Deep co-supervision and attention fusion strategy for automatic COVID-19 lung infection segmentation on CT images

International audienc

A Background-based Data Enhancement Method for Lymphoma Segmentation in 3D PET Images

International audienc

Feasibility and clinical value of linear endoscopic ultrasonography imaging in the lower gastrointestinal subepithelial lesions

Abstract Linear endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) has been extensively utilized as a novel diagnostic and therapeutic modality across various fields. However, there have been relatively few studies focusing on lower gastrointestinal lesions. The aim of our study was to investigate the feasibility, safety and clinical value of linear EUS in the lower gastrointestinal subepithelial lesions. This was a retrospective study involving patients with lower gastrointestinal subepithelial lesions diagnosed by linear EUS from August 2019 to April 2023 at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University. The data, including basic clinical information, linear EUS features, technical success rate, complications, and follow-up, were retrospectively collected and analyzed. A total of 69 patients with lower gastrointestinal subepithelial lesions underwent examination by linear EUS. Excluding the rectum, the technical success rate of linear EUS was 90.6% (29/32). Apart from the 7 patients whose diagnosis remained unknown, 3 patients with no abnormal EUS findings, and 3 patients failed the procedure, 56 patients were included in the final diagnostic performance analysis. The most common locations of the lesions were the rectum (37/56, 66.1%) and sigmoid colon (7/56, 12.5%). Based on endoscopy findings and pathological results, the most prevalent types of subepithelial lesions in the lower gastrointestinal tract were neuroendocrine tumor (NET) (12/56, 20.3%), lipoma (8/56, 13.6%) and extraluminal compression (8/56, 13.6%). The majority of lesions ranged in diameter from 1 to 3 cm (χ2 = 18.750, p < 0.001). After undergoing linear EUS examination, 36 patients received EUS-FNA (3/36), biopsy (5/36), endoscopic resection (25/36), or surgical excision (3/36) respectively. The pathological results of 29 patients were entirely consistent with the diagnosis made using linear EUS, with an 80.6% (29/36) diagnostic accuracy rate. Follow-up indicated that the lesions remained unchanged within 6–36 months. All patients tolerated the procedure well without any complications. In conclusion, linear EUS demonstrates technical feasibility, safety, and a high diagnostic accuracy for subepithelial lesions in the lower gastrointestinal tract

Overpressure reservoirs of the Huangliu Formation of the Dongfang area, Yinggehai Basin, South China Sea

The relationship between reservoir property and such factors as sedimentary microfacies, clastic component, grain size, and special diagenetic environment of high temperature and overpressure were comprehensively analyzed to study reservoir characteristics and influencing factors in the first member of upper-Miocene Huangliu Formation of the DF13-1 structure in the Dongfang area, Central Diapir Zone of the Yinggehai Basin. The dominant reservoirs in the first member of the Huangliu Formation in the Dongfang area are composed of very fine to fine lithic quartz sandstones that are deposited in submarine fans sourced from the Kuntom Uplift. The reservoirs are characterized by large thickness, broad distribution and good qualities. High-temperature thermal fluids activities and overpressure are two major diagenetic factors contributing to the good properties in the reservoirs. Thermal fluids activities of high tempreture accelerated the organic matter thermal evolution and clay mineral transformation, and in this process organic acids and CO2 were generated which dissolved the reservoirs and thus resulted in a secondary pore zone. Overpressure broadened oil generation window, increased corrosion time and strength, making secondary pores developed in deeper formations. Moreover, the overpressure was beneficial to preserve pores. The reservoir economic basement depths of siltstone, very fine sandstone and fine sandstone are about 3 100 m, 3 900 m and 5 000 m respectively. The fine sandstone and very fine sandstone in the first member of the Huangliu Formation could form high-quality gas reservoirs in present depth of 2 600–3 500 m. Key words: submarine fan, thermal fluid, overpressure, economic basement, reservoir property, Yinggehai Basi

Crosstalk between cancer-associated fibroblasts and regulated cell death in tumors: insights into apoptosis, autophagy, ferroptosis, and pyroptosis

