Left Anterior Fascicular Block After Transcatheter Closure of Ventricular Septal Defect in Children

Background: Arrhythmia is the most common complication after transcatheter closure of a ventricular septal defect (VSD). However, the effects of postprocedural left anterior fascicular block are not clear. This study presents the clinical characteristics, prognosis, and related risk factors of left anterior fascicular block after transcatheter closure of a VSD in children.Methods: The clinical and follow-up data of the patients in the Heart Center of Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from June 2009 to October 2018 were reviewed. And 30 cases were eligible out of all 1,371 cases.Results: An electrocardiogram showed a left anterior fascicular block within 3 days, and most patients gradually returned to normal within 1–2 years, showing a dynamic change. Left ventricular end-diastolic dimension Z-score ranged from −2 to 2 in all children, and no decrease of left ventricular ejection fraction was found in all children. The high ratio between VSD size and body surface area [p < 0.05, odds ratio (OR) 2.6, 95% CI: 1.136–6.113] and large diameter difference between the occluder size and VSD size (p < 0.05, OR 2.1, 95% CI: 1.036–4.609) were independent risk factors for postprocedural left anterior fascicular block.Conclusions: The incidence of postprocedural left anterior fascicular block is not that low, and the overall prognosis is quite good at the current follow-up stage. No progressive severity has been found, such as complete left bundle branch block, double (triple) bundle branch block, and atrioventricular block, to have an influence on cardiac systolic and diastolic function

Depositing boron on Cu(111): Borophene or boride?

Large-area single-crystal surface structures were successfully prepared on Cu(111) substrate with boron deposition, which is critical for prospective applications. However, the proposed borophene structures do not match the scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) results very well, while the proposed copper boride is at odds with the traditional knowledge that ordered copper-rich borides normally do not exist due to small difference in electronegativity and large difference in atomic size. To clarify the controversy and elucidate the formation mechanism of the unexpected copper boride, we conducted systematic STM, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy investigations, confirming the synthesis of two-dimensional copper boride rather than borophene on Cu(111) after boron deposition under ultrahigh vacuum. First-principles calculations with defective surface models further indicate that boron atoms tend to react with Cu atoms near terrace edges or defects, which in turn shapes the intermediate structures of copper boride and leads to the formation of stable Cu-B monolayer via large-scale surface reconstruction eventually.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure

Graphene‐Like Conjugated Molecule as Hole‐Selective Contact for Operationally Stable Inverted Perovskite Solar Cells and Modules

Further enhancing the operational lifetime of inverted-structure perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is crucial for their commercialization, and the design of hole-selective contacts at the illumination side plays a key role in operational stability. In this work, the self-anchoring benzo[rst]pentaphene (SA-BPP) is developed as a new type of hole-selective contact toward long-term operationally stable inverted PSCs. The SA-BPP molecule with a graphene-like conjugated structure shows a higher photostability and mobility than that of the frequently-used triphenylamine and carbazole-based hole-selective molecules. Besides, the anchoring groups of SA-BPP promote the formation of a large-scale uniform hole contact on ITO substrate and efficiently passivate the perovskite absorbers. Benefiting from these merits, the champion efficiencies of 22.03% for the small-sized cells and 17.08% for 5 × 5 cm2 solar modules on an aperture area of 22.4 cm2 are achieved based on this SA-BPP contact. Also, the SA-BPP-based device exhibits promising operational stability, with an efficiency retention of 87.4% after 2000 h continuous operation at the maximum power point under simulated 1-sun illumination, which indicates an estimated T80 lifetime of 3175 h. This novel design concept of hole-selective contacts provides a promising strategy for further improving the PSC stability.journal articl

Deceptive Targets Generation Simulation Against Multichannel SAR

Traditional synthetic aperture radar (SAR) deceptive jamming can effectively generate deceptive scenes or false targets in SAR images. However, these false targets or scenes can be easily distinguished or eliminated by the multichannel SAR system. To interfere with the multichannel SAR, we first analyzed the results of SAR deceptive jamming generated by one transponder and two transponders against three-channel SAR- ground moving target indication (GMTI). Then, we propose a new deceptive jamming method against three-channel SAR-GMTI by using three synergetic transponders. By modulating each transponder with a complex coefficient, three synergetic transponders can generate false moving targets with the controllable radial velocity and located azimuth position in three-channel SAR-GMTI. Besides, in this paper, we also introduce an algorithm to deploy three transponders reasonably by utilizing the minimum condition number. In the end, a general architecture of multiple transponders deceiving multichannel SAR is given. The proposed method can not only generate deceptive false targets against multichannel SAR-GMTI, but also guide the production of a deceptive digital elevation model (DEM) against multichannel interferometric SAR (InSAR). Simulations verify the effectiveness of the proposed method

A New Three-Dimension Deceptive Scene Generation against Single-Pass Multibaseline InSAR Based on Multiple Transponders

The interferometry synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) deceptive jamming method utilizing two synergetic transponders can generate a false three-dimension (3D) scene in a single baseline InSAR image. However, such deceptive capability could be reduced by the multibaseline InSAR system. To obtain effective deception on multibaseline InSAR, a novel deceptive scene generation method jointly employing multiple transponders is proposed. It only demands that each transponder is modulated with a complex coefficient when generating a false point. The complex modulation coefficient can be offline calculated according to the deceptive point coordinate by solving a matrix. Besides, the complex modulation coefficient can be combined with the deceptive scene template, and thus a large 3D deceptive scene is able to be created quickly in the multibaseline InSAR image by using the fast two-dimension (2D) SAR deceptive scene generation algorithm. As long as the number of transponders is not less than the number of antennas of the multibaseline InSAR system, this proposed method is effective. The effectiveness of the proposed method is validated by computer simulations

