Search

The valveless micropump based on dual synthetic jets is a potential fluid pumping device that has the ability to transport fluid continuously. In order to improve the performance of this device, a novel valveless continuous micropump based on dual synthetic jets with a Tesla structure was proposed by combining a double Tesla symmetrical nozzle and a dual synthetic jets actuator. The mechanism of the novel micropump and its flow field characteristics were analyzed, combined with numerical simulation and a PIV experiment. The performance of the novel micropump was compared with that of a dual synthetic jet micropump based on a traditional shrinking nozzle. The novel micropump achieved continuous flow with a larger and more stable flow rate in one cycle. The maximum pump flow speed reached 12 m/s. Compared with the traditional type, the pump flow rate was increased by 5.27% and the pump flow pulsation was reduced by 214.93%. The backflow and vortex inside the nozzle were prevented and inhibited effectively by the Tesla structure. The velocity and influence range of the pump flow increased with the intensification of driving voltage in a certain range.

To develop and validate a radiomic prediction model using initial noncontrast computed tomography (CT) at admission to predict in-hospital mortality in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI).A total of 379 TBI patients from three cohorts were categorized into training, internal validation, and external validation sets. After filtering the unstable features with the minimum redundancy maximum relevance approach, the CT-based radiomics signature was selected by using the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) approach. A personalized predictive nomogram incorporating the radiomic signature and clinical features was developed using a multivariate logistic model to predict in-hospital mortality in patients with TBI. The calibration, discrimination, and clinical usefulness of the radiomics signature and nomogram were evaluated.The radiomic signature consisting of 12 features had areas under the curve (AUCs) of 0.734, 0.716, and 0.706 in the prediction of in-hospital mortality in the internal and two external validation cohorts. The personalized predictive nomogram integrating the radiomic and clinical features demonstrated significant calibration and discrimination with AUCs of 0.843, 0.811, and 0.834 in the internal and two external validation cohorts. Based on decision curve analysis (DCA), both the radiomic features and nomogram were found to be clinically significant and useful.This predictive nomogram incorporating the CT-based radiomic signature and clinical features had maximum accuracy and played an optimized role in the early prediction of in-hospital mortality. The results of this study provide vital insights for the early warning of death in TBI patients.

In this study, we investigate the preoperative and postoperative computed tomography (CT) scores in severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients undergoing decompressive craniectomy (DC) and compare their predictive accuracy.Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to determine the relationship between CT score (preoperative and postoperative) and mortality at 30 days after injury. The discriminatory power of preoperative and postoperative CT score was assessed by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC).Multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusted for the established predictors of TBI outcomes showed that preoperative Rotterdam CT score (odds ratio [OR], 3.60; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.13-11.50; P = 0.030), postoperative Rotterdam CT score (OR, 4.17; 95% CI, 1.63-10.66; P = 0.003), preoperative Stockholm CT score (OR, 3.41; 95% CI, 1.42-8.18; P = 0.006), postoperative Stockholm CT score (OR, 4.50; 95% CI, 1.60-12.64; P = 0.004), preoperative Helsinki CT score (OR, 1.44; 95% CI, 1.03-2.02; P = 0.031), and postoperative Helsinki CT score (OR, 2.55; 95% CI, 1.32-4.95; P = 0.005) were significantly associated with mortality. The performance of the postoperative Rotterdam CT score was superior to the preoperative Rotterdam CT score (AUC, 0.82-0.97 vs 0.71-0.91). The postoperative Stockholm CT score was superior to the preoperative Stockholm CT score (AUC, 0.76-0.94 vs 0.72-0.92). The postoperative Helsinki CT score was superior to the preoperative Helsinki CT score (AUC, 0.88-0.99 vs 0.65-0.87).In conclusion, assessing the CT score before and after DC may be more precise and efficient for predicting early mortality in severe TBI patients who undergo DC.

