Serum proteins differentially expressed in gestational diabetes mellitus assessed using isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation proteomics

BACKGROUND As a well-known fact to the public,gestational diabetes mellitus(GDM)could bring serious risks for both pregnant women and infants.During this important investigation into the linkage between GDM patients and their altered expression in the serum,proteomics techniques were deployed to detect the differentially expressed proteins(DEPs)of in the serum of GDM patients to further explore its pathogenesis,and find out possible biomarkers to forecast GDM occurrence.METHODS Subjects were divided into GDM and normal control groups according to the IADPSG diagnostic criteria.Serum samples were randomly selected from four cases in each group at 24-28 wk of gestation,and the blood samples were identified by applying iTRAQ technology combined with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.Key proteins and signaling pathways associated with GDM were identified by bioinformatics analysis,and the expression of key proteins in serum from 12 wk to 16 wk of gestation was further verified using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).RESULTS Forty-seven proteins were significantly differentially expressed by analyzing the serum samples between the GDMgravidas as well as the healthy ones. Among them, 31 proteins were found to be upregulated notably and the rest16 proteins were downregulated remarkably. Bioinformatic data report revealed abnormal expression of proteinsassociated with lipid metabolism, coagulation cascade activation, complement system and inflammatory responsein the GDM group. ELISA results showed that the contents of RBP4, as well as ANGPTL8, increased in the serumof GDM gravidas compared with the healthy ones, and this change was found to initiate from 12 wk to 16 wk ofgestation.CONCLUSION GDM symptoms may involve abnormalities in lipid metabolism, coagulation cascade activation, complementsystem and inflammatory response. RBP4 and ANGPTL8 are expected to be early predictors of GDM.

The chemical characteristics of different sodium iron ethylenediaminetetraacetate sources and their relative bioavailabilities for broilers fed with a conventional corn‑soybean meal diet

Background Our previous studies demonstrated that divalent organic iron(Fe)proteinate sources with higher complexation or chelation strengths as expressed by the greater quotient of formation(Qf)values displayed higher Fe bioavailabilities for broilers.Sodium iron ethylenediaminetetraacetate(NaFeEDTA)is a trivalent organic Fe source with the strongest chelating ligand EDTA.However,the bioavailability of Fe when administered as NaFeEDTA in broilers and other agricultural animals remains untested.Herein,the chemical characteristics of 12 NaFeEDTA products were determined.Of these,one feed grade NaFeEDTA(Qf=2.07×10^(8)),one food grade NaFeEDTA(Qf=3.31×10^(8)),and one Fe proteinate with an extremely strong chelation strength(Fe-Prot ES,Qf value=8,590)were selected.Their bioavailabilities relative to Fe sulfate(FeSO_(4)·7H_(2)O)for broilers fed with a conventional corn-soybean meal diet were evaluated during d 1 to 21 by investigating the effects of the above Fe sources and added Fe levels on the growth performance,hematological indices,Fe contents,activities and gene expressions of Fe-containing enzymes in various tissues of broilers.Results NaFeEDTA sources varied greatly in their chemical characteristics.Plasma Fe concentration(PI),transferrin saturation(TS),liver Fe content,succinate dehydrogenase(SDH)activities in liver,heart,and kidney,catalase(CAT)activity in liver,and SDH mRNA expressions in liver and kidney increased linearly(P<0.05)with increasing levels of Fe supplementation.However,differences among Fe sources were detected(P<0.05)only for PI,liver Fe content,CAT activity in liver,SDH activities in heart and kidney,and SDH mRNA expressions in liver and kidney.Based on slope ratios from multiple linear regressions of the above indices on daily dietary analyzed Fe intake,the average bioavailabilities of Fe-Prot ES,feed grade NaFeEDTA,and food grade NaFeEDTA relative to the inorganic FeSO_(4)·7H_(2)O(100%)for broilers were 139%,155%,and 166%,respectively.Conclusions The bioavailabilities of organic Fe sources relative to FeSO_(4)·7H_(2)O were closely related to their Qf values,and NaFeEDTA sources with higher Qf values showed higher Fe bioavailabilities for broilers fed with a conventional corn-soybean meal diet.

