Establishment and Application of Fractal Capillary Tube Bundle Model of Porous Media

In view of the problem of statistical regression constant in the model of capillary tube bundles in the porous media, a capillary bundle percolation model with fractal geometry was reconstructed. The function expressions of the fractal coefficient and Kozeny constant were deduced. The relationship between the macroscopic fractal properties of porous media and the fractal dimension and the micro pore parameters were obtained. Results show: Fractal coefficient is a function of fractal dimension, maximum pore radius and minimum pore radius; The macroscopic physical properties of porous media are a function of the fractal dimension and the radius of the capillary (the maximum capillary radius and the minimum capillary radius). The expression does not contain any empirical or experimental constants. In the fractal capillary percolation model, the relationship between the three kinds of surface volume, skeleton volume and pore volume are the same as the traditional equal diameter straight capillary bundle model. The Kozeny constant can be accurately described by the function expression of the z-h coefficient, which is used for correcting the difference between real and ideal porous media model

Evaluation and Empirical Research on Eco-Efficiency of Financial Industry Based on Carbon Footprint in China

Since finance is the core of economic development, the green development of the financial industry is an essential driving force not only for achieving the dual “carbon” goal of China but also for economic and social sustainable development. An accurate understanding of the ecological efficiency of the financial industry is of great importance for guiding sustainable economic development. In this paper, we first calculate the carbon footprint of China’s financial industry in 2012 and 2017 based on the life cycle theory and the input–output analysis method. Second, we analyze the primary sources and final flows of the carbon footprint of the financial industry in each province from the perspectives of the industrial chain and final demand. Finally, we estimate the ecological efficiency, emission reduction, and value-added potential of the financial industry by using the radially adjusted slack variable DEA model (SRAM-DEA) under two assumptions, natural disposability and managerial disposability. The results show that (1) the ecological efficiency of the financial industry in most provinces is low, and the regional differences are significant; (2) the overall ecological efficiency of the financial industry in 2017 was better than that in 2012; (3) technological innovation of financial products and the upgrading of capital supervision play an essential role in promoting the improvement of ecological efficiency. Especially, under managerial disposability, the ecological efficiency of the financial industry in each province has a greater potential for emission reduction and added value

Th17 cells and IL-17 receptor signaling are essential for mucosal host defense against oral candidiasis

The commensal fungus Candida albicans causes oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC; thrush) in settings of immunodeficiency. Although disseminated, vaginal, and oral candidiasis are all caused by C. albicans species, host defense against C. albicans varies by anatomical location. T helper 1 (Th1) cells have long been implicated in defense against candidiasis, whereas the role of Th17 cells remains controversial. IL-17 mediates inflammatory pathology in a gastric model of mucosal candidiasis, but is host protective in disseminated disease. Here, we directly compared Th1 and Th17 function in a model of OPC. Th17-deficient (IL-23p19−/−) and IL-17R–deficient (IL-17RA−/−) mice experienced severe OPC, whereas Th1-deficient (IL-12p35−/−) mice showed low fungal burdens and no overt disease. Neutrophil recruitment was impaired in IL-23p19−/− and IL-17RA−/−, but not IL-12−/−, mice, and TCR-αβ cells were more important than TCR-γδ cells. Surprisingly, mice deficient in the Th17 cytokine IL-22 were only mildly susceptible to OPC, indicating that IL-17 rather than IL-22 is vital in defense against oral candidiasis. Gene profiling of oral mucosal tissue showed strong induction of Th17 signature genes, including CXC chemokines and β defensin-3. Saliva from Th17-deficient, but not Th1-deficient, mice exhibited reduced candidacidal activity. Thus, the Th17 lineage, acting largely through IL-17, confers the dominant response to oral candidiasis through neutrophils and antimicrobial factors

Facilitation promotes invasions in plant-associated microbial communities

While several studies have established a positive correlation between community diversity and invasion resistance, it is less clear how species interactions within resident communities shape this process. Here we experimentally tested how antagonistic and facilitative pairwise interactions within resident model microbial communities predict invasion by the plant-pathogenic bacterium Ralstonia solanacearum. We found that facilitative resident community interactions promoted and antagonistic interactions suppressed invasions both in the lab and in the tomato plant rhizosphere. Crucially, pairwise interactions could reliably explain observed invasions outcomes also in multispecies communities, and mechanistically, this was linked to direct inhibition of the invader by antagonistic communities (antibiosis), and to a lesser degree by resource competition between the members of the resident community and the invader. Together our findings suggest that the type and strength of pairwise interactions can reliably predict the outcome of invasions in more complex multispecies communities

Host Cell Invasion and Virulence Mediated by Candida albicans Ssa1

Candida albicans Ssa1 and Ssa2 are members of the HSP70 family of heat shock proteins that are expressed on the cell surface and function as receptors for antimicrobial peptides such as histatins. We investigated the role of Ssa1 and Ssa2 in mediating pathogenic host cell interactions and virulence. A C. albicans ssa1Δ/Δ mutant had attenuated virulence in murine models of disseminated and oropharyngeal candidiasis, whereas an ssa2Δ/Δ mutant did not. In vitro studies revealed that the ssa1Δ/Δ mutant caused markedly less damage to endothelial cells and oral epithelial cell lines. Also, the ssa1Δ/Δ mutant had defective binding to endothelial cell N-cadherin and epithelial cell E-cadherin, receptors that mediate host cell endocytosis of C. albicans. As a result, this mutant had impaired capacity to induce its own endocytosis by endothelial cells and oral epithelial cells. Latex beads coated with recombinant Ssa1 were avidly endocytosed by both endothelial cells and oral epithelial cells, demonstrating that Ssa1 is sufficient to induce host cell endocytosis. These results indicate that Ssa1 is a novel invasin that binds to host cell cadherins, induces host cell endocytosis, and is critical for C. albicans to cause maximal damage to host cells and induce disseminated and oropharyngeal disease

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely