Outer retina and choroid as potential imaging markers for evaluation of neural impairment in early type 2 diabetic patients.

PURPOSE: To quantify the presence of early structural alterations in the outer retinal layer and choroid among healthy subjects and diabetic patients with no or mild diabetic retinopathy, and to establish the correlation between the measured structural parameters and retinal sensitivity. METHODS: In total, 31 eyes from subjects with type 2 diabetes and 29 eyes from healthy subjects were enrolled. Optical coherence tomography was used to measure outer retina layers and choroid, while microperimetry was used to characterize the changes of visual function in a 6-mm diameter area at macula. Quantitative analysis of structural and functional changes was performed between groups and the structure-function correlations were determined. RESULTS: The thickness of myoid and ellipsoid zone, choroid and the mean retinal sensitivity were significantly smaller in diabetic group than that in controls (all P values < 0.05). Besides, thinner choroid and outer retina was associated with the decreased retinal sensitivity，especially in diabetic patients (r = 0.377, P = 0.048; r = 0.401, P = 0.034; respectively). Final multiple regression models showed the outer retinal thickness (ORT) (P = 0.033), choroidal thickness (P = 0.003) and the interaction between ORT and choroidal thickness (P = 0.001) were significant predictors to retinal sensitivity. CONCLUSIONS: Thinning of choroid and outer retina were significantly correlated with reduced retinal sensitivity, which indicate outer retina and choroid might be potential imaging markers for evaluation of visual function related to neural impairment in type 2 diabetic patients without or in the early stage of diabetic retinopathy.

Improved 2-round collision attack on IoT hash standard ASCON-HASH.

Lightweight cryptography algorithms are a class of ciphers designed to protect data generated and transmitted by the Internet of Things. They typically have low requirements in terms of storage space and power consumption, and are well-suited for resource-limited application scenarios such as embedded systems, actuators, and sensors. The NIST-approved competition for lightweight cryptography aims to identify lightweight cryptographic algorithms that can serve as standards. Its objective is to enhance data security in various scenarios. Among the chosen standards for lightweight cryptography, ASCON has been selected. ASCON-HASH is a hash function within the ASCON family. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the differential characteristics of ASCON-HASH, utilizing the quadratic S-box. Additionally, we employ message modification techniques and ultimately demonstrate a non-practical collision attack on the 2-round ASCON-HASH, requiring a time complexity of 298 hash function calls.

Energy Consumption Analysis for Continuous Phase Modulation in Smart-Grid Internet of Things of beyond 5G.

Wireless sensor network (WSN) underpinning the smart-grid Internet of Things (SG-IoT) has been a popular research topic in recent years due to its great potential for enabling a wide range of important applications. However, the energy consumption (EC) characteristic of sensor nodes is a key factor that affects the operational performance (e.g., lifetime of sensors) and the total cost of ownership of WSNs. In this paper, to find the modulation techniques suitable for WSNs, we investigate the EC characteristic of continuous phase modulation (CPM), which is an attractive modulation scheme candidate for WSNs because of its constant envelope property. We first develop an EC model for the sensor nodes of WSNs by considering the circuits and a typical communication protocol that relies on automatic repeat request (ARQ)-based retransmissions to ensure successful data delivery. Then, we use this model to analyze the EC characteristic of CPM under various configurations of modulation parameters. Furthermore, we compare the EC characteristic of CPM with that of other representative modulation schemes, such as offset quadrature phase-shift keying (OQPSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM), which are commonly used in communication protocols of WSNs. Our analysis and simulation results provide insights into the EC characteristics of multiple modulation schemes in the context of WSNs; thus, they are beneficial for designing energy-efficient SG-IoT in the beyond-5G (B5G) and the 6G era.

The Regulation of Phosphorus Release by Penicillium chrysogenum in Different Phosphate via the TCA Cycle and Mycelial Morphology.

