Experimental Study Based on Box-Behnken Design and Response Surface Methodology for Optimization Proportioning of Activated Lithium Slag Composite Cement-Based Cementitious Materials.

Cement-based cementitious materials occupy a central position in the construction industry, but the problem of high carbon dioxide(CO2) emissions from cement production has attracted global attention. To meet this challenge, finding low-carbon alternative materials has become a top priority in the research of new building materials. At the same time, the problem of large amounts of lithium slag piling up needs to be solved, and resource utilization has become its potential way out. In this study, the volcanic ash activity of lithium slag was activated by composite activation means of high-temperature calcination and sodium silicate, and it was used as an alternative mix to cement. The Box-Behnken design and response surface method (BBD-RSM) was utilized to optimize the ratio of activated lithium slag composite cement-based cementitious materials, and high-performance new solid waste cementitious materials were prepared. The results show that activated lithium slag composite cementitious materials activated lithium slag exhibit excellent performance when activated lithium slag mass fraction is 7.3%, the sodium silicate dosage is 8.8%, and water-solid ratio is 0.6:1. The composite cementitious material under this ratio shows excellent performance, with fluidity 235.69 mm, gelation time 73.54 s, water evolution rate 1.123%, 3d and 28d compressive strengths, respectively, are 11.54 MPa and 22.9 MPa. Compared with ordinary Portland-cement-based cementing materials, the uniaxial compressive strength, modulus of elasticity, and tensile strength at break of activated lithium slag cementitious material solidified body were increased by 34.33%, 36.43%, and 34.98%, and the compressive deformation and tensile deformation were enhanced by 37.78% and 40%. This study not only provides a theoretical basis and experimental foundation for the preparation of new solid waste cementitious materials, but also provides a new solution for the reinforcement of crushed rock bodies in engineering practice, which is of great significance for promoting the low-carbon development of the construction industry.

Resonances and antiresonances in heat generation by spin current in a quantum dot.

We study the heat generation in a quantum dot exposed to a rotating magnetic field and coupled to a normal lead. Both electron-phonon interaction and electron-electron interaction are considered in the dot. We show the emergence of resonances and antiresonances in the heat generation, which we attribute to constructive interference and destructive interference between phonon waves emitted from opposite spin channels in the dot.

Construction of a nano dispersed Cr/Fe-polycrystalline sensor via high-energy mechanochemistry for simultaneous electrochemical determination of dopamine and uric acid.

A bimetallic polycrystalline sensor (Cr/Fe-SNCM) having nanosized and high dispersion was designed and used for the electrochemical simultaneous determination of dopamine (DA) and uric acid (UA). Catalytic nanosized Cr/Fe were highly anchored on N/S/O-contained porous carbon with high dispersion and polycrystalline Cr/Fe via energetic mechanochemical method and high-temperature carbonization. The obtained Cr/Fe-SNCM exhibited high graphitized carbon supporter and endowed high electron transport and signal output for the whole sensor. Moreover, highly dispersed Cr/Fe sites and the polycrystalline form (metal-N/S/O) efficiently enhanced the catalytic reaction, leading to a limits of detection (based on the 3σ/m criterion) of 25.8 and 22.5 nM for DA and UA, respectively. This is 1-2 orders of magnitude lower than many state-of-the-art reported sensors. The Cr/Fe-SNCM1.0 sensor exhibited wide working range (0.1 to 10.0 µM), high recovery (96-103%) and low relative standard deviation (RSD = 3.2-4.7%) for DA and UA in real serum samples, possessing high significance for practical large-scale applications.

Teaching Mode Based on Educational Big Data Mining and Digital Twins.

