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Purpose. To investigate the efficacy and safety of orthokeratology (ortho‐k) and repeated low‐level red‐light (RLRL) therapy in treating poor responders of ortho‐k in myopic children. Methods. Study participants were 100 myopic children who completed two years of ortho‐k treatment in a retrospective study. In the first year of ortho‐k treatment (phase one), they experienced axial elongation of 0.30 mm or greater (defined as poor responders to ortho‐k). Children were divided into two groups: the orthokeratology group (OK, n = 45) continued to receive ortho‐k monotherapy and the combination group (OK‐RLRL, n = 55) received RLRL in addition to ortho‐k for the next year (phase two). Axial elongation over time between the groups was compared. Results. The mean age, male‐to‐female ratio, axial length (AL), and axial elongation in phase one were comparable between OK and OK‐RLRL groups (all P > 0.05). During phase two, significant AL shortening was observed in the OK‐RLRL group compared with children in the OK group (−0.10 ± 0.16 mm vs 0.30 ± 0.19 mm, P < 0.001). Among these 55 myopic children in the OK‐RLRL group, 35 (63.6%), 25 (45.4%), 11 (20%), 6 (10.9%), and 3 (5.4%) of them had AL shortening over 0.05 mm/year, 0.10 mm/year, and 0.20 mm/year, 0.3 mm/year, and 0.4 mm/year, respectively. Older baseline age (β = −0.02), higher treatment compliance (β = −0.462), and AL change at 1 month (β = 1.263) were significantly associated with less AL elongation (all P < 0.05). Conclusions. For poor responders of orthokeratology, RLRL could slow axial elongation in addition to the ortho‐k treatment effect. Those who respond poorly to ortho‐k with elder age might benefit more from combined therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study introduces a single-layer patterned graphene metamaterial, composed of a graphene ring (GR), two parallel graphene strips (TPGSs), two vertical graphene strips (TVGSs), and a graphene block (GB), which achieves triple plasmon-induced transparency (TPIT) in the terahertz (THz) frequency range using coupled mode theory (CMT) and the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) technique. Moreover, a synchronized electro-optical switch with four modulation modes is implemented by dynamically adjusting graphene's Fermi level, exhibiting modulation degrees of amplitude (MDA) of 88.3%, 94.7%, 86.9%, and 89.0% at 1.69 THz, 3.14 THz, 3.95 THz, and 4.67 THz, respectively. In addition, the modes excited by TPGSs and TVGSs interconvert due to the proposed structure's symmetry, accounting for the polarization insensitivity of TPIT. The enhanced MDA and polarization insensitivity of the electro-optical switch presented in this study significantly surpass those of comparable electro-optical switches. As a result, the polarization insensitivity of multiple optical switches to incident light fields offers a promising approach for designing optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the age of myopia onset and high myopia and to explore if age of onset mediated the associations of high myopia with parental myopia and time spent on electronics. Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled 1,118 myopic patients aged 18–40. Information was obtained via a detailed questionnaire. Multivariable logistic regression and linear regression models were utilized to assess age of onset in relation to high myopia and spherical equivalent refractive error, respectively. Structural equation models examined the mediated effect of onset age on the association between parental myopia, time spent on electronics, and high myopia. Results: An early age at myopia onset was negatively correlated with spherical equivalent refractive power. Subjects who developed myopia before the age of 12 were more likely to suffer from high myopia than those who developed myopia after the age of 15. Age of myopia onset was the strongest predictor of high myopia, with an area under the curve in receiver operator characteristic analysis of 0.80. Additionally, the age of myopia onset served as a mediator in the relationships between parental myopia, electronic device usage duration, and the onset of high myopia in adulthood. Conclusions: Age of myopia onset might be the single best predictor for high myopia, and age at onset appeared to mediate the associations of high myopia with parental myopia and time spent on electronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A monolayer metamaterial consisting of a rectangle graphene strip and four L-shaped graphene blocks was proposed to achieve a quintuple plasmon-induced transparency (quintuple-PIT). The numerical simulation results based on the finite difference time domain method agree well with the calculated results of the coupled mode theory. By modulating the Fermi energy level of graphene, an octuple-frequency asynchronous switch and a sextuple-frequency synchronous switch are designed and studied, which have excellent amplitude modulation degree (up to 97.7%), extinction ratio (up to 16.41 dB), insertion loss (low to 5.4%), and dephasing time(low to 3.86 ps). Furthermore, the results show that the proposed metamaterials has polarization-sensitive characteristics due to their non-central symmetry. Further research shows that the group index is as high as 604 which has a good slow light effect and can be used for optical storage. Hence, the quintuple-PIT proposed structure in this paper has good application value in the expansion of multi-function optical switches and the research of high-quality optical