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In order to study the formation characteristics of tantalum explosively formed projectile (EFP), based on LS-DYNA finite-element software, this article analyzes the influence of mesh size on tantalum EFP forming, compares the accuracy of JC constitutive parameters in different literature on the characterization of tantalum EFP forming, calculates the effective action time of detonation that drives EFP formation, and carries out experimental verification. The results show that the EFP forming velocity was less sensitive to grid size; however, the EFP shape was highly sensitive to grid size, among which the liner had the greatest influence. Besides, for the same density and different constitutive parameters, the velocity of the stabilized EFP was the same, but the change trend of velocity was different, which led to the difference in morphology. The verification test showed that a selection of appropriate JC constitutive parameters could simulate tantalum EFP forming. Finally, the effect of detonation products on EFP forming was reflected mainly in the axial acceleration and radial contraction of the tail skirt. The influence of explosives and detonation products on EFP forming can be ignored 80 μs after the charge detonates. In this work, the numerical simulation method of tantalum EFP forming was studied, which provides guidance for the design and engineering application of tantalum EFP.

Background: Increasing evidence has shown that amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) can result in abnormal energy metabolism and sleep disorders, even before motor dysfunction. Although the hypothalamus and thalamus are important structures in these processes, few ALS studies have reported abnormal MRI structural findings in the hypothalamus and thalamus.Purpose: We aimed to investigate volumetric changes in the thalamus and hypothalamus by using the automatic brain structure volumetry tool AccuBrain®.Methods: 3D T1-weighted magnetization-prepared gradient echo imaging (MPRAGE) scans were acquired from 16 patients with ALS with normal cognitive scores and 16 age-, sex- and education-matched healthy controls. Brain tissue and structure volumes were automatically calculated using AccuBrain®.Results: There were no significant differences in bilateral thalamic (F = 1.31, p = 0.287) or hypothalamic volumes (F = 1.65, p = 0.213) between the ALS and control groups by multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA). Left and right hypothalamic volumes were correlated with whole-brain volume in patients with ALS (t = 3.19, p = 0.036; t = 3.03, p = 0.044), while the correlation between age and bilateral thalamic volumes tended to be significant after Bonferroni correction (t = 2.76, p = 0.068; t = 2.83, p = 0.06). In the control group, left and right thalamic volumes were correlated with whole-brain volume (t = 4.26, p = 0.004; t = 4.52, p = 0.004).Conclusion: Thalamic and hypothalamic volumes did not show differences between patients with normal frontotemporal function ALS and healthy controls, but further studies are still needed.

As an important member of the Argonaute protein family, PIWI-like protein 1 (PIWIL1) plays a key role in tumor cell viability. However, the exact function of PIWIL1 in multiple myeloma (MM) and the underlying mechanism remain unclear. Here, we revealed that PIWIL1 was highly expressed in myeloma cell lines and newly diagnosed MM patients, and that its expression was notably higher in refractory/relapsed MM patients. PIWIL1 promoted the proliferation of MM cells and conferred resistance to chemotherapeutic agents both in vitro and in vivo. More importantly, PIWIL1 enhanced the formation of autophagosomes, especially mitophagosomes, by disrupting mitochondrial calcium signaling and modulating mitophagy-related canonical PINK1/Parkin pathway protein components. Mitophagy/autophagy inhibitors overcome PIWIL1-induced chemoresistance. In addition, PIWIL1 overexpression increased the proportion of side population (SP) cells and upregulated the expression of the stem cell-associated genes Nanog, OCT4, and SOX2, while its inhibition resulted in opposite effects. Taken together, our findings demonstrated that PIWIL1 induced drug resistance by activating mitophagy and regulating the MM stem cell population. PIWIL1 depletion significantly overcame drug resistance and could be used as a novel therapeutic target for reversing resistance in MM patients.

Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by the uncontrolled inflammation, easily affecting the kidney. Sepsis-induced acute kidney injury (S-AKI) has high morbidity and mortality, of which the pathophysiological mechanisms have not been completely illuminated, leading to nonspecific therapies. Specific microRNAs were related with the pathogenesis of AKI. However, only limited studies focused on the pyroptosis in the context of S-AKI. The in vitro LPS-induced HK-2 cell model and in vivo CLP-induced mouse model were established. qRT-PCR, Western blot, ELISA, and RNA pulldown were used for expression examination. Multiple biological databases were used for miRNA screening. H&E staining and IHC staining were performed. The LPS-induced HK-2 cells showed significantly increased (P

Schizochytrium sp. is a kind of heterotrophic protist, rich in docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). To study the application value of Schizochytrium sp. in fish diet, a 20-day feeding experiment was initiated to evaluate its effect on growth, fatty acid contents, and the gut microbiota of the important economic fish, silver pomfret. In this study, the diets of the treatment group were added with 2% Schizochytrium sp. The fish in the treatment group gained more weight and had a higher growth rate than the control group. The levels of DHA, eicosapentaenoic acid, and polyunsaturated fatty acids in the edible tissue of fish were highly increased in the treatment group after 20 days. After feeding Schizochytrium sp., high-throughput 16S rRNA sequencing showed that the Proteobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were the phyla with the highest abundance, and at the genus and species level, we observed an increased abundance of probiotics. The results indicated that ingestion of Schizochytrium sp. could change the dominant microbiota population, which might lead to accelerated growth and improved unsaturated fatty acid content and fish health. This study provides a reference for Schizochytrium sp. supplementation in fish diets and could aid in the industrialization of silver pomfret.

Antibiotics are refractory pollutants that have been widely found in various environmental media such as soil and surface water. Existing sewage treatments perform poorly at preventing antibiotics in urban sewage from polluting natural environments. In this study, we designed a bioelectrically enhanced bioretention cell system (bioretention cell-microbial fuel cell, BRC-MFC) that utilizes the unique structure of the BRC system to improve the removal of sewage antibiotics. This new system can efficiently remove antibiotics by using a synergy of plant absorption, filler adsorption, filler filtration and microbial degradation. To study the influences of multiple-antibiotics stress on the decontamination performance of BRC-MFC, ofloxacin (OFLX) and tetracycline (TC) were selected as target antibiotics, and five BRC-MFCs were built to treat sewage containing antibiotics of different concentrations. The concentrations of pollutant in the influent and effluent were measured and the pollutant removal performance of BRC-MFC was studied. The diversity of rhizosphere microorganisms and the abundance of denitrifying functional genes were analyzed. Experimental results showed that over 90% of OFLX and TC in each BRC-MFC were removed, with the removal rates positively correlating with the concentration of antibiotics. In addition, the removal rates of chemical oxygen demand (COD) in BRC-MFC were both over 90%, while the removal rate of total nitrogen (TN) was around 70%. Meanwhile, antibiotics could significantly improve the removal of ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N, p < 0.01). The microbial richness decreased, and we found that combined antibiotic stress on microorganisms was stronger than single antibiotic stress. The abundance of denitrifying functional genes was reduced by antibiotic stress. The results of this study provide reference values for other projects focusing on removing various antibiotics from domestic sewage using BRC-MFC.

To understand the influence of the length–diameter ratio (L/D) of explosively formed projectiles (EFPs) on the energy spatial distribution of behind-armor debris (BAD), three EFPs with different L/Ds were designed in this study. The scattering characteristics of the BAD formed by the EFP penetrating a steel target were investigated. High-speed photography was used to observe the shape of the BAD cloud. Fiber and foam plates were sequentially stacked to recover the fragments. The three-dimensional damaged area by the BAD was obtained based on the spatial position information of a large amount of BAD. Finally, the energy spatial distribution characteristics of the EFP and target material fragments were analyzed. The results showed that a large EFP L/D increased the total energy of the BAD, and the proportion of the energy of projectile fragments increased. The difference in the energy spatial distribution between EFPs with varying L/Ds was mainly in the scattering angle range of 3–17°. The total energy of fragments within 17° of scattering angle accounted for 85% of the total energy of all fragments. The BAD energy of the EFP with a large L/D (L/D = 3.86) was concentrated in a small scattering angle range in which the residual projectile was located. The average projectile fragment energy of the EFP with a moderate L/D (L/D = 2.4) was evenly distributed in the scattering angle range of 5–20°. As a result, the energy distribution of the BAD from EFP (L/D = 2.4) shifted towards the large scattering angle, thus leading to a uniform radial distribution of the striking area within the range of 500–1100 mm behind the target. However, with the increase in the distance behind the target, the radial direction of the striking area of the other two EFPs was gradually reduced. The reason was explained according to the force analysis of the fragments resulting from the bulge fracture of target. The spatial energy distribution of BAD is closely related to the damage ability of EFP in relation to the armored target. Thus, it is necessary to design EFPs with appropriate L/Ds in order to maximize the damaging effect behind the armor.

Laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) technic is suitable for manufacturing metal parts with complex shapes and internal channels. The energy input and post heat treatment have great influence on the formability, microstructure and properties of the metallic materials. In this work, Hastelloy X superalloy is fabricated by LPBF with a variation of laser power, and then post-treated by hot isostatic pressing and solution treatment. Influences of laser power and heat treatment on microstructure features of as-built sample are evaluated. The correlation among laser power, microstructure features and tensile properties of heat-treated samples are revealed. The results reveal that average grain size, aspect ratio, texture intensity increases while the proportion of high-angle grain boundaries decreases with the increase of laser power. Precipitates of Cr-rich carbides along grain boundary are observed after post heat treatment. Post-treatment promotes the twinned recrystallization, grain coarsening and texture degradation. Yield strength increases while tensile strength decreases with the increase in laser power. The higher vertical yield strength of sample with laser power of 320 W could be attributed to its larger aspect ratio and more twin boundaries. 280 W is the preferred laser power to obtain the best overall tensile properties. This study is helpful for the exploration of optimal LPBF process and post heat treatment, by which Ni-based superalloys with a good balance between strength and ductility can be produced.

