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Antimicrobial resistance seriously threatened human health, and new antimicrobial agents are desperately needed. As one of the largest classes of plant secondary metabolite, flavonoids can be widely found in various parts of the plant, and their antibacterial activities have been increasingly paid attention to. Based on the physicochemical parameters and antibacterial activities of sixty-six flavonoids reported, two regression equations between their ACD/LogP or LogD 7.40 and their minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) to gram-positive bacteria were established with the correlation coefficients above 0.93, and then were verified by another sixty-eight flavonoids reported. From these two equations, the MICs of most flavonoids against gram-positive bacteria could be roughly calculated from their ACD/LogP or LogD 7.40 , and the minimum MIC was predicted as approximately 10.2 or 4.8 μM, more likely falls into the range from 2.6 to 10.2 μM, or from 1.2 to 4.8 μM. Simultaneously, both tendentiously concave regression curves indicated that the lipophilicity is a key factor for flavonoids against gram-positive bacteria. Combined with the literature analyses, the results also suggested that the cell membrane is the main site of flavonoids acting on gram-positive bacteria, and which likely involves the damage of phospholipid bilayers, the inhibition of the respiratory chain or the ATP synthesis, or some others.

In this study, an urban fringe green space classification system was established to explore the spatiotemporal variation of green space landscape and ecosystem service value (ESV) based on multi-source land-use data of Ganjingzi district from 2000 to 2018. (1) Results show that the total green space area declined from 359.57 to 213.46 km 2 over the study period. Green space large plaque index (LPI) and class area both gradually declined, whereas the number of plaques (NP) and plaque density (PD) gradually increased, indicating green space landscape fragmentation. (2) Additionally, the value of green space ecosystem services reduced from 397.42 to 124.93 million yuan. The dynamic degree of ESV change in green space increased or decreased moderately, always being < 0 and showing a decreasing trend of ESV. From a spatial variation perspective, dynamic degrees of ESV variation in the western and northern regions with relatively intensive green space were higher than those in the east. Regarding ESV of various green space types, forest land had the highest functional values of ecological regulation and support, whereas arable land provided the highest functional values of production supply. (3) The ecological service function value of green space system is negatively correlated with PD, NP, edge density, landscape shape index, and Shannon’s diversity index, and positively correlated with aggregation index, contagion metrics, and LPI. The correlation coefficient between the climate regulation function of forest and the change of number of plaques is -0.874. The correlation coefficient of the recreation and culture of the wetland to the plaque density change is no less than -0.214.

The comprehensive suitability of regional human settlements is of great significance to the development and spatial distribution of regional human settlements and regional social and economic development. In this study, based on the traditional evaluation of the natural suitability of the human settlements, this study adds humanistic indicators to comprehensively evaluate the suitability of the human settlements in Liaoning, China. In particular, we sought to uncover the spatial differentiation law of the comprehensive suitability of these settlements and its correlations with population density and GDP density and provide a theoretical basis for urban human settlements planning and governance. The main conclusions were as follows: (1) the natural suitability index in Liaoning Province presents the law of longitudinal spatial differentiation from northeast to southwest, which follows the direction of the mountains, (2) the highest to lowest humanistic suitability indexes were as follows: the central, eastern, and western regions, (3) the highest to lowest spatial differentiations of the comprehensive suitability of the human settlements were as follows: the central and coastal, eastern, and western regions, and (4) the spatial distribution of population–economy density in Liaoning Province was basically consistent with the spatial distribution of the comprehensive suitability index of human settlements. The population–economy is concentrated in the areas with the best and moderate human settlements. Ultimately, we found that the distributions of population–economy and human settlement suitability were relatively coordinated and that highly suitable land was already fully utilized. Analyze the natural and humanistic advantages or limitations of the development of the human settlements in each city, and plan the construction of the natural, humanistic and human settlements in each city direction.

