Analytical and experimental analysis of concrete temperature and energy considering open-air environmental variations.

Longwave radiation is an important open-air environmental factor that can significantly affect the temperature of concrete, but it has often been ignored in the temperature analysis of open-air concrete structures. In this article, an improved analytical model of concrete temperature was proposed by considering solar radiation, thermal convection, thermal conduction and especially longwave radiation. Temperature monitoring of an open-air concrete block was carried out to verify the proposed model and analyze the heat energy characteristics of open-air concrete. As demonstrated by the open-air experiment, under the influence of longwave radiation, the temperature at the top of the concrete block could decrease rapidly at night and even become lower than the minimum temperature at its bottom. Compared with the analytical model that ignores longwave radiation, the improved model that includes it better matches the measured temperature. According to the energy analysis, although solar radiation controls the transient variation in heat energy, the heat exchange caused by longwave radiation were more than that caused by convection on sunlit surfaces, which indicates the importance of considering longwave radiation.

T2WI-based MRI radiomics for the prediction of preoperative extranodal extension and prognosis in resectable rectal cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether T2-weighted imaging (T2WI)-based intratumoral and peritumoral radiomics can predict extranodal extension (ENE) and prognosis in patients with resectable rectal cancer. METHODS: One hundred sixty-seven patients with resectable rectal cancer including T3T4N + cases were prospectively included. Radiomics features were extracted from intratumoral, peritumoral 3 mm, and peritumoral-mesorectal fat on T2WI images. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression were used for feature selection. A radiomics signature score (Radscore) was built with logistic regression analysis. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was used to evaluate the performance of each Radscore. A clinical-radiomics nomogram was constructed by the most predictive radiomics signature and clinical risk factors. A prognostic model was constructed by Cox regression analysis to identify 3-year recurrence-free survival (RFS). RESULTS: Age, cT stage, and lymph node-irregular border and/or adjacent fat invasion were identified as independent clinical risk factors to construct a clinical model. The nomogram incorporating intratumoral and peritumoral 3 mm Radscore and independent clinical risk factors achieved a better AUC than the clinical model in the training (0.799 vs. 0.736) and validation cohorts (0.723 vs. 0.667). Nomogram-based ENE (hazard ratio [HR] = 2.625, 95% CI = 1.233-5.586, p = 0.012) and extramural vascular invasion (EMVI) (HR = 2.523, 95% CI = 1.247-5.106, p = 0.010) were independent risk factors for predicting 3-year RFS. The prognostic model constructed by these two indicators showed good performance for predicting 3-year RFS in the training (AUC = 0.761) and validation cohorts (AUC = 0.710). CONCLUSION: The nomogram incorporating intratumoral and peritumoral 3 mm Radscore and clinical risk factors could predict preoperative ENE. Combining nomogram-based ENE and MRI-reported EMVI may be useful in predicting 3-year RFS. CRITICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: A clinical-radiomics nomogram could help preoperative predict ENE, and a prognostic model constructed by the nomogram-based ENE and MRI-reported EMVI could predict 3-year RFS in patients with resectable rectal cancer. KEY POINTS: • Intratumoral and peritumoral 3 mm Radscore showed the most capability for predicting ENE. • Clinical-radiomics nomogram achieved the best predictive performance for predicting ENE. • Combining clinical-radiomics based-ENE and EMVI showed good performance for 3-year RFS.

Effect of ventilation modalities on the early prognosis of patients with poststroke sleep apnea.

OBJECTIVE: Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the primary modality for treating sleep apnea after acute ischemic stroke (AIS). However, not all patients are well adherent to CPAP. Finding an alternative modality of ventilation to CPAP is essential. METHODS: This prospective randomized clinical trial was conducted from 1 May 2022 to 8 January 2023 at the Department of Neurology, Wuhan Union Hospital. Participants diagnosed with sleep apnea after AIS were grouped according to block randomization principles into the usual care group (nasal cannula and facemask), nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) group, and high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) group. Rates of pulmonary infection and endotracheal intubation within 1 week of hospitalization and 28-day mortality (poststroke) were the primary outcomes (early prognosis). RESULTS: In the trial, 178 patients (119 males [66.85%]; mean [SD] age, 61.04 [11.78] years) were eventually enrolled in the usual care group (n = 63), the nCPAP group (n = 55), and the HFNC group (n = 60). After ventilation, the nCPAP and HFNC groups were more effective than the usual care group in reducing the rate of pulmonary infection, endotracheal intubation, and improving neurological function and sleep apnea severity. However, there was no difference in 28-day mortality. Additionally, the improvement in prognosis was consistent between nCPAP and HFNC. In the comparison of comfort, the HFNC group was superior to nCPAP. INTERPRETATION: nCPAP and HFNC reduced early pulmonary infection rates and endotracheal intubation rates. For patients with poor compliance with nCPAP, HFNC may be the best alternative.

