Nuclear Modification Factor of Neutral Pions in the Forward and Backward Regions in p-Pb Collisions

The nuclear modification factor of neutral pions is measured in proton-lead collisions collected at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon of 8.16 TeV with the LHCb detector. The π^{0} production cross section is measured differentially in transverse momentum (p_{T}) for 1.5 Collapse

Key Words Collapse

MESH Headings Collapse

Grants Collapse

Measurements of the Higgs boson production cross section and couplings in the W boson pair decay channel in proton-proton collisions at s=13TeV

Production cross sections of the standard model Higgs boson decaying to a pair of W bosons are measured in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13Te V . The analysis targets Higgs bosons produced via gluon fusion, vector boson fusion, and in association with a W or Z boson. Candidate events are required to have at least two charged leptons and moderate missing transverse momentum, targeting events with at least one leptonically decaying W boson originating from the Higgs boson. Results are presented in the form of inclusive and differential cross sections in the simplified template cross section framework, as well as couplings of the Higgs boson to vector bosons and fermions. The data set collected by the CMS detector during 2016-2018 is used, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138fb - 1 . The signal strength modifier μ , defined as the ratio of the observed production rate in a given decay channel to the standard model expectation, is measured to be μ = 0 . 95 - 0.09 + 0.10 . All results are found to be compatible with the standard model within the uncertainties.

Observation of a J/ψΛ Resonance Consistent with a Strange Pentaquark Candidate in B^{-}→J/ψΛp[over ¯] Decays

An amplitude analysis of B^{-}→J/ψΛp[over ¯] decays is performed using 4400 signal candidates selected on a data sample of pp collisions recorded at center-of-mass energies of 7, 8, and 13 TeV with the LHCb detector, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 9  fb^{-1}. A narrow resonance in the J/ψΛ system, consistent with a pentaquark candidate with strangeness, is observed with high significance. The mass and the width of this new state are measured to be 4338.2±0.7±0.4  MeV and 7.0±1.2±1.3  MeV, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic. The spin is determined to be 1/2 and negative parity is preferred. Because of the small Q-value of the reaction, the most precise single measurement of the B^{-} mass to date, 5279.44±0.05±0.07  MeV, is obtained.

