Evidence for Nonlinear Gluon Effects in QCD and Their Mass Number Dependence at STAR

The STAR Collaboration reports measurements of back-to-back azimuthal correlations of di-π^{0}s produced at forward pseudorapidities (2.6<η<4.0) in p+p, p+Al, and p+Au collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 200 GeV. We observe a clear suppression of the correlated yields of back-to-back π^{0} pairs in p+Al and p+Au collisions compared to the p+p data. The observed suppression of back-to-back pairs as a function of transverse momentum suggests nonlinear gluon dynamics arising at high parton densities. The larger suppression found in p+Au relative to p+Al collisions exhibits a dependence of the saturation scale Q_{s}^{2} on the mass number A. A linear scaling of the suppression with A^{1/3} is observed with a slope of -0.09±0.01.

[Progress in the study of antiviral activity of cepharanthine against SARS-CoV-2]

As a member of the dibenzyl isoquinoline alkaloid family, cepharathine is an alkaloid from the traditional Chinese medicine cepharathine, which is mainly used for treatment of leukopenia and other diseases. Recent studies of the inhibitory effect of cepharathine against SARS-CoV-2 have attracted widespread attention and aroused heated discussion. As the original discoverer of the anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of cepharanthine, here we briefly summarize the discovery of cepharanthine and review important progress in relevant studies concerning the discovery and validation of anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of cepharathine, its antiviral mechanisms and clinical trials of its applications in COVID-19 therapy.

[Establishment and clinical validation of an artificial intelligence YOLOv51 model for the detection of precancerous lesions and superficial esophageal cancer in endoscopic procedure]

Objective: To construct the diagnostic model of superficial esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and precancerous lesions in endoscopic images based on the YOLOv5l model by using deep learning method of artificial intelligence to improve the diagnosis of early ESCC and precancerous lesions under endoscopy. Methods: 13, 009 endoscopic esophageal images of white light imaging (WLI), narrow band imaging (NBI) and lugol chromoendoscopy (LCE) were collected from June 2019 to July 2021 from 1, 126 patients at the Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, including low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, ESCC limited to the mucosal layer, benign esophageal lesions and normal esophagus. By computerized random function method, the images were divided into a training set (11, 547 images from 1, 025 patients) and a validation set (1, 462 images from 101 patients). The YOLOv5l model was trained and constructed with the training set, and the model was validated with the validation set, while the validation set was diagnosed by two senior and two junior endoscopists, respectively, to compare the diagnostic results of YOLOv5l model and those of the endoscopists. Results: In the validation set, the accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of the YOLOv5l model in diagnosing early ESCC and precancerous lesions in the WLI, NBI and LCE modes were 96.9%, 87.9%, 98.3%, 88.8%, 98.1%, and 98.6%, 89.3%, 99.5%, 94.4%, 98.2%, and 93.0%, 77.5%, 98.0%, 92.6%, 93.1%, respectively. The accuracy in the NBI model was higher than that in the WLI model (P<0.05) and lower than that in the LCE model (P<0.05). The diagnostic accuracies of YOLOv5l model in the WLI, NBI and LCE modes for the early ESCC and precancerous lesions were similar to those of the 2 senior endoscopists (96.9%, 98.8%, 94.3%, and 97.5%, 99.6%, 91.9%, respectively; P>0.05), but significantly higher than those of the 2 junior endoscopists (84.7%, 92.9%, 81.6% and 88.3%, 91.9%, 81.2%, respectively; P<0.05). Conclusion: The constructed YOLOv5l model has high accuracy in diagnosing early ESCC and precancerous lesions in endoscopic WLI, NBI and LCE modes, which can assist junior endoscopists to improve diagnosis and reduce missed diagnoses.

