The State of the Art in Root System Architecture Image Analysis Using Artificial Intelligence: A Review.

Roots are essential for acquiring water and nutrients to sustain and support plant growth and anchorage. However, they have been studied less than the aboveground traits in phenotyping and plant breeding until recent decades. In modern times, root properties such as morphology and root system architecture (RSA) have been recognized as increasingly important traits for creating more and higher quality food in the "Second Green Revolution". To address the paucity in RSA and other root research, new technologies are being investigated to fill the increasing demand to improve plants via root traits and overcome currently stagnated genetic progress in stable yields. Artificial intelligence (AI) is now a cutting-edge technology proving to be highly successful in many applications, such as crop science and genetic research to improve crop traits. A burgeoning field in crop science is the application of AI to high-resolution imagery in analyses that aim to answer questions related to crops and to better and more speedily breed desired plant traits such as RSA into new cultivars. This review is a synopsis concerning the origins, applications, challenges, and future directions of RSA research regarding image analyses using AI.

Prevalence and risk factors of tuberculosis among people living with HIV/AIDS in China: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence and risk factors associated with tuberculosis (TB) among people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in China. METHODS: A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines. After the literature was screened based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, STATA® version 17.0 software was used for the meta-analysis. The heterogeneity among study data was assessed using I2 statistics. Subgroup analysis and meta-regressions were performed to further explore the source of heterogeneity. RESULTS: A total of 5241 studies were retrieved. Of these, 44 studies were found to be eligible. The pooled prevalence of HIV/TB co-infection was 6.0%. The risk factors for HIV/TB co-infection included a low CD4+ T cell count, smoking, intravenous drug use and several other sociodemographic and clinical factors. Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination history was a protective factor. CONCLUSION: A high prevalence of TB was observed among people living with HIV/AIDS in China. Low CD4+ T cell count, smoking, and intravenous drug use were the primary risk factors for HIV/TB co-infection, whereas BCG vaccination history was a protective factor. Checking for TB should be prioritized in HIV screening and healthcare access. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: Registered on PROSPERO, Identifier: CRD42022297754.

From static to dynamic: live observation of the support system after ischemic stroke by two photon-excited fluorescence laser-scanning microscopy.

Ischemic stroke is one of the most common causes of mortality and disability worldwide. However, treatment efficacy and the progress of research remain unsatisfactory. As the critical support system and essential components in neurovascular units, glial cells and blood vessels (including the blood-brain barrier) together maintain an optimal microenvironment for neuronal function. They provide nutrients, regulate neuronal excitability, and prevent harmful substances from entering brain tissue. The highly dynamic networks of this support system play an essential role in ischemic stroke through processes including brain homeostasis, supporting neuronal function, and reacting to injuries. However, most studies have focused on postmortem animals, which inevitably lack critical information about the dynamic changes that occur after ischemic stroke. Therefore, a high-precision technique for research in living animals is urgently needed. Two-photon fluorescence laser-scanning microscopy is a powerful imaging technique that can facilitate live imaging at high spatiotemporal resolutions. Two-photon fluorescence laser-scanning microscopy can provide images of the whole-cortex vascular 3D structure, information on multicellular component interactions, and provide images of structure and function in the cranial window. This technique shifts the existing research paradigm from static to dynamic, from flat to stereoscopic, and from single-cell function to multicellular intercommunication, thus providing direct and reliable evidence to identify the pathophysiological mechanisms following ischemic stroke in an intact brain. In this review, we discuss exciting findings from research on the support system after ischemic stroke using two-photon fluorescence laser-scanning microscopy, highlighting the importance of dynamic observations of cellular behavior and interactions in the networks of the brain's support systems. We show the excellent application prospects and advantages of two-photon fluorescence laser-scanning microscopy and predict future research developments and directions in the study of ischemic stroke.

What Is Different about Teratoma-Associated Anti-LGI1 Encephalitis? A Long-Term Clinical and Neuroimaging Case Series.

