Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) offers a promising pathway to smooth third-generation semiconductors. However, it is still a challenge to reduce the use of additional oxidants or/and energy in ...current CMP processes. Here, a new and green atomically smoothing method: Piezocatalytic-CMP (Piezo-CMP) is reported. Investigation shows that the Piezo-CMP based on tetragonal BaTiO
(t-BT) can polish the rough surface of a reaction sintering SiC (RS-SiC) to the ultra-smooth surface with an average surface roughness (Ra) of 0.45 nm and the rough surface of a single-crystal 4H-SiC to the atomic planarization Si and C surfaces with Ra of 0.120 and 0.157 nm, respectively. In these processes, t-BT plays a dual role of piezocatalyst and abrasive. That is, it piezo-catalytically generates in-situ active oxygen species to selectively oxidize protruding sites of SiC surface, yielding soft SiO
, and subsequently, it acts as a usual abrasive to mechanically remove these SiO
. This mechanism is further confirmed by density functional theory (DFT) calculation and molecular simulation. In this process, piezocatalytic oxidation is driven only by the original pressure and friction force of a conventional polishing process, thus, the piezo-CMP process do not require any additional oxidant and energy, being a green and effective polishing method.
Antifibrotic therapy has changed the treatment paradigm for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF); however, a subset of patients still experienced rapid disease progression despite treatment. This ...study aimed to determine whether CT-based radiomic features can predict therapeutic response to antifibrotic agents. In this retrospective study, 35 patients with IPF on antifibrotic treatment enrolled from two centers were divided into training (
= 26) and external validation (
= 9) sets. Clinical and pulmonary function data were collected. The patients were categorized into stable disease (SD) and progressive disease (PD) groups based on functional or radiologic criteria. From pretreatment non-enhanced high-resolution CT (HRCT) images, twenty-six radiomic features were extracted through whole-lung texture analysis, and six parenchymal patterns were quantified using dedicated imaging platforms. The predictive factors for PD were determined via univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. In the training set (SD/PD: 12/14), univariate analysis identified eight radiomic features and ground-glass opacity percentage (GGO%) as potential predicators of PD. However, multivariate analysis found that the single independent predictor was the sum entropy (accuracy, 80.77%; AUC, 0.75). The combined sum entropy-GGO% model improved the predictive performance in the training set (accuracy, 88.46%; AUC, 0.77). The overall accuracy of the combined model in the validation set (SD/PD: 7/2) was 66.67%. Our preliminary results demonstrated that radiomic features based on pretreatment HRCT could predict the response of patients with IPF to antifibrotic treatment.
Online peer-to-peer (P2P) lending, one of the most successful technology- enabled initiatives in the fintech revolution, has drastically changed the way individual investors and borrowers meet and ...transact. While prior research has found herding among investors at the listing level, such social behavior has been underexplored at a macro, platform level. In this study, we attempt to fill this gap by examining whether subsequent investors follow their predecessors’ actions when choosing which platform to invest, and if so, how various platform attributes and regulations moderate herding behavior. We collected a novel data set from leading platforms in a large P2P lending market. Our baseline analysis reveals that herding exists at the platform level. Using a multilevel model, we further identify several interesting moderators: the investor’s herding behavior is accentuated by platforms’ market share and the cumulative amount funded, but attenuated by their time in operation. Finally, we find that government regulatory events dampen the magnitude of the herding effect, suggesting that more information disclosure and stricter operation standards reduce the value of observational learning. The results from our analysis provide implications for P2P lending investors, platform designers, and policymakers.
The IFN immune system comprises type I, II, and III IFNs, signals through the JAK-STAT pathway, and plays central roles in host defense against viral infection. Posttranslational modifications such ...as ubiquitination regulate diverse molecules in the IFN pathway. To search for the deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) involved in the antiviral activity of IFN, we used RNA interference screening to identify a human DUB, ubiquitin-specific protease (USP) 13, whose expression modulates the antiviral activity of IFN-α against dengue virus serotype 2 (DEN-2). The signaling events and anti-DEN-2 activities of IFN-α and IFN-γ were reduced in cells with USP13 knockdown but enhanced with USP13 overexpression. USP13 may regulate STAT1 protein because the protein level and stability of STAT1 were increased with USP13 overexpression. Furthermore, STAT1 ubiquitination was reduced in cells with USP13 overexpression and increased with USP13 knockdown regardless of with or without IFN-α treatment. Thus, USP13 positively regulates type I and type II IFN signaling by deubiquitinating and stabilizing STAT1 protein. Overall, to our knowledge, USP13 is the first DUB identified to modulate STAT1 and play a role in the antiviral activity of IFN against DEN-2 replication.
