Search

Homogenous melting at superheating temperature is commonly described by classical nucleation theory (CNT), but the atomic mechanism of the formation and development of critical liquid nuclei is still unclear. Molecular dynamics simulations were conducted to analyze the melting process of Ta. It is found that the process of subcritical liquid clusters evolving into critical liquid nucleus occupies most of the melting time, and merging between neighboring liquid clusters is the main path for subcritical liquid clusters to grow in size. Total melting time is strongly affected by the distribution of formation sites of subcritical liquid clusters, which has been considered random in homogenous melting. This work depicts a clear picture of the formation and development of liquid phase during the homogeneous melting process at superheating temperature and suggests an internal factor of melting mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Depressurization combined with heat (mainly hot water) injection is an important technique for exploiting natural gas hydrate (NGH). To overcome the problems of pore water intrusion and hot water energy loss in the technique, this paper employs a method of setting sealing boundaries in permeable overburden and underburden to exploit NGH. The influence of the presence of sealing boundaries on NGH exploitation performances was numerically investigated. The results indicate that the sealing boundaries in permeable overburden and underburden can inhibit water intrusion and reduce heat loss, significantly improving the efficiency of hydrate dissociation and gas production. Specifically, the hydrate dissociation and gas production efficiency increased by 22.0–30.1% and 63.9–85.1%, respectively. Moreover, there is an optimal sealing vertical distance within the range of 0–15 m, maximizing the mining efficiency of NGH at the end of production. On the other hand, the presence of sealing boundaries effectively limits the escape range of CH4 in the permeable overburden and underburden, resulting in an increasing gas-to-water ratio and an increasing energy efficiency. These findings provide theoretical and technical support for the mining of NGH by depressurization combined with heat injection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Observational Alzheimer's disease (AD) cohorts including the Australian, Biomarkers, Imaging and Lifestyle (AIBL) Study have enhanced our understanding of AD. The generalizability of findings from AIBL to the general population has yet to be studied. Objective: We aimed to compare characteristics of people with AD dementia in AIBL to 1) the general population of older Australians using pharmacological treatment for AD dementia, and to 2) the general population of older Australians who self-reported a diagnosis of dementia. Methods: Descriptive study comparing people aged 65 years of over (1) in AIBL that had a diagnosis of AD dementia, (2) dispensed with pharmacological treatment for AD in Australia in 2021 linked to the Australian census in 2021 (refer to as PBS/census), (3) self-reported a diagnosis of dementia in the 2021 Australian census (refer to as dementia/census). Baseline characteristics included age, sex, highest education attainment, primary language, and medical co-morbidities. Results: Participants in AIBL were younger, had more years of education, and had a lower culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) population compared to the PBS/census cohort and dementia/census cohort (mean age±standard deviation – AIBL 79±7 years, PBS/census 81±7, p < 0.001, dementia/census 83±8, p < 0.001; greater than 12 years of education AIBL 40%, PBS/census 35%, p = 0.020, dementia/census 29%, p < 0.001; CALD – AIBL 3%, PBS/census 20%, p < 0.001, dementia/census 22%, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that care should be taken regarding the generalizability of AIBL in CALD populations and the interpretation of results on the natural history of AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The drift dynamics of ion-temperature-gradient (ITG) driven fluctuations in the plane perpendicular to a guiding magnetic field is investigated by mapping its governing equation into a Schr o ̈ d inger -type equation. First, we separate the parallel dynamics and the perpendicular dynamics. The parallel dynamics can coherently couple with the perpendicular dynamics, leading to the growth of a coherent, localized ITG eigenmode. The E × B flow plays a dominant role for the fluctuation propagation dynamics and impact on the radial redistribution of fluctuations. Another attractive finding is that the ITG wave packet can penetrate a strong yet narrow E × B shear layer through "tunneling." When the parallel dynamics becomes stochastic, non-eigenmode peaks can emerge in the fluctuation power spectrum and an estimate of the saturated spectrum intensity of the ITG fluctuations can be obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The social risk of a community renewal project is a macro concept, which is composed of many micro social risk factors. Community renewal projects involve a large number of stakeholder subjects, and the relationship between the subjects is intricate and complex, which leads to a more diversified source of social risk factors behind community renewal projects. There are interactions and interdependence among many factors, and complex interactions form a coupled relationship between the factors. In this paper, an original corpus is constructed based on online and offline data, and 19 risk factors of community renewal projects and the coupling effects of the factors are identified through the grounded theory. The factor weights are solved through the analytic network process (ANP). The dynamic evolution model of social risks is constructed through the system dynamics model based on the factors, the coupling effects of the factors, and the factor weights, so as to simulate the dynamic evolution process of the social risks. The results show that factors such as the management mechanism soundness have larger weights, and in the process of social risks evolution, core factors such as unsound management mechanism will trigger a series of other risk factors, which will increase the overall social risks. This paper identifies the key factors of social risks, clarifies the complex coupling relationship between the factors, provides a dynamic evolution model, reveals the dynamic evolution process of social risks, and provides theoretical basis and countermeasure suggestions for efficiently identifying and controlling the social risks of community renewal projects. Practical Applications: Community renewal projects involve numerous stakeholders, including the government, enterprises, and residents. These stakeholders interact frequently, creating complex relationships that significantly impact the project. The diverse factors from these stakeholders can lead to significant social risks in community renewal projects, with these factors influencing and interacting with each other. This paper constructs a dynamic evolution model of social risks, which can reveal how social risk factors from diverse entities evolve dynamically. It uncovers the micro-level components behind the macro concept of social risks, helping managers and practitioners clarify the constituent factors of social risks and their dynamic interrelationships. By predicting social risks and their evolution in community renewal projects, this model provides a theoretical basis and feasible suggestions for efficiently identifying, evaluating, analyzing, and controlling social risks. Ultimately, it contributes to enhancing the efficiency and sustainability of community renewal projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible wearable electronics are in urgent need of advanced micro‐energy storage devices. MXenes are widely used in supercapacitors because of their excellent conductivity and hydrophilicity. Nevertheless, MXene‐based supercapacitors typically exhibit low capacitance and unsatisfied rate performance, particularly in the solid compact MXene film electrode with limited porosity and/or ion diffusion paths. Here, the synthesis of MXene inks with enlarged interlayer spacing for facilitated ion diffusion kinetics by intercalating lithium ions is reported. The ion‐intercalated MXene inks are further screen‐printed for scalable production of MXene‐based micro‐supercapacitors (MSCs). Benefiting from such an electrode architecture design, as well as the wide voltage window of 21 m bis(trifluoromethane)sulfonimide lithium (LiTFSI) water‐in‐salt electrolyte, the device exhibits impressive areal capacitance (252 mF cm−2), much‐improved rate performance (capacitance retention rate as high as 80%), excellent cyclic stability (retains 98.4% of initial capacitance after 10 000 cycles) and flexibility, showing great potential in the field of wearable intelligent electronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several (inter)national longitudinal dementia observational datasets encompassing demographic information, neuroimaging, biomarkers, neuropsychological evaluations, and muti-omics data, have ushered in a new era of potential for integrating machine learning (ML) into dementia research and clinical practice. ML, with its proficiency in handling multi-modal and high-dimensional data, has emerged as an innovative technique to facilitate early diagnosis, differential diagnosis, and to predict onset and progression of mild cognitive impairment and dementia. In this review, we evaluate current and potential applications of ML, including its history in dementia research, how it compares to traditional statistics, the types of datasets it uses and the