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Background: The objective of this study is to analyse the factors affecting late toxicity for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). Methods: Seven hundred and eighty-nine consecutive NPC patients treated with IMRT at our centre from January 2003 to February 2008 were retrospectively analysed. Radiotherapy-related complications were categorised using the RTOG Late Radiation Morbidity Scoring Criteria and the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (Version 3.0). Two hundred and thirty-three patients were treated with IMRT alone (group 1) and 556 patients underwent cisplatin-based chemotherapy (group 2). Results: Median follow-up was 65 months (range, 4–106 months). The 5-year major late toxicity rate was significantly greater in group 2 than group 1 (63.2% vs 42.0%, P <0.001). Multivariate analyses showed that N category, T category and chemotherapy were significant factors. The maximal dose (Dmax) to the temporal lobe was a significant factor affecting temporal lobe injury (TLI), with a hazard ratio of 1.26 (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.18–1.35; P <0.001) per 1-Gy increase. The 5-year TLI rate increased from 0.8% for 284 lobes with Dmax <65.77 Gy to 27.1% for 176 lobes with greater doses ( P <0.001). Logistic regression showed that the hazard ratio attributed to the parotid gland mean dose was 1.36 (95% CI, 1.21–1.53; P <0.001) per 1-Gy increase. Chemotherapy was not a significant factor ( P =0.211). Conclusion: With the application of IMRT, the incidence of radiation-related complications has been reduced except for TLI. The significant factors affecting the risk of TLI included T category, chemotherapy and Dmax.

In order to reveal the vibration isolation performance of new composite rubber bearings (CRBs), this paper establishes a numerical model of composite rubber bearings based on SAP2000, and studies the seismic response of bridges supported by LNB and CRB at different pier heights. The results show that compared with LNB, CRB can effectively reduce the shear force and bending moment of the pier without increasing the structural displacement.Compared with LNB, the advantages of CRB in isolation performance vary little with pier height, which indicates that CRB has broad application prospects..

The objective of this study is to analytically assess the effectiveness of a novel composite rubber bearing (CRB), which is proposed to enhance both the displacement and damping capacities of the laminated natural rubber bearing (LNB), in improving the seismic performance of girder bridges. Four numerical bridge models respectively with the unbonded and bonded LNBs and CRBs (i.e. ULNB, BLNB, UCRB, BCRB) are established based on the bearing restoring force models. Then, incremental dynamic analyses (IDAs) are performed to obtain the fragility functions and the estimated economic costs. The results show that the bearing fragilities of the two CRB bridges are between those of the two LNB ones, but the pier damage is obviously mitigated by the CRBs, leading to the lower system vulnerabilities and economic costs. Allowing bearing sliding can further reduce the damage probability of the piers, but enlarge that of the bearings especially for the collapse limit state.

Seismic isolation design is an effective and economical method to protect precast viaducts from severe earthquake damage. Correct selection of bearings is one of the common methods to achieve this goal. In order to optimize the vibration isolation performance of prefabricated viaducts, this paper compares the vibration isolation performance of lead rubber bearings (LRB) and laminated bearings (LB). The lead rubber bearing (LRB) and laminated bearing are respectively applied to the same analysis model of prefabricated viaduct. The seismic responses of bearings and structural members are analyzed by dynamic analysis method, and the typical seismic responses, including internal force, displacement, hysteresis curve and residual deformation, are compared. The results show that LRB has higher isolation efficiency and better self centering ability.

In order to analyze the intake flow characteristics of a four-valve direct injection(DI) diesel engine, the experiments and numerical simulations were conducted to investigate the flow coefficient, swirl ratio and intake flow interference of the following 4 combinations of intake ports: (1) helical (left) and tangential (right), abbreviation ; (2) tangential (left) and helical (right); (3) helical (left) and helical (right); and (4) tangential (left) and tangential (right).Results show that the relative flow coefficient and swirl ratio could be directly reflect the interference of combined intake port, and when the ratio was close to 1, which showed that intake port had less interference ;and when the ratio was close to 0, which showed that the interference was serious. The relative flow coefficient of the 4 combinations of intake ports has little difference, but the relative swirl ration had significant difference in the whole valve lift range. And there had little interference between adjacent intake ports, but the swirl was strongly formed in cylinder at the maximum valve lift.

The COP9 signalosome (CSN) is a multiprotein complex that was initially identified in plants as a repressor of photomorphogenesis. It is now known to play major roles in several other developmental pathways, from auxin response to flower development. Furthermore, the COP9 signalosome shares homologies with the lid sibcomplex of the proteasome and is evolutionarily conserved from fission yeast to humans. It is important for the proper development of virtually all higher eukaryotes. In recent years, significant progress has been made in unraveling the molecular, cellular, and physiological mode of action of the COP9 signalosome. This review discusses our current understanding of the COP9 signalosome function with particular emphasis on its recently defined role in modulating a wide variety of cellular processes by regulating specific protein degradation events.