A New 3D Iodoargentate Hybrid: Structure, Optical/Photoelectric Performance and Theoretical Research.

The explorations of new three-dimensional (3D) microporous metal halides, especially the iodoargentate-based hybrids, and understanding of their structure-activity relationships are still quite essential but full of great challenges. Herein, with the aromatic 4,4'-dpa (4,4'-dpa = 4,4'-dipyridylamine) ligands as the structural directing agents, we solvothermal synthesized and structurally characterized a novel member of microporous iodoargentate family, namely [H2-4,4'-dpa]Ag6I8 (1). Compound 1 possesses a unique and complicated 3D [Ag6I8]n2n- anionic architecture that was built up from the unusual hexameric [Ag6I13] secondary building units (SBUs). Research on optical properties indicated that compound 1 exhibited semiconductor behavior, with an optical band gap of 2.50 eV. Under the alternate irradiation of light, prominent photoelectric switching abilities could be achieved by compound [H2-4,4'-dpa]Ag6I8, whose photocurrent densities (0.37 µA·cm-2 for visible light and 1.23 µA·cm-2 for full-spectrum) compared well with or exceeded those of some high-performance halide counterparts. Further theoretical calculations revealed that the relatively dispersed conduction bands (CBs) structures in compound 1 induced higher electron mobilities, which may be responsible for its good photoelectricity. Presented in this work also comprised the analyses of Hirshfeld surface, powder X-ray diffractometer (PXRD), thermogravimetric measurement, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrum (EDX) along with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).

Dual analysis of wild-type and attenuated Orf virus and host cell transcriptomes revealed novel virus-host cell interactions.

IMPORTANCE: Currently, the only available commercial vaccines for Orf virus (ORFV) are live attenuated vaccines, which present a potential risk of reversion to virulence. Therefore, understanding the pathogenic mechanisms of different virulent strains of ORFV and host immune responses triggered by these viruses is crucial for developing new vaccines and interventions. In this study, we found that the attenuated strain downregulates the host innate immune response and antiviral activity. In addition, we noted that the wild-type strain can induce the immune response pattern centered on interferon-stimulated genes and interferon regulatory factor gene family. We predicted that STAT1 and STAT2 are the main transcription factors upstream of target gene promoters through gene regulatory networks and exert significant regulatory effects on co-expressed genes. Our study elucidated the complex interaction between ORFV strains and host cell immune responses, providing new insights into vaccine research for ORFV.

Incidence, prevention, risk factors, and prediction of venous thromboembolism in Chinese patients after colorectal cancer surgery: a prospective, multicenter cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a common and serious complication after colorectal cancer (CRC) surgery. Few large-sample studies have reported VTE incidence and management status after CRC surgery in China. This study aimed to investigate the incidence and prevention of VTE in Chinese patients after CRC surgery, identify risk factors for developing VTE, and construct a new scoring system for clinical decision-making and care planning. METHODS: Participants were recruited from 46 centers in 17 provinces in China. Patients were followed up for 1 month postoperatively. The study period was from May 2021 to May 2022. The Caprini score risk stratification and VTE prevention and incidence were recorded. The predictors of the occurrence of VTE after surgery were identified by multivariate logistic regression analysis, and a prediction model (CRC-VTE score) was developed. RESULTS: A total of 1836 patients were analyzed. The postoperative Caprini scores ranged from 1 to 16 points, with a median of 6 points. Of these, 10.1% were classified as low risk (0-2 points), 7.4% as moderate risk (3-4 points), and 82.5% as high risk (≥5 points). Among these patients, 1210 (65.9%) received pharmacological prophylaxis, and 1061 (57.8%) received mechanical prophylaxis. The incidence of short-term VTE events after CRC surgery was 11.2% (95% CI 9.8-12.7), including deep venous thrombosis (DVT) (11.0%, 95% CI 9.6-12.5) and pulmonary embolism (PE) (0.2%, 95% CI 0-0.5). Multifactorial analysis showed that age (≥70 years), history of varicose veins in the lower extremities, cardiac insufficiency, female sex, preoperative bowel obstruction, preoperative bloody/tarry stool, and anesthesia time at least 180 min were independent risk factors for postoperative VTE. The CRC-VTE model was developed from these seven factors and had good VTE predictive performance ( C -statistic 0.72, 95% CI 0.68-0.76). CONCLUSIONS: This study provided a national perspective on the incidence and prevention of VTE after CRC surgery in China. The study offers guidance for VTE prevention in patients after CRC surgery. A practical CRC-VTE risk predictive model was proposed.

