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Abstract Grout injection is an effective technique for repairing cracks in earthen sites. This study aims to address the challenges of Calcined Ginger Nuts (CGN)-based grout and enhance its engineering performance by investigating the compatibility of different superplasticizers. We examined the effects of Polycarboxylate Superplasticizer (PCE) and Naphthalene Superplasticizer (PNS) on the properties of CGN-based grout, focusing on fluidity, rheological properties, mechanical strength, volume stability, color difference, and pore structure. The engineering applicability of the optimized CGN-based grout with superplasticizers was assessed using COMSOL Multiphysics. The results show that fluidity increased with higher dosages of PCE and PNS. The grout containing these superplasticizers behaved as a shear-thinning fluid, following the power law model. Specifically, the consistency coefficient of grout with 0.5 wt% PCE and PNS decreased by 39.73% and 64.83%, respectively. Additionally, 2.9 wt% PCE and PNS reduced volume shrinkage rate by 6.86% and 6.27%, respectively. Initially, increasing the dosage of PCE and PNS improved compressive and flexural strength, but these properties later declined. XRD analysis revealed that PNS above 1.1 wt% and PCE weakened the hydration reaction, while both superplasticizers promoted carbonation. Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP) showed that 1.1 wt% PCE and PNS reduced the proportion of capillary pores by 13.79% and 10.11%, respectively. Based on these findings, 0.5 wt% PNS demonstrated the best compatibility with CGN-based grout, whereas PCE showed poor compatibility. Numerical simulations using COMSOL Multiphysics confirmed that 0.5 wt% PNS provided superior grouting effectiveness. Therefore, the CGN based grout with 0.5wt% PNS demonstrates excellent engineering performance and applicability. This study offers valuable insights into optimizing CGN-based grout for the preservation of earthen sites.

Abstract Grouting technology is the primary method for repairing cracks in earthen sites. However, there has been a long-standing lack of effective methods for evaluating grouting effectiveness. This paper proposes a field evaluation method based on P-wave velocity. This method explicitly discusses two scenarios where the P-wave velocity of the grout is either higher or lower than that of the soil, using the depth ℎ of the “hypothetical crack” as the evaluation indicator. The experimental results indicate that specimens with 20% and 40% defects show increases in ℎ values of 0.0113 m and 0.0166 m, respectively. Laboratory tests have demonstrated that this method can accurately evaluate grouting effectiveness and is not affected by the P-wave velocity of the soil. The application of this evaluation method to three typical earthen sites resulted in more reliable and easily quantifiable evaluation outcomes. By considering the width of grout, the method provides a more intuitive comparison of reparation effectiveness. The study demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed method, thereby facilitating effective crack reparation in earthen sites.

Rising damp is one of the main problems affecting historical masonry structures worldwide, as it affects the appearance of heritage architecture and reduces strength. In this study, to reproduce the pathologies as much as possible and explain the mechanism, the aging test was set up with the climate data (temperature, humidity, etc.) derived from the real environment in nature at the location of the White Temple Tower, which was the object of this study. The tests mimicked the temperature, humidity, and types of salt solutions as closely as possible. Unlike the traditional aging test (producing specimens in accordance with some standards), two samples of blue brick carvings and blue brick cubes were used for the test. The results show that brick carvings suffered more severe surface degradation than brick cubes under various circumstances. Brick specimens' mechanical characteristics, such as wave velocity and compressive strength, were greatly diminished, and there was a fluctuating trend in surface hardness and color difference. The data indicate a size effect on the weathering between brick carvings and brick cubes, with the former displaying a faster rate of weathering under identical conditions. The experiment successfully simulates some of the phenomena observed in the field and provides an idea for studying the weathering of brick artifacts.