general workflow. Moreover, we identify the technical barriers and challenges of ML implementations in clinical practice. Overall, this review provides a comprehensive understanding of ML with non-technical explanations for broader accessibility to biomedical scientists and clinicians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yarn‐woven triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have greatly advanced wearable sensor technology, but their limited sensitivity and stability hinder broad adoption. To address these limitations, Poly(VDF‐TrFE) and P(olyadiohexylenediamine (PA66)‐based nanofibers coaxial yarns (NCYs) combining coaxial conjugated electrospinning and online conductive adhesive coating are developed. The integration of these NCYs led to enhanced TENGs (NCY‐TENGs), notable for their flexibility, stretchability, and improved sensitivity, which is ideal for capturing body motion signals. One significant application of this technology is the fabrication of smart insoles from NCY‐TENG plain‐woven fabrics. These insoles are highly sensitive and possess antibacterial, breathable, and washable properties, making them ideal for real‐time gait monitoring in patients with diabetic foot conditions. The NCY‐TENGs and their derivatives show immense potential for a variety of wearable electronic devices, representing a considerable advancement in the field of wearable sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Dynamic total-body imaging enables new perspectives to investigate the potential relationship between the central and peripheral regions. Employing uEXPLORER dynamic [11C]CFT PET/CT imaging with voxel-wise simplified reference tissue model (SRTM) kinetic modeling and semi-quantitative measures, we explored how the correlation pattern between nigrostriatal and digestive regions differed between the healthy participants as controls (HC) and patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Methods: Eleven participants (six HCs and five PDs) underwent 75-min dynamic [11C]CFT scans on a total-body PET/CT scanner (uEXPLORER, United Imaging Healthcare) were retrospectively enrolled. Time activity curves for four nigrostriatal nuclei (caudate, putamen, pallidum, and substantia nigra) and three digestive organs (pancreas, stomach, and duodenum) were obtained. Total-body parametric images of relative transporter rate constant (R1) and distribution volume ratio (DVR) were generated using the SRTM with occipital lobe as the reference tissue and a linear regression with spatial-constraint algorithm. Standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) at early (1–3 min, SUVREP) and late (60–75 min, SUVRLP) phases were calculated as the semi-quantitative substitutes for R1 and DVR, respectively. Results: Significant differences in estimates between the HC and PD groups were identified in DVR and SUVRLP of putamen (DVR: 4.82 ± 1.58 vs. 2.58 ± 0.53; SUVRLP: 4.65 ± 1.36 vs. 2.84 ± 0.67; for HC and PD, respectively, both p < 0.05) and SUVREP of stomach (1.12 ± 0.27 vs. 2.27 ± 0.65 for HC and PD, respectively; p < 0.01). In the HC group, negative correlations were observed between stomach and substantia nigra in both the R1 and SUVREP values (r=-0.83, p < 0.05 for R1; r=-0.94, p < 0.01 for SUVREP). Positive correlations were identified between pancreas and putamen in both DVR and SUVRLP values (r = 0.94, p < 0.01 for DVR; r = 1.00, p < 0.001 for SUVRLP). By contrast, in the PD group, no correlations were found between the aforementioned target nigrostriatal and digestive areas. Conclusions: The parametric images of R1 and DVR generated from the SRTM model, along with SUVREP and SUVRLP, were proposed to quantify dynamic total-body [11C]CFT PET/CT in HC and PD groups. The distinction in correlation patterns of nigrostriatal and digestive regions between HC and PD groups identified by R1 and DVR, or SUVRs, may provide new insights into the disease mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tidal disruption events (TDEs) are routinely observed in quiescent galaxies, as stars from the nuclear star cluster are scattered into the loss cone of the central supermassive black hole (SMBH). TDEs are also expected to occur in active galactic nuclei (AGNs), due to scattering or orbital eccentricity pumping of stars embedded in the innermost regions of the AGN accretion disc. Encounters with embedded stellar-mass black holes (BH) can result in AGN μTDEs. AGN TDEs and μTDEs could therefore account for a fraction of observed AGN variability. Here, by performing scattering experiments with the few-body code SpaceHub , we compute the probability of AGN TDEs and μTDEs as a result of 3-body interactions between stars and binary BHs. We find that AGN TDEs are more probable during the early life of the AGNs, when rates are |$\sim (6\times 10^{-5}-5 \times 10^{-2}) (f_\bullet /0.01)\, \rm {AGN}^{-1}$| yr−1 (where f • is the ratio between the number density of BHs and stars), generally higher than in quiescent galactic nuclei. By contrast, μTDEs should occur throughout the AGN lifetime at a rate of |$\sim (1\times 10^{-4} - 4\times 10^{-2})(f_\bullet /0.01)\, \rm {AGN}^{-1}$| yr−1. Detection and characterization of AGN TDEs and μAGN TDEs with future surveys using Rubin and Roman will help constrain the populations of stars and compact objects embedded in AGN discs, a key input for the LVK AGN channel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, low-rank sparse representation (LRR) schemes have been applied to the field of hyperspectral image (HSI) anomaly detection (AD) and received attention. However, it is often accompanied by a small amount of noise in the AD, which leads to a high false alarm rate of detection results. In this paper, the HSI-AD algorithm is proposed to address this problem. First, the HSI is unmixed using the deep network to obtain the endmembers and abundance, and the abundance matrix is fused with the HSI to obtain the mixed data, which to a certain extent complements the spatial information of the HSI because the abundance matrix can reflect the subpixel-level information of the target image elements. Then, the mixed data are decomposed based on the model proposed in this paper. To overcome the situation that the sparse part of the traditional model is prone to mix with a small amount of noise, the sparse decomposition of the mixed data into anomaly and noise is used to remove the small amount of noise from the sparse part. A joint dictionary consisting of background and anomaly is used in the above model. In addition, to address the problem of information loss caused by the uniform accumulation of kernel norm over all singular values in the process of model decomposition, this paper designs the γ norm decomposition method to replace the general kernel norm decomposition for a more effective extraction of useful information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The diagnostic value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound combined with ultrasound elastography for benign and malignant thyroid nodules is still controversial, so we used meta-analysis to seek controversial answers. The PubMed, OVID, and CNKI databases were searched according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The literature was selected from the establishment of each database to February 2024. The QUADAS-2 tool assessed diagnostic test accuracy. SROC curves and Spearman's correlation coefficient were made by Review Manager 5.4 software to assess the presence of threshold effects in the literature. Meta-Disc1.4 software was used for Cochrane-Q and χ2 tests, which be used to evaluate heterogeneity, with P-values and I2 indicating heterogeneity levels. The appropriate effect model was selected based on the results of the heterogeneity test. Stata18.0 software was used to evaluate publication bias. The diagnostic accuracy of contrast-enhanced ultrasound combined with ultrasound elastography for benign and malignant thyroid nodules was evaluated by calculating the combined sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, DOR, and area under the SROC curve. A total of 31 studies included 3811 patients with 4718 nodules were analyzed. There is no heterogeneity caused by the threshold effect, but there is significant non-threshold heterogeneity. Combined diagnostic metrics were: sensitivity = 0.93, specificity = 0.91, DOR = 168.41, positive likelihood ratio = 10.60, and negative likelihood ratio = 0.07. The SROC curve area was 0.97. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound and elastography show high diagnostic accuracy for thyroid nodules, offering a solid foundation for early diagnosis and treatment. Trial registration. CRD42024509462. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the problem of weak maneuvering target detection in the space-based bistatic radar system through long-time coherent integration (LTCI). The space-based bistatic radar is vulnerable to the high-order range migration (RM) and Doppler frequency migration (DFM), since the target, the receiver and the transmitter all can play fast movement independently. To correct high- order RM and DFM, this usually involves joint high-dimensional parameter searching, incurring a large computational burden. In our previous work, a dual-scale (DS) decomposition of motion parameters was proposed, in which the optimal GRFT is conditionally decoupled into two cascade procedures called the modified generalized inverse Fourier transform (GIFT) and generalized Fourier transform (GFT), resulting in the DS-GRFT detector. However, even if the DS-GRFT detector preserves the superior performance and dramatically decreases the complexity, high-dimensional searching is still required. In this paper, by analyzing the structure of the DS-GRFT detector, we further designed a conditioned cubic phase function (CCPF) tailored to the range–slow-time signal after GIFT, breaking the joint high-dimensional searching into independent one-dimensional searching. Then, by connecting the proposed CCPF with the GIFT, we achieved a new LTCI detector called the DS-GIFT-CCPF detector, which obtained a significant computational cost reduction with acceptable performance loss, as demonstrated in numerical experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Efficient and thorough treatment of dye wastewater is essential to achieve ecological harmony. In this study, a new type of calcium-based modified coal gangue (Ca-CG) was prepared by using solid waste coal gangue as raw material and a CaCl2 modifier, which was used for the removal of malachite green, methylene blue, crystal violet, methyl violet and other dyes in water. When the dosage of Ca-CG was 1–5 g/L, the dosage of Ca-CG was the main factor affecting the dye adsorption effect. The adsorption effects of Ca-CG on four dyes were as follows: malachite green > crystal violet > methylene blue > methyl violet. Kinetics, isotherms and thermodynamic analysis showed that the adsorption of malachite green, methyl blue, crystal violet and methyl violet by Ca-CG fitted the second-order kinetic model, and adsorption with chemical reaction is the main process. The adsorption of four dyes by Ca-CG conformed to the Freundlich model, which is dominated by multi-molecular layer adsorption, and the adsorption was easy to carry out. The adsorption process of Ca-CG on the four dyes was spontaneous. The results of FTIR, XRD and SEM showed that the calcium-based materials such as lipscombite and dolomite were the key to the adsorption of malachite green by Ca-CG, and the main mechanisms for the adsorption of malachite green by Ca-CG are surface precipitation, electrostatic action, and chelation reaction. Ca-CG adsorption has great potential for the removal of dye wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To explore the metabolic fingerprints of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in individuals with type 2 diabetes using a newly-developed laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (LDI-MS) platform assisted by ferric particles. Metabolic fingerprinting was performed using a ferric particle-assisted LDI-MS platform. A nested population-based case-control study was performed on 216 DR cases and 216 control individuals with type 2 diabetes. DR cases and control individuals with type 2 diabetes were comparable for a list of clinical factors. The newly-developed LDI-MS platform allowed us to draw the blueprint of plasma metabolic fingerprints from participants with and without DR. The neural network afforded diagnostic performance with an average area under curve value of 0.928 for discovery cohort and 0.905 for validation cohort (95 % confidence interval: 0.902–0.954 and 0.845–0.965, respectively). Tandem MS and Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance MS with ultrahigh resolution identified seven specific metabolites that were significantly associated with DR in fully adjusted models. Of these metabolites, dihydrobiopterin, phosphoserine, N-arachidonoylglycine, and 3-methylhistamine levels in plasma were first reported to show the associations. This work advances the design of metabolic analysis for DR and holds the potential to promise as an efficient tool for clinical management of DR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plant growth promoting microbe assisted phytoremediation is considered a more effective approach to rehabilitation than the single use of plants, but underlying mechanism is still unclear. In this study, we combined transcriptomic and physiological methods to explore the mechanism of plant growth promoting microbe Trichoderma citrinoviride HT-1 assisted phytoremediation of Cd contaminated water by Phragmites australis. The results show that the strain HT-1 significantly promoted P. australis growth, increased the photosynthetic rate, enhanced antioxidant enzyme activities. The chlorophyll content and the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) were increased by 83.78%, 23.17%, 47.60%, 97.14% and 12.23% on average, and decreased the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) by 31.10%. At the same time, strain HT-1 improved the absorption and transport of Cd in P. australis, and the removal rate of Cd was increased by 7.56% on average. Transcriptome analysis showed that strain HT-1 induced significant up-regulated the expression of genes related to oxidative phosphorylation and ribosome pathways, and these upregulated genes promoted P. australis remediation efficiency and resistance to Cd stress. Our results provide a mechanistic understanding of plant growth promoting microbe assisted phytoremediation under Cd stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer (Ginseng) is one of the most used traditional Chinese herbal medicines, with its roots being used as the main common medicinal parts; its therapeutic potential has garnered significant attention. AUXIN/INDOLE-3-ACETIC ACID (Aux/IAA) is a family of early auxin-responsive genes capable of regulating root development in plants through the auxin signaling pathway. In the present study, 84 Aux/IAA genes were identified from the ginseng genome and their complexity and diversity were determined through their protein domains, phylogenetic relationships, gene structures, and cis-acting element predictions. Phylogenetic analyses classified PgIAA into six subgroups, with members in the same group showing greater sequence similarity. Analyses of interspecific collinearity suggest that segmental duplications likely drove the evolution of PgIAA genes, followed by purifying selection. An analysis of cis-regulatory elements suggested that PgIAA family genes may be involved in the regulation of plant hormones. RNA-seq data show that the expression pattern of Aux/IAA genes in Ginseng is tissue-specific, and PgIAA02 and PgIAA36 are specifically highly expressed in lateral, fibrous, and arm roots, suggesting their potential function in root development. The PgIAA02 overexpression lines exhibited an inhibition of lateral root growth in Ginseng. In addition, yeast two-hybrid and subcellular localization experiments showed that PgIAA02 interacted with PgARF22/PgARF36 (ARF: auxin response factor) in the nucleus and participated in the biological process of root development. The above results lay the foundation for an in-depth study of Aux/IAA and provide preliminary information for further research on the role of the Aux/IAA gene family in the root development of Ginseng. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The active galactic nucleus (AGN) disc has been proposed as a potential channel for the merger of binary black holes. The population of massive stars and black holes in AGN discs captured from the nuclei cluster plays a crucial role in determining the efficiency of binary formation and final merger rate within the AGN discs. In this paper, we investigate the capture process using analytical and numerical approaches. We discover a new constant integral of motion for one object's capture process. Applying this result to the whole population of the nuclei cluster captured by the AGN disc, we find that the population of captured objects depends on the angular density and eccentricity distribution of the nuclei clusters and is effectively independent of the radial density profile of the nuclei cluster and disc models. An isotropic nuclei cluster with thermal eccentricity distribution predicts a captured profile d N /d r  ∝  r −1/4. The captured objects are found to be dynamically crowded within the disc. Direct binary formation right after the capture would be promising, especially for stars. The conventional migration traps that help pile up single objects in AGN discs for black hole mergers might not be required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A long-lived magnetar, potentially originating from a binary neutron star system, has been proposed to explain the extended emission observed in certain short-duration gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs), and is posited as a potential central engine to power the engine-fed kilonovae. Previously, the process by which energy is injected into the surrounding ejecta/jet was widely believed to be nearly isotropic. In this study, we employ special relativity magnetohydrodynamic (SRMHD) simulations to investigate the wind injection process from a magnetar central engine. We explore the dynamics and energy distribution within the system and found that the parameter α = u A/ u MWN can be used to indicate the collimation of the magnetar wind energy injection, where u A is the local Alfven four-speed and u MWN is the four-speed of the magnetar wind nebular (MWN) formed from wind-ejecta collision. A significant portion of the injected energy from the magnetar spin-down wind will be channeled to the jet axis due to collimation within the MWN. Achieving isotropic energy injection requires a significantly small α that necessitates either an ultra-relativistic expanding MWN or an extremely low magnetization MWN, both of which are challenging to attain in sGRBs. Consequently, a considerably reduced energy budget (i.e. energy per solid angle reduced by a factor of up to 10 with respect to the value under isotropic assumption) is anticipated to be injected into the ejecta for engine-fed kilonovae. Engine-fed kilonovae would appear fainter than originally anticipated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Guizhou Plateau, as one of the original centers of tea plant, has a profound multi-ethnic