Phosphate-solubilizing fungi (PSF) efficiently dissolve insoluble phosphates through the production of organic acids. This study investigates the mechanisms of organic acid secretion by PSF, specifically Penicillium chrysogenum, under tricalcium phosphate (Ca3(PO4)2, Ca-P) and ferric phosphate (FePO4, Fe-P) conditions. Penicillium chrysogenum exhibited higher phosphorus (P) release efficiency from Ca-P (693.6 mg/L) than from Fe-P (162.6 mg/L). However, Fe-P significantly enhanced oxalic acid (1193.7 mg/L) and citric acid (227.7 mg/L) production by Penicillium chrysogenum compared with Ca-P (905.7 and 3.5 mg/L, respectively). The presence of Fe-P upregulated the expression of genes and activity of enzymes related to the tricarboxylic acid cycle, including pyruvate dehydrogenase and citrate synthase. Additionally, Fe-P upregulated the expression of chitinase and endoglucanase genes, inducing a transformation of Penicillium chrysogenum mycelial morphology from pellet to filamentous. The filamentous morphology exhibited higher efficiency in oxalic acid secretion and P release from Fe-P and Ca-P. Compared with pellet morphology, filamentous morphology enhanced P release capacity by > 40% and > 18% in Ca-P and Fe-P, respectively. This study explored the strategies employed by PSF to improve the dissolution of different insoluble phosphates.

Contour-aware network with class-wise convolutions for 3D abdominal multi-organ segmentation.

Accurate delineation of multiple organs is a critical process for various medical procedures, which could be operator-dependent and time-consuming. Existing organ segmentation methods, which were mainly inspired by natural image analysis techniques, might not fully exploit the traits of the multi-organ segmentation task and could not accurately segment the organs with various shapes and sizes simultaneously. In this work, the characteristics of multi-organ segmentation are considered: the global count, position and scale of organs are generally predictable, while their local shape and appearance are volatile. Thus, we supplement the region segmentation backbone with a contour localization task to increase the certainty along delicate boundaries. Meantime, each organ has exclusive anatomical traits, which motivates us to deal with class variability with class-wise convolutions to highlight organ-specific features and suppress irrelevant responses at different field-of-views. To validate our method with adequate amounts of patients and organs, we constructed a multi-center dataset, which contains 110 3D CT scans with 24,528 axial slices, and provided voxel-level manual segmentations of 14 abdominal organs, which adds up to 1,532 3D structures in total. Extensive ablation and visualization studies on it validate the effectiveness of the proposed method. Quantitative analysis shows that we achieve state-of-the-art performance for most abdominal organs, and obtain 3.63 mm 95% Hausdorff Distance and 83.32% Dice Similarity Coefficient on an average.

Recent research advances on simulation modeling of temperature distribution in microwave ablation of lung tumors.

Lung tumor is the first malignant tumor with the highest mortality, but only no more than one-third of patients can be treated by surgical resection. Microwave ablation (MWA) has become a new adjuvant therapeutic mean for lung tumors because of its low trauma, short treatment time, large ablation volume and wide application range. However, the treatment parameters of MWA, such as input power and ablation time, still depend on the doctors' experience, which leads to the ineffectiveness of MWA. Therefore, the accurate modeling of temperature distribution of lung tumor MWA has become a significant technical problem to be solved. Recent research was devoted to personalized characterization of lung tumor parameters, finite element analysis of temperature distribution in MWA and accurate ablation effect evaluation. In this paper, a review of the recently obtained results and data will be presented and discussed.

miR-3133 is an unfavorable prognosis factor and tumor suppressor in colon cancer.

Dysregulated miRNAs have been demonstrated to be associated with the progression of colon cancer. The dysregulation of miR-3133 was observed in colon cancer, but its specific function was unclear. The functional role of miR-3133 in colon cancer was investigated in this study. A total of 113 colon cancer patients were included. miR-3133 expression was evaluated by PCR. The biological effects of miR-3133 in colon cancer cells were assessed with the help of the transwell and CCK8 assay. The prognostic value of miR-3133 was estimated by a series of statistical analyses. In mechanism, the interaction between miR-3133 and RUFY3 was evaluated by luciferase reporter. The significant downregulation of miR-3133 was observed in colon cancer, which showed a significant association with the advanced TNM stage and bad survival of patients. miR-3133 and TNM stage were identified as independent prognostic indicators of colon cancer. In vitro, the overexpression of miR-3133 exerted a dramatically inhibitory effect on cellular processes of colon cancer, which were enhanced by miR-3133 knockdown. Additionally, miR-3133 could negatively regulate the luciferase activity and expression of RUFY3, which was speculated as the underlying mechanism mediating the regulatory effect of miR-3133. miR-3133 functioned as a prognostic biomarker indicating the progression and prognosis of colon cancer, and it also served as a tumor suppressor via negatively regulating RUFY3, which provides a potential therapeutic target for colon cancer.