Optimal investment based on relative performance and weighted utility

This paper studies the optimal portfolio allocation of a fund manager when he bases decisions on both the absolute level of terminal relative performance and the change value of terminal relative performance comparison to a predefined reference point. We find the optimal investment strategy by maximizing a weighted average utility of a concave utility and an Sshaped utility via a concavification technique and the martingale method. Numerical results are carried out to show the impact of the extent to which the manager pays attention to the change of relative performance related to the reference point on the optimal terminal relative performance.

Detection of Mechanical Deformation in Old Aged Power Transformer Using Cross Correlation Co-Efficient Analysis Method

Detection of minor faults in power transformer active part is essential because minor faults may develop and lead to major faults and finally irretrievable damages occur. Sweep Frequency Response Analysis (SFRA) is an effective low-voltage, off-line diagnostic tool used for finding out any possible winding displacement or mechanical deterioration inside the Transformer, due to large electromechanical forces occurring from the fault currents or due to Transformer transportation and relocation. In this method, the frequency response of a transformer is taken both at manufacturing industry and concern site. Then both the response is compared to predict the fault taken place in active part. But in old aged transformers, the primary reference response is unavailable. So Cross Correlation Co-Efficient (CCF) measurement technique can be a vital process for fault detection in these transformers. In this paper, theoretical background of SFRA technique has been elaborated and through several case studies, the effectiveness of CCF parameter for fault detection has been represented.

Impacts of high temperature,relative air humidity,and vapor pressure deficit on the seed set of contrasting maize genotypes during flowering

Heat stress is a major constraint to current and future maize production at the global scale.Male and female reproductive organs both play major roles in increasing seed set under heat stress at flowering,but their relative contributions to seed set are unclear.In this study,a 2-year field experiment including three sowing dates in each year and 20 inbred lines was conducted.Seed set,kernel number per ear,and grain yield were all reduced by more than 80%in the third sowing dates compared to the first sowing dates.Pollen viability,silk emergence ratio,and anthesis-silking interval were the key determinants of seed set under heat stress;and their correlation coefficients were 0.89^(***),0.65^(***),and-0.72^(***),respectively.Vapor pressure deficit(VPD)and relative air humidity(RH)both had significant correlations with pollen viability and the silk emergence ratio.High RH can alleviate the impacts of heat on maize seed set by maintaining high pollen viability and a high silk emergence ratio.Under a warming climate from 2020 to 2050,VPD will decrease due to the increased RH.Based on their pollen viability and silk emergence ratios,the 20 genotypes fell into four different groups.The group with high pollen viability and a high silk emergence ratio performed better under heat stress,and their performance can be further improved by combining the improved flowering pattern traits.

Relative orbit determination algorithm of space targets with passive observation

Angles-only relative orbit determination for space non-cooperative targets based on passive sensor is subject to weakly observable problem of the relative state between two spacecraft. Previously, the evidence for angles-only observability was found by using cylindrical dynamics, however, the solution of orbit determination is still not provided. This study develops a relative orbit determination algorithm with the cylindrical dynamics based on differential evolution. Firstly, the relative motion dynamics and line-of-sight measurement model for nearcircular orbit are established in cylindrical coordinate system.Secondly, the observability is qualitatively analyzed by using the dynamics and measurement model where the unobservable geometry is found. Then, the angles-only relative orbit determination problem is modeled into an optimal searching frame and an improved differential evolution algorithm is introduced to solve the problem. Finally, the proposed algorithm is verified and tested by a set of numerical simulations in the context of highEarth and low-Earth cases. The results show that initial relative orbit determination(IROD) solution with an appropriate accuracy in a relative short span is achieved, which can be used to initialize the navigation filter.