W, Yang S, Ha S, Yoo HD, Choi M, Jeong Y, Lee H, Lee Y, Yu I, Beyrouthy T, Maghrbi Y, Torims T, Veckalns V, Ambrozas M, De Oliveira ACA, Juodagalvis A, Rinkevicius A, Tamulaitis G, Norjoharuddeen NB, Abdullah WATW, Yusli MN, Zolkapli Z, Benitez JF, Hernandez AC, Coello ML, Quijada JAM, Sehrawat A, Palomo LV, Ayala G, Castilla-Valdez H, De La Cruz-Burelo E, La Cruz IHD, Lopez-Fernandez R, Herrera CAM, Navarro DAP, Hernández AS, Moreno SC, Barrera CO, Valencia FV, Pedraza I, Ibarguen HAS, Estrada CU, Bubanja I, Mijuskovic J, Raicevic N, Krofcheck D, Bheesette S, Butler PH, Ahmad A, Asghar MI, Awais A, Awan MIM, Hoorani HR, Khan WA, Shah MA, Shoaib M, Waqas M, Avati V, Grzanka L, Malawski M, Bialkowska H, Bluj M, Boimska B, Górski M, Kazana M, Szleper M, Zalewski P, Bunkowski K, Doroba K, Kalinowski A, Konecki M, Krolikowski J, Walczak M, Araujo M, Bargassa P, Bastos D, Boletti A, Faccioli P, Gallinaro M, Hollar J, Leonardo N, Niknejad T, Pisano M, Seixas J, Toldaiev O, Varela J, Adzic P, Dordevic M, Milenovic P, Milosevic J, Aguilar-Benitez M, Maestre JA, Fernández AÁ, Bachiller I, Luna MB, Bedoya CF, Montoya CAC, Cepeda M, Cerrada M, Colino N, De La Cruz B, Peris AD, Ramos JPF, Flix J, Fouz MC, Lopez OG, Lopez SG, Hernandez JM, Josa MI, Holgado JL, Moran D, Tobar ÁN, Dengra CP, Yzquierdo APC, Pelayo JP, Redondo I, Romero L, Navas SS, Gómez LU, Willmott C, de Trocóniz JF, Reyes-Almanza R, Gonzalez BA, Cuevas J, Erice C, Menendez JF, Folgueras S, Caballero IG, Fernández JRG, Cortezon EP, Álvarez CR, Bouza VR, Trapote A, Trevisani N, Cifuentes JAB, Cabrillo IJ, Calderon A, Campderros JD, Fernandez M, Madrazo CF, Manteca PJF, Alonso AG, Gomez G, Rivero CM, Arbol PMRD, Matorras F, Cuevas PM, Gomez JP, Prieels C, Rodrigo T, Ruiz-Jimeno A, Scodellaro L, Vila I, Garcia JMV, Jayananda MK, Kailasapathy B, Sonnadara DUJ, Wickramarathna DDC, Dharmaratna WGD, Liyanage K, Perera N, Wickramage N, Aarrestad TK, Abbaneo D, Alimena J, Auffray E, Auzinger G, Baechler J, Baillon P, Barney D, Bendavid J, Bianco M, Bocci A, Camporesi T, Garrido MC, Cerminara G, Chhibra SS, Cipriani M, Cristella L, d’Enterria D, Dabrowski A, David A, De Roeck A, Defranchis MM, Deile M, Dobson M, Dünser M, Dupont N, Elliott-Peisert A, Emriskova N, Fallavollita F, Fasanella D, Florent A, Franzoni G, Funk W, Giani S, Gigi D, Gill K, Glege F, Gouskos L, Haranko M, Hegeman J, Iiyama Y, Innocente V, James T, Janot P, Kaspar J, Kieseler J, Komm M, Kratochwil N, Lange C, Laurila S, Lecoq P, Long K, Lourenço C, Malgeri L, Mallios S, Mannelli M, Marini AC, Meijers F, Mersi S, Meschi E, Moortgat F, Mulders M, Orfanelli S, Orsini L, Pantaleo F, Pape L, Perez E, Peruzzi M, Petrilli A, Petrucciani G, Pfeiffer A, Pierini M, Piparo D, Pitt M, Qu H, Quast T, Rabady D, Racz A, Gutiérrez GR, Rieger M, Rovere M, Sakulin H, Salfeld-Nebgen J, Scarfi S, Schäfer C, Selvaggi M, Sharma A, Silva P, Snoeys W, Sphicas P, Summers S, Tatar K, Tavolaro VR, Treille D, Tsirou A, Onsem GPV, Wanczyk J, Wozniak KA, Zeuner WD, Caminada L, Ebrahimi A, Erdmann W, Horisberger R, Ingram Q, Kaestli HC, Kotlinski D, Missiroli M, Rohe T, Androsov K, Backhaus M, Berger P, Calandri A, Chernyavskaya N, De Cosa A, Dissertori G, Dittmar M, Donegà M, Dorfer C, Eble F, Gedia K, Glessgen F, Espinosa TAG, Grab C, Hits D, Lustermann W, Lyon AM, Manzoni RA, Perez CM, Meinhard MT, Nessi-Tedaldi F, Niedziela J, Pauss F, Perovic V, Pigazzini S, Ratti MG, Reichmann M, Reissel C, Reitenspiess T, Ristic B, Ruini D, Becerra DAS, Schönenberger M, Stampf V, Steggemann J, Wallny R, Zhu DH, Amsler C, Bärtschi P, Botta C, Brzhechko D, Canelli MF, Cormier K, De Wit A, Burgo RD, Heikkilä JK, Huwiler M, Jin W, Jofrehei A, Kilminster B, Leontsinis S, Liechti SP, Macchiolo A, Meiring P, Mikuni VM, Molinatti U, Neutelings I, Reimers A, Robmann P, Cruz SS, Schweiger K, Takahashi Y, Adloff C, Kuo CM, Lin W, Roy A, Sarkar T, Yu SS, Ceard L, Chao Y, Chen KF, Chen PH, Hou WS, Li Y, Lu RS, Paganis E, Psallidas A, Steen A, Wu HY, Yazgan E, Yu PR, Asavapibhop B, Asawatangtrakuldee C, Srimanobhas N, Boran F, Damarseckin S, Demiroglu ZS, Dolek F, Dumanoglu I, Eskut E, Guler Y, Guler EG, Hos I, Isik C, Kara O, Topaksu AK, Kiminsu U, Onengut G, Ozdemir K, Polatoz A, Simsek AE, Tali B, Tok UG, Turkcapar S, Zorbakir IS, Zorbilmez C, Isildak B, Karapinar G, Ocalan K, Yalvac M, Akgun B, Atakisi IO, Gülmez E, Kaya M, Kaya O, Özçelik Ö, Tekten S, Yetkin EA, Cakir A, Cankocak K, Komurcu Y, Sen S, Cerci S, Kaynak B, Ozkorucuklu S, Cerci DS, Grynyov B, Levchuk L, Anthony D, Bhal E, Bologna S, Brooke JJ, Bundock A, Clement E, Cussans D, Flacher H, Goldstein J, Heath GP, Heath HF, Holmberg ML, Kreczko L, Krikler B, Paramesvaran S, Nasr-Storey SSE, Smith VJ, Stylianou N, Pass KW, White R, Bell KW, Belyaev A, Brew C, Brown RM, Cockerill DJA, Cooke C, Ellis KV, Harder K, Harper S, Linacre J, Manolopoulos K, Newbold DM, Olaiya E, Petyt D, Reis T, Schuh T, Shepherd-Themistocleous CH, Tomalin IR, Williams T, Bainbridge R, Bloch P, Bonomally S, Borg J, Breeze S, Buchmuller O, Cepaitis V, Chahal GS, Colling D, Dauncey P, Davies G, Negra MD, Fayer S, Fedi G, Hall G, Hassanshahi MH, Iles G, Langford J, Lyons L, Magnan AM, Malik S, Martelli A, Monk DG, Nash J, Pesaresi M, Raymond DM, Richards A, Rose A, Scott E, Seez C, Shtipliyski A, Tapper A, Uchida K, Virdee T, Vojinovic M, Wardle N, Webb SN, Winterbottom D, Coldham K, Cole JE, Khan A, Kyberd P, Reid ID, Teodorescu L, Zahid S, Abdullin S, Brinkerhoff A, Caraway B, Dittmann J, Hatakeyama K, Kanuganti AR, McMaster B, Pastika N, Saunders M, Sawant S, Sutantawibul C, Wilson J, Bartek R, Dominguez A, Uniyal R, Hernandez AMV, Buccilli A, Cooper SI, Croce DD, Gleyzer SV, Henderson C, Perez CU, Rumerio P, West C, Akpinar A, Albert A, Arcaro D, Cosby C, Demiragli Z, Fontanesi E, Gastler D, Rohlf J, Salyer K, Sperka D, Spitzbart D, Suarez I, Tsatsos A, Yuan S, Zou D, Benelli G, Burkle B, Coubez X, Cutts D, Hadley M, Heintz U, Hogan JM, Landsberg G, Lau KT, Lukasik M, Luo J, Narain M, Sagir S, Usai E, Wong WY, Yan X, Yu D, Zhang W, Bonilla J, Brainerd C, Breedon R, De La Barca Sanchez MC, Chertok M, Conway J, Cox PT, Erbacher R, Haza G, Jensen F, Kukral O, Lander R, Mulhearn M, Pellett D, Regnery B, Taylor D, Yao Y, Zhang F, Bachtis M, Cousins R, Datta A, Hamilton D, Hauser J, Ignatenko M, Iqbal MA, Lam T, Nash WA, Regnard S, Saltzberg D, Stone B, Valuev V, Burt K, Chen Y, Clare R, Gary JW, Gordon M, Hanson G, Karapostoli G, Long OR, Manganelli N, Negrete MO, Si W, Wimpenny S, Zhang Y, Branson JG, Chang P, Cittolin S, Cooperstein S, Deelen N, Diaz D, Duarte J, Gerosa R, Giannini L, Gilbert D, Guiang J, Kansal R, Krutelyov V, Lee R, Letts J, Masciovecchio M, May S, Pieri M, Narayanan BVS, Sharma V, Tadel M, Vartak A, Würthwein F, Xiang Y, Yagil A, Amin N, Campagnari C, Citron M, Dorsett A, Dutta V, Incandela J, Kilpatrick M, Kim J, Marsh B, Mei H, Oshiro M, Quinnan M, Richman J, Sarica U, Setti F, Sheplock J, Stuart D, Wang S, Bornheim A, Cerri O, Dutta I, Lawhorn JM, Lu N, Mao J, Newman HB, Nguyen TQ, Spiropulu M, Vlimant JR, Wang C, Xie S, Zhang Z, Zhu RY, Alison J, An S, Andrews MB, Bryant P, Ferguson T, Harilal A, Liu C, Mudholkar T, Paulini M, Sanchez A, Terrill W, Cumalat JP, Ford WT, Hassani A, MacDonald E, Patel R, Perloff A, Savard C, Stenson K, Ulmer KA, Wagner SR, Alexander J, Bright-Thonney S, Cheng Y, Cranshaw DJ, Hogan S, Monroy J, Patterson JR, Quach D, Reichert J, Reid M, Ryd A, Sun W, Thom J, Wittich P, Zou R, Albrow M, Alyari M, Apollinari G, Apresyan A, Apyan A, Banerjee S, Bauerdick LAT, Berry D, Berryhill J, Bhat PC, Burkett K, Butler JN, Canepa A, Cerati GB, Cheung HWK, Chlebana F, Cremonesi M, Di Petrillo KF, Elvira VD, Feng Y, Freeman J, Gecse Z, Gray L, Green D, Grünendahl S, Gutsche O, Harris RM, Heller R, Herwig TC, Hirschauer J, Jayatilaka B, Jindariani S, Johnson M, Joshi U, Klijnsma T, Klima B, Kwok KHM, Lammel S, Lincoln D, Lipton R, Liu T, Madrid C, Maeshima K, Mantilla C, Mason D, McBride P, Merkel P, Mrenna S, Nahn S, Ngadiuba J, O’Dell V, Papadimitriou V, Pedro K, Pena C, Prokofyev O, Ravera F, Hall AR, Ristori L, Schneider B, Sexton-Kennedy E, Smith N, Soha A, Spalding WJ, Spiegel L, Strait J, Taylor L, Tkaczyk S, Tran NV, Uplegger L, Vaandering EW, Weber HA, Acosta D, Avery P, Bourilkov D, Cadamuro L, Cherepanov V, Errico F, Field RD, Guerrero D, Joshi BM, Kim M, Koenig E, Konigsberg J, Korytov A, Lo KH, Matchev K, Menendez N, Mitselmakher G, Madhu AM, Rawal N, Rosenzweig D, Rosenzweig S, Shi K, Sturdy J, Wang J, Yigitbasi E, Zuo X, Adams T, Askew A, Habibullah R, Hagopian V, Johnson KF, Khurana R, Kolberg T, Martinez G, Prosper H, Schiber C, Viazlo O, Yohay R, Zhang J, Baarmand MM, Butalla S, Elkafrawy T, Hohlmann M, Verma RK, Noonan D, Rahmani M, Yumiceva F, Adams MR, Gonzalez HB, Cavanaugh R, Chen X, Dittmer S, Evdokimov O, Gerber CE, Hangal DA, Hofman DJ, Merrit AH, Mills C, Oh G, Roy T, Rudrabhatla S, Tonjes MB, Varelas N, Viinikainen J, Wang X, Wu Z, Ye Z, Alhusseini M, Dilsiz K, Gandrajula RP, Köseyan OK, Merlo JP, Mestvirishvili A, Nachtman J, Ogul H, Onel Y, Penzo A, Snyder C, Tiras E, Amram O, Blumenfeld B, Corcodilos L, Davis J, Eminizer M, Gritsan AV, Kyriacou S, Maksimovic P, Roskes J, Swartz M, Vámi TÁ, Abreu A, Anguiano J, Barrera CB, Baringer P, Bean A, Bylinkin A, Flowers Z, Isidori T, Khalil S, King J, Krintiras G, Kropivnitskaya A, Lazarovits M, Lindsey C, Marquez J, Minafra N, Murray M, Nickel M, Rogan C, Royon C, Salvatico R, Sanders S, Schmitz E, Smith C, Takaki JDT, Wang Q, Warner Z, Williams J, Wilson G, Duric S, Ivanov A, Kaadze K, Kim D, Maravin Y, Mitchell T, Modak A, Nam K, Rebassoo F, Wright D, Adams E, Baden A, Baron O, Belloni A, Eno SC, Hadley NJ, Jabeen S, Kellogg RG, Koeth T, Mignerey AC, Nabili S, Palmer C, Seidel M, Skuja A, Wang L, Wong K, Abercrombie D, Andreassi G, Bi R, Brandt S, Busza W, Cali IA, Chen Y, D’Alfonso M, Eysermans J, Freer C, Gomez-Ceballos G, Goncharov M, Harris P, Hu M, Klute M, Kovalskyi D, Krupa J, Lee YJ, Maier B, Mironov C, Paus C, Rankin D, Roland C, Roland G, Shi Z, Stephans GSF, Wang J, Wang Z, Wyslouch B, Chatterjee RM, Evans A, Hansen P, Hiltbrand J, Jain S, Krohn M, Kubota Y, Mans J, Revering M, Rusack R, Saradhy R, Schroeder N, Strobbe N, Wadud MA, Bloom K, Bryson M, Chauhan S, Claes DR, Fangmeier C, Finco L, Golf F, Joo C, Kravchenko I, Musich M, Reed I, Siado JE, Snow GR, Tabb W, Yan F, Zecchinelli AG, Agarwal G, Bandyopadhyay H, Hay L, Iashvili I, Kharchilava A, McLean C, Nguyen D, Pekkanen J, Rappoccio S, Williams A, Alverson G, Barberis E, Haddad Y, Hortiangtham A, Li J, Madigan G, Marzocchi B, Morse DM, Nguyen V, Orimoto T, Parker A, Skinnari L, Tishelman-Charny A, Wamorkar T, Wang B, Wisecarver A, Wood D, Bhattacharya S, Bueghly J, Chen Z, Gilbert A, Gunter T, Hahn KA, Liu Y, Odell N, Schmitt MH, Velasco M, Band R, Bucci R, Das A, Dev N, Goldouzian R, Hildreth M, Anampa KH, Jessop C, Lannon K, Lawrence J, Loukas N, Lutton L, Marinelli N, Mcalister I, McCauley T, Mcgrady C, Meng F, Mohrman K, Musienko Y, Ruchti R, Siddireddy P, Townsend A, Wayne M, Wightman A, Wolf M, Zarucki M, Zygala L, Bylsma B, Cardwell B, Durkin LS, Francis B, Hill C, Ornelas MN, Wei K, Winer BL, Yates BR, Addesa FM, Bonham B, Das P, Dezoort G, Elmer P, Frankenthal A, Greenberg B, Haubrich N, Higginbotham S, Kalogeropoulos A, Kopp G, Kwan S, Lange D, Lucchini MT, Marlow D, Mei K, Ojalvo I, Olsen J, Stickland D, Tully C, Malik S, Norberg S, Bakshi AS, Barnes VE, Chawla R, Das S, Gutay L, Jones M, Jung AW, Karmarkar S, Liu M, Negro G, Neumeister N, Paspalaki G, Peng CC, Piperov S, Purohit A, Schulte JF, Stojanovic M, Thieman J, Wang F, Xiao R, Xie W, Dolen J, Parashar N, Baty A, Decaro M, Dildick S, Ecklund KM, Freed S, Gardner P, Geurts FJM, Kumar A, Li W, Padley BP, Redjimi R, Shi W, Leiton AGS, Yang S, Zhang L, Zhang Y, Bodek A, de Barbaro P, Demina R, Dulemba JL, Fallon C, Ferbel T, Galanti M, Garcia-Bellido A, Hindrichs O, Khukhunaishvili A, Ranken E, Taus R, Chiarito B, Chou JP, Gandrakota A, Gershtein Y, Halkiadakis E, Hart A, Heindl M, Karacheban O, Laflotte I, Lath A, Montalvo R, Nash K, Osherson M, Salur S, Schnetzer S, Somalwar S, Stone R, Thayil SA, Thomas S, Wang H, Acharya H, Delannoy AG, Fiorendi S, Spanier S, Bouhali O, Dalchenko M, Delgado A, Eusebi R, Gilmore J, Huang T, Kamon T, Kim H, Luo S, Malhotra S, Mueller R, Overton D, Rathjens D, Safonov A, Akchurin N, Damgov J, Hegde V, Kunori S, Lamichhane K, Lee SW, Mengke T, Muthumuni S, Peltola T, Volobouev I, Wang Z, Whitbeck A, Appelt E, Greene S, Gurrola A, Johns W, Melo A, Ni H, Padeken K, Romeo F, Sheldon P, Tuo S, Velkovska J, Arenton MW, Cox B, Cummings G, Hakala J, Hirosky R, Joyce M, Ledovskoy A, Li A, Neu C, Tannenwald B, White S, Wolfe E, Poudyal N, Black K, Bose T, Caillol C, Dasu S, De Bruyn I, Everaerts P, Fienga F, Galloni C, He H, Herndon M, Hervé A, Hussain U, Lanaro A, Loeliger A, Loveless R, Sreekala JM, Mallampalli A, Mohammadi A, Pinna D, Savin A, Shang V, Sharma V, Smith WH, Teague D, Trembath-Reichert S, Vetens W, Afanasiev S, Andreev V, Andreev Y, Aushev T, Azarkin M, Babaev A, Belyaev A, Blinov V, Boos E, Borshch V, Budkouski D, Bunichev V, Chadeeva M, Dermenev A, Dimova T, Dremin I, Dubinin M, Dudko L, Dydyshka Y, Epshteyn V, Gavrilov G, Gavrilov V, Gninenko S, Golovtcov V, Golubev N, Golutvin I, Gorbunov I, Ivanchenko V, Ivanov Y, Kachanov V, Kardapoltsev L, Karjavine V, Karneyeu A, Kim V, Kirakosyan M, Kirpichnikov D, Kirsanov M, Klyukhin V, Kodolova O, Konstantinov D, Korenkov V, Kozyrev A, Krasnikov N, Kuznetsova E, Lanev A, Lukina O, Lychkovskaya N, Makarenko V, Malakhov A, Matveev V, Mossolov V, Murzin V, Nikitenko A, Obraztsov S, Okhotnikov V, Oreshkin V, Ovtin I, Palichik V, Parygin P, Pashenkov A, Perelygin V, Perfilov M, Pivovarov G, Popov V, Popova E, Savina M, Savrin V, Seitova D, Selivanova D, Shalaev V, Shmatov S, Shulha S, Skovpen Y, Slabospitskii S, Smirnov I, Smirnov V, Snigirev A, Sosnov D, Spiridonov A, Stepennov A, Sulimov V, Tcherniaev E, Terkulov A, Teryaev O, Tlisov D, Toms M, Toropin A, Uvarov L, Uzunian A, Vlasov E, Volkov S, Vorobyev A, Voytishin N, Yuldashev BS, Zarubin A, Zhemchugov E, Zhizhin I, Zhokin A. Measurement of the mass dependence of the transverse momentum of lepton pairs in Drell-Yan production in proton-proton collisions at s=13TeV

The double differential cross sections of the Drell-Yan lepton pair (ℓ + ℓ - , dielectron or dimuon) production are measured as functions of the invariant mass m ℓ ℓ , transverse momentum p T ( ℓ ℓ ) , and φ η ∗ . The φ η ∗ observable, derived from angular measurements of the leptons and highly correlated with p T ( ℓ ℓ ) , is used to probe the low-p T ( ℓ ℓ ) region in a complementary way. Dilepton masses up to 1Te V are investigated. Additionally, a measurement is performed requiring at least one jet in the final state. To benefit from partial cancellation of the systematic uncertainty, the ratios of the differential cross sections for various m ℓ ℓ ranges to those in the Z mass peak interval are presented. The collected data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 36.3fb - 1 of proton-proton collisions recorded with the CMS detector at the LHC at a centre-of-mass energy of 13Te V . Measurements are compared with predictions based on perturbative quantum chromodynamics, including soft-gluon resummation.

CMS pythia 8 colour reconnection tunes based on underlying-event data

New sets of parameter tunes for two of the colour reconnection models, quantum chromodynamics-inspired and gluon-move, implemented in the pythia  8 event generator, are obtained based on the default CMS pythia  8 underlying-event tune, CP5. Measurements sensitive to the underlying event performed by the CMS experiment at centre-of-mass energies s = 7 and 13Te V , and by the CDF experiment at 1.96Te V are used to constrain the parameters of colour reconnection models and multiple-parton interactions simultaneously. The new colour reconnection tunes are compared with various measurements at 1.96, 7, 8, and 13Te V including measurements of the underlying-event, strange-particle multiplicities, jet substructure observables, jet shapes, and colour flow in top quark pair (t t ¯ ) events. The new tunes are also used to estimate the uncertainty related to colour reconnection modelling in the top quark mass measurement using the decay products of t t ¯ events in the semileptonic channel at 13Te V .

