Jiangsu University Research Articles

Fifth international scientific and practical conference «Transfer of Innovative Technologies 2019»

In May 2019, the 5th International Scientific Conference on Transfer of Innovative Technologies was held, which became a logical continuation of the Underwater Technologies Forum, which for four consecutive years was held at the Kyiv National University of Civil Engineering and Architecture under the slogan Impact of Water on the Environment and Innovative The main focus is on the integration of domestic and foreign experts in the development of theory, research, the creation of new technology and technologies, the use of the latest energy-efficient environmentally friendly technologies. Original ideas, new proposals, non-standard solutions, creative projects were considered. Methods of research and prediction of the properties of innovative materials, structures, technological processes, new approaches to the design, production and operation of industrial, civilian objects, infrastructure, energy, ecology, computer and information technologies are proposed. Original works and authoritative reviews on innovative technologies in construction, architecture, other fields of science and technology are presented. More than a hundred applications were received, including from scientists, manufacturers and experts from Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Australia, China, in the thematic areas: Architecture, Infrastructure, Construction, Engineering, Information Technology. The results of the competition program by nominations are summarized: Innovation project, Presentation, Publication. The best works are recommended for publication in international scientific journals Underwater Technologies: Industrial and Civil Engineering and Transfer of Innovative Technologies. Agreement was reached between KNUBA, Silesian University of Technology (Zabrze, Poland) and Jiangsu University of Science and Technology (Zhenjiang, China) for the joint publication of scientific journals. The importance of international cooperation in various fields and transfer of innovative technologies is emphasized.

Screening and Identification of Lactic Acid Bacteria with D-tagatose Production Capability

Aims: D-tagatose is a natural ketohexose which can be used as a functional sweetener in foods, diary and beverages products. Isolation of new bacterial strains having the ability to produce D-tagatose is a continuously trending topic of research.
 Study Design: Screening of strains with D-tagatose production by identification and determination of its ability to produce D-tagatose content.
 Place and Duration of Study: School of Food and Biological Engineering, Jiangsu University between May 2018 and April 2019.
 Methodology: We initially screened and identified the strains capable of producing D-tagatose through kimchi liquid, and determined the species and genetic characteristics of the strain by physiological, biochemical and molecular biological identification, and then determined the content of D-tagatose by high performance liquid chromatography. Finally calculate the ability of the strain to produce D-tagatose.
 Results: In this study, 4 strains of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were isolated from kimchi sample. The isolates were identified as Lactobacillus spp. (Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus fermentum and Lactobacillus salivarius) on the basis of morphological, physicochemical characteristics and analysis of 16S rDNA gene sequence. Because of the novelty, strain designated as L. salivarius UJS 003 was considered for D-tagatose yield. Fermentation of D-tagatose was carried out using galactose as substrate for 48 hr at 37 °C, and HPLC method was used to determine the yield. The experimental results exhibited a D-tagatose yield of 3.134 g/L by L. salivarius UJS 003.
 Conclusion: The strain UJS 003 represented as a potent D-tagatose producer and could be useful in a variety of biotechnological and industrial processes, particularly food and beverage industries.

Squeezed back-to-back correlations of K +K −in d + Au collisions at =200 GeV and Au + Au collisions at = 62.4 GeV * * Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (11647166, 11747155), the Natural Science Foundation of Inner Mongolia (2017BS0104), Changzhou Science and Technology Bureau (CJ20180054), and the Foundation of Jiangsu University of Technology (KYY17028)

We investigate the squeezed back-to-back correlations (BBC) of , caused by the mass modification of particles in the dense medium formed in d + Au collisions at GeV and Au + Au collisions at GeV. Considering that some kaons may not be affected by the medium, we further study the BBC functions of when parts of all kaons have a mass-shift. Our results indicate that the BBC functions of can be observed when only ~10% of all kaons have a mass-shift in d + Au collisions at GeV and the peripheral collisions of Au + Au at GeV. Since the BBC function is caused by the mass-shift due to the interactions between the particle and the medium, the successful detection of the BBC function indirectly marks that the dense medium has formed in these collision systems. We suggest the experimental measurement of the BBC function of in d + Au collisions at GeV and peripheral collisions of Au + Au at GeV.

