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•The effects of electrode configuration on HIS and spin transport are investigated.•The modulation laws of gate voltage on HIS and spin transport are revealed.•Excellent field effect transistors are realized with plane and platform electrodes.•High and regularly controllable SP and TMR are realized with tip electrode.

•The heterojunction has low lattice mismatch.•The TaGe2P4–WSi2As4heterojunction has p-type Schottky barrier.•The Schottky diode shows remarkable rectifying behavior (107) at low bias.•The rectification and regulating mechanism are analyzed systematically.

Chimeric antigen receptor-expressing T (CAR-T) cells induce robust antitumor responses in patients with hematologic malignancies. However, CAR-T cells exhibit only limited efficacy against solid tumors such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), partially due to their limited expansion and persistence. CD8+T cells, as key components of the adaptive immune response, play a central role in antitumor immunity. Aerobic glycolysis is the main metabolic feature of activated CD8+T cells. In the tumor microenvironment, however, the uptake of large amounts of glucose by tumor cells and other immunosuppressive cells can impair the activation of T cells. Only when tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in the tumor microenvironment have a glycolytic advantage might the effector function of T cells be activated. Glucose transporter type 1 (GLUT1) and acylglycerol kinase (AGK) can boost glycolytic metabolism and activate the effector function of CD8+ T cells, respectively. In this study, we generated GPC3-targeted CAR-T cells overexpressing GLUT1 or AGK for the treatment of HCC. GPC3-targeted CAR-T cells overexpressing GLUT1 or AGK specifically and effectively lysed GPC3-positive tumor cells in vitro in an antigen-dependent manner. Furthermore, GLUT1 or AGK overexpression protected CAR-T cells from apoptosis during repeated exposures to tumor cells. Compared with second-generation CAR-T cells, GPC3-targeted CAR-T cells overexpressing GLUT1 or AGK exhibited greater CD8+T-cell persistence in vivo and better antitumor effects in HCC allograft mouse models. Finally, we revealed that GLUT1 or AGK maintained anti-apoptosis ability in CD8+T cells via activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway. This finding might identify a therapeutic strategy for advanced HCC.

The continuous miniaturization of micro-LEDs poses challenges for yield testing using electrical contact probes. Single-ended electrical contact micro-LEDs (SEC-LEDs), as a special noncontact alternating current (ac) device, have advantages, such as not relying on probes and simple electrode design. It also solves the carrier injection problem in traditional ac drive LEDs, making it have great potential in the field of nondestructive testing of chips. However, the low luminous intensity of SEC-LED is still the bottleneck problem restricting the application of SEC-LED in the field of detection. In this study, an optimized driving waveform strategy is proposed to enhance the electroluminescent intensity of SEC-LED from a driving technology perspective. By establishing an equivalent circuit model and combining simulation analysis of its working mechanism, the impact of circuit parameters on current is further analyzed, leading to the derivation of corresponding current-domain equations. The simulation and experimental results illustrate that a higher rate of voltage change and a larger circuit capacitance are advantageous for increasing the forward peak current of SEC-LED. Square waves, with their highest rate of voltage change over time, have been identified as the optimal driving waveform for achieving high luminous intensity in SEC-LED. When driven by square waves at the optimal frequency point, the peak luminous intensity is increased by up to 266% compared to traditional sine wave driving. Therefore, this proposed optimization strategy effectively enhances its luminous performance and holds broad application prospects in micro-LEDs high-precision detection fields.

•The heterojunction interfaces have low lattice mismatch.•The TaSi2N4–WGe2N4/MoGe2N4heterojunctions have n-type Schottky barrier.•The heterojunction diodes show remarkable rectifying behaviors.•The rectification mechanism is analyzed systematically.

Xinqiao Gully is located in the area of the 2008 Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake in Sichuan province, China. Based on the investigation of the 2023 “6-26” Xinqiao Gully debris flow event, this study assessed the effectiveness of the debris flow control project and evaluated the debris flow hazards. Through field investigation and numerical simulation methods, the indicators of flow intensity reduction rate and storage capacity fullness were proposed to quantify the effectiveness of the engineering measures in the debris flow event. The simulation results show that the debris flow control project reduced the flow intensity by 41.05% to 64.61%. The storage capacity of the dam decreases gradually from upstream to the mouth of the gully, thus effectively intercepting and controlling the debris flow. By evaluating the debris flow of different recurrence intervals, further measures are recommended for managing debris flow events.

The detection of blue light hazard for artificial illuminants has become a challenging issue. In this work, a self-powered narrowband photodetector based on lead-free perovskite Cs2AgBiBr6 for low-toxicity blue light hazard detection has been reported. Under zero bias, the responsivity and specific detectivity at response peak of 450 nm can reach 0.327 A/W and ${2}.{8}\times {10} ^{{10}}$ Jones, respectively. In visible light, the photodetector is only sensitive to blue light with a rejection ratio (450/510 nm) of 28.4, effectively suppressing the influence of other visible light without filters. Then an error factor is introduced to establish a relationship between the blue light weighted radiance and photocurrent. By integrating with the back-end circuit, a portable detection system is demonstrated, which can smartly evaluate the blue light hazard level of artificial illuminants. We believe that such highly sensitive and lead-free features render it a promising candidate for human eyes protection in the field of green healthcare.

Light-emitting diode (LED) display devices that combine high light extraction efficiency (LEE) and high ambient contrast ratio (ACR) are the key to achieve high-performance displays. At present, the industry usually can only meet one performance at the expense of the other. In this article, a simple optical performance regulation method that does not require additional energy drive was implemented, by integrating photothermal actuation structure (PAS) into LED display devices to improve their LEE and ACR. Specifically, a PAS based on graphene oxide (GO) and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) (GO-PDMS PAS) was designed. The GO layer plays a role in extinction, which can reduce the reflectivity of LED display devices, thereby improving ACR. The PDMS layer and the GO layer jointly play a role in photothermal deformation; by absorbing the optical energy of LED display devices, the GO-PDMS PAS gradually opens, improving the LEE. Compared with the commercial LED display device using the graphite as extinction layer (GPH-LED), the ACR and LEE of the LED display device using the GO-PDMS PAS as extinction layer (PAS-LED) were improved by 437% and 150%, respectively. In the future, scholars can further study and optimize the structure of the PAS and design it in combination with other functional materials, thereby further improving the LEE and ACR of LED display devices.

A harmonic multiplying gyrotron traveling-wave amplifier (gyro-TWA) allows magnetic field reduction and frequency multiplication. This study presents a low-voltage, low-current, 500-GHz second-harmonic multiplying gyro-TWA that produces a medium power of ~10 W over a broad frequency range (~5 GHz). An improved harmonic multiplying gyro-TWA featuring a distributed-loss structure achieves improved amplification performance and stability. Simulation results show that the involved spurious oscillations can be suppressed by high lossy-section resistivity, long lossy section, and short copper section. A tuned magnetic field is employed to achieve broadband frequency characteristics. The output power of the amplifier is a quadratic function of the input power. With a 12-kV, 0.3-A electron beam, the frequency range of the proposed amplifier is approximately 5 GHz for a 1–50-mW input power that can be provided by a 250-GHz commercial solid-state source.

Proportioning is an important part of sintering, as it affects the cost of sintering and the quality of sintered ore. To address the problems posed by the complex raw material information and numerous constraints in the sintering process, a multi-objective optimisation model for sintering proportioning was established, which takes the proportioning cost and TFe as the optimisation objectives. Additionally, an improved multi-objective beluga whale optimisation (IMOBWO) algorithm was proposed to solve the nonlinear, multi-constrained multi-objective optimisation problems. The algorithm uses the constrained non-dominance criterion to deal with the constraint problem in the model. Moreover, the algorithm employs an opposite learning strategy and a population guidance mechanism based on angular competition and two-population competition strategy to enhance convergence and population diversity. The actual proportioning of a steel plant indicates that the IMOBWO algorithm applied to the ore proportioning process has good convergence and obtains the uniformly distributed Pareto front. Meanwhile, compared with the actual proportioning scheme, the proportioning cost is reduced by 4.3361 ¥/t, and the TFe content in the mixture is increased by 0.0367% in the optimal compromise solution. Therefore, the proposed method effectively balances the cost and total iron, facilitating the comprehensive utilisation of sintered iron ore resources while ensuring quality assurance.

The voids distribution uniformity within the bonding layer has emerged as a critical factor affecting thermal reliability of light-emitting diodes (LEDs), while the absence of quantitative characterization poses challenges in accurately assessing its impact and optimized design. In this study, a calculation method for the uniformity coefficient of the bonding layer voids distribution is proposed, revealing the impact of voids uniformity on the thermal performance of the device. We have investigated the influence of the number of voids and divided grids on the uniformity coefficient, establishing the criterion of saturated grid number. Results show that the decrease of the voids distribution uniformity coefficient leads to a lower thermal resistance and junction temperature, demonstrating that more uniformly distributed voids in the bonding layer are beneficial to improve the heat conduction path. This work reveals a significant correlation between the thermal performance of LED devices and the voids distribution uniformity coefficient, providing valuable insights for understanding and controlling the voids distribution to achieve effective heat dissipation of such devices.

AbstractThe frequent occurrence of extreme drought events in Guangxi has caused huge losses to human beings and economy in the region for many years. For fine identification of drought evolution characteristics, this study adopted the objective identification method of regional extreme events (OITREE) to carry out the comprehensive feature identification involving multidimensional elements such as intensity, duration and area of meteorological drought events based on the daily standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) data of Guangxi from 1979 to 2018a. By comparing the evolution characteristics of drought elements identified by grid SPEI statistical analysis and OITREE, a comprehensive analysis framework for drought characteristics of multidimensional factor’s measurement is formed in this study. Specifically, the grid analysis is more convenient to identify single point drought characteristics, and the OITREE method is better at describing the overall spatiotemporal evolution of drought events. The study found that flash droughts and seasonal droughts occurred alternately and were superimposed concurrently in Guangxi, and the multidimensional spatial and temporal characteristics of these two types of droughts were significantly different. In concrete terms, the average annual frequency of flash drought events in Guangxi was 2.0–3.8, the average annual duration varied from 20 to 60 d, and the concentration point of drought events had a region-wide dispersion; while the average annual frequency of seasonal drought events in Guangxi was 0.82–1.65, the average annual duration varied from 40 to 105 d, and the concentration point of drought events had a local concentration. Furthermore, for the flash drought, seasonal drought and total drought in Guangxi, the three-dimension clustering method was introduced to realize the comprehensive intensity spatial heterogeneity clustering partition and temporal heterogeneity clustering mapping of meteorological drought in Guangxi. The research results can provide important scientific support for promoting the operational risk assessment and regulation of regional drought disasters and forecasting and warning.

A method of collaborative simulation of the train collision process using a rigid motion model and a flexible collision model is proposed to solve the problem of the low computational efficiency of the finite element numerical simulation of the train collision process. This study investigated the collision response of a train derailment hitting a platform with different curve radii based on an accident in which a subway train derailed and hit a platform. Based on the results, a collision damage index is proposed to assess the relative degree of damage of train derailment collisions at different curve radii. The results reveal that within a certain radius of the curve (when the impact distance D exists), there is a positive correlation between the curve radius and the collision damage index, and when the curve radius exceeds a certain value (when the impact distance D doesn’t exist), the train and platform don’t collide.

C2H6S2N2O3Co, monoclinic, C2/c(no. 15), a= 12.4340(7) Å, b= 6.0522(4) Å, c= 10.6851(8) Å, β= 90.543(6)°, V= 804.05(9) Å3, Z= 4, Rgt(F) = 0.0200, wRref(F2) = 0.0499, T = 298(2) K.

Parallel connections of three-phase Vienna rectifiers are commonly used to increase the power ratings of electric vehicle charging stations in recent years. However, parallel operation can create a path for zero sequence circulating current (ZSCC), particularly when the rectifiers are operating under interleaved modes with unbalanced filter inductors. To tackle out this issue, an integrated control scheme is proposed in this article. Based on these frequency components of the ZSCC, the proposed control scheme has two layers. The low frequency component of the ZSCC is mitigated by using PIR control in the inner current control loop under the rotational reference frame, while the high frequency component of the ZSCC is reduced by applying the Discontinuous Pulse Width Modulation (DPWM) technique with proper zero sequence injections. The effectiveness of the proposed control scheme is validated through both numerical simulations and hardware experiments.

High-efficiency mini-LED with a large light-emitting angle is the key to achieving high-quality high dynamic range (HDR) in liquid crystal display (LCD) displays. In this study, we adopted photolithography and ion beam-assisted electron beam evaporation to prepare a dome-shaped SiO2/Al2O3 composite-patterned sapphire substrate (CPSS). Simultaneously, inductively coupled plasma (ICP) dry etching was used to form a patterned sapphire substrate (PSS) as the contrast group. Combined with epitaxial growth and chip manufacturing processes, mini-LED flip chips prepared using CPSS and PSS were obtained, and mini-LED backlight modules were prepared. By comparison, we found that the CPSS-LED chip has higher external quantum efficiency (EQE), and higher EQE brings higher peak brightness, which improves the HDR performance. Simultaneously, we also found that the CPSS-LED chip has a larger light-emitting angle, and the mini-LED backlight module made of it shows a more uniform irradiance distribution and better light mixing effect. In short, we prepared a high-performance mini-LED backlight module using the CPSS-LED chip with both a large light-emitting angle and high EQE, which is expected to be used in future LCD displays.

Due to the huge impact of temperature on mechanical and tribological properties of polymer composites, polyimide composites reinforced with glass fiber and aramid fiber were fabricated. The composites were treated by the alternate temperature from-50 °C to 150 °C with 200 cycles. The comparation of the test results were analyzed and discussed before and after alternate temperature treatment.

Objective To compare the severity of cartilage degeneration after meniscal tears between juvenile and adult rabbits.Design This study included 20 juvenile rabbits (2 weeks after birth) and 20 adult rabbits (6 months after birth). Meniscal tears were prepared in the anterior horn of medial menisci of right knees. Rabbits were sacrificed at 1, 3, 6, and 12 weeks postoperatively. Cartilage degenerations in the medial femoral condyle and medial tibial plateau were evaluated macroscopically and histologically. The semiquantitative assessment of cartilage degeneration was graded by macroscopic Outerbridge scoring system and histological Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) scoring system.Results In juvenile rabbits, the morphologically intact cartilage and normal extracellular matrix architecture were observed at the first week postoperatively. Mild uneven cartilage surface and toluidine blue depletion in the medial femoral condyle were observed on histological assessment at 3 weeks postoperatively. The worsened cartilage deterioration demonstrating chondral fibrillation, prominent cell death, and glycosaminoglycan (GAG) release was observed at 6 and 12 weeks postoperatively. In adult rabbits, only mild cartilage degeneration was observed in the medial femoral condyle at 12 weeks postoperatively. The outcomes of Outerbridge and OARSI scores were consistent with the aforementioned findings in juvenile and adult rabbits.Conclusions Our study validated that earlier and more severe cartilage degenerations were observed in juvenile rabbits after meniscal tears compared with adult rabbits. Moreover, the post-tear cartilage degeneration demonstrated regional specificity corresponded to the tear position. However, caution is warranted when extrapolating results of animal models to humans.

Cylas formicariusis one of the most important pests of sweet potato worldwide, causing considerable ecological and economic damage. This study improved the effect of comprehensive management and understanding of genetic mechanisms by examining the functional genomics of C. formicarius. Using Illumina and PacBio sequencing, this study obtained a chromosome-level genome assembly of adult weevils from lines inbred for 15 generations. The high-quality assembly obtained was 338.84 Mb, with contig and scaffold N50 values of 14.97 and 34.23 Mb, respectively. In total, 157.51 Mb of repeat sequences and 11 907 protein-coding genes were predicted. A total of 337.06 Mb of genomic sequences was located on the 11 chromosomes, accounting for 99.03% of the total length of the associated chromosome. Comparative genomic analysis showed that C. formicariuswas sister to Dendroctonus ponderosae, and C. formicariusdiverged from D. ponderosaeapproximately 138.89 million years ago (Mya). Many important gene families expanded in the C. formicariusgenome were involved in the detoxification of pesticides, tolerance to cold stress and chemosensory system. To further study the role of odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) in olfactory recognition of C. formicarius, the binding assay results indicated that CforOBP4–6 had strong binding affinities for sex pheromones and other ligands. The high-quality C. formicariusgenome provides a valuable resource to reveal the molecular ecological basis, genetic mechanism, and evolutionary process of major agricultural pests; it also offers new ideas and new technologies for ecologically sustainable pest control.

For improving the performance of the photon color conversion from the energy of an InGaN/GaN quantum-well (QW) structure into the longer-wavelength emission of a colloidal quantum dot (QD), we insert the photoresist solution of the QD into a surface nano-hole, whose bottom face is about 10 nm higher than the top QW. The sample top surface is then cleaned for depositing Ag nanoparticles (NPs) to induce the surface plasmon (SP) coupling with the QW structure such that the QDs inside the nano-holes are located in the region of strong field distribution (hot spot). In this situation, the SP coupling can enhance the Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) from QW into QD and the QD emission efficiency for producing a stronger color conversion process. The nanoscale-cavity effect of the nano-hole structure can further strengthen the SP-coupling enhanced FRET and QD emission.

