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The dm5.3 major-effect QTL in cucumber encodes a homolog of Arabidopsis sigma factor binding protein 1 (CsSIB1). CsSIB1 positively regulates defense responses against downy mildew in cucumber through the salicylic acid (SA) biosynthesis/signaling pathway. Downy mildew (DM) caused by the oomycete pathogen Pseudoperonospora cubensis is an important disease of cucumber and other cucurbits. Our knowledge on molecular mechanisms of DM resistance is still limited. In this study, we reported identification and functional characterization of the candidate gene for the major-effect QTL, dm5.3 for DM resistance originated from PI 197088. The dm5.3 QTL was Modelized through marker-assisted development of near isogenic lines (NILs). NIL-derived segregating populations were used for fine mapping which narrowed the dm5.3 locus down to a 144 kb region. Based on multiple lines of evidence, we show that CsSIB1 (CsGy5G027140) that encodes the VQ motif-containing sigma factor binding protein 1 as the most likely candidate for dm5.3. Local association analysis identified a haplotype consisting of 7 SNPs inside the coding and promoter region of CsSIB1 that was associated with DM resistance. Expression of CsSIB1 was up-regulated with P. cubensis infection. Transcriptome profiling of NILs in response to P. cubensis inoculation revealed key players and associated gene networks in which increased expression of CsSIB1 antagonistically promoted salicylic acid (SA) but suppressed jasmonic acid (JA) biosynthesis/signaling pathways. Our work provides novel insights into the function of CsSIB1/dm5.3 as a disease resistance (R) gene. The roles of sigma factor binding protein genes in pathogen defense in cucumber were also discussed.

Pulse wave reflections reflect cardiac afterload and perfusion, which yield valid indicators for monitoring cardiovascular status. Accurate quantification of pressure wave reflections requires the measurement of aortic flow wave. However, direct flow measurement involves extra equipment and well-trained operator. In this study, the personalized aortic flow waveform was estimated from the individual central aortic pressure waveform (CAPW) based on pressure-flow relations. The separated forward and backward pressure waves were used to calculate wave reflection indices such as reflection index (RI) and reflection magnitude (RM), as well as the central aortic pulse transit time (PTT). The effectiveness and feasibility of the method were validated by a set of clinical data (13 participants) and the Nektar1D Pulse Wave Database (4,374 subjects). The performance of the proposed personalized flow waveform method was compared with the traditional triangular flow waveform method and the recently proposed lognormal flow waveform method by statistical analyses. Results show that the root mean square error calculated by the personalized flow waveform approach is smaller than that of the typical triangular and lognormal flow methods, and the correlation coefficient with the measured flow waveform is higher. The estimated personalized flow waveform based on the characteristics of the CAPW can estimate wave reflection indices more accurately than the other two methods. The proposed personalized flow waveform method can be potentially used as a convenient alternative for the measurement of aortic flow waveform.

In view of the nitrogen and phosphorus non-point source pollution caused by paddy field drainage in southern China, two paddy fields in Nanjing and Yuyao cities were selected to study the effect of plant buffer zone–antifouling curtain walls on reducing non-point source pollution. The results showed that the designed plant buffer zone–antifouling curtain wall systems could significantly reduce the concentration of total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) in drainage of the two paddy fields. Compared with paddy field drainage in Nanjing, the interception rate of TN in the plant buffer zone and antifouling curtain wall were 33.0% and 59.3%, respectively; the removal rates of TP were about 18.4% and 40.3%, respectively. In addition, the contents of ammoniacal nitrogen (NH3-N), nitrate nitrogen (NO3-N) and Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) were also significantly reduced. For the Yuyao experimental area, compared to the paddy field without the soil plant buffer zone (the control), the concentration of each indicator in the discharge water of the paddy fields with the soil plant buffer system operation mode was significantly reduced, the rejection rate of the TP, TN, total dissolved phosphorus (TDP), NO3-N and NH3-N were 64.28%, 70.66%, 83.73%, 65.22% and 80.69%, respectively. In summary, the construction of a plant buffer zone–antifouling curtain wall (soil plant buffer zone) has an obvious effect on the reduction of non-point source pollution in paddy fields, which could improve yield and fertilizer utilization. The plant buffer zone–antifouling curtain wall could be popularized and applied in local areas and southern China.