Data mining technology has gradually become an important data analysis and knowledge discovery technology widely used in many modern industries. Data mining is a technique to find its regularity from a large amount of data by analyzing each data. It mainly includes three steps: data preparation, regularity search, and regularity representation. Data preparation is to select the required data from relevant data sources and integrate them into a data set for data mining; regular search is to find out the regularity contained in the data set by a certain method; regular expression is to be as user-readable as possible. The way of understanding (such as visualization) will represent the found patterns. This research mainly discusses the improvement of teaching mode based on digital twin-based education big data mining. Through the research on the basic principles of data mining and digital twin technology, the student evaluation tool module based on digital twin and the relevant data analysis tool module of students based on digital twin education big data mining are developed. Data mining is carried out from the data of student performance, personal basic information, and evaluation information to find the correlation between various factors, find the hidden laws, and provide support for teaching decision-making. This paper also solves the problem of frequent communication with remote databases according to the characteristics of the database data required by students and improves the efficiency and scalability of education big data mining technology based on digital twins. The goal of the virtual interactive system of the digital twin-based CNC platform is to have both three-dimensional real-time monitoring and remote control functions based on a three-dimensional virtual CNC panel. This research integrates the three-dimensional real-time monitoring and remote control of the virtual interactive system, analyzes the system operation process, develops the system interface, and improves the system sub-functions; it builds an experimental environment, conducts example tests on various functions of the digital twin platform virtual interactive system, and performs virtual interactions system performance indicators are analyzed. 60% of students believe that their innovation ability has been improved after the implementation of the digital twin teaching model; 50% of students believe that their self-evaluation ability has been improved. Applying digital twin's educational big data mining to student information management, university teaching evaluation, student performance analysis, and examination system, it has played a very good guiding role in improving the level of school teaching management.

Orthokeratology and Low-Intensity Laser Therapy for Slowing the Progression of Myopia in Children.

Orthokeratology (OK) is widely used to slow the progression of myopia. Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) provides sufficient low energy to change the cellular function. This research is aimed at verifying the hypothesis that LLLT treatment could control myopia progression and comparing the abilities of OK lenses and LLLT to control the refractive error of myopia. Eighty-one children (81 eyes) who wore OK lenses, 74 children (74 eyes) who underwent LLLT treatment, and 74 children (74 eyes) who wore single-vision distance spectacles for 6 months were included. Changes in axial length (AL) were 0.23 ± 0.06 mm for children wearing spectacles, 0.06 ± 0.15 mm for children wearing OK lens, and -0.06 ± 0.15 mm for children treated with LLLT for 6 months. Changes in subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFChT) observed at the 6-month examination were -16.84 ± 7.85 µm, 14.98 ± 22.50 µm, and 35.30 ± 31.75 µm for the control group, OK group, and LLLT group, respectively. Increases in AL at 1 month and 6 months were significantly associated with age at LLLT treatment. Changes in AL were significantly correlated with the baseline spherical equivalent refraction (SER) and baseline AL in the OK and LLLT groups. Increases in SFChT at 1 month and 6 months were positively associated with age at enrolment for children wearing OK lens. At 6 months, axial elongation had decelerated in OK lens-wearers and LLLT-treated children. Slightly better myopia control was observed with LLLT treatment than with overnight OK lens-wearing. Evaluations of age, SER, and AL can enhance screening for high-risk myopia, improve the myopia prognosis, and help determine suitable control methods yielding the most benefits.

Implications of Necroptosis for Cardiovascular Diseases.

Necroptosis is a non-apoptotic programmed cell death pathway, which causes necrosis-like morphologic changes and triggers inflammation in the surrounding tissues. Accumulating evidence has demonstrated that necroptosis is involved in a number of pathological processes that lead to cardiovascular diseases. However, the exact molecular pathways linking them remain unknown. Herein, this review summarizes the necroptosis-related pathways involved in the development of various cardiovascular diseases, including atherosclerosis, cardiac ischemia-reperfusion injury, cardiac hypertrophy, dilated cardiomyopathy and myocardial infarction, and may shed light on the diagnosis and treatment of these diseases.

Identification of aberrantly methylated differentially expressed genes in age-related macular degeneration.