Optimizing and adjusting the particle size composition of grinding products is of great significance for improving economic benefits and resource recovery and utilization. In this study, grinding contribution and quantitative separation of impact and grinding mechanism in cylindrical mill were creatively researched, and the grinding technical efficiency of impact and grinding was coupled to the grinding technical efficiency of grinding in drop-off mode. The results showed that the contribution rate of impact and grinding in grinding in drop-off mode varied with the grinding time. On the whole, the contribution rate of impact action increases with the grinding time and gradually becomes stable, and the contribution rate of grinding effect was just the opposite. Under the experimental conditions, the main contribution of the grinding process is impact action, and the contribution of grinding action is auxiliary. In addition, the contribution rate of impact and grinding effect in grinding in drop-off mode was also related to the feed particle size. The contribution rate of impact effect decreased with the decrease of feed particle size, while the contribution rate of grinding increased inversely.

Functional hand activity induces complex motion of the trapeziometacarpal (TMC) joint. Analyzing the TMC joint motion in vivo can aid in understanding joint behavior and lead to advancements in joint health evaluation. The purpose of this study was to quantify TMC joint motion during pinching using ultrasonography.

Between the two major arsenic-containing salts in natural water, arsenite (As(III)) is far more harmful to human and the environment than arsenate (As(V)) due to its high toxicity and transportability. Therefore, preoxidation of As(III) to As(V) is considered to be an effective means to reduce the toxicity of arsenic and to promote the removal efficiency of arsenic. Due to their high catalytic activity and arsenic affinity, iron-based functional materials can quickly oxidize As(III) to As(V) in heterogeneous Fenton-like systems, and then remove As(V) from water through adsorption and surface coprecipitation. In this review, the effects of different iron-based functional materials such as zero-valent iron and iron (hydroxy) oxides on arsenic removal are compared, and the catalytic oxidation mechanism of As(III) in heterogeneous Fenton process is further clarified. Finally, the main challenges and opportunities faced by iron-based As(III) oxidation functional materials are prospected.

Habitat degradation and fragmentation are crucial factors which result in biodiversity loss among the world. Understanding how species respond to the habitat change is helpful and essential for the conservation of the endangered ones. Therefore, the aim of current study is to explore how to carry out biodiversity conservation from the perspective of the habitat selection of species. We studied the microhabitat selection of blue eared pheasant (Crossoptilon auritum) during its breeding time (including mating, incubation, and feeding periods). The field research was carried out from April to August in 2014 at Helan Mountains, China. Six nests of blue eared pheasants were found; 323 used plots and 171 control plots were recorded. Results indicated that blue eared pheasants prefer mountainous coniferous forest at shady slope with domination of Picea crassifolia, and its habitat selection was mainly influenced by shrub density, tree density, altitude, slope degree, hiding cover, water resource, and human disturbance. However, there were slight differences among the three periods. Our study firstly compared factors that affect the microhabitat selection of blue eared pheasants among the three periods of its breeding time. Meanwhile, combining the current study with the previous ones, specific strategies could be applied on the works of endangered species and biodiversity conservation.

GPM6A is a glycoprotein in endothelial cells, and its biological function in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unknown. Through Affymetrix gene expression microarray and bioinformatic analysis, very low GPM6A expression was found in HCC tissue. The present study aims to explore the function and regulatory mechanism of GPM6A in HCC development and progression. Levels of GPM6A expression in HCC specimens from different disorders and various hepatoma cell lines were determined, and its role on cell proliferation was evaluated in hepatoma cells stably overexpressing GPM6A. Modulation of a specific microRNA (miRNA) on its expression and function was evaluated with miRNA mimetic transfection. Herein, it is reported that much lower GPM6A levels were found in HCC tissues than pericancerous liver tissues and correlated to a poor prognosis. GPM6A overexpression inhibited cell proliferation, suppressed colony formation, migration and invasion in two hepatoma cell types. Available evidence does not support that genetic and epigenetic dysregulation contributes significantly to GPM6A inactivation in HCC. Additional findings demonstrated that miR-96-5p acted directly on the 3′-UTR of the GPM6A gene and significantly decreased its mRNA and protein levels. MiR-96-5p transfection promoted proliferation, migration and invasion of SMMC-7721 and MHCC-97H hepatoma cells; whereas the function of oncogenic microRNA-96 was significantly inhibited in GPM6A-overexpressed hepatoma cells. In conclusion, GPM6A expression in HCC is commonly suppressed regardless its base disease types, and its low expression in HCC tissues is most likely attributed to upregulated miR-96-5p. GPM6A may function as a valuable biomarker for HCC progression and prognosis.

To acquire a further utilization of mulberry seed, antioxidant peptides derived from defatted mulberry seed protein was prepared using a continue-flow microreactor with the synergistic effects of immobilized protease and nontoxic ionic liquid. The mulberry seed meal was pretreated with the combined simultaneous ultrasound treatment at a frequency combination of 20/28/40 kHz, solid–liquid ratio of 1:30, output power of 400 W, and temperature of 40 °C; the extraction rate of mulberry seed protein was up to 70.1%, 21.54% higher than that obtained with the single-frequency ultrasonic treatment (p< 0.05). The hydrolysis process of mulberry seed protein in the continue-flow microreactor was catalyzed by the immobilized protamex combined with choline chloride, the flow rate was 2.5 mL/min, the temperature was 50 °C, and the hydrolysis rate was up to 83.33%, which was 1.14 times higher than that without ionic liquid. Moreover, the immobilized protease can be used 12 times under continue-flow condition, and the enzyme activity was still more than 80% of the original enzyme. Four antioxidant peptides including AMDGK (896.24 Da), KFRAKDG (1109.47 Da), FPSNEPLLG (1287.15 Da), and SNVPNKEL (1005.14 Da) were obtained by ionic liquid-enhanced microfluidic hydrolysis with immobilized protease from mulberry seed protein, and AMDGK had not been reported before. These peptides exhibited strong scavenging activities on 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH˙) (EC50were 2.64, 1.89, 2.16, and 1.34 mg/mL, respectively) and superoxide anion radicals (·O2−) (EC50were 3.36, 2.78, 2.56, and 1.77 mg/mL, respectively). Thus, the defatted mulberry seed protein possesses good edible development potential and economic value in the production of antioxidant peptides.

