Deep-learning-based ring artifact correction for tomographic reconstruction.

X-ray tomography has been widely used in various research fields thanks to its capability of observing 3D structures with high resolution non-destructively. However, due to the nonlinearity and inconsistency of detector pixels, ring artifacts usually appear in tomographic reconstruction, which may compromise image quality and cause nonuniform bias. This study proposes a new ring artifact correction method based on the residual neural network (ResNet) for X-ray tomography. The artifact correction network uses complementary information of each wavelet coefficient and a residual mechanism of the residual block to obtain high-precision artifacts through low operation costs. In addition, a regularization term is used to accurately extract stripe artifacts in sinograms, so that the network can better preserve image details while accurately separating artifacts. When applied to simulation and experimental data, the proposed method shows a good suppression of ring artifacts. To solve the problem of insufficient training data, ResNet is trained through the transfer learning strategy, which brings advantages of robustness, versatility and low computing cost.

ELANE Promotes M2 Macrophage Polarization by Down-Regulating PTEN and Participates in the Lung Cancer Progression.

BACKGROUND: Macrophages are one of the most important immunoinflammatory cell populations in the tumor microenvironment (TME). In this study, we preliminarily investigated the upstream pathway of M2 macrophage polarization affecting lung cancer progression. METHODS: Bioinformatics analysis was used to evaluate genes closely associated with lung adenocarcinoma and their relationship with immune cells. THP-1 monocytes were induced into M2 macrophages. The expression of markers in M2 macrophages was detected by quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR), enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and flow cytometry. The effects of neutrophil elastase (ELANE)-mediated M2 macrophages on lung cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion and tumor growth were investigated by in vitro and in vivo experiments after co-culture of macrophage conditioned medium (CM) and lung cancer cell lines A549 and H1299. The PTEN protein expression was detected by Western blotting. RESULTS: ELANE was significantly positively correlated with M2 macrophages. ELANE up-regulated the expression of the M2 macrophage markers CD206, CCL22, IL-10 and CCL18 and increased the proportion of CD206+ macrophages. Compared with M0-CM, M2-CM promoted cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, and (M2+ELANE)-CM further enhanced this effect. In vivo, ELANE promoted M2 macrophage-induced tumor growth in lung cancer mice model. In vitro experiments showed that ELANE can down-regulate the expression of PTEN and promote the polarization of M2 macrophages. CONCLUSION: ELANE promotes the polarization of M2 macrophages by down-regulating PTEN, thus promoting cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro and growth of lung cancer cells in vivo.

Automatic marker-based alignment method for a nano-resolution full-field transmission X-ray microscope.

Driven by the development of X-ray optics, the spatial resolution of the full-field transmission X-ray microscope (TXM) has reached tens of nanometers and plays an important role in promoting the development of biomedicine and materials science. However, due to the thermal drift and the radial/axial motion error of the rotation stage, TXM computed tomography (CT) data are often associated with random image jitter errors along the horizontal and vertical directions during CT measurement. A nano-resolution 3D structure information reconstruction is almost impossible without a prior appropriate alignment process. To solve this problem, a fully automatic gold particle marker-based alignment approach without human intervention was proposed in this study. It can automatically detect, isolate, and register gold particles for projection image alignment with high efficiency and accuracy, facilitating a high-quality tomographic reconstruction. Simulated and experimental results confirmed the reliability and robustness of this method.

Automatic literature screening using the PAJO deep-learning model for clinical practice guidelines.