Hindering Factors that Prevent College English Students from Participating in Class Discussions: A Case at Jiangsu University, China

During several non-participant observations of two advanced College English classes at Jiangsu University, it wasnoticed that most of the students did not engage in class discussions. To ascertain what the problem was, but fromlearners' perspectives, this research was conducted. Seventy-one students enrolled in College English at JiangsuUniversity volunteered to partake in this work. A self-administered questionnaire was used to gather the data. Thefindings indicate that most of the respondents did not take an active stance in class discussions because of their lackof knowledge on strategies to bear their thoughts or opinions. Other expressed that they did not know about thetopics to discuss in class, and that was a significant barrier to their performance. Besides, some participants doubtedto speak in class. That can be linked to their shyness. Knowledge about these findings is helpful for teachers andCollege English authorities to examine what kind of training should be offered to students and teachers to makesteady improvements.

221-LB: Omega-3 plus Plant Sterols Regulate Glucose and Lipid Metabolism in Impaired Glucose Regulation Individuals: A Parallel, Double-Blind Controlled and Randomized Clinical Trial

The balance of lipid metabolism has been recognized as one of the significant causes of impaired glucose metabolism in T2DM, which is steadily increasing worldwide. IGR plays a vital role in the prevention and treatment of T2DM. This study focused on roles of plant sterols (PS), omega-3 fatty acids or their combination on IGR individuals, moreover, further clarifying whether there is synergistic effect of combination PS with omega-3 fatty acids on the prevention and treatment of IGR through a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 2×2 factorial design trial. 200 participants consented were randomized to receive PS and omega-3 fatty acids (n=50), PS alone (n=50), omega-3 fatty acids alone (n=50) and placebo soy bean powder plus placebo capsules (n=50) for 12 weeks. To investigate the characteristics of body composition (weight, height, waistline, BMI, body fat rate, visceral fat rating), blood pressure, glucose metabolism (FPG, FINS, HOMA-IR, HbA1c), lipid metabolism (TG, TC, HDL-C, LDL-C) and inflammatory factors (Hs-CRP, IL-6) in IGR individuals. Compared with placebo group, the combined intervention significantly decreased TG, HDL-C, FBG, HOMA-IR and HbA1c. Omega-3 fatty acids alone led to significant reductions in waistline, TG, FBG, HOMA-IR and Hs-CRP. PS alone just decreased TG and Hs-CRP. No intervention produced significant changes in body weight, BMI, blood pressure, FINS, body fat rate, visceral fat rating, TC, LDL-C and IL-6. In conclusion, we have demonstrated for the first time that PS, omega-3 fatty acids or their combination significantly improved inflammation, insulin resistance, as well as glucose and lipid metabolism in IGR individuals. And combinative interaction has better effects than single dietary supplement. Disclosure P. Ruirong: None. Funding Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University

Peritoneal dialysis catheter insertion using a very-low-site approach: a 5-year experience.

Peritoneal dialysis (PD) catheter tip migration accounts for the majority of cases of PD catheter malfunction. In this case series, we described our experiences of using a modified PD catheter implantation approach through a site that is lower than the site that is conventionally used, to reduce catheter malfunction. We retrospectively identified 76 patients who received PD catheter implantation at the Affiliated Wujin Hospital of Jiangsu University, among whom 39 received the traditional approach of low-site insertion and 37 received a modified approach of very-low-site insertion. All participants were followed up for at least 2years after PD catheter implantation, and the development of catheter dysfunction or death during this period was monitored. We found that the survival rate of the initially inserted catheter was 75.68% among the very-low-site group. This survival rate was significantly better than that observed among the low-site group (48.72%; p = 0.029). Kaplan-Meier curves of the initial catheter survival also showed that the catheter survival was significantly higher in the patients in the very-low-site group than those in the low-site group (log rank p = 0.012). Complications, such as catheter tip migration, were not observed in the very-low-site group, while tip migration occurred in 15.38% of the patients in the low-site group (very-low-site group vs low-site group: p = 0.039). A safe and simple PD catheter implantation can be performed either through the low-site approach or the very-low-site approach.

