mlsa-iai-msu-lab/ru_sci_bench_zho_cite_reranking huggingface dataset:
An error evaluation on the vertical velocity algorithm in POM

A time splitting technique is common to many free surface ocean models. The different truncation errors in the equations of the internal and external modes require a numerical adjustment to make sure that algorithms correctly satisfy continuity equations and conserve tracers quantities. The princeton ocean model(POM) has applied a simple method of adjusting the vertical mean of internal velocities to external velocities at each internal time step. However, due to the Asselin time filter method adopted to prevent the numerical instability, the method of velocity adjustment used in POM can no longer guarantee the satisfaction of the continuity equation in the internal mode, though a special treatment is used to relate the surface elevation of the internal mode with that of the external mode. The error is proved to be a second-order term of the coefficient in the Asselin filter. One influence of this error in the numerical model is the failure of the kinetic boundary condition at the sea floor. By a regional experiment and a quasi-global experiment, the magnitudes of this error are evaluated, and several sensitivity tests of this error are performed. The characteristic of this error is analyzed and two alternative algorithms are suggested to reduce the error.
Soil Nitrous Oxide Emissions Under Maize-Legume Intercropping System in the North China Plain

Many studies have focused on various agricultural management measures to reduce agricultural nitrous oxide (N_2O) emission. However, few studies have investigated soil N_2O emissions in intercropping systems in the North China Plain. Thus, we conducted a field experiment to compare N_2O emissions under monoculture and maize-legume intercropping systems. In 2010, five treatments, including monocultured maize (M), maize-peanut (MP), maize-alfalfa (MA), maize-soybean (MS), and maize-sweet clover (MSC) intercropping were designed to investigate this issue using the static chamber technique. In 2011, M, MP, and MS remained, and monocultured peanuts (P) and soybean (S) were added to the trial. The results showed that total production of N_2O from different treatments ranged from (0.87±0.12) to (1.17±0.11) kg ha-1 in 2010, while those ranged from (3.35±0.30) to (9.10±2.09) kg ha~(-1) in 2011. MA and MSC had no significant effect on soil N_2O production compared to that of M (P<0.05). Cumulative N_2O emissions from MP in 2010 were significantly lower than those from M, but the result was the opposite in 2011 (P<0.05). MS significantly reduced soil N_2O emissions by 25.55 and 48.84% in 2010 and 2011, respectively (P<0.05). Soil N_2O emissions were significantly correlated with soil water content, soil temperature, nitrification potential, soil NH_4~+, and soil NO_3~- content (R~2=0.160-0.764, P<0.01). A stepwise linear regression analysis indicated that soil N_2O release was mainly controlled by the interaction between soil moisture and soil NO_3~- content (R~2=0.828, P<0.001). These results indicate that MS had a coincident effect on soil N_2O flux and significantly reduced soil N_2O production compared to that of M over two growing seasons.
Pathotypes and Genetic Diversity of Chinese Collections of Elsinoe fawcettii Causing Citrus Scab

Two scab diseases are currently recognized on citrus: citrus scab, caused by Elsinoe fawcettii, and sweet orange scab, caused by E. australis. Although these pathogens are economically important, there is no molecular data on these species in China. Here we use internal transcribed spacer sequence data to report on host-specificity and genetic relationships among 46 isolates collected from the main citrus varieties grown across China. All strains isolated were E. fawcettii. Based on pathogenicity testing on 9 different citrus species, isolates were divided into 11 pathotypes (SM, FBHR, SJCR, SPOJCR, SR, SOJG, SPOJC, SRGC, Lemon and two unnamed pathotypes). SM is a new pathotype, and two isolates did not fit into any of the known pathotypes of E. fawcettii. Inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR-PCR) assays separated the E. fawcettii isolates into 10 subgroups; the groupings basically corresponded to the pathogenicity test.
香炉山钨矿高大采空区充填回采方法优化研究

充填回采顺序的合理与否影响着地表地质灾害的发生。针对香炉山钨矿大规模地下高大采空区,用类比法确定充填体强度,拟定4种不同的充填回采方案并用数值模拟方式进行结果比较。结果表明,从经济角度,先两翼再中间的长方形充填回采方案可取,而充填面积如果大于回采区面积的2倍且充填区域的形状接近正方形,则充填后回采更安全可靠。
Responses of Plant Community and Soil Properties to Inter-Annual Precipitation Variability and Grazing Durations in a Desert Steppe in Inner Mongolia