Soil depth exerts stronger impact on bacterial community than elevation in subtropical forests of Huangshan Mountain.

The elevational distribution of bacterial communities in the surface soil of natural mountain forests has been widely studied. However, it remains unknown if microbial communities in surface and sub-surface soils exhibit a similar distribution pattern with elevation. To do so, Illumina HiSeq sequencing was applied to study the alterations in soil bacterial communities of different soil layers, along an altitudinal gradient from 500 to 1100 m on Huangshan Mountain in Anhui Province, China. Our results revealed a significant higher diversity of the bacterial communities in surface soil layers than in subsurface layers. Adonis analysis showed that soil layer had a greater influence on the composition of the bacterial communities than the elevation. The distance-based multivariate linear model suggested that soil labile organic carbon and elevation were the main element influencing the bacterial community composition in surface and subsurface soils, respectively. A remarkable difference appeared between the co-occurrence network structures of bacterial communities in different soil layers. Compared with the subsurface soil, surface soil had more edges, average degree, and much higher clustering coefficient. The two-way ANOVA results highlighted the significant impact of soil layers on the topological properties of the network compared with that of elevation. The keystone species belonged to Rhodospirillaceae in the surface soil, while the OTUs belonged to Actinomycetales in the subsurface soil. Collectively, our results demonstrate that the effects of soil depth on soil bacterial community composition and network properties of subtropical forest in Huangshan Mountain were significantly higher than those of elevation, with different keystone species in different soil layers. These findings can be served as an important basis for better understanding the microbial functions influencing the maintenance of habitat heterogeneity, biodiversity, and ecosystem services in forests ecosystems.

A retrospective analysis of transanal surgical management of 291 cases with rectal foreign bodies.

BACKGROUND: Rectal foreign bodies (RFB) are quite uncommon except in very busy hospitals. Because of their rarity, it is seldom that the treating physicians have a standard approach to the diagnosis, technique of extraction, and post-extraction evaluation. This can be further complicated by the rather extreme variability of size, shape, and texture of the foreign bodies, as well as the potential extent of trauma to the rectum or distal colon. AIM: The objectives of this study were to delineate the demographics, classification of cause, and injury patterns of RFB and to present the results of the transanal surgical management of a large series of RFB. METHODS: We retrospectively collected extensive data from the hospital medical records of the 291 patients who presented with RFB to the emergency department of Shenyang Proctological Hospital (Shenyang, China) from 2012 July to 2020 December. Specifically, demographics, origins and circumstance of the RFB, complications, injuries, anesthesia method, and the results of the transanal surgical management were recorded and analyzed. RESULTS: Of the 291 RFB cases, 225 (77.3%) were male and 66 (22.7%) were female, with a mean age of 53.8 ± 15.5 years (range, 1 ~ 88 years). The circumstances of the RFB were categorized as swallowed, 199 cases (68.4%); self-inserted, 87 (29.9%); and iatrogenic, 5 (1.7%). The proportion of males in the self-inserted RFB group was significantly greater than the swallowed RFB group (t = 31.114, p = 0.000). In the swallowed RFB group, the most common anorectal injuries and pathological changes were the following: penetration into the mucosa (75 cases, 37.7%), perianal or submucosal abscess (27 cases, 13.6%), and penetration into the anal canal (18 cases, 9.0%). In the self-inserted RFB group, 64 (73.6%) of the 87 cases had an intact rectum, whereas 8 (9.2%) had rectal mucosal ulcers and bleeding, and 7 (8%) had rectal lacerations. In the iatrogenic RFB group, 3 cases (60%) had rectal mucosal ulcers and bleeding, and 2 cases (40%) had inflammation of the rectal mucosa. Regarding extraction procedures, in the swallowed group, 187(187/199; 94%) patients underwent a transanal surgical procedure, and all were successful. In the self-inserted group, 82 patients underwent the transanal surgical procedure, and 74 (74/82; 90.2%) were successful whereas it was unsuccessful in the remaining 8 patients (8/82, 9.8%). Three (3/4, 75%) patients with iatrogenic RFB were resolved by the transanal surgical procedure. CONCLUSION: Men were markedly more likely than women to have swallowed RFBs and self-inserted RFBs. No serious damage to the rectum and anus was found in cases of swallowed RFB. Moreover, most surgical operations to remove foreign bodies via the anus were successful in this category of RFB. In contrast, rectal injury was more severe in patients with self-inserted RFB, such as rectal laceration, rectal mucosal ulcer, and bleeding. Moreover, the transanal removal operation in patients with self-inserted RFB had a failure rate of nearly 10%. Thick, long, hard foreign bodies did present a great challenge to the operator. Therefore, if necessary, patients with foreign bodies may need to be promptly referred for transabdominal removal.

