Deep Learning-Based Segmentation of 3D Volumetric Image and Microstructural Analysis.

As a fundamental but difficult topic in computer vision, 3D object segmentation has various applications in medical image analysis, autonomous vehicles, robotics, virtual reality, lithium battery image analysis, etc. In the past, 3D segmentation was performed using hand-made features and design techniques, but these techniques could not generalize to vast amounts of data or reach acceptable accuracy. Deep learning techniques have lately emerged as the preferred method for 3D segmentation jobs as a result of their extraordinary performance in 2D computer vision. Our proposed method used a CNN-based architecture called 3D UNET, which is inspired by the famous 2D UNET that has been used to segment volumetric image data. To see the internal changes of composite materials, for instance, in a lithium battery image, it is necessary to see the flow of different materials and follow the directions analyzing the inside properties. In this paper, a combination of 3D UNET and VGG19 has been used to conduct a multiclass segmentation of publicly available sandstone datasets to analyze their microstructures using image data based on four different objects in the samples of volumetric data. In our image sample, there are a total of 448 2D images, which are then aggregated as one 3D volume to examine the 3D volumetric data. The solution involves the segmentation of each object in the volume data and further analysis of each object to find its average size, area percentage, total area, etc. The open-source image processing package IMAGEJ is used for further analysis of individual particles. In this study, it was demonstrated that convolutional neural networks can be trained to recognize sandstone microstructure traits with an accuracy of 96.78% and an IOU of 91.12%. According to our knowledge, many prior works have applied 3D UNET for segmentation, but very few papers extend it further to show the details of particles in the sample. The proposed solution offers a computational insight for real-time implementation and is discovered to be superior to the current state-of-the-art methods. The result has importance for the creation of an approximately similar model for the microstructural analysis of volumetric data.

Experimental Evolution To Isolate Vaccinia Virus Adaptive G9 Mutants That Overcome Membrane Fusion Inhibition via the Vaccinia Virus A56/K2 Protein Complex.

For cell entry, vaccinia virus requires fusion with the host membrane via a viral fusion complex of 11 proteins, but the mechanism remains unclear. It was shown previously that the viral proteins A56 and K2 are expressed on infected cells to prevent superinfection by extracellular vaccinia virus through binding to two components of the viral fusion complex (G9 and A16), thereby inhibiting membrane fusion. To investigate how the A56/K2 complex inhibits membrane fusion, we performed experimental evolutionary analyses by repeatedly passaging vaccinia virus in HeLa cells overexpressing the A56 and K2 proteins to isolate adaptive mutant viruses. Genome sequencing of adaptive mutants revealed that they had accumulated a unique G9R open reading frame (ORF) mutation, resulting in a single His44Tyr amino acid change. We engineered a recombinant vaccinia virus to express the G9H44Y mutant protein, and it readily infected HeLa-A56/K2 cells. Moreover, similar to the ΔA56 virus, the G9H44Y mutant virus on HeLa cells had a cell fusion phenotype, indicating that G9H44Y-mediated membrane fusion was less prone to inhibition by A56/K2. Coimmunoprecipitation experiments demonstrated that the G9H44Y protein bound to A56/K2 at neutral pH, suggesting that the H44Y mutation did not eliminate the binding of G9 to A56/K2. Interestingly, upon acid treatment to inactivate A56/K2-mediated fusion inhibition, the G9H44Y mutant virus induced robust cell-cell fusion at pH 6, unlike the pH 4.7 required for control and revertant vaccinia viruses. Thus, A56/K2 fusion suppression mainly targets the G9 protein. Moreover, the G9H44Y mutant protein escapes A56/K2-mediated membrane fusion inhibition most likely because it mimics an acid-induced intermediate conformation more prone to membrane fusion.IMPORTANCE It remains unclear how the multiprotein entry fusion complex of vaccinia virus mediates membrane fusion. Moreover, vaccinia virus contains fusion suppressor proteins to prevent the aberrant activation of this multiprotein complex. Here, we used experimental evolution to identify adaptive mutant viruses that overcome membrane fusion inhibition mediated by the A56/K2 protein complex. We show that the H44Y mutation of the G9 protein is sufficient to overcome A56/K2-mediated membrane fusion inhibition. Treatment of virus-infected cells at different pHs indicated that the H44Y mutation lowers the threshold of fusion inhibition by A56/K2. Our study provides evidence that A56/K2 inhibits the viral fusion complex via the latter's G9 subcomponent. Although the G9H44Y mutant protein still binds to A56/K2 at neutral pH, it is less dependent on low pH for fusion activation, implying that it may adopt a subtle conformational change that mimics a structural intermediate induced by low pH.

