Biodiversity and distribution patterns of blooming jellyfish in the Bohai Sea revealed by eDNA metabarcoding.

BACKGROUND: The mass occurrence of scyphozoan jellyfish severely affects marine ecosystems and coastal economies, and the study of blooming jellyfish population dynamics has emerged in response. However, traditional ecological survey methods required for such research have difficulties in detecting cryptic life stages and surveying population dynamics owing to high spatiotemporal variations in their occurrence. The environmental DNA (eDNA) technique is an effective tool for overcoming these limitations. RESULTS: In this study, we investigated the biodiversity and spatial distribution characteristics of blooming jellyfish in the Bohai Sea of China using an eDNA metabarcoding approach, which covered the surface, middle, and bottom seawater layers, and sediments. Six jellyfish taxa were identified, of which Aurelia coerulea, Nemopilema nomurai, and Cyanea nozakii were the most dominant. These three blooming jellyfish presented a marked vertical distribution pattern in the offshore regions. A. coerulea was mainly distributed in the surface layer, whereas C. nozakii and N. nomurai showed a upper-middle and middle-bottom aggregation, respectively. Horizontally, A. coerulea and C. nozakii were more abundant in the inshore regions, whereas N. nomurai was mainly distributed offshore. Spearman's correlation analysis revealed a strong correlation between the eDNA of the three dominant blooming jellyfish species and temperature, salinity, and nutrients. CONCLUSIONS: Our study confirms the applicability of the eDNA approach to both biodiverstiy evaluation of blooming jellyfish and investigating their spatial distribution, and it can be used as a supplementary tool to traditional survey methods.

Metabolomics revealed more deleterious toxicity induced by the combined exposure of ammonia and nitrite on Ruditapes philippinarum compared to single exposure.

NH3-N and NO2-N always co-exist in the aquatic environment, but there is not a clear opinion on their joint toxicities to the molluscs. Presently, clams Ruditapes philippinarum were challenged by environmental concentrations of NH3-N and NO2-N, singly or in combination, and analyzed by metabolomics approaches, enzyme assays and transmission electron microscope (TEM) observation. Results showed that some same KEGG pathways with different enriched-metabolites were detected in the three exposed groups within one day, and completely different profiles of metabolites were found in the rest of the exposure period. The combined exposure induced heavier and more lasting toxicities to the clams compared with their single exposure. ACP activity and the number of secondary lysosomes were significantly increased after the combined exposure. The present study shed light on the joint-toxicity mechanism of NH3-N and NO2-N, and provided fundamental data for the toxicity research on inorganic nitrogen.

Differences in seed characteristics, germination and seedling growth of Suaeda salsa grown in intertidal zone and on saline inland.

The ecological restoration of saline land in the Yellow River Delta is essential for the sustainability of this region. Halophytic species, like Suaeda salsa, are critical for the restoration process. However, potential differences in traits of heteromorphic seeds collected from the intertidal zone and inland condition have been largely overlooked. The seeds were analyzed for hardness, nutrient elements, and secretions, while structural differences were observed under a stereomicroscope. Germination percentages of the different seed types and subsequent seedling growth were also recorded. Our study found that the black seeds from intertidal zone had the highest hardness when compared to the three other types of seeds. Nutrient analysis revealed that brown seeds had a higher iron (Fe) content than black seeds. Accordingly, brown seed embryos were greener compared to their black seed counterparts due to the iron's role in chlorophyll synthesis. Our results also revealed that brown seeds secreted greater amounts of exudates than black seeds. Finally, both the intertidal brown seeds and the inland-grown brown seeds had higher germination percentages and better early seedling growth than the corresponding black seeds. The differential characteristics between dimorphic seeds and seedlings may influence their environmental adaptation in different saline environments.

A Multi-Scale Anti-Multipath Algorithm for GNSS-RTK Monitoring Application.

