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Using the complex network technology, the characteristics of the core acupoint prescriptions and the application of acupuncture-moxibustion techniques were analyzed in treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) so as to provide the evidences for acupoint selection and therapeutic methods for RA treated with acupuncture and moxibustion. The articles of acupuncture and moxibustion for treatment of RA in recent 20 years were collated and imported, and the database of the acupoint prescriptions was developed. Using Cytoscape 3.9.2 software, the acupoints in the prescriptions were visualized for the common occurrence network analysis. The association rule analysis was performed with IBM SPSS Modeler 18.0 software and the complex network analysis was by Gephi 0.9.2 software. A total of 798 articles were screened, in which, 3 258 prescriptions were extracted with 253 acupoints involved. The analysis of acupoint selection was conducted in terms of syndrome/pattern differentiation, acupoint locations and main acupoints, and therapeutic methods. The results showed that the most common TCM syndromes of RA included painful利用复杂网络技术分析针灸治疗类风湿关节炎的核心腧穴处方以及刺灸法应用特点，为临床针灸治疗类风湿关节炎提供选穴、治法依据。对近20年针灸治疗类风湿关节炎的文献进行收集、整理、录入，建立针灸处方数据库，对处方中的腧穴运用Cytoscape3.9.0进行共现网络可视化、运用IBM SPSS Modeler 18.0进行关联规则分析、利用Gephi0.9.2软件进行复杂网络分析。共筛选出798篇文献，提取3 258条针灸处方，涉及253个腧穴，主要从辨证分型选穴、分部选穴、主穴处方及疗法进行分析。结果表明最常见的中医证型为痛痹、行痹、着痹及风湿热痹；辨证选穴核心腧穴组合为痛痹：关元、肾俞；着痹：阴陵泉、三阴交、足三里、脾俞、丰隆；行痹：风池、膈俞、风门、血海、外关；风湿热痹：大椎、曲池、合谷。分部选穴以上肢部、下肢部、脊柱部腧穴多见。曲池在主穴处方中使用频次最高，足三里-肾俞的共现强度最高；相关性最高的腧穴组合为足三里-曲池。针灸治疗类风湿关节炎选穴多遵循“主穴-局部配穴-辨证配穴”的原则，温针灸及针药联合为最常用的施治方法。.

A cohort of morphologically heterogenous doublecortin immunoreactive (DCX+) “immature neurons” has been identified in the cerebral cortex largely around layer II and the amygdala largely in the paralaminar nucleus (PLN) among various mammals. To gain a wide spatiotemporal view on these neurons in humans, we examined layer II and amygdalar DCX + neurons in the brains of infants to 100 year-old individuals. Layer II DCX + neurons occurred throughout the cerebrum in the infants/toddlers, mainly in the temporal lobe in the adolescents and adults, and only in the temporal cortex surrounding the amygdala in the elderly. Amygdalar DCX + neurons occurred in all age groups, localized primarily to the PLN, and reduced in number with age. The small-sized DCX + neurons were unipolar or bipolar, and formed migratory chains extending tangentially, obliquely and inwardly in layers I-III in the cortex, and from the PLN to other nuclei in the amygdala. Morphologically mature-looking neurons were lightly labeled and co-expressed the neuron-specific nuclear antigen, glutamic acid decarboxylase and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-diaphorase. Taken together, we consider that the layer II and amygdalar DCX + neurons form a slowly developing interneuron system that supports inhibitory network plasticity in the cerebrum in an age/region-dependent manner.

The effect of Li (2.0 wt%) addition on mechanical properties and ageing precipitation behavior of Al−3.0Mg−0.5Si was investigated by tensile test, dynamic elasticity modulus test, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) images. The results show that the tensile strength of the Li-containing alloy can be significantly improved; however, the ductility is sharply decreased and the fracture mechanism changes from ductile fracture to intergranular fracture. The elasticity modulus of the Li-containing alloy increases by 11.6% compared with the base alloy. The microstructure observation shows that the Li addition can absolutely change the precipitation behavior of the base alloy, and δ′-Al3Li phase becomes the main precipitates. Besides, β″-Mg2Si and δ′-Al3Li dual phases precipitation can be visibly observed at 170 °C ageing for 100 h, although the quantity of δ′-Al3Li phase is more than β″-Mg2Si phase. The width of the precipitate-free zone (PFZ) of the Li-containing alloy is much wider at the over-ageing state than the base alloy, which has a negative impact on the ductile and results in the decrease of elongation.