A Miniaturized Nickel Oxide Thermistor via Aerosol Jet Technology.

In this study, a miniaturized thermistor sensor was produced using the Aerosol Jet printing process for temperature sensing applications. A nickel oxide nanoparticle ink with a large temperature coefficient of resistance was fabricated. The thermistor was printed with a circular NiO thin film in between the two parallel silver conductive tracks on a cutting tool insert. The printed thermistor, which has an adjustable dimension with a submillimeter scale, operates over a range of 30-250 °C sensitively (B value of ~4310 K) without hysteretic effects. Moreover, the thermistor may be printed on a 3D surface through the Aerosol Jet printing process, which has increased capability for wide temperature-sensing applications.

Pollution in the urban soils of Lianyungang, China, evaluated using a pollution index, mobility of heavy metals, and enzymatic activities.

Soil samples from 16 urban sites in Lianyungang, China were collected and analyzed. A pollution index was used to assess the potential ecological risk of heavy metals and a sequential extraction procedure was used to evaluate the relative distribution of Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Cr, and As in exchangeable, carbonate, Fe/Mn oxide, organic/sulfide, and residual fractions. The mobility of heavy metals and urease (URE) activity, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, and invertase (INV) activity of soils was determined. The results showed that the average concentrations of Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Cr, and As in Lianyungang soils were much higher than those in the coastal city soil background values of Jiangsu and China. Among the five studied regions (utilities, commercial, industrial, tourism, and roadside), the industrial region had the highest metal concentrations demonstrating that land use had a significant impact on the accumulation of heavy metals in Lianyungang soils. Compared to the other metals, Cd showed the highest ecological risk. According to chemical partitioning, Cu was associated with the organic/sulfides and Pb and Zn were mainly in the carbonate and the Fe/Mn oxide phase. The greatest amounts of Cd were found in exchangeable and carbonate fractions, while Cr and As were mainly in the residual fraction. Cd had the highest mobility of all metals, and the order of mobility (highest to lowest) of heavy metals in Lianyungang soils was Cd > Zn > Pb > Cu > As > Cr. Soil urease activity, alkaline phosphatase activity, and invertase activity varied considerably in different pollution degree sites. Soil enzyme activities had the lowest levels in roadside and industrial regions. Across all the soil data in the five regions, the total Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Cr, and As level was negatively correlated with urease activity, alkaline phosphatase activity, and invertase activity, but the relationship was not significant. In the industrial region, alkaline phosphatase activity had significant negative correlations with total Cu, Pb, Cr, Zn, Cd, and heavy metal fractions. This showed that alkaline phosphatase activity was sensitive to heavy metals in heavily contaminated regions, whereas urease and invertase were less affected. The combination of the various methods may offer a powerful analytical technique in the study of heavy metal pollution in street soil.

New perspectives on dietary-derived treatments and food safety-antinomy in a new era.

Despite the advances in science and technology and wide use of chemical drugs, dietary intervention (or food therapy) remains useful in preventing or treating many human diseases. A huge body of evidence shows that the dietary pattern or habit is also an important contributing factor to the development of chronic diseases such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and cancers. In recent years, over-the-counter health foods, nutraceuticals, and plant-derived medicinal products have been gaining popularity all over the world, particularly in developed countries. Unfortunately, owing to the contamination with various harmful substances in foods and the presence of toxic food components, food-borne diseases have also become increasingly problematic. Incidents of food poisonings or tainted food have been increasing worldwide, particularly in China and other developing countries. Therefore, the government should put in a greater effort in enforcing food safety by improving the surveillance mechanism and exerting highest standards of quality control for foods.

Atomistic simulation of the effect of porosity on shock response of nanoporous gold.