During short baseline measurements in the Real-Time Kinematic Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS-RTK), multipath error has a significant impact on the quality of observed data. Aiming at the characteristics of multipath error in GNSS-RTK measurements, a novel method that combines improved complete ensemble empirical mode decomposition with adaptive noise (ICEEMDAN) and adaptive wavelet packet threshold denoising (AWPTD) is proposed to reduce the effects of multipath error in GNSS-RTK measurements through modal function decomposition, effective coefficient sieving, and adaptive thresholding denoising. It first utilizes the ICEEMDAN algorithm to decompose the observed data into a series of intrinsic mode functions (IMFs). Then, a novel IMF selection method is designed based on information entropy to accurately locate the IMFs containing multipath error information. Finally, an optimized adaptive denoising method is applied to the selected IMFs to preserve the original signal characteristics to the maximum possible extent and improve the accuracy of the multipath error correction model. This study shows that the ICEEMDAN-AWPTD algorithm provides a multipath error correction model with higher accuracy compared to singular filtering algorithms based on the results of simulation data and GNSS-RTK data. After the multipath correction, the accuracy of the E, N, and U coordinates increased by 49.2%, 65.1%, and 56.6%, respectively.

Lightweight 3D Dense Autoencoder Network for Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Image Classification.

The lack of labeled training samples restricts the improvement of Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Image (HRSI) classification accuracy based on deep learning methods. In order to improve the HRSI classification accuracy when there are few training samples, a Lightweight 3D Dense Autoencoder Network (L3DDAN) is proposed. Structurally, the L3DDAN is designed as a stacked autoencoder which consists of an encoder and a decoder. The encoder is a hybrid combination of 3D convolutional operations and 3D dense block for extracting deep features from raw data. The decoder composed of 3D deconvolution operations is designed to reconstruct data. The L3DDAN is trained by unsupervised learning without labeled samples and supervised learning with a small number of labeled samples, successively. The network composed of the fine-tuned encoder and trained classifier is used for classification tasks. The extensive comparative experiments on three benchmark HRSI datasets demonstrate that the proposed framework with fewer trainable parameters can maintain superior performance to the other eight state-of-the-art algorithms when there are only a few training samples. The proposed L3DDAN can be applied to HRSI classification tasks, such as vegetation classification. Future work mainly focuses on training time reduction and applications on more real-world datasets.

[Retracted] miR­30a­5p inhibits the proliferation, migration and invasion of melanoma cells by targeting SOX4.

Following the publication of this paper, it was drawn to the Editor's attention by a concerned reader that the tumour images shown in Fig. 3B were strikingly similar to data appearing in different form in another article written by different authors at different research institutes. Owing to the fact that the contentious data in the above article were already under consideration for publication prior to its submission to Molecular Medicine Reports, the Editor has decided that this paper should be retracted from the Journal. The authors were asked for an explanation to account for these concerns, but the Editorial Office did not receive a reply. The Editor apologizes to the readership for any inconvenience caused. [Molecular Medicine Reports 18: 2492­2498, 2018; DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2018.9166].

Learning Background-Suppressed Dual-Regression Correlation Filters for Visual Tracking.

The discriminative correlation filter (DCF)-based tracking method has shown good accuracy and efficiency in visual tracking. However, the periodic assumption of sample space causes unwanted boundary effects, restricting the tracker's ability to distinguish between the target and background. Additionally, in the real tracking environment, interference factors such as occlusion, background clutter, and illumination changes cause response aberration and, thus, tracking failure. To address these issues, this work proposed a novel tracking method named the background-suppressed dual-regression correlation filter (BSDCF) for visual tracking. First, we utilize the background-suppressed function to crop out the target features from the global features. In the training step, while introducing the spatial regularity constraint and background response suppression regularization, we construct a dual regression structure to train the target and global filters separately. The aim is to exploit the difference between the output response maps for mutual constraint to highlight the target and suppress the background interference. Furthermore, in the detection step, the global response can be enhanced by a weighted fusion of the target response to further improve the tracking performance in complex scenes. Finally, extensive experiments are conducted on three public benchmarks (including OTB100, TC128, and UAVDT), and the experimental results indicate that the proposed BSDCF tracker achieves tracking performance comparable to many state-of-the-art (SOTA) trackers in a variety of complex situations.

