Large-scale loss-of-function perturbations reveal a comprehensive epigenetic regulatory network in breast cancer

Objective:Epigenetic abnormalities have a critical role in breast cancer by regulating gene expression;however,the intricate interrelationships and key roles of approximately 400 epigenetic regulators in breast cancer remain elusive.It is important to decipher the comprehensive epigenetic regulatory network in breast cancer cells to identify master epigenetic regulators and potential therapeutic targets.Methods:We employed high-throughput sequencing-based high-throughput screening(HTS^(2))to effectively detect changes in the expression of 2,986 genes following the knockdown of 400 epigenetic regulators.Then,bioinformatics analysis tools were used for the resulting gene expression signatures to investigate the epigenetic regulations in breast cancer.Results:Utilizing these gene expression signatures,we classified the epigenetic regulators into five distinct clusters,each characterized by specific functions.We discovered functional similarities between BAZ2B and SETMAR,as well as CLOCK and CBX3.Moreover,we observed that CLOCK functions in a manner opposite to that of HDAC8 in downstream gene regulation.Notably,we constructed an epigenetic regulatory network based on the gene expression signatures,which revealed 8 distinct modules and identified 10 master epigenetic regulators in breast cancer.Conclusions:Our work deciphered the extensive regulation among hundreds of epigenetic regulators.The identification of 10 master epigenetic regulators offers promising therapeutic targets for breast cancer treatment.

数字化转型背景下融合课程互选和区块链的学分银行建设研究

新一轮产业革命中,计算机技术为经济发展和社会变革注入新活力。在教育领域,我国高校正在积极推进数字化转型,通过引入先进的技术手段,不断提升教育管理的效率和质量。基于区块链、人工智能等技术的各类应用在高校教育中得到广泛实践,其中之一便是学分银行建设。在对数字化转型概念界定的基础上,收集我国关于教学数字化过程中在研的或已完成的相关工作,利用区块链技术去中心化的数据存储,实现多源数据的安全汇聚;结合高校课程交换机制,对基于区块链技术的学分银行进行典型案例分析和相关研究总结,系统性地概述学分银行建设的相关工作和意义。在此基础上,对融合课程互选机制的学分银行系统建设进行总结,从技术创新和理论创新介绍创新经验,并从学术价值和应用价值介绍其对社会产生的效益,以期为构建区域内的可信赖、安全的终身学习账户平台提供启示,同时为教育数字化转型和高质量发展提供借鉴和参考。

High-Energy Lithium-Ion Batteries:Recent Progress and a Promising Future in Applications

It is of great significance to develop clean and new energy sources with high-efficient energy storage technologies,due to the excessive use of fossil energy that has caused severe environmental damage.There is great interest in exploring advanced rechargeable lithium batteries with desirable energy and power capabilities for applications in portable electronics,smart grids,and electric vehicles.In practice,high-capacity and low-cost electrode materials play an important role in sustaining the progresses in lithium-ion batteries.This review aims at giving an account of recent advances on the emerging high-capacity electrode materials and summarizing key barriers and corresponding strategies for the practical viability of these electrode materials.Effective approaches to enhance energy density of lithium-ion batteries are to increase the capacity of electrode materials and the output operation voltage.On account of major bottlenecks of the power lithium-ion battery,authors come up with the concept of integrated battery systems,which will be a promising future for high-energy lithium-ion batteries to improve energy density and alleviate anxiety of electric vehicles.

Boosting high initial coulombic efficiency of hard carbon by in-situ electrochemical presodiation

Hard carbon(HC)is a promising anode material for sodium ion batteries(SIBs),whereas inferior initial coulombic efficiency(ICE)severely limits its practical application.In the present work,we propose an in situ electrochemical presodiation approach to improve ICE by mixing sodium biphenyl(Na-Bp)dimethoxyethane(DME)solution with DME-based ether electrolyte.A solid electrolyte interface(SEI)could be formed beforehand on the HC electrode and Na^(+)was absorbed to nanopores and graphene stacks,compensating for the sodium loss and preventing electrolyte decomposition during the initial charge and discharge cycle.By this way,the ICE of half-cells was increased to nearly 100%and that of full-cells from 45%to 96%with energy density from 132.9 to 230.5 W h kg^(-1).Our work provides an efficient and facile method for improving ICE,which can potentially promote the practical application of HCbased materials.

