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Abstract Objective This study aimed to compare and analyze the expression and significance of the GRP78 protein in cochlear cell injury induced by a high glucose and high-fat diet in obese and diabetic rats. Methods Male SD rats were randomly divided into two groups: normal (NC) and high-fat (HF) groups. The NC group was fed a standard diet for eight weeks, while the HF group received a high-glucose, high-fat diet. The HF group was further categorized into the obesity group (OB group) and the type II diabetes mellitus group (T2DM group). To induce a type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM) model, the T2DM group received an intraperitoneal injection of a small dose of STZ (45 mg/kg). After four weeks on the original diet, body weight, blood glucose, blood lipid levels, and auditory brainstem response (ABR) thresholds were measured. The cochlea was dissected, and its morphology was observed using HE staining. Immunohistochemistry and western blotting were utilized to examine the expression level of the GRP78 protein in the cochlea. Results (1) The ABR threshold demonstrated a statistically significant difference between the T2DM group and the OB group (P

Electrocatalytic hydrogenation (ECH) of organics using water as hydrogen donors has been regarded as a green organic reduction technique to replace traditional chemical reactions that use sacrificial chemicals. The development of ECH process provides potential applications in the production of value-added chemicals owing to its low energy consumption, low pollution, high safety, and superior sustainability. However, its application is limited by the low conversion rate and poor selectivity toward desired products. The efficiency of ECH can be improved by rational design of electrocatalysts. This review covers several representative electrocatalytic systems (aldehydes, ketones, phenolic organics, alkynes, and organonitrogen compounds) and summarizes different ECH mechanisms, followed by thorough discussion on the modification strategies of electrocatalysts that are currently adopted to enhance the catalytic performance. Finally, in view of the current challenges for ECH, we discuss possible future directions in the field, aiming to provide guidance to the catalyst design toward highly efficient ECH reactions over different organic feedstocks.

Using inorganic fibrous membranes as protective layers has yielded success in suppressing dendrite growth. However, conventional fibrous membranes usually have large voids and low affinity for Li, promoting inhomogeneous charge distribution and allowing some dendrites to grow. Herein, we introduce a highly aligned TiO2/SiO2 (A-TS) electrospun nanofiber membrane as a protective layer for the Li metal anode. The A-TS membrane is fabricated by a custom-made electrospinning system with an automatic fiber alignment collector that allows control of the fibers’ orientation. At the scale of the individual fibers, their high binding energies with Li can attract more “dead” Li by reacting with the SiO2 component of the composite, avoiding uncontrollable deposition on the metal anode. At the membrane scale, these highly ordered structures achieve homogeneous contact and charge distribution on the Li metal surface, leaving no vulnerable areas to nucleate dendrite formation. Additionally, the excellent mechanical and thermal stability properties of the A-TS membrane prevent any potential puncturing by dendrites or thermal runaway in a battery. Hence, an A-TS@Li anode exhibits stable cycling performance when used in both Li–S and Li–NCM811 batteries, highlighting significant reference values for the future design and development of high-energy-density metal-based battery systems.

Abstract The rapid improvement in the gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs) with high ionic conductivity brought it closer to practical applications in solid-state Li-metal batteries. The combination of solvent and polymer enables quasi-liquid fast ion transport in the GPEs. However, different ion transport capacity between solvent and polymer will cause local nonuniform Li+ distribution, leading to severe dendrite growth. In addition, the poor thermal stability of the solvent also limits the operating-temperature window of the electrolytes. Optimizing the ion transport environment and enhancing the thermal stability are two major challenges that hinder the application of GPEs. Here, a strategy by introducing ion-conducting arrays (ICA) is created by vertical-aligned montmorillonite into GPE. Rapid ion transport on the ICA was demonstrated by 6Li solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance and synchrotron X-ray diffraction, combined with computer simulations to visualize the transport process. Compared with conventional randomly dispersed fillers, ICA provides continuous interfaces to regulate the ion transport environment and enhances the tolerance of GPEs to extreme temperatures. Therefore, GPE/ICA exhibits high room-temperature ionic conductivity (1.08 mS cm−1) and long-term stable Li deposition/stripping cycles (> 1000 h). As a final proof, Li||GPE/ICA||LiFePO4 cells exhibit excellent cycle performance at wide temperature range (from 0 to 60 °C), which shows a promising path toward all-weather practical solid-state batteries.

