bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
IL-1 and senescence: Friends and foe of EGFR neutralization and immunotherapy
Authors: Romaniello Donatella , Gelfo Valerio , Pagano Federica , Sgarzi Michela , Morselli Alessandra , Girone Cinzia , Filippini Daria Maria , D’Uva Gabriele , Lauriola Mattia
Published: January 2023

Historically, senescence has been considered a safe program in response to multiple stresses in which cells undergo irreversible growth arrest. This process is characterized by morphological and metabolic changes, heterochromatin formation, and secretion of inflammatory components, known as senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). However, recent reports demonstrated that anti-cancer therapy itself can stimulate a senescence response in tumor cells, the so-called therapy-induced senescence (TIS), which may represent a temporary bypass pathway that promotes drug resistance. In this context, several studies have shown that EGFR blockage, by TKIs or moAbs, promotes TIS by increasing IL-1 cytokine production, thus pushing cells into a “pseudo-senescent” state. Today, senotherapeutic agents are emerging as a potential strategy in cancer treatment thanks to their dual role in annihilating senescent cells and simultaneously preventing their awakening into a resistant and aggressive form. Here, we summarize classic and recent findings about the cellular processes driving senescence and SASP, and we provide a state-of-the-art of the anti-cancer strategies available so far that exploits the activation and/or blockade of senescence-based mechanisms.
Cytotoxic hexadepsipeptides and anti-coronaviral 4-hydroxy-2-pyridones from an endophytic Fusarium sp.
Authors: Chang Shanshan , Yan Biying , Chen Yuchuan , Zhao Wuli , Gao Rongmei , Li Yuhuan , Yu Liyan , Xie Yunying , Si Shuyi , Chen Minghua
Published: January 2023

Three new hexadepsipeptides (1–3), along with beauvericin (4), beauvericin D (5), and four 4-hydroxy-2-pyridone derivatives (6–9) were isolated from the endophytic fungus Fusarium sp. CPCC 400857 that derived from the stem of tea plant. Their structures were determined by extensive 1D and 2D NMR, and HRESIMS analyses. The absolute configuration of hexadepsipeptides were elucidated by the advanced Marfey’s method and chiral HPLC analysis. Compounds 4, and 7–9 displayed the cytotoxicity against human pancreatic cancer cell line, AsPC-1 with IC50 values ranging from 3.45 to 29.69 μM, and 7 and 8 also showed the antiviral activity against the coronavirus (HCoV-OC43) with IC50 values of 13.33 and 6.65 μM, respectively.
Expression and clinical significance of short-chain fatty acids in pregnancy complications
Authors: Chen Siqian , Li Jialin , Ren Shuaijun , Gao Yajie , Zhou Yuping , Xuan Rongrong
Published: January 2023

Objective

To investigate the expression of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs)—metabolites of intestinal flora—in gestational complications of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), preeclampsia (PE), and intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP), and its clinical significance.

Methods

Targeted metabonomics was used to detect SCFAs in the serum of 28 GDM pregnant women, 28 PE pregnant women, 29 ICP pregnant women, and 27 healthy pregnant women (NP); their expression changes were observed; the correlation between SCFAs and clinical characteristics was studied; and their potential as biomarkers for clinical diagnosis was evaluated.

Results

There were significant differences in the SCFA metabolic spectrum between the GDM, PE, ICP, and NP groups. Quantitative analysis showed that the content of isobutyric acid in the three pregnancy complications groups (the GDM, PE, and ICP groups) was significantly higher than that in the NP group (p < 0.05), and other SCFAs also showed significant differences in the three pregnancy complications groups compared with the NP group (p < 0.05). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis of the generalized linear model showed that multiple SCFAs were highly sensitive and specific as diagnostic markers in the pregnancy complications groups, where isobutyric acid was highly predictive in GDM (area under the ROC curve (AUC) = 0.764) and PE (AUC = 1), and caproic acid was highly predictive in ICP (AUC = 0.968), with potential clinical application.

Conclusion

The metabolic products of intestinal flora, SCFAs, during pregnancy are closely related to pregnancy complications (GDM, PE, and ICP), and SCFAs can be used as potential markers of pregnancy complications.
Oxymatrine ameliorates experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by rebalancing the homeostasis of gut microbiota and reducing blood-brain barrier disruption
Authors: Zhang Ming-Liang , Li Wei-Xia , Wang Xiao-Yan , Wu Ya-Li , Chen Xiao-Fei , Zhang Hui , Yang Liu-Qing , Wu Cheng-Zhao , Zhang Shu-Qi , Chen Yu-Long , Feng Ke-Ran , Wang Bin , Niu Lu , Kong De-Xin , Tang Jin-Fa
Published: January 2023

Background

Increasing evidence suggests that gut dysbiosis can directly or indirectly affect the immune system through the brain-gut axis and play a role in the occurrence and development of Multiple sclerosis (MS). Oxymatrine (OMAT) has been shown to ameliorate the symptoms of MS in the classical experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) model of MS, but whether its therapeutic role is through the correction of gut dysbiosis, is unclear.

