Multidimensional Connection Cloud Model Coupled with Improved CRITIC Method for Evaluation of Eutrophic Water

The degree of eutrophication in the water environment is deepening. For the appropriate treatment of eutrophication, it is essential to evaluate it accurately. However, the evaluation of eutrophication has not been well solved because it is full of uncertainty. Herein, a multidimensional connection cloud model, combined with the improved CRITIC (Criteria Importance Through Inter-criteria Correlation) method, was put forward here to assess water eutrophication and depict the randomness, ambiguity, and interaction of evaluation factors. First, an improved CRITIC was adopted to determine indicator weight so that the correlation among different indicators and more information were depicted. Secondly, a multidimensional connection cloud was simulated to characterize fuzzy indicators and ambiguous classification boundary values according to classification criteria. Next, the connection degree was calculated relative to the evaluation standard. The eutrophication grade was specified under the “maximum connection degree” principle. At last, the effectiveness and practicality of the model proposed here were affirmed by two cases and comparisons with supplementary methods. The results suggest that the proposed model can avoid shortcomings of the original CRITIC method and cloud model, and make the assessment result more realistic.

Identification of LINC00173 in Myasthenia Gravis by Integration Analysis of Aberrantly Methylated- Differentially Expressed Genes and ceRNA Networks

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disease associated with autoantibody production that leads to skeletal muscle weakness. The molecular mechanisms underlying MG are not fully understood. We analyzed the gene expression profile (GSE85452) and methylation profile (GSE85647) of MG samples from the GEO database to identify aberrantly methylated-differentially expressed genes. By integrating the datasets, we identified 143 hypermethylation-low expression genes and 91 hypomethylation-high expression genes. Then we constructed PPI network and ceRNA networks by these genes. Phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) and Abelson tyrosine-protein kinase (ABL)1 were critical genes in both PPI networks and ceRNA networks. And potential MG associated lncRNAs were selected by comprehensive analysis of the critical genes and ceRNA networks. In the hypermethylation-low expression genes associated ceRNA network, sirtuin (SIRT)1 was the most important gene and the lncRNA HLA complex (HC) P5 had the highest connection degree. Meanwhile, PTEN was the most important gene and the lncRNA LINC00173 had the highest connection degree in the hypomethylation-high expression genes associated ceRNA network. LINC00173 was validated to be upregulated in MG patients by qRT-PCR (P = 0.005), which indicated LINC00173 might be a potential biomarker for MG. These results provide a basis for future studies on the molecular pathogenesis of MG.

A Study on the Behavior of Composite Concrete and Open Web Steel Joists

In this research, the results of three composite open web steel joist static tests are presented along with the results of companion pushout tests. The effect of shear connection degree and span-to-depth ratio on the behavior of composite open web joists under distributed static loading is reviewed and discussed, followed by a comparison of results of the shear stud strength from push-out tests, back-calculated from the ultimate capacity of the composite joist tests, and to the provisions in the AISC, EC4, NZS, SJI, and BS5950. Specimen test results of the studied span-to-depth ratios showed that the load-deflection behavior was similar to ultimate capacity difference less than 10%, but they experienced different failure modes and deflection. And when the test results were compared based on the shear connection degree, they revealed that the composite open web joist designed with partial shear connection suffered from severe deformation and deflection accompanied with higher ultimate capacity

Application of a Cloud Model-Set Pair Analysis in Efficacy Assessment for Diabetic Ulcers

Because treatment of diabetic ulcers includes various uncertainties, efficacy assessments are needed and significant. In previous studies, set pair analysis (SPA) has been applied to the efficacy assessments of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) that pick out uncertainties related to the development and prognosis of disease. Optimized clinical protocols of SPA improve clinical efficacy. In the article, cloud model (CM) is employed to improve SPA, and a novel efficacy assessment method for a treatment of diabetic ulcers is proposed based on the cloud model-set pair analysis (CM-SPA). It is recommended to replace connection degree (CD) with cloud connection degree (CCD) that the efficacy assessment results are shown as normal clouds. Then, three diabetic ulcers patients treated with TCM made importance assessment by both CM-SPA and AHP based SPA. The comparison of assessment results shows that the CM-SPA is efficacious for the efficacy assessment of a treatment for diabetic ulcers and the results will be more scientific and accurate via CM-SPA.

Analytical Modeling and Results Evaluation of Composite Open Web Steel Joists Behavior

In this study, the analytic model (Azmi Model) had been considered for computation the load capacities of the composite open web steel joists and compared them with those obtained from experimental tests. The capacities of seven joists had been studied, each including one of the following variables (distribution of headed studs, connection degree of the connectors, inclination of the web, shape of the web, density of slab concrete, length of connectors).Theoretically, according to the Analytic model, the referenced joist of (45° web inclination , uniformly distributed ,over connected ,short headed studs) exhibited maximum load capacity of (18.45) ton, while the joist of (45° web inclination, uniformly distributed, under connected, short headed studs) exhibited minimum load capacity of (16.23) ton at yield point of bottom chord. Experimentally, the referenced joist exhibited maximum load capacity of (15.51) ton, while the joist of (34° web inclination, uniformly distributed, over connected, short headed studs) exhibited (12.49) ton load capacity. The load capacities values of the tested joists ranged between (67%-85%) of the predicted values according to the analytic model.