Stimulated thyroglobulin and pre-ablation antithyroglobulin antibody products can predict the response to radioiodine therapy of TgAb-positive differentiated thyroid cancer patients: a retrospective study

ObjectiveWe aimed to explore the predictive value of stimulated thyroglobulin (sTg) and pre-ablation antithyroglobulin (pa-TgAb) products for the effect of radioiodine therapy (RAIT) on TgAb-positive differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) patients.MethodsIn this study, we enrolled 265 patients with TgAb-positive DTC who underwent RAIT after total thyroidectomy (TT). Based on the last follow-up result, the patients were divided into two groups: the excellent response (ER) group and the non-excellent response (NER) group. We analyzed the factors related to the effect of RAIT.ResultsThe ER group consisted of 197 patients. The NER group consisted of 68 patients. For the univariate analysis, we found that the maximal tumor diameter, whether with extrathyroidal extension (ETE), bilateral or unilateral primary lesion, multifocality, preoperative TgAb (preop-TgAb), pa-TgAb, sTg × pa-TgAb, initial RAIT dose, N stage, and surgical extent (modified radical neck dissection or not), showed significant differences between the ER group and NER group (all p-values <0.05). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves showed that the cutoff value was 724.25 IU/ml, 424.00 IU/ml, and 59.73 for preop-TgAb, pa-TgAb, and sTg × pa-TgAb, respectively. The multivariate logistic regression analysis results indicated that pa-TgAb, sTg × pa-TgAb, initial RAIT dose, and N stage were independent risk factors for NER (all p-values <0.05). For the Kaplan–Meier analysis of disease-free survival (DFS), the median DFS of the patients with sTg × pa-TgAb < 59.73 and initial RAIT dose ≤ 100 mCi was significantly longer than that of the patients with sTg × pa-TgAb ≥ 59.73 (50.27 months vs. 48.59 months, p = 0.041) and initial RAIT dose >100 mCi (50.50 months vs. 38.00 months, p = 0.030).ConclusionWe found the sTg and pa-TgAb conducts is a good predictor of the efficacy of RAIT in TgAb-positive DTC patients. It can play a very positive and important role in optimizing treatment, improving prognosis, and reducing the burden of patients

The Recent Technological Development of Intelligent Mining in China

In the last five years, China has seen the technological development of intelligent mining and the application of the longwall automation technology developed by the Longwall Automation Steering Committee. This paper summarizes this great achievement, which occurred during the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011–2015), and which included the development of a set of intelligent equipment for hydraulic-powered supports, information transfers, dynamic decision-making, performance coordination, and the achievement of a high level of reliability despite difficult conditions. Within China, the intelligent system of a set of hydraulic-powered supports was completed, with our own intellectual property rights. An intelligent mining model was developed that permitted unmanned operation and single-person inspection on the work face. With these technologies, the number of miners on the work face can now be significantly reduced. Miners are only required to monitor mining machines on the roadway or at the surface control center, since intelligent mining can be applied to extract middle-thick or thick coal seams. As a result, miners’ safety has been improved. Finally, this paper discusses the prospects and challenges of intelligent mining over the next ten years

Dissociation path competition of radiolysis ionization-induced molecule damage under electron beam illumination.

Radiolysis ionization under electron beam illumination induces dissociation and damage of organic and biological molecules; thus, it is impossible to image the related materials by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). To understand the atomistic mechanism of radiolysis damage, we developed a systematical procedure based on real-time time-dependent density functional theory (rt-TDDFT) for simulating the radiolysis damage processes of molecules; this procedure can describe the ionization cross sections of the electronic states and the fast dissociation processes caused by hot carrier cooling and the Auger decay on deep levels. For the radiolysis damage of C2H6O2, our simulation unexpectedly showed that there is strong competition among three different dissociation paths, including fast dissociation caused by nonadiabatic cooling of the hot carrier; fast dissociation caused by Auger decay, which induces double ionization and Coulomb explosion; and slow dissociation caused by increased kinetic energy. As the energy of the incident electron beam changes, the time scales of these dissociation paths and their relative contributions to the molecule damage change significantly. These simulation results explain the measured mass spectra of the C2H6O2 dissociation fragments and also provide clear competition mechanisms for blocking these dissociation paths in the TEM imaging of organic and biological materials

Influence of formation process on gas generation and electrochemical performance of Li-rich/Si@C Li-ion batteries