Relative peripheral refraction in school children with different refractive errors using a novel multispectral refraction topographer

AIM:To compare relative peripheral refraction(RPR)in Chinese school children with different refractive errors using multispectral refraction topography(MRT).METHODS:A total of 713 eyes of primary school children[172 emmetropia(E),429 low myopia(LM),80 moderate myopia(MM),and 32 low hypermetropia(LH)]aged 10 to 13y were analyzed.RPRs were measured using MRT without mydriasis.MRT results showed RPR at 0-15°(RPR 0-15),15°-30°(RPR 15-30),and 30°-45°(RPR 30-45)annular in the inferior(RPR-I),superior(RPR-S),nasal(RPR-N),and temporal(RPR-T)quadrants.Spherical equivalent(SE)was detected and calculated using an autorefractor.RESULTS:There were significant differences of RPR 15-30 between groups MM[0.02(-0.12;0.18)]and LH[-0.13(-0.36;0.12)](P<0.05),MM and E[-0.06(-0.20;0.10)](P<0.05),and LM[-0.02(-0.15;0.15)]and E(P<0.05).There were also significant differences of RPR 30-45 between groups MM[0.45(0.18;0.74)]and E[0.29(-0.09;0.67)](P<0.05),and LM[0.44(0.14;0.76)]and E(P<0.001).RPR values increased from the hyperopic to medium myopic group in each annular.There were significant differences of RPR-S between groups MM[-0.02(-0.60;0.30)]and E[-0.44(-0.89;-0.04)](P<0.001),and LM[-0.28(-0.71;0.12)]and E(P<0.05).There were also significant differences of RPR-T between groups MM[0.37(0.21;0.78)]and LH[0.14(-0.52;0.50)](P<0.05),LM[0.41(0.06;0.84)]and LH(P<0.05),and LM and E[0.29(-0.10;0.68),P<0.05].A Spearman’s correlation analysis showed a negative correlation between RPR and SE in the 15°-30°(P=0.005),30°-45°(P<0.05)annular(P=0.002),superior(P<0.001),and temporal(P=0.001)quadrants.CONCLUSION:Without pupil dilation,values for RPR 15-30,30-45,RPR-S,and T shows significant differences between myopic eyes and emmetropia,and the differences are negatively correlated with SE.

Incorporating Relative Error Criterion to Conformal Prediction for Positive Data

Positive data are very common in many scientific fields and applications;for these data,it is known that estimation and inference based on relative error criterion are superior to that of absolute error criterion.In prediction problems,conformal prediction provides a useful framework to construct flexible prediction intervals based on hypothesis testing,which has been actively studied in the past decade.In view of the advantages of the relative error criterion for regression problems with positive responses,in this paper,we combine the relative error criterion(REC)with conformal prediction to develop a novel REC-based predictive inference method to construct prediction intervals for the positive response.The proposed method satisfies the finite sample global coverage guarantee and to some extent achieves the local validity.We conduct extensive simulation studies and two real data analysis to demonstrate the competitiveness of the new proposed method.

Relative peripheral refractive errors in Chinese children with myopic anisometropia

AIM:To compare relative peripheral refractive errors(RPREs)in Chinese children with and without myopic anisometropia(MAI)and to explore the relationship between RPRE and myopia.METHODS:This observational cross-sectional study included 160 children divided into two groups according to the interocular spherical equivalent refraction(SER)difference≥1.0 D in the MAI group(n=80)and<1.0 D in the non-MAI group(n=80).The MAI group was further divided into two subgroups:ΔSER<2.0 D group and ΔSER≥2.0 D group.Basic ocular biometric parameters of axial length(AL),average keratometry(Ave K),cylinder(CYL),surface regularity index(SRI),and surface asymmetry index(SAI)were recorded.In addition,multispectral refraction topography was performed to measure RPRE,and the parameters were recorded as total refraction difference value(TRDV),refraction difference value(RDV)0-10,RDV10-20,RDV20-30,RDV30-40,RDV40-53,RDV-superior(RDV-S),RDV-inferior(RDV-I),RDV-temporal(RDV-T)and RDV-nasal(RDV-N).RESULTS:In the non-MAI group,the interocular differences of all parameters of RPRE were not significant.In the MAI group,the interocular differences of TRDV,RDV10-53,RDV-S,RDV-I,RDV-T,and RDV-N were significant.In subgroup analysis,the interocular differences of TRDV,RDV30-53,RDV-I,and RDV-T were significant in ΔSER<2.0 D group and ΔSER≥2.0 D group,but the interocular differences of RDV10-30,RDV-S and RDV-N were only significant in the ΔSER≥2.0 D group.In correlation analysis,ΔTRDV,ΔRDV 10-53,ΔRDV-S,and ΔRDV-N were negatively correlated with ΔSER but positively correlated with ΔAL.CONCLUSION:The more myopic eyes have larger hyperopic RPRE in Chinese children with MAI in certain retinal range,and partialΔRPRE is closely associated with ΔSER and ΔAL.

An Experimental Study on the Effect of a Nanofluid on Oil-Water Relative Permeability

The low porosity and low permeability of tight oil reservoirs call for improvements in the current technologies for oil recovery.Traditional chemical solutions with large molecular size cannot effectively flow through the nanopores of the reservoir.In this study,the feasibility of Nanofluids has been investigated using a high pressure high temperature core-holder and nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR).The results of the experiments indicate that the specified Nanofluids can enhance the tight oil recovery significantly.The water and oil relative permeability curve shifts to the high water saturation side after Nanofluid flooding,thereby demonstrating an increase in the water wettability of the core.In the Nanofluid flooding process the oil recovery was enhanced by 15.1%,compared to waterflooding stage.The T2 spectra using the NMR show that after Nanofluid flooding,a 7.18%increment in oil recovery factor was gained in the small pores,a 4.9%increase in the middle pores,and a 0.29%increase in the large pores.These results confirm that the Nanofluids can improve the flow state in micro-sized pores inside the core and increase the ultimate oil recovery factor.

Relative Efficiencies of Optimal Designs in Four Dimensions Constructed Using Balanced Incomplete Block Designs

Experimentally, the best design gives estimates of the desired effects and contrasts with maximum precision. Efficiency as a discriminating factor enables comparison of designs. The goal of Response Surface Methodology (RSM) is the determination of the best settings of the in-put variables for a maximum (or a minimum) response within a region of interest, R. This calls for fitting a model that adequately represents the mean response since such a model, is then used to locate the optimum. D-, A-, E- and T-Optimal designs of a rotatable design of degree two in four dimensions constructed using balanced incomplete block designs (BIBD) when the number of replications is less than three times the number of pairs of treatments occur together in the design and their relative efficiencies to general designs are presented. D-optimal design had 88 runs after replicating the factorial part twice and the axial part thrice with an optimal variance of 0.6965612 giving an efficiency of 97.7% while for A- and T-optimal designs they are formed with 112 runs each obtained by replicating the factorial part two times and axial part six times. Their optimal variances are 0.05798174 and 1.29828 respectively, with efficiency of 71.8% for A-optimal and 87.5% for T-optimal design. E-optimal design was found to be the most efficient design with an only 32 runs comprising only of the factorial part and with an optimal variance of 0.4182000, attaining an efficiency of approximately 1%. This study proposes the adoption of the E-optimal design in estimating the parameters of a rotatable second-order degree model constructed using BIBD for less costs and time saving.

