Spatial clustering and common regulatory elements correlate with coordinated gene expression

Many cellular responses to surrounding cues require temporally concerted transcriptional regulation of multiple genes. In prokaryotic cells, a single-input-module motif with one transcription factor regulating multiple target genes can generate coordinated gene expression. In eukaryotic cells, transcriptional activity of a gene is affected by not only transcription factors but also the epigenetic modifications and three-dimensional chromosome structure of the gene. To examine how local gene environment and transcription factor regulation are coupled, we performed a combined analysis of time-course RNA-seq data of TGF-\b{eta} treated MCF10A cells and related epigenomic and Hi-C data. Using Dynamic Regulatory Events Miner (DREM), we clustered differentially expressed genes based on gene expression profiles and associated transcription factors. Genes in each class have similar temporal gene expression patterns and share common transcription factors. Next, we defined a set of linear and radial distribution functions, as used in statistical physics, to measure the distributions of genes within a class both spatially and linearly along the genomic sequence. Remarkably, genes within the same class despite sometimes being separated by tens of million bases (Mb) along genomic sequence show a significantly higher tendency to be spatially close despite sometimes being separated by tens of Mb along the genomic sequence than those belonging to different classes do. Analyses extended to the process of mouse nervous system development arrived at similar conclusions. Future studies will be able to test whether this spatial organization of chromosomes contributes to concerted gene expression.Comment: 30 pages, 9 figures, accepted in PLoS Computational Biolog

Standardized Volume Power Density Boost in Frequency-Up Converted Contact-Separation Mode Triboelectric Nanogenerators

The influence of a mechanical structure’s volume increment on the volume power density (VPD) of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) is often neglected when considering surface charge density and surface power density. This paper aims to address this gap by introducing a standardized VPD metric for a more comprehensive evaluation of TENG performance. The study specifically focuses on 2 frequency-up mechanisms, namely, the integration of planetary gears (PG-TENG) and the implementation of a double-cantilever structure (DC-TENG), to investigate their impact on VPD. The study reveals that the PG-TENG achieves the highest volume average power density, measuring at 0.92 W/m3. This value surpasses the DC-TENG by 1.26 times and the counterpart TENG by a magnitude of 69.9 times. Additionally, the PG-TENG demonstrates superior average power output. These findings introduce a new approach for enhancing TENGs by incorporating frequency-up mechanisms, and highlight the importance of VPD as a key performance metric for evaluating TENGs

Raman spectroscopy characterization of structural evolution in middle-rank coals

The second coalification jump which occurred during the middle-rank led to abrupt changes of many physical and chemical properties of coal, and the change of the aggregate structure may be the fundamental reason. In order to investigate the structural evolution characteristics of middle-rank coal and its relation with the second coalification jump in detail, the structure characteristics of six middle-rank coals (Ro,max=1.10%−1.63%) that across the second coalification jump were studied by Raman spectroscopy, and the structural parameters were calculated by fitting the first-order and second-order Raman spectrum using the fitting software. The results indicated that the evolution of Raman structural parameters with Ro,max is not linear, reflecting the complexity of the structural evolution of coal. According to the evolution characteristics of Raman structural parameters, the coalification during the stage of Ro,max=1.10%−1.63% can be divided into three stages. The turning points are located near Ro,max=1.30% and Ro,max=1.50%, respectively, which are exactly equivalent to the positions of the second and the third coalification jump discovered in previous research. It indicated that the Raman structural parameters can reflect the occurrence of the coalification jump, moreover, Raman spectroscopy is an effective method to study the coal structure. The first stage is Ro,max=1.10%−1.30%, the long-chain aliphatic structures cracked and the remained shorter-chain aliphatic hydrocarbons and aliphatic substituted structures on the aromatic rings will form new alicyclic structures, which caused the branched degree increases and hindered the alignment of aromatic systems in coal. The order degree of aromatic system is thus reached the least near Ro,max=1.30%, with the smallest WG, the largest FG/D, the smallest AD/AG, the increase of AS/A1, and the significant decrease of A(2G)R/A2. In the second stage of Ro,max=1.30%−1.50%, the aromatization of the alicyclic structures formed in the previous stage resulted in an increase in the content of aromatic C—H structure and the least of amorphous carbon structure. Besides, the degree of aromatization and aromatic structural both increased, which showed that A(GR+VL+VR)/AD, A(GR+VL+VR)/AG and FG/D decreased significantly, AD/AG increased, WG and d(G-D) increased quickly. The last stage is Ro,max=1.50%−1.63%, the condensation reaction occurred between the aromatic rings formed in the second stage, leading to the reduction of A(2G)R/A2. Meanwhile, the various bridging bonds between aromatic ring systems continued to break, resulting in the formation of some small-scale aromatic structures, as evidenced by a decrease in A(2G)R/A2, a small decrease in WG, and an increase in A(GR+VL+VR)/AD and A(GR+VL+VR)/AG. These results are the basis for deeply understanding the mechanism of coalification jump and coalification

