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Second phase dissolution of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys during solution treatment was closely associated with the content of main alloying elements. In present work, the phase characteristics of several Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys with various main alloying contents were investigated, and the second phase dissolution of these alloys during solution treatment was analyzed. The results showed that the extrusion alloys possessed abundant second phases, mainly including Mg(Zn,Cu,Al)2 phase and Fe-rich particles. The DSC analysis proved that the larger endothermic peak corresponded to the alloy with larger main alloying content, and the XRD spectrogram also backed up the advantage of Mg(Zn,Cu,Al)2 phase. After solution treated at 450°C, the residual phases remained in the alloys and the quantity of them were positively correlated with the main alloying content. With the increase of solution temperature, the electrical conductivity of the alloys showed a decremental trend, while the alloys with relatively low main alloying contents exhibited an inversion at the solution temperature of 475°C. The SEM observation demonstrated that no Mg(Zn,Cu,Al)2 phase was observed in the alloys with relatively low main alloying contents while seldom still remained in the alloy with high main alloying content after solution treated at 470°C. After solution treated at 475°C, Mg(Zn,Cu,Al)2 phase completely dissolved into the matrix for the alloy with high main alloying content. The statistics of residual phase quantity also proved this.

Background Numerous studies have suggested that age at first birth (AFB) is inversely associated with metabolic diseases, but positively associated with liver cancer in women. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a canonical example of metabolic dysfunction and inflammation-based liver disease, while the association between AFB and risk of NAFLD remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the association between AFB and the odds of NAFLD in women. Methods Women older than 20 years at the time of the survey were analyzed using National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data from 1999 to 2018 in the US. AFB was obtained with self-administered questionnaires. NAFLD was diagnosed as fatty liver index ≥ 60. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using logistic regression models. Results Of the 12,188 women included in this study, 5,670 (46.5%) had NAFLD. Compared to individuals with AFB of 30–32 years old (reference group), the fully adjusted ORs and 95% CI in women with AFB 35 years compared with the reference group. Conclusions Women with younger AFB have higher odds of NAFLD in later life. Policymakers should consider focusing on those with earlier AFB for screening and prevention of NAFLD.

With the continuous strengthening of application requirements, neutron sources are becoming more and more compact, integrated and mobile. There are challenges in two aspects. The first is to achieve high transmission efficiency of high beam current physically, the second is to achieve integration and miniaturization technically. The coupling of RFQ and DTL is a feasible way. A preliminary study on the key physical problems in the RFQ-DTL coupled cavity has been accomplished. For the beam dynamics, the compact matching of RFQ and DTL was studied for the coupled cavity. Taking the compact physical design of the RFQ-DTL for deuterium ion beam of 30 mA with the energy of 11 MeV without MEBT as an example, we studied the smooth transition of the phase advance per unit length, the ability of RFQ transition cell to rotate beam in the transverse phase space, the transverse and longitudinal acceptance optimization of DTL. The RFQ and DTL can be matched transversely and longitudinally after removing MEBT, and the transmission efficiency is 98.7%. For direct coupling of four-vane RFQ and CH-DTL, we studied the realization of the coupling, the factors affecting the field amplitude ratio, the tuning of the cavity, and the influence of the superimposed field on the beam transmission. The field amplitude ratio between RFQ and CH-DTL is from 16.5 to 36.2. Under the influence of the superimposed field, the difference in normalized RMS emittance is less than 1%. We have designed, constructed and cold-test the 750 MHz model cavity. The normalized electric field coefficients measured and simulated are basically in agreement.

Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy have been widely used in aerospace industry. However, there is still a lack of research on thermal stability of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy products. In the present work, an Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy with T79 and T74 states was placed in the corresponding environment for thermal exposure experiments. Performance was measured by tensile strength, hardness and electrical conductivity. In this paper, precipitation observation was analyzed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HREM). The precipitations of T79 state alloy were GPⅡ zone, η' phase and η phase while the ultimate tensile strength, hardness and electrical conductivity were 571MPa, 188.2HV and 22.2MS×m-1, respectively. The mechanical property of T79 state alloy decreased to 530MPa and 168.5HV after thermal exposure. The diameter of precipitate increased and the precipitations become η' and η phase at the same time. During the entire thermal exposure, T74 state alloy had the same mechanical property trend as T79 state alloy. The precipitate diameter also increased while the types of precipitate did not change under thermal exposure. The size of precipitates affected the choice of dislocation passing through the particles to affect the mechanical properties.

We present a high-resolution non-contact method for the measurement of two-dimensional (2D) phosphor surface temperature distribution (PSTD) of phosphor-coated light-emitting diodes (pc-LEDs) based on advanced hyper-spectral imaging technology. The studied pc-LEDs with a surface-mounted device structure are mainly consisted of blue InGaN/GaN-based LED chips (with a spectral emission at about 456 nm), red (Sr,Ca)AlSiN3: Eu2+ phosphors (with a spectral emission at around 623 nm), and transparent silicone gels. Experimental temperature results are compared with those of micro-thermocouple ( $\mu $ -TC) and infrared thermal imaging (TI), and fairly good agreements can be noticed. However, the spatial resolution of this proposed method is more than one order of magnitude higher than that of TI method, and the proposed method provides more detailed surface temperature information of phosphors than the latter. Therefore, we believe that this proposed method can serve as useful tools for the non-contact measurement of PSTD in pc-LEDs with or without optics lens.

STUDY QUESTION What is the mechanism of Tim-3+ regulatory T (Treg)-cell accumulation in the decidua during early pregnancy and is its disruption associated with recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL)? SUMMARY ANSWER IL-27 and Gal-9 secreted by trophoblasts activate the Tim-3 signaling pathway in CD4+ T cells and Treg cells and so promote accumulation of Tim-3+ Treg cells, the abnormal expression of IL-27 and Gal-9 is associated with impaired immunologic tolerance in RPL patients. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Tim-3+ Treg cells are better suppressors of Teff cell proliferation, and display higher proliferative activity than Tim-3− Treg cells. Tim-3+ Treg cells are tissue-specific promoters of T-cell dysfunction in many tumors. These cells express a unique factor that influences and shapes the tumor microenvironment. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION The animal study included 80 normal pregnant mice. In human study, decidua tissues in the first trimester for flow cytometry analysis were collected from 32 normal pregnant women and 23 RPL patients. Placenta tissues for immunohistochemistry analysis were collected from 15 normal pregnant women. Placenta tissues for western blot analysis were collected from 5 normal pregnant women, 5 RPL patients and 5 women who have experienced one miscarriage. Blood samples for in vitro experiments were collected from 30 normal pregnant women. This study was performed between January 2017 and March 2019. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS In this study, we investigated the kinetics of Tim-3+ CD4+ T-cell accumulation, and the proportions of Tim-3+ Treg cells throughout murine pregnancies using flow cytometry. We compared Tim-3 expression on decidual CD4+ T cells and Treg cells during normal pregnancies with expression on the same cell populations in women suffering from RPL. IL-27 and Gal-9 transcription and protein expression in the placenta were determined by RT-PCR and western blot, respectively. An in vitro co-culture model consisting of peripheral CD4+ T cells and primary trophoblasts from early pregnancy was used to mimic the maternal–fetal environment. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE The percentage of Tim-3+ Treg cells present in mouse uteri fluctuates as gestation proceeds but does not change in the spleen. Levels of Tim3+ Treg cells in uteri peaked at pregnancy Day 6.5 (E 6.5), then progressively diminished, and fell to non-pregnant levels by E18.5. In pregnant mice, Tim-3+ Treg cells constituted 40–70% of Treg cells in uteri but were present at much lower abundance in spleens. About 60% of decidual Treg cells were Tim-3 positive at E6.5. Of these decidual Tim3+ Treg cells, nearly 90% were PD-1 positive. However, only about 16% of Tim3− Treg cells expressed PD-1. Blocking the Tim-3 signaling pathway decreased the proportion of Treg cells and led to embryo resorption. Moreover, much lower Tim-3 expression was observed on CD4+ T cells and Treg cells in women who had suffered from RPL at 6–9 gestational weeks compared with those who had normal pregnancies at matched gestations. In a normal pregnancy, Tim-3 expression on decidual CD4+ T cells is induced initially by IL-27. Then Gal-9-Tim-3 interaction promotes differentiation of decidual Tim-3+ CD4+ T cells into Treg cells. IL-27 and Gal-9 cooperatively induced Tim-3+ Treg cells in vitro. LARGE SCALE DATA N/A LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION We did not investigate the kinetics of human decidual Tim-3+ CD4+ T and Tim-3+ Treg cell populations throughout pregnancy due to limited availability of second and third trimester decidua. In addition, functional suppressive data on the decidual Tim-3+ Treg cells are lacking due to limited and low quantities of these cells in decidua. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS These findings might have therapeutic clinical implications in RPL. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) This study was supported by research grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 81871186) and National Key Research & Developmental Program of China (2018YFC1003900, 2018YFC1003904). The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Effects of different solution treatments on microstructure, texture and mechanical properties of 6A16 aluminum alloy sheet were investigated by electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD) and tensile test. The results show that among the five solution treatments, with the increase of solution temperature and solution time, the average grain size increases and the yield strength of the alloy sheet gradually increases. The maximum elongation at break of the sheet is at 545 °C, and it increases with the increase of solution time. Therefore, the mechanical properties of the sheet are the best when the solution treatment is 545 °C for 5 min.

Effect of multi-section linear non-uniform heat transfer coefficient on quenching residual stress distribution in 27mm-thick Al-Zn-Mg-Cu aluminum alloy plate was simulation studied by using the finite element method, and the surface quenching residual stress distribution was measured by the X-ray diffraction method and hole-drilling method. The results show that the surface quenching residual stress represents the same distribution with non-uniform heat transfer coefficient in the transverse direction and the stress level maintains initial stress level of the heat transfer coefficient at each location. The distribution of the quenching residual stress in the center of the plate is approximately uniform and the stress level is approximately equal to average of maximum and minimum initial stress level. The measured surface quenching residual stress shows a wavy distribution in the transverse direction, which is similar to the simulated surface stress distribution without considering the stress level. The measurement results can be explained by the multi-section linear non-uniform quenching model.

Background Systematic evaluation of the successful heartbeat recovery rate (HRR) in patients during the platinum ten minutes after cardiac arrest. Methods The databases of CNKI (January 1979–March 2019), Chongqing VIP (January 1989–March 2019), Wanfang (January 1990–March 2019) and Web of Science (1900-May 2020) were searched. To collect the clinical data of patients with cardiac arrest before hospitalization and analyze the cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) at different times. Literature selection and data extraction were carried out by two researchers independently, and the meta package of R software (version 3. 61) was used for analysis. Results A total of 116 papers met the inclusion criteria, including 37,181 patients. Of these patients, 3367 had their heartbeats successfully restored. The results showed a high degree of heterogeneity (χ 2 = 6999.21, P 15 min group. The HRR were 0.417 (0.341–0.496), 0.143 (0.104–0.193), 0.049 (0.034–0.069), and 0.022 (0.009–0.051), respectively. The HRR was higher in the 0 to ≤5 min group than in the 5 to ≤10 min group, the 10 to ≤15 min group and the > 15 min group. There was no difference between the 10 to ≤15 min group and the > 15 min group. (3) When the groups were stratified with the cutoff of 10 min, the ≤10 min group HRR [0.250 (0.202–0.306)] was higher than the > 10 min group rate [0.041 (0.029–0.057)]. (4) The HRR of the telephone guidance group was [0.273 (0.227–0.325)] lower than that of the 0 to ≤5 min group [0.429 (0.347–0.516)] but higher than that of the 5 to ≤10 min group, the 10 to ≤15 min group, and the > 15 min group. (5) The HRR of the witness group [0.325 (0.216–0.458)] was not different from that of the 0 to ≤5 min group, but it was higher than those of the 5 to ≤10 min group, the 10 to ≤15 min group and the > 15 min group. (6) There was no significant difference HRR between the witnessed group, the telephone guidance group and the ≤10 min group. Conclusions (1) The HRR is time-sensitive, and early rescue can improve it. (2) CPR performed within the platinum ten minutes must be executed by the public, and other forces are auxiliary. (3) The concept of peri-cardiac arrest period (PCAP) should be established and improved to guide CPR.

The inflammatory response has been implicated in various cardiac and systemic diseases. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), the major polyphenol extracted from green tea, has various biological and pharmacological properties, such as anti-inflammation, anti-oxidative and anti-tumorigenesis. To some extent, the mechanism of EGCG in the inflammatory response that characterizes myocardial dysfunction is not fully understood. The present study aimed to investigate the inhibiting effect of EGCG on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation in vitro. Treatment with LPS affected rat H9c2 cardiomyocytes and induced an inflammatory response. However, the LPS-induced effects were attenuated after treatment with EGCG. The present results demonstrated that EGCG treatment repressed several inflammatory mediators, such as vascular endothelial growth factor, chemokine ligand 5, chemokine ligand 2, intercellular adhesion molecule-1, matrix metalloproteinase-2, tumor necrosis factor-α and nitric oxide (induced by LPS), and the repressing effect of EGCG on inflammatory response was dose-dependent in the range of 6.25-100 µM. EGCG inhibited these marked inflammatory key signaling molecules by reducing the expression of phospho-nuclear factor-κB p65, -Akt, -ERK and -MAPK p38 while the total protein level of these signal proteins were not affected. In conclusion, the present findings suggested that EGCG possesses cardiomyocyte-protective action in reducing the LPS-induced inflammatory response due to the inhibition of the phosphorylation of Akt and ERK signaling molecules.

The second phase dissolution of Al-9.2Zn-2.0Mg-1.9Cu alloy conducted by various temperatures of 2h was researched with the help of optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), electrical conductivity and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis. The results gave rise to the second phase existence of Mg(Zn,Cu,Al)2 and Fe-containing phases in the as-extruded alloy. When the alloy solution treated with a temperature varied from 450°C to 470°C, a small quantity of Mg(Zn,Cu,Al)2 phase still existed in the alloy while its content exhibited a decrement trend with the solution temperature rose. For the alloy solution treated at a temperature of 475°C, Mg(Zn,Cu,Al)2 phase dissolved into the matrix completely while Fe-containing phase still remained. The electrical conductivity of quenched alloy decrease with the solution temperature increase and reached a minimum value at 470°C, and then rose slightly for the solution temperature of 475°C.

Enterovirus 71 (EV71) is the predominant pathogen for severe hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) in children younger than 5 years, and currently no effective drugs are available for EV71. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop new drugs for the control of EV71 infection. In this study, LJ04 was extracted from Laminaria japonica using diethylaminoethyl cellulose-52 with 0.4 mol/l NaCl as the eluent, and its virucidal activity was evaluated based on its cytopathic effects on a microplate. LJ04 is composed of fucose, galactose, and mannose and mainly showed good virucidal activity against EV71. The antiviral mechanisms of LJ04 were the direct inactivation of the virus, the blockage of virus binding, disruptions to viral entry, and weak inhibitory activity against the nonstructural protein 3C. The two most important findings from this study were that LJ04 inhibited EV71 proliferation in HM1900 cells, which are a human microglia cell line, and that LJ04 can directly inactivate EV71 within 2 hr at 37°C. This study demonstrates for the first time the ability of a polysaccharide from L. japonica to inhibit viral and 3C activity; importantly, the inhibition of 3C might have a minor effect on the antiviral effect of LJ04. Consequently, our results identify LJ04 as a potential drug candidate for the control of severe EV71 infection in clinical settings.