Promoting effect of raft-raised scallop culture on the formation of coastal hypoxia.

The coastal waters around the Yangma Island are an important mariculture area of raft-raised scallop and bottom-seeded sea cucumber in the North Yellow Sea, China. Large-scale hypoxia in the bottom water of this area has caused the death of a large number of sea cucumbers and heavy economic losses. To find out the formation mechanism of hypoxia, the data obtained in each August during 2015-2018 were analyzed. Compared with the non-hypoxic year (2018), the temperature, trophic index (TRIX) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the bottom water were relatively higher, and the water column was stratified causing by continuous high air temperature and low wind speed meteorological conditions in the hypoxic years (2015-2017). These sites with the coexistence of thermocline and halocline, and the thickness of thermocline >2.5 m and its upper boundary >7.0 m deep, were prone to hypoxia. Spatially, the hypoxic place was highly consistent with the scallop cultivating places, and the DOC, TRIX, NH4+/NO3- and apparent oxygen utilization (AOU) at the culture sites were higher, indicating that organic matter and nutrients released by scallops may lead to local oxygen depletion. In addition, the bottom water of the culture sites had higher salinity, but lower turbidity and temperature, indicating that the slowed water exchange caused by scallop culture was a dynamic factor of hypoxia. All sites with AOU >4 mg/L at the bottom had hypoxia occurrence, even if there was no thermocline. In other words, stratification promoted the formation of hypoxia in coastal bottom water, but it was not indispensable. The raft-raised scallop culture could promote the formation of coastal hypoxia, which should arouse the attention for other coastal areas with intensive bivalve production.

Nitrogen-doped metal-organic framework derived porous carbon/polymer membrane for the simultaneous extraction of four benzotriazole ultraviolet stabilizers in environmental water.

Benzotriazole ultraviolet stabilizers (BUVSs) that are added to pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) have raised global concerns because of their high toxicity. An efficient method to monitor its pollution level is urgently imperative. Here, a nitrogen-doped metal-organic framework (MOF) derived porous carbon (UiO-66-NH2/DC) was prepared and integrated into polyvinylidene fluoride mixed matrix membrane (PVDF MMM) as an adsorbent for the first time. The hydrophobic UiO-66-NH2/DC with a pore size of 162 Å exhibited outstanding extraction performance for BUVSs, which solves the problem of difficult enrichment of large-size and hydrophobic targets. Notably, the density functional theory simulation was employed to reveal the structure of the derived carbon material and explored the recognition and enrichment mechanism (synergy of π-π conjugation, hydrogen bond, coordination, hydrophobic interaction and mesoporous channel) of BUVSs by UiO-66-NH2/DC-PVDF MMM. And then, an influential method based on dispersive membrane extraction (DME) coupled with ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) was developed for the simultaneous analysis of four BUVSs in environmental water samples. The validated method benefited from the high sensitivity (the limits of detection within 0.25-1.40 ng/L), accuracy (recoveries of 71.9-102.8% for wastewater) and rapidity (50 min to enrich 9 samples). This study expands the application prospects of porous carbon derived from MOF for sample pretreatment of pollutants in water.

Effects of instantaneous changes in temperature, light, and salinity on the dynamics of dissolved organic carbon release by Sargassum thunbergii.

Although macroalgae are regarded as the emerging fourth category of "blue carbon", few studies are available on the dynamics of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) release. Sargassum thunbergii is a typical intertidal macroalgae; and tidal action usually triggers instantaneous changes in temperature, light and salinity. Therefore, we investigated the mechanism of short-term changes in temperature, light and salinity on DOC release by S. thunbergii. As well as these factors coupled with desiccation, the combined effect of DOC release was revealed. The results showed the DOC release rate of S. thunbergii was from 0.028 to 0.037 mg C g -1(FW) h-1 under different photosynthetically active radiation (PAR, 0-1500 µmol photons m-2 s-1). The DOC release rate of S. thunbergii was from 0.008 to 0.208 mg C g -1(FW) h-1 under different salinity (5-40). The DOC release rate of S. thunbergii was from 0.031 to 0.034 mg C g -1(FW) h-1 under different temperature (10-30 °C). Either the increase in intracellular organic matter concentration due to increased photosynthesis (change in PAR and temperature, active), cell dehydration due to dry-out process (passive) or the decrease in extracellular salt concentration (passive) would lead to an increase in the difference in osmotic pressure and promote DOC release.