Probing Heavy Majorana Neutrinos and the Weinberg Operator through Vector Boson Fusion Processes in Proton-Proton Collisions at sqrt[s]=13 TeV

The first search exploiting the vector boson fusion process to probe heavy Majorana neutrinos and the Weinberg operator at the LHC is presented. The search is performed in the same-sign dimuon final state using a proton-proton collision dataset recorded at sqrt[s]=13  TeV, collected with the CMS detector and corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 138  fb^{-1}. The results are found to agree with the predictions of the standard model. For heavy Majorana neutrinos, constraints on the squared mixing element between the muon and the heavy neutrino are derived in the heavy neutrino mass range 50 GeV-25 TeV; for masses above 650 GeV these are the most stringent constraints from searches at the LHC to date. A first test of the Weinberg operator at colliders provides an observed upper limit at 95% confidence level on the effective μμ Majorana neutrino mass of 10.8 GeV.

[Outcomes of laryngotracheal reconstruction with anterior and posterior costal cartilage grafts in severe pediatric subglottic stenosis or laryngeal web]

Objective: To investigate outcomes of laryngotracheal reconstruction (LTR)with anterior and posterior costal cartilage grafts in severe pediatric subglottic stenosis (SGS) or laryngeal web (LW). Methods: A review of patients with severe subglottic stenosis or laryngeal web between January 2020 and January 2022 was performed. Demographic features including gender, age at diagnosis, age at surgery, etiology, airway support, and other comorbidities were collected preoperatively. Patients were evaluated in surgical site, breathing, swallowing, phonation and complications postoperatively.Descriptive analysis was used in this research. Results: Eight patients were included: six with grade Ⅲ SGS following Cotton-Myer grading scale, and two with type Ⅲ LW following Cohen's classification. All patients underwent LTR with anterior and posterior costal cartilage grafts. Five patients underwent single-stage LTR (ssLTR), and three patients underwent double-stage LTR (dsLTR). Seven out of eight patients were able to successfully extubate or decannulate with normal swallowing function; four patients had mild hoarseness, and three had moderate hoarseness. One patient failed in extubation, and underwent tracheotomy. Conclusions: LTR with anterior and posterior costal cartilage grafts is an effective and safe treatment for severe SGS or LW. Careful preoperative assessment of disease severity and overall medical status will help selection between ssLTR and dsLTR, thereby maximizing patient outcomes for both modalities.

Search for light Higgs bosons from supersymmetric cascade decays in pp collisions at s=13TeV

A search is reported for pairs of light Higgs bosons (H 1 ) produced in supersymmetric cascade decays in final states with small missing transverse momentum. A data set of LHC pp collisions collected with the CMS detector at s = 13 TeV and corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138fb - 1 is used. The search targets events where both H 1 bosons decay into pairs that are reconstructed as large-radius jets using substructure techniques. No evidence is found for an excess of events beyond the background expectations of the standard model (SM). Results from the search are interpreted in the next-to-minimal supersymmetric extension of the SM, where a "singlino" of small mass leads to squark and gluino cascade decays that can predominantly end in a highly Lorentz-boosted singlet-like H 1 and a singlino-like neutralino of small transverse momentum. Upper limits are set on the product of the squark or gluino pair production cross section and the square of the branching fraction of the H 1 in a benchmark model containing almost mass-degenerate gluinos and light-flavour squarks. Under the assumption of an SM-like branching fraction, H 1 bosons with masses in the range 40-120GeV arising from the decays of squarks or gluinos with a mass of 1200-2500GeV are excluded at 95% confidence level.

