HIPK2 reduces the resistance of gastric cancer cells to cisplatin via p53 pathway

Purpose: To uncover the functional effect of homologous domain-associated protein kinase 2 (HIPK2) on the viability of cisplatin (DDP)-resistant gastric cancer (GC) cells and elucidate the possible mechanism of action.Methods: The effect of DDP on GC viability and apoptotic rate was evaluated using MTT and flow cytometry (FCM) assays. The potential effect of HIPK2 on DDP sensitivity and cell apoptosis was investigated in the presence of cisplatin while the effect of HIPK2 on p53 activation was determined by immunoblot assay.Results: HIPK2 expression was decreased in DDP-resistant GC cell while upregulation of HIPK2 reduced growth, but promoted apoptosis in DDP-resistant GC cells. Further investigations showed that HIPK2 promoted p53 activation, while suppression of p53 weakened the inhibitory effect of HIPK2 on DDP-resistance in GC cells.Conclusion: The results suggest that HIPK2 is a promising and important therapeutic factor for the regulation of the resistance of GC cells to DDP. Thus, may have a role to play in the management of gastric cancer Keywords: Gastric cancer, Cisplatin, HIPK2, Homologous domain-associated protein kinase 2, p53 pathway, Therapeutic targe

Carbon Responder: Coordinating Demand Response for the Datacenter Fleet

The increasing integration of renewable energy sources results in fluctuations in carbon intensity throughout the day. To mitigate their carbon footprint, datacenters can implement demand response (DR) by adjusting their load based on grid signals. However, this presents challenges for private datacenters with diverse workloads and services. One of the key challenges is efficiently and fairly allocating power curtailment across different workloads. In response to these challenges, we propose the Carbon Responder framework. The Carbon Responder framework aims to reduce the carbon footprint of heterogeneous workloads in datacenters by modulating their power usage. Unlike previous studies, Carbon Responder considers both online and batch workloads with different service level objectives and develops accurate performance models to achieve performance-aware power allocation. The framework supports three alternative policies: Efficient DR, Fair and Centralized DR, and Fair and Decentralized DR. We evaluate Carbon Responder polices using production workload traces from a private hyperscale datacenter. Our experimental results demonstrate that the efficient Carbon Responder policy reduces the carbon footprint by around 2x as much compared to baseline approaches adapted from existing methods. The fair Carbon Responder policies distribute the performance penalties and carbon reduction responsibility fairly among workloads

Crop Monitoring and Classification Using Polarimetric RADARSAT-2 Time-Series Data Across Growing Season: A Case Study in Southwestern Ontario, Canada

Multitemporal polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) has proven as a very effective technique in agricultural monitoring and crop classification. This study presents a comprehensive evaluation of crop monitoring and classification over an agricultural area in southwestern Ontario, Canada. The time-series RADARSAT-2 C-Band PolSAR images throughout the entire growing season were exploited. A set of 27 representative polarimetric observables categorized into ten groups was selected and analyzed in this research. First, responses and temporal evolutions of each of the polarimetric observables over different crop types were quantitatively analyzed. The results reveal that the backscattering coefficients in cross-pol and Pauli second channel, the backscattering ratio between HV and VV channels (HV/VV), the polarimetric decomposition outputs, the correlation coefficient between HH and VV channel ρHHVV, and the radar vegetation index (RVI) show the highest sensitivity to crop growth. Then, the capability of PolSAR time-series data of the same beam mode was also explored for crop classification using the Random Forest (RF) algorithm. The results using single groups of polarimetric observables show that polarimetric decompositions, backscattering coefficients in Pauli and linear polarimetric channels, and correlation coefficients produced the best classification accuracies, with overall accuracies (OAs) higher than 87%. A forward selection procedure to pursue optimal classification accuracy was expanded to different perspectives, enabling an optimal combination of polarimetric observables and/or multitemporal SAR images. The results of optimal classifications show that a few polarimetric observables or a few images on certain critical dates may produce better accuracies than the whole dataset. The best result was achieved using an optimal combination of eight groups of polarimetric observables and six SAR images, with an OA of 94.04%. This suggests that an optimal combination considering both perspectives may be valuable for crop classification, which could serve as a guideline and is transferable for future research.This research was funded in part by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41,804,004, 41,820,104,005, 41,531,068, 41,904,004), the Canadian Space Agency SOAR-E Program (Grant No. SOAR-E-5489), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan) (Grant No. CUG190633), and the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, State Research Agency (AEI) and the European Regional Development Fund under project TEC2017-85244-C2-1-P