Water-flow window combines the functions of transparent building envelop, solar collector, as well as sun shading. Coloured particles are added to the flowing water within window cavity in order to provide extra shading, prevent indoor glare and enhance solar collection. The energy consumption of both air-conditioning system and water heating device can be further reduced. The aim of present investigation is to predict and analyze the year-round energy performance of a well-insulated water-flow window with different shading control modes. Accordingly, physical model of water-flow window is built up. FORTRAN program is developed and utilized in the numerical simulation. Results show that water-flow window can achieve exceptional sun blocking and cooling load reduction without occupying extra space. The year-round solar energy collection efficiency is within the range of 17.95∼21.06%. At the same time, indoor heat gain through the window can be reduced by around 50% compared with common double-layer window. The water-flow window under discussion has great application potential in buildings with constant hot water demand and high-density air-conditioning cooling load. In practice, the shading control mode should be carefully decided, and factors including climate region, hot water demand, window size and occupants' preference on indoor light environment should be taken into consideration. Numerical simulation proves to be an efficient method in predicting the energy performance of similar innovative-designed windows and a good assist in decision-making of real projects.

Fruit skin netting in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is associated with important fruit quality attributes. Two simply inherited genes H (Heavy netting) and Rs (Russet skin) control skin netting, but their molecular basis is unknown. Here, we reported map-based cloning and functional characterization of the candidate gene for the Rs locus that encodes CsSHINE1 (CsSHN1), an AP2 domain containing ethylene-responsive transcription factor protein. Comparative phenotypic analysis in near-isogenic lines revealed that fruit with netted skin had different epidermal structures from that with smooth skin including thicker cuticles, smaller, palisade-shaped epidermal and sub-epidermal cells with heavily suberized and lignified cell walls, higher peroxidase activities, which suggests multiple functions of CsSHN1 in regulating fruit skin netting and epidermal cell patterning. Among three representative cucumber inbred lines, three haplotypes at three polymorphic sites were identified inside CsSHN1: a functional copy in Gy14 (wild type) with light fruit skin netting, a copy number variant with two tandemly arrayed functional copies in WI7120 with heavy skin netting, and a loss-of-function copy in 9930 with smooth skin. The expression level of CsSHN1 in fruit exocarp of three lines was positively correlated with the skin netting intensity. Comparative analysis between cucumber and melon revealed conserved and divergent genetic mechanisms underlying fruit skin netting/reticulation that may reflect the different selection histories in the two crops. A discussion was made on genetic basis of fruit skin netting in the context of natural and artificial selections of fruit quality-related epidermal features during cucumber breeding.

In the post−genomics era, Agrobacterium tumefaciens−mediated genetic transformation is becoming an increasingly indispensable tool for characterization of gene functions and crop improvement in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.). However, cucumber transformation efficiency is still low. In this study, we evaluated the effects of several key factors affecting the shoot−regeneration rate and overall transformation efficiency in cucumber including genotypes, the age and sources of explants, Agrobacterium strains, infection/co−cultivation conditions, and selective agents. We showed that in general, North China cucumbers exhibited higher shoot−regeneration rate than US pickling or slicing cucumbers. The subapical ground meristematic regions from cotyledons or the hypocotyl had a similar shoot−regeneration efficiency that was also affected by the age of the explants. Transformation with the Agrobacterium strain AGL1 yielded a higher frequency of positive transformants than with GV3101. The antibiotic kanamycin was effective in selection against non−transformants or chimeras. Optimization of various factors was exemplified with the development of transgenic plants overexpressing the LittleLeaf (LL) gene or RNAi of the APRR2 gene in three cucumber lines. The streamlined protocol was also tested in transgenic studies in three additional genes. The overall transformation efficiency defined by the number of verified transgenic plants out of the number of seeds across multiple experiments was 0.2–1.7%. Screening among T1 OE transgenic plants identified novel, inheritable mutants for leaf or fruit color or size/shape, suggesting T−DNA insertion as a potential source of mutagenesis. The Agrobacterium−mediated transformation protocol from this study could be used as the baseline for further improvements in cucumber transformation.

