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Hierarchical chrysanthemum-like CuCo2O4-CuO composites were successfully synthesized by a facile one-pot hydrothermal method after calcination at 500 °C. Based on the results of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectra, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and transmission electron microscope (TEM), we found that not only the morphology (from 2 dimensional to 3 dimensional) but also the crystalline structure (Cu0 + Cu2O + CoOx → CuO + CuCo2O4) of the samples could be tuned by the calcination temperature. The existed interfaces of CuCo2O4-CuCo2O4, CuCo2O4-CuO, and CuO-CuO played a key role on the attenuation of electromagnetic waves. The effective absorption frequency bandwidth is up to 4.02 GHz with a matched thickness of 2.8 mm. The CuCo2O4-CuO/paraffin composites can even exhibit bigger effective frequency bandwidth (from 4.02 to 4.65 GHz) if we turn the incident angle of electromagnetic (EM) wave to a proper value (i.e., 45°). We believe that the hierarchical chrysanthemum-like CuCo2O4-CuO composites can be a good candidate for the high-performance Co-based spinel microwave absorbers.

Microsporidian spores contain a single polar filament that is coiled around the interior of the spore. Upon germination the polar tube (post-germination polar filament) is ejected by inversion into a host cell. The sporoplasm flows through the polar tube, directly infecting the cytoplasm of the cell. Various species of microsporidia display differences in the number of coils in the polar filament and in the amino acid sequence of the polar tube proteins (PTPs). Nosema pernyi is a lethal pathogen that causes microsporidiosis in the Chinese oak silkworm, Antheraea pernyi. In this study, we identified three PTPs in N. pernyi using RT-PCR and LC-MS/MS. Polar tube protein 3 was localized in the polar tube using immuno-histochemical staining and an immunofluorescence assay. Co-immunoprecipitation data and LC-MS/MS analysis revealed that some potential proteins, like immune related proteins in A. pernyi may interact with PTP3.

Recent progress in the metamaterial-based polarization manipulation of light highlights the promise of novel polarization-dependent optical components and systems. To overcome the limited frequency bandwidth of metamaterials resulting from their resonant nature, it is desirable to incorporate tunability into metamaterial-based polarization manipulations. Here, we propose a dielectric metamaterial for controlling linear polarization conversion using the phase-change characteristic of Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST), whose refractive index changes significantly when transforming from the amorphous phase to the crystalline phase under external stimuli. The polarization conversion phenomena are systematically studied using different arrangements of GST in this metamaterial. The performance of linear polarization conversion and the tunability are also analyzed and compared in three different designs. It is found that phase-change materials such as GST can be employed in dielectric materials for tunable and switchable linear polarization conversion in the telecom band. The conversion efficiency can be significantly modulated during the phase transition. Our results provide useful insights for incorporating phase-change materials with metamaterials for tunable polarization manipulation.

Background Fasting has demonstrated a robust lifespan extension in yeast and C. elegans. Although long-term total fasting, intermittent fasting or calorie restriction has been evaluated in clinic, there were long-term safety and practical concerns regarding with these regimens. Methods We have applied a special prebiotics-assisted fasting approach for 7~14 days continual dietary deprivation (CDD) in three trials. Our fasting regimen has achieved total of 25/94 individuals who have successfully accomplished 14D's total fasting. At the third trial, a modified paradigm plus daily mineral electrolytes assistance led up to 50% (15/32) success in fulfilling 14D-CDD. Among the results from successfully accomplishment subjects, one-way ANOVA with repeated measure on 5 treatments within individual has been compared with each own control. Findings Bioelectrical and biochemical results indicated significant reducing in fat mass (lipid) during fasting, while lean mass (protein) remained stable and found more accelerated recovery after refeeding. During 7~9thD CDD, we observed a significant slowing down in basal metabolism rate (BMR 100U/L, refeeding for more than 3 months remained lowered CK level. Fasting 14D also found significant suppression in myostatin, and it remained lower concentration even after 3 months' refeeding. Ultrasonic image confirmed unchanged muscle comparing with adipose during and after 14D fasting. Interpretation Our results indicated that initial fasting (1~7D) induced catabolism in all tissues. As the fasting continues, a preserved muscle mechanism has been established with reducing in BMR, myostatin and CK which might indicate an induction of anabolism through establishing ketone body metabolism. The beneficial evidence from current regimen indicated that repeated application of 14D-CDD every 6 months may supply practical health improvement strategy in facilitating disease treatments. Funding National Basic Research Project of China Declaration of Interest: The other authors declare no competing interests. Ethical Approval: The approval of the study protocol by the University of Henan Human Research Protection Program was under the guidance of China Association for Ethical Studies. The protocol was also recorded in Medical Ethics Committee of Henan Medical Association of Henan Province, and the entire clinical study was under the supervision of ethic board of The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University.

