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Nitrogen (N) addition is commonly employed to enhance wheat production, and the effectiveness is strongly influenced by site-specific factors encompassing environmental conditions and crop management practices. However, the current understanding fails to adequately account for the intricate and variable interactions among these factors. Consequently, we conducted a global meta-analysis to quantify the combined contributions of these factors to wheat yield, grain protein content (GPC), and water productivity (WP) and provide recommendations for optimizing N management. The results revealed a significant improvement in grain yield (14.85%), GPC (6.62%), and WP (10.79%) following the application of N. Moreover, higher N addition rates, the utilization of coated N fertilizer, post-anthesis fertilization, and multiple N applications exhibited enhanced outcomes in terms of yield, GPC, and WP in wheat systems. It was observed that applying 100–200 kg/ha of N was the optimal rate for maximizing yield, GPC, and WP. Medium soil texture and humid climate conditions showed a more pronounced increase in yield in response to N addition. Additionally, wheat yield demonstrated a stronger response to N addition benefits when the annual temperature was below 14 °C, while GPC showed a higher increase with temperatures exceeding 14 °C. Furthermore, adopting common N fertilization practices alongside irrigation and implementing pre-anthesis N addition in medium soil texture and humid climate conditions also contributed to achieving optimal wheat performance. The finding of this study serves as a guideline to support on-site N addition practice for wheat and to offer a reference to N management policy design across specific site conditions.

Oasis development relies on water supply and the supply mode can be divided into artesian piloting water (APW) mode and high-lift pumping water (HPW) mode. APW mode relies on gravity to retain and intercept water. HPW mode uses cascade pumping irrigation projects to transport water by up to 470 m, mainly serving extremely arid areas. A comprehensive analysis of the water-energy-food-ecology (WEFE) nexus to optimize water use management is conducive to the sustainable development of an oasis. Due to differences in water supply difficulty and cost, there are significant differences in socioeconomic development, water management, and drought adaptation between the APW and HPW oases. Taking the APW and HPW regions of Ningxia in the Yellow River Basin as the study areas, this study constructed a Bayesian network (BN) to quantify the causality and uncertainty in the WEFE nexus to analyze the development status and the evolving characteristics of the human-water relationships of the two regions. Scenario simulation based on BN quantified the impact and difference of management measures on the WEFE nexus in the two regions. During 2000–2020, as the APW region developed, agricultural water use decreased by 36%, showing great water-saving potential, while the development of the HPW region experienced water shortages. Excessive and inefficient agricultural water use is the main factor affecting the sustainability in both regions. Improving irrigation coefficient is the most effective way to reduce agricultural water use, and there is still a large adjustment space in agricultural water prices, channel lining rates and drip irrigation popularization areas to improve this coefficient. The adjustment of the planting structure will have great water-saving potential in the APW region, such as reducing rice area to 20,000 ha will save 5 × 108 m3 of water, but the potential is limited in the HPW area dominated by drought-resistant crops. In addition, improving wastewater treatment and ecological water use will effectively improve surface water quality and the ecological environment in the APW and HPW regions.

Abstract Background We reported on a case involving an older patient with HSV-1 encephalitis who simultaneously experienced the onset of peripheral nerve symptoms associated with the presence of anti-GM3 immunoglobulin G (IgG). Case presentation A 77-year-old male was admitted to hospital with high fever, weakness of both lower limbs, and an unstable gait. A CSF test revealed a strikingly increased protein level (1,002 mg/L, normative values: 150-450 mg/L) and MRI revealed hyper-signal lesions in the right temporal lobe, right hippocampus, right insula, and right cingulate gyrus. The CSF was positive for HSV PCR (HSV-1,17870). In addition, the serum samples were positive for CASPR2 antibodies (antibody titer: 1/10) and anti-GM3 immunoglobulin G (IgG) (+). The patient was diagnosed with HSV-1-induced peripheral nerve symptoms that were associated with encephalitis and the presence of anti-GM3 IgG and anti-CASPR2 antibodies. The patient had received included intravenous immunoglobulin, intravenous acyclovir, and corticosteroids therapy. At the one-year follow-up examination, he had regained the necessary skills associated with daily life. Conclusions Herpes simplex virus infection often induces encephalitis, and reaction to the virus may trigger an autoimmune response. Early diagnosis and treatment can avoid the progression of the disease to include autoimmune encephalitis.

Abstract Activation of HER2/ErbB2 coincides with escape from ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) premalignancy and disrupts 3D organization of cultured breast-epithelial spheroids. The 3D phenotype is infrequent, however, and mechanisms for its incomplete penetrance have been elusive. Using inducible HER2/ErbB2–EGFR/ErbB1 heterodimers, we match phenotype penetrance to the frequency of co-occurring transcriptomic changes and uncover a reconfiguration in the karyopherin network regulating ErbB nucleocytoplasmic transport. Induction of the exportin CSE1L inhibits nuclear accumulation of ErbBs, whereas nuclear ErbBs silence the importin KPNA1 by inducing miR-205. When these negative feedbacks are incorporated into a validated systems model of nucleocytoplasmic transport, steady-state localization of ErbB cargo becomes ultrasensitive to initial CSE1L abundance. Erbb2-driven carcinomas with Cse1l deficiency outgrow less irregularly from mammary ducts, and NLS-attenuating mutants or variants of HER2 favor escape in 3D culture. We conclude here that adaptive nucleocytoplasmic relocalization of HER2 creates a systems-level molecular switch at the premalignant-to-malignant transition.

Flight control law parameters should be designed to provide a sufficient stability margin for closed-loop aircraft while ensuring command tracking accuracy. The singular perturbation margin (SPM) and generalized gain margin (GGM), which are generalizations of the classical phase margin (PM) and gain margin (GM), respectively, from a linear time-invariant system to a nonlinear time-varying system, can be used to quantitatively characterize the maximum singular perturbation and regular perturbation allowed to maintain system stability. In this paper, the sliding mode flight control structure and the design parameters of the sliding mode control law are first introduced for an oblique wing aircraft (OWA), the SPM-gauge and GGM-gauge are added to this closed-loop aircraft model, and the analytical expressions of the SPM and GGM are derived with respect to the control law parameters. Second, the stability margin design requirements of closed-loop aircraft in flight control system design specifications are converted into limitations on the SPM and GGM to determine the value range of the flight control law parameters. Then, with the goal of reducing the sum of the approaching time and sliding time, the parameter value combination is selected within the control law parameter range that meets the stability margin requirements, thus forming a flight control law design method for OWA during the wing skewing process. Finally, the designed control law parameters are applied to a sample OWA, and the stability margin of closed-loop aircraft during the wing skewing process is verified.

The decrease in lake area has garnered significant attention within the global ecological community, prompting extensive research in remote sensing and computer vision to accurately segment lake areas from satellite images. However, existing image segmentation models suffer from poor generalization performance, the imprecise depiction of water body edges, and the inadequate inclusion of water body segmentation information. To address these limitations and improve the accuracy of water body segmentation in remote sensing images, we propose a novel GEA-MSNet segmentation model. Our model incorporates a global efficient attention module (GEA) and multi-scale feature fusion to enhance the precision of water body delineation. By emphasizing global semantic information, our GEA-MSNet effectively learns image features from remote sensing data, enabling the accurate detection and segmentation of water bodies. This study makes three key contributions: firstly, we introduce the GEA module within the encode framework to aggregate shallow feature semantics for the improved classification accuracy of lake pixels; secondly, we employ a multi-scale feature fusion structure during decoding to expand the acceptance domain for feature extraction while prioritizing water body features in images; thirdly, extensive experiments are conducted on both scene classification datasets and Tibetan Plateau lake datasets with ablation experiments validating the effectiveness of our proposed GEA module and multi-scale feature fusion structure. Ultimately, our GEA-MSNet model demonstrates exceptional performance across multiple datasets with an average intersection ratio union (mIoU) improved to 75.49%, recall enhanced to 83.79%, pixel accuracy (PA) reaching 90.21%, and the f1-score significantly elevated to 83.25%.

