不同粒径生物质炭对水稻甲基汞富集的影响

【目的】研究生物质炭粒径的改变对其理化性质以及汞污染稻田土壤中修复能力的影响,以期为减少汞污染地区水稻Oryza sativa甲基汞富集量、保障粮食安全提供科学依据。【方法】以水稻秸秆为制备生物质炭的原料,通过筛分法制备不同粒径(<0.5、0.5~1.0、1.0~2.0 mm)的水稻秸秆生物质炭,利用元素分析仪、比表面分析仪、傅里叶红外光谱仪和扫描电镜仪分析不同生物质炭的结构特征变化,并结合盆栽试验研究施用不同粒径生物质炭对水稻甲基汞富集的影响。【结果】(1)随着粒径的减小,生物质炭的表面形貌变化明显,生物质炭比表面积增大,孔隙增多,C—O、—OH和—COO含氧官能团强度增加。(2)与对照相比,3种粒径生物质炭的施入均降低了土壤中甲基汞的生物有效性,水稻各组织中甲基汞富集量减少,其中小粒径生物质炭的降低效果最佳,添加粒径<0.5 mm的生物质炭组精米中的甲基汞质量分数降低了47.01%。(3)生物质炭的施入增大了水稻根际土壤甲基汞质量分数,且这种正向促进作用随着生物质炭粒径的减小而更加明显。【结论】生物质炭粒径的减小能够增强其在汞污染稻田土壤中的修复能力,减少水稻对甲基汞的积累,降低甲基汞暴露风险。

临安区西径山不同森林中的汞迁移及沉降

森林系统,是汞在地球生物化学过程中极为重要的一环。其中,叶片是大气汞与森林交互作用的主要界面。本文以临安地区的典型落叶林、针叶林为例,进行定点监测,探明不同季节落叶林、针叶林中汞在叶片和林下土壤中的分布状况及其影响因素。定点监测实验的结果表明,森林汞在垂直方向上具有明显的分层累积现象,其中土壤中汞浓度最高,含量最多,凋落物其次,新鲜叶最低。且阔叶林在各垂直分层中汞含量均显著高于针叶林。2种森林类型汞均在7—9月达到峰值,这与森林生长发育的季节性与夏季土壤汞的再释放相关。凋落物汞输入是森林土壤汞的主要来源之一,而由土壤所固持的汞主要集中于0~10 cm土层,这与0~10 cm土层中含有的大量具有吸附、固定汞能力的有机质相关。另外,对阔叶林与针叶林的沉降通量估算结果显示,阔叶林沉降通量高于针叶林,这与阔叶林凋落物沉降通量显著高于针叶林相关。本研究的结果有助于了解森林叶片汞浓度以及土壤汞负荷的影响,以及不同季节森林叶片汞和土壤汞时空分布状况。同时,本研究也有利于进一步探明浙江省森林汞地球生物化学循环过程的特征与分布情况。

Flow characteristics and hot workability of a typical low-alloy high-strength steel during multi-pass deformation

Heavy components of low-alloy high-strength(LAHS) steels are generally formed by multi-pass forging. It is necessary to explore the flow characteristics and hot workability of LAHS steels during the multi-pass forging process, which is beneficial to the formulation of actual processing parameters. In the study, the multi-pass hot compression experiments of a typical LAHS steel are carried out at a wide range of deformation temperatures and strain rates. It is found that the work hardening rate of the experimental material depends on deformation parameters and deformation passes, which is ascribed to the impacts of static and dynamic softening behaviors. A new model is established to describe the flow characteristics at various deformation passes. Compared to the classical Arrhenius model and modified Zerilli and Armstrong model, the newly proposed model shows higher prediction accuracy with a confidence level of 0.98565. Furthermore, the connection between power dissipation efficiency(PDE) and deformation parameters is revealed by analyzing the microstructures. The PDE cannot be utilized to reflect the efficiency of energy dissipation for microstructure evolution during the entire deformation process, but only to assess the efficiency of energy dissipation for microstructure evolution in a specific deformation parameter state.As a result, an integrated processing map is proposed to better study the hot workability of the LAHS steel, which considers the effects of instability factor(IF), PDE, and distribution and size of grains. The optimized processing parameters for the multi-pass deformation process are the deformation parameters of 1223–1318 K and 0.01–0.08 s^(-1). Complete dynamic recrystallization occurs within the optimized processing parameters with an average grain size of 18.36–42.3 μm. This study will guide the optimization of the forging process of heavy components.

