PVO: Panoptic Visual Odometry

We present PVO, a novel panoptic visual odometry framework to achieve more comprehensive modeling of the scene motion, geometry, and panoptic segmentation information. Our PVO models visual odometry (VO) and video panoptic segmentation (VPS) in a unified view, which makes the two tasks mutually beneficial. Specifically, we introduce a panoptic update module into the VO Module with the guidance of image panoptic segmentation. This Panoptic-Enhanced VO Module can alleviate the impact of dynamic objects in the camera pose estimation with a panoptic-aware dynamic mask. On the other hand, the VO-Enhanced VPS Module also improves the segmentation accuracy by fusing the panoptic segmentation result of the current frame on the fly to the adjacent frames, using geometric information such as camera pose, depth, and optical flow obtained from the VO Module. These two modules contribute to each other through recurrent iterative optimization. Extensive experiments demonstrate that PVO outperforms state-of-the-art methods in both visual odometry and video panoptic segmentation tasks.Comment: CVPR2023 Project page: https://zju3dv.github.io/pvo/ code: https://github.com/zju3dv/PV

Go@Se@ni cathode materials for lithium-selenium battery

Selenium is a promising cathode material for high-energy lithium batteries. In this work, selenium was electrodeposited on nickel foam from aqueous selenite solution. The influences of pH values and current density on electrodeposited Se@Ni were investigated. It is found that electrodeposition at pH 7 and 0.5 mA cm −2 enables high current efficiency and produces uniform and smooth deposits. Graphene oxide (GO) was further coated on Se@Ni through physical adsorption to produce GO@Se@Ni. The developed GO@Se@Ni electrode delivers a high initial specific capacity of 593 mAh g −1 and good capacity retention over 100 cycles at 0.1 C

A BAHD acyltransferase contributes to the biosynthesis of both ethyl benzoate and methyl benzoate in the flowers of Lilium oriental hybrid ‘Siberia’

Lily is a popular flower worldwide due to its elegant appearance and pleasant fragrance. Floral volatiles of lily are predominated by monoterpenes and benzenoids. While a number of genes for monoterpene biosynthesis have been characterized, the molecular mechanism underlying floral benzenoid formation in lily remains unclear. Here, we report on the identification and characterization of a novel BAHD acyltransferase gene that contributes to the biosynthesis of two related floral scent benzoate esters, ethyl benzoate and methyl benzoate, in the scented Lilium oriental hybrid ‘Siberia’. The emission of both methyl benzoate and ethyl benzoate in L. ‘Siberia’ was found to be tepal-specific, floral development-regulated and rhythmic. Through transcriptome profiling and bioinformatic analysis, a BAHD acyltransferase gene designated LoAAT1 was identified as the top candidate gene for the production of ethyl benzoate. In vitro enzyme assays and substrate feeding assays provide substantial evidence that LoAAT1 is responsible for the biosynthesis of ethyl benzoate. It was interesting to note that in in vitro enzyme assay, LoAAT1 can also catalyze the formation of methyl benzoate, which is typically formed by the action of benzoic acid methyltransferase (BAMT). The lack of an expressed putative BAMT gene in the flower transcriptome of L. ‘Siberia’, together with biochemical and expression evidence, led us to conclude that LoAAT1 is also responsible for, or at least contributes to, the biosynthesis of the floral scent compound methyl benzoate. This is the first report that a member of the plant BAHD acyltransferase family contributes to the production of both ethyl benzoate and methyl benzoate, presenting a new mechanism for the biosynthesis of benzoate esters

Natural flavonoids derived from herbal medicines are potential anti-atherogenic agents by inhibiting oxidative stress in endothelial cells

As the common pathological basis of various cardiovascular diseases, the morbidity and mortality of atherosclerosis (AS) have increased in recent years. Unfortunately, there are still many problems in the treatment of AS, and the prevention and treatment of the disease is not ideal. Up to now, the occurrence and development of AS can roughly include endothelial cell dysfunction, vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation, inflammation, foam cell production, and neoangiogenesis. Among them, endothelial dysfunction, as an early event of AS, plays a particularly important role in promoting the development of AS. In addition, oxidative stress occurs throughout the causes of endothelial dysfunction. Some previous studies have shown that flavonoids derived from herbal medicines are typical secondary metabolites. Due to its structural presence of multiple active hydroxyl groups, it is able to exert antioxidant activity in diseases. Therefore, in this review, we will search PubMed, Web of Science, Elesvier, Wliey, Springer for relevant literature, focusing on flavonoids extracted from herbal medicines, and summarizing how they can prevent endothelial dysfunction by inhibiting oxidative stress. Meanwhile, in our study, we found that flavonoid represented by quercetin and naringenin showed superior protective effects both in vivo and in vitro, suggesting the potential of flavonoid compounds in the treatment of AS

Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group, β2-microglobulin, hemoglobin, and lactate dehydrogenase can predict early grade ≥ 3 infection in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma: A real-world multicenter study