Effect of different ventilation modalities on the early prognosis of patients with sleep apnea after acute ischemic stroke---protocol for a prospective, open-label and randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Sleep apnea is highly prevalent after acute ischemic stroke (AIS) and has increased stroke-related mortality and morbidity. The conventional sleep apnea treatment is continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) ventilation. However, it is poorly tolerated by patients and is not used in all stroke patients. This protocol describes the impact of high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) oxygen therapy compared to nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) ventilation or usual care on the early prognosis of patients with sleep apnea after AIS. METHODS: This randomised controlled study will be conducted in the intensive care unit of the Department of Neurology at the Wuhan Union Hospital. According to the study plan, 150 patients with sleep apnea after AIS will be recruited. All patients are randomly allocated in a 1:1:1 ratio to one of three groups: the nasal catheter group (standard oxygen group), the HFNC group, and the nCPAP group. Patients receive different types of ventilation after admission to the group, and their tolerance while using the different ventilation is recorded. Patients will be followed up by telephone three months after discharge, and stroke recovery is recorded. The primary outcomes were 28-day mortality, the incidence of pulmonary infection and endotracheal intubation. DISCUSSION: This study analyses different ventilation modalities for early interventions in patients with sleep apnea after AIS. We will investigate whether nCPAP and HFNC reduce early mortality and endotracheal intubation rates and improve distant neurological recovery in patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05323266; 25 March 2022).

MRI-based multiregional radiomics for preoperative prediction of tumor deposit and prognosis in resectable rectal cancer: a bicenter study.

OBJECTIVE: To build T2WI-based multiregional radiomics for predicting tumor deposit (TD) and prognosis in patients with resectable rectal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 208 patients with pathologically confirmed rectal cancer from two hospitals were prospectively enrolled. Intra- and peritumoral features were extracted separately from T2WI images and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator was used to screen the most valuable radiomics features. Clinical-radiomics nomogram was developed by radiomics signatures and the most predictive clinical parameters. Prognostic model for 3-year recurrence-free survival (RFS) was constructed using univariate and multivariate Cox analysis. RESULTS: For TD, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for intratumoral radiomics model was 0.956, 0.823, and 0.860 in the training cohort, test cohort, and external validation cohort, respectively. AUC for the peritumoral radiomics model was 0.929, 0.906, and 0.773 in the training cohort, test cohort, and external validation cohort, respectively. The AUC for combined intra- and peritumoral radiomics model was 0.976, 0.918, and 0.874 in the training cohort, test cohort, and external validation cohort, respectively. The AUC for clinical-radiomics nomogram was 0.989, 0.777, and 0.870 in the training cohort, test cohort, and external validation cohort, respectively. The prognostic model constructed by combining intra- and peritumoral radiomics signature score (radscore)-based TD and MRI-reported lymph nodes metastasis (LNM) indicated good performance for predicting 3-year RFS, with AUC of 0.824, 0.865, and 0.738 in the training cohort, test cohort and external validation cohort, respectively. CONCLUSION: Combined intra- and peritumoral radiomics model showed good performance for predicting TD. Combining intra- and peritumoral radscore-based TD and MRI-reported LNM indicated the recurrence risk. CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: Combined intra- and peritumoral radiomics model could help accurately predict tumor deposits. Combining this predictive model-based tumor deposits with MRI-reported lymph node metastasis was associated with relapse risk of rectal cancer after surgery. KEY POINTS: • Combined intra- and peritumoral radiomics model provided better diagnostic performance than that of intratumoral and peritumoral radiomics model alone for predicting TD in rectal cancer. • The predictive performance of the clinical-radiomics nomogram was not improved compared with the combined intra- and peritumoral radiomics model for predicting TD. • The prognostic model constructed by combining intra- and peritumoral radscore-based TD and MRI-reported LNM showed good performance for assessing 3-year RFS.

