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Aiming at the problems of faults, precipitation, weak layers and other factors inducing the deformation and instability of the end slope of the open-pit mine, taking the north slope of Dongming Open-pit Mine as the engineering practice background, the method of combining numerical simulation theory and limit equilibrium analysis is used. The influence of the weak layer of the north side slope on the deformation and displacement law of the slope rock and soil, and at the same time, combined with the limit equilibrium analysis method to control the stability of the north side slope, two schemes are proposed, namely, slope cutting and load reduction + pressure reduction. Through analysis and research, and based on the calculation results of Geo-slope and engineering geological conditions, the plan of slope cutting and load reduction + presser foot is finally adopted, which provides a reference for safe and efficient production during actual mining.

Maize (Zea mays) is one of the most important crops in the world, but its yield and quality are seriously affected by diverse diseases. Identifying broad-spectrum resistance genes is crucial for developing effective strategies to control the disease in maize. In a genome-wide study in maize, we identified a G-type lectin receptor kinase ZmLecRK1, as a new resistance protein against Pythium aphanidermatum , one of the causal pathogens of stalk rot in maize. Genetic analysis showed that the specific ZmLecRK1 allele can confer resistance to multiple pathogens in maize. The cell death and disease resistance phenotype mediated by the resistant variant of ZmLecRK1 requires the co-receptor ZmBAK1. A naturally occurring A404S variant in the extracellular domain of ZmLecRK1 determines the ZmLecRK1-ZmBAK1 interaction and the formation of ZmLecRK1-related protein complexes. Interestingly, the ZmLecRK1 susceptible variant was found to possess the amino acid S404 that is present in the ancestral variants of ZmLecRK1 and conserved among the majority of grass species, while the resistance variant of ZmLecRK1 with A404 is only present in a few maize inbred lines. Substitution of S by A at position 404 in ZmLecRK1-like proteins of sorghum and rice greatly enhances their ability to induce cell death. Further transcriptomic analysis reveals that ZmLecRK1 likely regulates gene expression related to the pathways in cell wall organization or biogenesis in response to pathogen infection. Taken together, these results suggest that the ZmLecRK1 resistance variant enhances its binding affinity to the co-receptor ZmBAK1, thereby enhancing the formation of active complexes for defense in maize. Our work highlights the biotechnological potential for generating disease-resistant crops by precisely modulating the activity of ZmLecRK1 and its homologs through targeted base editing. The G-type lectin receptor kinase ZmLecRK1 confers multiple disease resistance in maize. A naturally occurring A404S variant in ZmLecRK1 determines the ZmLecRK1-ZmBAK1 interaction for defense. The susceptible variant of ZmLecRK1 with S404 that is conserved among the majority of grass species constitutes the ancestral variants of ZmLecRK1, while the resistance variant with A404 is only present in a few maize inbred lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The brittleness index, as the most important parameter for brittleness evaluation, directly affects the compressibility of unconventional reservoirs. Currently, there is no unified calculation method for the brittleness index. This article uses a three-axis rock mechanics servo testing system to test the rock mechanics parameters of shale oil reservoirs in Block Y of the Ordos Basin and uses an X'Pert PRO X-ray diffractometer to test the rock mineral composition. The average volume fraction of quartz minerals, feldspar, and clay minerals in 36 samples of Block Y was tested to be 22.6%, 51.6%, and 18%, respectively. Calcite, dolomite, and pyrite are only present in a few samples. When the confining pressure is 30 MPa, the elastic modulus of the Chang 7 shale in this block is 14.72–34.58 GPa, with an average value of 23.77 GPa; The Poisson's ratio ranges from 0.106 to 0.288, with an average of 0.182; The differential stress ranges from 100.8 to 260.1 MPa, with an average of 164.36 MPa; The peak strain ranges from 0.57 to 1.21, with an average of 0.91. This article compares several mainstream brittle index evaluation methods and identifies the most suitable brittle index evaluation method for Block Y. Using the Jarvie mineral composition method to calculate the brittleness index 1 (MBI), the average value of 36 experimental results is 0.5393. Using the Rickman normalized Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio average value to calculate the brittleness index 2 (EBI), the average value of 36 experimental results is 0.5204. Based on the stress-strain curve and energy method, a model for brittleness index 3 (DBI) is established, and the average value of 36 experimental results is 0.5306. The trend of the brittleness index calculated by the three methods is consistent, indicating the feasibility of the newly established brittleness evaluation method. From the perspectives of mineral composition, rock mechanics parameters, and energy, establishing a brittleness evaluation method for shale oil reservoirs and studying its evaluation method is of great significance for sweet spot prediction in reservoir engineering, providing theoretical support for the selection of fractured intervals in the Chang 7 shale oil reservoir in Block Y of the Ordos Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evaluation of gas content plays a key role in determining the efficient development of shale reservoirs. To better understand the gas–water miscible competitive