[Effects of exercise on bone mineral content in children and adolescents at different growth stages: a Meta-analysis].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of exercise on bone mineral content(BMC) in children and adolescents at different growth stages. METHODS: EMBASE, PubMed, Web of Science, CNKI, VIP database and Wanfang database were searched. The randomized controlled trials(RCTS) published in Chinese and English on the effects of exercise on BMC in children and adolescents were collected using exercise, children, adolescents and BMC as search terms. Cochrane collaboration tool was used to evaluate the quality of the included studies, and RevMan5.4 software was used for Meta-analysis. The search time limit is from the establishment of the database to July 20, 2022. RESULTS: A total of 18 articles(22 RCTS) involving 1305 children and adolescents were included. The result of the Meta-analysis showed that: Compared with the control group, (1) exercise significantly improved spinal BMC(SMD=0.28, 95%CI 0.17-0.40, P<0.01) and femoral neck BMC(SMD=0.40, 95%CI 0.20-0.61, P<0.01), but not for systemic BMC(SMD=0.08, 95%CI-0.04-0.21, P=0.19). (2) Subgroup analysis showed that exercise significantly improved spinal BMC in the following stages: prepubertal(SMD=0.48, 95%CI 0.27-0.69, P<0.01)and early pubertal(SMD=0.22, 95%CI 0.05-0.39, P=0.01). The stages in which exercise significantly improved femoral neck BMC were as follows: prepubertal(SMD=0.60, 95%CI 0.05-1.16, P=0.03), early pubertal(SMD=0.22, 95%CI 0.01-0.43, P=0.04), middle and late pubertal(SMD=0.43, 95%CI 0.13-0.72, P<0.01). CONCLUSION: Exercise significantly enhanced spinal BMC during preadolescence and early adolescence as well as femoral neck BMC throughout childhood and adolescence, especially with higher effect sizes during preadolescence.

microRNA-155-3p attenuates intervertebral disc degeneration via inhibition of KDM3A and HIF1α.

OBJECTIVE: Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is a key element resulting in low back pain, but the mechanisms underlying IDD remain largely unknown. The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of microRNA-155-3p (miR-155-3p) on proliferation and autophagy of nucleus pulposus (NP) cells in IDD with the involvement of hypoxia-inducible factor 1 α (HIF1α)/histone lysine demethylase 3A (KDM3A) axis. METHODS: IDD NP tissues of patients with lumbar disc herniation and traumatic intervertebral disc NP tissues from patients with traumatic lumbar fracture were collected. Apoptosis in NP tissues was observed, and autophagy marker proteins in NP tissues were detected. NP cells in IDD were transfected with miR-155-3p mimic or KDM3A-siRNA to explore their roles in cell proliferation, autophagy and apoptosis. MiR-155-3p, KDM3A and HIF1α expression in NP tissues and cells were detected. RESULTS: Decreased miR-155-3p, and elevated HIF1α and KDM3A were presented in NP tissues and cells of IDD. Elevated miR-155-3p or silenced KDM3A promoted the proliferation and autophagy, and inhibited the apoptosis of NP cells of IDD. Moreover, elevated miR-155-3p decreased KDM3A and HIF1α expression, while silenced KDM3A decreased HIF1α expression in NP cells with IDD. CONCLUSION: The study concludes that up-regulated miR-155-3p or silenced KDM3A promotes the proliferation, autophagy, and restrains the apoptosis of NP cells of IDD via inhibition of HIF1α, which may be a promising approach for the treatment of IDD.

Long noncoding RNA BSN-AS2 induced by E2F1 promotes spinal osteosarcoma progression by targeting miR-654-3p/SYTL2 axis.

Spinal osteosarcoma (OS) is a rare and aggressive malignancy. Long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) BSN-AS2 has been shown to be an oncogenic gene in several cancers. However, the role and function of BSN-AS2 in spinal OS were unfamiliar. Our study identified that BSN-AS2 expression was boosted in spinal OS tissues and cell lines. Transcription factor E2F1 induced the upregulation of BSN-AS2 expression in spinal OS cells. Afterwards, loss-of-function assays indicated that BSN-AS2 depletion reduced cell proliferation, migration and invasion as well as promoted cell apoptosis in spinal OS. Thereafter, RIP, RNA pull down and luciferase reporter assays manifested BSN-AS2 could sponge miR-654-3p in spinal OS. After that, the binding effect of between miR-654-3p and SYTL2 was proved. Finally, rescue experiments illustrated that miR-654-3p inhibition or SYTL2 overexpression could counteract the inhibitory effect caused by BSN-AS2 deficiency on spinal OS progression. In conclusion, the availability of miR-654-3p was antagonized by E2F1-induced BSN-AS2 for SYTL2-meidated spinal OS progression.