WI, Yang S, Ha S, Yoo HD, Choi M, Kim MR, Lee H, Lee Y, Lee Y, Yu I, Beyrouthy T, Maghrbi Y, Dreimanis K, Pikurs G, Seidel M, Veckalns V, Ambrozas M, De Oliveira ACA, Juodagalvis A, Rinkevicius A, Tamulaitis G, Norjoharuddeen NB, Hoh SY, Yusuff I, Zolkapli Z, Benitez JF, Hernandez AC, Acosta HAE, Maríñez LGG, Coello ML, Quijada JAM, Sehrawat A, Palomo LV, Ayala G, Castilla-Valdez H, La Cruz IHD, Lopez-Fernandez R, Herrera CAM, Navarro DAP, Hernández AS, Barrera CO, Valencia FV, Pedraza I, Ibarguen HAS, Estrada CU, Bubanja I, Mijuskovic J, Raicevic N, Ahmad A, Asghar MI, Awais A, Awan MIM, Gul M, Hoorani HR, Khan WA, Shoaib M, Waqas M, Avati V, Grzanka L, Malawski M, Bialkowska H, Bluj M, Boimska B, Górski M, Kazana M, Szleper M, Zalewski P, Bunkowski K, Doroba K, Kalinowski A, Konecki M, Krolikowski J, Araujo M, Bargassa P, Bastos D, Boletti A, Faccioli P, Gallinaro M, Hollar J, Leonardo N, Niknejad T, Pisano M, Seixas J, Varela J, Adzic P, Dordevic M, Milenovic P, Milosevic J, Aguilar-Benitez M, Maestre JA, Fernández AÁ, Luna MB, Bedoya CF, Montoya CAC, Cepeda M, Cerrada M, Colino N, De La Cruz B, Peris AD, Val DFD, Ramos JPF, Flix J, Fouz MC, Lopez OG, Lopez SG, Hernandez JM, Josa MI, Holgado JL, Moran D, Dengra CP, Yzquierdo APC, Pelayo JP, Redondo I, Ferrero DDR, Romero L, Navas SS, Sastre J, Gómez LU, Escobar JV, Willmott C, de Trocóniz JF, Gonzalez BA, Cuevas J, Menendez JF, Folgueras S, Caballero IG, Fernández JRG, Cortezon EP, Álvarez CR, Bouza VR, Rodríguez AS, Trapote A, Villalba CV, Cifuentes JAB, Cabrillo IJ, Calderon A, Campderros JD, Fernandez M, Madrazo CF, Alonso AG, Gomez G, García CL, Rivero CM, Arbol PMRD, Matorras F, Cuevas PM, Gomez JP, Prieels C, Ruiz-Jimeno A, Scodellaro L, Vila I, Garcia JMV, Jayananda MK, Kailasapathy B, Sonnadara DUJ, Wickramarathna DDC, Dharmaratna WGD, Liyanage K, Perera N, Wickramage N, Abbaneo D, Alimena J, Auffray E, Auzinger G, Baechler J, Baillon P, Barney D, Bendavid J, Bianco M, Bilin B, Bocci A, Brondolin E, Caillol C, Camporesi T, Cerminara G, Chernyavskaya N, Chhibra SS, Choudhury S, Cipriani M, Cristella L, d’Enterria D, Dabrowski A, David A, De Roeck A, Defranchis MM, Deile M, Dobson M, Dünser M, Dupont N, Fallavollita F, Florent A, Forthomme L, Franzoni G, Funk W, Ghosh S, Giani S, Gigi D, Gill K, Glege F, Gouskos L, Govorkova E, Haranko M, Hegeman J, Innocente V, James T, Janot P, Kaspar J, Kieseler J, Kratochwil N, Laurila S, Lecoq P, Leutgeb E, Lintuluoto A, Lourenço C, Maier B, Malgeri L, Mannelli M, Marini AC, Meijers F, Mersi S, Meschi E, Moortgat F, Mulders M, Orfanelli S, Orsini L, Pantaleo F, Perez E, Peruzzi M, Petrilli A, Petrucciani G, Pfeiffer A, Pierini M, Piparo D, Pitt M, Qu H, Quast T, Rabady D, Racz A, Gutiérrez GR, Rovere M, Sakulin H, Salfeld-Nebgen J, Scarfi S, Selvaggi M, Sharma A, Silva P, Sphicas P, Leiton AGS, Summers S, Tatar K, Tavolaro VR, Treille D, Tropea P, Tsirou A, Wanczyk J, Wozniak KA, Zeuner WD, Caminada L, Ebrahimi A, Erdmann W, Horisberger R, Ingram Q, Kaestli HC, Kotlinski D, Lange C, Missiroli M, Noehte L, Rohe T, Aarrestad TK, Androsov K, Backhaus M, Berger P, Calandri A, Datta K, De Cosa A, Dissertori G, Dittmar M, Donegà M, Eble F, Galli M, Gedia K, Glessgen F, Espinosa TAG, Grab C, Hits D, Lustermann W, Lyon AM, Manzoni RA, Marchese L, Perez CM, Mascellani A, Nessi-Tedaldi F, Niedziela J, Pauss F, Perovic V, Pigazzini S, Ratti MG, Reichmann M, Reissel C, Reitenspiess T, Ristic B, Riti F, Ruini D, Becerra DAS, Steggemann J, Valsecchi D, Wallny R, Amsler C, Bärtschi P, Botta C, Brzhechko D, Canelli MF, Cormier K, De Wit A, Burgo RD, Heikkilä JK, Huwiler M, Jin W, Jofrehei A, Kilminster B, Leontsinis S, Liechti SP, Macchiolo A, Meiring P, Mikuni VM, Molinatti U, Neutelings I, Reimers A, Robmann P, Cruz SS, Schweiger K, Senger M, Takahashi Y, Adloff C, Kuo CM, Lin W, Rout PK, Yu SS, Ceard L, Chao Y, Chen KF, Chen PS, Cheng H, Hou WS, Khurana R, Kole G, Li YY, Lu RS, Paganis E, Psallidas A, Steen A, Wu HY, Yazgan E, Yu PR, Asawatangtrakuldee C, Srimanobhas N, Agyel D, Boran F, Demiroglu ZS, Dolek F, Dumanoglu I, Eskut E, Guler Y, Guler EG, Isik C, Kara O, Topaksu AK, Kiminsu U, Onengut G, Ozdemir K, Polatoz A, Simsek AE, Tali B, Tok UG, Turkcapar S, Uslan E, Zorbakir IS, Karapinar G, Ocalan K, Yalvac M, Akgun B, Atakisi IO, Gülmez E, Kaya M, Kaya O, Tekten S, Cakir A, Cankocak K, Komurcu Y, Sen S, Aydilek O, Cerci S, Hacisahinoglu B, Hos I, Isildak B, Kaynak B, Ozkorucuklu S, Simsek C, Cerci DS, Grynyov B, Levchuk L, Anthony D, Bhal E, Brooke JJ, Bundock A, Clement E, Cussans D, Flacher H, Glowacki M, Goldstein J, Heath GP, Heath HF, Kreczko L, Krikler B, Paramesvaran S, Nasr-Storey SSE, Smith VJ, Stylianou N, Pass KW, White R, Ball AH, Bell KW, Belyaev A, Brew C, Brown RM, Cockerill DJA, Cooke C, Ellis KV, Harder K, Harper S, Holmberg ML, Linacre J, Manolopoulos K, Newbold DM, Olaiya E, Petyt D, Reis T, Salvi G, Schuh T, Shepherd-Themistocleous CH, Tomalin IR, Williams T, Bainbridge R, Bloch P, Bonomally S, Borg J, Breeze S, Brown CE, Buchmuller O, Cacchio V, Cepaitis V, Chahal GS, Colling D, Dancu JS, Dauncey P, Davies G, Davies J, Negra MD, Fayer S, Fedi G, Hall G, Hassanshahi MH, Howard A, Iles G, Langford J, Lyons L, Magnan AM, Malik S, Martelli A, Mieskolainen M, Monk DG, Nash J, Pesaresi M, Radburn-Smith BC, Raymond DM, Richards A, Rose A, Scott E, Seez CM, Shtipliyski A, Shukla R, Tapper A, Uchida K, Uttley GP, Vage LH, Virdee T, Vojinovic M, Wardle N, Webb SN, Winterbottom D, Coldham K, Cole JE, Khan A, Kyberd P, Reid ID, Abdullin S, Brinkerhoff A, Caraway B, Dittmann J, Hatakeyama K, Kanuganti AR, McMaster B, Saunders M, Sawant S, Sutantawibul C, Wilson J, Bartek R, Dominguez A, Uniyal R, Hernandez AMV, Cooper SI, Croce DD, Gleyzer SV, Henderson C, Perez CU, Rumerio P, West C, Akpinar A, Albert A, Arcaro D, Cosby C, Demiragli Z, Erice C, Fontanesi E, Gastler D, May S, Rohlf J, Salyer K, Sperka D, Spitzbart D, Suarez I, Tsatsos A, Yuan S, Benelli G, Burkle B, Coubez X, Cutts D, Hadley M, Heintz U, Hogan JM, Kwon T, Landsberg G, Lau KT, Li D, Luo J, Narain M, Pervan N, Sagir S, Simpson F, Usai E, Wong WY, Yan X, Yu D, Zhang W, Bonilla J, Brainerd C, Breedon R, De La Barca Sanchez MC, Chertok M, Conway J, Cox PT, Erbacher R, Haza G, Jensen F, Kukral O, Mocellin G, Mulhearn M, Pellett D, Regnery B, Yao Y, Zhang F, Bachtis M, Cousins R, Datta A, Hamilton D, Hauser J, Ignatenko M, Iqbal MA, Lam T, Manca E, Nash WA, Regnard S, Saltzberg D, Stone B, Valuev V, Clare R, Gary JW, Gordon M, Hanson G, Karapostoli G, Long OR, Manganelli N, Si W, Wimpenny S, Branson JG, Chang P, Cittolin S, Cooperstein S, Diaz D, Duarte J, Gerosa R, Giannini L, Guiang J, Kansal R, Krutelyov V, Lee R, Letts J, Masciovecchio M, Mokhtar F, Pieri M, Narayanan BVS, Sharma V, Tadel M, Vourliotis E, Würthwein F, Xiang Y, Yagil A, Amin N, Campagnari C, Citron M, Collura G, Dorsett A, Dutta V, Incandela J, Kilpatrick M, Kim J, Li AJ, Masterson P, Mei H, Oshiro M, Quinnan M, Richman J, Sarica U, Schmitz R, Setti F, Sheplock J, Siddireddy P, Stuart D, Wang S, Bornheim A, Cerri O, Dutta I, Latorre A, Lawhorn JM, Lu N, Mao J, Newman HB, Nguyen TQ, Spiropulu M, Vlimant JR, Wang C, Xie S, Zhu RY, Alison J, An S, Andrews MB, Bryant P, Ferguson T, Harilal A, Liu C, Mudholkar T, Murthy S, Paulini M, Roberts A, Sanchez A, Terrill W, Cumalat JP, Ford WT, Hassani A, Karathanasis G, MacDonald E, Marini F, Patel R, Perloff A, Savard C, Schonbeck N, Stenson K, Ulmer KA, Wagner SR, Zipper N, Alexander J, Bright-Thonney S, Chen X, Cranshaw DJ, Fan J, Fan X, Gadkari D, Hogan S, Monroy J, Patterson JR, Quach D, Reichert J, Reid M, Ryd A, Thom J, Wittich P, Zou R, Albrow M, Alyari M, Apollinari G, Apresyan A, Bauerdick LAT, Berry D, Berryhill J, Bhat PC, Burkett K, Butler JN, Canepa A, Cerati GB, Cheung HWK, Chlebana F, Petrillo KFD, Dickinson J, Elvira VD, Feng Y, Freeman J, Gandrakota A, Gecse Z, Gray L, Green D, Grünendahl S, Gutsche O, Harris RM, Heller R, Herwig TC, Hirschauer J, Horyn L, Jayatilaka B, Jindariani S, Johnson M, Joshi U, Klijnsma T, Klima B, Kwok KHM, Lammel S, Lincoln D, Lipton R, Liu T, Madrid C, Maeshima K, Mantilla C, Mason D, McBride P, Merkel P, Mrenna S, Nahn S, Ngadiuba J, Noonan D, Papadimitriou V, Pastika N, Pedro K, Pena C, Ravera F, Hall AR, Ristori L, Sexton-Kennedy E, Smith N, Soha A, Spiegel L, Strait J, Taylor L, Tkaczyk S, Tran NV, Uplegger L, Vaandering EW, Weber HA, Zoi I, Avery P, Bourilkov D, Cadamuro L, Cherepanov V, Field RD, Guerrero D, Kim M, Koenig E, Konigsberg J, Korytov A, Lo KH, Matchev K, Menendez N, Mitselmakher G, Madhu AM, Rawal N, Rosenzweig D, Rosenzweig S, Shi K, Wang J, Wu Z, Adams T, Askew A, Habibullah R, Hagopian V, Kolberg T, Martinez G, Prosper H, Schiber C, Viazlo O, Yohay R, Zhang J, Baarmand MM, Butalla S, Elkafrawy T, Hohlmann M, Verma RK, Rahmani M, Yumiceva F, Adams MR, Gonzalez HB, Cavanaugh R, Dittmer S, Evdokimov O, Gerber CE, Hofman DJ, Lemos DS, Merrit AH, Mills C, Oh G, Roy T, Rudrabhatla S, Tonjes MB, Varelas N, Wang X, Ye Z, Yoo J, Alhusseini M, Dilsiz K, Emediato L, Gandrajula RP, Karaman G, Köseyan OK, Merlo JP, Mestvirishvili A, Nachtman J, Neogi O, Ogul H, Onel Y, Penzo A, Snyder C, Tiras E, Amram O, Blumenfeld B, Corcodilos L, Davis J, Gritsan AV, Kyriacou S, Maksimovic P, Roskes J, Sekhar S, Swartz M, Vámi TÁ, Abreu A, Alcerro LFA, Anguiano J, Baringer P, Bean A, Flowers Z, Isidori T, King J, Krintiras G, Lazarovits M, Mahieu CL, Lindsey C, Marquez J, Minafra N, Murray M, Nickel M, Rogan C, Royon C, Salvatico R, Sanders S, Smith C, Wang Q, Williams J, Wilson G, Allmond B, Duric S, Ivanov A, Kaadze K, Kim D, Maravin Y, Mitchell T, Modak A, Nam K, Roy D, Rebassoo F, Wright D, Adams E, Baden A, Baron O, Belloni A, Bethani A, Eno SC, Hadley NJ, Jabeen S, Kellogg RG, Koeth T, Lai Y, Lascio S, Mignerey AC, Nabili S, Palmer C, Papageorgakis C, Wang L, Wong K, Abercrombie D, Busza W, Cali IA, Chen Y, D’Alfonso M, Eysermans J, Freer C, Gomez-Ceballos G, Goncharov M, Harris P, Hu M, Kovalskyi D, Krupa J, Lee YJ, Long K, Mironov C, Paus C, Rankin D, Roland C, Roland G, Shi Z, Stephans GSF, Wang J, Wang Z, Wyslouch B, Yang TJ, Chatterjee RM, Crossman B, Evans A, Hiltbrand J, Jain S, Joshi BM, Kapsiak C, Krohn M, Kubota Y, Mans J, Revering M, Rusack R, Saradhy R, Schroeder N, Strobbe N, Wadud MA, Cremaldi LM, Bloom K, Bryson M, Claes DR, Fangmeier C, Finco L, Golf F, Joo C, Kamalieddin R, Kravchenko I, Reed I, Siado JE, Snow GR, Tabb W, Wightman A, Yan F, Zecchinelli AG, Agarwal G, Bandyopadhyay H, Hay L, Iashvili I, Kharchilava A, McLean C, Morris M, Nguyen D, Pekkanen J, Rappoccio S, Williams A, Alverson G, Barberis E, Haddad Y, Han Y, Krishna A, Li J, Lidrych J, Madigan G, Marzocchi B, Morse DM, Nguyen V, Orimoto T, Parker A, Skinnari L, Tishelman-Charny A, Wamorkar T, Wang B, Wisecarver A, Wood D, Bhattacharya S, Bueghly J, Chen Z, Gilbert A, Hahn KA, Liu Y, Odell N, Schmitt MH, Velasco M, Band R, Bucci R, Cremonesi M, Das A, Goldouzian R, Hildreth M, Anampa KH, Jessop C, Lannon K, Lawrence J, Loukas N, Lutton L, Mariano J, Marinelli N, Mcalister I, McCauley T, Mcgrady C, Mohrman K, Moore C, Musienko Y, Ruchti R, Townsend A, Wayne M, Yockey H, Zarucki M, Zygala L, Bylsma B, Carrigan M, Durkin LS, Francis B, Hill C, Joyce M, Lesauvage A, Ornelas MN, Wei K, Winer BL, Yates BR, Addesa FM, Das P, Dezoort G, Elmer P, Frankenthal A, Greenberg B, Haubrich N, Higginbotham S, Kalogeropoulos A, Kopp G, Kwan S, Lange D, Marlow D, Mei K, Ojalvo I, Olsen J, Stickland D, Tully C, Malik S, Norberg S, Bakshi AS, Barnes VE, Chawla R, Das S, Gutay L, Jones M, Jung AW, Kondratyev D, Koshy AM, Liu M, Negro G, Neumeister N, Paspalaki G, Piperov S, Purohit A, Schulte JF, Stojanovic M, Thieman J, Wang F, Xiao R, Xie W, Dolen J, Parashar N, Acosta D, Baty A, Carnahan T, Decaro M, Dildick S, Ecklund KM, Manteca PJF, Freed S, Gardner P, Geurts FJM, Kumar A, Li W, Padley BP, Redjimi R, Rotter J, Shi W, Yang S, Yigitbasi E, Zhang L, Zhang Y, Bodek A, de Barbaro P, Demina R, Dulemba JL, Fallon C, Ferbel T, Galanti M, Garcia-Bellido A, Hindrichs O, Khukhunaishvili A, Ranken E, Taus R, Onsem GPV, Goulianos K, Chiarito B, Chou JP, Gershtein Y, Halkiadakis E, Hart A, Heindl M, Jaroslawski D, Karacheban O, Laflotte I, Lath A, Montalvo R, Nash K, Osherson M, Routray H, Salur S, Schnetzer S, Somalwar S, Stone R, Thayil SA, Thomas S, Wang H, Acharya H, Delannoy AG, Fiorendi S, Holmes T, Nibigira E, Spanier S, Bouhali O, Dalchenko M, Delgado A, Eusebi R, Gilmore J, Huang T, Kamon T, Kim H, Luo S, Malhotra S, Mueller R, Overton D, Rathjens D, Safonov A, Akchurin N, Damgov J, Hegde V, Lamichhane K, Lee SW, Mengke T, Muthumuni S, Peltola T, Volobouev I, Whitbeck A, Appelt E, Greene S, Gurrola A, Johns W, Melo A, Romeo F, Sheldon P, Tuo S, Velkovska J, Viinikainen J, Cardwell B, Cox B, Cummings G, Hakala J, Hirosky R, Ledovskoy A, Li A, Neu C, Lara CEP, Tannenwald B, Karchin PE, Poudyal N, Banerjee S, Black K, Bose T, Dasu S, De Bruyn I, Everaerts P, Galloni C, He H, Herndon M, Herve A, Koraka CK, Lanaro A, Loeliger A, Loveless R, Sreekala JM, Mallampalli A, Mohammadi A, Mondal S, Parida G, Pinna D, Savin A, Shang V, Sharma V, Smith WH, Teague D, Tsoi HF, Vetens W, Afanasiev S, Andreev V, Andreev Y, Aushev T, Azarkin M, Babaev A, Belyaev A, Blinov V, Boos E, Borshch V, Budkouski D, Bunichev V, Chekhovsky V, Chistov R, Dermenev A, Dimova T, Dremin I, Dubinin M, Dudko L, Epshteyn V, Gavrilov G, Gavrilov V, Gninenko S, Golovtcov V, Golubev N, Golutvin I, Gorbunov I, Ivanchenko V, Ivanov Y, Kachanov V, Kardapoltsev L, Karjavine V, Karneyeu A, Kim V, Kirakosyan M, Kirpichnikov D, Kirsanov M, Klyukhin V, Kodolova O, Konstantinov D, Korenkov V, Kozyrev A, Krasnikov N, Kuznetsova E, Lanev A, Levchenko P, Litomin A, Lychkovskaya N, Makarenko V, Malakhov A, Matveev V, Murzin V, Nikitenko A, Obraztsov S, Oskin A, Ovtin I, Palichik V, Parygin P, Perelygin V, Perfilov M, Petrushanko S, Polikarpov S, Popov V, Popova E, Radchenko O, Savina M, Savrin V, Selivanova D, Shalaev V, Shmatov S, Shulha S, Skovpen Y, Slabospitskii S, Smirnov V, Sosnov D, Sulimov V, Tcherniaev E, Terkulov A, Teryaev O, Tlisova I, Toms M, Toropin A, Uvarov L, Uzunian A, Vlasov E, Volkov P, Vorobyev A, Voytishin N, Yuldashev BS, Zarubin A, Zhizhin I, Zhokin A. Measurement of the differential tt¯ production cross section as a function of the jet mass and extraction of the top quark mass in hadronic decays of boosted top quarks

A measurement of the jet mass distribution in hadronic decays of Lorentz-boosted top quarks is presented. The measurement is performed in the lepton + jets channel of top quark pair production (t t ¯ ) events, where the lepton is an electron or muon. The products of the hadronic top quark decay are reconstructed using a single large-radius jet with transverse momentum greater than 400Ge V . The data were collected with the CMS detector at the LHC in proton-proton collisions and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 138fb - 1 . The differential t t ¯ production cross section as a function of the jet mass is unfolded to the particle level and is used to extract the top quark mass. The jet mass scale is calibrated using the hadronic W boson decay within the large-radius jet. The uncertainties in the modelling of the final state radiation are reduced by studying angular correlations in the jet substructure. These developments lead to a significant increase in precision, and a top quark mass of 173.06 ± 0.84 Ge V .

