Analytical Prediction for Tunnel-Soil-Pile Interaction Mechanics based on Kerr Foundation Model

Zhiguo Zhang,Chengping Zhang,Kangming Jiang,Zhiwei Wang,Yunjuan Jiang,Qihua Zhao,Minghao Lu 대한토목학회 2019 KSCE JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING Vol.23 No.6

Existing analytical method to predict tunneling-induced pile deformation is generally based on the Winkler foundation model that neglects shear effects of soil, which is not sufficient for engineering practice. A simplified solution based on Kerr foundation model is presented in this study to investigate the tunnel-soil-pile interaction. In order to improve the accuracy of the prediction for tunneling-induced free-field movements, the cavity contraction theory is utilized in the first stage which received a higher accuracy than the previous solution. In the second stage, the soil free-field displacement is imposed on the existing pile, and the simplified solution for pile deformation governed by the disturbance of passive displacement is established based on the Kerr foundation model, which can take account of the soil shear effects. The applicability and accuracy of the simplified solution are then verified by several cases including the reported analytical solution, centrifuge modeling tests and observed data in situ. Good agreements are obtained in the comparative analyses, which demonstrates that the proposed solution can serve as an alternative approach for conservatively estimating tunneling-induced pile deformation in the preliminary design in clay. Furthermore, the parametric analysis associated with the pile deformation has also been performed. As a result, it is of primarily theoretical and practical significance to investigate the influence of soil shear effects on the tunnel-soil-pile interaction mechanics.

Diabetic Cardiomyopathy and Its Prevention by Nrf2: Current Status

Jing Chen,Zhiguo Zhang,Lu Cai 대한당뇨병학회 2014 Diabetes and Metabolism Journal Vol.38 No.5

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM), as one of the major cardiac complications in diabetic patients, is known to related with oxidative stress that is due to a severe imbalance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and/or reactive nitrogen species (RNS) generation and their clearance by antioxidant defense systems. Transcription factor nuclear factor NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) plays an important role in maintaining the oxidative homeostasis by regulating multiple downstream antioxidants. Diabetes may up-regulate several antioxidants in the heart as a compensative mechanism at early stage, but at late stage, diabetes not only generates extra ROS and/or RNS but also impairs antioxidant capacity in the heart, including Nrf2. In an early study, we have established that Nrf2 protect the cardiac cells and heart from high level of glucose in vitro and hyperglycemia in vivo, and in the following study demonstrated the significant down-regulation of cardiac Nrf2 expression in diabetic animals and patients. Using Nrf2-KO mice or Nrf2 inducers, blooming evidence has indicated the important protection by Nrf2 from cardiac pathogenesis in the diabetes. Therefore, this brief review summarizes the status of studies on Nrf2’s role in preventing DCM and even other complications, the need for new and safe Nrf2 inducer screening and the precaution for the undesirable side of Nrf2 under certain conditions.

In silico Improvement of Heterologous Biosynthesis of Erythromycin Precursor 6-Deoxyerythronolide B in Escherichia coli

Hailin Meng,Zhiguo Lu,Yong Wang,Xiaoning Wang,Siliang Zhang 한국생물공학회 2011 Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering Vol.16 No.3

The heterologous biosynthesis of 6-deoxyerythronolide B (6dEB), a key intermediate in the biosynthesis of erythromycin, has recently been achieved in Escherichia coli, but the experimental product yield remains low. In this study, in silico strategies were adopted to evaluate and improve the biosynthesis of 6dEB in this strain. The theoretical capability of E. coli to produce 6dEB was first evaluated by analyzing the maximum theoretical molar yield (MTMY) of 6dEB utilizing three carbon sources,glucose, propionate and glycerol. Although propionate is presently most often used experimentally, our results indicated that glucose would be the most feasible substrate for 6dEB production from economic and long-term standpoints. Compared with Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Bacillus subtilis, E. coli was found to be a better heterologous host for the biosynthesis of 6dEB due to the higher MTMY value under the same conditions. Two strategies,including a flux distribution comparison analysis (FDCA)and linear minimization of metabolic adjustment based (LMOMA-based) methods, were proposed and employed for in silico strain improvement of 6dEB production, which yielded several potential gene targets for future experimental validation. In a further analysis, increasing the specific growth rate (SGR) or the non-growth associated maintenance (NGAM) was found to decrease the MTMY; while increasing the specific oxygen uptake rate (SOUR) or the specific carbon source uptake rate (SCUR) increased the MTMY. Taken together, our findings identified key factors directly affecting the MTMY of 6dEB production, which will guide future experimental research or even the industrial production of 6dEB.

