addressed. This study involved six ILs developed from an interspecific crossing and backcrossing between Upland cotton and G. barbadense and represented one of the first studies to investigate breeding potentials of a set of ILs using a full diallel analysis. High mid-parent heterosis was detected in several hybrids between ILs and a commercial cultivar, which also out-yielded the high-yielding cultivar parent in F1, F2 and F3 generations. A further analysis indicated that general ability (GCA) variance was predominant for all the traits, while specific combining ability (SCA) variance was either non-existent or much lower than GCA. The estimated GCA effects and predicted additive effects for parents in each trait were positively correlated (at P

As the longest known single-celled trichomes, cotton (Gossypium L.) fibers constitute a classic model system to investigate cell initiation and elongation. In this study, we used a high-throughput transcriptome sequencing technology to identify fiber-initiation-related single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the wild-type (WT) Upland cotton (G. hirsutum) Xuzhou 142 and its natural fuzzless-lintless mutant Xuzhou 142 fl. Approximately 700 million high-quality cDNA reads representing over 58 Gb of sequences were obtained, resulting in the identification of 28,610 SNPs--of which 17,479 were novel--from 13,960 expressed genes. Of these SNPs, 50% of SNPs in fl were identical to those of G. barbadense, which suggests the likely origin of the fl mutant from an interspecific hybridization between Xuzhou 142 and an unknown G. barbadense genotype. Of all detected SNPs, 15,555, 12,750, and 305 were classified as non-synonymous, synonymous, and pre-terminated ones, respectively. Moreover, 1,352 insertion/deletion polymorphisms (InDels) were also detected. A total of 865 DEGs were identified between the WT and fl in ovules at -3 and 0 days post-anthesis, with 302 candidate SNPs selected from these DEGs for validation by a high-resolution melting analysis and Sanger sequencing in seven cotton genotypes. The number of genotypic pairwise polymorphisms varied from 43 to 302, indicating that the identified SNPs are reliable. These SNPs should serve as good resources for breeding and genetic studies in cotton.

Taxotere showed antitumor activity against solid tumors including prostate cancer. However, the molecular mechanism(s) of action of Taxotere has not been fully elucidated. In order to establish such molecular mechanism(s) in both hormone-insensitive (PC3) and hormone-sensitive (LNCaP) prostate cancer cells, comprehensive gene expression profiles were obtained by Affymetrix Human Genome U133A Array. The RNA from the cells treated with 2 nM Taxotere was subjected to microarray analysis. We found that a total of 166, 365, and 1785 genes showed greater than twofold change in PC3 cells after 6, 36, and 72 hours of treatment, respectively compared to 57, 823, and 964 genes in LNCaP cells. The expression of tubulin was decreased, whereas the expression of microtubuleassociated proteins was increased in Taxotere-treated prostate cancer cells, confirming the microtubuletargeting effect of Taxotere. Clustering analysis showed downregulation of some genes for cell proliferation and cell cycle. In contrast, Taxotere upregulated some genes that are related to induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. From these results, we conclude that Taxotere caused alterations of a large number of genes, many of which may contribute to the molecular mechanism(s) by which Taxotere affects prostate cancer cells. Further molecular studies are needed in order to determine the cause and effect relationships between these genes altered by Taxotere. Nevertheless, our results could be further exploited for devising strategies to optimize therapeutic effects of Taxotere for the treatment of prostate cancer.

