The restoration of surface mining is a key to meet the global ecosystem restoration target. With increased data accessibility and computing tool capabilities, it becomes possible to expand mine restoration monitoring from single mine sites to multiple mine sites on a large scale. This study constructed a new index, Mine Landscape Restoration Index (MLRI), by coupling Land Surface Temperature (LST) and Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) to simultaneously monitor the restoration of regional multiple mine sites. We analyze historical and future trends of restoration using Mann-Kendall test, Sen’ slope, and Hurst exponent for MLRI time series. The restoration effects of 46 surface coal mine sites located in the northwestern ecologically fragile region of China from 2000 to 2019 were assessed, based on 3675 Landsat images on Google Earth Engine. The results showed that MLRI was effective in identifying restoration areas and processes in surface mine sites, which was validated by high-resolution images and field investigation of mine samples. The restoration area overall percentage was significantly higher in mines started mining before 2000 than after 2000. According to the restoration effects, we clustered the 46 sites into high, medium, and low restoration area percentage clusters with 13, 11, and 22 mine sites, respectively. Individual clusters have aggregation characteristics within each mine region, but are distributed irregularly across the different six mine regions. This study provides a new approach to monitoring the restoration of surface coal mine sites and inform government managers in developing mine restoration programs and sustainable mining development plans.

Aim: This study evaluated the effect of intracavitary levobupivacaine infusion diluted with locally applied isotonic solution for pain control in cystoscopy. Methods: Included in this study are 100 patients who had previously undergone transurethral tumor resection for bladder tumor and were followed up by cystoscopy. The patients were randomized into five groups (n = 20). In the first, second, third, and fourth groups, 4, 6, 8, and 10 mL of levobupivacaine HCl (5.0 mg/mL) were mixed with 26, 24, 22, and 20 mL of isotonic solution, respectively. Hence, the total mixture was 30 mL for each group. The fifth group was the control group. In this group, the standard method commonly used in most clinics was utilized. That is, a gel containing Cathejell-2% lidocaine (25 mg lidocaine) was applied. Cystoscopic interventions were performed with a 17.5 Fr rigid cystoscope and 0°, 30°, and 70° lens. During cystoscopy and 30 min later, the pain status of patients was assessed using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and patient satisfaction was questioned. Results: The mean VAS score during and after the cystoscopy procedure was significantly lower in the levobupivacaine groups compared to the lidocaine group. In addition, patient satisfaction in the levobupivacaine groups was significantly higher than in the lidocaine group. No drug-related side-effects were observed in all groups. Conclusion: Thus, levobupivacaine is a more effective drug than lidocaine alone to control pain during cystoscopy. The use of levobupivacaine is recommended to prevent possible complications of general anesthesia by eliminating the need for the aforementioned as well as its cost-saving advantage.

BJOG Debate

The multi-domain bacterial S1 protein is the largest and most functionally important ribosomal protein of the 30S subunit, which interacts with both mRNA and proteins. The family of ribosomal S1 proteins differs in the classical sense from a protein with tandem repeats and has a “bead-on-string” organization, where each repeat is folded into a globular domain. Based on our recent data, the study of evolutionary relationships for the bacterial phyla will provide evidence for one of the proposed theories of the evolutionary development of proteins with structural repeats: from multiple repeats of assembles to single repeats, or vice versa. In this comparative analysis of 1333 S1 sequences that were identified in 24 different phyla; we demonstrate how such phyla can independently/dependently form during evolution. To our knowledge, this work is the first study of the evolutionary history of bacterial ribosomal S1 proteins. The collected and structured data can be useful to computer biologists as a resource for determining percent identity, amino acid composition and logo motifs, as well as dN/dS ratio in bacterial S1 protein. The obtained research data suggested that the evolutionary development of bacterial ribosomal proteins S1 evolved from multiple assemblies to single repeat. The presented data are integrated into the server, which can be accessed at http://oka.protres.ru:4200.

