Bis(6′-carb­oxy-2,2′-bipyridine-6-carboxyl­ato-κ3 N,N′,O 6)nickel(II) tetra­hydrate

In the title compound, [Ni(C12H7N2O4)2]·4H2O, the Ni atom is located at the centre of a distorted octa­hedron, formed by four N atoms and two O atoms from the same two tridentating chelated 6-carb­oxy-2,2′-bipyridine-6′-carboxyl­ate (L) ligands. Face-to-face π-stacking inter­actions between inversion-related pyridine rings with centroid–centroid distances of 3.548 (3) and 3.662 (3) Å (perpendicular distances between the respective rings are 3.314 and 3.438 Å) are found. Inter­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds between water mol­ecules and L ligands form R 5 3(10), R 6 5(14) and R 5 5(12) rings and also a centrosymmetric cage-like unit of water mol­ecules, which link eight adjacent NiII centers, forming a three-dimensional framework

Motion Planning for Autonomous Driving: The State of the Art and Future Perspectives

Thanks to the augmented convenience, safety advantages, and potential commercial value, Intelligent vehicles (IVs) have attracted wide attention throughout the world. Although a few autonomous driving unicorns assert that IVs will be commercially deployable by 2025, their implementation is still restricted to small-scale validation due to various issues, among which precise computation of control commands or trajectories by planning methods remains a prerequisite for IVs. This paper aims to review state-of-the-art planning methods, including pipeline planning and end-to-end planning methods. In terms of pipeline methods, a survey of selecting algorithms is provided along with a discussion of the expansion and optimization mechanisms, whereas in end-to-end methods, the training approaches and verification scenarios of driving tasks are points of concern. Experimental platforms are reviewed to facilitate readers in selecting suitable training and validation methods. Finally, the current challenges and future directions are discussed. The side-by-side comparison presented in this survey not only helps to gain insights into the strengths and limitations of the reviewed methods but also assists with system-level design choices.Comment: 20 pages, 14 figures and 5 table

The prognostic index PRIMA-PI combined with Ki67 as a better predictor of progression of disease within 24 months in follicular lymphoma

BackgroundProgression of disease within 24 months (POD24) is a risk factor for poor survival in follicular lymphoma (FL), and there is currently no optimal prognostic model to accurately predict patients with early disease progression. How to combine traditional prognostic models with new indicators to establish a new prediction system, to predict the early progression of FL patients more accurately is a future research direction.MethodsThis study retrospectively analyzed patients with newly diagnosed FL patients in Shanxi Provincial Cancer Hospital from January 2015 to December 2020. Data from patients undergoing immunohistochemical detection (IHC) were analyzed using χ2 test and multivariate Logistic regression. Also, we built a nomogram model based on the results of LASSO regression analysis of POD24, which was validated in both the training set and validation set, and additional external validation was performed using a dataset (n = 74) from another center, Tianjin Cancer Hospital.ResultsThe multivariate Logistic regression results suggest that high-risk PRIMA-PI group, Ki-67 high expression represent risk factors for POD24 (P<0.05). Next, PRIMA-PI and Ki67 were combined to build a new model, namely, PRIMA-PIC to reclassify high and low-risk groups. The result showed that the new clinical prediction model constructed by PRIMA-PI with ki67 has a high sensitivity to the prediction of POD24. Compared to PRIMA-PI, PRIMA-PIC also has better discrimination in predicting patient’s progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). In addition, we built nomogram models based on the results of LASSO regression (histological grading, NK cell percentage, PRIMA-PIC risk group) in the training set, which were validated using internal validation set and external validation set, we found that C-index and calibration curve showed good performance.ConclusionAs such, the new predictive model-based nomogram established by PRIMA-PI and Ki67 could well predict the risk of POD24 in FL patients, which boasts clinical practical value

Identify optimal HAP series scores for unresectable HCC patients undergoing TACE plus sorafenib: A Chinese multicenter observational study