Sarcopenia is a serious public health problem associated with the loss of muscle mass and function. The purpose of this study was to identify molecular markers and construct a ceRNA pathway as a significant predictor of sarcopenia. We designed a prediction model to select important differentially expressed mRNAs (DEMs), and constructed a sarcopenia associated ceRNA network. After correlation analysis of each element in the ceRNA network based on clinical samples and GTEX database, C2C12 mouse myoblasts were used as a model to verify the identified ceRNA pathways. A new model for predicting sarcopenia based on four molecular markers SEPP1, SV2A, GOT1, and GFOD1 was developed. The model was used to construct a ceRNA network and showed high accuracy. Correlation analysis showed that the expression levels of lncDLEU2, SEPP1, and miR-181a were closely associated with a high risk of sarcopenia. lncDLEU2 inhibits muscle differentiation and regeneration by acting as a miR-181a sponge regulating SEPP1 expression. In this study, a highly accurate prediction tool was developed to improve the prediction outcomes of sarcopenia. These findings suggest that the lncDLEU2-miR-181a-SEPP1 pathway inhibits muscle differentiation and regeneration. This pathway may be a new therapeutic target for the treatment of sarcopenia.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by periodic neuronal demyelination, which leads to a range of symptoms and eventually to disability. The goal of this research was to use UPLC-Orbitrap/MS to identify validated biomarkers and explore the metabolic mechanisms of MS in mice. Thirty-two C57BL/6 male mice were randomized into two groups that were fed either normal food or 0.2% CPZ for 11 weeks. The mouse demyelination model was assessed by LFB and the expression of MBP by immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry. The metabolites of the corpus callosum were quantified using UPLC-Orbitrap/MS. The mouse pole climbing experiment was used to assess coordination ability. Multivariate statistical analysis was adopted for screening differential metabolites, and the ingenuity pathway analysis (IPA) was used to reveal the metabolite interaction network. We successfully established the demyelination model. The CPZ group slowly lost weight and showed an increased pole climbing time during feeding compared to the CON group. A total of 81 metabolites ( VIP > 1 and P < 0.05 ) were determined to be enriched in 24 metabolic pathways; 41 metabolites were markedly increased, while 40 metabolites were markedly decreased in the CPZ group. The IPA results revealed that these 81 biomarker metabolites were associated with neuregulin signaling, PI3K-AKT signaling, mTOR signaling, and ERK/MAPK signaling. KEGG pathway analysis showed that two significantly different metabolic pathways were enriched, namely, the glycerophospholipid and sphingolipid metabolic pathways, comprising a total of nine biomarkers. Receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that the metabolites (e.g., PE (16 : 0/22 : 6(4Z, 7Z, 10Z, 13Z, 16Z, 19Z)), PC (18 : 0/22 : 4(7Z, 10Z, 13Z, 16Z)), cytidine 5 ′ -diphosphocholine, PS (18 : 0/22 : 6(4Z, 7Z, 10Z, 13Z, 16Z, 19Z)), glycerol 3-phosphate, SM (d18 : 0/16 : 1(9Z)), Cer (d18:1/18 : 0), galabiosylceramide (d18:1/18 : 0), and GlcCer (d18:1/18 : 0)) have good discrimination ability for the CPZ group. In conclusion, the differential metabolites have great potential to serve as biomarkers of demyelinating diseases. In addition, we identified metabolic pathways associated with CPZ-induced demyelination pathogenesis, which provided a new perspective for understanding the relationship between metabolites and CNS demyelination pathogenesis.

Background: Nervus intermedius neuralgia (NIN), known as geniculate neuralgia (GN), is an uncommon cranial nerve disease caused by an offending vessel compressing the nervus intermedius (NI). Microvascular decompression (MVD) has now become a valued treatment approach for NIN because it can resolve neurovascular conflict (NVC) at the root entry zone of the NI. In the era of continuously optimizing and improving the surgical technique of MVD, further minimization of all possible postoperative complications is not only welcome but also necessary.Objective: The aim of this work is to assess the postoperative outcome of direct visualization of the NI during the MVD procedure.Methods: This study retrospectively reviewed the clinical records of a group of seven consecutive patients with NIN who underwent MVD in the period of 2013–2020 in our clinic and 16 studies reported NIN patients who underwent MVD in the period of 2007–2020.Results: In total, 91.3% of all patients experienced immediate and complete relief of cranial neuralgia after MVD. Six of 23 patients have experienced direct visualization of the NI intraoperatively, and 66.7% of those patients had complications such as facial paralysis, dysacousia, or a combination of these conditions postoperatively. Slight surgical approach-related complications such as complaints associated with excessive drainage of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), nausea and vertigo, and delayed wound union were observed in 80% of the remaining 15 patients, and these symptoms are totally relieved in the telephone and outpatient follow-up after 6 months.Conclusion: Our case series shows that MVD produced immediate pain relief in the majority of NIN patients. MVD carries surgical risk, especially in patients who experience direct visualization of the NI after mechanical stretch and blunt dissection in surgical procedures. Attempts to avoid mechanical stretch and blunt dissection of the compressed nerve were important for intraoperative neuroprotection, especially facial nerve protection