2018 International Symposium on Power Electronics and Control Engineering (ISPECE 2018)

ISPECE 2018 PrefaceDuring December 28-30, 2018, the 2018 International Symposium on Power Electronics and Control Engineering (ISPECE 2018) was successfully held in the well-known historical and cultural ancient city of China—Xi’an. The goal of the conference was to provide an excellent international academic forum for all the researchers and practitioners. Any papers and topics that concentrates on the fields of power electronics and control engineering were broadly welcomed.Besides, the high-quality keynote talks were presented by professors from different areas including Prof. Yonghong Peng of the University of Sunderland, Prof. Jiang Yan of North China University of Technology and Prof. Yinglei Song of Jiangsu University of Science and Technology. It was a great chance for those that are of interest to the topics to interact with the experts to get their advice and consult as well as collaboration opportunities.ISPECE 2018 proceeding tends to collect the most up-to-date, comprehensive and worldwide state-of-art knowledge and research on the related fields of power electronics and control engineering. All the accepted papers have been submitted to strict peer review by expert referees, and selected based on originality, significance and clarity for the purpose of the conference. The proceeding consisting of 398 papers would be published in Journal of Physics: Conference Series (ISSN:1742-6588), and submitted to EI Compendex, Scopus, Inspec and CPCI for indexingList of Organizing Committees, Conference Chairs, Publication Chair, Local Committee, and International Technology Committees are available in this pdf.

Secrets of Lighting: Library Book Stack Illumination and Its Influences on Readers’ Book-Searching Behaviors

Abstract Book stack illuminance was recorded by a luminometer from September 2016 through September 2017 based on tracking-observation in two libraries at the University of Illinois at Urbana and Champaign in the US and the Jiangsu University Library in China. Independent-samples T test and one-way analysis of variance were used for records data analysis. Further, an experiment was designed to measure the effects of book stack lighting environment on readers’ book-searching behaviors. Independent-samples T test was used for experiment data analysis. It was found that the seasonal illuminance of book stacks changed irregularly, which meant that two hypotheses (1 and 2) central to this study were not fully supported, and the day-night illumination differences on the stacks was significant in UIUC libraries for three seasons, and completely significant in JSU Library. In the course of behavior experiments, stack lighting had no significant effect on American participants’ searching performance, while the results in the library of China were diametrically opposite. Therefore, the lighting system in book stacks should be optimized through choosing the appropriate light sources, adjusting the approaches to book stack lighting and, even more, considering readers’ expectation and perception during library lighting designing, so as to increase their efficiency in book-searching.

Developing Usable Academic Library Website for International Students through Usability Testing

A usable website is a key to ensuring user satisfaction whiles an unusable website brings about frustration and user dissatisfaction. Usability testing has been identified as a great way to check how usable products are to users. This is however ignored by many designers during the designing stage of products such as websites. This in the long run makes the user experience difficulties, errors, and frustration because the product was not created with the user needs in mind. Usability testing is a great way to explore the needs of users and also identify problems and challenges that users encounter while using a product. Involving users in usability testing helps to produce user-centered websites. This study therefore is an attempt to examine the Jiangsu University English Library Website which was designed for international students. Thus the study seeks to identify the needs of the international students as well as problems the users face whiles using the academic library website by involving them in the usability test. A user evaluation usability test with the Morae software was used in this study to analyze data. The study involves twenty international student participants of whom ten were from Asian Countries outside China and the other ten were from African countries and compared usability issues encountered by the groups when using the JUELW. According to the rule of the thumb 5 users are enough to help explore the usability issues. This study therefore serves as a guide for various libraries to use while conducting usability tests for their users and also makes recommendation for libraries to consider when designing library websites for their users especially international student.

