An Improved Fruit Fly Optimization Algorithm Inspired from Cell Communication Mechanism

Fruit fly optimization algorithm (FOA) invented recently is a new swarm intelligence method based on fruit fly’s foraging behaviors and has been shown to be competitive with existing evolutionary algorithms, such as particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm. However, there are still some disadvantages in the FOA, such as low convergence precision, easily trapped in a local optimum value at the later evolution stage. This paper presents an improved FOA based on the cell communication mechanism (CFOA), by considering the information of the global worst, mean, and best solutions into the search strategy to improve the exploitation. The results from a set of numerical benchmark functions show that the CFOA outperforms the FOA and the PSO in most of the experiments. Further, the CFOA is applied to optimize the controller for preoxidation furnaces in carbon fibers production. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the CFOA

The simultaneous removal of cadmium (II) and lead (II) from wastewater with the application of green synthesized magnesium silicate hydrate

To the purpose of solving the problems of coal-gangue accumulation in the mine and pollution of cadmium (II) and lead (II) in wastewater, magnesium silicate hydrate (M-S-H) was synthesized from coal-gangue by thermochemical. M-S-H had removed Cd(II) and Pb(II) by adsorption. The characterization of M-S-H and adsorption effects factors, including initial solution pH, initial metal concentration, adsorbent dose, temperature, reaction time, and coexisting ions were explored for adsorption performance. The solution pH was precisely controlled by a pH meter. The adsorption temperature was controlled by a thermostatic gas bath oscillator with an error of ±0.3. These results from this study revealed that M-S-H surface area increased from 8.12 to 26.15 m2/g with a pore volume of 0.12 cm3/g. The maximum adsorptions of Cd(II) and Pb(II) by M-S-H were 59.52 and 83.33 mg g−1, respectively. The adsorption performance for Cd(II) and Pb(II) reached saturation at pH 5, temperature 25°C, M-S-H 6 g/L, reaction time 90 min, and metal concentration 300 mg/L. Cd(II) and Pb(II) adsorption were spontaneous and endothermic and well fitted with the pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm adsorption models. The adsorption mechanisms were electrostatic interaction, ion exchange, and surface complexation. This research indicated that the synthesized M-S-H from coal gangue was efficiently eliminated metal ions from water, opening up new possibilities for coal gangue reuse

Spatial distributions, fractionation characteristics, and ecological risk assessment of trace elements in sediments of Chaohu Lake, a large eutrophic freshwater lake in eastern China

The concentrations, spatial distribution, fractionation characteristics, and potential ecological risks of trace elements (Cu, Pb, Zn, Cr, Ni, and Co) in the surface sediment samples collected from 32 sites in Chaohu Lake were investigated. The improved BCR sequential extraction procedure was applied to analyze the chemical forms of trace elements in sediments. The enrichment factor (EF), sediment quality guidelines (SQGs), potential ecological risk index (PERI), and risk assessment code (RAC) were employed to evaluate the pollution levels and the potential ecological risks. The results found that the concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Cr, Ni, and Co in the surface sediments were 78.59, 36.91, 161.84, 98.87, 38.92, and 10.09 mg kg(-1), respectively. The lower concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Cr, and Ni were almost found in the middle part of the lake, while Co increased from the western toward the eastern parts of the lake. Cr, Ni, Co, and Zn predominantly existed in the residual fractions, with the average values of 76.35, 59.22, 45.60, and 44.30%, respectively. Cu and Pb were mainly combined with Fe/Mn oxides in reducible fraction, with the average values of 66.4 and 69.1%, respectively. The pollution levels were different among the selected elements. Cu had the highest potential ecological risk, while Cr had the lowest potential ecological risk

Nanomagnetic-Mediated Drug Delivery for The Treatment of Dental Disease

Maintaining the vitality of the dental pulp, the highly innervated and highly vascular, innermost layer of the tooth, is a critical goal of any dental procedure. Upon injury, targeting the pulp with specific therapies is challenging because it is encased in hard tissues. This project describes a method that can effectively deliver therapeutic agents to the pulp. This method relies on the use of nanoparticles that can be actively steered using magnetic forces to the pulp, traveling through naturally occurring channels in the dentin (the middle layer of the tooth). This method can reduce the inflammation of injured pulp and improve the penetration of dental adhesives into dentin. Such a delivery method would be less expensive, and both less painful and less traumatic than existing therapeutic options available for treatment of injured dental pulp. This technique would be simple and could be readily translated to clinical use

Alternate erosion and deposition in the Yangtze Estuary and its future change

The morphological changing trend of the Yangtze Estuary, the largest estuary of Asia, has become a focus of research in recent years. Based on a long series of topographic data from 1950 to 2015, this paper studied the erosion-deposition pattern of the entire Yangtze Estuary. An alternation between erosion and deposition was found during the past 65 years, which was in correspondence to the alternation between flood and dry periods identified by multi-year average duration days of high-level water flow (defined as discharge ≥ 60,000 m3/s, namely, D≥60,000) from the Yangtze River Basin. A quantitative relationship was further developed between the erosional/depositional rate of the Yangtze Estuary and the interpreting variables of yearly water discharge, D≥60,000 and yearly river sediment load, with contributing rates of 1%, 59% and 40%, respectively. Mechanism behind the alternate erosion and deposition pattern was analyzed by examining residual water surface slope and the corresponding capacity of sediment transport in flood and dry periods. In flood periods, a larger discharge results in steeper slope of residual water level which permits a greater capacity of sediment transport. Therefore, more bed materials can be washed to the sea, leading to erosion of the estuary. In contrast, flatter slope of residual water level occurs in dry periods, and deposition dominates the estuarine area due to the decreased capacity of sediment transport and the increased backwater effect of flood-tide. Coastal dynamics and estuarine engineering projects alter the local morphological changes, but slightly affect the total erosional/depositional rate of the whole estuarine region. Heavy sedimentation within the Yangtze Estuary after the impoundment of the Three Gorges Dam can be attributed to the reduced occurrence frequency of flood years due to water regulation by the dam, and largely (at least 36%–52%) sourced from the sea. Deposition is still possible to occur in the Yangtze Estuary in the future, because the multi-year average D≥60,000 is unlikely to exceed the critical value of 14 days/yr which corresponds to the future equilibrium state of the Yangtze Estuary, under the water regulation of the large cascade dams in the upper Yangtze. Nevertheless, the mean depositional rate will not surpass the peak value of the past years, since the total sediment load entering the Yangtze Estuary has presented a decreasing trend

