An effective frame breaking policy for dynamic framed slotted aloha in RFID

The tag collision problem is considered as one of the critical issues in RFID system. To further improve the identification efficiency of an UHF RFID system, a frame breaking policy is proposed with dynamic framed slotted aloha algorithm. Specifically, the reader makes effective use of idle, successful, and collision statistics during the early observation phase to recursively determine the optimal frame size. Then the collided tags in each slot will be resolved by individual frames. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm achieves a better identification performance compared with the existing Aloha-based algorithms

A UEP LT Codes Design with Feedback for Underwater Communication

To satisfy the performance requirement of LT codes with Unequal Erasure Protection (UEP) in underwater environment, the Weighted Expanding Window Fountain (WEWF) code is proposed in this paper. The WEWF codes can achieve strong UEP property by nonuniformly selecting input symbols within each window. To overcome the disadvantages in terms of redundancy in the lower prioritized segments, Correlation Chain Feedback (CCFB) is also introduced to help the transmitter to precisely adjust the encoding scheme. Asymptotic analysis and simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach can achieve lower symbol error rate and less overall redundancy in the underwater acoustic sensor networks

Clinical features and liver pathology in chronic hepatitis B virus-infected patients with normal liver function

ObjectiveTo study the clinical features and liver pathology in chronic hepatitis B (HBV)-infected patients with normal liver function, and to explore the influencing factors. MethodsA total of 316 chronic HBV-infected patients with normal liver function who were admitted to our hospital from August 2008 to August 2012 were enrolled as subjects. Hepatic tissue was collected by ultrasound-guided biopsy and analyzed by hematoxylin-eosin staining, Masson staining, and anti-HBsAg and anti-HBcAg immunohistochemistry staining. The Knodell inflammatory score and Ishak fibrosis score were evaluated, and their relationships with age, gender, HBeAg, alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level, serum HBV DNA replication, and hepatic expression of HBsAg and HBcAg were analyzed. Comparisons of continuous data between two groups and between multiple groups were performed by t test and one-way analysis of variance, respectively. The further pairwise comparison was performed by SNK-q test. Comparison of categorical data was performed by χ2 test. ResultsIn all the chronic HBV-infected patients with normal liver function, there were 260 (82.3%) patients with at least moderate inflammation and necrosis, 256 (81.0%) patients with at least moderate fibrosis, 13 (4.1%) patients with severe inflammation and necrosis, and 26 (8.2%) patients with severe fibrosis (cirrhosis). The average age, Knodell score, and Ishak score were significantly higher in the female patients than in the male patients (t=3.526, P＜0.05; t=6.65, P＜0.05; t=5.77, P＜0.05). The chronic HBV-infected patients older than 30 years of age had significantly higher Knodell and Ishak scores than those younger than 30 years of age (both P＜0.05). Moreover, the degree of liver injury was significantly higher in the infected patients with an ALT level of (0.5-1) × upper limit of normal (ULN) than in those with an ALT level of (0-0.49) × ULN(P＜0.05). Patients with undetectable HBV DNA replication had a significantly lower degree of liver injury than those with detectable HBV DNA replication (P＜0.05). However, there was no significant correlation between liver injury and hepatic expression of HBsAg and HBcAg (both P＞0.05). ConclusionLiver biopsy should be considered for the chronic HBV-infected patients with detectable viral load and sustainable normal ALT, particularly those older than 40 years of age

Age as a predictor of significant fibrosis features in HBeAg-negative chronic hepatitis B virus infection with persistently normal alanine aminotransferase.

Although alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels reflect the degree of liver damage, not all patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection exhibit persistently elevated ALT levels. In the present study, we aimed to comprehensively evaluate the characteristics of histological abnormalities in a large population of Chinese patients with chronic HBV and persistently normal ALT levels.In total, 2303 consecutive patients who underwent liver biopsy were screened. Of these patients, 273 were categorized as having persistently normal ALT levels (PNALT), whereas 618 were categorized as having persistently or intermittently elevated ALT levels (PIALT). All these patients had at least three ALT values recorded in the year prior to the baseline liver biopsy.Significant necroinflammation was observed in 9.7% (11/113) patients with PNALT, 23.3% (42/180) patients with PIALT (ALT 1-2× upper limit of normal [ULN]), and 27.8% (42/151) patients with PIALT (ALT > 2× ULN), whereas significant fibrosis was observed in 8.8% (10/113) patients with PNALT, 27.8% (42/151) patients with PIALT (ALT 1-2× ULN), and 21.2% (32/151) patients with PIALT (ALT > 2× ULN). Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that age parameters were associated with significant histological abnormalities in patients with PNALT. The area under the curve showed that age was associated with significant fibrosis characteristics in patients with hepatitis B extracellular antigen (HBeAg)-negative PNALT.Significant histological abnormalities are not often observed in Chinese patients with PNALT. Interestingly, age appears to be a predictor of significant fibrosis in patients with HBeAg-negative PNALT

Rose Bengal diacetate-mediated antimicrobial photodynamic inactivation: potentiation by potassium iodide and acceleration of wound healing in MRSA-infected diabetic mice