Transferrin saturation (TS) is associated with mortality across populations, but its nonlinear relationship with all-cause mortality in coronary artery disease (CAD) and the role of systemic inflammation remain unclear. This study explored the association between TS and mortality in CAD patients, focusing on systemic inflammation as a potential mediator. Data from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2006 included 769 CAD patients (>18 years) with available TS and mortality records. Systemic inflammation markers, such as the systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) and systemic inflammation response index (SIRI), were analyzed. Kaplan-Meier curves, Cox proportional hazards models, and mediation analyses examined the interactions between TS, inflammation, and mortality. A U-shaped relationship between TS and all-cause mortality was observed, with an inflection point at 30.5%. TS levels ≤30.5% were inversely associated with mortality (HR = 0.98; 95% CI, 0.96-0.99; P < 0.0001), while levels >30.5% increased mortality risk (HR = 1.05; 95% CI, 1.02-1.08; P < 0.001). Systemic inflammation markers (SII/SIRI) were associated with and may partially mediate the relationship between low TS (≤30.5%) and mortality. (mediation proportions: 28.5% and 21.8%, respectively). No mediation effects were found for TS > 30.5%. TS demonstrates a U-shaped relationship with all-cause mortality in CAD patients. Systemic inflammation is linked to both TS and mortality outcomes, suggesting potential mechanistic interplay. Maintaining TS within 20-30% and addressing inflammation may reduce mortality risk.

Introduction Thyroid cancer has received increasing attention; however, its detailed pathogenesis and pathological processes remain unclear. We investigated the role of TANK‐binding kinase 1 (TBK1) in the progression of thyroid cancer. Methods The expression of TBK1 in thyroid cancer and normal control tissues was analyzed using real‐time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The function of TBK1 on thyroid cancer cells was detected using MTT, colony formation, wound healing, and Transwell assays. The xenograft assay was carried out to check on the role of TBK1 in thyroid cancer. Results TBK1 was highly expressed in thyroid tumors. High expression of TBK1 raised viability, proliferation, migration, and invasion of thyroid cancer cells. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed that TBK1 activated the phosphatidylinositol‐3‐kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin pathway. In addition, Myc‐associated zinc finger protein (MAZ) was overexpressed in thyroid cancer and transcriptionally activated BK1. MAZ silence reversed the effects of TBK1 overexpression on thyroid cancer progression. Cotransfection with MAZ small‐interfering RNA(siRNA) and TBK1 siRNA did not strengthen the inhibitory effect of TBK1 silencing on the thyroid cancer cells. The xenograft tumor assay showed that TBK1 short hairpinRNA inhibited tumor growth. Conclusion MAZ silencing inhibited tumor progress of thyroid cancer cells, whereas this inhibitory effect was reversed by TBK1 overexpression. Myc‐associated zinc finger protein (MAZ) silence significantly inhibited cell viability, proliferation, migration, and invasion of thyroid cancer cells, whereas the inhibitory effect was reversed by TANK‐binding kinase 1 (TBK1) overexpression.

Introduction Currently, nearly one-third of newly diagnosed Colorectal cancer (CRC) cases and associated deaths worldwide are from China. Among Chinese provinces, Fujian exhibited the highest CRC mortality rate. This study aims to analyze long-term trends of CRC epidemiology in Xiamen, Fujian, China. Methods Data were obtained from various cancer surveillance systems, including the Xiamen Cancer Register system, the Xiamen Death Register system, and the household registration system. Trends in incidence, mortality and survival rates from 2011 to 2020 were analyzed using annual percent changes (APC) and average annual percent changes (AAPC), stratified by sex and residency status. Results A total of 7,406 new cases and 3,726 CRC-related deaths were reported from Xiamen. The age-standardized of incidence and mortality rates were 26.09 per 100,000 and 12.70 per 100,000, respectively. The observed 5-year survival rate was 46.65%, with an age-standardized survival of 51.24%. CRC incidence in Xiamen is significantly increasing (AAPC = 4.90%). In contrast, trends in CRC mortality and survival rates are not significant. Urban areas exhibited higher rates of CRC incidence, mortality, and survival rate compared to rural areas, though rural areas showed a more marked upward trend. Conclusions The burden of CRC in Xiamen is notably high, with a concerning increasing in incidence. This underscores the urgent need for targeted strategies to address this public health challenges.