Comparison of the therapeutic effects of mesenchymal stem cells derived from human dental pulp (DP), adipose tissue (AD), placental amniotic membrane (PM), and umbilical cord (UC) on postmenopausal osteoporosis

Background: Osteoporosis is a systemic bone disease characterized by bone loss and microstructural degeneration. Recent preclinical and clinical trials have further demonstrated that the transplantation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from human adipose tissue (AD), dental pulp (DP), placental amniotic membrane (AM), and umbilical cord (UC) tissues can serve as an effective form of cell therapy for osteoporosis. However, MSC-mediated osteoimmunology and the ability of these cells to regulate osteoclast-osteoblast differentiation varies markedly among different types of MSCs.Methods: In this study, we investigated whether transplanted allogeneic MSCs derived from AD, DP, AM, and UC tissues were able to prevent osteoporosis in an ovariectomy (OVX)-induced mouse model of osteoporosis. The homing and immunomodulatory ability of these cells as well as their effects on osteoblastogenesis and the maintenance of bone formation were compared for four types of MSCs to determine the ideal source of MSCs for the cell therapy-based treatment of OVX-induced osteoporosis. The bone formation and bone resorption ability of these four types of MSCs were analyzed using micro-computed tomography analyses and histological staining. In addition, cytokine array-based analyses of serological markers and bioluminescence imaging assays were employed to evaluate cell survival and homing efficiency. Immune regulation was determined by flow cytometer assay to reflect the mechanisms of osteoporosis treatment.Conclusion: These analyses demonstrated that MSCs isolated from different tissues have the capacity to treat osteoporosis when transplanted in vivo. Importantly, DP-MSCs infusion was able to maintain trabecular bone mass more efficiently with corresponding improvements in trabecular bone volume, mineral density, number, and separation. Among the tested MSC types, DP-MSCs were also found to exhibit greater immunoregulatory capabilities, regulating the Th17/Treg and M1/M2 ratios. These data thus suggest that DP-MSCs may represent an effective tool for the treatment of osteoporosis

The influence of gold mining wastes on the migration-transformation behavior and health risks of arsenic in the surrounding soil of mined-area

Understanding the characteristic heavy metals and their migration-transformation behavior in mining areas is essential for the prevention and control of mining pollution. This study selected a gold mine in the Anqing-Guichi ore-cluster region in the Middle-Lower Yangtze metallogenic belt as the research area, the concentrations, and migration-transformation mechanisms of metalloid As and typical heavy metals (Cd, Zn, Pb, Cu, Cr, and Ni) in gold mining wastes (mine tailings and sewage sludge) and the surrounding soil (farmland soil and soil a mining area) were investigated. The results showed that the concentration of As was high in both mining wastes and soils, and the geo-accumulation index values of As in soils ranging from 1.44–6.70, indicated that As pollution was severe in the soil. Besides, a close correlation between the concentration of As and the content of iron was observed by XRF analysis, in conjunction with SEM observations, most As-bearing phases are embedded in Fe, O, and Si compounds. According to EDS and XPS results, the Fe-O-As particle was suggested to be Fe-(oxy)hydroxides with absorbed or co-precipitated As. Furthermore, the arsenic phase observed in the soils were consistent with the weathering oxidation products in the tailings, demonstrating that the mineral particles in the tailings could migrate into soils via atmospheric transport, rainwater leaching, surface runoff, etc., and consequently result in heavy metal accumulation. The sequential chemical extraction result showed that the residual state of As in the soil exceeded 60%, and As posed no risk to low risk according to the Risk assessment code result. However, due to the high concentration and high mobility of arsenic, its environmental impact cannot be ignored even if its bio-accessibility in mined area soil is low

Rapid detection of influenza A viruses using a real-time reverse transcription recombinase-aided amplification assay

IntroductionInfluenza A viruses (IAVs) are important pathogens of respiratory infections, causing not only seasonal influenza but also influenza pandemics and posing a global threat to public health. IAVs infection spreads rapidly, widely, and across species, causing huge losses, especially zoonotic IAVs infections that are more harmful. Fast and sensitive detection of IAVs is critical for controlling the spread of this disease.MethodsHere, a real-time reverse transcription recombinase-aided amplification (real-time RT-RAA) assay targeting conserved positions in the matrix protein gene (M gene) of IAVs, is successfully established to detect IAVs. The assay can be completed within 20 min at 42°C.ResultsThe sensitivity of the real-time RT-RAA assay was 142 copies per reaction at 95% probability, which was comparable to the sensitivity of the RT-qPCR assay. The specificity assay showed that the real-time RT-RAA assay was specific to IAVs, and there was no cross-reactivity with other important viruses. In addition, 100%concordance between the real-time RT-RAA and RT-qPCR assays was achieved after testing 120 clinical specimens.DiscussionThe results suggested that the real-time RT-RAA assay we developed was a specific, sensitive and reliable diagnostic tool for the rapid detection of IAVs