Finite element analysis and bearing capacity calculation of cross-shaped CFST columns under compressive load.

The study investigated the load capacity of cross-shaped concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) columns under axial and eccentric compression using finite element software ABAQUS. It analyzed six specimens with measured data and an additional 26 specimens with varied parameters, including eccentricity, slenderness ratio, section steel ratio and material properties such as concrete strength and steel yield strength.The objective was to understand how these parameters affect the load capacity of cross-shaped CFST columns. The research findings suggest that as eccentricity and slenderness ratio increase, the ultimate capacity decreases. Conversely, it increases with higher steel content, concrete strength and steel yield strength. Moreover, the bearing capacity deteriorates more rapidly with reduced eccentricity and concrete strength, while it demonstrates a nearly linear increase with greater steel content. Additionally, the study found that enhancing the resilience of the channel steel significantly boosts the load-bearing capacity of the column. Based on these findings, practical design equations were developed to determine the maximum bearing capacity of cross-shaped CFST columns under axial and eccentric compression. These equations are grounded in confined concrete theory and demonstrate robust applicability for practical design purposes.

Protein Dynamics Mediated by Cardiolipin in Bacteria.

Bacterial proteins targeting the appropriate subcellular sites are the base for their proper function. Several studies have shown that the anionic phospholipid cardiolipin (CL), a conical lipid preferring negative membrane curvature, modulates the lipid bilayers' structure, which impacts the activity of their resident proteins. Due to the favor of negative membrane curvature, CL is not randomly distributed in the bacterial plasma membrane. In contrast, it gathers in particular parts of the cell membrane to form microdomains, in which many functional membrane proteins are accumulated and carry out diverse physiological processes of bacteria, such as cell division, metabolism, infection, and antibiotic residence. In addition, CL has a unique structure that carries two negative charges, which makes it play a pivotal role in protein assembly, interaction, and location. These characteristics of CL make it closely related to many crucial physiological functions of bacteria. Here, we have reviewed the mechanism of protein dynamics mediated by CL initiated on the bacterial membrane. Furthermore, we studied the effect of CL on bacterial infection and antibiotic residence. Finally, the CL-targeting therapeutic agents for antibacterial therapy are also examined.

Inefficiencies of augmented reality for different sexes and grades in Chinese vocational education.

Nowadays, augmented reality (AR) is becoming more and more prevalent and used in many fields, including education. Previous studies have reported the positive effect of AR to advocate the use of AR in the classroom. However, it is unclear whether such a positive effect can be reported for any student. In this study, we recruited students from a Chinese vocational college. Due to the peculiar conditions in China, students in vocational colleges may have weaker learning abilities and worse academic performance than students in research universities. Furthermore, the sex and grade of students were considered. We conducted a three-stage experiment for the PPT-based group and the AR-based group separately. We taught the students the orthographic projection, a lesson from the Engineering Drawing course, which is widely learned by students who majored in architecture. The students' academic performances were rated prior to class, right after class, and 1-week after class, through a direct examination at three stages. We found the inefficiency of AR for students in vocational colleges. The interaction effect between sex and grade of students was also reported. Students undergoing AR-based teaching could not perform better or even worse than students undergoing PPT-based teaching. We recommended that the teachers should consider whether to use AR in the classroom based on the characteristics of students.

Design, Synthesis, and Biological Evaluation of Amidobenzimidazole Derivatives as Stimulator of Interferon Genes (STING) Receptor Agonists.

Stimulator of interferon genes (STING) is an endoplasmic reticulum-localized adaptor protein (STING receptor) that has been shown to be activated by binding to natural cyclic dinucleotide (CDN) ligands and plays a vital role in innate immune sensing of exogenous or endogenous DNA, which then induces type I interferons and other cytokines. In this paper, we described a series of amidobenzimidazole STING agonists with high potency for the STING receptor and presented the relevant structure-activity relationships (SARs). The relative potencies of compounds 16g, 24b, and 24e were measured by a STING competition binding assay. A more thorough study of the effect on the STING signaling pathway demonstrated that three compounds, 16g, 24b, and 24e, significantly increased the protein levels and mRNA levels of IFN-ß, CXCL10, and IL-6, and 24b as a representative compound effectively triggered the phosphorylation of STING, TBK1, and IRF3 in both human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (hPBMCs) and WT THP-1 cells. In addition, compound 24b demonstrated impressive antitumor efficacy in mice with established syngeneic colon tumors by intravenous administration. Furthermore, the pharmacokinetic profile of compound 24b was fully evaluated.

