Seasonal pulse effect of microplastics in the river catchment-From tributary catchment to mainstream.

Rivers have received extensive attention as a major pathway for microplastics (<5000 µm) from land to ocean. This study investigated the seasonal variation of microplastic contamination in surface water of the Liangfeng River catchment, a tributary of the Li River in China, based on a fluorescence-based protocol, and further explored the migration process of microplastic in the river catchment. The abundance of microplastics (50-5000 µm) was (6.20 ± 0.57)-(41.93 ± 8.13) items/L, of which 57.89-95.12% were small-sized microplastics (<330 µm). The microplastic fluxes in the upper Liangfeng River, lower Liangfeng River, and upper Li River were (14.89 ± 1.24) × 1012, (5.71 ± 1.15) × 1012, and (1.54 ± 0.55) × 1014 items/year, respectively. The 3.70% of microplastic load in the mainstream came from the tributary input. Fluvial processes can effectively retain 61.68% of microplastics in the surface water of river catchments, especially for small-sized microplastics. The rainy season is the main period of microplastic retention (91.87%) in the tributary catchment by fluvial processes, while exporting 77.42% of one-year microplastic emissions from the tributary catchment into the mainstream. This study is the first to reveal the transport characteristics of small-sized microplastics in river catchments based on flux variation, which not only can partly explain the "missing small-sized microplastic fraction" in the ocean, but also contribute to improving microplastic model.

A carbon price hybrid forecasting model based on data multi-scale decomposition and machine learning.

Accurate carbon price forecasting is of great significance to the operation of carbon financial markets. However, limited by the non-linearity and non-stationarity of the carbon price, the accurate and reliable predictions are difficult. To address the issue of applicability and accuracy, a novel carbon price hybrid model based on decomposition, entropy, and machine learning methods is proposed, named as CEEMDAN-PE-LSTM-RVM. Adopting the advanced structure (i.e., the prediction under classification), the proposed model owns reliable performance in face of the cases with different complexity. Furthermore, the relationship between the data feature and prediction accuracy is discussed to provide a benchmark for judging the reliability of the prediction, in which the chaos degree is introduced as a feature to characterize carbon price quantitatively. The performance of the proposed model is evaluated through historical data of four representative carbon prices. The results show that the average MAPE and RMSE of the proposed model achieve 1.7027 and 0.7993, respectively, which is significantly greater than others; the proposed model owns great robustness, which is less affected by the complexity of predicted objects. Thus, the proposed model provides a reliable tool for carbon financial markets.

The Identification of ECG Signals Using WT-UKF and IPSO-SVM.

The biometric identification method is a current research hotspot in the pattern recognition field. Due to the advantages of electrocardiogram (ECG) signals, which are difficult to replicate and easy to obtain, ECG-based identity identification has become a new direction in biometric recognition research. In order to improve the accuracy of ECG signal identification, this paper proposes an ECG identification method based on a multi-scale wavelet transform combined with the unscented Kalman filter (WT-UKF) algorithm and the improved particle swarm optimization-support vector machine (IPSO-SVM). First, the WT-UKF algorithm can effectively eliminate the noise components and preserve the characteristics of ECG signals when denoising the ECG data. Then, the wavelet positioning method is used to detect the feature points of the denoised signals, and the obtained feature points are combined with multiple feature vectors to characterize the ECG signals, thus reducing the data dimension in identity identification. Finally, SVM is used for ECG signal identification, and the improved particle swarm optimization (IPSO) algorithm is used for parameter optimization in SVM. According to the analysis of simulation experiments, compared with the traditional WT denoising, the WT-UKF method proposed in this paper improves the accuracy of feature point detection and increases the final recognition rate by 1.5%. The highest recognition accuracy of a single individual in the entire ECG identification system achieves 100%, and the average recognition accuracy can reach 95.17%.

Exploration of Prognostic Biomarkers of Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer (MIBC) by Bioinformatics.

