Machine learning classification models for fetal skeletal development performance prediction using maternal bone metabolic proteins in goats

Background: In developing countries, maternal undernutrition is the major intrauterine environmental factor contributing to fetal development and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Maternal nutrition restriction (MNR) in gestation has proven to impact overall growth, bone development, and proliferation and metabolism of mesenchymal stem cells in offspring. However, the efficient method for elucidation of fetal bone development performance through maternal bone metabolic biochemical markers remains elusive. Methods: We adapted goats to elucidate fetal bone development state with maternal serum bone metabolic proteins under malnutrition conditions in mid- and late-gestation stages. We used the experimental data to create 72 datasets by mixing different input features such as one-hot encoding of experimental conditions, metabolic original data, experimental-centered features and experimental condition probabilities. Seven Machine Learning methods have been used to predict six fetal bone parameters (weight, length, and diameter of femur/humerus). Results: The results indicated that MNR influences fetal bone development (femur and humerus) and fetal bone metabolic protein levels (C-terminal telopeptides of collagen I, CTx, in middle-gestation and N-terminal telopeptides of collagen I, NTx, in late-gestation), and maternal bone metabolites (low bone alkaline phosphatase, BALP, in middle-gestation and high BALP in late-gestation). The results show the importance of experimental conditions (ECs) encoding by mixing the information with the serum metabolic data. The best classification models obtained for femur weight (Fw) and length (FI), and humerus weight (Hw) are Support Vector Machines classifiers with the leave-one-out cross-validation accuracy of 1. The rest of the accuracies are 0.98, 0.946 and 0.696 for the diameter of femur (Fd), diameter and length of humerus (Hd, Hl), respectively. With the feature importance analysis, the moving averages mixed ECs are generally more important for the majority of the models. The moving average of parathyroid hormone (PTH) within nutritional conditions (MA-PTH-experim) is important for Fd, Hd and Hl prediction models but its removal for enhancing the Fw, Fl and Hw model performance. Further, using one feature models, it is possible to obtain even more accurate models compared with the feature importance analysis models. In conclusion, the machine learning is an efficient method to confirm the important role of PTH and BALP mixed with nutritional conditions for fetal bone growth performance of goats. All the Python scripts including results and comments are available into an open repository at https://gitlab.com/muntisa/goat-bones-machine-learning

Gastrointestinal Spatiotemporal mRNA Expression of Ghrelin vs Growth Hormone Receptor and New Growth Yield Machine Learning Model Based on Perturbation Theory

[Abstract] The management of ruminant growth yield has economic importance. The current work presents a study of the spatiotemporal dynamic expression of Ghrelin and GHR at mRNA levels throughout the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of kid goats under housing and grazing systems. The experiments show that the feeding system and age affected the expression of either Ghrelin or GHR with different mechanisms. Furthermore, the experimental data are used to build new Machine Learning models based on the Perturbation Theory, which can predict the effects of perturbations of Ghrelin and GHR mRNA expression on the growth yield. The models consider eight longitudinal GIT segments (rumen, abomasum, duodenum, jejunum, ileum, cecum, colon and rectum), seven time points (0, 7, 14, 28, 42, 56 and 70 d) and two feeding systems (Supplemental and Grazing feeding) as perturbations from the expected values of the growth yield. The best regression model was obtained using Random Forest, with the coefficient of determination R2 of 0.781 for the test subset. The current results indicate that the non-linear regression model can accurately predict the growth yield and the key nodes during gastrointestinal development, which is helpful to optimize the feeding management strategies in ruminant production system.National Natural Science Foundation of China; 31320103917State of California; XDA05020700National Space Science Center (China); 2010T2S13National Space Science Center (China); 2012T1S0009Hunan Provincial People's Government (China); 2013TF3006Xunta de Galicia; GRC2014/04

Perioperative Toripalimab Plus Chemotherapy for Patients With Resectable Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: The Neotorch Randomized Clinical Trial

IMPORTANCE: Adjuvant and neoadjuvant immunotherapy have improved clinical outcomes for patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the optimal combination of checkpoint inhibition with chemotherapy remains unknown. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether toripalimab in combination with platinum-based chemotherapy will improve event-free survival and major pathological response in patients with stage II or III resectable NSCLC compared with chemotherapy alone. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This randomized clinical trial enrolled patients with stage II or III resectable NSCLC (without EGFR or ALK alterations for nonsquamous NSCLC) from March 12, 2020, to June 19, 2023, at 50 participating hospitals in China. The data cutoff date for this interim analysis was November 30, 2022. INTERVENTIONS: Patients were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive 240 mg of toripalimab or placebo once every 3 weeks combined with platinum-based chemotherapy for 3 cycles before surgery and 1 cycle after surgery, followed by toripalimab only (240 mg) or placebo once every 3 weeks for up to 13 cycles. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcomes were event-free survival (assessed by the investigators) and the major pathological response rate (assessed by blinded, independent pathological review). The secondary outcomes included the pathological complete response rate (assessed by blinded, independent pathological review) and adverse events. RESULTS: Of the 501 patients randomized, 404 had stage III NSCLC (202 in the toripalimab + chemotherapy group and 202 in the placebo + chemotherapy group) and 97 had stage II NSCLC and were excluded from this interim analysis. The median age was 62 years (IQR, 56-65 years), 92% of patients were male, and the median follow-up was 18.3 months (IQR, 12.7-22.5 months). For the primary outcome of event-free survival, the median length was not estimable (95% CI, 24.4 months-not estimable) in the toripalimab group compared with 15.1 months (95% CI, 10.6-21.9 months) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.40 [95% CI, 0.28-0.57], P \u3c .001). The major pathological response rate (another primary outcome) was 48.5% (95% CI, 41.4%-55.6%) in the toripalimab group compared with 8.4% (95% CI, 5.0%-13.1%) in the placebo group (between-group difference, 40.2% [95% CI, 32.2%-48.1%], P \u3c .001). The pathological complete response rate (secondary outcome) was 24.8% (95% CI, 19.0%-31.3%) in the toripalimab group compared with 1.0% (95% CI, 0.1%-3.5%) in the placebo group (between-group difference, 23.7% [95% CI, 17.6%-29.8%]). The incidence of immune-related adverse events occurred more frequently in the toripalimab group. No unexpected treatment-related toxic effects were identified. The incidence of grade 3 or higher adverse events, fatal adverse events, and adverse events leading to discontinuation of treatment were comparable between the groups. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The addition of toripalimab to perioperative chemotherapy led to a significant improvement in event-free survival for patients with resectable stage III NSCLC and this treatment strategy had a manageable safety profile. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04158440

Genome-Wide Analysis of Histone H3 Lysine9 Modifications in Human Mesenchymal Stem Cell Osteogenic Differentiation

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) possess self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation potentials. It has been established that epigenetic mechanisms such as histone modifications could be critical for determining the fate of stem cells. In this study, full human genome promoter microarrays and expression microarrays were used to explore the roles of histone modifications (H3K9Ac and H3K9Me2) upon the induction of MSC osteogenic differentiation. Our results revealed that the enrichment of H3K9Ac was decreased globally at the gene promoters, whereas the number of promoters enriched with H3K9Me2 was increased evidently upon osteogenic induction. By a combined analysis of data from both ChIP-on-chip and expression microarrays, a number of differentially expressed genes regulated by H3K9Ac and/or H3K9Me2 were identified, implicating their roles in several biological events, such as cell cycle withdraw and cytoskeleton reconstruction that were essential to differentiation process. In addition, our results showed that the vitamin D receptor played a trans-repression role via alternations of H3K9Ac and H3K9Me2 upon MSC osteogenic differentiation. Data from this study suggested that gene activation and silencing controlled by changes of H3K9Ac and H3K9Me2, respectively, were crucial to MSC osteogenic differentiation

A study on the spatial-temporal patterns and influencing factors of atmospheric vulnerability in the Pearl River Delta.