memory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The variational mode decomposition (VMD) method has been widely applied in the field of mechanical fault diagnosis as an excellent non-recursive signal processing tool. The performance of VMD depends on its inherent prior parameters. Searching for the key parameters of VMD using intelligent optimization algorithms poses challenges for the internal essence and fitness function selection of intelligent optimization algorithm. Moreover, the computational complexity of optimization is high. Meanwhile, such methods are not competitive in evaluating orthogonality between intrinsic mode functions and the reconstruction error of the signal as a joint indictor for the termination of decomposition. Therefore, this paper proposes a new auto-regulative sparse variational mode decomposition method (ASparse–VMD) to achieve accurate feature extraction. The regularization term of the VMD handles sparsification by constructing an L2-norm with a damping coefficient ε, and mode number K is set adaptively in a recursive manner to ensure appropriateness. The penalty parameter α is dynamically selected according to the number of modes and sampling frequency. The update step τ of the VMD algorithm is set using the signal-to-noise ratio to ensure the singleness and orthogonality of the modal components and suppress mode aliasing. The experimental results of the simulation signal and measured signal demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed strategies for improving the inherent defects of VMD. Extensive comparisons with state-of-the-art methods show that the proposed algorithm is more effective and practical for hybrid feature extraction in mechanical faults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The urban agglomeration at the Yangtze River Delta is one of the six most developed and populated urban agglomerations in the world. In recent years, with accelerating urbanization, the land use has changed significantly. Excessive construction aggravates ecological fragility. In this context, this paper first investigates the evolutionary processes and layout of the ecological space in the Yangtze River Delta. The root causes of various problems are then analyzed. Finally, suggestions for further improvement in both detailed tasks and governance aspects are proposed. The applied methods included use of remote sensing (RS), geographic information system (GIS) and statistical analysis. Main results indicate that from 1990 to 2018, the ecological space of the Yangtze River Delta shrank, especially in the city of Shanghai. Ecological space is insufficient in the area, unevenly distributed and fragmented. The major root causes include rapid urbanization without overall planning, regional population surge and improper industrial structure. Suggestions for improvement include overall planning and integrated management, control of population size, active industry structure upgrade, land-use efficiency balanced with ecological indicators, and multiple integrated strategies encouraging application of new energy technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been shown to be essential for the emergence and growth of different cancers. However, further research is required to validate the function of circRNA in glioblastoma (GBM). Methods: CircNDC80 expression in both normal brain tissues (NBTs) and glioma tissues was determined using real-time PCR. The impact of circNDC80 on GBM cell proliferation, migration, and invasion was then confirmed by CCK-8, colony formation, EdU incorporation, Transwell, and wound healing assays. To determine how circNDC80 affects the capacity of glioma stem cells (GSCs) to maintain their stemness and self-renewal, a CellTiter-Glo assay, clonogenic assay and extreme limiting dilution assay were utilized. To ascertain the impact of circNDC80 in vivo, intracranial xenograft models were established. Results: When compared to NBT, glioblastoma tissue had a higher level of circNDC80 expression. In functional assays, circNDC80 promoted glioblastoma cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, while sustaining the stemness and fostering the self-renewal of glioma stem cells. In addition, a dual luciferase reporter assay and circRIP were used to verify that circNDC80 simultaneously affects the expression of ECE1 mRNA by sponging miR-139-5p, and a rescue experiment was used to verify the above results further. Conclusions: According to our research, circNDC80 is an oncogenic factor that promotes glioblastoma through the miR-139-5p/ECE1 pathway. This implies that circNDC80 may be employed as a novel therapeutic target and a possible predictive biomarker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasmon-induced transparency (PIT) and plasmon-induced reflectance (PIR) are explored in a patterned graphene metamaterial using finite-difference time-domain numerical simulations and coupled-mode-theory calculations, and both PIT and PIR phenomena can be tailored dynamically by adjusting the Fermi level of graphene. Surprisingly, the group index of the proposed structure can be increased abruptly to 630, indicating ultraslow light can be achieved. Furthermore, the reflectance of the PIR can reach 70%. Therefore, the proposed structure provides a solid foundation for the realization of excellent slow-light devices, reflectors, and modulators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to diagnose an incipient fault in rotating machinery under complicated conditions, a fast sparse decomposition based on the Teager energy operator (TEO) is proposed in