Quantitative analysis of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in neoadjuvant treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer: a retrospective study

PurposeTo explore the clinical value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) quantitative analysis in the evaluation and prognosis of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC).MethodsEighty-three consecutive patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and total mesorectal excision for LARC were retrospectively included. According to pathological results, patients were categorized into complete or incomplete response groups. Differences in ultrasonic parameters, pathological results, and clinical data between groups were evaluated. The cutoff point for a complete response as determined by quantitative analysis of CEUS was assessed using a receiver operating characteristic curve; additionally, overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were analyzed.ResultsOf the 83 patients, 12 (14.5%) achieved a complete response and 71 (85.5%) did not. There were significant between-group differences in carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels, differentiation degree, proportion of tumor occupying the lumen, anterior-posterior and superior-inferior diameters of the lesion, and intensity of enhancement (P<0.05). CEUS quantitative analysis showed significant between-group differences in peak intensity (PI) and area under the curve (AUC) values (P<0.05). The OS and PFS of patients with high PI, high AUC value, and poorly differentiated cancer were significantly worse than those with low PI, low AUC values, and moderately to highly differentiated cancer (P<0.05). High CEA levels (hazard ratio: 1.02, 95% confidence interval: 1.01–1.04; P=0.002) and low differentiation (2.72, 1.12–6.62; P=0.028) were independent risk factors for PFS and OS.ConclusionsCEUS can predict the response to neoadjuvant treatment in patients with LARC. CEUS quantitative analysis is helpful for clinical prognosis

Efficacy mechanisms research progress of the active components in the characteristic woody edible oils

Woody edible oils are a type of vegetable oil. Woody edible oils like olive oil have greater quantities of unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs), particularly essential FAs, as well as vitamin E, phytosterols, and other nutrients that are becoming more vital in human health. As a result, finding high-quality woody oil resource plants is critical to ensuring enough edible oil supply. As six novel woody crops, Paeonia suffruticosa, Plukenetia volubilis, Acer truncatum, Olea europaea, Camellia sinensis, and Camellia oleifera are characterized by high oil production, widespread cultivation, adaptability, and various active ingredients. The six woody crop oils contain UFAs (e.g., α-linolenic acid, oleic acid, and linoleic acid), vitamin E, polyphenols, phytosterols, and so forth. The presence of these active ingredients confers anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cholesterol and lipid metabolism regulating, blood lipid lowering, immune boosting, memory improving, intestinal flora regulating, and other properties to the oils, which are beneficial to body health. This article examined in depth the seed resources, FA composition, active component kinds, active ingredient efficacy mechanism, and physiological impacts of these six novel woody crop oils. These developments lay a solid platform for further study and development of these woody oil crops.This work was supported by the Key Research and Development Program of Zhejiang Province (No. 2021C02002), Zhejiang Provincial Natural Sciences Foundation of China under Grant (No. LZ22C200006), Top young talents of the ten thousand talents program of Zhejiang Province (ZJWR0308016), Key R&D projects in Zhejiang Province (2023C04010), and Zhejiang Basic Public Welfare Research Project (LGN21C200006). Agusti Romero acknowledges financial support from the CERCA Program from the Generalitat of Catalonia. We would like to thank all contributors of the current study for their concepts, ideas, contribution, and provision.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Prospecting Prediction for the Yulong Metallogenic Belt in Tibet Based on Remote Sensing Alteration Information and Structural Interpretation

The Yulong porphyry copper belt in eastern Tibet is located in the middle of Tethys–Himalayan metallogenic mega-province, which is one of the three major porphyry copper metallogenic mega-provinces. The Yulong copper belt belongs to the super porphyry copper belt and represents one of the most important copper mineralization prospecting areas in China. A significant quantity of research data shows that this study area belongs to the environment of intracontinental collision and compression, with a complex geological structure, magmatic rock development and excellent metallogenic geological background. However, because this area is located in an alpine and high-altitude area, it is difficult to carry out any traditional field geological surveys, and the existing studies of both prospecting and prediction are relatively weak. This study focused on information extraction for alteration minerals in the Yulong metallogenic belt and its surroundings based on multispectral data and hyperspectral data, establishing a spectral library of alteration minerals in this area. Based on Sentinel-1A radar data and Landsat-8 OLI color synthesis data, the linear structure of the study area was interpreted. On this basis, the information extraction results relating to alteration minerals obtained from multi-source remote sensing data, linear structure interpretation results and the geochemical exploration data of the study area were superimposed to comprehensively analyze the metallogenic geological conditions and mineralization characteristics in the area, establish remote sensing prospecting indicators there and optimize the potential areas for prospecting, providing technical support for the next step of prospecting and exploration in the area