adsorption mechanism in the pore-fracture system of water-bearing shale, the water vapor adsorption experiment of dry shale and the methane gas adsorption experiment of water-bearing shale were carried out to compare and analyze the competitive adsorption laws of formation water and methane gas on the shale surface under different temperatures, pressures, and water saturation conditions. Moreover, based on the molecular layer adsorption theory, the gas–liquid–solid interface competitive adsorption model considering the coupling of temperature, pressure, and water saturation was established to predict the actual gas content of water-bearing shale reservoirs. The results show that the main controlling factors affecting the adsorbed gas content of water-bearing shale are specific surface area, temperature, and water content in turn according to weight coefficients; Compared with the gas–solid adsorption model, the gas–liquid–solid competitive adsorption model has higher accuracy in calculation results, which are much closer to the desorption data of shale cores in Jiaoshiba area, Fuling, China. Hence, the competitive adsorption model provides a theoretical foundation for reasonably evaluating the exploitation potential of shale gas reservoirs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer immunotherapies, which train the natural immune system to specifically kill tumor cells while sparing the healthy cells, have helped revolutionize cancer treatments and demonstrated promising clinical therapeutic benefits for decades. However, the therapeutic outcome of immunotherapies, even for the most successful immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy, remains unsatisfactory in the clinical practice, mainly due to the low immunogenicity of solid tumors and its immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). Notably, several cancer treatment modalities, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and phototherapy, have been revealed to evoke tumor immunogenicity and reverse immunosuppressive TME via inducing immunogenic cell death (ICD) of tumor cells, which synergistically sensitized tumors to ICB therapy. Nanomedicines have been extensively applied to augment ICD-inducing treatment modalities and potentiate ICB therapeutic efficacy therapy due to the opportune convergence of immunotherapy and nanotechnology. Here, we discuss the recent advances in nanomedicine-mediated ICD and its combination with ICB therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Maize is one of the most important crops for food, cattle feed and energy production. However, maize is frequently attacked by various pathogens and pests, which pose a significant threat to maize yield and quality. Identification of quantitative trait loci and genes for resistance to pests will provide the basis for resistance breeding in maize. Here, a β‐glucosidase ZmBGLU17 was identified as a resistance gene against Pythium aphanidermatum, one of the causal agents of corn stalk rot, by genome‐wide association analysis. Genetic analysis showed that both structural variations at the promoter and a single nucleotide polymorphism at the fifth intron distinguish the two ZmBGLU17 alleles. The causative polymorphism near the GT‐AG splice site activates cryptic alternative splicing and intron retention of ZmBGLU17 mRNA, leading to the downregulation of functional ZmBGLU17 transcripts. ZmBGLU17 localizes in both the extracellular matrix and vacuole and contribute to the accumulation of two defence metabolites lignin and DIMBOA. Silencing of ZmBGLU17 reduces maize resistance against P. aphanidermatum, while overexpression significantly enhances resistance of maize against both the oomycete pathogen P. aphanidermatum and the Asian corn borer Ostrinia furnacalis. Notably, ZmBGLU17 overexpression lines exhibited normal growth and yield phenotype in the field. Taken together, our findings reveal that the apoplastic and vacuolar localized ZmBGLU17 confers resistance to both pathogens and insect pests in maize without a yield penalty, by fine‐tuning the accumulation of lignin and DIMBOA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Face reenactment aims to transfer the upper body motions from a driving actor to a target actor. Current methods either cannot transfer motion adequately or cannot synthesize high-quality video. This paper proposes a novel face reenactment method via unsupervised motion transfer and deep learning-based correction. Firstly, the motion of the driving actor is largely transferred to the target via an unsupervised motion model and a rough synthetic target video can be obtained. Then, a generative neural network with spatial-temporal structure is designed to correct the rough video to a realistic and smooth video. To synthesize smooth and detailed video, 3D convolution and attention mechanism are introduced into the network to process temporal information and guide the video correction. To avoid synthesizing background with artifacts, the background information is embedded into the network as fixed parameters. To improve the realism of the teeth, a mouth enhancement loss is designed. The network is trained in an adversarial manner, ensuring the realism of the generated images. Experiments show that this method can synthesize high-quality target videos and the performance is better than the current state-of-the-art face reenactment methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The overexpressed glutathione peroxidase4 (GPX4) and insufficient H2O2 in tumor cells weaken ferroptosis therapy and the elicited anticancer immune response. Herein, a rigid metal‐polyphenol shell decorated nanodevice ssPPELap@Fe‐TA is constructed to successfully overcome the drawbacks of ferroptosis therapy. The ssPPELap@Fe‐TA consists of a rigid Fe‐TA network‐based shell and