Design and baseline characteristics of the finerenone in reducing cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in diabetic kidney disease trial

Background: Among people with diabetes, those with kidney disease have exceptionally high rates of cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality and progression of their underlying kidney disease. Finerenone is a novel, nonsteroidal, selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist that has shown to reduce albuminuria in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) while revealing only a low risk of hyperkalemia. However, the effect of finerenone on CV and renal outcomes has not yet been investigated in long-term trials. Patients and Methods: The Finerenone in Reducing CV Mortality and Morbidity in Diabetic Kidney Disease (FIGARO-DKD) trial aims to assess the efficacy and safety of finerenone compared to placebo at reducing clinically important CV and renal outcomes in T2D patients with CKD. FIGARO-DKD is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, event-driven trial running in 47 countries with an expected duration of approximately 6 years. FIGARO-DKD randomized 7,437 patients with an estimated glomerular filtration rate >= 25 mL/min/1.73 m(2) and albuminuria (urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio >= 30 to <= 5,000 mg/g). The study has at least 90% power to detect a 20% reduction in the risk of the primary outcome (overall two-sided significance level alpha = 0.05), the composite of time to first occurrence of CV death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or hospitalization for heart failure. Conclusions: FIGARO-DKD will determine whether an optimally treated cohort of T2D patients with CKD at high risk of CV and renal events will experience cardiorenal benefits with the addition of finerenone to their treatment regimen. Trial Registration: EudraCT number: 2015-000950-39; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02545049

Simultaneous Rapid Determination of Seven Alternaria Toxins in Tuberous Crops during Storage Using QuEChERS Coupled with Ultrahigh-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Robust and sensitive ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography&ndash;tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC&ndash;MS/MS) combined with the quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) method was applied for the detection of seven Alternaria toxins (ATs) in tuberous crops. The influence of tuber conditions (fresh, germinated, and moldy) during storage on the concentration of the seven ATs is also investigated. ATs were extracted with acetonitrile under acidic conditions and purified with a C18 adsorbent. ATs were scanned with electrospray ionization (positive/negative ion) dynamic switching and detected in MRM mode. Calibration curve analysis results reveal good linear relationships in all toxin concentration ranges (R2 &gt; 0.99). The limit of detection and limit of quantification were 0.25&ndash;0.70 and 0.83&ndash;2.31 &mu;g/kg, respectively. The average recoveries of the seven ATs were 83.2&ndash;104% with intra-/inter-day precision at 3.52&ndash;6.55% and 4.02&ndash;7.26%, respectively. The developed method provided adequate selectivity, sensitivity, and precision in detecting the seven ATs at trace levels, and dispensed with standard addition or matrix-matched calibration to compensate for matrix effects. ATs in the fresh, germinated, and moldy samples of tuberous crops in storage (taro, potato, sweet potato, yam, cassava) were analyzed with this method, and the concentrations were 2.01&ndash;14.51 &mu;g/kg and significantly increased with storage duration. ALS was detected in most samples, whereas no quantities of ALT and ATX-I were detected. AME was often detected in combination with AOH in sweet potatoes. TeA and Ten were mostly detected in taro, potato, and yam. The established method could be used for the simultaneous detection and quantification of multicomponent toxins in elaborate matrices

Associated factors of health-promoting lifestyle of the elderly based on the theory of social ecosystem

