Salp swarm algorithm with iterative mapping and local escaping for multi-level threshold image segmentation: a skin cancer dermoscopic case study

Hao Shuhui,Huang Changcheng,Heidari Ali Asghar,Chen Huiling,Li Lingzhi,Algarni Abeer D.,Elmannai Hela,Xu Suling 한국CDE학회 2023 Journal of computational design and engineering Vol.10 No.2

If found and treated early, fast-growing skin cancers can dramatically prolong patients’ lives. Dermoscopy is a convenient and reliable tool during the fore-period detection stage of skin cancer, so the efficient processing of digital images of dermoscopy is particularly critical to improving the level of a skin cancer diagnosis. Notably, image segmentation is a part of image preprocessing and essential technical support in the process of image processing. In addition, multi-threshold image segmentation (MIS) technology is extensively used due to its straightforward and effective features. Many academics have coupled different meta-heuristic algorithms with MIS to raise image segmentation quality. Nonetheless, these meta-heuristic algorithms frequently enter local optima. Therefore, this paper suggests an improved salp swarm algorithm (ILSSA) method that combines iterative mapping and local escaping operator to address this drawback. Besides, this paper also proposes the ILSSA-based MIS approach, which is triumphantly utilized to segment dermoscopic images of skin cancer. This method uses two-dimensional (2D) Kapur’s entropy as the objective function and employs non-local means 2D histogram to represent the image information. Furthermore, an array of benchmark function test experiments demonstrated that ILSSA could alleviate the local optimal problem more effectively than other compared algorithms. Afterward, the skin cancer dermoscopy image segmentation experiment displayed that the proposed ILSSA-based MIS method obtained superior segmentation results than other MIS peers and was more adaptable at different thresholds.

Responses of Low-Quality Soil Microbial Community Structure and Activities to Application of a Mixed Material of Humic Acid, Biochar, and Super Absorbent Polymer

Fangze Li,Shuhui Men,Shiwei Zhang,Juan Huang,Xuehua Puyang,Zhenqing Wu,Zhanbin Huang 한국미생물·생명공학회 2020 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.30 No.9

Low-quality soil for land reuse is a crucial problem in vegetation quality and especially to waste disposal sites in mining areas. It is necessary to find suitable materials to improve the soil quality and especially to increase soil microbial diversity and activity. In this study, pot experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of a mixed material of humic acid, super absorbent polymer and biochar on low-quality soil indexes and the microbial community response. The indexes included soil physicochemical properties and the corresponding plant growth. The results showed that the mixed material could improve chemical properties and physical structure of soil by increasing the bulk density, porosity, macro aggregate, and promote the mineralization of nutrient elements in soil. The best performance was achieved by adding 3 g·kg-1 super absorbent polymer, 3 g·kg-1 humic acid, and 10 g·kg-1 biochar to soil with plant total nitrogen, dry weight and height increased by 85.18%, 266.41% and 74.06%, respectively. Physicochemical properties caused changes in soil microbial diversity. Acidobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Chloroflexi, Cyanobacteria, Firmicutes, Nitrospirae, Planctomycetes, and Proteobacteria were significantly positively correlated with most of the physical, chemical and plant indicators. Actinobacteria and Armatimonadetes were significantly negatively correlated with most measurement factors. Therefore, this study can contribute to improving the understanding of low-quality soil and how it affects soil microbial functions and sustainability.

Thermally Self-Healable Titanium Dioxide/Polyurethane Nanocomposites with Recoverable Mechanical and Dielectric Properties

Xudong Wu,Jingyu Huang,Shuhui Yu,Panpan Ruan,Rong Sun,Ching-Ping Wong 한국고분자학회 2020 Macromolecular Research Vol.28 No.4

Dielectric materials with self-healing property after the occurrence of detrimental events such as tearing or scratch are highly desired, which guarantees reliability and lifetime of the electric and electronic systems. Here, a self-healing covalently bonded titanium dioxide/polyurethane (TiO2/PU) nanocomposite with enhanced dielectric constant was prepared by in-situ polymerization based upon Diels-Alder reaction. The PU prepolymer was prepared from TiO2, poly(tetramethylene glycol) and 4,4-diphenylmethane diisocyanate. Then the linking between the prepolymer and Diels-Alder adducts of bifunctional maleimide blocked by furfuryl alcohol was carried out. The in-situ polymerization method allows the TiO2 filler, the PU polymer matrix, and the DA healing portion to be tightly connected, resulting in a stable nanocomposite system. Due to the reversibility of covalent bonds, the TiO2/PU nanocomposites exhibited thermal self-healing properties after being cut. The dielectric constant and loss, mechanical properties can be effectively restored to their original state after damage.