Extreme precipitation events often present significant risks to human life and property, making their accurate prediction an essential focus of current research. Recent studies have primarily concentrated on exploring the formation mechanisms of extreme precipitation. Existing prediction methods do not adequately account for the combined terrain and atmospheric effects, resulting in shortcomings in extreme precipitation forecasting accuracy. Additionally, the satellite data resolution used in prior studies fails to precisely capture nuanced details of abrupt changes in extreme precipitation. To address these shortcomings, this study introduces an innovative approach for accurately predicting extreme precipitation: the multimodal attention ConvLSTM-GAN for extreme rainfall nowcasting (ER-MACG). This model employs high-resolution Fengyun-4A(FY4A) satellite precipitation products, as well as terrain and atmospheric datasets as inputs. The ER-MACG model enhances the ConvLSTM-GAN framework by optimizing the generator structure with an attention module to improve the focus on critical areas and time steps. This model can alleviate the problem of information loss in the spatial–temporal convolutional long short-term memory network (ConvLSTM) and, compared with the standard ConvLSTM-GAN model, can better handle the detailed changes in time and space in extreme precipitation events to achieve more refined predictions. The main findings include the following: (a) The ER-MACG model demonstrated significantly greater predictive accuracy and overall performance than other existing approaches. (b) The exclusive consideration of DEM and LPW data did not significantly enhance the ability to predict extreme precipitation events in Zhejiang Province. (c) The ER-MACG model significantly improved in identifying and predicting extreme precipitation events of different intensity levels.

The growth status of winter wheat seedlings during the greening period is called the seedling situation. Timely and accurate determinations of the seedling situation type are important for subsequent field management measures and yield estimation. To solve the problems of low-efficiency artificial classification, subjective doping, inaccurate classification, and overfitting in transfer learning in classifying the seedling condition of winter wheat seedlings during the greening period, we propose an improved ConvNeXt winter wheat seedling status classification and identification network based on the pre-training–fine-tuning model addressing over-fitting in transfer learning. Based on ConvNeXt, a SETFL-ConvNeXt network (Squeeze and Excitation attention-tanh ConvNeXt using focal loss), a winter wheat seedling identification and grading network was designed by adding an improved SET attention module (Squeeze and Excitation attention-tanh) and replacing the Focal Loss function. The accuracy of the SETFL-ConvNeXt reached 96.68%. Compared with the classic ConvNeXt model, the accuracy of the Strong class, First class, and Third class increased by 1.188%, 2.199%, and 0.132%, respectively. With the model, we also compared the effects of different optimization strategies, five pre-training-fine-tuning models, and the degree of change in the pre-trained model. The accuracy of the fine-tuning models trained in the remaining layers increased by 0.19–6.19% using the last three frozen blocks, and the accuracy of the pre-trained model increased by 3.1–8.56% with the least degree of change method compared with the other methods. The SETFL-ConvNeXt network proposed in this study has high accuracy and can effectively address overfitting, providing theoretical and technical support for classifying winter wheat seedlings during the greening period. It also provides solutions and ideas for researchers who encounter overfitting.

Abstract With the development of modern electronic countermeasure technology, the fight between radar jamming and anti-jamming has become increasingly fierce. Experts have done a lot of highly effective work on radar anti-jamming performance. However, the emergence of various new complex interferences has rendered existing methods unable to meet the needs. In this manuscript, we consider the measurement and evaluation method of radar anti-jamming effectiveness based on principal component analysis and machine learning. Firstly, taking into account the diversity of variables in radar countermeasure experiments and the complexity of constraints between variables, we propose a bipartite covering array for the experimental scheme, which requires that each level combination of any radar parameter and jammer parameter occurs at least once, to ensure the rationality of the experiments. Secondly, according to the characteristics of multiple jammers and the analysis of impacts on radar performances, we combine the existing indicators and use the principal component analysis method to obtain two comprehensive indicators, which better reflect radar performances. Finally, we select the best model as a prediction for radar comprehensive indicators by comparing several machine learning algorithm models, including classification and regression tree, random forest, xgboost, and SVM. Additional experiments verify the effectiveness of the resulted model.