Phylogenetic analysis provides crucial insights into the evolutionary relationships and diversification patterns within specific taxonomic groups. In this study, we aimed to identify the phylogenetic relationships and explore the evolutionary history of Stipa using transcriptomic data. Samples of 12 Stipa species were collected from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and Mongolian Plateau, where they are widely distributed, and transcriptome sequencing was performed using their fresh spikelet tissues. Using bidirectional best BLAST analysis, we identified two sets of one-to-one orthologous genes shared between Brachypodium distachyon and the 12 Stipa species (9397 and 2300 sequences, respectively), as well as 62 single-copy orthologous genes. Concatenation methods were used to construct a robust phylogenetic tree for Stipa, and molecular dating was used to estimate divergence times. Our results indicated that Stipa originated during the Pliocene. In approximately 0.8 million years, it diverged into two major clades each consisting of native species from the Mongolian Plateau and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, respectively. The evolution of Stipa was closely associated with the development of northern grassland landscapes. Important external factors such as global cooling during the Pleistocene, changes in monsoonal circulation, and tectonic movements contributed to the diversification of Stipa. This study provided a highly supported phylogenetic framework for understanding the evolution of the Stipa genus in China and insights into its diversification patterns.

Common reed (Phragmites australis) is a widespread grass species that exhibits a high degree of intraspecific variation for functional traits along environmental gradients. However, the mechanisms underlying intraspecific variation and adaptation strategies in response to environmental gradients on a regional scale remain poorly understood. In this study, we measured leaf, stem, and root traits of common reed in the lakeshore wetlands of the arid and semi-arid regions of the Inner Mongolia Plateau aiming to reveal the regional-scale variation for functional traits in this species, and the corresponding potentially influencing factors. Additionally, we aimed to reveal the ecological adaptation strategies of common reed in different regions using the plant economics spectrum (PES) theory. The results showed that functional-trait variation followed significant latitudinal and longitudinal patterns. Furthermore, we found that these variations are primarily driven by temperature-mediated climatic differences, such as aridity, induced by geographical distance. In contrast, soil properties and the combined effects of climate and soil had relatively minor effects on such properties. In the case of common reed, the PES theory applies to the functional traits at the organ, as well as at the whole-plant level, and different ecological adaptation strategies across arid and semi-arid regions were confirmed. The extent of utilization and assimilation of resources by this species in arid regions was a conservative one, whereas in semi-arid regions, an acquisition strategy prevailed. This study provides new insights into intraspecific variations for functional traits in common reed on a regional scale, the driving factors involved, and the ecological adaptation strategies used by the species. Moreover, it provided a theoretical foundation for wetland biodiversity conservation and ecological restoration.

The present study was developed to explore nitrogen removal performance and associated microbial mechanisms of action in vertical flow constructed wetlands (VFCWs) when using external carbon sources. These analyses ultimately revealed that alkali-soaked Phragmites australis (P. australis) could serve as an effective plant carbon source, exhibiting the lower levels of total nitrogen (TN) release and the highest chemical oxygen demand (COD) of all tested carbon sources. Nitrogen removal efficiency improved following the addition of plant carbon sources, and under carbon/nitrogen (C/N) rations of 2, 4, 5, and 7, the VFCW system was able to remove 43.69%–75.76% TN, with the highest removal rate being observed at a C/N of 5. The abundance of denitrifying microorganisms such as Thiobaillus and Halomonas were also more enriched in VFCW1 than VFCW0, with stronger correlations in the microbial network community. A qPCR approach was used to analyze functional genes involved in denitrification, revealing that the addition of plant carbon sources was associated with increases in total gene abundance and the abundance of the denitrifying gene nirS, whereas no corresponding increase in amoA or nxrA abundance was observed. Higher total gene, amoA, and nxrA abundance were observed in the upper levels of these VFCW systems as compared to the lower layers, whereas nirS exhibited the opposite abundance pattern. Overall, these findings suggested that short-range denitrification is likely to be the primary denitrification process active in this VFCW system.

More physical qubits and qubit connections integrated on a superconducting quantum processor can improve the ability to execute quantum programs, but on the other hand, they might increase the probability of frequency collisions. Considering a performance and frequency collisions trade-off, it is a feasible method to optimize processor architecture aiming at running specific quantum programs. To this end, we propose a method for designing superconducting quantum processor architectures for the purpose of running specific quantum programs. Different from existing methods, our method is mainly based on graph theory to optimize processor architecture design. First, we convert the trade-off problem into the optimization of the distance between two points as well as the maximum degree in the processor architecture graph. Second, we consider the actual physical routing constraints and build a mathematical model for the optimization problem. Finally, we propose an automatic processor architecture design flow based on the mathematical model, which is implemented with an improved genetic algorithm. To show the effectiveness of our method, we selected sixteen quantum programs with different qubit numbers and different functions for comparison. Simulation results show that the architecture schemes of our method outperform IBM’s general-purpose square lattice architecture schemes. Compared to the general-purpose architecture schemes, the architecture schemes of our method have an average performance improvement of 15.61% and a minimum reduction of 21.33% in the probability of frequency collisions. Furthermore, in most of the selected quantum programs, our architecture schemes perform better than the eff-5-freq’s architecture schemes, with an average 6.58% improvement in performance and a minimum 6.45% reduction in the probability of frequency collisions. Therefore, our method can provide superconducting quantum processor architecture design with better performance and lower probability of frequency collisions for quantum programs.

Micro short circuit (MSC) fault diagnosis is thought functional in preventing thermal runaway of lithium-ion battery packs. Inconsistencies in the initial state-of-charge and aging state inevitably exist among cells of a battery pack. The existing method for MSC diagnosis disregards the symptoms originating from cell-to-cell inconsistency, which may lead to misdiagnosing inconsistent cells as MSC cells and vice versa. This work presents a method for detecting and quantitatively diagnosing MSC faults in lithium-ion battery packs, while taking cell inconsistency into consideration. Initially, the median incremental capacity (IC), derived based on ranking the terminal voltages of cells, is used as a benchmark representing the state of normal cells. Subsequently, the correlation coefficients between the ICs of individual cells and their median IC are calculated in both the time and frequency domains, as to distinguish the normal, inconsistent, and MSC cells. After detecting the MSC cell, an algorithm, which is based on a recursive least squares algorithm with forgetting factor and an adaptive H∞ Kalman filtering, is designed to calculate the short-circuit resistance online. The experimental results demonstrate that the short-circuit resistance estimated by the proposed algorithm exhibits rapid convergence to the actual values, thereby confirming the utility of the proposed algorithm in real-life contexts.

