Multi-Source Collaborative Gradient Discrepancy Minimization for Federated Domain Generalization

Federated Domain Generalization aims to learn a domain-invariant model from multiple decentralized source domains for deployment on unseen target domain. Due to privacy concerns, the data from different source domains are kept isolated, which poses challenges in bridging the domain gap. To address this issue, we propose a Multi-source Collaborative Gradient Discrepancy Minimization (MCGDM) method for federated domain generalization. Specifically, we propose intra-domain gradient matching between the original images and augmented images to avoid overfitting the domain-specific information within isolated domains. Additionally, we propose inter-domain gradient matching with the collaboration of other domains, which can further reduce the domain shift across decentralized domains. Combining intra-domain and inter-domain gradient matching, our method enables the learned model to generalize well on unseen domains. Furthermore, our method can be extended to the federated domain adaptation task by fine-tuning the target model on the pseudo-labeled target domain. The extensive experiments on federated domain generalization and adaptation indicate that our method outperforms the state-of-the-art methods significantly.Comment: Accepted by AAAI 202

Bifurcations for a predator–prey system with two delays

AbstractIn this paper, a predator–prey system with two delays is investigated. By choosing the sum τ of two delays as a bifurcation parameter, we show that Hopf bifurcations can occur as τ crosses some critical values. By deriving the equation describing the flow on the center manifold, we can determine the direction of the Hopf bifurcations and the stability of the bifurcating periodic solutions. In addition, special attention is paid to the global continuation of local Hopf bifurcations. Using a global Hopf bifurcation result of [J. Wu, Symmetric functional differential equations and neural networks with memory, Trans. Amer. Math. Soc. 350 (1998) 4799–4838], we may show the global existence of periodic solutions

An Analysis on Comparison of the Static Load Test Performed to Post-Grouted Pile Foundation with Chinese, American and European Standard

In the paper, a study is conducted to pile foundation post-grouting and static load test, in which the tested value is used to compare with the standard of China, America and Europe. Taking Li-yuTuo bridge as study object, the trial piles - 3c2 and 3c4 with length of 33 meters and diameter of 1.2 meter are selected. The vertical bearing capacity of single pile is designed as 33000 kN which thereafter is enhanced using post-grouting. The on-site static load test is employed to evaluate the bearing capacity of pile foundation that is obtained being 39220 kN through self-balanced test. It is indicated through standard comparison that the bearing capacity calculated by China and America standard is akin to each other, turning to be excessively conservative and much less than the theoretical value of Europe. The Chinese standard shows bearing capacity after grouting is increased by 78.8 percent compared with pile foundation being not grouted. The post-grouting trial value is increased by 18.8 percent more than design value, 81.4 percent than theoretical value of general pile and 1.44 percent than theoretical value of post-grouting

Surface Immunoproteomics Reveals Potential Biomarkers in Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris

Alicyclobacillus acidoterrestris is a major putrefying bacterium that can cause pecuniary losses in the global juice industry. Current detection approaches are time-consuming and exhibit reduced specificity and sensitivity. In this study, an immunoproteomic approach was utilized to identify specific biomarkers from A. acidoterrestris for the development of new detection methods. Cell surface-associated proteins were extracted and separated by 2-D (two-dimensional) gel electrophoresis. Immunogenic proteins were detected by Western blot analysis using antisera against A. acidoterrestris. Twenty-two protein spots exhibiting immunogenicity were excised and eighteen of the associated spots were successfully identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF MS). These proteins were observed to be involved in energy and carbohydrate metabolism, transmembrane transport, response to oxidative stress, polypeptide biosynthesis, and molecule binding activity. This is the first report detailing the identification of cell surface-associated antigens of A. acidoterrestris. The identified immunogenic proteins could serve as potential targets for the development of novel detection methods

The effects of drought stress on the activity of acid phosphatase and its protective enzymes in pigweed leaves

A model of drought was created on pigweed and the effects of drought stress on the activity of acid phosphatase and its protective enzymes were examined. The pot-cultured pigweeds were divided into 4 groups (ten plants per group) when they reached 6 leaves. (1) In the control group, the culture media contained 70 - 85% of field moisture capacity, (2) In the second group, the mild drought stress group, the culture media contained 50 - 60% of field moisture capacity, (3) The moderate drought stress group had a culture media that contained 40 - 50% of field moisture capacity; (4) The severe drought stress group culture media contained 30 - 40% of field moisture capacity. All through the process of the present study, the pigweed plants were cultured under natural conditions on the rooftop of the laboratory building; though transferred indoor in rainy days to avoid the influence of natural precipitation. The plants were sampled and detected every five days after the administration of drought stress. The results clearly demonstrated that the drought stress significantly enhanced the activity of acid phosphatase, membrane permeability and MDA contents; though the activity of acid phosphatase declined after a certain time of drought stress, the extent of membrane permeability and MDA contents still increased with the time. The membrane permeability and MDA contents were correlated with a correlation coefficient of 0.963, 0.971 and 0.939 under mild, moderate and severe drought stress, respectively. The activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxide dismutase (POD) and hydrogen peroxidase (CAT) was also enhanced with increase in the intensity of drought stress or the prolongation of drought stress at first and then decreased some time afterwards. It was concluded that drought stress enhanced the activity of acid phosphatase, membrane permeability and MDA in the pigweed plants, which was able to resist a certain drought stress by enhancing the activity of protective enzymes. However, excessive drought stress markedly affected the metabolic systems of enzyme and decreased the activity of enzyme