BACKGROUND: Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) are designed to assist doctors in clinical decision making. High-quality research articles are important for the development of good CPGs. Commonly used manual screening processes are time-consuming and labor-intensive. Artificial intelligence (AI)-based techniques have been widely used to analyze unstructured data, including texts and images. Currently, there are no effective/efficient AI-based systems for screening literature. Therefore, developing an effective method for automatic literature screening can provide significant advantages. METHODS: Using advanced AI techniques, we propose the Paper title, Abstract, and Journal (PAJO) model, which treats article screening as a classification problem. For training, articles appearing in the current CPGs are treated as positive samples. The others are treated as negative samples. Then, the features of the texts (e.g., titles and abstracts) and journal characteristics are fully utilized by the PAJO model using the pretrained bidirectional-encoder-representations-from-transformers (BERT) model. The resulting text and journal encoders, along with the attention mechanism, are integrated in the PAJO model to complete the task. RESULTS: We collected 89,940 articles from PubMed to construct a dataset related to neck pain. Extensive experiments show that the PAJO model surpasses the state-of-the-art baseline by 1.91% (F1 score) and 2.25% (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve). Its prediction performance was also evaluated with respect to subject-matter experts, proving that PAJO can successfully screen high-quality articles. CONCLUSIONS: The PAJO model provides an effective solution for automatic literature screening. It can screen high-quality articles on neck pain and significantly improve the efficiency of CPG development. The methodology of PAJO can also be easily extended to other diseases for literature screening.

Research on Robot Screwing Skill Method Based on Demonstration Learning.

A robot screwing skill learning framework based on teaching-learning is proposed to improve the generalization ability of robots for different scenarios and objects, combined with the experience of a human operation. This framework includes task-based teaching, learning, and summarization. We teach a robot to twist and gather the operation's trajectories, define the obstacles with potential functions, and counter the twisting of the robot using a skill-learning-based dynamic movement primitive (DMP) and Gaussian mixture model-Gaussian mixture regression (GMM-GMR). The hole-finding and screwing stages of the process are modeled. In order to verify the effectiveness of the robot tightening skill learning model and its adaptability to different tightening scenarios, obstacle avoidance trends and tightening experiments were conducted. Obstacle avoidance and tightening experiments were conducted on the robot tightening platform for bolts, plastic bottle caps, and faucets. The robot successfully avoided obstacles and completed the twisting task, verifying the effectiveness of the robot tightening skill learning model and its adaptability to different tightening scenarios.

Marinifilum caeruleilacunae sp. nov., isolated from Yongle Blue Hole in the South China Sea.

A Gram-stain-negative, non-motile, facultatively anaerobic and non-flagellated marine bacterium, designated JC070T was isolated from the Yongle Blue Hole in the South China Sea. The temperature, pH and NaCl ranges for growth of strain JC070T were 4-37 °C (optimum, 16 °C), pH 6.0-9.0 (optimum, pH 7.0) and 1.0 -6.0% (w/v; optimum, 3.0%). The predominant isoprenoid quinone of strain JC070T was identified as menaquinone-7. The dominant fatty acids (>10%) were iso-C15:0 (59.6%) and iso-C17:0 3-OH (17.2%). The major polar lipids were aminophospholipid, aminolipid, two unknown phospholipids and two unidentified lipids. The genomic DNA G+C content was determined to be 37.0 mol%. Based on the results of polyphasic analysis, a new species, named Marinifilum caeruleilacunae sp. nov., within the genus Marinifilum was proposed. The type strain is JC070T (= JCM 39045T=MCCC 1K03774T).

Feature detection network-based correction method for accurate nano-tomography reconstruction.

Driven by the development of advanced x-ray optics such as Fresnel zone plates, nano-resolution full-field transmission x-ray microscopy (Nano-CT) has become a powerful technique for the non-destructive volumetric inspection of objects and has long been developed at different synchrotron radiation facilities. However, Nano-CT data are often associated with random sample jitter because of the drift or radial/axial error motion of the rotation stage during measurement. Without a proper sample jitter correction process prior to reconstruction, the use of Nano-CT in providing accurate 3D structure information for samples is almost impossible. In this paper, to realize accurate 3D reconstruction for Nano-CT, a correction method based on a feature detection neural network, which can automatically extract target features from a projective image and precisely correct sample jitter errors, is proposed, thereby resulting in high-quality nanoscale 3D reconstruction. Compared with other feature detection methods, even if the target feature is overlapped by other high-density materials or impurities, the proposed Nano-CT correction method still acquires sub-pixel accuracy in geometrical correction and is more suitable for Nano-CT reconstruction because of its universal and faster correction speed. The simulated and experimental datasets demonstrated the reliability and validity of the proposed Nano-CT correction method.