Methods

The effects of OMAT on intestinal flora and short-chain fatty acids in EAE model mice were evaluated by 16S rRNA sequencing and GC-MS/MS, respectively, and the function change of the blood-brain barrier and intestinal epithelial barrier was further tested by immunohistochemical staining, Evans Blue leakage detection, and RT-qPCR.

Results

The alpha and beta diversity in the feces of EAE mice were significantly different from that of the control group but recovered substantially after OMAT treatment. Besides, the OMAT treatment significantly affected the gut functional profiling and the abundance of genes associated with energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism, the immune system, infectious diseases, and the nervous system. OMAT also decreased the levels of isobutyric acid and isovaleric acid in EAE mice, which are significantly related to the abundance of certain gut microbes and were consistent with the reduced expression of TNF-a, IL-6, and IL-1b. Furthermore, OMAT treatment significantly increased the expression of ZO-1 and occludin in the brains and colons of EAE mice and decreased blood-brain barrier permeability.

Conclusion

OMAT may alleviate the clinical and pathological symptoms of MS by correcting dysbiosis, restoring gut ecological and functional microenvironment, and inhibiting immune cell-mediated inflammation to remodel the brain-gut axis.
Abatement of potent P2Y12 antagonist-based dual antiplatelet therapy after coronary intervention: A network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
Authors: El Alaoui El Abdallaoui Oumaima , Tornyos Dániel , Lukács Réka , Komócsi András
Published: January 2023

Introduction

Dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) including prasugrel or ticagrelor is recommended in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) treated with coronary intervention (PCI). Acknowledging the importance of bleeding, multiple trials tested abatement schemes including uniform or guided de-escalation from the potent P2Y12 inhibitor (P2Y12-De) or P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy (P2Y12-Mo) with heterogeneous results. We aimed to perform a systematic review and network meta-analysis of the impact of DAPT abatement strategies in patients with PCI.

Methods

Electronic databases were searched for relevant randomized clinical studies evaluating clinical outcomes of patients after PCI. The rate of adverse events was evaluated using a frequentist network metanalysis. The random-effects model was used to combine risk estimates across trials and risk ratio (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) served as summary statistics. The primary endpoints of interest were the rate of major cardiac adverse events (MACE, defined as the composite of cardiovascular mortality, myocardial infarction and stroke) and bleeding.

Results

Ten studies were identified randomizing 42511 patients. 6359 switched to the P2Y12-De and 13062 switched to the P2Y12-Mo. The risk of MACE, reflected a 24% reduction in the P2Y12-De and a 14% in the P2Y12-Mo in comparison with the DAPT strategy using potent P2Y12 inhibitors (RR: 0.76 [0.62, 0.94], and RR: 0.86 [0.75, 0.99], p < 0.05 both). A 35% risk reduction of major bleeding was seen with monotherapy (RR: 0.65 [0.46, 0.91],) contrasting the de-escalation trials where this effect was not significant (RR: 0.84 [0.57, 1.22]). All bleeding and minor bleeding events were reduced with both strategies. Indirect P2Y12-Mo versus P2Y12-De comparisons exhibited them as similar alternatives without significant differences.

Conclusion

Our analysis suggests that both P2Y12-De and P2Y12-Mo reduce ischemic events and bleeding among PCI-treated ACS patients. Ischemic benefit was more expressed with P2Y12-De, however, reduction of major bleeding was only significant with P2Y12-Mo strategy.

Systematic review registration

https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42021258502, identifier CRD42021258502.
Traditional risk factors and cancer-related factors associated with cardiovascular disease risk in head and neck cancer patients
Authors: Mukherjee Amrita , Wiener Howard W. , Griffin Russell L. , Lenneman Carrie , Chatterjee Arka , Nabell Lisle M. , Lewis Cora E. , Shrestha Sadeep
Published: January 2023

Background

Risk of incident cardiovascular disease (CVD) in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients is under-reported. We assessed the association of HNSCC-related factors and traditional risk factors with 1- and 5-year CVD risk in HNSCC patients without prevalent CVD at cancer diagnosis.

Methods

A clinical cohort of 1,829 HNSCC patients diagnosed between 2012 and 2018, at a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer center was included. Information on HNSCC-related factors [HNSCC anatomical subsite, stage at diagnosis, treatment, and tumor human papillomavirus (HPV) status] were extracted from the tumor registry. Data on traditional risk factors (hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, tobacco smoking status, and obesity) were extracted from the electronic health records system (EHR) at baseline (HNSCC diagnosis). A composite of ischemic heart disease, heart failure, and ischemic stroke was the outcome of interest in time to event analysis. Hazard ratio (HR) (95% CI) were reported with death as a competing risk.

Results

In patients diagnosed with HNSCC, 10.61% developed incident CVD events by 1-year post cancer diagnosis. One-year CVD risk was lower in patients using antihypertensive medications at baseline, compared to patients without baseline hypertension [HR (95% CI): 0.41 (0.24–0.61)]. One-year CVD risk was high in patients receiving HNSCC surgery. Patients receiving radiation therapy had a higher 5-year CVD risk than surgery patients [HR (95% CI): 2.17 (1.31–3.04)]. Patients using antihypertensive medications had a lower 5-year CVD risk than patients without baseline hypertension [HR (95% CI): 0.45 (0.22–0.75)]. Older age and diabetes were associated with increased 1- and 5-year CVD risk. HPV-negative patients were older (p 0.006) and had a higher 5-year cumulative incidence of CVD (p 0.013) than HPV-positive patients.