Aspergillus niger Enhances Organic and Inorganic Phosphorus Release from Wheat Straw by Secretion of Degrading Enzymes and Oxalic Acid.

To explore the mechanisms of crop straw degradation and phosphorus (P) release by phosphate-solubilizing fungi (PSF), a typical PSF Aspergillus niger (A. niger, ANG) was investigated for the degradation of wheat straw (WST) in this work. The results revealed that A. niger significantly increased wheat straw degradation (30%) compared with no A. niger treatment (7.7%). Meanwhile, more than 92% of total P was released from WST by A. niger, much higher than from WST treatment (69.5%). Although the ratios of inorganic P release between WST and WST + ANG treatments were similar (17.6 vs 19.7%), a significant difference occurred between their release of organic P, i.e., WST (51.9%) vs WST + ANG (72.5%). The high enzyme activity of ß-1,4-glucanase and ß-glucosidase produced by A. niger contributed to the wheat straw degradation and organic P release compared with no A. niger treatment. Oxalic acid secreted by A. niger dominated the release of inorganic P from WST. Our findings suggested that A. niger is an efficient microbial agent for crop straw degradation and P release, which could be a candidate in the pathway of straw return.

Phosphorus biogeochemistry regulated by carbonates in soil.

Phosphates are the dominant phosphorus (P) source on Earth. The phosphates govern available P in soil, or even the complete ecosystem. The common deficiency of available P in carbonate-enriched soils suggests the tight correlation between P and C biogeochemistry, although the two elements have diverse abundance in soil. The influences of carbonates on P cycle were reviewed in this study, via both abiotic and biotic pathways. The abiotic processes at geochemical scale include element release, transport, sorption, desorption, weathering, precipitation, etc. The sorption of P on carbonate and buffering ability of carbonates were particularly addressed. Biotic factors are ascribed to various microorganisms in soil. As the most active P pool in soil, microorganisms prefer to consume abundant P, and then accumulate it in their biomass. Carbonates, however, are usually utilized by microorganisms after conversion to organic C. Meanwhile, extracellular precipitation of Ca-P phases significantly regulates the transportation of P in/out the cells. Moreover, they boost and complexify both carbonates and P turnover in soil via bioweathering and biomineralization, i.e., the intense interactions between biosphere and lithosphere. Based on this review, we proposed that carbonates may negatively affect P supply in soil system. This comprehensive review regarding the regulation by carbonates on P biogeochemistry would shed a light on predicting long-term P availability influenced by C biogeochemistry.

Camellia sinensis Chloroplast Fluoride Efflux Gene CsABCB9 Is Involved in the Fluoride Tolerance Mechanism.

Soil is a main source of fluoride for plants. The tea plants (Camellia sinensis) accumulate excessive amounts of fluoride in their leaves compared to other plants, but their fluoride tolerance mechanism is poorly understood. A chloroplast fluoride efflux gene (CsABCB9) was newly discovered by using transcriptome analysis, cloned from Camellia sinensis, and its function was demonstrated in the fluoride detoxication mechanism in Escherichia coli/Xenopus laevis oocytes and Arabidopsis thaliana. CsABCB9 is expressed in tea leaves upon F− treatment. The growth of tea, E. coli, and Arabidopsis were inhibited by F− treatment. However, growth of CsABCB9-overexpression in E. coli was shown to increase with lower fluoride content under F− treatment compared to the control. Furthermore, chlorophyll, xanthophyll and soluble sugar contents of CsABCB9-overexpression in Arabidopsis were improved under F− treatment compared to the wild type. CsABCB9 functions in fluoride transport, and the mechanism by which CsABCB9 improves fluoride resistance in tea is mainly chloroplast protection through fluoride efflux.

Remediation of Lead-Contaminated Water by Red Yeast and Different Types of Phosphate.

