Cellular Automata (CA) are widely used to model the dynamics within complex land use and land cover (LULC) systems. Past CA model research has focused on improving the technical modeling procedures, ...and only a few studies have sought to improve our understanding of the nonlinear relationships that underlie LULC change. Many CA models lack the ability to simulate the detailed patch evolution of multiple land use types. This study introduces a patch-generating land use simulation (PLUS) model that integrates a land expansion analysis strategy and a CA model based on multi-type random patch seeds. These were used to understand the drivers of land expansion and to investigate the landscape dynamics in Wuhan, China. The proposed model achieved a higher simulation accuracy and more similar landscape pattern metrics to the true landscape than other CA models tested. The land expansion analysis strategy also uncovered some underlying transition rules, such as that grassland is most likely to be found where it is not strongly impacted by human activities, and that deciduous forest areas tend to grow adjacent to arterial roads. We also projected the structure of land use under different optimizing scenarios for 2035 by combining the proposed model with multi-objective programming. The results indicate that the proposed model can help policymakers to manage future land use dynamics and so to realize more sustainable land use patterns for future development. Software for PLUS has been made available at https://github.com/HPSCIL/Patch-generating_Land_Use_Simulation_Model
•A PLUS model was proposed to support policymaking and understanding of the LULC laws.•Patch dynamics of land use can be projected by the proposed simulation framework.•A land expansion analysis strategy was presented to help uncover the drivers of LULC.•Sustainable land use patterns can be determined by coupling the PLUS and MOP methods.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Gastrointestinal (GI) cancers, one of the most lethal cancers nowadays, have caused millions of deaths. The tumor microenvironment (TME) is a complex ecosystem containing multiple cells, such as ...immune cells, cancer cells, and endothelial cells. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), the predominant cells infiltrating the TME, have been verified to play a crucial role in regulating tumor progression. Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) are involved in mediating tumor-infiltrating immune cells, including TAMs. GI cancer cells produce various ncRNAs to modulate TAM infiltration and polarization. Meanwhile, ncRNAs play a pivotal role in macrophage and cancer cell metabolic reprogramming. Furthermore, macrophages mediate the impact of ncRNAs on chemoresistance, metastasis, and progression of GI cancer. In this review, we summarize recent research advances in the crosstalk between macrophages and GI cancer regulated by ncRNAs. Moreover, we propose the promising role of ncRNAs as potential targets and prognostic biomarkers in cancer treatment, hoping to facilitate the identification of new targets for immunotherapy.
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•NcRNAs mediate TAMs infiltration, polarization, and metabolic reprogramming in gastrointestinal cancer.•TAMs regulate the chemoresistance, metastasis, and progression of gastrointestinal cancer through exosomal ncRNAs.•The interaction between ncRNAs and TAMs provide novel treatment strategy for clinical application.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
•Mapping and assessment of recreational services’ supply–demand are performed.•The landscape aesthetic quality is used as supply of recreational services.•6.62% areas of Shandong province is shortage ...of supply–demand matching.•The average supply–demand matching degree is 0.45 which indicated a mild balance.
