Numerical Simulation of Electromagnetic-Thermal-Fluid Coupling for the Deformation Behavior of Titanium-Aluminum Alloy under Electromagnetic Levitation.

Electromagnetic levitation (EML) is a good method for high-temperature processing of reactive materials such as titanium-aluminum (Ti-Al) alloys. In this study, the oscillation and deformation processes of Ti-48Al-2Cr alloy specimens at different high-frequency currents during the EML process were simulated using the Finite Element Method and Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) methods. The data of oscillation, stabilization time, deformation, and distribution of electromagnetic-thermal-fluid fields were finally obtained. The accuracy of the simulation results was verified by EML experiments. The results show the following: the strength and distribution of the induced magnetic field inside the molten droplet are determined by the high-frequency current; under the coupling effect of the electromagnetic field, thermal field, and fluid field, the temperature rise of electromagnetic heating is rapid, and accompanied by strong stirring, resulting in a uniform distribution of the internal temperature and a small temperature difference. Under the joint action of gravity and Lorentz force, the molten droplets are first within a damped oscillation and then tend to stabilize with time, and finally maintain the "near rhombus" shape.

Nature-Inspired Incorporation of Precipitants into High-Strength Bulk Aluminum Alloys Enables Life-Long Extraordinary Corrosion Resistance in Diverse Aqueous Environments.

The safe service and wide applications of lightweight high-strength aluminum alloys are seriously challenged by diverse environmental corrosion, since high strength and corrosion resistance are mutually exclusive for metals while surface protection cannot provide life-long corrosion resistance. Here, inspired by fish secreting slime from glands to resist external changes, a strategy of incorporating precipitants as the slime into bulk metals using the inner cavity of opened carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as the glands is developed to enable high-strength aluminum alloys with life-long superior corrosion resistance. The resulting material has ultrahigh tensile strength (≈700 MPa) and extraordinary corrosion resistance in acidic, neutral and alkaline media. Notably, it has the highest resistance to intergranular corrosion, exfoliation corrosion and stress-corrosion cracking, compared with all previously reported aluminum alloys, and its corrosion rate is even much lower than that of corrosion-resistant pure aluminum, which results from the pronounced surface enrichment of precipitants released (secreted) from exposed CNTs forming a protective surface film. Such high corrosion resistance is life-long and self-healing due to the on-demand minimal self-supply of the precipitants dispersed throughout the bulk material. This strategy can be readily expanded to other aluminum alloys, and could pave the way for developing corrosion-resistant high-strength metallic materials.

Impact of Electromagnetic Stirring Roller Arrangement Pattern on Magnetic Field Simulation and Solidification Structure of PW800 Steel in the Second Cooling Zone.

Strand electromagnetic stirring (S-EMS), a technique applied in the secondary cooling zone, enhances the solidification structure of casting slabs. This study examines how the arrangement pattern of electromagnetic stirring rollers-face-to-face, side-to-side or up-down misalignment produces this enhancement. It uses simulations to analyze the electromagnetic field distribution in these configurations. The findings demonstrate that: (1) The magnetic flux density distribution in the casting slab is related to the arrangement pattern of the electromagnetic stirring rollers. (2) The face-to-face arrangement produces the largest and most concentrated electromagnetic force compared to the other two arrangement patterns. (3) S-EMS can effectively improve the equiaxed grain ratio of casting slabs. Before and after EMS is turned on, casting slabs' average equiaxed grain ratio goes up from 8% to 33%.

LncRNA SNHG12 regulated by WTAP aggravated the oxygen-glucose deprivation/reperfusion-induced injury in bEnd.3 cell.