Conclusion

Traditional risk factors and cancer-related factors are associated with CVD risk in HNSCC patients. Future research should investigate the role of antihypertensive medications in reducing CVD risk in HNSCC patients.
Epicardial high-resolution mapping of advanced interatrial block: Relating ECG, conduction abnormalities and excitation patterns
Authors: Ramdat Misier Nawin L. , van Schie Mathijs S. , Li Chunsheng , Oei Frans B. S. , van Schaagen Frank R. N. , Knops Paul , Taverne Yannick J. H. J. , de Groot Natasja M. S.
Published: January 2023

Background

Impairment of conduction across Bachmann’s Bundle (BB) may cause advanced interatrial block (a-IAB), which in turn is associated with development of atrial fibrillation. However, the exact relation between a complete transverse line of conduction block (CB) across BB and the presence of a-IAB has not been studied.

Objective

The aims of this study are to determine whether (1) a complete transversal line of CB across BB established by high resolution mapping correlates with a-IAB on the surface ECG, (2) conduction abnormalities at the right and left atria correlate with a-IAB, and (3) excitation patterns are associated with ECG characteristics of a-IAB.

Methods

We included 40 patients in whom epicardial mapping revealed a complete transverse line of CB across BB. Pre-operative ECGs and post-operative telemetry were assessed for the presence of (a) typical a-IAB and de novo early post-operative AF (EPOAF), respectively. Total atrial excitation time (TAET) and RA-LA delay were calculated. Entry site and trajectory of the main sinus rhythm wavefront at the pulmonary vein area (PVA) were assessed.

Results

Thirteen patients were classified as a-IAB (32.5%). In the entire atria and BB there were no differences in conduction disorders, though, patients with a-IAB had an increased TAET and longer RA-LA delay compared to patients without a-IAB (90.0 ± 21.9 ms vs. 74.9 ± 13.0 ms, p = 0.017; 160.0 ± 27.0 ms vs. 136.0 ± 24.1 ms, p = 0.012, respectively). Patients with typical a-IAB solely had caudocranial activation of the PVA, without additional cranial entry sites. Prevalence of de novo EPOAF was 69.2% and was similar between patients with and without a-IAB.

Conclusion

A transverse line of CB across BB partly explains the ECG characteristics of a-IAB. We found atrial excitation patterns underlying the ECG characteristics of both atypical and typical a-IAB. Regardless of the presence of a-IAB, the clinical impact of a complete transverse line of CB across BB was reflected by a high incidence of de novo EPOAF.
Effects of treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease on heart failure with preserved ejection fraction
Authors: Yang Zifeng , Tian Ruifeng , Zhang Xiao-Jing , Cai Jingjing , She Zhi-Gang , Li Hongliang
Published: January 2023

In the past few decades, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) have become the most common chronic liver disease and the main form of heart failure (HF), respectively. NAFLD is closely associated with HFpEF by sharing common risk factors and/or by boosting systemic inflammation, releasing other secretory factors, and having an expansion of epicardial adipose tissue (EAT). Therefore, the treatments of NAFLD may also affect the development and prognosis of HFpEF. However, no specific drugs for NAFLD have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and some non-specific treatments for NAFLD are applied in the clinic. Currently, the treatments of NAFLD can be divided into non-pharmacological and pharmacological treatments. Non-pharmacological treatments mainly include dietary intervention, weight loss by exercise, caloric restriction, and bariatric surgery. Pharmacological treatments mainly include administering statins, thiazolidinediones, glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors, and metformin. This review will mainly focus on analyzing how these treatments may affect the development and prognosis of HFpEF.
Screening for key genes in circadian regulation in advanced atherosclerosis: A bioinformatic analysis
Authors: Yao Jiali , Liang Jingyan , Li Hongliang
Published: January 2023

Background

Atherosclerosis (AS) is the most important cardiovascular disease threatening human health, leading to adverse events such as myocardial infarction and stroke. The research on the pathogenesis and causes of AS is being improved step by step, and many factors are associated with AS. However, the relationship between circadian regulation and the pathogenesis of AS is still unclear. Our study identified 2 key genes of circadian regulation in AS by bioinformatics analysis, which provides new perspectives to understand the relationship between circadian rhythm and AS.

Methods

We downloaded samples of early and advanced AS from public databases, screened key genes by weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and Lasso, calculated the immune cell content of the samples using “CIBERSORT,” and analyzed the relationship between key genes and immune cells.

Results

We obtained the most relevant core modules for advanced AS and analyzed the functions of these modules. Two circadian rhythm-related genes were obtained, which influence the immune infiltration of this late AS. ROC curves demonstrated the efficacy of key genes to differentiate between early and advanced AS.

