An energy-absorbing sliding seat for reducing neck injury risks in rear impact—analysis for prototype built

<p><b>Objective</b>: This study investigated overall performance of an energy-absorbing sliding seat concept for whiplash neck injury prevention. The sliding seat allows its seat pan to slide backward for some distance under certain restraint force to absorb crash energy in rear impacts.</p> <p><b>Methods</b>: A numerical model that consisted of vehicle interior, seat, seat belt, and BioRID II dummy was built in MADYMO to evaluate whiplash neck injury in rear impact. A parametric study of the effects of sliding seat parameters, including position and cushion stiffness of head restraint, seatback cushion stiffness, recliner characteristics, and especially sliding energy-absorbing (EA) restraint force, on neck injury criteria was conducted in order to compare the effectiveness of the sliding seat concept with that of other existing anti-whiplash mechanisms. Optimal sliding seat design configurations in rear crashes of different severities were obtained. A sliding seat prototype with bending of a steel strip as an EA mechanism was fabricated and tested in a sled test environment to validate the concept. The performance of the sliding seat under frontal and rollover impacts was checked to make sure the sliding mechanism did not result in any negative effects.</p> <p><b>Results</b>: The protective effect of the sliding seat with EA restraint force is comparable to that of head restraint–based and recliner stiffness–based anti-whiplash mechanisms. EA restraint force levels of 3 kN in rear impacts of low and medium severities and 6 kN in impacts of high severity were obtained from optimization. In frontal collision and rollover, compared to the nonsliding seat, the sliding seat does not result in any negative effects on occupant protection. The sled test results of the sliding seat prototype have shown the effectiveness of the concept for reducing neck injury risks.</p> <p><b>Conclusion</b>: As a countermeasure, the sliding seat with appropriate restraint forces can significantly reduce whiplash neck injury risk in rear impacts of low, medium, and high severities with no negative effects on other crash load cases.</p

A Tetraphosphorus Ligand for Highly Regioselective Isomerization−Hydroformylation of Internal Olefins

A new pyrrole-based tetraphosphorus ligand capable of forming multiple chelating modes has been prepared. Higher regioselectivity has been achieved in the rhodium-catalyzed isomerization−hydroformylations of internal olefins compared with its bisphosphorus analogue

Enhancement of the Carbon Dots/K₂S₂O₈ Chemiluminescence System Induced by Triethylamine

Triethylamine (TEA), a common coreactant for electrochemiluminescence (ECL), is first utilized as a coreactant for chemiluminescence (CL). The CL intensity of carbon dots/K₂S₂O₈ could be increased by ∼20 times in the presence of TEA. On the basis of this fascinating phenomenon, a room temperature operated senor is constructed for the fast, selective, and sensitive determination of TEA. A wide linear relationship between CL intensity and TEA concentration from 1 μM to 1000 μM (<i>R</i>² = 0.9995) was found with the detection limit down to 1 μM. The enhancement mechanism of TEA to this CL system is carefully investigated. Experimental results reveal that the forming of TEA free radical is what indeed induced the enhancement of the CL efficiency of CDs

Consideration of Multitrophic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functions Improves Indices on River Ecological Status

Biological quality elements have been developed worldwide to assess whether a water body is in a good status or not. However, current studies mainly focus on a single taxonomic group or a small set of species, often limited by methods of morphological identification, and lack further aspects of biodiversity (e.g., across taxa and multiple attributes) and ecosystem functions. Here, we advance a framework for assessing the river’s ecological status based on complete biodiversity data measured by environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding and measurements of ecosystem functions in addition to physicochemical elements across a large riverine system in China. We identified 40 indicators of biodiversity and ecosystem functions, covering five taxonomic groups from bacteria to invertebrates, and associated with multiple attributes of biodiversity and ecosystem functions. Our data show that human impact on ecosystems could be accurately predicted by these eDNA-based indicators and ecosystem functions, using cross-validation with a known stressor gradient. Moreover, indices based on these indicators of biodiversity and ecosystem functions not only distinguish the physicochemical characteristics of the sites but also improve the assessment accuracy of 20–30% for the river’s ecological status. Overall, by incorporating eDNA-based biodiversity with physicochemical and ecosystem functional elements, the multidimensional perspectives of ecosystem states provide additional information to protect and maintain a good ecological status of rivers

Fishing eDNA in One of the World’s Largest Rivers: A Case Study of Cross-Sectional and Depth Profile Sampling in the Yangtze

The world’s largest rivers are home to diverse, endemic, and threatened fish species. However, their sheer sizes make large-scale biomonitoring challenging. While environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding has become an established monitoring approach in smaller freshwater ecosystems, its suitability for large rivers may be challenged by the sheer extent of their cross sections (>1 km wide and tens of meters deep). Here, we sampled fish eDNA from multiple vertical layers and horizontal locations from two cross sections of the lower reach of the Yangtze River in China. Over half of the ASVs (amplicon sequence variants) were detected in only a single combination of the vertical layers and horizontal locations, with ∼7% across all combinations. We estimated the need to sample >100 L of water across the cross-sectional profiles to achieve ASV richness saturation, which translates to ∼60 L of water at the species level. No consistent pattern emerged for prioritizing certain depth and horizontal samples, yet we underline the importance of sampling and integrating different layers and locations simultaneously. Our study highlights the significance of spatially stratified sampling and sampling volumes when using eDNA approaches. Specifically, we developed and tested a scalable and broadly applicable strategy that advances the monitoring and conservation of large rivers