A High-Temperature Superconducting Wideband Bandpass Filter at the L Band for Radio Astronomy

In order to ensure the normal operation of radio astronomy observations,an extremely sensitive receiver system needs to be equipped in front of the large radio telescope.An 8-pole wideband high-temperature superconducting(HTS)filter using a Coplanar Spiral Resonator Structure with a passband of 1160~1670 MHz is developed to suppress strong radio interference.The filter is fabricated on a 36 mm×14 mm YBCO HTS film,which is deposited on a 0.5 mm thick MgO substrate.The minimum insertion loss measured in the liquid nitrogen temperature region is 0.03 dB,and the first parasitic passband appears at 2600 MHz.The measured results are in good agreement with the simulations.The filter can be used in radio telescope receivers for the observation of neutral hydrogen and pulsars,as well as in high-sensitivity satellite navigation instruments.

Wave localization in randomly disordered periodic layered piezoelectric structures

Considering the mechnoelectrical coupling, the localization of SH-waves in disordered periodic layered piezoelectric structures is studied. The waves propagating in directions normal and tangential to the layers are considered. The transfer matrices between two consecutive unit cells are obtained according to the continuity conditions. The expressions of localization factor and localization length in the disordered periodic structures are presented. For the disordered periodic piezoelectric structures, the numerical results of localization factor and localization length are presented and discussed. It can be seen from the results that the frequency passbands and stopbands appear for the ordered periodic structures and the wave localization phenomenon occurs in the disordered periodic ones, and the larger the coefficient of variation is, the greater the degree of wave localization is. The widths of stopbands in the ordered periodic structures are very narrow when the properties of the consecutive piezoelectric materials are similar and the intervals of stopbands become broader when a certain material parameter has large changes. For the wave propagating in the direction normal to the layers the localization length has less dependence on the frequency, but for the wave propagating in the direction tangential to the layers the localization length is strongly dependent on the frequency.

Lumbopelvic Fixation and Sacral Decompression for U-shaped Sacral Fractures： Surgical Management and Early Outcome

U-shaped sacral fractures are rare and often difficult to diagnose primarily due to the difficulty in obtaining adequate imaging and the severe associated injuries. These fractures are highly unstable and frequently cause neurological deficits. The majority of surgeons have limited experience in management of U-shaped sacral fractures. No standard treatment protocol for U-shaped sacral fractures has been available till now. This study aimed to examine the management of U-shaped sacral fractures and the early outcomes. Clinical data of 15 consecutive patients with U-shaped sacral fracture who were admitted to our trauma center between 2009 and 2014 were retrospectively analyzed. Demographics, fracture classification, mechanism of injury and operative treatment and deformity angle were assessed. All the patients were treated with lumbopelvic fixation or （and） sacral decompression. EQ-5d score was applied to evaluate the patients＇ quality of life. Of the 15 consecutive patients with U-shaped sacral fracture, the mean age was 28.8 years （range： 15-55 years） at the time of injury. There were 6 females and 9 males. The mean follow- up time was 22.7 months （range： 9-47 months） and mean full weight-bearing time was 9.9 weeks （range： 8-14 weeks）. Ten patients received lumbopelvic fixation and sacral decompression, one lombosacral fixation, and 4 merely sacral decompression due to delayed diagnosis or surgery. The post-operation deformity angle （mean 27.87°, and range： 8°-90°） of the sacrum was smaller than that pre-operation （mean 35.67; range： 15-90） with no significance difference noted. At the latest follow-up, all patients obtained neurological recovery with different extents. Visual analogue score （VAS） was reduced from preoperative 7.07 （range： 5-9） to postoperetive 1.93 （range： 1-3）. All patients could walk without any aid after treatment. Eight patients were able to care for themselves and undertook some daily activities. Five patients had returned to work full time. In conclusion, lumbopelvic fixation is an effective method for stabilization of U-shaped sacral fractures with fewer complications developed. Effective reduction and firm fixation are the prerequisite of early mobilization and neurological recovery. Sacral decompression effectively promotes neurological recovery even in patients with old U-shaped sacral fractures.

Growth inhibition of hepatocellular carcinoma tumor endothelial cells by miR-204-3p and underlying mechanism

AIM: To investigate the mechanism by which miR-204-3p inhibits the growth of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tumor endothelial cells (TECs).