cultural heritage and abundant tea germplasm resources. However, the impact of indigenous community factors on the genetic diversity, population structure and geographical distribution of tea plant is still unclear. Results: Using the genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) approach, we collected 415 tea plant accessions from the study sites, estimated genetic diversity, developed a core collection, and conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) based on 99,363 high-quality single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). A total of 415 tea accessions were clustered into six populations (GP01, GP02, GP03, GP04, GP05 and GP06), and the results showed that GP04 and GP05 had the highest and lowest genetic diversity (Pi = 0.214 and Pi = 0.145, respectively). Moreover, 136 tea accessions (33%) were selected to construct the core set that can represent the genetic diversity of the whole collection. By analyzing seven significant SNP markers associated with the traits such as the germination period of one bud and two leaves (OTL) and the germination period of one bud and three leaves (OtL), four candidate genes possibly related to OTL and OtL were identified. Conclusions: This study revealed the impact of indigenous communities on the population structure of 415 tea accessions, indicating the importance of cultural practices for protection and utilization of tea plant genetic resources. Four potential candidate genes associated with the OTL and OtL of tea plant were also identified, which will facilitate genetic research, germplasm conservation, and breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a progressive disease that involves multiple organs due to increased blood glucose, and diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the main complication of DM in the eyes and causes irreversible vision loss. In the pathogenesis of diabetic vascular disease, oxidative stress caused by hyperglycemia plays an important role in Müller cell impairment. In recent years, AdipoRon, an adiponectin analog that demonstrated important physiological functions in obesity, diabetes, inflammation, and cardiovascular diseases, demonstrated cellular protection from apoptosis and reduced inflammatory damage through a receptor-dependent mechanism. Here, we investigated how AdipoRon reduced oxidative stress and apoptosis in Müller glia in a high glucose environment. Results: By binding to adiponectin receptor 1 on Müller glia, AdipoRon activated 5ʹ adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK)/acetyl-CoA carboxylase phosphorylation downstream, thereby alleviating oxidative stress and eventual apoptosis of cells and tissues. Transcriptome sequencing revealed that AdipoRon promoted the synthesis and expression of early growth response factor 4 (EGR4) and inhibited the cellular protective effects of AdipoRon in a high-glucose environment by reducing the expression of EGR4. This indicated that AdipoRon played a protective role through the EGR4 and classical AMPK pathways. Conclusions: This provides a new target for the early treatment of DR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key Clinical Message: Parathyroid lipoadenoma is a rare type of parathyroid adenoma, described as a single parathyroid adenoma with more than 50% fat on histologic examination and an unknown etiology, which is one of the rare causes of primary hyperparathyroidism. The difficulty of parathyroid lipoadenoma is mainly diagnosed by preoperative imaging localization. We hope to arouse attention to the parathyroid adenoma which is difficult to locate through our case report. The patient was a middle‐aged male with a body mass index of 38.4 kg/m2 who admitted to our hospital with a 40‐day history of an untreated thyroid nodule. We incidentally discovered parathyroid lipoadenoma in his thyroid surgery. His prognosis was good, and there were no signs of recurrence at his 12‐month follow‐up appointment. We believe that parathyroid lipoadenoma needs to rely on paraffin pathology to make a final diagnosis. This case report serves as a reminder that parathyroid lipoadenomas are also possible in patients who do not have primary hyperparathyroidism preoperatively and who have negative imaging. Clinicians must carefully examine the adipose tissue for the presence of parathyroid lipoadenomas during thyroid surgery to avoid postoperative hypoparathyroidism and persistent hypocalcaemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New composite adsorbents are proposed to further improve the application of thermochemical energy storage technology in buildings. A volcanic is taken as an adsorption substance, which is impregnated in 36.50 wt% and 54.00 wt% saturated MgCl2 and CaCl2 solutions to prepare composite adsorbents, which are called composite-MgCl2 and composite-CaCl2, respectively. According to the characterization, the main pore structure of the original volcanic is macropores (>100 nm), and hydrated salts tend to fill them. Compared with zeolite-MgCl2, the final water uptake of composite-MgCl2 and composite-CaCl2 increased by 0.15 g/g and 0.03 g/g. Meanwhile, the TG-DSC measurement results show that the thermochemical energy storage densities of composite-MgCl2 and composite-CaCl2 are 1.02 and 1.56 times that of zeolite-MgCl2, which are 642 kJ/kg and 983 kJ/kg, respectively. Moreover, the composition of the thermochemical energy storage densities of the composites is obtained by theoretical calculations, and the theoretically calculated results are close to the measured results. After several cycles, the composites still have high thermochemical energy storage capacity and low energy storage density cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, the methods based on the autoencoder reconstruction background have been applied to the area of hyperspectral image (HSI) anomaly detection (HSI-AD). However, the encoding mechanism of the autoencoder (AE) makes it possible to treat the anomaly and the background indistinguishably during reconstruction, which can result in a small number of anomalous pixels still being included in the acquired reconstruction background. In addition, the problem of redundant information in HSIs also exists in reconstruction errors. To this end, a fully convolutional AE hyperspectral anomaly detection (AD) network with an attention gate (AG) connection is proposed. First, the low-dimensional feature map as a product of the encoder and the fine feature map as a product of the corresponding decoding stage are simultaneously input into the AG module. The network context information is used to suppress the irrelevant regions in the input image and obtain the significant feature map. Then, the features from the AG and the deep features from upsampling are efficiently combined in the decoder stage based on the skip connection to gradually estimate the reconstructed background image. Finally, post-processing optimization based on guided filtering (GF) is carried out on the reconstruction error to eliminate the wrong anomalous pixels in the reconstruction error image and amplify the contrast between the anomaly and the background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The taxonomic placements of Chaenomeles Lindl. (Rosaceae) and their intrageneric species have long been controversial. This research aims to explore the palynomorphological characters of all Chaenomeles extant species in detail and to compare the results with phylogenetic relationships and the taxonomic classification scheme. The pollen morphology of 30 individuals of six taxa of Chaenomeles was investigated using both light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The pollens were measured, observed and statistically analyzed for 12 quantitative features and 2 qualitative ones. The study revealed that the Chaenomeles pollens are monad, tri-colporate, medium in size (P = 32.78–42.74 μm, E = 30.42–36.31 μm) and prolatespheroidal to subprolate in shape (P/E = 0.98–1.35). Based on exine ornamentation observed under SEM, two sexine sculpture types (type I—striate with microperforations, type II—striate with macroperforations) and two subtypes (twisted-striate, reticulate-striate) were recognized in the genus. Statistical analysis identified some pollen characteristics with diagnostic importance, including pollen shape, colpus dimension, length or direction of striae and diameter of perforation. These characteristics may have diagnostic and taxonomic value for the genus Chaenomeles and the family Rosaceae. An artificial key to studied species, based on pollen micromorphological attributes, is also provided. The obtained result was basically consistent with that of molecular studies published earlier. This study, for the first time, provides palynological evidence for the hybrid origin hypothesis of C. sinensis and supports the placement of this species in the monotypic genus Pseudocydonia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-body scatterings under the potential of a massive object are very common in astrophysics. If the massive body is far enough away that the two small bodies are in their own gravitational sphere of influence, the gravity of the massive body can be temporarily ignored. However, this requires the scattering process to be fast enough that the small objects do not spend too much time at distances near the surface of the sphere of influence. In this paper, we derive the validation criteria for effective two-body scattering and establish a simple analytical solution for this process, which we verify through numerical scattering experiments. We use this solution to study star–black hole scatterings in the discs of active galactic nuclei and planet–planet scatterings in planetary