Case report: Multimodality imaging revealing ruptured giant coronary artery aneurysm presenting with hemoptysis

Giant coronary artery aneurysm (CAA) is a relatively uncommon disease that is defined by a focal dilation of at least 20 mm and characterized by various clinical symptoms. However, cases presenting primarily with hemoptysis have not been reported. A man in his late 20 s suffering from persistent chest pain for over 2 months was transferred to our emergency department for intermittent hemoptysis lasting for 12 h. Bronchoscopy detected fresh blood in the left upper lobe bronchus without a definite bleeding source. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrated a heterogeneous mass and the high-intensity signals suggested active bleeding. coronary computed tomography (CT) angiography demonstrated a giant ruptured CAA wrapped in a large mediastinal mass Coronary angiography confirmed the CAA originating from the left anterior descending artery. The patient underwent an emergency sternotomy and an enormous hematoma arising from a ruptured CAA densely adhering to the left lung was identified. The patient recovered uneventfully and was discharged on the 7th day later. The ruptured CAA masquerading as hemoptysis highlights the indispensability of multimodality imaging for accurate diagnosis. Urgent surgical intervention is desirable in such life-threatening conditions

Antisaccadic eye movements in middle-aged individuals with a family history of Alzheimer's disease

BackgroundAntisaccade is closely associated with cognitive ability in Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, studies regarding antisaccade in the early stages of AD are scarce. Considering that first-degree family history is a well-established risk factor for AD, we explored the influence of family history on the performance of antisaccade tasks in individuals with normal cognition.MethodsIn total, 44 participants (aged 50–66 years) with a family history of AD (FH+) and 44 age-, gender-, and educational level-matched controls (FH-) were enrolled in our study. After cognitive assessment using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment and Mini-mental State Examination, participants underwent antisaccade trials, and all parameters were recorded using an eye tracker.ResultsWhile the average velocity was relatively lower in FH+ individuals than in FH− individuals (107.9 ± 14.3°/s vs. 132.9 ± 23.7°/s, p < 0.001), FH+ individuals surprisingly showed relatively fewer uninhibited reflexive saccades (44.7 ± 26.0% vs. 56.2 ± 24.7%, p = 0.037) than the control group. They also required a relatively shorter time to detect and correct false saccades (121.6 ± 40.7 ms vs. 143.9 ± 37.0 ms, p = 0.023).ConclusionsThis study showed that family history is associated with alterations in antisaccadic parameters, suggesting that eye tracking can be used to assess oculomotor control and executive function in individuals at risk of developing dementia

Time-Dependent Behavior of Full-Scale Recycled Aggregate Concrete Beams under Long-Term Loading

Sixteen full-scale recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) beams were cast and tested to study their time-dependent behavior under long-term loading. The test parameters include the replacement rate of the recycled coarse aggregates (RCAs), the replacement rate of the recycled fine aggregates (RFAs), the concrete strength, and the stress ratio. The influence of the above variables on the deflection and stiffness is discussed. The results show that the RCAs will increase the deflection of the specimen at a low stress ratio; at a high stress ratio, the beams will experience nonlinear creep, and the deflection of the specimen will be affected by the RCAs and the stress ratio. The RFAs have a substantial influence on the time-dependent behavior of the specimen, and the deflection of the specimen with 100% replacement of recycled aggregates can increase by 30%; the strength of the concrete does not have a substantial influence on the time-dependent behavior of the specimen; and the stress ratio has an influence on the initial deflection of the specimen. A deflection calculation formula is established based on the stress–strain relationship of the beam under long-term loading and the characteristics of the RAC. The calculation results are in good agreement with the test results

Discovery and inspiration of large- and medium-sized glutenite-rich oil and gas fields in the eastern South China Sea: An example from Paleogene Enping Formation in Huizhou 26 subsag, Pearl River Mouth Basin

Based on the practice of oil and gas exploration in the Huizhou Sag of the Pearl River Mouth Basin, the geochemical indexes of source rocks were measured, the reservoir development morphology was restored, the rocks and minerals were characterized microscopically, the measured trap sealing indexes were compared, the biomarker compounds of crude oil were extracted, the genesis of condensate gas was identified, and the reservoir-forming conditions were examined. On this basis, the Paleogene Enping Formation in the Huizhou 26 subsag was systematically analyzed for the potential of oil and gas resources, the development characteristics of large-scale high-quality conglomerate reservoirs, the trapping effectiveness of faults, the hydrocarbon migration and accumulation model, and the formation conditions and exploration targets of large- and medium-sized glutenite-rich oil and gas fields. The research results were obtained in four aspects. First, the Paleogene Wenchang Formation in the Huizhou 26 subsag develops extensive and thick high-quality source rocks of semi-deep to deep lacustrine subfacies, which have typical hydrocarbon expulsion characteristics of “great oil generation in the early stage and huge gas expulsion in the late stage”, providing a sufficient material basis for hydrocarbon accumulation in the Enping Formation. Second, under the joint control of the steep slope zone and transition zone of the fault within the sag, the large-scale near-source glutenite reservoirs are highly heterogeneous, with the development scale dominated hierarchically by three factors (favorable facies zone, particle component, and microfracture). The (subaqueous) distributary channels near the fault system, with equal grains, a low mud content (<5%), and a high content of feldspar composition, are conducive to the development of sweet spot reservoirs. Third, the strike-slip pressurization trap covered by stable lake flooding mudstone is a necessary condition for oil and gas preservation, and the NE and nearly EW faults obliquely to the principal stress have the best control on traps. Fourth, the spatiotemporal configuration of high-quality source rocks, fault transport/sealing, and glutenite reservoirs controls the degree of hydrocarbon enrichment. From top to bottom, three hydrocarbon accumulation units, i.e. low-fill zone, transition zone, and high-fill zone, are recognized. The main area of the channel in the nearly pressurized source-connecting fault zone is favorable for large-scale hydrocarbon enrichment. The research results suggest a new direction for the exploration of large-scale glutenite-rich reservoirs in the Enping Formation of the Pearl River Mouth Basin, and present a major breakthrough in oil and gas exploration