According to the unique characteristics of Li-rich manganese-based cathode materials during the first cycle charge, a pulse formation process was designed to reduce the gas production during the formation process and improve the electrochemical performance of the Li-rich/Si@C batteries. The GC-MS, SEM, XPS and electrochemical test results show that, compared with the traditional formation process by optimizing the formation process, the gas production of the batteries under the pulse formation is reduced by about 37%. After pulse formation, a dense film structure can be formed on the surface of the positive and negative active materials, the stress of the cells during the formation process can be relieved. The pulse formation process can also effectively save the formation time, shorten the time from 102.6 h to 81.5 h. In addition, the electrochemical stability during cycle is improved, after 500 cycles, both the capacity retention rate and the median voltage have been significantly improved

Factors impacting gas content measurements using gas desorption by drilling underground boreholes

Accurate determination of the gas content in coalbeds is important for safe mining. Currently, gas desorption by drilling underground boreholes is the most commonly used gas determination method. However, this method is not very accurate and needs to be improved. In this study, we established a laboratory protocol based on coal adsorption studies to analyse factors affecting the measurement accuracy. The results showed that exposure time, sampling method, sample weight, particle size and gas loss estimate significantly affected the gas content measurement using gas desorption by drilling underground boreholes. Longer exposure time and increased particle size resulted in higher relative errors. Sampling by coring is more accurate than sampling by drilling. The higher the sample weight is for samples weighing less than 240 g, the larger the error of the in situ measurements of desorbed gas, residual gas and lost gas is. The error tends to stabilize for heavier samples. The gas losses at different exposure times calculated using the commonly used Barrer model, power function method and negative exponent method were compared. The gas loss error within 0–12 min, computed with the Barrer model, and after 12 min, computed with the power function method, is minimal. The modified formula of gas loss was obtained using the combination of a fitting analysis and the relationship between gas loss and exposure time. Subsequently, the optimal procedure for in situ gas content measurements using gas desorption by drilling underground boreholes was determined. The gas content errors for anthracite, gas coal, lean coal and long flame coal, which were measured using gas desorption by drilling underground boreholes and corrected using the gas loss formula, decreased significantly to less than 10%, thus, meeting the engineering accuracy norm

TRPC3 Regulates the Proliferation and Apoptosis Resistance of Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells through the TRPC3/RASA4/MAPK Pathway

Currently, there is no effective molecular-based therapy for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Canonical transient receptor potential isoform 3 (TRPC3) was previously shown to be upregulated in breast cancer biopsy tissues when compared to normal breast tissues. However, the biological role of TRPC3 in breast cancer still remains to be elucidated. In this study, subcellular fractionation followed by Western blot and immunocytochemistry showed that TRPC3 was over-expressed on the plasma membrane of TNBC line MDA-MB-231 when compared to an estrogen receptor-positive cell line MCF-7. TRPC3 blocker Pyr3 and dominant negative of TRPC3 attenuated proliferation, induced apoptosis and sensitized cell death to chemotherapeutic agents in MDA-MB-231 as measured by proliferation assays. Interestingly, Ras GTPase-activating protein 4 (RASA4), a Ca2+-promoted Ras-MAPK pathway suppressor, was found to be located on the plasma membrane of MDA-MB-231. Blocking TRPC3 decreased the amount of RASA4 located on the plasma membrane, with concomitant activation of MAPK pathways. Our results suggest that, in TNBC MDA-MB-231 cells, Ca2+ influx through TRPC3 channel sustains the presence of RASA4 on the plasma membrane where it inhibits the Ras-MAPK pathway, leading to proliferation and apoptosis resistance. Our study reveals the novel TRPC3-RASA4-MAPK signaling cascade in TNBC cells and suggests that TRPC3 may be exploited as a potential therapeutic target for TNBC

Effect of Graphite Morphology on the Electrochemical and Mechanical Properties of SiOx/Graphite Composite Anode

Mixing SiOx materials with graphite materials has become a key technology to improve their performance, but it is still unclear what kind of graphite materials help to construct a stable electrode structure. The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of graphite morphology on the structure and performance of SiOx/C composite electrodes (850 mAh g−1). For the SiOx/C59 composite electrode constructed by the lamellar graphite (C59) with a big aspect ratio and SiOx particles, the SiOx particles agglomerate in the pores of C59 particles. This uneven electrode structure could lead to excessive stress and strain of the electrode during cycling, which causes the anode electrode structure failure and cycling performance deterioration. While the small-size lamellar graphite (SFG15) with random orientation helps to construct stable electrode structure with uniform particle distribution and pore structure, which could reduce the stress and strain change of the electrode during cycling. Thus, the composite electrode (SiOx/SFG15) exhibits better cycling performance compared with SiOx/C59 composite electrode. This work reveals the structure-activity relationship of graphite morphology, electrode structure and the mechanical and electrochemical performance of the electrode, and provides a guide to the design and development of the high capacity SiOx/C composite electrode structure