Study on the Influence of Graphene Content Variation on the Microstructure Evolution and Properties of Laser Additive Manufacturing Nickel-Based/SiC Composite Cladding Layer on Aluminum Alloy Surface.

A Ni25-10% SiC-X% graphene (mass fraction X = 0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5) composite cladding layer was prepared on a 6063 aluminum alloy substrate using laser cladding in order to enhance the comprehensive performance of the aircraft refueling interface. The effect of the graphene content on the organization and properties of nickel-based silicon carbide composite cladding layers was investigated by laser melting. The macroscopic morphology, microstructure, hardness, elemental changes, corrosion and wear resistance of the cladding layer were studied by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, a hardness tester, an X-ray diffractometer, an electrochemical workstation and an M-2000 frictional wear tester. The results indicated that the nickel-based clad layer without graphene incorporation had the worst forming, with a large number of pores and cracks in the cladding layer. Because graphene agglomerated easily, cracks were regenerated when the content of graphene was higher than 0.5%. The material phases of the cladding layer without graphene incorporation were mainly: Al3Ni2, Fe3Si and SiC. Due to the addition of graphene, the clad layer of specimen 2 was refined and a large number of hard phases, such as CrC and Cr23C6, were generated, which led to the increase in the hardness of the clad layer. When the content of graphene was further increased, the number of hard phases such as CrC and Cr23C6 produced in the cladding was relatively reduced due to the agglomeration of graphene, and the hardness of the cladding was reduced. As the impermeability of graphene reduces the diffusion of corrosive media to the substrate, the generation of hard-phase Al3Ni2 in the cladding layer makes the corrosion resistance of the cladding layer increase with the increase in graphene mass fraction. The result is that, when the content of graphene was 0.5%, the overall performance of the clad layer was the best, where its average hardness was increased by 40%, the average coefficient of friction was reduced by 12.7% and the wear rate was reduced by 60%.

A Novel Monopolar Cross-Scale Nanopositioning Stage Based on Dual Piezoelectric Stick-Slip Driving Principle.

The precise characterization and measurement of new nanomaterials and nano devices require in situ SEM nanorobotic instrumentation systems, which put forward further technical requirements on nanopositioning techniques of compact structure, cross-scale, nanometer accuracy, high vacuum and non-magnetic environment compatibility, etc. In this work, a novel cross-scale nanopositioning stage was proposed, which combined the advantages of piezoelectric stick-slip positioner and piezoelectric scanner techniques and adopted the idea of macro/micro positioning. A new structure design of a single flexible hinge shared by a small and large PZT was proposed to effectively reduce the size of the positioning stage and achieve millimeter stroke and nanometer motion positioning accuracy. Then, the cross-scale motion generation mechanism of the dual piezoelectric stick-slip drive was studied, the system-level dynamics model of the proposed positioning stages was constructed, and the mechanism design was optimized. Further, a prototype was manufactured and a series of experiments were carried out to test the performance of the stage. The results show that the proposed positioning stage has a maximum motion range of 20 mm and minimum step length of 70 nm under the small piezoceramic ceramic macro-motion stepping mode, and a maximum scanning range of 4.9 µm and motion resolution of 16 nm under the large piezoceramic ceramic micro-motion scanning mode. Moreover, the proposed stage has a compact structure size of 30 × 17 × 8 mm3, with a maximum motion speed of 10 mm/s and maximum load of 2 kg. The experimental results confirm the feasibility of the proposed stage, and nanometer positioning resolution, high accuracy, high speed, and a large travel range were achieved, which demonstrates that the proposed stage has significant performance and potential for many in situ SEM nanorobotic instrument systems.

A nomogram for predicting atrial fibrillation detected after acute ischemic stroke.

