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We present the results of the neutron star X-ray binary system Cen X-3 performed by Insight -HXMT with two observations during 2017 and 2018. During these two observations, the source reached a X-ray luminosity of ∼1038 erg s−1 from 2–105 keV. The analysis of the broadband X-ray spectrum reports the presence of two cyclotron resonance scattering features (CRSFs) with the fundamental line at ∼ 28 keV and the harmonic line at ∼47 keV. The multiple lines exist by fittings with different continuum models, like the absorbed negative and positive power-law with an exponential cutoff (NPEX) model and a power-law with high energy exponential cutoff model. This is the first time that both fundamental and harmonic lines are detected in Cen X-3. We also show evidence of two cyclotron lines in the phase-resolved spectrum of Cen X-3. The CRSF and continuum spectral parameters show evolution with the pulse profile, and the two line centroid energy ratio does not change significantly and locates in a narrow value range of 1.6−1.7 over the pulse phase. The implications of the discovering two cyclotron absorption features and phase-resolved spectral properties are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blazars show extreme observational properties that are due to the beaming effect with the jet being close to the line of sight. It was found that the observed luminosity is anticorrelated with the synchrotron peak frequency but the debeamed luminosity and the frequency is positively correlated. In this work, we revisit this correlation for a large sample of 255 blazars from the fourth Fermi catalog with available Doppler factors. Our analysis comes to the following conclusions. (1) The observed radio, X-ray, Îł -ray, and synchrotron peak luminosity are all anticorrelated with the peak frequency, but the debeamed luminosity is positively correlated with the debeamed peak frequency. The anticorrelation is due to a selection effect or a beaming effect. (2) The Compton dominance parameter is correlated with both the bolometric luminosity and Doppler factor, implying that the more highly Compton-dominated sources are more luminous. (3) The bolometric luminosity can be represented by the Îł -ray luminosity for Fermi blazars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mechano-electro-chemical coupling during the ion diffusion process is a core factor to determine the electrochemical performance of electrodes. However, relationship between the mechanics and the electrochemistry has not been clarified by experiments. Objective: In this work, we conduct an in situ, visual, comprehensive characterization of strain field and Li concentration distribution to further explore the mechano-electro-chemical relationship. Methods: The digital image correlation characterized by fluorescent speckle and active optical imaging is developed. Combined with electrochromic-based Li concentration detection, the spatiotemporal evolution of in-plane strain and Li concentration of a graphite electrode during the lithiation and delithiation processes are measured and displayed visually via a dual optical path acquisition system. Results: The visual results show that in-plane strain and Li concentration possess a spatially non-uniform gradient distribution along the radial direction (i.e., diffusion path) with large values outside and small values inside, and that both present obvious temporal segmentation. And mechano-electro-chemical coupling analysis reveals that the in-plane strain is not always linearly related to the concentration and infers that a high strain limits the diffusion and lithiation. The strain–concentration evolution exhibits obvious asymmetric differences between lithiation and delithiation, wherein three equations are fitted to approximately represent the evolution process between in-plane strain and concentration during the lithiation and delithiation processes Conclusions: This work overcomes the difficulties of fine strain measurements and collaborative concentration characterization during the electrochemical process, and provides an effective experimental method and data support for further exploration of mechano-electro-chemical coupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Change impact evaluation of complex product plays an important role in controlling change cost and improving change efficiency of engineering change enterprises. In order to improve the accuracy of engineering change impact evaluation, this paper introduces three-parameter interval grey number to evaluate complex products according to the data characteristics. The linear combination of BWM and Gini coefficient method is used to improve the three-parameter interval grey number correlation model. It is applied to the impact evaluation of complex product engineering change. This paper firstly constructs a multi-stage complex network for complex product engineering change. Then the engineering change impact evaluation index system is determined. Finally, a case analysis was carried out with the permanent magnet synchronous centrifugal compressor in a large permanent magnet synchronous centrifugal unit to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reservoir computing (RC) is a recently introduced bio-inspired computational framework capable of excellent performances in the temporal data processing, owing to its derivation from the recurrent neural network (RNN). It is well-known for the fast and effective training scheme, as well as the ease of the hardware implementation, but also the problematic sensitivity of its performance to the optimizable architecture parameters. In this article, a particular time-delayed RC with a single clamped–clamped silicon beam resonator that exhibits a classical Duffing nonlinearity is presented and its optimization problem is studied. Specifically, we numerically analyze the nonlinear response of the resonator and find a quasi-linear bifurcation point shift of the driving voltage with the driving frequency sweeping, which is called Bifurcation Point Frequency Modulation (BPFM). Furthermore, we first proposed that this method can be used to find the optimal driving frequency of RC with a Duffing mechanical resonator for a given task, and then put forward a comprehensive optimization process. The high performance of RC presented on four typical tasks proves the feasibility of this optimization method. Finally, we envision the potential application of the method based on the BPFM in our future work to implement the RC with other mechanical oscillators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of precision technology is increasingly seen as an option to improve productivity, animal welfare, resource use efficiency, and workplace features on dairy farms. There is limited research related to longitudinal adoption patterns of precision dairy technologies and reasons for any patterns. The aim of this analysis was to investigate trends in technology adoption regarding both the amount (number of farms with a technology) and intensity (number of technologies per farm) of adoption. Surveys of parlor technology adoption were conducted on New Zealand dairy farms in 2008, 2013, and 2018, with 532, 500, and 500 respondents, respectively. Technologies were grouped into labor-saving (LS, such as automatic cluster removers) or data-capture (DC, such as in-line milk meters) categories. Trends were examined for farms that had only LS, only DC, or LS+DC technologies. Technology adoption increased over