Neuroinflammation is a key mediator to the pathogenic cascades induced by cerebral ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. IKZF3, a key zinc finger transcription factor in the Ikaros family, has already been shown to modulate a wide range of cell functions and the production of inflammatory mediators. However, the effects of IKZF3 on inflammation and the potential mechanism after cerebral I/R injury remain unclear. In this study, we evaluated the effect of IKZF3 on HT-22 cells under oxygen-glucose deprivation and reoxygenation (OGD/R) in vitro and in mice with MACO in vivo. We found that IKZF3 expression peaked at 12 h after MCAO and OGD/R, and there was high expression of IKZF3 in brain tissues and HT-22 cells. IKZF3 knockdown exacerbated the damage by OGD-induced HT-22 cells injury and MCAO-induced brain injury in mice by regulating the production of inflammatory factors, which promoted the phosphorylation and nuclear transfer of NF-ĸB and may bind with NF-ĸB-p65 in vivo and in vitro. Our results suggested that IKZF3 may provide a new target in improve neurological recovery and reducing neuroinflammation after cerebral I/R injury.

Studies have found that Platonin has neuroprotective effect, but its molecular mechanism needs further study. We found that at the early stage of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury, Platonin treatment significantly reduced cerebral infarct lesions, improved neurological scores, and exerted neuroprotective effects. Our group has shown that NLRP3 inflammasomes activation is required to mediate neuronal injury during cerebral ischemia /reperfusion injury. The brain protective effect of Platonin is related to its ability to effectively regulate autophagy and NLRP3 inflammasomes-derived inflammation. Platonin treatment effectively induced autophagy (LC3II/I, p62) and reduced NLRP3 inflammasomes activation(NLRP3, cleaved-IL-1β，cleaved-IL-18, cleaved-caspase1). However, 3-MA (15 mg/kg) treatment downregulated the inhibitory effect of Platonin on NLRP3 inflammasomes. We also studied the location of BNIP3 in Platonin-mediated neuroprotection and found that Platonin induced the expression of autophagic protein BNIP3 and enhanced the co-immunoprecipitation of BNIP3 with LC3, and double-labeled immunofluorescence also showed enhanced co-localization of BNIP3 with LC3. Finally, si-BNIP3 transfection attenuated the co localization of BNIP3 with LC3, decreased the autophagy activity to a certain extent and blocked the inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasomes-derived inflammation by Platonin. This study demonstrated that Platonin may play a neuroprotection role in cerebral I / R injury by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasomes activation through upregulating autophagy via BNIP3 / LC3 pathway.

Glioma, the most severe primary brain malignancy, has very low survival rates and a high level of recurrence. Nowadays, conventional treatments for these patients are suffering a similar plight owing to the distinctive features of the malignant gliomas, for example chemotherapy is limited by the blood-brain barrier while surgery and radiation therapy are affected by the unclear boundaries of tumor from normal tissue. In the present study, a novel superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoprobe for enhanced T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was developed. A frequently used MRI probe, SPIO nanoparticles, was coated with a silica outer layer and for the first time was covalently modified with interleukin-6 receptor targeting peptides (I6P7) to promote transportation through the blood-brain barrier and recognition of low-grade gliomas. The efficiency of transcytosis across the blood-brain barrier was examined in vitro using a transwell invasion model and in vivo in nude mice with orthotopic low-grade gliomas. The targeting nanoprobe showed significant MRI enhancement and has potential for use in the diagnosis of low-grade gliomas.

Background Our previous studies demonstrated that autophagy alleviates cerebral I/R injury by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated inflammation. 6-Gingerol, a phenolic compound extracted from ginger, was reported to possess potent antiapoptotic and anti-inflammatory activities and is associated with autophagy. However, the effects of 6-Gingerol in cerebral I/R injury have not been elucidated, and whether they involve autophagy-induced NLRP3 inflammasome inhibition remains unclear. Methods Adult male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 1 h, followed by reperfusion for 24 h. 6-Gingerol and 3-methyladenine (3-MA) were injected intraperitoneally, and si-TRPV1 was injected via the lateral ventricle. Cerebral infarct volume, brain edema, neurological deficits, HE and Nissl were used to evaluate the morphological and functional changes of brain tissue, respectively. TRPV1, FAF1, autophagy related (LC3II/I, P62, Beclin1), inflammation related (NLRP3, cleaved-caspase-1, caspase-1, cleaved-IL-1β, IL-1β, cleaved-IL-18, IL-18) and apoptosis related (Bcl-2, Bax, cleaved-caspase-3) proteins were assessed by Western blot, immunofluorescence staining and coimmunoprecipitation, respectively. Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to evaluate the changes in the expression levels of interleukin-1 (IL-1β) and interleukin-18(IL-18), respectively. The degree of neuronal apoptosis was evaluated by TUNEL staining. Neuronal ultrastructure was examined by transmission electron microscopy. Result 6-Gingerol treatment significantly reduced cerebral infarct volume, improved brain edema and neurological scores, and reversed brain histomorphological damage after I/R injury. In addition, 6-Gingerol significantly reduced NLRP3 inflammasome-derived inflammation and neuronal apoptosis and upregulated autophagy. The autophagy inhibitor 3-MA rescued the effects of 6-Gingerol on the NLRP3 inflammasome and apoptosis. Moreover, the findings illustrated that 6-Gingerol inhibited autophagy-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation and apoptosis through the dissociation of TRPV1 from FAF1. Conclusion In brief, 6-Gingerol exerts antiapoptotic and anti-inflammatory effects via TRPV1/FAF1 complex dissociation-mediated autophagy during cerebral I/R injury. Therefore, 6-Gingerol may be an effective drug for the treatment of I/R injury.

