AMS-Net: Modeling Adaptive Multi-Granularity Spatio-Temporal Cues for Video Action Recognition.

Effective spatio-temporal modeling as a core of video representation learning is challenged by complex scale variations in spatio-temporal cues in videos, especially different visual tempos of actions and varying spatial sizes of moving objects. Most of the existing works handle complex spatio-temporal scale variations based on input-level or feature-level pyramid mechanisms, which, however, rely on expensive multistream architectures or explore multiscale spatio-temporal features in a fixed manner. To effectively capture complex scale dynamics of spatio-temporal cues in an efficient way, this article proposes a single-stream architecture (SS-Arch.) with single-input namely, adaptive multi-granularity spatio-temporal network (AMS-Net) to model adaptive multi-granularity (Multi-Gran.) Spatio-temporal cues for video action recognition. To this end, our AMS-Net proposes two core components, namely, competitive progressive temporal modeling (CPTM) block and collaborative spatio-temporal pyramid (CSTP) module. They, respectively, capture fine-grained temporal cues and fuse coarse-level spatio-temporal features in an adaptive manner. It admits that AMS-Net can handle subtle variations in visual tempos and fair-sized spatio-temporal dynamics in a unified architecture. Note that our AMS-Net can be flexibly instantiated based on existing deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) with the proposed CPTM block and CSTP module. The experiments are conducted on eight video benchmarks, and the results show our AMS-Net establishes state-of-the-art (SOTA) performance on fine-grained action recognition (i.e., Diving48 and FineGym), while performing very competitively on widely used Something-Something and Kinetics.

Investigation of the Vibrational Characteristics of 6-Isocyano-1-Methyl-1H-Indole: Utilizing the Isonitrile Group as an Infrared Probe.

Indole derivatives have garnered considerable attention in the realm of biochemistry due to their multifaceted properties. In this study, we undertake a systematic investigation of the vibrational characteristics of a model indole derivative, 6-isocyano-1-methyl-1H-indole (6ICMI), by employing a combination of FTIR, IR pump-probe spectroscopy, and theoretical calculations. Our findings demonstrate a strong dependence of the isonitrile stretching frequency of 6ICMI on the polarizability of protic solvents and the density of hydrogen-bond donor groups in the solvent when the isonitrile group is bonded to aromatic groups. Both experimental and theoretical analyses unveil a significant correlation between the isonitrile stretch vibration of 6ICMI and the solvent acceptor number of alcohols. Furthermore, the polarization-controlled infrared pump-probe conducted on 6ICMI in dimethyl sulfoxide provides additional support for the potential use of the isonitrile stretching mode of 6ICMI as an effective infrared probe for local environments.

Discovery of Novel Carboxamide Derivatives Containing Biphenyl Pharmacophore as Potential Fungicidal Agents Used for Resistance Management.

Natural products are one of the main sources of drug and agrochemicals discovery. Biphenyls skeleton are ubiquitous structures in many classes of natural products, which indicate extensive biological activities. So, in order to investigate the potential applications for natural biphenyl derivatives, a series of novel carboxamide derivatives with diverse substituent patterns were designed and synthesized based on active pharmacophore from natural biphenyl lignans, and their in vitro antifungal activities against several typical plant pathogens belonging to oomycetes, ascomycete, deuteromycetes, and basidiomycetes were fully investigated. The highly potential compounds were further tested in vivo assay against Botrytis cinerea Pers. of cucumber to demonstrate a practical application for controlling common plant diseases, which indicated four compounds could effectively control the resistant strains of carbendazim, rutamycin, and pyrazolidide. The potential modes of action for compound B12 against B. cinerea were also explored using molecular docking, microscopic technology, and label-free quantitative proteomics analysis. The results show that compound B12 may be a potential novel fungicidal agent used for gray mold resistance control, which can influence the protein synthesis of B. cinerea. These findings can provide a certain theoretical basis for the development of novel biphenyl derivatives as potential green antifungal agents.

Cluster synchronization for controlled nodes via the dynamics of edges in complex dynamical networks.