ABSTRACT The microstructure forming process of polyacrylate (PA) latex modified cement-based materials was investigated from mixing to hardening. Owing to the chemical reaction between PA particles and calcium ions in [...]

ABSTRACT Fly-ash and scrubber-ash are byproducts of municipal solid waste incinerators (MSWIs) that require further treatment before disposal to avoid polluting soil and groundwater with heavy metals. Recycling scrubber-ash is [...]

Aim: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of brachytherapy with double-strand 125I seeds and biliary drainage for malignant obstructive jaundice. Methods and Materials: 42 patients with obstructive jaundice because of extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma were enrolled. 22 patients (group A) received a biliary stent with common drainage tube implantation, and 20 patients (group B) received a biliary stent with double-strand 125I seeds radiotherapy drainage tube placement. The length, location and pathological stage of biliary stricture were recorded in the two groups. Total bilirubin (TBIL), direct bilirubin (DBIL), IgA, IgG, IgM, alanine aminotransferase and white blood cell (WBC) count were measured before and after percutaneous transhepatic cholangial drainage (PTCD). Tumor diameter was measured before and three months after PTCD, and the difference were calculated. Stent patency time, survival time, and complications were recorded. Results: There was no significant difference in the length, location and pathological stage of biliary stenosis between the two groups. There was no significant difference in TBIL, DBIL, IgA, IgG, IgM, alanine aminotransferase and WBC count between the two groups before or after PTCD (P> 0.05). Three months after PTCD, tumors growth in group A and tumors shrinkage in group B. The difference in tumor size between the two groups before and after PTCD was statistically significant (P&lt; 0.05). The average stent patency times in groups A and B were 3.55 ± 0.76 months and 8.76 ± 1.85 months, respectively (P&lt; 0.05). The average survival times in groups A and B were 133.5 ± 27.8 days and 252.5 ± 114.5 days, respectively (P&lt; 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of complications between the two groups (P> 0.05). Conclusion: Double-strand 125I seeds radiotherapy biliary drainage tubes can safely and effectively control tumors, prolong the patency of biliary stents, and prolong patient survival.

In spinless systems, growing attention has recently been attracted to synthetic gauge fields, which redefine the fundamental crystal symmetries by utilizing the projective algebraic relation. Hitherto, synthetic gauge fields have been commonly investigated in single orbital systems, and explorations on hybrid orbitals remain elusive in acoustics. Here, we report the experimental observation of hybrid topological phases induced by hybrid synthetic gauge flux, which is formed by the interaction between pand dorbitals embedded in acoustic cavities. By breaking the translation symmetries of Lxand/or Ly, we unambiguously demonstrate the first-order Möbius edge states and higher-order corner states. This work establishes a platform for seeking exotic topological phases induced by hybrid-orbitals interactions and initializing the framework of hybrid-orbitals-related topological physics. Potential applications can be anticipated in scenarios such as high-quality sensing and robust wave trapping due to the stepwise energy distribution of the hybrid topological phase.

Terbium metal rod with the dimension of 6.8mm in diameter and 150mm in length has been purified by solid state electrotransport (SSE) at 1050°C under a pressure of 10-5Pa for 50h, and the impurity distribution has been determined by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). The research results indicate that, the rare earth impurity migrates from cathode to anode of the rod, and the impurity distribution is relatively uniform in the longitudinal section; low melting point impurity of Al migrates from cathode to anode and the impurity concentration distribution is relatively uniform in the longitudinal section, the segregation degree is about 10% in each sample; the impurity with high melting point, Ta, W, Mo, etc., the distribution of above impurity is very non-uniform, for the impurity of Ta, the mean concentration of sample 7 is only 8.75 ppm, but the local concentration is up to 350 ppm, and it exists in an elementary substance form in the Tb; non-rare earth impurity in Tb metal, such as Ni, Si and Ti, migrates from cathode to anode of the rod significantly; the total impurity content in cathode end is lower than other posion, the impurty content of 22 imputies in sample 6 is 648.47 ppm, is the lowest in the Tb rod, except for the high melting point impurities, the lowest impurity content is 60.05ppm in sample 7.

Revealing the details of the configuration evolution process at the atom-sized level is fundamentally significant for understanding the interface configuration and further the electron transport property of molecular junctions. However, it is still prohibitively difficult to directly detect the geometric structure of the molecular junction with atom-sized precision in experiment presently. Here, ab initio-based adiabatic and nonadiabatic geometry evolution simulation methods are used to reveal the forming processes of single-molecule junctions. By applying this method, we systematically investigate the forming processes of 1,4-diethynylbenzene molecular junctions with gold and silver electrodes. The numerical results demonstrate that due to different hardnesses of gold and silver, when fabricating the 1,4-diethynylbenzene molecular junction with Ag electrodes by stretching, the ethynyl end is very easy to be adsorbed on the hollow position of the Ag electrode by spontaneously pushing the tip Ag atom aside. However, for the Au-electrode system, the Au atom on the electrode tip is very difficult to be pushed aside, so the ethynyl end is generally adsorbed on the tip atom of the Au electrode. These specific yet significant differences in the forming processes of ethynyl-ended molecular junctions thereby result in the higher conductance of Ag-electrode systems compared with that of Au-electrode ones in experimental measurements.