Effective microorganism treatment, a low-cost and remediation measure that with no secondary pollution, was conducted in aquaculture wastewater. Unfortunately, effective microorganism erosion caused by the momentum of water flow under in situ conditions limits the treatment effect. In the channel test, a floating plant bed coupled with the effective microorganism was used to treat crab-breeding wastewater. This study explored the effect of plant coverage and hydraulic loading on aquaculture wastewater purification in the floating plant bed&ndash, effective microorganism coupled system. The results show that the effect of the coupled treatment effect is much better than pure microorganism treatment. The pollutant degradation coefficient has a significantly positive correlation with the length of the floating plant bed. A plant coverage rate of 30% and effluent hydraulic loading of 1.0 m3/m2&middot, d are optimum floating plant bed&ndash, effective microorganism test conditions. Once the coverage rate exceeded 30%, the increase in the CODMn removal efficiency was not clear. At the same time, the high plant coverage inhibited the oxygen capacity in the water body, which directly led to a decrease in the degradation ability of organic matter by the plant. The biology&ndash, ecology coupled technology proposed in this study overcame the shortcomings of the easy-to-lose effective microorganism during the traditional unfixed process and improved the stability of the processing system. It strengthened the crab-breeding wastewater remediation effect. For an in situ application, the artificial restoration system 1 km in length was efficient, and the discharge met the standard at the end of the river.

Glioma is a common primary brain malignancy with a poor prognosis. Chemotherapy is the first‐line treatment for brain tumors but low efficiency of drugs in crossing the blood–brain barrier (BBB) and drug resistance related to tumor hypoxia thwart its efficacy. Herein, a theranostic nanodrug (iRPPA@TMZ/MnO) is developed by incorporating oleic acid‐modified manganese oxide (MnO) and temozolomide (TMZ) into a polyethylene glycol‐poly(2‐(diisopropylamino)ethyl methacrylate‐based polymeric micelle containing internalizing arginine‐glycine‐aspartic acid (iRGD). The presence of iRGD provides the nanodrug with a high capacity of crossing the BBB and penetrating the tumor tissue. After accumulation in glioma, the nanodrug responds to the tumor microenvironment to simultaneously release TMZ, Mn2+, and O2. The released TMZ induces tumor cell apoptosis and the released Mn2+ causes intracellular oxidative stress that kill tumor cells via a Fenton‐like reaction. The O2 produced in situ alleviates tumor hypoxia and enhances the chemotherapy/chemodynamic therapeutic effects against glioma. The Mn2+ can also serve as a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent for tumor imaging during therapy. The study demonstrates the great potential of this multifunctional nanodrug for MRI‐visible therapy of brain glioma., A theranostic nanodrug (iRPPA@TMZ/MnO) exhibiting a high capability of crossing the blood–brain barrier and accumulating in glioma is developed. This nanodrug can respond to the tumor microenvironment to alleviate tumor hypoxia, exert synergistic chemotherapy/chemodynamic therapy, and enable site‐specific magnetic resonance imaging for effective treatment of orthotopic brain glioma.