Observation of high-energy neutrinos from the Galactic plane

The origin of high-energy cosmic rays, atomic nuclei that continuously impact Earth's atmosphere, is unknown. Because of deflection by interstellar magnetic fields, cosmic rays produced within the Milky Way arrive at Earth from random directions. However, cosmic rays interact with matter near their sources and during propagation, which produces high-energy neutrinos. We searched for neutrino emission using machine learning techniques applied to 10 years of data from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. By comparing diffuse emission models to a background-only hypothesis, we identified neutrino emission from the Galactic plane at the 4.5σ level of significance. The signal is consistent with diffuse emission of neutrinos from the Milky Way but could also arise from a population of unresolved point sources.

First Study of Reaction Ξ^{0}n→Ξ^{-}p Using Ξ^{0}-Nucleus Scattering at an Electron-Positron Collider

Using (1.0087±0.0044)×10^{10}  J/ψ events collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII storage ring, the process Ξ^{0}n→Ξ^{-}p is studied, where the Ξ^{0} baryon is produced in the process J/ψ→Ξ^{0}Ξ[over ¯]^{0} and the neutron is a component of the ^{9}Be, ^{12}C, and ^{197}Au nuclei in the beam pipe. A clear signal is observed with a statistical significance of 7.1σ. The cross section of the reaction Ξ^{0}+^{9}Be→Ξ^{-}+p+^{8}Be is determined to be σ(Ξ^{0}+^{9}Be→Ξ^{-}+p+^{8}Be)=(22.1±5.3_{stat}±4.5_{sys})  mb at the Ξ^{0} momentum of 0.818  GeV/c, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. No significant H-dibaryon signal is observed in the Ξ^{-}p final state. This is the first study of hyperon-nucleon interactions in electron-positron collisions and opens up a new direction for such research.

[Structural changes of the frontal cortex in depressed mice are associated with decreased expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the changes in gray matter volume in depressive-like mice and explore the possible mechanism.

METHODS

Twenty-four 6-week-old C57 mice were randomized equally into control group and model group, and the mice in the model group were subjected to chronic unpredictable mild stimulation (CUMS) for 35 days. Magnetic resonance imaging was performed to examine structural changes of the grey matter volume in depressive-like mice. The expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the grey matter of the mice was detected using Western blotting and immunofluorescence staining.

RESULTS

Compared with the control mice, the mice with CUMS showed significantly decreased central walking distance in the open field test (P < 0.05) and increased immobile time in forced swimming test (P < 0.05). Magnetic resonance imaging showed that the volume of the frontal cortex was significantly decreased in CUMS mice (P < 0.001, when the mass level was greater than or equal to 10 756, the FDRc was corrected with P=0.05). Western blotting showed that the expression of mature BDNF in the frontal cortex was significantly decreased in CUMS mice (P < 0.05), and its expression began to decrease after the exposure to CUMS as shown by immunofluorescence staining. The volume of different clusters obtained by voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis was correlated with the expression level of mature BDNF detected by Western blotting (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

The decrease of frontal cortex volume after CUMS is related with the reduction of mature BDNF expression in the frontal cortex.

[Analysis of tobacco dependence level and its influencing factors on Tianjin residents]

Objective: To understand the prevalence and influencing factors of tobacco dependence among the population aged 15-69 in Tianjin to provide the basis for formulating targeted smoking control intervention policies and carrying out scientific smoking cessation intervention services. Methods: The data of this study comes from the 2018 Tianjin residents' health literacy monitoring survey. Probability-proportional-to-size sampling is adopted for sampling. SPSS 26.0 software was used for data cleaning and statistical analysis, and χ² test and binary logistic regression were used to analyze the influencing factors. Results: A total of 14 641 subjects aged 15-69 were included in this study. After standardized, with a smoking rate of 25.5%, including 45.5% for men and 5.2% for women. Among the population aged 15-69, the prevalence of tobacco dependence was 10.7%; among current smokers, the prevalence rate of tobacco dependence is 40.1%, of which the prevalence rate of male tobacco dependence is 40.0%, and the prevalence rate of female tobacco dependence is 40.6%. According to multivariate logistic regression analysis, people who live in rural areas, have an education level of primary school or below, smoke every day, smoke the first cigarette ≤15 years old, smoke ≥21 cigarettes per day, and smoke for more than 20 packet years, people who report poor physical health are more likely to suffer from tobacco dependence (all P<0.05); age and smoking age did not affect the possibility of tobacco dependence (all P>0.05). Among current smokers, there was no significant difference in their willingness to quit smoking whether they had tobacco dependence (P>0.05). The proportion of people with tobacco dependence who have tried to quit smoking and failed is higher (P<0.001). Conclusions: The prevalence of tobacco dependence among smokers aged 15-69 in Tianjin is high, and the demand for quitting smoking is great. Therefore, smoking cessation publicity should be carried out for key groups, and smoking cessation intervention work in Tianjin should be continuously promoted.

[Distribution characteristics of body mass index among Chinese oldest-old aged 80 years and above]

Objective: To investigate body mass index (BMI) level, identify the main type of nutritional problem, and describe the population distribution characteristics of BMI among Chinese people aged 80 years or above. Methods: The data of 9 481 oldest-old individuals were obtained from the 2017-2018 Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. The Lambda-Mu-Sigma method, weighted estimates of BMI, and comparisons by BMI quintiles were used to describe the BMI level and distribution characteristics among the oldest-old. Results: The average age of the participants was (91.9±7.7) years, with P₅₀ of the weighted BMI at 21.9 (95%CI: 21.8-22.0) kg/m². The result of BMI level showed a decreasing trend with age, with a rapid decline before age 100, and then the trend became slower. There are about 30% of the oldest-old classified as undernutrition, but the prevalence of overnutrition is only about 10%. The population distribution characteristics by BMI quintiles showed the oldest-old with lower BMI levels were likely to have the following characteristics: sociodemographically, to be older, female, ethnic minority, unmarried/divorced/widowed, rural residents, illiterate, with inadequate living expenses, located in Central, South, or Southwest China; regarding lifestyles, lower BMI levels were observed for participants who were smoking, not exercising, lack of leisure activities, or with poor dietary diversity; considering functional status, participants with lower BMI levels were those who have poor chewing ability, disability in activities of daily living, cognitive impairment, hearing loss, visual impairment, or poor self-rated health status. The oldest-old with higher BMI levels were likely to have heart disease, hypertension, cerebrovascular disease, and diabetes. Conclusions: The overall BMI level was low among the Chinese oldest-old and it showed a downward trend with age. Currently, the main nutritional problem among the Chinese oldest-old was undernutrition rather than overweight or obesity. Management of healthy lifestyles, functional status, and diseases would be helpful to reduce the risk of undernutrition among the oldest-old.

Search for an Invisible Z^{'} in a Final State with Two Muons and Missing Energy at Belle II

The L_{μ}-L_{τ} extension of the standard model predicts the existence of a lepton-flavor-universality-violating Z^{'} boson that couples only to the heavier lepton families. We search for such a Z^{'} through its invisible decay in the process e^{+}e^{-}→μ^{+}μ^{-}Z^{'}. We use a sample of electron-positron collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 10.58 GeV collected by the Belle II experiment in 2019-2020, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 79.7  fb^{-1}. We find no excess over the expected standard-model background. We set 90%-confidence-level upper limits on the cross section for this process as well as on the coupling of the model, which ranges from 3×10^{-3} at low Z^{'} masses to 1 at Z^{'} masses of 8  GeV/c^{2}.

Measurements of Normalized Differential Cross Sections of Inclusive π^{0} and K_{S}^{0} Production in e^{+}e^{-} Annihilation at Energies from 2.2324 to 3.6710 GeV

Based on electron positron collision data collected with the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII storage rings, the differential cross sections of inclusive π^{0} and K_{S}^{0} production as a function of hadron momentum, normalized by the total cross section of the e^{+}e^{-}→hadrons process, are measured at six center-of-mass energies from 2.2324 to 3.6710 GeV. Our results, which cover a relative hadron energy range from 0.1 to 0.9, significantly deviate from several theoretical calculations based on existing fragmentation functions.

[Association between cognitive impairment and main metals among oldest old aged 80 years and over in China]

Objective: To identify the main metals involved in cognitive impairment in the Chinese oldest old, and explore the association between these metal exposures and cognitive impairment. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 1 568 participants aged 80 years and older from Healthy Aging and Biomarkers Cohort Study (2017 to 2018). Fasting venous blood was collected to measure the levels of nine metals (selenium, lead, cadmium, arsenic, antimony, chromium, manganese, mercury, and nickel). The cognitive function of these participants was evaluated by using the Chinese version of the Mini-Mental State Examination (CMMSE). The random forest (RF) was applied to independently identify the main metals that affected cognitive impairment. The multivariate logistic regression model and restricted cubic splines (RCS) model were used to further verify the association of the main metals with cognitive impairment. Results: The age of 1 568 study subjects was (91.8±7.6) years old, including 912 females (58.2%) and 465 individuals (29.7%) with cognitive function impairment. Based on the RF model (the out-of-bag error rate was 22.9%), the importance ranking of variables was conducted and the feature screening of five times ten-fold cross-validation was carried out. It was found that selenium was the metal that affected cognitive function impairment, and the other eight metals were not included in the model. After adjusting for covariates, the multivariate logistic regression model showed that with every increase of 10 μg/L of blood selenium levels, the risk of cognitive impairment decreased (OR=0.921, 95%CI: 0.889-0.954). Compared with the lowest quartile(Q₁) of blood selenium, the ORs (95%CI) of Q₃ and Q₄ blood selenium were 0.452 (0.304-0.669) and 0.419 (0.281-0.622) respectively. The RCS showed a linear dose-response relationship between blood selenium and cognitive impairment (P_nonlinear>0.05). Conclusion: Blood selenium is negatively associated with cognitive impairment in the Chinese oldest old.

Molecular dynamics of interfacial crystallization of dodecane on hydroxylated silica surface impacted by H2O and CO2

The morphology of dodecane in a nanopore at temperatures typical in exploited or depleted oil reservoirs is investigated using molecular dynamics simulation. The dodecane morphology is found to be determined by interactions between interfacial crystallization and surface wetting of the simplified oil, while "evaporation" only plays a minor role. The morphology changes from an isolated, solidified dodecane droplet to a film with orderly lamellae structures remaining within, and finally to a film containing randomly distributed dodecane molecules, as the system temperature increases. In a nanoslit under the impact of water, since water wins against oil in surface wetting on the silica surface due to electrostatic interaction induced hydrogen bonding between water and the silanol group of silica, the spreading of dodecane molecules over the silica surface is impeded by this water confinement mechanism. Meanwhile, interfacial crystallization is enhanced, leading to always an isolated dodecane "droplet," with crystallization weakening as the temperature increases. Since dodecane is immiscible to water, there is no mechanism for dodecane to escape the silica surface, and the competition of surface wetting between water and oil determines the morphology of the crystallized dodecane droplet. For the CO2-dodecane system in a nanoslit, CO2 is an efficient solvent for dodecane at all temperatures. Therefore, interfacial crystallization rapidly disappears. The competition of surface adsorption between CO2 and dodecane is secondary for all cases. The dissolution mechanism is a clear clue for the fact that CO2 is more effective than water flooding in oil recovery for a depleted oil reservoir.

Precision Measurement of the Decay Σ^{+}→pγ in the Process J/ψ→Σ^{+}Σ[over ¯]^{-}

Using (10 087±44)×10^{6} J/ψ events collected with the BESIII detector, the radiative hyperon decay Σ^{+}→pγ is studied at an electron-positron collider experiment for the first time. The absolute branching fraction is measured to be (0.996±0.021_{stat}±0.018_{syst})×10^{-3}, which is lower than its world average value by 4.2 standard deviations. Its decay asymmetry parameter is determined to be -0.652±0.056_{stat}±0.020_{syst}. The branching fraction and decay asymmetry parameter are the most precise to date, and the accuracies are improved by 78% and 34%, respectively.

[Construction and biological characterization of a Proteus mirabilis strain with modABC gene deletion]

OBJECTIVE

To construct a modABC gene knockout strain of Proteus mirabilis and explore the effect of modABC gene deletion on biological characteristics of Proteus mirabilis.

METHODS

Fusion PCR was used to obtain the fusion gene of modABC and the kanamycin-resistant gene Kn, which was ligated with the suicide vector pCVD442 and transduced into Proteus mirabilis. The modABC gene knockout strain of Proteus mirabilis was obtained after homologous recombination with the suicide vector. PCR and Sanger sequencing were used to identify genomic deletion of modABC gene in the genetically modified strain. The concentration of molybdate in the wild-type and gene knockout strains was determined using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and their survival ability in LB medium was compared under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions.

RESULTS

PCR and sanger sequencing confirmed genomic deletion of modABC gene in the obtained Proteus mirabilis strain. The concentration of intracellular molybdenum in the modABC gene knockout strain was 1.22 mg/kg, significantly lower than that in the wild-type strain (1.46 mg/kg, P < 0.001). Under the aerobic condition, the modABC gene knockout strain grown in LB medium showed no significant changes in survival ability compared with the wild-type strain, but its proliferation rate decreased significantly under the anaerobic condition and also when cultured in nitrate-containing LB medium under anaerobic condition.