Polysaccharide from Edible Alga Enteromorpha clathrata Improves Ulcerative Colitis in Association with Increased Abundance of Parabacteroides spp. in the Gut Microbiota of Dextran Sulfate Sodium-Fed Mice.

Polysaccharide from the edible alga Enteromorpha clathrata has been demonstrated to exert beneficial effects on human health. However, what effect it has on inflammatory bowel diseases has not been investigated. Here, using a mouse model of dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced ulcerative colitis, we illustrate that Enteromorpha clathrata polysaccharide (ECP) could alleviate body weight loss, reduce incidences of colonic bleeding, improve stool consistency and ameliorate mucosal damage in diseased mice. 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatic analysis indicated that ECP significantly changed the structure of the gut microbiota and increased the abundance of Parabacteroides spp. in DSS-fed mice. In vitro fermentation studies further confirmed that ECP could promote the growth of Parabacteroides distasonis F1-28, a next-generation probiotic bacterium isolated from the human gut, and increase its production of short-chain fatty acids. Additionally, Parabacteroides distasonis F1-28 was also found to have anti-ulcerative colitis effects in DSS-fed mice. Altogether, our study demonstrates for the first time a beneficial effect of ECP on ulcerative colitis and provides a possible basis for understanding its therapeutic mechanisms from the perspective of symbiotic gut bacteria Parabacteroides distasonis.

Fast Li Plating Behavior Probed by X-ray Computed Tomography.

Uneven lithium plating/stripping is an essential issue that inhibits stable cycling of a lithium metal anode and thus hinders its practical applications. The investigation of this process is challenging because it is difficult to observe lithium in an operating device. Here, we demonstrate that the microscopic lithium plating behavior can be observed in situ in a close-to-practical cell setup using X-ray computed tomography. The results reveal the formation of porous structure and its progressive evolution in space over the charging process with a large current. The elaborated analysis indicates that the microstructure of deposited lithium makes a significant impact on the subsequent lithium plating, and the impact of structural inhomogeneity, further exaggerated by the large-current charging, can lead to severely uneven lithium plating and eventually cell failure. Therefore, a codesign strategy involving delicate controls of microstructure and electrochemical conditions could be a necessity for the next-generation battery with lithium metal anode.

Deep-learning-based image registration for nano-resolution tomographic reconstruction.

Nano-resolution full-field transmission X-ray microscopy has been successfully applied to a wide range of research fields thanks to its capability of non-destructively reconstructing the 3D structure with high resolution. Due to constraints in the practical implementations, the nano-tomography data is often associated with a random image jitter, resulting from imperfections in the hardware setup. Without a proper image registration process prior to the reconstruction, the quality of the result will be compromised. Here a deep-learning-based image jitter correction method is presented, which registers the projective images with high efficiency and accuracy, facilitating a high-quality tomographic reconstruction. This development is demonstrated and validated using synthetic and experimental datasets. The method is effective and readily applicable to a broad range of applications. Together with this paper, the source code is published and adoptions and improvements from our colleagues in this field are welcomed.

A Current Sensing Biosensor for BOD Rapid Measurement.