Conclusion

We identified 2 genes most associated with circadian rhythms in advanced AS, whose association with AS has not been elucidated and may become the next therapeutic target.
The use of cyclic peptide antigens to generate LRP8 specific antibodies
Authors: Argiriadi Maria A. , Deng Kangwen , Egan David , Gao Lei , Gizatullin Farid , Harlan John , Karaoglu Hanzatian Denise , Qiu Wei , Villanueva Ruth , Goodearl Andrew
Published: January 2023

LRP8 is a member of the LDLR-like protein family. It is a transport receptor, which can be used in the design of antibodies specific for investigating increasing exposure to therapeutics with respect to the blood brain barrier (BBB). In this study, a LRP8 peptide immunization strategy was implemented to generate antibodies to a specific epitope of the CR1 domain of LRP8 that could enable transport function and cross-react in mice, cynomolgus monkeys and humans. Additionally, a cyclized peptide immunogen was designed to conserve the structural β-hairpin element observed in a previously solved crystal structure of a related CR domain. As a result of this structure-based antigenic design, an LRP8 specific antibody, 11H1, was selected and characterized in ligand binding assays and crystallographic structure determination. The high-resolution structure of the 11H1 Fab complexed to the cyclized CR1 peptide revealed key interactions driving epitope recognition that were confirmed using a site-directed mutagenesis approach. A critical observation was that the identified structural CR1 epitope of 11H1 did not compete with reelin’s recognition of CR1 allowing for simultaneous binding. This was predicted by an in silico ternary model and confirmed by reelin binding data. These simultaneous binding events (11H1/CR1/reelin) could therefore enable the CR1 domain of LRP8, 11H1 and reelin to be used as a “BBB transporter” ternary complex in the design of therapeutic proteins. More importantly, 11H1 showed enhanced brain penetration after systemic intravenous dosing in a mouse study, which confirmed its potential function as BBB transporter for therapeutic proteins.
The South Shetland Islands, Antarctica: Lithostratigraphy and geological map
Authors: Bastías Joaquín , Chew David , Villanueva Camila , Riley Teal , Manfroi Joseline , Trevisan Cristine , Leppe Marcelo , Castillo Paula , Poblete Fernando , Tetzner Dieter , Giuliani Gregory , López Bastián , Chen Hong , Zheng Guang-Gao , Zhao Yue , Gao Liang , Rauch Anna , Jaña Ricardo
Published: January 2023

Over the last few decades, numerous geological studies have been carried out in the South Shetland Islands, which have greatly contributed to a better understanding of its geological evolution. However, few attempts have been conducted to correlate the geological units throughout this archipelago. We present herein a review of the literature available in the South Shetland Islands, which we use to propose a lithostratigraphical correlation that constitutes a coherent stratigraphy for the main Mesozoic and Cenozoic rocks of the South Shetland Islands along with a new geological map. The lithostratigraphical correlation shows that the geological and environmental evolution comprises three main stages: 1) deep marine sedimentation from ∼164 to 140 Ma, 2) subaerial volcanism and sedimentation with a proliferation of plants and fauna from ∼140 to 35 Ma and 3) glacial and interglacial deposits from ∼35 Ma. The lithostratigraphical correlation also shows a broad geographical trend of decreasing age of volcanism from southwest to northeast, which has been previously suggested. However, this spatial age trend is disrupted by the presence of Eocene magmatism in Livingston Island, located in the centre of the archipelago. We suggest that the migration of volcanism occurred from the Late Cretaceous until the early Eocene. Subsequently, enhanced magmatic activity took place from the mid-Eocene until the Miocene, which we associate with processes related with the waning of subduction. Constraining the protolith age of the metamorphic complex of Smith Island remains challenging, yet holds key implications for the tectonic and accretionary evolution of the Antarctic Peninsula. The rocks recording the glaciation of this sector of Antarctica are well exposed in the northern South Shetland Islands and hold critical information for understanding the timings and processes that lead to the greenhouse to icehouse transition at the end of the Eocene. Finally, contemporaneous rocks to the breakup of Antarctic Peninsula from Patagonia that led to the opening of the Drake Passage and the development of the Scotia Sea are exposed in the centre and north of the South Shetland archipelago. Better constraints on the age and tectonic settings on these units may lead to further understanding the paleobiogeographical evolution of the region, which may have played an important role for speciation as a land bridge between South America and Antarctica. The dataset containing the geological map and associated information is shared as a shapefile or KML file.
The present-day stress field along the Northwest Pacific Wadati-Benioff zone constrained by focal mechanisms of moderate earthquakes
Authors: Liu Chengyu , Liu Fangbin , Cai Yin , Ni Ran , Xu Xiujie , Li Guoyi , Hao Weiduo , Tian Zhaoyang
Published: January 2023