Macrophages are highly diverse cells and represent the major antigen-presenting cell at the maternal-fetal interface. Except for protecting the embryo with half of the paternal antigens from attack by the maternal immune system, decidua macrophages also have a critical role in implantation, trophoblast invasion, spiral artery remodeling, angiogenesis, and pathogen clearance. The classically activated (M1) and alternatively activated (M2) macrophages are the simplified classifications of macrophages, often applied to differentiate decidual macrophages. Particular phenotypes and functions of macrophages corresponding to each phase of the menstrual cycle and pregnancy are critical for establishing and maintaining pregnancy. Aberrant dynamics of decidual macrophages are associated with multiple pregnancy complications, such as recurrent pregnancy loss, preeclampsia, and preterm birth. Although various factors are related to decidual macrophage polarization, including cytokines, growth factors, hormones, and transcription factors, the potential regulatory mechanisms underlying decidual macrophage polarization are still unclear. Therefore, a thorough understanding of macrophage function and regulatory mechanism during pregnancy is critical to clarify the pathogenesis of pregnancy complications. In this review, we first describe an overview of the origin, phenotype, and function of macrophages in the uterus. Secondly, we propose emerging concepts explaining how macrophage polarization and functions are regulated, including immunometabolism, epigenetics, immune checkpoint, and microorganisms. Finally, we review the potential relationship among these novel factors in regulating the function of the immune system.

Context The influences of diabetes duration and glycemic control and their potential interplays on the risk of heart failure (HF) remain unclear. Objective This work aimed to investigate the association of diabetes duration and glycemic control with the risk of HF. Methods A total of 23 754 individuals with diabetes but without HF during the baseline recruitment of UK Biobank were included in this study. Duration of diabetes was self-reported, and the status of glycemic control was reflected by glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels. Their associations with incident HF were assessed using multivariate Cox models adjusting for traditional risk factors. Results Duration of diabetes and HbA1c levels both were positively associated with the risk of HF. The hazard ratios (HRs) (95% CI) for diabetes durations of 5 to less than 10, 10 to less than 15, and 15 years or more were 1.09 (0.97-1.23), 1.13 (0.97-1.30), and 1.32 (1.15-1.53), respectively (vs < 5 years); and the HRs for HbA1c of 53.0 to less than 58.5 mmol/mol (7.0% to < 7.5%), 58.5 to less than 63.9 mmol/mol (7.5% to < 8.0%), and 63.9 mmol/mol or greater (8.0%) were 1.15 (1.02-1.31), 1.07 (0.91-1.26), and 1.46 (1.30-1.65), respectively (vs < 53.0 mmol/mol [7.0%]). Individuals with the longest disease duration (≥ 15 years) and poorer glycemic control (HbA1c ≥ 63.9 mmol/mol [8.0%]) had a particularly higher risk of HF (P for interaction = .026). Conclusion The risk of HF among individuals with diabetes increases with a longer duration of diabetes and increasing HbA1c levels. This finding may contribute to the individualized prevention of HF in patients with diabetes if being considered in clinical practices and policy-making.

In this letter, an annular anode is designed for producing arc plasmas with a large non-equilibrium region by using a counterflow cold gas through the annular anode. The coupled mass-momentum-energy exchange processes in an argon arc plasma are studied numerically and experimentally. The counter-injection of the cold argon gas from the center of the anode leads to a steep gradient of the heavy-particle temperature due to the formation of a thin stagnation layer resulting from the interaction of the high temperature plasma with the cold gas; and in particular, a large volume non-equilibrium ‘dark’ plasma region is obtained above the anode surface. The results show that, with the enhancement of the convective heat transfer process in the plasma core region, the fraction of the non-equilibrium region to the whole arc plasma region reaches 92.2% where the heavy-particle temperature can be reduced significantly, e.g. ∼2300 K, while simultaneously, the electron temperature and number density are remained at high levels greater than 8000 K and 2.4 × 1020 m−3, respectively, under the operating condition studied in this letter. This research not only deepens the understanding to the non-equilibrium synergistic transport mechanisms of arc plasmas, but also provides a method for producing a large volume non-equilibrium plasma region so as to promote various existing applications, or even creating new applications in the future.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease. The pathogenesis of PD remains elusive, however PD appears to be caused by a complex interaction between environmental and genetic factors affecting various biological processes. The purpose of the present study is to identify hub genes and potential molecular mechanisms in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of PD patients to aid early diagnosis and start treatment promptly. Two gene expression profiles (GSE22491 and GSE100054) were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, in which 20 PBMC samples from PD patients and 17 controls were included, and the genes were analyzed with GEO2R. 1382 and 512 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in GSE22491 and GSE100054, respectively. Additionally, a total of 80 significant DEGs were found to co-exist in the two microarray datasets via Venn diagram. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses were performed, which showed that the DEGs were mainly enriched in platelet degranulation, blood coagulation, nitric oxide mediated signal transduction, positive regulation of GTPase activity and cellular response to lipopolysaccharide. PPI network, microRNA (miRNA) - hub gene network, and transcription factor (TF)- hub gene network were constructed. In summary, the present study provides data of potential diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for PD. SRC may be a potential target for the treatment of PD. Additionally, three TFs (HNF4A, CDX2 and FUS), three miRNAs (hsa-miR-16-5p, hsa-miR-103a-3p and hsa-miR-107), may be involved in PD.

Programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) and T-cell immunoglobulin mucin-3 (Tim-3) are important immune checkpoint receptors that prevent an overreacted maternal immune response to fetal antigens during pregnancy. Disruption of complex immune regulation mechanisms is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, including preeclampsia (PE). Our recent study showed that the Tim-3 pathway was involved in the regulation of decidual macrophage polarization. Decidual macrophages polarized to the M1 phenotype may impair uterine vessel remodeling during placentation, accounting for the occurrence of PE. Co-blockade of the PD-1/Tim-3 pathway was shown to successfully control tumor growth in preclinical cancer models. However, the effects of activating both PD-1 and Tim-3 pathways as a combined intervention strategy in PE are never reported. Herein, we observed the skew of decidual macrophage polarization toward the M1 phenotype in patients with PE and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced PE-like rat model. Moreover, we found that the activation of PD-1/Tim-3 pathway by using PD-L1 and Gal-9 fusion proteins could alleviate the manifestation of the LPS-induced PE-like rats and protect their offspring. Compared with the single intervention, the combination of PD-L1and Gal-9 fusion proteins exhibited obvious advantages in the relief of PE-like symptoms, trophoblast invasion, and fetal vascular development, indicating a synergistic effect of the activated PD-1/Tim-3 pathway. The in vitro study also revealed that the combined intervention using PD-L1 and Gal-9 fusion proteins inhibited the LPS-induced M1 macrophage polarization via the synergic activation of the ERK/GSK3β/β-catenin signaling pathway. Together, our findings provide the first evidence that simultaneous activation of PD-1/Tim-3 signaling pathways may have an optimal protective effect and serve as a new potential target for PE intervention.

The formalism of general probabilistic theories (GPTs), which include classical probability theory and quantum mechanics, has provided us with physical theories beyond quantum mechanics. In this work, we focus on studying the connection between several classes of exclusion tasks and core problems of resource theories-weight-based resource quantifiers and resource manipulations in any GPT. First, we introduce two resourceful quantifiers called the weight of state (WOS) and the weight of measurement (WOM) in any GPT; then, we show that the WOS accurately quantifies the best advantage that a given resource state offers over resourceless states in all channel exclusion tasks. Meanwhile, a similar conclusion can be drawn for the WOM. Second, we introduce the weight-generating power of a channel (WGPC) in any GPT, based on which the resource content of a nonfree channel can be quantified by understanding the number of resources produced by it. It is proven that the WGPC can be considered as the best advantage provided by a given nonfree channel when considering a class of free-state exclusion tasks. In the context of quantum mechanics, we show that the best advantage that a given resource channel provides over resourceless channels in a class of entanglement-assisted state exclusion tasks can be accurately quantified by the weight of channel (WOC). In addition, we introduce the maximum WOC ensemble (MWCE) and find that the MWCE admits an operational interpretation as the best advantage that a given resource channel ensemble provides over free channel ensembles in a class of specific free-channel exclusion tasks. Finally, we show that several classes of channel and state exclusion tasks can constitute complete sets of monotones, completely describing the transformations of states and measurements in any GPT, respectively.

We propose a non-contact method for determining phosphor/silicone temperature (phosphor temperature) in phosphor-coated light-emitting diode (pc-LED). The pc-LED with a surface mounted device (SMD) structure is primarily consisted of InGaN/GaN blue LED chip, (Sr,Ca)AlSiN3:Eu2+ red rare-earth phosphor, and transparent dimethyl silicone. This proposed method is basically based on a linear temperature dependence of divisional normalized emission power for phosphor/silicone mixture. Four types of pc-LED corresponding to four different phosphor concentrations are examined by proposed method. A comparison of measured results between micro-thermocouple device and proposed method has also been carried out, showing a fairly good agreement between them, except for pc-LED with 4.8 wt% phosphor concentration. We suggest that this proposed method can provide a useful tool for further study of optical and thermal characteristics in pc-LED.

In this paper, we put forward a new secret sharing scheme. First, we give the mutually unbiased bases on the p2-dimensional quantum system where p is an odd prime number, and then we construct the corresponding unitary transformation based on the properties of these mutually unbiased bases. Second, we construct a (N, N) threshold secret sharing scheme by using unitary transformation between these mutually unbiased bases. At last, we analyze the scheme’s security by several ways, for example, intercept-and-resend attack, entangle-and-measure attack, trojan horse attack, and so on. Using our method, we construct a single-particle quantum protocol involving only one qudit, and the method shows much more scalability than other schemes.

The evolution of flow structures during dynamic stall of a two-dimensional pitching National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics 0012 airfoil is studied using the variational Lagrangian coherent structures (LCSs), and the mass transport and vorticity transport are precisely analyzed using LCSs and lobe dynamics for further understanding the nature of flow phenomena in dynamic stall. First, the variational LCS algorithm is improved to be efficiently used in the accurate extraction of flow structures. Then, both the hyperbolic LCSs and elliptic LCSs are computed numerically in the whole process of dynamic stall to analyze the evolution of flow structures in detail. Further, a high-accuracy LCS-advection method is used in the advection of LCSs to quantitatively analyze the mass transport and vorticity transport in the evolution of LCSs utilizing lobe dynamics based on nonlinear dynamics. Finally, the evolution and motion of primary leading edge vortex (LEV) and trailing edge vortex (TEV) identified by elliptic LCSs are analyzed in depth. The results obtained can provide a deeper insight into the nature of flow phenomena in dynamic stall from the viewpoint of nonlinear dynamics. Specifically, the nature of evolution of primary LEV and the TEV and the reasons for the changes of lift coefficients are clarified from the viewpoint of fluid transport. To explain it briefly, the variational LCSs and lobe dynamics are powerful tools to quantitatively analyze the evolution of flow structures and fluid transport.