Amplitude- and duration-sensitivity of single-on and double-on neurons to CF-FM stimuli in inferior colliculus of Pratt's roundleaf bat (Hipposideros pratti).

During hunting, the duration and amplitude of bat's echolocation sounds co-vary. Our previous studies showed the inferior collicular neurons of constant frequency-frequency modulation (CF-FM) bat discharged as single-on (SO) or double-on (DO) responders when stimulated with behavior related CF-FM sounds. However, how the co-varied sound duration and amplitude modulate the response properties of SO and DO neurons were understudied. Therefore, we investigated amplitude- and duration-sensitivity in 121 neurons isolated in the inferior colliculus of CF-FM bat, Pratt's roundleaf bat (Hipposideros pratti). Responses of SO and DO neurons were obtained by in vivo intracellular recordings and examined for different stimulus amplitudes and durations. Our results revealed that response patterns of SO neurons were unaffected by changes in amplitude and duration of CF-FM stimuli. However, the excitability of DO neurons increased with prolonged CF duration and higher amplitude of CF-FM stimuli. These data suggested that the invariance of SO neurons play a key role in detection of Doppler shift and glint-like changes of frequency and amplitude induced by wingbeats of insects. In contrast, amplitude- and duration-sensitivity of DO neurons to CF-FM stimuli is consistent with the systematic changes in these signal parameters during sequential phases of foraging in CF-FM bats.

Prognostic significance of the epithelial-mesenchymal transition factor zinc finger E-box-binding homeobox 2 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Zinc finger E-box-binding homeobox 2 (ZEB2) has been reported to mediate epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and disease progression in several cancer types. However, the expression of ZEB2 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and its association with prognosis remains unclear. In the present study, a tissue microarray and immunohistochemistry were used to investigate ZEB2 and epithelial (E-)cadherin expression in OSCC tissues (n=218) and peritumoral esophageal tissues (POT; n=60). There was a significantly increased incidence of positive ZEB2 expression in OSCC tissues compared with the expression in POTs (P<0.012). By contrast, the incidence of positive E-cadherin expression in OSCC tissues was significantly decreased compared with the expression in POTs (P<0.004). ZEB2 expression in OSCC was associated with a number of clinicopathological factors, and it was also an independent predictive factor for shorter overall survival time (P<0.001). Overall, ZEB2 may promote OSCC metastasis and is a potential prognostic marker for malignancy.

Latency modulation of collicular neurons induced by electric stimulation of the auditory cortex in Hipposideros pratti: In vivo intracellular recording.

In the auditory pathway, the inferior colliculus (IC) receives and integrates excitatory and inhibitory inputs from the lower auditory nuclei, contralateral IC, and auditory cortex (AC), and then uploads these inputs to the thalamus and cortex. Meanwhile, the AC modulates the sound signal processing of IC neurons, including their latency (i.e., first-spike latency). Excitatory and inhibitory corticofugal projections to the IC may shorten and prolong the latency of IC neurons, respectively. However, the synaptic mechanisms underlying the corticofugal latency modulation of IC neurons remain unclear. Thus, this study probed these mechanisms via in vivo intracellular recording and acoustic and focal electric stimulation. The AC latency modulation of IC neurons is possibly mediated by pre-spike depolarization duration, pre-spike hyperpolarization duration, and spike onset time. This study suggests an effective strategy for the timing sequence determination of auditory information uploaded to the thalamus and cortex.

Log odds of positive lymph nodes is a novel prognostic indicator for advanced ESCC after surgical resection.