INTRODUCTION: Anti-leucine-rich glioma-inactivated 1 (LGI1) encephalitis is clinically heterogeneous, especially at presentation, and though it is sometimes found in association with tumor, this is by no means the rule. METHODS: Clinical data for 10 patients with anti-LGI1 encephalitis were collected including one case with teratoma and nine cases without and compared for clinical characteristics. Microscopic pathological examination and immunohistochemical assay of the LGI1 antibody were performed on teratoma tissue obtained by laparoscopic oophorocystectomy. RESULTS: In our teratoma-associated anti-LGI1 encephalitis case, teratoma pathology was characterized by mostly thyroid tissue and immunohistochemical assay confirmed positive nuclear staining of LGI1 in some tumor cells. The anti-LGl1 patient with teratoma was similar to the non-teratoma cases in many ways: age at onset (average 47.3 in non-teratoma cases); percent presenting with rapidly progressive dementia (67% of non-teratoma cases) and psychiatric symptoms (33%); hyponatremia (78%); normal cerebrospinal fluid results except for positive LGI1 antibody (78%); bilateral hippocampal hyperintensity on magnetic resonance imaging (44%); diffuse slow waves on electroencephalography (33%); good response to immunotherapy (67%); and mild residual cognitive deficit (22%). Her chronic anxiety and presentation with status epilepticus were the biggest differences compared with the non-teratoma cases. CONCLUSION: In our series, anti-LGI1 encephalitis included common clinical features in our series: rapidly progressive dementia, faciobrachial dystonic seizures, behavioral disorders, hyponatremia, hippocampal hyperintensity on magnetic resonance imaging, and residual cognitive deficit. We observed some differences (chronic anxiety and status epilepticus) in our case with teratoma, but a larger accumulation of cases is needed to improve our knowledge base.

Higher Cerebral Small Vessel Disease Burden in Patients With Small Intracerebral Hemorrhage.

Objective: To investigate the association between cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) and hematoma volume in primary intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Methods: Patients from a prospective ICH cohort were enrolled. Admission and follow-up CT scan within 72 h after onset were reviewed to calculate the final hematoma volume. We evaluated cortical superficial siderosis and the global SVD score, including white matter hyperintensities, lacunes, enlarged perivascular space, and cerebral microbleeds on MRI. We conducted the multivariate logistic regression analyses to explore the association between SVD markers and small ICH, as well as hematoma volume. Hematoma location was stratified into lobar and non-lobar for subgroup analysis. Results: A total of 187 patients with primary ICH (mean age 62.4 ± 13.4 years, 67.9% male) were enrolled. 94 (50.2%) patients had small ICH. The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed an association between global SVD score and small ICH [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 1.27, 95% CI 1.03-1.57, p = 0.027] and a trend of higher global SVD score towards non-lobar small ICH (aOR 1.23, 95% CI 0.95-1.58, p = 0.122). In the multivariate linear regression analysis, global SVD score was inversely related to hematoma volume of all ICH (ß = -0.084, 95% CI -0.142 to -0.025, p = 0.005) and non-lobar ICH (ß = -0.112, 95% CI -0.186 to -0.037, p = 0.004). Lacune (ß = -0.245, 95% CI -0.487 to -0.004, p = 0.046) was associated with lower non-lobar ICH volume. Conclusion: Global SVD score is associated with small ICH and inversely correlated with hematoma volume. This finding predominantly exists in non-lobar ICH.

Validation of UAV-based alfalfa biomass predictability using photogrammetry with fully automatic plot segmentation.