Grazing can dramatically affect arid grassland communities that are very vulnerable to environmental changes due to its relatively short and sparse ground coverage, low biomass, sandy soil and inter-annual precipitation found in the desert steppe. The study investigates the effects of different grazing durations on vegetation and soil properties of a desert steppe community. The experiment was conducted in Xisu Banner in Inner Mongolia with five treatments: CG (continuous grazing), 40UG (40 d ungrazed), 50UG (50 d ungrazed), 60UG (60 d ungrazed) and UG (ungrazed). The biomass of both shrub and annual-biennial plant communities were significantly decreased by CG. Continuous grazing and 40UG significantly reduced the ANPP (aboveground net primary productivity) by the end of the three year study. 60UG treatment increased soil organic carbon (OC), total nitrogen concentration (TN) and total phosphorus concentration (TP) concentrations and 50UG increased the TN and total phosphorus concentration (TK) concentrations, whereas CG, 40UG and 50UG decreased soil OC, TP and available phosphorus concentration (AP) concentrations. The perennial plant species of the desert steppe were generally tolerant for grazing. The annual-biennial plant species had large variability in ANPP because of the inter-annual precipitation. Our results highlight that inter-annual precipitation variations could strongly modify the community responses to grazing in arid ecosystems.
挤压对6N01铝合金型材性能均匀性的影响

6N01铝合金是制造车体所需的薄壁中空大型型材的良好材料,基本力学性能数据是制定塑性加工工艺、理解塑性加工过程以及进行塑性加工过程数值模拟的基础。T4状态6N01铝合金型材室温拉伸试验表明,型材的力学性能具有不均匀性和各向异性,且这种不均匀性主要体现在塑性变形抗力和塑性变形能力上,极限承载能力的不均匀性不显著。显微组织也具有不均匀性和各向异性,在截面不同位置具有不均匀的组织,沿挤压方向则形成拉长组织和形变织构,这种组织的不均匀性与织构是导致力学性能不均匀性和各向异性的内在根源,是由于热挤压变形与冷却速度等工艺条件差异而导致的。
Effects of water salinity and N application rate on water- and N-use efficiency of cotton under drip irrigation

In arid and semi-arid regions, freshwater scarcity and high water salinity are serious and chronic problems for crop production and sustainable agriculture development. We conducted a field experiment to evaluate the effect of irrigation water salinity and nitrogen(N) application rate on soil salinity and cotton yield under drip irrigation during the 2011 and 2012 growing seasons. The experimental design was a 3×4 factorial with three irrigation water salinity levels(0.35, 4.61 and 8.04 dS/m) and four N application rates(0, 240, 360 and 480 kg N/hm~2). Results showed that soil water content increased as the salinity of the irrigation water increased, but decreased as the N application rate increased. Soil salinity increased as the salinity of the irrigation water increased. Specifically, soil salinity measured in 1:5 soil:water extracts was 218% higher in the 4.61 dS/m treatment and 347% higher in the 8.04 dS/m treatment than in the 0.35 dS/m treatment. Nitrogen fertilizer application had relatively little effect on soil salinity, increasing salinity by only 3%–9% compared with the unfertilized treatment. Cotton biomass, cotton yield and evapotranspiration(ET) decreased significantly in both years as the salinity of irrigation water increased, and increased as the N application rate increased regardless of irrigation water salinity; however, the positive effects of N application were reduced when the salinity of the irrigation water was 8.04 dS/m. Water use efficiency(WUE) was significantly higher by 11% in the 0.35 dS/m treatment than in the 8.04 dS/m treatment. There was no significant difference in WUE between the 0.35 dS/m treatment and the 4.61 dS/m treatment. The WUE was also significantly affected by the N application rate. The WUE was highest in the 480 kg N/hm~2 treatment, being 31% higher than that in the 0 kg N/hm~2 treatment and 12% higher than that in the 240 kg N/hm~2 treatment. There was no significant difference between the 360 and 480 kg N/hm~2 treatments. The N use efficiency(NUE) was significantly lower in the 8.04 dS/m treatment than in either the 4.61 dS/m or the 0.35 dS/m treatment. There was no significant difference in NUE between the latter two treatments. These results suggest that irrigation water with salinity <4.61 dS/m does not have an obvious negative effect on cotton production, WUE or NUE under the experimental conditions. Application of N fertilizer(0–360 kg N/hm~2) could alleviate salt damage, promote cotton growth, and increase both cotton yield and water use efficiency.
Evolution of isolated G-band bright points: size, intensity and velocity