Globally, natural landscapes and their recreational ecosystem services (RES) are both under threat from anthropogenic activities and environmental changes. But the demand for RES increases with the development of human living standards. Therefore, mapping and assessing the supply–demand relationships of RES is crucial for landscape planning, management, and human well-being. This study aimed to study the relationships between supply and demand of RES in Shandong province, China, quantify the supply, demand, and supporting capacity of RES, analyze the degree of matching and coupling between the supply and demand of RES, and explore the effect of terrain gradient to RES. The results indicated that the average value of coupling coordination (CCD) between supply–demand of RES in Shandong province was 0.45, which is a mild balance. According to the supply–demand matching types, areas with low supply-high demand accounted for 6.62%, indicating a serious shortage matching of supply and demand. Using hotel quantity and roads as indicators of the supporting capacity of RES, the overall coordination between landscape aesthetic quality (LAQ) and regional hotel quantity shows a mild imbalance (0.38), while that with the regional road density shows a good balance (0.60). Furthermore, the scenery spots density, RES supply, RES supply–demand CCD and support capacity CCD shows an upward trend with the increase of elevation and slope, an “increased-decreased-increased” trend with the increase of terrain niche index. This study provides spatial matching of RES supply and demand in Shandong province. Optimizing land-use structures and improving natural resource allocation were proposed to boost coordination of RES supply and demand.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
The instability of bare slopes is a prevalent concern. The root system of herbaceous vegetation enhances the shear strength of shallow slope soil. This study investigated the mechanism of the ...root-soil system as well as the effects of different influencing factors on the shear strength of the soil and slope stability. In particular, indoor experiments were conducted on rootless undisturbed soil (RUS) and undisturbed soil with a root system (USRS) using a triaxial compression apparatus to analyze the slope stability of composite soil with a Tagetes erecta root system. Significance tests and correlation analysis of the factors affecting shear performance were conducted. The slope reinforcement effect by the plant root system was simulated under 24 working conditions using the MIDAS finite element method. The results revealed the influence of the root content, moisture content, and stress on the shear strength of USRS, as well as the contribution degree and influence of these variables on the slope stability. Both RUS and USRS exhibited strain hardening during shearing. A strong negative (positive) correlation was observed between the internal friction angle (φ) (cohesion (c)) of the USRS and the root content (moisture content). The maximum deviatoric stress during shear failure of the USRS was 1.29 times higher than that of the RUS. Moreover, the root content was positively correlated with the slope safety coefficient and the slope of the line under different working conditions, whereas the slope angle was negatively correlated with the slope safety coefficient. The reinforcement effect by the root system resulted in a 11.2% increase in the safety coefficient and the improved stability of slopes with an angle larger than 1.5%. The findings of this study provide new insights into shallow slope stability in practical slope protection projects.
Cervical cancer (CC) is a gynecological neoplasm with the highest incidence rate, primarily attributed to the persistent infection of high-risk Human papillomavirus (HPV). Despite extensive research, ...the pathogenesis of CC remains unclear. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) methylation, the most prevalent form of epigenetic modification in RNA, is intricately linked to cell proliferation, metastasis, metabolism, and therapeutic resistance within the tumor microenvironment (TME) of CC. The involvement of the writer, reader, and eraser in m6A modification impacts the advancement of tumors through the regulation of RNA stability, nuclear export, translation efficiency, and RNA degradation. Here, we discuss the biogenesis of m6A, the atypical expressions of m6A regulators, the mechanisms of molecular interactions, and their functions in CC. Furthermore, we elucidate m6A modification of non-coding RNA. In the context of precision medicine, and with the advancements of genomics, proteomics, and high-throughput sequencing technologies, we summarize the application of m6A in the clinical diagnosis and treatment of CC. Additionally, new perspectives on detection methods, immune regulation, and nano-drug development are presented, which lay the foundation for further research of m6A and provide new ideas for the clinical treatment of CC.
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Our understanding of the impact of long-term exposures to PM2.5 constituents and sources on mortality is limited.
To examine associations between long-term exposures to PM2.5 ...constituents and sources and cause-specific mortality in US older adults.
We obtained demographic and mortality data for 15.4 million Medicare beneficiaries living within the conterminous United States (US) between 2000 and 2008. We assessed PM2.5 constituents exposures for each beneficiary and used factor analysis and residual-based methods to characterize PM2.5 sources and mixtures, respectively. In age-, sex-, race- and site- stratified Cox proportional hazard models adjusted for neighborhood socio-economic status (SES), we assessed associations of individual PM2.5 constituents, sources, and mixtures and cause-specific mortality and examined modification of these associations by participant demographics and location of residence. We assessed the robustness of our findings to additional adjustment for behavioral risk factors and to alternate exposure definitions and exposure windows.