Current status and focus of breast reconstruction research in China and abroad: a bibliometric study

Background and purpose: According to the 2020 global cancer burden data of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), breast cancer has replaced lung cancer as the most common type of cancer worldwide. The aim of this study was to conduct a bibliometric and visual analysis of breast reconstruction related research in China and abroad published in the past 5 years, to understand the research status and development trend in this field, to discuss the focus of research in different countries and different disciplines, and to provide reference for other researchers. Methods: Relevant literatures about breast reconstruction were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection. The VOS viewer 1.6.15 software was used to extract the authors, countries, institutions and keywords to generate network maps of high-yield authors, institutions and high-frequency keywords clustering network. Results: A total of 4 815 documents meeting the requirements were retrieved, which showed an upward trend in the past five years. Regarding the discipline, 838 documents (17.40%) were published by breast surgery and Cancer Surgery, 3 308 (68.70%) were published by plastic surgery, and 669 (13.90%) were jointly published by both types of researchers. There were differences in the disciplines of the main authors between China and abroad. In China, authors from breast surgery published a larger proportion of documents (138, 44.52%), while the number of documents published by authors of plastic surgery (129, 44.52%) and the joint publication of both types of authors (43, 13.87%) was relatively small. However, foreign documents mainly came from authors of plastic surgery (74.74%). There were more cooperative groups (155) formed by major foreign authors, and more frequent joint publishing between groups, while Chinese authors formed only 16 cooperative groups with less cooperation. Authors from breast surgery focused more on oncology-related issues in breast reconstruction, while in plastic surgery, more attentions were paid on autologous tissue reconstruction. Conclusion: Breast reconstruction has gradually attracted the attention of Chinese and foreign researchers. Compared with foreign countries, there were problems such as lack of high-quality research and less cooperative research in China. There were differences in the research focus of breast reconstruction between China and abroad, which was mainly related to the differences in the disciplines of researchers

Triboelectrification-Enabled Self-Powered Detection and Removal of Heavy Metal Ions in Wastewater

route that works in a self-powered manner by harnessing the ambient energy using the triboelectrification effect. Relying on modified anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) a nanoporous surface with a layer of appropriate ligand molecules, serving as recognition element, the as-developed tribo-nanosensors can selectively capture and detect Cu 2+ , Pb 2+ , and Cr 3+ , which are commonly existing toxic heavy metal ions in industrial wastewater, in a sensing range of 0-200 × 10 −6 m with a sensitivity of 0.005 × 10 −6 , 0.003 × 10 −6 , and 0.004 × 10 −6 m −1 , respectively. The presented tribo-nanosensors are also proved to possess good stability after continuous working for up to 50,000 cycles. Moreover, the ambient triboelectrification effect was further utilized to develop a water-driven triboelectric nanogenerator (WD-TENG) as a sustainable power source for heavy metal ion removal by recycling the kinetic energy from flowing wastewater. The self-provided electric field can boost the migration and combination of ions as well as the electrolysis effect. The later induced a generation of large amount of OH − at the cathode in the wastewater, which promoted the precipitation of heavy metal ions. By controlling the wastewater pH values, Cu 2+ , Pb 2+ , and Cr 3+ were demonstrated to be fractionally precipitated from the wastewater. Under a fixed water flow rate of 3 L min −1 and initial heavy metal ion concentration of 100 × 10 −6 m, the self-powered cleaning system was capable of removing 97.4% of the heavy metal ions in the wastewater in 100 min. In addition, a further step was taken to recycle and collect the precipitated metals. Through a filtration, acidification, and chemical reduction process, pure metals are respectively obtained, which realizes the clean production and recycling economy. Featured as high detection sensitivity and removal efficiency, cost-effectiveness, simplicity as well as stability, the reported work not only opens a new and innovative pathway to environmentally friendly treatment of the ambient heavy metal ions, but also promotes substantial advancements in the fields of clinical toxicology, immunological surveillance, environmental monitoring, industrial waste management, and recycling economy. The triboelectrification enabled self-powered heavy metal ion treatment systematically consists of two steps, a tribonanosensor for metal ion detection and a water-driven triboelectric nanogenerator for metal ion removal. As demonstrated i

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting among cancer patients in Shanghai: a cross-sectional study

Background and purpose: Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) can cause severe damage to body functions and even lead to death. The prevention of CINV is critically important in patients receiving emetogenic chemotherapy regimen. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and treatment of CINV in Grade-A tertiary hospitals in Shanghai and explore risk factors of CINV to improve its management. Methods: The clinical data of 376 cancer patients in Grade-A tertiary hospitals in Shanghai from October 2022 to December 2022 were collected retrospectively. The questionnaire was used to conduct a cross-sectional study. The univariate and multivariable logistic regression models were used to evaluate the influencing factors of CINV. Results: The management and coincidence of the guideline in 2022 significantly improved compared to five years ago. For patients receiving high-emetic-risk chemotherapy regimen, the coincidence of the guideline increased from 21.6% to 67.0%. For patients receiving moderate-emetic-risk chemotherapy regimen, the neurokinin-1 (NK-1) receptor antagonist was not significantly associated with CINV. Multivariable analysis showed that the chemotherapy regimen was the only risk factor for CINV during the whole period (P<0.05). Conclusion: The chemotherapy regimen is the main risk factor for CINV. To control CINV better, clinical practitioners should focus on the intrinsic risk of chemotherapy regimens preferentially, estimate the risk and adhere better to guidelines