Solar power is a promising abundant, pollution free, inexhaustible and clean source of energy. Development of cost-effective solar system with high conversion efficiency is the key challenge in field of solar panel manufacturing industry. Different non-vacuum deposition methods have been developed to reduce the cost of solar panel system along with high conversion efficiency. In this paper, a review is presented with major focus on three non-vacuum deposition methods, as spin coating, dip coating and spray coating. Each mentioned deposition technique is discussed in details along with role of different deposition parameters on the characteristics of grown solar thin films.

Coherent perfect absorber (CPA) is a novel strategy proposed and demonstrated for solving the challenge to attain efficient control of absorption by exploiting the inverse process of lasing. The operation condition of CPA results in narrow-band, which is the main limitation obstruct it from practical applications. Here, we demonstrate a CPA with tunable operation frequency employing the liquid metal made reconfigurable metasurface. The flow of liquid metal is restricted with a plastic pipe for realizing a controllable liquid metal cut-wire. The adjustable electric dipolar mode of the reconfigurable cur-wire metasurface ensures that the quasi-CPA point can be dynamically controlled; the measured CPA under proper phase modulation is in good agreement with the simulation results. The proposed CPA system involving liquid metal for dynamic control of operation frequency will have potential applications and may stimulate the exploitation of liquid based smart absorption control of optical waves.

The active control of electromagnetic response in metamaterial and mutual coupling between resonant building blocks is of fundamental importance in realizing high-quality metamaterials. In this work, we propose and experimentally demonstrate the tunabilities of symmetry-broken metasurfaces made of orthogonal electric dipolar resonators. The metasurface with vertical and horizontal wires is integrated with a PIN diode for active control. It is found that the electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT)-like spectrum appears due to the destructive or constructive interferences between the two electric dipolar modes when the structural symmetry broken is introduced to the metasurface. Different from previous works on the EIT-like effect, there is only electric dipole response in our metasuface. The microscopic response of the metasurface is numerically calculated to illustrate the mode coupling between the orthogonal electric dipolar resonators. By applying temporal coupled-mode theory, the interaction between the electromagnetic wave and the symmetry-broken metasurface is described, and the characteristic parameters of the resonator system, which determine the electromagnetic response of the metasurface, are acquired.

The purpose of this study was to characterize mechanisms of plasmid-mediated antimicrobial resistance in Shigella boydii. S. boydii strain 2246 with resistance to ciprofloxacin, ceftriaxone and azithromycin was isolated from a human case of watery diarrhea in a Chinese public hospital. Resistance in strain 2246 to ceftriaxone and azithromycin was attributable to the presence of blaCTX-M-14, and erm(B) and mph(A), respectively, which were co-located on a multidrug-resistant (MDR) plasmid p2246-CTXM. p2246-CTXM represented a novel IncFII-type MDR plasmid with a very complex chimera structure. Its master backbone was genetically closely related to the R100 plasmid, but p2246-CTXM had evolved to integrate additional R100-unrelated backbone regions as well as massive exogenous mobile elements that carried multiple resistance determinants. In p2246-CTXM, erm(B) together with its leading peptide gene erm(C), mph(A) together with its regulatory genes mrx and mphR(A), and blaCTX-M-14 were captured by three different mobile elements Tn6295, the IS26-mph(A)-mrx-mphR(A)-IS6100 unit, and a truncated ISEcp1-blaCTX-M-14-IS903D-iroN transposition unit, respectively, all of which were harbored in a large Tn3-family transposon Tn6285. p2246-CTXM still carried additional resistance determinants mer (mercury resistance), aacA4 (aminoglycoside resistance), cmlA1 (chloramphenicol resistance), and qacED1 (quaternary ammonium compound resistance). This is the first report of identifying a clinical S. boydii strain simultaneously resistant to ciprofloxacin, ceftriaxone, and azithromycin, and determining the complete sequence of a resistance plasmid from S. boydii.

