To promote the standardization and harmonization of glycated hemoglobin A1c （HbA1c） testing results in medical laboratories across Beijing， we established a reference method for HbA1c. This method participated in the International Comparison Program for HbA1c Reference Laboratories organized by the European Reference Laboratory Network for HbA1c to validate its accuracy. The experimental samples consisted of HbA1c network reference laboratory proficiency testing samples imported annually from the Netherlands， including six calibrators （A-F）， ten intercomparison samples， several quality control materials， and additional auxiliary samples with International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine （IFCC）-assigned values. The pre-treatment process involved digesting samples with protein endopeptidase Glu-C. The experimental samples were removed from the -80 ℃ freezer and allowed to reach room temperature. Subsequently， 50 μL of Glu-C （mass concentration： 200 μg/mL） was added to each sample vial at a ratio of total hemoglobin to enzyme of 1 mg∶0.01 mg. The volume was then adjusted to a final volume of 500 μL with ammonium acetate solution （50 mmol/L， pH 4.3）. After thorough mixing， the samples were incubated at 37 ℃ for 18-20 h. Using mobile phases of methanol and 0.1% formic acid aqueous solution under gradient elution conditions， the detection of HbA1c in international samples was performed via high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry （HPLC-MS/MS）. A gradient elution mode was employed for liquid chromatography separation using a Shimadzu C18 column （50 mm×3 mm， 2.2 μm）. The injector temperature was maintained at 4-8 ℃， with a column temperature of 30 ℃. The flow rate was kept constant at 0.6 mL/min， with an injection volume of 5 μL and a total run time of 8 min. The MS detection was performed using electrospray ionization （ESI） in positive ion mode with multiple reaction monitoring （MRM）. The monitored ion pairs for the precursor and product ions of non-glycated and glycated N-terminal hexapeptides are m/z 348.2/237.2 and m/z 429.2/245.2， respectively. The linearity was evaluated by performing regression analysis. The HbA1c （mmol/mol） quantification in unknown samples was achieved by performing linear regression using Analyst 1.6.2 software. Peak areas were integrated， with the abscissa （X-axis） representing the known concentration ratio of HbA1c to hemoglobin A0 （HbA0）， and the ordinate （Y-axis） representing the average peak area ratio of glycated to non-glycated hexapeptides. Both glycated and non-glycated hexapeptides eluted within 3 min， with linear correlation coefficients ranging from 0.999 6 to 0.999 8. The quality control （QC） materials （≥3 types） annually provided by the IFCC were analyzed. Since each QC material in every shipment typically consists of two replicated vials， enzymatic digestion was performed in two separate batches. For each batch， five parallel samples were processed， followed by triplicate injections of each sample. Intra-assay and total coefficients of variation （CV） were calculated. The intra-assay coefficients of variation （CVs） were 0.35%-2.20%， and the total CVs were 0.83%-2.39%. From 2018 to 2024， IFCC compared individual laboratory results with the overall median， calculating proportional bias （slope） and systematic bias （intercept） based on linear regression. Our laboratory's combined statistical test value （computed from slope and intercept） ranged from 0.1 to 3.0. The systematic bias ranged from -0.69 to 1.27， and the proportional bias ranged from -0.009 to 0.021. The residual values from all testing points in the 2024 proficiency testing （PT） program were evenly distributed around zero. Furthermore， the magnitude of residual deviations from zero was relatively small compared to those observed across the 15 participating laboratories， demonstrating satisfactory consistency in our laboratory's analytical results. The established HbA1c reference method demonstrated robust performance， achieving satisfactory results in IFCC international comparisons from 2018 to 2024.