The present-day stress field in the northwest Pacific Wadati-Benioff Zone (WBZ) has been investigated on the basis of earthquake focal mechanism catalog covering the period from 2012 to 2021. Our catalog contains 201 focal mechanism solutions (Mw 4.0–5.9) compiled from the F-net network along three profiles (southern Kurile trench, central Japan trench and northern Izu-Bonin trench). According to the spatial variations in the stress regimes, we outlined 12 subvolumes for three profiles. Our results present that the maximum compressive stress is, slab-normal in trench-outer rise regions and nearly strike-normal and sub-horizontal in the depth range 0–70 km. At intermediate depths, a two-planar stress pattern is observed (70–200 km) in southern Kurile and central Japan trench WBZ, with the maximum compressive stress closely parallel to the slab in upper plane and slab-normal in lower plane, respectively. However, the southern Kurile trench WBZ exposes an extension stress regime in 200–300 km depth range. At depths below 300 km, northern Izu-Bonin trench WBZ shows a stress regime of pure compression. We infer the dominant forces may be the slab blending in the shallow trench-outer rise regions, slab pull and ridge push at shallow depths, and the slab resistance provided by the mantle to the penetration of the slab at deep depths. Whereas the two-planar stress pattern may be caused by the unbending of the slab, and the unusual stress state along the junction of the trench WBZ at intermediate depths may be influenced by lateral deformation due to increasing slab’s dip.
Using DInSAR to inventory landslide geological disaster in Bijie, Guizhou, China
Authors: Shen Chaoyong , Zhou Shaoqi , Luo Xuling , Zhang Yu , Liu Hui
Published: January 2023

Landslides are very complicated natural phenomena that create significant losses of life and assets throughout China. However, previous studies mainly focused on monitoring the development trend of known landslides in small areas, and few studies focused on the identification of new landslides. In addition, karst areas, where the vegetation is dense, the mountains are high, the slopes are steep, and the time incoherence is serious, have difficulty in tracking Differential Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (DInSAR) landslides. Therefore, based on DInSAR technology, we use ALOS-2 PALSAR data to conduct continuous monitoring of existing hazards and identify new geological hazards in karst areas. The major results are as follows: 1) From June 11 to 6 August 2017, it was discovered that a hidden point of landslides occurred on the 420 m northwest mountain near the town of Zongling. It was determined that the landslide hidden point had been slipping for two consecutive years, with an average slip of 6.0 cm. From 4 September 2016 to 22 January 2017, undiscovered hidden points in the landslide account were found in Yinjiazhai. On 13 September 2016 and 22 November 2016, the discovered potential hazards in the landslide log book were the mountain hazards in southwestern Shiping village, and the deformation was 7.8 cm. 2) The DInSAR monitoring results from September to November 2016 showed that large deformations occurred in the landslide area of Shiping village. During a field visit, large cracks on the surface were found. The length of surface cracks in the southwest direction of Shiping village was 2.8 m. On 13 July 2017, Shiping collapsed as a result of the collapse of the mountainous area where the disaster occurred. The average slope of the landslide in the landslide area was approximately 65°, the height was 95 m, the length and width were 150 m and 25 m, respectively, and the thickness was 5 m. The method has shown great potential in precisely identifying some new geological hazards sites, as well as tracking and monitoring the potential hazards of geological disasters listed on the landslide account.
In-situ boron isotope and chemical composition of tourmaline in the Gyirong pegmatite, southern Tibet: Implications for petrogenesis and magma source
Authors: Pei Qiuming , Ma Shaobing , Li Chenghong , Liu Fei , Zhang Yunhui , Xiao Yong , Wang Shiming , Wu Jianfei , Cao Huawen
Published: January 2023

Leucogranitic rocks, mainly including leucogranite-pegmatite systems, have been found to be widely distributed in the South Tibetan Himalaya, and they have received considerable interest because of their significance in crustal evolution and associated rare-metal mineralization. Although the nature and geodynamic setting of the Himalayan leucogranites have been well documented by numerous studies, the pegmatites spatially associated with these leucogranites are still poorly understood. Tourmaline is a ubiquitous phase from the leucogranite to the pegmatite. We have therefore conducted in situ major and trace element and boron isotope investigations of tourmaline from the Gyirong pegmatite, synthesizing published data on the Gyirong leucogranite, to document the origin of tourmaline and its genetic implications. Two types of tourmaline (Tur-Ⅰ & Tur-Ⅱ) have been identified in this contribution and they are enriched in Fe, Si and Al but depleted in Mg and Ca, with Mg/(Mg+Fe) ratios ranging from 0.22 to 0.45. Accordingly, the tourmalines belong to the alkali group and have schorl composition. Trace elements, such as Zn, Ga, V, Sc, Li, Sn, Sr, and Co in the tourmalines are relatively enriched, whereas, other trace elements record low concentrations less than 10 ppm. The trace element concentrations of tourmaline are mainly controlled by melt composition. Morphological and geochemical characteristics reflect that the tourmalines from the Gyirong pegmatite are magmatic in origin. The Gyirong pegmatitic tourmalines have S-type granitoids and pegmatites boron isotopic signatures with a tight range of δ11B values between −11.8 and −9.7‰, which is consistent with the magmatic tourmalines (Mg-poor) of the Gyirong leucogranite. This study suggests that the Gyirong pegmatite was the product of crustal anatexis and that the crustal metapelitic rocks within the Greater Himalayan Crystalline Complex were the most likely source components.
Fractional laplacians viscoelastic wave equation low-rank temporal extrapolation
Authors: Chen Hanming , Zhang Lifu , Zhou Hui
Published: January 2023

