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The 9,10-dihydro-9-oxa-10-phosphaphenanthrene-10-oxide (DOPO) flame retardants (DOPO-FRs) have attracted more and more attention in the flame-retardant industry due to their high efficiency, environmental protection, and good molecular design. During the flame-retardant process, the breakage of P-C bonds is very important to the flame-retardant effect. Through the comparison of different density functional theories (DFTs) on P-C BDEs, it was found that MN12-L has the highest calculation accuracy, and the root-mean-square error is the smallest with 1.85 kcal/mol. Therefore, MN12-L was selected to investigate P-C BDEs of different DOPO-FRs including thiophen-amine, benzo[d]thiazol-amine, triazol-amine, and aniline DOPO-FRs. By comparing the theoretical calculation of BDE with the experimental parameters of high limiting oxygen index (LOI) and vertical combustion test (UL-94 test), it was found that the P-C BDEs have a certain correlation with the flame-retardant effect. Finally, based on P-C BDEs, substituent effects, and effective flame-retardant fragments, a series of new DOPO-FRs were designed. The results showed that when only one DOPO fragment was contained, the effective fragments of flame retardants were ranked as furan > thiophene > triazole > imidazole. When bis-DOPO fragment was contained, the flame-retardant effect of diamino-triazole fragments was better than that of benzyldimethylamine fragments. In addition, when the substituents on the effective fragment have two EDGs, the flame-retardant effect is superimposed, which makes the flame-retardant performance more excellent.

Objective: Previous studies showed the PRP have the therapeutic effects for KOA, but the more detail roles remained unclear and therefore this study was carried on to explore the deeper mechanisms for PRP., Methods: NRS and WOMAC scores were used to evaluate the clinical efficacy before surgery, 1 month and 6 months after surgery, and the postoperative joint structure changes (n = 24). Examination of pathology of the femoral condyle plate in rats using HE staining (n = 6); Angiogenesis experiments were used to investigate the effect of different groups of cell culture supernatants on the tubular structure formation capacity of HUVECs (n = 3). Observe the proliferation of chondrocytes using clonal formation experiments (n = 3). Western blot was used to analyze the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway and the expression of exosome-secretion-related proteins (n = 3)., Results: In clinical studies, PRP can reduce patients' NRS and WOMAC scores and alleviate the progression of knee arthritis; In rat experiments, PRP reduced damage from knee arthritis and lowered Mankin's score. PRP improves tubular formation of HUVECs and the proliferation capacity of chondrocytes. Compared with the blank control group, the protein expression levels of PI3K, AKT, mTOR, P27, and cyclinD1 in the PRP group were increased. Compared with the PRP group, the protein expression levels of PI3K, AKT, mTOR, P27, and cyclinD1 in the PRP+Axitinib group supplemented with VEGFRs inhibitor and PI3K inhibitor group were significantly decreased. The effect of the LY294002 +PRP group was better than that of the above groups. Macrophage-derived exosomes activate HIF-1a and COX-2 in endothelial cells to promote chondrocyte repair of KOA., Conclusion: PRP can promote chondrocytes proliferation and repair by activating the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, thereby exerting anti-OA effects. It provides new targets and methods for the clinical treatment of OA.

