trans-2,3-Bis(2,4,5-trimethyl-3-thien­yl)but-2-enedinitrile

In title compound, C18H18N2S2, the dihedral angle between two thio­phene rings is 61.83 (8)°

Assessment of grid-connected wind turbines with an inertia response by considering internal dynamics

This paper presents a small-signal analysis of different grid side controllers for full power converter wind turbines with inertia response capability. In real wind turbines, the DC link controller, the drivetrain damping controller and the inertial response might present contradictory control actions in a close bandwidth range. This situation might lead to reduced control performance, increased component stress and non-compliance of connection agreements. The paper presents an analysis of the internal wind turbine dynamics by considering different grid-side converter control topologies: standard current control used in the wind industry, standard current control with inertia emulation capabilities and virtual synchronous machines. Comments are made on the similarities between each topology and the negative effects and limits, and possible remedies are discussed. Finally, the conclusion poses that the inclusion of a DC link voltage controller reduces the ability of a converter to respond to external frequency events without energy storage. The degradation increases with the DC link voltage control speed

Correlation of acoustic voice analysis and Voice Handicap Index in patients with postoperative unilateral vocal cord paralysis after thyroid surgery

Unilateral vocal cord paralysis is frequently observed in patients who undergo thyroid surgery. This study explored the correlation between acoustic voice analysis (objective measure) and Voice Handicap Index (VHI, a self-assessment tool). One hundred and forty patients who had thyroid surgery with or without postoperative unilateral vocal cord paralysis (PVCP and NPVCP) were included. The patients were evaluated by the VHI and Dysphonia Severity Index (DSI) tools. VHI scores were significantly higher in PVCP patients than in NPVCP patients. Jitter (%) and shimmer (%) were significantly increased, whereas DSI was significantly decreased in PVCP patients. Receiver operating characteristics curve revealed that VHI scores were associated with the diagnosis of PVCP, of which VHI total score yielded an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.81. Among acoustic parameters, DSI was highly associated to PVCP (AUC=0.82, 95%CI=0.75 to 0.89). Moreover, we found a correlation between VHI scores and voice acoustic parameters. Among them, DSI had a moderate correlation with functional and VHI scores, as suggested by an R value of 0.41 and 0.49, respectively. VHI scores and acoustic parameters were associated with the diagnosis of PVCP

Glutathione S-Transferase alpha 4 promotes proliferation and chemoresistance in colorectal cancer cells

Glutathion

Mitigation of sub-synchronous control interaction of a power system with DFIG-based wind farm under multi-operating points

This study presents a probabilistic design of a power system stabiliser (PSS) for doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG) converter and investigates its potential capability in mitigating the sub-synchronous control interaction (SSCI) at multi-operating points. The aim is to improve the probabilistic sub-synchronous stability of the system with wind farm penetration. In this study, participation factors are obtained to identify the SSCI strong-related state variables and major control loops, which are used for the preliminary siting of the DFIG-PSS. Probabilistic sensitivity indices are then employed for accurate positioning of the PSS, selecting the input control signal and optimising the PSS parameters. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is verified on a modified two-area power system. The results show that the designed DFIG-PSS is capable of improving probabilistic small-signal sub-synchronous stability of the system at multi-operating points and its performance is better than a DFIG-PSS designed with the general small-signal method

Salidroside Stimulates Mitochondrial Biogenesis and Protects against H 2

Salidroside (SAL) is an active component of Rhodiola rosea with documented antioxidative properties. The purpose of this study is to explore the mechanism of the protective effect of SAL on hydrogen peroxide- (H2O2-) induced endothelial dysfunction. Pretreatment of the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) with SAL significantly reduced the cytotoxicity brought by H2O2. Functional studies on the rat aortas found that SAL rescued the endothelium-dependent relaxation and reduced superoxide anion (O2∙-) production induced by H2O2. Meanwhile, SAL pretreatment inhibited H2O2-induced nitric oxide (NO) production. The underlying mechanisms involve the inhibition of H2O2-induced activation of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), and Akt, as well as the redox sensitive transcription factor, NF-kappa B (NF-κB). SAL also increased mitochondrial mass and upregulated the mitochondrial biogenesis factors, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma-coactivator-1alpha (PGC-1α), and mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM) in the endothelial cells. H2O2-induced mitochondrial dysfunction, as demonstrated by reduced mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm) and ATP production, was rescued by SAL pretreatment. Taken together, these findings implicate that SAL could protect endothelium against H2O2-induced injury via promoting mitochondrial biogenesis and function, thus preventing the overactivation of oxidative stress-related downstream signaling pathways

Sleep behavior and depression: Findings from the China Kadoorie Biobank of 0.5 million Chinese adults.