Resource Allocation in Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-Assisted Wireless-Powered Internet of Things.

Most of the wireless nodes in the Internet of Things (IoT) environment face the limited energy problem and the way to provide a sustainable energy for these nodes has become an urgent challenge. In this paper, we present an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to power the wireless nodes in the IoT and an investigation on the optimal resource allocation approach based on dynamic game theory. This IoT system consists of one UAV as the power source and information receiver. The wireless nodes can be powered and collected by the UAV. In order to distinguish the wireless nodes, the wireless nodes are divided into two categories based on the energy consumption. The UAV tries to power these two categories of nodes using a different power level based on the proposed approach, where the wireless nodes control the resources for information transmission. Based on Bellman dynamic programming, the optimal allocated resources for power transfer and information transmission are obtained for both the UAV and wireless nodes, respectively. In order to show the effectiveness of the proposed model and approach, we present numerical simulations.

Resource Allocation in Cognitive Radio Wireless Sensor Networks with Energy Harvesting.

The progress of science and technology and the expansion of the Internet of Things make the information transmission between communication infrastructure and wireless sensors become more and more convenient. For the power-limited wireless sensors, the life time can be extended through the energy-harvesting technique. Additionally, wireless sensors can use the unauthored spectrum resource to complete certain information transmission tasks based on cognitive radio. Harvesting enough energy from the environments, the wireless sensors, works as the second users (SUs) can lease spectrum resource from the primary user (PU) to finish their task and bring additional transmission cost to themselves. To minimize the overall cost of SUs and to maximize the spectrum profit of the PU during the information transmission period, we formulated a differential game model to solve the resource allocation problem in the cognitive radio wireless sensor networks with energy harvesting, considering the SUs as the game players. By solving the proposed resource allocation game model, we found the open loop Nash equilibrium solutions and feedback Nash equilibrium solutions for all SUs as the optimal control strategies. Ultimately, series numerical simulation experiments have been made to demonstrate the rationality and effectiveness of the game model.

Searchable Encryption Scheme for Personalized Privacy in IoT-Based Big Data.

The Internet of things (IoT) has become a significant part of our daily life. Composed of millions of intelligent devices, IoT can interconnect people with the physical world. With the development of IoT technology, the amount of data generated by sensors or devices is increasing dramatically. IoT-based big data has become a very active research area. One of the key issues in IoT-based big data is ensuring the utility of data while preserving privacy. In this paper, we deal with the protection of big data privacy in the data storage phase and propose a searchable encryption scheme satisfying personalized privacy needs. Our proposed scheme works for all file types including text, audio, image, video, etc., and meets different privacy needs of different individuals at the expense of high storage cost. We also show that our proposed scheme satisfies index indistinguishability and trapdoor indistinguishability.

Stackelberg Dynamic Game-Based Resource Allocation in Threat Defense for Internet of Things.

With the rapid development of the Internet of Things, there are a series of security problems faced by the IoT devices. As the IoT devices are generally devices with limited resources, how to effectively allocate the restricted resources facing the security problems is the key issue at present. In this paper, we study the resource allocation problem in threat defense for the resource-constrained IoT system, and propose a Stackelberg dynamic game model to get the optimal allocated resources for both the defender and attackers. The proposed Stackelberg dynamic game model is composed by one defender and many attackers. Given the objective functions of the defender and attackers, we analyze both the open-loop Nash equilibrium and feedback Nash equilibrium for the defender and attackers. Then both the defender and attackers can control their available resources based on the Nash equilibrium solutions of the dynamic game. Numerical simulation results show that correctness and effeteness of the proposed model.

Cooperative Dynamic Game-Based Optimal Power Control in Wireless Sensor Network Powered by RF Energy.

This paper focuses on optimal power control in wireless sensor networks powered by RF energy, under the simultaneous wireless information and power transfer (SWIFT) protocol, where the information and power can be transmitted at the same time. We aim to maximize the utility for each sensor through the optimal power control, considering the influences of both the SINR and the harvested energy. The utility maximization problem is formulated as a cooperative dynamic game of a given time duration. All the sensors cooperate together to control their transmission power to maximize the utility and agree to act cooperatively so that a team optimum can be achieved. As a result, a feedback Nash equilibrium solution for each sensor is given based on the dynamic programming theory. Simulation results verify the effectiveness of the proposed approach, by comparing the grand coalition solutions with the non-cooperative solutions.

