The Effects of Non-Darcy Flow on Hydraulic Fracturing Optimization Design

In recent years, the petroleum industry has been aware of the potential for non-Darcy flow in propped fracture. In hydraulic fracture stimulation treatments, the effects of non-Darcy flow as one of the most critical factors in reducing the productivity of hydraulically fractured high rate wells have been studied widely with examples of field cases. In the hydraulic fracture design, the non-Darcy flow can have great impact on the reduction of a propped half-length, thus lowering the well’s productive capability. These non-Darcy flow effects in propped fractures have been typically associated with high flow rates in both oil and gas wells. This paper studied the effects of non-Darcy flow in fracture on the hydraulic fracturing design, studied the propped porosity and bottom-hole on hydraulic fracturing design and deliverability of fractured well taking into account non-Darcy flow. Key words: Non-Darcy flow; Hydraulic fracturing; Optimization design; Productive capabilit

Knockdown of kinesin family member 2C restricts cell proliferation and induces cell cycle arrest in gastric cancer

Kinesin family member 2C (KIF2C) was reported to act as a vital player in several human cancers. However, the exact function of KIF2C in gastric cancer (GC) is poorly understood. In the present study, the potential role of KIF2C was studied in gastric cancer by bioinformatics analysis and proliferation assay. KIF2C expression was detected using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot. Our data showed that the expression of KIF2C was increased in different tumor tissues, including GC. KIF2C was overexpressed in GC tissues and might be used as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for GC. KIF2C expression was correlated with immune infiltration and the levels of cell cyclerelated genes in GC. Moreover, silencing of KIF2C can cause cell cycle arrest, and inhibit the proliferative ability of GC cells. Thus, our studies revealed that KIF2C levels might serve as a promising biomarker for diagnosis and prediction of prognosis of GC, and targeting KIF2C might be an effective therapeutic strategy for GC

Multidimensional Single Cell Based STAT Phosphorylation Profiling Identifies a Novel Biosignature for Evaluation of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Activity

INTRODUCTION: Dysregulated cytokine action on immune cells plays an important role in the initiation and progress of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a complex autoimmune disease. Comprehensively quantifying basal STATs phosphorylation and their signaling response to cytokines should help us to better understand the etiology of SLE. METHODS: Phospho-specific flow cytometry was used to measure the basal STAT signaling activation in three immune cell types of peripheral-blood mononuclear cells from 20 lupus patients, 9 rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and 13 healthy donors (HDs). A panel of 27 cytokines, including inflammatory cytokines, was measured with Bio-Plex™ Human Cytokine Assays. Serum Prolactin levels were measured with an immunoradiometric assay. STAT signaling responses to inflammatory cytokines (interferon α [IFNα], IFNγ, interleukin 2 [IL2], IL6, and IL10) were also monitored. RESULTS: We observed the basal activation of STAT3 in SLE T cells and monocytes, and the basal activation of STAT5 in SLE T cells and B cells. The SLE samples clustered into two main groups, which were associated with the SLE Disease Activity Index 2000, their erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and their hydroxychloroquine use. The phosphorylation of STAT5 in B cells was associated with cytokines IL2, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), and IFNγ, whereas serum prolactin affected STAT5 activation in T cells. The responses of STAT1, STAT3, and STAT5 to IFNα were greatly reduced in SLE T cells, B cells, and monocytes, except for the STAT1 response to IFNα in monocytes. The response of STAT3 to IL6 was reduced in SLE T cells. CONCLUSIONS: The basal activation of STATs signaling and reduced response to cytokines may be helpful us to identify the activity and severity of SLE

Controlled Reflected McKean–Vlasov SDEs and Neumann Problem for Backward SPDEs

This paper is concerned with the stochastic optimal control problem of a 1-dimensional McKean–Vlasov stochastic differential equation (SDE) with reflection, of which the drift coefficient and diffusion coefficient can be both dependent on the state of the solution process along with its law and control. One backward stochastic partial differential equation (BSPDE) with the Neumann boundary condition can represent the value function of this control problem. Existence and uniqueness of the solution to the above equation are obtained. Finally, the optimal feedback control can be constructed by the BSPDE

Fear of Bioterrorism and Implications for Public Health Preparedness

After the human anthrax cases and exposures in 2001, the Illinois Department of Public Health received an increasing number of environmental and human samples (1,496 environmental submissions, all negative for Bacillus anthracis). These data demonstrate increased volume of submissions to a public health laboratory resulting from fear of bioterrorism

Public perception on active aging after COVID-19: an unsupervised machine learning analysis of 44,343 posts

IntroductionTo analyze public perceptions of active aging in China on mainstream social media platforms to determine whether the “14th Five Year Plan for the Development of the Aging Career and Older Adult Care System” issued by the CPC in 2022 has fully addressed public needs.MethodsThe original tweets posted on Weibo between January 1, 2020, and June 30, 2022, containing the words “aging” or “old age” were extracted. A bidirectional encoder representation from transformers (BERT)-based model was used to generate themes related to this perception. A qualitative thematic analysis and an independent review of the theme labels were conducted by the researchers.ResultsThe findings indicate that public perceptions revolved around four themes: (1) health prevention and protection, (2) convenient living environments, (3) cognitive health and social integration, and (4) protecting the rights and interests of the older adult.DiscussionOur study found that although the Plan aligns with most of these themes, it lacks clear planning for financial security and marital life

Numerical Investigation of Fracture Compressibility and Uncertainty on Water-Loss and Production Performance in Tight Oil Reservoirs

Multi-stage hydraulic fracturing along with horizontal wells are widely used to create complex fracture networks in tight oil reservoirs. Analysis of field flowback data shows that most of the fracturing fluids are contained in a complex fracture network, and fracture-closure is the main driving mechanism during early clean up. At present, the related fracture parameters cannot be accurately obtained, so it is necessary to study the impacts of fracture compressibility and uncertainty on water-loss and the subsequent production performance. A series of mechanistic models are established by considering stress-dependent porosity and permeability. The impacts of fracture uncertainties, such as natural fracture density, proppant distribution, and natural fracture heterogeneity on flowback and productivity are quantitatively assessed. Results indicate that considering fracture closure during flowback can promote water imbibition into the matrix and delay the oil breakthrough time compared with ignoring fracture closure. With the increase of natural fracture density, oil breakthrough time is advanced, and more water is retained underground. When natural fractures connected with hydraulic fractures are propped, well productivity will be enhanced, but proppant embedment can cause a loss of oil production. Additionally, the fracture network with more heterogeneity will lead to the lower flowback rate, which presents an insight in the role of fractures in water-loss