IntroductionStaphylococcus aureus infection has long been a serious concern in the medical field, with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) posing a considerable challenge to public health. Given the escalating bacterial resistance and the favorable biosafety and environmental properties of phages, the resurgence of phage therapy offers a promising alternative to antibiotics.MethodsIn this study, we isolated and characterized a MRSA phage named StAP1 from a Chinese hospital. Phenotypic and molecular analyses revealed its broad-spectrum characteristics, genomic background, and potential application in MRSA infection treatment.ResultsMorphological examination classified the phage as a member of the Herelleviridae phage family, displaying a typical hexagonal head and a slender fibrous tail. Genomic analysis unveiled a size of ~144,705 bp for the StAP1 genome, encompassing 215 open reading frames (ORFs). The one-step growth curve demonstrated a 20-min incubation period for the phage, with an optimal multiplicity of infection (MOI) of 0.1. Moreover, StAP1 exhibited stability across a wide range of temperatures and pH levels. Further investigation of its broad-spectrum characteristics confirmed its ability to effectively infect all staphylococcal cassette chromosomal mec (SCCmec) types found in MRSA strains, notably displaying a remarkable lysis rate of 76.7% against the prevalent ST239 strain in China. In vivo studies show cased significant efficacy of the StAP1 phage against MRSA infection.DiscussionOverall, StAP1 phage presents a broad infection spectrum and exhibits strong lytic effects on various MRSA strains, highlighting its tremendous potential as a powerful tool for MRSA infection treatment.

Ecological integrity can satisfactorily reflect the comprehensive quality of ecosystems and has become a useful tool for evaluating the ecological environment. Ecological integrity evaluation has been widely applied in various ecosystems. Conducted in the Alxa League, the study established an ecological integrity index based on ecosystem structure, function and resilience and evaluated the ecological integrity of the study area in 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020. Using hotspots spatial analyses, we analyzed the temporal and spatial variation of ecological integrity index during the study period. The main contributing factors affecting ecological integrity were identified with the help of the geographical detector model. Our results showed that: (1) Ecosystem structure, function and resilience in the Alxa League had obvious spatial heterogeneity and barely changed from 1990 to 2020. (2) Half of the area had a poor ecological integrity index, and the decrease in ecological integrity mainly occurred in the Alxa Left Banner. (3) Among the factors affecting the ecological integrity index, land use intensity was the major driving factor, and desertification was a key reason leading to the decrease. Ecological integrity evaluation can increase public awareness of desert conditions and guide policy makers to make reasonable and sustainable policies or strategies to protect and restore desert ecosystems.

In the context of cancer expansion, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays an essential role in driving invasion and metastasis potential of cancer cells. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs)-derived factors involved in the initiation and progression of EMT. We assess the role of M2 macrophage in suppressing lung tumors of a natural compound (−)-Guaiol by using macrophage depleted model. Bone marrow-derived monocytes (BMDMs) were extracted and induced to M2-like phenotype in vitro. The co-culture of M2 macrophage and lung cancer cells was established to observe that inhibition of lung tumor growth by (−)-Guaiol requires presence of macrophages. This suppressed effect of (−)-Guaiol was alleviated when mice macrophage was depleted. The expression of M2-like macrophages was strongly reduced by (−)-Guaiol treated mice, but not the changes of M1-like macrophages. In vitro studies, we demonstrated that (−)-Guaiol suppressed M2 polarization of BMDMs, as well as migration, invasion, and EMT of lung cancer cells in co-culture. M2 macrophage-derived interleukin 10 (IL-10) was investigated as a critical signaling molecule between M2 macrophage and lung cancer cells. We have also verified that the mechanism of (−)-Guaiol inhibiting the EMT process of lung cancer is related to the activation of IL-10-mediated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3). These results suggested that the suppressive effect role of (−)-Guaiol in M2 macrophage promoting EMT of lung cancer, which was associated with inhibition of IL-10 mediated STAT3 signaling pathway.

IntroductionYu–Ye Tang (YYT) is a classical formula widely used in treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, the specific mechanism of YYT in treating T2DM is not clear.MethodsThe aim of this study was to investigate the therapeutic effect of YYT on T2DM by establishing a rat model of T2DM. The mechanism of action of YYT was also explored through investigating gut microbiota and serum metabolites.ResultsThe results indicated YYT had significant therapeutic effects on T2DM. Moreover, YYT could increase the abundance of Lactobacillus, Candidatus_Saccharimonas, UCG-005, Bacteroides and Blautia while decrease the abundance of and Allobaculum and Desulfovibrio in gut microbiota of T2DM rats. Nontargeted metabolomics analysis showed YYT treatment could regulate arachidonic acid metabolism, alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism, arginine and proline metabolism, glycerophospholipid metabolism, pentose and glucuronate interconversions, phenylalanine metabolism, steroid hormone biosynthesis, terpenoid backbone biosynthesis, tryptophan metabolism, and tyrosine metabolism in T2DM rats.DiscussionIn conclusion, our research showed that YYT has a wide range of therapeutic effects on T2DM rats, including antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects. Furthermore, YYT corrected the altered gut microbiota and serum metabolites in T2DM rats. This study suggests that YYT may have a therapeutic impact on T2DM by regulating gut microbiota and modulating tryptophan and glycerophospholipid metabolism, which are potential key pathways in treating T2DM.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is one of the main complications of diabetes. However, effective therapy to block or slow down the progression of DN is still lacking. San-Huang-Yi-Shen capsule (SHYS) has been shown to significantly improve renal function and delay the progression of DN. However, the mechanism of SHYS on DN is still unclear. In this study, we established a mouse model of DN. Then, we investigated the anti-ferroptotic effects of SHYS including the reduction of iron overload and the activation of cystine/GSH/GPX4 axis. Finally, we used a GPX4 inhibitor (RSL3) and ferroptosis inhibitor (ferrostatin-1) to determine whether SHYS ameliorates DN through inhibiting ferroptosis. The results showed that SHYS treatment was effective for mice with DN in terms of improving renal function, and reducing inflammation and oxidative stress. Besides, SHYS treatment reduced iron overload and upregulated the expression of cystine/GSH/GPX4 axis-related factors in kidney. Moreover, SHYS exhibited similar therapeutic effect on DN as ferrostatin-1, RSL3 could abolish the therapeutic and anti- ferroptotic effects of SHYS on DN. In conclusion, SHYS can be used to treat mice with DN. Furthermore, SHYS could inhibit ferroptosis in DN through reducing iron overload and upregulating the expression of cystine/GSH/GPX4 axis.

Abstract Background Ribonuclease (RNase T2) plays crucial roles in plant evolution and breeding. However, there have been few studies on the RNase T2 gene family in Ziziphus jujuba Mill., one of important dried fruit tree species. Recently, the released sequences of the reference genome of jujube provide a good chance to perform genome-wide identification and characterization of ZjRNase gene family in the jujube. Results In this study, we identified four members of RNase T2 in jujube distributed on three chromosomes and unassembled chromosomes. They all contained two conserved sites (CASI and CASII). Analysis of the phylogenetic relationships revealed that the RNase T2 genes in jujube could be divided into two groups: ZjRNase1 and ZjRNase2 belonged to class I, while ZjRNase3 and ZjRNase4 belonged to class II. Only ZjRNase1 and ZjRNase2 expression were shown by the jujube fruit transcriptome analysis. So ZjRNase1 and ZjRNase2 were selected functional verification by overexpression transformation of Arabidopsis. The overexpression of these two genes led to an approximately 50% reduction in seed number, which deserve further attention. Moreover, the leaves of the ZjRNase1 overexpression transgenic lines were curled and twisted. Overexpression of ZjRNase2 resulted in shortened and crisp siliques and the production of trichomes, and no seeds were produced. Conclusion In summary, these findings will provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms of low number of hybrid seeds in jujube and a reference for the future molecular breeding of jujube.