Recent advances in intermediate-temperature CO_(2) capture: Materials,technologies and applications

Carbon capture,utilization and storage(CCUS) is widely recognized as a vital strategy for mitigating the impact of human induced climate change.Among various CO_(2) adsorbents,intermediate-temperature solid adsorbents have garnered significant attention due to their potential applications in hydrogen utilization,specifically in the water gas shift,steam reforming and gasification processes.These processes are crucial for achieving carbon neutrality.While laboratory-level studies have showcased the high adsorption capacity of these materials via various synthesis and modification methods,their practical application in complex industrial environments remains challenging,impeding the commercialization process.This review aims to critically summarize the recent research progress made in intermediatetemperature(200-400℃) solid CO_(2) adsorbents,particularly focusing on indicators such as cyclability,gas selectivity,and formability,which play vital roles in industrial application scenarios.Additionally,we provide an overview of laboratory-level advanced technologies specifically tailored for industrial applications.Furthermore,we highlight several industrial-ready advanced technologies that can pave the way for overcoming the challenges associated with large-scale implementation.The insights provided by this review aim to assist researchers in identifying the most relevant research directions for industrial applications.By promoting advances in the application of solid adsorbents,we strive to facilitate the ultimate goal of achieving carbon neutrality.

BanXiaXieXin decoction treating gastritis mice with drug-resistant Helicobacter pylori and its mechanism

BACKGROUND Helicobacter pylori(H.pylori)is the main pathogen that causes a variety of upper digestive diseases.The drug resistance rate of H.pylori is increasingly higher,and the eradication rate is increasingly lower.The antimicrobial resistance of H.pylori is an urgent global problem.It has been confirmed that Banxia Xiexin decoction(BXXXT)demonstrates the effects of treating gastrointestinal diseases,inhibiting H.pylori and protecting gastric mucosa.The purpose of the present study is to further explore the therapeutic effects of BXXXT on drug-resistant H.pylori.AIM To confirm that BXXXT demonstrates therapeutical effects in vivo and in vitro on gastritis mice with drug-resistant H.pylori and explain its mechanism to provide an experimental basis for promoting the application of BXXXT.METHODS The aqueous extract of BXXXT was gained by water decocting method.The inhibitory effect of the aqueous extract on H.pylori was detected by dilution in vitro;drug-resistant H.pylori cells were used to build an acute gastritis model in vivo.Thereafter,the model mice were treated with the aqueous extract of BXXXT.The amount of H.pylori colonization,the repair of gastric mucosal damage,changes of inflammatory factors,apoptosis,etc.,were assessed.In terms of mechanism exploration,the main medicinal compositions of BXXXT aqueous extract and the synergistic bacteriostatic effects they had demonstrated were analyzed using mass spectrometry;the immune function of peripheral blood cells such as CD3+T and CD4+T of mice with gastritis before and after treatment with BXXXT aqueous extract was detected using a flow cytometry;the H.pylori transcriptome and proteome after treatment with BXXXT aqueous extract were detected.Differently expressed genes were screened and verification was performed thereon with knockout expression.RESULTS The minimum inhibitory concentration of BXXXT aqueous extract against H.pylori was 256-512μg/mL.A dose of 28 mg/kg BXXXT aqueous extract treatment produced better therapeutical effects than the standard triple therapy did;the BXXXT aqueous extract have at least 11 ingredients inhibiting H.pylori,including berberine,quercetin,baicalin,luteolin,gallic acid,rosmarinic acid,aloe emodin,etc.,of which berberine,aloe emodin,luteolin and gallic acid have a synergistic effect;BXXXT aqueous extract was found to stimulate the expressions of CD3+T and CD4+T and increase the number of CD4+T/CD8+T in gastritis mice;the detection of transcriptome and proteome,quantitative polymerase chain reaction,Western blotting and knockout verification revealed that the main targets of BXXXT aqueous extract are CFAs related to urea enzymes,and CagA,VacA,etc.CONCLUSION BXXXT aqueous extract could demonstrate good therapeutic effects on drug-resistance H.pylori in vitro and in vivo and its mechanism comes down to the synergistic or additional antibacterial effects of berberine,emodin and luteolin,the main components of the extract;the extract could activate the immune function and enhance bactericidal effects;BXXXT aqueous extract,with main targets of BXXXT aqueous extract related to urease,virulence factors,etc.,could reduce the urease and virulence of H.pylori,weaken its colonization,and reduce its inflammatory damage to the gastric mucosa.