The Toll pathway is one of the most important signaling pathways regulating insect innate immunity. Spatzle is a key protein that functions as a Toll receptor ligand to trigger Toll-dependent expression of immunity-related genes. In this study, a novel spatzle gene (ApSPZ) from the Chinese oak silkworm Antheraea pernyi was identified. The ApSPZ cDNA is 1065 nucleotides with an open reading frame (ORF) of 777 bp encoding a protein of 258 amino acids. The protein has an estimated molecular weight of 29.71 kDa and an isoelectric point (PI) of 8.53. ApSPZ is a nuclear and secretory protein with no conserved domains or membrane helices and shares 40% amino acid identity with SPZ from Manduca sexta. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that ApSPZ might be a new member of the Spatzle type 1 family, which belongs to the Spatzle superfamily. The expression patterns of several genes involved in the Toll pathway were examined at different developmental stages and various tissues in 5th instar larvae. The examined targets included A. pernyi spatzle, GNBP, MyD88, Tolloid, cactus and dorsalA. The RT-PCR results showed that these genes were predominantly expressed in immune-responsive fat body tissue, indicating that the genes play a crucial role in A. pernyi innate immunity. Moreover, A. pernyi infection with the fungus Nosema pernyi and the gram-positive bacterium Enterococcus pernyi, but not the gram-negative bacterium Escherichia coli, activated the Toll signaling pathway. These results represent the first study of the Toll pathway in A. pernyi, which provides insight into the A. pernyi innate immune system.

Occludin is a tight junction protein that forms the permeability barrier, which is typically disturbed in ischemic associated diseases. The aim of the present study was to determine whether somatostatin receptor 2 (SSTR2) in RF/6A cells is involved in the modulation of the downregulation of occludin induced by high glucose, and to evaluate the implicated molecules. RF/6A cells were maintained in Dulbecco's modified Eagle medium and treated with 0 or 30 mM D-glucose. SSTR2 agonist octreotide (OCT), OCT with SSTR2 antagonist cycle-somatostatin (c-SOM) and neuropilin 1 (NRP1) inhibitor ATWLPPR, respectively, were administered to RF/6A cells under high glucose conditions. Cell apoptosis was evaluated by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling. Western blot analysis was used to detect the protein expression level of SSTR2, occludin, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), protein kinase B (Akt), phosphorylated Akt (p-Akt), extracellular signal-related kinases (ERK) and p-ERK proteins. The amount of VEGF released was determined by ELISA. Notably, the level of occludin reduced significantly under high glucose conditions. The results indicated that the administration of OCT prevented the reduction of occludin induced by high glucose, and co-administration with c-SOM reversed the effect of OCT. Increased VEGF secretion and expression of VEGF, p-Akt and p-ERK in RF/6A cells induced by high glucose were inhibited by OCT. ATWLPPR also prevented the downregulation of occludin, but did not inhibit p-Akt and p-ERK levels under high glucose conditions. The current study concluded that the activation of SSTR2 prevents high glucose-induced occludin downregulation in RF/6A cells, and VEGF, NRP1, p-Akt and p-ERK were implicated in this process. The pharmacological effects of SSTR2 targeting to endothelium may be used to assess the role of resistance of permeability and anti-inflammation.

Nosema pernyi is a lethal pathogen that causes microsporidiosis in the Chinese oak silkworm, Antheraea pernyi. In this study, we presented its morphological and some molecular characteristics. The mature spores were measured to be 4.36 × 1.49 μm. The spore wall consisted of an electron-dense exospore (EX) and electron-lucent endospore (EN) layer. The polar filament (PF) was isofilar with 10-12 coils that were frequently arranged in a single row. Investigation results indicated that N. pernyi can infect the gut wall, silk glands, and other tissues. A full-length SMART cDNA library of N. pernyi was constructed, and then 824 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were sequenced. Ninety unigenes, out of 197 assembled unigenes, showed significant homology to known genes of Nosema ceranae, Nosema bombycis, Encephalitozoon cuniculi, and other microsporidian species. Based on the nucleotide sequence of the α- and β-tubulin genes and amino acid sequence of actin gene, phylogenetic trees analysis showed that N. pernyi was closely related to Nosema philosamiae and Nosema antheraeae. It was correctly assigned to the Nosema group.