Resource Allocation in Wireless Powered IoT System: A Mean Field Stackelberg Game-Based Approach.

The IoT system has become a significant component of next generation networks, and drawn a lot of research interest in academia and industry. As the sensor nodes in the IoT system are always battery-limited devices, the power control problem is a serious problem in the IoT system which needs to be solved. In this paper, we research the resource allocation in the wireless powered IoT system, which includes one hybrid access point (HAP) and many wireless sensor nodes, to obtain the optimal power level for information transmission and energy transfer simultaneously. The relationship between the HAP and the sensor nodes are formulated as the Stackelberg game, and the dynamic variations of the energy for both the HAP and IoT devices are formulated through the dynamic game with mean field control. Then the power control in the wireless powered IoT system is formulated as a mean field Stackelberg game model. We aim to minimize the transmission cost for each sensor node based on optimally power resource allocation. Meanwhile, we attempt to minimize the energy transfer cost based on power control. As a result, the optimal solutions based on the mean field control of the sensor nodes and the HAP are achieved through dynamic programming theory and the law of large numbers, and ε -Nash equilibriums can be obtained. The energy variations for both the sensor nodes and HAP after the control of resource allocation based on the proposed approach are verified based on the simulation results.

Clinical efficacy of percutaneous vertebroplasty versus percutaneous kyphoplasty treating osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures with kyphosis.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the clinical efficacy of percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) and percutaneous kyphoplasty (PKP) in treating osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (OVCFs) with kyphosis. METHODS: The clinical data included 63 patients in the PVP group and 70 in the PKP group. The study assessed the pain visual analog scale (VAS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), wedge angle (WA), local kyphotic angle (LKA), and vertebral height. RESULTS: The operative time was significantly less in the PVP group (p < 0.05). Meanwhile, more bone cement was injected into the PKP group (p < 0.05), with significantly higher surgical costs (p > 0.05). Post-operative VAS, ODI, WA, LKA, and vertebral height were significantly improved in PVP and PKP groups compared with pre-operative measurements (p < 0.05). The results revealed insignificant VAS and ODI improvement differences between the two groups at each follow-up time (p > 0.05). Vertebral height, WA, and LKA improved more significantly in the PKP group at day 1 and 3 months post-operatively (p < 0.05), with insignificant group differences at subsequent time points (p > 0.05). The improvements in VAS were unrelated to those in WA, LKA, or vertebral height in either group (p > 0.05). The improvement in VAS was unrelated to the amount of bone cement injected (p > 0.05); the PKP group demonstrated a lower incidence of cement leakage (12.9%; p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: PVP and PKP can restore partial vertebral height and improve kyphosis with similar clinical outcomes. PVP has a shorter operating time, is more economical, and can represent a therapeutic choice.

Effect of Myrcene on Th17/Treg Balance and Endocrine Function in Autoimmune Premature Ovarian Insufficiency Mice through the MAPK Signaling Pathway.

BACKGROUND: Premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) is a defect of ovarian functions in women younger than 40 years old. Although a large number of studies have focused on investigating autoimmune POI, its detailed pathogenesis is still largely unknown. Several studies have indicated that Myrcene exerted a part in the biological processes of various diseases. Nonetheless, whether Myrcene could influence the development of autoimmune POI remains to be elucidated. METHODS: POI model was established by injecting zona pellucida glycoprotein 3 (pZP3). Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining was applied to evaluate the pathological features of ovarian tissues. Enzymelinked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used for assessing the concentrations of estradiol (E2), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) and interleukin (IL)-17. Flow cytometry analysis was conducted for assessing the balance of Th17/Treg cells. RESULTS: The results showed that decreased levels of body weight, ovarian weight and ovarian index were reversed by Myrcene in POI model mice. The estrous cycles in mice were extended in pZP3 mice and Myrcene administration restored it to normal. The reduced number of primordial, primary, and secondary follicles as well as the increased number of atretic follicles in POI mice were offset by Myrcene administration. Moreover, Myrcene could modulate the Th17/Treg balance in autoimmune POI. Besides, Myrcene suppressed the MAPK signaling pathway in pZP3 mice. CONCLUSION: Myrcene regulated the Th17/Treg balance and endocrine function in autoimmune POI mice through the MAPK signaling pathway, which might provide a reference for improving the treatment of autoimmune POI.