Rhodotorula mucilaginosa (Rho) can secrete large amounts of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) to resist lead (Pb) toxicity. Phosphate is an effective material for the remediation of Pb. This study explored the Pb remediation by the combination of Rho and different types of phosphate in water. To do so, four phosphates, namely, ferric phosphate (FePO4, Fe-P), aluminum phosphate (AlPO4, Al-P), calcium phosphate [Ca3(PO4)2, Ca-P], and phosphogypsum (PG) were employed along with Rho. Compared with Rho application, the addition of phosphate significantly promoted the secretion of EPS by Rho (21-25 vs 16 mg). The formed EPS-Pb contributes to the Pb immobilization in the combination of Rho and phosphate. After 6 days of incubation, Rho + phosphate treatments immobilized over 98% of Pb cations, which is significantly higher than Rho treatment (94%). Of all Rho + phosphate treatments, Ca-P and PG-amended Rho had higher secretion of EPS, resulting in higher Pb removal. Nevertheless, PG had the highest efficiency for Pb removal compared with other phosphates, which reached 99.9% after 6 days of incubation. Likewise, new Pb minerals, such as pyromorphite and lead sulfate, only appeared in Rho + PG treatment. Altogether, this study concludes on the combined application of Rho and phosphate as an efficient approach to promote Pb remediation, particularly using PG waste.

The Efficacy and Safety of Zhengqing Fengtongning for Knee Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials.

BACKGROUND: Zhengqing Fengtongning release tablet (ZQFTN) is a proprietary Chinese medicine preparation of sinomenine, the main active component of the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) Sinomenium acutum. It is used in China as a complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for knee osteoarthritis (KOA). The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of ZQFTN in KOA treatment. METHOD: Randomized controlled trials of ZQFTN in KOA treatment were searched in PubMed, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Scientific Journals Database, and Wanfang database. Two reviewers independently conducted the screening, extracted the data, and assessed the methodological quality. Statistical analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 software. RESULTS: Eighteen studies were assessed that included 1512 participants (757 in the treatment group and 755 in the control group). The results showed that compared with the control group, the Visual Analogue Scale (standardized mean difference (SMD) = -0.87, 95% confidence interval (CI): [-1.08, -0.66], P < 0.001), Western Ontario and Mc Master University (WOMAC) Osteoarthritis Index pain score (SMD = -0.67, 95% CI: [-0.88, -0.46], P < 0.001), WOMAC stiffness score (SMD = -0.53, 95% CI: [-0.86, -0.20], P=0.001), WOMAC function score (SMD = -0.76, 95% CI: [-0.97, -0.55], P < 0.001), serum interleukin-1ß level (SMD = -4.36, 95% CI: [-6.41, -2.31], P < 0.001), and serum tumor necrosis factor-α level (SMD = -8.45, 95% CI: [-11.20, -5.69], P < 0.001) of the ZQFTN treatment group were lower, and the total effective rate was higher relative risk (RR = 1.15, 95% CI [1.07, 1.23], P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups (RR = 0.96, 95% CI: [0.69, 1.35], P=0.82). CONCLUSION: ZQFTN can effectively relieve knee pain, morning stiffness, and daily activity function disorders, reduce the expression of inflammatory factors in serum, and improve the total clinical response rate without increasing the incidence of adverse reactions. Therefore, ZQFTN has considerable potential as a CAM for KOA. However, due to the limitation of the quality of the included studies, the strength of this conclusion is affected. In the next step, multicenter, large sample, high-quality randomized controlled studies are needed to further confirm the present conclusion.

Sinomenine hydrochloride injection for knee osteoarthritis: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is a degenerative disease in the knee joint, with chronic joint pain, swelling, stiffness, and dysfunction as the primary manifestations. Sinomenine hydrochloride injection is a proprietary Chinese medicine injection of sinomenine, the main active component of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Clinical studies show that Sinomenine hydrochloride injection has a good effect on the treatment of KOA. At present, there is still a lack of systematic reviews and meta-analyses to evaluate the efficacy and safety of sinomenine hydrochloride injection in the treatment of KOA. Our purpose is to supplement this deficiency. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials of sinomenine hydrochloride injection in the treatment of KOA were searched for Eight electronic resource databases. We will use Review Manager 5.3 software for heterogeneity assessment, meta-analysis, and subgroup analysis. We will use the Cochrane Manual to assess the quality of the included studies, and use reporting biases assessment and sensitivity analysis to evaluate the reliability and stability of the results. RESULTS: This study will provide a high-quality synthesis to assess the efficacy and safety of sinomenine hydrochloride injection in the treatment of KOA. CONCLUSION: This systematic review evaluates the efficacy and safety of sinomenine hydrochloride injection in the treatment of KOA. INPLASY REGISTRATION NUMBER: INPLASY2021110057.

Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Exosomes Attenuate Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition of HK-2 Cells.

Renal fibrosis (RF) predisposes patients to an increased risk of progressive chronic kidney disease, and effective treatments remain elusive. Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-derived exosomes are considered a new treatment for tissue damage. Our study aimed to investigate the in vitro effects of bone marrow MSC-derived exosomes (BM-MSC-Exs) on transforming growth factor-ß1 (TGF-ß1)-induced fibrosis in renal tubular epithelial cells (HK-2 cells) and the associated mechanisms. Herein, we found BM-MSC-Exs could inhibit TGF-ß1-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in HK-2 cells, and may involve autophagy activation of BM-MSC-Exs. Moreover, we first reported that after ceria nanoparticles (CeNPs) treatment, the improvements induced by BM-MSC-Ex on EMT were significantly enhanced by upregulating the expression of Nedd4Lof MSCs and promoting the secretion of exosomes, which contained Nedd4L. In addition, Nedd4L could activate autophagy in HK-2 cells. In conclusion, BM-MSC-Ex prevents the TGF-ß1-induced EMT of renal tubular epithelial cells by transporting Nedd4L, which activates autophagy. The results of this in vitro experiment may extend to RF, whereby BM-MSC-Ex may also be used as a novel treatment for improving RF. Impact statement Renal fibrosis (RF) is an important pathological change in chronic kidney disease that ultimately leads to end-stage renal failure, and effective treatments remain elusive. In this study, there are two contributions. First, our results suggest that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes (BM-MSC-Exs) can prevent transforming growth factor-ß1 (TGF-ß1)-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of renal tubular epithelial cells through Nedd4L trafficking, which activates autophagy. Second, the improvement effects of BM-MSC-Ex on TGF-ß1-induced HK-2 EMT can be enhanced by ceria nanoparticles (CeNPs). The findings in this study may be extended to RF: BM-MSC-Exs may be used as a novel treatment to improve RF.

A precision compost strategy aligning composts and application methods with target crops and growth environments can increase global food production.

Compost represents an important input for sustainable agriculture, but the use of diverse compost types causes uncertain outcomes. Here we performed a global meta-analysis with over 2,000 observations to determine whether a precision compost strategy (PCS) that aligns suitable composts and application methods with target crops and growth environments can advance sustainable food production. Eleven key predictors of compost (carbon-to-nutrient ratios, pH and salt content electric conductivity), management (nitrogen N supply) and biophysical settings (crop type, soil texture, soil organic carbon, pH, temperature and rainfall) determined 80% of the effect on crop yield, soil organic carbon and nitrous oxide emissions. The benefits of a PCS are more pronounced in drier and warmer climates and soils with acidic pH and sandy or clay texture, achieving up to 40% higher crop yield than conventional practices. Using a data-driven approach, we estimate that a global PCS can increase the production of major cereal crops by 96.3 Tg annually, which is 4% of current production. A global PCS has the technological potential to restore 19.5 Pg carbon in cropland topsoil (0-20 cm), equivalent to 26.5% of current topsoil soil organic carbon stocks. Together, this points to a central role of PCS in current and emerging agriculture.

Comparison of the Rheological Properties and Structure of Fat Derivatives Generated via Different Mechanical Processing Techniques: Coleman Fat, Nanofat, and Stromal Vascular Fraction-Gel.