The widely-developed, mixed clastic-carbonate succession in the northern Qaidam Basin records the paleo-environment changes under the glacial activity during the Late Paleozoic icehouse period in the context of regional tectonic stability, however, the depositional environment and sequence stratigraphy characteristics of the mixed deposits is rarely reported and still not clear. Combined the latest drilling wells data, we analyzed the sedimentary and stratigraphic characterization of the mixed strata via detailed field outcrops and core observations and thin section microscopic observations and recognized three depositional systems, including progradational coastal system, incised valley system, and carbonate-dominated marine shelf system, and identified four third-order sequences, SQ1, SQ2, SQ3 and SQ4, consisting of LST, TST, and HST. The depositional environment is overall belonged to marine-continental transition context and shifted from marine to continental environment frequently, showing an evolutionary pattern from marine towards terrestrial-marine transition and then back into the marine environment again in the long-term, which was controlled by the regional tectonic subsidence and the high-frequency and large-amplitude sea-level changes due to the Late Paleozoic glacial activity. The result is of significance in understanding the evolution of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the sedimentation-climate response.

Biting midges of the genus Culicoides(order Diptera, family Ceratopogonidae) are potential biological vectors for the transmission of certain arboviruses among humans, livestock, and wild animals. This study collected a total of 405 Culicoidesindividuals from seven animal farms located in five counties in the border areas of Yunnan Province, China, and examined the Culicoidesspecies composition and the major arboviruses carried by the Culicoidesspecies. The collected Culicoideswere classified into seven species with variable abundances: Culicoides arakawae(5.43%, 22/405), Culicoides homotomus(1.23%, 5/405), Culicoides obsoletus(19.75%, 80/405), Culicoides orientalis(17.28%, 70/405), Culicoides oxystoma(29.38%, 119/405), Culicoides peregrinus(5.68%, 23/405), and Culicoides nipponensis(21.23%, 86/405). Among the seven species, C. oxystomaand C. nipponensiswere distributed in all the five counties with abundances of 13.33–44.87% and 10.00–46.83%, respectively, suggesting that these were the dominant species of Culicoideswidespread on animal farms in the border areas. PCR was used to detect major arboviruses in the collected Culicoidesspecimens, including bluetongue virus (BTV), Japanese encephalitis virus, Dengue virus, Zika virus, African swine fever virus, and African horse sickness virus. Among the tested viruses, only BTV serotype 1 was tested positive in C. oxystomaspecimens collected from a buffalo farm. Culicoides oxystomawas the dominant species on animal farms in the sampled areas, but it has not previously been documented as positive for BTV in China. The current results thus suggest that C. oxystomacould be an important vector for BTV transmission in these border areas, which, however, needs to be confirmed by further comprehensive experiments. Overall, the present study provides the first profile of Culicoidesspecies on animal farms in the China, Vietnam, and Myanmar border areas, establishes the prevalence of arboviruses carried by these Culicoidesspecies, and suggests the vector potential of C. oxystomaspecies for the transmission of BTV.

Objective: Supracondylar humerus fractures are the most frequent fractures of the paediatric elbow. The present study introduced a modified surgical procedure for treatment of supracondylar humerus fractures in children. Methods: From February 2015 to August 2019, 73 patients with Gartland’s type II and III supracondylar fractures were treated with this modified method. Totally, 68 of all patients were followed up for 3–12 months (mean 8.25 months). The evaluation results included fracture nonunion, ulnar nerve injury, pin track infection, carrying angle and elbow joint Flynn score. Results: The results showed that bone union was observed in all children, one case had an iatrogenic ulnar nerve injury, and the symptoms were completely relieved in 4 months after removing of the medial-side pin. All children had no cubitus varus deformity and no pin track infection, and the rate of satisfactory results according to Flynn’s criteria score was 100%. Conclusion: The modified closed reduction and Kirschner wires internal fixation could effectively reduce the rate of open reduction, the risk of iatrogenic ulnar nerve injury, and the incidence of cubitus varus deformity in treatment of supracondylar humerus fractures in children.

Owing to the inevitable loss in communication channels, the distance of entanglement distribution is limited to approximately 100 kilometres on the ground1. Quantum repeaters can circumvent this problem by using quantum memory and entanglement swapping2. As the elementary link of a quantum repeater, the heralded distribution of two-party entanglement between two remote nodes has only been realized with built-in-type quantum memories3–9. These schemes suffer from the trade-off between multiplexing capacity and deterministic properties and hence hinder the development of efficient quantum repeaters. Quantum repeaters based on absorptive quantum memories can overcome such limitations because they separate the quantum memories and the quantum light sources. Here we present an experimental demonstration of heralded entanglement between absorptive quantum memories. We build two nodes separated by 3.5 metres, each containing a polarization-entangled photon-pair source and a solid-state quantum memory with bandwidth up to 1 gigahertz. A joint Bell-state measurement in the middle station heralds the successful distribution of maximally entangled states between the two quantum memories with a fidelity of 80.4 ± 2.2 per cent (±1 standard deviation). The quantum nodes and channels demonstrated here can serve as an elementary link of a quantum repeater. Moreover, the wideband absorptive quantum memories used in the nodes are compatible with deterministic entanglement sources and can simultaneously support multiplexing, which paves the way for the construction of practical solid-state quantum repeaters and high-speed quantum networks.

Defects in acceptor-doped perovskite piezoelectric materials have a significant impact on their electrical properties. Herein, the defect mediated evolution of piezoelectric and ferroelectric properties of Fe-doped (Pb,Sr)(Zr,Ti)O3(PSZT-Fe) piezoceramics with different treatments, including quenching, aging, de-aging, and poling, was investigated systematically. Oxygen vacancies with a cubic symmetry are preserved in the quenched PSZT-Fe ceramics, rendering them robust ferroelectric behaviors. In the aged PSZT-Fe polycrystals, defect dipole between Fe dopant and oxygen vacancy has the same orientation with spontaneous polarization PS, which enables the reversible domain switching and hence leads to the emergence of pinched polarization hysteresis and recoverable strain effect. And the defect dipoles can be gradually disrupted by bipolar electric field cycling, once again endowing the aged materials with representative ferroelectric properties. For the poled PSZT-Fe polycrystals, the defect dipoles are reoriented to be parallel to the applied poling field, and an internal bias field aligning along the same direction emerges simultaneously, being responsible for asymmetric hysteresis loops.