64: EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF RECOMBINANT ACTIVATED FACTOR VII FOR THE TREATMENT OF PERIOPERATIVE BLEEDING

1N/A, Beijing 2Beijing Hospital, Beijing, China 3Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, China 4China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing, China

Experimental study of hydrodynamic performance for double-row rectangular floating breakwaters with porous plates

ABSTRACTAt present, floating breakwaters (FBs) have a good attenuating effect on short period wave, but the transmission coefficient of long period wave is still high and single-row FBs usually cannot provide desirable environment at adverse sea condition. Therefore, in order to attenuate the incoming wave better, a double-row FB system, consisted of two porous FBs with different distances in the wave direction, is proposed. A series of two-dimensional experiments were carried out in the wave flume (40 m*0.8 m*1.4 m) of the Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, China. Hydrodynamic characteristics of the FBs are illustrated and discussed to gain the conclusion that double-row FB system does better in many respects than single-row. Moreover, the particular porous design can effectively attenuate the incident waves with slight motion responses and small mooring forces.

Preoperative prediction of the extrathyroidal extension of papillary thyroid carcinoma using multi-b values of MR diffusion weighted imaging

Objective To evaluate the diagnostic performance of preoperative multi b values of DWI and ADC for the prediction of extrathyroidal extension (ETE) of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). Methods Between January 2013 and February 2017, MR images including dynamic contrast-enhanced MR imaging (DCE-MRI) and DWI images of 81 patients diagnosed as papillary thyroid carcinoma in the Affiliated Renmin Hospital of Jiangsu University were retrospectively analyzed. ADC values were measured on solid regions of tumors. The differences of ADC were compared between tumors with total ETE(minimal ETE, extensive ETE) and without ETE by independent-samples t test. Results When b=500 s/mm2, ADC values of PTCs with ETE[(1.27±0.17)×10-3mm2/s]were significantly lower than those from PTCs without ETE[(2.12±0.72)×10-3mm2/s, (t=9.126,P=0.000)]. ADC values of PTCs with extensive ETE[(1.23±0.17)×10-3mm2/s] were significantly lower than those from PTCs with minimal ETE[(1.29±0.16)×10-3mm2/s, (t=1.467, P=0.147) ]. When b=500 s/mm2, the cutoff value of ADC to discriminate PTCs with and without ETE was 1.530×10-3 mm2/s with a sensitivity of 69.0%, specificity of 93.7%, positive predictive value of 77.6%, negative predictive of 77.5% and ROC curve area of 0.887. Conclusion ADC values of the solid tumor tissue of PTC with ETE are significantly lower than those of PTC without ETE. DWI may be helpful in the determination of thyroid papillary carcinoma ETE. Key words: Diffusion magnetic resonance imaging; Thyroid neoplasms; Diagnostic techniques and procedures; Extrathyroidal extension

Thermoacoustic-reflected focusing lens based on acoustic Bessel-like beam with phase manipulation**Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11774137 and 51779107), the Six-Talent Peaks Project in Jiangsu Province, China (Grant No. GDZB-019), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant No. 2017M621643), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Higher Educational Institutions of China (Grant No. 18KJB140003), and the

We report the realization of broadband reflected acoustic focusing lenses based on thermoacoustic phased arrays of Bessel-like beams, in which the units of phase manipulation are composed of three rigid insulated boundaries and a thermal insulation film in air with different temperatures. Based on these units, we realize a reflected focusing lens which can focus reflected acoustic energy on a line, and its fractional bandwidth can reach about 0.29. In addition, we discuss the influences of the base angle of Bessel-like beam, the number of basic unit, and the variation of unit temperature on focusing performances in details. Furthermore, the reflected focusing lens for the cylindrical acoustic wave based on the Bessel-like beam is also demonstrated. The proposed focusing lens has the advantages of a broad working bandwidth, large focus size, and high robustness, which may provide possibilities for the design and application of acoustic lenses.