Role of processing parameters on relative density,microstructure and mechanical properties of selective laser melted titanium alloy

The relationships between the selective laser melting(SLM)processing parameters including laser power,scanning speed and hatch space,the relative density,the microstructure,and resulting mechanical properties of Ti-6Al-2Zr-1Mo-1V alloy were investigated in this work.The result shows that laser power acts a dominant role in determining the relative density in comparison with scanning speed and hatch space.The optimal SLM process window for fabricating relative density>99%samples is located in the energy density range of 34.72 J·mm^(-3)to 52.08 J·mm^(-3),where the laser power range is between 125 W and 175 W.An upward trend is found in the micro-hardness as the energy density is increased.The optimum SLM processing parameters of Ti-6Al-2Zr-1Mo-1V alloy are:laser power of 150 W,scanning speed of 1,600 mm·s^(-1),hatch space of 0.08 mm,and layer thickness of 0.03 mm.The highest ultimate tensile strength,yield strength,and ductility under the optimum processing parameter are achieved,which are 1,205 MPa,1,099 MPa,and 8%,respectively.The results of this study can be used to guide SLM production Ti-6Al-2Zr-1Mo-1V alloy parts.

Prediction of Low Heating Value of Sugar Cane Bagasse as a Fuel for Industrial Boilers in the High Relative Humidity Region: Case of Cameroon

Many attempts have been made to estimate calorific value of bagasse using mathematical equations, which were created based on data from proximate, ultimate, physical and chemical analysis. Questions have been raised on the applicability of these equations in different parts of the globe. This study was initiated to tackle these problems and also check the most suited mathematical models for the Law Heating Value of Cameroonian bagasse. Data and bagasse samples were collected at the Cameroonian sugarcane factory. The effects of cane variety, age of harvesting, source, moisture content, and sucrose on the LHV of Cameroon bagasse have been tested. It was shown that humidity does not change within a variety, but changes from the dry season to the rainy season;the sugar in the rainy season is significantly different from that collected in the dry season. Samples of the same variety have identical LHV. LHV in the dry season is significantly different from LHV in the rainy season. According to the fact that this study was done for cane with different ages of harvesting, the maturity of Cameroonian sugarcane does not affect LHV of bagasse. Tree selected models are much superior tool for the prediction of the LHV for bagasse in Cameroon compared to others. The standard deviation of these validated models is around 200 kJ/kg compared to the experimental. Thus, the models determined in foreign countries, are not necessarily applicable in predicting the LHV of bagasse in other countries with the same accuracy as that in their native country. There was linear relationship between humidity, ash and sugar content in the bagasse. It is possible to build models based on data from physical composition of bagasse using regression analysis.

Relative timing jitter compression in a Fabry-Pérot cavity-assisted free-running dual-comb interferometry

Dual-comb interferometric systems with high time accuracy have been realized for various applications.The flourishing ultralow noise dual-comb system promotes the measurement and characterization of relative timing jitter,thus improving time accuracy.With optical solutions,introducing an optical reference enables 105 harmonics measurements,thereby breaking the limit set by electrical methods;nonlinear processes or spectral interference schemes were also employed to track the relative timing jitter.However,such approaches operating in the time domain either require additional continuous references or impose stringent requirements on the amount of timing jitter.We propose a scheme to correct the relative timing jitter of a free-running dual-comb interferometry assisted by a Fabry-Pérot(F-P)cavity in the frequency domain.With high wavelength thermal stability provided by the F-P cavity,the absolute wavelength deviation in the operating bandwidth is compressed to<0.4 pm,corresponding to a subpicosecond sensitivity of pulse-to-pulse relative timing jitter.Also,Allan deviation of 10^(-10) is obtained under multiple coherent averaging,which lays the foundation for mode-resolved molecular spectroscopic applications.The spectral absorption features of hydrogen cyanide gas molecules at ambient temperature were measured and matched to the HITRAN database.Our scheme promises to provide new ideas on sensitive measurements of relative timing jitter.