systems, and calculate their one-dimensional cross-section analytically. Our solution will be valuable in reducing computational time when treating two-body scatterings under the potential of a much more massive third body, provided that the problem settings are in the valid parameter space region identified by our study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Serious illness is a life‐limiting condition negatively impacting daily function, quality of life, or excessively straining caregivers. Over 1 million older seriously ill adults undergo major surgery annually, and national guidelines recommend that palliative care be available to all seriously ill patients. However, the palliative care needs of elective surgical patients are incompletely described. Understanding baseline caregiving needs and symptom burden among seriously ill older surgical patients could inform interventions to improve outcomes. Methods: Using Health and Retirement Study data (2008–2018) linked to Medicare claims, we identified patients ≥66 years who met an established serious illness definition from administrative data and underwent major elective surgery using Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) criteria. Descriptive analyses were performed for preoperative patient characteristics, including: unpaid caregiving (no or yes); pain (none/mild or moderate/severe); and depression (no, CES‐D < 3, or yes, CES‐D ≥ 3). Multivariable regression was performed to examine the association between unpaid caregiving, pain, depression, and in‐hospital outcomes, including hospital days (days admitted between discharge date and one‐year post‐discharge), in‐hospital complications (no or yes), and discharge destination (home or non‐home). Results: Of the 1343 patients, 55.0% were female and 81.6% were non‐Hispanic White. Mean age was 78.0 (SD 6.8); 86.9% had ≥2 comorbidities. Before admission, 27.3% of patients received unpaid caregiving. Pre‐admission pain and depression were 42.6% and 32.8%, respectively. Baseline depression was significantly associated with non‐home discharge (OR 1.6, 95% CI 1.2–2.1, p = 0.003), while baseline pain and unpaid caregiving needs were not associated with in‐hospital or post‐acute outcomes in multivariable analysis. Conclusions: Prior to elective surgery, older adults with serious illnesses have high unpaid caregiving needs and a prevalence of pain and depression. Baseline depression alone was associated with discharge destinations. These findings highlight opportunities for targeted palliative care interventions throughout the surgical encounter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Castor is an important non-edible oilseed crop used in the production of high-quality bio-oil. In this process, the leftover tissues rich in cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin are regarded as by-products and remain underutilized. Lignin is a crucial recalcitrance component, and its composition and structure strongly limit the high-value utilization of raw materials, but there is a lack of detailed studies relating to castor lignin chemistry. In this study, lignins were isolated from various parts of the castor plant, namely, stalk, root, leaf, petiole, seed endocarp and epicarp, using the dilute HCl/dioxane method, and the structural features of the as-obtained six lignins were investigated. The analyses indicated that endocarp lignin contained catechyl (C), guaiacyl (G) and syringyl (S) units, with a predominance of C unit [C/(G+S) = 6.9:1], in which the coexisted C-lignin and G/S-lignin could be disassembled completely. The isolated dioxane lignin (DL) from endocarp had a high abundance of benzodioxane linkages (85%) and a low level of β-β linkages (15%). The other lignins were enriched in G and S units with moderate amounts of β-O-4 and β-β linkages, being significantly different from endocarp lignin. Moreover, only p-coumarate (pCA) incorporated into the epicarp lignin was observed, with higher relative content, being rarely reported in previous studies. The catalytic depolymerization of isolated DL generated 1.4–35.6 wt% of aromatic monomers, among which DL from endocarp and epicarp have high yields and excellent selectivity. This work highlights the differences in lignins from various parts of the castor plant, providing a solid theory for the high-value utilization of the whole castor plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phase reduction approach has manifested its efficacy in investigating synchronization behaviors in limit-cycle oscillators. However, spatial distributions of the phase value on the limit cycle may lead to illusions of synchronizations for oscillators close to bifurcations. In this paper, we compared the phase sensitivity function in the spatial domain and time domain for oscillators close to saddle-node homoclinic (SNH) bifurcation, also known as saddle-node bifurcation on an invariant circle. It was found that the phase sensitivity function in the spatial domain can show the phase accumulation feature on the limit cycle, which can be ignored in the phase sensitivity function in the time domain. As an example, the synchronization distributions of uncoupled SNH oscillators driven by common and independent noises were investigated, where the space-dependent coupling function was considered on common noise. These results shed some light on the phase dynamics of oscillators close to bifurcations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synergistic modulation of fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and the inner filter effect (IFE) was constructed within a molecule to control the stable fluorescence intensity as the internal standard, providing a new strategy for the accurate monitoring of photoactivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Casuarina glauca is an important coastal protection forest species, which is exposed to high salt stress all year round. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can promote the growth and salt tolerance of C. glauca under salt stress. However, the effects of AMF on the distribution of Na+ and Cl− and the expression of related genes in C. glauca under salt stress need to be further explored. This study explored the effects of Rhizophagus irregularis on plant biomass, the distribution of Na+ and Cl−, and the expression of related genes in C. glauca under NaCl stress through pot simulation experiments. The results revealed that the mechanisms of Na+ and Cl− transport of C. glauca under NaCl stress were different. C. glauca took a salt accumulation approach to Na+, transferring Na+ from roots to shoots. Salt accumulation of Na+ promoted by AMF was associated with CgNHX7. The transport mechanism of C. glauca to Cl− might involve salt exclusion rather than salt accumulation, and Cl− was no longer transferred to shoots in large quantities but started to accumulate in roots. However, AMF alleviated Na+ and Cl− stress by similar mechanisms. AMF could promote salt dilution of C. glauca by increasing biomass and the content of K+, compartmentalizing Na+ and Cl− in vacuoles. These processes were associated with the expression of CgNHX1, CgNHX2-1, CgCLCD, CgCLCF, and CgCLCG. Our study will provide a theoretical basis for the application of AMF to improve salt tolerance in plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DNA nanomachines have been engineered into diverse personalized devices for diagnostic imaging of biomarkers; however, the regeneration of DNA nanomachines in living cells remains challenging. Here, we report an ingenious DNA nanomachine that can implement telomerase (TE)‐activated regeneration in living cells. Upon apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APE1)‐responsive initiation of the nanomachine, the walker of the nanomachine moves along tracks regenerated by TE, generating multiply amplified signals through which APE1 can be imaged in situ. Additionally, augmentation of the signal due to the regeneration of the nanomachines could reveal differential expression of TE in different cell lines. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first proof‐of‐concept demonstration of the use of biomarkers to assist in the regeneration of nanomachines in living cells. This study offers a new paradigm for the development of more applicable and efficient DNA nanomachines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DNA nanomachines have been engineered into diverse personalized devices for diagnostic imaging of biomarkers; however, the regeneration of DNA nanomachines in living cells remains challenging. Here, we report an ingenious DNA nanomachine that can implement telomerase (TE)‐activated regeneration in living cells. Upon apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APE1)‐responsive initiation of the nanomachine, the walker of the nanomachine moves along tracks regenerated by TE, generating multiply amplified signals through which APE1 can be imaged in situ. Additionally, augmentation of the signal due to the regeneration of the nanomachines could reveal differential expression of TE in different cell lines. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first proof‐of‐concept demonstration of the use of biomarkers to assist in the regeneration of nanomachines in living cells. This study offers a new paradigm for the development of more applicable and efficient DNA nanomachines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Years of use of the antidiabetic drug metformin has long been associated with the risk of vitamin B12 (B12) deficiency in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients, although the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Accumulating evidence has shown that metformin may exert beneficial effects by altering the metabolism of the gut microbiota, but whether it induces human B12 deficiency via modulation of bacterial activity remains poorly understood. Here, we show that both metformin and the other biguanide drug phenformin markedly elevate the accumulation of B12 in E. coli. By functional and genomic analysis, we demonstrate that both biguanides can significantly increase the expression of B12 transporter genes, and depletions of vital ones, such as tonB, nearly completely abolish the drugs' effect on bacterial B12 accumulation. Via high-throughput screens in E. coli and C. elegans, we reveal that the TetR-type transcription factor RcdA is required for biguanide-mediated promotion of B12 accumulation and the expressions of B12 transporter genes in bacteria. Together, our study unveils that the antidiabetic drug metformin helps bacteria gather B12 from the environment by increasing the expressions of B12 transporter genes in an RcdA-dependent manner, which may theoretically reduce the B12 supply to T2D patients taking the drug over time. The antidiabetic drug, metformin, helps E. coli gather vitamin B12 from the environment by increasing the expressions of transporter genes in a RcdA-dependent manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heparin, a class of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), is widely used to induce sperm capacitation and fertilization. How heparin induces sperm capacitation remains unclear. Olfactory receptors (ORs) which are G protein-coupled receptors, have been proposed to be involved in sperm capacitation. However, the interaction between ORs and odor molecules and the molecular mechanism of ORs mediating sperm capacitation are still unclear. The present study aimed to explore the underlying interaction and mechanism between heparin and ORs in carrying out the boar sperm capacitation. The results showed that olfactory receptor 2C1 (OR2C1) is a compulsory unit which regulates the sperm capacitation by recognizing and binding with heparin, as determined by Dual-Glo Luciferase Assay and molecular docking. In addition, molecular dynamics (MD) simulation indicated that OR2C1 binds with heparin via a hydrophobic cavity comprises of Arg3, Ala6, Thr7, Asn171, Arg172, Arg173, and Pro287. Furthermore, we demonstrated that knocking down OR2C1 significantly inhibits sperm capacitation. In conclusion, we highlighted a novel olfactory receptor, OR2C1, in boar sperm and disclosed the potential binding of heparin to Pro287, a conserved residue in the transmembrane helices region 7 (TMH7). Our findings will benefit the further understanding of ORs involved in sperm capacitation and fertilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rheum palmatum, a well-known Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM), has been used for medical purposes for thousand years in China. However, endophyte diversity of R. palmatum among different tissues and ages is still not revealed. In this study, we used 16S and ITS amplicon sequencing and combined with PICRUSt and FUNGuild to compare endophyte diversity and ecological function among different tissues and ages of R. palmatum. The results showed that the diversity and OTUs (Operational taxonomic units) abundance of endophytic fungi and bacteria of R. palmatum differed among different tissues and ages. The predictive function analysis showed that metabolism was main function of endophytic bacteria in different tissue and year samples, while saprotroph was dominant trophic mode of endophytic fungi in different year samples. The dominant trophic modes of endophytic fungi were saprotroph, pathotroph-symbiotroph and symbiotroph, and relative abundances differed in the different tissue samples. Our results elucidated the comprehensive diversity and composition profiles of endophytes in different tissues and year of R. palmatum. Our data offered pivotal information to clarify the role of endophytes in the production of R. palmatum and its important metabolites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To investigate the predictive role of serum angiopoietin-1 and angiopoietin-2 (Ang-1/Ang-2) in evaluating the severity of diabetic retinopathy (DR). Methods: A total of 101 outpatients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) were recruited and were further divided into the following five groups: T2DM without DR (non-DR), mild non-proliferative DR (NPDR), moderate NPDR, severe NPDR and proliferative DR (PDR) in accordance with the International Clinical Diabetic Retinopathy Guidelines. Furthermore, 101 serum samples were included in the further analysis using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted to evaluate the diagnostic value of each index. Results: The expression of Ang-1 in the PDR group was significantly lower than that in the non-DR group, while Ang-2 showed an opposite upward trend (p < 0.05). The Ang-1/Ang-2 ratio of the non-DR group was significantly lower than that of the moderate NPDR, severe NPDR and PDR (p < 0.05, p < 0.01 and p < 0.01, respectively). Differences in the Ang-1/Ang-2 ratio were observed earlier than those in the individual Ang-1 and Ang-2 measurements. The maximal Youden index was 0.512 with a calculated area under the curve (AUC) value of 0.734 (p < 0.01). Conclusions: The Ang-1/Ang-2 ratio was helpful in assessing the severity of DR and may provide potential clinical benefits as a biomarker and early warning signs for DR diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The performance of sorption energy storage is influenced by operating conditions. Based on a zeolite/water reactor, a mathematical model of an open sorption energy storage system is established and the effects of several operating parameters are studied. Increasing the temperature in the charging process enhances mass transfer. Increasing the air mass flow rate increases the heat transfer coefficient but decreases the temperature and reduces the mass transfer coefficient. A higher mass transfer coefficient is beneficial for energy storage. Inlet air humidity has little effect on the heat transfer coefficient but increases the mass transfer coefficient, thereby promoting energy release. Meanwhile, reactor inlet air temperature is the main factor affecting the charging process and the initial water uptake is an important parameter in the discharge process. Higher inlet moisture and lower initial water uptake can achieve better thermal performance. An 80 kg/h air mass flow rate and 6 of collector cascade numbers are recommended, which can achieve 5.84 kWh of the cumulative charged energy and 48.2 % charging efficiency. Moreover, the long-term stable heat supply with a discharging efficiency of 49.0 % can be achieved at air 75 kg/h of mass flow rate and 8 g/kg of inlet air moisture. • A TRNSYS-MATLAB mathematical model was developed and verified. • Influence of key parameters on the charging and discharging processes were explored. • The changes in heat and mass transfer coefficients were discussed. • Suitable operating parameters for this system were suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A heating system achieved by combining thermochemical energy storage and absorption heat pump is proposed and verified. Based on the experimental data, a mathematical model of the zeolite/water reactor is established and verified. By setting up a micro-compressor between the evaporator and absorber, the AHP is driven by low temperature source. Based on typical days in winter, the stable operation of the system is explored, and the influence of main parameters on the charging/discharging and heating processes are analyzed. The results show that the charging and heating efficiency reached 55.11% and 73.52% during the daytime. The discharging efficiency at night reaches 88.27%. The AHP can be driven by a heat source at a minimum of 75 °C, and hot water at 48.3 °C is provided. Parameters influence analysis shows that temperature is an important factor affecting the charging process, and the initial air temperature is recommended to increase. Humidity is the biggest influencing factor in the discharging process and easily changed and controlled. By replacing electric heating, the system can allow the investment to be recovered within 6.23 years. Environmental analysis shows that the proposed system has significant benefits in terms of primary energy savings and pollutant emission reduction • A new heating system based on zeolite/water reactor was designed and evaluated • The micro-compressor reduced the absorption heat pump driving temperature to 75 °C • The reactor total charging and discharging efficiencies reached 55.11% and 88.27% • Initial air temperature and humidity were key parameters which should be focused on • The proposed system had obvious advantages in replacing electric heating [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Reservoirs have carbon source/ sink functions serving as sites for carbon flow and exchange. • The carbon cycle process in reservoirs is influenced by multi-factor mechanisms. • Future research directions for global reservoir carbon cycle include long-term, large-scale monitoring and modeling. Based on the focus on the role of reservoirs as carbon sources and sinks, this article explores their impact on the global carbon cycle. Reservoirs, which are "artificial lakes" created by human activities in rivers, are reviewed in terms of the key links in carbon cycling within reservoir areas, the influencing factors, and research methods related to carbon cycling and carbon emissions. By reviewing the literature on reservoir carbon cycling, we elucidate the mechanisms of carbon inputs, decomposition and transformation, carbon emissions, and carbon burial, summarizing