DNA methylation plays a significant role in many diseases. Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a leading cause of vision loss for people aged 50 years and above, but the etiology and pathogenesis are largely unknown. This study aimed to identify the aberrantly methylated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in AMD and predict the related pathways on the basis of public data.Aberrant methylation can influence the functions of key genes by altering their expression. Here, we found out DEGs by overlapping public microarray data (GSE29801 and GSE102952). Functional and enrichment analyses of selected genes were performed using the DAVID database. Subsequently, protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were constructed by using STRING and visualized in cytoscape to determine hub genes. Finally, we collected AMD patients' blood samples to identify the methylation statuses of these hub genes by using methylated DNA immunoprecipitation.In total, 156 hypermethylation-low expression genes and 127 hypomethylation-high expression genes were predicted. The hypermethylation-low expression genes were enriched in biological processes of response to cardiac conduction, ATP binding, and cell-cell junction assembly. The top 5 hub genes of the PPI network were HSP90AA1, HSPA1L, HSPE1, HSP90B1, and NOP56. Meanwhile, the hypomethylation-high expression genes were enriched in the biological processes of response to positive regulation of the MAPK cascade, actin cytoskeleton reorganization, dentate gyrus development, and cell migration. The top 5 hub genes of this PPI network were PIK3R1, EZR, IGF2, SLC2A1, and CDKN1C. Moreover, the methylation statuses of NOP56, EZR, IGF2, SLC2A1, CDKN1C were confirmed to be altered in the blood of AMD patients.This study indicated possible aberrantly methylated DEGs and differentially expressed pathways in AMD by bioinformatics analysis, providing novel insights for unraveling the pathogenesis of AMD. Hub genes, including NOP56, EZR, IGF2, SLC2A1, CDKN1C, might serve as aberrant methylation-based candidate biomarkers for AMD in future applications.

Preparation and characterization of galactosylated glycol chitosan micelles and its potential use for hepatoma-targeting delivery of doxorubicin.

This study aimed to develop novel galactosylated cholesterol modified-glycol chitosan (Gal-CHGC) micelles for targeting delivery of doxorubicin (DOX) in live cancer cells. Three kinds of Gal-CHGC conjugates were synthesized and characterized. The mean particle size and critical aggregation concentration of these polymeric micelles increased with the increase of galactose substitution degree. The DOX-loaded micelles were prepared by an o/w method. The mean diameters of DOX-loaded galactosylated micelles were in the range of 387-497 nm. DOX released from drug-loaded micelles displayed a biphasic way. Cellular uptake studies demonstrated that DOX-loaded galactosylated micelles could enhance the uptake of DOX into HepG2 cells. Moreover, the cytotoxicity of DOX-loaded galactosylated micelles against HepG2 cells significantly improved in contrast with free DOX and DOX-loaded micelles without galactosylation. These results suggested that Gal-CHGC micelles could be a potential carrier for hepatoma-targeting drug delivery.

Development of dual ligand-targeted polymeric micelles as drug carriers for cancer therapy in vitro and in vivo.

Chemotherapy is a major therapeutic approach for cancer patients. The action sites of cancer drugs are intracellular compartments including cytoplasm or nucleus. However, targeting drug delivery into the nucleus of specific tumor cells remains a challenging task. Herein, we developed dual-decorated polymeric micelles with folic acid (FA) and a nuclear localization signal (NLS) for specific tumor-targeted drug delivery. Cholesterol-modified glycol chitosan (CHGC) was synthesized. NLS and FA conjugated CHGC (NFCHGC) micelles were constructed. Doxorubicin (DOX) was chosen as a model anticancer drug and coumarin 6 (C6) was used as a hydrophobic fluorescence probe. The drug-loaded polymeric micelles were prepared and characterized. C6-loaded NFCHGC (C6/NFCHGC) showed efficient intracellular trafficking including endosomal/lysosomal escape and nucleus transportation in folate receptor (FR)-positive KB cells investigated by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). DOX-loaded NFCHGC (DOX/NFCHGC) exhibited stronger cytotoxicity against KB cells than other DOX formulations. Furthermore, blank polymeric micelles displayed low toxicity and good biocompatibility in vivo. DOX/NFCHGC micelles had the strongest anti-tumor efficacy against KB tumor xenograft models in vivo. These findings demonstrated that NFCHGC micelles were deemed as a potential drug nanocarrier for cancer therapy, especially used in FR-positive tumor cells and nucleus-targeting delivery.