To evaluate current club drug use and its potential association with the transmission of HIV/STD among Changsha men who have sex with men (MSM).A cross-sectional survey was conducted by using self-administered questionnaires including information regarding socio-demographics, club drug use, high-risk behaviors, and HIV/STD infections. Multiple methods including venue-based, peer referral using "snowball" techniques, and internet advertisements were used to recruit study participants.Of the 826 participants, 177 (21.4%) reported that they had used club drugs at some time before or during sex in the past six months. MSM with young age, low education level, and seeking partners through the internet or bars were the main population who used drugs. Poppers were the most common drug used among Changsha MSM. The prevalence of HIV, syphilis, and herpes simplex virus-2 were higher among drug users. There were no significant differences in unprotected sexual intercourse and condom use between drug users and non-users. Compared with non-users, risk behaviors such as group sex, multiple sex partners, and sex with foreigners were more frequent among drug users.Club drug use is common among Changsha MSM, and is related to unsafe sex activities and HIV/STD infection. It is necessary to build novel targeted HIV prevention strategies to monitor and reduce club drug use among MSM.

This study aims to propose an analysis method for resolving the pressure response of a pneumatic brake circuit considering the effect of a transmission pipe. Pneumatic brake systems (PBS) are widely used in commercial vehicles. The pressure response characteristic of the PBS is the key factor affecting braking performance. By using the thermodynamics of a variable-quality system, the pressure response model of the brake chamber is established, which includes the dynamic model of the pipe considering the unsteady friction and heat transfer. The partial-differential control equations of pipe are solved by introducing the constrained interpolation profile (CIP) method, and a virtual chamber model is proposed to set the boundary condition so as to solve the pressure response in the brake chamber simultaneously. Thus, the regularity of the brake pressure response is obtained by considering the influence of the pipe. Lastly, the model is verified experimentally. The present study indicates that the main factors that affect the pressure response delay are the pipe length and the combination forms of the sonic conductances of the orifices inlet and outlet. Furthermore, it helps to verify that the CIP method is an effective way of solving the pressure response of a brake circuit because of its high accuracy. The present study serves as a foundation for the design and analysis of a PBS.

In this paper, we consider the blowup mechanism of regular solutions to the spherically symmetry relativistic Euler-Poisson equations with repulsive force and damping. By means of a weighted function and the structured functional, we show the regular solution will blow up in finite time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To improve the application of zein in the food industry, the present study explored the effect of adding different amounts (0, 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 U/g) of protein glutaminase (PG) on the interfacial properties of zein by measuring solubility, protein structure, surface hydrophobicity, foaming, emulsification, surface tension, surface expansion modulus, and other indicators. As the amount of PG added was increased, the degree of zein deamidation gradually increased. When the amount of enzyme added was 40 U/g, the solubility increased by 504.38% compared with that of the control group. The secondary structure results showed that PG reduced the relative content of β-sheet and increased the relative content of β-turn. The endogenous fluorescence intensity and surface hydrophobicity first decreased and then increased, and the microstructure changed from blocks to flakes, forming a regular three-dimensional (3D) network structure. Raman spectral analysis showed that the peak intensity ratio of tyrosine residues (I850/I830) was enhanced, whereas the peak intensity ratio of tryptophan residues (I760/I1004) first decreased and then increased. In addition, PG reduced the surface tension of zein at the air-liquid interface, enhanced its surface expansion modulus, and significantly (P

Abstract Recently, the application of finger vein recognition has become popular. Studies have shown finger vein presentation attacks increasingly threaten these recognition devices. As a result, research on finger vein presentation attack detection (fvPAD) methods has received much attention. However, the current fvPAD methods have two limitations. (1) Most terminal devices cannot train fvPAD models independently due to a lack of data. (2) Several research institutes can train fvPAD models; however, these models perform poorly when applied to terminal devices due to inadequate generalisation. Consequently, it is difficult for threatened terminal devices to obtain an effective fvPAD model. To address this problem, the method of federated finger vein presentation attack detection for various clients is proposed, which is the first study that introduces federated learning (FL) to fvPAD. In the proposed method, the differences in data volume and computing power between clients are considered. Traditional FL clients are expanded into two categories: institutional and terminal clients. For institutional clients, an improved triplet training mode with FL is designed to enhance model generalisation. For terminal clients, their inability is solved to obtain effective fvPAD models. Finally, extensive experiments are conducted on three datasets, which demonstrate the superiority of our method.