SALL4 activates TGF-β/SMAD signaling pathway to induce EMT and promote gastric cancer metastasis.

BackgroundIncreasing evidence suggests that SALL4 plays oncogenic roles in cancer development and progression. We have previously shown that SALL4 is highly expressed in gastric cancer, and its upregulation is associated with lymph node metastasis and poor prognosis. The role of SALL4 in gastric cancer metastasis and the underlying mechanism remain unclear.Materials and methodsThe biological roles of SALL4 in gastric cancer cell mobility, migration, and invasion were investigated by wound healing, transwell migration assay, and Matrigel invasion assay. The effects of SALL4 on epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) in gastric cancer cells were examined by quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot. The downstream target genes of SALL4 were identified by microarray. The regulation of TGF-β1 by SALL4 in gastric cancer cells was analyzed by luciferase reporter assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation assay.ResultsSALL4 knockdown inhibited, while SALL4 overexpression promoted the motility, migration, and invasion abilities of gastric cancer cells in vitro. SALL4 knockdown also suppressed the peritoneal metastasis of gastric cancer cells in nude mice. SALL4 knockdown suppressed, while SALL4 overexpression induced the activation of TGF-β/SMAD signaling pathway and triggered EMT in gastric cancer cells. TGF-β1 was identified as a direct target gene of SALL4. The results of chromatin immunoprecipitation study and luciferase reporter assay further confirmed that SALL4 bound to the promoter of TGF-b1 gene and activated its expression. TGF-β1 knockdown reversed SALL4-mediated promotion of gastric cancer cell motility, migration, and invasion, indicating that TGF-β1 acts as a downstream effector of SALL4. Furthermore, the expression of TGF-β1 was found to be closely associated with that of SALL4 in gastric cancer tissues.ConclusionSALL4 promotes the metastasis of gastric cancer, at least partly, by directly activating TGF-β1, suggesting that SALL4 may serve as a new target for gastric cancer therapy.

Comparison of the diagnostic value of US and MRI for papillary thyroid carcinoma

Objective To compare the image features of magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) and ultrasound(US) for papillary thyroid carcinoma(PTC). Methods From January 2015 to April 2016, 86 consecutive patients underwent surgery and pathologically confirmed PTCs in the People's Hospital Affiliated to Jiangsu University were selected.All patients received neck US and MRI examination before thyroid surgery.For each case, the US and MRI features emphasized included the echogenic/signal, margin, shape, anteroposterior to transverse diameter ratio(A/T), microcalcifications and lymph node metastasis.Statistical analysis was performed using the χ2 test. Results In the comparison of US and MRI features, A/T≥1(41.9% in US and 62.8% in MRI) and lymph node metastasis(88.0% in MRI; 56.0% in US) demonstrated statistically significant differences (χ2=7.551, P=0.009; χ2=6.349, P=0.025), and no significant differences were observed in the margin, shape(P=0.724, P=0.316). Conclusion The MRI features of PTCs included A/T and lymph node metastasis was superior to US. Key words: Thyroid neoplasm; Carcinoma, papillary; Magnetic resonance imaging; Ultrasonography

