Composite Factors during Snowmelt Erosion of Farmland in Black Soil Region of Northeast China: Temperature, Snowmelt Runoff, Thaw Depths and Contour Ridge Culture

Snowmelt erosion could cause serious damage to soil quality and agricultural production conditions of slope farmland in the black soil region of northeast China. Contour ridge tillage is a traditional and effective measure to mitigate soil loss on slope farmland. However, the characteristics and influence factors of snowmelt erosion of slope farmland with contour ridge culture and the effect of this measure on the snowmelt process have not been comprehensively investigated, especially at the field scale. To bridge the gap, in situ observation was conducted on the snowmelt erosion process of a typical farmland in Baiquan County, Heilongjiang Province, China. The results revealed that during the snowmelt erosion period, the average daily snowmelt runoff volume and sediment concentration exhibited a trend of first increase and then a subsequent decrease. In the early stage, although the sediment concentration was large, limited discharge and soil thaw depths led to minimal soil loss. In the following stage, due to increased runoff and thaw depths, 94% of the total soil loss amount was obtained with an obvious erosion path formed. For each event, when soil thaw depths were shallow, sediment concentration had a high and early peak, whereas a reverse trend was observed when thaw depths increased. The hysteresis relationship of discharge–sediment indicated that the location where snowmelt erosion primarily occurred would change, under the influence of variations in runoff, freeze and thaw action, thaw depths, and micro-topography. The results could provide a guide in the control of soil erosion in seasonal snowmelt-erosion-prone areas

Simulation of rill erosion in black soil and albic soil during the snowmelt period

Snowmelt-induced rill erosion could bring serious harm for soil quality and agricultural productive conditions of slope farmland in the black soil zone of Northeast China. In this study, we conducted laboratory experiments to investigate the effects of the freeze-thaw (FT) temperature, number of FT cycles, water content, flow rate, and thaw depth on rill morphology and erosion amount in two common soil (black soil and albic soil). The thaw depth obtained the maximum range, which was the primary factor for the width-to-depth ratio of rills in the black soil; whereas, the flow rate obtained the maximum range as the primary factor for rill erosion in black soil and albic soil. The number of FT cycles had a minor effect on rill erosion in the two soils. Under the same conditions, the rill morphology showed a large difference between the two soils, and higher rill erosion occurred in albic soil than black soil. Rill erosion was relatively high in black soil and albic soil when the FT temperature fluctuated around 0°C during freezing-thawing. The water content exhibited a greater effect on rill erosion in black soil than in albic soil. The unthawed frozen layer could promote rill erosion during snowmelt period to some extent. The results could provide some reference for future study snowmelt-induced rill erosion mechanism and preventive measures

A radiomics based method for prediction of prostate cancer Gleason score using enlarged region of interest

Abstract Background Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common cancers in men worldwide, and its timely diagnosis and treatment are becoming increasingly important. MRI is in increasing use to diagnose cancer and to distinguish between non-clinically significant and clinically significant PCa, leading to more precise diagnosis and treatment. The purpose of this study is to present a radiomics-based method for determining the Gleason score (GS) for PCa using tumour heterogeneity on multiparametric MRI (mp-MRI). Methods Twenty-six patients with biopsy-proven PCa were included in this study. The quantitative T2 values, apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and signal enhancement rates (α) were calculated using multi-echo T2 images, diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI), for the annotated region of interests (ROI). After texture feature analysis, ROI range expansion and feature filtering was performed. Then obtained data were put into support vector machine (SVM), K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN) and other classifiers for binary classification. Results The highest classification accuracy was 73.96% for distinguishing between clinically significant (Gleason 3 + 4 and above) and non-significant cancers (Gleason 3 + 3) and 83.72% for distinguishing between Gleason 3 + 4 from Gleason 4 + 3 and above, which was achieved using initial ROIs drawn by the radiologists. The accuracy improved when using expanded ROIs to 80.67% using SVM and 88.42% using Bayesian classification for distinguishing between clinically significant and non-significant cancers and Gleason 3 + 4 from Gleason 4 + 3 and above, respectively. Conclusions Our results indicate the research significance and value of this study for determining the GS for prostate cancer using the expansion of the ROI region

