The role of autotransplantation in end-stage hepatic alveolar echinococcosis (AE) is unclear. We aimed to present our 15-case experience and propose selection criteria for autotransplantation. All ...patients were considered to have unresectable hepatic AE by conventional resection due to critical invasion to retrohepatic vena cava, hepatocaval region along with three hepatic veins, and the tertiary portal and arterial branches. All patients successfully underwent ex vivo extended right hepatectomy and autotransplantation without intraoperative mortality. The median autograft weight was 706 g (380–1000 g); operative time was 15.5 hours (11.5–20.5 hours); and anhepatic time was 283.8 minutes (180–435 min). Postoperative hospital stay was 32.3 days (12–60 days). Postoperative complication Clavien–Dindo grade IIIa or higher occurred in three patients including one death that occurred 12 days after the surgery due to acute liver failure. One patient was lost to follow-up after the sixth month. Thirteen patients were followed for a median of 21.6 months with no relapse. This is the largest reported series of patients with end-stage hepatic AE treated with liver autotransplantation. The technique requires neither organ donor nor postoperative immunosuppressant. The early postoperative mortality was low with acceptable morbidity. Preoperative precise assessment and strict patient selection are of utmost importance.
CsV3 Sb5 is a newly discovered Z2 topological kagome metal showing the coexistence of a charge-density-wave (CDW)-like order at T* = 94 K and superconductivity (SC) at Tc = 2.5 K at ambient pressure. ...Here, we study the interplay between CDW and SC in CsV3 Sb5 via measurements of resistivity, dc and ac magnetic susceptibility under various pressures up to 6.6 GPa. We find that the CDW transition decreases with pressure and experience a subtle modification at Pc1 ≈ 0.6 – 0.9 GPa before it vanishes completely at Pc2 ≈ 2 GPa . Correspondingly, Tc(P) displays an unusual M -shaped double dome with two maxima around Pc1 and Pc2 , respectively, leading to a tripled enhancement of Tc to about 8 K at 2 GPa. The obtained temperature-pressure phase diagram resembles those of unconventional superconductors, illustrating an intimated competition between CDW-like order and SC. The competition is found to be particularly strong for the intermediate pressure range Pc1 ≤ P ≤ Pc2 as evidenced by the broad superconducting transition and reduced superconducting volume fraction. The modification of CDW order around Pc1 has been discussed based on the band structure calculations. This work not only demonstrates the potential to raise Tc of the V-based kagome superconductors, but also offers more insights into the rich physics related to the electron correlations in this novel family of topological kagome metals.
The registration data of local cancer registries in 2014 were collected by National Central Cancer Registry (NCCR)in 2017 to estimate the cancer incidence and mortality in China.
The data submitted ...from 449 registries were checked and evaluated, and the data of 339 registries out of them were qualified and selected for the final analysis. Cancer incidence and mortality were stratified by area, gender, age group and cancer type, and combined with the population data of 2014 to estimate cancer incidence and mortality in China. The age composition of standard population of Chinese census in 2000 and Segi's population were used for age-standardized incidence and mortality in China and worldwide, respectively.
Total covered population of 339 cancer registries (129 in urban and 210 in rural) in 2014 were 288 243 347 (144 061 915 in urban and 144 181 432 in rural areas). The mortality verified cases (MV%) were 68.01%. Among them, 2.19% cases were identified through death certifications only (DCO%), and the mortality
Background and purpose
The effect of the triglyceride (TG) to high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL‐C) ratio (TG/HDL‐C) on clinical outcomes of acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) patients is unclear. ...This study sought to determine whether the TG/HDL‐C ratio in AIS patients is associated with worse outcomes at 3 months.
Methods
Acute ischaemic stroke patients who were admitted from 2011 to 2014 were enrolled in this study. TG, total cholesterol (TC), HDL‐C and low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL‐C) were collected on admission. Three end‐points were defined according to the modified Rankin scale (mRS) score at 3 months after symptom onset (excellent outcome, mRS 0–1; good outcome, mRS 0–2; and death, mRS 6).