An appropriate dynamic coupling form between nodes and edges' state can effectively promote the emergence of desired network function (phenomenon), but the existing literatures have not conducted in-depth research on the coupling mechanism. This paper mainly focuses on the coupling auxiliary mechanism of dynamic edges for the emergence of cluster phenomenon of nodes, explores the essential relation between structure and function in complex dynamical networks (CDNs). Firstly, a novel model of CDNs has dynamic systems attached on not only nodes but also edges is proposed from the viewpoint of large-scale system. Secondly, a feedback nodes controller is synthesized associate with the designed linear and adaptive dynamics of edges. Via the appropriate dynamic behaviors of the edges system, the controlled nodes can realize cluster synchronized. Finally, the validity of the proposed approaches is verified by a given numerical example.

Expression and clinical significance of NRLP1 in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction combined with malignant ventricular arrhythmia.

Objective: To investigate the clinical effects of NRLP1 expression in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) combined with arrhythmia. Methods: We enrolled 231 patients with STEMI in the first hospital of Quanzhou affiliated to Fujian Medical University from January 2019 to December 2020 to the observational group and 230 healthy individuals as the control group. We divided patients with STEMI into a malignant ventricular arrhythmia (MVA) group (n=36) and non-MVA(NMVA) group (n=195) depending on whether the individuals had experienced an episode of MVA within 48 hours after PCI. We recorded general variables such as age, gender, history of smoking, hypertension, of diabetes, hyperlipidemia, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), Gensini score, and mortality. Moreover, we determined NLRP1, IL-1ß, TNF-α, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP), cardiac troponin-1 (cTnI), and creatine kinase isoenzyme (CK-MB) in peripheral blood by ELISA. Results: We found significant differences in LVEF, Gensini scores, smoking history, and mortality between the MVA and NMVA groups. The mean NLRP1 expression was highest in the MVA group, which was positively correlated with the levels of IL-1ß, TNF-α, hs-CRP, NT-pro-BNP, cTnI and CK-MB. The expression of NLRP1 was associated with the smoking history, the LVEF value, the Gensini score, the MVA incidence and the mortality. Patients with higher NLRP1 expression levels had a higher MACE incidence and worse overall survivals within one year. Conclusion: The NLRP1 pathway is associated with the presence of arrhythmias after PCI treatments, and the NLRP1 expression level may be useful as a predictor of arrhythmia in patients with STEMI.

Structural diversity-guided optimization of carbazole derivatives as potential cytotoxic agents.

Carbazole alkaloids, as an important class of natural products, have been widely reported to have extensive biological activities. Based on our previous three-component reaction to construct carbazole scaffolds, we introduced a methylene group to provide a rotatable bond, and designed series of carbazole derivatives with structural diversity including carbazole amide, carbazole hydrazide and carbazole hydrazone. All synthesized carbazole derivatives were evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxic activity against 7901 (gastric adenocarcinoma), A875 (human melanoma) and MARC145 (African green monkey kidney) cell lines. The preliminary results indicated that compound 14a exhibited high inhibitory activities on 7901 and A875 cancer cells with the lowest IC50 of 11.8 ± 1.26 and 9.77 ± 8.32 µM, respectively, which might be the new lead compound for discovery of novel carbazole-type anticancer agents.

The evolutionary extortion game of multiple groups in hypernetworks.

As a type of zero-determinant strategies, the extortion strategy was found to be an evolutionarily stable strategy in structural groups. However, instead of complex networks structure, this paper focus on a multi-group game in hypernetworks, using the framework of a gift giving game driven by replicator-like dynamics. We find that the extortion is evolutionarily stable in the hypernetwork structure. The extortion game in hypernetworks can promote the emergence of the cooperative behavior compared to the traditional dual-strategy game and the extortion game in complex networks. The results show that the cooperation behavior attracts most of the groups for the smaller benefit value. With the increase of benefit value, cooperators turn into defectors and extortioners, but cooperation behavior still survives in hypernetworks under extreme conditions. Moreover, small-scale groups are more conducive to cooperation.

Asymptotically local synchronization in interdependent networks with unidirectional interlinks.

Synchronization in complex networks has been investigated for decades. Due to the particularity of the interlinks between networks, the synchronization in interdependent networks has received increasing interest. Since the interlinks are not always symmetric in interdependent networks, we focus on the synchronization in unidirectional interdependent networks to study the control scheme. The mathematical model is put forward and some factors are taken into consideration, such as different coupling functions and strengths. Firstly, the feasibility of the control scheme is proved theoretically by using Lyapunov stability theory and verified by simulations. Then, we find that the synchronization could be maintained in one sub-network by utilizing our control scheme while the nodes in the other sub-network are in chaos. The result indicates that the influence of interlinks can be decreased and the proposed scheme can guarantee the synchronization in one sub-network at least. Moreover, we also discuss the robust of our control scheme against the cascading failure. The scheme is verified by simulations to be effective while the disturbances occur.

Health-related risky behaviors and their risk factors in adolescents with high-functioning autism.

BACKGROUND: Health-related risky behaviors generally refer to behaviors that have a negative impact on health and quality of life. Health-related risky behaviors in adolescents with high-functioning autism (HFA) have not been well understood so far. Adolescents with HFA may have more health-related risky behaviors than neurotypical adolescents. AIM: To investigate health-related risky behaviors and their risk factors with HFA. METHODS: This is an observational study. Our study enrolled 110 adolescents aged 12-19-years-old meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 4th edition criteria for HFA. They were recruited from Peking University Sixth Hospital. There were also 110 age, sex and nationality matched controls enrolled who came from a public school in Beijing, China. Both groups completed the Adolescents Health-related Risky Behavior Inventory. Nonparametric tests were carried out for comparison of the Adolescents Health-related Risky Behavior Inventory scores between the two groups. Expression recognition, the Inventory of Subjective Life Quality for Child and Adolescent, Chinese Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Adult-Chinese Revised, Theory of Mind test and Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire were assessed in the autism group to explore factors associated with health-related risky behaviors. Multivariate regression analysis was conducted to explore the risk factors of health-related risky behaviors in the HFA group. RESULTS: The results showed that the total score of the Adolescents Health-related Risky Behavior Inventory and scores of "aggression and violence," "suicide and self-injury," "health compromising behavior" and "unprotected sex" subscales in the HFA group were significantly higher than those in the control group (Z range -4.197 to -2.213, P < 0.05). Among the associated factors, poor emotional experience (B = -0.268, P < 0.001), depression (B = -0.321, P < 0.001), low score of intelligence (B = -0.032, P = 0.042), low score of Theory of Mind test (B = -1.321, P = 0.003) and poor adaptation to school life (B = -0.152, P = 0.006) were risk factors. These risky behaviors may promote the occurrence of health-related risky behaviors in adolescents with HFA. CONCLUSION: This study showed that adolescents with HFA were more likely to be involved in health-related risky behaviors. Different health-related risky behaviors have different reasons.

Health-related risky behaviors in Chinese adolescents with autism: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Health-related risky behaviors (HRB) generally refer to behaviors that have a negative influence on health and quality of life. HRB in adolescents with autism have not been well understood so far. We aim to explore health-related risky behaviors and their risk factors with autistic adolescents. METHODS: In this study, 150 adolescents with autism and 150 neurotypical adolescents were enrolled. Participants in both groups completed the Adolescent Health-Related Risky Behavior Inventory (AHRBI). Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ), Wechsler Intelligence Scale, Theory of Mind (ToM) Test, Zung Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), Zung Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS), and Self-Esteem Scale (SES) were also assessed in the autism group to explore risk factors. RESULTS: The results showed that the total score of AHRBI and scores of "aggression and violence (AV)", "suicide or self-injury (SS)", "health-compromising behavior (HCB)", and "unprotected sex (US)" subscales in the autism group were significantly higher than those in the control group (Z value = - 4.58 ~ - 2.26, all P < 0.05). Anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, low IQ score, low ToM test score, increasing age, and communication disorder were found as risk factors for health-related risky behaviors in autistic adolescents. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents with autism have more health-related risky behaviors than neurotypical adolescents. We should pay attention to the emotional state, self-esteem, cognitive function, and verbal communication levels of autistic adolescent with health-related risky behaviors.