SDNMS: A Software Defined Network Measurement System for NFV Networks

As a promising technology to completely transform how we architect, deploy, operate and manage various networks, software-based Network Function Virtualization(NFV) enables hardware-independent, flexible, fast and efficient network service provision. With the increasing popularity of NFV paradigm, the Internet has also transformed to be a hybrid environment where NFV-based network entities coexist with traditional network devices. To facilitate our understanding, design, evaluate and manage of such novel network environment, there is a great need for a new NFV-compatible network measurement system which is still in absent so far. To bridge this gap, a system, named Software Defined Network Measurement System(SDNMS), is presented in this paper. Firstly, the architecture of SDNMS is proposed. In this architecture, a formal method to describe the working mode of the network measurement is defined. This method can also be utilized to generate a network measurement middle box(NMMB) in a specific location of the NFV network according to the customized description file, and to flexibly deploy the network measurement function. Secondly, the technology of virtual network measurement function(VNMF) combined with LXC is studied to form NMMB function. Thirdly, a control method is presented to control the start, stop, and update NMMB to form a specific network measurement system function. Finally, a prototype of SDNMS with network monitoring function to monitor network performance anomalies and locate faults is introduced. Experimental results have shown that SDNMS architecture and related technologies are feasible and effective to deploy and control network measurement functions in NFV networks. We hope SDNMS could provide a new method for practitioners to conduct network management and research at the age of NFV.

A Method for Rapidly Determining the Optimal Distribution Locations of GNSS Stations for Orbit and ERP Measurement Based on Map Grid Zooming and Genetic Algorithm

Designing the optimal distribution of Global Navigation Satellite System(GNSS)ground stations is crucial for determining the satellite orbit,satellite clock and Earth Rotation Parameters(ERP)at a desired precision using a limited number of stations.In this work,a new criterion for the optimal GNSS station distribution for orbit and ERP determination is proposed,named the minimum Orbit and ERP Dilution of Precision Factor(OEDOP)criterion.To quickly identify the specific station locations for the optimal station distribution on a map,a method for the rapid determination of the selected station locations is developed,which is based on the map grid zooming and heuristic technique.Using the minimum OEDOP criterion and the proposed method for the rapid determination of optimal station locations,an optimal or near-optimal station distribution scheme for 17 newly built BeiDou Navigation Satellite System(BDS)global tracking stations is suggested.To verify the proposed criterion and method,real GNSS data are processed.The results show that the minimum OEDOP criterion is valid,as the smaller the value of OEDOP,the better the precision of the satellite orbit and ERP determination.Relative to the exhaustive method,the proposed method significantly improves the computational efficiency of the optimal station location determination.In the case of 3 newly built stations,the computational efficiency of the proposed method is 35 times greater than that of the exhaustive method.As the number of stations increases,the improvement in the computational efficiency becomes increasingly obvious.

Effect of microRNA-1 on hepatocellular carcinoma tumor endothelial cells

AIM: To investigate the effect of microRNA-1(miR-1) on tumor endothelial cells(TECs) of human hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).METHODS: MiR-1 specific short hairpin RNA(shRNA)was synthesized and cloned into a recombinant lentiviral vector. TECs were then infected by the miRNA-1-shRNA recombinant lentivirus. TECs were divided into three groups: a control(CON) group consisting of normal TECs without lentiviral infection, a negative control(NC) group consisting of normal TECs infected with a negative control virus, and a microdown(MD) group consisting of normal TECs infected with the miR-1-inhibition virus containing the target gene. Silencing of miR-1 expression was quantified via quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(qRT-PCR). The proliferation of TECs was detected using MTT(Thiazolyl Blue Tetrazolium Bromide) assay; the observations were continued for 5 d, and the optical density value at 490 nm was detected every day. Apoptosis was detected via flow cytometry using Annexin V-APC single staining. The migration and invasion of TECs were detected using transwell assays.RESULTS: Lentiviral miR-1 shRNA was successfully transduced into TECs, and specifically silenced the expression of miR-1. The results of qRT-PCR showed that the expression of miR-1 was significantly decreased in the MD group(2-ΔΔCt = 0.57 ± 0.14)compared with the CON group(2-ΔΔCt = 1) and the NC group(2-ΔΔCt = 1.05 ± 0.13)(P < 0.01). The results of MTT assay showed that the cell proliferation was all significantly inhibited in the MD group in the 5days compared with the CON and NC groups(P <0.01). The results of flow cytometry showed that the apoptosis was significantly increased in the MD group(6.32% ± 0.33%) compared with the CONgroup(2.03% ± 0.30%) and the NC group(2.18% ±0.15%)(P < 0.01). The ability of cell migration was significantly inhibited in the MD group(62.0 ± 5.48)compared with the CON group(99.8 ± 3.11) and the NC group(97.2 ± 3.70)(P < 0.01). The ability of invasion of TECs was also significantly inhibited in the MD group(29.8 ± 2.39) compared with the CON group(44.6 ± 3.36) and the NC group(44.4 ± 5.17)(P <0.01).CONCLUSION: MiR-1 might be a potential tumor activator. Inhibiting its expression could decrease proliferation, induce apoptosis, and inhibit the migration and invasion of TECs of human HCC.