Background: Atrial fibrillation detected after stroke (AFDAS) is associated with an increased risk of ischemic stroke (IS) recurrence and death. Early diagnosis can help identify strategies for secondary prevention and improve prognosis. However, there are no validated predictive tools to assess the population at risk for AFDAS. Therefore, this study aimed to develop and validate a predictive model for assessing the incidence of AFDAS after acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Methods: This study was a multicenter retrospective study. We collected clinical data from 5332 patients with AIS at two hospitals between 2014.01 and 2021.12 and divided the development and validation of clinical prediction models into a training cohort (n = 3173) and a validation cohort (n = 2159). Characteristic variables were selected from the training cohort using the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) algorithm and multivariable logistic regression analysis. A nomogram model was developed, and its performance was evaluated regarding calibration, discrimination, and clinical utility. Results: We found the best subset of risk factors based on clinical characteristics and laboratory variables, including age, congestive heart failure (CHF), previous AIS/transient ischemia attack (TIA), national institutes of health stroke scale (NIHSS) score, C-reactive protein (CRP), and B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP). A predictive model was developed. The model showed good calibration and discrimination, with calibration values of Hosmer-Lemeshow χ2 = 4.813, P = 0.732 and Hosmer-Lemeshow χ2 = 4.248, P = 0.834 in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.815, 95% CI (0.777-0.853) and 0.808, 95% CI (0.770-0.847). The inclusion of neuroimaging variables significantly improved the performance of the integrated model in both the training cohort (AUC. 0.846 (0.811-0.882) vs. 0.815 (0.777-0.853), P = 0.001) and the validation cohort (AUC: 0.841 (0.804-0.877) vs. 0.808 (0.770-0.847), P = 0.001). The decision curves showed that the integrated model added more net benefit in predicting the incidence of AFDAS. Conclusion: Predictive models based on clinical characteristics, laboratory variables, and neuroimaging variables showed good calibration and high net clinical benefit, informing clinical decision-making in diagnosing and treating patients with AFDAS.

Development and validation of a predictive model for new-onset atrial fibrillation in sepsis based on clinical risk factors.

Objective: New-onset atrial fibrillation (NOAF) is a common complication and one of the primary causes of increased mortality in critically ill adults. Since early assessment of the risk of developing NOAF is difficult, it is critical to establish predictive tools to identify the risk of NOAF. Methods: We retrospectively enrolled 1,568 septic patients treated at Wuhan Union Hospital (Wuhan, China) as a training cohort. For external validation of the model, 924 patients with sepsis were recruited as a validation cohort at the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University (Urumqi, China). Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to screen predictors. The area under the ROC curve (AUC), calibration curve, and decision curve were used to assess the value of the predictive model in NOAF. Results: A total of 2,492 patients with sepsis (1,592 (63.88%) male; mean [SD] age, 59.47 [16.42] years) were enrolled in this study. Age (OR: 1.022, 1.009-1.035), international normalized ratio (OR: 1.837, 1.270-2.656), fibrinogen (OR: 1.535, 1.232-1.914), C-reaction protein (OR: 1.011, 1.008-1.014), sequential organ failure assessment score (OR: 1.306, 1.247-1.368), congestive heart failure (OR: 1.714, 1.126-2.608), and dopamine use (OR: 1.876, 1.227-2.874) were used as risk variables to develop the nomogram model. The AUCs of the nomogram model were 0.861 (95% CI, 0.830-0.892) and 0.845 (95% CI, 0.804-0.886) in the internal and external validation, respectively. The clinical prediction model showed excellent calibration and higher net clinical benefit. Moreover, the predictive performance of the model correlated with the severity of sepsis, with higher predictive performance for patients in septic shock than for other patients. Conclusion: The nomogram model can be used as a reliable and simple predictive tool for the early identification of NOAF in patients with sepsis, which will provide practical information for individualized treatment decisions.

Data set on oil palm plantation production and LUC emissions under different management strategies.

Oil palm plantations are the fundamental units in a palm supply chain. The fresh fruit bunch (FFB) yield at a plantation varies based on the maturity (age) of the oil palm trees. Failure to account for the maturity can lead to a demand-supply mismatch. To address this issue, Rajakal et al. (2021) have developed a mathematical optimisation model to determine the optimal maturity of the plantations needed to meet the crude palm oil demand. This article presents the data set on the FFB production and land use change (LUC) emissions at the plantations. The model was coded and solved in LINGO 18.0. The data can be used for further investigation in optimising other related activities in a palm supply chain.

Two [Co(bipy)3]3+-Templated Silver Halobismuthate Hybrids: Syntheses, Structures, Photocurrent Responses, and Theoretical Studies.