CLOCK inhibits the proliferation of porcine ovarian granulosa cells by targeting ASB9

Background Clock circadian regulator(CLOCK)is a core factor of the mammalian biological clock system in regulat-ing female fertility and ovarian physiology.However,CLOCK’s specific function and molecular mechanism in porcine granulosa cells(GCs)remain unclear.In this study,we focused on CLOCK’s effects on GC proliferation.Results CLOCK significantly inhibited cell proliferation in porcine GCs.CLOCK decreased the expression of cell cycle-related genes,including CCNB1,CCNE1,and CDK4 at the mRNA and protein levels.CDKN1A levels were upregulated by CLOCK.ASB9 is a newly-identified target of CLOCK that inhibits GC proliferation;CLOCK binds to the E-box element in the ASB9 promoter.Conclusions These findings suggest that CLOCK inhibits the proliferation of porcine ovarian GCs by increasing ASB9 level.

2022 Chinese expert consensus and guidelines on clinical management of toxicity in anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy for B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma

Adoptive cellular immunotherapy with chimeric antigen receptor(CAR)T cells has emerged as a novel modality for treating relapsed and/or refractory B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma(B-NHL).With increasing approval of CAR T-cell products and advances in CAR T cell therapy,CAR T cells are expected to be used in a growing number of cases.However,CAR T-cell-associated toxicities can be severe or even fatal,thus compromising the survival benefit from this therapy.Standardizing and studying the clinical management of these toxicities are imperative.In contrast to other hematological malignancies,such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia and multiple myeloma,anti-CD19 CAR T-cell-associated toxicities in B-NHL have several distinctive features,most notably local cytokine-release syndrome(CRS).However,previously published guidelines have provided few specific recommendations for the grading and management of toxicities associated with CAR T-cell treatment for B-NHL.Consequently,we developed this consensus for the prevention,recognition,and management of these toxicities,on the basis of published literature regarding the management of anti-CD19 CAR T-cell-associated toxicities and the clinical experience of multiple Chinese institutions.This consensus refines a grading system and classification of CRS in B-NHL and corresponding measures for CRS management,and delineates comprehensive principles and exploratory recommendations for managing anti-CD19 CAR T-cell-associated toxicities in addition to CRS.

Inhibiting 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor 3 alleviates pathological changes of a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease

Extracellular amyloid beta(Aβ) plaques are main pathological feature of Alzheimer’s disease.However,the specific type of neuro ns that produce Aβ peptides in the initial stage of Alzheimer’s disease are unknown.In this study,we found that 5-hydroxytryptamin receptor 3A subunit(HTR3A) was highly expressed in the brain tissue of transgenic amyloid precursor protein and presenilin-1 mice(an Alzheimer’s disease model) and patients with Alzheimer’s disease.To investigate whether HTR3A-positive interneurons are associated with the production of Aβ plaques,we performed double immunostaining and found that HTR3A-positive interneurons were clustered around Aβ plaques in the mouse model.Some amyloid precursor protein-positive or β-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme-1-positive neurites near Aβ plaques were co-localized with HTR3A interneurons.These results suggest that HTR3A-positive interneurons may partially contribute to the generation of Aβ peptides.We treated 5.0-5.5-month-old model mice with tro pisetron,a HTR3 antagonist,for 8 consecutive weeks.We found that the cognitive deficit of mice was partially reversed,Aβ plaques and neuroinflammation we re remarkably reduced,the expression of HTR3 was remarkably decreased and the calcineurin/nuclear factor of activated T-cell 4 signaling pathway was inhibited in treated model mice.These findings suggest that HTR3A interneurons partly contribute to generation of Aβ peptide at the initial stage of Alzheimer’s disease and inhibiting HTR3 partly reve rses the pathological changes of Alzheimer’s disease.