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality, both in adult and pediatric populations. However, the dynamic changes of gene expression profiles following TBI have not been fully understood. In this study, we identified the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) following TBI. Remarkably, Serpina3n, Asf1b, Folr1, LOC100366216, Clec12a, Olr1, Timp1, Hspb1, Lcn2, and Spp1 were identified as the top 10 with the highest statistical significance. The weighted gene coexpression analysis (WGCNA) identified 12 functional modules from the DEGs, which showed specific expression patterns over time and were characterized by enrichment analysis. Specifically, the black and turquoise modules were mainly involved in energy metabolism and protein translation. The green yellow and yellow modules including Hmox1, Mif, Anxa2, Timp1, Gfap, Cd9, Gja1, Pdpn, and Gpx1 were related to response to wounding, indicating that expression of these genes such as Hmox1, Anxa2, and Timp1 could protect the brains from brain injury. The green yellow module highlighted genes involved in microglial cell activation such as Tyrobp, Cx3cr1, Grn, Trem2, C1qa, and Aif1, suggesting that these genes were responsible for the inflammatory response caused by TBI. The upregulation of these genes has been validated in an independent dataset. These results indicated that the key genes in microglia cell activation may serve as a promising therapeutic target for TBI. In summary, the present study provided a full view of the dynamic gene expression changes following TBI.

OBJECTIVE Cushing disease (CD) is a rare clinical disease in which brain structural and function are impaired as the result of excessive cortisol. However, little is known whether rich-club organization changes in patients with CD, as visualized on resting-state magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), can reverse to normal conditions after transsphenoidal surgery (TSS). In this study, we aimed to investigate whether the functional connectivity of rich-club organization is affected and whether any abnormal changes may reverse after TSS. METHODS In this study, 38 patients with active CD, 33 with patients with CD in remission, and 41 age-, sex-, and education-matched healthy control participants underwent resting-state fMRI. Brain functional connectivity was constructed based on fMRI and rich club was calculated with graph theory approach. We constructed the functional brain networks for all participants and calculated rich-club connectivity based on fMRI. RESULTS We identified left precuneus, right precuneus, left middle cingulum, right middle cingulum, right inferior temporal, right middle temporal, right lingual, right postcentral, right middle occipital, and right precentral regions as rich club nodes. Compared with healthy control participants, rich-club connectivity was significantly lower in patients with active CD (P < 0.001). Moreover, abnormal rich-club connectivity improved to normal after TSS. CONCLUSIONS Our results show rich-club organization was disrupted in patients with active CD with excessive cortisol production. TSS can reverse abnormal rich-club connectivity. Rich club may be a new indicator to investigate the outcomes of TSS and to increase our understanding of the effect of excessive cortisol on brain functional connectivity in patients with CD.

Purpose To evaluate the safety and efficacy of ethanol embolization of lip arteriovenous malformations (AVMs). Materials and Methods Seventy-six patients with lip AVMs were treated with 173 ethanol embolization procedures. Lip AVMs were treated with direct puncture alone in 21 patients (35 procedures, 20.2%), transarterial embolization alone in 13 patients (18 procedures, 10.4 %), and a combination of both in 60 patients (120 procedures, 69.3%). Adjunctive surgical resection was performed after embolization for cosmetic purposes based on the patient’s request, including patient preference, functional impairment, and skin necrosis. The mean duration of follow-up was 30.9 months ± 27.6. The follow-up included clinic visits and telephonic questionnaires to evaluate the clinical signs and symptoms of AVMs as well as quality of life measures. Results Of 76 patients, 51 showed 100% devascularization of AVMs, as determined using arteriography, followed by 23 with 76%–99% devascularization and 2 with 50%–75% devascularization. Of the 76 patients, 40 achieved complete symptom relief and 25 achieved major improvements in cosmetic deformity after embolization. Additionally, 54 patients achieved satisfactory function and aesthetic improvement with ethanol embolotherapy alone, whereas 22 achieved similar outcomes with a combination of ethanol embolotherapy and surgical intervention. Thirty-three adverse events (including 1 major) were documented. Conclusions Ethanol embolization of lip AVMs, as a mainstay, is efficacious in managing these lesions, with acceptable complications. Surgical resection after embolization may improve function and cosmesis in a subset of patients.

This paper adopted the method of user interest concept tree based on domain ontology, and proposed a multi-agent based consumer behavior forecasting model in e-commerce to overcome the limitations of traditional consumer behavior forecasting method. The model consists of multiple agents. They are consumer behavior forecast agent, user interest model management agent, monitoring agent and source data monitoring agent. These agents collaborate with each other and then predict consumer behavior. In order to validate the feasibility of the model, the paper combined with the artificial intelligence technology, the database technology, the networkings as well as the electronic commerce correlation technique to build e-commerce consumer behavior predict expert system. From the test results, compared with the original method, it can effectively analyze and predict e-commerce customers consumer behavior, and can be concluded that the customer's overall consumption trend.

