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Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease in which atheromatous plaque long-termly accumulates and obstructs the intima of medium and large arteries, causing first severe stenosis and blood flow disorders, and then ischemia and hypoxia in tissues and organs. Nanomedicines have received widespread attention for their unique advantages over conventional drugs in the treatment of atherosclerosis. This article detailedly reviews several nanoparticle- and exosome-based targeted drug delivery systems in anti-atherosclerosis research, briefly describes the synthesis of representative nanomaterials, analyses their targeting properties and outlines the benefits and inherent challenges of nanomedicines. Despite the challenges that need to be addressed and refined, nanoparticles and exosomes used as drug delivery vehiclesin treatments for atherosclerosis hold great promise and are expected to have wider clinical applications.

Previous studies have verified that teacher-student relationship quality has a positive effect on students' academic engagement. Few studies, however, have examined whether school psychological capital mediates the linkage between teacher-student relationship and academic engagement. The present study aimed to examine the mediated role of school PsyCap between teacher-student relationship and academic engagement in a sample of 986 Chinese college students in their English as a foreign language (EFL) learning. Having controlled for gender and family resources, structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis was conducted to explore the predictive effect of the teacher-student relationship on academic engagement via mediator of school PsyCap. Results showed that the teacher-student relationship predicted school PsyCap. School PsyCap, in turn, predicted EFL learners' academic engagement. The present study provides evidence for the linkage between teacher-student relationship and academic engagement and contributes to the literature by uncovering the mediator mechanism between these two constructs. Both theoretical and practical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While an increasing literature on multilingualism addresses the key role of language in access to social resources, including crisis communication, little attention has been paid to practices of English-mediated multilingualism. Based on semi-structured interviews with 10 international students from South Asia and Southeast Asia receiving their higher education in China, the study reveals what language-related challenges international students encounter, how they mobilize their multilingual resources to enhance their access to crisis communication and build a shared community, and how their multilingual competences are valorized and enacted in the shifting paradigm of the China-oriented new economy addressing mutual accountability in South-South cooperation. The study suggests that English-mediated multilingualism in China fails to bridge the needs of international students of diverse backgrounds. The study also calls attention to the shifting paradigm of multilingual studies and the necessity of addressing the real world problems of health communication in a diverse context.

Due to the demand for temporary rapid grid connection in renewable energy power plants, the topology structure of T-connected power lines has been widely used in the power grid. In this three-terminal system, fault localization is difficult because of traditional impedance-based or traveling wave-based fault localization methods; the three-terminal data should be synchronized and communicated. Since different terminal assets belong to different enterprises, it is actually difficult to maintain good synchronization between them. Therefore, in practical applications, the fault location of T-connected power lines often fails. This article proposes a single terminal fault location method for a T-connection power line to address this issue. It is based on the fact that the local topology of the T-connected power line in the healthy phase remains unchanged during the fault-clearing process. It utilizes the sequential current and voltage data changes generated by the sequential tripping ping emitted by the circuit breaker from different terminals to describe the constant topology of the healthy phase as an equation and calculates the accurate fault location after solving the equation. The Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm was used to calculate fault distance and transition resistance, and the effectiveness of this method was verified through simulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At present, conventional periodontal treatment cannot achieve complete and effective periodontal tissue regeneration. Cell sheet technology (CST) is a kind of cell transplantation method without scaffold material that can maintain complete extracellular matrix, important ion channels of cells, growth factor receptors, etc., and ensure the interaction between cells and the extracellular matrix. In this paper, the application and research progress of the cell sheet in the field of periodontal tissue regeneration are reviewed. Different types of seed cells can be prepared into monolayer cell sheet, multilayer cell sheet, cell sheet fragments and cell sheet polymers. Among them, the monalayer cell sheet is easily damaged and requires high deoperator; the multilayer cell sheet shows improved mechanical properties, but its thickness needs to be controlled to avoid cell necrosis. The cell sheet fragment can be used in the narrow space between the alveolar bone and root cementum to reduce the difficulty of operation and improve the mechanical properties of the cell sheet. Cell sheet polymers are three-dimensional structures that can provide strong mechanical support and improve the stability of the cell sheet, but the stability of their biological activity needs to be further improved. In methods for construction of the cell sheet, the antifibrosis and antiangiogenesis properties of the amniotic sheet have shown that this structure is suitable as the matrix of cell culture; the method of using a temperature-sensitive culture dish is simple and easy; continuous induction with vitamin C can retain some important proteins on the cell surface; and the magnetic tissue engineering method can increase cell adhesion and easily form a stable cell sheet. The above methods have their own characteristics. In clinical applications, monolayer cell sheet is mainly used for direct transplantation to the receiving site to construct periodontal tissue; multilayer cell sheet of the same or different species overlap and are then transplanted to the receiving site; and multilayer cell sheet of the same kind are wrapped with scaffold material and then transplanted to the receiving site to construct a three-dimensional structure. Overall, cell sheet technology has shown good potential in periodontal tissue regeneration.