Verification of Multi-Group Covariance Data Processing Module in RXSP Code

The capability of multi-group covariance matrices has been developed in RXSP code to process correlation matrix data stored in Evaluated Nuclear Data Files for averaged number of neutrons per fission (MF31), resonance parameters (MF32), and neutron cross sections (MF33), and fission spectrum (MF35). MF31, MF33 and MF35 data blocks can be processed by multi-group neutron flux based weighting integral to compute self-shielded group-wise cross sections covariance matrices. However, MF32 only stores evaluated experimental measurements caused uncertainty for resonance parameters in resolved resonance range (RRR), for instance, the standard deviation of resonance level, elastic scattering, capture, fission reaction widths. In order to calculate uncertainties of cross sections in RRR from above resonance parameters uncertainty, the MF32 stored R-Matrix approximated resonance formulae should be used. NJOY code introduces covariance data processing method used initiated from ERRORJ code, which can handled all common used R-Matrix approximate resonance formulae, including Single-level Breit-Wigner, Multi-level Breit-Wigner and Reich-Moore. Posterior to the code development, the comparison of microscopic multi-group cross sections covariance matrices for 235U nuclide will be conducted between RXSP and NJOY code. Moreover, the multi-group covariance data library will be applied in benchmark using SCALE S/A and U/Q utility code package

Fluorescent Nanoparticle-RNAi-Mediated Silencing of Sterol Carrier Protein-2 Gene Expression Suppresses the Growth, Development, and Reproduction of <i>Helicoverpa armigera</i>

Helicoverpa armigera is a polyphagous destructive lepidopteran pest with strong Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) resistance. Cholesterol, a vital component for insect growth, can only be obtained from food, and its transfer and metabolism are regulated by sterol carrier protein-2 (SCP-2). This study examined whether H. armigera SCP-2 (HaSCP-2) gene expression, involved in cholesterol absorption, can be silenced by nanocarrier fluorescent nanoparticle-RNA interference (FNP-RNAi) by larval feeding and whether the silencing affected H. armigera development. Fluorescence microscopy showed that nanoparticle-siRNA was distributed in Ha cells and the larval midgut. FNP-HaSCP-2 siRNA suppressed HaSCP-2 expression by 52.5% in H.armigera Ha cells. FNP can effectively help deliver siRNA into cells, protect siRNA, and is not affected by serum. FNP-siRNA in vivo biological assays showed that HaSCP-2 transcript levels were inhibited by 70.19%, 68.16%, and 67.66% in 3rd, 4th, and 5th instar larvae, leading to a decrease in the cholesterol level in the larval and prepupal fatbodies. The pupation rate and adult emergence were reduced to 26.0% and 56.52%, respectively. This study demonstrated that FNP could deliver siRNA to cells and improve siRNA knockdown efficiency. HaSCP-2 knockdown by FNP-siRNA in vivo hindered H. armigera growth and development. FNP could enhance RNAi efficiency to achieve pest control by SCP-2-targeted FNP-RNAi

Synthesis and Characterization of a Novel Fretchet Dendritic Phthalocyanine Zinc(II): Tetra-{3,5-di-[3,5-di-(4-carboxylic benzyloxy)benzyloxy]benzyloxy} Phthalocyanine Zinc(II)

National Natural Science Foundation of China [60978071, 20604007]; Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province [2011J01029, 2010J01322]; Scientific Research Fundation of Ministry of Health of China [WKJ2008-2-61]A novel Fretchet structural dendritic substituted photosensitizer, tetra-{3,5-di-[3,5-di-(4-carboxylic benzyloxy)benzyloxy]benzyloxy} phthalocyanine zinc(II) (6), was synthesized by the following steps. Firstly, 3,5-di-(4-cyanobenzyloxy) benzyl alcohol (1) was obtained by reaction of 3,5-di-hydroxybenzyl alcohol with p-cyanobenzylbromide. Then, 3,5-di-(4-cyanobenzyloxy) benzyl bromide (2) was synthesized by the reaction of 1 with carbon tetrabromide in the presence of triphenylphosphine and tetrahydrofuran. Following, 2 reacted with 3,5-di-hydroxybenzyl alcohol to afford 3,5-di-[3,5-di-(4-cyanobenzyloxy)benzyloxy] benzyl alcohol (3). The fragment 4-{3,5-di-[3,5-di-(4-cyanobenzyloxy)benzyloxy]} phthalonitrile (4) was obtained by reaction of 3 with 4-nitrophthalonitrile. Tetra-{3,5-di-[3,5-di-(4-cyanobenzyloxy)benzyloxy]benzyloxy} phthalocyanine zinc(II) (5) was obtained by condensation of 4 with acetate zinc and 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU) in n-pentanol. The tetra- {3,5-di-[3,5-di-(4-carboxylic benzyloxy)benzyloxy]benzyloxy} phthalocyanine zinc(II) (6) was obtained by hydrolyzed 5 in NaOH. The structures of above compounds were characterized by a combination of methods including elemental analysis, H-1 NMR, IR, ESI-MS and MALDI-TOF-MS. The photophysical properties of 5 and 6 were studied by UV/Vis, steady state and transient fluorescence spectrometry. The compound 6 is a kind of good performance of dendritic photosensitizer