Variations of multi-parameter observations in atmosphere related to earthquake

Anomalies of multi-parameters (outgoing longwave radiation, surface latent heat flux, air temperature, relative humidity, and air pressure) before the 12 May 2008 Wenchuan <i>M</i><sub>s</sub> =8.0 earthquake were discussed in order to obtain the seismic precursors. Multi-parameter data were computed based on multi-year background data. The results indicated that these parameters had significant variations prior to this event. The anomaly of outgoing longwave radiation was observed firstly, which gives an early warning. Next were air temperature, relative humidity, and air pressure, which had quasi-simultaneous variations in the basin and the mountain region close to the epicenter. The last was surface latent heat flux, which happened the day before this event. The characteristics of the parameter variations for this event are similar to other earthquakes, which is demonstrated in some other publications. The variations can be attributed to solid earth degassing and chemical reactions in the atmosphere. Additionally, the emission of gases from solid earth into the atmosphere could be ascribed to the tectonic stress of the Wenchuan earthquake

Study of outgoing longwave radiation anomalies associated with Haiti earthquake

The paper presents an analysis by using the methods of Eddy field calculation mean and wavelet maxima to detect seismic anomalies within the outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) data based on time and space. The distinguishing feature of the method of Eddy field calculation mean is that we can calculate "the total sum of the difference value" of "the measured value" between adjacent points, which could highlight the singularity within data. The identified singularities are further validated by wavelet maxima, which using wavelet transformations as data mining tools by computing the maxima that can be used to identify obvious anomalies within OLR data. The two methods has been applied to carry out a comparative analysis of OLR data associated with the earthquake recently occurred in Haiti on 12 January 2010. Combining with the tectonic explanation of spatial and temporal continuity of the abnormal phenomena, the analyzed results have indicated a number of singularities associated with the possible seismic anomalies of the earthquake and from the comparative experiments and analyses by using the two methods, which follow the same time and space, we conclude that the singularities observed from 19 to 24 December 2009 could be the earthquake precursor of Haiti earthquake

Analysis on the Tendon Spacing of Prestressed Tunnel Liner

In this paper, based on cylindrical shell theory of elastic mechanics, the mechanical property of prestressed concrete lining structure was studied; models of calculating infinitely-long structure and semi-infinitely-long structure were established; theoretical formulas of normal displacement and inner force on the middle surface were deduced; the maximum influence scope of stress was determined and the superposition formula of maximum cable spacing was deduced. Combing observed data in practical project, the theoretical result and measured result of circumferential stress in prestressed concrete lining structure was compared. Results reveal that the theoretical result coincides with the measured value and that the method determining maximum cable spacing can be applied into practical projects. The even distribution of circumferential stress in the axial direction caused by the tensile force of anchor cable is not a factor determining the cable spacing

Functional Coordination of the Chromatin-Remodeling Factor AtINO80 and the Histone Chaperones NRP1/2 in Inflorescence Meristem and Root Apical Meristem

Chromatin structure requires proper modulation in face of transcriptional reprogramming in the context of organism growth and development. Chromatin-remodeling factors and histone chaperones are considered to intrinsically possess abilities to remodel chromatin structure in single or in combination. Our previous study revealed the functional synergy between the Arabidopsis chromatin-remodeling factor INOSITOL AUXOTROPHY 80 (AtINO80) and the histone chaperone NAP1-RELATED PROTEIN 1 (NRP1) and NRP2 in somatic homologous recombination, one crucial pathway involved in repairing DNA double strand breaks. Here, we report genetic interplay between AtINO80 and NRP1/2 in regulating inflorescence meristem (IM) and root apical meristem (RAM) activities. The triple mutant atino80-5 m56-1 depleting of both AtINO80 (atino80-5) and NRP1/2 (m56-1) showed abnormal positioning pattern of floral primordia and enlargement of IM size. Higher mRNA levels of several genes involved in auxin pathway (e.g., PIN1, FIL) were found in the inflorescences of the triple mutant but barely in those of the single mutant atino80-5 or the double mutant m56-1. In particular, the depletion of AtINO80 and NRP1/2 decreased histone H3 levels within the chromatin regions of PIN1, which encodes an important auxin efflux carrier. Moreover, the triple mutant displayed a severe short-root phenotype with higher sensitivity to auxin transport inhibitor NPA. Unusual high level of cell death was also found in triple mutant root tips, accompanied by double-strand break damages revealed by γ-H2A.X loci and cortex cell enlargement. Collectively, our study provides novel insight into the functional coordination of the two epigenetic factors AtINO80 and NRP1/2 in apical meristems during plant growth and development

