In the realm of real-time spaceborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imaging, the accurate and swift phase factors calculation (PFC) holds significant importance. This article introduces an innovative ...advanced RISC machines (ARM) field-programmable gate array (FPGA) hybrid acceleration technique designed to expedite the phase factor computation process of SAR imaging. By combing the strengths of ARM and FPGA, our approach achieves optimal performance. The proposed methodology strategically allocates the initial and intermediate calculations to ARM, while delegating the intricate exponential functions to FPGA. By incorporating a parallel four-channel coordinated rotation digital computer (CORDIC) structure and redundancy-based fault tolerant modules with error correction codes, the protection of soft errors is realized and the reliability is improved. By utilizing a modified three-tiered reconfigurable processing elements exchange network for fault tolerant CORDIC processors, the acceleration of computing time is realized and hardware overhead is reduced. A comprehensive prototype verification illustrates the method's efficacy for PFC in spaceborne SAR imaging. The evaluation of computational time and resource utilization unveils ARM's suitability for the initial two levels, while the complexities and precision of the third level warrant FPGA computing acceleration. Overall, this research advances a novel ARM-FPGA hybrid strategy that elevates phase factor computation in spaceborne SAR imaging, opening up avenues for efficient and dependable radar imaging applications.
Abstract
Background
Renal tubular epithelial–myofibroblast transdifferentiation (EMT) plays a key role in the regulation of renal fibrosis. Exosomes derived from human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem ...cells (hucMSCs) play a crucial role in alleviating renal fibrosis and injury. Additionally, hucMSC-derived exosomes contain numerous microRNAs (miRNAs). However, it is unclear whether mesenchymal stem cells can regulate the transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1-induced EMT of human renal tubular epithelial cells (RTECs) through exosomal miRNAs.
Method
HK-2, a human RTEC line, was co-treated with TGF-β1 and hucMSC-derived exosomes. Additionally, TGF-β1-treated HK-2 cells were transfected with a miR-335-5p mimic and disintegrin and metalloproteinase domain-containing protein 19 (ADAM19)-overexpression plasmid. miR-335-5p expression and ADAM19 protein and inflammation levels were measured via quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, western blotting, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, respectively.
Results
TGF-β1 treatment changed the shape of HK-2 cells from a cobblestone morphology to a long spindle shape, accompanied by an increase in interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, IL-1β, collagen I, collagen III, α-smooth muscle actin, vimentin, and N-cadherin protein levels, whereas E-cadherin protein levels were reduced in these HK-2 cells, suggesting that TGF-β1 treatment induced the inflammation and EMT of HK-2 cells. HucMSC-exosomes improved the inflammation and EMT phenotype of TGF-β1-induced HK-2 cells by transferring miR-335-5p. miR-335-5p was found to bind the
ADAM19
3′-untranslated region to reduce ADAM19 protein levels. Additionally, miR-335-5p improved the inflammation and EMT phenotype of HK-2 cells by reducing ADAM19 protein levels with TGF-β1 induction.
Conclusions
HucMSC-derived exosomal miR-335-5p attenuates the inflammation and EMT of HK-2 cells by reducing ADAM19 protein levels upon TGF-β1 induction. This study provides a potential therapeutic strategy and identifies targets for clinically treating renal fibrosis.
A pyrene-tiaraed pillar5arene derivative showing concentration-independent intensive excimer emission was synthesized. Photolysis of the compound led to a switch from excimer to monomer emission, ...which was applied for photo-writing.
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A pyrene-tiaraed pillar5arene derivative was synthesized, which showed a concentration-independent intensive excimer emission. Photolysis of the pyrene-tiaraed pillar5arene led to a switch from excimer to monomer emission, applicable to photo-writing.
Three chiral bicyclic pillar5arene derivatives termed as molecular universal joints (MUJs), were synthesized and separated enantiomerically. These MUJs showed temperature‐driven chirality switching ...in certain solvents. Herein, it is demonstrated that temperature‐driven chirality switching could also be realized by mixing two miscible organic solvents, in each of which chirality inversion is not accomplishable. Additionally, solvent mixing drastically varied the inversion temperature of the MUJs, for example, from far below zero to room temperature. Moreover, the temperature‐driven Sp/Rp to Rp/Sp chirality switching direction could be reversed by the solvent mixing and it was critically controlled by the mixing ratios of the two solvents. These observations allowed precise manipulation of the chirality switching behavior of the MUJs. Such a chirality switching was ascribed to the influences of solvent and temperature on the in–out equilibrium of the side rings, which is delicately controlled by several processes, including the solvation/desolvation and the inclusion/exclusion of the side rings and solvent molecules. Crucially, the solvent mixing introduced new supramolecular processes, in particular the desolvation of solvent molecules from the mixed solvent system and the solvation of the side ring by the mixed solvent, which significantly disturbed the original in–out equilibrium of MUJs and drastically switched the entropy and enthalpy changes of conformational interconversion.