We study the evolution pattern of isolated G-band bright points (GBPs) in terms of their size, intensity and velocity.Using a high resolution image sequence taken with the Hinode/Solar Optical Telescope (SOT), we detect GBPs in each image by the Laplacian and Morphological Dilation algorithm, and track their evolutions by a 26-adjacent method in a three-dimensional space-time cube.For quantifying the evolution, we propose a quantification method based on lifetime normalization which aligns the different lifetimes to common stages.The quantification results show that, on average, the diameter of isolated GBPs changes from 166 to 173 km, then down to 165 km; the maximum intensity contrast changes from 1.012 to 1.027, then down to 1.011; however, the velocity changes from 1.709 to 1.593 km s~(-1), then up to 1.703 km s~(-1).The results indicate that the evolution follows a pattern such that the GBP is small, faint and fast-moving at the birth stage, becomes big, bright and slow-moving at the middle stage, then gets small, faint and fast-moving at the decay stage until disappearance.Although the differences are very small, a two-sample t-test is used to demonstrate there are significant differences in means between the distributions of the different stages.Furthermore, we quantify the relationship between the lifetimes of GBPs and their properties.It is found that there are positive correlations between the lifetimes and their sizes and intensities with correlation coefficients of 0.83 and 0.65, respectively; however, there is a negative correlation between the lifetimes and velocities with a correlation coefficient of –0.49.In summary, the longer the GBP persists, the bigger, brighter and slower it will be.
Intranasal nerve growth factor bypasses the blood-brain barrier and affects spinal cord neurons in spinal cord injury

The purpose of this work was to investigate whether, by intranasal administration, the nerve growth factor bypasses the blood-brain barrier and turns over the spinal cord neurons and if such therapeutic approach could be of value in the treatment of spinal cord injury. Adult Sprague-Dawley rats with intact and injured spinal cord received daily intranasal nerve growth factor administration in both nostrils for 1 day or for 3 consecutive weeks. We found an in-creased content of nerve growth factor and enhanced expression of nerve growth factor receptor in the spinal cord 24 hours after a single intranasal administration of nerve growth factor in healthy rats, while daily treatment for 3 weeks in a model of spinal cord injury improved the deifcits in locomotor behaviour and increased spinal content of both nerve growth factor and nerve growth factor receptors. These outcomes suggest that the intranasal nerve growth factor bypasses blood-brain barrier and affects spinal cord neurons in spinal cord injury. They also suggest exploiting the possible therapeutic role of intranasally delivered nerve growth factor for the neuroprotection of damaged spinal nerve cells.
Two types of auditory glutamatergic synapses and their implications for repairing damaged central auditory pathways

For the mammalian brain to process and decipher the rich panoply of sounds that abound in the world, nature has evolved an elegant collection of neural circuits dedicated to this task. Indeed, the complexity, variety and number of neural pathways devoted to computing auditory information is unique among sensory modalities (Kaas, 2008). After the initial sensorineural encoding of sound at the level of the cochlea, auditory information is processed in several lower brainstem centers and eventually converges in the midbrain, at the level of the inferior colliculus (Wenstrup, 2005). Subsequently, auditory information is transferred through the thalamus, the medial geniculate body, and then the auditory cortex (Winer et al., 2005; Razak and Fuzessery, 2010; Hackett, 2011; Lee and Sherman, 2011; Lee and Winer, 2011; Imaizumi and Lee, 2013; Lee and Imaizumi, 2013). From here, the common view holds that auditory information is processed through a series of corticocortical connections, from which stimulus features such as sound location and identity are extracted (Felleman and Van Essen, 1991; Romanski et al., 1999; Carrasco and Lomber, 2009; Hackett, 2011). In this manner, perceptual features of such sound attributes are computationally decoded across multiple auditory cortical areas (Callan et al., 2006; Tsytsarev et al., 2009; Callan et al., 2012).
双模式健康教育提高老年冠心病PCI术后服药依从性的研究

