Transcriptome, microRNA, and degradome analyses of the gene expression of Paulownia with phytoplamsa

Primers of P. tomentosa miRNAs for qRT-PCR analysis. (DOCX 20.7 kb

Analysis of maxillary teeth and soft tissue profiles among Tibetan and Han Chinese females with facial symmetry for orthodontic treatment planning

The evaluation of maxillary teeth and soft tissue profiles is a critical component of orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning. This study aimed to evaluate the correlation between the sagittal position of maxillary anterior teeth and facial profile esthetics among Tibetan and Han Chinese adult females for optimizing orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning. A total of 100 Tibetan Chinese and 100 Han Chinese adult females with good facial symmetry were recruited. The smiling facial profile images with the maxillary central incisors and forehead in full view were taken based totally on the same standard. The photo measurement and head position were adjusted using the picture-enhancing software. The reference traces associated with forehead inclinations were utilized to assess the anteroposterior (AP) positions of the maxillary central incisors. The results showed that a round forehead was the dominant forehead shape for Tibetan (93%) and Han (55%) Chinese females. In Tibetan females, 85% of the maxillary central incisors were found to be located between the forehead's anterior limit line (the Gall line) and the goal anterior limit line (the Fall line), with 15% located posterior to the Fall line. This distribution manifested a strong association with incisor position and forehead inclination (R2 = 0.742). In Han females, 83% of the maxillary central incisors were located between the Fall line and the Gall line, with 12% posterior to the Fall line and 5% anterior to the Gall line. The positions of the maxillary central incisors exhibited a strong relationship with forehead inclination (R2 = 0.827). The maxillary central incisors were close to the aesthetic line in both ethnic groups, while forehead inclinations were correlated with AP maxillary incisor position. These findings demonstrated that there was a close relationship between the incisor position of Tibetan and Han females with facial symmetry and the forehead FFA factor, indicating a reference in oral hard and soft tissues for optimizing orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning in terms of facial contour

Actively implementing an evidence-based feeding guideline for critically ill patients (NEED): a multicenter, cluster-randomized, controlled trial

Background: Previous cluster-randomized controlled trials evaluating the impact of implementing evidence-based guidelines for nutrition therapy in critical illness do not consistently demonstrate patient benefits. A large-scale, sufficiently powered study is therefore warranted to ascertain the effects of guideline implementation on patient-centered outcomes. Methods: We conducted a multicenter, cluster-randomized, parallel-controlled trial in intensive care units (ICUs) across China. We developed an evidence-based feeding guideline. ICUs randomly allocated to the guideline group formed a local "intervention team", which actively implemented the guideline using standardized educational materials, a graphical feeding protocol, and live online education outreach meetings conducted by members of the study management committee. ICUs assigned to the control group remained unaware of the guideline content. All ICUs enrolled patients who were expected to stay in the ICU longer than seven days. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality within 28 days of enrollment. Results: Forty-eight ICUs were randomized to the guideline group and 49 to the control group. From March 2018 to July 2019, the guideline ICUs enrolled 1399 patients, and the control ICUs enrolled 1373 patients. Implementation of the guideline resulted in significantly earlier EN initiation (1.20 vs. 1.55 mean days to initiation of EN; difference − 0.40 [95% CI − 0.71 to − 0.09]; P = 0.01) and delayed PN initiation (1.29 vs. 0.80 mean days to start of PN; difference 1.06 [95% CI 0.44 to 1.67]; P = 0.001). There was no significant difference in 28-day mortality (14.2% vs. 15.2%; difference − 1.6% [95% CI − 4.3% to 1.2%]; P = 0.42) between groups. Conclusions: In this large-scale, multicenter trial, active implementation of an evidence-based feeding guideline reduced the time to commencement of EN and overall PN use but did not translate to a reduction in mortality from critical illness. Trial registration: ISRCTN, ISRCTN12233792. Registered November 20th, 2017

Actively implementing an evidence-based feeding guideline for critically ill patients (NEED): a multicenter, cluster-randomized, controlled trial.

