Existing data on folate status and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) prognosis are scarce. We prospectively examined whether serum folate concentrations at diagnosis were associated with liver cancer-specific survival (LCSS) and overall survival (OS) among 982 patients with newly diagnosed, previously untreated HCC, who were enrolled in the Guangdong Liver Cancer Cohort (GLCC) study between September 2013 and February 2017. Serum folate concentrations were measured using chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay. Cox proportional hazards models were performed to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95 % CI by sex-specific quartile of serum folate. Compared with patients in the third quartile of serum folate, patients in the lowest quartile had significantly inferior LCSS (HR = 1·48; 95 % CI 1·05, 2·09) and OS (HR = 1·43; 95 % CI 1·03, 1·99) after adjustment for non-clinical and clinical prognostic factors. The associations were not significantly modified by sex, age at diagnosis, alcohol drinking status and Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage. However, there were statistically significant interactions on both multiplicative and additive scale between serum folate and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels or smoking status and the associations of lower serum folate with worse LCSS and OS were only evident among patients with CRP > 3·0 mg/l or current smokers. An inverse association with LCSS were also observed among patients with liver damage score ≥3. These results suggest that lower serum folate concentrations at diagnosis are independently associated with worse HCC survival, most prominently among patients with systemic inflammation and current smokers. A future trial of folate supplementation seems to be promising in HCC patients with lower folate status.

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are a major worldwide public-health problem, but less data are available on the long-term trends of HAIs and antimicrobial use in Eastern China. This study describes the prevalence and long-term trends of HAIs and antimicrobial use in a tertiary care teaching hospital in Hefei, Anhui, China from 2010 to 2017 based on annual point-prevalence surveys. A total of 12 505 inpatients were included; 600 HAIs were recorded in 533 patients, with an overall prevalence of 4.26% and a frequency of 4.80%. No evidence was found for an increasing or decreasing trend in prevalence of HAI over 8 years (trend χ2 = 2.15, P = 0.143). However, significant differences in prevalence of HAI were evident between the surveys (χ2 = 21.14, P < 0.001). The intensive care unit had the highest frequency of HAIs (24.36%) and respiratory tract infections accounted for 62.50% of all cases; Escherichia coli was the most common pathogen (16.67%). A 44.13% prevalence of antimicrobial use with a gradually decreasing trend over time was recorded. More attention should be paid to potential high-risk clinical departments and HAI types with further enhancement of rational antimicrobial use.

This paper presents new water-soluble bio-polyelectrolyte-based nanoparticles, formed from lanthanide-induced polysaccharide aggregates (LIPAs). These new nano-aggregates are formed by coordinating a photoluminescent lanthanide–ligand complex to a single polyelectrolyte [i.e. polyanionic hyaluronic acid (HA)] or to two oppositely charged polyelectrolytes [i.e. HA and polycationic chitosan (CHI)]. We demonstrate that photoluminescent Eu3+–ligand complexes, which are dispersed homogeneously in aqueous solution by the association with water-soluble HA. The polysaccharide supermolecular assembly can be tuned to obtain nanoparticles of different sizes and surface charges. The preparation of stable and water-soluble lanthanide complexes via Eu3+–LIPAs opens opportunities for use of luminescent lanthanides in aqueous environments, for biosensing and bioimaging applications.

Boron nitride (BN) nanosheets incorporated silica antireflective (AR) coating was successfully prepared on fused silica substrate to improve the antilaser-damage ability of transmissive optics used in high-power laser systems. The BN nanosheets were obtained by urea assisted solid exfoliation, and then incorporated into basic-catalyzed silica sols without any further treatment. The transmission electron microscope (TEM) images indicated that the BN nanosheets generally consisted of 2–10 layers. The antireflective BN/ $\text{SiO}_{2}$ coating exhibited excellent transmittance as high as 99.89% at 351 nm wavelength on fused silica substrate. The thermal conductivity $0.135~\text{W}\cdot \text{m}^{-1}\cdot \text{K}^{-1}$ of the BN/ $\text{SiO}_{2}$ coating with 10% BN addition was about 23% higher than $0.11~\text{W}\cdot \text{m}^{-1}\cdot \text{K}^{-1}$ of the pure $\text{SiO}_{2}$ AR coating. The laser-induced damage threshold (LIDT) of that BN/ $\text{SiO}_{2}$ coating is also 23.1% higher than that of pure $\text{SiO}_{2}$ AR coating. This research provides a potential application of BN/ $\text{SiO}_{2}$ coatings in high-power laser systems.