Somatostatin (SST), an endogenous peptide, may exert anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects on retinal injury induced by ischemia. Retinal ischemic reperfusion (I/R) injury always produces many reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can aggravate the tissue damage. The effects of octreotide (OCT), a SST analogue, on retinal I/R injury and ROS formation, are not very clear. In this study, we observed the effects of OCT on morphological changes, oxidative stress, and cell death, induced by retinal I/R injury. The activation of nuclear factorκB (NF-κB) and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) were further evaluated in I/R retina treated with or without OCT. The retinal layer thickness was increased at 1 day after I/R and decreased at 7 days after I/RP<0.05. This effect was associated with increase in MDA and ROS levelsP<0.05. The Tunel-positive cells increased and the number of ganglion cell layer (GCL) neurons decreased significantly after I/R injury. The expression of p-p65 and ICAM-1 increased significantly in I/R retinasP<0.05. Each effect was markedly attenuated by application of OCT. These data indicate that OCT protects the retina against retinal I/R damage, which could be through inhibition of oxidative stress and downregulation of NF-κB and ICAM-1 expression.

Neuropilin-1 (NRP-1) is a transmembrane glycoprotein. As a VEGF co-receptor, NRP1 significantly enhances VEGFR2 signaling and promotes vascular permeability and migration. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of an NRP-1 inhibitor, ATWLPPR peptide, on the early stages of diabetic retinopathy. Eight-week-old male C57BL/6 mice were divided into three groups: a Normal group, a Diabetes (DB) ATWLPPR treatment group and a DB saline group. Electroretinography (ERG), fundus fluorescence angiography (FFA) and leukostasis were examined to evaluate the retinal injury induced by diabetes at the end of the fifth week after STZ injection. Occludin expression and extravasation of albumin were measured to determine the extent of vascular injury. The oxidative stress level and the levels of inflammation-associated proteins were also assayed. The results indicated that treatment with ATWLPPR prevents the abnormal condition of ERG (amplitudes of b-wave decreased and implicit time increased) and vascular injury (occludin degradation and increase in extravasated albumin). These effects were associated with a reduction in the oxidase stress level and the expression of VEGF, GFAP, and ICAM-1. We conclude that ATWLPPR, an NRP-1 inhibitor, may reduce the early retinal damage induced by diabetes by preserving vascular integrity and decreasing the oxidative stress level. Blockade of NRP-1 may be a new therapeutic strategy for the early stages of DR.

We investigate the electrically tunable Electromagnetic induced transparency (EIT)-like effect of active metamaterial structures composed of a wire and a split ring resonator by the simulation, experiment, and temporal coupled-mode theory. It is illustrated that an EIT-like effect appears as a result of weak coupling between bright and dark resonators. Around the EIT-like peak frequency, the superradiant resonance mode of the bright resonator is highly suppressed by the subradiant resonance mode of the dark resonator, and high transmittance as well as large group delay is manifested. By integrating a varactor diode into the EIT structure and altering the bias voltage, the EIT-like effect can be dynamically tuned. As the bias voltage ranges from 0 V to 8 V, the EIT-like peak frequency exhibits a prominent blueshift of 0.22 GHz and the transmittance experiences a modulation with a modulation depth up to 98%. Using the temporal coupled-mode theory, the transmission spectrum of the EIT structure is predicted ...

The engine box and the bearing cover have high concentricity requirements. In response to this, cutting parameter optimization of the main bearing bore boring process is presented. Combined with the processing requirements and processing characteristics of the main bearing bore boring process, the three-dimensional finite element model was established based on the Deform-3D. The variation of cutting force, cutting temperature and cutting deformation of two materials are obtained by changing the cutting parameters in cutting simulation. Through the comparison, the impacts of processing precision due to different materials are analyzed. On this basis, a cutting parameters optimization program of boring main bearing bore is proposed.

Nosema pernyi is the lethal pathogen of pebrine disease in Antheraea pernyi. We have developed a PCR-based method for detection of N. pernyi using specific primers. The primers were designed by the reported conserved regions of microsporidian SSU rRNA. When the genomic DNA of N. pernyi was used as the DNA template, the specific DNA sequences were amplified by PCR. It was observed that PCR diagnosis of N. pernyi using the three sets of primers provided increased specificity and sensitivity when compared with light microscopy. Key words: Nosema pernyi, Antheraea pernyi, pebrine disease, spores, PCR, detection.