A Zn-added Al-Mg-Si-Cu alloy during aging at 170 °C up to 34 h exhibits an interesting age-hardening effect. Small clusters, enriched in Mg and Si, are present in the sample after 0.25 h aging. The β′′ phase is dominant with the peak hardness of 135 HV after aging of 8 h. A decrease in hardness of the alloy occurs with the aging time increasing to 34 h, due to the coarsening of β′′ phase. It is also found that the Cu-containing L phase co-exists with the β′′ phase at this aging condition. The quantitative solute concentrations of the matrix show that the formation of clusters is consistent with the slight lower contents of Mg, Si and Cu compared with the alloy chemical composition, and the present of β′′ and L phase is associated with the further partitioning of Mg, Si and Cu from the Al matrix into the precipitates. No Zn-rich clusters and precipitates are observed and the Zn concentration in matrix has no significant change during aging for up to 34 h. This result means that the major of Zn remains in the matrix as aging continues.

Intermediate annealing on anisotropy and mechanical properties of an Al-0.78Mg-0.90Si-0.65Zn-0.16Cu (wt. %) alloy was investigated by tensile test, optical microscope (OM) and electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD). The results indicated that alloy sheet displayed various microstructure after without intermediate annealing, intermediate annealing treatment at 350°C for 2 h, 450°C for 2 h and 500°C for 5 min. Compared with the alloy without intermediate annealing, the alloy exhibited equiaxed grain with 35.0µm after annealing at 500°C for 5 min, grain orientation of the alloy was distributed randomly, and plastic strain ratio value of 45° direction was more than 0.6. The anisotropy of the sheet was significantly reduced. Annealing at 500°C for 5 min was suitable for the production process of automobile body sheets.

In order to analyze aging behavior of an Al-8.0Zn-1.8Mg-2.0Cu alloy, the microstructure of the alloy subjected to T6 and T76 states are investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution electron microscopy (HREM). Based on the precipitate observations, precipitate size distributions and average precipitate size are extracted from bright-field TEM images projected along 〈110〉Alorientation with the aid of an imaging analysis. The results indicate that the main precipitates are GPI zone, GPII zone and η' phase in the T6 alloy while η' phase and η phase in the T76 alloy. The bright-field TEM observations reveal that the matrix precipitates for the T6 alloy have small size and dispersive distribution while that for the T76 alloy has big size and sparse distribution. Both have discontinuously distributed grain boundary precipitates. Quantitative structural information including precipitate size distribution and average precipitate size has been calculated by an image analysis based on the bright-field TEM images projected along 〈110〉Alorientation. The results show that the T6 alloy has a narrower precipitate size range than the T76 alloy and thus the T6 alloy possesses a smaller average precipitate size than the T76 alloy.

Aging treatments of an Al-9.0Zn-2.0Mg-2.0Cu alloy, which belongs to high strength aluminum alloy widely used in aerospace industry, are investigated by various techniques, including hardness, electrical conductivity, mechanical properties, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution electron microscopy (HREM). The result shows that hardness and conductivity for one-step aging treatment increase with aging time prolongs while those for two-step aging treatment exhibit increment and decrement, respectively. Besides, the ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and yield strength (YS) for one-step and two-step aging treatments show slow increase and obvious decrease, respectively. Based on these, typical T6 and T76 aging regimes are extracted for microstructure observation. The matrix precipitates for the T6 alloy have small size and dispersive distribution while that for the T76 alloy has big size and sparse distribution. The grain boundary precipitates for both exhibit discontinuous distribution and the T76 alloy has larger size and broader precipitate free zones. The selected area diffraction patterns and HREM observations reveal that main precipitates for the T6 alloy are GPI zone, GPII zone and η' phase while for the T76 alloy are η' phase and η phase.

A systematic high-pressure study of the CdNx (x = 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6) system is performed by using the first-principles calculation method in combination with the particle swarm optimization algorit...

Quantum key distribution allows two remote parties to generate a theoretically secure key. However, its application still faces a great challenge, that is, the fundamental linear secret key-rate constraint. Recently, several QKD schemes have been presented to obtain a secret key rate which is higher than that of the previous schemes. Based on QKD scheme, a phase-matching quantum key distribution protocol with 3-state system is proposed for the first time in this paper. Here, each successful detection is responded in three different ways, and the two parties obtain the key through “flip and flip,” so this greatly improves the success rate of the phase-matching and makes the final key rate higher than that of the previous scheme. The simulation results show that the proposed protocol breaks the limit of linear key generation rate in a shorter distance, and the longest practical transmission distance is about 470 km.

The plastic deformation properties of cylindrical pre-void aluminum–magnesium (Al–Mg) alloy under uniaxial tension are explored using molecular dynamics simulations with embedded atom method (EAM) potential. The factors of Mg content, void size, and temperature are considered. The results show that the void fraction decreases with increasing Mg in the plastic deformation, and it is almost independent of Mg content when Mg is beyond 5%. Both Mg contents and stacking faults around the void affect the void growth. These phenomena are explained by the dislocation density of the sample and stacking faults distribution around the void. The variation trends of yield stress caused by void size are in good agreement with the Lubarda model. Moreover, temperature effects are explored, the yield stress and Young’s modulus obviously decrease with temperature. Our results may enrich and facilitate the understanding of the plastic mechanism of Al–Mg with defects or other alloys.

