321 research outputs found
Distributed Function Calculation over Noisy Networks
Considering any connected network with unknown initial states for all nodes, the nearest-neighbor rule is utilized for each node to update its own state at every discrete-time step. Distributed function calculation problem is defined for one node to compute some function of the initial values of all the nodes based on its own observations. In this paper, taking into account uncertainties in the network and observations, an algorithm is proposed to compute and explicitly characterize the value of the function in question when the number of successive observations is large enough. While the number of successive observations is not large enough, we provide an approach to obtain the tightest possible bounds on such function by using linear programing optimization techniques. Simulations are provided to demonstrate the theoretical results
Metagenomics reveals the abundance and accumulation trend of antibiotic resistance gene profile under long-term no tillage in a rainfed agroecosystem
Widespread soil resistance can seriously endanger sustainable food production and soil health. Conservation tillage is a promising practice for improving soil structure and health. However, the impact of long-term no-tillage on the presence of antibiotic resistance genes in agricultural soils remains unexplored. Based on the long-term (>11 yr) tillage experimental fields that include both conservation tillage practices [no tillage (ZT)] and conventional tillage practices [plough tillage (PT)], we investigated the accumulation trend of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in farmland soils under long-term no-tillage conditions. We aimed to provide a scientific basis for formulating agricultural production strategies to promote ecological environment safety and human health. In comparison to PT, ZT led to a considerable reduction in the relative abundance of both antibiotic resistance genes and antibiotic target gene families in the soil. Furthermore, the abundance of all ARGs were considerably lower in the ZT soil. The classification of drug resistance showed that ZT substantially decreased the relative abundance of Ethambutol (59.97%), β-lactams (44.87%), Fosfomycin (35.82%), Sulfonamides (34.64%), Polymyxins (33.67%), MLSB (32.78%), Chloramphenicol (28.57%), Multi-drug resistance (26.22%), Efflux pump (23.46%), Aminoglycosides (16.79%), Trimethoprim (13.21%), Isoniazid (11.34%), Fluoroquinolone (6.21%) resistance genes, compared to PT soil. In addition, the abundance of the bacterial phyla Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Acidobacteria, and Gemmatimonadetes decreased considerably. The Mantel test indicated that long-term ZT practices substantially increased the abundance of beneficial microbial flora and inhibited the enrichment of ARGs in soil by improving soil microbial diversity, metabolic activity, increasing SOC, TN, and available Zn, and decreasing pH. Overall, long-term no-tillage practices inhibit the accumulation of antibiotic resistance genes in farmland soil, which is a promising agricultural management measure to reduce the accumulation risk of soil ARGs
Tislelizumab in Patients with Previously Treated Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma (RATIONALE-208): A Multicenter, Non-Randomized, Open-Label, Phase 2 Trial
Introduction: Tislelizumab (anti-programmed cell death protein 1 antibody) showed preliminary antitumor activity and tolerability in patients with advanced solid tumors, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of tislelizumab in patients with previously treated advanced HCC.
Methods: The multi-regional phase 2 study, RATIONALE-208, examined single-agent tislelizumab (200 mg intravenously every three weeks) in patients with advanced HCC with Child-Pugh A, Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage B or C, and who had received one or more prior lines of systemic therapy. The primary endpoint was objective response rate (ORR), radiologically confirmed per Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors version 1.1 by Independent Review Committee. Safety was assessed in patients who received ≥1 dose of tislelizumab.
Results: Between April 9, 2018 and February 27, 2019, 249 eligible patients were enrolled and treated. After a median study follow-up of 12.7 months, ORR was 13% (n = 32/249; 95% confidence interval [CI], 9–18), including five complete and 27 partial responses. Number of prior lines of therapy did not impact ORR (one prior line, 13% [95% CI, 8–20]; two or more prior lines, 13% [95% CI, 7–20]). Median duration of response was not reached. Disease control rate was 53% and median overall survival was 13.2 months. Of the 249 total patients, grade ≥3 treatment-related adverse events were reported in 38 (15%) patients; the most common was liver transaminase elevations in 10 (4%) patients. Treatment-related adverse events led to treatment discontinuation in 13 (5%) patients or dose delay in 46 (19%) patients. No deaths were attributed to the treatment per investigator assessment.
Conclusion: Tislelizumab demonstrated durable objective responses, regardless of the number of prior lines of therapy, and acceptable tolerability in patients with previously treated advanced HCC
Search for C-parity violation in and
Using events recorded in
collisions at 3.686 GeV with the BESIII at the BEPCII collider, we
present searches for C-parity violation in and decays via . No significant
signals are observed in either channel. Upper limits on the branching fractions
are set to be and
at the 90\%
confidence level. The former is one order of magnitude more stringent than the
previous upper limit, and the latter represents the first limit on this decay
channel.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figure
Precision Measurement of the Mass of the Lepton
An energy scan near the pair production threshold has been performed
using the BESIII detector. About pb of data, distributed over four
scan points, was collected. This analysis is based on pair decays to
, , , , , , , and
final states, where denotes a charged or . The mass of the
lepton is measured from a maximum likelihood fit to the pair production
cross section data to be )
MeV/, which is currently the most precise value in a single measurement.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figure
Search for the radiative transitions and
By using a 2.92 fb data sample taken at GeV with
the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII collider, we search for the
radiative transitions and
through the hadronic decays . No
significant excess of signal events above background is observed. We set upper
limits at a 90% confidence level for the product branching fractions to be
and
. Combining our result with world-average
values of , we find the
branching fractions
and at a 90%
confidence level.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure
Measurement of the proton form factor by studying
Using data samples collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider,
we measure the Born cross section of at 12
center-of-mass energies from 2232.4 to 3671.0 MeV. The corresponding effective
electromagnetic form factor of the proton is deduced under the assumption that
the electric and magnetic form factors are equal . In
addition, the ratio of electric to magnetic form factors, , and
are extracted by fitting the polar angle distribution of the proton
for the data samples with larger statistics, namely at 2232.4 and
2400.0 MeV and a combined sample at = 3050.0, 3060.0 and 3080.0 MeV,
respectively. The measured cross sections are in agreement with recent results
from BaBar, improving the overall uncertainty by about 30\%. The
ratios are close to unity and consistent with BaBar results in
the same region, which indicates the data are consistent with the
assumption that within uncertainties.Comment: 13 pages, 24 figure
Observation of the state in at BESIII
We report the observation of the in the process with a statistical
significance of , in data samples at center-of-mass energies
4.230, 4.260, 4.360, 4.420 and 4.600~GeV collected with the BESIII
detector at the BEPCII electron positron collider. The measured mass of the
is ~MeV/, where the first error is
statistical and the second systematic, and the width is less than ~MeV at
the 90\% confidence level. The products of the Born cross sections for
and the branching ratio are also measured. These measurements are in good
agreement with the assignment of the as the charmonium
state.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, version to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
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