Ferroptosis: new insight into the mechanisms of diabetic nephropathy and retinopathy

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) and diabetic retinopathy (DR) are the most serious and common diabetes-associated complications. DN and DR are all highly prevalent and dangerous global diseases, but the underlying mechanism remains to be elucidated. Ferroptosis, a relatively recently described type of cell death, has been confirmed to be involved in the occurrence and development of various diabetic complications. The disturbance of cellular iron metabolism directly triggers ferroptosis, and abnormal iron metabolism is closely related to diabetes. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the role of ferroptosis in DN and DR is still unclear, and needs further study. In this review article, we summarize and evaluate the mechanism of ferroptosis and its role and progress in DN and DR, it provides new ideas for the diagnosis and treatment of DN and DR

HCV genotype 6 prevalence, spontaneous clearance and diversity amongst elderly members of the Li ethnic minority in Baisha County, China

The epidemiology of hepatitis C virus varies widely across geographical regions and ethnic groups. Our previous study showed that 6 strains isolated from Baisha County, Hainan Island, China, were all new genotype 6 (gt6) subtypes which differed significantly from subtypes of other regions. In the current study, we conducted a comprehensive epidemiological survey of HCV in the Li ethnic group, native to Baisha County. Anti‐HCV antibodies were detected by 2 independent ELISAs in all participants, and positive results confirmed by the recombinant immunoblot assay (RIBA) and HCV RNA viral loads were measured. Univariate chi‐square test and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to determine the risk factors for HCV infection and spontaneous clearance rates. Indeterminate RIBA results were excluded or included in analyses; consequently, findings were expressed as a range. Direct sequencing of partial regions within NS5B and E1 was employed for genotyping. Among 1682 participants, 117 to 153 were anti‐HCV positive (7.0%‐9.1%), with 42.7%‐52.6% confirmed to have cleared infection. Anti‐HCV positivity was associated with older age (≥60 years) (OR = 0.02, 95% CI 0.01‐0.05, P < 0.01) and surgery (OR = 2.75, 95% CI 1.36‐5.57, P < 0.01), with no significant difference found between the HCV infection group and the HCV spontaneous clearance group. The gt6 subtype distribution characteristics of Baisha County were unique, complex and diverse. The sequences did not cluster with known gt6 subtypes but formed 4 Baisha community‐specific groups. HCV infection in members of the Li minority ethnic group is characterized by high prevalence rates in the elderly, high spontaneous clearance rates and broad gt6 diversity