Melatonin (MT) plays an important role in plant growth and development, and response to biotic and abiotic stresses. Salt stress is one of the major abiotic stresses affecting plant growth and distribution. Sour jujube mainly grows in mountainous sandy land and faces the threat of salt stress. Thus, to explore whether exogenous MT application could improve the salt stress tolerance of sour jujube and reveal the molecular mechanism behind it, the phenotypic and transcriptomic analyses of different concentrations of MT treatments prior to sodium chloride (NaCl) treatment to sour jujube was investigated. Firstly, exogenous MT treatment has a certain alleviating effect on salt stress induced damage of sour jujube. Transcriptome analysis showed that 6,292, 2,795, and 4,198 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in water treatment (W) vs 400 mmol/L NaCl treatment (Na), W vs 10 µmol/L MT plus 400 mmol/L NaCl treatment (MNa), and Na vs MNa comparative groups, respectively. KEGG enrichment analysis of DEGs showed that multiple metabolic pathways were involved in MT regulated effect on salt stress, including mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway, phosphatidylinositol signaling system, and plant hormone signal transduction pathways etc. In addition, some transcription factor families, such as MYB, WRKY, and NAC, were also activated by exogenous MT treatment under salt stress. The results suggest that MT can improve the tolerance of sour jujube to salt stress mainly through the regulation of MAPK, hormone signaling pathways, and related transcription factors, which could lay the foundation for further study on the molecular mechanisms of how exogenous MT regulates salt stress tolerance in sour jujube.

Traditional distributed generation (DG) planning often only considers a single stakeholder and does not take into account demand response, which fails to take into account the interests of various stakeholders in the market and ignores the regulation capabilities of load and energy storage. Aiming at the above problems, this article proposes an optimal distributed power allocation model that takes into account the interests of distributed power operators, distribution companies and power users, as well as the demand response. Carbon trading mechanism and green certificate trading mechanism are introduced to take into account the carbon emissions during power generation and transmission and the flexibility resources on the energy storage side to establish a multi-principal allocation model that considers the environmental cost of carbon emissions and demand response; the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) comprehensive evaluation idea to maximise the benefits of each subject, and adopt the second-order cone relaxation technique for planning solution. The case analysis results show that the proposed optimal allocation model can effectively balance and improve the income of each subject. Compared with the traditional model, which does not consider energy storage and only maximizes the benefits of DG operators, the comprehensive benefits are improved by 43.7 %, and the consumption capacity of distributed generation is improved. It promotes carbon emission reduction and reduces carbon emissions by 1,243.05 t, which verifies the effectiveness of the proposed model.

Abstract With the increasing awareness of physical examination, the detection rate of pulmonary nodules is gradually increasing. For pulmonary nodules recommended for management by video‐assisted thoracic surgery (VATS), preoperative localization of the nodule is required if its location is difficult to determine intraoperatively by palpation. The computed tomography (CT)‐guided preoperative localization technique is the most widely used method with low operational difficulty and high efficiency, which can include hook wire, microcoil, medical dye, medical surgical adhesive, combined application, and emerging localization techniques according to the material classification. Each method has its corresponding advantages and disadvantages, but there is still a lack of unified guidelines or standards for the selection of CT‐guided preoperative localization methods in clinical practice. This review summarizes the operation precautions, advantages, and shortcomings of the above localization techniques in order to provide references for clinical application.

Background Nephrotic syndrome (NS) and nephrotic-range proteinuria (NRP) are uncommon in IgA nephropathy (IgAN), and their clinicopathology and prognosis have not been discussed. Podocytes may play an important role in both clinical phenotypes.Methods We investigated 119 biopsy-proven IgAN patients with proteinuria over 2 g/d. The patients were divided into three groups according to proteinuria level: the overt proteinuria (OP) group, NS group, and NRP group. In addition, according to the severity of foot process effacement (FPE), the patients were divided into three groups: the segmental FPE (SFPE) group, moderate FPE (MFPE) group, and diffuse FPE (DFPE) group. The outcome was survival from a combined event defined by a doubling of the baseline serum creatinine and a 50% reduction in eGFR or ESRD.Results Compared with the NRP group, patients in the NS group had more severe microscopic hematuria, presented with more severe endocapillary hypercellularity and had a higher percentage of DFPE. The Kaplan–Meier curve showed that MFPE patients had a better outcome in the NRP group

Identity recognition technology is a type of technology that realizes identity verification based on certain biological characteristics. After entering the Internet era, this technology has become a popular research direction in the computer field. In this paper, the image of the tooth print is used as the biological feature to carry out the research on the identification algorithm. This paper adopts the target detection algorithm based on neural network to detect a single tooth imprint area of the target, build a target detection network. The experimental results show that the method has a good segmentation effect on the target area, and the accuracy rate is 91.66%. According to the contour features of the collected tooth print images, a set of tooth pore area ratio feature extraction methods are designed. To objectively evaluate the recognition and classification method, the support vector machine is used as the final classifier. The recognition accuracy rate is 94.09%, and the verification accuracy rate is 94.09%. The test accuracy rate is 91.46%, and the classification effect is excellent. This paper has made a lot of breakthroughs and obvious progress based on the previous research on the tooth impression model.

Aiming at the problem that the puncture drag of the medical suture needle produced in the suture process will cause damage to the soft tissue,and the greater the puncture drag is,the higher the damage degree is,a biomimetic model of low-drag medical suture needle was proposed.The biomimetic prototype of low-drag medical suture needle was constructed,and its needle tip taper/radius and needle body curvature were designed based on the morphological/structural characteristics of the thorn in Ziziphus jujube,and vertical stripe grooves were set on the needle body,forming the biomimetic model of low-drag medical suture needles.LS-DYNA software and Coulomb friction model were used to simulate the process of biomimetic low-drag medical suture needle penetrating skin soft tissue.The results show that the needle body with vertical stripe grooves can reduce the puncture drag of low-drag medical suture needle with the thorn tip taper/radius and the thorn body curvature by 34.24%~58.48%,and can reduce the puncture drag of low-drag medical suture needle with the thorn tip taper/radius by 30.26%~49.86%.The biomimetic low-drag medical suture needles were fabricated and their puncture drag was experimentally tested.In the penetrating process,the puncture drag of biomimetic low-drag medical suture needle was reduced by 43.02%.The results reveal the influence mechanism of the morphological/structural characteristics of medical suture needle on its puncture drag,and provide a theoretical reference for the biomimetic design of low-drag medical suture needle.

Abstract Objectives Relationship between lipid profile and periodontitis has been reported. However, the association between lipid parameters and edentulism is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the association between lipid profile and reported edentulism in the elder population using a national cohort. Methods A total of 3 100 participants aged 65 or above were enrolled in 2011 from China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, which was a national population-based survey. We used adjusted logistics models to investigate the relationship between lipid profile and reported edentulism before and after propensity score matching. Results The mean (SD) age was 71.96 (5.63) years, and 1 581 (51.0%) were men. There were 254 (8.2%) individuals reporting edentulism, and the low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) was significantly higher in the reported edentulism group, compared with the non-edentulism (122.48 vs. 116.91 mg/dl, P = 0.015). In the multivariable model, LDL-C was significantly associated with a higher odds of reported edentulism (adjusted OR [95% CI], 1.004 [1.001–1.008]). In the matched population, LDL-C, non high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, remnant cholesterol, total cholesterol and triglycerides were positively associated with reported edentulism, while HDL-C was negatively associated. Conclusions Lipid profiles are probably associated with edentulism, indicating the interaction between oral health and metabolic status in the elder population.