OBJECTIVES: Previous studies have identified abnormal expression of lncRNA SNHG12 in ischemic stroke, but the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Through database predictions, m6A methylation sites were found on SNHG12, suggesting post-transcriptional modification. To further elucidate the role of SNHG12 and m6A methyltransferase WTAP in oxygen-glucose deprivation/reperfusion (OGD/R)-induced damage in cerebral microvascular endothelial cells, we conducted investigations. Additionally, we examined the impact of m6A methyltransferase WTAP on SNHG12 expression. RESULTS: Overexpressing SNHG12 in bEnd.3 cells was found to inhibit cell proliferation and promote apoptosis, as well as activate the production of reactive oxygen species and inflammatory cytokines (E-selectin, IL-6 and MCP-1), along with angiogenic proteins (VEGFA and FGFb). Conversely, SNHG12 knockdown alleviated OGD/R-induced damage to BEnd.3 cells, resulting in improved cell proliferation, reduced apoptosis, decreased ROS and LDH production, as well as diminished expression of inflammatory cytokines (E-selectin, IL-6 and MCP-1) and angiogenic proteins (VEGFA and FGFb). Furthermore, WTAP was found to positively regulate SNHG12 expression, and WTAP knockdown in bEnd.3 cells under the OGD/R conditions inhibited cell proliferation, promoted apoptosis, and increased ROS and LDH production. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that WTAP may play a crucial role in SNHG12-mediated OGD/R-induced damage in bEnd.3 cells. More molecular experiments are needed to further analyze its mechanism. Overall, our study helps to enrich our understanding of the dysregulation of SNHG12 in ischemic stroke.

Robot-assisted pyeloplasty and laparoscopic pyeloplasty in children: A comparison of single-port-plus-one and multiport surgery.

Objective: This study aimed to compare the effects of various trocar placements in robot-assisted and laparoscopic pyeloplasty involving children diagnosed with obstruction of the ureteropelvic junction (OUPJ). Methods: We retrospectively collected the data on 74 patients under 14 years of age who had been diagnosed with OUPJ; these patients underwent either robot-assisted or laparoscopic pyeloplasty in our hospital between January 2015 and November 2021. There were four groups, as follows: •Laparoscopic multiport pyeloplasty (LMPY),•Laparoscopic single-port pyeloplasty (LSPY),•Robotic-assisted multiport pyeloplasty (RMPY),•Robotic-assisted single-port-plus-one pyeloplasty (RSPY).Patients' characteristics as well as their perioperative and follow-up data were collected and evaluated. Results: There was no significant difference in the data regarding patients' characteristics. These data included the grade of hydronephrosis according to the Society of Fetal Urology (SFU grade), anterior and posterior diameter of the renal pelvis and ureter (APDRPU), and the differential degree of renal function (DRF) at following time points: preoperative, postoperative, and comparison of preoperative and postoperative. There was no difference among these groups. During surgery, the time of trocar placement, urethroplasty time, and total operative time in the robotic groups (RMPY and RSPY) were longer than those in the laparoscopic groups (LMPY and LSPY). However, the ratio of the urethroplasty time and full operative time (UT/WT) in the robotic groups (RMPY and RSPY) was lower than that in the laparoscopic groups (LMPY and LSPY) (P = 0.0075). Also, the volume of blood loss was lower in the robotic groups (RMPY and RSPY) than that in the laparoscopic groups (LMPY and LSPY), although there was no statistical difference (P = 0.11). There were, however, significant differences in hospitalization days (P < 0.0001) and parents' cosmetic satisfaction scores (P < 0.001). There were no differences in fasting time, the length of time that a ureteral catheter remained in place, or the number of postoperative complications. Conclusion: Our study shows that both robotic multiple-port and single-port-plus-one approaches are comparable, with laparoscopic multiple-port and single-port approaches equally effective in resolving OUPJ in children. Robotic and single-port-plus-one approaches may be associated with some advantages in hospitalization time and cosmetic outcomes; therefore, these approaches may be useful in urologic surgery that requires precise suturing, especially in pediatric patients.

WDR4 gene polymorphisms increase hepatoblastoma susceptibility in girls.