Inflammation plays an important role in the pathogenesis of cerebral ischemia. Syringin (SYR) is an active substance isolated from Acanthopanax senticosus plants, and possesses anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties. However, its effects on cerebral ischemic injury, as well as the underlying molecular events, are still unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of SYR in a rat model of cerebral ischemia and address the related molecular mechanism. A middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion model (MCAO) was used to simulate ischemic injury. SYR treatment clearly reduced the infarct volume, decreased cerebral water content, improved the neurological score, and attenuated neuronal death. Moreover, SYR decreased the expression of NF-κB, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, and MPO, promoted FOXO3a phosphorylation and cytoplasmic retention, and inhibited the nuclear translocation of NF-κB. FOXO3a knockdown by RNA interference significantly prevented SYR-induced inhibition of NF-κB-mediated inflammation. Confocal microscopy revealed that SYR reduced NF-κB translocation to the nucleus, and FOXO3a silencing reversed this effect. Finally, immunofluorescence and CO-IP experiments showed that SYR promoted the interaction between FOXO3a and NF-κB. In conclusion, SYR exerted a protective effect against brain I/R injury by reducing the inflammation accompanying cerebral ischemia. This effect was mediated by the FOXO3a /NF-κB pathway.

The Gy14 cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is resistant to oomyceteous downy mildew (DM), bacterial angular leaf spot (ALS) and fungal anthracnose (AR) pathogens, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are unknown. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping for the disease resistances in Gy14 and further map-based cloning identified a candidate gene for the resistant loci, which was validated and functionally characterized by spatial-temporal gene expression profiling, allelic diversity and phylogenetic analysis, as well as local association studies. We showed that the triple-disease resistances in Gy14 were controlled by the cucumber STAYGREEN (CsSGR) gene. A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the coding region resulted in a nonsynonymous amino acid substitution in the CsSGR protein, and thus disease resistance. Genes in the chlorophyll degradation pathway showed differential expression between resistant and susceptible lines in response to pathogen inoculation. The causal SNP was significantly associated with disease resistances in natural and breeding populations. The resistance allele has undergone selection in cucumber breeding. The durable, broad-spectrum disease resistance is caused by a loss-of-susceptibility mutation of CsSGR. Probably, this is achieved through the inhibition of reactive oxygen species over-accumulation and phytotoxic catabolite over-buildup in the chlorophyll degradation pathway. The CsSGR-mediated host resistance represents a novel function of this highly conserved gene in plants.

Map-based cloning identified a candidate gene for resistance to the anthracnose fungal pathogen Colletotrichum orbiculare in cucumber, which reveals a novel function for the highly conserved STAYGREEN family genes for host disease resistance in plants. Colletotrichum orbiculare is a hemibiotrophic fungal pathogen that causes anthracnose disease in cucumber and other cucurbit crops. No host resistance genes against the anthracnose pathogens have been cloned in crop plants. Here, we reported fine mapping and cloning of a resistance gene to the race 1 anthracnose pathogen in cucumber inbred lines Gy14 and WI 2757. Phenotypic and QTL analysis in multiple populations revealed that a single recessive gene, cla, was underlying anthracnose resistance in both lines, but WI2757 carried an additional minor-effect QTL. Fine mapping using 150 Gy14 × 9930 recombinant inbred lines and 1043 F2 individuals delimited the cla locus into a 32 kb region in cucumber Chromosome 5 with three predicted genes. Multiple lines of evidence suggested that the cucumber STAYGREEN (CsSGR) gene is a candidate for the anthracnose resistance locus. A single nucleotide mutation in the third exon of CsSGR resulted in the substitution of Glutamine in 9930 to Arginine in Gy14 in CsSGR protein which seems responsible for the differential anthracnose inoculation responses between Gy14 and 9930. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis indicated that CsSGR was significantly upregulated upon anthracnose pathogen inoculation in the susceptible 9930, while its expression was much lower in the resistant Gy14. Investigation of allelic diversities in natural cucumber populations revealed that the resistance allele in almost all improved cultivars or breeding lines of the U.S. origin was derived from PI 197087. This work reveals an unknown function for the highly conserved STAYGREEN (SGR) family genes for host disease resistance in plants.

This paper proposes a new multi-attribute decision making method based on Pythagorean fuzzy set and similarity measure. Firstly, the decision scheme is represented by Pythagorean fuzzy numbers, and then their sizes are ranked by the Pythagorean fuzzy number ranking method, so as to determine the positive ideal attribute value and the negative ideal attribute value. Then, the similarity between each decision-making scheme and the ideal attribute values is calculated respectively. Finally, the relative closeness of each scheme is calculated, and the optimal ranking is made according to its size. The validity and reliability of the proposed method are verified by case simulation.