Alfalfa is the most widely cultivated forage legume, with approximately 30 million hectares planted worldwide. Genetic improvements in alfalfa have been highly successful in developing cultivars with exceptional winter hardiness and disease resistance traits. However, genetic improvements have been limited for complex economically important traits such as biomass. One of the major bottlenecks is the labor-intensive phenotyping burden for biomass selection. In this study, we employed two alfalfa fields to pave a path to overcome the challenge by using UAV images with fully automatic field plot segmentation for high-throughput phenotyping. The first field was used to develop the prediction model and the second field to validate the predictions. The first and second fields had 808 and 1025 plots, respectively. The first field had three harvests with biomass measured in May, July, and September of 2019. The second had one harvest with biomass measured in September of 2019. These two fields were imaged one day before harvesting with a DJI Phantom 4 pro UAV carrying an additional Sentera multispectral camera. Alfalfa plot images were extracted by GRID software to quantify vegetative area based on the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index. The prediction model developed from the first field explained 50-70% (R Square) of biomass variation in the second field by incorporating four features from UAV images: vegetative area, plant height, Normalized Green-Red Difference Index, and Normalized Difference Red Edge Index. This result suggests that UAV-based, high-throughput phenotyping could be used to improve the efficiency of the biomass selection process in alfalfa breeding programs.

P2X7 receptor activation aggravates NADPH oxidase 2-induced oxidative stress after intracerebral hemorrhage.

Oxidative stress is a crucial pathological process that contributes to secondary injury following intracerebral hemorrhage. P2X7 receptor (P2X7R), which is activated by the abnormal accumulation of extracellular ATP, plays an important role in the regulation of oxidative stress in the central nervous system, although the effects of activated P2X7R-associated oxidative stress after intracerebral hemorrhage remain unclear. Mouse models of intracerebral hemorrhage were established through the stereotactic injection of 0.075 U VII collagenase into the right basal ganglia. The results revealed that P2X7R expression peaked 24 hours after intracerebral hemorrhage, and P2X7R expressed primarily in neurons. The inhibition of P2X7R, using A438079 (100 mg/kg, intraperitoneal), reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase 2 (NOX2) expression and malondialdehyde generation, increased superoxide dismutase and glutathione/oxidized glutathione levels, and alleviated neurological damage, brain edema, and apoptosis after intracellular hemorrhage. The P2X7R inhibitor A438079 (100 mg/kg, intraperitoneal injection) inhibited the activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) and nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) after intracerebral hemorrhage. Blocking ERK1/2 activation, using the ERK1/2 inhibitor U0126 (2 µg, intraventricular injection), reduced the level of NOX2-mediated oxidative stress induced by P2X7R activation after intracellular hemorrhage. Similarly, the inhibition of NF-κB, using the NF-κB inhibitor JSH-23 (3.5 µg, intraventricular), reduced the level of NOX2-mediated oxidative stress induced by P2X7R activation. Finally, GSK2795039 (100 mg/kg, intraperitoneal), a NOX2 antagonist, attenuated P2X7R-mediated oxidative stress, neurological damage, and brain edema after intracerebral hemorrhage. The results indicated that P2X7R activation aggravated NOX2-induced oxidative stress through the activation of the ERK1/2 and NF-κB pathways following intracerebral hemorrhage in mice. The present study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China (approval No. TJ-A20160805) on August 26, 2016.

Association of liver abnormalities with in-hospital mortality in patients with COVID-19.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The evolution and clinical significance of abnormal liver chemistries and the impact of hepatitis B infection on outcome in patients with COVID-19 is not well characterized. This study aimed to explore these issues. METHODS: This large retrospective cohort study included 2,073 patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and definite outcomes in Wuhan, China. Longitudinal liver function tests were conducted, with associated factors and risk of death determined by multivariate regression analyses. A prognostic nomogram was formulated to predict the survival of patients with COVID-19. The characteristics of liver abnormalities and outcomes of patients with COVID-19, with and without hepatitis B, were compared after 1:3 propensity score matching. RESULTS: Of the 2,073 patients, 1,282 (61.8%) had abnormal liver chemistries during hospitalization, and 297 (14.3%) had a liver injury. The mean levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and direct bilirubin (D-Bil) increased early after symptom onset in deceased patients and showed disparity compared to levels in discharged patients throughout the clinical course of the disease. Abnormal AST (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 1.39; 95% CI 1.04-1.86, p = 0.027) and D-Bil (adjusted HR 1.66; 95% CI 1.22-2.26; p = 0.001) levels at admission were independent risk factors for mortality due to COVID-19. A nomogram was established based on the results of multivariate analysis and showed sufficient discriminatory power and good consistency between the prediction and the observation. HBV infection in patients did not increase the risk of poor COVID-19-associated outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Abnormal AST and D-Bil levels at admission were independent predictors of COVID-19-related mortality. Therefore, monitoring liver chemistries, especially AST and D-Bil levels, is necessary in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. LAY SUMMARY: Liver test abnormalities (in particular elevations in the levels of aspartate aminotransferase [AST] and direct bilirubin [D-Bil]) were observed after symptom onset in patients who went on to die of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Abnormal levels of AST and D-Bil at admission were independent predictors of COVID-19-related mortality. HBV infection in patients did not increase the risk of poor COVID-19-associated outcomes.

Photoinduced Hydroarylation and Cyclization of Alkenes with Luminescent Platinum(II) Complexes.

Photoinduced hydroarylation of alkenes is an appealing synthetic strategy for arene functionalization. Herein, we demonstrated that aryl radicals generated from electron-deficient aryl chlorides/bromides could be trapped by an array of terminal/internal aryl alkenes in the presence of [Pt(O^N^C^N)] under visible-light (410 nm) irradiation, affording anti-Markovnikov hydroarylated compounds in up to 95 % yield. Besides, a protocol for [Pt(O^N^C^N)]-catalyzed intramolecular photocyclization of acrylanilides to give structurally diverse 3,4-dihydroquinolinones has been developed.

Hematoma Ventricle Distance on Computed Tomography Predicts Poor Outcome in Intracerebral Hemorrhage.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between hematoma ventricle distance (HVD) and clinical outcome in patients with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). METHODS: We prospectively enrolled consecutive patients with ICH in a tertiary academic hospital between July 2011 and April 2018. We retrospectively reviewed images for all patients receiving a computed tomography (CT) within 6 h after onset of symptoms and at least one follow-up CT scan within 36 h. The minimum distance of hematoma border to nearest ventricle was measured as HVD. Youden index was used to evaluate the cutoff of HVD predicting functional outcome. Logistic regression model was used to assess the HVD data and clinical poor outcome (modified Rankin Scale 4-6) at 90 days. RESULTS: A total of 325 patients were included in our final analysis. The median HVD was 2.4 mm (interquartile range, 0-5.7 mm), and 119 (36.6%) patients had poor functional outcome at 3 months. After adjusting for age, admission Glasgow coma scale, intraventricular hemorrhage, baseline ICH volume, admission systolic blood pressure, blood glucose, hematoma expansion, withdrawal of care, and hypertension, HVD ≤ 2.5 mm was associated with increased odds of clinical poor outcome [odd ratio, 3.59, (95%CI = 1.72-7.50); p = 0.001] in multivariable logistic regression analysis. CONCLUSION: Hematoma ventricle distance allows physicians to quickly select and stratify patients in clinical trials and thereby serve as a novel and useful addition to predict ICH prognosis.

Modeling and improving the output power of terahertz master-oscillator power-amplifier quantum cascade lasers.

A model based on carrier rate equations is proposed to evaluate the gain saturation and predict the dependence of the output power of a terahertz master-oscillator power-amplifier quantum cascade laser (THz-MOPA-QCL) on the material and structure parameters. The model reveals the design rules of the preamplifier and the power extractor to maximize the output power and the wall-plug efficiency. The correction of the model is verified by its agreement with the experiment results. The optimized MOPA devices exhibit single-mode emission at ∼ 2.6 THz with a side mode suppression ratio of 23 dB, a pulsed output power of 153 mW, a wall-plug efficiency of 0.22%, and a low divergence angle of ∼6°×16°, all measured at an operation temperature of 77 K. The model developed here is helpful for the design of MOPA devices and semiconductor optical amplifiers, in which the active region is based on intersubband transitions.

Surface-States-Modulated High-Performance InAs Nanowire Phototransistor.