We aimed to discover prognostic factors of muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) and investigate their relationship with immune therapies. Online data of MIBC were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus database (GEO) database. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and univariate Cox analysis were applied to classify genes into different groups. Venn diagram was used to find the intersection of genes, and prognostic efficacy was proved by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Heatmap was utilized for differential analysis. Riskscore (RS) was calculated according to multivariate Cox analysis and evaluated by receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC). MIBC samples from TCGA and GEO were analyzed by WGCNA and univariate Cox analysis and intersected at 4 genes, CLK4, DEDD2, ENO1, and SYTL1. Higher SYTL1 and DEDD2 expressions were significantly correlated with high tumor grades. Riskscore based on genes showed great prognostic efficiency in predicting overall survival (OS), disease-specific survival (DSS), and progression-free interval (PFI) in TCGA dataset (P < .001). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of RS reached 0.671 in predicting 1-year survival and 0.653 in 3-year survival. KEGG pathways enrichment filtered 5 enriched pathways. xCell analysis showed increased T cell CD4+ Th2 cell, macrophage, macrophage M1, and macrophage M2 infiltration in high RS samples (P < .001). In immune checkpoints analysis, PD-L1 expression was significantly higher in patients with high RS. We have, therefore, constructed RS as a convincing prognostic index for MIBC patients and found potential targeted pathways.

Identification of Prognostic Biomarkers for Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma (ccRCC) by Transcriptomics.

OBJECTIVE: Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is the most common histological type of renal malignancies. Our aim was to find the prognostic crux of ccRCC. METHODS: The data for ccRCC was acquired from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the International Genome Consortium (ICGC) database. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), differentially expressed genes (DEGs), and univariate Cox analysis were applied to classify the gene groups. A Venn diagram was used to find the intersection of the gene groups. The prognostic efficiency was proved by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Heatmap and volcano plots were utilized for differential analysis. The risk score (RS) was calculated based on the multivariate Cox analysis. RESULTS: The ccRCC samples were analyzed respectively via WGCNA, DEGs, and univariate Cox analysis based on five-year overall survival (OS) and intersected at two genes, ADGRF5 and EFNB2. The expressions of ADGRF5 and EFNB2 were negatively correlated with the OS and disease-specific survival (DSS) of the TCGA dataset, which was proved by Kaplan-Meier analysis (P<0.001). The RS was constructed and demonstrated great prognostic efficiency in predicting the OS, DSS, and progression-free interval (PFI) in TCGA (P<0.001) and the OS in ICGC (p=0.037). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) of RS achieved 0.647 in the prediction of three-year survival and 0.714 for five-year survival. The KEGG pathway enrichment in high RS samples filtered five enriched pathways, in which CTNNB1 and LRP6 showed the best accordance with RS (P<0.001). xCell analysis revealed increased T cell CD4+ Th1 cell infiltration in high RS samples (P<0.001). PD-1 expression was higher in the high RS patients. CONCLUSIONS: We constructed RS as a convincing prognostic index for ccRCC patients and found potential scientific target pathways.

Gender Role Characteristics and Entrepreneurial Self-Efficacy: A Comparative Study of Female and Male Entrepreneurs in China.

This study, based on Bem's (1974) gender schema theory, investigates gender differences in and the relationship between gender role characteristics and entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE) of 261 female and 265 male entrepreneurs in China. The results show that male and female entrepreneurs did not differ significantly in ESE or in masculine gender role characteristics, but differed significantly in feminine gender role characteristics. Examining four different stages in the entrepreneurial life cycle, we find that for female entrepreneurs, feminine characteristics had a positive influence on ESE in the searching and planning stages of entrepreneurship, and masculine characteristics had a positive influence on ESE in the searching stage. For male entrepreneurs, feminine characteristics had a positive influence on ESE in the searching and planning stages, and masculine characteristics had a positive influence on ESE in the marshaling and implementing stages. In addition, one feminine characteristic, "Friendly," showed a positive association with male entrepreneurs' ESE in the marshaling stage. Overall, the feminine gender role factor of "Friendly" and the masculine gender role factor of "Compete" played a greater role on ESE than other characteristics. Implications of the findings are discussed. This study contributes a new perspective to extant research on entrepreneurial self-efficacy and female entrepreneurship.

Angiomatous pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma: a case report and literature review.

