Improving postoperative outcomes in patients with pancreatic cancer:Inflammatory and nutritional biomarkers

This editorial assesses the prognostic value of preoperative inflammatory and nutritional biomarkers in patients undergoing surgical resection for pancreatic cancer.Lu et al evaluated the ability of seven biomarkers to predict postoperative recovery and long-term outcomes.These biomarkers were albumin-to-globulin ratio,prognostic nutritional index(PNI),systemic immune-inflammation index,neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio,platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio,nutritional risk index,and geriatric nutritional risk index.The PNI was found to be a strong predictor of both overall and recurrence-free survival,underscoring its clinical relevance in managing patients with pancreatic cancer.

Persistent alterations in gray matter in COVID-19 patients experiencing sleep disturbances:a 3-month longitudinal study

Sleep disturbances are among the most prevalent neuropsychiatric symptoms in individuals who have recovered from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infections.Previous studies have demonstrated abnormal brain structures in patients with sleep disturbances who have recovered from coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19).However,neuroimaging studies on sleep disturbances caused by COVID-19 are scarce,and existing studies have primarily focused on the long-term effects of the virus,with minimal acute phase data.As a result,little is known about the pathophysiology of sleep disturbances in the acute phase of COVID-19.To address this issue,we designed a longitudinal study to investigate whether alterations in brain structure occur during the acute phase of infection,and verified the results using 3-month follow-up data.A total of 26 COVID-19 patients with sleep disturbances(aged 51.5±13.57 years,8 women and 18 men),27 COVID-19 patients without sleep disturbances(aged 47.33±15.98 years,9 women and 18 men),and 31 age-and gender-matched healthy controls(aged 49.19±17.51 years,9 women and 22 men)were included in this study.Eleven COVID-19 patients with sleep disturbances were included in a longitudinal analysis.We found that COVID-19 patients with sleep disturbances exhibited brain structural changes in almost all brain lobes.The cortical thicknesses of the left pars opercularis and left precuneus were significantly negatively correlated with Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores.Additionally,we observed changes in the volume of the hippocampus and its subfield regions in COVID-19 patients compared with the healthy controls.The 3-month follow-up data revealed indices of altered cerebral structure(cortical thickness,cortical grey matter volume,and cortical surface area)in the frontal-parietal cortex compared with the baseline in COVID-19 patients with sleep disturbances.Our findings indicate that the sleep disturbances patients had altered morphology in the cortical and hippocampal structures during the acute phase of infection and persistent changes in cortical regions at 3 months post-infection.These data improve our understanding of the pathophysiology of sleep disturbances caused by COVID-19.

Relationship between coal size reduction and energy input in Hardgrove mill

Hardgrove grindability index （HGI） is an important indicator of coal grindability, and is one of the most important parameters to determine the capacity of coal pulverizer in power station. However, HGI is an empirical grindability index without linkages to any known physical parameters. To investigate the effect of energy input on the grinding in Hardgrove mill. a T20WN torque meter was installed on the shaft of a modified Hardgrove mill to record the torque driving the mill. Samples from four kinds of coals with HGI ranging from 36 to 72 were prepared according to the procedure of standard HGI test and ground in a modified Hardgrove mill at different revolutions. The relation of sample size reduction degree to specific comminution energy （Ecs） was studied with Shi-Kojovic model, The results show that Shi-Kojovic model predicted well the coal size reduction degree with Ecs in Hardgrove mill. The griadability index given by Shi-Kojovic model has a similar trend with HGI. The relation of sample size reduction degree to Ecs reveals that HGI has a non-linear relationship with effective specific energy in Hardgrove mill, which explains the non-linear relation of HG1 to industrial pulverizer capacity.

Physiological and Biochemical Basis of Water-Deficit Stress Tolerance in Pearl Millet Hybrid and Parents