Asymptotical stabilization of the nonlinear upper triangular fractional-order systems

Abstract This paper introduces a simple method of the design of the output feedback stabilizing controller (OFSC) for the nonlinear upper triangular fractional-order systems (NUTFOS). The OFSC which makes the closed-loop system asymptotically stable is given based on the fractional indirect Lyapunov method and the static gain control method. Furthermore, an algorithm is established to design OFSC for the NUTFOS. Finally, an example is presented to verify the validity of the proposed method

Response Surface Methodology for Optimization of Copper Leaching from Refractory Flotation Tailings

Response surface methodology is used to optimize the leaching process for refractory flotation copper tailings. The proportion of the refractory combination oxide copper (chrysocolla) is 64.84%. At present, few studies have examined the leaching of chrysocolla. In this study, we examine the effects of several variables, including the amount of concentrated sulfuric acid, leaching temperature, and leaching time, on leaching efficiency. Using a response surface methodology, we develop a quadratic model relanbting all the above experimental variables with leaching efficiency. The resulting model is highly consistent with experimental data. According to the model, the factor with the greatest influence on leaching efficiency is the amount of concentrated sulfuric acid. According to the model, the optimal leaching conditions are 85 kg/t concentrated sulfuric acid, a leaching temperature of 68.51 °C, and a leaching time of 4.36 h. The actual measured leaching efficiency under these conditions is 85.86%, which is close to the value of 86.79% predicted by the model. We study the leaching processes using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS) surface scan analyses. Both methods allow us to explore the content of the main element and visually observe its distribution, allowing us to develop effective methods for treating low-grade oxide ores

Optimized configuration of electro-thermal hybrid energy storage capacity based on wind power scenario probabilistic

In order to effectively improve the economy and feasibility of wind power grid access, an optimal configuration scheme of electric-thermal hybrid energy storage considering the probability of typical scenarios of wind power is proposed. Firstly, using scenario analysis and K-means clustering method, a large amount of wind power historical data is simplified into six typical output scenarios and the probability of each scenario is established. The number of clusters is determined by the elbow curve method and the Dunn index method. Secondly, a control strategy for electric-thermal hybrid energy storage system is proposed and a combined wind-storage system model applicable to multiple scenarios is established. Finally, a capacity configuration optimization model containing the integrated response of electric and thermal load with the objective of minimizing the economic cost and the amount of abandoned wind is established. The scenario probabilities are added to the objective function in the form of weights. The model is solved by particle swarm algorithm. Through simulation analysis and comparison with other energy storage configuration scenarios, it is verified that the proposed configuration strategy can improve wind power utilization by about 16.12% while reducing the overall system cost by about 43.76%

Correlation Analysis between Land-Use/Cover Change and Coastal Subsidence in the Yellow River Delta, China: Reviewing the Past and Prospecting the Future

In recent years, noticeable subsidence depressions have occurred along the coastal zone of the Yellow River Delta. Consistent with these changes, dramatic human modifications within the coastal zone stand out, and the coastline is altered from an undisturbed natural area to an artificial coastline. However, very few studies have attempted to quantitatively analyze the relationship between subsidence depression and human activities. Here, the subsidence characteristics of the different land-use types in the Yellow River Delta are examined, and their spatiotemporal trends are quantified using a long-term satellite-observed time series of 30 years (1984–2017) regarding the land use map in combination with the InSAR-derived vertical ground deformations during three typical periods (P1: 1992–2000, P2: 2007–2010, and P3: 2016–2017). Noticeably, the highest subsidence rates were observed in areas where substantial human activities were observed, such as the subsidence in the salt fields ranging from 13 mm/year to 32 mm/year to 453 mm/year, respectively. Moreover, through the land-use prediction of Land Change Modeler (LCM), it is found that the salt field area will be further expanded in the future. The ecological vulnerability of the Yellow River Delta coastal zone should receive more attention in the future in terms of planning environmental protection strategies