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Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is the most common subtype of NSCLC, characterized by poor prognosis and frequently diagnosed at advanced. While previous studies have demonstrated pleckstrin‐2 (PLEK2) as aberrantly expressed and implicated in tumorigenesis across various tumor types, including LUAD, the molecular mechanisms underlying PLEK2‐mediated LUAD progression remain incompletely understood. In this study, we obtained data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database to assess PLEK2 expression in LUAD, a finding further confirmed through analysis of human tissue specimens. PLEK2‐silenced LUAD cellular models were subsequently constructed to examine the functional role of PLEK2 both in vitro and in vivo. Our results showed elevated PLEK2 expression in LUAD, correlating with poor patients' prognosis. PLEK2 knockdown led to a significant suppression of LUAD cell proliferation and migration, accompanied by enhanced apoptosis. Moreover, tumor growth in mice injected with PLEK2‐silencing LUAD cells was impaired. Gene expression profiling and Co‐IP assays suggested direct interaction between PLEK2 and SPC25, with downregulation of SPC25 similarly impairing cell proliferation and migration. Additionally, we revealed phosphoinositide 3‐kinase (PI3K)/AKT signaling activation as requisite for PLEK2‐induced malignant phenotypes in LUAD. Collectively, our findings underscore PLEK2's oncogenic potential in LUAD, suggesting its utility as a prognostic indicator and therapeutic target for LUAD management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the relationship between spectral radius and maximum average degree of graphs. By using this relationship and the previous technique of Li and Ning in (J Graph Theory 103:486–492, 2023), we prove that, for any given positive number ε < 1 3 , if n is a sufficiently large integer, then any graph G of order n with ρ (G) > n 2 4 contains a cycle of length t for all integers t ∈ [ 3 , (1 3 - ε) n ] , where ρ (G) is the spectral radius of G. This improves the result of Li and Ning (2023). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A noncomplete graph G $G$ of diameter d $d$ is called an antipodal r $r$‐cover if its vertex set can be partitioned into the subsets (also called fibres) V1,V2,...,Vm ${V}_{1},{V}_{2},\ldots ,{V}_{m}$ of r $r$ vertices each, in such a way that two vertices of G $G$ are at distance d $d$ if and only if they belong to the same fibre. We say that G $G$ is symmetric if for every u∈Vi,v∈Vj $u\in {V}_{i},v\in {V}_{j}$, there exist u′∈Vi $u^{\prime} \in {V}_{i}$ such that d(u,u′)=d(u,v)+d(v,u′) $d(u,u^{\prime})=d(u,v)+d(v,u^{\prime})$, where 1≤i≠j≤m $1\le i\ne j\le m$. In this paper, we prove that, for r≥2 $r\ge 2$, an antipodal r $r$‐cover which is not a cycle, has at least r3d2 $r\unicode{x0230A}\frac{3d}{2}\unicode{x0230B}$ vertices provided d≥3 $d\ge 3$, and at least 2r(d−1) $2r(d-1)$ vertices provided it is symmetric. Our results extend those of Göbel and Veldman. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The drug‐resistant bacterial‐infected skin wound is still a severe healthcare problem. Uncontrolled bacterial infection, abundant reactive oxygen species (ROS) content, and prolonged inflammatory response are detrimental to wound healing. Moreover, excessive vessel growth can result in unsatisfactory scar formation. Herein, a three‐step regenerative strategy based on a bilayered gelatin/acryloyl β‐cyclodextrin (BGACD) hydrogel containing physical host–guest complexations and chemical crosslinks is proposed. The hydrogel is loaded with humic acids (HAs) and astragaloside IV (AS) in the lower layer and verteporfin (Vt) in the upper layer. Different gelatin/acryloyl β‐cyclodextrin ratios endow the lower and upper layers of the hydrogel with different degradation rates. Under light irradiation, the combination of HAs‐induced photothermal therapy (PTT) and verteporfin‐induced photodynamic therapy effectively inhibits MRSA growth. The HAs and astragaloside IV are released from the lower layer to scavenge ROS and promote M2 macrophage polarization and angiogenesis during the inflammation and early proliferation phases, while verteporfin releases from the upper layer suppress excessive vessel growth during the late proliferation and remodeling phases. The HAs‐AS@Vt@BGACD hydrogel successfully achieves rapid and scarless wound healing in an MRSA‐infected wound model in rats. Therefore, the HAs‐AS@Vt@BGACD hydrogel shows promising potential for the treatment of drug‐resistant bacteria‐infected skin wound healing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let S be a subset of V(G). The vertices of S are colored black and the vertices of V (G) - S are colored white. The color-change-rule is defined as if there is a black vertex u having an unique white neighbor v, then change the color of v to black. The zero forcing number of a graph, denoted by Z(G), is the minimum cardinality of a set S such that all vertices of V(G) are black by repeating the color-change-rule, which was proposed at the AIM-minimum rank group in 2008 to bound the maximal nullity of G. Hence it has received much attention. Our interest is to study the zero forcing number of graphs with matching number α ′ (G) and cyclomatic number c(G). In the paper, utilizing the alternating path and an operation associated with a vertex partition, we verify the sharp bounds that n (G) - 2 α ′ (G) ≤ Z (G) ≤ n (G) - α ′ (G) + c (G) - 1 for n (G) ≥ 3 . The extremal graphs attain the upper bound are completely characterized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We reported the identification of two rare α-thalassemia silent carriers with novel HBA1 mutations of CD 39 -C [Thr > Pro] (HBA1: c.114del; p.Thr39Profs*11) and CD 109 ACC > CCC [Thr > Pro] (HBA1: c.325A > C; p. Thr109Pro), respectively. The two probands were pregnant women diagnosed with mild hypochromic anemia or microcytic hypochromic anemia by routine blood tests. They started iron therapy before taking differential diagnosis from iron deficiency anemia. After wait and watch approach, they both accepted thalassemia genetic screening, which identified CD 39 -C [Thr > Pro] and CD 109 ACC > CCC [Thr > Pro], respectively. Due to inappropriate iron therapy, worse anemia and iron overload were noticed in the first proband, but no obvious side effect was found in both probands. Functional analysis showed that, relative to the wild type, CD 39 -C [Thr > Pro] considerably reduced the expression of the HBA1 protein while CD 109 ACC > CCC [Thr > Pro] only had a minor impact. Our study highlighted the importance of gestational thalassemia screening based on next-generation sequencing for identifying novel rare thalassemia variants and increased our understanding about the relationship between genotype and phenotype of α-thalassemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let n ≥ 29 , k ≥ 2 and δ ≥ 1 be three positive integers, where n ≥ k + 2 and n ≡ k (mod 2). In this paper, we characterize the extremal graphs with maximum spectral radius among all connected graphs on n vertices with minimum degree δ and matching number at most n − k 2. This solves an open problem proposed in [10]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of the relationships between the eigenvalues of a graph and its structural parameters is a central topic in spectral graph theory. In this paper, we give some new spectral conditions for the connectivity, toughness and perfect k-matchings of regular graphs. Our results extend or improve the previous related ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biochar's underlying biochemical and physiological mechanisms in reducing irrigation and salinity stress are elusive. This paper investigates