BackgroundHepatoma arterial-embolization prognostic (HAP) series scores have been proposed for prognostic prediction in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (uHCC) undergoing transarterial chemoembolization (TACE). However, their prognostic value in TACE plus sorafenib (TACE-S) remains unknown. Here, we aim to evaluate their prognostic performance in such conditions and identify the best model for this combination therapy.MethodsBetween January 2012 and December 2018, consecutive patients with uHCC receiving TACE-S were recruited from 15 tertiary hospitals in China. Cox regression analyses were used to investigate the prognostic values of baseline factors and every scoring system. Their prognostic performance and discriminatory performance were evaluated and confirmed in subgroup analyses.ResultsA total of 404 patients were enrolled. In the whole cohort, the median follow-up period was 44.2 (interquartile range (IQR), 33.2–60.7) months, the median overall survival (OS) time was 13.2 months, and 336 (83.2%) patients died at the end of the follow-up period. According to multivariate analyses, HAP series scores were independent prognostic indicators of OS. In addition, the C-index, Akaike information criterion (AIC) values, and time-dependent area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) indicated that modified HAP (mHAP)-III had the best predictive performance. Furthermore, the results remained consistent in most subsets of patients.ConclusionHAP series scores exhibited good predictive ability in uHCC patients accepting TACE-S, and the mHAP-III score was found to be superior to the other HAP series scores in predicting OS. Future prospective high-quality studies should be conducted to confirm our results and help with treatment decision-making

Potential candidates for liver resection in liver-confined advanced HCC: a Chinese multicenter observational study

BackgroundAdvanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is characterized as symptomatic tumors [performance status (PS) score of 1-2], vascular invasion and extrahepatic spread, but patients with PS1 alone may be eliminated from this stage. Although liver resection is used for liver-confined HCC, its role in patients with PS1 alone remains controversial. Therefore, we aimed to explore its application in such patients and identify potential candidates.MethodsEligible liver-confined HCC patients undergoing liver resection were retrospectively screened in 15 Chinese tertiary hospitals, with limited tumor burden, liver function and PS scores. Cox-regression survival analysis was used to investigate the prognostic factors and develop a risk-scoring system, according to which patients were substratified using fitting curves and the predictive values of PS were explored in each stratification.ResultsFrom January 2010 to October 2021, 1535 consecutive patients were selected. In the whole cohort, PS, AFP, tumor size and albumin were correlated with survival (adjusted P<0.05), based on which risk scores of every patient were calculated and ranged from 0 to 18. Fitting curve analysis demonstrated that the prognostic abilities of PS varied with risk scores and that the patients should be divided into three risk stratifications. Importantly, in the low-risk stratification, PS lost its prognostic value, and patients with PS1 alone achieved a satisfactory 5-year survival rate of 78.0%, which was comparable with that PS0 patients (84.6%).ConclusionSelected patients with PS1 alone and an ideal baseline condition may benefit from liver resection and may migrate forward to BCLC stage A

Otsu Image Segmentation Based on a Fractional Order Moth–Flame Optimization Algorithm

To solve the shortcomings of the Otsu image segmentation algorithm based on traditional Moth–Flame Optimization (MFO), such as its poor segmentation accuracy, slow convergence, and tendency to fall into local optimum, this paper proposes fractional order moth–flame optimization with the Otsu image segmentation algorithm. Utilizing the advantages of memorability and heritability in fractional order differentiation, the position updating of moths is controlled by fractional order. Using the adaptive fractional order, the positions of moths are used to adjust the fractional order adaptively to improve the convergence speed. Combining the improved MFO algorithm with the two-dimensional Otsu algorithm, the optimization objective function is achieved by using its dispersion matrix. The experimental results indicate that, compared with traditional MFO, the convergence rate of the proposed algorithm is improved by about 74.62%. Furthermore, it has better segmentation accuracy and a higher fitness value than traditional MFO

SYNTHESIS OF POROUS SILICON NITRIDE WITH UNIDIRECTIONALLY ALIGNED CHANNELS USING EXTRUSION METHOD

Porous silicon nitride (Si₃N₄) ceramics with highly ordered and unidirectionally aligned channels were fabricated by the extrusion method using nylon fibers as the pore forming agent. The microstructure, mechanical properties and gas permeability were investigated. The results showed that the added nylon fibers were mostly converted to pores, the average observed pore diameter was approximately 19.5 μm and shrank about 22% from the size of original pore former (25 μm) during sintering. The porosity and gas permeability increased and the 3-point bending strength decreased proportionally with increasing the nylon fiber content. When the nylon fiber content increased to 20 wt. %, the porosity, bending strength and gas permeability of the extrusion samples with uni-directionally aligned pores was higher than that of non-extruded sample with random pores. For the extruded samples, the resulting porous silicon nitride ceramics showed a high gas permeability owing to their uni-directionally pore oriented structure