冠心病是老年人的多发病、常见病,严重危害老年患者的身体健康。近年来,随着医学科学技术的迅速发展,经皮冠状动脉介入治疗(percutaneous coronary intervention,PCI)已成为治疗老年冠心病的一种重要手段,具有创伤小、疗效好及住院时间短的特点。PCI虽然部分恢复了心肌血流供应,解除了心绞痛症状,但没有改变动脉粥样硬化的基础,冠心病的危险因素还在,约有5%~8%的患者会在术后发生支架内再狭窄,部分患者将再次出现心绞痛,甚至心肌梗死而影响预后。临床研究表明,减少冠心病患者院外复发的危险因素,降低支架置入后再狭窄发生率,其根本仍是改善生活方式、坚持药物治疗、定期随访。因此,探索有效的健康教育模式,对提高患者的遵医行为,帮助患者建立良好的生活习惯、进行适当的运动、心理调节,坚持定期检查、自我监测、提高服药依从性等都具有重要的临床意义。服药依从性是指患者对医嘱的服从或遵守,并产生相关的有效作用,其依从性的高低直接影响药物治疗的效果。本研究以护理程序与健康信念(health belief model,HBM)双模式健康教育的整合运用,对老年冠心病PCI术后患者开展全程个体化健康教育干预,取得了显著效果,现将研究结果报道如下。
Generalized Drazin spectrum of operator matrices

Let A ∈B(X) and B ∈B(Y), MC be an operator on Banach space X⊕Y given by M_C =(AC 0B).A generalized Drazin spectrum defined by σ _(gD)(T) = {λ ∈ ? : T-λI is not generalized Drazin invertible} is considered in this paper. It is shown thatσ _(gD)(A)∪σ _(gD)(B)=σ _(gD)(M_C)∪W_(gD)(A,B,C),where W_(gD)(A,B,C) is a subset of σ _(gD)(A)∩σ _(gD)(B) and a union of certain holes in σ _(gD)(M_C). Furthermore, several suffcient conditions for σ _(gD)(A)∪σ _(gD)(B) = σ _(gD)(M_C) holds for every C ∈B(Y,X) are given.
嗜酸性筋膜炎1例报告

嗜酸性筋膜炎(eosinophilic fasciitis, EF)由Shulman[1]1974年首先描述,是一种以筋膜纤维化及炎症浸润、皮肤水肿硬化、血嗜酸性粒细胞增多为特征的少见病。
β-arrestin 及其在中枢神经系统疾病中的作用

arrestin 基因家族由4种成员构成,视觉arrestin (arrestin1)主要分布在视网膜视杆和视锥细胞,锥体arrestin (arrestin4)仅分布在视网膜视锥细胞中,β-arrestin1 (arrestin2)和β-arrestin2 (arrestin3)广泛分布在体内各个组织中。最初,β-arrestins 被认为是一种GPCRs 的负性调节因子,与G 蛋白偶联受体激酶(G-protein-coupled receptors kinases,GRK)联合作用,可以使GPCRs 发生受体脱敏反应,终止激动剂激动受体后引起的信号转导。随着研究的深入发现β-arrestins 可以作为细胞内的支架蛋白在感受器的胞吞作用和细胞转导中发挥重要作用,他们募集被胞吞的蛋白质和各种信号分子到受体上,然后把GPCRs 连接到不同的信号通路中。本文将就β-arrestins 信号通路的各个方面以及在中枢神经系统疾病中的作用进行综述。
浅析停车库喷头布置与梁位的关系

分析了停车库喷头布置与梁位的关系,指出在自动喷水灭火系统设计时应分析梁位情况,当梁高度小于400mm时,可以忽略梁的影响;当梁高介于400~700mm时,喷头宜布置在稍高于梁底以上的高度,且水平方向距离梁大于300mm的位置;当梁高大于700mm时,应在设计初期与结构专业协商,合理地确定梁的布置形式,以使结构和自动喷水灭火系统设计都能满足规范要求并具有较好的经济性。指出宜以一个框架梁格范围为基数来布置喷头,满足喷水强度和单只喷头最大保护面积的要求。
齐墩果酸生物黏附胶囊的制备及其释药特征