In order to improve the practicality of the rapid biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) method, a highly sensitive rapid detection method for BOD that is based on establishing the correlation between current and dissolved oxygen (DO) was developed. In this experiment, Bacillus subtilis was used as the test microorganism, and the embedding method was used to achieve quantitative fixation of microorganisms, which could increase the content of microorganisms and prolong the service life of the biological element. The conductivity (COND) probe is used as a sensing element, so that the testing value can be read every second. In the program, the moving average method is used to process the collected data so that the value can be read every minute. National standard samples were detected to test the accuracy and stability of the method. The results showed that relative error and analytical standard deviations were less than 5%. Different polluted water was tested to evaluate its application range. The results showed that relative error was less than 5%. The results of the method are consistent with the results of the wastewater sample obtained by the BOD5 standard method. The proposed rapid BOD current sensing biosensor method should be promising in practical application of wastewater monitoring.

Muricauda alvinocaridis sp. nov., isolated from shrimp gill from the Okinawa Trough.

A Gram-stain-negative, strictly aerobic, non-motile, long, straight-rod and non-flagellated marine bacterium strain, designated SCR12T, was isolated from the gill of a shrimp collected in the Tangyin hydrothermal field of the Okinawa Trough. The growth temperature was in the range of 16-40 °C and the optimum temperature was 37 °C. Optimal growth occurred at pH 6.5 and in the presence of 3 % (w/v) NaCl. The predominant isoprenoid quinone of strain SCR12T was menaquinone-6 (MK-6). The predominant fatty acids (>10 %) were iso-C15 : 0 (44.2 %), iso-C15 : 1 G (19.0 %) and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH (12.1 %). The major polar lipids comprised one phosphatidylethanolamine, three unidentified phospholipids, two unidentified aminolipids and three unidentified lipids. Based on the results of 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, strain SCR12T was found to be most closely related to Muricauda olearia CL-SS4T (98.09 %), followed by Muricauda beolgyonensis BB-My12T (97.65 %), Muricauda aquimarina SW-63T (97.58 %) and Muricauda ruestringensis DSM 13258T (97.31 %) and with lower sequence similarities (95.74-97.10 %) to other species of the genus Muricauda. Genome relatedness between strain SCR12T and M. olearia CL-SS4T was computed using both average nucleotide identity (ANI) and DNA-DNA hybridization (DDH) and resulted in values of 85.6 % and 29.3±2.3 %, respectively. The genomic DNA G+C content of strain SCR12T was 42.3 mol%. On the basis of polyphasic analysis, the strain SCR12T was considered to represent a novel species of the genus Muricauda, for which the name Muricauda alvinocaridis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SCR12T (=MCCC 1K03731T=JCM 33425T).

Gramella bathymodioli sp. nov., isolated from a mussel inhabiting a hydrothermal field in the Okinawa Trough.

A Gram-stain-negative, strictly aerobic, motile by gliding, rod-shaped and non-flagellated marine bacterium strain, designated BOM4T, was isolated from a mussel inhabiting the Tangyin hydrothermal field of the Okinawa Trough. The growth temperature was in the range of 16-40 °C, and the optimum temperature was 37 °C. Optimal growth occurred at pH 7.0 and in the presence of 1 % (w/v) NaCl. The predominant isoprenoid quinone of strain BOM4T was identified as menaquinone-6 (MK-6). The predominant fatty acids (>10 %) were iso-C15 : 0(43.8 %) and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH (17.5 %). The major polar lipids comprised one phosphatidylethanolamine, three unidentified aminolipids and two unidentified lipids. Based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analyses, strain BOM4T was found to be most closely related to Gramella aestuarii JCM 17790T (96.7 %), followed by Gramella flava JLT2011T (96.1 %), Gramella sediminilitoris GHTF-27T (95.6 %) and Gramella gaetbulicola RA5-111T (95.5 %) and with lower sequence similarities (93.7- 95.4 %) to other species of the genus Gramella. Genome relatedness between strain BOM4T and G. aestuarii JCM 17790T was computed using both average nucleotide identity and DNA-DNA hybridization with values of 75.6 and 19.3±2.4 %, respectively. The DNA G+C content of strain BOM4T was 41.4 mol%. On the basis of polyphasic analysis, strain BOM4T was considered to represent a novel species of the genus Gramella, for which the name Gramella bathymodioli sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is BOM4T (=MCCC 1K03735T=JCM 33424T).