Complete control: Temperature‐driven chirality switching of three pillar5arene‐based molecular universal joints (MUJs) can be manipulated by mixing two organic solvents, in each of which chirality inversion does not occur. By varying the solvent ratios, the inversion temperature of the MUJs drastically changed, and the temperature‐driven Sp/Rp to Rp/Sp chirality switching direction could be critically controlled.
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is partially inheritable while its mechanism is still uncertain.
This cross-sectional study focused on gene pathways as a whole rather than polymorphisms of single ...genes. Deep sequencing and gene enrichment analysis based on pathways in Reactome database were obtained to reveal gene mutations.
A total of 117 patients with MDD and 78 healthy controls were enrolled. The Digestion and Dietary Carbohydrate pathway (Carbohydrate pathway) was determined to contain 100% mutations in patients with MDD and 0 mutation in matched healthy controls.
Findings revealed in the current study enable a better understanding of gene pathways mutations status in MDD patients, indicating a possible genetic mechanism of MDD development and a potential diagnostic or therapeutic target.
How to determine reasonable position and length of anchor cable is a frequently encountered but not well addressed problem in slope reinforcement projects. In this paper, the variable-modulus ...elastoplastic strength reduction method (SRM) is used to obtain the stress field, displacement field, and factor of safety of slope. Slope reinforcement using anchor cables is modeled by surface loading, i.e. different distributions of surface loading represent various reinforcement schemes. Optimal reinforcement scheme of anchor cables can be determined based on slope stress and displacement fields. By comparing the factor of safety and stress field before and after slope reinforcement, it is found that better rein-forcement results can be achieved if strong reinforcement is applied upon the regions with high stress and large displacement. This method can well optimize the arrangement of anchor cables. In addition, several cases are employed to verify the proposed method.
Osteosarcoma is the most common malignant tumour found in bones, and it has a poor prognosis. For improved therapy, it is significant to have a deep understanding of the proteomics changes in the ...cancer stem cells (CSCs) of osteosarcoma. Therefore, a comparative proteomics approach based on ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to an Orbitrap Fusion mass spectrometer (UHPLC-Orbitrap Fusion MS) was established to investigate the key molecular changes between CSCs and non-CSCs in human osteosarcoma HOS cells. A proteomic analysis was performed on these samples and a total of more than 6600 proteins were identified in each run. Moreover, most of the correlation coefficients between three biological repeats were more than 0.9 in each group. That finding demonstrated not only that the reproducibility of the test is good but also that the stability of this MS is excellent. A label-free quantitative method was applied to analyse differentially expressed proteins. Using the criteria of greater than 1.5-fold changes and a p value < 0.05, 124 proteins were identified as being significantly different between HOS-CSCs and non-CSCs. A pathway analysis of differentially expressed proteins by Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) revealed the potential molecular regulatory networks that may regulate CSCs. Selected differential α-actinin 4 (ACTN4) proteins were validated by Western blot assay. These findings enhance our understanding of the molecular changes in CSCs and may provide additional improvements in therapy for treating osteosarcoma. Moreover, the UHPLC-Orbitrap Fusion MS-based proteomics method is helpful in cancer research.
We developed a facile and stable comparative proteomics assay based on ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to Orbitrap Fusion mass spectrometer to reveal the key proteins changed in cancer stem cells of osteosarcoma. Display omitted
•A stable and accurate analytical system was developed for proteomics study.•It’s the first time to detect proteome of cancer stem cells in osteosarcoma.•A wide range of proteins and corresponding pathways were identified and confirmed.•Results improve the understanding of osteosarcoma and new therapies.
We aimed to explore the feasibility and clinical effectiveness of percutaneous CT-guided iodine-125 (¹²⁵I) brachytherapy combined with chemotherapy for the treatment of patients with unresectable or ...locally advanced pancreatic carcinoma (PC).