Employing in situ-generated metal complexes as structural decorating agents, we, for the first time, isolated two [Co(bipy)3]3+-templated silver halobismuthate hybrids, namely [Co(bipy)3]2Ag4Bi2X16 (X = Br (1), I (2); bipy = 2,2'-bipyridine). Compounds 1 and 2 belong to the isomorphic phrases and exhibit the nonperovskite structures characteristic of the discrete [Ag4Bi2X16]6- anions. UV-vis absorption spectra analyses showed that the optical band gaps of compounds 1 and 2 are 2.40 and 1.95 eV, respectively, implying the visible light responding semiconductor properties. Moreover, under the alternate light illumination, the title compounds exhibited "on/off" photocurrent behaviors, with high photocurrent densities comparable to many metal halide hybrids. Presented in this work also involved the Hirshfeld surface analyses and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies together with the theoretical band structures, density of states, and electron wave functions.

Assessment of the Benefits of Targeted Interventions for Pandemic Control in China Based on Machine Learning Method and Web Service for COVID-19 Policy Simulation.

Taking the Chinese city of Xiamen as an example, simulation and quantitative analysis were performed on the transmissions of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the influence of intervention combinations to assist policymakers in the preparation of targeted response measures. A machine learning model was built to estimate the effectiveness of interventions and simulate transmission in different scenarios. The comparison was conducted between simulated and real cases in Xiamen. A web interface with adjustable parameters, including choice of intervention measures, intervention weights, vaccination, and viral variants, was designed for users to run the simulation. The total case number was set as the outcome. The cumulative number was 4,614,641 without restrictions and 78 under the strictest intervention set. Simulation with the parameters closest to the real situation of the Xiamen outbreak was performed to verify the accuracy and reliability of the model. The simulation model generated a duration of 52 days before the daily cases dropped to zero and the final cumulative case number of 200, which were 25 more days and 36 fewer cases than the real situation, respectively. Targeted interventions could benefit the prevention and control of COVID-19 outbreak while safeguarding public health and mitigating impacts on people's livelihood.

Difference of geographic distributions of the Chinese patients with prion diseases in the permanent resident places and referring places.

Human prion diseases (PrDs) are a group of transmissible neurodegenerative diseases that can be clarified as sporadic, genetic and iatrogenic forms. In this study, we have analysed the time and geographic distributions of 2011 PrD cases diagnosed by China National Surveillance for Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CNS-CJD) since 2006, including 1792 sporadic CJD (sCJD) cases and 219 gPrD cases. Apparently, the cases numbers of both sCJD and gPrD increased along with the surveillance years, showing a stepping up every five years. The geographic distributions of the PrDs cases based on the permanent residences were wide, distributing in 30 out of 31 provincial-level administrative divisions in Chinese mainland. However, the case numbers in the provincial level varied largely. The provinces in the eastern part of China had much more cases than those in the western part. Normalized the case numbers with the total population each province revealed higher incidences in six provinces. Further, the resident and referring places of all PrD cases were analysed, illustrating a clear concentrating pattern of referring in the large metropolises. Five provincial-level administrative divisions reported more PrD cases from other provinces than the local ones. Particularly, BJ reported not only more than one-fourth of all PrDs cases in Chinese mainland but also 3.64-fold more PrDs cases from other provinces than its local ones. We believed that good medical resources, well-trained programmes and knowledge of PrDs in the clinicians and the CDC staffs contributed to well-referring PrD cases in those large cities.

Orf Virus Detection in the Saliva and Milk of Dairy Goats.

Orf is a zoonotic and highly contagious disease caused by Orf virus (ORFV) infection. Orf outbreaks in sheep and goats usually lead to high culling rate and mortality in newborn kids and lambs, posing a great threat to the development of goat and sheep industry. Human Orf occurs via direct contact with infected animals or fomites. While this disease is traditionally thought to spread through direct contact, whether other transmission routes exist remains unclear. Herein, we report the detection of ORFV in the saliva and milk of dairy goats without clinical Orf symptoms. Further analyses showed that these ORFV are infectious, as they can induce characteristic cytopathic changes in primary mammary and lip cells. Importantly, these ORFV can induce typical Orf lesions after inoculation in ORFV-free dairy goats. This is the first study showing that live, infectious ORFV can be isolated from the saliva and milk of asymptomatic goats, highlighting novel potential transmission routes of ORFV. These findings provide a novel idea for the prevention and control of Orf spread.

Hygroscopic additive-modified magnesium sulfate thermochemical material construction and heat transfer numerical simulation for low temperature energy storage.