Anaxyelidae, a relict lineage of sawflies, are represented by a single extant species today but displayed remarkable Mesozoic diversity. Here, we describe the Orthosyntexis mascula sp. nov. from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber. The new species can be readily distinguished by its forewing, with a normally sized, uniformly sclerotized pterostigma; 1-Rs shorter than 1-M; cell 1M more than twice as long as wide; absence of 1r-rs; 1-Cu, distinctly shorter than 2-Cu; 3-Cu shorter than 4-Cu; 2m-cu shorter than 1m-cu; and 3rs-m twice as short as 4-M. In the hind wing, abscissa 2-M+Cu present, 1-M shorter than 2-M, crossvein m-cu absent, and cell R1 closed. Mesotibia with two apical spurs. Examination of high-resolution photographs of Kempendaja jacutensis enables a revised interpretation of its venation, confirming its placement in Anaxyelinae. Comparative analysis of syntexine taxa further reveals that variation in the forewing crossvein 1r-rs consistently corresponds with hind wing venation, suggesting that multiple evolutionary trajectories may have existed within Syntexinae. These findings not only expand the known diversity of Cretaceous Anaxyelidae but also provide new evidence for reconstructing the evolutionary history and internal diversification of Anaxyelidae.

In the present work, the orientation of two-dimensional square crystals is studied using the radial distribution function (RDF) defined with the Chebyshev distance. Traditional RDF methods, based on the Euclidean metric, fail to detect changes in crystal orientation due to their isotropic nature. To overcome this limitation, we introduce a modification of the RDF employing the Chebyshev metric, which adds sensitivity to directional changes within square lattices. This approach expands the information conventionally obtained from the RDF by incorporating not only translational properties but also orientational information. The study provides a mathematical analysis of the peak distribution in this enhanced RDF approach when applied to square crystals rotated through various orientations. We found that the orientation of square crystals can be efficiently determined by calculating the abscissa of the first peak in the Chebyshev RDF, which reduces computational times, even for fine numerical resolutions of differential annular widths as small as 10^{-3} or less. This approach can be applied to any two-dimensional (2D) Bravais lattice structure, with potential modifications based on lattice parameters and is robust for analyzing imperfect lattices with noise and vacancies. In this study, we demonstrate its application on rotated 2D Bravais square lattices, laying the groundwork for future studies on other 2D lattice structures. Additionally, we explore the use of this method to characterize jamming in 2D granular cubic systems, focusing on the orientation of oblique square grains in tilted vibrated layers under cyclic shear.

Reliability and accuracy of lateral correlation length measurements are studied and quantified from the analysis of synthetic correlated profiles. First, we review available methods to characterize self-affine profiles; we discuss the autocorrelation, Hurst, interface width, and maximum difference functions as widely applicable. We demonstrate that the functions are essentially related and give comparable predictions of the scaling behavior. Second, we consider definitions of correlation length employed in practice. Roughly, they might be cast into two groups, selecting by whether they do not require or require fitting. Approaches from the first group are straightforward and easy to implement; however, they may over- or underestimate the value of correlation length on a small data set due to a size effect. Approaches from the second group may smooth possible oscillations; nevertheless, their precision highly depends on the fit quality. We demonstrate that correlation length found with different approaches might be easily rescaled one onto another. In addition, we introduce a parameter which is further used to estimate accuracy of measurements. Third, we estimate accuracy of all functions and methods on synthetic correlated profiles. We demonstrate influence of the size effect on statistical functions. We show that different methods have different accuracy and different convergence rate to the true value. Fourth, we estimate a parameter saying how much profile length should be larger than the measured value of correlation length in order to get the desirable accuracy of measurements. Finally, we conclude our paper with the recommendation to define correlation length as an abscissa of the e^{-1} point of the autocorrelation function, and note that the accuracy of 10% is achieved if 100 studied profiles are at least 50 times larger than the measured value of correlation length.

A new species of Ateleute, A. valeriae sp. nov., is described from Kibale National Park, in Uganda. The new species differs from others of the genus in the Afrotropical region by its larger body size, ovipositor relatively long and straight, and presence of the distal abscissa of vein AA in the hind wing. The new species sheds light on the morphological variability and diversity of the genus Ateleute in the Afrotropical region.