[Comparison of CLIF and TLIF in treatment of degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis combined with lumbar spinal stenosis].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the difference between crenel lateral interbody fusion (CLIF) and transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) in the treatment of degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis (DLS) combined with lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS). METHODS: The clinical data of DLS combined with LSS patients meeting the selection criteria admitted between May 2018 and May 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. According to different surgical methods, the patients were divided into CLIF group (33 cases) and TLIF group (32 cases). There were no significant differences ( P>0.05) between the two groups in gender, age, disease duration, lesion segments, lumbar bone mineral density, degree of lumbar spondylolisthesis, and preoperative visual analogue scale (VAS) score, Oswestry disability index (ODI), intervertebral space height, intervertebral foramen height, lumbar lordosis (LL), and segmental lordosis (SL). The operation time, intraoperative blood loss, and perioperative complications were recorded and compared between the two groups. Lumbar CT scan was performed at last follow-up to compare the intervertebral fusion rate between the two groups. Intervertebral space height, intervertebral foramen height, LL, and SL were measured before operation, at 2 weeks, 3 months after operation, and at last follow-up. VAS score and ODI were used to evaluate the pain and improvement of the quality of life of the patients. RESULTS: There were no neurological and vascular complications in the two groups. The operation time and intraoperative blood loss in CLIF group were significantly less than those in TLIF group ( P<0.05). Patients in both groups were followed up for a median time of 18 months. All the incisions healed by first intention except 1 incision in TLIF group because of poor blood glucose control. No complications such as bedsore, falling pneumonia, and deep venous thrombosis were found in both groups. At last follow-up, the intervertebral fusion rates in CLIF and TLIF group were 90.91% (30/33) and 93.75% (30/32), respectively, showing no significant difference ( χ 2=0.185, P=0.667). The VAS score, ODI, intervertebral space height, intervertebral foramen height, LL, and SL were significantly improved in both groups at each time point after operation ( P<0.05). Except that VAS score in CLIF group was significantly lower than that in TLIF group at 2 weeks after operation ( Z=-4.303, P=0.000), there were no significant differences in VAS score and ODI between the two groups at other time points ( P>0.05). The intervertebral space height, intervertebral foramen height, LL, and SL in CLIF group were significantly higher than those in TLIF group at each time point after operation, and the differences were significant ( P<0.05). CONCLUSION: CLIF in the treatment of DLS combined with LSS can achieve the similar effectiveness with traditional TLIF, and has such advantages as minimal invasion and faster recovery.

Paeonol prevents migration and invasion, and promotes apoptosis of cervical cancer cells by inhibiting 5­lipoxygenase.

Cervical cancer is a common public health issue with high morbidity worldwide. Paeonol (Pae) has been recognized as a traditional Chinese medicine used for the treatment of various cancer types. However, whether Pae could exert a protective effect on cervical cancer remains to be investigated. The aim of the present study was to explore the role of Pae in cervical cancer cells and identify the potential mechanism. Cell Counting Kit­8 and colony­formation assays were conducted to test the proliferation of HeLa cells. Additionally, wound healing and transwell assays were used to detect the migratory and invasive abilities of cells. The plasmid that overexpressed 5­lipoxygenase (5­LO) or control vector was constructed and transfected into the cells. Subsequently, flow cytometry was used to monitor the apoptotic rate of cells. The expression levels of apoptosis­associated proteins and 5­LO were detected using western blot analysis. Reverse transcription­quantitative PCR analysis detected the expression of 5­LO. Pae inhibited the proliferation, invasion and migration of HeLa cells, promoted cell apoptosis and downregulated the expression of 5­LO. Overexpression of 5­LO, however, attenuated these effects. Thus, Pae could inhibit the proliferation, migration and invasion, as well as promote apoptosis of HeLa cells by regulating the expression of 5­LO.