Hazard ratios (HR) were highest for all causes of death, except COPD, for PM2.5 constituents and the coal combustion-related PM2.5 components, with no evidence of confounding by behavioral covariates. We further found Pb and metal-related PM2.5 components to be significantly associated with increased HR of all causes of death, except COPD and lung cancer mortality, and nitrate (NO3–) and silicon (Si) and associated source-related PM2.5 components (traffic and soil, respectively) to be significantly associated with increased all-cause, CVD, respiratory and all cancer-related mortality HR. Associations for other examined constituents and mortality were inconsistent or largely null. Our analyses of mixtures were generally consistent with these findings. Mortality HRs were greatest for minority, especially Black, low-income urban, younger, and male beneficiaries.
PM2.5 components related to coal combustion, traffic, and to a lesser extent, soil were strongly associated with mortality from CVD, respiratory disease, and cancer.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
We examined the association of long-term, daily 1-h maximum O
(ozone) exposures on cause-specific mortality for 22.2 million US Medicare beneficiaries between 2000-2008. We modeled the association ...between O
and mortality using age-gender-race stratified log-linear regression models, adjusted for state of residence. We examined confounding by (1) adjusting for PM
(particles with aerodynamic diameters <2.5 μm) and NO
(nitrogen dioxide) exposures, temperature, and neighborhood-level characteristics and behaviors, and (2) decomposing O
into its temporal and spatio-temporal components and comparing estimated risk ratios. We also examined sensitivity of our results to alternate exposure measures based on warm-season 8-h daily maximum and 24-h average exposures. We found increased risks from long-term O
exposures to be strongest and most consistent for mortality from respiratory disease (1.030, 95% CI: 1.027, 1.034) (including COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)), CHF (congestive heart failure), and lung cancer (1.015, 95% CI: 1.010, 1.020), with no evidence of confounding by PM
, NO
, and temperature and with results similar across O
exposure measures. While significant, associations between long-term O
exposures and CVD (cardiovascular)-related mortality (1.005, 95% CI: 1.003, 1.007) were confounded by PM
and varied with the exposure measure, with associations no longer significantly positive when warm-season 8-h maximum or 24-h average O
was used to assess exposures. In this large study, we provide strong evidence that O
exposure is associated with mortality from respiratory-related causes and for the first-time, lung cancer, but raise questions regarding O
-related impacts on CVD mortality. Our findings demonstrate the need to further identify potential confounders.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Gastric cancer (GC) remains one of the most common malignancies worldwide. Despite immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has revolutionized cancer treatment and obtained durable clinical responses, ...only a fraction of GC patients benefit from it. As an important component of T cells, regulatory T cells (Tregs) play a vital role in the pathogenesis of GC, keep a core balance between immune suppression and autoimmunity, and function as predictive biomarkers for prognosis of GC patients. In this review, we discuss the role of Tregs in the pathogenesis of GC, and targeting Tregs via influencing their transcription factor, migration, co-stimulatory receptors, immune checkpoints, and cytokines. We also focus on the currently important findings of Tregs metabolism including amino acid, fatty acid, and lactic acid metabolism of GC. The emerging role of microbiome and clinical combined therapy in modulating Tregs in GC treatment is also summarized. Meanwhile, this review recapitulates a novel regulator, magnesium, is involved in mediating Tregs in GC. These research advances on Treg-related strategies provide new insights and challenges for GC progression, treatment, and prognosis. And we hope our review can stimulate further discovery and implication of mediators and pathways targeting Tregs.