Desertification in degraded grasslands is manifested through the development of bare sandy patches, which eventually lead to habitat fragmentation. The ability of these bare sandy patches to regenerate naturally through in-situ soil seed banks is not well understood. To fill this knowledge gap, we randomly selected 24 bare sandy patches with areas ranging from 19 to 898 m2 in a desertified grassland of the Horqin sandy land, Northern China to determine whether soil seed bank can be used for natural regeneration of bare sandy patches. Species composition and density of soil seed bank as well as aboveground vegetation composition, abundance and coverage were investigated. We then determined their relationships with in-situ habitat characteristics. Our observations showed that the studied area had low soil seed bank density and species richness, as well as depauperate soil seed bank communities. Consequently, local soil seed bank was not able to provide sufficient seed source for natural regeneration. This was indicated by the relationships between aboveground vegetation, soil seed bank and the in-situ habitat characteristics. For bare patches with an area between 300 m2 and 900 m2, increase the soil seed bank density and species richness should be the main restoration measures. For bare patches with a small area of less than 50 m2, restoration of vegetation density should be the main measure. Our data highlighted that different extents of desertification, indicated by different bare patches, are requiring distinct restoration measures.

Abstract Although there is mounting concern about how high vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and low soil moisture (SM) affect ecosystem productivity, their relative importance is still under debate. Here, we comprehensively quantified the relative impacts of these two factors on ecosystem gross primary production (GPP) using observations from a global network of eddy‐covariance towers and two approaches (sensitivity analysis and linear regression model). Both approaches agree that a higher percentage of sites experience GPP reduction from high VPD than from low SM over the growing season. However, the constraint of high VPD and low SM on GPP reduction is tightly linked with climates and plant functional types. Humid and mesic ecosystems including forests and grasslands are dominated by VPD, while the semi‐arid and arid ecosystems including shrublands and savannas are dominated by SM. The varying dominant role of these two factors on GPP is closely related to plant stomatal behavior, as predicted by a stomatal conductance model. Additionally, we highlight the non‐linear impact of SM on GPP during droughts and the possible underestimation of the SM effects for deep‐rooted plants when only using surface‐layer SM. Our results shed light on a better understanding of the impacts of VPD and SM on vegetation productivity, with important implications for modeling the response and feedback of ecosystem dynamics to current and future climates.

Adenylate cyclase is the key enzyme in the synthesis of cAMP. Now, more and more plant genes which possessing AC function are being identified, but the classification of plant ACs has not yet been systematically studied and the relationship of plant ACs with other existing six classes ACs in animals and microorganisms is still unclear. In this study, we found that 7 of the 15 reported plant ACs with conserved CYTH-like_AC_Ⅳ-like domain were clustered into a group with high confidence (Group Ⅳ), while the other plant ACs were clustered into other three groups with no common domain. In addition, we also found that the Group Ⅳ plant ACs were grouped into an independent and specific class (Class VII), separated from the existing six classes of ACs. The Group Ⅳ plant ACs, compared to the existing six classes of ACs, own unique CYTH-like_AC_Ⅳ-like conserved domain and EXEXK signature motif, characteristic protein tertiary structures, specific subcellular localization and catalytic conditions. In view of the above, we regarded the Group Ⅳ plant ACs as the seventh class of AC (VII AC). This study does the systematic classification of plant ACs which could lay a foundation for further identification and study of the biological functions of the plant-specific VII ACs.

Protecting rare and endangered plants is important for maintaining ecosystem structure and function, conserving biodiversity, and even sustaining national economic growth. However, the effects of habitat characteristics, geographical distribution, and climatic factors on the distribution of rare and endangered plants in China, home to 19.4 % of the world’s endangered species, remain unclear. To address this important knowledge gap, we collected information on climate, altitude, habitat, and distribution of rare and endangered plants in China to determine their habitat characteristics, geographical distribution, and the relationships between environmental factors and species density. We found that rare and endangered plants tend to occur in warm, humid, and forested habitats. Mountains, rather than plains, hills, eolian landforms, tablelands, lakes, and glaciers, can provide mesophytic and less-disturbed refuges for rare and endangered plants. In particular, medium and medium high-altitude mountains located in monsoon dominated regions with high precipitation, temperature, and humidity provide habitats for species of rare and endangered plants with high density. Our findings highlight the importance for a more explicit consideration of these mountains for in situ conservation of rare and endangered plants.

The quantitative relationship between land use/cover change (LUCC) within basins, lake water environmental factors, and water quality has long been a popular research area. In this study, we investigated three typical basins (Ulansuhai Basin, Daihai Basin, and Dalinor Basin) in arid and semi-arid areas of China. The assessment was based on the China Land Cover Dataset (CLCD), which was used to calculate the land use dynamic degree index and Markov transfer matrix. Moreover, an econometric analysis model and a hybrid evolutionary algorithm (HEA) model were used to explore the quantitative relationship between LUCC and environmental factors on the lake water quality. The results showed that the LUCC of the three lake basins was dominated by cultivated land and grassland over the past 20 years. In all of the basins, grassland and water area were converted into cultivated land, water area decreased to varying degrees, and impervious surface area increased continuously. Moreover, the concentration of TN and TP were generally proportional to chemical oxygen demand concentration (COD), biochemical oxygen demand concentration (BOD5), and dissolved oxygen concentration (DO), but inversely proportional to water depth and transparency; the relationship between Nutrient concentration and pH was usually related to the ecological threshold. On the basin scale, the grassland and forestland played positive roles in improving water quality, while cultivated land and impervious surface were the main factors contributing to water pollution. Overall, this study provides a scientific theoretical basis for the rational utilization of land resources, improvement of lake water quality, and ecological protection of typical lake basins in arid and semi-arid regions.

Inflammatory reaction in the brain activates glial cells, and over-activated glial cells secrete inflammatory mediators, which aggravates the inflammatory response in the brain and accelerates the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD) in turn. Numerous natural compounds from herbs can alleviate inflammation, and it is very promising to find anti-neuroinflammatory natural compounds. Micheliolide (MCL) is an asesquiterpene lactone. Studies have proved that MCL showed an obvious anti-inflammatory property. Nevertheless, whether MCL can treat AD has not been determined. In this research, AD model mice were fed with a diet supplemented MCL for 3 months, the cognitive ability and inflammatory state of mice were detected. We found that MCL raised the frequency of touching novel objects, cut down the escape latency, raised the number of crossing platform, inhibited the infiltration of inflammatory cells and the secretion of interleukin-1α (IL-1α), IL-12p40, IL-13, IL-17A, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), macrophage inflammatory protein-1α (MIP-1α) and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) in peripheral blood samples, inhibited the hyperplasia of glial cells and the production of IL-1α, IL-4, G-CSF, granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), MIP-1α and MIP-1β, and reduced the deposition of Aβ peptides in the brain of AD mice. We also concluded that MCL dropped the expression of IL-1β, TNF-α, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and the phosphorylation of IκB, p65 and Akt in BV-2 cells. In conclusion, MCL alleviates the intensity of systemic inflammatory reaction via inhibiting nuclear transcription factor κ gene binding (NF-κB) and phosphoinositide-3-kinase/serine/threonine kinase (PI3K/Akt) pathways in glial cells, and improves the cognitive impairment of AD mice. Therefore, MCL could be a therapeutic candidate for AD.