The present investigation was aimed to understand the physiological and biochemical basis of water-deficit stress tolerance in pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.] hybrid ICMH 356 and its parents ICMR 356 (♂) and ICMB 88004 (♀) in response to and recovery from drought stress and also to comprehend crop adaptation under dryland conditions. A field experiment was conducted in a split plot design with moisture levels as the main plot and genotypes as the sub plots. A comparative analysis of hybrid and parents under well-watered and water-deficit stress conditions revealed that the hybrid was superior over the parents in terms of leaf water relations, excised leaf water retention capacity, accumulation of compatible solutes, photosynthesis, membrane stability index and antioxidative enzyme viz., superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione reductase (GR), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and guaiacol peroxidase (GPOX) activities. ANOVA for these parameters was also found to be significant for genotypes, treatments and their interactions at 0.01% level. Maintenance of superiority in terms of these physiological and biochemical parameters coupled with better recovery ability upon stress relief are crucial physiological mechanisms contributing to water deficit stress tolerance in pearl millet. Simple correlation coefficient analysis revealed significant positive association of yield at 0.01% level with relative water content, leaf water potential, stomatal conductance, photosynthesis, proline, total soluble sugars, free amino acids, membrane stability index, leaf area index and total biomass, while a significant negative association with solute potential and malondialdehyde content, under water-deficit stress clearly indicated that such relationships can be positively attributed to drought tolerance.

Assessment of retracted papers,and their retraction notices,from a cancer journal associated with“paper mills”

Cancer research is occasionally described as being in a reproducibility crisis.The cancer literature has ample papers retracted due to misconduct,including the use of paper mills,invalid authorship,or fake data.The objective of this paper was to gain an appreciation of the balance of retractions and associated retraction notices of 23 retracted Cancer Biotherapy and Radiopharmaceuticals papers associated with paper mills.By 23 March 2023,these retracted papers had already accumulated 287 citations according to Web of Science Core Collection,253 according to Scopus,and 365 according to Google Scholar,i.e.,metrically speaking,they were highly rewarded.All authors had an affiliation(71%being a hospital)in China.Most(12/21;57%)of corresponding authors had emails with a@163.com suffix.Four of the retraction notices(i.e.,17%)explicitly indicated paper mills as a reason for retraction although,in general,the retraction notices lacked details and background that could assist readers’understanding of the retractions.

Dual-band metamaterial with a windmill-like structure

A broadband negative refractive index metamaterial based on a windmill-like structure is proposed, and investigated numerically and experimentally at the microwave frequency range. From the numerical and experimental results, effect media parameters are retrieved, which clearly show that two broad frequency bands exist in which the permittivity and permeability are negative. The two negative bands are from 9.1 GHz to 10.5 GHz and from 12.05 GHz to 14.65 GHz respectively, and the negative bandwidth is 4 GHz. Due to the good bandwidth performance, the metallic cell with double negative property obtained in this paper is suitable for use in the design of multiband or broadband microwave devices.

Effect of the degree of milling on the physicochemical properties,pasting properties and in vitro digestibility of Simiao rice

Simiao rice is a variety of long-grain Indica rice popular in South China.However,researches on the milling technology of Simiao rice are limited.The effect of different degrees of milling(DOMs)of Simiao rice(0-12%)were evaluated in terms of the physicochemical properties and in vitro starch digestibility of the rice.The results showed that,as the DOM increased from 0 to 12%,the head rice yield(HRY)and the content of protein,lipid,dietary fiber,vitamin B1,vitamin E and niacin nonlinearly decreased,while the content of total starch and amylose and paste viscosity parameters nonlinearly increased.The differences in chemical constituents between the brown and milled Simiao rice with different DOMs lead to the variation in their pasting properties and in vitro digestibility.Because of lower content of slowly digestible starch(SDS)and resistant starch(RS),milled Simiao rice exhibited greater digestibility and a higher estimated glycaemic index(EGI).The EGI of Simiao rice ranged from 77.98 to 85.55,and remained almost constant(approximately 84)when the DOM was above 4%.Correlation analysis indicated that the EGI had strong negative correlations with lipid,protein,dietary fiber and RS,but a positive correlation with amylose.These results provide theoretical guidance for the production of Simiao rice with desired physicochemical properties and digestibility by adjusting the DOM.

Development and Processing of Millettia speciosa Instant Tea

This paper analyzed the effect of raw material crushing fineness,cooking time,ethanol content during ethanol precipitation and other factors on the preparation of raw material extract from Millettia speciosa Champ. instant tea. The raw materials of Millettia speciosa Champ.,Philippine flemingia root and radix fici simplicissimae were crushed into 10 mesh or finer powder,and cooked for 60 min. During ethanol precipitation,the ethanol content was about 50% to 70%,standing 12 h. The ophiopogon root was cooked in 1∶ 15 boiling water for 45 min,and chrysanthemum was leached for 45 min with 1∶ 20 demineralized water at 80 ℃. After concentration,preparation and spray drying,the finished Millettia speciosa Champ. instant tea was created. The detection of each product index indicated that Millettia speciosa Champ. instant tea had good taste and flavor,and there were no heavy metals,harmful substances and excessive microbes,thereby showing that the raw material of Millettia speciosa Champ. instant tea was selected reasonably,the mixture ratio was rational,and the processing technology was of some security,stability and maturity,which provided a theoretical basis for its development and application.