time; the likelihood of technology adoption in 2018 (and 2013 in parentheses) increased by 21 (22), 7 (68), and 378% (165) for LS, DC, and LS+DC technology groups, respectively, compared to 2008. Farms with LS+DC technologies also had a greater proportion of LS technologies compared to non-LS+DC farms, although this relationship declined over the 10-yr period. The use of a rotary versus herringbone parlor was estimated to be associated with 356 and 470% increase in the likelihood of adopting LS technologies and LS+DC, respectively, from 2008 to 2018. Regional differences in adoption were also found, with the likelihood of adopting DC and LS+DC technologies found to be 46 and 59% greater, respectively, in the South Island of New Zealand, compared to the base region of Waikato. The results highlight the importance of understanding spatial and temporal farm characteristics when considering future effect and adoption of precision dairy technologies. For example, the analysis indicates the occurrence of 2 trajectories to technology investment on farms, where larger farms are able to take advantage of technology opportunities, but smaller farms may be constrained by factors such as lack of economies of scale, limited capital to invest, and inability to retrofit technology into aging parlor infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A spallation target is one of the key components of the accelerator driven system. A liquid metal windowless target is an advanced type of a spallation target and has great application prospects. In this study, the free surface flow behavior and development in a scaled-down liquid metal windowless target are investigated in experiments and simulations. The experiments are carried out based on a liquid gallium experimental loop. The CFD simulations are performed based on a three-dimensional target model by using ANSYS CFX. The main working parameters of the target are measured through experiments and then set as the boundary conditions for simulations. The simulated values of the free surface height are in good agreement with the experimental data. The free surface height gradually decreases with an increase in the inlet flow rate and with a decrease in the outlet pressure. The simulation results reveal that a flow stagnation zone presenting large eddies and a reverse flow are formed below the outlet of the inner tube. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Definitive chemoradiation therapy (dCRT) is the standard treatment for patients with nonsurgical esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), yet patients have demonstrated great variations in their responses to dCRT and inevitably progressed following treatment. Methods: To identify prognostic biomarkers, we performed targeted next‐generation sequencing of 416 cancer‐related genes on primary tumors from 47 nonsurgical ESCC patients prior to dCRT treatment. The association between genetic alterations and patients' local recurrence‐free survival (LRFS), progression‐free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) was analyzed. Results: TP53 (78% of patients), NOTCH1 (32%), ARID1A (13%), FAT1 (13%), and CDKN2A (13%) were commonly mutated in ESCC patients, while gene amplifications frequently occurred in MCL1 (36%), FGF19 (34%), MYC (32%), CCND1 (27%), ZNF217 (15%), CDKN2A (13%), and YAP1 (11%). Univariate and multivariate analyses of clinical factors and genetic alterations indicated that sex is an independent prognostic factor, with males tending to have better LRFS (hazard ratio [HR], 0.25; 95%CI, 0.08‐0.77, P =.015) and progression‐free survival (PFS) (HR, 0.35; 95%CI, 0.13‐0.93, P =.030) following dCRT. Meanwhile, YAP1 amplification (n = 7) was an adverse prognostic factor, and patients with this alteration demonstrated a tendency toward worse outcomes with shorter LRFS (HR, 4.06; 95%CI, 1.26‐13.14, P =.019) and OS (HR, 2.78; 95%CI, 0.95‐8.17, P =.062). In a subgroup analysis, while sex and M‐stage were controlled, a much stronger negative effect of YAP1 amplification vs wild‐type in LRFS was observed (log‐rank P =.0067). Conclusion: The results suggested that YAP1 amplification is a potentially useful biomarker for predicting treatment outcomes and identifying patients with a high risk of relapse who should be closely monitored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the inclusion levels of different types of rapeseed meal (RSM) on performance, organ weight, and serum biochemical parameters in Cherry Valley ducks in the starter period and grower-finisher period. In Exp. 1, a total of 750 seven-day-old male ducklings were divided into 5 dietary treatments with 6 replicate pens of 25 birds per pen. The starter diets with the inclusion of 0, 5, 10, 15, or 20% of double-low RSM contained 0, 1.37, 2.15, 3.46, or 5.31 µmol glucosinolates (GLS)/g in the finished feed (from day 7 to 21). In Exp. 2, a total of 900 fifteen-day-old male ducklings were divided into 6 dietary treatments with 6 replicate pens of 25 birds per pen. The grower-finisher diets with the inclusion of 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, or 25% of Indian RSM contained 0, 7.67, 15.34, 24.66, 31.21, or 38.44 µmol GLS/g in the finished feed (from day 15 to 42). For ducklings in the starter period (Exp. 1), body weight gain and feed intake decreased linearly as the dietary double-low RSM inclusion level increased at day 7 to 14, while growth rate was not influenced by dietary double-low RSM inclusion levels at day 15 to 21 and day 7 to 21. For ducks in the grower-finisher period (Exp. 2), growth performance decreased linearly as the dietary RSM inclusion level increased from 5 to 20%. In addition, dietary RSM inclusion levels induced liver enlargement in ducklings at day 21 (5 to 20% double-low RSM with 1.37 to 5.31 µmol/g GLS) and thyroid enlargement accompanied by increased serum AST and ALP activities in ducks at day 42 (5 to 15% Indian RSM with 7.67 to 23.66 µmol/g GLS). Therefore, our results indicated that the upper limit of using RSM sources in feed formulation should consider the anti-nutritional factor of GLS content at different stages of duck growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scalable growth of SiC quasi-aligned nanoarrays on SiC wafer substrate was reported through the pyrolysis of polymer precursor by using Au as the catalysts. Differently to the conventional one-dimensional nanostructures often with cylindrical shape, the as-grown SiC nanowires possessed tapered configurations with sharp tips, enabling their desired formation with typical nanoneedle morphology. Their turn-on fields manifested a decline from 3.4 to 1.4 V/ μ m, when the temperatures were adjusted from room temperature to 400 °C, evidencing their excellent field emission performance. Furthermore, they behaved a high stability with no obvious current emission degradation when subjected to high temperature of 200 °C over 10 h, representing their promising applications in vacuum electronics with robust stability under high-temperature harsh conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The magnetic and microwave absorption properties of Nd2Co16.5Si0.5 and Nd2Co16.5Si0.5–paraffin composite have been investigated. The Nd2Co16.5Si0.5 compound shows a planar anisotropy with a saturation magnetization of 114 emu/g at room temperature. The Nd2Co16.5Si0.5–paraffin composite exhibits a permeability of 2.1 at a frequency of 100 MHz, together with a microwave reflection loss (RL) up to −38 dB at a frequency of 4 GHz with a thickness of 2.8 mm and a qualified bandwidth (QB, RL ≤ −10 dB) of 3.2 GHz at a frequency of 14 GHz with a thickness of 1 mm. This composite exhibits both high working frequency and permeability due to its high saturation magnetization. A strong microwave absorption was achieved for the composite through a better impedance match. Hence, it is possible that this composite can be used as a high-performance thin-layer microwave absorber. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A systematic procedure of experiments, performing simulation in conjunction with work measurement techniques, is introduced and aimed at undergraduate students in Industrial Engineering (IE) to learn a basic procedure for designing and implementing takt production in terms of the Toyota Production Systems (TPS). Students are split into small groups in a class. A series of experiments is designed and performed for an assembly line of magnetic contactors. Using the concept of the TPS, students perform work measurement studies including time study, process design, such as line balancing, and execute simulation experiments. At the end of the course, the teaching staff evaluates each group based on the performance of the simulation results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacteria and fungi are primary constituents of airborne microbes in fine particulate matter and harmful to health. To evaluate the environmental quality of different poultry houses in Shandong Province, China, the airborne aerobic bacteria, airborne fungi, and airborne Escherichia coli were collected by the Andersen-6 air microorganism sampler. The fine particulate matter was collected by a ZR-3920 ambient air particulate matter sampler, and bacterial and fungal diversities and relative abundances analyzed using high-throughput sequencing. Results showed that the concentrations of airborne aerobic bacteria, airborne fungi, and airborne Escherichia coli in poultry houses were 0.167 to 4.484 x 104 CFU/m³, 0.236 to 4.735 x 103 CFU/m³, and 0 to 33.0 CFU/m³, respectively. 11.4 to 34.3% of aerobic bacteria and 16.8 to 37.5% of fungi were distributed at levels 5 and 6 (0.6 to 2.1 μm, the particle sizes similar to fine particulate matter) in the Andersen sampler. The concentration of fine particulate matter in the poultry houses was 114 to 230 µg/m³, which was higher than the safety value 10 specified by WHO. In fine particulate matter, the main bacteria at phylum level were Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Proteobacteria, whereas the dominant phylum of fungus was Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. Importantly, the relative abundances of Escherichia and Corynebacterium in the broiler houses were greater than those in layer houses. However, the percentages of Aspergillus and Penicillium were 13.5 and 0.56%, with a relatively high level in the layer houses. Altogether, results revealed that the ambient air quality in the poultry houses sampled had a relatively high abundance of conditional pathogenic bacteria and concentration of fine particulate matter, which could threaten the health of animals and workers in those environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Milk fat determines the quality of milk and is also a main targeted trait in dairy cow breeding. Recent studies have revealed important regulatory roles of microRNAs (miRNA) in milk fat synthesis in the mammary gland. However, the role of miRNA in bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMEC) remains largely unknown. In this study, we found that the overexpression of miR-130a significantly decreased cellular triacylglycerol (TAG) levels and suppressed lipid droplet formation, whereas the inhibition of miR-130a resulted in greater lipid droplet formation and TAG accumulation in BMEC. MiR-130a also significantly affected mRNA expression related to milk fat metabolism. Specifically, the overexpression of miR-130a reduced the mRNA expression of PPARG, FABP3, PLIN2, and FATP1, whereas the downregulation of miR-130a increased the mRNA expression of PPARG, C/EBPβ, C/EBPα, PLIN2, FABP3, and FATP1. Furthermore, western blot analysis revealed the protein level of PPARG in miR-130a mimic and inhibitor transfection groups to be consistent with the mRNA expression response. Finally, luciferase reporter assays verified that PPARG was the direct target of miR-130a. This study provides the first experimental evidence that miR-130a directly affects TAG synthesis in BMEC by targeting PPARG, suggesting that miR-130a potentially could be used to improve beneficial milk components in dairy cows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The diagnosis of railway system faults is significant for its comfort, efficiency, and safety. The rail surface wear is the key impact factor when considering the health conditions of rails. This paper accomplishes contactless rail wear diagnosis by using multidimensional scaling based on a novel informational dissimilarity measure (IDM) to cluster intact and different worn rail profile data. The IDM uses weighted‐probability distribution of dispersion patterns to extract accurate time domain features from rail profile data, and the loss of information is minimized, which can greatly improve the accuracy for wear diagnosis. All the analyzing data for real experiments are collected by a laser scanner camera on an inspection car, where heavy‐haul railway rails with different types of surface wear are inspected. Experimental results with simulated and reality‐based data show that the proposed methods can identify worn profile data and discriminate different types of worn profiles more effectively when compared with existing methods. Thus, the proposed method offers a new thinking for the diagnosis of rail surface wear for heavy‐haul railways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a scale-dependent model to investigate the dynamic-pull-in characteristics of a functionally graded carbon nanotubes (FGCNTs) reinforced nanodevice with a piezoelectric layer. Based on nonlocal beam theory, the nonlinear thermoelectromechanical coupling dynamic governing equation of an electrostatically actuated nanodevice is derived. The material properties of the functionally graded layer depend on temperature environment, thickness, volume ratio, and distribution of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) reinforcement. The van der Waals interaction and Casimir force are considered in the dynamic-pull-in analysis. The homotopy perturbation method is used to obtain a second-order approximated analytical function of nature frequency with respect to initial amplitude. The influences of piezoelectric effect, temperature change, nonlocal parameters, distribution, and volume ratio of CNTs and initial amplitude on dynamic-pull-in behaviors and natural frequencies of the nanodevice are discussed. The results show that the system has one stable focus point at the domain of small initial amplitude and appears in a particular homoclinic orbit originating point and ends at an unstable saddle point. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The natural reservoir for influenza viruses is waterfowl, and from there they succeeded in crossing the barrier to different mammalian species. We analyzed the adaptation of avian influenza viruses to a mammalian host by passaging an H9N2 strain three times in differentiated swine airway epithelial cells. Using precisioncut slices from the porcine lung to passage the parental virus, isolates from each of the three passages (P1 to P3) were characterized by assessing growth curves and ciliostatic effects. The only difference noted was an increased growth kinetics of the P3 virus. Sequence analysis revealed four mutations: one each in the PB2 and NS1 proteins and two in the HA protein. The HA mutations, A190V and T212I, were characterized by generating recombinant viruses containing either one or both amino acid exchanges. Whereas the parental virus recognized α2,3-linked sialic acids preferentially, the HA190 mutant bound to a broad spectrum of glycans with α2,6/8/9-linked sialic acids. The HA212 mutant alone differed only slightly from the parental virus; however, the combination of both mutations (HA190+HA212) increased the binding affinity to those glycans recognized by the HA190 mutant. Remarkably, only the HA double mutant showed a significantly increased pathogenicity in mice. In contrast, none of those mutations affected the ciliary activity of the epithelial cells which is characteristic for virulent swine influenza viruses. Taken together, our results indicate that shifts in the HA receptor affinity are just an early adaptation step of avian H9N2 strains; further mutational changes may be required to become virulent for pigs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lawsonia intracellularis is an obligate intracellular bacterial pathogen that causes proliferative enteropathy (PE) in pigs. L. intracellularis infection causes extensive intestinal crypt cell proliferation and inhibits secretory and absorptive cell differentiation. However, the affected host upstream cellular pathways leading to PE are still unknown. β-catenin/Wnt signalling is essential in maintaining intestinal stem cell (ISC) proliferation and self-renewal capacity, while Notch signalling governs differentiation of secretory and absorptive lineage specification. Therefore, in this report we used immunofluorescence (IF) and quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR (RTqPCR) to examine β-catenin/Wnt and Notch-1 signalling levels in uninfected and L. intracellularis infected pig ileums at 3, 7, 14, 21 and 28 days post challenge (dpc). We found that while the significant increase in Ki67+ nuclei in crypts at the peak of L. intracellularis infection suggested enhanced cell proliferation, the expression of c-MYC and ASCL2, promoters of cell growth and ISC proliferation respectively, was down-regulated. Peak infection also coincided with enhanced cytosolic and membrane-associated β-catenin staining and induction of AXIN2 and SOX9 transcripts, both encoding negative regulators of β-catenin/Wnt signalling and suggesting a potential alteration to β-catenin/Wnt signalling levels, with differential regulation of the expression of its target genes. We found that induction of HES1 and OLFM4 and the down-regulation of ATOH1 transcript levels was consistent with the increased Notch-1 signalling in crypts at the peak of infection. Interestingly, the significant down-regulation of ATOH1 transcript levels coincided with the depletion of MUC2 expression at 14 dpc, consistent with the role of ATOH1 in promoting goblet cell maturation. The lack of significant change to LGR5 transcript levels at the peak of infection suggested that the crypt hyperplasia was not due to the expansion of ISC population. Overall, simultaneous induction of Notch-1 signalling and the attenuation of β-catenin/Wnt pathway appear to be associated with the inhibition of goblet cell maturation and enhanced crypt cell proliferation at the peak of L. intracellularis infection. Moreover, the apparent differential regulation of apoptosis between crypt and lumen cells together with the strong induction of Notch-1 signalling and the enhanced SOX9 expression along crypts 14 dpc suggest an expansion of actively dividing transit amplifying and/or absorptive progenitor cells and provide a potential basis for understanding the development and maintenance of PE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a laboratory method to evaluate the effective dynamic properties for flexural vibrations of a meta-structure is presented. The flexural vibration of a beam with periodically spaced resonators was investigated using wave propagation analysis. After analyzing vibration interactions between the resonators and the homogeneous beam, the effective dynamic properties of the meta-structure were evaluated using the transfer function method. The comparison of the measured and predicted results allowed for an understanding of the proposed vibration control mechanism. The effective bending stiffness was not affected by the attached resonators. The effective mass exhibited significant frequency-dependent variation near the natural frequency of the resonators. The effective mass becomes complex when the stiffness of the resonators is viscoelastic. The reflected wave from the metamaterial was completely blocked when the real part of the effective mass became negative. The effective mass decreased as the loss factor of the attached resonators increased. The proposed evaluation method can be used to analyze the effects of resonators on structural vibrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary TET proteins, by converting 5-methylcytosine (5mC) to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC), are hypothesized, but not directly shown, to protect promoter CpG islands (CGIs) against abnormal DNA methylation (DNAm) in cancer. We define such a protective role linked to DNA damage from oxidative stress (OS) known to induce this abnormality. TET2 removes aberrant DNAm during OS through interacting with DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) in a “Yin-Yang” complex targeted to chromatin and enhanced by p300 mediated TET2 acetylation. Abnormal gains of DNAm and 5hmC occur simultaneously in OS, and knocking down TET2 dynamically alters this balance by enhancing 5mC and reducing 5hmC. TET2 reduction results in hypermethylation of promoter CGIs and enhancers in loci largely overlapping with those induced by OS. Thus, TET2 indeed may protect against abnormal, cancer DNAm in a manner linked to DNA damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many shaft collapses are related to the deterioration and failure of the masonry shaft lining materials. In modern mine shaft, concrete is widely used to provide support. To analyse shafts stability, the properties of the lining need to be well defined. The behaviour of masonry and concrete can be considerably affected by long-term exposure to harsh mine water. This paper presents a study which focuses on the weathering effects of mine water on lining materials (brick, mortar, and concrete). To reproduce the weathering process, samples were placed into solutions of potable water, artificial mine water, and a more aggressive mine-water solution for just less than one year. Four phases of laboratory tests were conducted throughout the time period to assess the degradation of mechanical properties of the lining materials. Particular attention is given to the degradation of material strength and stiffness. Results indicate that the harsh acidic mine water has pronounced detrimental effects on the strength and stiffness of mortar. The weathering process is shown to have the most significant effect on the stiffness of concrete and mortar. It is also shown that the use of mass loss as an index for evaluation of mechanical properties may not be appropriate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lignocellulosic nanostructures, mainly cellulose and lignin based materials, have recently attracted much attention due to their renewable nature, wide variety of source materials available throughout the world, low cost and density, high surface functionality and reactivity. The exceptional mechanical strength, together with high aspect ratio and large surface area, enable these nanomaterials to reinforce a wide variety of polymers even at very low filler loadings. Furthermore, nanocomposite approach has emerged in the last two decades as an efficient strategy to upgrade the structural and functional properties of natural and/or synthetic polymers. The combination of bioresorbable and sustainable polymers with bio-based nanostructures opened new perspectives in the self-assembly of nanomaterials for different applications with tuneable mechanical, thermal and degradative properties. In the present paper, the effect of introduction of lignocellulosic reinforcement phases (cellulosic and lignin based nanostructures), on structural and functional properties of several thermoplastic polymer matrices was investigated at the nanoscale level. Both solvent casting and melt compounding were considered as processing techniques for the proposed nanocomposite formulations. The role of cellulose and lignin based nanostructures, such as their synergic action when embedded in a polymer matrix, were analysed (taking into account the required functionality of the systems in the appropriate final applications) and reported in terms of morphological, optical, thermal, chemical, mechanical, barrier and degradative performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ternary polymeric films based on poly (lactic acid), obtained dispersing cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) and lignin nanoparticles (LNP) at two different amounts (1 and 3 wt%), respectively in neat PLA and glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) grafted PLA (g-PLA), were produced by melt extrusion. Thermal, optical and mechanical properties, as well as the morphologies of CNC and LNP reinforced PLA nanocomposites, were investigated. Results from UV–Vis characterization have confirmed a synergic effect of LNP and CNC based nanostructures in terms of transparency and UV light blocking capability. In addition, the combination of the two lignocellulosic nanofillers proved to be effective also in nucleation and crystal growth, with increased cristallinity values for ternary systems in comparison with binary nanocomposites. Furthermore, the ternary nanocomposites showed both higher strength and modulus values than those of neat PLA and PLA binary systems. Lignin nanoparticles and cellulose nanocrystals, when combined with neat or grafted poly (lactic acid), have shown antibacterial activity with reduction in multiplication of the bacterial plant pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato (Pst). In particular, results from PLA nanocomposite films containing lignin nanoparticles pointed out how this green functionality allows to develop innovative strategies, towards harmful pathogens, helpful in the food packaging sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Differences between C signatures in various types of organic matter and between ecosystems make up a strong tool in ecological studies. However, a thorough interpretation of C signatures requires sufficient knowledge on the factors that cause differences in C content. To examine how clay affects C fractionation, we studied biodegradation of maize leaves in microcosms either with sand alone, or sand mixed with the clay minerals kaolinite (15 or 20 %) or montmorillonite (20 %) and an inoculum of microorganisms isolated from soil during a 70-day experimental period. We used carbon free soil media to avoid the background contribution from soil organic matter, which would otherwise obscure the resolution of changes in isotope composition of respired CO. Protozoan numbers were reduced by a factor 60 in the kaolinite amendments compared with sand, whereas they were completely undetectable in montmorillonite amendments. Bacterial numbers declined with increasing kaolinite content. Addition of 20 % montmorillonite, however, yielded higher numbers of bacteria than 20 % kaolinite, probably due to absence of protozoan grazing. Microcosms amended with sand alone evolved significantly more CO than systems with kaolinite, while systems amended with montmorillonite evolved the least amount of CO. The different treatments also had different CO signatures over time. We found a strong correlation between the C signature of CO and the degree of maize-leaf decomposition; thus, in the initial stages, the respired CO was depleted in C, while, in the advanced stages, there was a pronounced enrichment. This indicates that in the advanced stage, the remaining C must be strongly C enriched. The cumulated respiration from the added material was significantly affected by clay content and clay type. We suggest that clay amendment will impede C/C enrichment in soil in two ways, both through reduction of microbial diversity and hence food web complexity and through reduction of decomposition via protection of organic matter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The corrosion behavior of super vacuum die-cast AM60B magnesium alloys immersed in a 5 wt% NaCl solution was investigated by slow positron beam technique, XRD, XPS, SEM and potentiodynamic polarization tests. The XRD and XPS results indicated that Mg(OH) 2 was main corrosion product in the salt solution. With prolonging the immersion time, a significant decrease of Doppler-broadened annihilation line-width parameter near the surface after corrosion was observed and interpreted that the pre-existing interfacial voids between oxide film and matrix might promote the formation of Mg(OH) 2 corrosion layer. Polarization tests found that Mg(OH) 2 could provide a temporary protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study was conducted to investigate the effect of zinc (Zn) bearing palygorskite (ZnPal) inclusion on the growth performance, mineral content, meat quality, and antioxidant status of broilers. A total of 240 one-day-old Arbor Acres broiler chicks were randomly allocated into 5 dietary treatments with 6 replicates of 8 chicks. Broilers in the 5 treatments were fed a basal diet supplemented with 0, 20, 40, 60, and 80 mg/kg Zn diet in the form of ZnPal for 42 d, respectively. Birds exhibited similar average daily gain (ADG), average daily feed intake (ADFI), and feed/gain ratio (F:G) among groups during the 42-day study (P > 0.05). ZnPal supplementation linearly increased iron (Fe) (P = 0.031) and magnesium (Mg) (P = 0.002) content in the pectoralis major muscle. Similarly, the inclusion of ZnPal tended to increase Zn content in the thigh (P = 0.072) and linearly increase Zn content in the pectoralis major muscle (P = 0.055). The concentration of copper (Cu) in the thigh was linearly decreased by ZnPal inclusion (P = 0.011). Meanwhile, a quadratic trend for reduced Cu content was observed in the pectoralis major muscle (P = 0.074) and thigh (P = 0.082), respectively. The supplementation of ZnPal linearly reduced cooking loss in the pectoralis major muscle (P = 0.013), and linearly (P = 0.029) and quadratically (P = 0.034) decreased cooking loss in the thigh. Malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration in the thigh was linearly (P = 0.020) and quadratically (P = 0.017) reduced by ZnPal inclusion. Additionally, ZnPal supplementation tended to linearly enhance total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) activity of the pectoralis major muscle (P = 0.083). The results obtained in the current study indicated that ZnPal inclusion could alter muscular mineral accumulation, improve meat quality, and enhance the muscular antioxidant capacity of broilers, and Zn supplementation in the form of ZnPal at the dosage of 20 mg/kg would be sufficient in improving meat quality and muscular oxidative status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Familial multiple intestinal atresias is an autosomal recessive disease with or without combined immunodeficiency. In the last year, several reports have described mutations in the gene TTC7A as causal to the disease in different populations. However, exact correlation between different genotypes and various phenotypes are not clear. In this study, we report identification of novel compound heterozygous mutations in TTC7A gene in a Malay girl with familial multiple intestinal atresias and severe combined immunodeficiency ( MIA-SCID) by whole exome sequencing. We found two mutations in TTC7A: one that destroyed a putative splicing acceptor at the junction of intron 17/exon 18 and one that introduced a stop codon that would truncate the last two amino acids of the encoded protein. Reviewing the recent reports on TTC7A mutations reveals correlation between the position and nature of the mutations with patient survival and clinical manifestations. Examination of public databases also suggests carrier status for healthy individuals, making a case for population screening on this gene, especially in populations with suspected frequent founder mutations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Statistical imputation of classical human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles is becoming an indispensable tool for fine-mappings of disease association signals from case-control genome-wide association studies. However, most currently available HLA imputation tools are based on European reference populations and are not suitable for direct application to non-European populations. Among the HLA imputation tools, The HIBAG R package is a flexible HLA imputation tool that is equipped with a wide range of population-based classifiers; moreover, HIBAG R enables individual researchers to build custom classifiers. Here, two data sets, each comprising data from healthy Japanese individuals of difference sample sizes, were used to build custom classifiers. HLA imputation accuracy in five HLA classes (HLA-A, HLA-B, HLA-DRB1, HLA-DQB1 and HLA-DPB1) increased from the 82.5-98.8% obtained with the original HIBAG references to 95.2-99.5% with our custom classifiers. A call threshold (CT) of 0.4 is recommended for our Japanese classifiers; in contrast, HIBAG references recommend a CT of 0.5. Finally, our classifiers could be used to identify the risk haplotypes for Japanese narcolepsy with cataplexy, HLA-DRB1*15:01 and HLA-DQB1*06:02, with 100% and 99.7% accuracy, respectively; therefore, these classifiers can be used to supplement the current lack of HLA genotyping data in widely available genome-wide association study data sets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polylactic (acid) bionanocomposites filled with 0, 1 and 3 wt.% of lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) were produced by means of two processing techniques, melt extrusion (E-PLA) and solvent casting (C-PLA). The samples were thermally and mechanically characterized by using thermal analyses (TGA and DSC) and tensile tests. Nucleation effect was proved to be remarkably enhanced when homogeneous dispersion of LNPs in PLA matrix was achieved at 1 wt.%, in melt extruded samples, while further increase of the loading of LNPs up to 3 wt.% did not favor the crystallization behavior. Elongation at break in the case of extruded bionanocomposites was positively affected by the presence of LNPs; nonetheless, in the case of solvent cast films, a decreased tendency of tensile parameters was observed, attributed to inhomogeneous dispersion of LNPs. Disintegrability in composting conditions has been also tested and visual observation, chemical, thermal and morphological investigations proved that the incorporation of 1 wt.% of LNPs hindered the disintegration of PLA matrix, due to the hydrophobic nature of the filler. When the nanoparticles content rises up to 3 wt.%, aggregation and rougher film surface structure induced higher degradation rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of Ni and Ce co-doping on the spin entropy in CaCoO have been carefully studied. It is found that Ni and Ce co-doping is more effective than single rare earth element doping in improving the spin entropy of CaCoO. The largest magnetothermopower ratio value of 70 % is achieved for CaCeCoNiO, which is at least two times larger than that of the reported CaCeCoO, CaLuCoO, and CaGdCoO materials. This enhancement proves the remarkable increase in the spin entropy of Ni and Ce co-doped CaCoO. Co 2p X-ray photoemission spectroscopy shows the decrease in Co concentration induced by Ni and Ce co-doping. The reduction in Co concentration is suggested to result in the enhanced spin entropy from Co site. And coexistence of Ni and Ni provides a new hopping model for transporting spin entropy, contributing to the increase of the total spin entropy. The joint contributions from Co concentration decrease and the new hopping model, both induced by Ni and Ce co-doping, make the spin entropy increase remarkably. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are responsible for tumor initiation and progression. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are highly expressed in cancer cells and associated with poor prognosis. However, a linkage between CSCs and TLRs is unclear, and potential intervention strategies to prevent TLR stimulation-induced CSC formation and underlying mechanisms are lacking. Here, we demonstrate that stimulation of toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) promotes breast cancer cells toward a CSC phenotype in vitro and in vivo. Importantly, conventional NF-κB signaling pathway is not exclusively responsible for TLR3 activation-enriched CSCs. Intriguingly, simultaneous activation of both β-catenin and NF-κB signaling pathways, but neither alone, is required for the enhanced CSC phenotypes. We have further identified a small molecule cardamonin that can concurrently inhibit β-catenin and NF-κB signals. Cardamonin is capable of effectively abolishing TLR3 activation-enhanced CSC phenotypes in vitro and successfully controlling TLR3 stimulation-induced tumor growth in human breast cancer xenografts. These findings may provide a foundation for developing new strategies to prevent the induction of CSCs during cancer therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel method based on an artificial magnetic conductor (AMC) structure is presented to improve radiation performances of low-temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC) antennas. A millimeter-wave (mmW) LTCC patch antenna using AMC structures is designed, achieving a wide bandwidth of 26%, a high gain of 8.27 dBi, and a high radiation efficiency of 86.2%. Based on the antenna element, an 4 \times 4 array with an AMC is developed. A low loss multilayer laminated waveguide (LWG) power divider is proposed to feed the array. Simulation and measurement results for the proposed array are in good agreement, and demonstrate a good and stable performance in terms of 13.96% matching bandwidth, high gain of 19.1 dBi, and flat gain response with variation of 2 dB. Furthermore, the efficiency can reach 63.1% which is higher than other designs available in the literature. A very high efficiency of more than 45% is achieved across a wide frequency band from 34 to 37 GHz. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

(NaKLi)LaTaNbO (KNLTN-La) lead-free subtransparent ceramics was prepared by a conventional sintering technique. The structure and the optical properties of the ceramics were investigated. The room temperature crystallographic indexing revealed the ABO perovskite type, tetragonal phase and P4mm point group in the ceramics. The surface and fractured surface SEM micrographs showed a dense microstructure with few micropores in KNLTN-La ceramics, which was obviously better than for the pure KNLTN ceramics. The refractive indexes of the films were investigated by an ellipsometer and the results show that the KNLTN-La subtransparent ceramics reveals significant wavelength dependent dispersion. The refractive index ranges from 2.14 to 2.06 with the wavelength increase from 380 nm to 900 nm. The dispersive behavior was analyzed by three parameters of Cauchy dispersion model and the values of the parameters A, B and C are 2.0610±0.0005, 0.0054±0.0003 and 0.00069±0.00004, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tool path ripple error (TPR_error) is one of the main reasons due to the medium-high spatial frequency error on the surface of aspheric optics. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of the tool step size to the TPR_error in sub-aperture deterministic polishing (SDP) and study a method which can optimize the tool step size to restrain this error. Three groups of simulation experiments were conducted using three different tool influence functions to simulate the uniform removal of the material. As the TPR_error is influenced by three factors, which are full width at half maximum (FWHM) of tool influence function (TIF), tool step size, and depth of material removed, each group of the experiments was conducted under the fixed TIF and depth of material removed. It turns out that both peak-to-valley (PV) and root-mean-square (RMS) values of the TPR_error become larger with the increase of the tool step size, and the variation tendency likes a reversed 'L' shape curve. And, the method adopted in the simulation was further validated by the experiment. Therefore, the tool step size at the inflection point would be optimal to restrain the TPR_error together with saving the polishing time to a certain extent. This method could be used to determine the best-suited tool step size in SDP whose typical TIF is a Gaussian or Gaussian-like shape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Grain size of AZ91 alloy reduced from 500μm to 124μm by SiC inoculants. [•] Solution route is 400°C+16h for spheroidization without notable grain growth. [•] Pressurized solidification favors the flow and feeding capacity of residual liquid. [•] Relative density increases continuously with the increase of holding pressure. [•] Tensile strength reaches 167MPa for modified alloy with applied pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a nonlocal phase field method is presented to solve anisotropic diffusion-driven morphological evolution and migration of void defects in finite metallic film interconnects by utilizing a nonlocal phase field model considering a small scale effect. The nonlocal elastic theory is used to describe a small scale effect on the morphological evolution and migration of the void. In example calculations, the effects of the stress field, the electric field, and the anisotropic diffusion characteristic on the evolution of void defects in finite metallic film interconnects are described and discussed. The result in comparison with literature shows that the small scale effect based on nonlocal elastic model induces the migration diffusion of the crack tip to decrease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stress partitions among multiple phases for two cold-rolled transformation-induced-plasticity (TRIP)-assisted C-Mn-Al-Si steels, with different carbon content levels of 0.1% and 0.2% (mass fractions), were investigated using in situ high-energy X-ray diffraction at ambient and low temperatures (-40°C) under uniaxial tensile loading. Based on the evolution of stresses for various phases during plastic deformation, a modified constitutive model was established for describing the micromechanical behavior of TRIP-assisted multiphase steels, based on a Gladman-type mixture law (GTML) embedded with the Mecking-Kocks work-hardening formula. The index n, an important parameter in the GTML for characterizing the accommodation of loading stresses among different phases, was determined to be severely affected by the transformation kinetics of retained austenite. The quantitative relationship between n and the transformation rate of retained austenite was also clearly revealed in the investigated alloys. The modified model thus correlates the mismatch of stresses for multiple phases with the transformation kinetics of metastable phases during plastic deformation and is suitable for all advanced steels with multi-scale microstructures. This model forms the basis for microstructure-based numerical simulations of micromechanical behavior and greatly benefits the design of a new type of high-strength and high-plasticity steel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High temperature superconductor (HTS) magnetic levitation is proposed to be applied in the micro thrust (mN level) measurement to achieve a fully suspending measuring method for electric propulsion devices, which can get rid of all connecting interferences and lead to higher precision. Levitation friction loss is still the main problem limiting the response of HTS levitation to small tangent momentum. To investigate the friction loss characteristics at low speeds, we designed and established a set of single permanent magnet/superconductor levitating rotation setup. The initial rotation angular momentum of the magnet is given by a small impact pendulum with high accuracy, and the swinging angle of the magnet is recorded by a digital image processing method depending on a CCD camera. Through the setup, the swinging rotation of the magnet is observed and the low friction loss is analyzed. The relation between the swinging rotation and field cooling heights is also discussed. The research is helpful of understanding the friction loss mechanism and mechanical properties of HTS levitation under tiny disturbances. It provides important technical support to develop the micro thrust measuring device depending on HTS levitation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Highlights: [•] Usefulness of positron beam measurement for characterization of corrosion layer. [•] The calcium carbonate was deposited on the surface of both HPDC and SVDC alloys. [•] Larger volume fraction of eutectic phase in SVDC alloy than HPDC alloy. [•] Higher corrosion resistance of SVDC alloy than HPDC alloy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Details behind the experimental technique of ultrasonic velocity profiling (UVP) to obtain in situ velocity measurements of both aqueous and organic phases in commercial solvent extraction SX settlers are presented. The commercial applicability and benefit of the process is demonstrated via the on-site analysis of two settlers at a commercial copper solvent extraction operation. The two settlers had the same dimensions and were operated under essentially equivalent conditions but differed in terms of being assessed before and after routine maintenance, with the internal ‘furniture’ configuration of the latter also being modified. UVP-determined organic and aqueous flow pattern results from the two settlers are reported and compared in relation to the furniture configuration/maintenance status of each. The results highlight the potential for UVP analysis to ascertain flow patterns in commercial solvent extraction settlers to benefit industrial operations directly and to enable the development of improved mathematical (computational fluid dynamics) modelling of flow patterns in settlers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is predominantly characterized by chromosomal translocations between the retinoic acid receptor, alpha (RARA) gene and the promyelocytic leukemia (PML) or promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger (PLZF) gene. In APL cells with PML/RARA fusions, arsenic trioxide and all-trans retinoic acid treatments specifically target the fusion protein for proteasome-dependent degradation, thereby promoting cellular differentiation and clinical remission of disease. In contrast, APL cells expressing PLZF/RARA fusion proteins are largely resistant to similar treatments and prognosis for patients with this translocation is poor. Understanding the molecular mechanisms regulating PLZF/RARA protein stability would provide novel therapeutic targets for PLZF/RARA-associated APL. Toward this end, we have performed an RNAi-based screen to identify factors affecting PLZF/RARA stability. Among the factors identified was the ubiquitin-specific peptidase 37 (USP37). We showed that USP37 interacted with PLZF/RARA through the PLZF moiety and sustained PLZF/RARA steady state levels. Domain mapping study revealed that N-terminal domain of USP37 is required for the PLZF/RARA interaction and protein regulation. Furthermore, overexpression or depletion of USP37 caused an increase or decrease of PLZF/RARA protein half-life, correlating with down- or upregulation of PLZF/RARA poly-ubiquitination, respectively. By PLZF/RARA-transduced primary mouse hematopoietic progenitor cells, we demonstrated that Usp37 knockdown alleviated PLZF/RARA-mediated target gene suppression and cell transformation potential. Altogether, our findings of USP37-modulating PLZF/RARA stability and cell transformation suggest that USP37 is a potential therapeutic target for PLZF/RARA-associated APL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although ginsenoside Rg3 has been shown to exert anticancer effects on a variety of malignancies, the effects and molecular mechanisms of ginsenoside Rg3 on oesophageal cancer remain unclear. Therefore, these factors must be explored. Here, we analyzed the effect of ginsenoside Rg3 on oesophageal cancer cell proliferation and migration, as well as its effect on apoptosis. Furthermore, we detected downstream pathways that ginsenoside Rg3 could act on. The results showed that ginsenoside Rg3 significantly inhibited cell proliferation and migration and promoted apoptosis. We found that ginsenoside Rg3 regulates the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin pathway in oesophageal cancer development. In general, ginsenoside Rg3 inhibits the proliferation and migration of oesophageal cancer cells via induction of apoptosis and down regulation of the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin pathway. This study aimed to suggest new treatment options for oesophageal cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background No prospective study has investigated the relationship between type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and the risk of primary liver cancer (PLC) in mainland China, and little is known about the effect of diabetes duration on PLC risk. Design Data from two population-based cohorts (the Shanghai Men's Health Study, SMHS, 2002–2006 and the Shanghai Women's Health Study, SWHS, 1996–2000) were thus used to assess the associations among T2DM, diabetes duration and PLC risk in Chinese population. Results During follow-up through 2009, 344 incident PLC cases were identified among 60 183 men and 73 105 women. T2DM is significantly associated with the increased risk of PLC in both men [hazard ratio (HR) = 1.63, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06–2.51] and women (HR = 1.64, 95% CI 1.03–2.61). The highest risk of incident liver cancer was observed in the first 5 years after diabetes diagnosis, and decreased substantially with the prolonged diabetes duration (Ptrend < 0.001). No synergistic interaction in the development of PLC was found between diabetes and other known risk factors. Conclusions T2DM is associated with the increased risk of subsequent liver cancer within 5 years after diagnosis in Chinese population, suggesting that hyperinsulinaemia rather than hyperglycaemia is more likely to be a primary mediator for this association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The controllable formation of zinc oxide ( ZnO) nanostructures and nanowires by a cheap and environmental friendly fabrication method of simply subjecting metallic zinc films in sodium chloride ( NaCl) solution at 170°C from 3 to 15 h under hydrothermal conditions is demonstrated in this study. Scanning electron microscopy ( SEM) and X-ray diffraction ( XRD) indicate that ZnO films with different morphologies are obtained: from a film with network of circular pores to a film with nanowire-like network with bigger pores. It is observed that heating duration has an effect on its photoluminescence ( PL) properties. Ultraviolet emission is observed for all ZnO films. Green emission surfaces after heating for 6 h, which subsequently disappears after 15 h of heating. It is suggested that the morphology change over different heating durations is responsible for the rise and subsequent decline in green emissions. Lastly, the growth mechanism behind zinc oxidation and morphology change is proposed and investigated with the aid of experimental method. It is verified that pitting corrosion is responsible for the growth mechanism here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background A number of epidemiological studies have reported inconsistent findings on the association between meat consumption and lung cancer. Design We therefore conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the relationship between meat consumption and lung cancer risk in epidemiological studies. Results Twenty-three case–control and 11 cohort studies were included. All studies adjusted for smoking or conducted in never smokers. The summary relative risks (RRs) of lung cancer for the highest versus lowest intake categories were 1.35 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.08–1.69) for total meat, 1.34 (95% CI 1.18–1.52) for red meat, and 1.06 (95% CI 0.90–1.25) for processed meat. An inverse association was found between poultry intake and lung cancer (RR = 0.91, 95% CI 0.85–0.97), but not for total white meat (RR = 1.06, 95% CI 0.82–1.37) or fish (RR = 1.01, 95% CI 0.96–1.07). Conclusions The relationship between meat intake and lung cancer risk appears to depend on the types of meat consumed. A high intake of red meat may increase the risk of lung cancer by about 35%, while a high intake of poultry decreases the risk by about 10%. More well-designed cohort studies on meat mutagens or heme iron, meat cooking preferences, and doneness level are needed to fully characterize this meat–lung cancer association. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]