目的制备齐墩果酸生物黏附胶囊并研究其释药特征。方法采用单因素正交设计法,确定羟丙甲基纤维素K4M、卡波姆971PNF、乳糖的用量及配比与制剂体外释放度及黏附力的关系。以齐墩果酸生物黏附胶囊在大鼠胃黏膜滞留率考察其生物利用度,并对其释药过程进行动力学方程拟合以判断释药机制。结果实验表明羟丙甲基纤维素与卡波姆均能阻滞药物的释放和对胃肠组织有较大的黏附力。生物黏附胶囊释药以Higuchi方程拟合最佳,与Peppas方程也有较好的相关性。结论该处方设计及制备工艺合理。其释药特征说明扩散和溶蚀均起作用,但扩散机制所占的比例相对较大。
天舒胶囊治疗偏头痛疗效的系统评价

目的通过文献检索系统评价天舒胶囊治疗偏头痛的临床疗效。方法计算机检索Pubmed、Cochrane图书馆、中国学术文献出版总库(CNKI)、维普电子期刊全文数据库(VIP)、万方数据库、中国生物医学文献数据库(CBM)等。2名评价员独立评价纳入研究的质量并提取资料,使用RevMan 5.0软件进行统计分析。结果共纳入20个研究,共1 807例患者。Meta 分析结果显示,天舒胶囊在偏头痛治疗有效率方面优于对照组[OR=3.60,95% CI =(2.65,4.90),P<0.000 01],天舒胶囊与对照组相比,能够减少头痛的持续时间[MD=- 13.20,95% CI =(- 20.29,- 6.11),P<0.000 01]和发作频率[MD=- 2.66,95%CI =(- 3.32,- 2.00),P=0.000 3],但是在减轻头痛程度方面无显著性差异[MD=- 0.96,95%CI =(- 2.41,0.48),P=0.13]。结论天舒胶囊能使偏头痛患者受益,但尚待大规模、高质量的研究加以验证。
分子靶向药物治疗非小细胞肺癌的策略

目的:介绍分子靶向药物治疗非小细胞肺癌的策略。方法:依据文献综述分子靶向药物治疗非小细胞肺癌的原理、一线及二线用药原则、未来分子靶向治疗药物的研究方向。结果与结论:治疗非小细胞肺癌需设计合理有效的一线及二线靶向治疗措施;未来肿瘤治疗的方向将是针对肿瘤细胞的特定靶点的个体化靶向治疗。
Experimental Study on Bubble Pulse Features Under the Combined Action of Horizontal and Vertical Walls

The pulse features of a bubble have a close connection with the boundary condition. When a bubble moves near a rigid wall, it will be attracted by the Bjerknes force of the wall, and a jet pointing at the wall will be generated. In real application, the bubble may move under the combined action of walls in different directions when it forms at the corner of a pipe or at the bottom of a dam. The motion of the bubble shows complex and nonlinear characteristics under these conditions. In order to investigate the bubble pulse features near complex walls, a horizontal wall and a vertical wall are put into the experimental water tank synchronously, and an electric circuit with 200 voltages is designed to generate discharge bubbles, and then experimental study on the bubble pulse features under the combined action of horizontal and vertical walls is carried out. The influences of the combined action of two walls on the bubble shape, pulse period, moving trace and inside jet are obtained by changing the distances from bubble center to the two walls. It aims at providing references for the relevant theoretical and numerical research.
The crystal structure of fibroblast growth factor 18 (FGF18)

Dear Editor, Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) regulate a plethora of critical processes in development (Beenken and Mohammadi, 2009).These processes are mediated by signaling through four FGF receptors (FGFR1–4), which are high-affinity cell surface receptor tyrosine kinases.Receptors 1–3 undergo alternative splicing to generate b- and c-isoforms with altered ligand specificities and affinities.Ligand to receptor binding is not unique and one receptor can be activated by several FGFs.Heparan sulfate (HS) proteoglycan, a variably polysulfated glycosaminoglycan related to heparin, is an essential requirement for FGF signaling with FGFs varying in their specificities for different HS sulfation patterns (Gallagher et al., 1992).
Intercellular protein–protein interactions at synapses