Multiple delays and connection topology are the key parameters for the realistic modeling of networks. This paper discusses the influences of time delays and connection weight on multi-delay artificial neural models with inertial couplings. Firstly, sufficient conditions of some singularities involving static bifurcation, Hopf bifurcation, and pitchfork-Hopf bifurcation are presented by analyzing the transcendental characteristic equation. Secondly, taking self-connection weight and coupling delays as adjusting parameters and utilizing the parameter perturbation with the aid of the non-reduced order technique for the first time, rich dynamics near zero-Hopf interaction are obtained on the plane with self-connected weight and coupling delay as abscissa and ordinate. The multi-delay inertial neural system can exhibit coexisting attractors such as a pair of nontrivial equilibrium points and a periodic orbit with nontrivial equilibrium points. Self-connected weight can affect the number and dynamics of the system equilibrium points, while time delays can contribute to both trivial equilibrium and non-trivial equilibrium losing their stability and generating limit cycles. Simulation plots are displayed with computer software to support the established main results. Compared with the traditional reduced-order method, the used method here is simple and valid with less computation. The key research findings of this paper have significant theoretical guiding value in dominating and optimizing networks.

We further pursue an investigation on an abstract model characterizing the dynamics of a general class of n-species facultative mutualisms that was initiated in Georgescu et al. (2017), establishing biologically relevant sufficient conditions for the global asymptotic stability of the coexistence equilibria. These conditions are given in terms of per-species limits of growth-to-loss ratios computed at higher population densities, complemented by either monotonicity or sublinearity inequalities, and are observed to hold for n-species versions of mutualistic models in current use. The specific modeling details that require either of these conditions being satisfied are outlined and discussed. As mutualisms can enhance species diversification and facilitate stable coexistence via a plethora of mechanisms, it is then important to understand the stability of speciose mutualisms, our results being of potential interest to theoretical ecologists studying the coexistence of many interacting species and to conservationists aiming for rare species preservation.

In this study, a novel and accurate quantitative analysis method for the direct determination of chitosan (CS) in aqueous solutions using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) is presented. By detecting the mass spectrum response intensity of a series of CS characteristic ion pairs, the sample concentration (abscissa) was linearly fitted with the total ion current (TIC) response intensity of its characteristic ion pairs (ordinate). A reliable standard curve was derived for quantifying CS in the range of 125-4000 ng/mL. Under the detection conditions, this CS quantification method yielded acceptable specificity (no interference peak), linearity (with correlation coefficient (r[2]) values >0.999), precision (acceptable limit RSDr < 3 %, RSDR < 6 %), accuracy (RE within the acceptable limits of ±5 %), and stability (acceptable limit RE within ±5 %, RSDr < 3 %). Moreover, the applicability of measurement was verified when a series of substrates did not interact with CS in the solution. Results have verified the applicability of this method for determining CS content in different composites. This study provides a method for determining CS content with significant practical value and economic benefit.

Purpose: To investigate the effect of obesity on mortality and invasive respiratory care (IRC) in patients with COVID-19. Methods: We studied 1,105 patients for 34 months and collected data. The primary outcome was all-cause death at 29 days. The secondary outcome was IRC indicated by a pulse oximetry rate below 93% at a mask oxygenation rate of 5 L/min or more. Results: Age- and sex-adjusted multivariate regression analysis for 29-day deaths showed the significance of body mass index (BMI) > 19.6 kg/m[2] (odds ratio 0.117, 95% confidence interval 0.052-0.265, P<0.001). The graphs with BMI in the abscissa showed, within a BMI between 11 and 25 kg/m[2], a decreasing pattern for mortality and IRC rate, and no increase in overweight. Conclusion: In Japanese COVID-19 patients, the risk of mortality and the IRC rate decreased in underweight patients and remained low in overweight patients, suggesting the importance of the obesity paradox.