The energy content of secondary batteries is often limited by the charge carriers available in the system. Here, the authors employed an anion acceptor cathode for simultaneous use of electrolyte anions and cations as effective charge carriers in solid polymer electrolytes for lithium-based batteries.

Abstract Flexible organic materials that exhibit dynamic ultralong room temperature phosphorescence (DURTP) via photoactivation have attracted increasing research interest for their fascinating functions of reversibly writing-reading-erasing graphic information in the form of a long afterglow. However, due to the existence of a nonnegligible activation threshold for the initial exposure dose, the display mode of these materials has thus far been limited to binary patterns. By resorting to halogen element doping of carbon dots (CDs) to enhance intersystem crossing and reduce the activation threshold, we were able to produce, for the first time, a transparent, flexible, and fully programmable DURTP composite film with a reliable grayscale display capacity. Examples of promising applications in UV photography and highly confidential steganography were constructed, partially demonstrating the broad future applications of this material as a programmable platform with a high optical information density.

Controlling the charge transfer between radical anions and cations is a promising way to tune the emission mechanism in electrochemiluminescence (ECL) systems. Here, the authors report a donor-acceptor based covalent organic framework, using triphenylamine and triazine building units, and demonstrate efficient ECL based on an adjustable intrareticular charge transfer.

Based on 22 nm ultrathin-body fully depleted silicon-on-insulator (UTB-FDSOI) transistors, we propose a novel structure of buried insulator layer aiming at total ionizing dose (TID) effects mitigation. Using technology computer-aided design (TCAD) tools, we focus on the influences of UTB-FDSOI devices with different structures and parameters on TID effects, such as buried oxide (BOX) layer thickness, buried Si3N4 layer, and electron traps. First, we construct four types of UTB-FDSOI N-type metal-oxide semiconductor (NMOS) devices numerically, in which the novel device features a buried silicon-oxidenitride-oxide-silicon (SONOS) structure. Then, the transfer characteristics and trapped charge distribution of these devices are studied under different irradiation doses. It is known that a thinner BOX layer could lead to slighter TID effects, and the buried nitride layer and the electron traps could reduce the TID-induced leakage current (Ioff). Employing these optimization structures for TID effects hardness, the innovative transistor shows much better resistance against TID effects compared to the conventional FDSOI transistors. In addition, the threshold voltage of the novel device could be increased by applying appropriate bias conditions, similar to those of programming SONOS memory, so that the Ioff caused by TID irradiation further decreases. These results provide useful guidance for designers to achieve TID effects mitigation of SOI devices.

Single-bit upset (SBU) and multiple-cell upset (MCU) features of high-speed QDR-SRAM are revealed under the 14 MeV neutron irradiation. By comparing with the high-altitude real atmosphere test results directly, the equivalence of 14 MeV neutrons for atmospheric neutron-induced single event effect (SEE) evaluation is investigated. It is found that, compared with the 65 nm planar device, the SBU cross-section of 14 nm FinFET SRAM decreases to 1/58 and the proportion of MCU shows little difference, which results from the narrow channel between fin and substrate caused by shallow channel isolation in 14 nm FinFET process, and the charge sharing effect between fins is weakened. The SBU and MCU cross-sections under the 14 MeV neutron irradiation are underestimated by 22.8% and 85.7%, respectively. Besides, the probability and maximum size of MCU are both smaller than those in the real atmosphere. The MCU shape tends to be vertical, resulting from the smaller vertical spacing of sensitive volumes (about 100 nm). Further Monte-Carlo simulation shows that the total yield of secondary ions produced by atmospheric neutrons is higher than that produced by 14 MeV neutrons. Major Components of the “useful” products are p, Si, α, etc., which are the main cause of SBU events. Besides, compared with 14 MeV neutrons, atmospheric neutrons generate more kinds of secondary ions in the SV within the scope from p to W, and the diverse high-Z elements, such as W, Ta, Hf, etc., are the main cause of MCU events. Moreover, the maximum LET of secondary ions can reach 31.5 MeV·cm2/mg. The equivalence of using 14 MeV neutrons for atmospheric neutron-induced SEE evaluation is closely related to the critical charge of the device under test.

The outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 virus caused more than 80,155,187 confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide, which has posed a serious threat to global public health and the economy. The development of vaccines and discovery of novel drugs for COVID-19 are urgently needed. Although the FDA-approved SARS-CoV-2 vaccines has been launched in many countries recently, the strength of safety, stringent storage condition and the possibly short-term immunized efficacy remain as the major challenges in the popularity and recognition of using vaccines against SARS-CoV-2. With the spike-receptor binding domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV-2 being responsible for binding to human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor (hACE2), ACE2 is identified as the receptor for the entry and viral infection of SARS-CoV-2. In this study, molecular docking and biolayer interferometry (BLI) binding assay were adopted to determine the direct molecular interactions between natural small-molecule, 1,2,3,4,6-Pentagalloyl glucose (PGG) and the spike-RBD of the SARS-CoV-2. Our results showed that PGG preferentially binds to a pocket that contains residues Glu 340 to Lys 356 of spike-RBD with a relatively low binding energy of -8 kcal/mol. BLI assay further confirmed that PGG exhibits a relatively strong binding affinity to SARS-CoV-2-RBD protein in comparison to hACE2. In addition, both ELISA and immunocytochemistry assay proved that PGG blocks SARS-CoV-2-RBD binding to hACE2 dose dependently in cellular level. Notably, PGG was confirmed to abolish the infectious property of RBD-pseudotyped lentivirus in hACE2 overexpressing HEK293 cells, which mimicked the entry of wild type SARS-CoV-2 virus in human host cells. Finally, maximal tolerated dose (MTD) studies revealed that up to 200 mg/kg/day of PGG was confirmed orally safe in mice. Our findings suggest that PGG may be a safe and potential antiviral agent against the COVID-19 by blockade the fusion of SARS-CoV-2 spike-RBD to hACE2 receptors. Therefore, PGG may be considered as a safe and natural antiviral agent for its possible preventive application in daily anti-virus hygienic products such as a disinfectant spray or face mask.

Despite their potential application as drug-delivery carriers, covalent organic frameworks (COF) have been only evaluated in vitro. Here the authors show by real time tracking in vivo the cell uptake of anticancer-drug loaded and water dispersible COFs.

Background: Neuropathic pain is a type of chronic pain that results from dysfunctions of the somatosensory nerve system. This study was aimed to investigate the effect of mTOR/VEGF signaling pathway on neuropathic pain and the regulation mechanisms of miR-183 on AMPA Receptors through mTOR/VEGF signaling pathway. Methods: Chronic compress injury (CCI) model was constructed in the current study, we used paw withdrawal mechanic threshold (PWMT) and paw withdrawal thermal latency (PWTL) to observe mTOR and VEGF receptors. Dual luciferase analysis, western blot and qRT-PCR were also applied to complete this experiment. Results: It was observed that the inhibition of mTOR and VEGF receptors could significantly relieve neuropathic pain in the CCI model. Moreover mTOR was confirmed as the direct target of miR-183. Furthermore, miR-183 could modulate VEGF through regulating mTOR expressions. We also found the expressions of AMPA receptors (i.e. GluR1 and GluR2), located in the downstream of mTOR/VEGF signaling pathway, were significantly upregulated when miR-183 was downregulated or when the mTOR/VEGF signaling pathway was activated. Conclusion: The inhibition of mTOR or VEGF receptors can significantly relieve neuropathic pain, and the upregulation of miR-183 can suppress AMPA receptors by inhibiting mTOR/VEGF pathway.