IntroductionThis research explored the clinical application of grade ≥ 3 infection predictive models for the newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) population.MethodsIt evaluated 306 patients with NDMM based on three different predictive models. The relationship between the grade ≥ 3 infection rates in NDMM and the scores was analyzed retrospectively. The cumulative incidence of early grade ≥ 3 infection was estimated using the Kaplan–Meier method and log-rank test to assess the statistical significance of the difference. To compare the predictive performance in the prediction of infection, the Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve (ROC) curve was used to show the area under the curve (AUC), and DeLong’s test was used to analyze the difference in AUC.ResultsThe incidence of grade ≥ 3 infection within the first 4 months of NDMM was 40.20%. Concerning the FIRST score (predictors: ECOG, β2-microglobulin, hemoglobin, and lactate dehydrogenase), GEM-PETHEMA score (predictors: albumin, male sex, ECOG, and non-IgA type MM), and Infection Risk model of Multiple Myeloma (IRMM) score (predictors: ECOG, serum β2-microglobulin, globulin, and hemoglobin), the probability of early grade ≥ 3 infection in the different groups showed statistically significant differences (low-risk vs. high-risk: 25.81% vs. 50.00%, p < 0.001; low-risk vs. moderate-risk vs. high-risk: 35.93% vs. 41.28% vs. 60.00%, p= 0.045; low-risk vs. moderate-risk vs. high-risk: 20.00% vs. 43.75% vs. 52.04%, p < 0.001). Statistical differences existed in the probability of early grade ≥ 3 infection among the different groups by the FIRST and IRMM scores but no statistical differences in the GEM-PETHEMA score (p < 0.001, p< 0.001, and p = 0.090, respectively). The FIRST score showed good discrimination and simple calculation with highest AUC. Further subgroup analysis showed that the FIRST score could still apply for patients treated with bortezomib-based regimen and frail patients.DiscussionOur findings indicate that the FIRST score (consisting of ECOG, β2-microglobulin, hemoglobin, and lactate dehydrogenase) is a simple and robust infection stratification tool for patients with NDMM and could be used in routine clinical work

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<p>High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) results of (A) commercial surfactin sample, and (B) our extract surfactin of <i>B</i>. <i>subtilis</i> HH2 in LB medium. There were three main peaks (Peak A-C) of the extract and the surfactin standard in the same location.</p

Wide‐bandwidth nanocomposite‐sensor integrated smart mask for tracking multiphase respiratory activities

Wearing masks has been a recommended protective measure due to the risks of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) even in its coming endemic phase. Therefore, deploying a “smart mask” to monitor human physiological signals is highly beneficial for personal and public health. This work presents a smart mask integrating an ultrathin nanocomposite sponge structure-based soundwave sensor (≈400 µm), which allows the high sensitivity in a wide-bandwidth dynamic pressure range, i.e., capable of detecting various respiratory sounds of breathing, speaking, and coughing. Thirty-one subjects test the smart mask in recording their respiratory activities. Machine/deep learning methods, i.e., support vector machine and convolutional neural networks, are used to recognize these activities, which show average macro-recalls of ≈95% in both individual and generalized models. With rich high-frequency (≈4000 Hz) information recorded, the two-/tri-phase coughs can be mapped while speaking words can be identified, demonstrating that the smart mask can be applicable as a daily wearable Internet of Things (IoT) device for respiratory disease identification, voice interaction tool, etc. in the future. This work bridges the technological gap between ultra-lightweight but high-frequency response sensor material fabrication, signal transduction and processing, and machining/deep learning to demonstrate a wearable device for potential applications in continual health monitoring in daily life

Identifying RNA-binding Proteins Required for mRNA localization to Drosophila Germ Granules

Germ cells are specialized cells in metazoans that transfer genetic material from parents to the offspring, thus allowing the continuation of the species. In Drosophila, a specialized cytoplasm called the germ plasm accumulate at the posterior pole of the developing embryo, instructing the formation of germ cells. A single protein called Oskar is necessary and sufficient for the nucleation of germ plasm. Contained within the germ plasm are non-membrane bound RNA granules called germ granules. Germ granules enrich approximately 200 different maternally-provided mRNAs that code for proteins required for germ cell development. These mRNAs only translate in granules and are repressed elsewhere in the embryo. It is unclear how most of these mRNAs enrich in germ granules and how they promote germ cell development. Biochemical analysis identified Oskar as an RNA binding protein (RBP) that binds at least three critical germ granule mRNAs, nanos (nos), germ-cell-less (gcl) and polar granule component (pgc), suggesting that Oskar could be recruiting these mRNAs to granules. However, this model has never been experimentally tested. In addition. it is unclear how other germ granule mRNAs enrich in germ granules. The aim of my project is to identify RBPs required for mRNA enrichment to Drosophila germ granules. Immunoprecipitation of Oskar from early Drosophila embryos revealed 47 unique RNA-binding proteins (RBP) as germ granule constituents and possible candidates that could recruit mRNAs to germ granules. To test this idea, an RNA interference (RNAi) screen was performed to assess the role of germ granule RBPs in mRNA recruitment to Drosophila germ granules. Experiments revealed that out of these 47 RBPs, only 4 (Vasa, CG7878, HnRNP-K and Kra) appear required for mRNA recruitment. The rest participate in the maintenance of germ granules (4) and germ granule assembly and disassembly (14). Moving forward, I will test whether Vasa, CG7878, HnRNP-K and Kra are also sufficient to recruit germ granule mRNAs to an ectopic location in the embryo to further validate the involvement of these proteins in mRNA enrichment to germ granules. My work will help elucidate the molecular regulators and mechanism of mRNA enrichment to Drosophila germ granules

Recommendations to Enhance Ecosystem Services in the False Creek South Neighbourhood Association’s Plans for the Campus of Care

Urban planning is the art of giving design, structure and care to the cities, which has become increasingly important as more people live in urban areas. In a changing world due to climate and land-use changes, it is vital to consider sustainability in urban planning. The False Creek South Neighborhood Association (FCSNA) is preparing a proposal to the City of Vancouver for a supportive housing complex called the Campus of Care (CoC). While there has been some consideration on the social aspects that the FCSNA wishes to incorporate into their proposal, little attention has been given to how the CoC can supply relevant ecosystem services (ES). The report provides suggestions developed for the plans of the CoC in order to reduce the environmental impact of the proposed infrastructure while increasing the presence of ES.Science, Faculty ofEarth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department ofUnreviewedUndergraduat