CONTEXT: Nanoporous metals (NPMs) have a three-dimensional bicontinuous porous network structure that consists of interconnected nanoligaments. NPMs have the potential to effectively attenuate and dissipate the effects of impacts and blasts. Previous studies do not provide data on the possible effects of porosity at the nanoscale. METHODS: Molecular dynamics simulations based on the embedded-atom method potential were performed using the open-source code LAMMPS (Large-scale Atomic/Molecular Massively Parallel Simulator). RESULTS: Nanoporous gold (NPG) absorbs shock energy first through the elastic-plastic deformation of ligaments and then through the collapse of ligaments. After the shock loading is relaxed, NPG with lower porosity has a higher amount of springback, and new voids tend to nucleate and grow at collapsed ligaments where the packing is looser. NPG with higher porosity has a better ability to resist the propagation of a shock wave and is subjected to a smaller stress effect.

Dual-domain accelerated MRI reconstruction using transformers with learning-based undersampling.

Acceleration in MRI has garnered much attention from the deep-learning community in recent years, particularly for imaging large anatomical volumes such as the abdomen or moving targets such as the heart. A variety of deep learning approaches have been investigated, with most existing works using convolutional neural network (CNN)-based architectures as the reconstruction backbone, paired with fixed, rather than learned, k-space undersampling patterns. In both image domain and k-space, CNN-based architectures may not be optimal for reconstruction due to its limited ability to capture long-range dependencies. Furthermore, fixed undersampling patterns, despite ease of implementation, may not lead to optimal reconstruction. Lastly, few deep learning models to date have leveraged temporal correlation across dynamic MRI data to improve reconstruction. To address these gaps, we present a dual-domain (image and k-space), transformer-based reconstruction network, paired with learning-based undersampling that accepts temporally correlated sequences of MRI images for dynamic reconstruction. We call our model DuDReTLU-net. We train the network end-to-end against fully sampled ground truth dataset. Human cardiac CINE images undersampled at different factors (5-100) were tested. Reconstructed images were assessed both visually and quantitatively via the structural similarity index, mean squared error, and peak signal-to-noise. Experimental results show superior performance of DuDReTLU-net over state-of-the-art methods (LOUPE, k-t SLR, BM3D-MRI) in accelerated MRI reconstruction; ablation studies show that transformer-based reconstruction outperformed CNN-based reconstruction in both image domain and k-space; dual-domain reconstruction architectures outperformed single-domain reconstruction architectures regardless of reconstruction backbone (CNN or transformer); and dynamic sequence input leads to more accurate reconstructions than single frame input. We expect our results to encourage further research in the use of dual-domain architectures, transformer-based architectures, and learning-based undersampling, in the setting of accelerated MRI reconstruction. The code for this project is made freely available at https://github.com/william2343/dual-domain-mri-recon-nets (Hong et al., 2022).

Mechanical response of nanoporous nickel investigated using molecular dynamics simulations.

The effect of pore size on the deformation mechanism and mechanical properties of nanoporous Ni under tension and compression tests is studied using molecular dynamic simulations in terms of atomic trajectories, dislocation extraction algorithm, and the stress-strain curve. The simulation results show that samples have a longer elastic deformation period during tension compared to that during compression. Dislocations nucleate at pore surfaces and propagate until they are terminated by neighboring pores. Samples under tension have lower ultimate stress and higher strain at ultimate stress compared to those of samples under compression. Samples with smaller pore diameter have more transformation from face-centered cubic to hexagonal close-packed structures due to more dislocation activity. The ultimate stress of samples significantly decreases with increasing pore diameter.

Tribbles Pseudokinase 3 Contributes to Cancer Stemness of Endometrial Cancer Cells by Regulating ß-Catenin Expression.

Endometrial cancer (EC) is the second most common gynecological malignancy worldwide. Tribbles pseudokinase 3 (TRIB3) is a scaffolding protein that regulates intracellular signal transduction, and its role in tumor development is controversial. Here, we investigated the biological function of TRIB3 in EC. We found that the messenger RNA (mRNA) expression level of TRIB3 was significantly and positively correlated with shorter overall survival of EC patients in The Cancer Genome Atlas database. The protein expression of TRIB3 was found to be significantly increased in EC cancer stem cells (CSCs) enriched by tumorsphere cultivation. Knockdown of TRIB3 in EC cells suppressed tumorsphere formation, the expression of cancer stemness genes, and the in vivo tumorigenesis. The expression of ß-catenin at both the protein and the mRNA levels was downregulated upon TRIB3 silencing. TRIB3 was found to interact with E74 Like ETS transcription factor 4 (ELF4) in the nucleus and bound to ELF4 consensus sites within the catenin beta 1 (CTNNB1) promoter in EC cell lines. These data indicated that TRIB3 may regulate CTNNB1 transcription by enhancing the recruitment of ELF4 to the CTNNB1 promoter. In conclusion, our results suggest that TRIB3 plays an oncogenic role in EC and positively regulates the self-renewal and tumorigenicity of EC-CSCs. Targeting TRIB3 is considered as a potential therapeutic strategy in future EC therapy.