A Boltzmann model equation (kinetic model) involving the chemical reaction of a multicomponent gaseous mixture is derived based on Groppi's work [“A Bhatnagar–Gross–Krook-type approach for chemically reacting gas mixtures,” Phys. Fluids 16, 4273 (2004)], in which the relaxation parameters of elastic collision frequency for rigid elastic spheres are obtained based on the collision term, and the pivotal collision frequency of the chemical reaction is deduced from the chemical reaction rate that is determined by the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method. This kinetic model is shown to be conservative, and the H theorem for an endothermic reaction is proven. In the framework of the gas-kinetic unified algorithm, the discrete velocity method, finite volume method, and implicit scheme are applied to solve the proposed kinetic model by introducing a suitable boundary condition at the wall surface. For hypersonic flows around a cylinder, the proposed kinetic model and the corresponding numerical methods are verified for both endothermic and exothermic reactions by comparison of the model's results with results from the DSMC method. The different influences of endothermic and exothermic reactions are also given. Finally, the proposed kinetic model is also used to simulate an exothermic reaction-driven flow in a square cavity.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of Deoxyribonuclease I (DNase I) coating on initial adhesion and biofilm formation of peri-implant bacteria. Titanium (Ti), Ti-polydopamine (Ti-PDOP), Ti-PDOP-DNase I and Ti-PDOP-inactivated DNase I samples were studied. The FE-SEM, EDS and XPS were used to confirm that DNase I was coated onto Ti. The initial adhesion and biofilm formation of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (A.a) and Fusobacterium nucleatum (F.n) were observed by CLSM. The osteogenic induction of Ti-PDOP-DNase I on MC3T3-E1 cells was investigated by ALP activity and RT-PCR. The adhesion clearance rate of viable bacteria on the surfaces of Ti-PDOP-DNase I was 91.95% for A.a, and 96.37% for F.n, and the 24 h biofilm formation of the bacteria was significantly inhibited. In addition, on DNase I coating, the mRNA level of osteogenic marker genes (alp, opn, bsp, sp7) and the activity of ALP were both up-regulated. Therefore, DNase I coating could be an alternative approach for preventing implant-related infection.

Based on accurate numerical solution of the kinetic equation using well-resolved spatial and velocity grids, the separation of rarefied gas flow in a microchannel with double rectangular bends is investigated over a wide range of Knudsen and Reynolds numbers. Rarefaction effects are found to play different roles in flow separation (vortex formation) at the concave and convex corners. Flow separations near the concave and convex corners are only observed for a Knudsen number up to 0:04 and 0:01, respectively. With further increase of the Knudsen number, flow separation disappears. Due to the velocity slip atthe solid walls, the concave (convex) vortex is suppressed (enhanced), which leads to the late (early) onset of separation of rarefied gas flows with respect to the Reynolds number. The critical Reynolds numbers for the emergence of concave and convex vortices are found to be as low as 0:32 x 10􀀀3 and 3.:8, respectively. The slip velocity near the concave (convex) corner is found to increase (decrease) when the Knudsen number increases. An adverse pressure gradient appears near the concave corner for all the examined Knudsennumbers, while for the convex corner it only occurs when the Knudsen number is less than 0:1. Due to the secondary flow and adverse pressure gradient near the rectangular bends, the mass-flow-rate ratio between the bent and straight channels of the same length is a non-monotonic function of the Knudsen number. Our results clarify the diversified and often contradictory observations reported in the literature about flow-rate enhancement and vortex formation in bent microchannels.

Background: Breakfast, which is considered as an important meal of the day, is being ignored by an increasing number of people as the pace of modern life accelerates. Although a large number of previous studies have reported the relationship between skipping breakfast and type 2 diabetes mellitus, most of them were cross-sectional studies. It remains unclear how skipping breakfast affects such specific cardio-metabolic diseases as hypertension, strokes and hypercholesterolemia. Methods: The protocols and reports of this meta-analysis are based on a meta-analysis of observational studies in epidemiological guidelines (MOOSE). Relevant studies were systematically retrieved from PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and the Cochrane Library, and were restricted to English from the inception to May 10, 2019. All the results were obtained by RRs, and outcomes of interests should include the occurrence of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Results: Fourteen cohort studies in total were eventually included. Compared with people having breakfast frequency≦3times/week, those with a frequency>3 times/week have reduced the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus, obesity, Metabolic Syndrome, Low high-density lipoprotein cholesterolemia, Cardiovascular Diseases, cardiovascular Mortality, hypertension and strokes, with (RR = 0.8 [95% CI: 0.7–0.91], P = .142, I2 = 37.6%), (RR = 0.74 [95% CI: 0.59–0.94], P

Quantum key agreement requires all participants to recover the shared key together, so it is crucial to resist the participant attack. In this paper, we propose a verifiable multi-party quantum key agreement protocol based on the six-qubit cluster states. A verifiable distributor who preserves some subsequences of the six-qubit cluster states is introduced into this protocol, thus the participants can not obtain the shared key in advance. Besides, the correctness and simultaneity of the shared key are guaranteed by the trusted design combiner and homomorphic hash function. Furthermore, the security analysis shows that the new protocol can resist the external and internal attacks., 9 pages, 2 figures