Egg Yolk Fat Deposition Is Regulated by Diacylglycerol and Ceramide Enriched by Adipocytokine Signaling Pathway in Laying Hens

The mechanism which regulates differential fat deposition in egg yolk from the indigenous breeds and commercial laying hens is still unclear. In this research, Chinese indigenous Huainan Partridge chickens and Nongda III commercial laying hens were used for egg collection and liver sampling. The weight of eggs and yolk were recorded. Yolk fatty acids were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Lipid metabolites in the liver were detected by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Yolk weight, yolk ratio and yolk fat ratio exhibited higher in the Huainan Partridge chicken than that of the Nongda III. Compared to the Nongda III, the content of total saturated fatty acid was lower, while the unsaturated fatty acid was higher in the yolk of the Huainan Partridge chicken. Metabolites of phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylserine from glycerolphospholipids, and metabolites of diacylglycerol from glycerolipids showed higher enrichment in the Huainan Partridge chicken than that of the Nongda III, which promoted the activation of the adipocytokine signaling pathway. However, metabolites of phosphatidic acid, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine and lysophosphatidylcholine from glycerol phospholipids, and metabolites of triacylglycerol from glycerolipids showed lower enrichment in the Huainan Partridge chicken than that of the Nongda III. The high level of yolk fat deposition in the Huainan Partridge chicken is regulated by the activation of the adipocytokine signaling pathway which can promote the accumulation of diacylglycerol and ceramide in the liver

Egg Yolk Fat Deposition Is Regulated by Diacylglycerol and Ceramide Enriched by Adipocytokine Signaling Pathway in Laying Hens

The mechanism which regulates differential fat deposition in egg yolk from the indigenous breeds and commercial laying hens is still unclear. In this research, Chinese indigenous Huainan Partridge chickens and Nongda III commercial laying hens were used for egg collection and liver sampling. The weight of eggs and yolk were recorded. Yolk fatty acids were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Lipid metabolites in the liver were detected by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Yolk weight, yolk ratio and yolk fat ratio exhibited higher in the Huainan Partridge chicken than that of the Nongda III. Compared to the Nongda III, the content of total saturated fatty acid was lower, while the unsaturated fatty acid was higher in the yolk of the Huainan Partridge chicken. Metabolites of phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylserine from glycerolphospholipids, and metabolites of diacylglycerol from glycerolipids showed higher enrichment in the Huainan Partridge chicken than that of the Nongda III, which promoted the activation of the adipocytokine signaling pathway. However, metabolites of phosphatidic acid, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine and lysophosphatidylcholine from glycerol phospholipids, and metabolites of triacylglycerol from glycerolipids showed lower enrichment in the Huainan Partridge chicken than that of the Nongda III. The high level of yolk fat deposition in the Huainan Partridge chicken is regulated by the activation of the adipocytokine signaling pathway which can promote the accumulation of diacylglycerol and ceramide in the liver

Stoichiometric Ratio Controlled Dimension Transition and Supramolecular Chirality Enhancement in a Two-Component Assembly System

To control the dimension of the supramolecular system was of great significance. We construct a two component self-assembly system, in which the gelator LHC18 and achiral azobenzene carboxylic acid could co-assembly and form gels. By modulating the stoichiometric ratio of the two components, not only the morphology could be transformed from 1D nanaotube to 0D nanospheres but also the supramolecualr chirality could be tuned. This work could provide some insights to the control of dimension and the supramolecular chirality in the two-component systems by simply modulating the stoichiometric ratio

Case report: perioperative management of caesarean section for a parturient with mitochondrial myopathy

Abstract Background Mitochondrial myopathies represent a group of disorders caused by mitochondrial defects that disrupt energy production. Most patients have issues from infancy to early childhood. Pregnancy in women with mitochondrial myopathy is uncommon and the management for these parturients is full of challenges. Case presentation A 36-year-old woman with mitochondrial myopathy was scheduled for caesarean section under a combined spinal-epidural anaesthesia and multi-model analgesia. The parturient was safe and the delivery was performed safely and smoothly, but there were some complications after surgery due to the complex condition of the patient. After consultation with and treatment from multiple disciplines, both the parturient and neonate were well and discharged. Conclusion It is important that patients with mitochondrial diseases are comprehensively assessed and monitored perioperatively

Long-Term Field Biochar Application for Rice Production: Effects on Soil Nutrient Supply, Carbon Sequestration, Crop Yield and Grain Minerals

Research is still under-represented for the long-term impacts of field biochar application on soil fertility, rice production and mineral nutrition and soil C sequestration. To investigate these effects, a field trial was established in the fall of 2010 with low (2.4 t ha−1), intermediate (6 t ha−1) and high (12 t ha−1) biochar doses. The biochar effect on soil nutrients is more pronounced in the surface soil and is dose dependent. In the surface soil, biochar application increased the availability of soil N, P and K. High dose decreased soil total Fe by 11.6% and Mn by 20.7%, leading to a slight but insignificant decrease in grain Fe and Mn concentration. The intermediate and high doses significantly increased the soil available Zn by 96.2% and 227.9% but did not affect the grain Zn concentration. Grain Cu concentration was significantly decreased by the intermediate (−19.6%) and high (−14.3%) dose of biochar. Biochar had a slight but insignificant boost on rice yield. Soil total C and N increased linearly with biochar application for the surface soil only where biochar was applied. In conclusion, with great soil C sequestration capacity, the long-term field return of biochar is beneficial for improving the soil macronutrient and Zn fertility, but caution is needed, as higher doses of biochar could potentially lead to a decrease in soil Fe and Mn and a reduction in grain Cu concentration