跨⽂化教育，针对中国学⽣在西班牙的情况

En esta época de coexistencia e integración de múltiples culturas, la cuestión de la diversidad cultural se ha convertido en un importante tema de educación en países de todo el mundo. Para abordar esta cuestión y promover el respeto mutuo, la comprensión y la comunicación entre diferentes grupos e individuos, la UNESCO introdujo oficialmente el concepto de educación intercultural en 1992, con el objetivo de promover la comprensión y el respeto de otras culturas a través de prácticas de educación intercultural. Sin embargo, tras nuestro análisis, encontramos que en realidad hay muchos problemas en el estudio de la educación intercultural y una relativa falta de prácticas de educación intercultural en España. Por lo tanto, esta tesis pretende promover mediadores interculturales para abordar los problemas de educación intercultural presentes en los estudiantes chinos, y con el deseo de que la sociedad se preste más atención al concepto de educación intercultural. Este Trabajo Fin de Máster desarrolla en primer lugar las teorías relacionadas con la educación intercultural, seguida de un análisis de la reforma educativa a escala española y enumera las características del sistema educativo español que promueve la comprensión de las diferentes formas de vida y aboga por una convivencia integrada. En segundo lugar, presentamos el grupo de estudiantes chinos para analizar una serie de cuestiones derivadas de la educación intercultural. Utilizamos un cuestionario anónimo para encuestar a los estudiantes chinos del grado en Comercio de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid sobre las dificultades de estudiar en España, y acabamos recogiendo 56 cuestionarios, tras lo cual estudiamos estos datos en detalle. Por último, proponemos una estrategia para resolver las dificultades de aprendizaje de los estudiantes chinos promoviendo un curso de formación intercultural, en el que introduciremos un mediador intercultural como figura clave para resolver los problemas interculturales paso a paso.在这个多元文化并置共存与整合的时代，文化多样性问题成为当今世界各国教育 的重要议题。为了应对这一问题，促进不同群体及个体之间的相互尊重、理解和交 流，1992 年联合国教科文组织正式提出了跨文化教育这个概念，想通过跨文化教育实 践来增进人们对其他文化的了解和尊重。然而经过我们的分析发现，实际上对跨文化 教育的研究存在着许多的问题，而在西班牙跨文化教育实践也相对缺乏。因此本论文 旨在推广跨文化调解人去解决跨文化教育存在在中国学生的问题，以及呼吁社会多加 关注跨文化教育的概念。 本论文首先跨文化教育相关的理论进行一一阐述，其次分析西班牙规模的教育改 革，并列举了西班牙教育体系的特点，促进理解不同的生活方式，主张融合共处。再 次在分析跨文化教育带来的一系列问题时，我们采用了中国学生这个群体来进行分 析。通过匿名问卷调查的方式询问马德里康普顿斯贸易系的中国学生们关于在西班牙 读书的难点，最后我们收集到了 56 份问卷，之后我们对这些数据进行详细研究。 最 后我们提出解决中国学生学习困难问题的策略是通过推广跨文化培训课程，在这个课 程里我们还将引入调解员这个重点人物来逐一解决跨文化产生的问题。Máster Universitario en Comunicación Intercultural, Interpretación y Traducción en los Servicios Públicos. Especialidad e

Morphology and phylogeny of Cytospora (Cytosporaceae, Diaporthales) species associated with plant cankers in Tibet, China

During our biodiversity investigations in Tibet, China, typical Cytospora canker symptoms were observed on branches of hosts Myricaria paniculate, Prunus cerasifera and Sibiraea angustata. Samples were studied, based on morphological features coupled with multigene phylogenetic analyses of ITS, act, rpb2, tef1 and tub2 sequence data, which revealed two new species (Cytospora myricicola sp. nov. and C. sibiraeicola sp. nov.) and a known species (C. populina). In addition, Cytospora populina is newly discovered on the host Prunus cerasifera and in Tibet

GoT: a Growing Tree Model for Clustering Ensemble

The clustering ensemble technique that integrates multiple clustering results can improve the accuracy and robustness of the final clustering. In many clustering ensemble algorithms, the co-association matrix (CA matrix), which reflects the frequency of any two samples being partitioned into the same cluster, plays an important role. However, generally, the CA matrix is highly sparse with low value density, which may limit the performance of an algorithm based on it. To handle these issues, in this paper, we propose a growing tree model (GoT). In this model, the CA matrix is firstly refined by the shortest path technique so that its sparsity will be mitigated. Then, a set of representative prototype examples is discovered. Finally, to handle the low value density of the CA matrix, the prototypes gradually connect to their neighborhood, which likes a set of trees growing up. The rationality of the discovered prototype examples is illustrated by theoretical analysis and experimental analysis. The working mechanism of the GoT is visually shown on synthetic data sets. Experimental analyses on eight UCI data sets and eight image data sets show that the GoT outperforms nine representative clustering ensemble algorithms

Effects of Corner Set−Backs on Wind Loads and Wind Induced Responses of Rectangular Tall Buildings