Results
In all, 1006 patients were included (median age 68.5 years; 58.2% male). Higher TG, non‐HDL‐C and TG/HDL‐C were strongly associated with the three end‐points after adjustments: excellent odds ratio (OR) = 1.39, OR 1.89 and OR 2.34, respectively and good (OR 1.48, OR 2.90 and OR 4.12) outcomes, and death (OR 0.59, OR 0.29 and OR 0.26). According to receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, the best discriminating factor was a TG/HDL‐C ≥ 0.87 for excellent outcomes area under the ROC curve (AUC) 0.596; sensitivity 73.3%; specificity 42.7% and non‐death (AUC 0.674; sensitivity 67.8%; specificity 60.6%) as well as a TG/HDL‐C ≥ 1.01 for a good outcome (AUC 0.652; sensitivity 61.6%; specificity 63.2%). Patients with a TG/HDL‐C < 0.87 had a 2.94‐fold increased risk of death (95% confidence interval 1.89–4.55) compared with patients with a TG/HDL‐C ≥ 0.87.
Conclusions
A lower TG/HDL‐C was independently associated with death and worse outcome at 3 months in AIS.
All the Li metal anode-based batteries suffer from a high propensity to form Li dendrites. To prevent the formation of dendritic lithium on the electrodes, amorphous carbon coatings are deposited ...onto the surface of metallic lithium foil by magnetron sputtering technique. The electrochemical performances of the amorphous carbon-coated lithium (Li/C) electrodes are investigated by galvanostatic charge/discharge tests, cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The compact carbon coatings on the surface of lithium foil can suppress the growth of dendritic lithium during charge–discharge process. The thickness of amorphous carbon coating affects the electrode from two aspects; the thick coating can prevent the formation of dendritic lithium much efficiently, but lead to a large impedance of Li+ transfer.
•Amorphous carbon coatings were deposited onto the surface of metallic lithium.•The formation of dendritic can be prevented according to the SEM photograph.•The electrochemical performance is promoted due to the existence of a-C coating.•The thickness of a-C coating affects the electrode performance from two aspects.
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Exploring high performance cathode materials is of great means for the development of bi-functional electrochromic energy storage devices. Herein, Nb-doped WO3 mesoporous films as ...integrated high-quality cathode are successfully constructed via a facile sol-gel method. Chemical state and crystallinity of the WO3 based films are significantly influenced by doping concentration. Compared with the pure WO3, the optimal Nb-doped film shows improved optical-electrochemical properties with high specific capacity (74.4 mAh g−1 at 2 A g−1), excellent high-rate capability, large optical contrast (61.7% at 633 nm), and ultra-fast switching speed (3.6 s and 2.1 s for coloring and bleaching process, respectively). These positive features suggest the potential application of Nb-doped WO3 mesoporous cathode. Our research paves the way for the development of multifunctional photoelectrochemical energy devices.
DyCo2Mnx (x = 0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and 1.0) compounds were synthesised and found to all be single-phase, isostructural to DyCo2 (MgCu2 Laves phase cubic structure (Fd-3 m) at room temperature). ...DyCo2Mn exhibits a huge coercivity field HC = 21,170 Oe at 5 K. The magnetic transition at Curie temperature TC, was observed as first order for DyCo2 but second order for the Mn doped compounds. Using Kouvel-Fisher plot, critical isotherm analysis and Arrott-Noaks plot techniques, a detailed critical exponents analysis was carried out on these transitions: critical exponents β ≈ 0.5, γ ≈ 1.0, and δ ≈ 3.0 were derived indicating that all the second-order transitions belong exhibit long-range magnetic interactions during the magnetic transitions. High-resolution synchrotron X-ray measurements confirm that there are crystal structure transformations sychronised with the magnetic transitions from paramagnetism to ferrimagnetism (PM-FM) at TC in the x = 0.0 and 0.2 cases with crystal structure changing from cubic (Fd-3 m) to tetragonal (I41/amd), However structures remain cubic (Fd-3 m) for x = 0.4, 0.6, and 1.0.
•A change of crystal structure from cubic (Fd-3 m) to tetragonal (I41/amd) near Tc occurs in both DyCo2 and DyCo2Mn0.2.•Strong competition between the electronic structure, rare earth molecular field and rR/rCo ratio factors affects the crystal structure type.•An extreme huge coercivity HC = 21,170 Oe at 5 K was found in DyCo2Mn.•TC increases from 141 K for DyCo2 to 295 K for DyCo2Mn0.4.•A broad operating temperature range in DyCo2Mn is found, which is an advantage for the practical magnetic cooling technology application.