This is a unique case describing hydrocephalus to be the primary presenting symptom of neurosarcoidosis. A 49-year-old woman with previous ischemic cerebral events presented with a gait disorder, urinary incontinence and cognitive impairment. Imaging showed obstructive hydrocephalus, progressive white matter abnormalities and basal leptomeningeal enhancement. Further diagnostics suggested sarcoidosis.

Background: Mast cells play a critical role in tumor-associated immune pathways. We aimed to determine whether the urinary mast cell mediators predict the immune response in patients with non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) treated with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) immunotherapy. Methods: Nineteen patients who have received immunotherapy due to NMIBC and 19 healthy participants were enrolled. Urine samples were collected to assay N-methylhistamine, histamine, and tryptase levels immediately before the first BCG instillation, immediately after the third and sixth instillations, and four weeks after the sixth instillation in patients with NMIBC and at a single visit in healthy participants. Cystoscopic examinations were performed on the patient with NMIBC at three-month intervals for two years. The changes in urinary markers due to BCC response, BCG instillation, and the presence of NMIBC were assessed. Results: The average age was 56.1 ± 10.5 years in patients with NMIBC. Fourteen patients had high-grade Ta tumors, and 5 had high-grade T1 tumors. While 12 patients responded, 6 presented with recurrence and 1 with progression. There was no correlation between the levels of mast cell mediators and BCG response. The N-methylhistamine and histamine levels were increased significantly with the onset of immunotherapy, and N-methylhistamine levels were significantly decreased when immunotherapy was terminated. Pre-BCG estimated marginal means of N-methylhistamine were significantly higher in patients with NMIBC than healthy participants. Conclusions: Our study is the first study to identify the changes in mast cell mediators with the onset of immunotherapy and with the presence of bladder cancer. However, these mediators were not found to predict the patients’ response to immunotherapy.

In this paper, we prove an optimal three-ball inequality for bi-Laplace equation in some open, connected set. The derivation of such estimate relies on a delicate Carleman estimate for the bi-Laplace equation and some Caccioppoli inequalities to estimate the lower-ters. Based on three -ball inequality, we then derive the vanishing order of solutions, which is a quantitative version of the strong unique continuation property.

The paper formulates the nonlinear problem of steady-state heat conduction at the constant electric potential difference on the surfaces of a plane dielectric layer with the temperature-dependent heat conduction coefficient and electrical resistivity. A fixed temperature value is set on one of the layer surfaces, and the convective heat exchange with the ambient medium occurs on the opposite surface. The formulation of the problem is transformed into integral ratios, which allows the calculation of the temperature distribution over the layer thickness, governed both by the monotonic and nonmonotonic function. The quantitative assay of the temperature state of a layer of a polymer dielectric made of amorphous polycarbonate is given as an example, as well as the analysis of nonuniformity of the absolute value of electric field intensity over the thickness of this layer.

Background: In Bogotá, Colombia, oxygen-dependent (OD) preterm infants are home discharged in Kangaroo Position, to a Kangaroo Mother Care program (KMCP) with ambulatory oxygen, strict follow-up and oxygen weaning protocols. Objectives: 1) to describe growth and morbimortality up to 6 months of an OD preterm infants’ cohort. 2) to explore the association between oxygen requirement, perinatal history, Hb levels, transfusions, feeding patterns and growth. Methods: Prospective cohort study. Descriptive and multivariate analysis. Results: 445 patients were recruited with 33 weeks median gestational age (GA). 21% of mothers had preeclampsia, 50% infections and 77% received antenatal corticosteroids. Upon KMCP admission, median GA, chronological age and hospital stay were 36 weeks, 19 and 17 days, respectively; 55.6% of patients had neonatal sepsis and 66.6% were admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Patients had on average 52 days with oxygen, a median of 3200g and 42 weeks GA at oxygen weaning. Median follow-up oxygen saturation was 94% with 0.016-0.5 l/min of oxygen. One-year mortality was 0.2% and attrition 20%. At 6 months, all patients had appropriate growth and 66% were breastfeeding. Multiple regression analysis showed that higher GA, Hb levels, weight gain, and exclusive breastfeeding decreased oxygen requirement whilst invasive ventilation and transfusions had the opposite effect (R2=0.48). Conclusions: In OD preterm infants, there is a close relationship between days of oxygen requirement and GA, mechanical ventilation, Hb levels at discharge, transfusions, exclusive breastfeeding and weight gain. Strict monitoring with established protocols in an ambulatory KMCP allows adequate growth and safe oxygen weaning.