BACKGROUND: Pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma is rare, accounting for <1 % of all central nervous system (CNS) neoplasms. Angiomatous pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma is an extremely rare variant of pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma, with only six cases reported thus far. CASE PRESENTATION: A 24-year-old Chinese female patient who presented with seizure and loss of consciousness for 15 min underwent computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, which revealed a mass in the left parietal lobe. Histologically, the tumor was characterized by pleomorphic tumor cells and prominent vascularity. The angiomatous region varied, ranging from a sinusoidal pattern to a venous malformation. Focal fibrinoid necrosis, hyalinization, and a moderate infiltration by lymphocytes and plasma cells were visible in the vessel wall. The tumor cells were in close proximity with adjacent small vessels. Capillaries adjacent to or extending between tumor cells were focally observed. Most tumor cells were positive for glial fibrillary acidic protein and oligodendrocyte lineage transcription factor 2. The Ki-67 index was low. Based on the patient's history, clinical data, and pathological findings, she was diagnosed with angiomatous pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma (WHO grade II). CONCLUSIONS: This case serves as a reminder to pathologists of the need to be aware of this rare variant of pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma to avoid a misdiagnosis of this indolent CNS tumor and therefore inappropriate treatment.

Ectopic adrenocortical adenoma in the renal hilum: a case report and literature review.

BACKGROUND: Ectopic (accessory) adrenocortical tissue, also known as adrenal rests, is a developmental abnormality of the adrenal gland. The most common ectopic site is in close proximity to the adrenal glands and along the path of descent or migration of the gonads because of the close spatial relationship between the adrenocortical primordium and gonadal blastema during embryogenesis. Ectopic rests may undergo marked hyperplasia, and occasionally induce ectopic adrenocortical adenomas or carcinomas. CASE PRESENTATION: A 27-year-old Chinese female patient who presented with amenorrhea of 3 months duration underwent computed tomography urography after ultrasound revealed a solitary mass in the left renal hilum. Histologically, the prominent eosinophilic tumor cells formed an alveolar- or acinar-like configuration. The immunohistochemical profile (alpha-inhibin+, Melan-A+, synaptophysin+) indicated the adrenocortical origin of the tumor, diagnosed as ectopic adrenocortical adenoma. The patient was alive with no tumor recurrence or metastasis at the 3-month follow-up examination. CONCLUSIONS: The unusual histological appearance of ectopic adrenocortical adenoma may result in its misdiagnosis as oncocytoma or clear cell renal cell carcinoma, especially if the specimen is limited. This case provides a reminder to pathologists to be aware of atypical cases of this benign tumor. Although uncommon, an ectopic adrenal lesion should be included in the differential diagnosis of tumors involving the renal hilum. A misdiagnosis of this benign condition as a malignant renal tumor may have severe consequences for the patient, including unnecessary radical nephrectomy. Preoperative biopsy and appropriate immunohistochemical staining will assist in determining the origin and nature of the tumor and in avoiding intraoperative uncertainty.

MicroRNA-145 suppresses hepatocellular carcinoma by targeting IRS1 and its downstream Akt signaling.

Accumulating evidences have proved that dysregulation of microRNAs (miRNAs) is involved in cancer initiation and progression. In this study, we showed that miRNA-145 level was significantly decreased in hepatocellular cancer (HCC) tissues and cell lines, and its low expression was inversely associated with the abundance of insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1), a key mediator in oncogenic insulin-like growth factor (IGF) signaling. We verified IRS1 as a direct target of miR-145 using Western blotting and luciferase reporter assay. Further, the restoration of miR-145 in HCC cell lines suppressed cancer cell growth, owing to down-regulated IRS1 expression and its downstream Akt/FOXO1 signaling. Our results demonstrated that miR-145 could inhibit HCC through targeting IRS1 and its downstream signaling, implicating the loss of miR-145 regulation may be a potential molecular mechanism causing aberrant oncogenic signaling in HCC.

Slug regulates E-cadherin expression in metastatic adenocarcinoma cells isolated from pleural fluid.