BACKGROUND: To investigate the prognostic value of the log odds of positive lymph nodes (LODDS) in patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) after surgical resection. METHODS: Clinical data of 260 patients with advanced ESCC undergoing surgical resection were retrospectively reviewed. Univariate and multivariate analysis were done using the chi-square test and Cox regression model. Receiver-operating-characteristic (ROC) curve was used to compare the association of pathologic nodal (pN) and LODDS with 3- or 5-year overall survival (OS). The cut-point analyses were performed to determine whether there was a cutoff LODDS related to the greatest OS difference. RESULTS: The mean follow-up duration was 30 months (range, 3 to 106 months). The 1-, 3-, 5-year OS rates were 70.0%, 41.9% and 30.3%, respectively. Univariate analyses indicated that the 5-year OS rates were 51.2%, 30.5%, 24.6%, and 14.2% in LODDS1, LODDS2, LODDS3, and LODDS4, respectively, and the median survival times were 68.7, 34.6, 24.0, and 14.6 months, respectively (P=0.000) for all patients, and subgroup analysis showed the effect did not change in 155 patients without lymph node (LN) metastasis (P=0.024). Multivariate analysis showed that LODDS [hazard ratio (HR) =1.309, P=0.003] to be independent and significant prognostic factors for all patients, so as in node-negative patients LODDS (HR =1.610, P=0.038). The AUC of LODDS stage (AUC =0.630) was larger than that of pN stage (AUC =0.621) in prediction of 3-year OS, however LODDS were smaller in prediction of 5-year OS (AUC =0.620, 0.631, respectively), and the differences were not statistically significant (P>0.05 all). Lastly, the step analysis identified the best cut-off point for LODDS as -1.2 that is significantly associated with the prognosis of the node-negative patients (P=0.024), and the ROC analysis also indicated that a cut-off value of -1.2 for LODDS provided the highest sensitivity and specificity interestingly. CONCLUSIONS: LODDS may be suitable for evaluation of OS in advanced ESCC patients without LN metastasis.

Vav1 expression is increased in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and indicates poor prognosis.

Recently, Vav1 has been suggested to play an essential role in the progression of human cancers. However, the correlation between Vav1 expression and prognosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is still unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate Vav1 expression and its prognostic value in ESCC. The expression of Vav1 was detected by real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blotting in ESCC tissues and matched nontumorous tissues. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was carried out to detect Vav1 expression in paraffin samples from 112 primary ESCC patients. Survival analysis was performed using Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed to evaluate the correlation of Vav1 expression with prognosis of ESCC patients. The expression levels of Vav1 mRNA and protein in ESCC tissues were both significantly higher than those in adjacent nontumorous tissues. High Vav1 expression was significantly correlated with larger tumor size (P = 0.015), depth of tumor invasion (P = 0.023), lymph node metastasis (P = 0.008) and TNM stage (P < 0.001). The rate of overall survival (OS) was significantly lower in patients with high Vav1 expression than those with low Vav1 expression (P = 0.014). Multivariate Cox analysis indicated that Vav1 expression is an independent prognostic factor for OS (HR = 1.660, 95%CI = 1.058-2.607, P = 0.028). In summary, our findings demonstrate that Vav1 may be a candidate molecular prognostic marker for patients with ESCC.

Association of the C47T polymorphism in superoxide dismutase gene 2 with noise-induced hearing loss: a meta-analysis / Associação do polimorfismo C47T no gene da superóxido dismutase 2 com perda auditiva induzida pelo ruído: metanálise

Abstract Introduction Currently, there is limited information about the relationship between manganese superoxide dismutase (sod2) c47t polymorphism and susceptibility to noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). Objective The aim of this meta-analysis was to clarify the association between SOD2 C47T polymorphism and NIHL. Methods A search in PubMed and Web of Science was performed to collect data. All full-text, English-written studies containing sufficient and complete case-and-control data about the relationship between SOD2 C47T polymorphism and NIHL were included. Three eligible studies, comprising 1094 subjects, were identified. pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated to evaluate the strength of the association between SOD2 C47T polymorphism and NIHL. Results No significant association between C47T polymorphism and risk of NIHL was found with the following combinations: T vs. C (OR = 0.83; 95% CI = 0.63–1.09); TT vs. CC (OR = 0.49; 95% CI = 0.22–1.09); CT vs. CC (OR = 0.54; 95% CI = 0.25–1.17); TT vs. CC + CT (OR = 0.82; 95% CI = 0.50–1.32); CC vs. TT + TC (OR = 0.49; 95% CI = 0.23–1.04). However, in subgroup analysis, a significant association was found for TT vs. CC + CT (OR = 0.77; 95% CI = 0.42–1.41) in the Chinese population. Conclusion The present meta-analysis suggests that SOD2 C47T polymorphism is significantly associated with increased risk of NIHL in the Chinese population. Further large and well-designed studies are needed to confirm this association.