The Role of Plasma Choline and Betaine in Cardiovascular Disease Risk

Background: As precursors of Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), the association between dietary choline and betaine and the risk of CVD have been well studied. However, researches on the relationship between plasma choline and betaine and the development and progression of CVD remain inconclusive. Methods: PubMed was used to search for the studies on association between choline and betaine in plasma and CVD risk. A systemic meta-analysis was then conducted. Importantly, a case-control study including 2,019 subjects was further performed to validate the relationship between plasma choline and betaine and the progression of CVD. Findings: A total of four studies enrolled 7,219 subjects were eventually included in the meta-analysis. The result suggested plasma choline was significantly associated with CVD progression [Hazard ratio (HR): 2·33, 95% Confidence interval (CI): 1·32-4·12, p = 3·50E-3], while plasma betaine not (HR: 1·14, 95% CI: 0·89-1·45, p = 2·91E-1). Furthermore, 2,019 subjects including 235 normal coronary artery (NCA), 631 non-significant coronary artery disease (nos-CVD) and 1,153 acute coronary syndrome (ACS) individuals, were recruited to confirm the findings. The result adjusted multiple covariates and TMAO indicated that plasma choline was significantly associated with CVD progression [NCA vs. nos-CVD, Odds ratio (OR): 1·75, 95% CI: 1·08 - 2·83, p = 2·24E-02]. Interpretation: Increased plasma choline level associates with the risk of CVD. The plasma choline contributes to CVD progression from NCA to nos-CVD independent from TMAO. However, plasma choline contributes to CVD progression by converting into TMAO from nos-CVD to ACS. Funding: This study was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (91639115). Declaration of Interest: Authors declare no conflicts of interest. Ethical Approval: Participants provided written informed consent and the China Pharmaceutical University and Jiangsu University Review Board approved the study.

Associations between Tensin1 protein and clinicopathological characteristics and prognoses of gastric cancer patients

Objective To investigate the associations between expression of Tensin1 protein and clinicpathological characteristics and prognoses of gastric cancer (GC) patients. Methods The retrospective case-control study was conducted. The clinicopathological data of 163 GC patients who were admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University between July 31, 2011 and December 31, 2013 were collected. The GC tissues and adjacent normal tissues were taken to paraffin imbedding, and then were detected by immunohistochemistry. Observation indicator: (1) expressions of Tensin1 protein in GC tissues and adjacent normal tissues; (2) association between expression of Tensin1 protein in GC tissues and clinicopathological characteristics; (3) follow-up and survival situations; (4) prognostic factors analysis. Follow-up using telephone interview was performed to detect survival up to January 1, 2017. Measurement data with skewed distribution were described as M (range). Count data were analyzed using the chi-square test or pairing chi-square test. The survival curve and rate were respectively drawn and calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method, and Log-rank test was used for survival analysis. The univariate analysis and multivariate analysis were done using the COX roportional hazard model. Results (1) Expressions of Tensin1 protein in GC tissues and adjacent normal tissues: immunohistochemistry showed that Tensin1 protein in GC tissues and adjacent normal tissues mainly expressed in cytoplasm. Of 163 patients, 154 (66 with high expression and 88 with low expression) and 9 had respectively positive and negative expressions of Tensin1 protein in GC tissues; 79 (37 with high expression and 42 with low expression) and 84 had respectively positive and negative expressions of Tensin1 protein in adjacent normal tissues, with statistically significant differences in positive expression ratio and expression levels (χ2=64.65, 12.93, P<0.05). (2) Association between expression of Tensin1 protein in GC tissues and clinicopathological characteristics: high expression rate of Tensin1 protein in GC tissues were respectively 31.34%(21/67) in GC patients with tumor metastases and 46.88%(45/96) in GC patients without tumor metastasis, with a statistically significant difference (χ2=3.95, P<0.05). (3) Follow-up and survival situations: all the 163 patients were followed up for 3.3-64.7 months, with a median time of 28.7 months. The 3-year cumulative disease-free survival rate and cumulative overall survival rate in GC tissues were 63.12%, 74.22% in 66 patients with high expression of Tensin1 protein and 47.30%, 55.74% in 97 patients with low and negative expressions of Tensin1 protein, showing statistically significant differences in above indicators (χ2=4.58, 4.11, P<0.05). Survival analysis of subgroups showed that 3-year cumulative disease-free survival rate in GC tissues of patients with maximum tumor dimension ≥ 5 cm, nerve and / or vascular invasions and stage Ⅲ of TNM staging were 45.98%, 62.79%, 52.75% in patients with high expression of Tensin1 protein and 18.11%, 31.10%, 32.80% in patients with low and negative expressions of Tensin1 protein, with a statistically significant difference (χ2=5.85, 7.89, 4.96, P<0.05). The 3-year cumulative overall survival rate was respectively 66.00%, 75.75%, 67.93% in patients with high expression of Tensin1 protein and 30.74%, 40.15%, 44.67% in patients with low and negative expressions of Tensin1 protein, with statistically significant differences (χ2=7.59, 9.62, 4.32, P<0.05). (4) Prognostic factors analysis: results of univariate analysis showed that maximum tumor dimension, histological grade, nerve and / or vascular invasions, postoperative TNM staging, postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy and expression of Tensin1 protein were related factors affecting prognoses of GC patients [hazard ratio (HR)=3.66, 2.45, 2.17, 3.36, 0.41, 0.54, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.09-6.41, 1.43-4.19, 1.17-4.04, 1.52-7.41, 0.23-0.72, 0.31-0.96, P<0.05]. Results of multivariate analysis showed that maximum tumor dimension ≥ 5 cm and grade Ⅲ of histological grade were independent risk factors affecting prognoses of GC patients (HR=3.21, 2.17, 95%CI: 1.63-6.32, 1.18-3.99, P<0.05), and postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy and high expression of Tensin1 protein were independent protective factors affecting prognoses of GC patients (HR=0.50, 0.44, 95%CI: 0.28-0.90, 0.24-0.82, P<0.05). Conclusion High expression of Tensin1 protein may inhibit GC metastasis, and it is also an independent protective factor affecting prognoses of GC patients. Key words: Gastric neoplasms; Tensin1; Clinicopathological characteristics; Prognosis; Survival rate