Adenylyl cyclase (AC) is the vital enzyme for generating 3′,5′-cyclic adenosine monophosphate, an important signaling molecule with profound nutritional and medicinal values. However, merely, a dozen of AC proteins have been reported in plants so far. Here, a protein annotated as triphosphate tunnel metalloenzyme (PbrTTM1) in pear, the important worldwide fruit plant, was firstly identified to possess AC activity with both in vivo and in vitro methods. It exhibited a relatively low AC activity but was capable of complementing AC functional deficiencies in the E. coli SP850 strain. Its protein conformation and potential catalytic mechanism were analyzed by means of biocomputing. The active site of PbrTTM1 is a closed tunnel constructed by nine antiparallel β-folds surrounded with seven helices. Inside the tunnel, the charged residues were possibly involved in the catalytic process by coordinating with divalent cation and ligand. The hydrolysis activity of PbrTTM1 was tested as well. Compared to the much higher capacity of hydrolyzing, the AC activity of PbrTTM1 tends to be a moonlight function. Through a comparison of protein structures in various plant TTMs, it is reasonable to speculate that many plant TTMs might possess AC activity as a form of moonlighting enzyme function.

This study aims to identify hot spots, research limitations and future research directions in tourism environmental impact assessment (TEIA). We analyzed studies from the core database of Web of Science (WoS) based on their coauthorship, keyword co-occurrence and timeline with VOSviewer and CiteSpace. It was found that China, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Spain are the major contributors to TEIA, and relatively stable cooperative groups have been formed among the authors. Research hotspots in the past 20 years mainly include: the impact of tourism activities in different tourist destinations on the environment, the approaches to assess the impact of tourism on the environment, and strategies on reducing the negative impact of tourism on the environment. We also found TEIA deficiency in the following five aspects: 1) insufficient studies on macro decision-making; 2) insufficient dynamic interaction analysis; 3) insufficient tourism heat footprint research; 4) insufficient studies on the positive effects of tourism on the environment; and 5) insufficient interdisciplinary innovation. Based on the findings, we suggest that 1) further studies be conducted on tourism activity type, time scale, macro pattern, environmental process and policy effect of tourism impact assessment with more variables and factors considered; 2) the impact of different types of tourism on each subsystem of the environment and the paths of the interaction among subsystems be explored from the perspective of system governance; 3) the study of thermal footprint generated by tourism activities be given more attention, especially large-scale tourism activities; 4) the positive impact of tourism activities on the ecological environment be studied, especially ecotourism; 5) the applicability of TEIA evaluation results be increased by means of interdisciplinary methods such as big data analysis.

The distribution, morphology, and innervation of vasculature in different mouse colonic segments and layers, as well as spatial relationships of the vasculature with the enteric plexuses, glia, and macrophages are far from being complete. The vessels in the adult mouse colon were stained by the cardiovascular perfusion of wheat germ agglutinin (WGA)-Alexa Fluor 448 and by CD31 immunoreactivity. Nerve fibers, enteric glia, and macrophages were immunostained in the WGA-perfused colon. The blood vessels entered from the mesentery to the submucosa and branched into the capillary networks in the mucosa and muscularis externa. The capillary net formed anastomosed rings at the orifices of mucosa crypts, and the capillary rings surrounded the crypts individually in the proximal colon and more than two crypts in the distal colon. Microvessels in the muscularis externa with myenteric plexus were less dense than in the mucosa and formed loops. In the circular smooth muscle layer, microvessels were distributed in the proximal, but not the distal colon. Capillaries did not enter the enteric ganglia. There were no significant differences in microvascular volume per tissue volume between the proximal and distal colon either in the mucosa or muscularis externa containing the myenteric plexus. PGP9.5-, tyrosine hydroxylase-, and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP)-immunoreactive nerve fibers were distributed along the vessels in the submucosa. In the mucosa, PGP9.5-, CGRP-, and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP)-immunoreactive nerves terminated close to the capillary rings, while cells and processes labeled by S100B and glial fibrillary acidic protein were distributed mainly in the lamina propria and lower portion of the mucosa. Dense Iba1 immunoreactive macrophages were closely adjacent to the mucosal capillary rings. There were a few macrophages, but no glia in apposition to microvessels in the submucosa and muscularis externa. In conclusion, in the mouse colon, (1) the differences in vasculature between the proximal and distal colon were associated with the morphology, but not the microvascular amount per tissue volume in the mucosa and muscle layers; (2) the colonic mucosa contained significantly more microvessels than the muscularis externa; and (3) there were more CGRP and VIP nerve fibers found close to microvessels in the mucosa and submucosa than in the muscle layers.

As a critical raw material for the textile industry, cotton lint provides various types of cotton yarns, fabrics and finished products. However, due to the complexity of the supply chain and its many links, information records are often missing, inaccurate or lagging, resulting in low transparency and traceability. In the traditional cotton lint supply chain, the data of each link are stored in isolation; due to the lack of an effective sharing mechanism and the formation of “information silos”, complete traceability is challenging to achieve. In addition, the completeness and authenticity of documents such as lint quality reports and certificates of origin must be rapidly strengthened. Otherwise, quality problems may arise. To solve the above problems, this study proposes a cotton lint supply chain traceability system based on blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), covering the whole cotton lint production process from harvesting to selling. We use an NFT as an asset token to digitise seed cotton, cotton lint and quality inspection reports and allow participants to store and manage these assets on the blockchain. The system design includes architecture diagrams, sequence diagrams and Ethernet smart contract development based on the ERC721 standard. In addition, the integration of Interplanetary File System (IPFS) technology solves the problem of storing large files on the chain and ensures that the data are permanently preserved and cannot be tampered with. We provide a diagram of the interactions between the system components and the four core algorithms’ design, testing and verification process. We present an in-depth analysis of the solution regarding the transaction costs and smart contract security. We confirm the solution’s security, reliability and applicability through a cost evaluation and security analysis.

Conservation tillage has been promoted as an effective practice to preserve soil health and enhance agroecosystem services. Changes in tillage intensity have a profound impact on soil nitrogen cycling, yet their influence on nitrate losses at large spatiotemporal scales remains uncertain. This study examined the effects of tillage intensity on soil nitrate losses in the US Midwest from 1979–2018 using field data synthesis and process-based agroecosystem modeling approaches. Our results revealed that no-tillage (NT) or reduced tillage intensity (RTI) decreased nitrate runoff but increased nitrate leaching compared to conventional tillage. These trade-offs were largely caused by altered water fluxes, which elevated total nitrate losses. The structural equation model suggested that precipitation had more pronounced effects on nitrate leaching and runoff than soil properties (i.e. texture, pH, and bulk density). Reduction in nitrate runoff under NT or RTI was negatively correlated with precipitation, and the increased nitrate leaching was positively associated with soil bulk density. We further explored the combined effects of NT or RTI and winter cover crops and found that incorporating winter cover crops into NT systems effectively reduced nitrate runoff but did not significantly affect nitrate leaching. Our findings underscore the precautions of implementing NT or RTI to promote sustainable agriculture under changing climate conditions. This study provides valuable insights into the complex relationship between tillage intensity and nitrate loss pathways, contributing to informed decision-making in climate-smart agriculture.

The physical mixing of inorganic fillers and a polymer matrix is a common method for constructing superhydrophobic coatings. Nevertheless, the interface bonding strength between the polymer and nanofiller was weak. The construction of interacting covalent bonds is a potential solution. In this study, carbon nanotubes were modified by aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) and fluorosilane, and the reaction between the amino groups in APTES and -NCO(curing agent N3390) improved the bonding strength. Thus, the coatings maintained superhydrophobicity even after 260 abrasion cycles, 200 tape-peeling cycles, 18-day heat treatment, and acid/alkali attack. Furthermore, the corrosion current density could be reduced by three orders of magnitude compared with that of bare steel.

For covert communication in lossy channels, it is necessary to consider that the carrier of the hidden watermark will undergo multiple image-processing attacks. In order to ensure that secret information can be extracted without distortion from the watermarked images that have undergone attacks, in this paper, we design a novel fragmented secure communication system. The sender will fragment the secret data to be transmitted and redundantly hide it in a large number of multimodal carriers of messenger accounts on multiple social platforms. The receiver receives enough covert carriers, extracts each fragment, and concatenates the transmitted secret data. This article uses the image carrier as an example to fragment the text file intended for transmission and embeds it into a large number of images, with each fragment being redundant and embedded into multiple images. In this way, at the receiving end, only enough stego images need to be received to extract the information in each image, and then concatenate the final secret file. In order to resist various possible attacks during image transmission, we propose a strong robust image watermarking method. This method adopts a watermark layer based on DFT, which has high embedding and detection efficiency and good invisibility. Secondly, a watermark layer based on DCT is adopted, which can resist translation attacks, JPEG attacks, and other common attacks. Experiments have shown that our watermarking method is very fast; both the embedding time and the extraction time are less than 0.15 s for images not larger than 2000×2000. Our watermarking method has very good invisibility with 41 dB PSNR on average. And our watermarking method is more robust than existing schemes and robust to nearly all kinds of attacks. Based on this strong robust image watermarking method, the scheme of fragmenting and hiding redundant transmission content into a large number of images is effective and practical. Our scheme can 100% restore the secret file completely under different RST or hybrid attacks, such as rotation by 1 degree and 5 degrees, scaling by 1.25 and 0.8, and cropping by 10% and 25%. Our scheme can successfully restore the secret file completely even if 30% of received images are lost. When 80% of received images are lost, our scheme can still restore 61.1% of the secret file. If all stego images can be obtained, the original text file can be completely restored.

The upset state is an unexpected flight state, which is characterized by an unintentional deviation from normal operating parameters. It is difficult for the pilot to recover the aircraft from the upset state accurately and quickly. In this paper, an upset recovery strategy and pilot assistance system (PAS) based on reinforcement learning is proposed. The man–machine closed-loop system was established and the upset state, such as a high angle of attack and large attitude angle, was induced. The upset recovery problem was transformed into a sequential decision problem, and the Markov decision model of upset recovery was established by taking the deflection change of the control surface as the action. The proximal policy optimization (PPO) algorithm was selected for the strategy training. The adaptive pilot model and the reinforcement learning method proposed in this paper were used to make the aircraft recover from the upset state. Based on the correspondence between the flight state, the recovery method, and the recovery result, the aircraft upset recovery safety envelopes were formed, and the four-level upset recovery PAS with alarm warning, coordinated control, and autonomous recovery modes was constructed. The results of the digital virtual flight simulation and ground flight test show that compared with a traditional single pilot, the aircraft upset recovery strategy, the upset recovery safety envelopes, and the PAS established in this study could reduce the handling burden of the pilot and improve the success rate and effect of upset recovery. This research has certain theoretical reference values for flight safety and pilot training.

Wire and cable are important industrial products involving the national economy and people’s livelihood, which are hailed as the “blood vessel” and “nerve” of the national economy, providing the basic guarantee for the normal operation of modern economy and society. The data traceability of their production and circulation process is a key factor in ensuring their quality and safety management. We aim to solve the problems of unsafe data transmission, weak quality control, and information islands in the process of wire and cable quality traceability in order to improve the production management efficiency of wire and cable manufacturing enterprises and to reduce the cost of consumer quality traceability of wire and cable products. We analyzed the technical characteristics and advantages of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) identity resolution and the blockchain. Key technologies are introduced, a traceability method that integrates the two is proposed, and a quality traceability framework based on the IIoT identity resolution system and blockchain technology is constructed. By analyzing the quality information composition of the wire and cable supply chain, a new quality traceability model based on the wire and cable supply chain is established. Finally, through the verification of the developed quality traceability system, the quality traceability function and quality information of each production link of wire and cable are successfully realized. This paper fills a gap in the field of cable product quality traceability using the combination of IIoT and blockchain technology. According to this model, it also has some potential for the traceability of other industrial products.

As urbanization accelerates, deep excavation projects have become increasingly vital in the construction of high-rise buildings and underground facilities. However, the potential risks to the surrounding environment and the inherent complexities involved necessitate thorough research to ensure the safety of those engineering projects with deep foundation pit excavation and to minimize their impact on adjacent structures. This study introduces a multi-stage and multi-parameter numerical simulation method to scrutinize the construction process of deep foundation pits. This approach not only investigates the influence of excavation activities on nearby buildings and roads but also enhances the fidelity of simulation models by establishing a three-dimensional finite element model integrated with on-site investigated geological information. Therefore, the proposed method can provide a more holistic and accurate analysis of the overall impacts of the pit excavation process. To examine the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method, this study adopts the multi-stage and multi-parameter influence analysis approach for a real practical engineering case to explore the impact of excavation on the foundation pit support structure, nearby buildings, and surrounding roads. The foundation pit support’s maximum displacement was 8.64 mm, well under the 25 mm standard limit. Anchor rod forces were about 10% below the standard limit. Building and road settlements were also minimal, at 10.33 mm and 16.44 mm, respectively, far below their respective limits of 200 mm and 300 mm. This study not only validates the feasibility of design and construction stability of deep foundation pits but also contributes theoretical and practical insights, serving as a valuable reference for future engineering projects of a similar scope.

Tasa Wesołowska, 1981 is a small chrysilline genus distributed in East Asia, with two currently known species: T. davidi (Schenkel, 1963) and T. nipponica Bohdanowicz & Prószyński, 1987, both species having been recorded in China.The combination Tasa koreana (Wesołowska, 1981) comb. rev. is re-validated, based on the characteristics of the copulatory organs of both sexes. A re-description and diagnostic photographs are also provided.

Abstract Background We report a rare case of Gardnerella vaginalis found in the cerebrospinal fluid of a young boy. Case presentation A 14-year-old boy was admitted to hospital with headache, vomiting, fever, drowsiness and positive meningeal irritation signs on examination. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shows white blood cell and protein were elevated, and glucose was low. Traditional aerobic and anaerobic culture of CSF did not grow any organisms. However, metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) reveals G. vaginalis in his CSF. The patient was diagnosed with purulent meningitis, and treated with intravenous meropenem and linezolid for a week, followed by oral administration of amoxicillin for two weeks. He recovered without sequelae. Conclusions Purulent meningitis caused by Gardnerella vaginalis is extremely rare. Metagenomic next-generation sequencing of CSF should be highlighted for early diagnosis. With effective antibiotic treatment, the prognosis was excellent.