The similarity computation has an important influence on the performance of the personalized recommendation system. Due to the sparsity of the data in the recommendation system, the traditional similarity measurement method can not achieve the desired results. Sparse scoring similarity measurement method based on the Bhattacharyya measure has achieved good results. In this paper, the score similarity measure is introduced. Then, a method to improve the similarity measure based on the Bhattacharyya measure is presented. Taking into account all the items of the two users’ score, and according to the score to distinguish between the user is really interested in the project.

Mg-Al Cl-layered double hydroxide (LDH) was prepared from Mg-Al CO32-LDH by the calcination recovery method. Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) spectra proved that Cl-anions replaced CO32-anions in the LDH structure. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images showed that the platelet thickness of Mg-Al Cl-LDH were larger than those of Mg-Al CO32-LDH. This increase in the structural dimensions occurred because of that a larger quantity of monovalent Cl-anions had substituted divalent CO32-anions. The result of freezing temperature tests indicated that Mg-Al Cl-LDH is more effective than Mg-Al CO32-LDH in melting snow. Conductivities of immersion liquids testified that Cl-anions are restricted in asphalt mixtures by Mg-Al Cl-LDH without negatively affecting the surrounding environment and pavement. Snow melting rates for Mg-Al Cl-LDH before and after immersion did not change, indicating that rain did not weaken the effect of Mg-Al Cl-LDH on melting snow and thus did not pollute the environment.

Effect of a chloride deicing additive (Cl-DIA) on the performance of asphalt mixture was investigated by evaluating the moisture, cracking and rutting resistance. Freeze-thaw splitting test result showed that asphalt mixture containing Cl-DIA weakened moisture resistance to some extent but it was still applicable for asphalt pavement. Wheel-tracking test indicated that Cl-DIA evidently improved the rutting resistance of the asphalt mixture and the weight concentration of Cl-DIA in asphalt mixture had to exceed 3%. Beam bending test implied that Cl-DIA did not help for the cracking of the asphalt mixture.

Recently, micro-surfacing is more widely used to protect the asphalt pavement for its superiority in China. This paper investigated the effects of the waste rubber on the micro-surfing material. First, the noise reduction mechanism was analysis. Then, the surface performance of the micro-surfacing mixture was characterized in the laboratory. Sound absorption and vibration damping theory was put forward in this paper. The addition of crumb can slightly improve the surface performance of the pavement.

Plasma membrane NADPH oxidases (NOXs), also named respiratory burst oxidase homologues (Rbohs), are critical generators of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which as signal molecules regulate growth and development, and adaptation to various biotic and abiotic stresses in plants. NOXs-dependent ROS production is frequently induced by diverse phytohormones. The ROS commonly function downstream of, and interplay with hormone signalings, coordinately modulating plant development and stress tolerance. In this review, we summarize recent advances on the roles and molecular mechanisms of Rbohs in mediating signalings of multiple hormones including auxin, gibberellins, abscisic acid, ethylene and brassinosteroids in plants.

Palladium nanoparticles (Pd NPs) were fabricated by using insulin amyloid fibrils (INSAFs) as biotemplates. Atomic force microscopy measurements showed that ultra-small Pd NPs were well adsorbed and dispersed on surfaces of INSAFs. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirmed the partial reduction of Pd ion into metallic Pd(0) probably due to the presence of Cys groups on surface of the insulin fibrils. The electrochemical performance of Pd/INSAFs to reduction of H2O2 was further evaluated by cyclic voltammetry. The remarkably high electrocatalytic activity, low detection limitation and excellent stability make the Pd/INSAFs a promising bio-nanoelectrocatalyst.

With the growth of population, water security has become the worldwide problem combined with severe environment pollution, quick economic development and irrational water allocation. Based on sustainable development, Water resources carrying capacity (WRCC) driven from physics originally has been proposed to solve it. The measurement of WRCC can tell decision-makers that how much population the water resource can feed, what degree water resources can support the economic and so on. Because the decision-makers can make adaptive decisions based on the correct evaluation of WRCC, the ways of the assessment of WRCC are very important. This paper focuses on how to measure WRCC by selecting three typical methods, fuzzy model of comprehensive evaluation, multiple criteria analysis (MCA) and system dynamics (SD) methods. The characteristics of these methods are good at solving the multi-objective and complicated problem in common which is the trait of WRCC. The differences of them are the specific process of analysis and evaluation.