Based on the principles of fairness and feasibility, a nonlinear optimization allocation method for pollutants was developed based on controlled section water quality standards, considering the synergetic influence of point and surface sources. The maximum allowable emission of pollutants from point and surface sources were taken as the objective function. The water quality attainment rate of controlled sections, the control requirements of pollution sources, and technical parameters of pollution control engineering were taken as constraints. A nonlinear optimization allocation model was established, and a genetic algorithm was used to solve the problem. As an example, the model was applied to a certain area in the Taihu Lake basin, southern Jiangsu province, China. The analysis results showed that the annual number of days for ammonia-nitrogen and total phosphorus meeting the standard were 334 and 332 days, respectively, under maximum allowable emissions for each pollutant, and the water quality compliance rates of the control section were 91.5% and 91%, respectively. The ammonia-nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations in the controlled section achieved related water quality compliance rate targets of 90%. These all met the water quality compliance rate requirements of the control section. The results indicate that this method reflects the feasibility of optimizing the total allocation results systematically and intuitively, overcomes the insufficiency in the feasibility of the optimized allocation method, and provides effective and reliable technical support for control and management of the total pollutant amount based on water quality improvement.

A mathematical model for simulating hydrodynamics and pollutants migration in a tidal river network was constructed, which takes the temporal and spatial distribution of rainfall runoff and non-point pollutants into consideration. Under the design hydrologic conditions of a typical hydrological year, the daily concentration change process for the control section is obtained. Aiming at the uncertainty of hydrology and water quality parameters such as flow direction, flow rate and concentration change in tidal river network area, a statistical analysis method is used to obtain the maximum allowable concentration of pollutants in the control section under the condition of the water quality standard assurance rate of. Then, a formula for calculating the pollutions emission intensity of point and non-point sources is derived. The method was applied to the pollution source control in a typical region like Taihu in China.

NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 6 (NLRP6), a novel member of the NLR family, has been confirmed to have an inflammasome-dependent proinflammatory effect in cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury. NLRP6 assembles a multimeric inflammasome complex comprising the adaptor ASC and the effector pro-caspase-1 to mediate the activation of caspase-1. The molecular mechanism regulating activation of the NLRP6 inflammasome remains unclear. Previous studies have shown that BRCA1-BRCA2-containing complex subunit 3 (BRCC3), a JAMM domain-containing Zn2+ metalloprotease deubiquitinating enzyme, participates in a variety of cellular activities. In this study, we found that BRCC3 expression was increased in the middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model. BRCC3 siRNA could reduce nerve damage and inflammation. Interestingly, the result of co-immunoprecipitation showed that the interaction between BRCC3 and NLRP6 was enhanced after model, and the result of immunofluorescence showed that the co-localization of BRCC3 and NLRP6 was increased. At the same time, the expression of NLRP6, cleavated-caspase-1 and IL-1β was decreased after BRCC3 interference. These results illustrate a regulatory mechanism involving the BRCC3-NLRP6 pathway and highlight NLRP6 as a potential therapeutic target for inflammatory diseases.

Interdiffusion in the BCC phase of the Ti-Mn binary and Ti-Al-Mn ternary systems was investigated between 1273 and 1473 K by applying the diffusion-couple technique. The local chemical compositions within the interdiffusion zone of the diffusion couples were acquired by electron probe microanalysis (EPMA). The raw composition profiles were then analytically represented by the error function expansion, which allow the ternary inter- and impurity diffusivities to be appropriately extracted by the Whittle–Green and generalized Hall methods, respectively. It was demonstrated that, all four diffusion coefficients D~kij (i, j = Al, Mn), both main and cross ones, increase with increasing the composition of diffusing specie at 1473 K, whereas at 1273 K D~TiMnMn and D~TiMnAl are enhanced by the addition of diffusing specie Mn but D~TiAlAl and D~TiAlMn are in weak dependence with the Al content. A complete comparison among seven Ti-Al-X (Ni, Co, Fe, Mn, Cr, V and Mo) ternary systems reveals that the order of the average main interdiffusion coefficients D~TiXX¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ (X = Ni, Co, Fe, Mn, Cr, V and Mo) exhibits DNi > DCo > DFe > DMn > DCr > DV > DMo., This work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51571113) and Joint Project of Industry-University-Research of Jiangsu Province (Grant No: BY2016005-02). YG would like to thank the support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 11647162) and Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institution (PAPD). GX wishes to gratefully acknowledge the financial support by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51701094) and the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (BK20171014).

