Seismic facies and lithofacies analysis, once considered a breakthrough in exploration applications, is currently a dynamic field because of the addition of several new concepts and interpretive ...procedures. In terms of basic theory, notable developments have taken place that encompass refinements in geological and geophysical concepts, including several enhancements to sequence-stratigraphic and facies distribution models, better knowledge of seismic response mechanism to small-scale stratigraphic structures and different rock types, as well as the emergence of new technologies, such as the one allows the restoration of original depositional architecture and spectral decomposition. A seismic facies analysis index system is proposed that includes nine independent parameters: position, external form, internal configuration, continuity, smoothness, amplitude, frequency, special waveforms, and appearance. The sedimentary systems established by traditional seismic facies analysis lack detailed lithofacies and hydrodynamic information. However, presently further subdivision of seismic lithofacies into more detailed categories is now possible, made available by the addition of new seismic parameters that are indicative of sedimentary structure and rock-type combinations. This enables interpreters to identify lithofacies details directly from the seismic data and reconstruct the sedimentary systems with greater precision (by superposition of the environment, lithofacies and flow paths). The seismic slice image analysis, including seismic geomorphology and seismic sedimentology, employs a stratal time slice, 90° phase shift, and spectral decomposition techniques to improve the resolution of the slice images, describe sedimentary micro-facies and understand sedimentary processes based on the geometric features of the time slice. The seismic facies auto-classification techniques are still at an early stage of development, but significant possibilities exist for future enhancements if the new seismic index system, where the accumulated knowledge of the skilled experts could be utilized advantageously. This paper will also serve as a summary of the state-of-the-art of seismic facies analysis.
Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are a promising therapeutic target for cancer immunotherapy. Targeted delivery of therapeutic drugs to the tumor-promoting M2-like TAMs is challenging. Here, we ...developed M2-like TAM dual-targeting nanoparticles (M2NPs), whose structure and function were controlled by α-peptide (a scavenger receptor B type 1 (SR-B1) targeting peptide) linked with M2pep (an M2 macrophage binding peptide). By loading anti-colony stimulating factor-1 receptor (anti-CSF-1R) small interfering RNA (siRNA) on the M2NPs, we developed a molecular-targeted immunotherapeutic approach to specifically block the survival signal of M2-like TAMs and deplete them from melanoma tumors. We confirmed the validity of SR-B1 for M2-like TAM targeting and demonstrated the synergistic effect of the two targeting units (α-peptide and M2pep) in the fusion peptide (α-M2pep). After being administered to tumor-bearing mice, M2NPs had higher affinity to M2-like TAMs than to tissue-resident macrophages in liver, spleen, and lung. Compared with control treatment groups, M2NP-based siRNA delivery resulted in a dramatic elimination of M2-like TAMs (52%), decreased tumor size (87%), and prolonged survival. Additionally, this molecular-targeted strategy inhibited immunosuppressive IL-10 and TGF-β production and increased immunostimulatory cytokines (IL-12 and IFN-γ) expression and CD8+ T cell infiltration (2.9-fold) in the tumor microenvironment. Moreover, the siRNA-carrying M2NPs down-regulated expression of the exhaustion markers (PD-1 and Tim-3) on the infiltrating CD8+ T cells and stimulated their IFN-γ secretion (6.2-fold), indicating the restoration of T cell immune function. Thus, the dual-targeting property of M2NPs combined with RNA interference provides a potential strategy of molecular-targeted cancer immunotherapy for clinical application.
As one of the important offshore fisheries in China,the tuna longline fishery in the Indian Ocean is indispensable to explore the spatial and temporal changes in fisheries and their relationship with ...different environmental factors.Based on the Indian Ocean tuna fishery production data collected from January to June of2016,combined with the data of environmental factors obtained by satellite remote sensing,ArcGIS and GAM models were used to analyze the temporal and spatial changes of Thunnus obesus and Thunnus albacores fishing grounds in the Indian Ocean and their relationship with different environmental factors.The results showed that:CPUE values of T.obesus and T.albacares were first decreased and then increased from January to June,reaching the highest values in April,with2.45ind/thousand hooks and3.56ind/thousand hooks respectively.There was significant difference in each month’s CPUE(P<0.001);the temporal and spatial changes of T.obesus and T.albacares fishing grounds tended to be the same.They were th
Rapid basin subsidence can cause the stacking of all strata deposited within a third-order eustatic cycle in a backstepping pattern. However, such extreme changes in stratal stacking patterns remain ...unexplored due to the lack of case studies. In this study, we first introduce the concept of sequence-stratigraphic dynamics based on previous achievements, and investigate the normal variations of genetic stratigraphic units of a third-order cycle driven by basin subsidence using mathematical simulations and a case study. We have established a dynamic equation and a system for the evaluation of the variations in genetic stratigraphic units based on which 6 potential driving mechanisms and 36 genetic unit variations, including 2 extreme variants of normal and reverse, were identified. The results confirm that third-order cyclic sea level change (Rsea-level), generalized basin subsidence (Rbase), and the sediment supply (Rsediment) drive the changes in the stratigraphic architecture. However, the variations of genetic stratigraphic unit are driven by the residual basin subsidence rate (Rbase- Rsediment). The stratal stacking pattern depends on the ratio of sediment supply rate to the residual accommodation rate (Rsea-level + Rbase- Rsediment). Sequence-stratigraphic dynamics are applicable to all basins, and may lend themselves as a theoretical basis for wider stratigraphic correlations.
•The concept, dynamic equation and working method of sequence stratigraphic dynamics are presented.•Driven by eustatic cyclic sea level change itself, a prototype sequence consisting of six genetic units will be formed.•The types of genetic units in a sequence decreases from six to one when the external force increases continuously.•There may be 36 underlying genetic unit variation pathways and 6 driving mechanisms.
