Cross Cultural Comparative Research of Online Consumer Reviews Intentions

A detailed literature review on motives of knowledge sharing in virtual communities is conducted. Moreover, the comparative study on intentions of consumer reviews between Amazon.com and Amazon.cn, based on an online open-ended survey through content analysis, is done. The analytical results show that users contribute their consumption experiences are mainly depended upon social motives, psychological motives and economic motives, which are deeply correlated and influenced by their national culture dimensions

Heat transport capacity of an axial-rotating single- loop oscillating heat pipe for abrasive-milling tools

In order to enhance heat transfer in the abrasive-milling processes to reduce thermal damage, the concept of employing oscillating heat pipes (OHPs) in an abrasive-milling tool is proposed. A single-loop OHP (SLOHP) is positioned on the plane parallel to the rotational axis of the tool. In this case, centrifugal accelerations do not segregate the fluid between the evaporator and condenser. The experimental investigation is conducted to study the effects of centrifugal acceleration (0–738 m/s2), heat flux (9100–31,850 W/m2) and working fluids (methanol, acetone and water) on the thermal performance. Results show that the centrifugal acceleration has a positive influence on the thermal performance of the axial-rotating SLOHP when filled with acetone or methanol. As for water, with the increase of centrifugal acceleration, the heat transfer performance first increases and then decreases. The thermal performance enhances for higher heat flux rises for all the fluids. The flow inside the axial-rotating SLOHP is analyzed by a slow-motion visualization supported by the theoretical analysis. Based on the theoretical analysis, the rotation will increase the resistance for the vapor to penetrate through the liquid slugs to form an annular flow, which is verified by the visualization

Multiplex PCR for 17 Y-Chromosome Specific Short Tandem Repeats (STR) to Enhance the Reliability of Fetal Sex Determination in Maternal Plasma

The aim of the study was to demonstrate the influence of target gene and amplification product length on the performance of fetal gender determination systems using maternal plasma. A total of 40 pairs of plasma DNA samples from pregnant women and genomic DNA samples from maternal blood, amniotic fluid and paternal blood were isolated for gender determination by amplification of the amelogenin gene and 17 Y-chromosome STR loci, using three different commercial kits. The gender of the fetuses was confirmed by cytogenetic analysis or phenotype at birth. Both the AmpFℓSTR-Identifiler amplification kit and the Mini-STR Amplification kit for amelogenin gene detection were reliable in determining fetal gender (92.0% and 96.0%, respectively), but false negatives were present in both systems. AmpFℓSTR-Yfiler was found to be fully reliable as it amplified Y-STR in all cases of pregnancies with male fetuses and thus was 100% correct in determining fetal gender. The results demonstrated that multiple fluorescent PCR for 17 Y-STR loci was more reliable than AMELY gene testing in fetal sex determination with maternal plasma. We also found that the shorter amplification products could improve the performance of fetal gender determination systems

Genetic sources and diversity of the paddy field carp in the Pearl River basin inferred from two mitochondrial loci

Paddy field carp (PF-carp) is an economically important fish cocultured with rice in traditional agricultural systems. Several distinctive strains of PF-carp have been formed through years of artificial and cross breeding. There is a concern about the status of germplasm resources among PF-carp, since little is known about the genetic sources, diversity, or differentiation. In this study we collected 17 PF-carp populations covering Daotian carp (DTL), Ru Yuan No. 1 (RY), Jinbian carp (JBL), Shaijiang carp (SJL), and Wu carp (WL) along the Pearl River basin to explore their genetic sources and diversity using concatenated sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and the D-Loop region. According to the haplotype network analyses, 1, 9, and 57 haplotypes originated from Cyprinus carpio carpio, Cyprinus carpio haematopterus and Cyprinus carpio rubrofuscus, respectively, confirming that genetic introgression has occurred in Pearl River PF-carp populations and Cyprinus carpio carpio was the most common species for genetic origin. The results showed that RY exhibited the lowest level of nucleotide diversity (π = 0.0011) due to high-intensity breeding and was significantly differentiated from the other four strains. PF-carp strains in these remote traditional systems tended to experience artificial selection and a lack of farmer connection that gradually increased genetic differentiation among strains. Notably, three populations of JBL exhibited significant high-level differentiation, since they originated from mountainous areas hindering farmers from fry exchange. In contrast, no significant differentiation was uncovered in the WL populations, since this strain is the most popular cultured strain and has undergone artificial exchange of parents and fry in many cultured regions. This study helps us to understand the status of germplasm resources among PF-carp and to trace their genetic origin before being introduced for local cultivation