CONCLUSION

Homologous recombination with the suicide vector can be used for modABC gene knockout in Proteus mirabilis. modABC gene participates in molybdate uptake and is associated with anaerobic growth of Proteus mirabilis in the presence of nitrate.

[Prediction of microvascular invasion in hepatocellular carcinoma with magnetic resonance imaging using models combining deep attention mechanism with clinical features]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the consistency and diagnostic performance of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for detecting microvascular invasion (MVI) of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and the validity of deep learning attention mechanisms and clinical features for MVI grade prediction.

METHODS

This retrospective study was conducted among 158 patients with HCC treated in Shunde Hospital Affiliated to Southern Medical University between January, 2017 and February, 2020. The imaging data and clinical data of the patients were collected to establish single sequence deep learning models and fusion models based on the EfficientNetB0 and attention modules. The imaging data included conventional MRI sequences (T₁WI, T₂WI, and DWI), enhanced MRI sequences (AP, PP, EP, and HBP) and synthesized MRI sequences (T1mapping-pre and T1mapping-20 min), and the high-risk areas of MVI were visualized using deep learning visualization techniques.

RESULTS

The fusion model based on T1mapping-20min sequence and clinical features outperformed other fusion models with an accuracy of 0.8376, a sensitivity of 0.8378, a specificity of 0.8702, and an AUC of 0.8501 for detecting MVI. The deep fusion models were also capable of displaying the high-risk areas of MVI.

CONCLUSION

The fusion models based on multiple MRI sequences can effectively detect MVI in patients with HCC, demonstrating the validity of deep learning algorithm that combines attention mechanism and clinical features for MVI grade prediction.

[Association of plasma vitamin B12 level with plasma uric acid level among the elderly over 65 years old in 9 longevity areas of China]

Objective: To investigate the association of plasma vitamin B₁₂ level with plasma uric acid level among the elderly over 65 in 9 longevity areas of China. Methods: The elderly over 65 years old with complete information on plasma vitamin B₁₂ and plasma uric acid from Healthy Aging and Biomarkers Cohort Study (2017 to 2018) were recruited in this study. Information on socio-demographic characteristics, life styles, diet intake, and health status were collected by questionnaire and physical examination; and fasting venous blood was collected to detect the levels of plasma vitamin B₁₂, uric acid and other indicators. Multiple linear regression models were used to analyze the association of plasma vitamin B₁₂ level per interquartile range increase with plasma uric acid level. The association trend of plasma vitamin B₁₂ level with plasma uric acid level was described by restrictive cubic splines fitting multiple linear regression model. Multiple logistic regression models were used to analyze the association of plasma vitamin B₁₂ level stratified by quartiles with hyperuricemia. Results: A total of 2 471 participants were finally included in the study, the age was (84.88±19.76) years old, of which 1 291 (52.25%) were female. The M (Q₁, Q₃) level of plasma vitamin B₁₂ was 294 (203, 440) pg/ml and the plasma uric acid level was (341.01±90.46) μmol/L. A total of 422 participants (17.08%) were defined with hyperuricemia. The results of multiple linear regression model showed that there was a positive association of plasma vitamin B₁₂ level with plasma uric acid level after adjustment for covariates (P<0.05). An IQR increase in plasma vitamin B₁₂ (237 pg/ml) was associated with a 6.36 (95%CI: 2.00-10.72) μmol/L increase in the plasma uric acid level. The restrictive cubic splines curve showed a positive linear association of log-transformed plasma vitamin B₁₂ with uric acid level (P<0.001). Conclusion: There is a positive association of plasma vitamin B₁₂ level with plasma uric acid level among the elderly over 65 years old in 9 longevity areas of China.

[Association of hs-CRP with frailty and its components among the elderly over 65 years old in 9 longevity areas of China]

Objective: To investigate the association of the levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) with frailty and its components among the elderly over 65 years old in 9 longevity areas of China. Methods: Cross-sectional data from the Health Ageing and Biomarkers Cohort Study (HABCS, 2017-2018) were used and the elderly over 65 years old were included in this study. Through questionnaire interview and physical examination, the information including demographic characteristics, behavior, diet, daily activity, cognitive function, and health status was collected. The association between hs-CRP and frailty and its components in the participants was analyzed by multivariate logistic regression model and restrictive cubic spline. Results: A total of 2 453 participants were finally included, the age was (84.8±19.8) years old. The median hs-CRP level was 1.13 mg/L and the prevalence of frailty was 24.4%. Compared with the low-level group (hs-CRP<1.0 mg/L), the OR (95%CI) value of the high-level group (hs-CRP>3.0 mg/L) was 1.79 (1.35-2.36) mg/L. As for the components, the hs-CRP level was also positively associated with ADL disability, IADL disability, functional limitation and multimorbidity. After adjusting for confounding factors, compared with the low-level group, the OR (95%CI) values of the high-level group for the four components were 1.68 (1.25-2.27), 1.88 (1.42-2.50), 1.68 (1.31-2.14) and 1.39 (1.12-1.72), respectively. Conclusion: There is a positive association between the levels of hs-CRP and the risk of frailty among the elderly over 65 years old in 9 longevity areas of China. The higher hs-CRP level may increase the risk of frailty by elevating the risk of four physical functional disabilities, namely ADL disability, IADL disability, functional limitation and multimorbidity.

[Association of greenness, nitrogen dioxide with the prevalence of hypertension among the elderly over 65 years old in China]

Objective: To investigate the association of mixed exposure to greenness and nitrogen dioxide(NO₂) and hypertension among the older adults aged 65 years and over in China. Methods: The study subjects were from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey from 2017 to 2018. A total of 15 423 older adults aged 65 years and over meeting the criteria were finally included in the study. A questionnaire survey was used to collect information on demographic characteristics, lifestyle habits and self-reported prevalence of hypertension. Blood pressure values were obtained through physical examination. The level of normalized difference vegetation index(NDVI) was measured by the Medium-resolution Imaging Spectral Radiator(MODIS) of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA). The concentration of NO₂ was from China's surface air pollutant data set. Meteorological data was from NASA MERRA-2. The exposure to NDVI and NO₂ for each study subject was calculated based on the area within a 1 km radius around their residence. The association between mixed exposure of NDVI and NO₂ as well as their interaction and hypertension in older adults was analyzed by using the multivariate logistic regression model. The restrictive cubic spline(RCS) function was used to explore the exposure-response relationship between greenness and NO₂ and the risk of hypertension in study subjects. Results: The mean age of 15 423 older adults were (85.6±11.6). Women accounted for 56.3%(8 685/15 423) and 55.6%(8 578/15 423) lived in urban areas. The mean time of residence was (60.9±28.5) years. 59.8% of participants were with hypertension. The mean NDVI level was 0.41±0.13, and the mean NO₂ concentration was (32.18±10.36) μg/cm³. The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that NDVI was inversely and linearly associated with the hypertension in older adults, with the OR(95%CI) value of 0.959(0.928-0.992). Compared with the T₁ group of NDVI, the risk of hypertension was lower in the T₃ group, with the OR(95%CI) value of 0.852(0.769-0.944), and the trend test was statistically significant(P<0.05). Compared with the T₁ group of NO₂, the risk of hypertension was higher in the T₂ and T₃ groups, with OR(95%CI) values of 1.160(1.055-1.275) and 1.244(1.111-1.393), and the trend test was statistically significant (P<0.05). The result of the RCS showed that NDVI was inversely and linearly associated with hypertension in older adults. NO₂ was nonlinearly associated with hypertension in older adults. The interaction analysis showed that NDVI and NO₂ had a negative multiplicative interaction on the risk of hypertension, with OR(95%CI) value of 0.995(0.992-0.997). Conclusion: Exposure to greenness and NO₂ are associated with hypertension in older adults.

Evaluation of the efficacy of aparatinib and carrilizumab combined with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization in the treatment of primary hepatocellular carcinoma

OBJECTIVE

The study aimed to analyze the efficacy of aparatinib and carrilizumab combined with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) in the treatment of primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 150 patients with primary HCC admitted to our hospital from March 1, 2019, to March 1, 2022 was chosen and randomized as the control and treatment group. The control group went through TACE treatment, and the treatment group experienced apatinib + karilizumab + TACE treatment. The near and long-term efficacy of the two groups were compared. The total survival time (OS), time to progression (TTP), and hospital costs were compared between the two groups. Fasting venous blood was collected before and one month after treatment in the two groups, and liver and kidney functions were tested using automatic biochemical analyzer. The levels of CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+ were detected by flow cytometry, and CD4+/CD8+ was calculated. The levels of cysteinyl aspartate specific protease-8 (Caspase-8), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and alpha fetoprotein (AFP) were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The patients' conditions were closely observed and the adverse reaction rates of diarrhea, hand foot syndrome, bone marrow suppression, proteinuria, fever and pain were compared between the two groups.

RESULTS

The disease control rate (DCR) of short-term treatment in the treatment group was 97.33%, which was much higher than 88.00% in the control group. The survival ratios of the treatment group in September and December were 65.33% and 42.67% respectively, which were also much higher than 48.00% and 20.00% in the control group (p < 0.05). The TTP and OS of patients in the treatment group were significantly longer than those in the control group (p < 0.05), and the hospital expenses were significantly higher than those in the control group (p < 0.05). The levels of liver function indicators such as alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and total bilirubin (TBIL) were largely decreased in both groups after treatment, and more significant difference was detected in the treatment group (p < 0.05). Renal function between the two groups had no significant difference after treatment (p > 0.05). After treatment, the levels AFP and VEGF were strongly decreased and the level of Caspase-8 was markedly increased in both groups, and the treatment group had lower levels of AFP and VEGF and higher level of Caspase-8 than the control group (p < 0.05). The CD3+ and CD4+/CD8+ levels in two groups were dramatically elevated after treatment, and the treatment group had much higher CD3+ and CD4+/CD8+ levels than the control group (p < 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the rates of adverse reactions such as diarrhea, hand-foot syndrome, bone marrow suppression, proteinuria, fever, and pain between the two groups (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The combination of apatinib and carrilizumab with TACE had better near- and long-term efficacy in the treatment of primary HCC by effectively inhibiting tumor vascular regeneration, inducing tumor cell apoptosis, and improving patients' liver function and immune function with higher safety, which could be widely used in clinical practice.

[Clinical analysis of 15 pregnant women complicated with moyamoya disease]

Objective: To explore the effects of pregnancy complicated with moyamoya disease on maternal and fetal outcomes. Methods: The general clinical data and maternal and fetal outcomes of 20 pregnancies of 15 patients with moyamoya disease admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2012 to October 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. Results: (1) General information: among the 20 pregnancies of 15 clearly diagnosed pregnant women complicated with moyamoya disease, 12 were diagnosed before pregnancy (60%, 12/20), 3 were diagnosed during pregnancy (15%, 3/20), and 5 were diagnosed during puerperal period (25%, 5/20). There were 7 cases of primipara (35%, 7/20) and 13 cases of multipara (65%, 13/20). (2) Pregnancy complications and maternal and infant outcomes: among the 20 pregnancies of 15 pregnant women with moyamoya disease, there were 9 pregnancy complications (45%, 9/20), including 5 gestational hypertension (25%, 5/20), 2 severe pre-eclampsia (10%, 2/20), 1 hyperlipidemia and 1 gestational diabetes mellitus (5%, 1/20). There were 2 case of drug abortion in the first trimester, 3 cases of labor induction in the second trimester, and 15 cases of delivery during the third trimester. All the 15 deliveries were cesarean section, of which 11 (11/15) were cesarean sections with medical indications, and 4 (4/15) were cesarean sections caused by personal factors. General anesthesia was used in 5 cases (5/15), epidural block anesthesia in 7 cases (7/15), and combined spinal and epidural anesthesia in 3 cases (3/15). The median gestational age of 15 neonates was 37.2 weeks (34.0 to 40.8 weeks), with 10 cases (10/15) were full-term infants, and 5 (5/15) were preterm infants (3 of which were associated with hypertensive disorder complicating pregnancy). The birth weight of 15 neonates was (2 853±454) g. Four neonates were admitted to neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), of which 3 cases were admitted to NICU due to premature delivery and 1 case was admitted to NICU due to neonatal jaundice. There was no neonatal asphyxia or death. All neonates were followed up from 4 months to 6 years after birth, and all grew well. (3) Neurological symptoms during pregnancy: 8 cases (40%, 8/20) had neurological symptoms during pregnancy, and 6 cases (30%, 6/20) had hemorrhagic symptoms, of which 3 cases occurred during the puerperal period (3/6). There were 2 cases of ischemic symptoms (10%, 2/20), all of which occurred during the puerperal period (2/2). (4) Analysis of factors related to the occurrence of cerebral hemorrhage: the incidence of cerebral hemorrhage in patients with moyamoya disease diagnosed before pregnancy was significantly lower than that in those without a clear diagnosis, and the incidence of cerebral hemorrhage in women with moyamoya disease was lower than that in primipara (all P<0.01). The incidence of cerebral hemorrhage in moyamoya patients without hypertensive disorder complicating pregrancy was lower than that in patients with hypertensive disorder complicating pregrancy, but the difference was not statistically significant (P>0.05). Conclusions: Pregnancy combined with moyamoya disease has adverse effects on maternal and infant outcomes, and the incidence of pregnancy complications increases. Cerebral hemorrhage occurres in prenatal and puperium, while cerebral ischemia occurres mainly in puperium.