the biogeochemical coupling processes of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), particulate organic carbon (POC), and particulate inorganic carbon (PIC) with hydrological conditions and nutrients. The study concludes that the reservoir carbon cycling process is influenced by the characteristics of the reservoirs themselves, hydrological and hydrodynamic conditions, physicochemical and nutrient conditions, and human activities. Additionally, we further clarify the applications of field sampling and analysis, modeling, remote sensing technology, and isotope techniques in reservoir carbon cycling. In the future, it is recommended to continue monitoring and simulating the reservoir carbon cycle processes on a long-term and large-scale basis, and to deeply explore the multifactorial mechanisms of reservoir construction in the global carbon cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overwhelming evidence has shown that aging is a significant risk factor for COVID-19-related hospitalizations, death and other adverse health outcomes. Particular T cell subsets that susceptible to aging and associated with COVID-19 disease severity requires further elucidation. Our study recruited 57 elderly patients with acute COVID-19 and 27 convalescent donors. Adaptive immunity was assessed across the COVID-19 severity spectrum. Patients underwent age-dependent CD4+ T lymphopenia, preferential loss of circulating T follicular regulatory cells (cTfh) subsets including cTfh-em, cTfh-cm, cTfh1, cTfh2, cTfh17 and circulating T follicular regulatory cells (cTfr), which regulated antibody production through different pathways and correlated with COVID-19 severity, were observed. Moreover, vaccination improved cTfh-cm, cTfh2, cTfr proportion and promoted NAb production. In conclusion, the elderly had gone through age-dependent cTfh subsets deficiency, which impeded NAb production and enabled aggravation of COVID-19 to critical illness, whereas SARS-CoV-2 vaccine inoculation helped to rejuvenate cTfh, cTfr and intensify NAb responses. [Display omitted] • COVID-19 severity aggravated with age. • The elderly underwent COVID-19 severity-dependent decrease of cTfh and cTfr. • Deficient cTfh and cTfr contributed to severity-dependent decrease of NAb jointly. • cTfh, cTfr and NAb deficiency enabled aggravation of COVID-19 to critical illness. • Vaccine inoculation rejuvenate cTfh, cTfr and NAb responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible load is widely used in servo systems, and will cause nonlinear displacement and vibration of the system and then cause speed fluctuations in the servo system motor. In order to reduce the fluctuation of system velocity, a fuzzy adaptive vibration suppression strategy based on pole assignment is proposed. Firstly, the dynamic model of the flexible-load system is established by using the assumed mode method (AMM) and the Lagrange principle. Then, according to the initial traditional PID parameters, the same real-part pole assignment method is used to improve it. Next, a fuzzy adaptive rule is designed to adjust the PID parameters after pole assignment. Finally, three different control strategies are applied to the servo-driven flexible-load system, three different conditions with the variable as the length of the flexible load are selected for numerical simulation, the output parameters of the system are obtained, and the errors are analyzed. The results show that the fuzzy adaptive PID control strategy based on pole assignment proposed in this paper makes the system have a higher working accuracy, and compared with the traditional PID control method and the improved PID control method, the vibration suppression effect of the system is more obvious, and the stability of the system can be increased by about 10%, which fully demonstrates the effectiveness of the control strategy proposed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is an energy‐determined half‐reaction for water splitting and many other energy conversion processes, such as rechargeable metal–air batteries and CO2 reduction, due to its four‐electron sluggish process. To reduce the energy consumption and cost of these advanced technologies, various transition metal‐based nanomaterials, like metal oxides/hydroxides, nitride, and phosphide are synthesized. Among these, metal–organic framework (MOF)‐based materials are considered as the ideal candidate for the fabrication of efficient OER electrocatalysts owing to their unique physicochemical properties. In this review, the fundamental catalytic mechanisms and key evaluation parameters of OER in acidic and alkaline media are presented first. Then, design strategies for MOF‐based OER catalysts and research progress in the study of the structure–performance relationship are summarized. Subsequently, the recent research advances of MOF‐based OER electrocatalysts in alkaline, acidic, and neutral electrolytes are overviewed. Finally, current challenges and future opportunities are provided under the frame of materials design, theoretical understanding, advanced characterization techniques, and industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypochlorite plays a vital role in biological systems and our daily life. The rapid and convenient detection of hypochlorite is imperative and significant for disease treatment and human health. In this work, EY/UiO-66-NH2 (EY = eosin Y) was prepared through a hydrothermal process and could be applied to the detection and bioimaging of hypochlorite as a self-calibrating sensing nanoprobe. EY/UiO-66-NH2 features two emissions at 432 nm and 533 nm, and the emission intensity of 533 nm is enhanced with increasing ClO− concentration. EY/UiO-66-NH2 could be utilized as a ratiometric fluorescence sensor of ClO−. The linear range of EY/UiO-66-NH2 towards ClO− is 0.1–200 μM and its detection limit is 46.4 nM. In comparison with previously reported probes for ClO−, EY/UiO-66-NH2 has the advantages of a wide linear range, low detection limit, turn-on fluorescence and ratiometric response. This work provides a new method for ClO− detection in living cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Purpose/Significance] At present, there is relatively little research on the open science (OS) policy at the level of scientific research institutions in China, while some preliminary explorations have been made abroad. The text analysis of OS policies of representative scientific research institutions and lessons drawn from their policy making experience can provide a good reference for the formulation of OS policies by Chinese scientific research institutions. It gives play to the main role of scientific research institutions in the OS process, and promotes the practice of OS from bottom to top. [Method/Process] Based on the perspective of policy tools, this paper uses the content analysis method to conduct quantitative analysis on 12 OS policy texts published by international scientific research institutions. It establishes an X-Y two-dimensional analysis framework for OS policy of scientific research institutions. The content analysis categories are as follows: policy instrument dimension (X dimension) - authority, incentive, symbol and exhortation, capacity building, and system change; OS content factor dimension (Y dimension) - open content, open process, open infrastructure, and open cooperation. This paper carries out research through the X-Y two-dimensional analysis framework, aiming to reveal the use of policy tool preferences and policy content focus on the tendency, refining the key factors of research institutions' OS policy, putting forward the policy tool optimization strategy and providing insights into Chinese scientific research institutions in formulating OS policies. [Results/Conclusions] From the dimension of policy tools, capacity building tools are more used, followed by authority tools, and other policy tools are less used. From the dimension of OS content elements, the eight themes of open data, open access, OS education and training, open cooperation, open evaluation, open infrastructure, open incentive and citizen science are the main concerns in the OS policies issued by international research institutions. The use of OS policy tools in scientific research institutions should coordinate with each other, optimize the combination of policy tools; try to solve the actual problems, strengthen the internal balance of policy tools; adjust measures to local conditions and make full use of differences in policy tools. In formulating OS policies, scientific research institutions should further integrate themselves into the international OS tide, understand the development trend, and ensure the forward-looking of policies; adjust and optimize the organizational structure, clarify the division of responsibilities, and promote open scientific practice in an overall way; the core elements and key issues ofOS policies should be grasped when formulating policies; and in the process ofpolicy formulation and implementation, they should ensure the investment of funds, as well as timely dynamic adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The green transformation strategy is critical for achieving the emission mitigation targets in China's cement study. However, previous studies have focused on the nationwide industry level and overlooked the significant differences in the cement plants, remaining the risk of difficulties in implementing the proposed strategy. To overcome this problem, this study proposes a framework for plant-level green transformation strategy based on the industry-level emission mitigation pathway and a plant-level cement database. The strategy indicates the cement plants that need to be shut down, be