Tanshinone IIA (Tan-IIA) is the main bioactive component of Chinese herbal medicine salvia miltiorrhiza (Danshen). Sodium sulfonate of Tan-IIA is widely used in the treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Tan-IIA also has inhibitory effects on tumor cells such as gastric cancer, but its therapeutic effect and mechanism on human neuroblastoma have not been evaluated, so its pharmacological mechanism is systematically evaluated by the combined method of network pharmacology and molecular docking. PharmMapper and SwissTargetPrediction predicted 331 potential Tan-IIA-related targets, and 1,152 potential neuroblastoma-related targets were obtained from GeneCards, DisGeNET, DrugBank, OMIM and Therapeutic Target databases (TTD), 107 common targets for Tan-IIA and neuroblastoma. Through gene ontology (GO) functional annotation, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomesa (KEGG) pathway enrichment, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network and cytoHubba plug-in, 10 related signal pathways (Pathways in cancer, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, Prostate cancer, etc.) and 10 hub genes were identified. The results of molecular docking showed that Tan-IIA could interact with 10 targets: GRB2, SRC, EGFR, PTPN1, ESR1, IGF1, MAPK1, PIK3R1, AKT1 and IGF1R. This study analyzed the related pathways and targets of Tan-IIA in the treatment of human neuroblastoma, as well as the potential anticancer and anti-tumor targets and related signaling pathways of Tan-IIA, which provides a reference for us to find and explore effective drugs for the treatment of human neuroblastoma.

With the emergence of Level 4 automated vehicles, it is necessary to investigate the impact of these vehicles on mode choice. Previous studies have looked at the potential benefits and drawbacks of automated vehicles, but there has been little research done on how these vehicles will impact individuals’ travel behaviors. This paper proposes a needs-based approach to study the impact of Level 4 automated vehicles on mode choice. The approach takes into consideration the travel needs of different individuals and their willingness to adopt new technologies. Through a stated preference survey in China, the data on travel preferences and the perceived safety levels of automated vehicles can be collected. Then, a model is built to simulate the adoption of Level 4 automated vehicles and estimate the mode split for different scenarios. The results indicated that private AV modes are preferred, and business and nonwork trips may be the targeted market for all AV modes. Overall, value of automation increases with income for private modes, with large variance. Furthermore, Pro-AV attitude has a positive effect on value of automation, especially for self-owned AV and AV subscription. Accordingly, the needs-based approach demonstrates a promising method to study the impact of new technologies on travel behaviors and provides insights for policy makers to promote more sustainable transportation systems.

Abstract Rail vehicles generate huge longitudinal impact loads in collisions. If unreasonable matching exists between the compressive strength of the intermediate coupler and the structural strength of the car body, the risk of car body structure damage and train derailment will increase. Herein, a four-stage rigid–flexible coupling finite element model of the coupler is established considering the coupler buckling load. The influence of the coupler buckling load on the train longitudinal–vertical–horizontal buckling behavior was studied, and the mechanism of the train horizontal buckling instability in train collisions was revealed. Analysis results show that an intermediate coupler should be designed to ensure that the actual buckling load is less than the compressive load when the car body structure begins to deform plastically. The actual buckling load of the coupler and the asymmetry of the structural strength of the car body in the lateral direction are two important influencing factors for the lateral buckling of a train collision. If the strength of the two sides of the car body structure in the lateral direction is asymmetrical, the deformation on the weaker side will be larger, and the end of the car body will begin to deflect under the action of the coupler force, which in turn causes the train to undergo sawtooth buckling.