Hepatoblastoma, originating from hepatoblasts, is the most common hepatic malignancy. WD repeat domain 4 (WDR4) is a subunit of RNA N(7)-methylguanine (m7G) methyltransferase complex. Recently, WDR4 has shown oncogenic potential in various adult cancers, but its roles in pediatric cancers have not been reported. We performed a case-control study (313 cases vs. 1446 controls) to investigate whether genetic variants in the WDR4 gene influence hepatoblastoma susceptibility in the Chinese Han nationality. We first determine the genotypes of five WDR4 gene polymorphisms (rs2156315 C>T, rs2156316 C>G, rs6586250 C>T, rs15736 G>A, rs2248490 C>G) in participants, using the Taqman assay. And then, an unconditional logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the association between WDR4 gene polymorphisms and hepatoblastoma risk. Overall, we did not find any polymorphism significantly associated with the risk of developing hepatoblastoma. Instead, the stratified analysis revealed that the co-existence of 2-5 risk genotypes increased hepatoblastoma risk by 2.23 folds in girls (adjusted odds ratio=2.23, 95% confidence interval=1.17-4.23, P=0.014). In conclusion, our results demonstrate that single selected polymorphisms were too weak to exert a significant effect on the whole study population. However, in combination, two or more WDR4 gene polymorphisms significantly conferred increased hepatoblastoma risk in girls. Our findings may encourage more genetic association studies to discover significant polymorphisms in the WDR4 gene for hepatoblastoma.

Identification of key carcinogenic genes in Wilms' tumor.

This study aimed to probe carcinogenic genes and pathways associated with Wilms' tumor (WT) onset and malignancy progression. After screening, three datasets acquired from the Gene Expression Omnibus database were analyzed. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified and GO functional enrichment, KEGG pathway enrichment and protein-protein interaction (PPI) were analyzed. The DEGs with top fold change values or top protein interaction scores were used to analyze overall survival based on the TARGET WT dataset. Together, 866 up-regulated genes in GDS1791, 585 up-regulated genes in GDS2010, and 277 down-regulated genes in GDS4802 were found, from which 46 key DEGs were selected for further analysis. In the PPI network, hub positions included COL5A1, COL4A1, ARPP21, SPARCL1, CD86, LY96 and PPP1R12B. The top DEGs (ARPP21, SYNPO, PRRC2B, PPP1R12B, EFCAB2 and LY96) were selected for survival analysis, and they consistently showed a significantly positive correlation with poor survival. Together, five key carcinogenic genes (SYNPO, PRRC2B, PPP1R12B, EFCAB2 and LY96) were highly associated with WT onset and patient survival. These risk genes, interaction networks and enrichments should improve our understanding of the complex molecular mechanisms in WT development and help clinical applications.

Drug preconcentration and direct quantification in biofluids using 3D-Printed paper cartridge.

Drug detection in biofluids has always been great importance for clinical diagnosis. Many detection technologies such as chromatography-mass spectrometry, have been applied to the detection of drugs. However, these technologies required multi-step operations, including complicated and time-consuming pretreatment processes and operations of bulky detection instruments, significantly limiting development of drug detection in clinical diagnosis. Herein, a portable 3D-printed paper cartridge was fabricated for fast sample preconcentration and direct drugs quantitative detection in biofluids by a portable Raman spectrometer. This cartridge contained both paper tip with silver nanowires to preconcentrate samples and achieve surface-enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) measurement, and 3D-printed cartridge to build enclosed environment for the improvement of detection, which cost only one dollar. The preconcentration ability of the cartridge was up to 18.13-fold fluorescence enhancement and compared to the non-preconcentration method, it achieved 9.93-fold improvement of SERS performance. The anticancer drug of epirubicin hydrochloride, cyclophosphamide and their mixtures were quantitatively detected in the bovine serum or artificial urine. The integrated detection procedure required only 1 h, including sample pretreatment and preconcentration, drying, SERS measurements, and quantification analysis. This 3D-printed paper cartridge constituted a portable detection platform that would be potentially a practical and point-of-care detection tool for drug preconcentration and quantification on the clinical diagnosis.