In order to analyze intake port flow characteristics of a four-valve direct injection (DI) diesel engine, steady-state flow bench experiments and numerical simulations method were coupled to investigate the following four combined intake ports: (1) helical port (left) and tangential port (right); (2) tangential port (left) and helical port (right); (3) helical port (left) port and helical (right); and (4) tangential port (left) and tangential (right) port. Results show that the simulation of port flow coefficients matches experimental findings very well, and the port coefficients of the above four combinations do not vary much, but their swirl ratios are very different. Specifically, when the valve lift is the maximum, the swirl ratio of the combination of \"helical and tangential\" is the greatest among the four combinations, and the swirl ratio of \"tangential and tangential\" is the minimum. And the3D fluid simulation method and steady-state experiment are important means to investigate the flow characteristics of the combined intake ports.

Intake port structure directly affects the flow characteristics and combustion process of diesel engine, and then affects the comprehensive performance of diesel engine. To the intake ports of a four-valve direct injection diesel engine, the flow characteristics are analyzed on the four combined intake ports : (1) helical (left) and tangential (right), (2) tangential (left) and helical (right); (3) helical (left) and helical (right); and (4) tangential (left) and tangential (right).And the influence of air flow in four combined intake ports to in-cylinder gas flow is also analyzed. Results show that the helical and tangential combination intake ports flow velocity increases with the valve lift increases, and small turbulence arises at the valve guide lug, and the intake flow velocity of the minimum cross-section of the junction of the guiding section and the helical section is the maximum. The air flow in- cylinder moves from top cylinder head bottom to the cylinder bottom, the air flow is enlarged gradually by the small-scale irregular swirl, which eventually converges to a single swirl. The turbulence kinetic energy is very big when the air is just entering the cylinder, the flow space expands rapidly, and the dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy is very significant with the gas moves to the bottom of the cylinder.

Table 1 The correlation coefficients between serum macrophage colony-stimulating factor levels and disease activity variables AS (n = 12) RA (n = 12) BASDAI 0.62* - Schober test -0.37 - Sacroiliitis score 0.44 - Disease activity scores - 0.63* Morning stiffness - -0.11 Grip strength - 0.06 Platelet count 0.11 0.08 ESR 0.61* 0.55 CRP 0.40 0.58* Serum level of IgA 0.68* 0.22 Serum level of IgG 0.07 -0.02 Serum level of IgM -0.21 0.02 Serum level of ALB -0.26 -0.64* ALB, albumin; AS, ankylosing spondylitis; BASDAI, Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index; CRP, C reactive protein; ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; Ig, immunoglobulin; RA, rheumatoid arthritis. *p<0.05; -, not applicable.

Light is vital to plant life, not only as an energy source for photosynthesis but also as an important environmental signal regulating development and growth. Light affects almost every stage of plant development, including seedling development, which represents one of the most dramatic and best characterized processes. In Arabidopsis thaliana, for example, the morphology of the embryo in the imbibing seed (d 1), as well as the emerging seedling from the seed coat (d 2), are minimally affected by light conditions. Soon after, however, seedling morphogenesis differs drastically, depending on the light environment. Light-grown seedlings exhibit short hypocotyls and open and expanded cotyledons. Cell-type differentiation and chloroplast development are soon established, and photosynthetically related genes are highly expressed. The shoot apical meristem is activated to produce true leaves and the plants proceed with further vegetative and reproductive growth soon thereafter. This development pattern in light is known as photomorphogenesis. In contrast, when seedlings are grown in complete darkness, they undergo a developmental program known as skotomorphogenesis or etiolation, in which the cotyledons remain folded and undeveloped, while the hypocotyls rapidly elongate. The apical hook serves to protect cotyledons and the quiescent shoot meristems as the seedling elongates rapidly to reach for the light. Instead of developing chloroplasts, the cotyledon cells form etioplasts that can readily convert into chloroplasts when exposed to light. This process is known as greening or de-etiolation. In addition, etiolated seedlings display a very different gene expression pattern from that determined by light. After the initial elongating growth, the seedlings come to a developmental arrest in the continuous absence of light. In higher plants, light-controlled physiological and developmental responses are mediated through at least three families of photoreceptors: phytochromes, cryptochromes, or blue-light receptors, and UV-B receptors, depending on the wavelengths of light to which they are most sensitive. In Arabidopsis, genes for five phytochromes, phytochrome A, B, C, D, and E, and a blue-light receptor, CRY1 (or HY4), have been isolated. Recent reviews of the photobiology and molecular biology of photoreceptor action have been published. In this Update we will emphasize the role of a group of negative regulators genetically identified as constitutive photomorphogenic (COP) or de-etiolated (DET) loci.