Differences in per capita rates of revascularization and in choice of revascularization procedure for eleven states

BACKGROUND: A few studies have investigated differences in elective procedure rates across small and medium sized referral regions. The purposes of this study are to investigate differences in revascularizations across 11 entire states and to investigate differences in choice of revascularization procedure (percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) vs. coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery). METHODS: Age-sex adjusted rates per 100,000 population who were 20 or older were calculated for PCI, CABG surgery, and total revascularization for each state. Also, the risk-adjusted proportion of revascularized patients who underwent PCI was calculated for each state and differences were compared. RESULTS: We found variations in procedures performed per capita of 1.83-fold for PCI, 1.54-fold for CABG surgery, and 1.54-fold for total revascularization. For patients undergoing revascularization of two or more vessels, the age/sex adjusted maximum rate of 224 per 100,000 population over 20 years old in Florida was 53% higher than the minimum rate of 146 in Colorado. Higher catheterization rates per 1,000 Medicare enrollees and higher percent of white patients were significant predictors of higher revascularization rates, and density of specialists was a significant predictor of catheterization rate. The risk-adjusted percentage of revascularized patients with two or more arteries attempted who underwent PCI ranged from 10.4% in Oregon to 29.0% in Iowa. CONCLUSION: There are reasonably large differences among states in total revascularization rates and in type of revascularization among revascularization. These differences appear to be related to practice pattern differences. Future effort should be devoted to understanding the reason for these differences and the impact on patients' health and survival

Network development of low-cost carriers in China's domestic market

This paper examines China's LCC market and assesses the network development patterns from a geographical perspective. Overall, a nationwide LCC network has been formed with each individual LCC focusing on their own markets with limited overlap to avoid cut-throat competition. Spring Airlines has developed an advanced network supported by its core bases including Shanghai in East China, Shijiazhuang in North China, Shenyang in Northeast China and Shenzhen in South China. China United has developed a network radiating from Beijing. West Air and Lucky Air seem to be developing a hub-and-spoke network that contributes to the tourism industry in West China. The LCC network is affected by seasonal variations, especially for the routes to tourism destinations such as Haikou, Sanya and Xiamen. Hub cities, however, experience less seasonal impact. This research also finds that routes between 600 and 1800 km account for a large proportion of the LCC markets. Aviation policy, local government's subsidization and the expansion of the high-speed rail network have helped shape the landscape of China's LCC sector

Dual regulatory switch through interactions of Tcf7l2/Tcf4 with stage-specific partners propels oligodendroglial maturation

Constitutive activation of Wnt/β-catenin inhibits oligodendrocyte myelination. Tcf7l2/Tcf4, a β-catenin transcriptional partner, is required for oligodendrocyte differentiation. How Tcf7l2 modifies β-catenin signalling and controls myelination remains elusive. Here we define a stage-specific Tcf7l2-regulated transcriptional circuitry in initiating and sustaining oligodendrocyte differentiation. Multistage genome occupancy analyses reveal that Tcf7l2 serially cooperates with distinct co-regulators to control oligodendrocyte lineage progression. At the differentiation onset, Tcf7l2 interacts with a transcriptional co-repressor Kaiso/Zbtb33 to block β-catenin signalling. During oligodendrocyte maturation, Tcf7l2 recruits and cooperates with Sox10 to promote myelination. In that context, Tcf7l2 directly activates cholesterol biosynthesis genes and cholesterol supplementation partially rescues oligodendrocyte differentiation defects in Tcf712 mutants. Together, we identify stage-specific co-regulators Kaiso and Sox10 that sequentially interact with Tcf7l2 to coordinate the switch at the transitions of differentiation initiation and maturation during oligodendrocyte development, and point to a previously unrecognized role of Tcf7l2 in control of cholesterol biosynthesis for CNS myelinogenesis

Artificial intelligence-driven microbiome data analysis for estimation of postmortem interval and crime location

Microbial communities, demonstrating dynamic changes in cadavers and the surroundings, provide invaluable insights for forensic investigations. Conventional methodologies for microbiome sequencing data analysis face obstacles due to subjectivity and inefficiency. Artificial Intelligence (AI) presents an efficient and accurate tool, with the ability to autonomously process and analyze high-throughput data, and assimilate multi-omics data, encompassing metagenomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics. This facilitates accurate and efficient estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI), detection of crime location, and elucidation of microbial functionalities. This review presents an overview of microorganisms from cadavers and crime scenes, emphasizes the importance of microbiome, and summarizes the application of AI in high-throughput microbiome data processing in forensic microbiology

Percolation in half spaces and Markov fields on branching planes.