Metabolic disorder is noted for pacing-induced cardiomyopathy. The benefits of His bundle pacing over right ventricular (RV) pacing in preventing pacing-induced cardiomyopathy from a metabolic ...perspective are yet to be fully understood.
Three pig groups were established for this study: sham control, RV pacing (RV pacing for 6 months), and His pacing (RV pacing for 6 months, followed by His bundle pacing for 3 months). Complete atrioventricular block was created in the last 2 groups. Left ventricular function and dyssynchrony were assessed via echocardiography, while proteins linked to metabolism, endoplasmic reticulum stress, and inflammation in left ventricular myocardium were examined. The RV pacing group had significantly more left ventricular mechanical dyssynchrony compared with the other groups. The RV pacing group exhibited triglyceride and diacylglycerol accumulation in cardiomyocytes and higher expression of binding immunoglobulin protein and tumor necrosis factor-α than the other groups. Additionally, the expression of CD36 was activated, while the expression of hormone-sensitive lipase was downregulated in the RV pacing group compared with the His pacing and sham control groups. Furthermore, the expressions of GLUT4 and pyruvate dehydrogenase were higher in the RV pacing group than the sham control and His pacing groups. Notably, the abnormal fatty acid and glucose metabolic pathways in the left ventricular myocardium during RV pacing could be corrected by His bundle pacing.
His bundle pacing can mitigate the abnormal metabolism disorders, endoplasmic reticulum stress, and inflammation induced during RV pacing and may contribute to the superiority of conduction system pacing over RV pacing in reducing heart failure hospitalization.
A mild decrease of ADAMTS13 (a disintegrin and metalloprotease with thrombospodin type 1 motif 13) could attribute to stroke and coronary heart disease in general population. However, the role of ...ADAMTS13 in hemodialysis (HD) patients remains to be explored. This cross-sectional and observational cohort study enrolled 98 chronic HD patients and 100 normal subjects with the aims to compare the ADAMTS13 activity between chronic HD patients and normal subjects, and to discover the role of ADAMTS13 on the newly developed cardiovascular events for HD patients in a 2-year follow-up. Our HD patients had a significantly lower ADAMTS13 activity than normal subjects, 41.0 ± 22.8% versus 102.3 ± 17.7%, p < 0.001. ADAMTS13 activity was positively correlated with diabetes, triglyceride and hemoglobin A1c, and negatively with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in HD patients. With a follow-up of 20.3 ± 7.3 months, the Cox proportional hazards model revealed that low ADAMTS13, comorbid diabetes, and coronary heart diseases have independent correlations with the development of cardiovascular events. Our study demonstrated that chronic HD patients have a markedly decreased ADAMTS13 activity than normal subjects. Although ADAMTS13 seems to correlate well with diabetes, high triglyceride and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, ADAMTS13 deficiency still carries an independent risk for cardiovascular events in chronic HD patients.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common human malignancies worldwide with very poor prognosis. Resistance to targeted therapeutic drugs such as sorafenib remains one of the major ...challenges in clinical treatment. In the present study, PARP1 was found to be highly expressed in human embryonic stem cells, but progressively decreased upon specified hepatic differentiation. Reactivation of PARP1 expression was also detected in HCC residual tumors after sorafenib treatment in xenograft mouse model, indicating the potential important roles of PARP1 in stem cell pluripotency and HCC sorafenib treatment resistance. Overexpression of PARP1 was frequently observed in HCC patients, and closely associated with poor clinical outcome. Treatment of Sorafenib induced activation of DNA damage repair signaling, which is highly active and essential for maintenance of stem cell pluripotency in HCC residual tumors. PARP inhibitor Olaparib extensively suppressed the DNA damage repair signaling, and significantly inhibited the global pluripotent transcriptional network. The repression of key pluripotent transcriptional factors and DNA damage repair signaling by Olaparib was mainly through CHD1L-mediated condensation of the chromatin structure at their promotor regions. The global reshaping of the pluripotent transcriptome by Olaparib might reinforce Sorafenib in eliminating HCC residual tumors and enhance therapeutic efficiency.
Purpose
Accurate predictions of postoperative pain intensity are necessary for customizing analgesia plans. Insomnia is a risk factor for severe postoperative pain. Moreover, heart rate variability ...(HRV) can provide information on the sympathetic–parasympathetic balance in response to noxious stimuli. We developed a prediction model that uses the insomnia severity index (ISI), HRV, and other demographic factors to predict the odds of higher postoperative pain.