Abstract Erectile dysfunction (ED) caused by cavernous nerve injury (CNI) is refractory to heal mainly ascribed to the adverse remodeling of the penis induced by ineffectual microvascular perfusion, fibrosis, and neurotrophins scarcity in cavernosum. Phosphodiesterase type V inhibitors (PDE5i) have been regarded as an alternative candidate drug for avoiding penile neuropathy. However, the therapeutic efficacy is severely limited due to poor accumulation under systemic medication and endogenous nitric oxide (NO) deficiency in cavernosum. Herein, an innovative liposomal microbubble (MB) loaded with both Sildenafil (one of PDE5i) and NO was designed. Ultrasound‐targeted MB destruction (UTMD)‐mediated efficient release and integration erectogenic agents into corpus cavernosum with high biosafety. On a bilateral CNI rat model, the multifunctional MB‐cooperated UTMD improved microvascular perfusion in penis, simultaneously, alleviated hypoxia and oxidative stress, indicating successful activation of NO–cyclic guanosine monophosphate pathway. Also, evaluation of the endothelial/muscular composition, intracavernosal pressure, and neural integrity in the penis proved that coordinated intervention reversed the abnormal structural remodeling and promoted the recovery of functional erection. Our work demonstrates that MB loading Sildenafil and NO combined with UTMD hold great promise to “awaken” the efficacy of PDE5i in neurogenic ED, which provided a superior option for ensuring penile rehabilitation.

The use of air springs has become widespread in various industries due to their exceptional superelastic properties; however, their strong nonlinear characteristics have become a hindrance to numerical simulations of air springs and have garnered increasing attention. This paper examined the nonlinear dynamic mechanical characteristics of air springs from a fluid–structure interaction perspective and verified the accuracy of the simulation analysis model through quasistatic tension and compression experiments. The average relative errors for air spring load and gas pressure were found to be 8.1% and 7.7%, respectively, which supports the validity of the model. The impact of frequency and amplitude excitations on the axial load characteristics of air springs was investigated through tension and torsion testing. The results showed that increasing the excitation frequency improves the stability of the axial load, while increasing the excitation amplitude enhances the axial load value. The change in axial compression was found to be more significant than that in axial tension, as it was affected not only by the axial load but also by the radial load, which is a key factor affecting the dynamic characteristics of air springs. A radial load analysis model was established to study the influence of frequency and amplitude excitations on the axial load characteristics of air springs. The simulation results indicated that under different amplitudes, the radial load of air springs goes through four stages: a steady period, rising period, steady period, and falling period. Additionally, under the same amplitude, the radial load value increases with an increase in frequency. This research on the dynamic load characteristics of air springs under amplitude and frequency excitations is important for their application in low-frequency and low-amplitude vibration environments, and its findings can be utilized to improve the technical parameters of air springs for suspension damping.

Recently, the coding metasurface has gained significant attention due to its exceptional potential in controlling electromagnetic (EM) waves with the rapid development of wireless communication systems. Meanwhile, graphene shows tremendous promise for the implementation of reconfigurable antennas due to its high tunable conductivity and its unique property that makes it a very suitable material for realizing steerable coded states. In this paper, we first propose a simple structured beam reconfigurable millimeter wave (MMW) antenna using a novel graphene-based coding metasurface (GBCM). Different from the previous method, its coding state can be manipulated by altering the sheet impedance of graphene instead of bias voltage. Then, we design and simulate several most popular coding sequences, including dual-, quad-and single-beam-generated implement, 30° beam deflection, as well as a random coding sequence for radar cross-section (RCS) reduction. The theoretical and simulation results show that graphene has great potential for MMW manipulation applications, which lay a foundation for the subsequent development and fabrication of GBCM.

The type and structure of clay minerals are among the main factors affecting the physical and mechanical properties of loess, and the salt content plays a dominant role in many factors affecting aggregation. In this study, the grain size analysis, Atterberg limits tests, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy spectrum analysis (EDS) were used to explore the microstructure and physicochemical mechanisms of the aggregation of clay particles. Finally, the unconfined compressive test, direct shear test, and elastic wave velocity test were conducted to explore the effect of sulfate agglomeration on loess properties. The results show that the salt-washing process leads to the loss of the original soluble salt, dispersion of the original aggregates, and increase of fine particles, such as fine silt and clay. With the increase of sulfate content, the content of fine silt and clay decreases, the liquid limit and plasticity index decrease, the plasticity limit remains unchanged, the aggregate content of fine silt and clay increases, the adsorption capacity weakens, and the diffusion layer compresses and thins. The mechanical test results show that when the sulfate content is less than 3%, the sulfate is almost completely dissolved and the aggregate is less, which increases compressive strength and the cohesion; when the sulfate content is more than 3%, too much sulfate cannot be dissolved and precipitated; hence, the aggregate increases. However, the existence of large volume mirabilite crystals reduces the cementation, which reduces the compressive strength, increases the internal friction angle, and weakens the cohesion.