[Associations of all-cause mortality with admission blood pressure variability during multiple hospitalizations in acute decompensated heart failure]

Objective: To investigate whether admission blood pressure (BP) variability during multiple hospitalizations is associated with all-cause mortality independent of baseline BP in acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF). Methods: Patients with ADHF admitted to the Department of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University from September 2013 to December 2017 were retrospectively enrolled. The risk of all-cause mortality associated with indices of BP variability, including mean admission BPs, standard deviation of BP and coefficient of variation of BP during multiple hospitalizations was assessed, using Cox regression model. Results: A total of 1 006 ADHF patients (mean aged (69.3±13.5) years; 411 (40.8%) female; 670 (66.6%) with preserved ejection fraction) were enrolled. During a median follow-up of 1.54 years, 47.0% of patients died. In all ADHF patients, after adjusting for confounding factors, for every 1-standard deviation (SD) increase in SD and coefficient of variation (CV) of systolic BP, the risk of all-cause mortality increased by 10% and 11%, respectively (SD: HR, 1.10, 95%CI, 1.01-1.21, P=0.029, CV: HR, 1.11, 95%CI, 1.02-1.21, P=0.017); for every 1-SD increase in the mean of diastolic BP, the risk of all cause mortality decreased by 25% (HR, 0.75; 95%CI, 0.65-0.87; P<0.001). In ADHF patients with preserved ejection fraction, after accounted for potential confounders, higher SD and CV of admitted systolic and diastolic BP were significantly associated with higher risk of all-cause mortality, regardless of whether confounding factors were adjusted (P≤0.049); After adjusting for confounding factors, the risk of all-cause mortality increased by 18% and 19% for every 1-SD increase in SD and CV of systolic BP, while the risk of all-cause mortality increased by 11% and 15% for every 1-SD increase in SD and CV of diastolic BP. In ADHF patients with reduced ejection fraction, after adjusting for confounding factors, the higher the mean admission systolic BP during multiple hospitalizations, the lower the risk of total mortality (HR, 0.68; 95%CI, 0.47-1.00; P=0.049). Conclusions: In patients with ADHF, independent of baseline BP, BP variability during multiple hospitalizations was strong predictor of all-cause mortality.

Measurements of the Electric and Magnetic Form Factors of the Neutron for Timelike Momentum Transfer

We present the first measurements of the electric and magnetic form factors of the neutron in the timelike (positive q^{2}) region as function of four-momentum transfer. We explored the differential cross sections of the reaction e^{+}e^{-}→n[over ¯]n with data collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII accelerator, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 354.6  pb^{-1} in total at twelve center-of-mass energies between sqrt[s]=2.0-2.95  GeV. A relative uncertainty of 18% and 12% for the electric and magnetic form factors, respectively, is achieved at sqrt[s]=2.3935  GeV. Our results are comparable in accuracy to those from electron scattering in the comparable spacelike region of four-momentum transfer. The electromagnetic form factor ratio R_{em}≡|G_{E}|/|G_{M}| is within the uncertainties close to unity. We compare our result on |G_{E}| and |G_{M}| to recent model predictions, and the measurements in the spacelike region to test the analyticity of electromagnetic form factors.

Observation of a New X(3872) Production Process e^{+}e^{-}→ωX(3872)

Using 4.7  fb^{-1} of e^{+}e^{-} collision data at center-of-mass energies from 4.661 to 4.951 GeV collected by the BESIII detector at the BEPCII collider, we observe the X(3872) production process e^{+}e^{-}→ωX(3872) for the first time. The significance is 7.8σ, including both the statistical and systematic uncertainties. The e^{+}e^{-}→ωX(3872) Born cross section and the corresponding upper limit at 90% confidence level at each energy point are reported. The line shape of the cross section indicates that the ωX(3872) signals may be from the decays of some nontrivial structures.

Observation of Three Charmoniumlike States with J^{PC}=1^{--} in e^{+}e^{-}→D^{*0}D^{*-}π^{+}

The Born cross sections of the process e^{+}e^{-}→D^{*0}D^{*-}π^{+} at center-of-mass energies from 4.189 to 4.951 GeV are measured for the first time. The data samples used correspond to an integrated luminosity of 17.9  fb^{-1} and were collected by the BESIII detector operating at the BEPCII storage ring. Three enhancements around 4.20, 4.47, and 4.67 GeV are visible. The resonances have masses of 4209.6±4.7±5.9  MeV/c^{2}, 4469.1±26.2±3.6  MeV/c^{2}, and 4675.3±29.5±3.5  MeV/c^{2} and widths of 81.6±17.8±9.0  MeV, 246.3±36.7±9.4  MeV, and 218.3±72.9±9.3  MeV, respectively, where the first uncertainties are statistical and the second systematic. The first and third resonances are consistent with the ψ(4230) and ψ(4660) states, respectively, while the second one is compatible with the ψ(4500) observed in the e^{+}e^{-}→K^{+}K^{-}J/ψ process. These three charmoniumlike ψ states are observed in the e^{+}e^{-}→D^{*0}D^{*-}π^{+} process for the first time.

[Application and prospect of tissue engineering strategies based on decellularized extracellular matrix in bone-tendon injuries]

Under the rapid development of national health and fitness, the incidence rates of bone-tendon injuries have been increasing observably. Bone-to-tendon healing poses a formidable clinical challenge due to the complex structure, composition and mechanics of the interface. A variety of strategies, including advanced biomaterials, bioactive growth factors and multiple stem cell lineages, have been developed, providing new adjuvant therapies for the repair of motor system injuries. Among them, tissue engineering of decellularized extracellular matrix materials is one of the most promising approaches. The well-designed shapes of scaffolds, the improvements of acellular protocols, the bioactivity enhancement of materials and the appropriate seed cells in biomimetic applications have been proved to have more satisfactory clinical efficacy and application prospects. This review intends to provide a reference for future innovations in bone-tendon injury by summarizing the research progresses of tissue engineering strategies in recent years.

Sequence-to-Sequence Change-Point Detection in Single-Particle Trajectories via Recurrent Neural Network for Measuring Self-Diffusion

A recurrent neural network is developed for segmenting between anomalous and normal diffusion in single-particle trajectories. Accurate segmentation infers a distinct change point that is used to approximate an Einstein linear regime in the mean-squared displacement curve via the transition density function, a unique physical descriptor for short-lived and delayed transiency. Through several artificial and simulated scenarios, we demonstrate the compelling accuracy of our model for dissecting linear and nonlinear behaviour. The inherent practicality of our model lies in its ability to substantiate the self-diffusion coefficient through offline trajectory segmentation, which is opposed to the common ‘best-guess’ linear fitting standard. Additionally, we show that the transition density function has fundamental implications and correspondence to underlying mechanisms that influence transition. In particular, we show that the known proportionality between salt concentration and diffusion of water also influences delayed anomalous behaviour.

[Prevalence of albuminuria and its association with cardiovascular diseases in Chinese residents aged over 35 years]

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of albuminuria in Chinese residents aged >35 years and its potential association with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Methods: A total of 34 647 Chinese subjects aged ≥35 years were selected by stratified multi-stage random sampling from 2012 to 2015. Data were collected through questionnaires, physical examinations, and laboratory tests. Albuminuria was categorized into 3 types according to urinary albumin-to- creatinine ratio: normal (<30 mg/g), microalbuminuria (MAU, 30-300 mg/g), and macroalbuminuria (≥300 mg/g). Measurement data were expressed as x¯±s, and t-tests were used for comparisons between indicators. Qualitative data were expressed as rate or constituent ratio, and the χ² test or Kruskal-Wallis test was used to examine differences. Logistic regression was used for multivariate analyses. SAS 9.4 software was used for statistical analyses, and P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The prevalence of abnormal albuminuria was 19.1%; the prevalence was 17.2% for MAU and lower in males (13.8%) than females (20.1%, P<0.01). The risk of CVD was higher among subjects with MAU (OR=1.23, 95%CI 1.12-1.35) and macroalbuminuria (OR=1.86, 95%CI 1.50-2.32). When MAU was complicated by hypertension and diabetes mellitus, the CVD risk was 1.76 times higher. Conclusions: The prevalence of MAU is high among Chinese subjects aged 35 years and over. Those with MAU have higher CVD risk, especially those with hypertension and diabetes mellitus.

[Association of greenness exposure with waist circumference and central obesity in Chinese adults aged 65 years and over]

Objective: To examine the association of greenness exposure with waist circumference (WC) and central obesity in older adults in China. Methods: Based on the cross-sectional data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey in 2017-2018, 14 056 participants aged 65 years and over were included. Demographic characteristics, lifestyle, WC, and other information were collected through a questionnaire and physical examination. Based on the satellite monitoring data of moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) provided by NASA, the annual mean of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) within a radius of 1 000 meters was obtained as the measurement value of greenness exposure. Multivariate linear regression model, multivariate logistic regression model, and restricted cubic splines (RCS) model were used to analyze the association and dose-response relationship between greenness exposure and WC and central obesity in older adults in China. Results: A total of 14 056 participants were enrolled with a median age of 84.0 years [IQR: 75.0-94.0 years]. About 45.0% (6 330) of them were male and 48.6% (5 853) were illiterate. There were 10 964 (78.0%) participants from rural. The mean of WC was (84.4±10.8) cm. Central obesity accounted for 60.2% (8 465), and the NDVI range was (-0.06, 0.78). After adjusting for confounding factors, the multivariate linear regression model showed that the change value of WC in the urban group [β (95%CI):-0.49 (-0.93, -0.06)] was smaller than that in the rural [-0.78 (-0.98, -0.58)] for every 0.1 unit increase in NDVI (Pinteraction=0.022). Compared with the Q1 group in NDVI, WC of Q2 and Q3 groups in rural decreased, and the β (95%CI) values were-1.74 (-2.5, -0.98) and-2.78 (-3.55, -2.00), respectively. The multivariate logistic regression model showed that after adjusting for confounding factors, the risk of central obesity decreased for urban and rural older adults with an increase of 0.1 unit in NDVI, and the OR (95%CI) values were 0.87 (0.80, 0.95) and 0.86 (0.82, 0.89), respectively (Pinteraction=0.284). Compared with the Q1 group in NDVI, the risk of central obesity in the Q2 and Q3 groups in rural was lower, and the OR (95%CI) values were 0.68 (0.58, 0.80) and 0.57 (0.49, 0.68), respectively. The results of the multivariate regression model with RCS showed that there was a non-linear association of NDVI with WC (Pnonlinear=0.006) and central obesity (Pnonlinear=0.025). Conclusion: Greenness exposure is negatively associated with WC and central obesity in older adults in China.

Evidence for the Cusp Effect in η' Decays into ηπ^{0}π^{0}

Using a sample of 4.3×10^{5} η^{'}→ηπ^{0}π^{0} events selected from the ten billion J/ψ event dataset collected with the BESIII detector, we study the decay η^{'}→ηπ^{0}π^{0} within the framework of nonrelativistic effective field theory. Evidence for a structure at π^{+}π^{-} mass threshold is observed in the invariant mass spectrum of π^{0}π^{0} with a statistical significance of around 3.5σ, which is consistent with the cusp effect as predicted by the nonrelativistic effective field theory. After introducing the amplitude for describing the cusp effect, the ππ scattering length combination a_{0}-a_{2} is determined to be 0.226±0.060_{stat}±0.013_{syst}, which is in good agreement with theoretical calculation of 0.2644±0.0051.

