A Conceptual Framework for Smart City International Standards

Smart cities construction has been a global focus during the past ten years. It contributes to the achievement of the sustainability development goals (for economy, society, and environment) by leveraging information and communication technologies (ICTs). International organizations (such as ISO, IEC, and ITU-T) have developed standards to encapsulate precise and state-of-the-art knowledge regarding research, practice and policy. However, thousands of such standards have not been fully used due to the lack of generally agreed vocabularies or frameworks. In this article, a conceptual framework named ‘ALL’ is proposed. Some initial evaluations on the proposed framework have been performed. The result shows that the framework could help people observe, organize and use such standards more efficiently. Some preliminary conversations with governments prove the potential usefulness of the framework in practice

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

When Nanoworlds Collide: Implementing DNA Amplification, Nanoparticles, Molecules, and FRET into a Single MicroRNA Biosensor

International audienc

Three-Dimensional FRET Multiplexing for DNA Quantification with Attomolar Detection Limits

International audiencePhotoluminescence (PL) multiplexing usually relies on spectral or temporal separation. A combination into higher-order multiplexing for biosensing is extremely challenging because the PL intensity is required for target quantification at very low concentrations and the interplay of color, lifetime, and intensity must be carefully adapted. Here, we demonstrate time-gated Förster resonance energy transfer (TG-FRET) from a long-lifetime Tb complex to Cy3.5 and Cy5.5 dyes for spectrotemporal multiplexing of four different DNA targets in the same sample by single-color excitation and two-color detection. We used rolling circle amplification (RCA) for high specificity and sensitivity and for placing Tb donors and dye acceptors at controlled distances within the amplified DNA concatemers. This precise distance tuning led to target-specific PL decays of the FRET pairs and simple, separation-free, and higher-order multiplexed quantification of DNA. The RCA-FRET DNA assay could distinguish very homologous target sequences and provided limits of detection down to 40 zeptomoles (300 aM)

Adoptive cell therapy for cancer treatment

Abstract Adoptive cell therapy (ACT) is a rapidly growing anti‐cancer strategy that has shown promise in treating various cancer types. The concept of ACT involves activating patients’ own immune cells ex vivo and then transferring them back to the patients to recognize and eliminate cancer cells. Currently, the commonly used ACT includes tumor‐infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), genetically engineered immune cells, and dendritic cells (DCs) vaccines. With the advancement of cell culture and genetic engineering techniques, ACT has been used in clinics to treat malignant hematological diseases and many new ACT‐based regimens are in different stages of clinical trials. Here, representative ACT approaches are introduced and the opportunities and challenges for clinical translation of ACT are discussed

Which factors influence public perceptions of urban attractions? — A comparative study

To better serve the public, urban attractions must understand the public's likes and dislikes and continually adapt and optimize their service in response. However, traditional methods for gauging public opinion, such as questionnaires and individual interviews, cannot meet the need for large-scale, time-efficient, and high-precision public preference surveys: only large volumes of online tourist review data will suffice. This study takes Beijing and Shenzhen, the two top-tier cities in North and South China, as subjects to conduct an online review of visitor data for urban attractions in the two cities. Specifically, the influence of attraction features on public perception is quantitatively analyzed from three dimensions—spatial, temporal and resource type—which are combined with Natural Language Processing (NLP), Textual Data Mining, and Econometric analysis. The results show that the influence of four types of features—First impression, Economical, Service and Environmental features—on public perception remains largely consistent under different model conditions. However, different landscape types and attributes affect preferences in different ways. To be precise, water has radically different effects on public preferences in the north and south, with water features in urban attractions in the south contributing less to positive public perceptions. Meanwhile, water features significantly increase preferences for natural landscapes. Furthermore, public perceptions were found to be heavily influenced by public health emergencies (COVID-19). In the two cities studied, the proportion of positive reviews was higher after 2020 than before, as were the regression model indices. Drawing on these results, several suggestions are put forward for the optimization and adaptation of urban attractions

Multiplexed Biosensing and Bioimaging Using Lanthanide-Based Time-Gated Förster Resonance Energy Transfer

International audienc

Single-Measurement Multiplexed Quantification of MicroRNAs from Human Tissue Using Catalytic Hairpin Assembly and Förster Resonance Energy Transfer

International audienceAbsolute quantification of microRNAs (miRNAs) or other nucleic acid biomarkers is an important requirement for molecular and clinical biosensing. Emerging technologies with beneficial features concerning simplicity and multiplexing present an attractive route for advancing diagnostic tools toward rapid and low-cost bioanalysis. However, the actual translation into the clinic by miRNA quantification in human samples is often missing. Here, we show that implementing time-gated Förster resonance energy transfer (TG-FRET) into a catalytic hairpin assembly (CHA) can be used for the simultaneous quantification of two miRNAs with a single measurement from total RNA extracts of human tissues. A single terbium–dye FRET pair was conjugated at two specific distances within target-specific CHA hairpin probes, such that each miRNA resulted in distinct amplified photoluminescence (PL) decays that could be distinguished and quantified by TG PL intensity detection. Enzyme-free amplification in a separation-free assay format and the absence of autofluorescence background allowed for simple, specific, and sensitive detection of miR-21 and miR-20a with limits of detection down to 1.8 pM (250 amol). Reliable duplexed quantification of both miRNAs at low picomolar concentrations was confirmed by analyzing total RNA extracts from different colon and rectum tissues with single- and dual-target CHA-TG-FRET and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) for comparison. These simple and multiplexed nucleic acid biomarker assays present a capable method for clinical diagnostics and biomolecular research

Energy transfer with nanoparticles for in vitro diagnostics

International audienc