Density-wave-ordered phases of Rydberg atoms on a honeycomb lattice.

Rydberg atom arrays have recently emerged to be a promising platform for the exploration of exotic quantum phases of matter and quantum phenomena. In this work, we map out the ground-state phase diagram of Rydberg atoms on a honeycomb lattice as a function of the Rydberg blockade radius and the laser detuning by performing large-scale finite-size density matrix renormalization group simulations. Apart from a featureless disordered phase, we find five other intricate long-range density-wave-ordered phases within a relatively wide parameter space. The properties of these quantum phases are analyzed by calculating their Rydberg excitation profiles and static structure factors. In addition, a continuous quantum phase transition belonging to the (2+1)-dimensional Ising universality class is explored by a standard finite-size scaling analysis. Our work implies some different physics, such as the possible nontrivial quantum phase transitions and a highly degenerate string ordered phase, that a honeycomb geometry could bring to the Rydberg system and serves as a numerical guide for possible real experiments.

Quantitative Evaluation of a Cross-Sectional Area of the Fetal Straight Sinus by Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Its Clinical Value.

Objective: The intracranial venous system plays an important role in ensuring blood circulation and a stable blood supply to the fetal brain. In the present study, a cross-sectional area of the fetal straight sinus was quantitatively evaluated by fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to explore the method's clinical value. Methods: The clinical and MRI data of 126 normal fetuses in mid-to-late stage pregnancies were retrospectively analyzed. The "dominant" sequence of the fetal straight sinus was selected, and the cross-sectional area of the lumen was measured at each gestational age to obtain the normal range at different ages and to analyze the developmental pattern and characteristics of the fetal straight sinus. Results: There were statistically significant differences in the cross-sectional area of the fetal straight sinus among different gestational ages (P < 0.05). The cross-sectional area of the fetal straight sinus was positively correlated with gestational age (coefficient of determination = 0.6892, P < 0.05). That is, the cross-sectional area of the fetal straight sinus grew with increasing gestational age, and the regression equation was y = 0.27 x - 2.14 (P < 0.05). Additionally, there were five fetuses with cerebral venous abnormalities, including four with heart failure and one with venous sinus thrombosis. Conclusion: Quantitative measurement of a cross-sectional area of the fetal straight sinus by MRI enhanced understanding of the anatomical features and developmental pattern of fetal cerebral veins and provided a reference for the clinical diagnosis of related diseases and investigation concerning pathogenesis.

Quantum phases of Rydberg atoms on a frustrated triangular-lattice array.

The neutral atoms coupled to a highly excited Rydberg state on a two-dimensional triangular lattice are investigated by employing the density matrix renormalization group technique in the matrix product state form. The full ground-state phase diagram as a function of blockade radius and the detuning of the exciting laser is determined by the behavior of entanglement entropy. We find several quantum phases including stripe-ordered and symmetry-breaking density-wave-ordered phases featured with regular excitation patterns of different excitation densities ρ = 1/3, 1/4, and 1/7. In addition, a ρ = 2/3 ordered phase and an interesting "order-by-disorder" phase, which has been prepared experimentally, are also observed in this work. Our work provides an exploration of the possible quantum phases that can occur in a triangularly arrayed Rydberg system, and thus could be a faithful theoretical guide for further experimental research.

Multipartite entanglement and quantum criticality of Rydberg atoms trapped in a two-dimensional optical lattice.

We investigate the multipartite entanglement and quantum criticality of neutral atoms on a two-dimensional square lattice, interacting via laser excitation to atom Rydberg states. It is found that the first derivative of residual entanglement with respect to detuning has peaks near the critical point, and corresponding critical behaviors are shown to obey conventional finite-sized scaling, from which we numerically determine the quantum critical point and the critical exponent of the associated correlation length. We also show that there is a sharp peak in the fidelity susceptibility near the critical point, and the critical exponent of the associated correlation length is obtained based on the finite size analysis.

Learning spin liquids on a honeycomb lattice with artificial neural networks.