Enhancement of the fluidity and mechanical performance of grouting materials has proven to be an effective method of seepage prevention in geotechnical engineering. In this research, a microfine-cement-based grout mixed with microfine fly ash (MFA), nano-CaCO3 (NC), and superplasticizer (SP) was designed to improve the rheological and mechanical properties of grouting materials, and the particle size distribution, fluidity, spreading ability, bleed capacity, setting time, and mechanical properties were studied. A water/solid (W/S) ratio of 1.2 was selected, and the contents of MFA, NC, and SP by mass of microfine cement (MC) were 0–40%, 0–2.0%, and 1.5%, respectively. The results showed that MFA and 1.5% SP improved the fluidity and spreading ability of fresh grouts, while prolonging the setting time. The addition of NC can increase the yield stress and plastic viscosity and decrease the fluidity and spreading ability; nevertheless, it obviously enhances the stability and shortens the setting time of grouts. The addition of MFA and 1.5% SP reduced the compressive strength of hardened grouts; however, the addition of NC improved the mechanical properties.

This work investigates the responses of the fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI) Hall sensors to the three main types of irradiation ionization effects, including the total ionizing dose (TID), transient dose rate (TDR), and single event transient (SET) effects. Via 3D technology computer aided design (TCAD) simulations with insulator fixed charge, radiation, heavy ion, and galvanomagnetic transport models, the performances of the transient current, Hall voltage, sensitivity, efficiency, and offset voltage have been evaluated. For the TID effect, the Hall voltage and sensitivity of the sensor increase after irradiation, while the efficiency and offset voltage decrease. As for TDR and SET effects, when the energy deposited on the sensor during a nuclear explosion or heavy ion injection is small, the transient Hall voltage of the off-state sensor first decreases and then returns to the initial value. However, if the energy deposition is large, the transient Hall voltage first decreases, then increases to a peak value and decreases to a fixed value. The physical mechanisms that produce different trends in the transient Hall voltage have been analyzed in detail.

This work investigates the behavior of fully depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI) Hall sensors with an emphasis on their physical parameters, namely the aspect ratio, doping concentration, and thicknesses. Via 3D-technology computer aided design (TCAD) simulations with a galvanomagnetic transport model, the performances of the Hall voltage, sensitivity, efficiency, offset voltage, and temperature characteristics are evaluated. The optimal structure of the sensor in the simulation has a sensitivity of 86.5 mV/T and an efficiency of 218.9 V/WT at the bias voltage of 5 V. In addition, the effects of bias, such as the gate voltage and substrate voltage, on performance are also simulated and analyzed. Optimal structure and bias design rules are proposed, as are some adjustable trade-offs that can be chosen by designers to meet their own Hall sensor requirements.

The development of white-light-emitting diodes (w-LEDs) makes it meaningful to develop novel high-performance phosphors excited by blue light. Herein, BiOCl:Pr3+ green-yellow phosphors were prepared via a high-temperature solid-state reaction method. The crystal structure, luminescent properties, lifetime, thermal quenching behavior, and quantum yield were studied in detail. The BiOCl:Pr3+ phosphors presented several emission peaks located in green and red regions, under excitation at 453 nm. The CIE coordinates could be tuned along with the changed doping concentration with fair luminescence efficiency. The results also indicated that the optimized doping concentration of Pr3+ ions was at x = 0.0075 because of the concentration quenching behavior resulting from an intense exchange effect. When the temperature reached 150 °C, the intensity of the emission peak at 495 nm could remain at 78% of that at room temperature. The activation energy of 0.20 eV also confirmed that the BiOCl:Pr3+ phosphor exhibited good thermal stability. All these results indicate that the prepared products have potential to be used as a high-performance green-yellow-light-emitting phosphor for blue-light-based w-LEDs.