Methods
We recruited gynecological surgery patients classified as American Society of Anesthesiologists class 1–3. An ISI questionnaire was completed 1 day before surgery. HRV was calculated offline using intraoperative electrocardiogram data. Pain severity at the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) was assessed with the 0–10 numerical rating scale (NRS). The primary outcome was the model's predictive ability for moderate‐to‐severe postoperative pain. The secondary outcome was the relationship between individual risk factors and opioid consumption in the PACU.
Results
Our study enrolled 169 women. Higher ISI scores (p = 0.001), higher parasympathetic activity (rMSSD, pNN50, HF; p < 0.001, p < 0.001, p < 0.001), loss of fractal dynamics (SD2, alpha 1; p = 0.012, p = 0.039) in HRV analysis before the end of surgery were associated with higher NRS scores, while laparoscopic surgery (p = 0.031) was associated with lower NRS scores. We constructed a multiple logistic model (area under the curve = 0.852) to predict higher NRS scores at PACU arrival. The five selected predictors were age (OR: 0.94; p = 0.020), ISI score (OR: 1.14; p = 0.002), surgery type (laparoscopic or open; OR: 0.12; p < 0.001), total power (OR: 2.02; p < 0.001), and alpha 1 (OR: 0.03; p < 0.001).
Conclusion
We employed a multiple logistic regression model to determine the likelihood of moderate‐to‐severe postoperative pain upon arrival at the PACU. Physicians could personalize analgesic regimens based on a deeper comprehension of the factors that contribute to postoperative pain.
A 16 Gb/s four-level pulse amplitude modulation (PAM4) underwater wireless optical communication (UWOC) system based on 488-nm laser diode (LD) with light injection and optoelectronic feedback ...techniques is proposed and successfully demonstrated. Experimental results show that such a 1.8-GHz 488-nm blue light LD with light injection and optoelectronic feedback techniques is enough forceful for a 16 Gb/s PAM4 signal underwater link. To the authors' knowledge, this study is the first to successfully adopt a 488-nm LD transmitter with light injection and optoelectronic feedback techniques in a PAM4 UWOC system. By adopting a 488-nm LD transmitter with light injection and optoelectronic feedback techniques, good bit error rate performance (offline processed by Matlab) and clear eye diagrams (measured in real-time) are achieved over a 10-m underwater link. The proposed system has the potential to play a vital role in the future UWOC infrastructure by effectively providing high transmission rate (16 Gb/s) and long underwater transmission distance (10 m).
The efficacy of i.v. or topical lidocaine as an anaesthesia adjunct in improving clinical outcomes in patients receiving gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures under propofol sedation remains ...unclear.
Electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library) were searched for RCTs comparing the clinical outcomes with or without lidocaine application (i.v. or topical) in patients receiving propofol for gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures from inception to 29 March 2021. The primary outcome was propofol dosage, while secondary outcomes included procedure time, recovery time, adverse events (e.g. oxygen desaturation), post-procedural pain, and levels of endoscopist and patient satisfaction.
Twelve trials (1707 patients) published between 2011 and 2020 demonstrated that addition of i.v. (n=7) or topical (n=5) lidocaine to propofol sedation decreased the level of post-procedural pain (standardised mean difference SMD=-0.47, 95% confidence interval CI: -0.8 to -0.14), risks of gag events (risk ratio RR=0.51, 95% CI: 0.35–0.75), and involuntary movement (RR=0.4, 95% CI: 0.16–0.96). Subgroup analysis demonstrated that only i.v. lidocaine reduced propofol dosage required for gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures (SMD=-0.83, 95% CI: -1.19 to -0.47), increased endoscopist satisfaction (SMD=0.75, 95% CI: 0.21–1.29), and shortened the recovery time (SMD=-0.83, 95% CI: -1.45 to -0.21). Intravenous or topical lidocaine did not affect the incidence of oxygen desaturation (RR=0.72, 95% CI: 0.41–1.24) or arterial hypotension (RR=0.6, 95% CI: 0.22–1.65) and procedure time (SMD=0.21, 95% CI: -0.09 to 0.51).
This meta-analysis demonstrated that i.v. or topical lidocaine appears safe to use and may be of benefit for improving propofol sedation in patients undergoing gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures. Further large-scale trials are warranted to support our findings.
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