We study two sets of models: independent percolation models in half spaces Zᵈ⁻¹ x Z₊, and Ising/Potts models as well as the Fortuin-Kasteleyn (FK) random cluster models on branching planes T x Z, where Z is the one-dimensional lattice, Z₊ = {0,1,2,...} and T is a Bethe lattice. We prove that for independent percolation in half spaces, the infinite cluster is unique whenever it exists. For the Ising/Potts models on branching planes, there are (at least) two phase transitions; that is, there exist(s) a unique Gibbs state, tree-like nonunique Gibbs states or plane-like nonunique Gibbs states corresponding to high temperature, intermediate temperature or low temperature. In the low temperature plus phase, the plus infinite cluster is unique and it "traps" the space T x Z and prevents co-existence of the minus infinite cluster. For the FK random cluster models (which are dependent percolation models) on T x Z, the number of infinite (open) clusters may be zero, infinity or one depending on the value of p--the probability of each bond being open. This is an extension of Grimmett and Newman's results for independent percolation on T x Z. We also prove that both the independent percolation model and the FK random cluster models satisfy a finite island property when p is close to 1. Chapter 1 is an introduction. Chapter 2 contains the proof of the uniqueness theorem for independent percolation in half spaces. The proof utilizes only a large deviation estimate and translation invariance of the models along the hyperplane Zᵈ⁻¹ x {0}. The Ising/Potts models and the FK random cluster models on the branching planes are studied in Chapter 3. The methods are to use the FK representation of Ising/Potts systems as dependent percolation models to carry over Grimmett and Newman's results for independent percolation to the Ising/Potts models. However, in order to prove the plane-like behavior of the Ising/Potts models, the corresponding results for independent percolation are not sufficient and this led us to investigate independent percolation again and prove a new finite island property. Chapters 2 and 3 are independent. Readers with basic knowledge of percolation and Ising models can omit chapter 1 and read chapters 2 and 3 directly

Modified Constitutive Models and Mechanical Properties of GFRP after High-Temperature Cooling

Many materials are highly sensitive to temperature, and the study of the fire resistance of materials is one of the important research directions, which includes the study of the fire resistance of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites, but the cooling mode on the change of FRP mechanical properties after high temperature has not been investigated. This study analyzes the mechanical properties of GFRP under various cooling methods after exposure to high temperatures. The tensile strength of GFRP was evaluated through water cooling, firefighting foam cooling, and air cooling within the temperature range of 20–300 °C. Damage modes were investigated at different target temperatures. The results indicate that the tensile strength of air-cooled GFRP is the highest, whereas water cooling yields the lowest retention rate. It indicates that the FRP temperature decreases slowly under air cooling and the better recovery of the damage within the resin matrix, while under water cooling, the damage at the fiber/resin interface is exacerbated because of the high exposed temperature and the water, resulting in a reduction in the strength of GFRP. Between 20 and 150 °C, GFRP essentially recovers its mechanical properties after cooling, with a residual tensile strength factor exceeding 0.9. In the range of 150–250 °C, GFRP exhibits a graded decline in strength. At 300 °C, GFRP loses certain mechanical properties after cooling, with a residual tensile strength factor below 0.1. Furthermore, the analysis of experimental results led to the modification of the Johnson–Cook constitutive model, proposing a model for GFRP under three cooling methods. Additionally, a predictive model for the elastic modulus of GFRP after high-temperature cooling was derived, showing agreement with experimental results