BackgroundPrevious cluster-randomized controlled trials evaluating the impact of implementing evidence-based guidelines for nutrition therapy in critical illness do not consistently demonstrate patient benefits. A large-scale, sufficiently powered study is therefore warranted to ascertain the effects of guideline implementation on patient-centered outcomes.MethodsWe conducted a multicenter, cluster-randomized, parallel-controlled trial in intensive care units (ICUs) across China. We developed an evidence-based feeding guideline. ICUs randomly allocated to the guideline group formed a local "intervention team", which actively implemented the guideline using standardized educational materials, a graphical feeding protocol, and live online education outreach meetings conducted by members of the study management committee. ICUs assigned to the control group remained unaware of the guideline content. All ICUs enrolled patients who were expected to stay in the ICU longer than seven days. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality within 28 days of enrollment.ResultsForty-eight ICUs were randomized to the guideline group and 49 to the control group. From March 2018 to July 2019, the guideline ICUs enrolled 1399 patients, and the control ICUs enrolled 1373 patients. Implementation of the guideline resulted in significantly earlier EN initiation (1.20 vs. 1.55 mean days to initiation of EN; difference - 0.40 [95% CI - 0.71 to - 0.09]; P = 0.01) and delayed PN initiation (1.29 vs. 0.80 mean days to start of PN; difference 1.06 [95% CI 0.44 to 1.67]; P = 0.001). There was no significant difference in 28-day mortality (14.2% vs. 15.2%; difference - 1.6% [95% CI - 4.3% to 1.2%]; P = 0.42) between groups.ConclusionsIn this large-scale, multicenter trial, active implementation of an evidence-based feeding guideline reduced the time to commencement of EN and overall PN use but did not translate to a reduction in mortality from critical illness.Trial registrationISRCTN, ISRCTN12233792 . Registered November 20th, 2017

Actively implementing an evidence-based feeding guideline for critically ill patients (NEED): a multicenter, cluster-randomized, controlled trial (vol 26, 46, 2022)

BackgroundPrevious cluster-randomized controlled trials evaluating the impact of implementing evidence-based guidelines for nutrition therapy in critical illness do not consistently demonstrate patient benefits. A large-scale, sufficiently powered study is therefore warranted to ascertain the effects of guideline implementation on patient-centered outcomes.MethodsWe conducted a multicenter, cluster-randomized, parallel-controlled trial in intensive care units (ICUs) across China. We developed an evidence-based feeding guideline. ICUs randomly allocated to the guideline group formed a local "intervention team", which actively implemented the guideline using standardized educational materials, a graphical feeding protocol, and live online education outreach meetings conducted by members of the study management committee. ICUs assigned to the control group remained unaware of the guideline content. All ICUs enrolled patients who were expected to stay in the ICU longer than seven days. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality within 28 days of enrollment.ResultsForty-eight ICUs were randomized to the guideline group and 49 to the control group. From March 2018 to July 2019, the guideline ICUs enrolled 1399 patients, and the control ICUs enrolled 1373 patients. Implementation of the guideline resulted in significantly earlier EN initiation (1.20 vs. 1.55 mean days to initiation of EN; difference - 0.40 [95% CI - 0.71 to - 0.09]; P = 0.01) and delayed PN initiation (1.29 vs. 0.80 mean days to start of PN; difference 1.06 [95% CI 0.44 to 1.67]; P = 0.001). There was no significant difference in 28-day mortality (14.2% vs. 15.2%; difference - 1.6% [95% CI - 4.3% to 1.2%]; P = 0.42) between groups.ConclusionsIn this large-scale, multicenter trial, active implementation of an evidence-based feeding guideline reduced the time to commencement of EN and overall PN use but did not translate to a reduction in mortality from critical illness.Trial registrationISRCTN, ISRCTN12233792 . Registered November 20th, 2017