Observations of Ürümqi glacier No. 1 at the headwaters of the Ürümqi river, Tien Shan, show remarkable changes between 1959 and 2003. The cumulative mass balance of the glacier is –10 032 mm, equivalent to 11.1 m of glacier ice, or 20% of the glacier volume, showing particular sensitivity to temperature change. The speed of glacier flow has gradually declined, especially since the 1980s. From 1980 to 2003, the flow speed of the east and west branches of the glacier decreased by about 21% and 43%, respectively. The glacier continuously retreated from 1962 to 2003. Its length has decreased by about 180 m (7.5%) and its area has diminished by 0.23 km2 (11.8%). Analyses show that summer precipitation is negatively correlated with mass balance and positively associated with runoff. These relationships are reasonable, as higher precipitation leads to higher runoff and lower glacier melt. On the other hand, summer temperature is negatively correlated with mass balance and positively associated with runoff, as higher temperatures lead to higher glacier melt and thus higher runoff, with summer temperatures controlling mass-balance variation. Over the past 45 years the negative mass balance, caused by higher ablation than accumulation, is associated with precipitation increase and temperature warming over the study area.

Nine possible native point defects in MgCaSi have been studied by employing density functional theory based ab initio calculations. The complex chemical potential limits are first determined using a two-dimension (∆μMg, ∆μCa) diagram, then the defect formation energies as a function of the atomic chemical potential are gained. The energetic results show that under Mg-rich conditions, the most favorable defect is MgCa rather than MgSi, while CaMg is predominant compared to CaSi under Ca-rich conditions. The bonding energy is first introduced to uncover the intrinsic feature of defect formation energy. The local geometric distortion around CaMg, MgSi, and CaSi antisite defects gradually increases due to the smaller atomic radii from Ca to Mg and Si, showing the important role of the geometrical mismatch. The density of states indicates that the higher stability of CaMg and MgCa originates from the smaller deviation of the Fermi level from the pseudo-gap.

δ18O measurements based on systematic sampling and isotopic modeling have been adopted to study the controls of stable isotopes in lake water in two lake basins (lakes Yamdrok-tso and Puma Yum-tso) at two different elevations on the southern Tibetan Plateau. Temporally, δ18O values in precipitation and lake water display a seasonal fluctuation in both lakes. Spatially, δ18O values in the two lake basins increase by 10% from the termini of glaciers to the lake shores, by ∽1% from the lake shores to the lake center and by 0.4% from the water surface to depth in these lakes. The clear annual δ18O variations indicate that lake water mixes sufficiently in a short time. Model results show that glacial meltwater and surface lake-water temperature are not the dominant factors in the balance process of stable isotopes in lake water. Equilibrium δ18O values decrease by 0.8% for Yamdrok-tso lake and 0.6% for Puma Yum-tso lake when glacial meltwater contributions to these lakes shrink by 60%. δ18O ratios increase rapidly during the initial stages and take a longer time to approach the equilibrium value.

Massively parallel sequencing (MPS) technology has become increasingly available and has been widely used to screen for trisomies 21, 18, and 13 in singleton pregnancies. This study assessed the performance of MPS testing of cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA) from maternal plasma for trisomies 21, 18, and 13 in twin pregnancies. Ninety-two women with twin pregnancies were recruited. The results were identified through karyotypes of amniocentesis or clinical examination and follow-up of the neonates. Fluorescent in-situ hybridization was used to examine the placentas postnatally in cases of false-positive results. The fetuses with autosomal trisomy 21 (n = 2) and trisomy 15 (n = 1) were successfully detected via MPS testing of cffDNA. There was one false-positive for trisomy 13 (n = 1), and fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH) identified confined placental mosaicism in this case. For twin pregnancies undergoing second-trimester screening for trisomy, MPS testing of cffDNA is feasible and can enhance the diagnostic spectrum of non-invasive prenatal testing, which could effectively reduce invasive prenatal diagnostic methods. In addition to screening for trisomy 21, 18, and 13 by cffDNA, MPS can detect fetal additional autosomal trisomy. False-positive results cannot completely exclude confined placental mosaicism.