Advances in the study of B cells in renal ischemia-reperfusion injury

Renal ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is a non-negligible clinical challenge for clinicians in surgeries such as renal transplantation. Functional loss of renal tubular epithelial cell (TEC) in IRI leads to the development of acute kidney injury, delayed graft function (DGF), and allograft rejection. The available evidence indicates that cellular oxidative stress, cell death, microvascular dysfunction, and immune response play an important role in the pathogenesis of IRI. A variety of immune cells, including macrophages and T cells, are actively involved in the progression of IRI in the immune response. The role of B cells in IRI has been relatively less studied, but there is a growing body of evidence for the involvement of B cells, which involve in the development of IRI through innate immune responses, adaptive immune responses, and negative immune regulation. Therefore, therapies targeting B cells may be a potential direction to mitigate IRI. In this review, we summarize the current state of research on the role of B cells in IRI, explore the potential effects of different B cell subsets in the pathogenesis of IRI, and discuss possible targets of B cells for therapeutic aim in renal IRI

FT4/FT3 ratio: A novel biomarker predicts coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) in euthyroid INOCA patients.

Background Ischemia and no obstructive coronary artery disease (INOCA) patients who presented coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) demonstrate a poor prognosis, yet the risk factors for CMD remain unclear. Subtle changes in thyroid hormone levels within the normal range, especially the free thyroxine (FT4)/free triiodothyronine (FT3) ratio, have been shown to regulate the cardiovascular system. This prospective study investigated the correlation between FT4/FT3 ratio and CMD in euthyroid patients with INOCA. Methods This prospective study (www.chictr.org.cn/, ChiCTR2000037112) recruited patients with myocardial ischemia symptoms who underwent both coronary angiography (CAG) and myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) with dynamic single-photon emission computed tomography (D-SPECT). INOCA was defined as coronary stenosis< 50% and CMD was defined as coronary flow reserve (CFR)<2.5. All patients were excluded from abnormal thyroid function and thyroid disease history. Results Among 71 INOCA patients (15 [21.1%] CMD), FT4 and FT4/FT3 ratio in CMD group were significantly higher and both showed significantly moderate correlation with CFR (r=-0.25, p=0.03; r=-0.34, p=0.003, respectively). The ROC curve revealed that FT4/FT3 ratio had the highest efficacy for predicting CMD with an optimized cutoff value>3.39 (AUC 0.78, p<0.001, sensitivity, 80.0%; specificity, 71.4%). Multivariate logistic regression showed that FT4/FT3 ratio was an independent predictor of CMD (OR 7.62, 95% CI 1.12-51.89, p=0.038, P for trend=0.006). Conclusion In euthyroid INOCA patients, increased FT4/FT3 ratio levels are associated with the occurrence of CMD, presenting a novel biomarker for improving the risk stratification

A Left Ventricular Mechanical Dyssynchrony-Based Nomogram for Predicting Major Adverse Cardiac Events Risk in Patients With Ischemia and No Obstructive Coronary Artery Disease.

Background The risk stratification of patients with ischemia and no obstructive coronary artery disease (INOCA) remains suboptimal. This study aims to establish a left ventricular mechanical dyssynchrony (LVMD)-based nomogram to improve the present situation. Methods Patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD) were retrospectively enrolled and divided into three groups: normal (stenosis 4, summed difference score ≥2), and obstructive CAD (stenosis ≥50%). LVMD was defined by ROC analysis. INOCA group were followed up for the occurrence of major adverse cardiac events (MACEs: cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, revascularization, stroke, heart failure, and hospitalization for unstable angina). Nomogram was established using multivariate Cox regression analysis. Results Among 334 patients (118 [35.3%] INOCA), LVMD parameters were significantly higher in INOCA group versus normal group but they did not differ between obstructive CAD groups. In INOCA group, 27 (22.9%) MACEs occurred during a 26-month median follow-up. Proportion of LVMD was significantly higher with MACEs under both stress (63.0% vs. 22.0%, P < 0.001) and rest (51.9% vs. 20.9%, P = 0.002). Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed significantly higher rate of MACEs (stress log-rank: P = 0.002; rest log-rank: P < 0.001) in LVMD patients. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that stress LVMD (HR: 3.82; 95% CI: 1.30-11.20; P = 0.015) was an independent predictor of MACEs. The internal bootstrap resampling approach indicates that the C-index of nomogram was 0.80 (95% CI: 0.71-0.89) and the AUC values for 1 and 3 years of risk prediction were 0.68 (95% CI: 0.46-0.89) and 0.84 (95% CI: 0.72-0.95), respectively. Conclusion LVMD-based nomogram might provide incremental prognostic value and improve the risk stratification in INOCA patients