the effects of two types of biochar (wood biochar and poultry biochar) on the growth and physiology of tomato seedlings exposed to the combined effects of drought and salinity stress. Two types of biochar, wood biochar (WB) and poultry biochar (PB), were added to the soil separately, with three salinity gradients of 0, 100, and 200 mmol/L and two water supply conditions of full irrigation (FI) and deficit irrigation (DI). Results showed that biochar addition effectively improved the root water potential and osmotic potential of tomato plant under drought and salinity stress. Biochar application also mitigated leaf relative water content by 9.86% and 24.37% under drought and salinity stress, respectively. Furthermore, biochar application decreased abscisic acid concentrations in xylem sap under drought and salinity stress. Biochar altered the soil structure and increased field water holding capacity, indirectly increasing the soil water supply. While water use efficiency did not increase significantly after biochar application, a synergistic increase in seedling growth and water consumption occurred. In conclusion, biochar addition shows promise for promoting seedling growth to help mitigate the adverse impacts of drought and salinity stress on plant growth and physiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Materials and methods Results Conclusion One of the pathological characteristics of obesity is fat accumulation of skeletal muscles (SKM) and the myocardium, involving mechanisms of insulin resistance and abnormal lipid metabolism. Apolipoprotein A-IV (ApoA-IV) is an essential gene in both glucose and lipid metabolisms.Using high-fat diet (HFD) induced obese apoA-IV-knockout mice and subsequent introduction of exogenous recombinant-ApoA-IV protein and adeno-associated virus (AAV)-transformed apoA-IV, we examined lipid metabolism indicators of SKM and the myocardium, which include triglyceride (TG) content, RT-PCR for lipogenic indicators and western blotting for AKT phosphorylation. Similarly, we used high-glucose-fed or palmitate (Pal)-induced C2C12 cells co-cultured with ApoA-IV protein to evaluate glucose uptake, the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)–AKT pathway, and lipid metabolisms.In stable obese animal models, we find ApoA-IV-knockout mice show elevated TG content, enhanced expression of lipogenic enzymes and diminished phosphorylated AKT in SKM and the myocardium, but both stable hepatic expression of AAV-apoA-IV and brief ApoA-IV protein administration suppress lipogenesis and promote AKT phosphorylation. In a myoblast cell line C2C12, ApoA-IV protein suppresses Pal-induced lipid accumulation and lipogenesis but enhances AKT activation and glucose uptake, and the effect is abolished by a PI3K inhibitor.We find that ApoA-IV reduces fat accumulation by suppressing lipogenesis and improves glucose uptake in SKM and the myocardium by regulating the PI3K–AKT pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), which is mainly characterized by insulin resistance and insulin secretion deficiency, has been soaring in recent years. Accompanied by many other metabolic syndromes, such as cardiovascular diseases, T2DM represents a big challenge to public health and economic development. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ), a ligand-activated nuclear receptor that is critical in regulating glucose and lipid metabolism, has been developed as a powerful drug target for T2DM, such as thiazolidinediones (TZDs). Despite thiazolidinediones (TZDs), a class of PPARγ agonists, having been proven to be potent insulin sensitizers, their use is restricted in the treatment of diabetes for their adverse effects. Post-translational modifications (PTMs) have shed light on the selective activation of PPARγ, which shows great potential to circumvent TZDs' side effects while maintaining insulin sensitization. In this review, we will focus on the potential effects of PTMs of PPARγ on treating T2DM in terms of phosphorylation, acetylation, ubiquitination, SUMOylation, O-GlcNAcylation, and S-nitrosylation. A better understanding of PTMs of PPARγ will help to design a new generation of safer compounds targeting PPARγ to treat type 2 diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For an integer ℓ ≥ 2 , a P ≥ ℓ -factor of a graph G is a spanning subgraph in which each component is a path of order at least ℓ . In this paper, we characterize the extremal graphs with maximum spectral radius among all connected graphs of given order with prescribed minimum degree and without a P ≥ 2 -factor or a P ≥ 3 -factor. This generalizes the result in Li and Miao (Discrete Math 344:112588, 2021). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a graph G and an integer k ≥ 2 , the k-power of G is the graph with vertex set V (G) in which two vertices are adjacent if and only if their distance is at most k in G. In this paper, we study spectral conditions for a graph to contain a copy of k -power of Hamilton cycle. This solves a problem proposed in [20]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. From the perspective of economics, this study discusses the value of establishing a standardized clinical nutrition diagnosis and treatment pathway in the diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary infection and provides a reference for optimizing the diagnosis and treatment pathway of pulmonary infection. Methods. The patients who received the nutrition diagnosis and treatment pathway intervention in 2017 were counted as the routine group and were subdivided into the conventional intervention group (C1) and conventional control group (C2) according to whether the standardized nutrition therapy was applied or not. The patients who received the nutrition diagnosis and treatment pathway intervention in 2020 were counted as the experimental group and were subdivided into the experimental intervention group (T1) and the experimental control group (T2) according to whether standardized intervention was applied or not. The total hospitalization expenses, average daily hospitalization cost, nutrition support expenses, plasma albumin before and after nutrition support, readmission, and other indicators of all patients were recorded and compared. The cost-effectiveness ratio (CER), incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER), and cost-effectiveness threshold for cost-effectiveness analysis were adopted. Results. Compared with the C2 group, the C1 group had higher total hospitalization expenses, average daily hospitalization expenses, nutritional support expenses, and plasma albumin improvement rate and lower readmission rate (P < 0.001). Compared with the T2 group, the T1 group had higher total hospitalization cost, average daily hospitalization expenses, nutritional support expenses, and plasma albumin improvement rate and lower readmission rate (P < 0.001). Taking the improvement rate of plasma albumin as the effect index, compared with the C1 group, the T1 group has less investment cost and better effect, and the ICER is negative (below the cost-effect threshold). And taking the readmission rate as the effective index, compared with the C1 group, the T1 group invested less cost and had a better effect, and the ICER was negative (below the cost-effect threshold). Conclusion. For the patients with pulmonary infection, whether the improvement rate of plasma albumin or the readmission rate is used as the impact index, the standardized nutrition diagnosis and treatment pathway in 2020 is more economical than the nonstandardized nutrition diagnosis and treatment pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The machined-surface integrity plays a critical role in corrosion resistance and fatigue properties of ultra-high-strength steels. This work develops a multiphysics