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•Tregs are the major inhibitor cells that exert immune suppression effect in the TME.•Tregs participate in the pathogenesis, immunotherapy, and prognosis of GC.•Targeting the transcription factor, migration, co-stimulatory receptors, immune checkpoints, and cytokines of Tregsin GC.•Tregs in GC can be modulated by the metabolic processes, microbiome, magnesium, and clinical combined therapy.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
This study presents the crustal shear wave velocity structure and radial anisotropy along two linear seismic arrays across the North China Craton (NCC) from ambient noise tomography. About a half to ...one year long ambient noise data from 87 stations were used for obtaining the inter-station surface wave empirical Green's functions (EGFs) from cross-correlation. Rayleigh and Love dispersion curves within the period band 5–30s were measured from the EGFs of the vertical and transverse components, respectively. These dispersion data were then used to determine the crustal shear wave velocity structure (VSV and VSH) and radial anisotropy (2(VSH−VSV)/(VSH+VSV)) from point-wise linear inversion with constraints from receiver function analysis. Our results reveal substantial structural variations among different parts of the NCC. The Bohai Bay Basin in the eastern NCC is underlain by a thin crust (~30km) with relatively low velocities (particularly VSV) and large positive radial anisotropy in the middle to lower crust. Such a crustal structure is no longer of a cratonic type and may have resulted from the widespread tectonic extension and intensive magmatism in this region since late Mesozoic. Beneath the Ordos Basin in the western NCC, the crust is relatively thicker (≥40km) and well stratified, and presents a large-scale low velocity zone in the middle to lower crust and overall weak radial anisotropy except for a localized lower crust anomaly. The overall structural features of this region resemble those of typical Precambrian shields, in agreement with the long-term stability of the region. The crustal structure under the Trans North China Orogen (TNCO, central NCC) is more complicated and characterized by smaller scale velocity variations, strong positive radial anisotropy in the middle crust and rapid change to weak-to-negative anisotropy in the lower crust. These features may reflect complex deformations and crust–mantle interactions, probably associated with tectonic extension and magmatic underplating during the Mesozoic to Cenozoic evolution of the region. Our structural images in combination with previous seismic, geological and geochemical observations suggest that the Phanerozoic lithospheric reactivation and destruction processes may have affected the crust (especially the middle and lower crust) of the eastern NCC, and the effect probably extended to the TNCO, but may have minor influence on the crust of the western part of the craton.
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► We studied the crustal structure of the NCC by 2-D ambient noise tomography. ► Variations in crustal structure and deformation correlate with regional tectonics. ► Our result reflects uneven crustal modifications in the different parts of the NCC.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
The impact of long-term exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) on cause-specific mortality is poorly understood.
To assess mortality risks associated with long-term NO2 exposure and evaluate confounding ...of this association.
We examined the association between 12-month moving average NO2 exposure and cause-specific mortality in 14.1 million US Medicare beneficiaries between 2000 and 2008. Associations were examined using age, gender, and race-stratified and state-adjusted Poisson regression models. We assessed the potential for confounding by PM2.5 and behavioral covariates and unmeasured confounding by decomposing NO2 into its spatial and spatio-temporal components.
We found significant associations between 12-month NO2 exposure and increased mortality from all-causes risk ratio (RR): 1.052; 95% CI: 1.051, 1.054; per 10 ppb, cardiovascular (CVD) (1.133; 95% CI: 1.130, 1.137) and respiratory disease (1.050; 95% CI: 1.044, 1.056), all cancers (1.021; 95% CI: 1.017, 1.025), ischemic heart disease (IHD) (1.221; 95% CI: 1.217, 1.226), cerebrovascular (CBV) disease (1.092; 95% CI: 1.085, 1.100), and for the first time pneumonia (1.275; 95% CI: 1.263, 1.287). Associations generally remained positive and statistically significant after adjustment for PM2.5 and behavioral factors.
Our findings provide additional evidence of the increased risk posed by long-term NO2 exposures on increased mortality from all-causes, CVD, respiratory disease, IHD, CBV, and cancer and provide new evidence of their impact on mortality from pneumonia. Unmeasured confounding of these associations was present, however, demonstrating the need to understand sources of this confounding.
•We found new evidence that long-term NO2 exposures are associated with increased mortality from pneumonia.•We provide additional evidence of association between NO2 exposures and increased all-causes mortality.•NO2 was also associated with mortality from cardiovascular, ischemic heart, cerebrovascular, respiratory disease, and cancer.•NO2-associated mortality was robust after adjustment for PM2.5 and neighborhood level demographic and behavioral covariates.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
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