Slug protein is a key regulator of epithelial-mesenchymal transition, but its expression in cancer is less well studied. To evaluate the expression of slug, E-cadherin and vimentin in adenocarcinoma cells from malignant pleural effusions, we analyzed 121 malignant pleural fluid specimens. Twenty-eight nonmalignant pleural fluid specimens were analyzed as control. Besides clinical cytological diagnosis tests, immunofluorescence, immunocytochemistry and Western blotting methods were used. Results showed strong membrane staining of E-cadherin in adenocarcinoma cells from pleural fluid. Slug mainly showed nucleus staining. Cytoplasma positive of vimentin was found in adenocarcinoma cells isolated from pleural fluid. Slug, E-cadherin and vimentin expression was found in 43/121 (36%), 87/121 (72%) and 102/121 (84%) cases, respectively. Our data showed elevated levels of slug were accompanied by down regulation of E-cadherin and the expression of vimentin in adenocarcinoma cells. In addition, there was no relationship between slug expression and patient's age or gender or tumor site. Hyperplasia epithelium cells from nonmalignant pleural fluid were uniformly negative for E-cadherin and slug. In conclusion, the results demonstrated the inverse expression of slug and E-cadherin in the majority of malignant pleural fluid cases compared with nonmalignant pleural fluid. The slug protein may be helpful to access the prognosis of patients with pleural fluid.

[Clinical observation on acupuncture for diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome patients in syndrome of liver-stagnation and spleen-deficiency and its impact on Th1/Th2].

OBJECTIVE: To observe clinical therapeutic effects of acupuncture for pattern of liver-stagnation and spleen-deficiency in diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (D-IBS) and its impact on cell factors. METHODS: Forty cases were selected and divided into an acupuncture group (21 cases) in which acupuncture was applied and a medicine group (19 cases) in which oral administration of dicetel and bifidobacterium lactobacillus triple viable capsules were applied. The symptom scores, level of Th1-type cytokine (IFN-gamma, IL-2) and Th2-type cytokine (IL-4, IL-10) and ratio of IFN-gamma to IL-4 were compared in two groups before and after treatment to analyze acupuncture effect. RESULTS: The clinical symptoms were improved after one-week treatment in the acupuncture group (P<0.05), which had faster onset than the medicine group (P<0.05). The total effective rate was 90.48% (19/21) in the acupuncture group, which was superior to 78.95% (15/19) in the medicine group (P<0.05). Compared with medicine treatment, imbalanced condition of Th1/Th2 was turning towards the direction of Th2 after acupuncture, indicating a tendency to recover the balance. CONCLUSION: The clinical efficacy of acupuncture for D-IBS has close relationship with effectively improving balance of Th1/Th2 in patients with liver-stagnation and spleen-deficiency.

Multifractal ECG mapping of ventricular epicardium during regional ischemia in the pig.

Myocardial ischemia creates abnormal electrophysiological substrates that can result in life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias. Early clinical identification of ischemia in patients is important to managing their condition. We analyzed electrograms from an ischemia-reperfusion animal model in order to investigate the relationship between myocardial ischemia and variability of electrocardiogram (ECG) multifractality. Ventricular epicardial electropotential maps from the anesthetized pig during LAD ischemia-reperfusion were analyzed using multifractal methods. A new parameter called the singularity spectrum area reference dispersion (SARD) is presented to represent the temporal evolution of multifractality. By contrasting the ventricular epicardial SARD and range of singularity strength (delta alpha) maps against activation-recovery interval (ARI) maps, we found that the dispersions of SARD and dleta alpha increased following the onset of ischemia and decreased with tissue recovery. In addition, steep spatial gradients of SARD and delta alpha corresponded to locations of ischemia, although the distribution of multifractality did not reflect the degree of myocardial ischemia. However, the multifractality of the ventricular epicardial electrograms was useful for classifying the recoverability of ischemic tissue. Myocardial ischemia significantly influenced the multifractality of ventricular electrical activity. Recoverability of ischemic myocardium can be classified using the multifractality of ventricular epicardial electrograms. The location and size of regions of severe ischemic myocardium with poor recoverability is detectable using these methods.