[Modified Brisson surgery combined with skin flap clipping for the treatment of severe concealed penis in children].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of modified Brisson surgery combined with the skin flap clipping technique in the treatment of severe concealed penis in children. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data on 165 children with severely concealed penis treated in our hospital from January 2014 to January 2019, 105 by modified Brisson surgery combined with the skin flap clipping technique and the other 60 by modified Devine surgery, all the operations performed by the same surgeon. We compared the two surgical strategies concerning operation time, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative increase of penile exposure, preputial edema duration, flap necrosis and penile retraction, and satisfaction of the patients' parents with the overall surgical effect. RESULTS: No injury of the dorsal nerve or urethra, nor postoperative refractory prepuce edema or painful erection was found in any of the cases. The patients treated by modified Brisson surgery, in comparison with those treated by modified Devine surgery, showed significantly less intraoperative blood loss (ï¼»8.4 ± 1.60ï¼½ vs ï¼»12.6 ± 2.10ï¼½ ml, P < 0.05), more postoperative increase of penile exposure (ï¼»2.7 ± 0.29ï¼½ vs ï¼»2.3 ± 0.22ï¼½ cm, P < 0.05), fewer cases of flap necrosis (1 vs 4, P < 0.05) and higher rate of satisfaction with the overall surgical effect (94.9% vs 84.5%, P < 0.05), but there were no statistically significant differences between the former and the latter groups in the operation time (ï¼»48.3 ± 4.1ï¼½ vs ï¼»48.1 ± 5.0ï¼½ min, P > 0.05) or the postoperative duration of prepuce edema (ï¼»3.3 ± 0.93ï¼½ vs ï¼»3.2 ± 0.90ï¼½ d, P > 0.05) or number of cases of penile retraction at 6 months (1 vs 1, P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Modified Brisson surgery combined with the skin flap clipping technique can achieve satisfactory results in the treatment of severe concealed penis in children and therefore deserves to be popularized in clinical application.

[Differences and Relationship Between Rhizosphere Characteristics and Methane Emissions of Double-cropping Rice Variety].

Six field varieties of early rice and late rice were selected as test materials for field experiments to explore the difference in CH4 emissions among different rice varieties, and Static Obscura-Gas Chromatography was used to determine the CH4 gas. The results demonstrated a significant difference in the CH4 emissions flux between early and late rice varieties. The average yield of total fertility CH4 emissions was highest in Xiangzaoxian 24 and lowest in Zhuliangyou 819, with a difference of 34.6%. Of the late rice varieties, Tyou 15 was the highest and the Ziyou 299 was the lowest, with a difference of 33.9%. Differences in CH4 emissions and the greenhouse effect of unit yields between different double cropping rice varieties differed significantly. The cumulative CH4 emissions from early rice varieties ranged from 198.3-303.44 kg·hm-2, and the lowest emissions were from Zhuliangyou 819. The greenhouse effect per yield ranged from 0.67 to 1.40 kg·kg-1, and Luliangyou 996 had the lowest emission value. The late-season rice varieties exhibited significantly higher cumulative CH4 emissions compared to early rice, ranging from 291.93 to 388.28 kg·hm-2, and Ziyou 299 had the lowest emission value. The greenhouse effect of per yields rice varieties, while the late rice varieties were contrary to early rice. Reducing carbon and nitrogen concentrations in the rhizosphere and increasing Eh values could reduce CH4 emissions.

Does the climate warming hiatus exist over the Tibetan Plateau?

The surface air temperature change over the Tibetan Plateau is determined based on historical observations from 1980 to 2013. In contrast to the cooling trend in the rest of China, and the global warming hiatus post-1990s, an accelerated warming trend has appeared over the Tibetan Plateau during 1998-2013 (0.25 °C decade(-1)), compared with that during 1980-1997 (0.21 °C decade(-1)). Further results indicate that, to some degree, such an accelerated warming trend might be attributable to cloud-radiation feedback. The increased nocturnal cloud over the northern Tibetan Plateau would warm the nighttime temperature via enhanced atmospheric back-radiation, while the decreased daytime cloud over the southern Tibetan Plateau would induce the daytime sunshine duration to increase, resulting in surface air temperature warming. Meanwhile, the in situ surface wind speed has recovered gradually since 1998, and thus the energy concentration cannot explain the accelerated warming trend over the Tibetan Plateau after the 1990s. It is suggested that cloud-radiation feedback may play an important role in modulating the recent accelerated warming trend over the Tibetan Plateau.