In this paper, by discussing and analyzing the observational results of near infrared imaging, optical spectroscopy and 12CO molecular line, together with IRAS and NVSS data, we conclude that WB89 520 is an UC HII region with a very young compact stellar cluster. The spectrum of the UC HII region shows that it is an extremely metal-poor nebula, which has the lowest line ratio of [NII]/Hα (∼ 1/56) discovered in the nebulae of our Galaxy until now. We give two possible explanations for the low metallicity.

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of in ovo feeding (IOF) of folic acid on the folate metabolism, immune function and the involved epigenetic modification of broilers. A total of 400 (Cobb) hatching eggs were randomly divided into four groups (0, 50, 100 and 150 µg injection of folic acid at embryonic age 11 d), and chicks hatched from each treatment were randomly divided into six replicates with 12 broilers/replicate after incubation. The results indicated that, in ovo, 100- and 150-µg folic acid injections improved the hatchability. The average daily gain and feed conversion ratio increased in the 150-µg group during the late growth stage. Simultaneously, in the 100- and 150-µg groups, an increase was observed in hepatic folate content and the expression of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (d1 and 42) and methionine synthase reductase (d21). IgG and IgM concentrations, as well as plasma lysozyme activity of broilers, showed a marked increase along with increasing folic acid levels. The splenic expression levels of IL-2 and IL-4 were up-regulated, whereas that of IL-6 was down-regulated, in the 100- and 150-µg folic acid treatment groups. In addition, histone methylation in IL-2 and IL-4 promoters exhibited an enrichment of H3K4m2 but a loss of H3K9me2 with the increased amount of folic acid additive. In contrast, a decrease in H3K4m2 and an increase in H3K9me2 were observed in the IL-6 promoter in folic acid treatments. Furthermore, in ovo, the 150-µg folic acid injection improved the chromatin tightness of the IL-2 and IL-4 promoter regions. Our findings suggest that IOF of 150 µg of folic acid can improve the growth performance and folate metabolism of broilers, and enhance the relationship between immune function and epigenetic regulation of immune genes, which are involved with the alterations in chromatin conformation and histone methylation in their promoters.

From 1994 to 1997, we observed the star HD229221 several times spectroscopically by using the Beijing Astronomical Observatory 2.16 m telescope and the spectrograph Universal.

From the spectra we clearly see that the H-α spectral feature of this star underwent a peculiar variation, from a single emission line to one composed of three components, i.e. emission+absorption+filled emission. In our paper, based on an analysis of its spectral line variation and some physical parameters (e.g. luminosity, age, etc.), we discuss the possible reasons that might cause this peculiar variation.

Titanium dioxide (TiO2), a widely used inorganic semiconductor owing to its superb photoelectric properties, has frequently been fabricated into composites to reduce its relatively large band gap and overcome its limited visible light absorption. In this article, a “layer-by-layer” method has been developed to prepare the composite structure of nitrogen (N)-doped graphene quantum dots (GQDs)-sensitized TiO2 nanofibers. The as-prepared structure shows considerable luminescence and exhibits excellent photoelectric properties. Various factors including the crystalline phase of TiO2, amount of N in GQDs, and irradiation wavelength were investigated to find the optimal conditions for enhanced photoelectric activity. It is demonstrated that the combination of highest N amount GQDs with TiO2 nanofibers of mixed phases (750 °C-sintered TiO2 nanofibers) possess the best photoelectric properties. The enhancement of properties using TiO2 nanofibers with mixed phases mainly contributes to the transfer of electrons between conduction bands of different phases in TiO2 and the distinctive photoluminescence (PL) property of N-GQDs. Furthermore, this enhancement can be achieved in most areas of the visible light range. The general mechanism of the electron generation and transfer of the structure is based on the normal PL and upconversion PL property of N-GQDs which serve as the sensitizer. We consider it a feasible method to improve the photoelectric conversion efficiency in photovoltaic devices.