Machine learning methods provide a new perspective on the study of many-body system in condensed matter physics and there is only limited understanding of their representational properties and limitations in quantum spin liquid systems. In this work, we investigate the ability of the machine learning method based on the restricted Boltzmann machine in capturing physical quantities including the ground-state energy, spin-structure factor, magnetization, quantum coherence, and multipartite entanglement in the two-dimensional ferromagnetic spin liquids on a honeycomb lattice. It is found that the restricted Boltzmann machine can encode the many-body wavefunction quite well by reproducing accurate ground-state energy and structure factor. Further investigation on the behavior of multipartite entanglement indicates that the residual entanglement is richer in the gapless phase than the gapped spin-liquid phase, which suggests that the residual entanglement can characterize the spin-liquid phases. Additionally, we confirm the existence of a gapped non-Abelian topological phase in the spin liquids on a honeycomb lattice with a small magnetic field and determine the corresponding phase boundary by recognizing the rapid change of the local magnetization and residual entanglement.

Quantum entanglement and criticality in a one-dimensional deconfined quantum critical point.

We investigate the ground-state quantum entanglement in a one-dimensional incarnation of deconfined quantum critical point by making use of the finite-size density matrix renormalization group method. We observe two distinct behaviors of two-site entanglement calculated on odd and even bonds, and the difference O_{E} is shown to obey conventional scaling relations for order parameters. Accurate deconfined critical point and associated critical exponents are numerically extracted from finite-size scaling analyses. We further notice a close similarity between O_{E} and the valence-bond-solid order parameter and same observations are also obtained for quantum coherence and trace distance. Furthermore, the deconfined critical point is suggested to possess rich quantum entanglement other than the two-site entanglement from the residual entanglement perspective. Our work explores the critical characteristics of the one-dimensional deconfined quantum critical point from the quantum information aspect and provides insights for its ground-state entanglement structure.

An Immune Risk Score Predicts Survival of Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia Receiving Chemotherapy.

PURPOSE: Prediction models for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are useful, but have considerable inaccuracy and imprecision. No current model includes covariates related to immune cells in the AML microenvironment. Here, an immune risk score was explored to predict the survival of patients with AML. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: We evaluated the predictive accuracy of several in silico algorithms for immune composition in AML based on a reference of multi-parameter flow cytometry. CIBERSORTx was chosen to enumerate immune cells from public datasets and develop an immune risk score for survival in a training cohort using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator Cox regression model. RESULTS: Six flow cytometry-validated immune cell features were informative. The model had high predictive accuracy in the training and four external validation cohorts. Subjects in the training cohort with low scores had prolonged survival compared with subjects with high scores, with 5-year survival rates of 46% versus 19% (P < 0.001). Parallel survival rates in validation cohorts-1, -2, -3, and -4 were 46% versus 6% (P < 0.001), 44% versus 18% (P = 0.041), 44% versus 24% (P = 0.004), and 62% versus 32% (P < 0.001). Gene set enrichment analysis indicated significant enrichment of immune relation pathways in the low-score cohort. In multivariable analyses, high-risk score independently predicted shorter survival with HRs of 1.45 (P = 0.005), 2.12 (P = 0.004), 2.02 (P = 0.034), 1.66 (P = 0.019), and 1.59 (P = 0.001) in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Our immune risk score complements current AML prediction models.

Methylation of the Promoter Region of the Tight Junction Protein-1 by DNMT1 Induces EMT-like Features in Multiple Myeloma.

The molecular alterations that initiate the development of multiple myeloma (MM) are not fully understood. Our results revealed that TJP1 was downregulated in MM and positively related to the overall survival of MM patients in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and patient samples. In parallel, cell adhesion capacity representing MM metastasis was decreased in MM patients compared with healthy samples, together with the significantly activated epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) transcriptional-like patterns of MM cells. Further analyses demonstrated that TJP1 negatively regulated EMT and consequently positively regulated cell adhesion in MM from TCGA database and MM1s cells. Furthermore, the methylation level of each CpG site on the TJP1 promoter was negatively correlated with TJP1 expression levels. Quantitative real-time PCR and western blot assays demonstrated that methylase DNMT1 regulated the methylation of TJP1. Finally, treatment with a combination of the MM clinical medicine bortezomib, methylation inhibitor, or TJP1 overexpression significantly suppressed the viability and progression of tumor cells of MM orthotopic models. In summary, our results indicate that DNMT1 promotes the methylation of TJP1 promoter, thereby decreasing its expression and regulating the development of EMT-inhibited MM cell adhesion. Therefore, methylation of TJP1 is a potential therapeutic agent to prevent the progression of MM disease.

Systematic Construction and Validation of a Metabolic Risk Model for Prognostic Prediction in Acute Myelogenous Leukemia.