Thermo-mechanical properties of bowl-shaped grinding wheel and machining error compensation for grinding indexable inserts

In order to meet the technical requirements of grinding the circumferential cutting edge of indexable inserts, thermo-mechanical properties of bowl-shaped grinding wheel in high speed grinding process and the influence of dimension variations of the grinding wheel on machining accuracy were investigated. Firstly, the variation trends of the dimension due to centrifugal force generated in different wheel speeds were studied and the effect of stress stiffening and spin softening was presented. Triangular heat flux distribution model was adopted to determine temperature distribution in grinding process. Temperature field cloud pictures were obtained by the finite element software. Then, dimension variation trends of wheel structure were acquired by considering the thermo-mechanical characteristic under combined action of centrifugal force and grinding heat at different speeds. A method of online dynamic monitoring and automatic compensation for dimension error of indexable insert was proposed. By experimental verification, the precision of the inserts satisfies the requirement of processing.

GC-MS结合电子鼻技术对不同茶区茉莉花茶香气的差异比较

为探究不同产区茉莉花茶香气差异,采用气相色谱-质谱(GasChromatography-Mass Spectrometry,GC-MS)结合电子鼻(Electronic Nose,E-nose)技术对西南、华南、江南三大茶区的8种茉莉花茶进行香气研究。结果表明,8个样品共鉴定出香气成分58种,其中西南、江南、华南茶区分别为45种、51种、47种。江南茶区香气化合物总量最高。共有香气成分主要包括邻氨基苯甲酸甲酯、顺式-3-己烯醇苯甲酸酯、乙酸苄酯、水杨酸甲酯、芳樟醇、吲哚等。其中水杨酸甲酯在江南茶区含量最高(22.32μg/g),分别较华南、西南茶区高33.96%、68.01%;邻氨基苯甲酸甲酯(67.39μg/g)和吲哚(43.84μg/g)含量在华南茶区最高。茉莉花茶香气评价指数(JasmineTea Flavor Index,JTF index)分析表明西南茶区样品等级最高。香气聚类分析将共有香气成分分为3类,分别呈花香、茉莉花香和草木香。通过电子鼻技术可知样品香气物质变化与硫化物、碳氢化合物、芳香化合物有关,并能有效区别样品香气。综上,三大茶区样品香气种类差异不明显,但各香气成分含量差异显著(P<0.05),江南和华南茶区的样品特征性香气成分含量较高,西南茶区样品综合指数高。

Compressive near-field millimeter wave imaging algorithm based on Gini index and total variation mixed regularization

A compressive near-field millimeter wave(MMW)imaging algorithm is proposed.From the compressed sensing(CS)theory,the compressive near-field MMW imaging process can be considered to reconstruct an image from the under-sampled sparse data.The Gini index(GI)has been founded that it is the only sparsity measure that has all sparsity attributes that are called Robin Hood,Scaling,Rising Tide,Cloning,Bill Gates,and Babies.By combining the total variation(TV)operator,the GI-TV mixed regularization introduced compressive near-field MMW imaging model is proposed.In addition,the corresponding algorithm based on a primal-dual framework is also proposed.Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed GI-TV mixed regularization algorithm has superior convergence and stability performance compared with the widely used l1-TV mixed regularization algorithm.

Design and Evaluation of a Sensitive, Low Cost and Portable Millimeter Wave Survey Meter

We developed a small, hand-held, portable, low cost, millimeter wave (mmW) meter to detect and display the levels of emissions from L3 ProVision security scanners used in hundreds of airports for detection of contraband and weapons. The meter is intended to measure radiation emissions from this particular scanner and enable the user to enable periodic quality assurance measurements and to see if undesirably high levels were to occur. The non-engineering staff of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) can use this meter to demonstrate safety of these scanners to passengers using this simple handheld instrument certified by the US Food Drug administration. This meter can assess human exposure levels during periodic quality assurance inspections, in a region where a person is being scanned, and demonstrate the lack of possible interference with body worn medical devices. It has receiving, signal processing, output display, and user control subsystems, and displays graphical and numerical information. The meter detects low level, pulses of mmW electromagnetic radiation (20 - 30 GHz with levels of 0.02 V/m to 0.15 V/m). It displays a single burst of five or more 10 μsec pulses. It detects levels as low as several thousand times below the maximum permissible levels prescribed by international human exposure safety standards. This compact system replaces the bulky and costly collection of large and costly instruments needed to perform the same measurements.