Test of the Relative Permeability Curve of a Gas and Oil Condensate System and its Effect on the Recovery of Oil and Gas

The relative permeability curve has been measured with simulation oil (refined oil) and gas (nitrogen or air) at room temperature and a lowpressure, both of which are very important parameters for depicting the flow of fluid through porous media in a hydrocarbon reservoir. This basic measurement is often applied in exploitation evaluation, but the underground conditions with high temperature and pressure, and the phase equilibrium of oil and gas, are not taken into consideration when the relative permeability curve is tested. There is an important theoretical and practical sense in testing the diphase relative permeability curve of the equilibrium of oil and gas under the conditions of high temperature and pressure. The test method for the relative permeability curve is proposed in this paper. The relative permeability of the equilibrium of oil and gas and the standard one are tested in two fluids, and the differences between these two methods are stated. The research results can be applied to the simulation and prediction of CVD in long cores and then the phenomenon can better explain that the recovery of condensate gas rich in condensate oil is higher than that of CVD test in PVT. Meanwhile, the research shows that the relative permeability curve of equilibrium oil and gas is sensitive to the rate of exploitation, and the viewpoint proves that an improved gas recovery rate can properly increase the recovery of condensate oil.

Analysis on the Climate Characteristics of Relative Humidity in Recent 40 Years in Urumqi City

By using the daily average relative humidity data in Urumqi during 1961-2000,the basic climate characteristics and the variation trend of relative humidity in Urumqi in recent 40 years were analyzed.The results showed that the yearly average relative humidity in Urumqi was 57.5%.The relative humidity in winter was 77.5% which was the biggest all the year round,and the relative humidity in summer was 41.2% which was the smallest.The relative humidity in spring,summer,autumn,winter and the yearly relative humidity all displayed the increase trend.The yearly mean relative humidity had the periods of mainly 2,3-4 and quasi-7 years.The periodic oscillation of quasi-7 years was the strongest.

Algebraic Structure of the Dynamical Equations of Holonomic Mechanical System in Relative Motion

Aim To study an algebraic of the dynamical equations of holonomic mechanical systems in relative motion. Methods The equations of motion were presented in a contravariant algebraic form and an algebraic product was determined. Results and Conclusion The equations a Lie algebraic structure if any nonpotential generalized force doesn't exist while while the equations possess a Lie-admissible algebraic structure if nonpotential generalized forces exist .

QTL Analysis for Relative Water Content in Rice

Drought tolerance is complex in rice. Under drought stress, leaf water content trait can be used as a indicator for variety evaluation. In this study, ahybrid F2 population was constructed with drought-tolerant indica rice cultivar Luhan No.1 and japonica rice cultivar Nipponbare, to analyze QTLs related with relative water content in rice. According to the results, two QTLs were detected between markers 4-27M and 4-23M and between markers 6-3M and RM276 on chromosomes 4 and 6, with the contribution rate of 4.81% -6.43% to phenotypic variation.

Effects of Relative Soil Water Content on Antioxidant Enzyme System in Malus sieversii(Lebed.) Roem

By pot experiment under artificially simulated water stress conditions, soluble protein content, MDA content and SOD, POD, CAT and APX activities in Malus sieversfi leaves were determined to reveal the response mechanism of M. sieversii to changes of relative soil water content. According to the results, with the decrease of relative soil water content, MDA content in M. sieversii leaves increased by mem- brane lipid peroxidation. Cells resist water stress-induced membrane lipid peroxidation and clear the increased reactive oxygen species by improving soluble protein content and SOD, POD, CAT and APX activities. However, various enzymes were involved in the response to water stress under different moisture conditions. In addition, the results indicated that M. sieversii had a good adaptability to higher relative soil water contents.

Relative Hom-Rota-Baxter算子和Hom-Tridendriform代数

通过给出Relative Hom-Rota-Baxter算子的定义,利用Relative Hom-Rota-Baxter算子构造Hom-Dendriform代数和Hom-Tridendriform代数.