Since 2014, highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N6 viruses have been responsible for outbreaks in poultry. In this study, four H5N6 virus strains were isolated from fecal samples of sick white ducks and dead chickens in Shandong in 2019. These H5N6 viruses were triple-reassortant viruses that have not been previously characterized. Their HA genes were derived from the H5 viruses and were closely related to the vaccine strain Re-11. Their NA genes all fell into the N6-like lineage and the internal gene were derived from H5N1 and H9N2 viruses. They all showed high pathogenicity in mice and caused lethal infection with high rates of transmission in chickens. Moreover, the SPF chickens inoculated with the current used vaccine in China were completely protected from these four H5N6 viruses. Our study indicated the necessity of continued surveillance for H5 IAV and the importance of timely update of vaccine strains in poultry industry.

Groundwater age is often used to estimate groundwater recharge through a simplified analytical approach. This estimated recharge is thought to be representative of the mean recharge between the point of entry and the sampling point. However, given the complexity in actual recharge, whether the mean recharge is reasonable is still unclear. This study examined the validity of the method to estimate long-term average groundwater recharge and the possibility of obtaining reasonable spatial recharge pattern. We first validated our model in producing reasonable age distributions using a constant flux boundary condition. We then generated different flow fields and age patterns by using various spatially-varying flux boundary conditions with different magnitudes and wavelengths. Groundwater recharge was estimated and analyzed afterwards using the method at the spatial scale. We illustrated the main findings with a field example in the end. Our results suggest that we can estimate long-term average groundwater recharge with 10% error in many parts of an aquifer. The size of these areas decreases with the increase in both the amplitude and the wavelength. The chance of obtaining a reasonable groundwater recharge is higher if an age sample is collected from the middle of an aquifer and at downstream areas. Our study also indicates that the method can also be used to estimate local groundwater recharge if age samples are collected close to the water table. However, care must be taken to determine groundwater age regardless of conditions.

Stable isotope analysis is a universally recognized and efficient method of indicating trophic relationships that is widely applied in research. However, variations in natural isotopic abundance may lead to inaccuracies due to the effects of complex environmental conditions. This research compared the carbon and nitrogen isotopic niches of fish communities between diverse biotopes around the Yellow River estuary and adjacent sea areas, with the aim of revealing distinctions in stable isotopic niche metrics, trophic positions, and feeding preferences. Stable isotopic niche results indicated that the communities of estuarine habitants were compatible in most study biotopes, and may provide a corridor for energy and material transportation between Laizhou Bay and the open water. Local biocoenosis was embodied in the wider isotopic niche corresponding to frequent environmental changes and abiotic gradients. This implied that they used various food sources to adapt to the fickle environment, including marine-terrestrial boundaries and the estuary. Our analysis of the food source contribution indicated that allochthonous sources were considered major energy sources in estuarine areas directly affected by Yellow River-diluted water, while autochthonous benthic and pelagic producers dominated carbon input into the food web in Laizhou Bay and the open water. A significant variation in the fish δ15N characteristic was found within estuarine adjacent regions, so, together with the results from previous studies, we deemed the local high concentration of dissolved inorganic nitrogen as the original trigger of the abnormal δ15N characteristic in fishes via a transport process along food chains. These results provide a new perspective on the natural distinction of carbon and nitrogen isotopic niches. The detailed data reported here enhance our understanding of variations in fish communities in estuarine ecosystems.