Objective: To discuss and analyze the clinical efficacy and prognostic effect of an electroacupuncture dilatational wave in acute-stage facial paralysis. Method: Sixty patients with acute facial paralysis who received treatment in the inpatient department of our hospital from April 2018 to January 2019 were randomly divided into two groups: a treatment group and a control group. Both groups were treated with the same procedures, such as antivirus, nerve nutrition, circulation improvement, anti-inflammatory, infrared radiation on the affected side, electroacupuncture in quiescent period and Chinese herbal decoction. Dilatational wave treatment was also performed in the treatment group in the acute stage, and the clinical efficacy and effect on prognosis were compared between the two groups. Results: The total effective rate of the treatment group was 96.7%, and the total effective rate of the control group was 70%. The difference in the level of efficacy between the two groups was statistically different (P < 0.05). Conclusions: For the acute stage of facial paralysis, patients who underwent conventional treatment using an electroacupuncture dilatational wave showed a significantly improved efficacy rate, as well as other clear advantages. The treatment is, therefore, worthy of further investigation.

Methanol electrolysis is a promising strategy to achieve energy-saving and efficient electrochemical hydrogen (H2) production. In this system, the advanced electrocatalysts with high catalytic performance for both the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) are highly desirable. Inspired by the complementary catalytic properties of rhodium (Rh) and palladium (Pd) for MOR and HER, herein, several Pd core-RhPd alloy shell nanodendrites (Pd@RhPd NDs) are synthesized through the galvanic replacement reaction between Pd nanodendrites (Pd NDs) and rhodium trichloride. For MOR, Pd@RhPd NDs exhibit Rh content-determined catalytic activity, in which Pd@Rh0.07Pd NDs have an optimal combination of oxidation potential and oxidation current due to the synergistic catalytic process of Pd/Rh double active sites. For HER, the introduction of Rh greatly improves the catalytic activity of Pd@RhPd NDs compared to that of Pd NDs, suggesting that Rh is the main activity site for HER. Unlike MOR, however, the HER activity of Pd@RhPd NDs is not sensitive to the Rh content. Using Pd@Rh0.07Pd NDs as robust bifunctional electrocatalysts, the as-constructed two-electrode methanol electrolysis cell shows a much lower voltage (0.813 V) than that of water electrolysis (1.672 V) to achieve electrochemical H2 production at 10 mA cm-2, demonstrating the application prospect of methanol electrolysis for H2 production.

This study aims to identify and analyze the metabolites of imperatorin in rats by UHPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap MS. Specifically, after rats were treated(ig) with imperatorin, the plasma, urine, and feces were collected, and the samples were processed by solid phase extraction. Then, UHPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap MS was performed. In MS, 0.1% formic acid water(A)-acetonitrile(B) was applied as mobile phase for gradient elution and the data of MS in both positive and negative ion modes were collected. The metabolites of imperatorin in blood, urine, and feces of rats were analyzed to explore the metabolic pathways of imperatorin in rats. According to accurate molecular weight, multistage MS data, MS fragmentation rule of the standard substance, and previous reports, a total of 51 metabolites were identified, with 35, 40, and 16 from plasma, urine, and feces, separately. The main metabolic pathways were oxidization, glucuronidation, isopentenyl removal, sulphation, carboxylation, among others. The conclusion in this study is expected to serve as a reference for the further development and the further pharmacodynamics study of imperatorin.

Due to [Formula: see text] not being a group under addition, [Formula: see text] admits no traditional wavelet or Gabor frame. This paper addresses a class of dilation-and-modulation ([Formula: see text]) Parseval frames for [Formula: see text]. We present a parametric expression of all [Formula: see text]-Parseval frames (frame sequences) and [Formula: see text]-orthonormal bases (systems); and develop an approach to obtain all [Formula: see text]-Parseval frames (frame sequences) and [Formula: see text]-orthonormal bases (systems) starting with one [Formula: see text]-Parseval frame for [Formula: see text].

