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A facile template method was employed to synthesize Fe nanowires of different sizes, dimensions. Comprehensive analyses were conducted to explore their morphology, structure, composition, and magnetic properties. The surface of as-prepared Fe nanowires was modified with SiO2 by sol–gel method to improve the dispersion of as-prepared Fe nanowires in aqueous solution. Furthermore, the relaxation properties, biocompatibility and in vivo imaging abilities of the Fe@SiO2 nanowires were evaluated. The study revealed that the SiO2-coated Fe nanowires functioned effectively as transverse relaxation time (T2) contrast agents (CAs). Notably, as the length of the Fe@SiO2 nanowires increased, their diameter decreased, leading to a higher the transverse relaxivity (r2) value. Our study identified that among the Fe nanowires synthesized, the Fe3@SiO2 nanowires, characterized by a diameter of around 30 nm and a length of approximately 500 nm, exhibited the highest r2 value of 59.3 mM−1 s−1. These nanowires demonstrated good biocompatibility and non-toxicity. Notably, upon conducting small animal imaging a 1.5 T with Sprague–Dawley rats, we observed a discernible negative enhancement effect in the liver. These findings indicate the promising potential of Fe@SiO2 nanowires as T2 CAs, with the possibility of tuning their size for optimized results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Core–shell Fe@Fe3O4 nanowires (NWs) were successfully prepared on a homemade anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template by the anodic oxidation of Fe NWs followed by annealing reduction. A field-emission scanning electron microscope was used to observe the morphology of the AAO template, which shows that the diameter of AAO template was 30 nm. TEM results confirm a thin oxide layer was formed on Fe NWs, confirming the core–shell nature of Fe NWs. The TEM analysis shows that with the increase in anodizing time, the oxide layer thickness was increased from 2.4, 4.6, 5.9 nm, respectively. The elemental composition of core–shell Fe NWs was confirmed by energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer. The oxide phase of Fe could not be easily distinguished by X-ray analysis, because of the line width broadening of nanocrystals; thus, the valence states of Fe in Fe@Fe2O3 and Fe@Fe3O4 NWs were further analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). XPS results confirm the oxide nature of Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 in core–shell Fe NWs. The influence of oxide layer thickness on the magnetic properties of core–shell Fe@Fe3O4 NWs was investigated by vibrating sample magnetometry. Magnetic measurement revealed that the coercivity and squareness values of core–shell Fe@Fe3O4 NWs gradually increased with the increase in the Fe3O4 shell thickness. Results clearly showed that the size and magnetism of the core–shell Fe@Fe3O4 NWs can be adjusted to a certain extent by this synthetic method, so as to meet different requirements in desired biomedical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, exponential stability of periodic solution for an inertial neural network is studied. Different from most research on inertial neural networks, the model in this paper is based on memristors and is involved with periodic solutions. In order to simplify the difficulty in dealing with inertial terms and constructing Lyapunov functions, the inertial neural network in this paper is transformed into a suitable neural network with enhanced characteristics by using appropriate variable transformation method. Under the Lyapunov stability theory and Leary-Schauder alternative theorem, we prove the existence and global exponential stability of the periodic solution for the inertial neural network under mild conditions. At last, the feasibility of the theoretical conclusions is illustrated by some numerical examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We proposed a compact and simple polarization phase-shifting lateral shearing interferometer using two polarization beam splitter plates (PBSP). This interferometer is composed of two PBSP, a quarter-wave plate, an analyzer and a CCD camera. With the two PBSP positioned in appropriate spatial positions, optical path difference compensation is achieved, which allows for the implement of aplanatic and common-path shearing interferometer. Therefore, the system possesses significant advantages of simple structure, compact and strong anti-interference ability. The effectiveness of the interferometer is demonstrated by simulations and experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phytoplasmas are plant pathogenic bacteria that inhabit the phloem sieve elements in infected plants and lack a cell wall. Infection of the woody perennial Ziziphus jujuba with phytoplasma causes jujube witches' broom (JWB), a disease that causes heavy crop losses. The TEOSINTE BRANCHED 1/CYCLOIDEA/PCF (TCP) transcription factors (TFs) are plant-specific regulators of plant morphogenesis, development, and defense after phytoplasma infection. While the TCP gene family has been studied in many plants, there is no report on TCPs in jujube. In this study, 21 ZjTCP TFs were identified and bioinformatically analyzed based on the genome of the Dongzao cultivar. Another 2 ZjTCPs were found in the genome of the Junzao cultivar. Physicochemical properties of the ZjTCP proteins were quite varied, indicating possible versatility of functions. ZjTCP proteins ranged from 172 to 590 amino acids (aa), had isoelectric points (pIs) between 5.53 (ZjTCP1) and 9.81 (ZjTCP11), and molecular weights ranging from 19,279.98 (ZjTCP11) to 61,784.17 kDa (ZjTCP19). Interaction network mapping predicted several hubs, such as ZjTCP6, ZjTCP7, ZjTCP8, ZjTCP15, ZjTCP16, and ZjTCP19, among which ZjTCP6 and ZjTCP16 were predicted to function in plant defense and morphogenesis. Spatiotemporal expression analysis of the ZjTCPs showed that ten of the ZjTCP genes were detected after infection with 'Candidatus Phytoplasma ziziphi'. ZjTCP6, ZjTCP7, ZjTCP16, and ZjTCP19 were up-regulated after phytoplasma infection. ZjTCP16 showed the most significant increase in transcript levels, after the emergence of disease symptoms. ZjTCP12, ZjTCP15, and ZjTCP18 were down-regulated after phytoplasma infection. We concluded that ZjTCP6 and ZjTCP16 were most likely regulatory factors with roles during the plant response to jujube witches' broom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]