Tribbles Homolog 3 Involved in Radiation Response of Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells by Regulating Notch1 Activation.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer for women in Taiwan and post-lumpectomy radiotherapy is one of the therapeutic strategies for this malignancy. Although the 10-year overall survival of breast cancer patients is greatly improved by radiotherapy, the locoregional recurrence is around 10% and triple negative breast cancers (TNBCs) are at a high risk for relapse. The aim of this paper is to understand the mechanisms of radioresistance in breast cancers which may facilitate the development of new treatments in sensitizing breast cancer toward radiation therapy. Tribbles homolog 3 (TRIB3) is a pseudokinase protein and known to function as a protein scaffold within cells. It has been reported that higher TRIB3 expression is a poor prognostic factor in breast cancer patients with radiotherapy. In this study, we investigate the involvement of TRIB3 in the radiation response of TNBC cells. We first found that the expression of TRIB3 and the activation of Notch1, as well as Notch1 target genes, increased in two radioresistant TNBC cells. Knockdown of TRIB3 in radioresistant MDA-MB-231 TNBC cells decreased Notch1 activation, as well as the CD24-CD44⁺ cancer stem cell population, and sensitized cells toward radiation treatment. The inhibitory effects of TRIB3 knockdown in self-renewal or radioresistance could be reversed by forced expression of the Notch intracellular domain. We also observed an inhibition in cell growth and accumulated cells in the G0/G¹ phase in radioresistant MDA-MB-231 cells after knockdown of TRIB3. With immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry analysis, we found that, BCL2-associated transcription factor 1 (BCLAF1), BCL2 interacting protein 1 (BNIP1), or DEAD-box helicase 5 (DDX5) were the possible TRIB3 interacting proteins and immunoprecipitation data also confirmed that these proteins interacted with TRIB3 in radioresistant MDA-MB-231 cells. In conclusion, the expression of TRIB3 in radioresistant TNBC cells participated in Notch1 activation and targeted TRIB3 expression may be a strategy to sensitize TNBC cells toward radiation therapy.

Influence of storage methods on the surface roughness of tissue conditioners.

The purpose of this study was to compare the influence of three kinds of storage methods on surface roughness of tissue conditioners. Four commercial tissue conditioners (GC Soft Liner, Softone, Fictioner, and Hydro-Cast) were used in this study. Five samples of each material were stored in distilled water, air, and a denture cleanser (Polident). Mean surface roughness (R(a)) values of dental stone casts made from the tissue conditioners were measured after 0, 1, 3, 7, and 14 days of immersion using a profilometer. Significant differences in the R(a) values of the specimens were found among the three storage methods. The values of R(a) significantly increased with increase in immersion time for each storage method, except for the materials stored in air. It was found that the materials stored in air showed the most stable and lowest values of R(a). Results obtained suggested that a tissue conditioner exhibited smooth and minimal change in surface roughness with time when stored in air than in distilled water and denture cleanser.

Current status and influencing factors of discharge planning of ward nurses in cardiovascular / 中国实用护理杂志

