ELSI: A Unified Software Interface for Kohn-Sham Electronic Structure Solvers

Solving the electronic structure from a generalized or standard eigenproblem is often the bottleneck in large scale calculations based on Kohn-Sham density-functional theory. This problem must be addressed by essentially all current electronic structure codes, based on similar matrix expressions, and by high-performance computation. We here present a unified software interface, ELSI, to access different strategies that address the Kohn-Sham eigenvalue problem. Currently supported algorithms include the dense generalized eigensolver library ELPA, the orbital minimization method implemented in libOMM, and the pole expansion and selected inversion (PEXSI) approach with lower computational complexity for semilocal density functionals. The ELSI interface aims to simplify the implementation and optimal use of the different strategies, by offering (a) a unified software framework designed for the electronic structure solvers in Kohn-Sham density-functional theory; (b) reasonable default parameters for a chosen solver; (c) automatic conversion between input and internal working matrix formats, and in the future (d) recommendation of the optimal solver depending on the specific problem. Comparative benchmarks are shown for system sizes up to 11,520 atoms (172,800 basis functions) on distributed memory supercomputing architectures.Comment: 55 pages, 14 figures, 2 table

Recombinant expression and functional analysis of a Chlamydomonas reinhardtii bacterial-type phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase gene fragment

To investigate the function of a bacterial-type phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC2) derived from photosynthetically-grown Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a fragment of the pepc2 gene was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. After optimal induction for 6 h, PEPC activity in the reverse mutant was lower than wild type (0.9 vs. 1.7 U/mg protein), and soluble protein was also lower than wild type (119 vs. 186 mg/g dry wt). In contrast, the total lipid content was increased from 56 (in wild type) to 71 mg/g dry wt, despite the growth rate being slightly diminished. The changes in PEPC activity, soluble protein and total lipid in the forward mutant were the opposite (2.4 U/mg, 230 mg/g, and 44 mg/g dry wt, respectively). Together, these data indicate that PEPC may function as a metabolic pivot in the regulation of protein and lipid accumulation in this alga

Long-term proton pump inhibitor use and the incidence of gastric cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: There are controverted whether the long-term use of proton pump inhibitors (PPI) will increase the risk of gastric cancer. We performed a meta-analysis to assess the risk of gastric cancer in PPI users compared with non-PPI users. Methods: The main inclusion criteria were original studies reporting the incidence of gastric cancer in PPI users compared with non-PPI users. Key outcomes were the risk ratios (RR) for gastric cancer in association with PPI users or non-PPI users. Results: We analyzed data from 8 studies, comprising more than 927,684 patients. The risk of gastric cancer in PPI users was significantly higher than in non-PPI users [RR= 2.10, 95% CI (1.17-3.97)]. The risk of gastric cancer was similar between the 2 groups when the duration was ≤1 year [RR= 2.18, 95% CI (0.66-7.11)]. While the risk of gastric cancer for PPI users was higher than in non-PPI users when the duration was between 1-3 years, ≥1 year, ≥3 years and ≥5 years. The risk of non-cardiac gastric cancer for PPI users was higher than for non-PPI users [RR= 2.66, 95% CI (1.66 -4.27)], and the risk of non-cardiac gastric cancer for PPI users was higher than for non-PPI users when the duration ≥1 year [RR= 1.99, 95% CI (1.03-3.83)], but the risk for cardiac gastric cancer was similar between the 2 groups [RR= 1.86, 95% CI (0.71-4.89)]. Conclusions: We found the long-term use of PPI (duration ≥1 year) was significantly associated with a higher risk of non-cardiac gastric cancer

Positive impact of a tower inlet cover on natural draft dry cooling towers under crosswind conditions