With the large-scale integration of distributed renewable energy into low-voltage distribution station areas, rapidly growing services put forward new requirements on transparent monitoring. In order to accurately and objectively quantify the transparency of various distribution station areas and measure the impact of different dimensional indexes on the transparency evaluation of distribution station areas, this paper proposes a confidence relative offtarget distance-based multi-dimensional transparency evaluation method. First, a multi-dimensional transparency evaluation index system with electrical and communication integration is constructed. Second, an improved gray target model combining both positive and negative target vectors is established to realize bi-directional quantitative analysis. Then, the relative off-target distance is calculated based on the endowment coefficient by leveraging both subjective and objective weights. Finally, the confidence of the relative off-target distance is calculated based on fuzzy entropy to improve the reliability of transparency evaluation. The simulation results show that this method can effectively distinguish the transparency gap between different distribution station areas, identify the single dimensional index with the greatest contribution or potential, and verify the effectiveness of the proposed method applied to the transparency evaluation of distribution station areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circuit breakers on the filter bank branches in converter stations are vulnerable to contact wear and mechanical deterioration caused by frequent operations, which can lead to circuit breaker breakdowns and explosions. It is imperative to conduct research on the early detection of abnormal states in circuit breakers. Existing electrical quantity-based detection methods are constrained by a priori assumptions, and their measurement methods are susceptible to interference, leading to misjudgments. To address this issue, this paper examines the influence of changes in critical breakdown field strength and contact spacing on circuit breaker operation states. It also proposes a technical scheme that employs breakdown current values to comprehensively characterize circuit breaker operation states, replacing the use of critical breakdown field strength and contact spacing. An early detection method for abnormal circuit breaker states based on a sequence of breakdown current ratios at different times is proposed, and its effectiveness is verified through simulation and field recording data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the current trend of power electronics in energy systems, a high percentage of renewable energy transports clean energy to the grid through grid-connected inverters. The pulse-width modulation (PWM) technique brings high-order harmonics near to the switching frequency, and LCL filters with low-pass characteristics become the common choice for grid-connected inverters. However, the low-order harmonics caused by nonideal switching characteristics are difficult to filter out, and the new resonance point introduced by the LCL filter causes a security problem for the energy systems. Firstly, the generation mechanism of the 6 k ± 1 order harmonic and high-frequency resonance from a PV grid-connected inverter is analyzed. Then, a virtual resistor is constructed by the active damping method to absorb the resonant component. Meanwhile, this paper also presents an adaptive modulation voltage compensation method to decrease the low-order harmonics. Finally, the actual measured data of user photovoltaic (PV) and multiple comparative simulations verify these theories. Simulation results show that the proposed coordinated control algorithm reduces the peak of the resonance point, and the rate of low-order harmonics mitigation is more than 50%. The proposed method is suitable for various operating conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary control goals of a wind turbine (WT) are structural load shedding, maximum wind energy capture in the underpowered situation, and consistent power production in the full power condition. A crucial component of the control problem for wind turbines with varying speeds is maximum power tracking control. Conventional maximum power tracking control tracks the ideal blade tip speed ratio to provide the most wind power at the specified wind speeds. However, because of the wind turbine's great nonlinearity and the significant external disturbances it encounters, it is difficult to react quickly to variations in wind speed, and the tracking speed is sluggish, which lowers the amount of electricity produced annually. In light of this, this work develops a novel preset performance controller for a wind power system maximum power tracking control. With this technique, the convergence rate and tracking precision may be set. In particular, based on the concept of time-varying feedback, a time-varying function, known as the preset performance function, is first created to allow the convergence speed and accuracy to be predetermined; then this time-varying function is used to transform the actual specified time problem of the original system into a bounded time problem of the new system; finally, a direct robust controller design strategy with pre-defined performance is suggested based on the design concept of the backstepping technique. The plan may maximize the rotor power coefficient by altering the wind turbine speed, track the ideal blade tip speed ratio for a given tracking accuracy and speed, and get the most wind power to produce the most power with the strongest robustness. The simulation results show that the recommended control technique works. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a chronic and fatal disease characterized by pulmonary vascular remodeling, similar to the 'Warburg effect' observed in cancer, which is caused by reprogramming of glucose metabolism. Oroxylin A (OA), an active compound derived from Scutellaria baicalensis, which can inhibit glycolytic enzymes [hexokinase 2 (HK2), Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1 (PDK1) by downregulating aerobic glycolysis to achieve the treatment of liver cancer. To the best of our knowledge, however, the impact of OA on PAH has not been addressed. Consequently, the present study aimed to evaluate the potential protective role and mechanism of OA against PAH induced by monocrotaline (MCT; 55 mg/kg). The mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) was measured using the central venous catheter method; HE and Masson staining were used to observe pulmonary artery remodeling. Non-targeted metabolomics was used to analyze the metabolic pathways and pathway metabolites in MCT-PAH rats. Western Blot analysis was employed to assess the levels of glucose transporter 1 (Glut1), HK2), pyruvate kinase (PK), isocitrate dehydrogenase 2 (IDH2), pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 1(PDK1), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) protein expression in both lung tissue samples from MCT-PAH rats. The results demonstrated that intragastric administration of OA (40 and 80 mg/kg) significantly decreased mPAP from 43.61±1.88 mmHg in PAH model rats to 26.51±1.53 mmHg and relieve pulmonary artery remodeling. Untargeted metabolomic analysis and multivariate analysis indicated abnormal glucose metabolic pattern in PAH model rats, consistent with the Warburg effect. OA administration decreased this effect on the abnormal glucose metabolism. The protein levels of key enzymes involved in glucose metabolism were evaluated by western blotting, which demonstrated that OA could improve aerobic glycolysis and inhibit PAH by decreasing the protein levels of Glut1, HK2, LDH, PDK1 and increasing the protein levels of PK and IDH2. In conclusion, OA decreased MCT-induced PAH in rats by reducing the Warburg effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hydraulic turbine governing system (HTGS) is a complex nonlinear system that regulates the rotational speed and power of a hydro-generator set. In this work, an incremental form of an HTGS nonlinear model was established and the Takagi–Sugeno (T-S) fuzzy linearization and mixed H2/H∞ robust control theory was applied to the design of an HTGS controller. A T-S fuzzy H2/H∞ controller for an HTGS based on modified hybrid particle swarm optimization and gravitational search algorithm integrated with chaotic maps (CPSOGSA) is proposed in this paper. The T-S fuzzy model of an HTGS that integrates multiple-state space equations was established by linearizing numerous equilibrium points. The linear matrix inequality (LMI) toolbox in MATLAB was used to solve the mixed H2/H∞ feedback coefficients using the CPSOGSA intelligent algorithm to optimize the weighting matrix in the process so that each mixed H2/H∞ feedback coefficients in the fuzzy control were optimized under the constraints to improve the performance of the controller. The simulation results show that this method allows the HTGS to perform well in suppressing system frequency deviations. In addition, the robustness of the method to system parameter variations is also verified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study validated the school psychological capital (PsyCap) scale in the Chinese context and examined the predictive effect of PsyCap resources on academic engagement and achievement emotions. Self-report data for PsyCap resources, student engagement, enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom toward English learning were collected from 1,000 sophomores. Item-level analyses and confirmatory factor analysis were used to verify the validity of the school PsyCap scale, and structural equation modeling was applied to reveal the predictive effect of school PsyCap resources on academic engagement and achievement emotions. Results showed that the school PsyCap scale retained superior psychometric properties. Besides, PsyCap resources were demonstrated to have a positive relationship to academic engagement and enjoyment, and a negative relationship to anxiety and boredom. The effectiveness of the school PsyCap scale was verified among Chinese college students, and besides the traditional predictors, school PsyCap is also critically important for students' academic engagement and achievement emotions. Limitations and implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introducing ethynylene linkages in a conjugated molecule can deepen the HOMO level, decrease the steric constraints and better delocalize the π electrons and so on, which are beneficial for organic solar cells. Furthermore, the typical method of introducing acetylene linkages by Sonogashira reactions can avoid the usage of toxic stannyl