Unveiling the link between systemic inflammation markers and cognitive performance among older adults in the US: A population-based study using NHANES 2011–2014 data

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the association between systemic inflammation markers and cognitive performance among older US adults. Methods: This cross-sectional study assessed 3,632 older participants from the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The main analysis included participants aged over 60 years. Systemic inflammation markers were quantified by calculating the composite inflammation indicators from the blood routine count, and cognitive performance was assessed using Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer\u27s Disease (CERAD) test, Animal Fluency test (AFT), and Digit Symbol Substitution test (DSST). Results: There were 2,743 individuals enrolled in the current analysis. The overall mean age was 64.9 years and 48.7 % were males. The levels of SIRI and PIV were significant negative associated with scores of CERAD, CERAD delayed recall, and DSST in the unadjusted models. Moreover, SII were significant negative associated with scores of CERAD and CERAD delayed recall. After adjusting the covariates of demographics, lifestyle factors, history of chronic diseases and BMI, significant negative association were observed between systematic inflammation markers and cognitive performance. Additionally, a progressive and significant decrease in the score of cognitive performance assessments with the increased levels of SIRI, SII, and PIV were respectively observed. Finally, the correlation between systemic inflammation markers and cognitive performance were evidenced in the sensitive analysis. Conclusion: Findings support a strong inverse correlation between systemic inflammation markers and cognitive performance, suggesting that addressing inflammation could be a promising avenue for enhancing cognitive health and mitigating age-related cognitive decline

Relationships between structure and antioxidant capacity and activity of glycosylated flavonols

The antioxidant capacity (AC) and antioxidant activity (AA) of three flavonols (FLV), aglycones and their glycosylated derivatives were evaluated using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) assays in various solvents. Findings confirmed that the glycosylation at the 3-position (3-glycosylation) always decreased the AC under most conditions due to substitution of the 3-position hydroxyl group and glycoside disruption in the molecular planarity. The 7-glycosylated derivatives did not have the above effects, thus generally exhibited ACs similar to their aglycones. Glycosylation decreased the AA of kaempferol and isorhamnetin for both assays in methanol, 3-glycosylation inhibited quercetin AA in the ABTS assay. In the DPPH assay, the AA of 3-glycosylated quercetin was significantly higher than quercetin. Using LC–MS/MS analysis, we found that quercetin and quercetin-7-glucoside underwent dimerization during the antioxidant reaction, potentially leading to a decline in AAs. However, 3-glycoside substitution may have hindered dimer formation, thereby allowing the FLVs to retain strong free radical scavenging abilities.National Key Research and Development Program of China | Ref. 2019YFC160670

Heritability enrichment of immunoglobulin G N-glycosylation in specific tissues

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified over 60 genetic loci associated with immunoglobulin G (IgG) N-glycosylation; however, the causal genes and their abundance in relevant tissues are uncertain. Leveraging data from GWAS summary statistics for 8,090 Europeans, and large-scale expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) data from the genotype-tissue expression of 53 types of tissues (GTEx v7), we derived a linkage disequilibrium score for the specific expression of genes (LDSC-SEG) and conducted a transcriptome-wide association study (TWAS). We identified 55 gene associations whose predicted levels of expression were significantly associated with IgG N-glycosylation in 14 tissues. Three working scenarios, i.e., tissue-specific, pleiotropic, and coassociated, were observed for candidate genetic predisposition affecting IgG N-glycosylation traits. Furthermore, pathway enrichment showed several IgG N-glycosylation-related pathways, such as asparagine N-linked glycosylation, N-glycan biosynthesis and transport to the Golgi and subsequent modification. Through phenome-wide association studies (PheWAS), most genetic variants underlying TWAS hits were found to be correlated with health measures (height, waist-hip ratio, systolic blood pressure) and diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, inflammatory bowel disease, and Parkinson’s disease, which are related to IgG N-glycosylation. Our study provides an atlas of genetic regulatory loci and their target genes within functionally relevant tissues, for further studies on the mechanisms of IgG N-glycosylation and its related diseases

Characterization of genome-wide H3K27ac profiles reveals a distinct PM2.5-associated histone modification signature

Complete list of differentially modified H3K27ac loci. (XLSX 69 kb