We report a high-performance InAs nanowire phototransistor with the photoresponse mechanism governed by the gate-controlled surface states. Detailed characterizations suggest that the high density of surface defect states of the InAs nanowire can capture electrons from the nanowire core to form negative surface charge centers. Before and after light illumination, nanowire surface states undergo processes of capturing and neutralizing the electrons, respectively. This leads to an increase in the concentration and mobility of electrons after light illumination, which endows the device with remarkable photoresponsivity. After modulating the surface states through gate voltage and surface passivation, significantly high responsivity of up to 4.4 × 103 A/W and gain of up to 2.7 × 103 under the illumination of light at the wavelength of 2000 nm are obtained, putting our devices among the high-performance short-wave infrared nanowire photodetectors. This work provides an important reference for understanding the surface effects of nanomaterials and enhancing the performance of nanophotodetectors by modulating the surface states.

Iron- and cobalt-catalyzed C(sp3)-H bond functionalization reactions and their application in organic synthesis.

Direct C-H bond functionalization catalyzed by non-precious transition metals is an attractive strategy in synthetic chemistry. Compared with the precious metals rhodium, palladium, ruthenium, and iridium commonly used in this field, catalysis based on non-precious metals, especially the earth-abundant ones, is appealing due to the increasing demand for environmentally benign and sustainable chemical processes. Herein, developments in iron- and cobalt-catalyzed C(sp3)-H bond functionalization reactions are described, with an emphasis on their applications in organic synthesis, i.e., the synthesis of natural products and pharmaceuticals and/or their modification.

Intraventricular Hemorrhage Growth: Definition, Prevalence and Association with Hematoma Expansion and Prognosis.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study is to propose a definition of intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) growth and to investigate whether IVH growth is associated with ICH expansion and functional outcome. METHODS: We performed a prospective observational study of ICH patients between July 2011 and March 2017 in a tertiary hospital. Patients were included if they had a baseline CT scan within 6 h after onset of symptoms and a follow-up CT within 36 h. IVH growth was defined as either any newly occurring intraventricular bleeding on follow-up CT scan in patients without baseline IVH or an increase in IVH volume ≥ 1 mL on follow-up CT scan in patients with initial IVH. Poor outcome was defined as modified Rankin Scale score of 3-6 at 90 days. The association between IVH growth and functional outcome was assessed by using multivariable logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: IVH growth was observed in 59 (19.5%) of 303 patients. Patients with IVH growth had larger baseline hematoma volume, higher NIHSS score and lower GCS score than those without. Of 44 patients who had concurrent IVH growth and hematoma growth, 41 (93.2%) had poor functional outcome at 3-month follow-up. IVH growth (adjusted OR 4.15, 95% CI 1.31-13.20; P = 0.016) was an independent predictor of poor functional outcome (mRS 3-6) at 3 months in multivariable analysis. CONCLUSION: IVH growth is not uncommon and independently predicts poor outcome in ICH patients. It may serve as a promising therapeutic target for intervention.

Efficacy and safety of calcitonin-gene-related peptide binding monoclonal antibodies for the preventive treatment of episodic migraine - an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Migraine is one of the most common neurological disorders that leads to disabilities. However, the conventional drug therapy for migraine might be unsatisfactory at times. Therefore, this meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of calcitonin-gene-related peptide binding monoclonal antibody (CGRP mAb) for the preventive treatment of episodic migraine, and provide high-quality clinical evidence for migraine therapy. METHODS: A systematic electronic database search was conducted to identify the potentially relevant studies. Two independent authors performed data extraction and quality appraisal. Mean difference (MD) and risk ratio (RR) were pooled for continuous and dichotomous data, respectively. The significance levels, weighted effect sizes and homogeneity of variance were calculated. RESULTS: Eleven high-quality randomized control trials that collectively included 4402 patients were included in this meta-analysis. Compared to placebo group, CGRP mAb therapy resulted in a reduction of monthly migraine days [weighted mean difference (WMD) = - 1.44, 95% CI = (- 1.68,- 1.19)] and acute migraine-specific medication days [WMD = - 1.28, 95% CI = (- 1.66,- 0.90)], with an improvement in 50% responder rate [RR = 1.51, 95% CI = (1.37,1.66)]. In addition, the adverse events (AEs) and treatment withdrawal rates due to AEs were not significantly different between CGRP mAb and placebo groups. Similar efficacy and safety results were obtained for erenumab, fremanezumab, and galcanezumab in subgroup analysis. CONCLUSIONS: The current body of evidence reveals that CGRP mAb is an effective and safe preventive treatment for episodic migraine.

