Matroidal Entropy Functions: Constructions, Characterizations and Representations

In this paper, we characterize matroidal entropy functions, i.e., entropy functions in the form $\mathbf{h} = \log v \cdot \mathbf{r}_M$ , where $v \ge 2$ is an integer and $\mathbf{r}_M$ is the rank function of a matroid $M$. By constructing the variable strength arrays of some matroid operations, we characterized matroidal entropy functions induced by regular matroids and some matroids with the same p-characteristic set as uniform matroid $U_{2,4}$.Comment: 23 pages, 5 figures, submitted to IEEE Transactions on Information Theor

Polysaccharide immunization and colorectal cancer: A systematic review and network meta-analysis

Polysaccharides have a variety of biological activities, and in the anti-tumor field, they produce tumor suppressive effects by regulating the polarization of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). In immunotherapy, it has significant activities in modulating cytokines and antibody production. We reviewed them and selected CD24, an immune target, for meta-analysis with colorectal cancer (CRC) to investigate the correlation between CD24 expression and CRC. Correlation of CD24 positive expression with clinical-pathological features: age, sex, Duke’s stage, diameter, depth of invasion, degree of differentiation, and lymph node metastasis. It showed that: CD24 expression in CRC was significantly correlated with advanced nuclear grade of CRC, lymph node metastasis, Duke’s stage of CRC and age of CRC patients, while there was no significant correlation with gender, tumor diameter and invasion depth. The aim is to clarify the specific mechanism of polysaccharide immune anti-tumor, combined with targeted site-specific anti-solid tumor

CT manifestations and clinical characteristics of pulmonary invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma

Objective: To investigate the CT imaging manifestations and clinicopathologic features of patients with primary pulmonary invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma (PIMA) diagnosed pathologically after surgery. Methods: The clinical data of 78 patients with PIMA diagnosed pathologically after surgery in the Department of Thoracic Surgery of Anhui Chest Hospital from November 2019 to November 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Results: Among the 78 cases, 33 (42.3%) were male and 45 (57.7%) were female，aged (60.3±7.8) years in total, and serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) was increased (＞5 ng/mL) in 9 cases (11.5%). According to the clinical characteristics, patients could be divided into the asymptomatic group (60 cases, 76.9%) and the symptomatic group (18 cases, 23.1%). The symptomatic group included 8 cases with coughing and coughing up mucus sputum, 4 cases with chest tightness and chest and back pain, and 6 cases with other symptoms. Imaging manifestations showed that 51 (65.4%) lesions were located in the inferior lobes of both lungs and 71 (91.0%) in the peripulmonary,of which 46 patients (59.0%) had completely solid nodules, and common signs included shallow lobulation and vascular cluster sign. Postoperative pathologic stages Ⅰ, Ⅱ, Ⅲa were found in 61 (78.2%), 9 (11.5%) and 8 (10.3%) patients, respectively. Moreover, genetic testing was performed in 13 patients, of which 8 cases were detected with mutations of Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene (KRAS), and 1 case was detected with mutations of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene. Twenty-two patients were tested for the expression of programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), and 18 (81.8%) of these patients had a tumor proportional score (TPS) of＜1%. Conclusion: Except for expectoration of mucous sputum, PIMA has no specific clinical symptoms. CT manifestations show that the lesions usually occur in the inferior lobes and peripulmonary of the lungs, and most pulmonary nodules are completely solid, which with signs of shallow lobulation and vascular cluster. Laboratory tests show that the expression level of PD-L1 is low, and the KRAS mutations are relatively more frequent. These features have some value in the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of PIMA

