Geography and similarity of regional cuisines in China

Food occupies a central position in every culture and it is therefore of great interest to understand the evolution of food culture. The advent of the World Wide Web and online recipe repositories has begun to provide unprecedented opportunities for data-driven, quantitative study of food culture. Here we harness an online database documenting recipes from various Chinese regional cuisines and investigate the similarity of regional cuisines in terms of geography and climate. We found that the geographical proximity, rather than climate proximity is a crucial factor that determines the similarity of regional cuisines. We develop a model of regional cuisine evolution that provides helpful clues to understand the evolution of cuisines and cultures.Comment: 13 pages, 11 figures and 2 table

Influence of Reciprocal links in Social Networks

In this Letter, we empirically study the influence of reciprocal links, in order to understand its role in affecting the structure and function of directed social networks. Experimental results on two representative datesets, Sina Weibo and Douban, demonstrate that the reciprocal links indeed play a more important role than non-reciprocal ones in both spreading information and maintaining the network robustness. In particular, the information spreading process can be significantly enhanced by considering the reciprocal effect. In addition, reciprocal links are largely responsible for the connectivity and efficiency of directed networks. This work may shed some light on the in-depth understanding and application of the reciprocal effect in directed online social networks

A study on the preparation and characterization of plasmid DNA and drug-containing magnetic nanoliposomes for the treatment of tumors

Zi-Yu Wang1,2, Li Wang1, Jia Zhang1, Yun-Tao Li1, Dong-Sheng Zhang11School of Medicine, Southeast University, Nanjing, China; 2School of Basic Medical Sciences, Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, ChinaPurpose: To explore the preparation and characterization of a novel nanosized magnetic liposome containing the PEI-As2O3/Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 complex.Methods: Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 and As2O3/Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 nanoparticles were prepared by chemical coprecipitation and loaded with PEI. The PEI-As2O3/Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 complex was characterized using transmission electron and scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive spectrometry, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Cell transfection experiments were performed to evaluate the transfect efficiency. Magnetic nanoliposomes were prepared by rotatory evaporation and their shape, diameter, and thermodynamic characteristics were observed.Results: Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 and PEI-As2O3/Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 nanoparticles were spherical, with an average diameter of 20–40 nm. PEI-As2O3/Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 was an appropriate carrier for the delivery of a foreign gene to HepG2 cells. Energy dispersive spectrometry results confirmed the presence of the elements nitrogen and arsenic. Nanoliposomes of approximately 100 nm were observed under a transmission electron microscope. Upon exposure to an alternating magnetic field, they also had good magnetic responsiveness, even though Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 was modified by PEI and encased in liposomes. Temperatures increased to 37°C–54°C depending on different concentrations of PEI-As2O3/Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 and remained stable thereafter.Conclusion: Our results suggest that PEI-As2O3/Mn0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 magnetic nanoliposomes are an excellent biomaterial, which has multiple benefits in tumor thermotherapy, gene therapy, and chemotherapy.Keywords: nanoliposomes, magnetic fluid hyperthermia, As2O3, DN

Electric-filed tuned anomalous valley Hall effect in A-type hexagonal antiferromagnetic monolayer

The combination of antiferromagnetic (AFM) spintronics and anomalous valley Hall effect (AVHE) is of great significance for potential applications in valleytronics. Here, we propose a design principle for achieving AVHE in A-type hexagonal AFM monolayer. The design principle involves the introduction of layer-dependent electrostatic potential caused by out-of-plane external electric field, which can break the combined symmetry ($PT$ symmetry) of spatial inversion ($P$) and time reversal ($T$), producing spin splitting. The spin order of spin splitting can be reversed by regulating the direction of electric field. Based on first-principles calculations, the design principle can be verified in AFM $\mathrm{Cr_2CH_2}$. The layer-locked hidden Berry curvature can give rise to layer-Hall effect, including valley layer-spin Hall effect and layer-locked AVHE. Our works provide an experimentally feasible way to realize AVHE in AFM monolayer.Comment: 5 pages,6 figure

Elevated plasma pyruvate kinase M2 concentrations are associated with the clinical severity and prognosis of coronary artery disease

Graphical abstract Highlights Pyruvate kinase M2 is a predictor of clinical severity of coronary artery disease Pyruvate kinase M2 predicts the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events Pyruvate kinase M2 showed additional prognostic value in coronary artery disease IntroductionPyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) was involved in the pathophysiology of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease (CAD). We tested whether plasma PKM2 concentrations were correlated with clinical severity and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) in CAD patients. Materials and methodsA total of 2443 CAD patients and 238 controls were enrolled. The follow-up time was two years. Plasma PKM2 concentrations were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits (Cloud-Clone, Wuhan, China) using SpectraMax i3x Multi-Mode Microplate Reader (Molecular Devices, San Jose, USA). The predictors of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) were assessed by logistic regression analysis. The association between PKM2 concentration in different quartiles and MACEs was evaluated by Kaplan-Meier (KM) curves with log-rank test and Cox proportional hazard models. The predictive value of PKM2 and a cluster of conventional risk factors was determined by Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The net reclassification improvement (NRI) and the integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) were utilized to evaluate the enhancement in risk prediction when PKM2 was added to a predictive model containing a cluster of conventional risk factors. ResultsIn CAD patients, PKM2 concentration was the independent predictor of ACS (P < 0.001). Kaplan-Meier cumulative survival curves and Cox proportional hazards analyses revealed that patients with a higher PKM2 concentration had higher incidence of MACEs compared to those with a lower PKM2 concentration (P < 0.001). The addition of PKM2 to a cluster of conventional risk factors significantly increased its prognostic value of MACEs. ConclusionBaseline plasma PKM2 concentrations predict the clinical severity and prognosis of CAD

Single nonmagnetic impurity resonance in FeSe-based 122-type superconductors as a probe for pairing symmetry

We study the effect of a single non-magnetic impurity in A$_{y}$Fe$_{2-x}$Se$_{2}$ (A=K, Rb, or Cs) superconductors by considering various pairing states based on a three-orbital model consistent with the photoemission experiments. The local density of states on and near the impurity site has been calculated by solving the Bogoliubov-de Gennes equations self-consistently. The impurity-induced in-gap bound states are found only for attractive impurity scattering potential, as in the cases of doping of Co or Ni, which is characterized by the strong particle-hole asymmetry, in the nodeless $d_{x^2-y^2}$ wave pairing state. This property may be used to probe the pairing symmetry of FeSe-based 122-type superconductors.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure