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Abstract Oocyte maturation arrest is one of the important causes of female infertility, but the genetic factors remain largely unknown. PABPC1L, a predominant poly(A)‐binding protein in Xenopus, mouse, and human oocytes and early embryos prior to zygotic genome activation, plays a key role in translational activation of maternal mRNAs. Here, we identified compound heterozygous and homozygous variants in PABPC1L that are responsible for female infertility mainly characterized by oocyte maturation arrest in five individuals. In vitro studies demonstrated that these variants resulted in truncated proteins, reduced protein abundance, altered cytoplasmic localization, and reduced mRNA translational activation by affecting the binding of PABPC1L to mRNA. In vivo, three strains of Pabpc1l knock‐in (KI) female mice were infertile. RNA‐sequencing analysis showed abnormal activation of the Mos‐MAPK pathway in the zygotes of KI mice. Finally, we activated this pathway in mouse zygotes by injecting human MOS mRNA, and this mimicked the phenotype of KI mice. Our findings reveal the important roles of PABPC1L in human oocyte maturation and add a genetic potential candidate gene to be screened for causes of infertility.

The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway is a key driver in many histiocytic disorders, including Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) and Erdheim–Chester disease (ECD). This has led to successful and promising treatment with targeted therapies, including BRAF inhibitors and MEK inhibitors. Additional novel inhibitors have also demonstrated encouraging results. Nevertheless, there are several problems concerning targeted therapy that need to be addressed. These include, among others, incomplete responsiveness and the emergence of resistance to BRAF inhibition as observed in other BRAF-mutant malignancies. Drug resistance and relapse after treatment interruption remain problems with current targeted therapies. Targeted therapy does not seem to eradicate the mutated clone, leading to inevitable relapes, which is a huge challenge for the future. More fundamental research and clinical trials are needed to address these issues and to develop improved targeted therapies that can overcome resistance and achieve long-lasting remissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD) is a rare and probably fatal multisystemic non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH). To comprehensively investigate the clinical features, genomic analysis, treatments, and prognostic factors of ECD, we retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 75 ECD patients and 10 mixed LCH and ECD patients in our center. The median age at diagnosis was 46 years (range, 5–70). ECD patients were older at diagnosis (p = 0.006) and had more cardiac involvement (p = 0.011) as well as vascular (p = 0.031) involvement compared to mixed LCH and ECD patients. 64.8% of ECD patients and 87.5% of mixed LCH and ECD patients carried BRAFV600E mutation. The BRAFV600E mutation correlated with a greater number of affected organs (p = 0.030) and was associated with lung involvement (p = 0.033) as well as pleural involvement (p = 0.002). The median follow-up time was 38 months (range, 1–174). The estimated 5-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were 48.9% and 84.7%, respectively. In a multivariate analysis, right atrial pseudotumor (p = 0.013) and pancreatic involvement (p = 0.005) predicted worse OS, while pleural (p = 0.042) and central nervous system (CNS) involvement (p = 0.043) predicted worse PFS. Our study described the clinical spectrum of ECD and mixed LCH and ECD, while also revealed the prognostic value of right atrial pseudotumor and pancreatic, pleural, and CNS involvement for worse survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an advanced amorphous material, sp3 amorphous carbon exhibits exceptional mechanical, thermal and optical properties, but it cannot be synthesized by using traditional processes such as fast cooling liquid carbon and an efficient strategy to tune its structure and properties is thus lacking. Here we show that the structures and physical properties of sp3 amorphous carbon can be modified by changing the concentration of carbon pentagons and hexagons in the fullerene precursor from the topological transition point of view. A highly transparent, nearly pure sp3−hybridized bulk amorphous carbon, which inherits more hexagonal-diamond structural feature, was synthesized from C70 at high pressure and high temperature. This amorphous carbon shows more hexagonal-diamond-like clusters, stronger short/medium-range structural order, and significantly enhanced thermal conductivity (36.3 ± 2.2 W m−1 K−1) and higher hardness (109.8 ± 5.6 GPa) compared to that synthesized from C60. Our work thus provides a valid strategy to modify the microstructure of amorphous solids for desirable properties. sp3 amorphous carbon exhibits exceptional mechanical, thermal, and optical properties, but cannot be synthesized using traditional processes. Here authors report a nearly pure sp3−hybridized amorphous carbon synthesized from C70 which shows more short/medium-range order and enhanced thermal conductivity compared to C60. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Numerous immune cell types, such as B and T lymphocytes, natural killer cells (NK), and NKT cells, are related to the pathogenesis of diseases in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Our goal in this investigation is to examine the phenotype of NK cells and NKT cells alterations in individuals with SLE. Methods: Typically, 50 SLE patients and 24 age-matched healthy people had their PBMCs obtained. Employing flow cytometry, the phenotype of NK and NKT cells and immunoglobulin-like transcript 2 (ILT2) expressions were identified. ELISA was utilized to evaluate the amounts of interleukin-15 (IL-15) and sHLA-G in the serum. Results: The frequencies of the circulating NK and NKT cells in individuals with SLE were decreased compared to healthy controls. Furthermore, ILT2 expression was significantly increased in NKT cells, but showed no obvious change in NK cells. Clinical severity and active nephritis were substantially associated with ILT2+ NKT cell frequencies. The correlation study showed that the upregulation of ILT2 expression was related to sHLA-G in plasma but not to IL-15. Conclusions: ILT2+ NKT cells have a vital function in the immune abnormalities of SLE, which can also supply a viable goal for therapeutic intervention. Key Points •ILT2 expression was significantly increased in NKT cells in SLE patients. •ILT2+ NKT cell frequencies were associated with clinical severity which may be used as an indicator for evaluating disease activity in patients with SLE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present inventory management, the manager must determine an appropriate order quantity, while ensuring that the product has high potential profitability. However, the following issues may be encountered when estimating product profitability: (i) a newly launched product may belong to high uncertainty demand; (ii) the market demand is obtained from multiple samples; (iii) the sampling error probably leads to overestimating profitability. To explore the above issues, our study developed an estimation method based on multiple samples for assessing the conservative profitability of a newsboy-type product with exponentially distributed demand. Note that profitability is defined as the maximum probability of achieving a target profit. First, we adopted an achievable capacity index (ACI) with a streamlined form to measure the extent of profitability. The unbiased and efficient estimator of ACI and its statistical properties were also derived. Then, the lower confidence bound of ACI (LCBA) was derived to express the conservative profitability of the newsboy-type product. The LCBA values for various number of groups, sample sizes, confidence levels, and estimates were tabulated. These generic tables can guide the direction of decision-making in some policies. For example, by looking up these tables, the retailers can decide which items are worth selling, and the manufacturers can decide to accept or reject the contract renewal of production orders. Considering the impact of high cost for sampling, the minimum data size requirement meeting an acceptable criterion is also presented. Finally, a real-world example regarding the production order of vacuum molding products was performed to illustrate the practicality of our method. Some managerial insights for the explored example were also presented according to the results of the sensitivity analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Univariate analysis showed that first-line systemic therapy compared to local therapy (36.3 months vs. 28.0 months, I P i = 0.013) and non-CNS-risk lesions involvement compared to CNS-risk lesions involvement (36.0 months vs. 23.0 months, I P i = 0.016) indicated better PFS (Fig. Dear Editor, Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare, heterogeneous histiocytic disease derived from the misguided clonal expansion of CD1a-positive and CD207-positive myeloid precursors cells [[1]]. Local therapy was initiated in six patients (14.0%), including complete surgical resection (mandible and maxilla) in one patient, and surgery and postoperative radiation in five patients. Of the five patients who received postoperative radiation, four received postoperative radiation for all bone lesions, while one (mandible and ribs involvement) only received postoperative radiation for the mandible lesions. [Extracted from the article]

In recent years, with global climate change, the utilization of carbon dioxide as a resource has become an important goal of human society to achieve carbon peaking and carbon neutrality. Among them, the catalytic conversion of carbon dioxide to generate renewable fuels has received great attention. As one of these methods, photocatalysis has its unique properties and mechanism, which can only rely on sunlight without inputting other energy. It is an emerging discipline with great development prospects. The core of photocatalysis lies in the development of photocatalysts with high activity, high selectivity, low cost, and high durability. This review first introduces the background and mechanism of photocatalysis, then introduces various types of photocatalysts based on different substrates, and analyzes the methods and mechanisms to improve the activity and selectivity of photocatalysts. Finally, combining the plasmon effect with photocatalysis, the review analyzes the promoting effect of the plasmon effect on the photocatalytic carbon dioxide synthesis of renewable fuels, which provides a new idea for it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, ceramic coatings were prepared on the surface of Al mesh using the micro-arc oxidation (MAO) method. Tribological tests and salt spray tests were employed to investigate the effect of MAO coating on the wear resistance and corrosion resistance of Al mesh. The results show that the internal dense layer of MAO coating has a protective effect on the salt spray corrosion and mass loss of Al mesh substrate at high temperature, and MAO can effectively improve the wear resistance of the aluminum mesh substrate. The prepared MAO Al mesh was treated with oil heating, and the surfaces maintain oleophilic and hydrophobic properties, which can be applied for oil–water separation. Compared with conventional oil–water separation, this method has a simple preparation process, low cost, and excellent performance. All these features make the MAO Al mesh become an ideal candidate for oil–water mixtures separation. It can have wide application prospects in oil spill cleanup, wastewater treatment, and water purification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Upcycling of carbon dioxide towards fuels and value-added chemicals poses an opportunity to overcome challenges faced by depleting fossil fuels and climate change. Herein, combining highly controllable molecular beam epitaxy growth of gallium nitride (GaN) under a nitrogen-rich atmosphere with subsequent air annealing, a tunable platform of gallium oxynitride (GaN1-xOx) nanowires is built to anchor rhodium (Rh) nanoparticles for carbon dioxide hydrogenation. By correlatively employing various spectroscopic and microscopic characterizations, as well as density functional theory calculations, it is revealed that the engineered oxynitride surface of GaN works in synergy with Rh to achieve a dramatically reduced energy barrier. Meanwhile, the potential-determining step is switched from *COOH formation into *CO desorption. As a result, significantly improved CO activity of 127 mmol‧gcat−1‧h−1 is achieved with high selectivity of >94% at 290 °C under atmospheric pressure, which is three orders of magnitude higher than that of commercial Rh/Al2O3. Furthermore, capitalizing on the high dispersion of the Rh species, the architecture illustrates a decent turnover frequency of 270 mol CO per mol Rh per hour over 9 cycles of operation. This work presents a viable strategy for promoting CO2 refining via surface engineering of an advanced support, in collaboration with a suitable metal cocatalyst. Thermocatalytic hydrogenation holds great promise for commercial utilization of carbon dioxide, but the process is energy-intense with high temperature and pressure requirements. Here, the authors engineer a GaN1-xOx rhodium nanoparticle catalyst for CO2 to CO hydrogenation that functions at temperatures as low as 170 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Although grain boundary pinning as the main source has been clarified in A15-structured superconductors, the pinning properties in high-performance Nb3Al are still poorly understood. In this paper, a comparative study of the pinning behavior of some typical Nb3Al samples prepared by MAT and RHQT methods, which have different superconducting properties in Tc, Jc, Hirr, and Fp, is investigated. It is observed that the scaling behavior of the pinning force of these samples is dominated by the planar pinning mechanism, characterized by h* ≈ 0.2; however, it is interesting to find that scaling exponents p and q appear to vary with sample's performance: when Fp,max > 1 GN/m3, the characteristics of the p-Fp,max and q-Fp,max curves are different from those at Fp,max < 1 GN/m3. Furthermore, Hirr-Fp,max curve also changes its character at Fp,max ≈ 1 GN/m3. This correlation between pinning force scaling behavior and performance supports the view point that the main source of planar pinning centers in high-performance Nb3Al may not be grain boundaries, but other planar defects such as stacking faults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Cu/SSZ-13 catalyst with Si/Al ratio of 10 and Cu/Al ratio in the range of 0.005 to 0.5 was synthesized by ion exchange method. The effect of Cu/Al ratio on the performance, selectivity, and active center of the catalyst SCR was studied. The samples with too low Cu/Al ratio have low catalytic activity in the entire temperature range due to the small number of active sites. The samples with too high Cu/Al ratio have good performance in the low temperature range due to the large number of active sites. However, a large amount of copper that has not undergone ion exchange will generate CuO, which greatly enhances the oxidation of NH3 at high temperatures, which in turn leads to a decrease in catalytic performance at high temperatures. XRD and BET experiments show that all catalyst samples have good CHA crystal structure and microporous structure, and the pore size is mostly about 2 nm. In situ DRIFTS analysis shows that when the Cu/Al ratio is low, the proportion of Z2Cu in the active sites is higher, and the stability of the catalyst is enhanced. When the copper–aluminum ratio is high, the proportion of ZCuOH increases, and the low-temperature activity of the catalyst is higher. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing multi-filamentary 122-type iron pnictides with high mechanical strength and large filling factor is essential for promoting engineering application. In this work, we fabricated 19-filamentary Sr0.6K0.4Fe2As2/Ag/Monel composite wires and tapes through employing roller-die drawing. The introduction of Monel outer sheath strongly reinforces the microhardness Hv up to 134–138, which is ~ 3.4 times higher than silver inner matrix of only 36–44. Importantly, multi-filamentary design and extraordinary microhardness of Sr0.6K0.4Fe2As2/Ag/Monel conductors increase their filling factors by a factor of 2–4 times; those are 35.6–36.4% comparing with 8–15% for the present multi-filamentary wires. Through magnetic characterization, the critical current density Jc values of Sr0.6K0.4Fe2As2 wires and tapes are 2.7 × 103 and 4.2 × 103 A/cm2 at 4.2 K and 5 T, respectively. The Jc enhancement in tapes is attributed to high mass density and grain texture in the filaments. Moreover, the magnetic Jc exhibits weak field-dependent in the high-field region even at 20 K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to high-temperature corrosion after low NOx transformation with separate over fire air (SOFA), combined arrangement of corner and wall tangential firing burners, as well as anti-tangential and deflecting air technology are studied. Numerical simulation with realizable k - ε two equation and Non-premixed combustion including probability density function model (PDF) is carefully adopted. Result conveys that application of combined arrangement can remarkably reduce the tangent circle in the furnace, lowering the probability that coal particles might strike the furnace wall. Also, lower CO and temperature near the wall would greatly decelerate the high-temperature corrosion. Further studies conclusively show that the performance has no linear relation to the angle in deviation cases. If properly arranged, combined burners layouts behave better than deviation (including anti-tangential) methods in restraint of high-temperature corrosion. All the technologies play effective roles in NOx reduction that the best-performing anti-tangential case 4 has a 50.7% drop from original case. Remission of high-temperature corrosion will have great economic and security importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amorphous materials inherit short- and medium-range order from the corresponding crystal and thus preserve some of its properties while still exhibiting novel properties1,2. Due to its important applications in technology, amorphous carbon with sp2 or mixed sp2–sp3 hybridization has been explored and prepared3,4, but synthesis of bulk amorphous carbon with sp3 concentration close to 100% remains a challenge. Such materials inherit the short-/medium-range order of diamond and should also inherit its superior properties5. Here, we successfully synthesized millimetre-sized samples—with volumes 103–104 times as large as produced in earlier studies—of transparent, nearly pure sp3 amorphous carbon by heating fullerenes at pressures close to the cage collapse boundary. The material synthesized consists of many randomly oriented clusters with diamond-like short-/medium-range order and possesses the highest hardness (101.9 ± 2.3 GPa), elastic modulus (1,182 ± 40 GPa) and thermal conductivity (26.0 ± 1.3 W m−1 K−1) observed in any known amorphous material. It also exhibits optical bandgaps tunable from 1.85 eV to 2.79 eV. These discoveries contribute to our knowledge about advanced amorphous materials and the synthesis of bulk amorphous materials by high-pressure and high-temperature techniques and may enable new applications for amorphous solids.Preparing amorphous phases of carbon with mostly sp3 bonding in bulk is challenging, but macroscopic samples that are nearly pure sp3 are synthesized here by heating fullerenes at high pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) is not only a biomarker of kidney injury but also a bone-derived factor involved in metabolism. We aimed to explore relationships between plasma NGAL and chronic kidney disease-mineral bone disorder (CKD-MBD) parameters in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients. Materials and methods: First, a cross sectional observational study, including 105 MHD patients, was conducted to explore relationships between plasma NGAL levels and CKD–MBD parameters. Second, impact of parathyroidectomy and auto-transplantation (PTX + AT) on plasma NGAL was investigated in 12 MHD patients with severe secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT). Results: According to Spearman correlation analysis, plasma NGAL levels were positively correlated with female (r = 0.243, P = 0.012), vintage (r = 0.290, P = 0.003), Klotho (r = 0.234, P = 0.016), calcium(Ca) (r = 0.332, P = 0.001), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) (r = 0.401, P < 0.001) and intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) (r = 0.256, P = 0.008); while inversely correlated with albumin(Alb) (r = − 0.201, P = 0.039). After adjusting for age, sex, vintage, Alb and all parameters of CKD–MBD(Ca, P, lg(ALP), lg(iPTH), Klotho and fibroblast growth factor 23(FGF23)), lg(NGAL) were positively correlated with Ca (r = 0.481, P < 0.001), P (r = 0.336, P = 0.037), lg(ALP) (r = 0.646, P < 0.001) in Partial correlation analysis; further multiple linear regression analysis showed same positive associations between lg(NGAL) and Ca (β = 0.330, P = 0.002), P (β = 0.218, P = 0.037), lg(ALP) (β = 0.671, P < 0.001). During the 4–7 days after PTX + AT, plasma NGAL decreased from 715.84 (578.73, 988.14) to 688.42 (660.00, 760.26) ng/mL (P = 0.071), Klotho increased from 496.45 (341.73, 848.30) to 1138.25 (593.87, 2009.27) pg/mL (P = 0.099). Conclusion: Plasma NGAL levels were positively associated with ALP in MHD patients; and downtrends were shown after PTX + AT in patients with severe SHPT. These findings suggest that NGAL is a participant in CKD–MBD under MHD condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ketamine is a non-competitive channel blocker of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors1. A single sub-anaesthetic dose of ketamine produces rapid (within hours) and long-lasting antidepressant effects in patients who are resistant to other antidepressants2,3. Ketamine is a racemic mixture of S- and R-ketamine enantiomers, with S-ketamine isomer being the more active antidepressant4. Here we describe the cryo-electron microscope structures of human GluN1–GluN2A and GluN1–GluN2B NMDA receptors in complex with S-ketamine, glycine and glutamate. Both electron density maps uncovered the binding pocket for S-ketamine in the central vestibule between the channel gate and selectivity filter. Molecular dynamics simulation showed that S-ketamine moves between two distinct locations within the binding pocket. Two amino acids—leucine 642 on GluN2A (homologous to leucine 643 on GluN2B) and asparagine 616 on GluN1—were identified as key residues that form hydrophobic and hydrogen-bond interactions with ketamine, and mutations at these residues reduced the potency of ketamine in blocking NMDA receptor channel activity. These findings show structurally how ketamine binds to and acts on human NMDA receptors, and pave the way for the future development of ketamine-based antidepressants.Structures of ketamine bound to human NMDA receptors show how ketamine inhibits receptor activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In comparison to involute internal gear pumps, conjugated straight-line internal gear pumps have the advantages of smaller trapped volume, lower flow ripple, and higher reliability. Conjugated straight-line internal gear pumps were invented by Truninger in 1966; however, because of their unique line type, the main characteristics of these pumps are still not completely understood. Internal gear pairs are the key component of these pumps. To better understand the performance of these pumps, the present research focused on the design of an internal gear pair. A numerical model was developed to demonstrate the design method of the conjugated straight-line internal gear pair. To point out the effective engagement of the gear pair, three fundamental requirements were considered—a conjugated point existed in the tooth profile, no interference occurred during the meshing process, and the overlap coefficient was greater than one. Furthermore, according to the design of the gear pair, flow characteristics and some optimization suggestions for tooth parameters were proposed. The main characteristics of the gear pair were compared with those of an involute gear pair. Finally, a conjugated straight-line internal gear pair machined by the linear cutting method was tested, and the obtained results revealed that the design method was correct. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The peculiar magnetic properties of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SIONs) have spurred great interest in their potential application in enhancing medical images and drug delivery. Currently hindering the application of nanomagnetic particles in these fields is due to SIONs nonuniform size distribution, agglomeration, non-crystallinity, and low magnetic moment. In this paper, magnetic nanocrystals of different sizes and morphologies were prepared by the solvothermal method, which utilized an n-hexane-surfactant system with Fe(acac)3 and iron-powder precursors. The crystalline structure and particle size of grown SIONs are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). HRTEM showed that the SIONs were approximately 5.6–6.8 nm in size with no agglomeration and a uniform distribution. Within the reaction time, HRTEM also confirmed that the shape and nanocrystals of SIONs had changed from an irregular crystal shape to triangles and quadrilaterals, and finally to hexagonal nanoparticles. According to the test results of the magnetic properties test and the literature, the material that has been synthesized is a superparamagnetic material. And the maximum saturation magnetization was 62.65 emu/g, which is reported among the largest magnetic properties of SIONs at a size of 6.8 nm. Highlights: The SIONs are approximately 5.6–6.8 nm in size with no agglomeration and a uniform distribution. The maximum saturation magnetization was 62.65 emu/g, which is reported among the largest magnetic properties of SIONs at a size of 6.8 nm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The catalytic system coupled with electric field was utilized to realize oxidation of benzene over Pd/Co3O4 catalysts at low temperature. For catalysts with 1% Pd loading, the temperature for complete conversion of benzene was substantially reduced from the 358 °C to 293 °C with electric field. The characterization results demonstrated that release of lattice oxygen in the Co3O4 spinel was enhanced with electric field, therefore reinforced the formation of PdOx from the oxidation of Pd0. DRIFT results showed that active sites [PdOx] was formed from the reaction of PdOx with O species from catalyst bulk through MvK mechanism under electric field while dissociation of gaseous oxygen that occur at relatively high temperature is necessary for the formation of active sites in conventional catalytic system. In addition, the inhibition of the produced water molecules on the catalyst activity was eliminated due to the promoted "H2O sink" effect of Co3O4 support with electric field. Based on the results and discussion, pathways of benzene oxidation over Pd/Co3O4 catalyst under electric field are revealed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evolution of particle size distribution function (PSDF) of soot in premixed flames of benzene and toluene was studied on a burner stabilized stagnation (BSS) flame platform. The cold gas velocities were changed to hold the maximum flame temperatures of different flames approximately constant. The PSDFs of all the test flames exhibited a bimodal distribution, i.e., a small-size nucleation mode and a large-size accumulation mode. It was observed that soot nucleation and particle growth in the benzene flame were stronger than those in the toluene flame at short residence times. At longer residence times, the PSDFs of the two flames were similar, and the toluene flame showed a larger particle size distribution range and a higher particle volume fraction than the benzene flame. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of high energy density materials (HEDMs) with balanced detonation energy and sensitivity is an urgent task in the current energetic material field. Here, by means of density functional theory (DFT) computations, we systematically exploited 14 cyclic nitramines in the framework of 1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) and 1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocane (HMX) as HEDMs. Our results demonstrate that although the -CF(NO2)2 derivatives exhibit negative heats of formations; all designed compounds have high crystal densities (1.83–2.09 g/cm3), good thermal stability (bond dissociation energy > 143 kJ/mol), and remarkable detonation performance (detonation velocities, 8.59–9.31 km/s). More importantly, compounds A1, B1, C1, and D1 exhibit lower impact sensitivity than 2,4,6,8,10,12-hexanitro-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20). Given these properties, it could be expected that compounds A1, B1, C1, and D1 are potential HEDM candidates with acceptable sensitivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enzymatic catalysis in living cells enables the in-situ detection of cellular metabolites in single cells, which could contribute to early diagnosis of diseases. In this study, enzyme is packaged in amorphous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) via a one-pot co-precipitation process under ambient conditions, exhibiting 5–20 times higher apparent activity than when the enzyme is encapsulated in corresponding crystalline MOFs. Molecular simulation and cryo-electron tomography (Cryo-ET) combined with other techniques demonstrate that the mesopores generated in this disordered and fuzzy structure endow the packaged enzyme with high enzyme activity. The highly active glucose oxidase delivered by the amorphous MOF nanoparticles allows the noninvasive and facile measurement of glucose in single living cells, which can be used to distinguish between cancerous and normal cells. For packaging enzymes into metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), crystalline MOFs are usually used. Here, the authors encapsulated enzymes in amorphous MOFs a via one-pot co-precipitation process under ambient condition, which led to higher enzymatic activity than in a corresponding crystalline MOF composite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CuCeZrOx and KCuCeZrOx catalysts were synthesized and coated on the blank diesel particulate filter (DPF) substrate and a particulate matter (PM) loading apparatus was used for soot loading. The catalytic performances of soot oxidation were evaluated by temperature programmed combustion (TPC) test and characterization tests were conducted to investigate the physicochemical properties of the catalysts. The reaction mechanism in the oxidation process was analyzed with diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy. The results demonstrated that CuCeZrOx catalyst exhibited high activities of soot oxidation at low temperature and the best results have been attained with Cu0.9Ce0.05Zr0.05Ox over which the maximum soot oxidation rate decreased to 410 °C. Characterization tests have shown that catalysts containing 90% Cu have uniformly distributed grains and small particle sizes, which provide excellent oxidation activity by providing more active sites and forming a good bond between the catalyst and the soot. The low-temperature oxidation activity of soot could be further optimized due to the excellent elevated NO's conversion rate by partially substituting Cu with K. The maximum particle oxidation rate can be easily realized at such a low temperature as 347°C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of Pd/Co3O4 catalysts were prepared by Self-Propagating High-Temperature Synthesis (SHS) method in this study, and electric field was applied for catalytic combustion of lean methane over Pd/Co3O4 catalysts at low temperature. When electric field was applied, the catalytic combustion performance of Pd/Co3O4 catalysts was greatly improved, and the application of electric field could reduce the load of active element Pd to some extent while maintaining the same efficiency. Based on experimental tests and the analysis results of X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), H2-temperature-programmed reduction (H2-TPR) and in-situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (in-situ DRIFTS), the mechanism of catalytic oxidation of CH4 over Pd/Co3O4 catalysts in electric field was proposed. The catalytic combustion of CH4 occurs only when the temperature is higher than 250 °C normally, but when electric field was applied, the whole process of CH4 oxidation was promoted significantly and the reaction temperature was reduced. Electric field could promote the reduction of the support Co3O4 to release the lattice oxygen, resulting in the increase of PdOx and the surface chemisorbed oxygen, which could provide more active sites for the low-temperature oxidation of CH4. Furthermore, electric field could accelerate the dehydroxylation of CoOOH to further enhance the activity of the catalysts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetic insulators (MIs) attract tremendous interest for spintronic applications due to low Gilbert damping and the absence of Ohmic loss. Spin-orbit torques (SOTs) on MIs are more intriguing than magnetic metals since SOTs cannot be transferred to MIs through direct injection of electron spins. Understanding of SOTs on MIs remains elusive, especially how SOTs scale with the MI film thickness. Here, we observe the critical role of dimensionality on the SOT efficiency by studying the MI layer thickness-dependent SOT efficiency in tungsten/ thulium iron garnet (W/TmIG) bilayers. We show that the TmIG thin film evolves from twodimensional to three-dimensional magnetic phase transitions as the thickness increases. We report the significant enhancement of the measured SOT efficiency as the TmIG thickness increases, which is attributed to the increase of the magnetic moment density. We demonstrate the current-induced SOT switching in the W/TmIG bilayers with a TmIG thickness up to 15 nm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geometric Hall effect is induced by the emergent gauge field experienced by the carriers adiabatically passing through certain real-space topological spin textures, which is a probe to non-trivial spin textures, such as magnetic skyrmions. We report experimental indications of spin-texture topological charges induced in heterostructures of a topological insulator (Bi, Sb)2Te3 coupled to an antiferromagnet MnTe. Through a seeding effect, the pinned spins at the interface leads to a tunable modification of the averaged real-space topological charge. This effect experimentally manifests as a modification of the field-dependent geometric Hall effect when the system is field-cooled along different directions. This heterostructure represents a platform for manipulating magnetic topological transitions using anti- ferromagnetic order. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epigenomic abnormalities caused by genetic mutation in epigenetic regulators can result in neurodevelopmental disorders, deficiency in neural plasticity and mental retardation. As a histone demethylase, plant homeodomain finger protein 8 (Phf8) is a candidate gene for syndromal and non-specific forms of X-chromosome-linked intellectual disability (XLID). Here we report that Phf8 knockout mice displayed impaired learning and memory, and impaired hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP) without gross morphological defects. We also show that mTOR signaling pathway is hyperactive in hippocampus in Phf8 knockout mouse. Mechanistically, we show that demethylation of H4K20me1 by Phf8 results in transcriptional suppression of RSK1 and homeostasis of mTOR signaling. Pharmacological suppression of mTOR signaling with rapamycin in Phf8 knockout mice recovers the weakened LTP and cognitive deficits. Together, our results indicate that loss of Phf8 in animals causes deficient learning and memory by epigenetic disruption of mTOR signaling, and provides a potential therapeutic drug target to treat XLID. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

EGFR is required for animal development, and dysregulation of EGFR is critically implicated in malignant transformation. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the regulation of EGFR expression remains poorly explored. Here we report that the zinc-finger protein ZNF516 is a transcription repressor. ZNF516 is physically associated with the CtBP/LSD1/CoREST complex and transcriptionally represses a cohort of genes including EGFR that are critically involved in cell proliferation and motility. We demonstrate that the ZNF516-CtBP/LSD1/ CoREST complex inhibits the proliferation and invasion of breast cancer cells in vitro and suppresses breast cancer growth and metastasis in vivo. Significantly, low expression of ZNF516 is positively associated with advanced pathological staging and poor survival of breast carcinomas. Our data indicate that ZNF516 is a transcription repressor and a potential suppressor of EGFR, adding to the understanding of EGFR-related breast carcinogenesis and supporting the pursuit of ZNF516 as a potential therapeutic target for breast cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Naringenin, a flavanone mainly derived from grapes and citrus fruits, has been reported to exhibit cardioprotective effects. Accumulating evidence has confirmed that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-mediated apoptosis participates in the process of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury and inhibiting ER stress is a potential therapeutic target/strategy in preventing cardiovascular diseases. Herein, the current study was designed to investigate whether naringenin protects H9c2 myocardial cells against hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) injury via attenuating ER stress or ER stress-mediated apoptosis. Our results showed that naringenin treatment resulted in obvious increases in the viability of H9c2 cells and the expression of Bcl-2 (anti-apoptotic protein), and decreases in the morphological changes of apoptotic cells, the activity of caspase-3 and the expression of Bax (pro-apoptotic protein) in H/R-treated H9c2 cells, implying the protective effects of naringenin against H/R-induced injury. In addition, naringenin also significantly reversed H/R-induced ER stress as evidenced by the up-regulation of Glucose-regulated protein 78, C/EBP homologous protein and Cleaved caspase-12 proteins. Meanwhile, naringenin remarkably reversed H/R-induced the increases in the expression of cleaved activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6) and phosphorylation levels of phospho-extracellular regulated protein kinases (PERK) and inositol-requiring enzyme-1α (IRE1α) in H9c2 cells. Finally, we found that ATF6 siRNA, PERK siRNA or IRE1α siRNA abolished H/R-induced cytotoxicity and apoptosis in H9c2 cells. In conclusion, these results confirmed that ER stress-mediated apoptosis contributes to the protection effects of naringenin against H/R injury, which is potentially involved in ATF6, IRE1α and PERK signaling activation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work explores the use of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) modified carbon nanotubes (CNTs@P3HT) for the cathodes of hole transporter free, mesoscopic perovskite (CHNHPbI) solar cells (PSCs), simultaneously achieving high-performance, high stability and low-cost PSCs. Here the thin P3HT modifier acts as an electron blocker to inhibit electron transfer into CNTs and a hydrophobic polymer binder to tightly cross-link the CNTs together to compact the carbon electrode film and greatly stabilize the solar cell. On the other hand, the presence of CNTs greatly improve the conductivity of P3HT. By optimizing the concentration of the P3HT modifier (2 mg/mL), we have improved the power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of CNTs@P3HT based PSCs up to 13.43% with an average efficiency of 12.54%, which is much higher than the pure CNTs based PSCs (best PCE 10.59%) and the sandwich-type P3HT/CNTs based PSCs (best PCE 9.50%). In addition, the hysteresis of the CNTs@P3HT based PSCs is remarkably reduced due to the intimate interface between the perovskite and CNTs@P3HT electrodes. Degradation of the CNTs@ P3HT based PSCs is also strongly retarded as compared to cells employing the pure CNTs electrode when exposed to the ambient condition of 20%-40% humidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heavy metal ion pollution is one of the important environmental problems, and many efforts have been devoted to develop highly sensitive sensors for detection of heavy metal ions in environment. In this study, an 1,10-phenanthroline-based fluorescent sensor (F-phen) was synthesized and doped into poly( N-isopropylacrylamide- co- N-hydroxymethyl-acrylamide) (Poly(NIPAAm- co-NMA)) nanofiber films via simple electrospinning technique, where the moieties of NIPAAm and NMA were designed to exhibit thermo-responsive and chemical crosslinking functions, respectively. The electrospun nanofibers prepared from the appropriate composition of NMA in the copolymer (P3) could stabilize their fibrous morphology in aqueous environment. Among different weight ratios of F-Phen doped in nanofibers, P3-3 (3 wt% corresponding to copolymer) showed significant quenching of fluorescence as chelating with Cu ion. The linear Stern-Volmer plot of nanofibers for Cu was observed, and the calculated Stern-Volmer constant ( K) was 5.5 × 10 M. As compared to dip-coating films, the downward deviation to linear Stern-Volmer plots of thin films was observed, indicating a fraction of F-Phen was inaccessible to the quencher (Cu). The enhanced sensitivity of F-Phen-doped electrospun nanofibers is attributed to their higher surface area compared to dip-coating films. In addition, the F-Phen-doped nanofibers also exhibited an on/off switchable sensing behavior. This is due to the hydrophilic-hydrophobic change of PNIPAAm as varying temperature that controlled the metal ions to be accessible to the sensors. All of the results indicate the thermo-responsive electrospun sensing nanofibers not only enhance the sensitivity and have an on-off sensing characteristic, but also provide a simple strategy to design and fabricate effective sensing materials for detection of metal ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an algorithm that is capable of generating 3-D video from monocular video through a hierarchical approach that characterizes the low-level features and high-level semantics of video content to generate depth map. Color and texture features are used to locally indicate video's characteristics followed by segmentation of the video into several regions. Subsequently, semantics, including shape and motion semantics, of segmented regions are delineated from a higher perspective to refine segmentation result via measuring the interrelations among segmented regions. Subsequently, according to refined segmentation map and semantics of segmented regions, the proposed method generates a depth map with high stability using both spatial and temporal information. The stable depth map minimized visual quality degradation, such as flicker and blurring when viewing the 3-D video. The experimental results show the capability of the proposed algorithm in generating a high quality and stable depth map. In addition, subjective viewing evaluation shows that the proposed algorithm surpasses those of the commercial products for converting 2-D video to 3-D video, including TriDef 3D and CyberLink Power DVD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we modify a derivative-free line search algorithm (DFL) proposed in the Ref. (Liuzzi et al. SIAM J Optimiz 20(5):2614-2635, ) to minimize a continuously differentiable function of box constrained variables or unconstrained variables with nonlinear constraints. The first-order derivatives of the objective function and of the constraints are assumed to be neither calculated nor explicitly approximated. Different line-searches are used for box-constrained variables and unconstrained variables. Accordingly the convergence to stationary points is proved. The computational behavior of the method has been evaluated on a set of test problems. The performance and data profiles are used to compare with DFL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the association between insulin (INS) pathway related genes, including INS, insulin receptor (INSR), insulin receptor substrate 1 ( IRS1), insulin- like growth factor 2 ( IGF2), IGF2 receptor ( IGF2R) and IGF binding protein 1 ( IGFBP1), and high myopia (HM) in a Han Chinese population, we have genotyped 24 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of these genes in this cohort by Sequenom MassARRAY method. The genotyping data was analyzed by χ test and the linkage disequilibrium block structure was examined by Haploview software. SNPs in the INS- IGF2 region (rs2070762 and rs1003483), and the INSR gene (rs3745551 and rs2229429) showed significant association with HM (allelic P = 0.0085, 0.0494, 0.0171 and 0.0238, respectively). Under the model of risk genotype combination of INSR and IRS1, carrying the variant allele (A) of the IRS1 Gly972Arg SNP (rs1801278) further increased the risk among the rs2229429T allele carriers (odds ratio 6.865, 95 % confidence interval 1.533-30.745). None of the SNPs in the IGF2R and IGFBP1 genes were found to be significantly associated with HM. Genetic variants in the insulin signaling pathway genes may increase the susceptibility of high myopia in Han Chinese. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a report which looks into the opinions and priorities of college students in Shanghai, China concerning environmental issues, using a survey-based approach. It investigates the various factors that influence students' environmental views as well as highlights the significant role of the views and opinions of the students in the future Chinese society. Result of the survey reveals that students regard environmental issues with a high sense of urgency.

Spatial density fluctuation of supersonic flow over a backward-facing step is studied by nano-tracer planar laser scattering, aero-optic method and proper orthogonal decomposition analysis. Measurements were carried out in a Ma = 3.0 low-noise indraft wind tunnel. By varying the superficial roughness of the wall upstream from the step, supersonic laminar flow and supersonic turbulent flow were generated over a backward-facing step. The reattachment regions of these two flows were focused on. Flow structures of supersonic boundary layer, free shear layer, $$Kelvin - Helmholtz$$ vortices and reattachment shock were revealed. Based on the density-grayscale calibration of the flow field, the density distribution and optical path difference were calculated. Proper orthogonal decomposition was applied to 400 samples of optical path difference distributions which were generated by performing ray tracing method. According to the principle of proper orthogonal decomposition and the aero-optic basic equations, peaks in the first mode of proper orthogonal decomposition could reveal intensive spatial density fluctuations. The results showed that around the location of the reattachment point, density changed dramatically in both of two flows spatially. The location of reattachment point judged by the intensive density variation basically agreed with that judged by velocity field or flow structures. Thus, it was found that reattachment of supersonic backward-facing step occurred with intensive spatial density fluctuation which caused complex aero-optic aberration. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Issues concerning the structural instability of an oscillating micro-bead chain are addressed based on systematic experiments. The patterns of rupture are categorized into two distinct regimes, referred to as a weak ductile fracture and a strong ductile fracture. A weak ductile fracture describes a more rigid rupture, which often occurs in a pronounced oscillation driven by strong field strengths. The position of the rupture usually favors toward the two sides of the chain. An interesting phenomenon of a reversed rupture, wherein the ruptured segments oscillate in opposite directions, is observed when there is excessive field strength. An important consequence of the reversed rupture is to cause permanent failure of the chaining structure. On the other hand, a strong ductile fracture, featuring significant deformation before rupture, is favored in a more viscous solvent fluid. The positions of the breakages in this regime favor the central region of the chain. The prominence of rupture instability is enhanced by a weaker directional field or by a longer chain, which is in agreement with quantitative assessments by the normal forces acting between the interfaces of beads. In addition, results of the present experiments provide further validations of the global criterion for rupture instability given by $$Mn^{1/2}*N>1.7,$$ where Mn and N, respectively, represent the dimensionless Mason number and the number of beads in the chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The feasibility of thermoluminescence (TL) to differentiate irradiated Chinese medicinal herbs from non-irradiated was investigated. Thirty different dried Chinese herbs were tested, including root, flower, ramulus, rhizome, cortex, and whole plant samples. Irradiation of Chinese herbs was associated with strong TL peaks at ~150-250 °C, while TL curves of non-irradiated herbs had very low intensities above 250 °C, which was also confirmed by the TL ratio (non-irradiated, TL/TL < 0.1). The ability to determine the irradiation dose by the TL method was influenced by the amount and types of minerals in the samples. All levels of irradiation doses could be detected when between 0.1 and 1.0 kGy, except for three herbs at 0.1 kGy dose. Different blends with small quantities (0.1-10 %) of irradiated herbs were also tested in this study. Samples with powder mixtures containing 1 % irradiated components could be differentiated (TL/TL > 0.1) except for sterculia lychnophora, semen cassia, flos inulae, and anemone root. TL ratios of some herbs indicated irradiation (TL/TL > 0.1) even if the irradiated components were as low as 0.1 %. Thus we demonstrated that TL analysis had excellent sensitivity and reliability for the identification of irradiated Chinese herbs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CYP3A4 metabolizes more than 50% of the drugs on the market. The large inter-individual differences of CYP3A4 expression may contribute to the variability of human drug responses. Post-transcriptional regulation of CYP3A4 is poorly understood, whereas transcriptional regulation has been studied much more thoroughly. In this study, we used multiple software programs to predict miRNAs that might bind to CYP3A4 and identified 112 potentially functional miRNAs. Then a luciferase reporter system was used to assess the effect of the overexpression of each potentially functional miRNA in HEK 293T cells. Fourteen miRNAs that significantly decreased reporter activity were measured in human liver samples (N = 27) as candidate miRNAs. To establish a more effective way to analyze in vivo data for miRNA candidates, the relationship between functional miRNA and target mRNA was modeled mathematically. Taking advantage of this model, we found that hsa-miR-577, hsa-miR-1, hsa-miR-532-3p and hsa-miR-627 could significantly downregulate the translation efficiency of CYP3A4 mRNA in liver. This study used in silico, in vitro and in vivo methods to progressively screen functional miRNAs for CYP3A4 and to enhance our understanding of molecular events underlying the large inter-individual differences of CYP3A4 expression in human populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]