Effect of Various Retrogression Regimes on Aging Behavior and Precipitates Characterization of a High Zn-Containing Al–Zn–Mg–Cu Alloy

Kai Wen,Baiqing Xiong,Yongan Zhang,Zhihui Li,Xiwu Li,Shuhui Huang,Lizhen Yan,Hongwei Yan,Hongwei Liu 대한금속·재료학회 2018 METALS AND MATERIALS International Vol.24 No.3

In the present work, the infl uence of various retrogression treatments on hardness, electrical conductivity and mechanicalproperties of a high Zn-containing Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloy is investigated and several retrogression regimes subjected to a samestrength level are proposed. The precipitates are qualitatively investigated by means of transmission electron microscopy(TEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy techniques. Based on the matrix precipitate observations, thedistributions of precipitate size and nearest inter-precipitate distance are extracted from bright-fi eld TEM images projectedalong ⟨110⟩ Al orientation with the aid of an imaging analysis and an arithmetic method. The results show that GP zonesand η′ precipitates are the major precipitates and the precipitate size and its distribution range continuously enlarge with theretrogression regime expands to an extent of high temperature. The nearest inter-precipitate distance ranges obtained arequite the same and the average distance of nearest inter-precipitates show a slight increase. The infl uence of precipitates onmechanical properties is discussed through the interaction relationship between precipitates and dislocations.

Microstructure Evolution of High-Alloyed Al–Zn–Mg–Cu–Zr Alloy Containing Trace Amount of Sc During Homogenization

Yu Wang,Zhihui Li,Baiqing Xiong,Kai Wen,Shuhui Huang,Xiwu Li,Yongan Zhang 대한금속·재료학회 2019 METALS AND MATERIALS International Vol.25 No.3

Microstructure evolution of a new high-alloyed Al–Zn–Mg–Cu–Zr–Sc aluminium alloy during two-stage homogenizationprocess was investigated by use of scanning electron microscope, transition electron microscope and high resolution transitionelectron microscope. The results indicate that the morphology and chemical composition of Al 3 (Sc, Zr) particles formedin the fi rst stage were greatly aff ected by heating temperature. With the increase of heating temperature, the morphologyof Al 3 (Sc, Zr) particles transform from cuboidal with evident faceting to spheroidal due to improved Zr diff usivity. MoreZr atoms enrich in the interface of precipitate/matrix forming a thin layer. Moreover, the mean diameter of precipitatesincreases a little bit with the increase of heating temperature, showing very restricted coarsening rate and high thermal stabilityof Al 3 (Sc, Zr) particles. After an appropriate second stage heat treatment (474 °C × 48 h), the intermetallic formed inthe solidifi cation process could dissolve suffi ciently and Al 3 (Sc, Zr) particles still keep very good coherency with Al matrixwithout abnormal growth.

The deubiquitinating enzyme STAMBP is a newly discovered driver of triple-negative breast cancer progression that maintains RAI14 protein stability

Yang Qianqian,Yan Ding,Zou Chaoying,Xue Qian,Lin Shuhui,Huang Qingtian,Li Xiaofen,Tang Daolin,Chen Xin,Liu Jinbao 생화학분자생물학회 2022 Experimental and molecular medicine Vol.54 No.-

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a heterogeneous malignancy in women. It is associated with poor prognosis, aggressive malignant behavior, and limited treatment options. In the ubiquitin‒proteasome system (UPS), deubiquitinases (DUBs) are potential therapeutic targets for various tumors. In this study, by performing unbiased siRNA screening, we identified STAMBP, a JAMM metalloprotease in the DUB family, as a driver of human TNBC tumor growth. Functionally, the knockdown of STAMBP inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of multiple TNBC cell lines. Immunoprecipitation–mass spectrometry combined with functional and morphological analysis verified the interaction between STAMBP and the actin-binding protein RAI14. Mechanistically, STAMBP stabilized the RAI14 protein by suppressing the K48-linked ubiquitination of RAI14 and thus prevented its proteasomal degradation. Therefore, knocking down STAMBP resulted in the reduction in RAI14 protein levels and suppression of tumor growth in vitro and in vivo. Importantly, high levels of STAMBP were correlated with poor prognosis in TNBC patients. In summary, we reveal a previously unrecognized DUB pathway that promotes TNBC progression and provides a rationale for potential therapeutic interventions for the treatment of TNBC.