model for predicting the microstructure changes and microhardness of machined AerMet100 steel. The variations of stress, strain and temperature of the machined workpiece are evaluated by constructing a finite-element model of the orthogonal cutting process. Based on the multiphysics fields, the analytical models of phase transformation and dislocation density evolution are built up. The white layer is modeled according to the phase-transformation mechanism and the effects of stress and plastic strain on real phase-transformation temperature are taken into consideration. The microhardness changes are predicted by a model that accounts for both dislocation density and phase-transformation evolution processes. Experimental tests are carried out for model validation. The predicted results of cutting force, white-layer thickness and microhardness are in good agreement with the measured data. Additionally, from the proposed model, the correlation between the machined-surface characteristics and processing parameters is established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we proposed in situ controlled preparation of 3D flower-like Ti 3 C 2 T x microspheres (FMXMSs) by water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion-assisted assembly. Polyethyleneimine (PEI), as a large molecule, can effectively stabilize the emulsion system. Ethylenediamine (EDA), as a weak cross-link agent, contains rich amino groups, which can effectively induce the assembly of Ti 3 C 2 T x in spherical droplets and eventually form 3D flower-like Ti 3 C 2 T x microspheres. By adjusting the water-oil volume ratio, the size of micro-emulsion droplets can be controlled, thus the structure and size of microspheres can finally be controlled. The structure has a large specific surface area (108.31 m2 g-1) which can provide an effective ion diffusion pathway. As the supercapacitors electrode, the specific capacitance of FMXMSs is up to 224.57 F g-1 at 5 mV s-1 and 193.67 F g-1 at 0.5 A g-1. Moreover, they also show good long-term cyclic stability. After 5000 cycles, the specific capacitance does not decay. The results indicate that W/O emulsion-assisted assembly is feasible for preparing MXenes microspheres with high electrochemical performance. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mobile-edge computing (MEC) has been recognized as a promising solution to provide efficient communication and computation capabilities for mobile users (MUs). However, the problem relating to parallel offloading and load balancing with multiple cooperative MEC servers and massive delay-sensitive execution workloads remains to be investigated. In this paper, we study a joint parallel offloading and load balancing policy for such an MEC system. We formulate a long-term system average-cost (i.e., weighted sum of energy consumption and execution delays) stochastic programming problem under MU battery level stability and delay constraints. Our aims include optimizing the data sizes for uplink offloading transmissions for optimized communication and computation resource allocation among multi-users, and maximizing the computation capability utilization of cooperative MEC servers by load balancing. To solve this problem, we first design a Lyapunov-based centralized cost management algorithm (LYP-CCMA) to obtain the optimal system average-cost under the battery level stability constraints. Further, we propose two algorithms based on alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) to implement distributed resources allocation. Simulation results verify our analysis and demonstrate the superior performance of our proposed schemes over several baseline schemes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A graph G is called a 1-planar graph if G has a drawing in the plane, so that each of its edges is crossed at most once. In this paper, we prove that λ 1 (G) ≤ 5 + 2 n + 5 for a 1-planar graph G of order n ≥ 7. For n ≥ 6.23 × 10 18 , we characterize the unique extremal graph with the maximum spectral radius among all 1-planar graphs of order n. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have recently seen tremendous progress in diffusion advances for generating realistic human motions. Yet, they largely disregard the multi-human interactions. In this paper, we present InterGen, an effective diffusion-based approach that enables layman users to customize high-quality two-person interaction motions, with only text guidance. We first contribute a multimodal dataset, named InterHuman. It consists of about 107 M frames for diverse two-person interactions, with accurate skeletal motions and 23,337 natural language descriptions. For the algorithm side, we carefully tailor the motion diffusion model to our two-person interaction setting. To handle the symmetry of human identities during interactions, we propose two cooperative transformer-based denoisers that explicitly share weights, with a mutual attention mechanism to further connect the two denoising processes. Then, we propose a novel representation for motion input in our interaction diffusion model, which explicitly formulates the global relations between the two performers in the world frame. We further introduce two novel regularization terms to encode spatial relations, equipped with a corresponding damping scheme during the training of our interaction diffusion model. Extensive experiments validate the effectiveness of InterGen (https://tr3e.github.io/intergen-page/). Notably, it can generate more diverse and compelling two-person motions than previous methods and enables various downstream applications for human interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The principles of monitoring conservation tillage were comprehensively introduced. • The spatial distribution and hotspots of global related research were summarized. • Data sources, features, and approaches were covered in detail. • Challenges and future prospects were highlighted. Conservation tillage (CT) is a new tillage method to prevent soil erosion by retaining a certain crop residue amount on the soil surface, supplemented with other protective management measures. Identifying the location and distribution of CT measures is key to soil protection, agro-environmental monitoring, and resource utilization assessment. Remote sensing technology provides an effective tool for CT distribution mapping and monitoring due to its spatial and temporal coverage at a low cost. We aim to comprehensively review the progress in CT mapping and monitoring by using remote sensing over the past decade. We started with the definition of CT, presented the CT remote sensing mapping and monitoring principles, and analyzed CT remote sensing monitoring objects and their distribution over the last decade. The CT remote sensing monitoring research status was examined in detail from three perspectives: data sources, features, and approaches. The challenges and future prospects of CT remote sensing monitoring advancement were finally summarized. The results could provide a holistic picture to improve the understanding of CT remote sensing mapping and monitoring and provide a scientific reference for the field of conservation agriculture remote sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrous acid (HONO) is of great interest due to its contribution to hydroxyl (OH) radicals by self-photolysis. Nowadays, machine learning (ML) algorithms are good at capturing complicated non-linear relationships between predictors and dependent variables. Here, using the whole year of 2018 of observed HONO and related pollutant data at an urban site in Beijing, an ML-RF (random forest) model is carried out to predict HONO concentrations and explore the main factors influencing HONO formation mechanisms. ML-RF models show satisfactory