Selective and effective anticancer agents: Synthesis, biological evaluation and structure-activity relationships of novel carbazole derivatives.

Carbazole alkaloids is an important class of natural products with diverse biological functions. So, the aim of this article is to explore new chemical entities containing carbazole scaffold as potential novel cytotoxic agents based on our developed three-component indole-to-carbazole reaction. Two series of carbazole derivatives were designed and synthesized, and their in vitro cytotoxic activities against three cell lines (A875, HepG2, and MARC145) were evaluated. The results indicated that some of these carbazole derivatives exhibited significantly good cytotoxic activities against tested cell lines compared with the control 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). Especially, carbazole acylhydrazone compounds 7g and 7p displayed high inhibitory activity on cancer cells, but almost no activity on normal cells. Further analysis of induced apoptosis for potential compounds indicated that the potential antitumor agents induced cell death in A875 cells at least partly (initially) by apoptosis, which might be used as promising lead scaffold for discovery of novel carbazole-type cytotoxic agents.

Adaptive State Observer Design for Dynamic Links in Complex Dynamical Networks.

The state observer for dynamic links in complex dynamical networks (CDNs) is investigated by using the adaptive method whether the networks are undirected or directed. In this paper, a complete network model is proposed, which is composed of two coupled subsystems called nodes subsystem and links subsystem, respectively. Especially, for the links subsystem, associated with some assumptions, the state observer with parameter adaptive law is designed. Compared to the existing results about the state observer design of CDNs, the advantage of this method is that a estimation problem of dynamic links is solved in directed networks for the first time. Finally, the results obtained in this paper are demonstrated by performing a numerical example.

The structural balance analysis of complex dynamical networks based on nodes' dynamical couplings.

The nodes and their connection relationships are the two main bodies for dynamic complex networks. In existing theoretical researches, the phenomena of stabilization and synchronization for complex dynamical networks are generally regarded as the dynamic characteristic behaviors of the nodes, which are mainly caused by coupling effect of connection relationships between nodes. However, the connection relationships between nodes are also one main body of a time-varying dynamic complex network, and thus they may evolve with time and maybe show certain characteristic phenomena. For example, the structural balance in the social networks and the synaptic facilitation in the biological neural networks. Therefore, it is important to investigate theoretically the reasons in dynamics for the occurrence. Especially, from the angle of large-scale systems, how the dynamic behaviors of nodes (such as the individuals, neurons) contribute to the connection relationships is one of worthy research directions. In this paper, according to the structural balance theory of triad proposed by F. Heider, we mainly focus on the connection relationships body, which is regarded as one of the two subsystems (another is the nodes body), and try to find the dynamic mechanism of the structural balance with the internal state behaviors of the nodes. By using the Riccati linear matrix differential equation as the dynamic model of connection relationships subsystem, it is proved under some mathematic conditions that the connection relationships subsystem is asymptotical structural balance via the effects of the coupling roles with the internal state of nodes. Finally, the simulation example is given to show the validity of the method in this paper.

Surface-bioengineered Gold Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications.

The conjugation of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) with biomolecules could create many outstanding biofunctions for the surface-functionalized nanoparticles and extend their biomedical applications. In this review, we summarize the recent advances in the surface bioengineering of AuNPs with biomolecules, such as DNA, proteins, peptides, and biopolymers, in which the details on the structure, functions, and properties of surface- bioengineered AuNPs are discussed. In addition, the surface-biofunctionalization of AuNPs for biomedical applications like biosensing, bioimaging, drug delivery, and tissue engineering are introduced. It is expected that this work will be very helpful for readers to understand the surface functionalization and engineering techniques for various metallic nanoparticles and design novel biomaterials for biomedical applications.