Chemical synapses are asymmetric intercellular junctions through which neurons send nerve impulses to communicate with other neurons or excitable cells.The appropriate formation of synapses, both spatially and temporally, is essential for brain function and depends on the intercellular protein-protein interactions of cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) at synaptic clefts.The CAM proteins link pre- and post-synaptic sites, and play essential roles in promoting synapse formation and maturation, maintaining synapse number and type, accumulating neurotransmitter receptors and ion channels, controlling neuronal differentiation, and even regulating synaptic plasticity directly.Alteration of the interactions of CAMs leads to structural and functional impairments, which results in many neurological disorders, such as autism, Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia.Therefore, it is crucial to understand the functions of CAMs during development and in the mature neural system, as well as in the pathogenesis of some neurological disorders.Here, we review the function of the major classes of CAMs, and how dysfunction of CAMs relates to several neurological disorders.
Effects of Buyang Huanwu Decoction on antioxidant and drug-metabolizing enzymes in rat liver

AIM: To study the effect of Buyang Huanwu Decoction (BYHWD) on the antioxidant enzymes and drug-metabolizing enzymes in rat liver. METHOD: Following treatment of rats with BYHWD at 6.42, 12.83, or 25.66 g·kg~(–1) per day for 15 days, microsomes and cytosols isolated from the liver tissues were prepared by differential centrifugation according to standard procedures. The activities of the antioxidant enzymes and cytochrome b5, NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase, CYP3A, CYP2E1, UGT, and GST of the rat livers were determined by UV-Vis spectrophotometer. RESULTS: The activities of ALT, AST, antioxidant enzymes, and the Hepatosomatic Index in serum were not significantly affected. In cytosols, the activity of CAT was significantly increased at the dosage of 12.83 g·kg~(–1), and all the other antioxidant activities and MDA levels were not affected by this treatment. BYHWD had no effect on cytochrome b5, NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase, CYP3A, and UGT. At the highest dose (25.66 g·kg~(–1)), the activity of CYP2E1 was significantly inhibited, and the activities of GST and the level of GSH were increased. CONCLUSION: BYHWD is safe for the liver, and has the functions of detoxification and antioxidant. Patients should be cautioned about the herb-drug interaction of BYHWD and CYP2E1 substrates.
Dynamic monitoring of the cytotoxic effects of protoberberine alkaloids from Rhizoma Coptidis on HepG2 cells using the xCELLigence system

AIM: To investigate the cytotoxic effects of the six protoberberine alkaloids (PAs) from Rhizoma Coptidis on HepG2 cells. METHOD: A systematic screening was conducted to investigate the dynamic response of HepG2 cells to the PAs using the impedance-based xCELLigence system. Cisplatin was selected as the positive control. The real time, concentration-response curves and the 50% inhibitory concentrations (IC_(50)) were acquired to evaluate the anticancer activity of the PAs. RESULTS: All of the six PAs inhibited cell growth and induce death in HepG2 cells in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. The IC_(50) values of cisplatin, berberine, columbamine, coptisine, epiberberine, jatrorrhizine, and palmatine were 5.13, 42.33, 226.54, 36.90, 302.72, 383.54, and 456.96 μg·mL~(-1), respectively. The results obtained using the xCELLigence system corresponded well with those of the conventional methods. CONCLUSION: The xCELLigence system is a reliable and efficient tool for real-time screening of the cytotoxic effect of compounds in cell-based in vitro assays. Coptisine and berberine, with methylenedioxy group at C2 and C3 on the phenyl ring showed stronger effect.than the other four PAs. However, compared with cisplatin, the six PAs didn’t show obvious cytotoxic effect on HepG2 cells.These results provided some useful data for the evaluation of the anticancer compounds, and the clinical application of traditional Chinese medicine.
3D finite element method (FEM) simulation of groundwater flow during backward erosion piping

Backward erosion piping is an important failure mechanism for cohesive water retaining structures which are founded on a sandy aquifer. At present, the prediction models for safety assessment are often based on 2D assumptions. In this work, a 3D numerical approach of the groundwater flow leading to the erosion mechanism of backward erosion piping is presented and discussed. Comparison of the 2D and 3D numerical results explicitly demonstrates the inherent 3D nature of the piping phenomenon. In addition, the influence of the seepage length is investigated and discussed for both piping initiation and piping progression. The results clearly indicate the superiority of the presented 3D numerical model compared to the established 2D approach. Moreover, the 3D numerical results enable a better understanding of the complex physical mechanism involved in backward erosion piping and thus can lead to a significant improvement in the safety assessment of water retaining structures.