Research progress in low-temperature discharge performance of Ni-rich ternary lithium-ion batteries

With the rapid development of the new energy automotive industry, consumers' requirements for the range of electric vehicles have been increasing. The Ni-rich ternary lithium-ion battery has become the most promising power battery in electric vehicles due to its high specific energy, but the battery system still faces the problem of poor performance at low temperature.The research progress on low temperature performance of Ni-rich ternary power battery in recent years was summarized in this review. The influence factors on the low temperature performance of Ni-rich ternary power battery were summarized emphatically. On the one hand, the effects of low temperature performance from thermodynamics were analyzed, including the structural change of the Ni-rich ternary cathode materials and graphite anode materials, electrolytic phase transformation and solvation structure changes, and glass transition of binder. On the other hand, rate controlling step in the low temperature discharge process in the Ni-rich ternary lithium-ion battery was summed up. According to this, main modification measures of low-temperature performance in Ni-rich ternary power battery were summarized. Low temperature electrolyte was designed by optimizing solvents, improving lithium salts and applying new additives. In order to improve the low temperature performance of electrode materials, three methods were mainly employed: substitution, surface modification and smaller material particle size. The remaining shortcomings of the research on low-temperature performance of the battery were summarized, and the research on the low temperature thermodynamic characteristics of batteries is not clear enough. In addition, the research methods for the low temperature kinetic process of batteries are single, and the influence of the reaction sequence in batteries is insufficiently understood

Microstructure and mechanical properties of MoAlB particles reinforced Al matrix composites by interface modification with in situ formed Al12Mo

The interfacial bonding between reinforcement particles and metal matrix is vital significant to the mechanical properties of composites. In this study, a new MoAlB/Al composites with interface modification by in situ formed Al12Mo were prepared from MoAlB and Al powders for the first time. The thermal stability of MoAlB in MoAlBeAl systemwas investigated by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetry analysis. It was found that the MoAlB can react with Al to form Al12Mo and a small quantity of AlB2 and MoB2. The formed Al12Mo can suppress the Al atoms diffusion and thus to hinder the reaction progress. The modified interfacial bond by in situ formed Al12Mo effectively improved the mechanical properties of the MoAlB/Al composites. The Vickers hardness increases linearly as the MoAlB volume content increases from 5% to 20%, the hardness value increases by approximate 11 H V for every 5% reinforcements increment. The yield stress and Vickers hardness of 20MoAlB/Al composites are 124.2 MPa and 70.1 H V, respectively. The mechanical properties and failure mechanism of the composites with different initial MoAlB contents were also estimated and analyzed, the excessive MoAlB particles will be detrimental to the mechanical properties due to the premature microcracks initiation, rapid propagation and coalescence of the microcracks in the composites. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Effect of Graphite Morphology on the Electrochemical and Mechanical Properties of SiO_x/Graphite Composite Anode

Mixing SiOx materials with graphite materials has become a key technology to improve their performance, but it is still unclear what kind of graphite materials help to construct a stable electrode structure. The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of graphite morphology on the structure and performance of SiOx/C composite electrodes (850 mAh g−1). For the SiOx/C59 composite electrode constructed by the lamellar graphite (C59) with a big aspect ratio and SiOx particles, the SiOx particles agglomerate in the pores of C59 particles. This uneven electrode structure could lead to excessive stress and strain of the electrode during cycling, which causes the anode electrode structure failure and cycling performance deterioration. While the small-size lamellar graphite (SFG15) with random orientation helps to construct stable electrode structure with uniform particle distribution and pore structure, which could reduce the stress and strain change of the electrode during cycling. Thus, the composite electrode (SiOx/SFG15) exhibits better cycling performance compared with SiOx/C59 composite electrode. This work reveals the structure-activity relationship of graphite morphology, electrode structure and the mechanical and electrochemical performance of the electrode, and provides a guide to the design and development of the high capacity SiOx/C composite electrode structure