Abstract Previous studies have shown that antimicrobial photodynamic inactivation (aPDI) can be strongly potentiated by the addition of the non-toxic inorganic salt, potassium iodide (KI). This approach was shown to apply to many different photosensitizers, including the xanthene dye Rose Bengal (RB) excited by green light (540 nm). Rose Bengal diacetate (RBDA) is a lipophilic RB derivative that is easily taken up by cells and hydrolyzed to produce an active photosensitizer. Because KI is not taken up by microbial cells, it was of interest to see if aPDI mediated by RBDA could also be potentiated by KI. The addition of 100 mM KI strongly potentiated the killing of Gram-positive methicillin-resistant Staphylocccus aureus, Gram-negative Eschericia coli, and fungal yeast Candida albicans when treated with RBDA (up to 15 µM) for 2 hours followed by green light (540 nm, 10 J/cm2). Both RBDA aPDI regimens (400 µM RBDA with or without 400 mM KI followed by 20 J/cm2 green light) accelerated the healing of MRSA-infected excisional wounds in diabetic mice, without damaging the host tissue

Inhibition of KIF14 Suppresses Tumor Cell Growth and Promotes Apoptosis in Human Glioblastoma

Background/Aims: The mitotic kinesin superfamily protein KIF14 is essential for cytokinesis and chromosome segregation, and increased KIF14 expression is related to a variety of human cancers. However, the role of KIF14 in the development and malignant progression of astrocytomas and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. The present study examined the relation between KIF14 and the pathogenesis of malignant astrocytoma. Methods and Results: The role of KIF14 in astrocytoma development and progression was investigated by analyzing KIF14 expression using SYBR Green quantitative real-time RT-PCR, western blotting and immunohistochemistry in human astrocytoma and normal brain tissues. KIF14 expression was higher in astrocytoma samples, and was positively correlated with pathological grade and proliferative activity indicated by Ki-67 staining. SiRNA knockdown of KIF14 inhibited tumor growth in vitro and in vivo, attenuated anchorage-independent growth, and induced G2/M phase arrest, cytokinesis failure and apoptosis in glioblastoma cell lines in association with decreased AKT phosphorylation and activity. Conclusions: The upregulation of KIF14 in astrocytoma is associated with disease severity, and suppression of KIF14 inhibits cell proliferation and induces apoptosis through a mechanism involving the inactivation of AKT signaling, suggesting that KIF14 plays an important role in astrocytoma tumorigenesis and could be a promising molecular target for anticancer therapy

A Pilot Study of Serum MicroRNAs Panel as Potential Biomarkers for Diagnosis of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

<div><p>Background</p><p>The invasive nature of liver biopsy makes the histopathological diagnosis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) difficult and its diagnostic performance unsatisfactory. The present study aimed to identify a serum microRNA (miRNA) expression profile that could serve as a novel diagnostic biomarker for NAFLD.</p><p>Methods</p><p>Serum miRNA expression was investigated using three cohorts comprising 465 participants (healthy controls and NAFLD patients) recruited between August 2010 and June 2013. miRNA expression was initially screened by Illumina sequencing using serum samples pooled from 20 patients and 20 controls. Quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction assay was then used to evaluate the expression of selected miRNAs. A logistic regression model was constructed using a training cohort (n = 242) and validated using another cohort (n = 183). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was used to evaluate diagnostic accuracy.</p><p>Results</p><p>We identified an miRNA panel (hsa-miR-122-5p, hsa-miR-1290, hsa-miR-27b-3p, and hsa-miR-192-5p) with a high diagnostic accuracy for NAFLD. The satisfactory diagnostic performance of the miRNA panel remained regardless of the NAFLD activity score (NAS) status. There was significant difference between the AUC values of the miRNA panel and those of ALT (AUC = 0.786, 95% CI = 0.717–0.855; <i>P</i> = 0.142) and FIB-4 (AUC = 0.795, 95% CI = 0.730–0.860; sensitivity = 69.9%, specificity = 83.7%.</p><p>Conclusion</p><p>We identified a serum microRNA panel with considerable clinical value in NAFLD diagnosis. The results indicate that the miRNA panel is a more sensitive and specific biomarker for NAFLD than ALT and FIB-4.</p></div

Improved photocatalytic activity of porous ZnO nanosheets by thermal deposition graphene-like g-C3N4 for CO2 reduction with H2O vapor

Porous ZnO nanosheets (PNS-ZnO) were prepared by calcining ZnS(en)(0.5) (en = ethylenediamine) nanosheets in air, and g-C3N4 (g-CN) nanofilms were coated on the surface of PNS-ZnO by thermal deposition using bulk g-C3N4 as precursor. Experimental results showed that the graphene-like g-C3N4 could be deposited on the surface of ZnO to form nanocomposites with core/shell structure. After the loading of g-CN, the light absorption and chemical adsorption of CO2 over PNS-ZnO were improved obviously and the recombination of photogenerated electron and hole was greatly depressed due to the formation of heterojunction between PNS-ZnO and g-CN. All PNS-ZnO@g-CN nanocomposites exhibited much higher photocatalytic activity for CO2 reduction with H2O vapor when compared to pure PNS-ZnO and bulk g-CN. The loading amount of g-CN had significant influence on the light absorption and photocatalytic activity, and [email protected] exhibited the best photocatalytic performance, for which H-2, CH4 and CO production rates of 22.7, 30.5 and 16.8 mu mol/g(cat)/h can be obtained, respectively

MicroRNA profile and diagnostic performance in training dataset.

<p>AUC: area under the receiver operating characteristic curve.</p

Demographic and clinical features of NAFLD patients and healthy controls in the screening set.

1<p>BMI: Body mass index, <b>²</b>Occasional: the ethanol intake per week was less than 140 g in men (70 g in women) in the past 12 months.<b>³</b>NAS: the NAFLD activity score. ^aIndependent samples-t test. ^bPearson Chi-Square.</p