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In recent years, there is a growing interest in domain adaptation for remote sensing image scene classification, particularly in universal domain adaptation, where both source and target domains possess their unique private categories. Existing methods often lack precision on remote sensing image datasets due to insufficient prior knowledge between the source and target domains. This study aims to effectively distinguish between common and private classes despite large intra-class sample discrepancies and small inter-class sample discrepancies in remote sensing images. To address these challenges, we propose Sample-Prototype Optimal Transport-Based Universal Domain Adaptation (SPOT). The proposed approach comprises two key components. Firstly, we utilize an unbalanced optimal transport algorithm along with a sample complement mechanism to identify common and private classes based on the optimal transport assignment matrix. Secondly, we leverage the optimal transport algorithm to enhance discriminability among different classes while promoting similarity within the same class. Experimental results demonstrate that SPOT significantly enhances classification accuracy and robustness in universal domain adaptation for remote sensing images, underscoring its efficacy in addressing the identified challenges.

The goal of this study was to investigate clinical and hemodynamic differences in moyamoya disease patients underwent direct bypass using one donor-one recipient (1D1R), one donor-two recipients (1D2R), and two donors-two recipients (2D2R) bypass. To the authors’ knowledge, this represents the largest series reported to date. Clinical and radiographic data were collected for 98 patients using 1D1R (28 cases), 1D2R (46 cases), and 2D2R (24 cases) bypasses. The patients’ demographic information, clinical presentations, associated medical conditions, intraoperative hemodynamics, and postoperative hemispheric perfusion were obtained from reviewing medical records, intraoperative microvascular Doppler ultrasonography, and CT perfusion scans. There was no significant difference in the incidence of postoperative complication, bypass vessel patency, and good neovascularization among the 3 groups ( P  > 0.05). When postoperative complications occurred, patients in the 1D2R group had a lower modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score and a shorter duration of symptoms compared to those in the 1D1R group ( P  < 0.05). A significant difference was observed in the intraoperative mean velocity values of the donor vessel and the recipient artery (RA) in the parietal lobe among the three groups, with the 1D1R group showing the highest values ( P  < 0.05). Under blood pressure control, there was significant difference in the volumes of the hypoperfusion area, infarct core, and penumbra among the three groups ( P  < 0.05). The application of 1D1R, 1D2R, and 2D2R techniques resulted in distinct clinical and hemodynamic outcomes. Patients containing dual RAs were likely to have more extensive perfusion changes and better prognosis in the event of surgical complications.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) is one of the most significant diseases affecting the pig industry worldwide and is caused by the PRRS virus (PRRSV), which has complex genetic variation due to frequent mutations, indels, and recombination. The emergence of PRRSV L1C.5 in 2020 in the United States has raised worldwide concerns about PRRSV with the RFLP 1-4-4 pattern and lineage 1C. However, studies on the pathogenic characteristics, epidemiological distribution, and effectiveness of vaccines against PRRSV with L1C and RFLP1-4-4 pattern in China are still insufficient. In this study, a novel recombinant variant of PRRSV with RFLP 1-4-4 and lineage 1C features, different from L1C.5 in the United States, was isolated in China in 2021. In pathogenicity experiments in specific pathogen-free piglets or farm piglets, 60–100% of artificially infected experimental piglets died with high fever and respiratory symptoms. Inflammatory cytokine and chemokine levels were upregulated in infected piglets. A commercially modified live vaccine against highly pathogenic PRRSV did not provide effective protection when the vaccinated piglets were challenged with the novel L1C-1-4-4 variant. Therefore, this strain merits special attention when devising control and vaccine strategies. These findings suggest that extensive joint surveillance is urgently needed and that vaccine strategies should be updated to prevent the disease from spreading further.

Pseudorabies virus (PRV) and porcine parvovirus type 1 (PPV1) are major pathogens that cause reproductive disorders in sows, and mixed infections are frequently detected on pig farms. In this study, a recombinant PRV (rPRV-VP2) based on a PRV variant (HLJ8) was constructed to express the PPV1 VP2 protein. To ensure safety, four virulence genes (TK, gE, gI, and UL39) of PRV HLJ8 were deleted, followed by further evaluation of safety and immunogenicity in piglets. The PPV1 VP2 expression cassette was inserted into the gE/gI deletion site, enabling successful expression of the VP2 protein, which exhibited hemagglutination activity with a titre of 1:64. Animal experiments demonstrated that rPRV-VP2 elicited robust antibody responses against both PRV and PPV1, providing complete protection in both mice and piglets. Compared with commercial PRV and PPV1 vaccines, rPRV-VP2 conferred comparable or superior protection, resulting in not only no clinical symptoms but also significantly reduced viral loads in tissues. The deletion of the gE gene can distinguish wild-type virus infection from vaccine immunity in clinical applications. Overall, rPRV-VP2 offers a safe and effective strategy for dual protection against PRV and PPV1, reducing vaccination costs in pig production.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) is one of the most economically devastating infectious diseases in the global swine industry. With the continuous mutation and recombination of PRRSV, existing detection methods frequently result in false negatives, further complicating the prevention and control of PRRS. The duplex real-time quantitative RT-PCR (RT-qPCR) for the simultaneous detection of PRRSV-1 and PRRSV-2 was developed by designing specific primers and probes based on the ORF6 gene, which is different from conventional nucleic acid detection methods that are typically based on the ORF7 gene. The method showed high specificity for exclusively detecting PRRSV-1 and PRRSV-2, with no cross-reactivity observed against other porcine pathogens. The limit of detection (LOD) was 8.42 copies for PRRSV-1 and 7.84 copies for PRRSV-2. Intra-assay coefficients of variation (CVs) were 0.22-1.07% and inter-assay CVs were 0.52-1.28%. A total of 356 clinical samples were detected using the developed duplex RT-qPCR and compared to the WOAH-recommended RT-qPCR assay and commercial universal PRRSV RT-qPCR detection kit. The assay established in this study demonstrated higher positivity rates, indicating its superior sensitivity. An efficient, sensitive, and accurate method for the detection and differentiation of PRRSV-1 and PRRSV-2 was developed and applied to the detection and monitoring of PRRSV.