Background: Acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) is a heterogeneous disease with recurrent gene mutations and variations in disease-associated gene expression, which may be useful for prognostic prediction. Methods: RNA matrix and clinical data of AML were downloaded from GEO, TCGA, and TARGET databases. Prognostic metabolic genes were identified by LASSO analysis to establish a metabolic model. Prognostic accuracy of the model was quantified by time-dependent receiver operating characteristic curves and the area under the curve (AUC). Survival analysis was performed by log-rank tests. Enriched pathways in different metabolic risk statuses were evaluated by gene set enrichment analyses (GSEA). Results: We identified nine genes to construct a prognostic model of shorter survival in the high-risk vs. low-risk group. The prognostic model showed good predictive efficacy, with AUCs for 5-year overall survival of 0.78 (0.73-0.83), 0.76 (0.62-0.89), and 0.66 (0.57-0.75) in the training, adult external, and pediatric external cohorts, respectively. Multivariable analysis demonstrated that the metabolic signature had independent prognostic value with hazard ratios of 2.75 (2.06-3.66), 1.89 (1.09-3.29), and 1.96 (1.00-3.84) in the training, adult external, and pediatric external cohorts, respectively. Combining metabolic signatures and classic prognostic factors improved 5-year overall survival prediction compared to the prediction by classic prognostic factors (p < 0.05). GSEA revealed that most pathways were metabolism-related, indicating potential mechanisms. Conclusion: We identified dysregulated metabolic features in AML and constructed a prognostic model to predict the survival of patients with AML.

Multipartite entanglement, quantum coherence, and quantum criticality in triangular and Sierpinski fractal lattices.

We investigate the quantum phase transitions of the transverse-field quantum Ising model on the triangular lattice and Sierpinski fractal lattices by employing the multipartite entanglement and quantum coherence along with the quantum renormalization group method. It is shown that the quantum criticalities of these high-dimensional models closely relate to the behaviors of the multipartite entanglement and quantum coherence. As the thermodynamic limit is approached, the first derivatives of the multipartite entanglement and quantum coherence exhibit singular behaviors, and the consistent finite-size scaling behaviors for each lattice are also obtained from the first derivatives. The multipartite entanglement and quantum coherence are demonstrated to be good indicators for detecting the quantum phase transitions in the triangular lattice and Sierpinski fractal lattices. Furthermore, the dimensions determine the relations between the critical exponents and the correlation length exponents for these lattices.

Puerarin reduces ischemia/reperfusion-induced myocardial injury in diabetic rats via upregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor A/angiotensin-1 and suppression of apoptosis.

Puerarin is an active ingredient of pueraria, which has been developed for puerarin injections, used in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases including arrhythmia, myocardial ischemia and hypertension. However, the molecular mechanisms of puerarin on ischemia/reperfusion (I/R)­induced myocardial apoptosis in diabetic rats are not fully understood. The present study aimed to investigate whether puerarin can attenuate I/R­induced myocardial apoptosis in diabetic rats, and to investigate the underlying mechanism. A hemodynamic analyzing system was employed to analyze the left ventricular developed pressure (LVDP), the left ventricular end­systolic interior dimension (LVIDs) and the left ventricular end diastolic interior dimension (LVIDd). ELISA kits were used to analyze malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), tumor necrosis factor­α (TNF­α) and interleukin (IL)­6 levels, NO production and caspase­3 activity. Nuclear factor (NF)­κB, ascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), angiotensin (Ang)­I, phosphorylated (p)­endothelial nitric oxide synthase protein expression was analyzed using western blot analysis. Puerarin significantly reduced the myocardial infarct area, and increased left ventricular developed pressure in diabetic rats with myocardial I/R. Oxidative stress, inflammation and nuclear factor­κB protein expression were significantly reduced by puerarin. Furthermore, puerarin activated the protein expression levels of VEGFA and Ang­I, and increased nitric oxide production, phosphorylated­endothelial nitric oxide synthase protein expression and caspase­3 activity. These results demonstrated that the myocardial protective effect of puerarin serves to reduce myocardial I/R injury, via upregulation of VEGFA/Ang­1 and suppression of apoptosis, in diabetic rats with myocardial I/R.

Quantum phase transition in fiber-coupled quantum networks.