Hydrodynamic Analysis of a Semi-submersible Wind-Tidal Combined Power Generation Device

Energy shortages and environmental pollution are becoming increasingly severe globally. The exploitation and utilization of renewable energy have become an effective way to alleviate these problems. To improve power production capacity, power output quality, and cost effectiveness, comprehensive marine energy utilization has become an inevitable trend in marine energy development. Based on a semi-submersible wind-tidal combined power generation device,a three-dimensional frequency domain potential flow theory is used to study the hydrodynamic performance of such a device. For this study, the RAOs and hydrodynamic coefficients of the floating carrier platform to the regular wave were obtained. The influence of the tidal turbine on the platform in terms of frequency domain was considered as added mass and damping. The direct load of the tidal turbine was obtained by CFX.FORTRAN software was used for the second development of adaptive query workload aware software, which can include the external force. The motion response of the platform to the irregular wave and the tension of the mooring line were calculated under the limiting condition(one mooring line breakage). The results showed that the motion response of the carrier to the surge and sway direction is more intense, but the swing amplitude is within the acceptable range. Even in the worst case scenario, the balance position of the platform was still in the positioning range, which met the requirements of the working sea area. The safety factor of the mooring line tension also complied with the requirements of the design specification. Therefore, it was found that the hydrodynamic performance and motion responses of a semi-submersible wind-tidal combined power generation device can meet the power generation requirements under all design conditions, and the device presents a reliable power generation system.

In advanced pancreatic cancer: The value and significance of interventional therapy

Pancreatic cancer is famous as“the king of cancer”due to its high degree of malignancy,rapid course of disease development,and poor prognosis.Relevant epidemiological studies have indicated that with improvement in people’s standard of living,the morbidity and mortality of pancreatic cancer has increased.At the same time,the disease shows an obvious upward trend worldwide.Pancreatic cancer has become a major public health problem that seriously affects the life and health of people.The present review focuses on the recent advances in interventional therapy such as transcatheter arterial infusion,radiofrequency ablation,microwave ablation,and irreversible electroporation of pancreatic cancer.

A PCA-Based Internet Delay Space Dividing Algorithm

It's a hot issue to improve the accuracy of network coordinate systems(NCS). By analyzing the error source of NCSes, it's emphasized that guaranteeing the low dimensionality of embedding datasets is the principle on the designing of NCSes. Based on this observation, a PCA based Internet delay space dividing algorithm(IDSD-PCA) is proposed. Beginning at choosing an optimized sub dataset randomly, IDSD-PCA partitions the Internet delay dataset into several sub datasets with low dimensionality by iterations. After the partition, the whole delay dataset and sub datasets are embedded into a hierarchical NCS. The experimental results show that with this framework both the metric space based models and the non-metric space based models can predict the end-to-end delays more accurately.

Treatment strategy for gallstone pancreatitis and the timing of cholecystectomy

AIM:To reviewed the literature and evaluated the scope and timing of the application of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography(ERCP)/endoscopic sphincterotomy(ES)and cholecystectomy.METHODS:A pooled odds ratio(OR)and a pooled mean difference with the 95%CI were used to assess the enumeration data of included studies.A pooled weighted mean difference(WMD)and a pooled mean difference with the 95%CI were used to assess the measurement data of included studies.Statistical heterogeneity was tested with theχ2 test.According to forest plots,heterogeneity was not significant,so the fixed effect model was adopted.The significance of the pooled OR was determined by the Z test and statistical significance was considered at P<0.05.RESULTS:Data were collected from two studies(353patients,142 in the early cholecystectomy group and211 in the delayed cholecystectomy group)regarding the length of hospital stay[The WMD was-2.87(95%CI:-3.36--2.39,P<0.01).Data were collected from four studies(618 patients,211 in the early cholecystectomygroup and 408 in the delayed cholecystectomy group)regarding perioperative complications(OR=0.94,95%CI:0.41-2.12,P>0.05).Data were collected from four studies(618 patients,211 in the early cholecystectomy group and 408 in the delayed cholecystectomy group)on the number of patients who underwent ERCP±ES postoperatively(OR=0.80,95%CI:0.45-1.41,P>0.05).CONCLUSION:Cholecystectomy offers better protection than ES against further bouts of pancreatitis in patients with gallstone pancreatitis,although ES is an acceptable alternative.

Slope excavation quality assessment and excavated volume calculation in hydraulic projects based on laser scanning technology

Slope excavation is one of the most crucial steps in the construction of a hydraulic project. Excavation project quality assessment and excavated volume calculation are critical in construction management. The positioning of excavation projects using traditional instruments is inefficient and may cause error. To improve the efficiency and precision of calculation and assessment, three-dimensional laser scanning technology was used for slope excavation quality assessment. An efficient data acquisition, processing, and management workflow was presented in this study. Based on the quality control indices, including the average gradient, slope toe elevation, and overbreak and underbreak,cross-sectional quality assessment and holistic quality assessment methods were proposed to assess the slope excavation quality with laserscanned data. An algorithm was also presented to calculate the excavated volume with laser-scanned data. A field application and a laboratory experiment were carried out to verify the feasibility of these methods for excavation quality assessment and excavated volume calculation. The results show that the quality assessment indices can be obtained rapidly and accurately with design parameters and scanned data, and the results of holistic quality assessment are consistent with those of cross-sectional quality assessment. In addition, the time consumption in excavation quality assessment with the laser scanning technology can be reduced by 70%e90%, as compared with the traditional method. The excavated volume calculated with the scanned data only slightly differs from measured data, demonstrating the applicability of the excavated volume calculation method presented in this study.

Painlevé Property and Exact Solutions to a (2+1) Dimensional KdV-mKdV Equation

A (2 + 1) dimensional KdV-mKdV equation is proposed and integrability in the sense of Painlevé and some exact solutions are discussed. The B?cklund transformation and bilinear equations are obtained through Painlevé analysis. Some exact solutions are deduced by Hirota method and generalized Wronskian method.

Foliar K application delays leaf senescence of winter rapeseed(Brassica napus L.) under waterlogging

To better understand waterlogging effect on leaf senescence in winter rapseed (Brassica napus L.) during flowering stage, experiments were designed to explore foliar K application influences on adverse effects of waterlogging stress. Winter rapeseed was sprayed with K after waterlogging at initial flowering stage. Results indicated that waterlogging significantly decreased leaf net photosynthetic rate (Pn), stomatal conductance (Gs), intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci) and transpiration rate (Tr). It also declined maximum quantum yield of PS II (Fv/Fm), quantum yield of electron transport (ΦPS II) and photochemical quenching (qP), but increased leaf non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) and minimal fluorescence (Fo). Interestingly, exogenous application of K significantly alleviated waterlogging-induced photosynthesis inhibition. Foliar K application increased RuBisCO activation, chlorophyll and soluble protein contents, while significantly decreased MDA content under waterlogging stress. Moreover, K supplementation improved accumulation of K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, N, Zn2+, Mn2+, Fe2+ in leaves. In general, foliar K application is effective inalleviating deleterious effects of waterlogging stress and delays leaf senescence of winter rapeseed.

Dynamics of cantilever plates and its hybrid vibration control

Applying Lagrange-Germain＇s theory of elas- tic thin plates and Hamiltonian formulation, the dynamics of cantilever plates and the problem of its vibration control are studied, and a general solution is finally given. Based on Hamiltonian and Lagrangian density function, we can obtain the flexural wave equation of the plate and the relationship between the transverse and the longitudinal eigenvalues. Based on eigenfunction expansion, dispersion equations of propagation mode of cantilever plates are deduced. By satisfying the boundary conditions of cantilever plates, the natural frequencies of the cantilever plate structure can be given. Then, analytic solution of the problem in plate structure is obtained. An hybrid wave/mode control approach, which is based on both independent modal space control and wave control methods, is described and adopted to analyze the active vibration control of cantilever plates. The low-order （controlled by modal control） and the high-order （controlled by wave control） frequency response of plates are both improved. The control spillover is avoided and the robustness of the system is also improved. Finally, simulation results are analyzed and discussed.

Improving the Performance of PbS Quantum Dot Solar Cells by Optimizing ZnO Window Layer

Comparing with hot researches in absorber layer,window layer has attracted less attention in PbS quantum dot solar cells(QD SCs). Actually, the window layer plays a key role in exciton separation, charge drifting, and so on.Herein, ZnO window layer was systematically investigated for its roles in QD SCs performance. The physical mechanism of improved performance was also explored. It was found that the optimized ZnO films with appropriate thickness and doping concentration can balance the optical and electrical properties, and its energy band align well with the absorber layer for efficient charge extraction. Further characterizations demonstrated that the window layer optimization can help to reduce the surface defects, improve the heterojunction quality, as well as extend the depletion width. Compared with the control devices, the optimized devices have obtained an efficiency of 6.7% with an enhanced V_(oc) of 18%, J_(sc) of 21%, FF of 10%, and power conversion efficiency of 58%. The present work suggests a useful strategy to improve the device performance by optimizing the window layer besides the absorber layer.