A Simple and Effective Visual Fluorescent Sensing Paper-Based Chip for the Ultrasensitive Detection of Mercury Ions in Environmental Water.

Traces of mercury ions in environmental water can harm humans and animals. Paper-based visual detection methods have been widely developed for the rapid detection of mercury ions; however, existing methods are not sensitive enough to be used in real environments. Here, we developed a novel, simple and effective visual fluorescent sensing paper-based chip for the ultrasensitive detection of mercury ions in environmental water. CdTe-quantum-dots-modified silica nanospheres were firmly absorbed by and anchored to the fiber interspaces on the paper's surface to effectively avoid the unevenness caused by liquid evaporation. The fluorescence of quantum dots emitted at 525 nm can be selectively and efficiently quenched with mercury ions, and the ultrasensitive visual fluorescence sensing results attained using this principle can be captured using a smartphone camera. This method has a detection limit of 2.83 µg/L and a fast response time (90 s). We successfully achieved the trace spiking detection of seawater (from three regions), lake water, river water and tap water with recoveries in the range of 96.8-105.4% using this method. This method is effective, low-cost, user-friendly and has good prospects for commercial application. Additionally, the work is expected to be utilized in the automated big data collection of large numbers of environmental samples.

Dissolved oxygen gradient on three dimensionally printed microfluidic platform for studying its effect on fish at three levels: cell, embryo, and larva.

A simple and low-cost dissolved oxygen gradient platform of three dimensionally (3D) printed microfluidic chip was developed for cultivating cells, embryos, and larvae of fish. "Christmas tree" structure channel networks generated a dissolved oxygen gradient out of two fluids fed to the device. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membrane with high biocompatibility was used as the substrate for cell culture in the 3D-printed microfluidic chip, which made the cell analysis easy. The embryos and larvae of fish could be cultured directly in the chip, and their development can be observed in real time with a microscope. Using zebrafish as a model, we assessed the effect of different dissolved oxygen on its cells, embryos, and larvae. Hypoxia induced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in zebrafish cells, embryos, and larvae, eventually leading to cell apoptosis and developmental impairment. Hypoxia also increased nitric oxide content in zebrafish cells, which might be a defensive strategy to overcome the adverse effect of hypoxia in fish cells. This is the first platform that could comprehensively investigate the effects of different dissolved oxygen on fish at the cell, embryo, and larva levels, which has great potential in studying the responses of aquatic organisms under different oxygen concentrations.

Selective cationic covalent organic framework for high throughput rapid extraction of novel polyfluoroalkyl substances.

Novel per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) raise global concerns due to their toxic effects on environment and human health. However, researches on analytical methods of novel PFASs are lacking. Here, a kind of selective cationic covalent organic framework (iCOF) was designed and loaded on the surface of cotton as an adsorbent. Then, a simple solid-phase extraction (SPE) method based on the cotton@iCOF was developed for high throughput rapid extraction of six novel PFASs in water samples, coupled with ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) determination. Several important SPE parameters, such as the amount of iCOF, sample pH, desorption conditions and salinity were systematically investigated. Under optimal conditions, the limits of detection and quantification of this SPE-UHPLC-MS/MS method were as low as 0.08-2.14 ng/L and 0.28-7.15 ng/L, respectively. The recoveries were 77.9-117.6 % for the tap water and surface water, and F-53 B in surface water were detected. Notably, this SPE process was rapid (1 h for 500 mL water sample) compared with commercial SPE (normal 2-3 h), owing to little resistance of cotton@iCOF and omission of nitrogen blowing process, and high throughput with 12 samples concurrently extracted. Additionally, various characterization means and density functional theory (DFT) calculations showed that ion-exchange effect, hydrophobic interaction, hydrogen bonding and ordered channel structure synergistically contributed to the PFASs adsorption on cotton@iCOF. The cotton@iCOF-based SPE method with simplicity, rapidity, selectivity and efficiency provided new research ideas for the analysis and control of ionic emerging pollutants in water.