This study proposes a tower inlet cover to improve the performance of the small natural draft dry cooling tower (NDDCT) under crosswind conditions. CFD analyses are performed on a small NDDCT with tower inlet covers of different lengths, and the CFD model is validated against experimental results. The air temperature, air pressure, air flow and heat flux fields are presented, and the thermal performance for each heat exchanger and the NDDCT are obtained using CFD simulations. The CFD simulation results show that the high-pressure zone around the tower side wall, formed by the crosswind, causes the decrease in air flow through the tower and the deterioration in tower performance with a crosswind. The tower inlet cover can improve the tower performance in crosswinds by increasing the air flow of the heat exchangers. Tower inlet covers with lengths of 1.5 m, 3 m and 4.5 m improve the tower heat load by 40–65%, 70–130% and 85–230%, respectively, when the crosswind increases from 4 m/s to 12 m/s

Modeling Hidden Nodes Collisions in Wireless Sensor Networks: Analysis Approach

This paper studied both types of collisions. In this paper, we show that advocated solutions for coping with hidden node collisions are unsuitable for sensor networks. We model both types of collisions and derive closed-form formula giving the probability of hidden and visible node collisions. To reduce these collisions, we propose two solutions. The first one based on tuning the carrier sense threshold saves a substantial amount of collisions by reducing the number of hidden nodes. The second one based on adjusting the contention window size is complementary to the first one. It reduces the probability of overlapping transmissions, which reduces both collisions due to hidden and visible nodes. We validate and evaluate the performance of these solutions through simulations

Preparative Purification of Bioactive Compounds from Flos Chrysanthemi Indici

To understand the material basis and underlying molecular machinery of antiosteoporosis activity of the Flos Chrysanthemi Indici (FCI), the consequences of ethanol extract on the bone loss in mice induced due to ovariectomy (OVX) was evaluated. Also, the antiosteoporosis fraction obtained from the FCI ethanol extract was isolated and purified using a preparative high-speed countercurrent chromatography (HSCCC). The in vitro impact of the compounds was investigated on osteoblast proliferation and differentiation. The results revealed that ethyl acetate fraction with robust in vivo antiosteoporosis activity was obtained. The important compounds purified by HSCCC using gradient elution system included acacetin, apigenin, luteolin, and linarin. The four compounds enhanced the differentiation and proliferation of osteoblasts in MC3T3-E1 cells. They also augmented the mRNA levels of runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2), osteocalcin (OCN), osteopontin (OPN), and type I collagen (COL I). The AKT signaling pathway was also activated in MC3T3-E1 cells by the four compounds. The present study demonstrated that the antiosteoporosis effects of FCI did not depend on a single component, and HSCCC efficiently isolated and purified the antiosteoporosis bioactive compounds from FCI

Laparoscopic-assisted total gastrectomy with D2 lymph node dissection: a case of 12-year-old child with advanced gastric cancer

The video shows the operation of laparoscopic-assisted total gastrectomy with D2 lymph node dissection for a 12-year-old child with advanced gastric cancer

Enhanced energy density with a wide thermal stability in epitaxial Pb0.92La0.08Zr0.52Ti0.48O3 thin films

High-quality epitaxial Pb0.92La0.08Zr0.52Ti0.48O3 (PLZT) films of thickness of 880 nm were fabricated using pulsed laser deposition on (001) Nb doped SrTiO3 (Nb:STO) substrates. Besides a confirmation of the epitaxial relationship [100]PLZT//[100]Nb:STO and (001)PLZT//(001)Nb:STO using X-ray diffraction, a transmission electron microscopy study has revealed a columnar structure across the film thickness. The recoverable energy density (Wrec) of the epitaxial PLZT thin film capacitors increases linearly with the applied electric field and the best value of 31 J/cm3 observed at 2.27 MV/cm is considerably higher by 41% than that of the polycrystalline PLZT film of a comparable thickness. In addition to the high Wrec value, an excellent thermal stability as illustrated in a negligible temperature dependence of the Wrec in the temperature range from room temperature to 180 C is achieved. The enhanced Wrec and the thermal stability are attributed to the reduced defects and grain boundaries in epitaxial PLZT thin films, making them promising for energy storage applications that require both high energy density, power density, and wide operation temperatures