Object: To explore the factors related to health-promoting lifestyles of the elderly based on social-ecosystem theory. Design: A cross-sectional survey study was carried out to include 627 elderly people in communities in three cities of Hebei Province (Shijiazhuang, Tangshan, and Zhangjiakou) from October 2021 to January 2022 for questionnaire survey (601 validly returned cases). Venue: Three cities of Hebei Province (Shijiazhuang, Tangshan, and Zhangjiakou). Participants: 627 elderly people. Interventions: A cross-sectional survey study. Main measurements: The questionnaire survey was conducted by using the general demographic data, health promotion life scale, frailty scale, general self-efficacy scale, health engagement scale, General Self-Efficacy Scale, The family Adaptability, Partnership, Growth, Affection, and Resolve scale, and Perceived Social Support Scale. Results: The total health promotion lifestyle score for the elderly was 100.20 ± 16.21, which was at the lower limit of the good level, with the highest mean score for nutrition (2.71 ± 0.51) and the lowest mean score for physical activity (2.25 ± 0.56). Stepwise linear regression showed that exercise frequency (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.304–3.885), smoking status (95% CI −4.190 to −1.556), self-efficacy (95% CI 0.071–0.185), health management (95% CI 0.306–0.590), frailty (95% CI −3.327 to −1.162) in the microsystem, marital status (95% CI 0.677–3.660), children's attention to the elderly health (95% CI 4.866–11.305), family care in the mesosystem (95% CI 1.365–4.968), and pre-retirement occupation (95% CI 2.065–3.894), living area (95% CI 0.813–3.912), whether receive community-based chronic disease prevention and management services (95% CI 2.035–8.149), social support (95% CI 1.667–6.493) in the macrosystem were the main factors affecting health promotion of life in the elderly (P < 0.05). Hierarchical regression analysis showed the microsystem accounted for 17.2%, the mesosystem accounted for 7.1%, and the macrosystem accounted for 11.4%. Conclusion: The health promotion lifestyle of the elderly in Hebei Province was at the lower limit of good level. Among them, exercise frequency, children's attention to the elderly health, and pre-retirement occupation played a major role in relation to the health-promoting lifestyle of the elderly. Hence, it needs the joint action of individuals, families, and society to promote the elderly to adopt the health promotion lifestyle and realize healthy aging. Resumen: Objetivo: Explorar los factores relacionados con los estilos de vida saludables de adultos mayores a partir de la teoría del ecosistema social. Diseño: Se realizó un estudio de encuesta transversal para incluir a 627 ancianos de la comunidad de tres ciudades de la provincia de Hebei (Shijiazhuang, Tangshan y Zhangjiakou) de octubre de 2021 a enero de 2022 para encuesta por cuestionario (601 casos válidos). Lugar: Tres ciudades de la provincia de Hebei (Shijiazhuang, Tangshan y Zhangjiakou). Participantes: Seiscientos veintisiete (627) ancianos. Intervenciones: Estudio transversal y de encuesta. Principales medidas: La encuesta se realizó utilizando los datos demográficos generales, la escala de promoción de la salud de vida, la escala de fragilidad, la escala de autoeficacia general, la escala de compromiso con la salud, la escala de autoeficacia general, la escala de adaptabilidad familiar, asociación, crecimiento, afecto y resolución y la escala de apoyo social percibido. Resultados: La puntuación total de estilo de vida en promoción de la salud para los ancianos fue de 100,20 ± 16,21, que se sitúen en el límite inferior del nivel bueno, con la mayor puntuación media para nutrición (2,71 ± 0,51) y la menor puntuación media para actividad física (2,25 ± 0,56). La regresión lineal por pasos mostró que la frecuencia de ejercicio (intervalo de confianza del 95% [IC 95%] 1,304 – 3,885), el estado de tabaquismo (IC 95% -4,190 – -1,556), la autoeficacia (IC 95% 0,071 – 0,185), el manejo de la salud (IC 95% 0,306 – 0,590), la fragilidad (IC 95% -3,327 – -1,162) en el microsistema, el estado civil (IC 95% 0,677 – 3.660), la atención de los niños a la salud de los ancianos (IC 95% 4,866 – 11,305), el cuidado familiar en el mesosistema (IC 95% 1,365 – 4,968) y la ocupación previa a la jubilación (IC 95% 2,065 – 3,894), área de residencia (IC 95%: 0,813 – 3,912), recibir servicios comunitarios de prevención y manejo de enfermedades crónicas (IC 95%: 2,035 – 8,149), apoyo social (IC 95%: 1,667 – 6,493) en el macrosistema fueron los principales factores que afectaron la promoción de la salud en los ancianos (p < 0,05). El análisis de regresión jerárquica mostró que el microsistema representaba 17,2%, el mesosistema 7,1% y el macrosistema 11,4%. Conclusión: El estilo de vida de promoción de la salud de los ancianos de la provincia de Hebei estaba en el límite inferior de buen nivel. Entre ellos, la frecuencia de ejercicio, la atención de los niños a la salud de las personas de edad y la ocupación previa a la jubilación desempeñaron un papel importante en relación con el estilo de vida que promueve la salud de las personas de edad. Por lo tanto, se necesita la acción conjunta de los individuos, las familias y la sociedad para promover que los ancianos adopten el estilo de vida de promoción de la salud y tengan un envejecimiento saludable