This study was based on the pilot one-stage combined partial nitritation and ANAMMOX process (CPNA), using data mining and analysis of 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing data of activated sludge in the process of sludge bulking and recovery, combined with PISCRUSt2. The function prediction analysis aimed to reveal the microbial community changes and the characteristics of nitrogen metabolism and carbon metabolism at different stages of sludge bulking and recovery of the one-stage CPNA process. The results of the study showed that the microbial

Let K be a bounded linear operator on a separable Hilbert space H . Gavruţa in 2012 proposed the notion of K-frame. It is exactly an atomic system with respect to K, and allows a stable reconstruction in range ( K ) . This paper addresses the construction of K-frames. We characterize bounded linear operators on l 2 that transform a pair of Bessel sequences into a K-frame; present a sufficient condition to obtain K-frames from two orthogonal (disjoint) K-frames. Moreover, when dim ( H ) ∞ , we investigate Parseval K-frames and K-frames with prescribed norms. Some examples are also provided.

Rapid detection of long-chain alcohol vapors with high energy is highly desirable owing to their inflammable and explosive properties. However, chemoresistive sensors based on metal oxides have bee...

Hypermonins A-D (1-4), four rearranged nor-polycyclic polyprenylated acylphloroglucinols (PPAPs) with unprecedented skeletons, together with two new biosynthesis related PPAPs (5 and 6) were isolated and identified from the flowers of Hypericum monogynum. Hypermoins A-D represented the first examples of highly modified norPPAPs characterized by a rare 7/6/6/5-tetracyclic system. From the biogenic synthesis pathway analysis, all isolates shared the same biosynthetic intermediate, and the addition of two methyls or one methyl to this intermediate through methyltranferase could generate different types of PPAPs (1-7). Their planner structures as well as absolute configuration were confirmed via spectroscopic analysis, ECD calculation, and X-ray crystallography. All isolates potentially reversed multidrug resistance (MDR) activity in both two cancer cells, HepG2/ADR and MCF-7/ADR. Specifically, hypermoin E (5) and hyperielliptone HA (7) were found to be the best MDR modulators with the reversal fold ranging from 41 to 236, which is higher than the positive control verapamil.

Hymoins A-D (1-4), two pairs of light-induced transformative polyprenylated acylphloroglucinols with an unprecedented pentacyclic skeleton, were isolated from the flowers of Hypericum monogynum. The first decarbonylative ring contraction of complex natural products was investigated by light irradiation. Their structures were elucidated by nuclear magnetic resonance analysis, X-ray crystallography, and electronic circular dichroism calculations. In addition, compound 3 showed moderate inhibition efficacy of the platelet-activating-factor-induced aggregation of rabbit platelets.

The negative symptoms of schizophrenia without effective therapeutic agents seriously affect the quality of life. Studies investigating the neurobiological mechanisms of the negative symptoms of sc...

Background:Deoxypodophyllotoxin, isolated from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Anthriscus sylvestris, is well-known because of its significant anti-tumor activity with strong toxicity in vitro and in vivo.Objective:In this article, a series of deoxypodophyllotoxin derivatives were synthesized and their anti-tumor effectiveness was evaluated.Methods:The anti-tumor activity of deoxypodophyllotoxin derivatives was investigated by the MTT assay method. Apoptosis percentage was measured by flow cytometer analysis using Annexin-V-FITC.Results:The derivatives revealed obvious cytotoxicity in the MTT assay by decreasing the number of late cancer cells. The decrease of Bcl-2/Bax could be observed in MCF-7, HepG2, HT-29, and MG-63 using Annexin V-FITC. The ratio of Bcl-2/Bax in the administration group was decreased, which was determined by the ELISA kit.Conclusion:The derivatives of deoxypodophyllotoxin could induce apoptosis in tumor cell lines by influencing Bcl-2/Bax.