Insights into the long-term pollution trends and sources contributions in Lake Taihu, China using multi-statistic analyses models.

Eutrophication pollution seriously threatens the sustainable development of Lake Taihu, China. In order to identify the primary parameters of water quality and the potential pollution sources, the water quality dataset of Lake Taihu (2010-2014) was analyzed with the water quality index (WQI) and multivariate statistical analysis methods. Principle component analysis/factor analysis (PCA/FA) and correlation analysis screened out five significant water quality indicators, i.e. potassium permanganate index (CODMn), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), chloride ion (Cl-) and dissolved oxygen (DO), to represent the whole datasets and evaluate the water quality with WQI. Since northwestern of Lake Taihu was the most heavily polluted area, the parameters of the water quality were analyzed to further explore the potential sources and their contributions. Five potential pollution sources of northwestern lake were identified, and the contribution rate of each pollution source was calculated by the absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR) and positive matrix factorization (PMF) models. In brief, the PMF model was more suitable for pollution source apportionment of the northwestern lake, and the contribution rate was ranked as agricultural non-point source pollution (26.6%) > domestic sewage discharge (23.5%) > industrial wastewater discharge and atmospheric deposition (20.6%) > phytoplankton growth (16.0%) > rainfall or wind disturbance (13.4%). This study might provide useful information for the optimization of water quality management and pollution control strategies of Lake Taihu.

Effect of functional electrical stimulation plus body weight-supported treadmill training for gait rehabilitation in patients with poststroke: a retrospective case-matched study.

BACKGROUND: Functional electrical stimulation (FES) plus body weight-supported treadmill training (BWSTT) provide effective gait training for poststroke patients with abnormal gait. These features promote a successful active motor relearning of ambulation in stroke survivors. AIM: This is a retrospective study to assess the effect of FES plus BWSTT for gait rehabilitation in patients poststroke. DESIGN: A retrospective case-matched study. SETTING: Participants were recruited from a rehabilitation department in an acute university-affiliated hospital POPULATION: Ninety patients poststroke from Yue Bei People's Hospital underwent BWSTT (A: control group) were compared to an equal number of cross-matched patients who received FES plus BWSTT (B: FES plus BWSTT group). METHODS: While B group received FES for 45 minutes plus BSWTT for 30 minutes in the program, group A received time-matched BWSTT alone. The walking speed, step length, step cadence, Fugl-Meyer Lower-Limb Scale (LL-FMA), composite spasticity scale (CSS), 10-Meter Walk Test (10MWT), Tinetti Balance Test (TBT) and nerve physiology testing were collected before and after intervention. RESULTS: One hundred and eighty patients with poststroke abnormal gait were chosen. There were significant differences in walking speed, step length, step cadence, LL-FMA, CSS, TBT, and 10MWT between baseline and postintervention (P<0.05). There were significant differences in walking speed, step length, step cadence, LL-FMA, CSS, TBT, and 10MWT between two groups at the end of the eighth week (P<0.05), but not at baseline (P>0.05). In comparison with group A, the peak of somatosensory evoked potential (SEP) and motor evoked potential (MEP) amplitude increased, the latency was shortened, and the conduction velocity of sensory nerve (SCV) and motor nerve (MCV) was significantly increased in the group B (P<0.05). No adverse events occurred during the study. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that FES plus BWSTT could be more effective than BWSTT alone in the improvement of gait, balance, spasticity, and function of the lower limb in patients poststroke. CLINICAL REHABILITATION IMPACT: Introduce effective rehabilitation strategies for poststroke patients with abnormal gait.

