We report results on the searches of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) with sub-GeV masses (mχ) via WIMP-nucleus spin-independent scattering with Migdal effect incorporated. Analysis on ...time-integrated (TI) and annual modulation (AM) effects on CDEX-1B data are performed, with 737.1 kg day exposure and 160 eVee threshold for TI analysis, and 1107.5 kg day exposure and 250 eVee threshold for AM analysis. The sensitive windows in mχ are expanded by an order of magnitude to lower DM masses with Migdal effect incorporated. New limits on σχNSI at 90% confidence level are derived as 2×10−32∼7×10−35 cm2 for TI analysis at mχ∼50–180 MeV/c2, and 3×10−32∼9×10−38 cm2 for AM analysis at mχ∼75 MeV/c2–3.0 GeV/c2.
We report the first results of a light weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) search from the CDEX-10 experiment with a 10 kg germanium detector array immersed in liquid nitrogen at the China ...Jinping Underground Laboratory with a physics data size of 102.8 kg day. At an analysis threshold of 160 eVee, improved limits of 8×10^{-42} and 3×10^{-36} cm^{2} at a 90% confidence level on spin-independent and spin-dependent WIMP-nucleon cross sections, respectively, at a WIMP mass (m_{χ}) of 5 GeV/c^{2} are achieved. The lower reach of m_{χ} is extended to 2 GeV/c^{2}.
Aim To investigate the potential of iodine concentration (IC) determined using virtual monochromatic spectral computed tomography (CT) to predict the response of gastric carcinomas to preoperative ...neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NC). Materials and methods A total of 20 patients were enrolled who underwent two spectral CT examinations (1 week before and two cycles after NC). The percentage change in tumour thickness (%ΔCWT) and in IC on the arterial phase (%ΔIC-a) and venous phase (%ΔIC-v) after NC were calculated and compared for different histopathological regression grades and response groups. The diagnostic efficacies to discriminate good response (GR) and poor response (PR) of the above three parameters were evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Results The decrease rate of %ΔIC-a for the GR group was higher than that for the PR group (−0.59 −0.76, −0.20 versus −0.11 −0.75, 0.92, p =0.012). There was no significant difference in the %ΔIC-v and %ΔCWT values between the GR and PR groups ( p =0.076 and p =0.779, respectively). The areas under the ROC curve (AUC) values were 0.857, 0.762, and 0.542 for %ΔIC-a, %ΔIC-v, and %ΔCWT, respectively, in the response prediction. The cut-off value for identifying PR was a decrease rate of <52.9% for %ΔIC-a, and the sensitivity and specificity values were 0.857 and 0.833. Conclusion Changes in the IC for gastric carcinomas following NC were detected using spectral CT and correlated with histopathological regression. The prediction efficacy for IC was better than that for tumour thickness, with IC on the arterial phase being a better predictor than IC on the venous phase.
Understanding soil physical properties is essential for soil quality management and sustainable land use. With the growing accumulation of microplastics in soils, a better understanding of the impact ...of microplastics on soil physical properties is crucial to conserve and manage soil quality. This study explored the effects of polyester microfiber (PMF) concentrations (0, 0.1% and 0.3%) on bulk density, porosity, aggregation and hydraulic conductivity of a clayey soil from a field experiment (1 year) and a pot experiment (6 wet-dry cycles). Polyester microfibers significantly increased the volume of >30 μm pores and reduced the volume of <30 μm pores compared to the control treatment. However, there were no detectable changes in the soil bulk density and saturated hydraulic conductivity between the PMF treatments and the control treatment. Interestingly, we observed that polyester microfibers significantly increased the contents of water stable large macroaggregates (>2 mm) in the 0.3% PMF (44%) and 0.1% PMF (39%) treatments compared to the control treatment (31%) in the pot experiment, but this was not true in the field experiment. The efficient interaction between polyester microfibers and fine soil particles and the frequent wet-dry cycles enhanced the formation and stability of macro-aggregates induced by polyester microfibers in the pot experiment. Overall, our results provide valuable evidence for microplastic influences on soil physical properties. Because microplastics are long-term anthropogenic contaminants, it is necessary to further study the impacts of microplastics on soil quality for terrestrial ecosystem sustainability.
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•The changes of soil physical properties induced by polyester microfiber were observed from a field and a pot experiment.•Polyester microfibers did not alter soil bulk density and saturated hydraulic conductivity.•Polyester microfibers reduced the volume of <30 μm pores as increased the volume of >30 μm pores.•Polyester microfibers increased soil aggregation in the pot experiment but not in the field experiment.
We present results on light weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) searches with annual modulation (AM) analysis on data from a 1-kg mass p-type point-contact germanium detector of the CDEX-1B ...experiment at the China Jinping Underground Laboratory. Datasets with a total live time of 3.2 yr within a 4.2-yr span are analyzed with analysis threshold of 250 eVee. Limits on WIMP-nucleus (χ-N) spin-independent cross sections as function of WIMP mass (m_{χ}) at 90% confidence level (C.L.) are derived using the dark matter halo model. Within the context of the standard halo model, the 90% C.L. allowed regions implied by the DAMA/LIBRA and CoGeNT AM-based analysis are excluded at >99.99% and 98% C.L., respectively. These results correspond to the best sensitivity at m_{χ}<6 GeV/c^{2} among WIMP AM measurements to date.