We propose a Bayesian method to measure the total Galactic extinction parameters, RV and AV. Validation tests based on the simulated data indicate that the method can achieve the accuracy of around 0.01 mag. We apply this method to the SDSS BHB stars in the northern Galactic cap and find that the derived extinctions are highly consistent with those from Schlegel et al. (1998). It suggests that the Bayesian method is promising for the extinction estimation, even the reddening values are close to the observational errors.

Albrecher et al. (Albrecher, H., Mayer Ph., Schoutens, W. (2008) General lower bounds for arithmetic Asian option prices. Applied Mathematical Finance, 15, 123–149) have proposed model-independent lower bounds for arithmetic Asian options. In this paper we provide an alternative and more elementary derivation of their results. We use the bounds as control variates to develop a simple Monte Carlo method for pricing contracts with Asian-style features. The conditioning idea that is inherent in our approach also inspires us to propose a new semi-analytic pricing approach. We compare both approaches and conclude that these both have their merits and are useful in practice. In particular, we point out that our newly proposed Monte Carlo method allows to deal with Asian-style products that appear in insurance (e.g., unit-linked contracts) in a very efficient way, and outperforms other known Monte Carlo methods that are based on control variates.

Potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) single crystals are the only nonlinear crystals currently used for electro-optic switches and frequency converters in inertial confinement fusion research, due to their large dimension and exclusive physical properties. Based on the traditional solution-growth process, large bulk KDP crystals, usually with sizes up to 600  $\times $  600 mm $^{{2}}$ so as to make a frequency doubler for the facility requirement loading highly flux of power laser, can be grown in standard Holden-type crystallizers, without spontaneous nucleation and visible defects, one to two orders of magnitude faster than by conventional methods. Pure water and KDP raw material with a few ion impurities such as Fe, Cr, and Al (less than 0.1 ppm) were used. The rapid-growth method includes extreme conditions such as temperature range from 60 to 35 $^{\circ }$ C, overcooling up to 5 $^{\circ }$ C, growth rates exceeding 10 mm/day, and crystal size up to 600 mm. The optical parameters of KDP crystals were determined. The optical properties of crystals determined indicate that they are of favorable quality for application in the facility.

A navigation integration processing scheme, called the strong tracking unscented Kalman filter (STUKF), is based on the combination of an unscented Kalman filter (UKF) and a strong tracking filter (STF). The UKF employs a set of sigma points by deterministic sampling, such that the linearization process is not necessary, and therefore the error caused by linearization as in the traditional extended Kalman filter (EKF) can be avoided. As a type of adaptive filter, the STF is essentially a nonlinear smoother algorithm that employs suboptimal multiple fading factors, in which the softening factors are involved. In order to resolve the shortcoming in traditional approach for selecting the softening factor through personal experience or computer simulation, a novel scheme called the fuzzy strong tracking unscented Kalman filter (FSTUKF) is presented where the Fuzzy Logic Adaptive System (FLAS) is incorporated for determining the softening factor. The proposed FSTUKF algorithm shows promising results in estimation accuracy when applied to the integrated navigation system design, as compared to the EKF, UKF and STUKF approaches.

A periodic wavelet Galerkin method is presented in this paper to solve a weakly singular integral equations with emphasis on the second kind of Fredholm integral equations. The kernel function, which includes of a smooth part and a log weakly singular part, is discretised by the periodic Daubechies wavelets. The wavelet compression strategy and the hyperbolic cross approximation technique are used to approximate the weakly singular and smooth kernel functions. Meanwhile, the sparse matrix of systems can be correspondingly obtained. The bi-conjugate gradient iterative method is used to solve the resulting algebraic equation systems. Especially, the analytical computational formulae are presented for the log weakly singular kernel. The computational error for the representative matrix is also evaluated. The convergence rate of this algorithm is O (N-p log(N)), where p is the vanishing moment of the periodic Daubechies wavelets. Numerical experiments are provided to illustrate the correctness of the theory presented here.