performance during the heating, non-heating and whole year periods with R values of 0.95, 0.96 and 0.95, respectively. Primary emissions and diffusion have an obvious influence on ambient HONO during the heating period, while chemical formation processes such as NO 2 heterogeneous reaction and photolysis of nitrate are important for HONO during the non-heating period with higher RH and stronger solar intensity. O 3 and NH 3 are the most important variables for HONO in both periods, indicating the close relationship of HONO with atmospheric oxidation and the important role of NH 3 in HONO formation processes. Although there are deviations due to some variability in HONO formation mechanisms between years, ML-RF models based on 2018 data are able to roughly predict HONO for three periods in 2017 and 2021. Overall, machine learning with limited meteorological and pollutant parameters offers great advantages in HONO prediction, and it can also provide some clues to improve the chemical mechanisms of HONO by finding related variables of ambient HONO. [Display omitted] • Machine learning predicted HONO shows satisfactory performance in 2018. • O 3 and NH 3 are the most important HONO predictors. • Main HONO sources are different between heating and non-heating periods. • Machine learning model is feasible to predict HONO across years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work proposes a nonsingular adaptive fixed‐time switching control method for a class of strict‐feedback nonlinear dynamics subject to full state constraints. The peculiarity of this design lies in overcoming the singularity issue that typically appears in the existing backstepping‐based fixed‐time control methods caused by the iterative differentiation of fractional power terms as tracking errors approach to zero, while guaranteeing the nonviolation of full state constraints. Crucial in solving such singularity issue is to skillfully introduce a smooth switching between fractional power and integer power terms, which guarantees that fractional power term is confined within a positive interval all the time. An asymmetric time‐varying barrier Lyapunov function is delicately incorporated into control design, rendering state variables to be within prescribed time‐varying bounds. Besides, radial basis function neural network is employed to handle system unknown nonlinearities. It is rigorously proved that all the closed‐loop signals eventually converge to small regions around origin within fixed‐time. Comparative simulation results are finally given to validate the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed control strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Transcatheter closure of aneurysmal perimembranous ventricular septal defect (pmVSD), pmVSD near the aortic valve, and intracristal VSD (icVSD) with symmetrical or asymmetrical ventricular septal defect occluders still presents significant challenges. We report our experience with transcatheter closure of pmVSD and icVSD using Amplatzer duct occluder II (ADO II) in children.Method: We retrospectively analyzed all children, who presented to our hospital consecutively between March 2014 and June 2020 for attempted transcatheter closure of pmVSD or icVSD with the ADO II device. Standard safety and last-follow-up outcomes were assessed and compared.Results: In total, 41 patients underwent transcatheter closure of VSD with the ADO II (28 in pmVSD and 13 in icVSD groups) with a median age of 3.5 years (total range: 0.9 to 12 years) and median weight of 15.0 kg (total range: 10.0 to 43.0 kg). Implantation was successful in 40/41 patients (97.5%, 27/28 in pmVSD group, 13/13 in icVSD group). One patient with mild aortic valve prolapse in pmVSD group developed new-onset moderate aortic regurgitation after a 4/4 mm ADO II was deployed; however, this resolved after the device was retrieved and successfully replaced with a 5 mm zero eccentric VSD occluder. There was no procedure-related mortality. After a median follow-up of six months (total range: 6 to 72 months), complete closure rates were 85.1% and 76.9% among pmVSD and icVSD groups, respectively. In the pmVSD group, one case of new-onset moderate tricuspid regurgitation was observed at six months, and there was one case of severe tricuspid regurgitation that had progressed from mild tricuspid regurgitation at 12 months. No serious complications were noted in the icVSD group.Conclusion: ADO II provides a safe and reproducible alternative for the closure of perimembranous and intracristal ventricular septal defects with a diameter less than 5 mm in young children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The frozen elephant trunk (FET) technique has become an important tool in the treatment of acute type A aortic dissection. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of long FET on spinal cord injury (SCI) and distal aortic remodeling after acute type A aortic dissection based on clinical and radiological outcomes. Methods: From January 2018 to November 2019, 158 patients (mean age 51.8 years [range: 32–78 years], 88.6% male) with acute type A aortic dissection were treated by FET with 100 mm (n = 113) or 150 mm (n = 45) open hybrid stent graft prosthesis. Patients were divided into two groups according to the length of FET. The clinical and radiological outcomes of the patients were reviewed retrospectively. Results: Postoperative outcomes did not differ significantly: in‐hospital mortality (9.7% vs. 6.7%, p =.758) and SCI (5.3% vs. 2.2%, p =.674). Aortic remodeling, which was evaluated by aortic diameter, true lumen diameter, false lumen (FL) diameter and the rate of FL complete thrombosis, was more positive in long FET group in the descending thoracic aorta during the follow‐up period. At the abdominal level, there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups. Conclusions: The long version of FET does not increase the risk of SCI in patients with acute type A aortic dissection. The application of long FET can achieve better results in terms of remodeling of the thoracic aorta in the short‐ and medium‐term follow‐up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work was designed to prepare a novel NiS/KNbO 3 p-n heterojunction composite for efficient photocatalytic nitrogen fixation under simulated sunlight. The NiS/KNbO 3 photocatalyst was prepared through a two-step hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy analyses proved that NiS nanoparticles were closely decorated on the surface of KNbO 3 nanorods, to facilitate the migration of electrons between the two semiconductors. Mott-Schottky analysis indicated that the Femi level of KNbO 3 is higher than that of NiS. Thus, the electron migration from KNbO 3 to NiS occurs naturally. This migration elevates the band potential of NiS, makes NiS/KNbO 3 form a type-II photocatalyst, and generates an internal electric field in the composite. The synergetic effect of the internal electric field and the type-II band structure endows NiS/KNbO 3 with high efficiency in the spatial separation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs, verified by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and transient photocurrent experiments. Therefore, NiS/KNbO 3 presents good efficiency in photocatalytic N 2 reduction with an NH 3 production rate of 155.6 μmol·L−1·g−1·h−1, which is 1.9 and 6.8 times higher than those of KNbO 3 and NiS, respectively. UV–visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and N 2 -adsorption experiments were also performed to investigate the effect of light absorption and surface area on the photocatalytic reaction. Nevertheless, compared with the great promotion effect in charge separation, the contribution of the two factors can be ignored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let G be an irregular graph on n vertices with maximum degree Δ ≥ 3 and diameter D ≥ 3 . The spectral radius of G, which is denoted by ρ (G) , is the largest eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix of G. In this paper, a new lower bound of Δ - ρ (G) is given, which improves the previous bounds intrinsically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let G be a connected irregular graph on n vertices with maximum degree Δ and diameter D. The spectral radius of G, which is denoted by ρ (G) , is the largest eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix of G. In this paper, we study the lower bound of Δ - ρ (G) . As a result, a new lower bound is obtained which improves the known lower bounds of Δ - ρ (G) . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: With the rapid development of transcatheter techniques and instruments, transcatheter occlusion for patients with perimembranous ventricular septal defect (pVSD) and aortic valve prolapse (AVP) was constantly being tried, while the efficacy and safety of pVSD with AVP remain controversial.Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate long-term efficacy and safety of transcatheter occlusion of pVSD with AVP.Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 164 children with pVSD and AVP who underwent transcatheter occlusion between January 2013 and November 2014. AVP was divided into 3 degrees according to right coronary leaflet morphology at end-diastole during aortic root angiography. Patient demographic and clinical data were collected.Results: There were 97 males and 67 females (median age, 40.0 (30.0-62.7) months; average weight, 16.94 ± 9.02 kg). Mild (n = 63), moderate (n = 89), and severe (n = 12) AVP success rates were 93.7%, 89.9%, and 58.3%, respectively. Immediately after procedure, there was no new-onset aortic regurgitation (AR) above trivial degree, residual shunt above mild degree, or complications requiring medication or operation, except for 1 patient who developed transient complete atrioventricular block. During follow-up, 1 mild AVP patient aggravated from mild to moderate AR and 1 moderate AVP patient aggravated from trivial to moderate AR. The new-onset AR in mild, moderate, and severe AVP was 2%, 1.8%, and 20%, respectively. AR disappeared in 17 patients. Residual shunt occurred in 9 patients after procedure, 4 of which disappeared during the follow-up period. No serious complications occurred in any patient during follow-up. Five-year cardiovascular event-free survival rates for mild, moderate, and severe AVP were 89.6%, 94.5%, and 80.0%, respectively.Conclusion: Transcatheter occlusion of pVSD with mild and moderate AVP has a high success rate and few complications, which is safe and effective in long-term follow-up. Transcatheter occlusion of pVSD with severe AVP has low success rates and high AR incidence. Therefore, transcatheter occlusion of pVSD with AVP is recommended for mild to moderate, but not severe, AVP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: Hypertensive vascular remodelling is responsible for end‐organ damage and is the result of increased extracellular matrix accumulation and excessive vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation. MicroRNA‐26a (miR‐26a), a non‐coding small RNA, is involved in several cardiovascular diseases. We aimed to validate the effect and mechanisms of miR‐26a in hypertensive vascular remodelling. Experimental Approach Male spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) were injected intravenously with recombinant adeno‐associated virus‐miR‐26a. Samples of thoracic aorta were examined histologically with H&E staining. In vitro, angiotensin II (AngII)‐induced VSMCs cultured from thoracic aortae of female Sprague‐Dawley rats, were transfected with miR‐26a mimic or inhibitor. Western blots, qRT‐PCR and immunohistological methods were used, along with chromatin‐immunoprecipitation and luciferase reporter assays. Specific siRNAs were used to silence Smad production in VSMCs Key Results: Levels of miR‐26a were lower in the thoracic aorta and plasma of SHRs than in WKY rats. Overexpression of miR‐26a inhibited extracellular matrix deposition by targeting connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) and decreased VSMC proliferation by regulating the enhancer of zeste homologue 2 (EZH2)/p21 pathway both in vitro and in vivo. AngII‐mediated Smad3 activation suppressed miR‐26a expression, which in turn promoted Smad3 activation via targeted regulation of Smad4, leading to further down‐regulation of miR‐26a. Conclusion and Implications: Our data show that AngII stimulated a Smads/miR‐26a positive feedback loop, which further reduced expression of miR‐26a, leading to collagen production and VSMC proliferation and consequently vascular remodelling. MiR‐26a has an antagonistic effect on hypertensive vascular remodelling and can be a strategy for treating hypertensive vascular remodelling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports in recent years have suggested that adiponectin (APN) improves insulin resistance and inhibits apoptosis by activating the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) pathway and the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway after binding to its receptor. This study aims to explore the mechanism by which APN reduces embryo loss rate and trophoblast apoptosis in early pregnancy of mice with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). PCOS mice were subcutaneously injected with APN (10 μg mg kg−1 day−1) on 11 consecutive days from the 3rd day of pregnancy onwards to observe the change of the embryo loss rate of PCOS mice induced by APN. Quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot were used to determine the relative expressions of mRNA and the proteins AMPK, PI3K, and Akt in mouse uterine tissue. At the same time, primary cultured mouse villous trophoblast cells were used to further explore the underlying mechanisms in vitro. APN significantly reduces the pregnancy loss rate of PCOS mice. At the same time, APN increases phosphorylation and mRNA expression levels of AMPK, PI3K, and Akt in PCOS mouse uterine tissue. In addition, trophoblast cells of model mice were treated with APN and inhibitors, and APN was found to reduce trophoblast cell apoptosis by affecting the phosphorylation levels of AMPK, PI3K, Akt, and FoxO3a proteins. APN reduces the embryo loss rate and ameliorates trophoblast apoptosis in PCOS mice by affecting the AMPK/PI3K/AKT/FoxO3a signaling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel polyaniline (PANI)/Eu3+ nanofiber sensing film was prepared in the presence of Eu(NO 3) 3 which serves as structure-directed agent. The morphological, component, crystallinity and electrochemical properties were carried out by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Energy-Dispersive X-ray (EDX), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) techniques. The results indicated the nanofiber-like network with porous structure appeared in the PANI embedded by Eu3+ ions, thereby leading to large specific surface area. Furthermore, the PANI/Eu3+ nanofibers were grown onto the inner wall of capillary glass to form the tube sensor. By the sensing measurements, this tube sensor enabled the detection of low-volume (0.3 mL) NH 3 for response 435% at concentration of 0.25 ppm with a short response time (5 s) and recovery time (5 s), and the performances of reproducibility and selectivity were also excellent. The above results demonstrated the potential application of PANI/Eu3+ tube sensor for low-volume NH 3 gas. Image 1 • A PANI/Eu3+ tube sensor was designed for the trace NH 3 detection. • Eu3+ ions dopant as structure-directed agent promoted the formation of nanofiber-like network and porous structure. • The film was grown onto the inner wall of silica glass capillary tube (length 7.5 cm, inner diameter 1 mm). • The low-volume (0.3 mL) NH 3 can be detected with rapid response (435%, 0.25 ppm) with response/recovery time (5 s/5 s). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