Importance: Coleman fat, nanofat, and stromal vascular fraction-gel (SVF-gel) are three widely used fat derivatives. However, their rheological properties and structure remain unknown. Objectives: To disclose the rheological properties and structure of three different fat derivatives. Design, Settings, and Participants: Fat tissues obtained from eight different donors were processed into three separate groups: Coleman fat, nanofat, and SVF-gel (n = 8); their viscoelastic properties and structure were determined. Intervention: Oscillation measurements were performed in the context of serrated 25-mm parallel-plate geometry with a 1.2-mm gap at 25°C. In addition, fat samples were fixed using a patented protocol and observed under scanning electron microscopy. Main Outcomes and Measures: Comparison of the viscoelastic properties, microstructure, and particle size. Results: At 0.77 Hz, the elastic modulus of SVF-gel, Coleman fat, and nanofat was 201.6 ± 0.74, 69.94 ± 15.61, and 34.89 ± 3.484 Pa, respectively; their viscosity was 44.06 ± 3.038, 15.37 ± 2.0380, and 7.516 ± 0.7250 mPa, respectively. The particle size of SVF-gel, Coleman fat, and nanofat was 106.0 ± 4.796, 86.93 ± 3.597, and 12.61 ± 7.603 µm, respectively. Conclusion and Relevance: Mechanical processing may impact graft efficacy. The characterization of the rheological properties and structure of different fat derivatives in this study may help surgeons select the better type of tissue for a given intervention; however, further studies are still required.

Influences of blood flow parameters on temperature distribution during liver tumor microwave ablation.

Highlights: (1) A 3D simulation model of MWA (microwave ablation) based on the temperature-dependent characteristic parameters and blood flow parameters was established to realize the visual simulation of temperature distribution and coagulation zone. The internal forced convection condition was used to accurately characterize the large vessel. (2) The ex vivo MWA experimental platform was built to verify the accuracy of the simulation model. A peristaltic pump was employed for operatively controlling blood circulation and a medical soft plastic tube was introduced for appropriately simulating a blood vessel. (3) The influences of blood flow parameters of large vessels on temperature distribution and coagulation zone were systematically analyzed in order to provide reference and guidance for MWA clinicians. Purpose: Clinical MWA of liver tumor is significantly limited by the accurate prediction of vascular cooling effects. To provide reference and guidance for clinical MWA of liver tumor, the three-dimensional effects of different blood flow parameters of large vessels on MWA temperature distribution were systematically evaluated. Materials and methods: Firstly, the MWA three-dimensional finite element simulation model with blood flow parameters was established. Secondly, to verify the effectiveness of the model, MWA was performed ex vivo in porcine liver for 360 s and the temperature was measured by thermocouples. A medical soft plastic tube was placed parallel to the MWA antenna to simulate a natural liver vessel. Finally, based on this model, the influences of different vessel diameters and vessel-antenna spacings on MWA temperature distribution were analyzed. Results: Sixteen ablations were performed to verify the accuracy of the simulation model. The mean temperature errors between measured data and simulation results at six measurement points were 3.87 ℃. In the first 10 seconds of MWA, the vessel cooling effect on temperature distribution was negligible. When the vessel-antenna spacing was 5 mm and the vessel diameter varied from 3 mm to 6 mm, the temperature at the measured point near the vessel decreased by 2.11 ℃ at 360 s. When the vessel diameter was 6 mm and the vessel-antenna spacing varied from 5 mm to 7 mm, the temperature at the measured point near the vessel reduced by 14.91 ℃ at 360 s. In addition, blood diameter had little influence on the temperature distribution near the heating point. The volume of coagulation zone will not be obviously affected once the vessel lies outside the predicted coagulation zone. Conclusions: The MWA simulation model with blood flow parameters is established. Vessel-antenna spacing is the primary factor affecting the temperature distribution. A vessel with larger diameter can have a more significant effect on the temperature distribution. The large vessel will take away and block part of conduction heat, so the coagulation zone will not be formed on the lateral side of the vessel.

Green synthesis of 1,5-dideoxy-1,5-imino-ribitol and 1,5-dideoxy-1,5-imino-DL-arabinitol from natural D-sugars over Au/Al2O3 and SO42-/Al2O3 catalysts.

A green synthetic route for the synthesis of some potential enzyme active hydroxypiperidine iminosugars including 1,5-dideoxy-1,5-imino-ribitol and 1,5-dideoxy-1,5-imino-DL-arabinitol, starting from commercially available D-ribose and D-lyxose was tested out. Heterogeneous catalysts including Au/Al2O3, SO42-/Al2O3 as well as environmentally friendly reagents were employed into several critical reaction of the route. The synthetic route resulted in good overall yields of 1,5-dideoxy-1,5-imino-ribitol of 54%, 1,5-dideoxy-1,5-imino-D-arabinitol of 48% and 1,5-dideoxy-1,5-imino-L-arabinitol of 46%. The Au/Al2O3 catalyst can be easily recovered from the reaction mixture and reused with no loss of activity.