Oncological outcomes of sequential laparoscopic gastrectomy after treatment with camrelizumab combined with nab-paclitaxel plus S-1 for gastric cancer with serosal invasion

ObjectiveTo explore the oncological outcomes of sequential laparoscopic gastrectomy after treatment with camrelizumab in combination with nab-paclitaxel plus S-1 for the treatment of gastric cancer with serosal invasion.MethodsThis study is a retrospective cohort study and retrospectively analyzed the clinicopathological data of 128 patients with serosal invasion gastric cancer (cT4NxM0) who received nab-paclitaxel + S-1(SAP) or camrelizumab + nab-paclitaxel + S-1 (C-SAP) regimen and underwent laparoscopy assisted gastrectomy in Fujian Union Hospital from March 2019 to December 2020. The patients were divided into SAP group and C-SAP group. The 2-years overall survival rate, 2-year recurrence free survival rate recurrence rate and initial recurrence time were compared between the two groups.ResultsA total of 128 patients were included, including 90 cases in SAP group and 38 cases in C-SAP group. There were no significant differences in age, gender, gastrectomy method, surgical approach, R0 resection, nerve invasion, vascular invasion, total number of harvested lymph nodes, number of positive lymph nodes and major pathologic response (MPR) rate between the two groups (P>0.05). However, the proportion of ypT0, ypN0 and pCR rate in C-SAP group were significantly higher than those in SAP group (P<0.05). The 2-year OS of C-SAP group (80.7%) was higher than that of SAP group (67.8%), and the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.112); At 2 years after operation, the recurrence rate of C-SAP group (44.3%) was lower than that of SAP group (55.8%) (P = 0.097); Further analysis showed that the average time to recurrence in the C-SAP group was 18.9 months, which was longer than that in SAP group 13.1 months (P = 0.004); The 2-year recurrence free survival rate in C-SAP group was higher than that in SAP group (P=0.076); There was no significant difference in the overall survival time after recurrence between the two groups (P= 0.097).ConclusionCamrelizumab combined with neoadjuvant chemotherapy can improve the proportion of ypT0, ypN0 and pCR in patients, while prolonging the initial recurrence time of patients in the C-SAP group, but did not increase the immunotherapy/chemotherapy related side effects and postoperative complications

Acupuncture for menstruation-related migraine prophylaxis:A multicenter randomized controlled trial

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture, an alternative medicine therapy, as a preventive treatment for menstruation-related migraine (MRM). PATIENTS AND METHODS: This was a prospective, multicenter, double-dummy, participant-blinded, randomized controlled clinical trial conducted in China between 1 April 2013, and 30 April 2014. The participants were enrolled from four study centers and randomized to into either the acupuncture group, which received 24 sessions of acupuncture at traditional acupoints plus placebo, or the medication group, which received sham acupuncture plus naproxen. The primary endpoint was change from the baseline average number of migraine days per perimenstrual period over cycles 1−3. The secondary endpoints included changes from the baseline average number of migraine days outside the perimenstrual period, mean number of migraine hours during and outside the perimenstrual period, mean visual analog scale score during and outside the perimenstrual period, ≥50% migraine responder rate, and the proportion of participants who used acute pain medication over cycles 1−3 and 4−6. RESULTS: A total of 172 women with MRM were enrolled; 170 in the intention-to-treat analyses. Our primary outcome reported a significant between-group difference that favored the acupuncture group (95% CI, 0.17–0.50; P < 0.001), with the average reduction of migraine days per perimenstrual period from the baseline was 0.94 (95% CI, 0.82–1.07) in the acupuncture group and 0.61 (95% CI, 0.50–0.71) in the medication group over cycles 1−3. CONCLUSION: This study showed that compared to medication, acupuncture reduces the number of migraine days experienced by patients with MRM. For patients who received the acupuncture treatment over three cycles, the preventive effect of the therapy was sustained for six cycles. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: [https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN57133712], identifier [ISRCTN15663606]