In the present work, the microstructural characteristics and mechanical properties of Al–1.5 Mg–0.6Si and Al–3.0 Mg–0.6Si alloy containing 3 wt% Li were investigated by optical microscopy (OM), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), time of flight–secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and mechanical performance testing. The addition of Li reduces the density of the base alloy by up to 8.4%. The residual second phases contain Mg and Si in the hot-rolled condition, but the Mg/Si atomic ratio decreases after quenching, which means that Li substitute some of the Mg and convert Mg2Si into a (Mg, Li)2Si phase during solution treatment. The results of SIMS observations confirm this. The high Mg-containing alloy has a more rapid hardening response compared to the low Mg-containing alloy. TEM observation reveals that the δ′-Al3Li + β′′-Mg2Si dual phases can be observed in the high Mg-containing alloy after aging for 100 h at 170 °C. The higher Mg content enhances the precipitation of the δ′ phase, which results in the high Mg-containing alloy having a larger average diameter size of δ′ particles and wider δ′-precipitate-free zones (δ′-PFZs). The mechanical properties are significantly improved with the elastic modulus increasing by more than 16.5%. However, the existence of large second phases and wide δ′-PFZs in Li-containing alloys is detrimental to their ductility; as a result, their elongation is much lower than that of the base alloy.

N-Phenylphenothiazine as an inexpensive, highly reductive and oxygen tolerant organophotocatalyst has exhibited potential in various challenging photochemical transformations. Here we report a general and straightforward method to access structurally diverse N-phenylphenothiazine derivatives by means of a novel electrochemical tool. The introduction of a 2-naphthylamine moiety with an extended π-system and an amine group led to the variation of spectral characterization. Photochemical verification experiments demonstrated that the formed N-arylation products with good efficacy and chemo/site-control displayed competitive catalytic activity in challenging transformations.

Hypsampsone A (1) and hyperhexanone F (2), two novel seco-polycyclic polyprenylated acylphloroglucinols, were isolated from Hypericum sampsonii. Hypsampsone A (1) features the first spirocyclic system fused with 5/6/5/5 tetracyclic skeleton. Hyperhexanone F (2) represents the second novel 1,2-seco-bicyclo[3.3.1]-PPAP skeleton. Their structures were established by extensive spectroscopic analysis, computer-assisted structure elucidation software, and calculated electronic circular dichroism spectra. A plausible biogenetic pathway of 1 was also proposed. Compounds 1 and 2 showed moderate multidrug resistance reversal activity to adriamycin (ADR) resistant cancer cell lines, HepG2/ADR and MCF-7/ADR, with the fold-reversals ranging from 16 to 38 at noncytotoxic concentration of 10 μM.

Background and Objective: Postinfectious bronchiolitis obliterans (PIBO) is an uncommon and severe form of chronic obstructive lung disease in children. Adenovirus (ADV) is the main pathogen of PIBO in children. However, the risk factors of ADV-PIBO are not fully understood. This study aims to analyze the clinical characteristics of PIBO caused by ADV and compared with non-ADV-PIBO. Materials and Methods: A retrospective study of children under the age of 14 years diagnosed PIBO was performed in 56 ADV-PIBO cases, 29 non-ADV-PIBO, and 39 healthy controls to determine clinical characteristics of PIBO. Results: There was no difference between ADV-PIBO and non-ADV-PIBO cases in gender, age, individual and family atopy or history of asthma, and previous history of wheezing and no difference in the clinical manifestations and signs between the two groups. However, the hospital stay, duration of ventilator use, and multifocal pneumonia incidence of ADV-PIBO group have a significant differences compared with non-ADV-PIBO. Notably, inflammatory markers lactic dehydrogenase (LDH), interleukin 8 (IL-8), and interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) were significantly increased in PIBO patients, and those expressed in ADV-PIBO patients were higher than those in non-ADV-PIBO patients. In addition, ADV-PIBO children required a longer duration of oral prednisone and azithromycin than non-ADV-PIBO cases. Conclusions: Compared with non-ADV-PIBO, ADV-PIBO has a longer hospital stay, longer duration of ventilator use, increased LDH, IL-8, and IFN-γ expressions, and longer duration of oral prednisone and azithromycin treatment. Further research is needed to determine why PIBO caused by ADVs are more severe than those caused by other pathogens.