intermediates and potentially dangerous lithiation reactions. In this study, two simple small molecules BEDPP and NEDPP are designed and synthesized, in which two diketopyrrolopyrrole units are symmetrically connected to benzene and naphthalene cores, respectively, via acetylene linkages. And the BHJ (Bulk Heterojunction) solar cells based on BEDPP and NEDPP without using solvent additive and without any post-treatment for the active layers provide us power conversion efficiencies of 1.48% and 2.31% with remarkably high open circuit voltages up to 0.90 and 0.98 V, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unique properties of boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes including facile synthesis, high absorption coefficients, and delocalized molecular orbitals as well as excellent photochemical and thermal stability, make them promising as materials for organic solar cells. Accordingly, in this study three A- D-A structural small molecules of BDTT-BODIPY, FL-BODIPY, and TT-BODIPY have been synthesized, in which two BODIPY acceptor units are symmetrically conjugated to 4,8-bis(5-(2-ethylhexyl) thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b]dithiophene (BDTT), 9,9-dioctyl-9H-fluorene (FL), and thieno[3,2-b]thiophene (TT) donor cores, respectively. The manipulation of the structural parameters significantly improves the performances of the BHJ OSCs, which show power conversion efficiencies of 4.75 %, 1.51 %, and 1.67 % based on [6,6]-phenyl C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) as the acceptor material and BDTT-BODIPY, FL-BODIPY, and TT-BODIPY as the donor materials, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The auto-phosphorylation of murine receptor-interacting protein 3 (Rip3) on Thr 231 and Ser 232 in the necrosome is required to trigger necroptosis. However, how Rip3 phosphorylation is regulated is still largely unknown. Here we identified protein phosphatase 1B (Ppm1b) as a Rip3 phosphatase and found that Ppm1b restricts necroptosis in two settings: spontaneous necroptosis caused by Rip3 auto-phosphorylation in resting cells, and tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF)-induced necroptosis in cultured cells. We revealed that Ppm1b selectively suppresses necroptosis through the dephosphorylation of Rip3, which then prevents the recruitment of mixed lineage kinase domain-like protein (Mlkl) to the necrosome. We further showed that Ppm1b deficiency (Ppm1bd/d) in mice enhanced TNF-induced death in a Rip3-dependent manner, and the role of Ppm1b in inhibiting necroptosis was evidenced by elevated Rip3 phosphorylation and tissue damage in the caecum of TNF-treated Ppm1bd/d mice. These data indicate that Ppm1b negatively regulates necroptosis through dephosphorylating Rip3 in vitro and in vivo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Necroptosis is a form of programmed necrosis that is mediated by signaling complexes containing the receptor-interacting protein 3 (RIP3) and RIP1 kinases. We show that RIP3 and its interaction with the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) protein ICP6 triggers necroptosis in infected mouse cells and limits viral propagation in mice. ICP6 interacts with RIP1/RIP3 through its RHIM domain and forms dimers/oliogmers by its C-terminal R1 domain. These binding events result in RIP1-RIP3 hetero- and RIP3-RIP3 homo-interactions and subsequent necroptosis of HSV-1-infected mouse cells. However, ICP6 RHIM cannot trigger necroptosis and even inhibits TNF-induced necroptosis in human cells. As the RHIM domain in murine cytomegalovirus protein vIRA can inhibit necroptosis in both human and mouse cells, these data suggest that both viral and host RHIM sequences determine whether the virus-host RHIM interaction is pro- or anti-necroptotic and that some viruses may evolve to escape this restriction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Viruses hijack host factors for their high speed protein synthesis, but information about these factors is largely unknown. In searching for genes that are involved in viral replication, we carried out a forward genetic screen for Drosophila mutants that are more resistant or sensitive to Drosophila C virus (DCV) infection-caused death, and found a virus-resistant line in which the expression of pelo gene was deficient. Our mechanistic studies excluded the viral resistance of pelo deficient flies resulting from the known Drosophila anti-viral pathways, and revealed that pelo deficiency limits the high level synthesis of the DCV capsid proteins but has no or very little effect on the expression of some other viral proteins, bulk cellular proteins, and transfected exogenous genes. The restriction of replication of other types of viruses in pelo deficient flies was also observed, suggesting pelo is required for high level production of capsids of all kinds of viruses. We show that both pelo deficiency and high level DCV protein synthesis increase aberrant 80S ribosomes, and propose that the preferential requirement of pelo for high level synthesis of viral capsids is at least partly due to the role of pelo in dissociation of stalled 80S ribosomes and clearance of aberrant viral RNA and proteins. Our data demonstrated that pelo is a host factor that is required for high efficiency translation of viral capsids and targeting pelo could be a strategy for general inhibition of viral infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solution processed organic near-infrared (NIR) photodetectors (PDs) based on a porphyrin small molecule as a donor material and (6,6)-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PC61BM) as an acceptor material are reported. Operating at room temperature, these PDs show a low dark current density of 3.44 nA cm−2, a broad spectral response from 380 to 960 nm with high external quantum efficiencies around 20% in the NIR region at a bias of 0 V. Detectivities over 1012 cm H1/2 W−1 in the whole range from 380 to 930 nm are achieved, which rank as one of the best performances among previously reported NIR PDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four new donor-acceptor (donor) [D-A(D)], PBDT-PTQ, PBDT-PTTQ, PBDT-TQ, and PBDT-TTQ, bearing the same backbone of alternative benzodithiophene (BDT) and quinoxaline units but with phenylene thienyl, phenylene di-thienyl, thienyl and di-thienyl groups (other donors), respectively, at the acceptor quinoxaline units, were designed and synthesized to investigate the impacts of the conjugated side chains at the acceptor units on the photovoltaic properties of polymers. The power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of the polymer solar cells (PSCs) based on PBDT-TQ:[6,6]-phenyl-C-70-butyric acid methyl ester (PC70BM) and PBDT-PTQ:PC70BM reach to 4.39 and 3.58%, respectively, which are 43 and 17% higher, respectively, than that of a reported alkylphenyl substituted polymer with the same main chain. However, the PCEs based on PBDT-TTQ and PBDT-PTTQ, in which an additional thiophene is added at a side chain of PBDT-TQ and PBDT-PTQ, respectively, decline. The mechanism how the conjugated side chains affect the performance of the PSCs is also discussed. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2013 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The motility of distal colon could be inhibited by dopamine (DA), yet, the involved receptor is controversial according to the published reports. The goal of present study was to investigate DA receptor(s) mediated inhibition of DA on the colonic motility in rat. The contraction of isolated colon strips was assessed through isometric force transducer. The expressions of DA receptors in distal colon were detected through immunofluorescence and Western blot. DA concentration in colonic smooth muscle was measured by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. The results showed that DA inhibited the spontaneous motility of distal colon in a dose-dependent manner with EC50 8.3 μM. Tetrodotoxin increased colonic contractive frequency, but failed to affect the inhibition of DA on the colonic motility. Pretreatment with SCH-23390, an antagonist of dopaminergic receptor D1, shifted the dose-response curve to the right with EC50 of DA 37 μM. However, blocking dopaminergic receptor D2 with sulpiride, had no effect. The immunoreactivity of D1 and D2 were detected in the distal colon including myenteric plexus and smooth muscle. Acute cold-restraint stress (CRS) enhanced spontaneous contraction of rat distal colon, which was more sensitive to DA compared with control. Moreover, DA content and D1 expression in smooth muscle layer were increased under CRS condition. In conclusion, D1 in the smooth muscle is mediated DA inhibition on the spontaneous contraction of rat distal colon. The increased DA content and D1 receptor expression in the smooth muscle layer could be a compensatory effect under CRS condition to balance the enhanced colonic motility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Free-surface related multiples exist widely in marine seismic data. Imaging with multiples rather than suppression has particular benefits because multiples have more information than primaries, such as wider illumination and higher vertical resolution. One-way wave-equation based pre-stack depth migration (OWPSDM) is an effective imaging tool with high calculation efficiency. By using an OWPSDM operator, primaries and multiples are imaged simultaneously. The artifacts caused by the cross-correlation between forward-propagated source and backward-propagated multiples can be suppressed by an approach with the following three steps: for the first step, the source is replaced by the recorded field data together with a wavelet and the data is the recorded field data. The imaging results contain both real structure images and artifacts. For the second step, the source is the wavelet and the data is replaced by the predicted free-surface related multiples. Artifacts can be obtained after using the imaging condition at each depth. Lastly, artifacts can be suppressed by adaptive subtraction from the images obtained in the first step. Numerical tests on synthetic data of a three-layer model show that our scheme provides regions with wider illumination and balanced image amplitudes compared to the images obtained with primaries only. Artifacts caused by the cross-correlation between a forward-propagated wavelet and backward-propagated free-surface multiples were properly predicted and suppressed. Applying the proposed method to real deep marine data shows that the image quality of deep target layers is improved, with balanced illumination and fewer artifacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cover page of the journal "Chinese Journal of Chemistry" is presented.