Animal cells in tissues are supported by biopolymer matrices, which typically exhibit highly nonlinear mechanical properties. While the linear elasticity of the matrix can significantly impact cell ...mechanics and functionality, it remains largely unknown how cells, in turn, affect the nonlinear mechanics of their surrounding matrix. Here, we show that living contractile cells are able to generate a massive stiffness gradient in three distinct 3D extracellular matrix model systems: collagen, fibrin, and Matrigel. We decipher this remarkable behavior by introducing nonlinear stress inference microscopy (NSIM), a technique to infer stress fields in a 3D matrix from nonlinear microrheology measurements with optical tweezers. Using NSIM and simulations, we reveal large long-ranged cell-generated stresses capable of buckling filaments in the matrix. These stresses give rise to the large spatial extent of the observed cell-induced matrix stiffness gradient, which can provide a mechanism for mechanical communication between cells.
Probiotics is a prevalence therapeutic method for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), but there is lack of comparison in different protocols. We aim to differentiate the reasonable protocols by assessing ...the efficacy and safety through the combined way of traditional and network meta-analysis.
PubMed, Medline, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials databases were searched from January 2006 to April 2019. The relative risk (RR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to combine dichotomous data of responders.
Among 14 studies included 1695 patients were identified as suitable for inclusion. The proportion of responders was associated with the administration of multispecies probiotics (RR: 1.39; 95% CI: 1.19-1.61) and the dose of 10∼10 (RR: 2.08; 95% CI: 1.59-2.71). In network meta-analysis, the protocol of DUO had a significant effect for diarrhea type of IBS compared with placebo (RR: 7.46; 95% CI: 2.00-32.23). In the rest of 4 protocols, no significant difference was found in each other except F19 which appears inferior when compared with Pro (RR: 0.16; 95% CI: 0.03-0.88). Meanwhile, Pro showed a superior effect for undifferentiated-type IBS compared with placebo (RR: 7.16; 95% CI: 1.72-29.89). No probiotics-associated severe adverse event was reported in included studies.
Probiotics is a safety choice to improve the overall symptoms for IBS patient. The protocols with suitable dose combined of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium can have prepotent effects compared with single species or over-dosage protocols. Network meta-analysis shows that DUO may be the first recommendation for diarrhea-type IBS. In the remaining 4 regimes of this study, Pro has a high rank for undifferentiated-type IBS.
Liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) are responsible for the immunologic tolerance of liver which is a common site for visceral metastases, suggesting its potential role as an target for cancer ...immunotherapy. However, targeted modulation of LSECs is still not achieved thus far. Here, we report LSECs are specifically targeted and modulated by melittin nanoparticles (α-melittin-NPs). Intravital imaging shows that LSECs fluoresce within 20 s after intravenous injection of α-melittin-NPs. α-melittin-NPs trigger the activation of LSECs and lead to dramatic changes of cytokine/chemokine milieu in the liver, which switches the hepatic immunologic environment to the activated state. As a result, α-melittin-NPs resist the formation of metastatic lesions with high efficiency. More strikingly, the survival rate reaches 80% in the spontaneous liver metastatic tumor model. Our research provides support for the use of α-melittin-NPs to break LSEC-mediated immunologic tolerance, which opens an avenue to control liver metastasis through the immunomodulation of LSECs.
Protein ubiquitination is a post-translational modification (PTM) that regulates various aspects of protein function by different mechanisms. Characterization of ubiquitination has lagged behind that ...of smaller PTMs, such as phosphorylation, largely because of the difficulty of isolating and identifying peptides derived from the ubiquitinated portion of proteins. To address this issue, we generated a monoclonal antibody that enriches for peptides containing lysine residues modified by diglycine, an adduct left at sites of ubiquitination after trypsin digestion. We use mass spectrometry to identify 374 diglycine-modified lysines on 236 ubiquitinated proteins from HEK293 cells, including 80 proteins containing multiple sites of ubiquitination. Seventy-two percent of these proteins and 92% of the ubiquitination sites do not appear to have been reported previously. Ubiquitin remnant profiling of the multi-ubiquitinated proteins proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and tubulin α-1A reveals differential regulation of ubiquitination at specific sites by microtubule inhibitors, demonstrating the effectiveness of our method to characterize the dynamics of lysine ubiquitination.
Changes in sea level are global and cyclical; however, the understanding of the processes that control them is still very limited owing to the low rate of progress in technology to reconstruct the ...trajectory of global sea level change. Based on the reconstruction of the Cenozoic sea level change curve in the northern South China Sea, discrimination criteria for global sea level (GSL) and relative sea level (RSL) changes are proposed for the first time, and five technical difficulties in single-period trajectory reconstruction are addressed. The findings show that the recorded sea level changes are dominated by the GSL change component in only a small number of basins worldwide. The Cenozoic sea level showed an increasing trend of sea level, and the fluctuation amplitude of the second-order cycle was considerably smaller than that of the third-order cycle. These findings challenge the consensus that the Cenozoic sea level continues to fall and that the magnitude of the second-order cycle is greater than that of the third-order cycle. In terms of technological advancement, the accuracy of the third-order single-period trajectory was improved to approach the cosine locus by correcting the deviation between the sea level indicated by the residual accommodation space and the GSL, and eliminating the trajectory distortion caused by the differences in the deposition rate. The new technique has the potential to reconstruct original single-period trajectories, which can provide technical support for comparing the single-period sea level trajectory with the corresponding celestial orbit and studying the mechanisms driving primary cycles.
•The global sea-level (GSL) curve since 33 Ma has been reconstructed.•A criterion for distinguishing GSL and RSL trajectories is proposed.•Five technical difficulties in single-period curve construction are addressed.•New findings challenges the consensus on GSL change.
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