Abstract Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), the main stromal component of the tumor microenvironment (TME), play multifaceted roles in cancer progression through paracrine signaling, exosome transfer, and cell interactions. Attractively, recent evidence indicates that CAFs can modulate various forms of regulated cell death (RCD) in adjacent tumor cells, thus involving cancer proliferation, therapy resistance, and immune exclusion. Here, we present a brief introduction to CAFs and basic knowledge of RCD, including apoptosis, autophagy, ferroptosis, and pyroptosis. In addition, we further summarize the different types of RCD in tumors that are mediated by CAFs, as well as the effects of these modes of RCD on CAFs. This review will deepen our understanding of the interactions between CAFs and RCD and might offer novel therapeutic avenues for future cancer treatments

A Golden2-like transcription factor, BnGLK1a, improves chloroplast development, photosynthesis, and seed weight in rapeseed

Enhancing photosynthetic efficiency is a major goal for improving crop yields under agricultural field conditions and is associated with chloroplast biosynthesis and development. In this study, we demonstrate that Golden2-like 1a (BnGLK1a) plays an important role in regulating chloroplast development and photosynthetic efficiency. Overexpressing BnGLK1a resulted in significant increases in chlorophyll content, the number of thylakoid membrane layers and photosynthetic efficiency in Brassica napus, while knocking down BnGLK1a transcript levels through RNA interference (RNAi) had the opposite effects. A yeast two-hybrid screen revealed that BnGLK1a interacts with the abscisic acid receptor PYRABACTIN RESISTANCE 1-LIKE 1–2 (BnPYL1–2) and CONSTITUTIVE PHOTOMORPHOGENIC 9 SIGNALOSOME 5A subunit (BnCSN5A), which play essential roles in regulating chloroplast development and photosynthesis. Consistent with this, BnGLK1a-RNAi lines of B. napus display hypersensitivity to the abscisic acid (ABA) response. Importantly, overexpression of BnGLK1a resulted in a 10% increase in thousand-seed weight, whereas seeds from BnGLK1a-RNAi lines were 16% lighter than wild type. We propose that BnGLK1a could be a potential target in breeding for improving rapeseed productivity. Our results not only provide insights into the mechanisms of BnGLK1a function, but also offer a potential approach for improving the productivity of Brassica species

Genome-Wide Identification of the <i>TIFY</i> Gene Family in <i>Brassiceae</i> and Its Potential Association with Heavy Metal Stress in Rapeseed

The TIFY gene family plays important roles in various plant biological processes and responses to stress and hormones. The chromosome-level genome of the Brassiceae species has been released, but knowledge concerning the TIFY family is lacking in the Brassiceae species. The current study performed a bioinformatics analysis on the TIFY family comparing three diploid (B. rapa, B. nigra, and B. oleracea) and two derived allotetraploid species (B. juncea, and B. napus). A total of 237 putative TIFY proteins were identified from five Brassiceae species, and classified into ten subfamilies (six JAZ types, one PPD type, two TIFY types, and one ZML type) based on their phylogenetic relationships with TIFY proteins in A. thaliana and Brassiceae species. Duplication and synteny analysis revealed that segmental and tandem duplications led to the expansion of the TIFY family genes during the process of polyploidization, and most of these TIFY family genes (TIFYs) were subjected to purifying selection after duplication based on Ka/Ks values. The spatial and temporal expression patterns indicated that different groups of BnaTIFYs have distinct spatiotemporal expression patterns under normal conditions and heavy metal stresses. Most of the JAZIII subfamily members were highest in all tissues, but JAZ subfamily members were strongly induced by heavy metal stresses. BnaTIFY34, BnaTIFY59, BnaTIFY21 and BnaTIFY68 were significantly upregulated mostly under As3+ and Cd2+ treatment, indicating that they could be actively induced by heavy metal stress. Our results may contribute to further exploration of TIFYs, and provided valuable information for further studies of TIFYs in plant tolerance to heavy metal stress