[A case report of myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative disease unclassifiable with karyotype aberration of trisomy 8 and JAK2 mutation].

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between clinical features of myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative disease, unclassifiable (MDS/MPD-U), karyotype of chromosome and JAK2 mutation in 1 case. The clinical features, karyotype and JAK2 mutation of the patient with MDS/MPD-U were studied by means of bone marrow biopsy, karyotype analysis and ARMS-PCR technique. The results indicated that the typical micromegakaryocytes and thrombocytosis, karyotype aberration of trisomy 8 as well as JAK2 V617F mutation were found in this patient. It is concluded that the patient was diagnosed as MDS/MPD-U with trisomy 8 and JAK2 V617F mutation. The data of this patient will provide evidence for studying correlation of chromosome karyotype aberration with JAK2 V617F mutation and for evaluating prognosis of MDS/MPD-U.

[Effect of bone-marrow mesenchymal stem cells on the immune function of aging rats].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of transplantation of bone-marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) on the immune functions of aging rats. METHODS: Healthy SD rats were randomized into normal control, aging model group and MSCs group. The aging model was established by daily subcutaneous injection of D-galactose for 4 consecutive months. MSCs were isolated from the bone marrow of adult SD rats and injected (3×10(6) MSCs) in rats in the MSCs group via the tail vein once a week for 4 weeks. The spleen index, activity of T lymphocytes and the levels of IL-2 and IL-10 in spleen were measured, and the pathological changes of the spleen were observed after the treatments. RESULTS: MSCs transplantation enhanced the cellular immune function of aging rats manifested by obviously increased spleen index, activity of T lymphocyte and the level of IL-2, and lowered level of IL-10 in the spleen. The rats in the aging model group showed serious spleen injury, which was obviously lessened by MSCs injection. CONCLUSION: MSCs transplantation can improve the cellular immune function of aging rats and ameliorate spleen injury induced by D-galactose.

[Matrine enhances the cytotoxic sensitivity of ABCG2high nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells to natural killer cells by inducing high expression of NKG2D receptor ligands].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the mechanism underlying the effects of matrine in enhancing the cytotoxic sensitivity of CNE2/DDP cells highly expressing ATP-binding cassette superfamily G member 2 (ABCG(2)(High)) to allogenic natural killer (Allo-NK) cells. METHODS: ABCG(2)(High) CNE2/DDP cells and Allo-NK cells were isolated by magnetic activated cell sorting (MACS). Flow cytometry was used to evaluate the purity of the isolated cells and the expression of NKG2D ligands on the target cells before and after incubation with matrine. The cytotoxic sensitivity of the treated and non-treated ABCG(2)(High) CNE2/DDP cells to Allo-NK cells was measured by LDH releasing assay. RESULTS: The expression rate of ABCG2 was (91.40-/+2.32)% in ABCG(2)(High) CNE2/DDP cells. More than 90% of the isolated NK cells were identified to be CD3(-)CD16(+)CD56(+) cells. The expression rates of MICA, MICB, ULBP1, ULBP2, and ULBP3 on the target cells incubated with matrine increased from (2.92-/+0.33)%, (4.27-/+0.33)%, (5.80-/+0.62)%, (11.10-/+3.15)%, and (7.75-/+1.14)% to (11.30-/+0.89)%, (14.29-/+2.61)%, (12.56-/+1.06)%, (43.24-/+4.43)%, and (12.77-/+1.06)%, respectively. At the E: T ratio of 10:1 and 20:1, the cytotoxic sensitivity of ABCG(2)(High) cells to Allo-NK cells increased from (15.32-/+1.34)% and (27.26-/+6.81)% in un-treated cells to (28.53-/+1.37)% and (42.72-/+2.80)% in matrine-treated cells, respectively, showing significant differences in the cytotoxic sensitivity of the target cells in both groups produced by matrine treatment (F=29.05, P=0.000). CONCLUSION: Matrine can up-regulate the expressions of NKG2D ligands (MICA/B and ULBP1-3) in ABCG(2)(High) nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells, which results in increased cytotoxic sensitivity of the cells to Allo-NK cells.