Objective:To explore the current status of discharge planning of ward nurses in cardiovascular department and analyzed influencing factors, and to provide reference for intervention strategies to build the discharge planning ability of the responsible nurses in cardiovascular department.Methods:This study was a cross-sectional survey. Convenience sampling method was adopted to select 267 ward nurses of cardiovascular department from 5 first-class hospitals in Dalian City from July to August 2022 as the research objects. The questionnaire survey was conducted by general data questionnaire, Job-Esteem Scale for Nurses in Hospital and Discharge Planning of Ward Nurses. Multiple linear regression analysis and Pearson correlation analysis were used for data analysis.Results:The total score of discharge planning of ward nurses in cardiovascular department was (103.86 ± 16.20) points; the total score of nurses' professional respect was (98.92 ± 13.67) points, and the total score of discharge planning of ward nurses in cardiovascular department was positively correlated with the total score of job-esteem and scores of all dimensions ( r values were 0.382-0.551, all P<0.01). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that age, professional title, certificate of cardiovascular nurses and job-esteem of nurses were influencing factors of discharge planning of ward nurses in cardiovascular department ( t values were 2.57-8.27, all P<0.05), accounting for 47.3% of the total variation. Conclusions:The discharge planning of ward nurses in cardiovascular department was above the medium level, and age, professional title, whether they were cardiovascular nurses and job-esteem were the influencing factors. From the perspective of improving nurses' job-esteem, nursing managers can focus on young nurses and nurses with low professional titles, attach importance to the training of specialized ward nurses in cardiovascular department, and take certain countermeasures to improve the discharge planning of ward nurses in cardiovascular department.

Progress of mobile medical technology in the prevention and treatment of diabetic foot / 中国实用护理杂志

The article summarized and analyzed the application status, specific application methods, shortcomings and prospects of mobile medical technology in the prevention and treatment of diabetic foot, and to provide reference for the application and future research of mobile medical technology in the prevention and treatment of diabetic foot in our country.

Overview and reflection on the development of the first batch of the inheritance studios of acupuncture and moxibustion academic schools / 中国针灸

The development status of the first 11 inheritance studios of acupuncture and moxibustion academic schools is summarized. Aiming at the current problems, it is suggested to establish qualitative and quantitative evaluation standards and establish a fair and reasonable evaluation system, build a systematic scientific theory and excavate the inherent laws of the schools, implement standardized management of the schools and protect the personalized characteristics of the schools, open outpatient clinic of acupuncture and moxibustion schools and promote the characteristic diagnosis and treatment technology, to promote the inheritance and development of acupuncture and moxibustion academic schools.

Brief introduction of Qilu modern acupuncture methods / 中国针灸

Qilu acupuncture and moxibustion has promoted the formation and development of traditional Chinese medicine, which has a special historical position. By systematically collecting, sorting out and summarizing the characteristic acupuncture methods and academic ideas of several Qilu acupuncturists since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the understanding of the advantages and characteristics of Qilu modern acupuncture methods is deepened, aiming to exploring the inheritance and development pattern of Qilu acupuncture methods in the new era.

Saikosaponin D regulates apoptosis and autophagy of pancreatic cancer Panc-1 cells via Akt/mTOR pathway / 中国中药杂志

This study aims to investigate the effect and mechanism of saikosaponin D on the proliferation, apoptosis, and autophagy of pancreatic cancer Panc-1 cells. The cell counting kit(CCK-8) was used to examine the effects of 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, and 28 μmol·L~(-1) saikosaponin D on the proliferation of Panc-1 cells. Three groups including the control(0 μmol·L~(-1)), low-concentration(10 μmol·L~(-1)) saikosaponin D, and high-concentration(16 μmol·L~(-1)) saikosaponin D groups were designed. The colony formation assay was employed to measure the effect of saikosaponin D on the colony formation rate of Panc-1 cells. The cells treated with saikosaponin D were stained with hematoxylin-eosin(HE), and the changes of cell morphology were observed. Hoechst 33258 fluorescent staining was used to detect the effect of saikosaponin D on the cell apoptosis. The autophagy staining assay kit with MDC was used to examine the effect of saikosaponin D on the autophagy of Panc-1 cells. Western blot and immunocytochemistry(ICC) were employed to examine the effect of saikosaponin D on the expression levels and distribution of B-cell lymphoma-2(Bcl-2), Bcl-2-associated X protein(Bax), cysteine-aspartic acid protease-3(caspase-3), cleaved caspase-3, autophagy-associated protein Beclin1, microtubule-associated protein light chain 3(LC3), protein kinase B(Akt), phosphorylated protein kinase B(p-Akt), mammalian target of rapamycin(mTOR), and phosphorylated mammalian target of rapamycin(p-mTOR). The results showed that compared with the control group, saikosaponin D decreased the proliferation rate of Panc-1 cells in a dose-dependent and time-dependent manner. The colony formation rate of the cells significantly decreased after saikosaponin D treatment. Compared with the control group, the cells treated with saikosaponin D became small, accompanied by the formation of apoptotic bodies. The saikosaponin D groups showed increased apoptosis rate and autophagic vesicle accumulation. Compared with the control group, saikosaponin D up-regulated the expression of Bax, cleaved caspase3, Beclin1, LC3Ⅱ/LC3Ⅰ and down-regulated the expression of Bcl-2, caspase-3, p-Akt/Akt, and p-mTOR/mTOR. In addition, these proteins mainly existed in the cytoplasm. In conclusion, saikosaponin D can inhibit the proliferation and induce the apoptosis and autophagy of Panc-1 cells via inhibiting the Akt/mTOR pathway.