The emerging 5G applications and the connectivity of billions of devices have driven the investigation of multi-domain heterogeneous converged optical networks. To support emerging applications with their diverse quality of service requirements, network slicing has been proposed as a promising technology. Network virtualization is an enabler for network slicing, where the physical network can be partitioned into different configurable slices in the multi-domain heterogeneous converged optical networks. An efficient resource allocation mechanism for multiple virtual networks in network virtualization is one of the main challenges referred as virtual network embedding (VNE). This paper is a survey on the state-of-the-art works for the VNE problem towards multi-domain heterogeneous converged optical networks, providing the discussion on future research issues and challenges. In this paper, we describe VNE in multi-domain heterogeneous converged optical networks with enabling network orchestration technologies and analyze the literature about VNE algorithms with various network considerations for each network domain. The basic VNE problem with various motivations and performance metrics for general scenarios is discussed. A VNE algorithm taxonomy is presented and discussed by classifying the major VNE algorithms into three categories according to existing literature. We analyze and compare the attributes of algorithms such as node and link embedding methods, objectives, and network architecture, which can give a selection or baseline for future work of VNE. Finally, we explore some broader perspectives in future research issues and challenges on 5G scenario, field trail deployment, and machine learning-based algorithms.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a serious threat to human health, and new antimicrobial agents are desperately needed. Plant flavonoids are increasingly being paid attention to for their antibacterial activities, for the enhancing of the antibacterial activity of antimicrobials, and for the reversing of AMR. To obtain more scientific and reliable equations, another two regression equations, between the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) (y) and the lipophilicity parameter ACD/LogP or LogD7.40 (x), were established once again, based on the reported data. Using statistical methods, the best one of the four regression equations, including the two previously reported, with regard to the antimicrobial quantitative relationship of plant flavonoids to Gram-positive bacteria, is y = −0.1285 x6 + 0.7944 x5 + 51.785 x4 − 947.64 x3 + 6638.7 x2 − 21,273 x + 26,087; here, x is the LogP value. From this equation, the MICs of most plant flavonoids to Gram-positive bacteria can be calculated, and the minimum MIC was predicted as approximately 0.9644 μM and was probably from 0.24 to 0.96 μM. This more reliable equation further proved that the lipophilicity is a key factor of plant flavonoids against Gram-positive bacteria; this was further confirmed by the more intuitive evidence subsequently provided. Based on the antibacterial mechanism proposed in our previous work, these also confirmed the antibacterial mechanism: the cell membrane is the major site of plant flavonoids acting on the Gram-positive bacteria, and this involves the damage of the phospholipid bilayers. The above will greatly accelerate the discovery and application of plant flavonoids with remarkable antibacterial activity and the thorough research on their antimicrobial mechanism.

An important indicator for measuring the resilience and ability of urban networks to recover under external environmental shock, which is essential for the healthy development of the region, is urban network structure resilience. Herein we analyzed the resilience of the urban network structure and explored the influencing factors of resilience in the three provinces of Northeast China. We accomplished this by utilizing the Gephi profiling social network analysis tools based on the Baidu Index, road mileage, statistical data, other multi-source data, construction information, and the transportation, innovation, and economic multiple linkage network. This analysis enabled us to propose relevant suggestions and strategies to optimize urban network structure resilience. Our results indicate that (1) in 2019, the multi-city network structure in the three provinces of Northeast China contains both commonalities and characteristics. Overall, each network demonstrates a spatial distribution pattern of “dense in the north and sparse in the south.” (2) There exist evident hierarchical differences in the resilience characteristics of the multi-city network structure in the three provinces; each provincial capital city and sub-provincial city possesses greater advantages, the innovation network exhibits the most evident hierarchy, the mismatch of the information network is the highest, and the transmission and agglomeration of the economic network are the most prominent. (3) The resilience of the urban network structure of the three provinces is the result of the interaction of several factors. Political and economic factors such as government capacity, economic status, and urban vitality are the main factors affecting the resilience of the network structure.

Hemicellulose is the second most abundant natural polysaccharide and a promising feedstock for biomaterial synthesis. In the present study, the hemicellulose of loblolly pine was obtained by the alkali extraction-graded ethanol precipitation technique, and the hemicellulose-polyvinyl alcohol (hemicellulose-PVA) composite film was prepared by film casting from water. Results showed that hemicellulose with a low degree of substitution is prone to self-aggregation during film formation, while hemicellulose with high branching has better compatibility with PVA and is easier to form a homogeneous composite film. In addition, the higher molecular weight of hemicellulose facilitates the preparation of hemicellulose-PVA composite film with better mechanical properties. More residual lignin in hemicellulose results in the better UV shielding ability of the composite film. This study provides essential support for the efficient and rational utilization of hemicellulose.