The fractional Laplacians constant-Q (FLCQ) viscoelastic wave equation can describe seismic wave propagation accurately in attenuating media. A staggered-grid pseudo-spectral (SGPS) method is usually applied to solve this wave equation but it is of only second-order accuracy in time, due to a second-order finite-difference (FD) time differentiation. Visible time dispersion and numerical instability could appear in the case of a large timestepping size. To resolve this problem, we develop a more accurate low-rank temporal extrapolation scheme for the FLCQ viscoelastic wave equation. We realize this goal by deriving an analytical time-marching formula from the general solution of the FLCQ wave equation. Compressional (P) and shear (S) wave velocities dependent k-space operators are involved in the formula and they can compensate for the time dispersion errors caused by the FD time differentiation. To implement the k-space operators efficiently in heterogeneous media, we adopt a low-rank approximation of these operators, which reduces the computational cost at each time step to several fast Fourier transforms (FFTs). Another benefit of the low-rank extrapolation is explicit separation of P and S waves, which is helpful for further developing vector wavefield-based seismic migration methods. Several numerical examples are presented to verify the higher accuracy and the less restrictive stability condition of the low-rank temporal extrapolation than the traditional SGPS extrapolation.
Automatic identification of conodont species using fine-grained convolutional neural networks
Authors: Duan Xiong
Published: January 2023

Conodonts are jawless vertebrates deposited in marine strata from the Cambrian to the Triassic that play an important role in geoscience research. The accurate identification of conodonts requires experienced professional researchers. The process is time-consuming and laborious and can be subjective and affected by the professional level and opinions of the appraisers. The problem is exacerbated by the limited number of experts who are qualified to identify conodonts. Therefore, a rapid and simple artificial intelligence method is needed to assist with the identification of conodont species. Although the use of deep convolutional neural networks (CNN) for fossil identification has been widely studied, the data used are usually from different families, genera or even higher-level taxonomic units. However, in practical geoscience research, geologists are often more interested in classifying species belonging to the same genus. In this study, we use five fine-grained CNN models on a dataset consisting of nine species of the conodont genusHindeodus. Based on the cross-validation results, we show that using the Bilinear-ResNet18 model and transfer learning generates the optimal classifier. Area Under Curve (AUC) value of 0.9 on the test dataset was obtained by the optimal classifier, indicating that the performance of our classifier is satisfactory. In addition, although our study is based on a very limited taxa of conodonts, our research principles and processes can be used as a reference for the automatic identification of other fossils.
Long-term internal erosion mechanism of organic matter in sediments solidified by cement, lime, and metakaolin
Authors: Wang Hongxing , Zhang Dizhi , Wu Shangwei , Jing Xiaofei , Liu Kehui , Ren Lingyan
Published: January 2023

In applications of stabilized/solidified (S/S) sediments, the organic matter inside the original sediments will decompose and release fulvic acid (FA) and humic acid (HA) gradually, which may reduce the durability of the S/S sediments. It is critical to understand the long-term internal erosion mechanism to improve the durability of S/S sediments. Thus, S/S sediments solidified by commonly used cement, lime, and metakaolin were first prepared in the laboratory. Reasonable proportioning of the additives was determined through orthogonal tests. Unconfined compression strength tests, measurements of organic environment indexes and chemical environment indexes, and scanning electron microscopy analysis were then conducted after different curing periods of the S/S sediments to explore the erosion mechanism. The following results and conclusions were obtained. 1) The microstructure of S/S sediments is composed of a sediment aggregate core, a hydrated calcium silicate (CSH) shell covering the core, and calcium hydroxide (CH) submerged in the CSH shell. 2) HA and FA are released gradually by organic matter decomposition inside the core and are consumed by neutralization reactions with solidification products. 3) The dissipation process of organic matter and the induced damage process of S/S sediments can be partitioned into three stages: in the first stage, HA and FA jointly neutralize the solidification products inside the CSH shell, the CSH shell is eroded gradually, and the S/S sediments lose strength gradually; in the second stage, the neutralization reactions are still inside the CSH shell, but only occur between FA (not HA) and the solidification products, the CSH shell breaks down at the end of this stage, but the S/S sediments do not lose much strength until the end point; and in the third stage, neutralization reactions take place outside the CSH shell between HA (but not FA) and the solidification products, and the S/S sediments lose strength dramatically. It was also concluded that HA (rather than FA) is more likely to neutralize solidification products in a more alkaline environment; HA has much stronger chemical affinity with Ca2+ ions than FA; HA controls the strength loss of S/S sediments, whereas FA controls the working status of HA; and the developments of HA content and Ca2+ ion concentration reflect the strength loss of S/S sediments.
Fluid evolution and paleo-pressure recovery by Raman quantitative analysis in the Shahejie Formation of the western slope belt in Dongpu Sag, Bohai Bay Basin, China
Authors: Tang Youjun , Wu Yijun , Wang Ruyue , Huang Yahao , Xue Yifan , Chen Zhonghong , Xu Tianwu , Wang Ting , Li Hongbo
Published: January 2023