Selectively converting CO_(2) to HCOOH on Cu-alloys integrated in hematite-driven artificial photosynthetic cells

The integration of electrochemical CO_(2)reduction(CO_(2)RR) and photoelectrochemical water oxidation offers a sustainable access to valuable chemicals and fuels. Here, we develop a rapidly annealed hematite photoanode with a photocurrent density of 2.83 mA cm^(-2)at 1.7 VRHEto drive the full-reaction. We also present Cu-alloys electrocatalysis extended from CuInSnS4, which are superior in both activity and selectivity for CO_(2)RR. Specifically, the screened CuInSn achieves a CO_(2)to HCOOH Faradaic efficiency of 93% at a cell voltage of-2.0 V by assembling into artificial photosynthesis cell. The stability test of IT exhibits less than 3% degradation over 24 h. Furthermore, in-situ Raman spectroscopy reveals that both CO_(3)^(-2)and CO_(2)are involved in CO_(2)RR as reactants. The preferential affinity of C for H in the ^(*)HCO_(2)intermediate enables an improved HCOOH-selectivity, highlighting the role of multifunctional Cu in reducing the cell voltage and enhancing the photocurrent density.

Maternal zinc alleviates tert-butyl hydroperoxide-induced mitochondrial oxidative stress on embryonic development involving the activation of Nrf2/PGC-1αpathway

Background Mitochondrial dysfunction induced by excessive mitochondrial reactive oxygen species(ROS)damages embryonic development and leads to growth arrest.Objective The purpose of this study is to elucidate whether maternal zinc(Zn)exert protective effect on oxidative stress targeting mitochondrial function using an avian model.Result In ovo injected tert-butyl hydroperoxide(BHP)increases(P<0.05)hepatic mitochondrial ROS,malondialdehyde(MDA)and 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine(8-OHdG),and decreases(P<0.05)mitochondrial membrane potential(MMP),mitochondrial DNA(mtDNA)copy number and adenosine triphosphate(ATP)content,contributing to mitochondrial dysfunction.In vivo and in vitro studies revealed that Zn addition enhances(P<0.05)ATP synthesis and metallothionein 4(MT4)content and expression as well as alleviates(P<0.05)the BHP-induced mitochondrial ROS generation,oxidative damage and dysfunction,exerting a protective effect on mitochondrial function by enhancing antioxidant capacity and upregulating the mRNA and protein expressions of Nrf2 and PGC-1α.Conclusions The present study provides a new way to protect offspring against oxidative damage by maternal Zn supplementation through the process of targeting mitochondria involving the activation of Nrf2/PGC-1αsignaling.

Linolenic acid-metronidazole inhibits the growth of Helicobacter pylori through oxidation

BACKGROUND Resistance to antibiotics is one the main factors constraining the treatment and control of Helicobacter pylori(H.pylori)infections.Therefore,there is an urgent need to develop new antimicrobial agents to replace antibiotics.Our previous study found that linolenic acid-metronidazole(Lla-Met)has a good antibacterial effect against H.pylori,both antibiotic-resistant and sensitive H.pylori.Also,H.pylori does not develop resistance to Lla-Met.Therefore,it could be used for preparing broad-spectrum antibacterial agents.However,since the antibacterial mechanism of Lla-Met is not well understood,we explored this phenomenon in the present study.AIM To understand the antimicrobial effect of Lla-Met and how this could be applied in treating corresponding infections.METHODS H.pylori cells were treated with the Lla-Met compound,and the effect of the compound on the cell morphology,cell membrane permeability,and oxidation of the bacteria cell was assessed.Meanwhile,the differently expressed genes in H.pylori in response to Lla-Met treatment were identified.RESULTS Lla-Met treatment induced several changes in H.pylori cells,including roughening and swelling.In vivo experiments revealed that Lla-Met induced oxidation,DNA fragmentation,and phosphatidylserine ectropionation in H.pylori cells.Inhibiting Lla-Met with L-cysteine abrogated the above phenomena.Transcriptome analysis revealed that Lla-Met treatment up-regulated the expression of superoxide dismutase SodB and MdaB genes,both anti-oxidation-related genes.CONCLUSION Lla-Met kills H.pylori mainly by inducing oxidative stress,DNA damage,phosphatidylserine ectropionation,and changes on cell morphology.