Resumo Introdução Atualmente, são limitadas as informações acerca da relação entre o polimorfismo C47T de superóxido dismutase 2 (SOD2) dependente de manganês e suscetibilidade à perda auditiva induzida pelo ruído (PAIR). Objetivo O objetivo desta metanálise foi esclarecer a associação entre o polimorfismo C47T de SOD2 e PAIR. Método Foram feitas buscas no PubMed e Web of Science para coleta de dados. Foram incluídos todos os estudos no idioma inglês, com dados suficientes e completos de casos e controles sobre a relação entre o polimorfismo C47T de SOD2 e PAIR. Foram identificados três estudos qualificados, que abrangeram 1.094 indivíduos. Foram calculadas as razões das chances (odds ratio, OR) acumuladas e intervalos de confiança (IC) de 95% para que fosse avaliada a potência da associação entre o polimorfismo C47T de SOD2 e PAIR. Resultados Não foi encontrada uma associação significativa entre o polimorfismo C47T de SOD2 e risco de PAIR com as seguintes combinações: T vs. C (OR = 0,83, IC 95% = 0,63-1,09); TT vs. CC (OR = 0,49, IC 95% = 0,22-1,09); CT vs. CC (OR = 0,54, IC 95% = 0,25-1,17); TT vs. CC + CT (OR = 0,82, IC 95% = 0,50-1,32); CC vs. TT + TC (OR = 0,49, IC 95% = 0,23-1,04). Contudo, na análise de subgrupo, foi encontrada uma associação significativa para TT vs. CC + CT (OR = 0,77, 95% CI = 0,42-1.41) na população chinesa. Conclusão A presente metanálise sugere que o polimorfismo C47T de SOD2 demonstra associação significativa com maior risco de PAIR na população chinesa. Há necessidade de novos estudos de grande porte bem concebidos, para confirmação dessa associação.

Association of the C47T polymorphism in superoxide dismutase gene 2 with noise-induced hearing loss: a meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Currently, there is limited information about the relationship between manganese superoxide dismutase (sod2) c47t polymorphism and susceptibility to noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). OBJECTIVE: The aim of this meta-analysis was to clarify the association between SOD2 C47T polymorphism and NIHL. METHODS: A search in PubMed and Web of Science was performed to collect data. All full-text, English-written studies containing sufficient and complete case-and-control data about the relationship between SOD2 C47T polymorphism and NIHL were included. Three eligible studies, comprising 1094 subjects, were identified. pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated to evaluate the strength of the association between SOD2 C47T polymorphism and NIHL. RESULTS: No significant association between C47T polymorphism and risk of NIHL was found with the following combinations: T vs. C (OR=0.83; 95% CI=0.63-1.09); TT vs. CC (OR=0.49; 95% CI=0.22-1.09); CT vs. CC (OR=0.54; 95% CI=0.25-1.17); TT vs. CC+CT (OR=0.82; 95% CI=0.50-1.32); CC vs. TT+TC (OR=0.49; 95% CI=0.23-1.04). However, in subgroup analysis, a significant association was found for TT vs. CC+CT (OR=0.77; 95% CI=0.42-1.41) in the Chinese population. CONCLUSION: The present meta-analysis suggests that SOD2 C47T polymorphism is significantly associated with increased risk of NIHL in the Chinese population. Further large and well-designed studies are needed to confirm this association.

Does tumor size improve the accuracy of prognostic prediction in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma after surgical resection?

This study aimed to investigate whether the inclusion of tumor size could improve the prognostic accuracy in patients with esophageal squamous cell cancer (ESCC). A total of 387 patients with ESCC who underwent curative resection were enrolled in this analysis. The patients were categorized into small-sized tumors (SSTs) and large-sized tumors (LSTs) using an appropriate cut-off point for tumor size. Kaplan-Meier survival curve and log-rank test were used to evaluate the prognostic value of tumor size. A Cox regression model was adopted for multivariate analysis. Their accuracy was compared based on the presence or absence of tumor size. Using 3.5 cm as the optimal cut-off point, 228 and 159 patients presented with LSTs (≥ 3.5 cm) and SSTs (< 3.5 cm), respectively. The patients with LSTs had significantly worse prognoses than patients with SSTs (23.9% vs. 43.2%, P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed that tumor size, histological type, invasion depth, and lymph node metastasis were independent predictors of overall survival. The addition of tumor size to the AJCC TNM staging improved the predictive accuracy of the 5-year survival rate by 3.9%. Further study showed that tumor size and T stage were independent predictors of the prognosis of node-negative patients, and the combination of tumor size and T stage improved the predictive accuracy by 3.7%. In conclusion, tumor size is indeed a simple and practical prognostic factor in patients with ESCC. It can be used to improve the prognostic accuracy of the current TNM staging, especially for patients with node-negative disease.

Lymph node ratio-based staging system as an alternative to the current TNM staging system to assess outcome in adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction after surgical resection.