Metal chalcogenides are charming candidates for nonlinear optical (NLO) materials due to their multiple functional structural units and large polarizability. Here, isostructural Sn-based chalcogenides BaZnSnQ4 (Q = S, Se) were successfully synthesized based on the idea of heterovalent cations co-substitution of the Ga site in the parent BaGa2Se4. They crystallize in an orthorhombic system with polar space group Fdd2. Their structures are built by the NLO functional motifs ZnQ4 and SnQ4 tetrahedra. BaZnSnS4 (1) and BaZnSnSe4 (2) exhibit good SHG effects (0.6 and 1.0 times than that of AgGaS2) and also show type-I phase-matchable behaviors. In addition, their laser-induced damage thresholds are about 9.8 and 5.7 times higher than that of AgGaS2, respectively. BaZnSnS4 possesses a larger bandgap (3.25 eV) among the quaternary chalcogenide AMIIMIVQ4 (A = Sr, Ba; MII = Zn, Cd, Hg; MIV = Si, Ge, Sn; Q = S, Se) system. On the basis of theoretical calculation result, the source of SHG responses can be assigned to the synergetic effect of large distorted tetrahedral units. The achievement of this work provides a route to obtain new infrared NLO materials.

A phytochemical investigation of the roots of Euphorbia fischeriana Steud. led to the isolation of eleven undescribed gallotannins, fishertannins A-K, together with four known analogues. Their structures were elucidated by the comprehensive spectroscopic data including UV, IR, HR-ESI-MS, and NMR, while the absolute configurations of the sugar moiety were determined by the acid hydrolysis and HPLC analyses. Fishertannin A possessed an unusual skeleton comprised of acetophenone, galloyl group, arabinofuranosyl and glucopyranosyl moieties. Fishertannin B, fishertannin H, fishertannin K, 1,2,3-tri-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranose, 3,4,6-tri-O-galloyl-D-glucopyranose, and 1,6-di-O-galloyl-β-D-glucopyranose displayed the potent α-glucosidase inhibitory activities with the IC

This study aimed to investigate the effect of continuing nursing care team mode on postoperative outpatient chemotherapy patients with pancreatic cancer.One-hundred patients receiving postoperative outpatient chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer between September 2019 and December 2020 were enrolled in this study and divided into two groups, an intervention group and a control group (n = 50 each), by random number table method or coin tossing method. The patients in the intervention group were followed up using continuing nursing care team mode, while those in the control group were followed up using the traditional telephone follow-up mode. The effects of the two modes on patients' self-care ability, quality of life, anxiety, hospital waiting time, and the nurses' communication ability and self-efficacy were compared and analyzed.The self-care ability and quality of life of the patients in the intervention group were better than those of the control group (p 0.05), the anxiety score and hospital waiting times were lower than those in the control group (p 0.05), and the communication ability and general self-efficacy of the nurses were also significantly stronger than those in the control group (p 0.05).The application of the continuing nursing care team mode for follow-up can improve the self-care ability and quality of life of patients, effectively reduce the anxiety and hospital waiting time of outpatient chemotherapy patients, and improve the nurses' communication ability and general self-efficacy. Therefore, this practice is worthy of clinical popularization.

Developing broad-band-emitting phosphors is very important to light-emitting diode (LED) lighting and displays. We introduced Eu2+ to solid solutions K2YZr1–yHfy(PO4)3 with a langbeinite-type struc...

Snake venom metalloproteinases (SVMPs) are an important component in viperid and crotalid venoms, and these SVMPs play important and versatile roles in the pathogenesis of snakebite envenoming. The SVMPs from elapid venoms are not well elucidated compared with those from viperid and crotalid venoms. Atrase B is a nonhemorrhagic P-III SVMP purified from the Naja atra venom, which possesses a weak fibrinogenolytic activity. In this paper, the activity and mechanism of atrase B against platelet aggregation and blood coagulation were investigated. The in vitro assay showed that atrase B remarkably inhibited ristocetin- and thrombin-induced platelet aggregation by cleavage of the platelet membrane glycoprotein Ib, and the coagulation of normal human plasma, which may be caused by inhibiting coagulation factor VIII predominantly. When atrase B was intravenously injected into rats at doses of 0.05 and 0.30 mg/kg, the activated partial thromboplastin and the thrombin times were significantly prolonged in a dose-dependent manner. Similarly, the fibrinogen level decreased, but only a high dose of atrase B showed remarkable activity against platelet aggregation. Results suggested that anticoagulation was a more important function of atrase B compared with its activity against platelet aggregation. These results indicated that atrase B may play an important role in the anticoagulant properties of Naja atra venom. In addition, atrase B may be a potent anticoagulant agent because its effectiveness in vivo against platelet aggregation and blood coagulation.