Measurements of Proton High-Order Cumulants in sqrt[s_{NN}]=3 GeV Au+Au Collisions and Implications for the QCD Critical Point

We report cumulants of the proton multiplicity distribution from dedicated fixed-target Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=3.0  GeV, measured by the STAR experiment in the kinematic acceptance of rapidity (y) and transverse momentum (p_{T}) within -0.5<y<0 and 0.4<p_{T}<2.0  GeV/c. In the most central 0%-5% collisions, a proton cumulant ratio is measured to be C_{4}/C_{2}=-0.85±0.09 (stat)±0.82 (syst), which is 2σ below the Poisson baseline with respect to both the statistical and systematic uncertainties. The hadronic transport UrQMD model reproduces our C_{4}/C_{2} in the measured acceptance. Compared to higher energy results and the transport model calculations, the suppression in C_{4}/C_{2} is consistent with fluctuations driven by baryon number conservation and indicates an energy regime dominated by hadronic interactions. These data imply that the QCD critical region, if created in heavy-ion collisions, could only exist at energies higher than 3 GeV.

Measurements of _{Λ}^{3}H and _{Λ}^{4}H Lifetimes and Yields in Au+Au Collisions in the High Baryon Density Region

We report precision measurements of hypernuclei _{Λ}^{3}H and _{Λ}^{4}H lifetimes obtained from Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=3.0  GeV and 7.2 GeV collected by the STAR experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, and the first measurement of _{Λ}^{3}H and _{Λ}^{4}H midrapidity yields in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=3.0  GeV. _{Λ}^{3}H and _{Λ}^{4}H, being the two simplest bound states composed of hyperons and nucleons, are cornerstones in the field of hypernuclear physics. Their lifetimes are measured to be 221±15(stat)±19(syst)  ps for _{Λ}^{3}H and 218±6(stat)±13(syst)  ps for _{Λ}^{4}H. The p_{T}-integrated yields of _{Λ}^{3}H and _{Λ}^{4}H are presented in different centrality and rapidity intervals. It is observed that the shape of the rapidity distribution of _{Λ}^{4}H is different for 0%-10% and 10%-50% centrality collisions. Thermal model calculations, using the canonical ensemble for strangeness, describes the _{Λ}^{3}H yield well, while underestimating the _{Λ}^{4}H yield. Transport models, combining baryonic mean-field and coalescence (jam) or utilizing dynamical cluster formation via baryonic interactions (phqmd) for light nuclei and hypernuclei production, approximately describe the measured _{Λ}^{3}H and _{Λ}^{4}H yields. Our measurements provide means to precisely assess our understanding of the fundamental baryonic interactions with strange quarks, which can impact our understanding of more complicated systems involving hyperons, such as the interior of neutron stars or exotic hypernuclei.

Probing the Gluonic Structure of the Deuteron with J/ψ Photoproduction in d+Au Ultraperipheral Collisions

Understanding gluon density distributions and how they are modified in nuclei are among the most important goals in nuclear physics. In recent years, diffractive vector meson production measured in ultraperipheral collisions (UPCs) at heavy-ion colliders has provided a new tool for probing the gluon density. In this Letter, we report the first measurement of J/ψ photoproduction off the deuteron in UPCs at the center-of-mass energy sqrt[s_{NN}]=200  GeV in d+Au collisions. The differential cross section as a function of momentum transfer -t is measured. In addition, data with a neutron tagged in the deuteron-going zero-degree calorimeter is investigated for the first time, which is found to be consistent with the expectation of incoherent diffractive scattering at low momentum transfer. Theoretical predictions based on the color glass condensate saturation model and the leading twist approximation nuclear shadowing model are compared with the data quantitatively. A better agreement with the saturation model has been observed. With the current measurement, the results are found to be directly sensitive to the gluon density distribution of the deuteron and the deuteron breakup process, which provides insights into the nuclear gluonic structure.