Background DNA damage repair is an important mechanism of platinum resistance. HOXB7 is one member of HOX family genes, which are essential developmental regulators and frequently dysregulated in cancer. Recently, its relevance in chemotherapy resistance and DNA damage repair has also been addressed. However, little is known regarding the association between HOXB7 and chemotherapy resistance in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Methods The association between HOXB7 expression detected by immunohistochemisty and tumor regression grade (TRG) and long‐term survival was analyzed in 143 ESCC patients who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy. CCK8 assay was used to examine the effect of cisplatin in a panel of four ESCC cell lines. A stable cell strain with HOXB7 knockdown of KYSE150 and KYSE450 was established to explore the effect on cisplatin sensitivity. The interaction of HOXB7 with Ku70, Ku80 and DNA‐PKcs was determined by GST‐pull down, coimmunoprecipitation and immunofluorescent colocalization. Finally, we investigated whether disrupting HOXB7 function by a synthetic peptide HXR9 blocking the formation of HOXB7/PBX could enhance cisplatin sensitivity in vitro and in vivo. Results High expression of HOXB7 was associated with cisplatin resistance and worse chemotherapy efficacy. HOXB7 knockdown reinforced cisplatin sensitivity. It was identified that HOXB7 interacts with Ku70, Ku80 and DNA‐PKcs. HOXB7 knockdown was related to the downregulation of Ku70, Ku80 and DNA‐PKcs as well as arrested cell cycle in S phase. HOXB7 inhibition by HXR9 had a synergistic effect to improve cisplatin sensitivity. Conclusion HOXB7 may be a biomarker for the prediction of chemoresistance of ESCC and serves as a promising therapeutic target.

Immuno-inflammation has been shown to play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of moyamoya disease (MMD). However, how did circulating Treg/Th17 cells involve in MMD patients remains unclear. 26 MMD, 21 atherothrombotic stroke, and 32 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. MMD patients have a significantly higher percentage of circulating Treg and Th17 cells as well as their dominantly secreting cytokines than other groups ( P  < 0.0001), whereas no difference was found in the ratio of Treg/Th17 between patients in MMD and atherothrombotic stroke group or control subjects ( P  = 0.244). However, the increased Treg in MMD patients which were enriched with FrIII Treg cells had deficient suppressive functions ( P  = 0.0017) compared to healthy volunteers. There was a positive correlation between Treg or TGF-β and MMD Suzuki’s stage. And the level of circulating Treg was as an independent factor associated with MMD stage. Besides, TGF-β was also correlated with the increased expression of VEGF in MMD patients. Our findings indicated an important involvement of circulating Treg in the pathogenic development of MMD and TGF-β in Treg induced VEGF.

It is well known that insect larval midgut cadherin protein serves as a receptor of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) crystal Cry1Ac or Cry1Ab toxins, since structural mutations and downregulation of cad gene expression are linked with resistance to Cry1Ac toxin in several lepidopteran insects. However, the role of Spodoptera frugiperda cadherin protein (SfCad) in the mode of action of Bt toxins remains elusive. Here, we investigated whether SfCad is involved in susceptibility to Cry1Ab or Cry1Fa toxins. In vivo, knockout of the SfCad gene by CRISPR/Cas 9 did not increase tolerance to either of these toxins in S. frugiperda larvae. In vitro cytotoxicity assays demonstrated that cultured insect TnHi5 cells expressing GFP-tagged SfCad did not increase susceptibility to activated Cry1Ab or Cry1Fa toxins. In contrast, expression of another well recognized Cry1A receptor in this cell line, the ABCC2 transporter, increased the toxicity of both Cry1Ab and Cry1Fa toxins, suggesting that SfABCC2 functions as a receptor of these toxins. Finally, we showed that the toxin-binding region of SfCad did not bind to activated Cry1Ab, Cry1Ac, nor Cry1Fa. All these results support that SfCad is not involved in the mode of action of Cry1Ab or Cry1Fa toxins in S. frugiperda.

Skeletal defects resulting from trauma and disease represent a major clinical problem worldwide exacerbated further by global population growth and an increasing number of elderly people. As treatment options are limited, bone tissue engineering opens the doors to start an infinite amount of tissue/bone biomaterials having excellent therapeutic potential for the management of clinical cases characterized by severe bone loss. Bone engineering relies on the use of compliant biomaterial scaffolds, osteocompetent cells, and biologically active agents. In fact, we are interested to use a new natural material, tannin. Among other materials, porous tannin spray-dried powder (PTSDP) has been approved for human use. We use PTSDP as reconstructive materials with low cost, biocompatibility, and potential ability to be replaced by bone in vivo . In this study, macro PTSDP scaffolds with defined geometry, porosity, and mechanical properties are manufactured using a combination of casting technology and porogen leaching, by mixing PTSDP and hydroxyapatite Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2 with polyethylene glycol macroparticles. Our results show that the scaffolds developed in this work support attachment, long-term viability, and osteogenic differentiation of human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived mesenchymal progenitors. The combination of select macroporous PTSDP scaffolds with patient-specific osteocompetent cells offers new opportunities to grow autologous bone grafts with enhanced clinical potential for complex skeletal reconstructions.