Due to the modulation of tiny frequency offset on the array elements, a frequency diverse array (FDA) jammer can generate multiple range-dimension point false targets, and many deception jamming methods against SAR using an FDA jammer have been studied. However, the potential of the FDA jammer to generate barrage jamming has rarely been reported. In this paper, a barrage jamming method against SAR using an FDA jammer is proposed. To achieve two-dimensional (2-D) barrage effect, the stepped frequency offset of FDA is introduced to generate range-dimensional barrage patches, and the micro-motion modulation is employed to increase the extent of barrage patches along the azimuth direction. Mathematical derivations and simulation results demonstrate the validity of the proposed method in generating flexible and controllable barrage jamming.

Leaf area index (LAI) is one of the important variables for crop growth monitoring and yield estimating. In this article, the potato LAI was retrieved by several vegetation indices (VIs) and spectral parameters of the continuum removal method (SPCRM) to provide accurate estimates. A comparison of the two methods of retrieving precision was completed. The data source for computing VIs and SPCRM was hyperspectral reflectance data for the life cycle, derived from two potato cultivars, Favorite (early maturing variety) and Yanshu 4 (late maturing variety), through field experiments. Sensitive bands were identified to indicate seven VIs by correlation analysis. Additionally, seven SPCRM were computed. Based on these methods, the potato LAI was retrieved and tested. Meanwhile, a comparison of the retrieving precision was implemented. The results showed that compared with the filtered spectral reflectance and VIs, the correlation between the potato LAI and the continuum removal spectral reflectance and its retrieved SPCRM were higher. The determination coefficients (R2) of the retrieving models of four parameters, the total area (S), the left area (Sl), the right area (Sr) and the depth area ratio (W), derived from the continuum removal method were all above 0.801, and their fitting coefficients (r) were all above 0.868, with the mean relative errors (MRE) all

Five new triterpenoids, oenotheralanosterols C-G (1–5), with seven known triterpenoidcompounds, namely 2α,3α,19α-trihydroxy-24-norurs4,12-dien-28-oic acid (6), 3β,23-dihydroxy-1-oxo-olean-12-en-28-oic acid (7), remangilone C (8), knoxivalic acid A (9), termichebulolide (10), rosasecotriterpene A (11), androsanortriterpene C (12), were extracted and separated from the dichloromethane part of Oenothera biennis L. The anti-pulmonary fibrosis activities of all the compounds against TGF-β1-induced damage tonormal human lung epithelial (BEAS-2B) cells were investigated in vitro. The results showed that compounds 1–2, 6, 8, and 11 exhibited significant anti-pulmonary fibrosis activities, with EC50 values ranging from 4.7 μM to 9.9 μM.