A three-dimensional hierarchical sandwich-type graphene sheet-sulfur/carbon (GS-S/CZIF8-D) composite for use in a cathode for a lithium sulfur (Li-S) battery has been prepared by an ultrasonic method. The microporous carbon host was prepared by a one-step pyrolysis of Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework-8 (ZIF-8), a typical zinc-containing metal organic framework (MOF), which offers a tunable porous structure into which electro-active sulfur can be diffused. The thin graphene sheet, wrapped around the sulfur/zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 derived carbon (S/CZIF8-D) composite, has excellent electrical conductivity and mechanical flexibility, thus facilitating rapid electron transport and accommodating the changes in volume of the sulfur electrode. Compared with the S/CZIF8-D sample, Li-S batteries with the GS-S/CZIF8-D composite cathode showed enhanced capacity, improved electrochemical stability, and relatively high columbic efficiency by taking advantage of the synergistic effects of the microporous carbon from ZIF-8 and a highly interconnected graphene network. Our results demonstrate that a porous MOF-derived scaffold with a wrapped graphene conductive network structure is a potentially efficient design for a battery electrode that can meet the challenge arising from low conductivity and volume change.

Nitrogen-doped carbon dots are introduced as a novel substrate suitable for enzyme immobilization in electrochemical detection metods. Nitrogen-doped carbon dots are easily synthesised from polyacrylamide in just one step. With the help of the amino group on chitosan, glucose oxidase is immobilized on nitrogen-doped carbon dots-modified carbon glassy electrodes by amino-carboxyl reactions. The nitrogen-induced charge delocalization at nitrogen-doped carbon dots can enhance the electrocatalytic activity toward the reduction of O2. The specific amino-carboxyl reaction provides strong and stable immobilization of GOx on electrodes. The developed biosensor responds efficiently to the presence of glucose in serum samples over the concentration range from 1 to 12 mM with a detection limit of 0.25 mM. This novel biosensor has good reproducibility and stability, and is highly selective for glucose determination under physiological conditions. These results indicate that N-doped quantum dots represent a novel candidate material for the construction of electrochemical biosensors.

Uncontrolled transport of anions leads to many issues, including concentration polarization, excessive interface side reactions, and space charge-induced lithium dendrites at the anode/electrolyte interface, which severely deteriorates the cycling stability of lithium metal batteries. Herein, an asymmetrical polymer electrolyte modified by a boron-containing single-ion conductor (LiPVAOB), is designed to inhibit the nonuniform aggregation of free anions in the vicinity of the lithium anode through the repulsion effect improving the lithium-ion transference number to 0.63. This LiPVAOB exerts a repulsion interaction with free anions even at a long distance and a selective effect for free anions transport, which diminishes uneven aggregation of free anions at the interface and suppresses space charges-induced lithium dendrites growth. Consequently, the assembled Li||Li cell delivers an ultra-long cycle for over 5400 h. The Li||LiFePO4 cell exhibits outstanding cycle performance with a capacity retention of 93% over 4500 cycles. In particular, the assembled high-voltage Li||Li1.2Ni0.2Mn0.6O2 cell (charged to 4.8 V) exhibits good cycle stability with a high specific capacity of 245 mAh g-1. This designed polymer electrolyte provides a promising strategy for regulating ion transport to inhibit space charge-induced lithium dendrite growth for high-performance lithium metal batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACTThe paradox between massive rural revitalisation and cultural preservation calls for new sustainable development strategies. How to strike a balance between them has become a research hotspot especially for traditional villages in developing countries. Through data collection, field research and analogy, this article explores the spatial prototypes of mandala, Mount Meru and ‘zhai xin’ (central stronghold) concept, and points out the coupling relationship between spatial patterns and Tibetan settlements and its influences on settlement layout, architectural forms, and local customs, which includes the cultural philosophy of spatial patterns, the structure of human settlements, village layout, road network planning, and core node building complex. Taking Ge’en Tibetan Village revamping program in Aba Tibetan and Qiang County as an illustrative example, this design strategy will not only improve local residents’ living standards, but also helps to retain the cultural essence of traditional villages, thereby diving the development of tourism and other tertiary industries. Based on cultural heritage preservation, this work offers new perspectives on land use planning and architectural design for the revitalisation and sustainable development of traditional village in under-developed areas.

Abstract In modern electronic warfare, multi‐function radar work mode recognition is increasingly crucial. However, the challenges posed by complex electromagnetic environments, such as lost pulses, spurious pulses, and measurement errors, along with the reliance of traditional multi‐task learning strategies on clean samples, make it difficult for existing algorithms to achieve satisfactory recognition performance in real‐world scenarios. To address these issues, this paper introduces a novel residual shrinkage reconstruction recurrent neural network (RS‐RRNN). The network uses a Gated Recurrent Unit as its backbone to extract temporal features and enhances feature extraction by reconstructing the GRU's input, while also reducing dependence on clean samples. These features are then processed through a residual shrinkage structure to reduce noise, which significantly improves the model's robustness in non‐ideal scenarios. Simulations demonstrate that RS‐RNN has better performances in accuracy and robustness than existing networks.

Abstract Background Precise preoperative localization is crucial for improving the success rate and reducing the duration of thoracoscopic surgeries. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and patient perception of the four-hook localization needle compared to the traditional double-hook localization needle in the localization of pulmonary nodules. Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of 207 patients who underwent video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS). Seventy-six patients used a four-hook localization needle preoperatively, while 121 patients used the traditional double-hook needle. Propensity score matching was employed to balance the baseline characteristics of the two groups and minimize confounding bias. We compared the surgery success rate, surgical field success rate, complication rate, and post-localization respiratory pain score between the two groups. Results Both localization methods achieved a 100% success rate. The four-hook needle had a statistically significant shorter localization time (20.00 min vs. 21.00 min, P = 0.046) and a lower preoperative displacement rate (5.81% vs. 17.36%, P = 0.014) compared to the double-hook needle. Both before and after propensity score matching, the postoperative respiratory pain score was significantly lower in the four-hook group compared to the double-hook group (P

Abstract Pigs play a central role in human livelihoods in China, but a lack of systematic large-scale whole-genome sequencing of Chinese domestic pigs has hindered genetic studies. Here, we present the 1000 Chinese Indigenous Pig Genomes Project sequencing dataset, comprising 1011 indigenous individuals from 50 pig populations covering approximately two-thirds of China’s administrative divisions. Based on the deep sequencing (~25.95×) of these pigs, we identify 63.62 million genomic variants, and provide a population-specific reference panel to improve the imputation performance of Chinese domestic pig populations. Using a combination of methods, we detect an ancient admixture event related to a human immigration climax in the 13th century, which may have contributed to the formation of southeast-central Chinese pig populations. Analyzing the haplotypes of the Y chromosome shows that the indigenous populations residing around the Taihu Lake Basin exhibit a unique haplotype. Furthermore, we find a 13 kb region in the THSD7A gene that may relate to high-altitude adaptation, and a 0.47 Mb region on chromosome 7 that is significantly associated with body size traits. These results highlight the value of our genomic resource in facilitating genomic architecture and complex traits studies in pigs.

Abstract Background This study aimed to develop and validate an ultrasound radiomics model for distinguishing invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) from ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) by combining intratumoral and peritumoral features. Methods Retrospective analysis was performed on 454 patients from Chengzhong Hospital. The patients were randomly divided in accordance with a ratio of 8:2 into a training group (363 cases) and validation group (91 cases). In addition, 175 patients from Yanghu Hospital were used as the external test group. The peritumoral ranges were set to 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 mm. Mann–Whitney U-test, recursive feature elimination, and a least absolute shrinkage and selection operator were used to in the dimension reduction of the radiomics features and clinical knowledge, and machine learning logistic regression classifiers were utilized to construct the diagnostic model. The area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristics, accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity were used to evaluate the model performance. Results By combining peritumoral features of different ranges, the AUC of the radiomics model was improved in the validation and test groups. In the validation group, the maximum increase in AUC was 9.7% (P = 0.031, AUC = 0.803) when the peritumoral range was 8 mm. Similarly, when the peritumoral range was only 8 mm in the test group, the maximum increase in AUC was 4.9% (P = 0.005, AUC = 0.770). In this study, the best prediction performance was achieved when the peritumoral range was only 8 mm. Conclusions The ultrasound-based radiomics model that combined intratumoral and peritumoral features exhibits good ability to distinguish between IDC and DCIS. The selection of peritumoral range size exerts an important effect on the prediction performance of the radiomics model.