The role of functional strategies in global plant distribution

© 2020 The Authors. Ecography published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Nordic Society Oikos Understanding the determinants of species distributions is a central topic in ecology. Competition, stress tolerance and colonization, respectively represented by Grime\u27s competitor (C), stress-tolerator (S) and ruderal (R) schemes, are three important functions that interactively influence plant distributions. In this study, we compiled a dataset of 2645 vascular plant species to explore the roles of the CSR strategies in global plant distribution. We analyzed the associations between the CSR scores and species range size with phylogenetic generalized least square (PGLS) models and phylogenetic path analysis, both of which accounted for the effects of species phylogenetic relatedness, longevity and growth form. The functional strategy-range size associations differed across different distributional ranges and growth forms. Specifically, species global and native range sizes were positively associated with the R score; species naturalized range size was positively associated with the C score; and all range-size measurements were negatively associated with the S score. These patterns were mostly driven by herbs but not shrubs or trees. For species global and native-range distributions, the patterns of shrubs were even opposite to those of herbs. Our work emphasizes the importance of distinguishing the functional strategy-distribution associations between different distributional ranges and growth forms for ecosystem conservation and invasion risk prediction, because of the trade-offs among the CSR strategies

Fuelling innovation with love: Unravelling the role of companionate love culture and Confucian work values in employees’ innovative behaviour

Purpose: Following social information processing (SIP) theory, this study enriches existing research on emotional culture and innovative behaviour by introducing the chain mediating role of perspective-taking and knowledge-sharing intentions and the moderating role of Confucian work values. Design/methodology/approach: We conducted a quantitative study using four-stage paired survey data. Data were collected from 392 employees and their corresponding supervisors in three Chinese manufacturing companies in November 2022. We chose these participants due to the significance of innovative behaviour in their roles. The surveys were anonymous and self-administered. We used SPSS20.2 and MPLUS 8.3 software to analyse the data and test our hypotheses. Findings/results: The data analysis results indicated that: (1) the companionate love culture had a positive effect on innovative behaviour, (2) perspective-taking and knowledge-sharing intentions mediated the positive impact of the companionate love culture on innovative behaviour, and (3) Confucian work values moderated the chain mediation path by weakening the positive impact of the companionate love culture on perspective-taking. Practical implications: To promote innovative behaviour in employees, a company could continuously manage the organisational companionate love culture. Originality/value: Drawing on the SIP theory, this paper developed a model clarifying how and when love can fuel innovation in the workplace. It’s interesting that employees with lower Confucian work values may benefit more from a companionate love culture, as they might need more external motivation to engage in perspective-taking and knowledge sharing

A Design of Double Broadband MIMO Antenna

The MIMO antenna applied to LTE mobile system should be miniaturization and can work in the current communication frequency band; isolation between each antenna unit also should be good so as to reduce loss of radio wave energy and improve the antenna performance of the MIMO system. This paper puts forward the design scheme of a broadband MIMO double antenna. And the design of antenna unit and debugging and related technical measures, such as bending antenna bracket, are both presented; the integration design of high isolation of ultra broadband MIMO antenna is realized on the plate with the volume of 100 × 52 × 0.8 mm3; antenna working bands are 698 MHz~960 MHz and 1710 MHz~2700 MHz; in the whole spectrum, the 10 dB of port isolation can be basically achieved; in low frequency band, the isolation degree of antenna port can reach 12 dB

The Histone Demethylases Jhdm1a/1b Enhance Somatic Cell Reprogramming in a Vitamin-C-Dependent Manner

SummaryReprogramming of somatic cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) resets the epigenome to an embryonic-like state. Vitamin C enhances the reprogramming process, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here we show that the histone demethylases Jhdm1a/1b are key effectors of somatic cell reprogramming downstream of vitamin C. We first observed that vitamin C induces H3K36me2/3 demethylation in mouse embryonic fibroblasts in culture and during reprogramming. We then identified Jhdm1a/1b, two known vitamin-C-dependent H3K36 demethylases, as potent regulators of reprogramming through gain- and loss-of-function approaches. Furthermore, we found that Jhdm1b accelerates cell cycle progression and suppresses cell senescence during reprogramming by repressing the Ink4/Arf locus. Jhdm1b also cooperates with Oct4 to activate the microRNA cluster 302/367, an integral component of the pluripotency machinery. Our results therefore reveal a role for H3K36me2/3 in cell fate determination and establish a link between histone demethylases and vitamin-C-induced reprogramming