Clinical analysis of 23 cases with adult intussusception

Objective To analyze the pathogenesis, type, diagnosis and surgical methods of adult intussusception. Methods The clinical presentation, diagnosis and therapeutic management of 23 patients admitted with the diagnosis of intussusception in Kunshan First People′s Hospital Affiliated to Jiangsu University from January 2014 to March 2017 were reviewed retrospectively. Results For all patients, Symptom included paroxysmal bellyache (22/23), abdominal mass (7/23), nausea and vomit (2/23). Twenty one patients received operation, and all discharged from hospital. Malignant neoplasm, benign tumor, diverticulum, inflammation and fecal stone were main cause for intussusception. Conclusion Most of adult intussusceptions are secondary lesions, with complex pathologic condition and non-specific symptoms. CT scanning has been proved to be the most useful diagnostic radiologic method. Surgery is the main treatment of adult intussusception. As for patients recevied conservative treatment and intraoperative exploration with no obvious lesions, endoscopy is necessary postoperative. Key words: Diagnosis; Treatment; Disease attributes; Adult intussusception; Etiology

Predictive value of serum S100B levels in patients with multiple trauma combined delirium for their outcome at intensive care unit discharge

Objective: To investigate the predictive value of elevated serum S100B level in patients with multiple traumas combined delirium for the clinical prognosis prior to intensive care unit (ICU) discharge. Methods: One hundred seventy-nine patients with multiple traumas diagnosed as delirium after admission over 48 hours to the Department of Critical Care Medicine, People's Hospital Affiliated to Jiangsu University from January 2013 to December 2016 were divided into two groups according to the level of serum S100B measured prior to the ICU discharge: high S100B group (≥0.20 μg/L, n=53) and low S100B group (<0.20 μg/L, n=126). The difference of the clinical prognoses between the two groups was evaluated with t or Chi-square test. Results: The patients in high S100B group had a higher ICU readmission rate (18.9% vs 6.3%, χ(2)=6.464, P=0.011). The 30-day mortality was higher for patients in high S100B group than that in low S100B group (5.7% vs 4.0%, χ(2)=0.308, P=0.579). The incidence of adverse outcome was also significantly higher for patients in high S100B group than that in low S100B group (35.8% vs 17.5%, χ(2)=7.144, P=0.008). The sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score before ICU discharge was also higher for patients in the high S100B group than that in the low S100B group (3.2±1.3 vs 2.4±1.1, t=4.204, P=0.000). The duration of ICU stay for patients in high S100B group was significantly longer than that in the low S100B group[(16±8) vs (12±5) d, t=4.095, P=0.000]. The area under the curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristics of the S100B was 0.742, 95% CI: 0.574-0.910. The multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the odds ratio (95% CI) in the prediction of adverse outcomes by S100B level prior to the ICU discharge was 1.39(1.15-1.53), P=0.009. Conclusion: Elevated serum level of S100B in patients with multiple traumas combined delirium prior to ICU discharge is closely associated with poor clinical prognosis, but it is only a modest predictor that may not be used alone in judgements of clinical treatments for patients.