NOD-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) promotes the inflammatory response during progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver (NAFL) to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). This study aimed to further delineate the role of NLRP3 in NASH development by abolishing its expression in mice. A high-fat and calorie diet plus high fructose and glucose in drinking water (HFCD-HF/G) was used to establish NASH in both wild-type (WT) and NLRP3 knock-out (KO) mice. Hepatocellular injury, hepatic steatosis and fibrosis, as well as inflammatory response and insulin resistance in the liver and epidydimal white adipose tissue (eWAT) were determined. Elevated body weight, liver weight and serum alanine transaminase level, increased hepatic triglyceride accumulation and collagen deposition, and worsened systemic insulin resistance were observed in Nlrp3−/−mice compared to WT mice under HFCD-HF/G feeding. Upregulated hepatic transcription of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1), and enhanced infiltration of inducible nitric oxide synthase-positive (iNOS+) M1 macrophages were also documented in HFCD-HF/G-fed Nlrp3−/−mice in comparison to HFCD-HF/G-fed WT mice. Moreover, transcription of TNF-α and MCP-1 and infiltration of iNOS+M1 macrophages were increased in the liver of Nlrp3−/−mice under control diet. NLRP3 deficiency did not attenuate, but instead aggravated NASH development under HFCD-HF/G feeding. The worsened extent of NASH might be attributed to enhanced hepatic MCP-1 expression and M1 macrophage infiltration in Nlrp3−/−mice. Our study points to additional caution when NLRP3 blockade is considered as a therapeutic strategy in the treatment of human NASH.

With the rapid development of science and technology, more and more new methods and technologies have been added to the traditional Chinese Medicine Inheritance model, which makes the process of inheritance of famous doctors have more means, and the results of inheritance are more objective, rigorous and intelligent. In the process of inheriting the informationization of famous doctors, there are some bottlenecks, such as data acquisition difficulties, data processing difficulties, algorithm application difficulties, analysis and summary difficulties. Integration of artificial intelligence with big data, deep learning algorithm and knowledge atlas technology has brought technological innovation to the informationization of famous doctors' inheritance. Under this wave, the team of the Intelligent Research and Development Center of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine Information, Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medical Sciences, has developed a series of professional application systems in the field of traditional Chinese medicine around the planning of famous doctors' inheritance and excavation, and has developed ancient Chinese medicine, such as Today's Medical Records Cloud Platform, Medical Records Big Data Analysis Platform, Cloud Medical Records APP, Famous Medical Heritage Workstation. To a certain extent, it can solve the problems of inefficient collection of medical records, lack of objective data support and information barriers in the summary of famous doctors' experience under the limitation of traditional model, so as to promote the inheritance of famous doctors' experience and enhance the teaching ability and efficiency of teachers and apprentices.

Silkworm pupae are a typical byproduct with high protein content from silk-reeling industry. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of defatted silkworm pupae hydrolysate as an alternative nitrogen source to produce polysaccharides and flavonoids using the fungus Phellinus baumii. The results indicated that the defatted silkworm pupa was treated with dispase, and the freeze-dried hydrolysate had a yield of 37% and a nitrogen content of 3.18%. In the fermentation process, the content of the hydrolysates was 32 g/L. Moreover, the consuming reducing sugar accounted for 75.61% of the total reducing sugar and the nitrogen consumption accounted for 35.19% of the total nitrogen content. The maximum biomass produced by the hydrolysate treatment group was 0.6 g/L, and the extracellular flavonoid concentration was 0.4 g/L; the produced extracellular polysaccharide concentration was 7.71 g/L, which was 1.4–5.9 times higher than that of other nitrogen source treatment groups. Therefore, the defatted silkworm pupae hydrolysate is an effective alternative nitrogen source which has great economic value. As a nitrogen source reagent, it enhanced the fermentation ability of P. baumiiand increased the yield of extracellular polysaccharides and flavonoids.

The matching of crowdsourced drivers and delivery tasks is an important decision problem for the crowdsourced delivery platform. Although the existence of uncertainty of transportation duration in logistics delivery has been verified, uncertain transportation duration has not been considered in previous studies on the matching of crowdsourced drivers and delivery tasks. This would lead to the limitation that the results of the existing methods cannot meet the time requirements of senders. In this case, the profit and customer satisfaction of the crowdsourced delivery platform would decrease. In this paper, a model-based rolling matching strategy to match crowdsourced drivers and delivery tasks considering uncertain transportation duration is proposed. In addition, it is assumed that the crowdsourced delivery platform also has some dedicated drivers to implement the delivery tasks that cannot be implemented by crowdsourced drivers. First, a simpler problem is described, which is to match crowdsourced drivers and delivery tasks considering uncertain transportation duration in a static data environment. Then, a model is proposed to solve the above problem. Based on the proposed model, this paper further proposes a rolling procedure to solve the problem in a data refreshing environment. Moreover, a heuristic algorithm is presented for combining multiple delivery tasks to solve the one-to-many matching. Finally, a case study and comparison are given to illustrate the validity and the contribution of the proposed matching strategy. The results show that the proposed matching strategy has a distinct advantage of cost savings.

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is the most common type of idiopathic interstitial pneumonia and has one of the poorest prognosis. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying IPF progression remain largely unknown. In this study, we determined that IL-24, an IL-20 subfamily cytokine member, was increased both in the serum of IPF patients and the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) of mice following bleomycin (BLM)-induced pulmonary fibrosis. As a result, IL-24deficiency protected mice from BLM-induced lung injury and fibrosis. Specifically, loss of IL-24significantly attenuated transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) production and reduced M2 macrophage infiltration in the lung of BLM-induced mice. Mechanistically, IL-24 alone did not show a perceptible impact on the induction of M2 macrophages, but it synergized with IL-4 to promote M2 program in macrophages. IL-24 suppressed IL-4-induced expression of suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1) and SOCS3, through which it enhanced signal transducer and activator of transcription 6/peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (STAT6/PPARγ) signaling, thereby promoting IL-4-induced production of M2 macrophages. Collectively, our data support that IL-24 synergizes with IL-4 to promote macrophage M2 program contributing to the development of pulmonary fibrosis.