This study aimed to assess the prognostic value of the hypothetical tumor-N-ratio (rN)-metastasis (TrNM) staging system in adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction (AEG). The clinical data of 387 AEG patients who received surgical resection were retrospectively reviewed. The optimal cut-off point of rN was calculated by the best cut-off approach using log-rank test. Kaplan-Meier plots and Cox regressions model were applied for univariate and multivariate survival analyses. A TrNM staging system based on rN was proposed. The discriminating ability of each staging was evaluated by using an adjusted hazard ratio (HR) and a -2log likelihood. The prediction accuracy of the model was assessed by using the area under the curve (AUC) and the Harrell's C-index. The number of examined lymph nodes (LNs) was correlated with metastatic LNs (r = 0.322, P < 0.001) but not with rN (r = 0.098, P > 0.05). The optimal cut-points of rN were calculated as 0, 0~0.3, 0.3~0.6, and 0.6~1.0. Univariate analysis revealed that pN and rN classifications significantly influenced patients' RFS and OS (P < 0.001). Multivariate analysis adjusted for significant factors revealed that rN was recognized as an independent risk factor. A larger HR, a smaller -2log likelihood and a larger prediction accuracy were obtained for rN and the modified TrNM staging system. Taken together, our study demonstrates that the proposed N-ratio-based TrNM staging system is more reliable than the TNM staging system in evaluating prognosis of AEG patients after curative resection.

[Predictive value of log odds of positive lymph nodes for the prognosis of patients with node-negative squamous cell carcinoma of the thoracic esophagus after radical esophagectomy].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the log odds of positive lymph nodes(LODDS) on the prognosis of patients with node-negative squamous cell carcinoma of the thoracic esophagus after radical esophagectomy. METHODS: Clinical data of 136 patients with node-negative squamous cell carcinoma of the thoracic esophagus after radical esophagectomy from January 2005 to January 2009 were retrospectively analyzed. LODDS was estimated using the calculation: log(pnod+0.5)/(tnod-pnod+0.5), in which pnod indicates the number of positive lymph nodes and tnod indicates the total number of lymph nodes retrieved. The best cut-off value for LODDS was identified by using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Drawing of survival curves was employed with the Kaplan-Meier estimator, and survival rate was analyzed using Log-rank test. The Cox proportional hazard model was used to identify independent factors associated with prognosis. RESULTS: A total of 136 patients, including 112 males and 24 females, seventy-nine patients were 65 years or older(range 27-92 years), and were included in the present study. Among them, the most cancer site was the middle third of the thoracic esophagus(115 cases), followed by the lower third(13 cases), and the upper third(8 cases). There were 70 patients with tumor diameter ≤3.5 cm and 66 patients with tumor diameter >3.5 cm. There were 32 patients with stage pT1-2, and 104 with stage pT3-4. The number of patients in TNM classification I, II and III was 14, 85 and 37, respectively. All the patients received radical esophagectomy with primary tumor resection and lymph node dissection. The median follow-up time was 44.2 months(range, 4.4-98.4 months). Five-year overall survival rate was 43.2%, and the median total survival time was 48 months. ROC analysis showed that the appropriate cut-off value of LODDS was -1.2. There were 99 patients with LODDS≤-1.2(LODDS1 stage), 37 patients with LODDS >-1.2(LODDS2 stage), the median survival time and 5-year survival rate were 56.5 months and 48.3% in patients with LODDS1 stage and 30.0 months and 29.7% in patients with LODDS 2 stage, respectively, with significant difference(χ(2)=4.980, P=0.026). Multivariate analyses showed that recurrence(HR=0.627, 95% CI:0.395 to 0.996; P=0.048) and LODDS >-1.2(HR=1.853; 95% CI:1.155 to 2.974; P=0.011) were the independent factors affecting the prognosis of patients. CONCLUSIONS: For patients with node-negative squamous cell carcinoma of the thoracic esophagus after radical esophagectomy, LODDS stage has a unique prediction for prognosis, and patients with LODDS less than -1.2 (cut-off value) have a better prognosis.

Research of the ATPase's rotation catalysis stochastic transition dynamics.

In this paper, based on the structure of the ATPase and the master equation, we put forward a stochastic hopping model which describes the rotary four-state motor's dynamics action. Finally, we obtained the relationship of the angle velocity omega, diffusion coefficient and the ATP's concentration, and got a result which accords with the rotary motor's biological mechanism.