In order to investigate the effects of corner set-backs on wind loads and wind-induced responses of rectangular high-rise buildings, pressure measurements were carried out on a benchmark model (CARRC) and four models with different rates (5%, 10%, 15%, 20%) of corner set-backs in a boundary layer wind tunnel. The test results show that the corner set-backs contribute to reducing along-wind loads of the rectangular high-rise building models, and the maximum reduction happens at 10% corner set-back. The across-wind loads decrease as the rate of corner set-back is increasing and the maximum reduction emerges at 20% corner set-back. The RMS accelerations at the top of models also decrease with the increasing of rate of corner set-back in along-wind and across-wind. Through the fitting of test results, empirical formulas for the correlation factors of base moment coefficients of rectangular high-rise buildings with different rates of corner set-back are put forward. Moreover, the correlation factors for the power spectrum densities of base moments are listed at typical frequencies corresponding to the practical tall buildings. The outputs of this paper aim to serve as references for wind-resistant design of similar buildings in strong wind region

Effects of Corner Set−Backs on Wind Loads and Wind Induced Responses of Rectangular Tall Buildings

In order to investigate the effects of corner set-backs on wind loads and wind-induced responses of rectangular high-rise buildings, pressure measurements were carried out on a benchmark model (CARRC) and four models with different rates (5%, 10%, 15%, 20%) of corner set-backs in a boundary layer wind tunnel. The test results show that the corner set-backs contribute to reducing along-wind loads of the rectangular high-rise building models, and the maximum reduction happens at 10% corner set-back. The across-wind loads decrease as the rate of corner set-back is increasing and the maximum reduction emerges at 20% corner set-back. The RMS accelerations at the top of models also decrease with the increasing of rate of corner set-back in along-wind and across-wind. Through the fitting of test results, empirical formulas for the correlation factors of base moment coefficients of rectangular high-rise buildings with different rates of corner set-back are put forward. Moreover, the correlation factors for the power spectrum densities of base moments are listed at typical frequencies corresponding to the practical tall buildings. The outputs of this paper aim to serve as references for wind-resistant design of similar buildings in strong wind region

Study on GIS Visualization in Evaluation of the Human Living Environment in Shenyang-Dalian Urban Agglomeration

Analysis of human living environmental quality of Shenyang-Dalian urban agglomerations has important theoretical and practical significance in rapid development region. A lot of investigations have been carried for Shenyang-Dalian urban agglomerations, including 38 counties. Based on the carrying capacity of resources, natural and socioeconomic environmental factors and regional changes of human living environmental evaluation are analyzed with the application of geographic information systems (GIS) software. By using principal component analysis (PCA) model and natural breaks classification (NBC) method, the evaluation results are divided into five categories. The results show that the human living environmental evaluation (HLEE) indexes of Dalian, Shenyang, and Liaoyang are higher than other counties. Among these counties, the human living environmental evaluation (HLEE) indexes of coastal counties are significantly higher than inland counties. The range of the human living environmental evaluation index in most of the study area is at III, IV, and V levels, accounting for 80.01%. Based on these results, it could illustrate the human living environment is in relatively suitable condition in Shenyang-Dalian urban agglomeration

Response of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi to Hydrologic Gradients in the Rhizosphere of Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin ex. Steudel Growing in the Sun Island Wetland

Within the rhizosphere, AM fungi are a sensitive variable to changes of botanic and environmental conditions, and they may interact with the biomass of plant and other microbes. During the vegetative period of the Phragmites australis growing in the Sun Island Wetland (SIW), the variations of AM fungi colonization were studied. Root samples of three hydrologic gradients generally showed AM fungi colonization, suggesting that AM fungi have the ability for adaptation to flooded habitats. There were direct and indirect hydrological related effects with respect to AM fungi biomass, which interacted simultaneously in the rhizosphere. Though water content in soil and reed growth parameters were both positively associated with AM fungi colonization, only the positive correlations between reed biomass parameters and the colonization could be expected, or both the host plant biomass and the AM fungi could be beneficial. The variations in response of host plant to the edaphic and hydrologic conditions may influence the effectiveness of the plant-mycorrhizal association. This study included a hydrologic component to better assess the role and distribution of AM fungi in wetland ecosystems. And because of that, the range of AM fungi was extended, since they actually showed a notable adaptability to hydrologic gradients