Tracing the potential pollution sources of the coastal water in Hong Kong with statistical models combining APCS-MLR.

In this study, variety of statistical methods were performed to reveal the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics of pollutants and parsing pollution sources of the coastal water in Hong Kong. The temporal-spatial distribution characteristics of the water pollution were various among the three distinct areas, which might be ascribed to the different dominant pollution sources. Cluster and network analysis showed preliminary pollution sources in these areas, and also indicated the temporal characteristics of Deep Bay water pollution, which could divided into two parts before and after 2010. According to the principal component analysis/factor analysis results, three factors in Deep Bay, Tolo Harbour and Victoria Harbour could explained 68.72%, 54.87% and 72.28% of the total variances, respectively. The contribution rate of different pollution source on water quality variables in each area had calculated by absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression model. The contribution rate was roughly ranked as: point source pollution > non-point source pollution > overland runoff > river input. It is the first time to combine multivariate statistical methods, network analysis and regression model to profoundly analyze spatiotemporal variation of seawater quality and parsing the pollution sources. This novel analysis method can provide reference for the water quality evaluation and management of other water bodies.

Pathway-based biomarker identification with crosstalk analysis for robust prognosis prediction in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Although many prognostic single-gene (SG) lists have been identified in cancer research, application of these features is hampered due to poor robustness and performance on independent datasets. Pathway-based approaches have thus emerged which embed biological knowledge to yield reproducible features. METHODS: Pathifier estimates pathways deregulation score (PDS) to represent the extent of pathway deregulation based on expression data, and most of its applications treat pathways as independent without addressing the effect of gene overlap between pathway pairs which we refer to as crosstalk. Here, we propose a novel procedure based on Pathifier methodology, which for the first time has been utilized with crosstalk accommodated to identify disease-specific features to predict prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). FINDINGS: With the cohort (N = 355) of HCC patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), cross validation (CV) revealed that PDSs identified were more robust and accurate than the SG features by deep learning (DL)-based approach. When validated on external HCC datasets, these features outperformed the SGs consistently. INTERPRETATION: On average, we provide 10.2% improvement of prediction accuracy. Importantly, governing genes in these features provide valuable insight into the cancer hallmarks of HCC. We develop an R package PATHcrosstalk (available from GitHub https://github.com/fabotao/PATHcrosstalk) with which users can discover pathways of interest with crosstalk effect considered.

Benign Intracerebral Hemorrhage: A Population at Low Risk for Hematoma Growth and Poor Outcome.

Background To define benign intracerebral hemorrhage ( ICH ) and to investigate the association between benign ICH , hematoma expansion, and functional outcome. Methods and Results We analyzed a prospectively collected cohort of patients with ICH, who presented within 6 hours of symptom onset between July 2011 and February 2017 to a tertiary teaching hospital. Follow-up computed tomographic scanning was performed within 36 hours after initial computed tomographic scanning. Benign ICH was operationally defined as homogeneous and regularly shaped small ICH . The presence of benign ICH was judged by 2 independent reviewers (Q.L., W.Y.) on the basis of the admission computed tomographic scan. Functional independence was defined as a modified Rankin Scale score of 0 to 2 at 3 months. The associations between benign ICH , hematoma expansion, and functional outcome were assessed by using multivariable logistic regression analyses. A total of 288 patients with ICH were included. Benign ICH was found in 48 patients (16.7%). None of the patients with benign ICH had early hematoma expansion. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of benign ICH for predicting functional independence at 3 months were 30.7%, 96.6%, 90.0%, 60.0%, and 0.637, respectively. Conclusions Patients with benign ICH are at low risk of hematoma expansion and poor outcome. These patients may be safe for less intensive monitoring and are unlikely to benefit from therapies aimed at preventing ICH expansion.