Atmospheric environmental assessment has emerged as a prominent area of research due to global climate change and regional atmospheric pollution issues. Accurate evaluation of atmospheric environmental vulnerability characteristics and understanding driving mechanisms are crucial for effective air pollution monitoring and prevention. This study focuses on the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region and employs the Vulnerability-Scoping-Diagram (VSD) model framework to establish an index system for assessing atmospheric environmental vulnerability based on exposure, sensitivity, and adaptability, combining the entropy value method and adopts Geographic Information System (GIS) for the time change and spatial evolution analysis, and finally utilizing the factor detection and interaction in Geodetector to explore the contribution degree of each driving factor of atmospheric environmental vulnerability and the exchange of influencing factors. The findings of this research are as follows: Firstly, the sensitivity index and resilience index of the atmospheric environment of the PRD exhibit an overall upward trend with fluctuations, while the exposure index demonstrates a pattern of initial increase, followed by a decrease, and subsequent increase with significant interannual variability. Secondly, the atmospheric environment vulnerability level of the PRD is primarily categorized as low and mild, with a negligible proportion of moderate vulnerability and no instances of severe or extreme vulnerability. The vulnerability index shows an initial increase followed by a subsequent decline from 2016 to 2020, indicating an overall improvement in the region's atmospheric environment. Thirdly, notable variations exist in the atmospheric environment vulnerability indices among the nine cities in the PRD, in which moderate vulnerability and low vulnerability are mainly concentrated in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan, and Dongguan in the central part of the PRD. lower vulnerability is primarily observed in the eastern and western regions of the PRD characterized by favorable natural environments and limited human interference, such as Huizhou, Zhaoqing, and Zhuhai. Finally, the atmospheric environment vulnerability of the PRD is the result of the combined effect of various driving factors, among which the urban built-up area, PM2.5 concentration, SO2 concentration, population density and the share of tertiary industry in GDP are the key drivers

Marketing of Islamic banking in Singapore.

A multitude of studies have indicated that there is potential growth for Sharia-compliant financial services (i.e. there is an increasing number of retail and corporate customers who want to conduct financial services in accordance to the Sharia). In the recent decade, Islamic finance has received attention from the Singapore government. Nevertheless, the development of Islamic Banking has been slow in Singapore despite interventions from the local authorities. We decided to conduct a research to help financial institutions better determine their promotional efforts in Islamic banking. Our research focuses on determining the type of information which an individual requires to consider Islamic Banking Aside from that, we looked at the effects which different marketing messages have on prospective customers. Finally, we also examined the differences between Muslims and Non-Muslims in the information required and receptivity to the different marketing messages. Through the surveys conducted, we found out that individuals require a high level of principles knowledge, i.e. the functioning principles and theoretical foundations of IB, to form an opinion on Islamic Banking. Financial profitability is the only important message that will significantly increase an individual’s purchase intention in Islamic Banking. Additional tests also revealed relationships between principles-knowledge and the effect of marketing messages on purchase intent. Our findings stress the importance of principles-knowledge to locals who have yet to form opinions on Islamic Banking. We would recommend financial institutions which are interested in promoting Islamic Banking to distribute marketing materials which are educational in nature and to focus on financial profitability of Islamic banking products.  BUSINES

Knowledge Mapping of Tourism Footprint: A Bibliometric Review Based on CiteSpace

Sustainable tourism plays an important role in enhancing economic benefits, promoting the transformation of development methods, and strengthening international communication. And the tourism footprint is gaining research attention as an essential means for evaluating the sustainability of tourism. However, there have been few attempts to draw a scientific investigation map of the tourism footprint. With the purpose of reviewing systematically the research status and providing ideas for future research in this field, this study conducts a scientometric analysis of 517 academic publications on tourism footprint with CiteSpace. We find that tourism footprint is gaining attention and promotion on a worldwide scale which is becoming a popular multidisciplinary study area. China, the United States, and England have the most productive institutions. There is a marked trend of cross-fertilization of research in this field with other disciplines. And we summarize three predominant research themes: the economic impacts of tourism development, the assessment of tourism footprint, and the promotion of sustainable tourism. Developing a consensus model for tourism footprint accounting and establishing a dynamic monitoring mechanism may get more attention in the future