BACKGROUND: Mixed results have shown the association between sleep behavior and depression, but evidence relating the joint effect of sleep duration and sleep disturbances is limited, especially in Chinese population. METHODS: A total of 512,891 adults aged 30-79 years from China Kadoorie Biobank (CKB) were included. Depression was defined by Composite International Diagnostic Inventory-short form (CIDI-SF). Sleep duration and sleep disturbances, including difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep (DIMS), early morning awakening (EMA), daytime dysfunction (DDF) and any sleep disturbances (ASD), were obtained by a self-reported questionnaire. Logistic regression was applied to examine the association between sleep behavior and depression. RESULTS: About 23.1% of participants reported short sleep duration (≤ 6h), and 5.1% reported long sleep duration (> 9h). Compared with normal sleep duration (7-9h), both groups were associated greater likelihood of having depression (short sleep: OR = 2.32, 95%CI: 2.14-2.51; long sleep: OR = 1.56, 96%CI: 1.34-1.81). Participants reported sleep disturbances were significantly associated with depression (odds ratios ranged from 3.31 to 4.17). Moreover, the associations tended to be stronger for those who reported both abnormal sleep duration and sleep disturbances (p for interactions < 0.05), especially for those who slept long. LIMITATIONS: The cross-sectional nature of the study design limits the interpretation of the results. CONCLUSIONS: Abnormal sleep duration and sleep disturbances were associated with depression. The associations were stronger for abnormal sleep duration accompanied with sleep disturbances, especially for a long duration. More attention should be paid on these persons in clinical practice

Living Arrangements of the Elderly in China: Evidence from CHARLS

Recent increases in Chinese elderly living alone or only with a spouse has raised concerns about elderly support, especially when public support is inadequate. However, using rich information from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, we find that the increasing trend in living alone is accompanied with a rise in living close to each other. This type of living arrangement solves the conflicts between privacy/independence and family support. This is confirmed in further investigation: children living close by visit their parents more frequently. We also find that children who live far away provide a larger amount of net transfers to their parents, a result consistent with responsibility sharing among siblings. Having more children is associated with living with a child or having a child nearby, while investing more in a child's schooling is associated with greater net transfers to parents

UBE2C Is a Potential Biomarker of Intestinal-Type Gastric Cancer With Chromosomal Instability

This study explored potential biomarkers associated with Lauren classification of gastric cancer. We screened microarray datasets on gastric cancer with information of Lauren classification in gene expression omnibus (GEO) database, and compared differentially expressing genes between intestinal-type or diffuse-type gastric cancer. Four sets of microarray data (GSE2669, GSE2680, GDS3438, and GDS4007) were enrolled into analysis. By differential gene analysis, UBE2C, CDH1, CENPF, ERO1L, SCD, SOX9, CKS1B, SPP1, MMP11, and ANLN were identified as the top genes related to intestinal-type gastric cancer, and MGP, FXYD1, FAT4, SIPA1L2, MUC5AC, MMP15, RAB23, FBLN1, ANXA10, and ADH1B were genes related to diffuse-type gastric cancer. We comprehensively validated the biological functions of the intestinal-type gastric cancer related gene UBE2C and evaluated its clinical significance on 1,868 cases of gastric cancer tissues from multiple medical centers of Shanghai, China. The gain of copy number on 20q was found in 4 out of 5 intestinal-type cancer cell lines, and no similar copy number variation (CNV) was found in any diffuse-type cancer cell line. Interfering UBE2C expression inhibited cell proliferation, migration and invasion in vitro, and tumorigenesis in vivo. Knockdown of UBE2C resulted in G2/M blockage in intestinal-type gastric cancer cells. Overexpression of UBE2C activated ERK signal pathway and promoted cancer cell proliferation. U0126, an inhibitor of ERK signaling pathway reversed the oncogenic phenotypes caused by UBE2C. Moreover, overexpression of UBE2C was identified in human intestinal-type gastric cancer. Overexpression of UBE2C protein predicted poor clinical outcome. Taken together, we characterized a group of Lauren classification-associated biomarkers, and clarified biological functions of UBE2C, an intestinal-type gastric cancer associated gene. Overexpression of UBE2C resulted in chromosomal instability that disturbed cell cycle and led to poor prognosis of intestinal-type gastric cancer