Computation of Topological Indices of Dutch Windmill Graph

In this paper, we compute Atom-bond connectivity index, Fourth atom-bond connectivity index, Sum connectivity index, Randic connectivity index, Geometric-arithmetic connectivity index and Fifth geometric-arithmetic connectivity index of Dutch windmill graph.

Study on Visually Design of Indexable Insert Tip

In order to improve the development efficiency of the indexable insert tip, three-dimensional parametric and visualization applications program of indexable insert tip was developed in AutoCAD VBA （Visual Basic for Applications）. The software could significantly improve the modeling efficiency of indexable insert tip and the model could also be used to static analysis, dynamic analysis and thermodynamic analysis. All aspects of performance could be fully understood by the finite element analysis. The ref- erence for the blade parameters preferred is also provided.

Nutrimental diagnosis of avocado(Persea americana Mill.)“Haas”,soil fertility and water quality in Cuernavaca,Morelos,Mexico

In two contrasting agricultural ecohabitats (agrohabitats) in the avocado production area in the municipality of Cuernavaca, Morelos, an analysis of nutrimental status, soil fertility and water quality was conducted to measure soil fertility levels and to determine the nutrimental state of the trees. The “Hass” variety avocado groves studied had an average age of 8 years;the first grove was planted in an acrisol soil (1700 to 1900 meters above mean sea level [mamsl]);the second, in an andosol soil (1200 to 1700 mamsl). In each agrohabitat, tests were performed to determine the soil’s physical and chemical characteristics. The physical and chemical characteristics of the soils of this zone differ as do the nutrimental states of the avocado trees in the two agrohabitats. The trees showed excessive concentration of Ca, Fe, S, Z and Mg. The indices of Deviation from Optimal Percentage (DOP) in the two agrohabitats showed different nutrimental requirements;nevertheless, they were low and very near to zero, 14.218 and 13.350 respectively. The water used for the agricultural irrigation was low in salinity and sodium content and thus may be used for the agricultural irrigation without restrictions.

京津冀地区碳排放时空格局变化及其驱动因子

人类对陆地生态系统的改变是碳排放增加的主要原因。在“双碳”目标背景下探索土地利用变化与碳排放的动态关系,有助于区域土地低碳可持续利用。研究基于土地利用转移视角,采用重心-标准差椭圆方法揭示了京津冀地区土地利用碳排放时空格局演化特征,评估了碳排放与生态环境、社会经济发展的协调程度,并借助改进的Kaya模型和LMDI分解模型定量分析了土地利用变化对碳排放的影响程度。结果表明:(1)建设用地的转入是土地利用碳排放增加的主要来源,引起碳排放量增加15844.36万t;耕地、草地向林地、水域的转变促进了地区固碳能力的提升。(2)土地利用碳排放空间分布格局呈现出东北-西南方向向中心进一步聚集的趋势,并且东-西向聚集趋势大于南-北向。(3)京津冀地区整体碳排放与生态环境的协调性呈向好趋势发展,但大部分地区碳排放与社会经济发展出现失衡现象,地区间碳生产力差异逐渐增大。(4)经济水平是促进碳排放增加的最显著因素,单位GDP用地强度是抑制碳排放增加的最主要因素。分析结果表明,严格控制建设用地的无序扩张是促进低碳土地利用的基础,低碳经济发展是促进地区减碳的重要途径。

Probabilistic analysis of tunnel face seismic stability in layered rock masses using Polynomial Chaos Kriging metamodel

Face stability is an essential issue in tunnel design and construction.Layered rock masses are typical and ubiquitous;uncertainties in rock properties always exist.In view of this,a comprehensive method,which combines the Upper bound Limit analysis of Tunnel face stability,the Polynomial Chaos Kriging,the Monte-Carlo Simulation and Analysis of Covariance method(ULT-PCK-MA),is proposed to investigate the seismic stability of tunnel faces.A two-dimensional analytical model of ULT is developed to evaluate the virtual support force based on the upper bound limit analysis.An efficient probabilistic analysis method PCK-MA based on the adaptive Polynomial Chaos Kriging metamodel is then implemented to investigate the parameter uncertainty effects.Ten input parameters,including geological strength indices,uniaxial compressive strengths and constants for three rock formations,and the horizontal seismic coefficients,are treated as random variables.The effects of these parameter uncertainties on the failure probability and sensitivity indices are discussed.In addition,the effects of weak layer position,the middle layer thickness and quality,the tunnel diameter,the parameters correlation,and the seismic loadings are investigated,respectively.The results show that the layer distributions significantly influence the tunnel face probabilistic stability,particularly when the weak rock is present in the bottom layer.The efficiency of the proposed ULT-PCK-MA is validated,which is expected to facilitate the engineering design and construction.