Fishing eDNA in One of the World’s Largest Rivers: A Case Study of Cross-Sectional and Depth Profile Sampling in the Yangtze

The world’s largest rivers are home to diverse, endemic, and threatened fish species. However, their sheer sizes make large-scale biomonitoring challenging. While environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding has become an established monitoring approach in smaller freshwater ecosystems, its suitability for large rivers may be challenged by the sheer extent of their cross sections (>1 km wide and tens of meters deep). Here, we sampled fish eDNA from multiple vertical layers and horizontal locations from two cross sections of the lower reach of the Yangtze River in China. Over half of the ASVs (amplicon sequence variants) were detected in only a single combination of the vertical layers and horizontal locations, with ∼7% across all combinations. We estimated the need to sample >100 L of water across the cross-sectional profiles to achieve ASV richness saturation, which translates to ∼60 L of water at the species level. No consistent pattern emerged for prioritizing certain depth and horizontal samples, yet we underline the importance of sampling and integrating different layers and locations simultaneously. Our study highlights the significance of spatially stratified sampling and sampling volumes when using eDNA approaches. Specifically, we developed and tested a scalable and broadly applicable strategy that advances the monitoring and conservation of large rivers

Table_1_UBE2S and UBE2C confer a poor prognosis to breast cancer via downregulation of Numb.docx

PurposeUbiquitin-conjugating enzymes E2S (UBE2S) and E2C (UBE2C), which mediate the biological process of ubiquitination, have been widely reported in various cancers. Numb, the cell fate determinant and tumor suppressor, was also involved in ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation. However, the interaction between UBE2S/UBE2C and Numb and their roles in the clinical outcome of breast cancer (BC) are not widely elucidated.MethodsOncomine, Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia (CCLE), the Human Protein Atlas (HPA) database, qRT-PCR, and Western blot analyses were utilized to analyze UBE2S/UBE2C and Numb expression in various cancer types and their respective normal controls, breast cancer tissues, and breast cancer cell lines. The expression of UBE2S, UBE2C, and Numb in BC patients with different ER, PR, and HER2 status, grades, stages, and survival status was compared. By Kaplan–Meier plotter, we further evaluated the prognostic value of UBE2S, UBE2C, and Numb in BC patients. We also explored the potential regulatory mechanisms underlying UBE2S/UBE2C and Numb through overexpression and knockdown experiments in BC cell lines and performed growth and colony formation assays to assess cell malignancy.ResultsIn this study, we showed that UBE2S and UBE2C were overexpressed while Numb was downregulated in BC, and in BC of higher grade, stage, and poor survival. Compared to hormone receptor negative (HR−) BC cell lines or tissues, HR+ BC demonstrated lower UBE2S/UBE2C and higher Numb, corresponding to better survival. We also showed that increased UBE2S/UBE2C and reduced Numb predicted poor prognosis in BC patients, as well as in ER+ BC patients. In BC cell lines, UBE2S/UBE2C overexpression decreased the level of Numb and enhanced cell malignancy, while knocking down UBE2S/UBE2C demonstrated the opposite effects.ConclusionUBE2S and UBE2C downregulated Numb and enhanced BC malignancy. The combination of UBE2S/UBE2C and Numb could potentially serve as novel biomarkers for BC.</p

Data_Sheet_1_Case Report: Benign Uterine Adenomyoma Metastasis in the Right Lung.doc

BackgroundPulmonary metastasis of benign uterine leiomyoma and uterine endometriosis has been reported; however, pulmonary benign metastasizing uterine adenomyoma has not been reported. Herein, we report the first case of pulmonary benign metastasizing uterine adenomyoma. It is very important to differentiate from pulmonary primary synovial sarcoma; histopathology and immunohistochemistry are very helpful, molecular pathology can be used if necessary.Case PresentationA female patient was admitted to the hospital because of pulmonary nodules. Lung computed tomography (CT) showed a nodular high density shadow in the upper lobe of the right lung, with a clear boundary and a diameter of approximately 1.2 cm. A contrast CT scan showed obvious enhancement, and no obvious lobulation or burr was found. Video-assisted thoracoscopic resection of the tumor was performed. The upper lobe nodules were completely removed. Postoperative pathological report confirmed the lesion as metastatic benign adenomyoma of the right upper lung.ConclusionThe lung is the most common organ for malignant tumor metastasis, and a few benign tumors can also develop pulmonary metastasis. Pulmonary benign metastasizing adenomyoma is extremely rare, and the prognosis is very good after surgical resection. When pulmonary CT shows a solid high-density shadow, we should consider the possibility of a metastatic benign tumor.</p