Ancylomarina longa sp. nov., isolated from southern Okinawa Trough sediment and emended description of the family Marinifilaceae.

A Gram-stain-negative, obligately anaerobic, non-motile, non-spore-forming, long-rod-shaped and non-flagellated bacterial strain, designated T3-2 S1-CT, was isolated from a sediment sample collected at the Okinawa Trough. Phylogenetic analyses of 16S rRNA gene sequences and the whole genome revealed that strain T3-2 S1-CT was a member of the family Marinifilaceae and exhibited less than 95.1 % sequence similarities to the closely related type strains of the family Marinifilaceae. Optimal growth occurred at pH 7.0, 28 °C and in the presence of 3 % (w/v) NaCl. The isoprenoid quinone of strain T3-2 S1-CT was identified as menaquinone-7 (MK-7) and the predominant fatty acids (>10 %) were iso-C15 : 0 (38.9 %) and anteiso-C15 : 0 (11.6 %). The major polar lipids were one phosphatidylethanolamine, one phosphatidylmonomethylethanolamine, one aminolipids, two unidentified lipids and two unidentified phospholipids. The DNA G+C content of strain T3-2 S1-CT was 35.7 mol%. On the basis of the results of polyphasic analyses, strain T3-2 S1-CT is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Ancylomarina, for which the name Ancylomarina longa sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is T3-2 S1-CT (=KCTC 15505T=MCCC 1K01617T).

Carideicomes alvinocaridis gen. nov., sp. nov., a marine bacterium isolated from shrimp gill in a hydrothermal field of Okinawa Trough.

A Gram-stain-negative, strictly aerobic, oval-shaped, non-motile bacterium with no flagella, designated strain SCR17T, was isolated from a shrimp gill habitat in Tangyin hydrothermal field of Okinawa Trough. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain SCR17T formed a lineage within the family 'Rhodobacteraceae', and shared 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity of 93.2-96.2 % to the related genera Aquicoccus and Roseivivax. Strain SCR17T was able to grow with 0-14 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 9-10 %). The sole respiratory quinone was ubiquinone-10. The major polar lipids of strain SCR17T comprised phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), an unidentified aminolipid (AL), an unidentified phospholipid (PL) and an unidentified lipid (L). The predominant fatty acids (more than 10 % of the total fatty acids) were C18 : 1ω7c or/and C18 : 1ω6c, anteiso-C15 : 0, C16 : 0 and C19 : 0 cyclo ω8c . The genomic DNA G+C content of strain SCR17T was 67.7 mol%. Based on polyphasic taxonomic analyses, strain SCR17T is considered to represent a novel species in a new genus of the family 'Rhodobacteraceae', for which the name Carideicomes alvinocaridis gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Carideicomes alvinocaridis is SCR17T (=JCM 33426T=MCCC 1K03732T). The discovery of a novel host-associated bacterium in hydrothermal fields provides an opportunity for the study of host-bacterial symbiosis in extreme environments.

Puteibacter caeruleilacunae gen. nov., sp. nov., a facultatively anaerobic bacterium isolated from Yongle Blue Hole in the South China Sea.