We retrospectively reviewed 66 patients with Stage III and IV PC who had received chemotherapy. A total of 35 (53%) patients receiving 125I brachytherapy and chemotherapy (gemcitabine + cisplatin, GP) were classified as Group A, and 31 (47%) patients who received GP chemotherapy alone were categorized as Group B. The evaluated indications were local control rate (LCR), local progression-free survival (LPFS), overall survival (OS), treatment-related complications, and the degree of symptom relief. Kaplan-Meier curves, log-rank test and Cox regression models were generated and used for further analysis to identify predictors of outcomes.
The median follow-up time was 6.00±0.84 months. The 1-, 3-, 6-, 12- and 18-month LCRs for Group A were 100% (35/35), 89.3% (25/28), 71.4% (15/21), 37.5% (3/8) and 33.3% (1/3), respectively; and those for Group B were 87.1% (27/31), 69.6% (16/23), 41.2% (7/17), 14.3% (1/7) and 0% (0/3), respectively. The LCR differed at 1-, 3- and 6-months (P = 0.032; P = 0.009; P = 0.030; respectively). The median LPFS was 7.00±0.30 months and 5.00±0.75 months for Groups A and B (P = 0.023), respectively; however, the median OS of the groups were not significantly different (8.00±0.77 months vs. 6.00±1.04 months. P = 0.917). No life-threatening complications occurred during or after the procedures. Patients in Group A experienced better pain control and relief of abdominal distension than those in Group B.
CT-guided 125I brachytherapy is a feasible, safe, and valuable treatment for patients with unresectable PC.
Magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) have been widely used for various biomedical applications such as magnetic resonance imaging and drug delivery. However, their potential toxic effects, ...including genotoxicity, need to be thoroughly understood. In the present study, the genotoxicity of IONPs with different particle sizes (10, 30 nm) and surface coatings (PEG, PEI) were assessed using three standard genotoxicity assays, the Salmonella typhimurium reverse mutation assay (Ames test), the in vitro mammalian chromosome aberration test, and the in vivo micronucleus assay. In the Ames test, SMG-10 (PEG coating, 10 nm) showed a positive mutagenic response in all the five test bacterial strains with and without metabolic activation, whereas SEI-10 (PEI coating, 10 nm) showed no mutagenesis in all tester strains regardless of metabolic activation. SMG-30 (PEG coating, 30 nm) was not mutagenic in the absence of metabolic activation, and became mutagenic in the presence of metabolic activation. In the chromosomal aberration test, no increase in the incidence of chromosomal aberrations was observed for all three IONPs. In the in vivo micronucleus test, there was no evidence of increased micronuclei frequencies for all three IONPs, indicating that they were not clastogenic in vivo. Taken together, our results demonstrated that IONPs with PEG coating exhibited mutagenic activity without chromosomal and clastogenic abnormalities, and smaller IONPs (SMG-10) had stronger mutagenic potential than larger ones (SMG-30); whereas, IONPs with SEI coating (SEI-10) were not genotoxic in all three standard genotoxicity assays. This suggests that the mutagenicity of IONPs depends on their particle size and surface coating.
Abstract
The Tianwen-1 spacecraft is China's first Mars exploration mission. The Mars Orbiter Magnetometer (MOMAG) is a scientific instrument on board the Tianwen-1 mission that is designed to study ...magnetic fields at Mars, including the solar wind to the magnetosheath and the ionosphere. Using the first Tianwen-1/MOMAG data that is publicly available, we present an interplanetary coronal mass ejection (ICME) and stream interaction region (SIR) list based on in situ observations at Mars between 2021 November 16 and 2021 December 31. We compared the magnetic field intensity and vector magnetic field measurements from Tianwen-1/MOMAG and Mars Atmospheric Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN)/Magnetometer (MAG) during the ICME and SIR interval and found a generally good consistency between them. Due to MAVEN's orbital adjustment since 2019, the Tianwen-1/MOMAG instrument is almost unique in its status as an interplanetary magnetic field monitor currently at Mars. The observations indicate that the MOMAG instrument on Tianwen-1 is performing well and can provide accurate measurements of the vector magnetic field in the near-Mars solar wind space. The multipoint observations combining MOMAG, MINPA, and MEPA on board Tianwen-1 with MAG, SWIA, and STATIC on board MAVEN will help develop systematic studies of the characteristics of ICMEs and SIRs at Mars, and their influences on the Martian atmosphere and ionosphere.