E.R. van Dam and G.R. Omidi generalized the concept of strongly regular graphs as follows. If for any two vertices the number of ℓ -walks (walks of length ℓ ) from one vertex to the other is the same which depends only on whether the two vertices are the same, adjacent or non-adjacent, then G is called a strongly ℓ -walk-regular graph. The existence of strongly ℓ -walk-regular graphs which are not strongly 3-walk-regular graphs is unknown. In this paper, we prove that the edge-connectivity of a connected strongly 3-walk-regular graph G of degree k ≥ 3 is equal to k. Moreover, if G is not the graph formed by adding a perfect matching between two copies of K 4 , then each edge cut set of size k is precisely the set of edges incident with a vertex of G. For a regular graph G in general, we also give a sufficient and tight condition such that G is 1-extendable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let G be a graph on even number of vertices. A perfect matching of G is a set of independent edges which cover each vertex of G. For an integer t ≥ 1 , G is t-extendable if G has a perfect matching, and for any t independent edges, G has a perfect matching which contains these given t edges. The graph G is bi-critical if for any two vertices u and v, the graph G - u , v contains a perfect matching. Let G be a connected k-regular graph. In this paper, we obtain two sharp sufficient eigenvalue conditions for a connected k-regular graph to be 1-extendable and bi-critical, respectively. Our results are in term of the second largest eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix of G. We also give examples that show that there is no good spectral characterization (in term of the second largest eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix) for 2-extendability of regular graphs in general. Also, for any integer 1 ≤ ℓ < k + 2 2 , we obtain an eigenvalue condition for G to be (ℓ + 1) -connected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The design of high‐efficiency and cost‐effective electrocatalysts is one of the most crucial factors for facilitating the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Therefore, we prepared CoxFe1‐xOOH with coral‐like nanonet arrays on carbon cloth (CC) as high‐performance OER catalysts by a facile hydrothermal method. The resulting CoxFe1‐xOOH was characterized by X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X‐ray photoelectron spectrometry. When serving as a catalyst electrode in the OER, Co0.875Fe0.125OOH/CC exhibits excellent catalytic activity. Co0.875Fe0.125OOH/CC has a low overpotential of 300 mV at a current density of 20 mA cm−2 (150 mV less than that of FeOOH/CC) and a small Tafel slope of 83 mV dec−1 in 1.0 M KOH in OER. Moreover, it also has a superior electrochemical durability for more than 50 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at the problem of large deformation and residual stress after drilling of aircraft skin Aluminum Alloy 2024 (AA2024) sheet, an Improved Grey Wolf Optimizer (IGWO) is proposed to optimize its fixture layout to make the deformation and residual stress smaller. A layout coding scheme is designed to obtain the maximum deformation and residual stress under different fixture layouts. Then, a kriging prediction model is developed with a prediction error of 3.7% for deformation and 2.2% for residual stress. The model is integrated with the IGWO to provide a comprehensive set of optimal solutions. The specific improvements of IGWO included initializing the population with good point set to increase population diversity, incorporation of Lévy flight to prevent local optimum, adjustable distance control parameter tuning for balance the global and local searches and optimizing the population by non-dominated sort and crowding distance. In addition, experimental studies and algorithmic comparisons are carried out to verify the efficacy of both the proposed model and the algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endometrial carcinoma (EC) is a malignant neoplasm of the endometrial epithelium, which may be diagnosed by pathological investigations. The aim of the current study was to identify new markers for the diagnosis of EC using machine learning. The association between human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) infection and endometrial cancer risk have not been widely reported. It remains ambiguous whether HTLV-1 infection is associated with several types of cancer. The present study investigated the association between HTLV-1 infection-associated genes and EC risk. RNA sequencing uterine cancer expression data were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between normal and matched tumor samples. A total of 41 genes were selected by an overlap between HTLV-1 infection pathway-associated genes and the DEGs. Two-way hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA) and a support vector machine (SVM) classifier were constructed using the 41 genes. The accuracy of the candidate genes in risk-stratifying the samples was 100%. The accuracy of the proposed SVM model was 100%. In addition, the classification power of the SVM model was validated using a merged dataset (TCGA and the Genotype-Tissue Expression project). This predictive feature achieved reliable outcomes with risk-stratifying samples of almost 99% in two-way HCA, and an accuracy yield of 98% of the SVM classifier. In conclusion, the 41 genes identified in the current study may be implicated in the development of EC and may be of prognostic value for the disease. The results obtained the current study suggest that HTLV-1 may be potentially associated with EC and highlight potential disease mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let G be a connected graph. An edge cut set M of G is a cyclic edge cut set if there are at least two components of G - M which contain a cycle. The cyclic edge-connectivity of G is the minimum cardinality of a cyclic edge cut set (if exists) of G. In this paper, we show that the cyclic edge-connectivity of a connected strongly regular graph G (not K 3 , 3 ) of degree k ≥ 3 with girth c is equal to (k - 2) c , where c = 3 , 4 or 5. Moreover, if G is not the triangular graph srg-(10, 6, 3, 4), the complete multi-partite graph K 2 , 2 , 2 , 2 or the lattice graph srg-(16, 6, 2, 2), then each cyclic edge cut set of size (k - 2) c is precisely the set of edges incident with a cycle of length c in G. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Calcium phosphate bone cement is one of the most widely used bone substitutes, but its clinical use is still critically limited by its poor physicochemical properties. In this work, calcium-binding agents, citric acid (CA) and sodium alginate (SA), were jointly introduced into α-tricalcium phosphate (α-TCP) cement to improve its physicochemical properties. Effects of CA and SA on the phase, morphology, deformation, handling and mechanical properties of the cement were further investigated. Co-existence of both agents significantly shortened the setting time whilst improved the anti-washout ability, injectability and mechanical strength of α-TCP cement in a CA-content-dependent manner. Rapid formation of SA-CA gel networks within the cement matrix enhanced the mobility of pastes with a strong cohesive action, which was beneficial for clinical injection. Herein, the conjunction of CA and SA was supposed to pave a way in developing injectable bone cement with good physicochemical properties for numerous clinical orthopedic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract HONO is an important precursor of OH radical and plays a key role in atmospheric chemistry, but its source and formation mechanism remain uncertain, especially during complex atmospheric pollution processes. In this study, HONO mixing ratios were measured by a custom-made instrument during a severe pollution event from 16 to 23 December 2016, at an urban area of Beijing. The measurement was divided into three periods: I (haze), II (severe haze) and III (clean), according to the levels of PM 2.5. This pollution episode was characterized by high levels of NO (75 ± 39 and 94 ± 40 ppbV during periods I and II, respectively) and HONO (up to 10.7 ppbV). During the nighttime, the average heterogeneous conversion frequency during the two haze periods were estimated to be 0.0058 and 0.0146 h−1, and it was not the important way to form HONO. Vehicle emissions contributed 52% (±16)% and 40% (±18)% to ambient HONO at nighttime during periods I and II. The contribution of homogeneous reaction of NO with OH should be reconsidered under high-NO x conditions and could be noticeable to HONO sources during this pollution event. Furthermore, HONO was positively correlated with PM 2.5 during periods I and II, suggesting a potential chemical link between HONO and haze particles. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • High HONO concentrations were observed in a severe pollution episode in Beijing. • The NO 2 conversion was not an important pathway to form HONO at nighttime. • Direct emissions could be critical to the observed HONO. • The homogeneous reaction could be a noticeable HONO source. • Good relation of HONO with PM 2.5 implied a chemical link between HONO and PM 2.5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The machined surface integrity plays a critical role in the corrosion resistance and fatigue property of austenitic stainless steels. This work develops an analytical model for prediction of microstructural changes, micro-hardness and residual stress in machining of 304 austenitic stainless steel. The distributions of stress, strain and temperature are first modelled by building up a multi-physics framework of orthogonal cutting process. Then, the martensitic transformation is modelled based on strain-induced martensitic transformation kinetics. The micro-hardness variation is subsequently predicted by a model which accounts for both dislocation density and phase transformation evolution processes. Finally, the residual stress is derived from a relaxation procedure. Experimental tests are conducted for the model validation. The predicted results in terms of cutting force, martensite fraction, micro-hardness, and residual stress are in good agreement with the measured data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mitochondrial ribosome protein L51 (MRPL51) is a 39S subunit protein of the mitochondrial ribosome. Its dysregulation may be involved in non-small cell lung cancer. The present study aimed to explore MRPL51 expression in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and normal lung tissues, as well as its regulatory effects on malignant LUAD behaviors. In addition, the role of forkhead box protein M1 (FOXM1) in MRPL51 transcription was studied. Bioinformatics analysis and subsequent in vitro experiments, including western blotting, immunofluorescent staining, Transwell invasion assay, dual-luciferase assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation quantitative PCR were conducted. The results demonstrated that MRPL51 expression was upregulated at both the mRNA and protein levels in LUAD tissues compared with normal lung tissues. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis demonstrated that LUAD tissues with higher MRPL51 expression also had higher expression levels of genes enriched in multiple gene sets, including 'DNA_REPAIR', 'UNFOLDED_PROTEIN_RESPONSE', 'MYC_TARGETS_V1', 'OXIDATIVE_ PHOSPHORYLATION', 'MTORC1_SIGNALING', 'REACTIVE_OXYGEN_SPECIES_PATHWAY', 'MYC_ TARGETS_V2', 'E2F_TARGETS' and 'G2M_ CHECKPOINT'. MRPL51 expression was positively correlated with 'cell cycle', 'DNA damage', 'DNA repair', epithelial-mesenchymal transition ('EMT'), 'invasion' and 'proliferation' of LUAD cells at the single-cell level. Compared to the negative control, MRPL51 knockdown decreased N-cadherin and vimentin expression but increased E-cadherin expression in A549 and Calu-3 cells. MRPL51 knockdown suppressed cell proliferation, induced G1 phase arrest and decreased cell invasion. Patients with LUAD and higher MRPL51 expression had a significantly shorter overall survival (OS). FOXM1 could bind to the MRPL51 gene promoter and activate its transcription. In conclusion, MRPL51 was transcriptionally activated by FOXM1 in LUAD and contributed to the malignant behaviors of tumor cells, including EMT, cell cycle progression and invasion. High MRPL51 expression may be a prognostic biomarker indicating poor OS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at production environment and operation design in manual materials handling which often overlook workers’ physiological factors and cause fatigue, even work-related musculoskeletal disorders, we construct a biobjective model based on economics and ergonomics. In the model, two objectives include functions about handling time and energy consumption. Based on the openness of IGRIP/ERGO simulation software combined with MATLAB, we design and develop the interactive simulation platform, where program language can be automatically generated. Then, we analyze the case about handling operations in an automobile brake pad manufacturing company, and the number of input materials and process scheduling are taken as research objects. Finally, the results show that the win-win optimal solution can be usually obtained between productivity and ergonomics for decision makers according to the proposed biobjective model. Moreover, the case study demonstrates that the interactive simulation platform can be devoted to providing the solution for modern production operation directly and conveniently, which can make the production environment and operation design in accordance with ergonomics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Donor organ rejection remains a significant problem. The present study aimed to assess whether transferring a donor's major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes to the recipient could mitigate rejection in organ transplantation. Seven loci of MHC genes from donor mice were amplified and ligated into vectors; the vectors either contained one K locus, seven loci or were empty (control). The vectors were subsequently injected into the thymus of recipients (in heterotransplants, recipient rats received the vector containing one K locus), following which donor mouse hearts were transplanted. Following the transplantation of allograft and heterograft, electrocardiosignals were viable for a significantly longer duration in recipient mice and rats receiving the donor histocompatibility-2 complex (H-2)d genes compared with those in controls, and in mice that received seven vectors compared with those receiving one vector. Mixed lymphocyte cultures containing cells from these recipients proliferated significantly less compared with mixed lymphocyte cultures containing controls. Also, hearts from H-2d genes-treated recipients demonstrated less lymphocyte infiltration and necrosis compared with the control recipient. The present study concluded that allograft and heterograft rejection may be mitigated by introducing the donor's MHC into the recipient; transferring seven loci has been demonstrated to be more effective than transferring one locus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community-based festivals celebrate a sense of community and