Search for the Chiral Magnetic Effect via Charge-Dependent Azimuthal Correlations Relative to Spectator and Participant Planes in Au+Au Collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=200 GeV

The chiral magnetic effect (CME) refers to charge separation along a strong magnetic field due to imbalanced chirality of quarks in local parity and charge-parity violating domains in quantum chromodynamics. The experimental measurement of the charge separation is made difficult by the presence of a major background from elliptic azimuthal anisotropy. This background and the CME signal have different sensitivities to the spectator and participant planes, and could thus be determined by measurements with respect to these planes. We report such measurements in Au+Au collisions at a nucleon-nucleon center-of-mass energy of 200 GeV at the Relativistic Heavy-Ion Collider. It is found that the charge separation, with the flow background removed, is consistent with zero in peripheral (large impact parameter) collisions. Some indication of finite CME signals is seen in midcentral (intermediate impact parameter) collisions. Significant residual background effects may, however, still be present.

[Preliminary clinical experience of the novel transcatheter aortic valve system Prizvalve® for the treatment of severe aortic stenosis]

Objective: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) with the novel Prizvalve^® system in treating severe aortic stenosis. Methods: This is a single-center, prospective, single-arm, observational study. A total of 11 patients with severe aortic stenosis with high risk or inappropriate for conventional surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) were included, and TAVI was achieved with the Prizvalve^® system between March 2021 and May 2021 in West China Hospital. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) was performed immediately after prosthesis implantation to evaluate mean transaortic gradient and maximal transaortic velocity. The device success rate was calculated, which was defined as (1) the device being delivered via the access, deployed, implanted and withdrawn, (2) mean transaortic gradient<20 mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa) or a maximal transaortic velocity<3 m/s post TAVI, and without severe aortic regurgitation or paravalvular leak post TAVI. TTE was performed at 30 days after the surgery, and all-cause mortality as well as the major cardiovascular adverse events (including acute myocardial infarction, disabling hemorrhagic or ischemic stroke) up to 30 days post TAVI were analyzed. Results: The age of 11 included patients were (78.1±6.3) years, with 8 males. A total of 10 patients were with NYHA functional class Ⅲ or Ⅳ. Devices were delivered via the access, deployed, implanted and withdrawn successfully in all patients. Post-implant mean transaortic gradient was (7.55±4.08) mmHg and maximal transaortic velocity was (1.78±0.44) m/s, and both decreased significantly as compared to baseline levels (both P<0.05). No severe aortic regurgitation or paravalvular leak was observed post TAVI. Device success was achieved in all the 11 patients. No patient died or experienced major cardiovascular adverse events up to 30 days post TAVI. Mean transaortic gradient was (9.45±5.07) mmHg and maximal transaortic velocity was (2.05±0.42) m/s at 30 days post TAVI, which were similar as the values measured immediately post TAVI (both P>0.05). Conclusions: TAVI with the Prizvalve^® system is a feasible and relatively safe procedure for patients with severe aortic stenosis and at high risk or inappropriate for SAVR. Further clinical studies could be launched to obtain more clinical experience with Prizvalve^® system.

Measurement of the Sixth-Order Cumulant of Net-Proton Multiplicity Distributions in Au+Au Collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=27, 54.4, and 200 GeV at RHIC

According to first-principle lattice QCD calculations, the transition from quark-gluon plasma to hadronic matter is a smooth crossover in the region μ_{B}≤T_{c}. In this range the ratio, C_{6}/C_{2}, of net-baryon distributions are predicted to be negative. In this Letter, we report the first measurement of the midrapidity net-proton C_{6}/C_{2} from 27, 54.4, and 200 GeV Au+Au collisions at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The dependence on collision centrality and kinematic acceptance in (p_{T}, y) are analyzed. While for 27 and 54.4 GeV collisions the C_{6}/C_{2} values are close to zero within uncertainties, it is observed that for 200 GeV collisions, the C_{6}/C_{2} ratio becomes progressively negative from peripheral to central collisions. Transport model calculations without critical dynamics predict mostly positive values except for the most central collisions within uncertainties. These observations seem to favor a smooth crossover in the high-energy nuclear collisions at top RHIC energy.