Secondary cracks were frequently reported in fatigue failure of aviation aluminum alloy. In present study, scanning electron microscope observation of fracture morphology was carried out on an Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy extrusion plate with high zinc content. Secondary cracks penetrated continuous dimples formed via a chain of discontinuously distributed Fe-rich particles. Secondary cracks showed deflections inside or between dimples and could branch and then coalesce in neighbor dimples, or the branch just arrested without further growth, which were beneficial to energy release during fatigue crack propagation.

Two novel polycyclic polyprenylated acylphloroglucinols (PPAPs), hyperfols A (1) and B (2), and two known biosynthetically related precursors (3 and 4) were isolated from Hypericum perforatum. Compound 1 possesses an unprecedented 2,3-seco-PPAP with a fused 5/5/9/5 tetracyclic skeleton, and 2 features a 30-norPPAP. Their structures were established by spectroscopic analysis, computer-assisted structure elucidation software, and electronic circular dichroism calculations. Moreover, compounds 1 and 4 exhibit significant cytotoxicity against human erythroleukemia cells by inducing cell apoptosis.

The fatigue crack propagation of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys could be influenced by the content of main alloying element. In the present work, two Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys with a same Zn/Mg ratio were treated by two stage over-aging aging treatment and typical T7651 states were extracted via mechanical properties. Fatigue crack propagation of the two alloys were tested and the related precipitation characteristics and fracture morphology were observed. The results showed that the alloy with higher Zn, Mg contents possessed a better fatigue crack propagation resistance compared with the alloy with lower Zn, Mg contents. The corresponding fracture morphology also showed the difference of fatigue striation, which provided an additional support. The precipitation observation demonstrated that the both alloys possessed GPII zone, η' phase and η phase while the alloy with higher Zn, Mg contents had a larger average precipitate size and a larger proportion of large size precipitates compared with the alloy with lower Zn, Mg contents. Cut and bypass mechanisms of dislocation-precipitate interactions were used to explain the difference of fatigue crack propagation between the two alloys.

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.

Background Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) and macrophages are critical components in many tissue microenvironments, including that in adipose tissue. The close interaction between MSCs and macrophages modulates various adipose-related disease development. However, the effects of macrophages on the fate of MSCs remain largely elusive. We here studied the effect of macrophages on the adipogenic differentiation of MSCs. Methods Macrophages were obtained from THP-1 cells treated with phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA). The induced matured macrophages were then induced to undergo classically activated macrophage (M1) or alternatively activated macrophage (M2) polarization with Iipopolysaccharide (LPS)/interferon (IFN)-γ and interleukin (IL)-4/IL-13, respectively. The supernatants derived from macrophages under different conditions were applied to cultured human adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (hADSCs) undergoing adipogenic differentiation. Adipogenic differentiation was evaluated by examining Oil Red O staining of lipid droplets and the expression of adipogenesis-related genes with real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR) and western blot analysis. Results The adipogenic differentiation of hADSCs was impaired when treated with macrophage-derived supernatants, especially that from the M1-polarized macrophage (M1-sup). The inhibitory effect was found to be mediated by the inflammatory cytokines, mainly tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and IL-1β. Blocking TNF-α and IL-1β with neutralizing antibodies partially alleviated the inhibitory effect of M1-sup. Conclusion Macrophage-derived supernatants inhibited the adipogenic differentiation of hADSCs in vitro, irrespective of the polarization status (M0, M1 or M2 macrophages). M1-sup was more potent because of the higher expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Our findings shed new light on the interaction between hADSCs and macrophages and have implications in our understanding of disrupted adipose tissue homeostasis under inflammation.

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.

Stability has been an important subject in the design of a portal frame structure. Conventional stability analysis of the portal frame is normally conducted assuming that all the joints are rigid. However, the joints of a portal frame in real applications are not always rigid and semirigid connections often exist. AISC design code requires that the effect of the joint flexibility on the behavior and buckling capacity of the portal frame should be taken into account in the analysis and design procedures. To address this issue, a portal frame with flexible joints and rigid members was theoretically analyzed in the literature and closed form solution was derived for its global buckling load. However, when more parameters are involved, e.g., different leg lengths, asymmetric frame shape, and moving load, the solution to the governing equation of the stability of the frame becomes impossible. This paper presents a comprehensive parametric study on the stability of an asymmetric portal frame with flexible joints and rigid members through finite element (FE) analysis. The FE model was first validated by the existing theoretical solution in the literature. Parameters including the position of the moving load, the lengths of the two frame legs, and the span of the frame were analyzed. Design curves were developed based on the parametric study, from which the stable, unstable, and catastrophically unstable states of the portal frame were characterized. This paper contributes benchmark results for the stability optimization in the design of the portable frame of a general shape.