A large number of numerical simulations are required to design an energy absorption scheme for train crashworthiness, leading to low design efficiency in the early stage. Based on train collision dynamics theory and the finite element method, a dynamic finite element model of longitudinal train collision is established. According to the model, we studied the acceleration time-history characteristics during the train collision process, obtained the mean-peak ratio coefficient, and determined the calculation formula for the maximum mean acceleration of a longitudinal train collision. Through characteristic analysis of the vehicle acceleration, interface force, and other parameters during a longitudinal train collision, the calculation method of the mean acceleration was improved. The analysis shows that the maximum mean acceleration depends on two stages in the collision process: (1) the coupler action of the head vehicle: the mean-peak ratio coefficient of the head vehicle is 0.7 in this stage, and the mean-peak ratio coefficient of other vehicles is 0.43; (2) the coupler of the collision interface is cut off, and the energy absorption devices of the head vehicle or intermediate vehicle absorb energy; the mean-peak ratio coefficient of the vehicle is 0.93 in this stage. On this basis, a mathematical function is established describing the mean acceleration of the vehicle and the average crushing force of the coupler collapse tube and the energy-absorbing device. The calculation formula is obtained for the maximum mean acceleration of the longitudinal train collision, and the results are compared with the mean acceleration obtained by numerical simulation. The Kruskal–Wallis ANOVA multisample independent nonparametric test was conducted to verify the reliability of the calculation results in the 95% confidence interval. The calculation formula can be used to calculate the maximum mean acceleration in the energy allocation stage of train crashworthiness design to effectively improve the efficiency of train collision energy allocation.

Four new benzoylamide derivatives, lepidiumamide B–E (1–4), were isolated from the seeds of Lepidium apetalum Willd. The structures were determined by a combination of MS and NMR analyses. All compounds were evaluated for their protective effects against NRK-52e cell injury induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in vitro. These compounds showed significantly protective activity and ameliorated LPS-induced NRK52e cells via the Nrf2/Keap1 pathway. The discovery of these active compounds is important for the prevention and treatment of renalinjury.

During the process of archaeological excavation in the regions of Southeast China, collapse of test square usually occurs due to poor site-specific conditions. In this paper, the fast Lagrangian analysis of continua in three dimensions (FLAC3D) is employed to reveal the behaviors of test square. Taking the archaeological works in Liangzhu prehistoric earthen sites as the research background, the paper first introduces the geological setting, excavation procedure and monitoring scheme of the studied test square. Then, the deformation of four sides of the test square is modeled using FLAC3D. By comparison, it shows that the numerical results are consistent with the results from field monitoring. The result suggests that the numerical simulation can be effectively applied to representing the actual behaviors of the test square, which is helpful for determination of excavation scheme and stability evaluation of the test square during archaeological excavation. Keywords: Prehistoric earthen site, Archaeological excavation, Test square behaviors, Field monitoring, Numerical simulations

Thermal conductivity of soils is an important parameter in heat and water transfer analysis of soils. Here, a modified model was proposed to calculate the saturation-dependent thermal conductivity of fine-textured soils from the completely dry condition to the full water saturation. In the study, we developed a new parallel-series model for calculating the thermal conductivity of soils at the completely dry condition with a weighting parameter. The weighting parameter can be calculated using the ratio of the thermal conductivity of air to the thermal conductivity of solid grains. We also proposed a simplified equation to calculate the parameter a of the model proposed by Bi et al. using sand content and thermal conductivity of soils at the full water saturation. Substituting the new parallel-series model and the simplified equation for the parameter a into the model proposed by Bi et al., yielding the modified model. The modified model was evaluated with 14 soil samples. Results show that the modified model could well estimate the thermal conductivity from the completely dry condition to the full water saturation. Keywords: Thermal conductivity, Saturation-dependent, Parallel-series model, Weighting parameter

Aimed at the problem that the deceptive jamming against synthetic aperture radar ground moving target indication generated by single jammer cannot work effectively in multi-channel SAR, a novel deceptive jamming against multi-channel SAR-GMTI based on two jammers is studied. First, signal model of the novel deceptive jamming is built. Then, based on three-channel clutter suppression and interferometry processing, the amplitude and interferometric phase of deceptive moving target generated by the novel deceptive jamming are derived. Last, simulation experiment validates that the novel deceptive jamming can generate false moving targets with the controllable radial velocity and located azimuth position in the multi-channel SAR.