this paper. In this proposed method, firstly, the TEO is employed to enhance the envelope of the impulses, which is more sensitive to frequency and can eliminate the low-frequency harmonic component and noise; secondly, a smoothing filtering algorithm was adopted to suppress the noise in the TEO envelope; thirdly, the fault signal was reconstructed by multiplication of the filtered TEO envelope and the original fault signal; finally, sparse decomposition was used based on a generalized S-transform (GST) to obtain the sparse representation of the signal. The proposed preprocessing method using the filtered TEO can overcome the interference of high-frequency noise while maintaining the structure of fault impulses, which helps the processed signal perform better on sparse decomposition; sparse decomposition based on GST was used to represent the fault signal more quickly and more accurately. Simulation and application prove that the proposed method has good accuracy and efficiency, especially in conditions of very low SNR, such as impulses with anSNR of −8.75 dB that are submerged by noise of the same amplitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Double narrowband induced perfect absorption in the terahertz region is achieved in a graphene–dielectric–gold hybrid metamaterial, whose physical mechanism is analyzed using the coupled-mode theory (CMT), which agreed well with the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulation. This study found that the Fermi level of graphene can be adjusted to improve the absorptivity when the refractive index (RI) nd of the chosen dielectric cannot achieve a good absorption effect. In addition, the blue shift of absorption spectrum can be used in the design of dual-frequency electro-optical switches, of which the modulation degree of amplitude (MDA) can reach as high as 94.05% and 93.41%, indicating that this is a very promising electro-optical switch. Most significantly, the RI sensing performance is investigated, which shows an ultra-high absorption sensitivity SA = 4.4°/RIU, wavelength sensitivity Sλ = 9.8°/RIU, and phase shift sensitivity Sφ = 2691°/RIU. At last, an interesting finding is that the two peaks (R1 and R2) of plasmon-induced absorption (PIA) show different polarization characteristics (insensitive or sensitive) to the incident light angle; this polarization-sensitive is particularly important for the PIT/PIA-based optical polarizers. Undoubtedly, this paper is of great significance to the research and design of terahertz photonic devices and sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at non-stationary signals with complex components, the performance of a variational mode decomposition (VMD) algorithm is seriously affected by the key parameters such as the number of modes K , the quadratic penalty parameter α and the update step τ. In order to solve this problem, an adaptive empirical variational mode decomposition (EVMD) method based on a binary tree model is proposed in this paper, which can not only effectively solve the problem of VMD parameter selection, but also effectively reduce the computational complexity of searching the optimal VMD parameters using intelligent optimization algorithm. Firstly, the signal noise ratio (SNR) and refined composite multi-scale dispersion entropy (RCMDE) of the decomposed signal are calculated. The RCMDE is used as the setting basis of the α , and the SNR is used as the parameter value of the τ. Then, the signal is decomposed into two components based on the binary tree mode. Before decomposing, the α and τ need to be reset according to the SNR and MDE of the new signal. Finally, the cycle iteration termination condition composed of the least squares mutual information and reconstruction error of the components determines whether to continue the decomposition. The components with large least squares mutual information (LSMI) are combined, and the LSMI threshold is set as 0.8. The simulation and experimental results indicate that the proposed empirical VMD algorithm can decompose the non-stationary signals adaptively, with lower complexity, which is O(n2), good decomposition effect and strong robustness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The glioma immune microenvironment (GIM), consisting of glioma cells, stromal cells, and immune cells, accelerates the initiation, development, immune evasion, chemoresistance, and radioresistance of glioblastoma (GBM), whereas the immunosuppressive mechanisms of GBM have not been thoroughly elucidated to date. The glioma data downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas (CGGA) databases were used to evaluate the composition of tumor-infiltrating immune cells (TICs) by the CIBERSORT algorithm. RNA-seq datasets from the TCGA and CGGA were used to analyze the relationship between immune scores with patients' characteristics and TICs, which showed higher ratios of tumor-inhibiting/tumor-promoting signatures (M2/M1 macrophages) along with higher immune scores. The distribution of TICs among different glioma patients and the correlation with hazard ratio (HR) analysis suggested that M2 macrophages were abundant in malignant gliomas and indicated an unfavorable prognosis. We further analyzed TCGA cases with available mutation and copy-number alteration information, which showed that the status of PTEN could influence the immune microenvironment of glioma patients. Tissue microarrays of 39 GBM patients were carried out to confirm the clinical significance of PTEN and macrophage markers. We found that the high expression of PTEN was associated with a more