Solar control films are designed to absorb or reflect the incident solar radiation, in order to reduce solar transmission through window glass. In the present study, the glass surface temperatures were measured for selected solar window films on various applications, and compared to the cases of the same window glass types without solar window films. Dynamic simulation models are also developed with the aid of the building energy simulation program EnergyPlus. After experimental validations, the computer models are used to evaluate the energy saving potentials of the subject samples of solar window films as applied onto glazing of three different function rooms in Hong Kong, namely office, shopping mall and hotel guest room. The results show that the thermal performance of the film applications on clear glass is better than on tinted or laminated glass windows. Solar films have very good energy saving potential when applied to all three functional areas in commercial buildings, and the best results are found in office applications.

Aim of the paper is to present a theoretical investigation into the energy performance of a novel PV/T module that employs the MPCM (Micro-encapsulated Phase Change Material) slurry as the working fluid. This involved (1) development of a dedicated mathematical model and computer program; (2) validation of the model by using the published data; (3) prediction of the energy performance of the MPCM (Microencapsulated Phase Change Material) slurry based PV/T module; and (4) investigation of the impacts of the slurry flow state, concentration ratio, Reynolds number and slurry serpentine size onto the energy performance of the PV/T module. It was found that the established model, based on the Hottel–Whillier assumption, is able to predict the energy performance of the MPCM slurry based PV/T system at a very good accuracy, with 0.3–0.4% difference compared to a validated model. Analyses of the simulation results indicated that laminar flow is not a favorite flow state in terms of the energy efficiency of the PV/T module. Instead, turbulent flow is a desired flow state that has potential to enhance the energy performance of PV/T module. Under the turbulent flow condition, increasing the slurry concentration ratio led to the reduced PV cells' temperature and increased thermal, electrical and overall efficiency of the PV/T module, as well as increased flow resistance. As a result, the net efficiency of the PV/T module reached the peak level at the concentration ratio of 5% at a specified Reynolds number of 3,350. Remaining all other parameters fixed, increasing the diameter of the serpentine piping led to the increased slurry mass flow rate, decreased PV cells' temperature and consequently, increased thermal, electrical, overall and net efficiencies of the PV/T module. In overall, the MPCM slurry based PV/T module is a new, highly efficient solar thermal and power configuration, which has potential to help reduce fossil fuel consumption and carbon emission to the environment.

Aim of the paper is to report the experimental study of a novel liquid–vapour separator incorporated gravity-assisted loop heat pipe (GALHP) (T1), against the conventional GALHP (T2) and a gravitat ...

Aim of the paper is to investigate the thermal performance of a novel liquid–vapour separator incorporated gravity-assisted loop heat pipe (GALHP) (T1), against a conventional GALHP (T2) and a gravitational straight heat pipe (T3), from the conceptual and theoretical aspects. This involved a dedicated conceptual formation, thermo-fluid analyses, and computer modelling and results discussion. The innovative feature of the new GALHP lies in the integration of a dedicated liquid–vapour separator on top of its evaporator section, which removes the potential entrainment between the heat pipe liquid and vapour flows and meanwhile, resolves the inherent ‘dry-out’ problem exhibited in the conventional GALHP. Based on this recognised novelty, a dedicated steady-state thermal model covering the mass continuity, energy conservation and Darcy equations was established. The model was operated at different sets of conditions, thus generating the temperature/pressure contours of the vapour and liquid flows at the evaporator section, the overall thermal resistance, the effective thermal conductivity, and the flow resistances across entire loop. Comparison among these results led to determination of the optimum operational settings of the new GALHP and assessment of the heat-transfer enhancement rate of the new GALHP against the conventional heat pipes. It was suggested that the overall thermal resistance of the three heat pipes (T1, T2, and T3) were 0.10 °C/W, 0.49 °C/W and 0.22 °C/W, while their effective thermal conductivities were 31,365 W/°C m, 9,648 W/°C m and 5,042 W/°C m, respectively. This indicated that the novel heat pipe (T1) could achieve a significantly enhanced heat transport effect, relative to T2 and T3. Compared to a typical cooper rod, T1 has around 78 times higher effective thermal conductivity, indicating that T1 has the tremendous competence compared to other heat transfer components. It should be noted that this paper only reported the theoretical outcomes of the research and the second paper would report the follow-on experimental study and model validation. The research results could be directly used for design, optimisation and analyses of the new GALHP, thus promoting its wide applications in various situations to enable the enhanced thermal performance to be achieved.