To study the compressive mechanical properties of a new type of brazed aluminum honeycomb plate (BAHP), tensile tests on single- and brazed-cell walls as well as compression tests in the out-of-plane, in-plane longitudinal, and transverse directions were conducted. Compared to the material properties of a traditional glued aluminum honeycomb plate (GAHP), those of the single- and brazed-cell walls of the BAHP are entirely different. Therefore, their characteristics should be considered separately when performing theoretical and simulation analysis. Under out-of-plane compression, the core of the BAHP did not debond, owing to its higher strength than that of the GAHP. In comparison, under in-plane compression in the longitudinal and transverse directions, the load–displacement characteristics, ultimate load, and failure modes also differed, and there was no large-scale cracking. Considering the characteristics of the BAHP, a strength prediction method was proposed. The simulation results demonstrated that the model built based on the new method was highly consistent with the experimental results. Defects with uneven height and debonding will cause the overall instability, and the degree of defects will influence the strength and instability displacement, which have little impact on the elastic stage. Moreover, the model considering defects is closer to the test results.

Vascular endothelial cell premature senescence plays an important part in stroke. Many microRNAs (miRNAs) are known to be involved in the pathological process of vascular endothelial cell premature senescence. The present study aimed to investigate the mechanism of hydrogen peroxide (H~2O2)-induced premature senescence in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and effect of miR-142-3p on hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced premature senescence. HUVECs were exposed to H2O2 to establish a model premature senescence in endothelial cells. CCK-8 assay was performed to detect cell viability. Senescence-associated ß-galactosidase staining assay and senescence-related proteins p16 and p21 were used to detect changes in the degree of cell senescence. RT-qPCR and Western blot were conducted to measure mRNA and protein levels, respectively. The scratch wound-healing assay, transwell assay, and EdU assay were performed to evaluate the ability of migration and proliferation, respectively. miRNA-142-3p and silencing information regulator 2 related enzyme 1 (SIRT1) binding was verified using Targetscan software and a dual-luciferase assay. We found that miRNA-142-3p is abnormally up-regulated in HUVECs treated with H2O2. Functionally, miRNA-142-3p inhibition may mitigate the degree of HUVEC senescence and improve HUVEC migration and proliferation. Mechanistically, SIRT1 was validated to be targeted by miRNA-142-3p in HUVECs. Moreover, SIRT1 inhibition reversed the effects of miRNA-142-3p inhibition on senescent HUVECs exposed to H2O2. To our knowledge, this is the first study to show that miRNA-142-3p ameliorates H2O2-induced HUVECs premature senescence by targeting SIRT1 and may shed light on the role of the miR-142-3p/SIRT1 axis in stroke treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese ash bolts are extensively utilized for anchoring earthen sites in China, but their physical and mechanical properties are influenced by changes in moisture content during the grout curing process. This study reveals significant effects on compressive strength parallel to the grain and flexural strength, with a comparatively lower influence on tensile strength parallel to the grain. As moisture content increases, the failure mode shifts from fiber fracture to inter-fiber destruction, resulting in a transition from brittleness to elastoplasticity in the bolts' properties. Additionally, we observed that the diameter of the samples has a less pronounced effect on mechanical strength and modulus compared to moisture content, though it notably enhances resistance to deformation. Scanning electron microscopy images show interlocking textures within the wooden fibers, effectively enhancing the strength and toughness of the bolts. Importantly, this research presents quantitative results: Chinese ash bolts exhibit a natural density range of 0.65 to 0.78 g/cm3 and a saturation moisture content spanning from 93.15 to 114.15 %. Furthermore, in their natural state, these bolts display remarkable tensile strength (126.56 MPa), compressive strength (55.91 MPa), and bending strength (106.34 MPa). This study highlights the critical significance of carefully choosing the most suitable bolt diameters to fortify resistance against deformation. The concrete data provided contribute significantly to improving conservation practices for earthen sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aimed at the deficiency of conventional parameter-level methods in radar specific emitter identification (SEI), which heavily rely on empirical experience and cannot adapt to the waveform change, a novel algorithm is proposed to extract specific features and identify in Hilbert-Huang transform domain. Firstly, 2-dimensional physical representation of emitters is formed with Hilbert-Huang transform (HHT). Based on this, 4 types of multi-view features are constructed, and the feature space is spanned by elaborating the extraction. Principal components, between-class similarity, spectrum entropy, and deep architecture are used to describe the subtle features. Finally, support vector machine (SVM) is selected as the classifier to realize identification to alleviate the small sample problem. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm realizes specific identification using 4 intentional modulations of simulated data. The selected 4 types of unintentional representations are feasible to discriminate identical emitters. Additionally, the proposed algorithm obtains higher accuracy than typical signal-level methods in the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) range [0, 20] dB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we address the problem of direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation with the arbitrary array. The manifold separation technique (MST) is employed to transform the arbitrary array into a virtual array with Vandermonde manifold on which the spatial annihilating filter reconstruction method can be applied. When building the optimization problem for annihilating filter reconstruction, we propose the general solution modeling which can reduce the truncation error in MST to a negligible level. Finally, the spatial annihilating filter is reconstructed under the structural total least square (STLS) framework with the multiple measurement vectors structural total least norm (MMV-STLN) approach and the DOAs are estimated from the filter coefficients. Numerical simulations have verified the new proposed method adapts well to the low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), limited snapshots and closely-spaced sources scenarios and can handle the coherent signals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the continuous development of science and technology, the conventional low-temperature storage technology can no longer meet people’s pursuit of food quality. In recent years, magnetic fields have been widely used in the field of low-temperature food storage due to its advantages of being simple, efficient, safe, pollution-free and energy-saving. Magnetic fields can maintain the eating quality of stored food by optimizing the cooling and freezing process, regulating enzyme activity and reducing microbial contents. In order to provide a theoretical reference for the industrial application of magnetic fields in low-temperature storage of foods, this paper reviews the mechanism of magnetic field-assisted low-temperature storage technology and its application in various kinds of food, summarizes shortcomings in this field, and gives an outlook on future directions of development.