The DSMC modeling is developed to simulate three-dimensional (3D) rarefied ionization flows and numerically forecast the communication blackout around spacecraft during hypervelocity reentry. A new weighting factor scheme for rare species is introduced, whose key point is to modify the corresponding chemical reaction coefficients involving electrons, meanwhile reproduce the rare species in resultants and preserve/delete common species in reactants according to the weighting factors. The resulting DSMC method is highly efficient in simulating weakly inhomogeneous flows including the Couette shear flow and controlling statistical fluctuation with high resolution. The accurate reliability of the present DSMC modeling is also validated by the comparison with a series of experimental measurements of the Shenzhou reentry capsule tested in a low-density wind tunnel from the HAI of CARDC. The obtained electron number density distribution for the RAM-C II vehicle agrees well with the flight experiment data, while the electron density contours for the Stardust hypervelocity reentry match the reference data completely. In addition, the present 3D DSMC algorithm can capture distribution of the electron, N+ and O+ number densities better than the axis-symmetric DSMC model. The introduction of rare species weighting factor scheme can significantly improve the smoothness of the number density contours of rare species, especially for that of electron in weak ionization case, while it has negligible effect on the macroscopic flow parameters. The ionization characteristics of the Chinese lunar capsule reentry process are numerically analyzed and forecasted in the rarefied transitional flow regime at the flying altitudes between 80 and 97 km, and the simulations predict communication blackout altitudes which are in good agreement with the actual reentry flight data. For the spacecraft reentry with hypervelocity larger than the second cosmic speed, it is forecasted and verified by the present DSMC modeling that ionization reactions will cover the windward capsule surface, leading to reentry communication blackout, and the communication interruption must be considered in the communication design during reentry in rarefied flow regimes.

In the (t, n) threshold quantum secret sharing scheme, it is difficult to ensure that internal participants are honest. In this paper, a verifiable (t, n) threshold quantum secret sharing scheme is designed to combine with classical secret sharing scheme. First of all, the distributor uses the asymmetric binary polynomial to generate the shares and sends them to each participant. Secondly, the distributor sends the initial quantum state with the secret to the first participant, and each participant performs unitary operation that uses the mutually unbiased bases on the obtained d dimension single bit quantum state (d is a large odd prime number). In this process, distributor can randomly check the participants, and find out the internal fraudsters. Then the secret is reconstructed after all other participants publicly transmit it at the same time. The analysis of this scheme includes correctness analysis, completeness analysis and security analysis. And the security analysis shows that the scheme can resist both external and internal attacks.

The proton beam with energy around 100 MeV has seen wide applications in modern scientific research and in various fields. However, proton sources in China fall short for meeting experimental needs owing to the vast size and expensive traditional proton accelerators. The Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology of Sichuan University proposed to build a 3 GHz side-coupled cavity linac (SCL) for re-accelerating a 26 MeV proton beam extracted from a CS-30 cyclotron to 120 MeV. We carried out investigations into several vital factors of S-band SCL for proton acceleration, such as optimization of SCL cavity geometry, end cell tuning, and bridge coupler design. Results demonstrated that the effective shunt impedance per unit length ranged from 22.5 to 59.8 MΩ/m throughout the acceleration process, and the acceleration gradient changed from 11.5 to 15.7 MV/m when the maximum surface electric field was equivalent to Kilpatrick electric field. We obtained equivalent circuit parameters of the biperiodic structures and applied them to the end cell tuning; results of the theoretical analysis agreed well with the 3D simulation. We designed and optimized a bridge coupler based on the previously obtained biperiodic structure parameters, and the field distribution un-uniformness was

To investigate the effect and mechanism of miRNA-145 on leukemic cell apoptosis.After transfection of miRNA-145 mimic and negative control mimic in leukemia cells by Lipofectamine 2000 liposome, the MTT assay was used to detect the effect of miRNA-145 on cell proliferation. Flow cytometry was used to detect the effect of miRNA-145 on cell cycle and apoptosis. Western blotting assay was used to detect the expression levels of BCL-2, CDK6, Cyclin D1, BAX, PI3K p-PI3K, p-AKT and AKT.The relative level of microRNA in HuT 78 cells transfected with miRNA-145 was 2.3±02, which was significantly higher than that in blank control group and miRNA-NC group (P＜0.05). MTT assay showed that the proliferation level of HuT 78 cells transfected with miRNA-145 mimic was significantly lower than that of blank control and miRNA-NC group (P＜0.05). Flow cytometry showed that the cells at GUpregulation of miRNA-145 may inhibit the proliferation of leukemia cells and promote the apoptosis, which may be related with the inhibition of PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.miRNA-145对白血病HuT 78细胞凋亡的影响及其机制研究.探讨miRNA-145对白血病细胞凋亡的影响及其机制.利用 Lipofectamine 2000 脂质体将miRNA-145模拟物（mimic）及阴性对照转染至白血病细胞后，采用MTT实验检测miR-145对细胞增殖能力的影响，采用流式细胞术检测miR-145对白血病细胞的细胞周期及凋亡影响，采用Western blot实验检测BCL-2、CDK6、Cyclin D1、BAX、PI3K、p-PI3K、 p-AKT及AKT表达水平.miR-145模拟物转染HuT 78细胞后，miR-145模拟物相对水平为2.3±0.2，显著高于空白对照组及miR-NC组（P＜0.05）。miR-145模拟物转染至HuT 78细胞后， HuT 78细胞增殖水平明显低于空白对照及miR-NC组（P＜0.05）。转染miRNA-145模拟物后可促使HuT 78细胞的G上调miR-145可抑制白血病细胞的增殖能力，并促进细胞发生凋亡，其机制可能与PI3K/AKT信号通路受到抑制有关.