The evolution patterns of the Neo-Tethys Himalayas have been a major topic of research, particularly in the Neo-Tethys Ocean. The geological field investigations were conducted in the Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous Sangxiu Formation in the Tsomei Longzi area of Tibet. A stratigraphic hierarchy of the Sangxiu Formation was established based on an analysis of the sedimentary lithology in this area. Based on the geochemical characteristics and chronology of the felsic-mafic volcanic rocks of the Sangxiu Formation, the genesis, tectonic background, and evolutionary pattern of the volcanic rocks of the Sangxiu Formation were revealed. Basalts, dolerite, and volcanic debris constitute the volcanic rocks of the Sangxiu Group in the Zhegu area. The Early Cretaceous Sangxiu Formation basalts were determined using SHRIMP zircon U-Pb ages of 141 ± 1 Ma and 142 ± 1 Ma. Volcanic rocks of the Sangxiu Formation, which are intraplate rifting products of the Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous period, originated from the mantle and mixed with crustal materials. The rock type is an intraplate alkaline basalt that formed during the rifting activity of the passive continental margin extension. There was a crucial growth episode in the Neo-Tethys Ocean during the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous. The Neo-Tethys Ocean expansion from the Late Triassic to the Early Cretaceous was caused by a younger rifting along the passive continental edge rather than a continuation of the early Mid-Ocean Ridge development, thus demonstrating the expansion of the Neo-Tethys Ocean at various stages.

Resistin has been shown to play a key role in inducing vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) malfunction in the atherosclerosis progression. Ginsenoside Rb1 is the main component of ginseng, which has been used for thousands of years and has been reported to have a powerful vascular protective effect. The aim of this study was to explore the protective effect of Rb1 on VSMCs dysfunction induced by resistin. In the presence or absence of Rb1, human coronary artery smooth muscle cells (HCASMC) were treated at different time points with or without 40 ng/ml resistin and acetylated low-density lipoprotein (acetylated LDL). Cell migration and proliferation were analyzed using wound healing test and CellTiter Aqueous Cell Proliferation Assay (MTS) test, respectively. Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) (H2DCFDA as a dye probe) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities were measured by a microplate reader and the differences between groups were compared. Rb1 significantly reduced resistin-induced HCASMC proliferation. Resistin increased HCASMC migration time-dependently. At 20 µM, Rb1 could significantly reduce HCASMC migration. Resistin and Act-LDL increased ROS production to a similar level in HCASMCs, while Rb1 pretreated group reversed the effects of resistin and acetyl-LDL. Besides, the mitochondrial SOD activity was significantly reduced by resistin but was restored when pretreated with Rb1. We confirmed the protection of Rb1 on HCASMC and suggested that the mechanisms involved might be related to the reduction of ROS generation and increased activity of SOD. Our study clarified the potential clinical applications of Rb1 in the control of resistin-related vascular injury and in the treatment of cardiovascular disease.

Summary: Different cellular compartments within a tissue present distinct cancer-initiating capacities. Current approaches to dissect such heterogeneity require cell-type-specific genetic tools based on a well-understood lineage hierarchy, which are lacking for many tissues. Here, we circumvented this hurdle and revealed the dichotomous capacity of fallopian tube Pax8+ cells in initiating ovarian cancer, utilizing a mouse genetic system that stochastically generates rare GFP-labeled mutant cells. Through clonal analysis and spatial profiling, we determined that only clones founded by rare, stem/progenitor-like Pax8+ cells can expand on acquiring oncogenic mutations whereas vast majority of clones stall immediately. Furthermore, expanded mutant clones undergo further attrition: many turn quiescent shortly after the initial expansion, whereas others sustain proliferation and manifest a bias toward Pax8+ fate, underlying early pathogenesis. Our study showcases the power of genetic mosaic system-based clonal analysis for revealing cellular heterogeneity of cancer-initiating capacity in tissues with limited prior knowledge of lineage hierarchy.

Abstract Meteorological drought indices like the Standardized Precipitation Evaporation Index (SPEI) are frequently used to diagnose “ecological drought,” despite the fact that they were not explicitly designed for this purpose. More recently developed indices like the Evaporative Stress Index (ESI), which is based on the degree of coupling between actual to potential evapotranspiration, may better capture dynamic plant response to moisture limitations. However, the skill of these indices at describing plant water stress is rarely evaluated at sub‐seasonal timescales over which drought evolves. Moreover, it remains unclear how variability in phenological timing impacts and complicates early drought detection. Here, we compared the ability of ESI and SPEI to reflect the dynamics of ecological drought in forests and grasslands, based on anomalies of Gross Primary Productivity (GPP), surface conductance (Gs, a proxy for stomatal conductance), soil moisture, and vapor pressure deficit. ESI performed better than SPEI in capturing the dynamics of GPP and Gs, but still missed early ecological drought signals due to biases linked to earlier onset of spring leaf development. Thus, we developed a modified variant of the ESI (ESILAI) that accounts for the complicating effects of phenological shifts in leaf area index (LAI). The ESILAI detected drought onset up to 7–10 weeks earlier than SPEI and ESI. Additionally, drought onset dates determined from ESILAI are close to (±2 weeks) the dates determined from LAI‐corrected anomalies of Gs, and GPP, as well as the onset dates of soil water deficit and atmospheric aridity.

Abstract Soil freeze–thaw processes lead to high nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions and exacerbate the greenhouse effect. The wetlands of the Inner Mongolia Plateau are in the pronounced seasonal freeze–thaw zone, but the effect of spring thaw on N2O emissions and related microbial mechanisms is still unclear. We investigated the effects of different periods (freeze, freeze–thaw, and thaw) on soil bacterial community diversity and composition and greenhouse gas emissions during the spring freeze–thaw in the XiLin River riparian wetlands in China by amplicon sequencing and static dark box methods. The results showed that the freeze–thaw periods predominantly impact on the diversity and composition of the bacterial communities. The phyla composition of the soil bacteria communities of the three periods is similar in level, with Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, Actinobacteria, and Acidobacteria dominating the microbial communities. The alpha‐diversity of bacterial communities in different periods varies that the freezing period is higher than that of the freeze–thaw period (p

Abstract This study is to investigate whether astaxanthin could alleviate the oxidative stress damages of follicles induced by BPA and improve the development of the cultured follicles and oocytes. Compared with BPA group, the survival rate, antrum formation rate, oocyte maturation rate and adherence area of the D8 and D10 follicles of the BPA+Asta group were significantly higher. The estrogen and progesterone in the culture medium of BPA+Asta group were significantly higher. PCNA in D8 and D10 granulosa cells and ERα in D10 granulosa cells of follicles in BPA+Asta group were significantly higher. The levels of malondialdehyde in the follicle culture medium, levels of ROS in the oocytes, the expression levels of caspase 3 and cathepsin B in the oocytes of the BPA+Asta group were significantly lower. However, the mitochondrial membrane potential, and the expression levels of antioxidant genes (CAT, SOD1 and SOD2) and anti-apoptotic gene Bcl-2 in the oocytes in the BPA+Asta group were significantly higher. Astaxanthin improves the development of follicles and oocytes through increasing the antioxidant capacity of follicles and oocytes, and relieving the BPA-induced oxidative stress during follicular development and oocyte maturation.