Fine-Grained Classification of Remote Sensing Ship Images Based on Improved VAN

The remote sensing ships’fine-grained classification technology makes it possible to identify certain ship types in remote sensing images,and it has broad application prospects in civil and military fields.However,the current model does not examine the properties of ship targets in remote sensing images with mixed multi-granularity features and a complicated backdrop.There is still an opportunity for future enhancement of the classification impact.To solve the challenges brought by the above characteristics,this paper proposes a Metaformer and Residual fusion network based on Visual Attention Network(VAN-MR)for fine-grained classification tasks.For the complex background of remote sensing images,the VAN-MR model adopts the parallel structure of large kernel attention and spatial attention to enhance the model’s feature extraction ability of interest targets and improve the classification performance of remote sensing ship targets.For the problem of multi-grained feature mixing in remote sensing images,the VAN-MR model uses a Metaformer structure and a parallel network of residual modules to extract ship features.The parallel network has different depths,considering both high-level and lowlevel semantic information.The model achieves better classification performance in remote sensing ship images with multi-granularity mixing.Finally,the model achieves 88.73%and 94.56%accuracy on the public fine-grained ship collection-23(FGSC-23)and FGSCR-42 datasets,respectively,while the parameter size is only 53.47 M,the floating point operations is 9.9 G.The experimental results show that the classification effect of VAN-MR is superior to that of traditional CNNs model and visual model with Transformer structure under the same parameter quantity.

The Anatomical Research on the Mental Foramen Related to the Mental Nerve Block

Objective: The aim of this study was to observe and investigate the location of mental foramen, providing scientific and reasonable anatomic basic for clinical mental nerve block. Methods: The shape, orientations, relationship with teeth and number of accessory mental foramina in 50 (100 side) adult mental foramina were observed. The long and short diameters of the mental foramen and the distance between the mental foramen and the peripheral anatomical markers were measured by a vernier caliper, and statistical analysis of the data was performed to obtain the final results. Results: The probability of mental foramen being elliptical in shape accounted for 27%, circular for 73%;10% of the mental foramen openings are outward and 90% are outward and upward;The mental foramina were located under the first premolars in 20%, under the second premolars in 75%, and 5% situated in the bottom of the first molars. The incidence of accessory mental foramina was 1%;the long diameter of the mental foramen was (2.42 ± 0.71) mm, and the short diameter of the mental foramen was (2.15 ± 0.14) mm;the vertical distance from the mental foramen center to the alveolar crest and the lower margin of the mandible were (14.09 ± 3.23) mm and (14.56 ± 1.74) mm;the distance between the midpoints of the vertical line to the center of the mental foramen was (1.26 ± 0.97) mm;the horizontal distance from the center of the mental foramen to the anterior median line was (23.57 ± 1.82) mm. Conclusion: The point of mental nerve block was selected below and behind the second premolars, above the midline of the mandible. The distance from the anterior median line was 2.5 cm, and the mental foramen was explored forward and downward after the insertion.

Treatment Strategy for Post-Hepatectomy Recurrent Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Single Center Experience with 556 Consecutive Cases in China

Background: Treatment strategy for recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains scantily defined. This study was aimed to establish a treatment strategy to manage post-hepatectomy recurrent HCC and report the clinical outcomes. Methods: From January 2006 to December 2016, 556 consecutive patients who developed post-hepatectomy HCC recurrence were enrolled in the study. The patients were clinically stratified and treated according to a strategy established by a multi-disciplinary team. Clinical data and survival times were collected prospectively and analyzed retrospectively. Results: According to the strategy, there were 298 (53.6%), 214 (38.5%), 32 (5.7%) and 12 (2.2%) patients stratified into Early, Intermediate, Advanced and Terminal stages, respectively. In Early stage patients, 164 (55.0%) received curative treatment in the form of repeat resection or local ablation, 134 (45.0%) received transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), and the 1-, 3-, and 5-year overall survival (OS) rates were 82.0%, 46.8% and 37.3%, respectively. In Intermediate stage patients, 207 (96.7%) received TACE, 7 (3.3%) radiotherapy, and the 1-, 3-, and 5-year OS rates were 73.2%, 31.8% and 15.9%, respectively. In Advanced stage patients, 22 patients received sorafenib, 10 radiotherapy, and the mean survival time (MST) was 25.1 ± 3.1 months. All the 12 patients in Terminal stage received the best supportive treatment, and the MST was 6.5 ± 3.4 months. Clinical stages and duration of disease-free interval were independent factors relating to overall survival. Conclusions: A treatment strategy derived from the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer staging system, with some modifications, has been successfully established to manage post-hepatectomy recurrent HCC, and the clinical outcomes were commendable.