1. Understanding the animal-habitat relationship at local scale is crucial in ecology, particularly to develop strategies for wildlife management and conservation. As this relationship is governed by environmental features and intra and inter-specific interactions, habitat selection of a population may vary locally between its core and edges. 2. This is particularly true for central place foragers, such as grey and harbour seals, whose trends in numbers vary among different regions in the Northeast Atlantic. Here, we aimed at studying how foraging habitat selection may vary locally with the influence of population trends and physical habitat features 3. Using GPS/GSM tags deployed in grey and harbour seal colonies of contrasting sizes, we investigate spatial patterns and foraging habitat selection by comparing trip characteristics and home range similarities, and fitting GAMM to the seal distribution and environmental data respectively. 4. We show that grey seal foraging habitat selection and spatial patterns differed markedly between regions. Grey seals may select environmental characteristics for their foraging habitat accounting for local differences in prey consumed. Spatial patterns were different might depend on local seal density and regional productivity, located from inshore to offshore areas for the limit ranges and core population respectively. Our results on foraging habitat selection reflected the coastal and sedentary behaviour of harbour seals. We found no difference in spatial patterns between colonies, except for the Inner Hebrides where seals foraged further, potentially reflecting density dependence pressure, as the number in this colony is higher. 5. These results suggest that local conditions might have a strong influence on population spatial ecology, highlighting as well the relevance of studying foraging habitat selection based on foraging behaviour at fine geographical scale, particularly if species are managed within regional units.

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma (CLL/SLL) of the breast is rare. We report a 59-year-old female with remote history of ductal carcinoma in situ treated with radiation and tamoxifen, who was recently diagnosed with CLL/SLL of contralateral breast after a localized suspicious cluster of masses was detected on routine mammography.

Cytopenias are common among neonates in neonatal intensive care units (NICU). Although, bone marrow aspirations (BMA) are often performed as part of diagnostic work up but trephine marrow biopsies (BMB) have not been reported from living neonates. BMB is indispensable to accurately assess the cellularity and architecture. There is paucity of literature regarding the technique of BMB in neonates. In this report, for the first time, we describe trephine BMB from Posterior superior iliac crest (PSIC) using 18 guage BMA needle in six living neonates admitted to NICU where bone marrow biopsy findings helped in understanding the underlying mechanism and diagnosis of cytopenias.

For ascending aortic pseudoaneurysms with a large aortic entry site and thrombus burden, temporary stent-graft placement at induction of circulatory arrest can prevent thrombotic complication.

Embolism spreading in dehydrating angiosperm xylem is driven by gas movement between embolised and sap-filled conduits. Here, we examine how proximity to pre-existing embolism and hydraulic segmentation affect embolism propagation. Based on the optical method, we compared xylem embolism resistance between detached leaves and leaves attached to branches, and between intact leaves and leaves with cut minor veins for six species. Moreover, we directly compared the optical and pneumatic method on detached leaves. Embolism resistance of detached leaves was significantly lower than leaves attached to stems, except for two species with all vessels ending in their petioles. Cutting of minor veins showed limited embolism spreading in minor veins near the cuts prior to major veins. Moreover, there was strong agreement in embolism resistance between the optical and pneumatic method, with minor differences occurring during early stages of embolism formation. We conclude that embolism resistance may represent a relative trait, depending on the proximity and connectivity to pre-existing embolism as a gas source. Since embolism formation may not rely on a certain pressure difference threshold between functional and embolised conduits, we suggest that embolism is facilitated by pressure-driven gas diffusion, while hydraulic segmentation can prevent embolism propagation by reducing gas diffusion.

A 59-year old gentleman with transformation of myelodysplastic syndrome to acute megakaryoblastic leukemia was treated with standard intensive chemotherapy. His poor outcome was attributed to advanced age, aggressive disease biology, underlying myelodysplastic syndrome, poor response to induction chemotherapy, high lactate dehydrogenase and lack of good cytogenetic and molecular mutations.