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Objectives: Tibial tubercle is a crucial player in maintaining the structural integrity and functional stability of the knee joint. Currently, there is no standardized protocol for the classification and treatment of tibial tubercle fractures in adults. This study analyzed the incidence and treatment strategies of tibial tubercle fractures in adults according to the four‐column and nine‐segment classification system. Methods: Data of patients with proximal tibial fractures involving tibial tubercle fractures who were treated at our hospital from August 2007 to March 2023 were retrospectively reviewed. The fractures were classified using the AO/OTA classification and four‐column and nine‐segment classification systems, and the treatment protocol (surgically treated or conservatively treated) was recorded. The number and distribution proportion of patients were counted. A two‐sided t‐test was conducted to determine the significance of differences between the gender and sides. Results: In total, 169 tibial tubercle fractures were found in 1484 proximal tibial fractures. According to the AO/OTA classification, seven of the 169 patients, (4.1%) were type A, 36 patients (21.3%) were type B, and 126 patients (74.6%) were type C. According to the four‐column and nine‐segment classification, type 1 cleavage without free fragments was the most common type of fracture (93/169, 55.0%), followed by type 2 dissociative segmental fragments (48/169, 28.4%) and type 3 comminuted fractures (28/169, 16.6%). Overall, 139 of the 169 proximal tibial fractures with tuberosity involvement were treated surgically. Among them, additional fixation of the tubercle fragment was performed in 52 fractures. Conclusion: The incidence of tibial tubercle fractures involved in proximal tibial fractures was approximately 11.4% (169/1484) in adults, and approximately one‐third of the tubercle bone fragment required additional fixation (30.8%, 52/169). The injury types in the four‐column and nine‐segment classifications are helpful for accurately judging and making treatment‐related decisions for tibial tubercle fractures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on fixed‐time consensus of networked Euler–Lagrange systems (NELSs) over event‐based communication under denial‐of‐service (DoS) attacks. First of all, a basic fixed‐time consensus algorithm is developed for NELSs, where a general fixed‐time communication triggering scheme through error decomposition method is designed for decreasing communication frequencies while avoiding singularity. Then, to fulfil the consensus problem of NELSs in the presence of DoS attacks, a novel fixed‐time resilient algorithm is further presented by the basic algorithm, where the effective attack interval is redefined for carrying out the algorithm design. Furthermore, a hierarchical fixed‐time control framework with privacy preservation is introduced for the consensus problem of NELSs under DoS attacks. Meanwhile, a self‐triggered scheme is employed for the above algorithms to lower the update frequencies of control inputs. The stated algorithms possess a uniformly constrained upper bound on the convergence time, and are resilient as well as responsive to DOS attacks while saving control resources significantly. Finally, numerous illustrative examples are given for demonstrating the efficacy of the derived schemes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polyanionic cathode materials are increasingly used in research because of their good cycling performance, high theoretical capacity, and high operating voltage. However, it exhibits poor performance due to its structure, which prevents it from reaching its full theoretical capacity. In this study, carbon‐coated Li6V3(PO4)5@C cathode materials are constructed under Li3V2(PO4)3 research conditions using the sol–gel process and anhydrous citric acid as the carbon source. Several boron doping concentrations are investigated to create Li6V3(PO4)5@BC cathode materials. The electrochemical measurements demonstrate that during the first cycle, at a current density of 0.5 C and a B doping quantity of 2 wt%, the specific discharge capacity of Li6V3(PO4)5@BC reaches 167.43 mAh g−1. The steady discharge specific capacity following 80 cycles of constant‐current charging and discharging is 136.84 mAh g−1. Li6V3(PO4)5@BC‐2 has a specific discharge capacity of 131.1 mAh g−1 at 2 C. The material's electrochemical performance greatly improves following the right quantity of B doping, which is primarily attributed to the increase in carbon layer defects brought on by B's entrance. This can increase the rate of lithium‐ion migration and hold more lithium ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the distributed optimization problem of networked Euler–Lagrange (EL) systems with actuator faults and unknown model parameters. In order to solve this issue, some event‐triggered fault‐tolerant (ETFT) optimal coordination algorithms with the mechanism of intermittent communication and intermittent controller update are designed for the first time to compensate for the impact of physical faults on the system, and reduce communication costs and control resource consumption. For practical applications, it is difficult for the system to have a secure environment if there exist malicious attacks blocking network channels among agents. Therefore, the resilient ETFT optimal coordination with intermittent communication subject to asynchronous denial‐of‐service (DoS) attacks is considered. Especially, auxiliary systems with adaptive gains are introduced in the algorithms due to the unavailability of the EL model parameters, which also enable virtual data exchange between agents and protect actual state information. Note that the algorithms are fully distributed as the global topology information is not required. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed algorithms is verified through numerical simulation of examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Engineered noble metal nanomaterials (NMN) possess adjustable optical, electrical, and biocompatible properties that make them excellent tools for probing the nano‐bio‐interface. Understanding their interactions with biomolecules, cells, and tissues at the nano‐bio‐interface is crucial in designing these nanomaterials for biomedical applications. This review summarizes the structure, properties, synthesis, and passivation methods of noble metal nanoparticles, as well as the construction strategy and detection technology of the nano‐bio‐interface to provide important information about their uptake, distribution, metabolism, and degradation in vivo and in vitro. The related action mechanisms include the kinetic and thermodynamic processes of the nano‐bio‐interface, the driving forces for its formation, and the chemical reactions at the nano‐bio‐interface. By exploring the action mechanism of the nano‐bio‐interface, the antibacterial properties and cytotoxicity of NMN could be better understood, and open up more extensive biological applications. Finally, the future trends of NMNs in the biological field and the challenges encountered in realizing these technologies are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is concerned with the fixed‐time fault‐tolerant control problem of multiple Euler–Lagrange systems (MELSs) with intermittent communication, actuator faults and input disturbances. A nonsingular fixed‐time control framework with three parts is built for the above problem. In the first part, a novel adaptive controller is proposed for MELSs to ensure the fixed‐time stability of sliding modes while successfully solving the actuator faults, parameter uncertainties and unknown disturbances. In the second part, the fixed‐time estimators based on event‐triggered communication are designed by an error decomposition approach. In the third part, an auxiliary system is introduced for the singularity problem and sufficient condition for achieving the consensus is rigorously proved by synthesizing the results of the above two parts. The key feature of the proposed control framework is that the convergence time is constrained by a constant without involving initial states, and the singularity problems of fixed‐time control is avoided. Finally, simulation examples are provided to prove the efficacy of the proposed algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the distributed Nash equilibrium seeking problem of quadratic time‐varying games with Euler–Lagrange (EL) players, where external disturbances and parametric uncertainties are involved. A gradient‐based hierarchical algorithm consisting of a game layer and a control layer is proposed. Specifically, in the game layer, EL players communicate with neighbors through a graph to reach the consensus on potential aggregate values, which will be employed to calculate the gradient of each player's objective function, and then, a gradient‐based sliding mode controller is developed to track time‐varying gradient in the control layer. Thus, the convergence results are hierarchically obtained through the Lyapunov stability method. In addition, the hierarchical control strategy is extended to address the constrained problems through the utilization of a smooth penalty function. By appropriately choosing control parameters, the Nash equilibrium seeking errors can be arbitrarily small. The relation between the optimal solutions of the original problem and the dual one is further discussed. Finally, the proposed methods are numerically verified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs) work similarly to lithium‐ion batteries, but they cost less and are safer. However, the battery has some shortcomings, such as low energy density and poor stability, which hinder its development and application. The development of electrode materials with low cost and high‐performance characteristics is a hot and difficult point in the research of SIBs. In this paper, the existing sodium ion cathode and anode materials are systematically reviewed. Firstly, the electrochemical structures and properties of various cathode and anode materials were introduced, and the limitations of cathode and anode materials of SIBs were analyzed. Based this, the current modification methods were summarized, such as surface coating of materials, doping of heteroatoms and metal elements to improve the electrochemical performance. In this paper, the research progress and modification measures of SIBs are summarized and prospected. It is helpful to further improve its comprehensive performance and lay a foundation for the future application of cathode and anode materials for SIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A facile and highly efficient method was proposed for the separation and regeneration of LiFePO4 (LFP) cathode materials from spent lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs). The optimal separation conditions involved immersing the spent LFP materials in NaOH (0.5 mol/L) solutions at a temperature of 90 °C, with a solid‐liquid ratio of 30 g/L under stirring of 500 rpm. The high separation effect can be attributed to the synergistic action of several factors at the interface. Furthermore, the structure, composition, morphology, and electrochemical performance of the regenerated LFP (D‐LFP) materials at different temperatures were systematically investigated. Notably, the D‐LFP material generated through calcination at 650 °C for 10 h exhibited a initial discharge capacity of 154.4 mAh g−1 at 0.5 C and the capacity retention rate of 97.3 % after 100 cycles. Moreover, a detailed investigation of the kinetics of the separation and regeneration processes was carried out, along with an exploration of the underlying electrochemical mechanism. This idea not only mitigates the harmful impact of waste on both human health and the environment but also realizes the transformation of waste into valuable resource treasure, promoting a greener and more sustainable development of society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Some studies have reported that the prognosis of total laparoscopic hysterectomy (TLH) for early‐stage cervical cancer (CC) is worse than that of open surgery. And this was associated with the use of uterine manipulator or not. Therefore, this study retrospectively analyzes the efficacy and safety of TLH without uterine manipulator combined with pelvic lymphadenectomy for early‐stage CC. Methods: Fifty‐eight patients with CC (stage IB1‐IIA1) who received radical hysterectomy from September 2019 to January 2020 were divided into no uterine manipulator (n = 26) and uterine manipulator group (n = 32). Then, clinical characteristics were collected and intraoperative/postoperative related indicators were compared. Results: Patients in the no uterine manipulator group had significantly higher operation time and blood loss than in the uterine manipulator group. Notably, there was no significant difference in hemoglobin change, blood transfusion rate, number of pelvic nodules, anal exhaust time, complications and recurrence rate between the two groups. Additionally, patients in the uterine manipulator group were prone to urinary retention (15.6%) and lymphocyst (12.5%), while the no uterine manipulator group exhibited high probability of bladder dysfunction (23.1%) and urinary retention (15.4%). Furthermore, the 1‐year disease‐free survival rate and the 1‐year overall survival rate were not significantly different between the two groups. Conclusion: There was no significant difference in the efficacy and safety of TLH with or without uterine manipulator combined with pelvic lymphadenectomy in the treatment of patients with early‐stage CC. However, the latter requires consideration of the negative effects of high operation time and blood loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehensive Summary: Only a few fused benzothiadizole (BTz) based conjugated polymers have been applied in organic field‐effect transistors (OFETs), and their performances were low, mainly due to the lack of available building blocks and in‐depth study of the relationship between structure and performance. Herein, we report two isomeric fused BTz‐based building blocks (M1 and M2) and their copolymers PBTzVBTz‐T and PBTzVBTz‐TT, PTVT‐T and PTVT‐TT. DFT study showed all polymers had nearly planar backbone geometries, and PBTzVBTz‐TT exhibited the most linear backbone. PTVT‐T and PTVT‐TT exhibited red‐shift absorption spectra and deeper LUMO level than those of PBTzVBTz‐T and PBTzVBTz‐TT. Thin film microstructure study demonstrated PBTzVBTz‐TT and PTVT‐TT had edge‐on molecular orientation, while the others had the mixed molecular orientation of edge‐on and face‐on. Furthermore, PBTzVBTz‐TT had the longest coherence length in thin film. All these features of PBTzVBTz‐TT resulted in its highest carrier mobility of 0.1 cm2·V–1·s–1 among these polymers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, a facile method with high efficiency is proposed for the separation and regeneration of LiMn2O4 (LMO) cathode material for spent lithium‐ion batteries through a simple heat treatment method. At first, the aluminum foil is separated at 450 °C in air, with a separation efficiency as high as 97.95%. Then, separation LMO is regenerated with high crystallinity at 650 °C with an optimum calcination time of 6 h. Importantly, this method allows D‐LMO to exhibit high reversible capacity (133 mAh g−1 at 0.1C), high rate performance (101 mAh g−1 at 5C), and long lifespan (0.5C, 92.1% capacity retention ratio after 100 cycles). A positive effect of the pyrolysis of polyvinylidene fluoride on D‐LMO is also suggested by the results. Moreover, a detailed investigation of the kinetics of the separation and regeneration is done, and the electrochemical mechanism is explored. Furthermore, this method requires much less energy input and chemical consumption, which would be helpful for environmental protection and green recycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi‐resonance thermally activated delayed fluorescence (MR‐TADF) emitters have been studied to address the issue of the broadband emission in organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs). Herein, the authors have systematically investigated the effect of electron‐donating or ‐withdrawing units in the para position of B atom on the optoelectronic emission modulation BCz‐BN MR‐TADF emitters. Due to the enhanced spin‐orbit coupling (SOC) effect, BN(p)SCH3 with electron structure of para‐D‐π‐B is synthesized by introducing a heavy S atom into the para position of B atom of BCz‐BN. By oxidizing BN(p)SCH3, BN(p)SOCH3 and BN(p)SO2CH3 with electron structure of para‐A‐π‐B have been synthesized. The quantum simulations and photophysical studies have illustrated BN(p)SCH3 can exhibit large reverse intersystem crossing rate constant (kRISC) of 6.4 × 104 s−1 due to the large SOC constants and small singlet‐triplet energy splitting (ΔEST) of 0.12 eV. BN(p)SOCH3 and BN(p)SO2CH3 with electron structure of para‐A‐π‐B displayed red‐shift emissions with smaller full‐width at half‐maximum (FWHM) values of ≈21 nm and kRISC values owing to enhanced ΔEST and the low emission contribution of the triplet excitons in contrast to those of BN(p)SCH3 with electron structure of para‐D‐π‐B. Consequently, BN(p)SCH3‐based OLEDs show highly efficient blue emission with an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 26.2% and excellent color purity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) are often regarded as pests when their population densities exceed a certain threshold. Vegetation restoration measures are commonly used for the ecological control of pikas. Nevertheless, it is not known how effective these measures are, and if effective, which factors are responsible for the decline in pika densities. Four commonly used grassland restoration measures: exclosure [E], exclosure/fertilized [EF], exclosure/overseeding [EO], exclosure/fertilization/over‐seeding [EOF], were implemented in grasslands degraded by high densities of pikas, and the pika density (PD) and vegetation traits in each treatment plot were monitored for 4 consecutive years. Neither the PD nor the vegetation composition was affected by any of the vegetation restoration measures within the first year. From the second year onwards, all the vegetation restoration measures had a significant effect on the vegetation composition and structure, such as an increase in the height, cover, and biomass. All the vegetation restoration measures, except E, had a significant suppressive effect on pika densities as time progressed, with the combination EOF measure having the largest effect. The stepwise regression analysis indicated that the vegetation height is the main factor that determines the PD. Similarly, structural equation modelling showed that vegetation restoration measures reduce PD primarily by increasing vegetation height. This may be because the height of the vegetation is closely correlated to the predation risk of pikas. Our results highlight the importance of vegetation height in pika management, suggesting that the key to successful pika management is to find a sustainable grazing system, which is beneficial to the growth of the dominant graminoids and maintains a high plant diversity for the sustainability of grassland ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The finite‐time nonlinear placement problem of networked Euler‐Lagrange systems (NELSs) is discussed in this paper. The problem is reformulated into a finite‐time aggregate game under an undirected graph. Then, several novel practical gradient‐based finite‐time hierarchical (GFTH) algorithms composed of a game layer, a Nash equilibrium (NE) seeking layer, and a control layer are proposed. Specifically, the game layer employs an aggregate function to reach a consensus on the potential aggregate value which is adopted by a gradient‐based finite‐time method to tackle the finite‐time NE seeking problem in the NE seeking layer, and then, the tracking problem is realized in the control layer. The convergence results are established by a nonsmooth Lyapunov function. In addition, the versatility of the GFTH algorithms is shown by extending to address the task‐space control problem of NELSs. The effectiveness of the proposed algorithms is illustrated via simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: G‐protein coupled receptor 17 (GPR17) is an orphan receptor involved in the process of myelination, due to its ability to inhibit the maturation of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) into myelinating oligodendrocytes. Despite multiple claims that the biological ligand has been identified, it remains an orphan receptor. Experimental Approach: Seventy‐seven oxysterols were screened in a cell‐free [35S]GTPγS binding assay using membranes from cells expressing GPR17. The positive hits were characterized using adenosine 3′,5′ cyclic monophosphate (cAMP), inositol monophosphate (IP1) and calcium mobilization assays, with results confirmed in rat primary oligodendrocytes. Rat and pig brain extracts were separated by high‐performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and endogenous activator(s) were identified in receptor activation assays. Gene expression studies of GPR17, and CYP46A1 (cytochrome P450 family 46 subfamily A member 1) enzymes responsible for the conversion of cholesterol into specific oxysterols, were performed using quantitative real‐time PCR. Key Results: Five oxysterols were able to stimulate GPR17 activity, including the brain cholesterol, 24(S)‐hydroxycholesterol (24S‐HC). A specific brain fraction from rat and pig extracts containing 24S‐HC activates GPR17 in vitro. Expression of Gpr17 during mouse brain development correlates with the expression of Cyp46a1 and the levels of 24S‐HC itself. Other active oxysterols have low brain concentrations below effective ranges. Conclusions and Implications: Oxysterols, including but not limited to 24S‐HC, could be physiological activators for GPR17 and thus potentially regulate OPC differentiation and myelination through activation of the receptor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The oxygen vacancy modulated LiTiOPO4‐y was synthesized by simple hydrothermal and high‐temperature solid‐phase methods. X‐ray diffraction (XRD) test data analyses reveal that the density of oxygen defects in LiTiOPO4‐y can be affected by the hydrothermal reaction time. The electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) showed signal peaks at g=2.003, which proved that oxygen defects were generated. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) further demonstrated that oxygen defects exist in LiTiOPO4‐y, which led to the partial conversion of Ti4+ to Ti3+. The capacity of LiTiOPO4 was limited (less than 161 mAh g−1) by cycling potential range (0.5–3.0 V). The oxygen‐deficient LiTiOPO4‐y was used to enhance lithium‐ion storage performance by mediating voltage from 0.01 to 3.0 V. The initial capacity of oxygen‐deficient LiTiOPO4‐y, which was synthesized after hydrothermal treatment for 18 h, with an exposed (121) face, reached 563.5 mAh g−1 at the current density of 500 mA g−1. After 1500 cycles, the specific discharge capacity kept at 397.2 mAh g−1. In the oxygen‐defective LiTiOPO4‐y, multiple coordination unsaturated sites are exposed, which can not only significantly enhance ion diffusion and charge transfer, but also promote Li+ to more storage sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To solve the problem of large expansion offset of text detection in natural scenes, a text detection method based on HDBNet is proposed. First, the probability map of the text region is obtained by segmenting the image. The binary map is obtained by using the differentiable binarization of the probability map. The bounding box of the text region can be obtained by looking for the connected region on the binary map. Then, aiming at the problem of large expansion offset of text detection in natural scenes, a scheme of height prediction is adopted to compensate for the expansion loss caused by the width‐to‐height ratio. Finally, experiments show that when the depth network structure is ResNet‐50, the Precision, Recall and F‐measure of the proposed HDBNet method in TD500 data set are 0.9196, 0.8058 and 0.8590, respectively. Moreover, in MLT data set, the Precision, Recall and F‐measure of the proposed HDBNet method are 0.9393, 0.7884 and 0.8573 respectively. The results of HDBNet are higher than those of the comparison methods. Therefore, compared with the comparison methods, the proposed HDBNet method can significantly improve the performance of the text detection system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The association of repeated administration of gadolinium‐based contrast agents (GBCAs) with the gadolinium (Gd) retention in the brains of mother and fetus remains unclear. Purpose: To investigate the effects of pregnancy and repeated administration of GBCAs on Gd retention in the brains of mother and pup mice. Study type: Cross‐sectional cohort toxicity study. Animal Model: From gestational days 16–19, pregnant (n = 48) BALB/c mice. Field Strength: A 9.4 T and fast spin echo sequence. Assessment: Half of the mother mice (n = 24) were killed at postnatal day 1 (P1) for inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP‐MS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Besides the ICP‐MS and TEM, four pups were randomly selected from each mother and killed at P1 for ultraperformance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (UPLC‐MS) and Nissl staining. Statistical Tests: One‐way analysis of variance and unpaired t‐test. Results: In the group of gadodiamide, retention of Gd in the brains of pregnant mice was significantly lower than that of nonpregnant mice in the area of the deep cerebellar nuclei (DCN) (10.35 ± 2.16 nmol/g vs. 18.74 ± 3.65 nmol/g). Retention of Gd in the DCN of pups whose mothers were administered gadoterate meglumine was significantly lower than that of pups whose mothers were administered gadodiamide (0.21 ± 0.09 nmol/g vs. 6.15 ± 3.21 nmol/g) at P1. In mice treated with gadodiamide, most of the retained Gd in the brain tissue was insoluble (19.5% ± 9.5% of the recovered amount corresponded to the intact complex in the DCN). Data Conclusion: In different brain areas of the mother and pup mice, the retention of Gd after gadoterate meglumine administration was lower than that of gadodiamide and gadopentetate dimeglumine administration, and almost all the detected Gd in pups' brains was intact soluble GBCAs. Evidence Level: 1 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehensive Summary: Chlorinated conjugated polymers are rarely reported in ambipolar and n‐type organic thin‐film transistors (OTFTs), mainly due to the lack of chlorinated strong electron‐deficient building blocks. Herein, we report three new chlorine (Cl)‐ and cyano (CN)‐ substituted (E)‐1,2‐di(thiophen‐2‐yl)ethane building blocks and their copolymers P2Cl1CNTVT‐DPP, P4Cl1CNTVT‐DPP and P2Cl2CNTVT‐DPP. P2Cl1CNTVT‐DPP and P2Cl2CNTVT‐DPP had nearly planar backbone geometries, mixture of edge‐on and face‐on orientation and deeper energy levels, while P4Cl1CNTVT‐DPP had a twist backbone geometry, face‐on orientation and shallower energy levels. As a result, P2Cl1CNTVT‐DPP exhibited ambipolar characteristic with hole mobility (μh) of 0.70 cm2·V–1·s–1 and electron mobility (μe) of 0.84 cm2·V–1·s–1 and P2Cl2CNTVT‐DPP exhibited n‐type characteristic with μe of 0.64 cm2·V–1·s–1, while P4Cl1CNTVT‐DPP exhibited the lowest μe of 0.36 cm2·V–1·s–1. The devices based on P2Cl2CNTVT‐DPP exhibited good stability after being stored for 10 d in air. The results demonstrate that by rational molecular design, chlorinated polymers with low cost can be applied to high‐performance ambipolar and n‐type OTFTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is widely believed that people have preferences in relation to the colour of their interior environment. With the development of the global small apartment industry, it is important to understand well people's colour preference for apartments. This study investigated the apartment colour preference (N = 958) and the arousal level measured as heart rate variability for 70 young Chinese people for 21 colours. The findings indicate that young Chinese people (22‐27 years of age) prefer light red, red, yellow, and gray areas of the colour space, and least prefer darker colours in the green, gray, and brown areas of the colour space. In terms of heart rate variability arousal, it was found that colours in the red, purple, and yellow areas of the colour space had the highest effect on heart rate variability arousal, vs gray and brown colours, which were found to have the lowest effect on arousal levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mimicking the multi‐scale highly ordered hydroxyapatite (HAp) nanocrystal structure of the natural tooth enamel remains a great challenge. Herein, a bottom‐up step‐by‐step strategy is developed using extrusion‐based 3D printing technology to achieve a high‐precision dental crown with multi‐scale highly ordered HAp structure. In this study, hybrid resin‐based composites (RBCs) with "supergravity +" HAp nanorods can be printed smoothly via direct ink writing (DIW) 3D printing, induced by shear force through a custom‐built nozzle with a gradually shrinking channel. The theoretical simulation results of finite element method are consistent with the experimental results. The HAp nanorods are first highly oriented along a programmable printing direction in a single printed fiber, then arranged in a layer by adjusting the printing path, and finally 3D printed into a highly ordered and complex crown structure. The printed samples with criss‐crossed layers by interrupting crack propagation exhibit a flexural strength of 134.1 ± 3.9 MPa and a compressive strength of 361.6 ± 8.9 MPa, which are superior to the corresponding values of traditional molding counterparts. The HAp‐monodispersed RBCs are successfully used to print strong and bioactive dental crowns with a printing accuracy of 95%. This new approach can help provide customized components for the clinical restoration of teeth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oxygen‐deficient TiP2O7‐y is synthesized by solvothermal and high‐temperature solid‐phase methods. X‐ray powder diffraction (XRD) test data analyses reveal that the solvothermal reaction time can affect the density of oxygen defects in the TiP2O7‐y. Fourier transform infrared spectra (FT‐IR) shows that there is a blue shift in the P−O bond because of the presence of oxygen vacancies. It is strongly demonstrated that oxygen vacancies exist in TiP2O7‐y because electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) shows sharp peaks at g=2.003. Oxygen vacancy modulated TiP2O7‐y with exposed (541) face shows long cycling stability and super high‐rate capabilities. The initial discharge capacity of TiP2O7‐y, which was prepared after solvothermal reaction for 18 h, reached 828.4 mAh g−1. It can still maintain 246.9 mAh g−1, at 0.5 A g−1, after 500 cycles. Even cycled at 5 A g−1, the reversible rate capacity was maintained at 209.7 mAh g−1. Oxygen vacancies can not only improve the electronic conductivity of TiP2O7‐y but also increase the lithium‐ion diffusion rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher levels of learning adaptability at work are expected to help performance when individuals encounter an unfamiliar environment, such as during organizational entry. However, little is known about how and when newcomer learning adaptability drives innovative behaviors. Drawing on and extending individual adaptability theory, we propose that two mediating mechanisms, positive framing and task mastery, may transmit the effect of learning adaptability on innovative behavior, with supervisor's tendency to avoid uncertain situations posited as a boundary condition. The proposed hypotheses were tested using multi‐source, multi‐wave data from three companies. We found that learning adaptability indirectly impacts innovative behavior via positive framing but not via task mastery. In addition, supervisor uncertainty avoidance moderated the relationship between learning adaptability and positive framing, and task mastery moderated the relationship between positive framing and innovative behavior, supporting a pattern of moderated mediation, such that the indirect relationship between learning adaptability and innovative behavior via positive framing was more positive when both moderators were low. The research findings are discussed in terms of implications for socialization research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microfluidic spinning has been used to mimic and discover the natural spinning process of silk. However, it is still challenging to understand the orientation and alignment of silk‐spinning through microfluidic chips. Here, flow analysis is performed for a bioinspired microfluidic chip mimicking the shape of a spider's major ampullate gland and spinning duct by in situ small angle X‐ray scattering and simulations using the finite element method. A composite suspension of regenerated silk fibroin and cellulose nanofibers show higher orientation and alignment after flowing through the microfluidic chip. This confinement can be attributed to the drop in the extrusion pressure of the silk proteins and the shear and elongation forces from the anisotropic microchannel. This work reveals the microstructure−property relationship of fibers obtained through the microfluidic chip. Hence, it paves the way to uncover the mystery behind the natural spinning process and further provides comprehensive and systematic insights into preparing highly oriented artificial fibers for biomedical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vegetation is a key to improving and protecting a new tropical coral island terrestrial ecosystem. Because of their superior ability in adapting poor soil structure and fertility, conserving soil and water and improving the living environment, warm‐season turfgrass are considered as important pioneer plants and frequently applied in vegetation construction on tropical coral islands. However, few studies had evaluated the growth of these turfgrass and how these turfgrass influence the soil microbial communities on tropical coral islands. In this study, we conducted a greenhouse experiment and assessed the performance, soil properties and rhizosphere bacterial communities of five typical warm‐season turfgrasses species (i.e., Paspalum vaginatium, Paspalum notatum, Cynodon dactylon, Zoysia tenuifolia, and Stenotaphrum helferi) grown on tropical coral sand. Results showed that C. dactylon was superior in the adaptability and turf performance among the studied species, with a turf establishment time of 34 days and a turf quality score of 6.83. Richness of bacterial species and nitrifying bacteria in its rhizosphere soil planted with C. dactylon were also much higher than with other species. The speed of turf establishment was positively correlated with rhizosphere soil bacterial species richness. Our findings indicated that C. dactylon could be a potentially suitable candidate species for vegetation restoration and soil bacterial community conservation on tropical coral islands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is concerned with the quantized fault‐tolerant control (FTC) for consensus of multiple Lagrangian systems subject to stochastically switching networks, actuator and sensor faults. First of all, a reliable quantized FTC algorithm is developed under Markov jump networks (MJNs), where the communication signal is first quantized before transmitted to develop controllers, and the communication networks are stochastically switching with the sojourn time belonging to an exponential distribution. Then, to handle the FTC problem in the presence of unknown control directions, the Nussbaum function is introduced to further improve the control reliability. Furthermore, the FTC case involving semi‐Markov jump networks (S‐MJNs) and time‐varying communication delays is considered, where the negative constraints of time delays can be effectively attenuated with the sojourn time following a Weibull distribution. Meanwhile, several sufficient criteria on the consensus analysis and algorithms synthesis are established by means of the Lyapunov–Krasovskii stability method. Finally, numerous illustrative examples are elaborated on for demonstrating the feasibility of the derived results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: In the field of urban development, the construction of new smart cities has received the attention of the government and society. In the process of promoting urban intelligence, urban road lighting, intelligent lighting, etc, have gradually received attention, while the lighting source and control methods have been greatly improved. Smart cities portray a very good vision for development for human beings. Traditional video surveillance only provides simple functions such as video capture, storage, and playback, which are difficult to use as an early warning and alarm. To ensure that abnormal behaviors are monitored in real time and effective measures are taken in a timely manner, monitoring personnel are required to monitor the video at all times. A huge monitoring network will generate massive video data. How to efficiently extract useful information from these massive data is a problem to be solved by intelligent video surveillance technology. This paper starts with the concept of top‐level design of smart city construction and analyzes the meaning and content of top‐level design. This paper summarizes some of the misunderstandings in the current top‐level design process and provides suggestions for the top‐level design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cytoplasmic lncRNAs have been found to directly interact with target mRNAs and regulate their stability. In this study, we aimed to study the molecular mechanism underlying the function of m6A as a central regulator in chemoresistance and CML proliferation. In this study, we established three mice groups (control group, ADR‐R group and ADR‐R + shLINC00470 group). We detected PTEN mRNA expression in the presence of LINC00470 in the mice models, as well as in the KCL22 and K562 cells. LINC00470 was significantly enriched for PTEN mRNA to exhibit a negative regulatory relationship between LINC00470 and PTEN mRNA. However, the alteration of LINC00470 had no effect on the luciferase activity of PTEN promoter, while the half‐life of PTEN mRNA was affected. It was further validated that LINC00470 down‐regulated PTEN expression by positively regulating the m6A modification of PTEN mRNA via RNA methyltransferase METTL3. Moreover, the relative expression of LC3II, Beclin‐1, ATG7 and ATG5 was all decreased in cells treated with LINC00470, and down‐regulated PTEN expression was observed in chemo‐resistant cells, while the expression of PTEN was rescued by the transfection of shMETTL3 into chemo‐resistant cells. Moreover, the knockdown of METTL3 also restored the normal level of PTEN m6A modification and LINC00470 expression in chemo‐resistant cells. In conclusion, our results demonstrated the molecular mechanism underlying the effect of LINC00470 on CML by reducing the PTEN stability via RNA methyltransferase METTL3, thus leading to the inhibition of cell autophagy while promoting chemoresistance in CML. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small nucleolar RNA host gene 6 (SNHG6) has been recognized as an oncogene in numerous cancers and overexpression of SNHG6 was found to promote colorectal cancer (CRC). Hence, we performed a meta‐analysis to examine the clinical importance of the long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) SNHG6. Moreover, comprehensive identification of RNA‐binding proteins‐mass spectrometry (ChIRP‐MS) was conducted to explore the carcinogenic mechanism of lncRNA SNHG6 in CRC. Fourteen studies conducted on 1,139 patients were included in this meta‐analysis. We also constructed the protein–protein interactive (PPI) network in string based on the ChIRP‐MS results and cytoscape was used to identify core modules in the PPI network, which were then analyzed using the bioinformatics websites, cancer single‐cell state atlas (CancerSEA) and G:profilter. The clinical outcomes of the meta‐analysis indicated that higher expression of SNHG6 was related with a poorer survival outcome (overall survival: hazard ratio (HR) = 1.92; 95% confidence interval [Cl]: 1.48, 2.49; p <.0001; disease‐free survival: HR = 1.84; 95% Cl: 1.02, 3.34; p =.044), higher tumor stage (odds ratio [OR] = 3.35; 95% Cl: 2.57, 4.37; p <.0001), distant metastasis (OR = 1.83; 95% Cl: 1.11, 2.99; p =.017) and lymph node metastasis (OR = 1.33; 95% Cl: 0.93, 1.89; p =.119). The ChIRP‐MS results showed that core Module 1 of the PPI was significant in ribosomes and core Module 2 was mainly related to spliceosomes and messenger RNA processing. In conclusion, a higher expression of SNHG6 was found to be associated with a poorer survival outcome, high tumor stage, and distant metastasis in various solid tumors. SNHG6 was also found to be able to affect the processes of transcription and translation to promote CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: In this study, the clinical effect of negative pressure drainage‐assisted irrigation (NPDI) technique was evaluated in treating maxillofacial space infection (MSI) by comparing with traditional technique. Method: A prospective study was conducted in 58 patients with MSI. The patients were randomly divided into two groups based on different treatment techniques. Thirty patients receiving NPDI were included in NPDI group, and 28 patients receiving traditional technique were included in traditional group. Case data (gender, age, etiology, concurrent illness, diabetes, involved spaces, preoperative white cell count, airway control method) and clinical effect (postoperative hospital stay, total cost of admission) for the two groups were analyzed. Results: Patients in both groups were cured clinically. There were no significant differences in gender, age, etiology, concurrent illness, diabetes, involved spaces, preoperative white cell count, and airway control method in NPDI group and traditional group (p >.05). The postoperative hospital stay and the total cost of admission in the NPDI group were significantly lower than the traditional group (p <.001). Conclusion: Negative pressure drainage‐assisted irrigation used in the treatment of MSI can shorten the postoperative hospital stay, reduce the total cost of admission, and show favorably clinical effect. It is a clinically recommended method for MSI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A visible‐light‐promoted metal‐free carboxylative cyclization of propargylic amines with CO2 was shown to offer exo‐iodomethylene 2‐oxazolidinones. Incorporation of both CO2 and iodo moieties into these compounds was realized efficiently. The mechanism study revealed that this carboxylative cyclization proceeds through a radical pathway. Notably, the iodine‐functionalized 2‐oxazolidinone as a platform molecule could be easily converted into a wide range of value‐added chemicals through Buchwald–Hartwig, Suzuki, Sonogashira, photocatalytic ene, and photoreduction reactions. As a result, the plentiful downstream transformations remarkably enhance the range of chemicals derived from CO2 and open a potential avenue for CO2 functionalization to circumvent energy challenges in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intrigued by relationship between team motivational context and individual characteristics in the organizational reality, we developed and tested a cross‐level model to investigate the interactive effects of team empowerment and individual goal orientations on individual creative performance through the mediating mechanism of an individual's creative self‐efficacy. Using multi‐wave multi‐source data from 63 R&D teams in three IT companies, we found that (1) team empowerment, individual learning goal orientation, and individual performance orientation are all positively related to individual creative performance through mediation of creative self‐efficacy; (2) learning orientation and performance approach orientation could both supplement the effects of team empowerment on individual creative self‐efficacy. Our findings point to the importance of individual goal orientation in shaping the effects of team motivation climates and provide insights for both scholars and practitioners. The specific practical implications include but are not limited to (1) individuals with learning and performance approach orientations should be identified during hiring procedures given that they could still thrive in less empowered teams and maintain a relatively high level of creative self‐efficacy and creative outcomes; (2) managers should consider assigning employees who are more learning oriented to more empowering and open‐ended tasks in order to obtain better creative results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: An investigator‐initiated clinical study was carried out to evaluate the therapeutic potency of SR‐0379 for the treatment of leg ulcers in patients with Werner syndrome. Methods: A multicenter, open‐label study was carried out from September 2017 to February 2018. The inclusion criteria for leg ulcers were: (i) leg ulcers in patients with Werner syndrome, diabetes or critical limb ischemia/venous stasis; and (ii) a wound size of >1 cm and <6 cm in diameter. Four individuals with Werner syndrome and diabetic ulcers, respectively, were enrolled. SR‐0379 (0.1%) was sprayed on skin ulcers once per day for 4 weeks. Efficacy was evaluated by determining the rate of wound size reduction as a primary end‐point at 4 weeks after the first treatment compared with the pretreatment wound size. As secondary end‐points, the DESIGN‐R score index, the 50% wound size reduction ratio, time to wound closure and quantification of wound bacteria were also evaluated. The safety of SR‐0379 was evaluated during the study period. Results: The reduction rate of ulcer size treated with 0.1% SR‐0379 was 22.90% (mean) in the Werner syndrome ulcers group (n = 4) and 35.70% (mean) in the diabetic ulcers group (n = 4), respectively. The DESIGN‐R score decreased by 4.0 points in the Werner syndrome ulcers group and 4.3 points in the diabetic ulcers group. Two mild adverse events were reported in two patients, and causal relationships were denied in any events. Conclusion: Treatment with SR‐0379 was safe, well‐tolerated, and effective for leg ulcers of both Werner syndrome and diabetes patients. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2019; 19: 1118–1123. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The subsidence and exhumation histories of the Qiangtang Basin and their contributions to the early evolution of the Tibetan plateau are vigorously debated. This paper reconstructs the subsidence history of the Mesozoic Qiangtang Basin with 11 selected composite stratigraphic sections and constrains the first stage of cooling using apatite fission track data. Facies analysis, biostratigraphy, palaeo‐environment interpretation and palaeo‐water depth estimation are integrated to create 11 composite sections through the basin. Backstripped subsidence calculations combined with previous work on sediment provenance and timing of deformation show that the evolution of the Mesozoic Qiangtang Basin can be divided into two stages. From Late Triassic to Early Jurassic times, the North Qiangtang was a retro‐foreland basin. In contrast, the South Qiangtang was a collisional pro‐foreland basin. During Middle Jurassic‐Early Cretaceous times, the North Qiangtang is interpreted as a hinterland basin between the Jinsha orogen and the Central Uplift; the South Qiangtang was controlled by subduction of Meso‐Tethyan Ocean lithosphere and associated dynamic topography combined with loading from the Central Uplift. Detrital apatite fission track ages from Mesozoic sandstones concentrate in late Early to Late Cretaceous (120.9–84.1 Ma) and Paleocene–Eocene (65.4–40.1 Ma). Thermal history modelling results record Early Cretaceous rapid cooling; the termination of subsidence and onset of exhumation of the Mesozoic Qiangtang Basin suggest that the accumulation of crustal thickening in central Tibet probably initiated during Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous times (150–130 Ma), involving underthrusting of both the Lhasa and Songpan–Ganze terranes beneath the Qiangtang terrane or the collision of Amdo terrane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary familial brain calcification (PFBC) is a rare neurological disorder. Mutations in five genes (SLC20A2, PDGFRB, PDGFB, XPR1, and MYORG) have been linked to PFBC. Here, we used SYBR green‐based real‐time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay and denaturing high‐performance liquid chromatography analysis to detect copy number variants (CNVs) in 20 unrelated patients with PFBC, negatively sequenced for the five known genes. We identified three deletions in SLC20A2, including a large de novo full gene deletion and two exonic deletions confined to exon 2 and exon 6, respectively. Subsequent linked‐read whole‐genome sequencing of the patient with the large deletion showed a 1.7 Mb heterozygous deletion which removed the entire coding regions of SLC20A2 as well as 21 other genes. In the family with a deletion of exon 6, a missense variant of uncertain significance (SLC20A2: p.E267Q) also co‐segregated with the disease. Functional assay showed the deletion could result in significantly impaired phosphate transport, whereas the p.E267Q variant did not. Our results confirm that deletion in SLC20A2 is a causal mechanism for PFBC and highlight the importance of functional study for classifying a rare missense variant as (likely) pathogenic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Mucosal traction as a "second hand" in endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is very helpful for ESD operators. The efficacy of using a snare combined with endoclips to assist in ESD (SC‐ESD) was evaluated whether it could achieve peroral external traction (PET) and peroral internal traction (PIT) and real‐time adjustment of mucosal traction position. This study aimed to preliminarily evaluate its feasibility. Methods: A snare was fixed using endoclips to the incised mucosal flap that was intended for dissection. Subsequently, the snare was adjusted to achieve mucosal traction. This study included 54 gastroesophageal neoplasias in 54 consecutive patients who underwent SC‐ESD. The operative and clinical data were retrospectively collected. Results: Peroral external tractions were performed for 22 esophageal neoplasias, and PETs and PITs were performed for 32 gastric neoplasias. The median (interquartile range) sizes of lesions were 4.3 (2.5) and 4.2 (2.1) cm, operation times were 73.4 (43.8) and 60.0 (45.2) min, and submucosal dissection times were 27.0 (32.0) and 31.0 (34.5) min in the esophagus and stomach, respectively. Mucosal traction position could be effectively adjusted by fixing the snare to the incised mucosal flap intended for dissection during SC‐ESD. All lesions in the esophagus and stomach were completely resected, with R0 resection rates of 100%. Besides postoperative bleeding in a patient with gastric neoplasia, no intraoperative and postoperative perforations occurred. Conclusions: SC‐ESD seems to be feasible for resecting gastroesophageal neoplasia, and two types of mucosal tractions (PET and PIT) could be effectively achieved during SC‐ESD. Further prospective comparative study with a large sample is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Perovskite‐type solid‐state electrolytes exhibit great potential for the development of all‐solid‐state lithium batteries due to their high Li‐ion conductivity (approaching 10−3 S cm−1), wide potential window, and excellent thermal/chemical stability. However, the large solid–solid interfacial resistance between perovskite electrolytes and electrode materials is still a great challenge that hinders the development of high‐performance all‐solid‐state lithium batteries. In this work, a perovskite‐type Li0.34La0.51TiO3 (LLTO) membrane with vertically aligned microchannels is constructed by a phase‐inversion method. The 3D vertically aligned microchannel framework membrane enables more effective Li‐ion transport between the cathode and solid‐state electrolyte than a planar LLTO membrane. A significant decrease in the perovskite/cathode interfacial resistance, from 853 to 133 Ω cm2, is observed. It is also demonstrated that full cells utilizing LLTO with vertically aligned microchannels as the electrolyte exhibit a high specific capacity and improved rate performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The development of efficient catalysts for the alkylation of amines with carboxylic acids is attracting much attention. Herein, we would like to report an earth‐abundant iron‐catalyzed protocol for the N‐alkylation of anilines using carboxylic acid as alkyl source and phenylsilane as reducing agent. With Fe2(CO)9 as a catalyst, a broad range of primary and secondary anilines are successfully converted to the corresponding tertiary anilines. Furthermore, this N‐alkylation mainly goes through the amide pathway; while the aldehyde pathway can not be ruled out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Material surfaces can induce cell responses such as contact guidance, yet little attention has been paid to further cell orientation. Herein, we report an interesting phenomenon of cell orientation beyond the classic contact guidance on a stripe‐like micropattern with cell‐adhesive arginine‐ glycine‐aspartate (RGD) peptides on a nonfouling background decorated by poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). Such a micropattern with cell adhesion contrast led to significant contact guidance after cell seeding. What is more, the localized and elongated cells were found to be further orientated out of the adhesive stripes, and even an anticlockwise rotation was observed for rat mesenchymal stem cells (rMSCs). The left‐right asymmetry of rMSCs stood only in statistics, for we observed all cases including clockwise orientation, anticlockwise orientation or just keeping the orientation of previous contact guidance. We further found that human foreskin fibroblasts (HFFs) preferred a clockwise rotation, while human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) and human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (HUVECs) exhibited no significant preference to either direction, which indicated that the left‐right symmetry or asymmetry was cell‐type dependent. The present report has partially confirmed the cell chirality and revealed its complexity, calling for further careful and comprehensive investigation of the challenging topic of cell chirality on material surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT: Donor–acceptor (D–A) conjugated polymers bearing non‐covalent configurationally locked backbones have a high potential to be good photovoltaic materials. Since 1,4‐dithienyl‐2,5‐dialkoxybenzene (TBT) is a typical moiety possessing intramolecular S…O interactions and thus a restricted planar configuration, it was used in this work as an electron‐donating unit to combine with the following electron‐accepting units: 3‐fluorothieno[3,4‐b]thiophene (TFT), thieno‐[3,4‐c]pyrrole‐4,6‐dione (TPD), and diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) for the construction of such D–A conjugated polymers. Therefore, the so‐designed three polymers, PTBTTFT, PTBTTPD, and PTBTDPP, were synthesized and investigated on their basic optoelectronic properties in detail. Moreover, using [6,6]‐phenyl‐C71‐butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) as acceptor material, polymer solar cells (PSCs) were fabricated for studying photovoltaic performances of these polymers. It was found that the optimized PTBTTPD cell gave the best performance with a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 4.49%, while that of PTBTTFT displayed the poorest one (PCE = 1.96%). The good photovoltaic behaviors of PTBTTPD come from its lowest‐lying energy level of the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) among the three polymers, and good hole mobility and favorable morphology for its PC71BM‐blended film. Although PTBTDPP displayed the widest absorption spectrum, the largest hole mobility, and regular chain packing structure when blended with PC71BM, its unmatched HOMO energy level and disfavored blend film morphology finally limited its solar cell performance to a moderate level (PCE: 3.91%). © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018, 56, 689–698 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been much speculation regarding the influence of cultural norms on the acceptance and use of personnel selection testing. This study examined the cross-level direct effects of four societal cultural variables (performance orientation, future orientation, uncertainty avoidance, and tightness-looseness) on selection practices of organisations in 23 countries. A total of 1,153 HR professionals responded to a survey regarding testing practices in hiring contexts. Overall, little evidence of a connection between cultural practices and selection practices emerged. Implications of these findings for personnel selection and cross-cultural research as well as directions for future work in this area are described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A dual-time varying delay complex network system is formed by a plurality of sub-networks. This paper discusses the crossed synchronization stability of such systems on the basis of crossed synchronization definition between the sub-nets. By the Lyapunov stability theory with the Zero Theorem, we obtained a sufficient condition that a synchronization exponentially stable controller exists in the complex network system, with characteristic variable delay. The relationship between the complex network nodes are discussed, and the two nodes must be connected and can interact with each other so it has the actual coupling strength. Finally, combining the given conditions, a numerical simulation illustrates its effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stimuli-responsive luminescent materials, which are dependent on changes in physical molecular packing modes, have attracted more and more interest over the past ten years. In this study, 2,2-dihydroxy-1,1-naphthalazine was synthesized and shown to exhibit different fluorescence emission in solution and solid states with characteristic aggregation-induced emission (AIE) properties. A remarkable change in the fluorescence of 2,2-dihydroxy-1,1-naphthalazine occurred upon mechanical grinding, heating, or exposure to solvents. According to the characterization by solid-state fluorescence spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography, differential scanning calorimetry, and X-ray powder diffraction, the fluorescence change could be attributed to transitions between two structurally different polymorphs. These significant properties could also give 2,2-dihydroxy-1,1-naphthalazine more potential applications as a multifunctional material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Species-rich grasslands have high conservation value because they support diverse floral and faunal assemblages. Alpine grassland is an important and characteristic ecosystem of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, but ca. 30 % has been severely degraded by the combined effects of climate change, human activity, overgrazing and rodent damage. One potential method to restore grassland diversity involves using hemiparasitic plants to modify the competitive relationships among neighboring species. A possible candidate is Pedicularis kansuensis, a hemiparasitic plant found in grasslands throughout the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, but more information on its host associations and its effects on surrounding vegetation is required to assess its suitability. Thus, we examined host associations of P. kansuensis by direct root excavation at a selected site on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and found that haustoria formation is non-randomly distributed among host species, with preferential bias for members of Poaceae, Rosaceae and Fabaceae. We also found that aboveground biomass of grasses and legumes was higher in quadrats from which the parasite had been removed than in intact controls, while the biomass of sedges and forbs was unaffected by parasite removal. However, removal significantly decreased plant species richness and Shannon-Wiener diversity. These results suggest that P. kansuensis modifies the competitive balance in grassland communities of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, allowing for colonization by subordinate species and thereby enhancing species diversity and contributing to restoration of these degraded grasslands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Activation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) has been shown to have an important role in skin barrier function by regulating differentiation and lipid synthesis in keratinocytes. Oat ( Avena sativa) has long been used as a soothing agent to relieve skin irritations, and the clinical benefits of topical oat formulations have been proven; however, the mechanistic understanding of oat's mode of action remains unknown. We investigated whether an oat lipid extract could activate PPARs and subsequently increase epidermal lipid synthesis and differentiation markers. Primary human epidermal keratinocytes and transformed cell lines were treated with PPAR agonists and oat lipid extracts to investigate the PPAR agonism. PPAR target genes and epidermal differentiation markers were analysed using quantitative real-time PCR and HPTLC analysis. Oat lipid extract demonstrated robust dual agonism for PPARα and PPARβ/δ, and increased direct PPAR target gene induction in primary human keratinocytes. In addition, oat oil treatment increased both receptor expression and, consistent with the literature on PPARs, oat oil treatment resulted in a significant upregulation of differentiation genes (involucrin, SPRRs and transglutaminase 1) and ceramide processing genes (β-glucocerebrosidase, sphingomyelinases 3 and ABCA12). Further, oat oil treatment in keratinocytes significantly increased ceramide levels (70%), suggesting a functional translation of PPAR activation by oat oil in keratinocytes. Taken together, these results demonstrate that oat lipids possess robust dual agonistic activities for PPARα and PPARβ/δ, increase their gene expression and induce differentiation and ceramide synthesis in keratinocytes, which can collectively improve skin barrier function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT In the Mainland China stock market, an upmarket is represented by the color red, whereas a downmarket is represented by the color green. Elsewhere, including the Chinese Hong Kong stock market, the color representations are the opposite. Three studies were conducted to examine the red-up-green-down effect for Mainland Chinese as well as the green-up-red-down effect for Hong Kong people. Study 1 showed that Mainland Chinese tended to predict greater economic growth (study 1a) and higher growth in consumption trends (study 1b) when the experimental materials were presented in red than in green, whereas Hong Kong participants exhibited the opposite tendencies. Study 2 found that Mainland Chinese implicitly associated red and green with up and down, respectively; Hong Kong people, however, implicitly associated green and red with up and down, respectively. Study 3 further indicated that Mainland Chinese were more likely to predict good outcomes when scenarios were presented in red, whereas Hong Kong participants were more likely to predict good outcomes when scenarios were presented in green. These findings suggest that culturally specific environment cues could influence human prediction and judgment. Implications for judgment generally are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]