Internal properties and environments of dark matter halos

We use seven high-resolution $N$-body simulations to study the correlations among different halo properties (assembly time, spin, shape and substructure), and how these halo properties are correlated with the large-scale environment in which halos reside. The large-scale tidal field estimated from halos above a mass threshold is used as our primary quantity to characterize the large-scale environment, while other parameters, such as the local overdensity and the morphology of large-scale structure, are used for comparison. For halos at a fixed mass, all the halo properties depend significantly on environment, particularly the tidal field. The environmental dependence of halo assembly time is primarily driven by local tidal field. The mass of the unbound fraction in substructure is boosted in strong tidal force region, while the bound fraction is suppressed. Halos have a tendency to spin faster in stronger tidal field and the trend is stronger for more massive halos. The spin vectors show significant alignment with the intermediate axis of the tidal field, as expected from the tidal torque theory. Both the major and minor axes of halos are strongly aligned with the corresponding principal axes of the tidal field. In general, a halo that can accrete more material after the formation of its main halo on average is younger, is more elongated, spins faster, and contains a larger amount of substructure. Higher density environments not only provide more material for halo to accrete, but also are places of stronger tidal field that tends to suppress halo accretion. The environmental dependencies are the results of these two competing effects. The tidal field based on halos can be estimated from observation, and we discuss the implications of our results for the environmental dependence of galaxy properties.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA

Long-term prednisone treatment causes fungal microbiota dysbiosis and alters the ecological interaction between gut mycobiome and bacteriome in rats

Glucocorticoids (GCs) are widely used in the treatment of immune-mediated diseases due to their anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive effects. Prednisone is one of the most commonly used GCs. However, it is still unknown whether prednisone affects gut fungi in rats. Herein we investigated whether prednisone changed the composition of gut fungi and the interactions between gut mycobiome and bacteriome/fecal metabolome in rats. Twelve male Sprague–Dawley rats were randomly assigned to a control group and a prednisone group which received prednisone daily by gavage for 6 weeks. ITS2 rRNA gene sequencing of fecal samples was performed to identify differentially abundant gut fungi. The associations between gut mycobiome and bacterial genera/fecal metabolites obtained from our previously published study were explored by using Spearman correlation analysis. Our data showed that there were no changes in the richness of gut mycobiome in rats after prednisone treatment, but the diversity increased significantly. The relative abundance of genera Triangularia and Ciliophora decreased significantly. At the species level, the relative abundance of Aspergillus glabripes increased significantly, while Triangularia mangenotii and Ciliophora sp. decreased. In addition, prednisone altered the gut fungi-bacteria interkingdom interactions in rats after prednisone treatment. Additionally, the genus Triangularia was negatively correlated with m-aminobenzoic acid, but positively correlated with hydrocinnamic acid and valeric acid. Ciliophora was negatively correlated with phenylalanine and homovanillic acid, but positively correlated with 2-Phenylpropionate, hydrocinnamic acid, propionic acid, valeric acid, isobutyric acid, and isovaleric acid. In conclusion, long-term prednisone treatment caused fungal microbiota dysbiosis and might alter the ecological interaction between gut mycobiome and bacteriome in rats

Deep muscularis propria tumor invasion without lymph node metastasis as a unique subclassification of stage IB gastric cancer: a retrospective study

BACKGROUND: The prognosis difference based on the depth of tumor muscularis propria invasion in gastric cancer (GC) was still debated, and therapy strategy for stage IB GC patient required further investigation. METHODS: A total of 380 patients with pT2 GC after radical surgery were retrospectively analyzed, including 185 in superficial muscularis propria (sMP) group and 195 in deep muscularis propria (dMP) group. RESULTS: The overall survival (OS) was significantly better for patients in sMP group than for patients in dMP group (P = 0.007). In multivariate analysis, depth of tumor invasion, pN stage, age, primary location, positive expression of p53, elevated maximal LDH, elevated initial CA19-9 and AFP level were independent prognostic factors for OS. The sMP group had a significantly better OS than dMP group (P = 0.014) in pN0 stage. After further stratification, the survival outcomes were not significantly different between deep muscularis propria tumor invasion without lymph node metastasis (dMPN0) group (stage IB) and superficial muscularis propria tumor invasion with stage 1-2 lymph node metastasis (sMPN1-2) group (stage II) (P = 0.100). Patients with adjuvant chemotherapy had a statistically better survival than those without in dMPN0 group (P = 0.045) and dMPN0 patients with adjuvant chemotherapy had better OS than sMPN1-2 patients (P = 0.015). In addition, greater postoperative survival could be observed in sMPN0 patients than dMPN0 patients in p53-positive group (P = 0.002), and similar OS could be seen between dMPN0 patients with p53-positive and T2N1-2 patients (P = 0.872). CONCLUSION: As a unique subclassification of stage IB GC, appropriate adjuvant chemotherapy should be considered for patients with dMPN0 stage. In addition, positive expression of p53, elevated LDH could be potential factors in identifying the different prognoses for stage IB GC patients