A Modified CycleGAN for Multi-Organ Ultrasound Image Enhancement via Unpaired Pre-Training

Handheld ultrasound devices are known for their portability and affordability,making them widely utilized in underdeveloped areas and community healthcare for rapid diagnosis and early screening.However,the image quality of handheld ultrasound devices is not always satisfactory due to the limited equipment size,which hinders accurate diagnoses by doctors.At the same time,paired ultrasound images are difficult to obtain from the clinic because imaging process is complicated.Therefore,we propose a modified cycle generative adversarial network(cycleGAN) for ultrasound image enhancement from multiple organs via unpaired pre-training.We introduce an ultrasound image pre-training method that does not require paired images,alleviating the requirement for large-scale paired datasets.We also propose an enhanced block with different structures in the pre-training and fine-tuning phases,which can help achieve the goals of different training phases.To improve the robustness of the model,we add Gaussian noise to the training images as data augmentation.Our approach is effective in obtaining the best quantitative evaluation results using a small number of parameters and less training costs to improve the quality of handheld ultrasound devices.

Analysis of the Correlation between Middle-season Rice Yield and Meteorological Factors in Jingdong County from 2009 to 2016

Middle-season rice is an important food crop in southern rice areas of China,especially in Yunnan,the main rice-producing region.However,due to the impact of low temperature at the seedling stage and high or low temperature at the booting and heading stage of middle-season rice,the yield is not stable.Based on the data of yield factors of different middle-season rice varieties planted in the same ecological site in Jingdong County from 2009 to 2016,average development period was calculated using the data of development period measured in field during 2009-2016,and the average of meteorological factors(daily average temperature,daily maximum temperature,daily minimum temperature,and sunshine hours)and total precipitation were calculated.The correlation between meteorological factors in different development periods of each year and corresponding per unit area yield was analyzed.The results show that temperature is the most important factor affecting rice yield.Sufficient light is beneficial to the increase in the number of grains per spike and thousand seed weight at the sowing-seedling emergence stage and milk maturity-maturity stage.Excessive precipitation will reduce the number of grains per spike at the booting-heading stage.Excessive precipitation decreases the number of filled grains per spike at the jointing-booting stage,and proper drainage helps increase the formation rate of ears.This study provides scientific reference for rice production and management in this county in future.

Application of Meteorological Data Operation System(MDOS)in Meteorological Operation

Meteorological data operation system(MDOS)is a comprehensive business platform that integrates data transmission and monitoring,quality control,processing,storage and distribution,and data services.The operation and implementation of MDOS has further improved the quality control system of meteorological data in Yunnan Province,adjusted the business layout of meteorological data,and made the availability ratio of meteorological data continue to increase.The availability ratio of meteorological data from national stations rose from 99.68% to 99.96%,and that of regional stations increased from 95.33% to 99.08% from 2016 to 2020.MDOS not only solves the problem of inconsistent data and quality control methods of various business platforms,but also provides guarantees for more refined and accurate weather forecasts and climate predictions.

Diurnal variation of nitrated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in PM_(10) at a roadside site in Xiamen,China

Intensive daytime and nighttime sampling was carried out from 23 Oct to 31 Dec 2008 to investigate the occurrence of nitrated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons （NPAHs） in PM1o at a roadside site in Xiamen, China. At the same time, six PMt0 samples were collected from a nearby roadway tunnel for comparison. Six NPAHs, namely 9-nitroanthracene, 2- and 3-nitrofluoranthene, 1- nitropyrene, 7-nitrobenz[a]anthracene, and 6-nitrobenzo[a]pyrene, were identified and quantified using GC/MS in negative ion chemical ionization mode. The average total concentration of six NPAHs （~NPAHs） in the cold season （26 Nov-31 Dec） was 2.3 （daytime） and 9.9 （nighttime） times higher than those in the warm season. Significant statistical difference （p 〈 0.01, 2-tailed） of ∑NPAHs between daytime and nighttime was found during both the warm and cold seasons. NPAHs were significantly positively correlated with their parent PAHs and nitrogen dioxide but negatively correlated with ambient temperature. The ratio of 2 ＋ 3-nitrofluoranthene to 1- nitropyrene exhibited a similar diurnal pattern as ZNPAHs and was generally greater than 5, indicating the importance of secondary atmospheric formation. The diurnal variations of NPAHs were all influenced by the diurnal variations of PAHs, nitrogen dioxide, sunlight, and temperature. The daily inhalable exposure to the six NPAHs in the tunnel was much higher than the roadside values in the warm season but only slightly higher than those in the cold season.

High stearic acid diet modulates gut microbiota and aggravates acute graft-versus-host disease

Dear Editor,Acute graft-versus-host disease(aGVHD)is the leading cause of transplantation-related mortality,and limits therapeutic benefits of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation(allo-BMT).New insight is needed into the development of aGVHD.Most nutritional metabolites contribute to host health and immune homeostasis.

Dendritic cell-derived IL-27 p28 regulates T cell program in pathogenicity and alleviates acute graft-versus-host disease

Interleukin 27(IL-27),a heterodimeric cytokine composed of Epstein-Barr virus-induced 3 and p28,is a pleiotropic cytokine with both pro-and anti-inflammatory properties.However,the precise role of IL-27 in acute graft-versus-host disease is not yet fully understood.In this study,utilizing mice with IL-27 p28 deficiency in dendritic cells(DCs),we demonstrated that IL-27 p28 deficiency resulted in impaired Treg cell function and enhanced effector T cell responses,corresponding to aggravated aGVHD in mice.In addition,using single-cell RNA sequencing,we found that loss of IL-27 p28 impaired Treg cell generation and promoted IL1R2^(+)TIGIT^(+)pathogenic CD4+T cells in the thymus at a steady state.Mechanistically,IL-27 p28 deficiency promoted STAT1 phosphorylation and Th1 cell responses,leading to the inhibition of Treg cell differentiation and function.Finally,patients with high levels of IL-27 p28 in serum showed a substantially decreased occurrence of grade II-IV aGVHD and more favorable overall survival than those with low levels of IL-27 p28.Thus,our results suggest a protective role of DC-derived IL-27 p28 in the pathogenesis of aGVHD through modulation of the Treg/Teff cell balance during thymic development.IL-27 p28 may be a valuable marker for predicting aGVHD development after transplantation in humans.