We explore the quantum criticality in a one-dimensional quantum network, where adjacent nodes are connected by a fiber and each node consists of a cavity doped with N two-level atoms. We investigate the phase diagrams for cases of different atom numbers on resonance by making use of the mean-field approximation and find that both the fidelity and entanglement entropy for the ground state have dramatic changes near the critical points. Finally, the photon population imbalance of adjacent cavities is analytically explored via the two-node quantum network as the forerunner of phase transition.

[Research progress on the molecular pathogenesis of Trichomonas vaginalis].

Trichomonas vaginalis is one of the most common human sexually transmitted pathogens that colonize the urogenital mucosa. This paper reviews those factors in the molecular pathogenesis of the parasite, including cell adhesin, interaction with fibronectin and laminin, G-proteins, pore-forming protein and proteinases.

[Research advances in microbial degradation of nitrobenzene and its substituted compounds].

Nitrobenzene and its substituted compounds are a group of priority pollutants characterized by chemical stability, high toxicity, and biological accumulation. To treat the waste water and gas containing nitrobenzene and its substituted compounds and to remedy the environment polluted by these compounds, microbial degradation had advantages over other methods. This paper summarized the research advances in the microbial degradation of nitrobenzene and its substituted compounds by terms of the acclimation and screening of degradation strains, degradation pathways and mechanisms, co-metabolism, chemotaxis, and molecular genetics. Further studies should be made on the construction and application of engineering bacteria. In the microbial remediation of environment polluted by nitrobenzene and its substituted compounds, co-metabolism and synergetic degradation of co-strains would play an important role.

[Comparative research on Cd removal from water by different kinds of seedlings].

Ecological effects of Cd removal from water and the changes of physiological and biochemical indexes of seedlings of maize, sunflower and castor-oil plant were investigated. The results showed that (1) with the trial time lasting, Cd content in solution decreased, and the processes of Cd removal by seedlings of each concentration were almost completed in 48 hours. The removal effects of sunflower and castor-oil plant were better than those of maize at 1 mg x L(-1) and 2 mg x L(-1) Cd, whereas the best removal effects at 5 mg x L(-1) and 10 mg x L(-) Cd were those of castor-oil plant, followed by maize and sunflower. (2) Root absorbed the most proportion of Cd by all these three kinds of seedlings at every treatment. The ability of Cd accumulation by the three kinds of seedlings could be drawn as follow sunflower> castor-oil plant > maize. (3) The physiological and biochemical indexes of seedlings exposed to Cd for 72 hours had changed to different degree compared with control. The root activity and the proline content of sunflower both have significant relations with Cd accumulation, and the plasma membrane permeability and the proline content of castor-oil plant both have significant positive relations with Cd accumulation. Maize, sunflower and castor-oil plant could endure certain concentration of Cd, and the tolerance of sunflower and castor-oil plant are both greater than that of maize through general analysis of Cd accumulation and the changes of physiological and biochemical indexes.

Diffusion and entanglement of a kicked particle in an infinite square well under frequent measurements.

We investigate the dynamics of a kicked particle in an infinite square well undergoing frequent measurements of energy. For a large class of periodic kicking forces, constant diffusion is found in such a non-Kolmogorov-Arnol'd-Moser system. The influence of a phase shift of the kicking potential on the short-time dynamical behavior is discussed. The general asymptotical measurement-assisted diffusion rate is obtained. The entanglement between the particle and the measuring apparatus is investigated. There exist two distinct dynamical behaviors of entanglement. The bipartite entanglement between the system of interest and the whole spin of the measuring apparatus grows with the kicking steps and it gains a larger value for a more chaotic system. However, the partial entanglement between the system of interest and the partial spin of the measuring apparatus decreases with the kicking steps. The relation between the entanglement and quantum diffusion is also analyzed.

DNA damage of germ cell of rat induced by nitrotoluene chemicals.

2,4-dinitrotoluene(2,4-DNT), 2,6-dinitrotoluene(2,6-DNT) and 4-nitrotoluene(4-NT) are typical pollutants in the Songhua River of Northeast China. Sertoli/germ cell cocultures and single cell gel electrophoresis(SCGE) are applied to investigate whether they have genotoxicity on DNA damage of germ cell of Kunming male rat. The results showed that all three nitrotoluene compounds tested could induce DNA single-strand breaks of the germ cell. A significant relationship is found between logarithm dose and the degree of DNA damage, which implies that 2,4-DNT, 2,6-DNT and 4-NT have genotoxicity and can induce the germ cell DNA strand to break in vitro.