Soil Moisture Retrieval Using SAR Backscattering Ratio Method during the Crop Growing Season

Soil moisture content (SMC) is an indispensable basic element for crop growth and development in agricultural production. Obtaining accurate information on SMC in real time over large agricultural areas has important guiding significance for crop yield estimation and production management. In this study, the paper reports on the retrieval of SMC from RADARSAT-2 polarimetric SAR data. The proposed SMC retrieval algorithm includes vegetation correction based on a ratio method and roughness correction based on the optimal roughness method. Three vegetation description parameters (i.e., RVI, LAI, and NDVI) serve as vegetation descriptors in the parameterization of the algorithm. To testify the vegetation correction result of the algorithm, the water cloud model (WCM) was compared with the algorithm. The calibrated integrated equation model (CIEM) was employed to describe the backscattering from the underlying soil. To improve the accuracy of SMC retrieval, the CIEM model was optimized by using the optimal roughness parameter and the normalization method of reference incidence angle. Validation against ground measurements showed a high correlation between the measured and estimated SMC when the NDVI serves as vegetation descriptor (R2 = 0.68, RMSE = 4.15 vol.%, p &lt; 0.01). The overall estimation performance of the proposed SMC retrieval algorithm is better than that of the WCM. It demonstrates that the proposed algorithm has an operational potential to estimate SMC over wheat fields during the growing season

Numerical and Experimental Investigation on the Effect of Mechanical Smoke Extraction Caused by External Wind in Subway Station Halls

When fires break out in subway station halls, traditional smoke extraction (TSE) systems are employed with the aim of preventing smoke from spreading to the platform and passageways. The functionality of TSE systems under the influence of external winds needs to be further explored. Based on a numerical method, this study investigated the effect on TSE systems under the influence of external wind. A numerical model was established and validated by means of full-scale field tests to ensure accuracy. Subsequently, the validated model was applied to study the effect of the external wind directions and speeds on the smoke diffusion distance. The results showed that when all entrances and exits were on the windward side, the external wind direction led to serious longitudinal diffusion of the smoke toward the side with fewer entrances and exits of the station hall, and the diffusion distance increased with increasing wind speed. The diffusion distance reached a maximum value of 61.32 m when the outdoor wind was 5 m/s, which was 67.9% higher than that under no wind. When all the entrances and exits were on the leeward side, the external wind had little influence on the degree of smoke spread, with the greatest smoke diffusion distance being only 4.76% longer than that under no wind. When two entrances and exits were on the windward side and the other on the leeward side, the external wind caused smoke to spread to a passageway, and the degree of smoke spread was more unfavorable at higher wind speeds, with the longest diffusion distance being 7.28 m. To prevent smoke from spreading to passageways and to effectively shorten the longitudinal diffusion distance of smoke, an optimized smoke control (OSC) system was proposed, employing center and passageway smoke barriers, which were able to shorten the diffusion distances by 35.45%, 13.64%, and 2.35%. In particular, smoke diffusion did not occur in passageways. This study provides a reference for the fire safety engineering design of subway stations