Background and Objectives: The 1 + X certificate system, introduced in China in 2019, integrates academic credentials with vocational skill certificates to meet the heightened demand for skilled talents in the growing economy. This study aims to innovate and evaluate the vocational pharmaceutical education system under the 1 + X certificate framework, specifically addressing the gap between theoretical education and workplace requirements., Materials and Methods: A retrospective observational approach analyzed 490 pharmacy students over two academic years. The 2021 cohort underwent 1 + X integrated education, while the 2020 cohort followed conventional education. We collaborated closely with industry partners to identify and compile typical job competencies, formulating work projects aligned with industry demands. Combining the skill level standards and assessment content of "1+X Pharmaceutical Purchasing and Sales" and "1+X Pharmaceutical Preparation", we revised the course standards, incorporating typical work projects into the 2021 pharmacy professional teaching curriculum. This constituted the fundamental content of the 1 + X education reform. Statistical analysis compared course scores and 1 + X certificate examination performance., Results: The 2021 cohort, under the 1 + X educational model, demonstrated higher average scores in pharmacy courses, with significant improvements in pharmacology (1 + X vs. Traditional education: 58.40 ± 14.20 vs. 53.44 ± 14.67), clinical pharmacotherapy (72.74 ± 10.28 vs. 63.15 ± 11.03), and pharmaceutical distribution and marketing (79.34 ± 10.96 vs. 67.50 ± 15.82). 1 + X certificate pass rates and satisfaction with the model were also higher than the 2020 cohort., Conclusion: The 1 + X certificate system is useful for developing talent in Chinese vocational education, effectively integrating assessments with industry standards. Future research should aim at evaluating long-term outcomes and improving quantitative skills assessments for enhanced effectiveness., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Adaptive cruise control and autonomous lane-change systems represent pivotal advancements in intelligent vehicle technology. To enhance the operational efficiency of intelligent vehicles in combined lane-change and car-following scenarios, we propose a coordinated decision control model based on hierarchical time series prediction and deep reinforcement learning under the influence of multiple surrounding vehicles. Firstly, we analyze the lane-change behavior and establish boundary conditions for safe lane-change, and divide the lane-change trajectory planning problem into longitudinal velocity planning and lateral trajectory planning. LSTM network is introduced to predict the driving states of surrounding vehicles in multi-step time series, combining D3QN algorithm to make decisions on lane-change behavior. Secondly, based on the following state between the ego vehicle and the leader vehicle in the initial lane, as well as the relationship between the initial distance and the expected distance with the leader vehicle in the target lane, with the primary objective of maximizing driving efficiency, longitudinal velocity is planned based on driving conditions recognition. The lateral trajectory and conditions recognition are then planned using the GA-LSTM-BP algorithm. In contrast to conventional adaptive cruise control systems, the DDPG algorithm serves as the lower-level control model for car-following, enabling continuous velocity control. The proposed model is subsequently simulated and validated using the NGSIM dataset and a lane-change scenarios dataset. The results demonstrate that the algorithm facilitates intelligent vehicle lane-change and car-following coordinated control while ensuring safety and stability during lane-changes. Comparative analysis with other decision control models reveals a notable 17.58% increase in driving velocity, underscoring the algorithm's effectiveness in improving driving efficiency.

With the advantages of superior wear resistance, mechanical durability, and stability, the liquid-solid triboelectric nanogenerator (LS-TENG) has been attracting much attention in the field of energy harvesting and self-powered sensors. However, most of the studies on LS-TENG focused on device innovations, changes in solid materials, and the effect of solid properties on output performance, and there is a lack of studies on liquids, especially at the molecular level. A U-tube LS-TENG was assembled to conduct experiments, whereby the effects of molecular structures, including molecular composition, carbon chain length, functional groups and material properties on the output performance were investigated. The deuterium replacing hydrogen and the atomic compositions could not achieve the enhancement of the output performance. Whether the chemical functional groups improve the output performance of LS-TENG depends on the mating solid material. Hydroxyl and cyanogenic groups can improve the output performance for the FEP case, while amide and cyanogenic groups can improve the output performance for the PTFE case. The order of output performances for functional groups of four groups of liquids with both FEP and PTFE materials is also obtained. It was also found that the dielectric constant is not positively correlated with the output performance. The results of this study might provide a reference for the deeper study and application of LS-TENG.

Vibration measurement and analysis play an important role in diagnosing mechanical faults, but existing vibration sensors are limited by issues such as dependence on external power sources and high costs. To overcome these challenges, the use of triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG)-based vibration sensors has recently attracted attention. These vibration sensors measure a small range of vibration frequencies and are not suitable for measuring high-frequency vibrations. Herein, a self-powered vibration sensor based on an elastic steel triboelectric nanogenerator (ES-TENG) is proposed. By optimizing the elastic steel sheet structure and combining time-frequency transformation and filtering processing methods, the measurement of medium- and high-frequency vibrations is achieved. These results demonstrate that the ES-TENG can perform vibration measurements in the range of 2-10,000 Hz, with a small average error (~0.42%) between the measured frequency and external vibration frequency values. Therefore, the ES-TENG can be used as a self-powered, highly-accurate vibration sensor for intelligent machinery monitoring.