extended survival period of glioma patients, positively correlated with M2 macrophages and negatively with M1 macrophages. Transwell and flow cytometry analyses demonstrated that PTEN status could prevent M1 to M2 polarization and M2 macrophage recruitment of gliomas in vitro. The newly discovered immunoregulatory activity of PTEN opens innovative avenues for investigations relevant to counteracting cancer development and progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solar energy absorption is a very important field in photonics. The successful development of an efficient, wide-band solar absorber is an extremely powerful driver in this field. We propose an ultra-wideband (UWB) solar energy absorber composed of a Ti ring and SiO2–Si3N4–Ti thin films. In the range of 300–4000 nm, the wide band has an absorption efficiency of more than 90% and can reach 3683 nm, and it has four absorption peaks with a high absorptivity. Moreover, the weighted average absorption efficiency of the solar absorber under AM 1.5 is maintained above 97.03%, which indicates it has great potential for use in the field of solar energy absorption. Moreover, we proved that the polarization is insensitive by analyzing the absorption characteristics at arbitrary polarization angles. For both the transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) modes, the UWB absorption is maintained at more than 90% in the wide incidence angle range of 60°. The UWB solar energy absorber has great potential for use in a variety of applications, such as converting solar light and heat into electricity for public use and reducing the side effects of coal-fired power generation. It can also be used in information detection and infrared thermal imaging owing to its UWB characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approaching nature is one of the common demands from citizens. City parks are the most available urban green space (UGS) that provide spaces for people to enjoy nature, which increases their degree of health and releases mental stress. This study will concentrate on the question of what features of UGSs influence the final overall health and well-being of the respondents. This study will use social investigation and statistical analysis. The results show that the majority of green space users are middle income and well-educated. The key features of the green spaces that influenced the overall health and well-being of the respondents was the accessibility to lawns or water bodies. In addition, fitness facilities could increase the overall effect, but this effect was not as strong as the accessibility to lawns and water bodies. Greenways and walkways provide isolated special spaces that increase calm, relaxation, vigor, fitness, and proactivity. Low levels of noise indicate a quiet environment, which increased the mental well-being of visitors. In addition, vegetation diversity has positive benefits on the mental well-being of visitors. For the use of UGS, the distance between the park and the city center is the most decisive factor on the visit frequency and the length of each visit. Long distances result in low visit frequencies and each visit lasts a longer time. This research is valuable and could guide the future design and planning of UGS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A bilayer metamaterial composed of double graphene strips and square-ring graphene is proposed to realize plasmon induced transparency (PIT). The couple mode theory (CMT) is employed to explain the phenomenon of PIT, whose results are in good agreement with the simulation of the finite-difference time-domain. The dynamically adjustable PIT is investigated, where an on-to-off modulation composed of synchronous and asynchronous switching is realized by modulating the Fermi levels of graphene, the modulation degrees of amplitude are 67.5%, 86.1%, and 65.3%, respectively. The changes of transmission spectra are also studied by adjusting the coupling distance between double graphene strips and square-ring graphene, and the result shows that PIT is gradually disappeared with the increase of coupling distance and the decrease of coupling strength. Then, the corresponding relationships between dips of PIT and modes of CMT are described clearly, which are affected by the relative location between resonant points of the bright and dark modes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twisted bilayer graphene strips are proposed to excite dual-plasmon-induced-transparency (DPIT). Coupled mode theory is employed to fit the transmission spectra of finite-difference time-domain numerical simulations. When the upper- and lower-layers graphene are perpendicular to each other, an electric-optic switch can be realized only by changing the Fermi level of graphene, and the modulation degree of amplitude reaches 55%. Interestingly, DPIT can be degenerated to single PIT and gradually disappeared by changing the angle between the upper- and lower-layers graphene, thus multimode filters can be designed. Therefore, this work provides new ideas for designing multifunctional electro-optic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel multilayer terahertz metamaterial composed of double rectangle, vertical single rectangle, vertical double rectangle and single rectangle graphene layer is proposed. The dynamic adjustable triple plasmon induced transparency (PIT) is realized by coupling two bright modes and two dark modes, which is an especial synergy effect between two single-PIT. Coupled mode theory contained four resonators is employed to explain the