A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of the Effect of Oral Exercises on Masticatory Function

The aim of the current systematic review was to summarize and to evaluate the available information on the effectiveness of oral exercise in improving the masticatory function of people ≥18 y. Electronic databases (Medline, Embase, CENTRAL) and gray literatures were searched (up to December 2020) for relevant randomized and nonrandomized controlled clinical trials. Two reviewers independently conducted the study selection, data extraction, and quality assessments. Meta-analysis was conducted for the comparison of bite force and masticatory performance using mean difference (MD) and standardized mean difference (SMD), respectively. GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation) assessment was adopted for collective grading of the overall body of evidence. Of the 1,576 records identified, 18 studies (21 articles) were included in the analysis. Results of meta-analysis indicated that oral exercise could significantly improve the mean bite force of the participants (parallel comparison: MD, 41.2; 95% CI, 11.6-70.7, P = 0.006; longitudinal comparison: MD, 126.5; 95% CI, 105.2-144.9, P < 0.001). However, the improvement in masticatory performance was not significant (parallel comparison: SMD, 0.11; 95% CI, -0.20 to 0.42, P = 0.48; longitudinal comparison: SMD, 0.4; 95% CI, -0.11 to 0.91, P = 0.13). Results of meta-regression showed that greater improvements in bite force can be achieved among younger adults and with more intensive exercise. Chewing exercise is the most effective oral exercise, followed by clenching exercise, while simple oral exercise may not have a significant effect. Based on the results of the meta-analysis and GRADE assessment, a weak recommendation for people with declined masticatory function to practice oral exercise is made.

The decrease of endothelial progenitor cells caused by high altitude may lead to coronary heart disease

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between the number of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) and coronary heart disease (CHD).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 24 patients with CHD were chosen from Lanzhou City and Xianyang City, and then, 24 healthy controls who matched the CHD group in gender, age and address were chosen as control group. C-reactive protein (CRP) and c-reaction protein (hs-CRP) were detected. The levels of interleukin-8 (IL-8), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), homocysteine (Hcy), hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1α) and stromal cell-derived factor 1 (SDF-1α) were detected.

RESULTS

The number of EPCs in control groups was both increased compared with CHD group (p<0.05). The number of EPCs in Xianyang control group was increased compared with Lanzhou control group (p<0.05). Compared with the control group, the levels of TC, LDL and CRP in the CHD group were higher (p<0.05). Compared with Lanzhou control group, Hcy level was decreased in Lanzhou CHD group (p<0.05). Compared with Xianyang control group, the levels of IL-8 and VEGF were increased, but the levels of HIF-1α and Hcy were decreased in the Xianyang CHD group (p<0.05). The expressions of IL-8, VEGF, Hcy and HIF-1α were increased in Lanzhou control group than the Xianyang control group (p<0.05). In Lanzhou CHD group, Spearman correlation analysis showed that the number of EPCs was negatively related to hs-CRP content (r=-0.631, p<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The decrease of EPCs caused by high altitude may increase the expressions of various cytokines, leading to the occurrence of CHD.

An Adaptive Low-Rank Modeling-Based Active Learning Method for Medical Image Annotation

Active learning is an effective solution to interactively select a limited number of informative examples and use them to train a learning algorithm that can achieve its optimal performance for specific tasks. It is suitable for medical image applications in which unlabeled data are abundant but manual annotation could be very time-consuming and expensive. However, designing an effective active learning strategy for informative example selection is a challenging task, due to the intrinsic presence of noise in medical images, the large number of images, and the variety of imaging modalities. In this study, a novel low-rank modeling-based multi-label active learning (LRMMAL) method is developed to address these challenges and select informative examples for training a classifier to achieve the optimal performance. The proposed method independently quantifies image noise and integrates it with other measures to guide a pool-based sampling process to determine the most informative examples for training a classifier. In addition, an automatic adaptive cross entropy-based parameter determination scheme is proposed for further optimizing the example sampling strategy. Experimental results on varied medical image datasets and comparisons with other state-of-the-art multi-label active learning methods illustrate the superior performance of the proposed method.