The chemical components of the family Gesneriaceae are complex and diverse. The compounds isolated from the plants of this family mainly include flavonoids, phenylethanoid glycosides, terpenoids, anthraquinones, organic carboxylic acids, and steroids. Gesneriaceae have a wide range of pharmacological activities, including antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-tumor, enzyme inhibition and activation, cytotoxicity, and anti-Alzheimer activities. In this study, the chemical components and pharmacological activities of Gesneriaceae in recent years were summarized to provide a reference for future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Realgar, a traditional Chinese medicine, has shown antitumor efficacy in several tumor types. We previously showed that realgar nanoparticles (nano-realgar) had significant antileukemia, anti-lung cancer and anti-liver cancer effects. In addition, the anti-tumor effects of nanorealgar were significantly better than those of ordinary realgar., Objective: To explore the inhibitory effects and molecular mechanisms of nano-realgar on the migration, invasion and metastasis of mouse breast cancer cells., Methods: Wound-healing migration assays and Transwell invasion assays were carried out to determine the effects of nano-realgar on breast cancer cell (4T1) migration and invasion. The expression levels of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and -9 were measured by Western blot. A murine breast cancer metastasis model was established, administered nano-realgar for 32 days and monitored for tumor growth and metastasis by an in vivo optical imaging system. Finally, living imaging and hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining were used to measure the morphology and pathology of lung and liver cancer cell metastases, respectively. Angiogenesis was assessed by CD34 immunohistochemistry., Results: Nano-realgar significantly inhibited the migration and invasion of breast cancer 4T1 cells and the expression of MMP-2 and -9. Meanwhile, nano-realgar effectively suppressed the abilities of tumor growth, metastasis and angiogenesis in the murine breast cancer metastasis model in a time- and dosedependent manner., Conclusion: Nano-realgar significantly inhibited migration and invasion of mouse breast cancer cells in vitro as well as pulmonary and hepatic metastasis in vivo, which may be closely correlated with the downexpression of MMP-2 and -9 and suppression of tumor neovascularization., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)