Inorganic and organic fluids are widely found in sedimentary basins during oil and gas migration and accumulation. This research investigates two types of sandstone reservoirs with different pressure states and fluid evolution of the Shahejie Formation in the western slope belt of Dongpu Sag. Based on petrographic observations, micro-Raman spectroscopy, and fluorescent spectrometry, petroleum inclusions, CH4-bearing inclusions, and CO2-bearing inclusions were discovered in quartz-hosted minerals. The pressure–temperature–time–composition (P–T–t–X) properties of the CH4 and CO2 inclusions were obtained by quantitative Raman analysis and thermodynamic models. Minimum trapped pressure was predicted by the thermodynamic modeling of petroleum inclusions. Saffron yellow petroleum inclusions represent an early Oligocene oil-charging event (∼32–30 Ma), and the two kinds of reservoirs were all kept in moderate-overpressure conditions (average pressure coefficient: 1.26). Due to rapid uplift and denudation (Dongying movement) in the middle Oligocene in step II, crude oil degrades into CH4 and CO2 (density of CH4 gas inclusions: 0.1010–0.1339 g/cm3; density of CO2 gas inclusions: 0.450–0.612 g/cm3) and retains low-maturity (0.67–1.04%) bitumen in situ. Tectonic destruction causes the reservoir to be released to normal pressure. With the reburial of the Es3 Formation, step II entered the middle stage of oil generation again (average pressure coefficient: 0.90). However, in step I, with secondary hydrocarbons occurring, second-stage oil (performance for pale blue fluorescence in petroleum inclusions) accumulated at ∼12–0 Ma (late Miocene–Pliocene). The second oil charging event in step I remains a reservoir under high-overpressure conditions (average pressure coefficient: 1.67).
An unusual Northwest–Southeast oriented Meiyu rain belt in 2021
Authors: Huo Liwei , Guan Zhaoyong , Zhang Mengke , Jin Dachao , Wang Ji , Shi Yinglong , Wang Yi , Liu Yin , Liu Chun
Published: January 2023

Affected by the East Asian summer monsoon, summer floods occur frequently in eastern China, causing huge economic losses and social impacts. In 2021, the precipitation anomaly during the Meiyu period in Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley (YHRV) was abnormally high, with a value of 188.0 mm, about 1.7 standard deviations above normal. However, it did not cause serious flood disasters. This was mainly due to the existence of two precipitation anomaly centers in YHRV, which shared the impact of the excessive precipitation. These two centers were located at the junction of Anhui Province and Henan Province and the junction of Jiangsu Province, Anhui Province and Jiangxi Province, respectively. And more notably, the 2021 Meiyu precipitation anomalies were distributed in a Northwest-Southeast oriented band that is very rare. During the 2021 Meiyu period, the western Pacific subtropical high (WPSH) weakened and extended westward. An anticyclonic circulation anomaly in the lower troposphere was observed over eastern China, which was found to be related to the quasi-stationary wave trains propagating eastward from Hainan Island to the northwestern Pacific by vorticity budget analysis. And the Rossby wave source term played a critical role. In addition, the tropical Atlantic anomalous warming produced convergence anomaly over the eastern Mediterranean and excited quasi-stationary wave trains propagating downstream at the mid-latitudes in upper layers through a monsoon-desert-like teleconnection. It raised the geopotential height over eastern China and thus favored the westward extension of WPSH. These large-scale circulation anomalies generated the anomalous easterly winds along the eastern coast of China and the anomalous southwesterly winds from Guangxi Province to the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Similar features can be found in the anomalous water vapor transport and the water vapor converged in the YHRV. The above-mentioned reasons jointly caused the abnormally high precipitation anomaly and its unusual pattern in the 2021 Meiyu season. This study might provide a scientific basis and clues for understanding Meiyu precipitation anomalies and disaster prevention and mitigation.
Pseudo-depth domain reverse time migration in VTI medium based on GPU parallel strategy
Authors: Xinwen Zhang , Jianping Huang , Zhiqiang Jiang , Qingyang Li , Zhenchun Li
Published: January 2023

As one of the main imaging methods, a lot of attention has been directed to reverse time migration anisotropic media. However, reverse time migration still faces cost and memory limitations, especially in imaging high frequencies. A coordinate transformation strategy in transversely isotropic media with a vertical axis of symmetry (VTI) was utilized to obtain high-resolution images useful for stratigraphic interpretation. The coordinate transformation converted traditional depth domain imaging into pseudo-depth domain imaging. In addition, this paper used the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) parallel strategy and compared the imaging approach with the conventional acoustic isotropy method. By testing several models and field data, it concludes that Graphics Processing Unit parallel strategy can significantly improve the computational efficiency of imaging. The pseudo-depth domain method also has obvious advantages in computational time and memory consumption. Moreover, it is more reasonable when considering anisotropy for complex laminated layers.
Changes of Köppen–Trewartha climate types in the Tibetan Plateau during the mid-Holocene, present-day, and the future based on high-resolution datasets
Authors: Huang Lingxin , Feng Song , Chen Jie , Deng Yajie , Chen Fahu , Huang Wei
Published: January 2023