A phenology-based vegetation index for improving ratoon rice mapping using harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 data

Ratoon rice,which refers to a second harvest of rice obtained from the regenerated tillers originating from the stubble of the first harvested crop,plays an important role in both food security and agroecology while requiring minimal agricultural inputs.However,accurately identifying ratoon rice crops is challenging due to the similarity of its spectral features with other rice cropping systems(e.g.,double rice).Moreover,images with a high spatiotemporal resolution are essential since ratoon rice is generally cultivated in fragmented croplands within regions that frequently exhibit cloudy and rainy weather.In this study,taking Qichun County in Hubei Province,China as an example,we developed a new phenology-based ratoon rice vegetation index(PRVI)for the purpose of ratoon rice mapping at a 30 m spatial resolution using a robust time series generated from Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2(HLS)images.The PRVI that incorporated the red,near-infrared,and shortwave infrared 1 bands was developed based on the analysis of spectro-phenological separability and feature selection.Based on actual field samples,the performance of the PRVI for ratoon rice mapping was carefully evaluated by comparing it to several vegetation indices,including normalized difference vegetation index(NDVI),enhanced vegetation index(EVI)and land surface water index(LSWI).The results suggested that the PRVI could sufficiently capture the specific characteristics of ratoon rice,leading to a favorable separability between ratoon rice and other land cover types.Furthermore,the PRVI showed the best performance for identifying ratoon rice in the phenological phases characterized by grain filling and harvesting to tillering of the ratoon crop(GHS-TS2),indicating that only several images are required to obtain an accurate ratoon rice map.Finally,the PRVI performed better than NDVI,EVI,LSWI and their combination at the GHS-TS2 stages,with producer's accuracy and user's accuracy of 92.22 and 89.30%,respectively.These results demonstrate that the proposed PRVI based on HLS data can effectively identify ratoon rice in fragmented croplands at crucial phenological stages,which is promising for identifying the earliest timing of ratoon rice planting and can provide a fundamental dataset for crop management activities.

Asymmetric Drying and Wetting Trends in Eastern and Western China

As an important factor that directly affects agricultural production, the social economy, and policy implementation,observed changes in dry/wet conditions have become a matter of widespread concern. However, previous research has mainly focused on the long-term linear changes of dry/wet conditions, while the detection and evolution of the non-linear trends related to dry/wet changes have received less attention. The non-linear trends of the annual aridity index, obtained by the Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition(EEMD) method, reveal that changes in dry/wet conditions in China are asymmetric and can be characterized by contrasting features in both time and space in China. Spatially, most areas in western China have experienced transitions from drying to wetting, while opposite changes have occurred in most areas of eastern China. Temporally, the transitions occurred earlier in western China compared to eastern China. Research into the asymmetric spatial characteristics of dry/wet conditions compensates for the inadequacies of previous studies, which focused solely on temporal evolution;at the same time, it remedies the inadequacies of traditional research on linear trends over centennial timescales. Analyzing the non-linear trend also provides for a more comprehensive understanding of the drying/wetting changes in China.

Are we ready to use new endoscopic scores for ulcerative colitis?

For ulcerative colitis(UC),the variability in inflammatory activity along the colon poses a challenge in management.The focus on achieving endoscopic healing in UC is evident,where the UC Endoscopic Index of Severity and Mayo Endoscopic Subscore are commonly used for evaluation.However,these indices primarily consider the most severely affected region.Liu et al recent study validates the Toronto Inflammatory Bowel Disease Global Endoscopic Reporting(TIGER)score offering a comprehensive assessment of inflammatory activity across diverse segments of the colon and rectum and a reliable index correlating strongly with UC Endoscopic Index of Severity and moderately with Mayo Endoscopic Subscore(MES).Despite recommendation,certain aspects warrant further invest-igation.Fecal calprotectin,an intermediate target,correlates with TIGER and should be explored.Determining TIGER scores defining endoscopic remission and response,evaluating agreement with histological activity,and assessing inter-endoscopist agreement for TIGER require scrutiny.Exploring the correlation between TIGER and intestinal ultrasound,akin to MES,adds value.