THE STUDY AND IMPLEMENTATION OF MEANDER-LINE ANTENNA FOR AN INTEGRATED TRANSCEIVER DESIGN

This thesis focuses on the design and evaluation of the meander-line antenna geometry. One standard meander-line antenna and other two non-standard meander antennas have been studied. These printed antennas are discussed with the goal of identifying which is suitable for use in a miniaturized wireless transceiver design and which is able to provide the better performance using minimal Printed Circuit Board (PCB) space. In a word, the main objective is to characterize tradeoffs and identify which antenna provides the best compromise among volume, bandwidth and efficiency. The performance of each antenna is evaluated based on return loss, operational bandwidth, and radiation pattern characteristics. During our measurement, return loss is measured by reading the S11-port reflection coefficient on Vector Network Analyzer (VNA). This coefficient can be used to characterize how well the antenna is able to be efficiently fed. Operational bandwidth is measured as the frequency range over which the antenna keeps the value of Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR) or equivalently has -10dB return loss. Ansoft High Frequency Structure Simulator (HFSS) is used to simulate expected characteristics which are resonant frequency, bandwidth, VSWR, and radiation pattern. HFSS is used to provide a good guide for the antenna design before the actual prototype is manufactured. Simulated results are compared with results of measurement to point out the differences and help demonstrate the practical effects on antenna performance. Radiation pattern are measured to illustrate the effects of antenna miniaturization. All the above measurements are done in the anechoic chamber

Transcriptome Expression Profiling in Response to Drought Stress in Paulownia australis

The response and adaptation to drought remains poorly understood for Paulownia australis. To investigate this issue, transcriptome profiling of four P. australis accessions (two diploid and the other two autotetraploid) under water stress condition were studied using Illumina Genome Analyzer IIx analysis. The current study aimed to identify genes of P. australis metabolism pathways that might be involved in this plant’s response to water deficit. Potted seedlings were subjected to well-watered conditions and drought stress, respectively. More than 290 million raw transcript reads were assembled into 111,660 unigenes, with a mean length of 1013 bp. Clusters of orthologous groups, gene ontology and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes annotations analyses were performed on the unigenes. Many differentially expressed genes and several metabolic pathways were identified. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to verify the expression patterns of 14 genes. Our study identified altered gene expression in P. australis induced by drought stress and provided a comprehensive map of drought-responsive genes and pathways in this species. To our knowledge, this is the first publicly available global transcriptome study of P. australis. This study provides a valuable genetic resource for this species

Genome-Wide Identification of the <i>Paulownia fortunei</i> Aux/IAA Gene Family and Its Response to Witches’ Broom Caused by Phytoplasma

The typical symptom of Paulownia witches’ broom (PaWB), caused by phytoplasma infection, is excessive branching, which is mainly triggered by auxin metabolism disorder. Aux/IAA is the early auxin-responsive gene that participates in regulating plant morphogenesis such as apical dominance, stem elongation, lateral branch development, and lateral root formation. However, no studies have investigated the response of the Aux/IAA gene family to phytoplasma infection in Paulownia fortunei. In this study, a total of 62 Aux/IAA genes were found in the genome. Phylogenetic analysis showed that PfAux/IAA genes could be divided into eight subgroups, which were formed by tandem duplication and fragment replication. Most of them had a simple gene structure, and several members lacked one or two conserved domains. By combining the expression of PfAux/IAA genes under phytoplasma stress and SA-treated phytoplasma-infected seedlings, we found that PfAux/IAA13/33/45 may play a vital role in the occurrence of PaWB. Functional analysis based on homologous relationships showed a strong correlation between PfAux/IAA45 and branching. Protein–protein interaction prediction showed that PfARF might be the binding partner of PfAux/IAA, and the yeast two-hybrid assay and bimolecular fluorescent complementary assay confirmed the interaction of PfAux/IAA45 and PfARF13. This study provides a theoretical basis for further understanding the function of the PfAux/IAA gene family and exploring the regulatory mechanism of branching symptoms caused by PaWB