Interview

Dr Xueyun Wei from Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, China, talks to Electronics Letters about the work behind the paper ‘Application of kernel PCA for foetal electrocardiogram estimation’, page 340. Dr Xueyun Wei I joined a team of scientific researchers who, using both advanced signal processing and detection technology, focus on biomedical signal processing and methods that can help to diagnose diseases. At the moment, my research focuses on the non-invasive detection of foetal electrocardiogram (ECG). Foetal ECG monitoring using abdominal ECG signals involves the detection of signals with low amplitudes that are produced by the foetal heartbeat. These signals are often overwhelmed by large interference and noise. The maternal ECG is the predominant source of interference, which is the most important consideration that must be accounted for when estimating foetal ECG signals. Various techniques have been employed to address foetal ECG estimation, including correlation techniques, adaptive filtering, wavelet analysis, blind source separation, neural networks and singular value decomposition. When employing an analysis method, such as principal component analysis, the powerful maternal ECG is considered to be the principal component as it dominates the foetal ECG and other background noises. Utilising the correlation between the maternal components in different lead ECG signals, allows maternal components from abdominal signals to be removed and foetal ECG to be estimated. In our Letter, we have reported a new method to estimate the antepartum foetal ECG signal using kernel principal component analysis (kPCA). We show that this method can reveal nonlinearities in the principal components of signals measured with different leads, thereby allowing the maternal components in different lead signals to be extracted. When compared to the popular independent component analysis method, experimental data from the proposed method has shown strong nonlinear analysis ability for foetal ECG estimation. The work reported in our Letter shows strong nonlinearity between the maternal components of every collected signal due to observed diversity in the signal propagation path. Kernel PCA can be considered to be a non-linear form of PCA that can extract the non-linear principal component from multi-dimensional data. Thus, this method can be applied to ECG signals that have been recorded using multiple leads to eliminate the maternal ECG components and accurately estimate foetal ECG signals. Selecting an appropriate kernel function and parameters based on multi-dimensional nonlinear data is the only challenge associated with this method. Although many signal processing methods have been used to extract foetal ECG information from the abdominal ECG signal, these methods still experience problems that limit their clinical application, such as low extraction accuracy and reliability difficulties. Most of the existing research methods use the linear mixed model or the local linear mixed model, which lack the ability to perform extensive nonlinear analysis. This work provides a new nonlinear un-mixing model for foetal ECG extraction, which could be used for clinical applications in the near future. We are planning to apply this method in appropriate technology as soon as possible. Changes in the foetal heart function are due to the regulating function of the central nervous system. Therefore, foetal heart monitoring plays a very important role in foetal disease/deficiency diagnosis. I am also studying big data issues associated with biomedical signals. At the moment, data storage capacities and modern technology has exceeded the intellectual ability of people. This issue is particularly prevalent for contemporary medical service data, which is ever-increasing. However, traditional statistical techniques and data managerial tools cannot meet current demands. The demand for quantitative diagnosis and precise treatment is increasing in modern medicine. Therefore, the application of biomedical signal processing is a field that is rapidly expanding. This field is full of challenging and innovative opportunities. The excitement it brings to researchers is like climbing Mount Qomolangma (Everest), making people full of passion and expectation.