The machine joint surfaces are necessary to form the functions of the complex mechanical system. Because the macro or micro relative motions may appear in the machine joint surfaces, the vibration and friction phenomena will be excited, then the singularities, disturbances and faults of the mechanical system may be appeared when the machine equipments in the running process. These undesired phenomena will have adverse effect on the efficiency, precision, reliability and lifetime of the mechanical equipment. In order to ensure the functions and properties of the mechanical system, more attentions should be paid to mechanism of vibration and friction during the process of designing and manufacturing the modern machine. In this paper, machine joint surfaces are classified by different classification standards: the macro relative motions and micro contact styles between the joint surfaces. The theories and methods for researching vibration and friction mechanism are inducted and summarized and the view of non-linear should be advocated for the future research. The point of precisely quantifying for machine assembly accuracy design while considered the relevancies between the macro and micro-scale of mechanical system indicates that new directions and methods for studying vibration and friction mechanism in machine joint surfaces should be put forward.

Nowadays, the power demand has been dramatically increasing in highly populated load centers. The high-temperature superconductor (HTS) cables are one possible solution for electricity transmission due to their higher transmission capacity and lower electrical loss compared with traditional power cables. A comprehensive and accurate model is very important for working condition prediction in order for power flow control and overvoltage protection, especially for HTS cable which is very expensive and lacking of operation experience. In this paper, a simplified model for HTS cable is described to further facilitate operating condition simulations. The self-, mutual inductances, capacitances of and between each layer are calculated to construct the parameter matrixes. By proper transformation, the electrical parameters matrixes can be represented by simplified PI sections. Uniform current distribution in conductor layers is always desired. The simplified distributed parameters model presented in this paper is also helpful for structure optimization to achieve uniform current distribution in conductor layers.

It is very attractive to replace traditional power cables into high-temperature superconducting (HTS) cables for electricity transmission to metropolitan areas with the advantages of high capacity and low losses. However, these advantages only present when the conductors are kept in certain low temperature. When over-voltage or over-current occur, the HTS cable may quench and the resistivity of the conductor will increase rapidly which will result in the reduction of transmission capacity, increase of the power loss or even electrical insulation breakdown. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the level of over-current and overvoltage. In this paper, an accurate model for a 1-km-long 110 kV HTS cable is presented and a simple simulation model for power system containing HTS cable is built up using EMTP-ATP program. Single-phase short-circuit fault and electrical insulation breakdown fault are considered to investigate the over-voltage and over-current level of HTS cable. The simulation results may provide instructive guide for the protection systems for HTS cables.

To investigate the underlying mechanism of age related increase of pulmonary fibrosis incidenceThe levels of pulmonary collagen and TGF-beta1 protein, MMP2,9 mRNA and TIMP 1,2,3 mRNA expression were measured by ELISA and realtime PCR.As compared with adult rats [(756 +/- 160) pg/g vs (1 000 +/- 246) pg/g, P0.05] the aged rats had more extracellular matrix components, increased TGF-beta1 protein level, lower (3.15 +/- 1.76 vs 0.17 +/- 0.13, P0.01) MMP2 mRNA expression and TIMP 1,2,3 mRNA expressions (TIMP1 2.00 +/- 1.74 vs 0.11 +/- 0.06,TIMP2 7.60 +/- 2.51 vs 2.69 +/- 1.76, TIMP3 1.32 +/- 0.46 vs 0.29 +/- 0.16, P0.01). No difference was observed in MMP9 (1.66 +/- 0.67 vs 1.74 +/- 0.87, P0.05) mRNA expression.elevation in TGF-beta1 protein level, changes in the expression of MMP2/9 and decreased expression of TIMPS mRNA could be the underlying mechanism of age related increase of pulmonary incidence.

To observe the efficiency of both the APACHE II/III scoring systems in predicting the prognosis of patients older than 75 years.We calculated both the APACHE II and III scores in patients older than 75 years who were admitted to the geriatric intensive care unit (GICU) of our hospital in a duration of 6 months. The scores and predicting death rates were compared with the actual death rates.There was definite correlation between the APACHE II/III scores and the actual death rates. Sensitivity of the APACHE II/III systems are 66.7% and 41.7% respectively. Specificity of the APACHE II/III systems are 90.9% and 100% respectively.Both the APACHE II/III systems can do well in predicting the prognosis of ICU patients older than 75 years, but APACHE III tends to underestimate the hospital death rate of elderly patients.