disulfide‐containing polyphosphoester (ssPPE) core with β‐lapachone loading. The rigid Fe‐TA network‐based shell of ssPPELap@Fe‐TA enables its efficient internalization by tumor cell and then disintegrates in the acidic endosome/lysosome to initiate Fe3+/Fe2+ conversion‐driven ferroptosis. The ssPPE core will deplete glutathione (GSH) via the disulfide‐thiol exchange reaction to inactivate GPX4, and also trigger the release of β‐lapachone to significantly increase intracellular H2O2 and then promote Fe3+‐mediated Fenton reaction, eventually achieving strong inhibition of tumor progression. Moreover, ssPPELap@Fe‐TA elicites a robust systemic antitumor immune response by promoting dendritic cells (DCs) maturation and T cell infiltration, and synergizes with anti‐PD‐L1 antibody (a‐PD‐L1) to strikingly suppress 4T1 tumor growth and lung metastasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A radial well has a unique wellbore configuration. Fracture propagation in radial well deflagration fracturing is studied rarely. The mechanism of interaction between deflagration fractures, natural fractures, and micro-fractures is still unknown. Based on continuum mechanics, damage mechanics, and variational principles, a numerical model of fracture propagation in deflagration fracturing is established with the Hamilton principle and phase-field fracture theory. The effects of horizontal principal stress difference, natural fracture distribution, and micro-fractures around the wellbore on fracture propagation in deflagration fracturing are studied. First, when no natural fractures are developed around the radial well, fractures are initiated at both ends of the radial well. Second, when there are three natural fractures around the radial well, the created fractures have the morphology of shorter fractures in the middle and longer fractures on both sides under stress interference mechanisms. Third, a larger density of natural fractures causes obvious stress superposition, changes the initiation points of radial wells and fracture morphology, and increases fracture width and reservoir stimulation volume. Fourth, as the micro-fractures increase, their interference and induction effects on deflagration fractures are enhanced gradually, and the deflection angle of fractures increases by 38.7%. The study provides a reference for optimizing deflagration fracturing in a radial well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After multi-stage volume hydraulic fracturing in a shale oil reservoir, massive amounts of water can be imbibed into the matrix pores. One of the key imbibition characteristics of a shale reservoir is the imbibition water and its height distribution. Based on high pressure mercury injection (HPMI) experiments and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analyses, this study quantitatively evaluated the pore-size distribution of Chang 7 continental shale oil reservoirs in Yanchang Formation, Ordos Basin. The pores could be divided into three types as micropores (≤0.1 μm), mesopores (0.1–1.0 μm), and macropores (>1.0 μm), while the volume of micropores and mesopores accounted for more than 90%. This demonstrated that there were strong heterogeneity and micro–nano characteristics. According to the spontaneous imbibition (SI) experiments, the cumulative proportion of imbibition water content was the largest in micropores, exceeding 43%, followed by mesopores around 30%, and that of macropores was the lowest, and basically less than 20%. The negative values of stage water content in the macropore or mesopore indicated that these pores became a water supply channel for other dominant imbibition pores. Additionally, combining the fractal theory with the NMR T2 spectrum, the relative imbibition water and actual height were calculated in different pores, while the height distribution varied with cores and shale oil. The shorter the core, the higher was the relative height, while the radius of macropores filled with imbibition water was reduced. This indicates that the height distribution was affected by the pore structure, oil viscosity, and core length. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are still some problems in the study of hydraulic fracture (HF) network evolution in cemented naturally fractured reservoirs, such as microseismic mapping showing exaggerated stimulated reservoir volume in some cases. In addition, the dominant role of natural fracture (NF) cementation strength, injection rate, in situ stress difference, NF distribution, and fracture initiation sequence of perforations in synthetically influencing fracture network formation needs to be further studied. For this purpose, a three‐dimensional matrix hexahedral element global coupled 0‐thickness cohesive element hydraulic fracturing model was developed. Results show that each interaction between HF and NF causes HF diameter shrinkage, which increases the propagation pressure of HF. When the cementation strength of the NF is low, the HF tends to deviate toward the tip of the NF to form a complex fracture network. Increasing the injection rate and the number of NFs can significantly enhance the complexity of the HF network, but does not change the HF and NF interaction pattern. The in situ stress differences dominate the morphology of the HF network when the cementation strength of NFs is constant. The stress interference of multiple fractures under segmented fracturing may form "S"‐shaped HFs, and the HFs are difficult to maintain a symmetrical morphology in the direction of the well axis. In addition, some NFs in inactivated damaged zones have developed a certain width geometrically due to the induced effect of HF, but they are still isolated by the low permeability matrix and might only generate some microseismic events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]