校园欺凌对学生教育表现的影响效应评估——来自PISA2015我国四省市的证据

文章基于PISA 2015我国北京、上海、江苏和广东四省市数据,系统评估了校园欺凌对于学生学业成绩和非认知领域的影响效应。研究结果表明,遭受欺凌使学生数学、阅读成绩分别降低5.73分和0.57分,对科学成绩几乎没有影响;不同类型欺凌对学生学业成绩的影响效应不同;遭受欺凌使学生珍视关系的合作意向、珍视团队的合作意向、学校归属感分别降低0.07分、0.14分和0.28分,使学生学业焦虑、成就动机分别升高0.15分和0.02分;不同类型欺凌对学生非认知表现的影响效应不同。为了避免或减轻欺凌对学生教育表现的影响,本研究建议国家应加强对校园欺凌的治理力度,切实维护学生发展权益;教育管理部门和学校应开展校园欺凌监测和诊断,帮助学生克服校园欺凌;学校应加强反欺凌制度建设,多方合作营造良好育人环境。

Prealbumin is predictive for postoperative liver insufficiency in patients undergoing liver resection

AIM:To investigate the risk factors for postoperative liver insufficiency in patients with Child-Pugh class A liver function undergoing liver resection.METHODS:A total of 427 consecutive patients undergoing partial hepatectomy from October 2007 to April 2011 at a single center(Department of Hepatic SurgeryⅠ,Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital,Shanghai,China) were included in the study.All the patients had preoperative liver function of Child-Pugh class A and were diagnosed as having primary liver cancer by postoperative histopathology.Surgery was performed by the same team and hepatic resection was carried out by a clamp crushing method.A clamp/unclamp time of 15 min/5 min was adopted for hepatic inflow occlusion.Patients' records of demographic variables,intraoperative parameters,pathological findings and laboratory test results were reviewed.Postoperative liver insufficiency and failure were defined as prolonged hyperbilirubinemia unrelated to biliary obstruction or leak,clinically apparent ascites,prolonged coagulopathy requiring frozen fresh plasma,and/or hepatic encephalopathy.The incidence of postoperative liver insufficiency or liver failure was observed and the attributing risk factors were analyzed.A multivariate analysis was conducted to determine the independent predictive factors.RESULTS:Among the 427 patients,there were 362 males and 65 females,with a mean age of 51.1 ± 10.4 years.Most patients(86.4%) had a background of viral hepatitis and 234(54.8%) patients had liver cirrhosis.Indications for partial hepatectomy included hepatocellular carcinoma(391 patients),intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma(31 patients) and a combination of both(5 patients).Hepatic resections of ≤ 3 and ≥ 4 liver segments were performed in 358(83.8%) and 69(16.2%) patients,respectively.Seventeen(4.0%) patients developed liver insufficiency after hepatectomy,of whom 10 patients manifested as prolonged hyperbilirubinemia unrelated to biliary obstruction or leak,6 patients had clinically apparent ascites and prolonged coagulopathy,1 patient had hepatic encephalopathy and died on day 21 after surgery.On univariate analysis,age ≥ 60 years and prealbumin < 170 mg/dL were found to be significantly correlated with postoperative liver insufficiency(P = 0.045 and P = 0.009,respectively).There was no statistical difference in postoperative liver insufficiency between patients with or without hepatitis,liver cirrhosis and esophagogastric varices.Intraoperative parameters(type of resection,inflow blood occlusion time,blood loss and blood transfusion) and laboratory test results were not associated with postoperative liver insufficiency either.Age ≥ 60 years and prealbumin < 170 mg/dL were selected on multivariate analysis,and only prealbumin < 170 mg/dL remained predictive(hazard ratio,3.192;95%CI:1.185-8.601,P = 0.022).CONCLUSION:Prealbumin serum level is a predictive factor for postoperative liver insufficiency in patients with liver function of Child-Pugh class A undergoing hepatectomy.Since prealbumin is a good marker of nutritional status,the improved nutritional status may decrease the incidence of liver insufficiency.