Tibetan Plateau (TP) is strongly impacted by accelerated anthropogenic warming that already exceeds natural variability. However, the spatial differences in climate and ecosystem response in TP between anthropogenic and natural forcings are unclear. Here, the Köppen–Trewartha climate classification is applied to examine the shifts in terrestrial climate regimes and vegetation distribution in TP by analyzing the WorldClim high-resolution downscaled climate dataset for the mid-Holocene (MH, ∼6 cal ka BP), the present-day (PD, 1960–1990), and in the future (2050s) under the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios. The results show that the polar climate and the dry climate occupied more than 70% of TP area in the three periods. The MH, dominated by the natural forcing, is featured as having less distribution of dry climate than the PD. The anthropogenic change will promote a transition from a cold climate type to a warmer climate type in the 2050s. The precipitation change is responsible for the differences in climate types between the MH and PD, while warming dominates the evolution of climate types across TP in the 2050s. Moreover, vegetation types can be represented by major climate types in a large proportion of TP. In particular, polar climate regions correspond well to the areas of meadows, and the dry climate regions correspond to the steppes and deserts areas. The large changes in the climate regimes of TP suggest an extensive (shrinking) area of meadows (steppes) under natural forcing and a shrinking area of meadows under anthropogenic warming.
Complex mantle flow beneath the Luxi uplift segment of the Tanlu fault zone inferred from SKS splitting measurements
Authors: Lu Mingwen , Lei Jianshe
Published: January 2023

To better understand the anisotropic structure and mantle dynamics in and around the Luxi uplift segment of the Tanlu fault zone in East China, we collect waveform data recorded at 47 NCISP (Northern China Interior Structure Project) portable seismic stations during November 2000 to August 2001. Using the minimum transverse energy grid-search method of SKS wave splitting measurement, effective splitting results at 35 stations are obtained. Our results show that the fast wave polarization direction (FPD) in the study area is dominated by a nearly E-W direction, with a range of 70°–116° and an average FPD of N98°E, which is generally perpendicular to the trend of the Tanlu fault zone. The splitting time varies from 0.6 to 1.5 s with an average of 0.94 s. Although there are subtle differences in FPDs of different tectonic units, it is still evident that larger splitting times amounting to ∼1.2 s are located north of the Luxi uplift, which is closely associated with the E-W horizontal flow in the big mantle wedge (BMW). In contrast, smaller splitting times are visible between the two branches of the Tanlu fault zone, indicating the existence of upwelling flow in the BMW. These complex mantle flow suggests that the BMW structure has played an important role in the deep dynamic processes beneath East Asia.
A multi-scale dense-connection denoising network for DAS-VSP records
Authors: Dong Xintong , Lin Jun , Lu Shaoping , Zhong Tie , Li Yue
Published: January 2023

Due to high spatial resolution, low cost, and wide bandwidth, distributed optical fiber acoustic sensing (DAS) is regarded as a potential tool for data acquisition in vertical seismic profile (VSP) surveys. However, in real DAS-VSP records, desired signals are often seriously plagued by various noise, which does not appear in the conventional seismic data received by electronic geophones. Exploring a high-performing attenuation method for the background noise can significantly improve the quality of DAS-VSP records and has essential impacts on the following imaging and interpretation. Deep-learning-based methods, especially convolutional neural network (CNN), have shown remarkable performance in seismic data denoising. However, the conventional CNN-based methods may degrade when dealing with DAS-VSP records in low signal-to-noise ratio. In this study, we propose a novel multi-scale dense-connection denoising network (MDD-Net) to achieve high-accuracy processing of the complex DAS background noise. Unlike conventional multi-scale networks, MDD-Net utilizes widen convolution block to capture the multi-scale features of the analyzed data. On this basis, dense connection operations are employed to fuse the features and improve the network efficiency. Meanwhile, an enhanced spatial attention (ESA) block is designed to reinforce the features, which are helpful for noise suppression and weak signal recovery. Both synthetic and field DAS-VSP records are processed to verify the effectiveness of MDD-Net. Meanwhile, we also compare the denoising results with other competing methods. The experimental results demonstrate that MDD-Net can significantly attenuate the complex DAS background noise and restore the desired signals, even for the weak upgoing signals.
How a marine debris environmental education program plays to strengths of linguistically diverse learners
Authors: Hartley Jenna M. , Stevenson Kathryn T. , Pereira Sasha R. , Peterson M. Nils , Lawson Danielle F. , Martinez Bryan
Published: January 2023

Although environmental education (EE) has increased focus on how to best serve diverse populations, one understudied area is how linguistically diverse learners may engage with EE programming. Linguistic diversity is on the rise across the United States; for instance, nearly one-third of all children between the ages of 0 and 8 have at least one parent who speaks a language other than English in the home. This study evaluated impacts of an EE curriculum designed to promote pro-environmental behavior change with a pre-post, treatment-control experimental design among students from linguistically diverse households. In partnership with teachers, we implemented the curriculum in elementary schools across the state of North Carolina, United States. Over two school years (2018–2020), 36 teachers from 31 schools across 18 counties participated in the study, providing 644 paired pre-post student responses (n = 204 control; n = 440 treatment). About 10% of the sample (n = 49 treatment, n = 18 control) reported speaking a language at home other than English. We tested hypotheses that the curriculum would increase pro-environmental behavior change among all students, but particularly among those from linguistically diverse households using multiple linear regression. Results indicate that the curriculum effectively encouraged pro-environmental behaviors for all students on average, but particularly among linguistically diverse students, adding to growing examples of the equigenic effects of environmental and nature-based education. These findings are consistent with research demonstrating that EE can contribute to behavior change among young learners and may be particularly well-suited to resonate with the unique contributions of linguistically diverse learners.