Effects of Anacetrapib in Patients with Atherosclerotic Vascular Disease

BACKGROUND: Patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease remain at high risk for cardiovascular events despite effective statin-based treatment of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. The inhibition of cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) by anacetrapib reduces LDL cholesterol levels and increases high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels. However, trials of other CETP inhibitors have shown neutral or adverse effects on cardiovascular outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving 30,449 adults with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive atorvastatin therapy and who had a mean LDL cholesterol level of 61 mg per deciliter (1.58 mmol per liter), a mean non-HDL cholesterol level of 92 mg per deciliter (2.38 mmol per liter), and a mean HDL cholesterol level of 40 mg per deciliter (1.03 mmol per liter). The patients were assigned to receive either 100 mg of anacetrapib once daily (15,225 patients) or matching placebo (15,224 patients). The primary outcome was the first major coronary event, a composite of coronary death, myocardial infarction, or coronary revascularization. RESULTS: During the median follow-up period of 4.1 years, the primary outcome occurred in significantly fewer patients in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (1640 of 15,225 patients [10.8%] vs. 1803 of 15,224 patients [11.8%]; rate ratio, 0.91; 95% confidence interval, 0.85 to 0.97; P=0.004). The relative difference in risk was similar across multiple prespecified subgroups. At the trial midpoint, the mean level of HDL cholesterol was higher by 43 mg per deciliter (1.12 mmol per liter) in the anacetrapib group than in the placebo group (a relative difference of 104%), and the mean level of non-HDL cholesterol was lower by 17 mg per deciliter (0.44 mmol per liter), a relative difference of -18%. There were no significant between-group differences in the risk of death, cancer, or other serious adverse events. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease who were receiving intensive statin therapy, the use of anacetrapib resulted in a lower incidence of major coronary events than the use of placebo. (Funded by Merck and others; Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN48678192 ; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01252953 ; and EudraCT number, 2010-023467-18 .)

A Super-resolution Algorithm Based on SURF and POCS for 3D Bionics PTZ

Image super-resolution algorithm improves image resolution in software. Before image tracking, it needs to enhance image resolution to improve the image tracking accuracy of the bionic eye. The traditional super-resolution reconstruction method can’t satisfy the accuracy and real-time system, so this paper proposes super-resolution image reconstruction algorithm based on SURF (Speeded up Robust Features) and POCS (Projections Onto Convex Sets). The algorithm applies SURF algorithm on image registration and uses RANSAC (RANdom SAmple Consensus) algorithm to kick out fault feature to improve the accuracy of image registration. After motion estimation, this paper applies POCS algorithm to reconstruct a super-resolution image. Finally, some experiments are performed on the platform of a bionic eye, which show that the algorithm can better improve the image resolution and reach real-time requirements to some extent, and providing basis for the subsequent image tracking

A chain mediation model reveals the association between family sense of coherence and quality of life in caregivers of advanced cancer patients

Abstract Caregivers of advanced cancer patients face challenges impacting their quality of life (QoL). While evidence suggests that family sense of coherence (FSOC) can enhance individual psychological well-being and reduce distress symptoms, the precise mechanism through which FSOC improves caregivers' QoL remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the relationships among FSOC, psychological resilience, psychological distress, and QoL in primary caregivers of advanced cancer patients. A cross-sectional observational study was undertaken from June 2020 to March 2021 across five tertiary hospitals in China. Instruments included a general characteristic questionnaire, the Family Sense of Coherence Scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire-4, the 10-item Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale, and the 8-item SF-8 health survey. Pearson’s correlation and chain mediation analyses were performed using IBM SPSS (version 21) and PROCESS macro (version 3.4). Out of 290 valid questionnaires, results demonstrated that FSOC directly and positively influences caregivers' QoL. Psychological distress partially mediated the FSOC-QoL association, with paths "FSOC-psychological distress-QoL" and "FSOC-psychological resilience-psychological distress-QoL" contributing 43.08% and 6.72% of the total effect, respectively. Furthermore, this study distinguished physical and mental aspects of QoL, confirming both conform to the chain mediation model. FSOC impacts caregivers' QoL directly and indirectly through the mediation of psychological distress and the chain mediation effect of "psychological resilience-psychological distress". These insights enhance our understanding of the complex interplay between FSOC and QoL, underscoring the potential benefits of bolstering FSOC to strengthen caregiver resilience, alleviate distress, and ultimately elevate their QoL