Seasonal change of microplastics uptake in the Pacific oysters Crassostrea gigas cultured in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea, China.

This study investigated seasonal microplastics (MPs) pollution characteristics in oysters and surrounding surface seawater from five aquaculture farms located at the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea. MPs abundances in oysters were 2.40 ± 0.14 (winter) to 3.28 ± 0.19 (autumn) items/individual, and 0.22 ± 0.02 (spring) to 0.45 ± 0.06 (summer) items/g (ww). In surface seawater, average seasonal MPs abundances were 3.41 ± 1.06-8.86 ± 2.48 items/L. Fibers were dominant shape, and cellophane and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) were dominant polymers in oysters and surface seawater. Positive correlation was found between oysters' MPs abundance (items/individual) and environmental factors (NO2-N (r = 0.466), and temperature (r = 0.485)) by Spearman correlation analysis in four seasons. Main environmental factor affecting seasonal MPs abundance of oysters and surface seawater was NH3-N and SiO3-Si in summer and winter respectively. In conclusion, seasonal change of MPs uptake in cultured oysters was relatively small.

A Partial Ambiguity Resolution Algorithm Based on New-Breadth-First Lattice Search in High-Dimension Situations.

With the development and integration of GNSS systems in the world, the positioning accuracy and reliability of GNSS navigation services are increasing in various fields. Because the current multisystem fusion leads to an increase in the ambiguity dimension and the ambiguity parameters have discrete characteristics, the current conventional search algorithm leads to low search efficiency when the ambiguity dimension is large. Therefore, this paper describes a new algorithm that searches the optimal lattice points by lattice theory through the breadth-first algorithm and reduces the search space of ambiguity by calculating and judging the Euclidean distance between each search variable and the target one so as to propose a new lattice ambiguity search algorithm based on the breadth-first algorithm. The experimental results show that this method can effectively improve the search efficiency of ambiguity in high-dimension situations.

The distinct toxicity effects between commercial and realistic polystyrene microplastics on microbiome and histopathology of gut in zebrafish.

As a ubiquitous emerging pollutant, microplastics (MPs) have attracted widespread attention. At this stage, researchers mainly employed commercial MPs (CMPs) as the model particles to explore the toxic effects of MPs. But whether CMPs can reflect the effects of realistic MPs (RMPs) still remains unknown. Herein, the effects of commercial and realistic polystyrene MPs on gut microbiota of zebrafish were compared. Considering MPs co-exist with antibiotics in real environment, we further distinguished the effects of CMPs and RMPs when they co-existed with enrofloxacin (ENR). The results revealed that while both CMPs and RMPs significantly shifted the gut microbiota, CMPs exhibited stronger toxic effects and more severe damage to gut. Furthermore, ENR exhibited a distinct effect with both CMPs and RMPs on gut microbiota, while the addition of CMPs and RMPs significantly alleviated the toxicity of ENR. In addition, analysis via Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway database revealed that seven major level 1 pathways associated with metabolism, information processing and diseases in the microbial community were affected. Taken together, this work is the first to report that CMPs could not represent RMPs in terms of toxicity and other behaviors, reminding people the limits of using CMPs in ecotoxicology studies.

Incubation habitats and aging treatments affect the formation of biofilms on polypropylene microplastics.