triple-PIT, and the theoretical results exhibit excellent consistency with finite-difference time-domain. Surprisingly, the triple-PIT can evolve into a dual-PIT or a single-PIT only by changing the Fermi level of graphene, and the amplitude modulation degrees at the four resonance frequencies of the triple-PIT are 74.7%, 87.8%, 76.5%, and 77.7%, respectively. In addition, a simultaneous switching at multiple frequencies is realized by adjusting different Fermi levels. Therefore, this study not only lays the foundation for explaining phenomenon of the triple-PIT but also puts forward new ideas for the design of optoelectronic device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A terahertz multifunction modulator composed of upper-layer double graphene ribbons and lower-layer a graphene strip, which can generate a Fano resonance produced by hybrid between a broad mode and a narrow mode, is proposed to realize electro-optical switch and filtering function. The electric field distribution, hybrid theory, and quantum level theory are all employed to explain the Fano resonance, whose transmission spectra are fitted by coupled mode theory. In comparison to other graphene-based terahertz modulators, the amplitude modulation degree can reach 99.57%, meaning an excellent electro-optical switch can be realized. Moreover, the extinction ratio of Fano resonance can reach 99.70%, demonstrating an unparalleled electro-optical filter is implemented. Finally, variations in the lateral and longitudinal lengths of the lower-layer a graphene strip enable excellent dual-band, triple-band filters. Thus, this work provides a new way to implement terahertz multi-function modulators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The plasmon-induced transparency (PIT), which is destructive interference between the superradiation mode and the subradiation mode, is studied in patterned graphene-based terahertz metasurface composed of graphene ribbons and graphene strips. As the results of finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulation and coupled-mode theory (CMT) fitting, the PIT can be dynamically modulated by the dual-mode. The left (right) transmission dip is mainly tailored by the gate voltage applied to graphene ribbons (stripes), respectively, meaning a dual-mode on-to-off modulator is realized. Surprisingly, an absorbance of 50% and slow-light property of 0.7 ps are also achieved, demonstrating the proposed PIT metasurface has important applications in absorption and slow-light. In addition, coupling effects between the graphene ribbons and the graphene strips in PIT metasurface with different structural parameters also are studied in detail. Thus, the proposed structure provides a new basis for the dual-mode on-to-off multi-function modulators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The optical transmission properties in a three-slit metal grating with different mediums are studied. The results show that the tunable phase resonances and multiple phase resonances can be obtained by filling different mediums into the three slits of the straight channel grating. When the medium in the three slits is extremely asymmetric, the phenomenon of multiphase splitting becomes very obvious. In addition, based on the field distributions, multiphase resonant mechanisms have been proposed for the physical origins of the observations. In addition, a multi-channel selector is described by flexibly controlling the light through any slit of the grating. Compared with the conventional compound grating, this grating with different mediums has obvious advantages, such as simple structure, and ease of implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transmission properties of light through a plasmonic grating with multislits are investigated. The results show that sharp phase resonance (PR) and multiphase resonance (MPR) for each mode at multiple frequencies are achieved and effectively tailored only by adjusting the slight difference of the multislit widths; the values of the PR dips are almost zero. Based on the field distributions, Fabry–Pérot-resonant and phase-resonant mechanisms have been suggested for the physical origins of the observations qualitatively. In addition, we can realize the control of light spreading through an arbitrary slit; a multichannel selector is modeled and described. Compared with the conventional plasmonic compound grating, this multislit grating with different slit widths has obvious advantages, such as simple structure, single material composition, and better realizability. PR and MPR can be achieved at multiple frequencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tumor recurrence occurs in more than 70% of ovarian cancer patients, and the majority eventually becomes refractory to treatments. Ovarian Cancer Stem Cells (OCSCs) are believed to be responsible for the tumor relapse and drug resistance. Therefore, eliminating ovarian CSCs is important to improve the prognosis of ovarian cancer patients. However, there is a lack of effective drugs to eliminate OCSCs because the core signaling pathways regulating OCSCs remain unclear. Also it is often hard for biologists to identify a few testable targets and infer driver signaling pathways regulating CSCs from a large number of differentially expression genes in an unbiased manner. In this study, we propose a straightforward and integrative analysis to identify potential core signaling pathways of OCSCs by integrating transcriptome data of OCSCs isolated based on two distinctive markers, ALDH and side population, with regulatory network (Transcription Factor (TF) and Target Interactome) and signaling pathways. We first identify the common activated TFs in two OCSC populations integrating the gene expression and TF-target Interactome; and then uncover up-stream signaling cascades regulating the activated TFs. In specific, 22 activated TFs are identified. Through literature search validation, 15 of them have been reported in association with cancer stem cells. Additionally, 10 TFs are found in the KEGG signaling pathways, and their up-stream signaling cascades are extracted, which also provide potential treatment targets. Moreover, 40 FDA approved drugs are identified to target on the up-stream signaling cascades, and 15 of them have been reported in literatures in cancer stem cell treatment. In conclusion, the proposed approach can uncover the activated up-stream signaling, activated TFs and up-regulated target genes that constitute the potential core signaling pathways of ovarian CSC. Also drugs and drug combinations targeting on the core signaling pathways might be able to eliminate OCSCs. The proposed approach can also be applied for identifying potential activated signaling pathways of other types of cancers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Congenital cataract is a major cause of visual impairment and childhood blindness. The solubility and stability of crystallin proteins play critical roles in maintaining the optical transparency of the lens during the life span. Previous studies have shown that approximately 8.3%∼25% of congenital cataracts are inherited, and mutations in crystallins are the most common. In this study, we attempted to identify the genetic defect in a four-generation family affected with congenital cataracts. The congenital cataract phenotype of this four-generation family was identified as membranous cataract by slit-lamp photography. Mutation screening of the candidate genes detected a heterozygous c.465G→C change in the exon6 of the βB2-crystallin gene (CRYBB2) in all family members affected with cataracts, resulting in the substitution of a highly conserved Tryptophan to Cystine (p.W151C). The mutation was confirmed by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis and found that the transition resulted in the absence of a BslI restriction site in the affected members of the pedigree. The outcome of PolyPhen-2 and SIFT analysis predicted that this W151C mutation would probably damage to the structure and function of βB2-crystallin. Wild type (wt) and W151C mutant βB2-crystallin were expressed in human lens epithelial cells (HLECs), and the fluorescence results showed that Wt-βB2-crystallin was evenly distributed throughout the cells, whereas approximately 34.7% of cells transfected with the W151C mutant βB2-crystallin formed intracellular aggregates. Taken together, these data suggest that the missense mutation in CRYBB2 gene leads to progressive congenital membranous cataract by impacting the solubility and function of βB2-crystallin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fuzzy control problems for systems with bounded uncertain delays were studied. Based on Lyapunov stability theory and matrix theory, a nonlinear state feedback fuzzy controller was designed by linear matrix inequalities (LMl) approach, and the global exponential stability of the closed-loop system was strictly proved. For a fuzzy control system with bounded uncertain delays, under the global exponential stability condition which is reduced to p linear matrix inequalities, the controller guarantees stability performances of state variables. Finally, the simulation shows the validity of the method in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a brand-new tactical missile control scheme—variable centroid vector control according to the international highlight in the field of missile control and the research status of hypersonic missile control in China. Four critical problems related with the new control method are included: improving phase control in the spinning missile single-channel control; establishing variable centroid controlled spinning missile attitude dynamics equations; analyzing variable centroid control strategies and analyzing the stability of the controlled missile and implementing robust control. The achievements and results obtained are valuable and helpful to the theoretical explorations and engineering applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the trend of global warming and urbanization, frequent extreme weather influences the life of citizens seriously. Shanghai, as a typical mega-city in China that has been successful in urbanization, suffers seriously from the urban heat island (UHI) effect. The research concentrates on the spatial and temporal pattern of surface UHI and land use. Then, the relation between them are further discussed. The results show that for the last 15 years, the UHI effect of Shanghai has been increasing continuously in both intensity and area. The UHI extends from the city center toward the suburban area. Along with the year, the ratio in area of Agricultural Land (AL), Wetland (WL), and Bare Land (BL) has decreased. On the contrary, Construction Land (CL) and Green Land (GL) have increased. The average land surface temperature (LST) rankings for each research year from high to low were all CL, BL, GL, AL, and WL. CL contributed the most to the UHI effect, while WL and GL contributed the most to mitigate the UHI. The conclusion provides practical advice aimed to mitigate the UHI effect for urban planning authorities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]