As an renewable and clean energy of the world, wind energy has gained more and more attention and its fault diagnosis becomes more and more important. The gearbox, as the kernel component of the wind ...turbine system, it’s robust conditions have a great influence on the whole wind turbines system. Wind turbine gearbox has complex structure, which is usually composed of solar planetary gearbox and cylindrical gearbox. In the process of operation, various kinds of faults easily occur, resulting in serious losses. Once the wind turbine gearbox is not functioning as smoothly as it could be, it may result in large economic losses for the company and owner. At the same time, the failure rate of wind turbine gearbox has always been high because of complicated mechanic structure and special motion. Therefore, the tasks of reducing the downtime and increasing the productivity of wind turbine gearbox are urgent. This paper reviewed some research results of faults diagnosis on wind turbines gearbox, such as time-frequency analysis method, vibration based methods, nondestructive testing methods, etc. Meanwhile, this paper finds out some key problems and the channel of the resolution of the issue in order to supply some information for the further research of wind turbines gearbox.
Abstract Objective Retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4) is thought to be associated with insulin resistance in humans, while pregnancy is normally characterized by progressive insulin resistance. ...Gestational diabetes (GDM) occurs when pancreatic beta-cell function is unable to compensate for insulin resistance. This study aimed to determine whether or not serum RBP4 levels are elevated in pregnancy, and to explore the relationship between RBP4 levels and insulin resistance during pregnancy. Methods Serum RBP4 was measured at median gestational week 26 in 121 pregnant women, including 63 with GDM (GDM group) and 58 normal, glucose-tolerant pregnant women (P-NGT group), as well as 65 non-pregnant normal, glucose-tolerant women (NP-NGT group). Multiple stepwise regression analysis was used to explore the independent factors of RBP4. Results Serum RBP4 levels in the P-NGT and GDM groups were significantly higher than in the NP-NGT group (34.50 ± 9.80 mg/L and 41.64 ± 12.21 mg/L vs 30.64 ± 9.46 mg/L, respectively; P < 0.05) after adjusting for age, body mass index (BMI) and blood pressure. Furthermore, RBP4 levels were much higher in the GDM vs P-NGT group. Spearman's correlation analysis showed that serum RBP4 levels were positively correlated with triglycerides (TG), fasting plasma glucose, postprandial 2 h plasma glucose and HOMA-IR in pregnancy. Of these, TG and HOMA-IR ( r2 = 0.312) were independent factors of serum RBP4. Conclusion Serum RBP4 levels are significantly increased in pregnancy, independent of age and BMI, and are also considerably higher in pregnant women with GDM than in those with normal glucose tolerance. In addition, serum RBP4 levels appear to be a valuable marker of insulin resistance and dysfunctional lipid metabolism in pregnancy.
Purpose
To assess the efficacy and safety of drug-eluting beads transarterial chemoembolization (DEB-TACE) in liver cancer patients with different times of previous conventional transarterial ...chemoembolization (cTACE) treatments.
Methods
367 liver cancer patients about to receive DEB-TACE treatment were enrolled in this prospective cohort study. All patients were divided into no previous cTACE group (NPC group), 1–2 times previous cTACE group (PC group) and triple or above previous cTACE group (TPC group) according to the times of previous cTACE treatments.
Results
There was no difference in complete response (CR) (
P
= 0.671) and objective response rate (ORR) (
P
= 0.062) among three groups. Additionally, no difference in overall survival (OS) among groups (
P
= 0.899) was found. As to liver function, most liver function indexes were deteriorative at 1 week after DEB-TACE operation, but returned to baseline at 1–3 months after DEB-TACE operation in all three groups, while percentage of abnormal total bile acid (TBA) patients was higher in TPC group than NPC and PC groups at 1–3 month post-DEB-TACE (
P
= 0.018). As for safety profiles, the incidence of pain during DEB-TACE operation was lower in TPC group compared to NPC and PC groups (
P
= 0.005), while no difference of other adverse events was found during and 1 month post-DEB-TACE treatment among three groups.
Conclusion
DEB-TACE treatment was equally efficient and tolerated in liver cancer patients with different times of previous cTACE treatments.
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