Neuroprotective effects of ginsenoside Rb1 on hippocampal neuronal injury and neurite outgrowth

Ginsenoside Rb1 has been reported to exert anti-aging and anti-neurodegenerative effects. In the present study, we investigate whether ginsenoside Rb1 is involved in neurite outgrowth and neuroprotection against damage induced by amyloid beta（25–35） in cultured hippocampal neurons, and explore the underlying mechanisms. Ginsenoside Rb1 significantly increased neurite outgrowth in hippocampal neurons, and increased the expression of phosphorylated-Akt and phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2. These effects were abrogated by API-2 and PD98059, inhibitors of the signaling proteins Akt and MEK. Additionally, cultured hippocampal neurons were exposed to amyloid beta（25–35） for 30 minutes; ginsenoside Rb1 prevented apoptosis induced by amyloid beta（25–35）, and this effect was blocked by API-2 and PD98059. Furthermore, ginsenoside Rb1 significantly reversed the reduction in phosphorylated-Akt and phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 levels induced by amyloid beta（25–35）, and API-2 neutralized the effect of ginsenoside Rb1. The present results indicate that ginsenoside Rb1 enhances neurite outgrowth and protects against neurotoxicity induced by amyloid beta（25–35） via a mechanism involving Akt and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 signaling.

Deep reinforcement learning-based joint task offloading and bandwidth allocation for multi-user mobile edge computing

The rapid growth of mobile internet services has yielded a variety of computation-intensive applications such as virtual/augmented reality. Mobile Edge Computing (MEC), which enables mobile terminals to offload computation tasks to servers located at the edge of the cellular networks, has been considered as an efficient approach to relieve the heavy computational burdens and realize an efficient computation offloading. Driven by the consequent requirement for proper resource allocations for computation offloading via MEC, in this paper, we propose a Deep-Q Network (DQN) based task offloading and resource allocation algorithm for the MEC. Specifically, we consider a MEC system in which every mobile terminal has multiple tasks offloaded to the edge server and design a joint task offloading decision and bandwidth allocation optimization to minimize the overall offloading cost in terms of energy cost, computation cost, and delay cost. Although the proposed optimization problem is a mixed integer nonlinear programming in nature, we exploit an emerging DQN technique to solve it. Extensive numerical results show that our proposed DQN-based approach can achieve the near-optimal performance。

Ginsenoside Rg1 protects against neurodegeneration by inducing neurite outgrowth in cultured hippocampal neurons

Ginsenoside Rg1（Rg1） has anti-aging and anti-neurodegenerative effects. However, the mechanisms underlying these actions remain unclear. The aim of the present study was to determine whether Rg1 affects hippocampal survival and neurite outgrowth in vitro after exposure to amyloid-beta peptide fragment 25–35（Aβ_（25–35））, and to explore whether the extracellular signal-regulated kinase（ERK） and Akt signaling pathways are involved in these biological processes. We cultured hippocampal neurons from newborn rats for 24 hours, then added Rg1 to the medium for another 24 hours, with or without pharmacological inhibitors of the mitogen-activated protein kinase（MAPK） family or Akt signaling pathways for a further 24 hours. We then immunostained the neurons for growth associated protein-43, and measured neurite length. In a separate experiment, we exposed cultured hippocampal neurons to Aβ_（25–35） for 30 minutes, before adding Rg1 for 48 hours, with or without Akt or MAPK inhibitors, and assessed neuronal survival using Hoechst 33258 staining, and phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and Akt by western blot analysis. Rg1 induced neurite outgrowth, and this effect was blocked by API-2（Akt inhibitor） and PD98059（MAPK/ERK kinase inhibitor）, but not by SP600125 or SB203580（inhibitors of c-Jun N-terminal kinase and p38 MAPK, respectively）. Consistent with this effect, Rg1 upregulated the phosphorylation of Akt and ERK1/2; these effects were reversed by API-2 and PD98059, respectively. In addition, Rg1 significantly reversed Aβ_（25–35）-induced apoptosis; this effect was blocked by API-2 and PD98059, but not by SP600125 or SB203580. Finally, Rg1 significantly reversed the Aβ_（25–35）-induced decrease in Akt and ERK1/2 phosphorylation, but API-2 prevented this reversal. Our results indicate that Rg1 enhances neurite outgrowth and protects against Aβ_（25–35）-induced damage, and that its mechanism may involve the activation of Akt and ERK1/2 signaling.

Risk factors and surgical outcomes for spontaneous rupture of BCLC stages A and B hepatocellular carcinoma: A case-control study

AIM: To investigate the risk factors and surgical outcomes for spontaneous rupture of Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stages A and B hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).