[Treatment of chronic thoracolumbar osteoporotic fractures combined with kyphosis with cement-injectable cannulated pedicle screw and multiple level Schwab grade â osteotomy].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of cement-injectable cannulated pedicle screw combined with multiple level Schwab grade Ⅰ osteotomy for chronic thoracolumbar osteoporotic fractures with kyphosis. METHODS: The clinical data of 27 patients with symptomatic chronic thoracolumbar osteoporotic fractures combined with kyphosis treated between June 2015 and June 2017 were retrospectively analysed. Among them, there were 8 males and 19 females, with an average age of 69.5 years (range, 56-81 years). The damage segment (kyphosis vertex) included T 11 in 4 cases, T 12 in 12 cases, L 1 in 10 cases, and L 2 in 1 case. The disease duration ranged from 3 to 21 months, with an average of 12.5 months. The T value of lumbar vertebral bone mineral density ranged from -4.9 to -2.5, with an average value of -3.61. The American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) classification was used to evaluate spinal cord injury, there were 1 case of grade D and 26 cases of grade E. The visual analogue scale (VAS) score, Oswestry disability index (ODI), kyphosis Cobb angle of fracture site, and sagittal vertical axis (SVA) data were obtained before operation, at 2 weeks after operation, 3 months after operation, and last follow-up, to evaluate the quality of life and improvement of sagittal spine parameters. RESULTS: No complications related to pedicle screw and bone cement occurred. The incisions healed by first intention in 26 cases, and 1 incision healed after dressing change due to poor blood glucose control. There were no complications such as bedsore, hypostatic pneumonia, or deep venous thrombosis. All patients were followed up 8-24 months, with an average of 16.6 months. The VAS score, ODI score, Cobb angle, and SVA were significantly improved when compared with those before operation ( P<0.05). There was no significant difference in Cobb angle between each time point after operation ( P>0.05); the VAS score and ODI score at 3 months after operation and last follow-up were significantly better than those at 2 weeks after operation ( P<0.05), and the ODI score at last follow-up was further improved when compared with the score at 3 months ( P<0.05), but there was no significant difference in VAS score ( P>0.05); SVA at last follow-up was significantly worse than that at 2 weeks and 3 months after operation ( P<0.05), but there was no significant difference between at 2 weeks and 3 months after operation ( P>0.05). During the follow-up period, there was no complication such as pedicle screw loosening, breakage or cutting, adjacent vertebral fracture, proximal junctional kyphosis, and so on. CONCLUSION: For the chronic thoracolumbar osteoporotic fractures combined with kyphosis, the cement-injectable cannulated pedicle screw and multiple level Schwab grade Ⅰ osteotomy has the advantages of less operation trauma, quick recovery, and remarkable effectiveness.

Up-regulation of soluble P-selectin predicates its prognostic value in patients with ankylosing spondylitis.

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic inflammatory disease with a high rate of disability. To find a proper prognosis marker is helpful for the treatment of AS. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether soluble P selectin (SP selectin) exerted effects on the prognosis of AS patients. Firstly, we detected the expression level of SP selectin in 85 AS patients and 60 normal subjects using quantitative real-time-polymerase chain reaction (QRT-PCR) assay. The result demonstrated that SP-selectin was over expressed in AS patients compared with healthy controls and the difference was significant (P < 0.05). Chi-square test was used to estimate whether SP selectin was associated with clinicopathologic characteristics. The factors of stages (P = 0.002), HLA-B27 (P = 0.002), ESR (P = 0.001) and C-reactive protein (P = 0.000) were considered to be related to the expression of SP selectin, which indicated that SP-selectin might be involved in the development of AS. Besides, the prognosis of AS patients after treatment was explored and analyzed via Cox regression analysis. The analysis suggested that ESR and SP selectin both served as independent prognostic biomarkers for AS (HR = 2.069, 95% CI = 1.049-4.080; HR = 4.562, 95% CI = 1.766-11.784). Taken together, our study revealed that not only the level of SP selectin was upregulated, but also SP selectin could predict the prognosis of AS patients.

DWT features performance analysis for automatic speech recognition of Urdu.

This paper presents the work on Automatic Speech Recognition of Urdu language, using a comparative analysis for Discrete Wavelets Transform (DWT) based features and Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC). These features have been extracted for one hundred isolated words of Urdu, each word uttered by ten different speakers. The words have been selected from the most frequently used words of Urdu. A variety of age and dialect has been covered by using a balanced corpus approach. After extraction of features, the classification has been achieved by using Linear Discriminant Analysis. After the classification task, the confusion matrix obtained for the DWT features has been compared with the one obtained for Mel-Frequency Cepstral Coefficients based speech recognition. The framework has been trained and tested for speech data recorded under controlled environments. The experimental results are useful in determination of the optimum features for speech recognition task.