Recently, rare-earth-activated phosphors have been excessively studied for applications in field of white light-emitting diodes (W-LEDs). In this work, a series of Sm3+-doped Na5Bi(P2O7)2 phosphors have been synthesized via traditional high-temperature solid-state reaction method. The purity and phase structure were verified by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Owing to the 4G5/2→6H7/2 transition of Sm3+, Na5Bi1−xSmx(P2O7)2 phosphors show intense orange–red emission centered at 600 nm under near-UV light (403 nm) excitation. The 4% Sm3+ ion is the optimum doping concentration. The concentration quenching dominant mechanism is the d−d interaction. Moreover, phosphors Na5Bi0.96Sm0.04(P2O7)2 show good thermal stability, restraining 79.4% at 150 °C of that measured at 25 °C. The CIE coordinates of phosphor Na5Bi0.96Sm0.04(P2O7)2 were calculated to be (0.573, 0.414). Therefore, phosphor Na5Bi1−xSmx(P2O7)2 could be potentially used as an orange–red phosphor for W-LEDs.

Among various control techniques, variable substitution control is one of the most practical one for synchronizing systems. In this paper, we study inter-layer synchronization of two-layer networks via variable substitution control. We focus on three cases: identical topologies with all nodes being controlled, different topologies with all nodes being controlled, and identical topologies with part of nodes being controlled. Theoretical and numerical results show that, controlling all nodes in the response layer can lead to inter-layer synchronization whatever the coupling strength is. However, for two-layer networks with non-identical topologies in the drive and response layers, the fully-connected network and the star network have the best driving ability, the ring network follows, and the chain has the worst. Furthermore, when partial nodes are controlled in the response layer, whether inter-layer synchronization occurs depends on the layer size, the inner-coupling matrix, the coupling strength as well as the number of nodes controlled in the response layer. The provided results offer illustrative and useful hints for synchronizing two networks via variable substitution control.

The use of thermoelectric materials, which is a clean energy conversion method, can realize the direct conversion of thermal energy and electrical energy. Ceramic samples of the [Ca2CoO3−δ]0.62[CoO2] system with different contents of Co were prepared by sol–gel method combined with cold-press technology. X-ray diffraction and field emission scanning electron microscopy were used to confirm the single-phase composition and plate grain morphology of the samples. Analysis of the thermoelectric properties of [Ca2CoO3−δ]0.62[CoO2] (300–1026 K) shows that the electrical conductivity of the CCO–Co3 sample with low Co content is increased by 12% compared with that of the original sample CCO–Co1 at 1026 K. The thermal conductivity is decreased to 2.99 Wm−1 K−1. The ZT value of the samples with low Co content reaches 0.09 at 1026 K, which is 50% higher than that of the original sample CCO–Co1. Therefore, reducing Co content is an effective method to improve the thermoelectric properties of [Ca2CoO3−δ]0.62[CoO2] ceramics.

The rich compositional and structural diversity of borophosphates provides a wide variety of host lattices for luminescent materials. Herein, we report a borophosphate, CsNa2REE2(BO3)(PO4)2 (REE = Y, Gd), with a new type of three-dimensional (3D) anionic framework of [REE2(BO3)(PO4)2]∞. In this structure, REE3+ ions are in a linear array and the nearest intraline REE-REE distance is above 6.9 A. Surprisingly, the Eu3+ activated phosphors CsNa2REE2(1-x)Eu2x(BO3)(PO4)2 show an insignificant concentration quenching effect; the higher the Eu3+ concentration, the larger the absolute luminescent external quantum yield. The 100% Eu3+ phosphor CsNa2Eu2(BO3)(PO4)2 possesses an IQY of 59% under 394 nm excitation. Moreover, CsNa2Eu2(BO3)(PO4)2 phosphor possesses superior thermal stability in the range 30-200 °C, retaining more than 96% of its initial intensity at 200 °C. We believe the prepared phosphor has potential application as a red phosphor for NUV excited LEDs.