In this research, the core objective is to explore the effect of super-absorbent polymer material (poly(sodium acrylate)) on the heat storage performance of magnesium sulfate and to investigate the heat transfer behavior of 13X-zeolite, nano-aluminum oxide (nano-Al2O3) and poly(sodium acrylate) modified magnesium sulfate in a reactor. Finally it provides support for future material and reactor design. All characterizations and performance tests were done in the laboratory and a numerical simulation method was used to investigate the heat transfer behavior of the reactor. Through hydrothermal treatment, bulk MgSO4·6H2O was changed into nanoparticles (200-500 nm) when composited with poly(sodium acrylate), 13X-zeolite and nano-Al2O3. Among these materials, MgSO4·6H2O shows the highest activation energy (36.8 kJ mol-1) and the lowest energy density (325 kJ kg-1). The activation energy and heat storage energy density of nano-Al2O3 modified composite material MA-1 are 28.5 kJ mol-1 and 1305 kJ kg-1, respectively. Poly(sodium acrylate) modified composite material, MPSA-3, shows good heat storage energy density (1100 kJ kg-1) and the lowest activation energy (22.3 kJ mol-1) due its high water-absorbing rate and dispersing effect. 13X-zeolite modified composite material MZ-2 shows lower activation energy (32.4 kJ mol-1) and the highest heat storage density (1411 kJ kg-1), which is 4.3 times higher than that of pure magnesium sulfate hexahydrate. According to the heat transfer numerical simulation, hygroscopic additives could prominently change the temperature distribution in the reactor and efficiently release heat to the thermal load side. The experimental and numerical simulation temperatures are similar. This indicates that the result of the numerical simulation is very close to the actual heat transfer behavior. This reactor could output heat at around 50 °C and absorb heat in the range of 100-200 °C. All these results further prove the strategy that thermochemical nanomaterial synthesis technology combined with material-reactor heat transfer numerical simulation is feasible for future material and reactor design.

The application of apparent diffusion coefficients derived from intratumoral and peritumoral zones for assessing pathologic prognostic factors in rectal cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the diagnostic performance of the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) derived from intratumoral and peritumoral zones for assessing pathologic prognostic factors in rectal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred forty-six patients with rectal cancer who underwent preoperative MRI were prospectively enrolled. Two radiologists independently placed free-hand regions of interest (ROIs) in the largest tumor cross section and three small ROIs on the peritumoral zone adjacent to the tumor contour. Maximum values of tumor ADC (ADCtmax), minimum values of tumor ADC (ADCtmin), mean values of tumor ADC (ADCtmean), mean values of peritumor ADC (ADCpmean), and ADCpmean/ADCtmean (ADC ratio) were obtained on ADC maps and correlated with prognostic factors using uni- and multivariate logistic regression, and receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis. RESULTS: Interobserver agreement was excellent for ADCtmax and ADCtmean (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC], 0.915-0.958), and were good for ADCtmin, ADCpmean, and ADC ratio (ICC, 0.774-0.878). The ADC ratio was significantly higher in the poor differentiation, T3-4 stage, lymph node metastasis (LNM)-positive, extranodal extension (ENE)-positive, tumor deposit (TD)-positive, and lymphovascular invasion (LVI)-positive groups than that in the well-moderate differentiation, T1-2 stage, LNM-negative, ENE-negative, TD-negative, and LVI-negative groups (p = 0.008, < 0.001, < 0.001, 0.001, < 0.001, and < 0.001, respectively). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of the ADC ratio was the highest for assessing poor differentiation (0.700), T3-4 stage (0.707), LNM-positive (0.776), TD-positive (0.848), and LVI-positive (0.778). Both the ADC ratio (AUC = 0.677) and ADCpmean (AUC = 0.686) showed higher diagnostic performance for assessing ENE. CONCLUSION: The ADC ratio could provide better predictive performance for assessing preoperative prognostic factors in resectable rectal cancer. KEY POINTS: • Both the peritumor/tumor ADC ratio and ADCpmean are correlated with important prognostic factors of resectable rectal cancer. • Both peritumor ADC and peritumor/tumor ADC ratio had higher diagnostic performance than tumor ADC for assessment of prognostic factors in resectable rectal cancer. • Peritumor/tumor ADC ratio showed the most capability for the assessment of prognostic factors in resectable rectal cancer.