Potential biomarkers and lncRNA-mRNA regulatory networks in invasive growth hormone-secreting pituitary adenomas

PURPOSE

Growth hormone-secreting pituitary adenomas (GH-PAs) are common subtypes of functional PAs. Invasive GH-PAs play a key role in restricting poor outcomes. The transcriptional changes in GH-PAs were evaluated.

METHODS

In this study, the transcriptome analysis of six different GH-PA samples was performed. The functional roles, co-regulatory network, and chromosome location of differentially expressed (DE) genes in invasive GH-PAs were explored.

RESULTS

Bioinformatic analysis revealed 101 DE mRNAs and 70 DE long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) between invasive and non-invasive GH-PAs. Functional enrichment analysis showed that epithelial cell differentiation and development pathways were suppressed in invasive GH-PAs, whereas the pathways of olfactory transduction, retinol metabolism, drug metabolism-cytochrome P450, and metabolism of xenobiotics by cytochrome P450 had an active trend. In the protein-protein interaction network, 11 main communities were characterized by cell- adhesion, -motility, and -cycle; transport process; phosphorus and hormone metabolic processes. The SGK1 gene was suggested to play a role in the invasiveness of GH-PAs. Furthermore, the up-regulated genes OR51B6, OR52E4, OR52E8, OR52E6, OR52N2, MAGEA6, MAGEC1, ST8SIA6-AS1, and the down-regulated genes GAD1-AS1 and SPINT1-AS1 were identified in the competing endogenous RNA network. The RT-qPCR results further supported the aberrant expression of those genes. Finally, the enrichment of DE genes in chromosome 11p15 and 12p13 regions were detected.

CONCLUSION

Our findings provide a new perspective for studies evaluating the underlying mechanism of invasive GH-PAs.

Observation of D_{s}^{±}/D^{0} Enhancement in Au+Au Collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=200 GeV

We report on the first measurement of charm-strange meson D_{s}^{±} production at midrapidity in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=200  GeV from the STAR experiment. The yield ratio between strange (D_{s}^{±}) and nonstrange (D^{0}) open-charm mesons is presented and compared to model calculations. A significant enhancement, relative to a pythia simulation of p+p collisions, is observed in the D_{s}^{±}/D^{0} yield ratio in Au+Au collisions over a large range of collision centralities. Model calculations incorporating abundant strange-quark production in the quark-gluon plasma and coalescence hadronization qualitatively reproduce the data. The transverse-momentum integrated yield ratio of D_{s}^{±}/D^{0} at midrapidity is consistent with a prediction from a statistical hadronization model with the parameters constrained by the yields of light and strange hadrons measured at the same collision energy. These results suggest that the coalescence of charm quarks with strange quarks in the quark-gluon plasma plays an important role in D_{s}^{±}-meson production in heavy-ion collisions.

[Analysis of risk factors for delayed bleeding after endoscopic submucosal dissection of gastric epithelial neoplasm]