place. Communities across the United States (US) and elsewhere have turned to various community-based events to celebrate local heritage and culture. This study investigates the relationship between the attributes of a historical re-enactment festival and participants’ perceived value. Drawing on means–end theory and event experience literature, we examined event attributes, perceived benefits, and attendees’ perceived value in the context of a historical re-enactment festival in the Midwestern US. The results highlighted the importance of four attributes of historical re-enactment festivals, namely historical re-enactment, social interactions, event design, and physical facets. Each factor contributed differently to attendees’ perceived value of such a festival experience. In addition, perceived benefits of attending such an event mediated the relationships between event attributes and perceived value. Theoretical and managerial implications of these findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The sluggish kinetics of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) have been one of the bottlenecks hindering the commercial application of rechargeable metal-air batteries. This report describes the viability of synthesis of self-supported Au-based alloy (AuCuCo) by a facile one-pot hydrothermal method and their use as highly efficient catalysts for ORR and OER. The obtained AuCuCo exhibits comparable electrocatalytic activity and better stability toward both the ORR and OER in alkaline media as compared with commercial Pt/C and IrO 2 /C catalyst. The improved electrocatalytic activity of AuCuCo is attributed to its unique three-dimensional nanostructure, the abundance of twin crystals, and change in the electronic structure of Au by alloying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alginate is a kind of marine-derived plant polysaccharide with useful properties including inherent flame-retardancy and biocompatibility, yet poor flowability and low processing efficiency induced by high viscosity impede its further industrial applications. In this study, PEG-substituted tertiary amines were adapted to functionalize alginate with different molecular weight via acid-base reaction to improve the flowability. Based on alginate with low molecular weight, alginate fluids exhibited excellent flowability at room temperature in the absence of solvent. For alginate with high molecular weight, gelatinous precipitated phase exhibited significant shear-thinning properties and higher solid content despite lack of solvent-free flowability, which was applied to wet-spinning. The alginate fibers exhibited increased tensile strength by 104% and elongation at break by 132% compared with conventional alginate fibers, and the spinning efficiency was significantly improved. The proposed strategy is expected to extend to highly efficient processing of other polysaccharides to obtain high-performance biomedical materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This paper analyzed the cases of dural arteriovenous fistula (DAVF) with spinal dural arteriovenous fistula (SDAVF) in the diagnosis and treatment process. Case presentation: One case involving dural arteriovenous fistula (DAVF) with spinal dural arteriovenous fistula (SDAVF) from the 306th Hospital of PLA was retrospectively analyzed. The patient consulted the doctor due to lower limb sensory and motor disorders while exhibiting symptoms of urinary dysfunction. A computed tomographic angiography (CTA) and cerebral angiography confirmed the diagnosis of dural arteriovenous fistula (DAVF), necessitating surgical treatment. The patient was referred to our hospital for an magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and a spinal angiography to obtain a confirmed diagnosis for spinal arteriovenous fistula, after which they underwent surgical fistula resection. The invasive intracranial dural arteriovenous fistula (DAVF) resection proceeded smoothly but did not ease the patient's symptoms. However, postoperative symptoms were partially relieved by the lumbar open spinal dural arteriovenous fistula adminstration. Conclusions: Since not enough is understood about these two diseases, the rate of misdiagnosis is significantly increased. Early diagnosis and treatment of spinal dural arteriovenous fistula (SDAVF) can play a positive role during the recovery from neural function damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in extreme temperatures have more effects on ecosystems and human society than changes in climate averages. As a hotspot of global warming, the Arctic has experienced unprecedented heatwaves recently, which highlights the importance of identifying long-term variations of extreme temperatures. However, spatial unbalance of observations and artificially chosen investigation periods limit our knowledge of extreme temperatures over the Arctic lands. Here, we build a complete and quality-controlled observation network on surface temperature over the Arctic lands and combine in situ and reanalysis data to evaluate changes of extreme temperatures during the period 1979–2020. Our results indicate that 1) the increase in extreme temperatures has accelerated since the 2000s, especially on the coast of Eurasia; 2) the change magnitude for cold events is larger than for warm events, in terms of intensity, frequency, and duration; and 3) increases in warm events only occur locally, for example, Alaska and central Siberia, while decreases in cold events occur throughout the Arctic lands. The long-term trends of extreme temperatures are synchronous with sea ice loss, and patterns of interannual variations are mainly related to the North Atlantic Oscillation. We suggest further efforts toward improvement over North America, especially for Greenland, through sufficient observations and regional models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phellodendron has always been of great significance in promoting human health and ecological restoration. However, human activities and climate change have severely affected habitat, population dynamics and sustainable use of Phellodendron. Little is known about the geographical distribution pattern and their responses to climate change of Phellodendron. In order to reveal the impact of climate change on Phellodendron, we conducted a study based on natural distribution data of two species (297 occurrence points), 20 environmental factors, and an optimized MaxEnt model. Our results identified the main environmental factors influencing Phellodendron, predicted their potential geographical distribution, and assessed migration trends under climate change in China. Our analysis showed that Ph. amurense and Ph. chinense have potential suitable habitats of 62.89 × 104 and 70.71 × 104 km2, respectively. Temperature and precipitation were found to play an essential role in shaping the present geographical distribution of Phellodendron populations. Based on two future climate scenarios, we forecasted that the potential suitable habitat of Ph. amurense would decrease by 12.52% (SSP245) and increase by 25.28% (SSP585), while Ph. chinense would decline by 19.61% (SSP245) and 15.78% (SSP585) in the late‐21st century. The potential suitable habitats of Ph. amurense and Ph. chinense would shift to northward and westward, respectively. Hydrothermal change was found to be the primary driver of the suitable habitat of Phellodendron populations in the future. We recommend establishing nature reserves for existing Phellodendron populations, especially Ph. chinense. Our study provided a practical framework for the impact of climate change on the suitable habitat of Phellodendron species and guided regional cultivation, long‐term conservation, and sustainable use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]