To assess the effectiveness of radiofrequency (RF) versus other percutaneous strategies (balloon compression, glycerol rhizotomy [GR], and microvascular decompression [MVD]) in patients with trigeminal neuralgia. We systematically searched the electronic databases of PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library to identify eligible studies throughout October 2020. The odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was applied to assess effect estimates using the random-effects model. Eighteen retrospective cohort studies that enrolled 6391 patients with trigeminal neuralgia were included. We noted that RF was associated with an increased incidence of immediate pain relief compared with GR (OR 2.65; 95% CI 1.29-5.44; P = 0.008). Moreover, RF was associated with an increased risk of pain recurrence compared with MVD (OR 3.80; 95% CI 2.00-7.20; P < 0.001). Furthermore, RF was associated with an increased incidence of postoperative anesthesia compared with GR (OR 3.01; 95% CI 1.11-8.13; P = 0.030) or MVD (OR 4.62; 95% CI 2.15-9.93; P < 0.001). This study found that RF was superior to GR for the improvement in immediate pain relief; whereas, RF yielded an excess risk of pain recurrence compared with MVD. Moreover, the incidence of postoperative anesthesia in patients treated with RF significantly increased compared with the incidence after treatment with GR and MVD., (© 2021. Belgian Neurological Society.)

In this study, fourteen new cholic acid (CA) derivatives were designed and synthesized, and the GloSensor cAMP accumulation assay indicated that all derivatives could activate the Takeda G protein-coupled receptor 5 (TGR5). Methylation of 7- and 12-hydroxyl groups in CA significantly increased TGR5 agonism for the new derivatives. For example, 7,12-dimethoxy derivative B1 exhibited 78-fold higher potency for TGR5 than the 7,12-dihydroxyl derivative A1 and 258-fold higher potency than CA itself. On the other hand, A1 positively modulated chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA) functional activity in TGR5, whereas B1 did not show similar activity. Molecular docking experiments indicated that A1 formed a hydrogen bond between the 12-OH and amino acid Thr131 of TGR5, which is significant for its allosteric property. However, methylation at the 12-hydroxyl group in CA (derivative B1) disrupted this pivotal H-bond. Therefore, the free 12-hydroxyl group is essential for the CA derivatives in TGR5 allosteric agonism. Overall, we discovered a highly potent TGR5 agonist, B1, which can be used as lead compound for further study., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Harvesting wind energy from the ambient environment is a feasible method for powering wireless sensors and wireless transmission equipment. Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have proven to be a stable and promising technology for harvesting ambient wind energy. This study explores a new method for the performance enhancement and practical application of TENGs. An array of flag-type triboelectric nanogenerators (F-TENGs) for harvesting wind energy is proposed. An F-TENG consists of one piece of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membrane, which has two carbon-coated polyethylene terephthalate (PET) membranes on either side with their edges sealed. The PTFE was pre-ground to increase the initial charge on the surface and to enhance the effective contact area by improving the surface roughness, thus achieving a significant improvement in the output performance. The vertical and horizontal arrays of F-TENGs significantly improved the power output performance. The optimal power output performance was achieved when the vertical parallel distance was approximately 4 D /15 (see the main text for the meaning of D ), and the horizontal parallel distance was approximately 2 D . We found that the peak output voltage and current of a single flag-type TENG of constant size were increased by 255% and 344%, respectively, reaching values of 64 V and 8 μA, respectively.

Bergenin is a C-glucoside of 4-O-methyl gallic acid with a variety of biological activities, such as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. Herein, we investigated the involvement of bergenin in the protective effect against H 2 O 2 -induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in human nucleus pulposus cells (HNPCs) and the underlying mechanisms. HNPCs were cotreated with various concentrations of bergenin and 200 μM H 2 O 2 for 24 h. Cell viability was detected by Cell Counting Kit-8 and lactate dehydrogenase release assays. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) was evaluated utilizing 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein-diacetate. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities and glutathione (GSH) levels were measured to assess oxidative stress. Apoptosis was evaluated using terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling and caspase-3/7 activity assays. Expression of protein was determined by western blotting. Results indicated that treatment with bergenin significantly alleviated H 2 O 2 -induced viability reduction and ROS overproduction in HNPCs in a dose-dependent manner. Bergenin alleviated H 2 O 2 -induced oxidative stress in HNPCs by increased activity of superoxide dismutase and level of glutathione peroxidase. H 2 O 2 -induced apoptosis and activity of caspase-3/7 were also suppressed by bergenin treatment in HNPCs. Western blotting showed that H 2 O 2 -induced decrease in expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPAR-γ) and increase in nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) were inhibited by bergenin. However, the inhibitory effect of bergenin on H 2 O 2 -induced viability reduction, oxidative stress and apoptosis were noticeably abrogated in PPAR-γ knockdown HNPCs. In conclusion, our results indicated that bergenin alleviates H 2 O 2 -induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in HNPCs by activating PPAR-γ and suppressing NF-κB pathway., (© 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)