Hot deformation behavior of CNTs/Al-Li composite prepared by powder metallurgy

Jia Lei,Liu Yang,Xing Zhiguo,He Gengchao,Lu Zhenlin,Zhou Yongxin 한국탄소학회 2022 Carbon Letters Vol.32 No.5

CNTs/Al-Li composite was first prepared by hot-pressed sintering from Al-Li alloy powder and CNTs solution, and then the hot compression tests were performed on MMS-100 thermal simulator at strain rate range of 0.01– 10 s−1, deformation temperature range of 350–500 °C, and total deformation amount of 60%. True stress–strain curves were plotted, and constitutive equation as well as hot processing maps were successfully confirmed based on Arrhenius constitutive model and Prasad instability criterion. Results show that CNTs/Al-Li composite have a very poor hot deformation ability and narrow processing region, which is strain rate range of 0.1–1 s−1 and deformation temperature range of 360–400 °C. Hot extrusion experiment was carried out and the processing parameters were selected according to the established hot processing map, and an improvement on strength and a good balance between strength and plasticity can be obtained, which is about 650 MPa for tensile strength and 9% for elongation.

Specific Mutations in APC, with Prognostic Implications in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer

Huan Peng,Jun Ying,Jia Zang,Hao Lu,Xiaokai Zhao,Pengmin Yang,Xintao Wang,Jieyi Li,Ziying Gong,Daoyun Zhang,Zhiguo Wang 대한암학회 2023 Cancer Research and Treatment Vol.55 No.4

Purpose Loss-of-function mutations in the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene are common in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). However, the characteristic of APC specific mutations in mCRC is poorly understood. Here, we explored the clinical and molecular characteristics of N-terminal and C-terminal side APC mutations in Chinese patients with mCRC. Materials and Methods Hybrid capture-based next-generation sequencing was performed on tumor tissues from 275 mCRC pati-ents to detect mutations in 639 tumor-associated genes. The prognostic value and gene-pathway difference between APC specific mutations in mCRC patients were analyzed. Results APC mutations were highly clustered, accounting for 73% of all mCRC patients, and most of them were truncating mutations. The tumor mutation burden of the N-terminal side APC mutations group (n=76) was significantly lower than that of the C-terminal side group (n=123) (p < 0.001), further confirmed by the public database. Survival analysis showed that mCRC patients with N-terminus side APC mutations had longer overall survival than C-terminus side. Tumor gene pathway analysis showed that gene mutations in the RTK/RAS, Wnt and transforming growth factor β signaling pathways of the C-terminal group were significantly higher than those of the N-terminal group (p < 0.05). Additionally, KRAS, AMER1, TGFBR2, and ARID1A driver mutations were more common in patients with C-terminal side APC mutations. Conclusion APC specific mutations have potential function as mCRC prognostic biomarkers. There are obvious differences in the gene mutation patterns between the C-terminus and N-terminus APC mutations group, which may have certain guiding significance for the subsequent precise treatment of mCRC.

Culture-Positive Spontaneous Ascitic Infection in Patients with Acute Decompensated Cirrhosis: Multidrug-Resistant Pathogens and Antibiotic Strategies

Jing Liu,Yanhang Gao,Xianbo Wang,Zhiping Qian,Jinjun Chen,Yan Huang,Zhongji Meng,Xiaobo Lu,Guohong Deng,Feng Liu,Zhiguo Zhang,Hai Li,Xin Zheng 연세대학교의과대학 2020 Yonsei medical journal Vol.61 No.2

Purpose: This study investigated multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens and antibiotic strategies of culture-positive spontaneousascitic infection (SAI) in patients with acute decompensated cirrhosis. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 432 acute decompensated cirrhotic patients with culture-positive SAI from11 teaching hospitals in China (January 2012 to May 2018). A Cox proportional hazards model analysis was conducted to identifyindependent predictors of 28-day mortality. Results: A total of 455 strains were isolated from 432 ascitic culture samples. Gram-negative bacteria (GNB), gram-positive bacteria(GPB), and fungi caused 52.3, 45.5, and 2.2% of all SAI episodes, respectively. Episodes were classified as nosocomial (41.2%), healthcare-related (34.7%), and community-acquired (24.1%). Escherichia coli (13.4%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (2.4%) were extendedspectrumβ-lactamase producing isolates. The prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was 1.1%. Ceftazidime,cefepime, aztreonam, and amikacin were recommended as first-line antibiotics agents for non-MDR GNB infections; piperacillin/tazobactam and carbapenems for MDR GNB in community-acquired and healthcare-related or nosocomial infections, respectively;and vancomycin or linezolid for GPB infections, regardless of drug-resistance status. Multivariate analysis revealed days ofhospital stay before SAI, upper gastrointestinal bleeding, white blood cell count, alanine aminotransferase, serum creatinine concentration,total bilirubin, and international normalized ratio as key independent predictors of 28-day mortality. Conclusion: MDR pathogens and antibiotic strategies were identified in patients with acute decompensated cirrhosis with culture-positive SAI, which may help optimize therapy and improve clinical outcomes.