How do technological innovation and fiscal decentralization affect the environment? A story of the fourth industrial revolution and sustainable growth

Deteriorating environmental quality poses a serious threat to life on earth. Similar to other countries, China has been attempting to reduce its reliance on non-renewable energy sources by adopting new energy-efficient technologies that help create a more sustainable industrial structure. Various studies have been conducted to determine the leading causes of environmental degradation. However, unlike international trade, economic activities, and eco-innovation, the political structure of a country is often ignored by scholars because of its indirect impact—which is difficult to evaluate—on emission reduction. In this study, we examine the impact of technological innovation and fiscal decentralization on carbon dioxide (CO) emissions in the presence of gross domestic product (GDP) and globalization in the case of China for the period 2005Q1 to 2018Q4. By using time series econometric techniques, we find that technological innovation, fiscal decentralization, GDP, and globalization are influential factors in explaining CO emissions in China. In terms of policy implications, we suggest that to deal with deteriorating environmental quality, China needs to formulate policies to mitigate emission levels by promoting an energy-efficient system. Moreover, to smoothen the process, it is imperative to clarify the responsibilities at different levels of government to successfully achieve the targets of low CO emissions and energy-saving functions of fiscal expenditures

Analysis of cooperation equilibrium of participants in power battery recycling chains considering information barrier

In the era of large-scale retirement of power batteries, there are information barriers and high recovery costs in their recycling. In view of this, in this study we constructed a tripartite evolutionary game model of the cooperation between power battery production and recycling enterprises and government participation. We analyzed the strategic choice of the three parties in the process of power battery recycling and simulated the influence of participants' willingness and information barriers on the strategic choices of the parties. The results showed that power battery production and recycling enterprises, and the government are affected by each other's willingness to participate at different degrees. The willingness of power battery manufacturers and recycling enterprises to cooperate with each other decreased with increases in information barriers.By analyzing the impact of information barrier on power battery recycling, some suggestions are put forward to provide decision-making reference for promoting the sustainable development of power battery industry

Evolving pattern and improvement path of China’s solid waste management policies

Systematically sorting out the evolving pattern of solid waste management policies and studying the key points and development trends of solid waste management policies are conducive to the clarification of improvement path of solid waste management policies. Based on the promulgated solid waste management policies, this study applies statistical methods to the analysis of the text structure and contents of the solid waste management policies, attempting to find out the internal evolving pattern of the solid waste management policies in China. Closely integrating the current policy requirements for the construction of‘waste-free city’, this study puts forward a policy optimization and improvement path. The findings are briefly listed blow: ① The solid waste management policies have demonstrated multiple text types and various levels of effectiveness, and the policy framework system is gradually optimized.② In each edition of solid waste management policy, the hotspot issues are highlighted with distinctive characteristics of the times and dynamic evolution. The policies are covering more fields, the contents are more targeted and comprehensive, and the implementation is more specific and practical.③ The policies mainly focus on harmlessness, reduction, reclamation, pollution prevention, supervision and management, secondary pollution, recycling, circular economy, etc.④ The government strengthens the top-level design from the macro level, focusing on policy guidance and standardization, policy coordination, technical support, and governance improvement to promote the realization of the goals of‘harmlessness, reduction, reclamation’. ⑤ The diversification of tools, approaches and factors supporting solid waste management, and the growing awareness of the technical support of solid waste management, and the management mode and governance path have entered the phase of adaptive transformation. Based on practical needs, the market oriented policies and incentive mechanisms for solid waste management are inadequate, applicable technical attention is not highly paid, and the comprehensive management level and governance capabilities are in urgent need of improvement. Combined with the theoretical research, practical actions and policy initiatives of the construction of‘waste-free city’in other countries, from the perspectives of solid waste full product lifecycle management, technical support paradigm policy, main body coordination policy, guidance incentive policy, laws and regulations and other aspects, the policy improvement path and direction of China’s‘waste-free city’are thoroughly discussed in this study