Spatial epidemic characteristics of human brucellosis in Gansu Province from 2016 to 2020 / 中华地方病学杂志

Objective:To learn about the epidemic dynamics and spatial epidemic characteristics of human brucellosis in Gansu Province.Methods:Data on human brucellosis in Gansu Province reported by China Disease Control and Prevention Information System from January 2016 to December 2020 were collected and analyzed by descriptive epidemiology and spatial clustering analysis.Results:A total of 10 025 cases of human brucellosis were reported in Gansu Province from 2016 to 2020, with a statistically significant difference in incidence rate between years (χ 2 = 242.86, P = 0.001). The incidence was the lowest in 2018 (6.03/100 000), and the highest in 2020 (11.39/100 000). The reported cases were concentrated in 45 - 55 years old, accounting for 34.52% (3 461/10 025); the male to female ratio was 2.91 ∶ 1.00 (7 458/2 567); farmers were the main occupation, accounting for 82.11% (8 232/10 025). Among the 86 counties (cities, districts) in Gansu Province, Yongchang County had the highest number of reported cases in 2020 (339 cases), and Sunan Yugur Autonomous County had the highest incidence in 2020 (190.89/100 000). Spatial autocorrelation analysis showed that there was significant spatial positive correlation between the incidence rate of human brucellosis in Gansu Province from 2016 to 2020 (global Moran's I > 0, Z > 1.96, P < 0.05), showing a spatial clustering distribution. The high-high clustering areas were concentrated in Yongchang County and Sunan Yugur Autonomous County. Conclusion:In Gansu Province, the main population of human brucellosis is middle-aged male farmers, and the incidence of brucellosis is spatially clustered.

Effect of EDTA with and without surfactants or ultrasonics on removal of smear layer.

This study compared the in vitro efficacy of Smear Clear (Sybron Endo, CA), a 17% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) solution with surfactants, to 17% EDTA, with and without the use of ultrasonics, in removal of the smear layer. Seventy-five extracted teeth, randomly distributed into 5 test groups, were prepared by using ProFile rotary instruments (Dentsply Maillefer, Ballaigues, Switzerland) and subjected to different final irrigating regimes; group A, 1% sodium hypochlorite; group B, 17% EDTA; group C, 17% EDTA with ultrasonics; group D, Smear Clear; and group E, Smear Clear with ultrasonics. Samples were examined under the scanning electron microscope and scored for debris and smear layer removal. Statistical analysis showed that groups D and E did not perform significantly better than groups B and C. Group C performed significantly better than group B. Addition of surfactants to EDTA in Smear Clear did not result in better smear layer removal. The use of ultrasonics with 17% EDTA improved smear layer removal.

Historical records of trace metals in core sediments from the Lianyungang coastal sea, Jiangsu, China.

We analyzed element concentrations in cores from the Lianyungang coastal sea to determine depositional trends and geochemical sources of metals. Enrichment factors (EFs) and pollution load index (PLI) were used to assess the enrichment and pollution of metals. Profiles of vertical distributions of the elements reflected different depositional environments in 3 cores. Cores A and C deposited sediments with rich terrestrial elements by rivers, corresponding to mixed-up patterns in the sediment. Meanwhile, core B was mainly deposited in a less undisturbed depositional environment. Correlations and principal component analysis indicated that sediments were influenced by natural and anthropogenic impacts. According to the EFs, most metals showed no significant enrichment and pollution in the core sediments. Lastly, PLI values (<1) of sediments indicated that the Lianyungang coastal sea was a lowly polluted area despite PLI value of metals in average sediment was lower than that in surface sediment.