Brown planthopper (BPH), white‐backed planthopper (WBPH) and small brown planthopper (SBPH), are the closely related rice pests that perform differentially on wheat plants. Using fecundity as a ...fitness measure, we found that SBPH well‐adapted on wheat plants, followed by WBPH, while BPH had the worst performance. The transcriptomic responses of SBPH and BPH to wheat plants have been compared previously. To understand the different fitness mechanisms of three planthoppers, this study first investigated the transcriptomic responses of WBPH to rice and wheat plants. Genes involved in detoxification, transportation and proteasome were significantly enriched in WBPH in response to different diets. Moreover, comparative analysis demonstrated that most co‐regulated genes in BPH and SBPH showed different expression changes; whereas most co‐regulated genes in BPH and WBPH exhibited similar expression changes. Subsequently, this study also investigated the influences of host plants on the bacterial community of three planthoppers. The three planthoppers harboured distant diversity of bacterial communities. However, there was no dramatic change in bacterial diversity or relative abundance in planthoppers colonized on different hosts. This study illustrates generic and species‐specific changes of three rice planthoppers in response to different plants, which deepen our understanding towards the host fitness for planthopper species.
The majority of co‐regulated genes changed similarly between BPH and WBPH, but reciprocally between SBPH and WBPH.
No dramatic change in bacterial community when planthoppers colonized on different hosts.
Host transfer frequency may account for the easier adaptation of SBPH to wheat plants than that of WBPH and BPH
Background
IL‐25 has been proposed to play a key role in the pathogenesis of chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP). This study aimed to evaluate the association of IL‐25 with the ...Th2‐biased inflammatory profiles in CRSwNP.
Methods
Nasal polyp (NP) tissues and control uncinate process tissues were collected from 92 patients with CRSwNP, 20 patients with chronic rhinosinusitis without nasal polyps (CRSsNP), and 16 normal control subjects. IL‐25 expression was examined using immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining, flow cytometry, RT‐qPCR, and ELISA. The inflammatory profiles and clinical characteristics of 2 NP subtypes (IL‐25high and IL‐25low) were evaluated, and the effects of IL‐25 on Th2 cytokine production in cultured dispersed polyp cells were examined in vitro.
Results
The mRNA and protein levels of IL‐25 were significantly increased in the polyp tissues compared with the control uncinate process tissues. The IL‐25high subtype showed greater computed tomography scores, endoscopic scores, and Th2 response. Exposure to IL‐25 activated type 2 innate lymphoid cells and Th2 cells in NP simultaneously which further increased Th2 cytokine production in vitro.
Conclusions
Local IL‐25 plays a crucial role in promoting Th2‐biased inflammatory profiles in NP and may serve as a promising therapeutic target in CRSwNP patients.
Aim
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), endorectal ultrasound (EUS) and computed tomography (CT) are commonly used to evaluate lymph node (LN) metastasis for rectal cancer, but there is no agreement on ...which form of imaging is most accurate. The study aimed to review systematically the diagnostic performance of the three imaging modalities.
Method
The PubMed, Cochrane Library and EMBASE databases were systematically searched for English and Chinese language studies evaluating the diagnostic accuracy of MRI, EUS and/or CT for evaluating LN metastasis. Papers published before 31 December 2013 were included in the search. Subject‐level data were included. Diagnostic odds ratios were calculated for each modality and summary receiver operating characteristic curves were constructed using hierarchical regression models. The performance of the three modalities was compared.
Results
The analysis included data from 123 studies evaluating LN metastasis. The sensitivity and specificity in patients having no chemoradiotherapy were 0.77 and 0.76 for MRI, 0.57 and 0.80 for EUS and 0.79 and 0.76 for CT. The three modalities showed similar accuracy (P = 0.39). MRI showed higher accuracy than EUS for patients who received neoadjuvant therapy (P = 0.04). MRI at a field strength > 1.5 T yielded better performance than EUS (P = 0.03) and similar performance to CT (P = 0.17). High resolution MRI showed similar diagnostic accuracy to EUS (P = 0.18) and CT (P = 0.16).
Conclusion
MRI, EUS and CT show similar accuracy but none could provide reliable evaluation for LN metastasis. MRI rather than EUS is recommended for LN evaluation after neoadjuvant therapy. MRI at a field strength of 3.0 T is the recommended method for MRI examination. But high resolution MRI does not improve the diagnostic performance in evaluating LN metastasis.
SUMMARY
The importance of low-frequency seismic data has been already recognized by geophysicists. However, there are still a number of obstacles that must be overcome for events recovery and noise ...suppression in low-frequency seismic data. The most difficult one is how to increase the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) at low frequencies. Desert seismic data are a kind of typical low-frequency seismic data. In desert seismic data, the energy of low-frequency noise (including surface wave and random noise) is strong, which largely reduces the SNR of desert seismic data. Moreover, the low-frequency noise is non-stationary and non-Gaussian. In addition, compared with seismic data in other regions, the spectrum overlaps between effective signals and noise is more serious in desert seismic data. These all bring enormous difficulties to the denoising of desert seismic data and subsequent exploration work including geological structure interpretation and forecast of reservoir fluid. In order to solve this technological issue, feed-forward denoising convolutional neural networks (DnCNNs) are introduced into desert seismic data denoising. The local perception and weight sharing of DnCNNs make it very suitable for signal processing. However, this network is initially used to suppress Gaussian white noise in noisy image. For the sake of making DnCNNs suitable for desert seismic data denoising, comprehensive corrections including network parameter optimization and adaptive noise set construction are made to DnCNNs. On the one hand, through the optimization of denoising parameters, the most suitable network parameters (convolution kernel、patch size and network depth) for desert seismic denoising are selected; on the other hand, based on the judgement of high-order statistic, the low-frequency noise of processed desert seismic data is used to construct the adaptive noise set, so as to achieve the adaptive and automatic noise reduction. Several synthetic and actual data examples with different levels of noise demonstrate the effectiveness and robustness of the adaptive DnCNNs in suppressing low-frequency noise and preserving effective signals.
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