Symptomatic Venous Thromboembolism Is a Disease Related to Infection and Immune Dysfunction

The characteristics of human genomics and cellular immune function between clinically symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE) and controls were systematically compared to explore the immunologic pathogenesis of VTE. Microarray assay showed the mRNA expressions of genes related to non-specific cellarer immune and cytokines were significantly down-regulated. Abnormal expressions of CD3+, CD4+, CD8+, NK marker CD16+56+, CD19 and aberrant CD4+/CD8+ ratio were detected in 54 among 56 patients. In PE patients, microarray assay revealed the imbalance in the expressions of genes related to the immune system. The expressions of genes related to non-specific immune cells and cytokines were markedly up-regulated and those associated with cellular immune were dramatically down-regulated. In VTE patients, cytological examination indicated the functions of NK cells were significantly compromised, and the antigen recognition and killing function of T cells markedly decreased. The consistence between genomic and cytological examination suggests the symptomatic VTE is closely associated with the infection and immune dysfunction.</p

Lactoferrin Inhibits the Development of T2D-Induced Colon Tumors by Regulating the NT5DC3/PI3K/AKT/mTOR Signaling Pathway

Although increasing evidence shows the association between type 2 diabetes (T2D) and colorectal cancer, the related mechanism remains unclear. This study examined the suppressive effect of lactoferrin (LF) on the development of T2D-induced colon cancer. First, a co-cultured cell model consisting of NCM460 and HT29 cells was constructed to mimic the progression of T2D into colon cancer. The migration ability of NCM460 cells increased significantly (p &lt; 0.05) after cultivation in HT29 cell medium (high glucose), while LF suppressed the progression of T2D to colon cancer by regulating the 5&prime;-nucleotidase domain-containing 3 (NT5DC3) protein and the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway in diabetic BALB/c mice and in cell models. A mutation assay of the phosphorylation site in the NT5DC3 protein and a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) protein binding test were performed to further ascertain a mechanistic link between LF and the NT5DC3 protein. The results indicated that LF specifically bound to the NT5DC3 protein to activate its phosphorylation at the Thr6 and Ser11 sites. Next, metabolic-specific staining and localization experiments further confirmed that LF acted as a phosphate donor for NT5DC3 protein phosphorylation by regulating the downstream metabolic pathway in T2D-induced colon tumors, which was specifically accomplished by controlling Thr6/Ser11 phosphorylation in NT5DC3 and its downstream effectors. These data on LF and NT5DC3 protein may suggest a new therapeutic strategy for cancer prevention, especially in T2D patients susceptible to colon cancer

Analysis on the Pathogenesis of Symptomatic Pulmonary Embolism with Human Genomics

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>: In the present study, the whole human genome oligo microarray was employed to investigate the gene expression profile in symptomatic pulmonary embolism (PE).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>: Twenty patients with PE and 20 age and gender matched patients without PE as controls were enrolled into the present study in the same period. The diagnosis of PE was based on the clinical manifestations and findings on imaging examinations. Acute arterial and/or venous thrombosis was excluded in controls. The whole human genome oligo microarray was employed for detection. Statistical analysis was performed with t test following analysis of very small samples of repeated measurements and Gene Ontology (GO) analysis.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>: Genomic data showed no damage to vascular endothelial cells in PE patients. Genomic data only found increased mRNA expression of a small amount of coagulation factors in PE patients. In the PE group, anticoagulant proteins, Fibrinolytic system and proteins related to platelet functions only played partial roles in the pathogenesis of PE. In addition, the mRNA expressions of a fraction of adhesion molecules were markedly up-regulated. Gene Ontology analysis showed the genes with down-regulated expressions mainly explain the compromised T cell immunity. Symptomatic VTE patients have compromised T cell immunity.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION: </b>The damage to vascular endothelial cells is not necessary in the pathogenesis of VTE, and only a fraction of factors involved in the shared coagulation cascade are activated. Genomic results may provide a new clue for clinical diagnosis, treatment and prevention of VTE.</p