The development of CALPHAD-type thermodynamic database for Ti or Zr based biomedical alloys has been spurred by the increased interest in efficiently tailoring an alloy composition to obtain high stability of β_bcc, low Young's modulus, and free of detrimental phases. However, the thermodynamic prediction is not adequate to be performed without the information of key sub-ternary Ti–Zr–Sn system. In present work, the thermodynamic assessment of Ti–Zr–Sn system is performed via a critical evaluation of phase equilibria and microstructure development in this ternary system. The partial isothermal sections at 1323 K and 1473 K with Sn content below 40 at. % are obtained by analyzing chemical compositions and crystal structures of individual phases in the annealed alloys. The composition homogeneity range of most phases is validated to favor a ternary extension paralleling to the Ti–Zr axis. Particularly, β_bcc and η phases (with the chemical composition (Ti, Zr)5Sn3+x) show complete solubility of Ti and Zr from Ti–Sn edge to Zr–Sn edge. With the database, negligible ternary solubility of Zr4Sn phase, microstructure development in the as-cast samples, and the controversial conclusions in literature are discussed. Most of the experimental findings, including equilibrium phase constitution, solidification sequence, DSC signals, projections of liquidus, are reproduced in a self-consistent way. The work moves towards the completeness of multi-component Ti/Zr thermodynamic database. It can be used for composition design of novel metastable β-type biomedical alloys.

In order to investigate the short-term effects of wastewater (dairy effluent) and EM treated wastewater on cabbage quality (vitamin C, nitrate), yield, Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorous (P) uptakes and heavy metals (i.e., Hg, Pb and Cd) accumulation in Cabbage, field experiments were conducted with the following irrigation treatments: Clean Water (CW), Waste Water (WW), Reclaimed Water-EM treated wastewater (RW), Clear Water-wastewater rotation (C/W) and clear water-treated wastewater rotation (C/R). The results showed that: yield of cabbages, concentration of total N and P in cabbages could be improved in treatment irrigated with both untreated and EM treated dairy effluent, especially in treatments RW and C/R. Heavy metals in cabbages irrigated with/without dairy effluent showed non-significant difference. The highest nitrate was obtained with C/W treatment and the lowest was obtained with the RW treatment. With integrate comparative study of nutrition, nitrate and heavy metal, EM treated dairy effluent is more suitable to irrigate cabbage than raw dairy effluent. And the cabbages under RW and C/W treatment grew better than other treatments. It is suggested that the EM treated wastewater can be used as a safe alternative for irrigation of cabbages edible.

Partial root zone drying (PRD) has been used as a technique in the production of many crops. However, the extent or duration of the drying treatment would change the effect and the mechanisms in terms of plant water relations are not clear enough. The aim of this research was to evaluate the PRD effect with shorter or longer drying duration in a potato crop and elucidate the mechanisms based on plant water relations. Potato (Solanum tuberosum L. cv. May Queen) was grown in experimental plots under plastic rainout shelters. Three treatments: (1) whole-season PRD, (2) early-season PRD for 8 weeks and then return to normal irrigation for the remainder of the season and (3) normal irrigation as control, were arranged in a Latin square design in 9 plots. Water was supplied by drip irrigation to one side of the potato row once every 5 days on average, and the other side of the row was allowed to dry for 15 days, and then the irrigation line was moved to the dry side and the wet side allowed to dry. Pressure–volume curves were used to analyze the osmotic adjustment induced by PRD and a modified mathematic equation, − Ψ − 1 = Ψ FT − 1 − π s + a − 1 [ ζ 0 − β ( 1 − ζ ) − ζ ap ] e − α ( 1 − ζ ) + π s + a − 1 [ ζ 0 − β ( 1 − ζ ) − ζ ap ] was used to compare the pressure–volume relations. As shown by the results, tuber yield and photosynthetic activity were increased by the early-season PRD treatment, but not by the whole-season PRD treatment because the whole-season PRD treatment reduced the leaf area index. By analyzing the pressure–volume curves, it was found that osmotic adjustment occurred and the turgor potential was higher in potato leaves in the PRD treatments. The fraction of water in the cell symplasm was higher and that in apoplasm was smaller in PRD-treated potato leaves. Both the osmotic potential and relative water content at the point of incipient plasmolysis were lower in potato leaves in the PRD treatments, suggesting that the plants in the PRD plots were more resistant to water stress, which was also confirmed by the analysis of transpiration declining curve of excised leaves. In conclusion, the PRD treatment was effective in improving potato tuber yield, but early-season treatment rather than the whole-season treatment should be adopted.