Microbial colonization and biofilm formation associated with microplastics (MPs) have recently attracted wide attention. However, little is known about the effect of MP aging and different exposed habitats on biofilm formation and associated microbial community characteristics. To obtain a comprehensive understanding, virgin and aged polypropylene MPs were selected as attachment substrates and exposed to different aquatic habitats (marine, estuary, and river). The results showed that the aging process could destroy surface structure and increase oxygen-containing groups of MPs. The total biomass of the biofilms, attached-bacterial OTU numbers, and α diversities increased with exposure time. The biofilms biomass and α diversity of MPs in the river were significantly higher than those in the marine and estuary habitats, and temperature and salinity were primary factors affecting microbial colonization. Bacterial communities in MP-attached biofilms were significantly different from those in surrounding water. Microorganisms tend to adhere to aged MPs, and especially, genes related to human pathogens were significantly expressed on aged MPs, suggesting a potential ecological and health risk of aged MPs in aquatic ecosystems. Our results showed that aged MPs and different habitats have an important influence on microbial colonization, and the weathering process can accelerate biofilm formation on MPs.

Landslide Displacement Prediction Based on Time Series Analysis and Double-BiLSTM Model.

In recent years, machine learning models facilitated notable performance improvement in landslide displacement prediction. However, most existing prediction models which ignore landslide data at each time can provide a different value and meaning. To analyze and predict landslide displacement better, we propose a dynamic landslide displacement prediction model based on time series analysis and a double-bidirectional long short term memory (Double-BiLSTM) model. First, the cumulative landslide displacement is decomposed into trend and periodic displacement components according to time series analysis via the exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) method. We consider that trend displacement is mainly influenced by landslide factors, and we apply a BiLSTM model to predict landslide trend displacement. This paper analyzes the internal relationship between rainfall, reservoir level and landslide periodic displacement. We adopt the maximum information coefficient (MIC) method to calculate the correlation between influencing factors and periodic displacement. We employ the BiLSTM model for periodic displacement prediction. Finally, the model is validated against data pertaining to the Baishuihe landslide in the Three Gorges, China. The experimental results and evaluation indicators demonstrate that this method achieves a better prediction performance than the classical prediction methods, and landslide displacement can be effectively predicted.

Characterization of the metabolites of tirabrutinib generated from rat, dog and human liver microsomes using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography combined with high-resolution mass spectrometry.

RATIONALE: Tirabrutinib is an orally administered Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor developed for the treatment of autoimmune disorders and haematological malignancies. The goals of this study were to identify the metabolites of tirabrutinib and to propose the metabolic pathways. METHODS: Tirabrutinib was individually incubated with rat, dog and human liver microsomes at 37°C for 1 h. To trap the potential reactive metabolites, glutathione (GSH) was incorporated into the incubation samples. The incubation samples were analysed using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography combined with high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-HRMS). The metabolites were identified and characterized by exact masses, product ions and retention times. RESULTS: A total of 18 metabolites, including four GSH conjugates, were identified and characterized in terms of elemental compositions and product ions. The metabolic pathways of tirabrutinib included amide hydrolysis, O-dealkylation, mono-oxygenation, di-oxygenation and GSH conjugation. Among these metabolites, M10 was the most abundant metabolite. Compared with dog, rat has the closer metabolic profiles to humans, and thus it would be more suitable for toxicity study. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides valuable data regarding the in vitro metabolism of tirabrutinib, which may be helpful for further safety assessment of this drug.

Seasonal and spatial variations in nutrients under the influence of natural and anthropogenic factors in coastal waters of the northern Yellow Sea, China.

Analysis of the common and most influential natural and anthropogenic activities on the spatiotemporal variation in nutrients at a multiannual scale is important. Eleven cruises from 2015 to 2017 were carried out to better elucidate the seasonal and spatial variations in nutrients, as well as the impact factors on dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN), phosphorus (DIP) and silicate (DSi). Both nutrient concentrations and forms showed similar and significant seasonal variations over the 3 years, and were closely related to the biomass and species of phytoplankton. Terrestrial inputs had significant effects on the spatial distribution of nutrients throughout the year, especially in the surface water, which showed DIN > DIP>DSi. In summer, shellfish aquaculture and hypoxia jointly affected the spatial distribution of nutrients. The bottom water nutrient concentrations in the aquaculture area were 1.1-2.3 times higher than those outside of the aquaculture area. Seasonal hypoxia can increase the release of DSi and NH4+ from the sediment to the water. In summary, anthropogenic activities and physical conditions jointly influenced the nutrient distributions.