retrofitted, and promote technologies. Results show that 1005 clinker and 3706 cement production plants should be shut down or retrofitted, while 60%+ of the plants should take denitrification and dust removal technologies in 2019–2035. The plant-level strategy can achieve energy conservation and CO 2 , SO 2 , NO x , and PM reductions by 40.0–79.9%, demonstrating the existence of the co-benefits. As only 4.1%–25.0% of the plants contribute half of the energy conservation and emission reduction effects, the plant-level strategy leads to significant spatial heterogeneity of the co-benefits. For example, the energy conservation and emission reduction potential in the five largest cement producer cities varies from over 30%. In addition, the total fixed investment is 99.6 billion Chinese Yuan (CNY) and the highest cost is 12.8 billion CNY/a, which will not cause heavy economic burdens to the industry. This study bridges the industrial-level planning and plant-level implementation of the green transformation strategy, whose methodology supports the synergic energy conservation and emission reduction in China's cement industry and beyond. [Display omitted] • Green transformation in China's cement industry encounters spatial heterogeneity. • Industrial-level pathway and detailed plant-level database are input in this study. • The strategy defines the cement plants to be shut down, retrofitted, and unchanged. • The strategy reduces carbon emissions by 20–61% of the cement plants in key cities. • The proposed strategy can support the precise management in China's cement industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing the interface density in nuclear-material systems has been proposed to be a promising strategy for annihilating defects introduced by ion irradiation. The role of interface characteristics between the WTaTiVCr refractory high entropy alloy (RHEA) and metal tungsten (W) on the irradiation resistance is rather unclear because of the distinct defect energy that exists in these two kinds of materials. Here, the nano-crystalline and amorphous mixed structures were obtained in WTaTiVCr/W multilayers to investigate the irradiation tolerance and mechanical properties. After being exposed to a 60 keV helium (He) ion irradiation platform at a fluence of 1 × 1017 cm−2, the grain sizes in irradiated multilayers were slightly decreased from 12.4 nm to 7.2 nm with increasing individual thickness, which was explained from the perspective of He+ energy deposition. The dependence of bubble growth in multilayers on the individual thickness was disclosed based on the analysis of bubble size and its pressure in the RHEA and W layers. The phase structures and element distributions in WTaTiVCr/W multilayers were also revealed by the defect formation and crystallization. Also, a maximum irradiation hardening of 1.91 GPa in the RHEA(10)/W(7) multilayer was disclosed, and the irradiation hardening in the multilayers exhibited a decreasing trend with increasing monolayer thickness, and the corresponding mechanisms about the hardening behaviors in these multilayers were also discussed based on the interface density and irradiation-induced defects. • Irradiation induced grain growth in the multilayers depended on the individual thickness. • Bubble sizes and pressures in the multilayers were analyzed. • The hardening in the irradiated multilayers exhibit a decreasing trend with increasing individual thickness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Illustration of Zn2+ induced formation of spheric aggregates at mid-pH for cellular entry. [Display omitted] Although the restriction of intramolecular motion has been well recognized as the fundamental of aggregation induced emission enhancement (AIEE), the regulation mechanism of gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) based AIEE system are still unclear. In this paper, we have investigated the Zn2+-induced AIEE process of thiolate ligands (i.e., cysteine, glutathione and an 8-mer peptide) protected AuNCs, which shows a pH-dependent evolution from single AuNCs to spheric aggregates to irregular network. Using photoluminescent enhancement ratio as an index, the concept of " mid-pH " is proposed to indicate the optimal pH for the formation of spheric AuNCs aggregates. Importantly, the surface ligands allow the formation of spheric AuNCs aggregates at tunable mid-pH between 5.7 and 7.5. Owing to the appropriate size and surface peptide targetability, the spheric AuNCs aggregates can be successfully screened for targeted tumor cell uptake and imaging at physiological pH. The cell uptake mechanism study showed that AuNCs aggregates was specifically recognized by arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) sequence on the ligand and integrin αvβ3 on the cell surface, thus mainly through clathrin-mediated endocytosis. This work provides new sight to artificially regulate the construction of efficient cellular imaging probes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Purpose/Significance] At present, there is relatively little research on the open science (OS) policy at the level of scientific research institutions in China, while some preliminary explorations have been made abroad. The text analysis of OS policies of representative scientific research institutions and lessons drawn from their policy making experience can provide a good reference for the formulation of OS policies by Chinese scientific research institutions. It gives play to the main role of scientific research institutions in the OS process, and promotes the practice of OS from bottom to top. [Method/Process] Based on the perspective of policy tools, this paper uses the content analysis method to conduct quantitative analysis on 12 OS policy texts published by international scientific research institutions. It establishes an X -Y two-dimensional analysis framework for OS policy of scientific research institutions. The content analysis categories are as follows: policy instrument dimension (X dimension) - authority, incentive, symbol and exhortation, capacity building, and system change; OS content factor dimension (Y dimension) - open content, open process, open infrastructure, and open cooperation. This paper carries out research through the X -Y two-dimensional analysis framework, aiming to reveal the use of policy tool preferences and policy content focus on the tendency, refining the key factors of research institutions' OS policy, putting forward the policy tool optimization strategy and providing insights into Chinese scientific research institutions in formulating OS policies. [Results/Conclusions] From the dimension of policy tools, capacity building tools are more used, followed by authority tools, and other policy tools are less used. From the dimension of OS content elements, the eight themes of open data, open access, OS education and training, open cooperation, open evaluation, open infrastructure, open incentive and citizen science are the main concerns in the OS policies issued by international research institutions. The use of OS policy tools in scientific research institutions should coordinate with each other, optimize the combination of policy tools; try to solve the actual problems, strengthen the internal balance of policy tools; adjust measures to local conditions and make full use of differences in policy tools. In formulating OS policies, scientific research institutions should further integrate themselves into the international OS tide, understand the development trend, and ensure the forward-looking of policies; adjust and optimize the organizational structure, clarify the division of responsibilities, and promote open scientific practice in an overall way; the core elements and key issues of OS policies should be grasped when formulating policies; and in the process of policy formulation and implementation, they should ensure the investment of funds, as well as timely dynamic adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LEAFY (LFY) plays an important role in the flowering process of plants, controlling flowering time and mediating floral meristem differentiation. Owing to its considerable importance, the mango LFY gene (MiLFY; GenBank accession no. HQ585988) was isolated, and its expression pattern and function were characterized in the present study. The cDNA sequence of MiLFY was 1152 bp, and it encoded a 383 amino acid protein. MiLFY was expressed in all tested tissues and was highly expressed in flowers and buds. Temporal expression analysis showed that MiLFY expression was correlated with floral development stage, and two relative expression peaks were detected in the early stages of floral transition and floral organ differentiation. Moreover, 35S::GFP-MiLFY fusion protein was shown to be localized to the nucleus of cells. Overexpression of MiLFY in Arabidopsis promoted early flowering and the conversion of lateral meristems into terminal flowers. In addition, transgenic plants exhibited obvious morphological changes, such as differences in cauline leaf shape, and the number of lateral branches. When driven by the MiLFY promoter, GFP was highly expressed in leaves, floral organs, stems, and roots, during the flowering period. Exogenous gibberellin (GA3) treatment downregulated MiLFY promoter expression, but paclobutrazol (PPP333) upregulated it. Bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC) assays showed that the MiLFY protein can interact with zinc-finger protein 4 (ZFP4) and SUPPRESSOR OF OVEREXPRESSION OF CONSTANS 1 (MiSOC1D). Taken together, these results indicate that MiLFY plays a pivotal role in controlling mango flowering, and that it is regulated by gibberellin and paclobutrazol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]