Blue holes are unique geomorphological units characterized by steep redox and biogeochemical gradients. Yongle Blue Hole is located on the largest atoll (Yongle Atoll) of the western Xisha Islands in the South China Sea. A Gram-stain-negative, facultatively anaerobic, non-motile, non-flagellated marine bacterium with creamy white colonies, designated JC036T, was isolated from Yongle Blue Hole. Cells were short-rod-shaped and catalase-negative. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis showed that sequence similarities were lower than 91.6 % against all validly named species in the family Prolixibacteraceae; a reconstructed phylogenetic tree indicated that strain JC036T formed a lineage with strains in the family Prolixibacteraceae. Growth occurred at 4-37 °C (optimum, 28 °C), at pH 5.0-9.0 (optimum, 7.0) and in the presence of 2-6 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 3 %). The prevalent isoprenoid quinone of strain JC036T was menaquinone-7 (MK-7). Iso-C15 : 0 and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH were the predominant fatty acids. The major polar lipids included a phospholipid, phosphatidylethanolamine, an aminophospholipid and four unidentified lipids. The genomic DNA G+C content of strain JC036T was 37.8 mol%. Based on physiological and biochemical characteristics and whole genome comparisons, we propose a new genus and species, Puteibacter caeruleilacunae gen. nov., sp. nov., within the family Prolixibacteraceae. The type strain of Puteibacter caeruleilacunae is JC036T (=JCM 33128T=MCCC 1K03579T). From this study, a deeper understanding of the community of the microorganism and their roles in biogeochemical cycles, especially anaerobic bacteria, is provided.

Marinifilum breve sp. nov., a marine bacterium isolated from the Yongle Blue Hole in the South China Sea and emended description of the genus Marinifilum.

A Gram-stain-negative, facultative anaerobic, non-motile, short-clavate and non-flagellated marine bacterium strain, designated JC075T, was isolated from the Yongle Blue Hole in the South China Sea. Based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence, strain JC075T was found to be closely related to Marinifilum albidiflavum FB208T (97.10 %), Marinifilum flexuosum DSM 21950T (96.43 %) and Marinifilum fragile JCM 15579T (95.58 %), with less than 90.24 % sequence similarity to other genera of the family Marinifilaceae. The growth temperature was in the range of 10-37 °C, and the optimum temperature was 16 °C. Optimal growth occurred at pH 7.0 and in the presence of 3 % (w/v) NaCl. The isoprenoid quinone of strain JC075T was identified as menaquinone-7 and the predominant fatty acids (>10 %) were iso-C15 : 0 (47.9 %), summed feature 9 (C17 : 1 or/and iso-C17 : 1ω9c; 18.7 %) and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH (14.9 %). The major polar lipids were one phosphatidylethanolamine, one phospholipid, one aminophospholipid, one glycolipid, one aminolipid and two unidentified lipids. The DNA G+C content of strain JC075T was 35.8 mol%. On the basis of polyphasic analysis, strain JC075T was considered to represent a novel species of the genus Marinifilum, for which the name Marinifilumbreve sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is JC075T (=KCTC 15646T=MCCC 1K03477T=JCM 32401T).

Ancylomarina psychrotolerans sp. nov., isolated from sediments of Fildes Peninsula and emended the description of genus Ancylomarina.

A Gram-stain negative, obligately anaerobic, non-motile, asporogenous long rod-shaped and non-flagellated bacterial strain, designated 4SWWS2-6T, was isolated from sediment in the intertidal zone of Fildes Peninsula, Antarctica. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain 4SWWS2-6T belongs to the genus Ancylomarina and showed high sequence similarity with Ancylomarina subtilis FA102T (96.5%). Optimal growth occurred at pH 6.5, 16 °C and in the presence of 3% (w/v) NaCl. Strain 4SWWS2-6T contained menaquinone-7 (MK-7) as the major respiratory quinone and held iso-C15:0, anteiso-C15:0 and iso-C15:0 3-OH as the major cellular fatty acids. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylmonomethylethanolamine, an aminolipid, two unidentified lipids and an unidentified phospholipid. The DNA G + C content of strain 4SWWS2-6T was 37.6 mol%. On the basis of the polyphasic analyses, strain 4SWWS2-6T is considered to represent a novel species in the genus Ancylomarina, for which the name Ancylomarina psychrotolerans sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is 4SWWS2-6T (= KCTC 15504T = MCCC 1K01618T).