[Survival analysis of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma treated with adjuvant chemotherapy after radical resection based on CoxPH model and deep learning algorithm]

Objective: To establish a predictive model for survival benefit of patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) who received adjuvant chemotherapy after radical resection. Methods: The clinical and pathological data of 249 patients with ICC who underwent radical resection and adjuvant chemotherapy at 8 hospitals in China from January 2010 to December 2018 were retrospectively collected. There were 121 males and 128 females,with 88 cases>60 years old and 161 cases≤60 years old. Feature selection was performed by univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis. Overall survival time and survival status were used as outcome indicators,then target clinical features were selected. Patients were stratified into high-risk group and low-risk group,survival differences between the two groups were analyzed. Using the selected clinical features, the traditional CoxPH model and deep learning DeepSurv survival prediction model were constructed, and the performance of the models were evaluated according to concordance index(C-index). Results: Portal vein invasion, carcinoembryonic antigen>5 μg/L,abnormal lymphocyte count, low grade tumor pathological differentiation and positive lymph nodes>0 were independent adverse prognostic factors for overall survival in 249 patients with adjuvant chemotherapy after radical resection (all P<0.05). The survival benefit of adjuvant chemotherapy in the high-risk group was significantly lower than that in the low-risk group (P<0.05). Using the above five features, the traditional CoxPH model and the deep learning DeepSurv survival prediction model were constructed. The C-index values of the training set were 0.687 and 0.770, and the C-index values of the test set were 0.606 and 0.763,respectively. Conclusion: Compared with the traditional Cox model, the DeepSurv model can more accurately predict the survival probability of patients with ICC undergoing adjuvant chemotherapy at a certain time point, and more accurately judge the survival benefit of adjuvant chemotherapy.

[A nomogram for preoperative prediction of lymph node metastasis in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma based on inflammation-related markers]

Objectives: To construct a nomogram for prediction of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) lymph node metastasis based on inflammation-related markers,and to conduct its clinical verification. Methods: Clinical and pathological data of 858 ICC patients who underwent radical resection were retrospectively collected at 10 domestic tertiary hospitals in China from January 2010 to December 2018. Among the 508 patients who underwent lymph node dissection,207 cases had complete variable clinical data for constructing the nomogram,including 84 males,123 females,109 patients≥60 years old,98 patients<60 years old and 69 patients were pathologically diagnosed with positive lymph nodes after surgery. Receiver operating characteristic curve was drawn to calculate the accuracy of preoperative imaging examinations to determine lymph node status,and the difference in overall survival time was compared by Log-rank test. Partial regression squares and statistically significant preoperative variables were screened by backward stepwise regression analysis. R software was applied to construct a nomogram,clinical decision curve and clinical influence curve,and Bootstrap method was used for internal verification. Moreover,retrospectively collecting clinical information of 107 ICC patients with intraoperative lymph node dissection admitted to 9 tertiary hospitals in China from January 2019 to June 2021 was for external verification to verify the accuracy of the nomogram. 80 patients with complete clinical data but without lymph node dissection were divided into lymph node metastasis high-risk group and low-risk group according to the score of the nomogram among the 858 patients. Log-rank test was used to compare the overall survival of patients with or without lymph node metastasis diagnosed by pathology. Results: The area under the curve of preoperative imaging examinations for lymph node status assessment of 440 patients was 0.615,with a false negative rate of 62.8% (113/180) and a false positive rate of 14.2% (37/260). The median survival time of 207 patients used to construct a nomogram with positive or negative postoperative pathological lymph node metastases was 18.5 months and 27.1 months,respectively (P<0.05). Five variables related to lymph node metastasis were screened out by backward stepwise regression analysis,which were combined calculi,neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio,albumin,liver capsule invasion and systemic immune inflammation index,according to which a nomogram was constructed with concordance index(C-index) of 0.737 (95%CI: 0.667 to 0.806). The C-index of external verification was 0.674 (95%CI:0.569 to 0.779). The calibration prediction curve was in good agreement with the reference curve. The results of the clinical decision curve showed that when the risk threshold of high lymph node metastasis in the nomogram was set to about 0.32,the maximum net benefit could be obtained by 0.11,and the cost/benefit ratio was 1∶2. The results of clinical influence curve showed that when the risk threshold of high lymph node metastasis in the nomogram was set to about 0.6,the probability of correctly predicting lymph node metastasis could reach more than 90%. There was no significant difference in overall survival time between patients with high/low risk of lymph node metastasis assessed by the nomogram and those with pathologically confirmed lymph node metastasis or without lymph node metastasis (Log-rank test:P=0.082 and 0.510,respectively). Conclusion: The prediction accuracy of preoperative nomogram for ICC lymph node metastasis based on inflammation-related markers is satisfactory,which can be used as a supplementary method for preoperative diagnosis of lymph node metastasis and is helpful for clinicians to make personalized decision of lymph node dissection for patients with ICC.

Measurement of the Λ_{c}^{+} Lifetime

An absolute measurement of the Λ_{c}^{+} lifetime is reported using Λ_{c}^{+}→pK^{-}π^{+} decays in events reconstructed from data collected by the Belle II experiment at the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy electron-positron collider. The total integrated luminosity of the data sample, which was collected at center-of-mass energies at or near the ϒ(4S) resonance, is 207.2  fb^{-1}. The result, τ(Λ_{c}^{+})=203.20±0.89±0.77  fs, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic, is the most precise measurement to date and is consistent with previous determinations.

Search for a Dark Photon and an Invisible Dark Higgs Boson in μ^{+}μ^{-} and Missing Energy Final States with the Belle II Experiment

The dark photon A^{'} and the dark Higgs boson h^{'} are hypothetical particles predicted in many dark sector models. We search for the simultaneous production of A^{'} and h^{'} in the dark Higgsstrahlung process e^{+}e^{-}→A^{'}h^{'} with A^{'}→μ^{+}μ^{-} and h^{'} invisible in electron-positron collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 10.58 GeV in data collected by the Belle II experiment in 2019. With an integrated luminosity of 8.34  fb^{-1}, we observe no evidence for signal. We obtain exclusion limits at 90% Bayesian credibility in the range of 1.7-5.0 fb on the cross section and in the range of 1.7×10^{-8}-200×10^{-8} on the effective coupling ϵ^{2}×α_{D} for the A^{'} mass in the range of 4.0  GeV/c^{2}<M_{A^{'}}<9.7  GeV/c^{2} and for the h^{'} mass M_{h^{'}}<M_{A^{'}}, where ϵ is the mixing strength between the standard model and the dark photon and α_{D} is the coupling of the dark photon to the dark Higgs boson. Our limits are the first in this mass range.

The protective roles of allicin on type 1 diabetes mellitus through AMPK/mTOR mediated autophagy pathway

Background: Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is one of the most common endocrine and metabolic diseases in children. Pancreatic β cells are thought to be critical cells involved in the progression of T1DM, and their injury would directly lead to impaired insulin secretion. Purpose: To investigate the protective effects of allicin on pancreatic β cell injury and elucidate the underlying mechanism. Methods: The streptozotocin (STZ)-induced mouse T1DM model in vivo and STZ-induced pancreatic β cell Min6 model in vitro were used to explore the effects of allicin on T1DM. The experiments include fasting blood glucose test, oral glucose tolerance detection, HE staining, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, TUNEL staining, western blot, real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR), and flow cytometry. Results: Allicin could significantly decrease blood glucose level, improve islet structure and insulin expression, and inhibit apoptosis to reduce STZ-induced pancreatic β cell injury and loss through activating AMPK/mTOR mediated autophagy pathway. Conclusion: Allicin treatment significantly reduced STZ-induced T1DM progression, suggesting that allicin may be a potential therapy option for T1DM patients.

Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by minimally invasive esophagectomy for locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a prospective multicenter randomized clinical trial

BACKGROUND

Neoadjuvant therapy is recommended for locally advanced esophageal cancer, but the optimal strategy remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy (nCT) followed by minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) for locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Eligible patients staged as cT3-4aN0-1M0 ESCC were randomly assigned (1 : 1) to the nCRT or nCT group stratified by age, cN stage, and centers. The chemotherapy, based on paclitaxel and cisplatin, was administered to both groups, while concurrent radiotherapy was added for the nCRT group; then MIE was carried out. The primary endpoint was 3-year overall survival. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03001596).

RESULTS

A total of 264 patients were eligible for the intention-to-treat analysis. By 30 November 2021, 121 deaths had occurred. The median follow-up was 43.9 months (interquartile range 36.6-49.3 months). The overall survival in the intention-to-treat population was comparable between the nCRT and nCT strategies [hazard ratio (HR) 0.82, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.58-1.18; P = 0.28], with a 3-year survival rate of 64.1% (95% CI 56.4% to 72.9%) versus 54.9% (95% CI 47.0% to 64.2%), respectively. There were also no differences in progression-free survival (HR 0.83, 95% CI 0.59-1.16; P = 0.27) and recurrence-free survival (HR 1.07, 95% CI 0.71-1.60; P = 0.75), although the pathological complete response in the nCRT group (31/112, 27.7%) was significantly higher than that in the nCT group (3/104, 2.9%; P < 0.001). Besides, a trend of lower risk of recurrence was observed in the nCRT group (P = 0.063), while the recurrence pattern was similar (P = 0.802).

CONCLUSIONS

NCRT followed by MIE was not associated with significantly better overall survival than nCT among patients with cT3-4aN0-1M0 ESCC. The results underscore the pending issue of the best strategy of neoadjuvant therapy for locally advanced bulky ESCC.

Chronic pain conditions and risk of suicidal behavior: a 10-year longitudinal co-twin control study

BACKGROUND

Understanding the relationship between chronic pain conditions and suicidal behavior-suicide attempt, other intentional self-harm, and death by suicide-is imperative for suicide prevention efforts. Although chronic pain conditions are associated with suicidal behaviors, these associations might be attributed to unmeasured confounding or mediated via pain comorbidity.

METHODS

We linked a population-based Swedish twin study (N=17,148 twins) with 10 years of longitudinal, nationwide records of suicidal behavior from health and mortality registers through 2016. To investigate whether pain comorbidity versus specific pain conditions were more important for later suicidal behavior, we modeled a general factor of pain and two independent specific pain factors (measuring pain-related somatic symptoms and neck-shoulder pain, respectively) based on 9 self-reported chronic pain conditions. To examine whether the pain-suicidal behavior associations were attributable to familial confounding, we applied a co-twin control model.

RESULTS

Individuals scoring one standard deviation above the mean on the general pain factor had a 51% higher risk of experiencing suicidal behavior (odds ratio (OR), 1.51; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.34-1.72). The specific factor of somatic pain was also associated with increased risk for suicidal behavior (OR, 1.80; 95% CI, 1.45-2.22]). However, after adjustment for familial confounding, the associations were greatly attenuated and not statistically significant within monozygotic twin pairs (general pain factor OR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.59-1.33; somatic pain factor OR, 1.02; 95% CI, 0.49-2.11) CONCLUSION: Clinicians might benefit from measuring not only specific types of pain, but also pain comorbidity; however, treating pain might not necessarily reduce future suicidal behavior, as the associations appeared attributable to familial confounding.

[Management and prognosis of extremely preterm infants with gestational age ≤25+6 weeks]

Objective: To investigate the outcomes including major complications and prognosis of extremely preterm infants with gestational age ≤25⁺⁶ weeks. Methods: The cross-sectional study enrolled 233 extremely preterm infants with gestational age ≤25⁺⁶ weeks who were admitted to the Department of Neonatology of Shenzhen Maternity and Child Healthcare Hospital from January 2015 to December 2021. The clinical data including perinatal factors, treatments, complications, and prognosis were extracted and analyzed. These extremely preterm infants were also grouped according to gestational age and year of admission to further analyze their survival rate, major complications, causes of death, and long-term outcomes. The comparisons between the groups were performed with Chi-square test and Kruskal-Wallis. Results: Among these 233 extremely preterm infants, 134 (57.5%) were males and 99 (42.5%) females. The gestational age was (24.6±0.9) weeks, the birth weight was 710.0 (605.0,784.5) g, and the overall survival rate was 61.8% (144/233). Among the surviving extremely preterm infants, the earliest gestational age was 22⁺² weeks and the lowest birth weight was 390 g. There were 17.6% (41/233) of extremely preterm infants had treatment withdrawn and were discharged in line with the will of guardians. Among the rest 192 extremely preterm infants managed with aggressive treatments, 14 (7.3%) died in hospital and 34 (17.7%) had treatment withdrawn later due to severe complications. Of the 192 extremely preterm infants, 144 (75.0%) survived, and the survival rate increased year by year (χ²=26.28, P<0.001) while the mortality decreased year by year (χ²=14.09, P=0.027). Among the survivors, 20.8%(30/144) had no major complications, and the incidence of complications was also negatively related with the gestational age (χ²=7.24, P=0.044), and the length of invasive ventilation was negatively related to the gestational age (χ²=29.14, P<0.001). In the group of less than 23⁺⁶ weeks, all extremely preterm infants had one or more major complications. The follow-up were completed in 122 infants and revealed that delayed motor development, language retardation, and hearing and vision impairment accounted for 17.2% (21/122), 8.2% (10/122) and 17.2% (21/122), respectively. Conclusions: Extremely preterm infants with gestational age ≤25⁺⁶ weeks are difficult to treat, but the survival rate of infants undergoing aggressive treatments increases year by year. Although the prevalence of major complications is still high, most extremely preterm infants have acceptable prognosis during follow-up.