Objective: To determine the potential risk factors of delayed hemorrhage after endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) in patients with early gastric carcinomas or precancerous lesions. Methods: The clinical data of 637 patients with early gastric carcinomas (EGC) who treated with ESD in Department of Endoscopy at Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, from August 2013 to August 2019, were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate analysis and multivariate logistic analysis were conducted to evaluate the risk factors associated with delayed bleeding. Results: A total of 699 lesions in 637 patients, of which 696 lesions were resected enbloc, the curative resection rate was 92.1% (644/699). The pathological diagnosis after ESD showed that 46 cases were low-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, 71 were high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, and 582 were cancer. Delayed bleeding occurred in 74 lesions, while other 625 lesions without postoperative bleeding. The incidence was 10.6%. Compared with the non-bleeding group, there were statistically significant differences in the maximum length of the lesion, the gross shape of the lesion, the control of intra operative bleeding, and the operation time in the delayed bleeding group (P<0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the maximum length of the lesion and the gross shape of the lesion were independent factors of delayed bleeding after ESD. Delayed bleeding was inclined to occur in patients with lesion size ≥3.0 cm (OR=1.958, 95% CI: 1.162-3.299) and the superficial and flat lesion (OR=10.598, 95% CI: 1.313-85.532) after ESD. Conclusions: The maximum length of the lesion and the gross shape of the lesion are independent impact factors of delayed bleeding occurring in patients with EGC and precancerous lesions after ESD. Patients with lesion size≥3 cm, or superficial flat lesion should be paid attention after ESD operation. It needs to take timely measures to prevent the very likely bleeding in order to ensure postoperative recovery and improve the quality of life for postoperative patients.

Measurement of e^{+}e^{-} Momentum and Angular Distributions from Linearly Polarized Photon Collisions

The Breit-Wheeler process which produces matter and antimatter from photon collisions is experimentally investigated through the observation of 6085 exclusive electron-positron pairs in ultraperipheral Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=200  GeV. The measurements reveal a large fourth-order angular modulation of cos4Δϕ=(16.8±2.5)% and smooth invariant mass distribution absent of vector mesons (ϕ, ω, and ρ) at the experimental limit of ≤0.2% of the observed yields. The differential cross section as a function of e^{+}e^{-} pair transverse momentum P_{⊥} peaks at low value with sqrt[⟨P_{⊥}^{2}⟩]=38.1±0.9  MeV and displays a significant centrality dependence. These features are consistent with QED calculations for the collision of linearly polarized photons quantized from the extremely strong electromagnetic fields generated by the highly charged Au nuclei at ultrarelativistic speed. The experimental results have implications for vacuum birefringence and for mapping the magnetic field which is important for emergent QCD phenomena.

Analysis of risk factors and prognosis of post-stroke pulmonary infection in integrated ICU

OBJECTIVE

The incidence of SAP (stroke-associated pneumonia) is high in integrated ICU (Intensive Care Unit), and it might result in sepsis, which exacerbates the clinical outcome and increases mortality. It is necessary to investigate the epidemiological features of post-stroke infection and sepsis, identify the risk factors and analyze the prognosis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed the data of 329 patients with cerebral infarction or cerebral hemorrhage, from seven tertiary university hospitals in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2016. Basic demographic and clinical data including common health evaluation, stroke severity, microbiological parameters, surgical interventions and treatments were recorded for the analysis. SAP was diagnosed according to the criteria and recommendation from American Heart Association (AHA).

RESULTS

188 (66.4%) patients suffered pneumonia, 124 patients were diagnosed as SAP. Compared with SAP, patients with non-SAP pulmonary infection had prolonged mechanical ventilation time, prolonged central venous catheter indwelling time, and higher incidence of sepsis (17.7% vs. 48.4%). 53 patients (18.7%) developed sepsis during hospitalization, whose mortality rate during hospitalization and the occurrence of neurologic dysfunction at 3 months were significantly increased (p<0.05). 130 positive results of sputum cultures were found. The detected pathogens were mainly gram-negative bacteria. The pathogenic detection rate of non-SAP patients with pulmonary infection was higher (78.1%). The in-hospital mortality was 16.3% and the related risk factors were higher NIHSS score at admission, lower GCS score at admission, pulmonary infection (especially non-SAP pulmonary infection) and sepsis during hospitalization.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of pulmonary infection after stroke in the integrated ICU is high, and it is easy to be complicated with sepsis, prolonging the mechanical ventilation time, central venous catheter indwelling time and hospitalization time, and the prognosis of long-term neurological function is relatively poor. The definition of stroke-associated pneumonia has implications for the classification of clinical infections, the prediction of possible pathogenic pathogens, and the guidance of anti-infective treatment.