The reactions of C60with acetone were carried out under basic condition in the presence of 1.0 M TBAOH (tetra-n-butylammonium hydroxide) methanol solution and ArCH2Br (Ar = Ph or o-BrPh), where methano[60]fulleroids with a novel 1,1,4,9,9,25-configuration were obtained and structurally characterized by single crystal diffraction. The product was formed via the ring-opening reaction of the [5,6]-cyclopropane by the nucleophilic addition of MeO–, which is different from the reactions of other ketones reported previously.

The development of 3D printing techniques has provided a promising platform to study tissue engineering and mechanobiology; however, the pursuit of printability limits the possibility of tailoring scaffolds’ mechanical properties. The brittleness of those scaffolds also hinders potential clinical application. To overcome these drawbacks, a double-network ink composed of only natural biomaterials is developed. A shear-thinning hydrogel made of silk fibroin (SF) and methacrylated hyaluronic acid (MAHA) presents a high mechanical modulus with a low concentration of macromers. The physical cross-linking due to protein folding further increases the strength of the scaffolds. The proposed SF/MAHA scaffold exhibits a storage modulus 10 times greater than that of methacrylated gelatin scaffold, along with better flexibility and biodegradation. The synergistic effect between fibroin and hyaluronic allows us to tailor the mechanical strength of scaffolds without compromising their printability. The hierarchy porous structure of the SF/MAHA scaffolds offers a better spatial microenvironment for the migration and proliferation of cells compared to gelatin scaffolds. For the first time, this strategy achieves 3D printing of natural biomaterials with controlled mechanical characteristics by manipulating the cross-linking of peptide chains. The design of such ductile scaffolds with hydrolysis resistance provides a new platform for the mechanobiology research. It also shows promise in the tissue engineering of musculoskeletal system where structural strength is needed.

A nitrogen-rich Cu–BTT MOF is employed for the derivation of N-doped Cu–N–CTcomposite electrocatalysts by the pyrolyze method. Well-dispersed Cu nanoparticles in 20–40 nm sizes were kept in the N-doped carbon matrix. CO (FE 40.8%) and HCOOH (FE 38.1%) were produced in high efficiencies in Cu–N–C1100.

In this study, we analyze the influence of the pore structure of an SBA-15 particle on the light emission from its inner adsorbed quantum dots (QDs) and outer light-emitting diode (LED) chips. It is found that the particle features of a high refractive index, comparable feature size of pore structure, and lower amount of QD adsorption help with QD light extraction, demonstrating a mechanism to suppress QD light propagating through pores and thus reducing the reabsorption loss. We consequently developed highly efficient QD white LEDs with wet-mixing QD/SBA-15 nanocomposite particles (NPs) by further optimizing the packaging methods and the introduced NP mass ratio. The LEDs demonstrated a record luminous efficacy (the ratio of luminous flux to electrical power) of 206.8 (entrusted test efficiency of 205.8 lm W–1certificated by China National Accreditation Service) and 137.6 lm W–1at 20 mA for white LEDs integrating only green QDs and green–red QD color convertors, respectively, with improved operating stability. These results are comparable to conventional phosphor-based white LEDs, which can be a starting point for white LEDs only using QDs as convertors toward commercialization in the near future.

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Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted more attention in the field of supercapacitors for their potential high performance. Herein, one new Mn-based MOF, [Mn(Hpzca)2]n(1), has been obtained via one-step hydrothermal method with the ligand (H2pzca = 1H-pyrazole-4-carboxylic acid). After characterization, the Mn-MOF exhibits a 3D structure bridged through the carboxylic group, which has a {318·438·510} topological structure. The supercapacitive performance has been tested in the three-electrode system; the results showed a high specific capacitance and a good cycling stability. Its maximum specific capacitance was 443 F g–1at 1 Ag1–, along with a high capacitance of 86% retained after 1000 cycles at a current density of 5 A g–1in the 6 M KOH solution.

The structural, mechanical, and thermodynamic properties of refractory metals Rh, Ir, W, Ta, Nb, Mo, Re, and Os have been systematically investigated by first-principles calculations based on density functional theory. Comparative studies reveal that Young's modulus (E = 636.42 GPa), shear modulus (G = 256.81 GPa), bulk modulus (B = 406.55 GPa), and microhardness (H = 44.69 GPa) of hexagonal Os are the highest, which reveals Os has the best overall mechanical properties. The body-centered cubic Nb has the smallest Young's modulus (E = 94.76 GPa), shear modulus (G = 33.62 GPa), bulk modulus (B = 174.50 GPa), and hardness (H = 2.04 GPa). Based on the ratio of bulk to shear modulus, it is judged that Rh, Ir, and Os are brittle materials (B/G &lt; 1.75), and Nb, Ta, Mo, W, and Re exhibit ductile (B/G > 1.75). The elastic anisotropy has also been discussed by plotting both the 3D contours and the 2D planar projections of Young's modulus. For the face-centered cubic metals Rh and Ir and hexagonal close-packed metals Re and Os, the 3D contours of the Young's modulus are very similar, whereas body-centered cubic metals Ta, W, Nb, and Mo exhibit significant difference in elastic anisotropy. The thermodynamic calculations show that Debye temperature and minimum thermal conductivity decreases along Rh, Os, Mo, Ir, Re, W, Ta, Nb sequence. Furthermore, the results can be used as a general guidance for the design and development of high temperature refractory alloy system.