Stratification and mixing of the water column is an important dynamic process in the estuary, which plays a significant role in the estuarine circulation, mass transport and energy exchange. Based on the multi-station synchronous observation data from 26 February to 6 March in 2011 during dry season in the North Channel of the Changjiang Estuary, the Richardson number, the Simpson number and the potential energy anomaly of water were calculated to analyze the tidal variation of the mixing and stratification processes. The roles of the depth-mean straining, longitudinal advection, non-mean straining and tidal stirring in the processes of mixing and stratification of the water column were analyzed by calculating the contribution terms of the time-derivative of potential energy anomaly. The results show that the mixing and stratification of the water column in the North Channel have significant spatiotemporal variation. Stability of the stratification gradually decreases from neap tide to spring tide. In the reaches of salt wedge migration, permanent stratification develops during neap and mean tide, with stability increasing on the flood and decreasing on the ebb, which is dominated by longitudinal advection. During spring tide, periodic stratification develops, with development of stratification on the flood and its breakdown on the ebb, which is dominated by longitudinal advection and tidal stirring. In the main reaches of saltwater intrusion, permanent stratification develops during neap tide, with stability increasing on the ebb and decreasing on the flood, which is dominated by depth-mean tidal straining. During mean and spring tide, periodic stratification occurs, with development of stratification on the ebb and its breakdown on the flood, which is controlled by depth-mean tidal straining and assisted by tidal stirring. In the North Channel, tidal advection is the main stratifying agent in the salt wedge migration reaches, and tidal straining is the main stratifying agent in the main reaches of saltwater intrusion.

The pharyngeal sac is a comparatively rare organ in the digestive tract among teleost fishes. However, our understanding of this remarkable organ in the silver pomfret (Pampus argenteus) is limited. In the present study, we examined the various morphological and histological characteristics of the pharyngeal sac using histochemical techniques and electron microscopy. The pharyngeal sac showed unique characteristics such as well-developed muscular walls, weakly keratinized epithelium, numerous goblet cells, and needle-like processes on the papillae. The porous cavity of the papillae contained numerous adipocytes and was tightly enveloped by type I collagen fibers. These structures might provide mechanical protection and excellent biomechanical properties for grinding and shredding prey. A comparison of gene expression levels between the pharyngeal sac and esophagus using RNA-seq showed that phenotype-associated genes (epithelial genes and muscle genes) were upregulated, whereas genes related to nutrient digestion and absorption were downregulated in the pharyngeal sac. These results support the role of the pharyngeal sac in shredding and predigesting food. Overall, these findings provide a clearer understanding of the pharyngeal sac morphology and explain the morphological adaptations of the digestive tract for feeding on gelatinous prey. To our knowledge, this is the first report on pharyngeal sac gene expression in P. argenteus.

ABSTRACT: Neuropeptide S (NPS) and its receptor neuropeptide S receptor 1 (NPSR1) have been suggested to regulate many physiological processes in the central nervous system (CNS), such as arousal, anxiety, and food intake in mammals and birds, however, the functionality and tissue expression of this NPS-NPSR1 system remain unknown in birds. Here, we cloned NPS and NPSR1 cDNAs from the chicken brain and reported their functionality and tissue expression. The cloned chicken NPS is predicted to encode a mature NPS peptide of 20 amino acids, which shows a remarkable sequence identity (∼94%) among tetrapod species examined, while NPSR1 encodes a receptor of 373 amino acids conserved across vertebrates. Using cell-based luciferase reporter systems, we demonstrated that chicken NPS could potently activate NPSR1 expressed in vitro and thus stimulates multiple signaling pathways, including calcium mobilization, cyclic adenosine monophosphate/protein kinase A (cAMP/PKA), and mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (MAPK/ERK) signaling pathways, indicating that NPS actions could be mediated by NPSR1 in birds. Quantitative real-time PCR revealed that NPS and NPSR1 are widely expressed in chicken tissues, including the hypothalamus, and NPSR1 expression is likely controlled by a promoter upstream exon 1, which shows strong promoter activities in cultured DF-1 cells. Taken together, our data provide the first proof that the avian NPS-NPSR1 system is functional and helps to explore the conserved role of NPS and NPSR1 signaling in tetrapods.

Aiming at nonlinear flow in fractured porous media, based on the finite volume method, the discrete equations of Darcy flow in porous and Forchheimer flow in fracture were derived, and a solution method for coupling flow is proposed. The flow solution by the proposed method for single fracture and intersecting fracture is verified against Frih’s solution. Based on this method, nonlinear flow behavior for fractured rock deep-buried tunnels under high water heads was discussed. The results show that the hydraulic gradient of surrounding rock is characterized by “large at the bottom and small at the top”, with a maximum difference of 2.5 times. Therefore, the flow rate at the bottom of the tunnel is greater than that at the top. The fracture flow rate along the flow direction is also greater than that in the vertical flow direction, with a maximum difference of 60 times. The distribution homogeneity and density of fracture are the most important factors that affect the hydraulic behavior of fractured rock tunnels. The more fractures concentrated in the direction of water pressure and the greater the density, the greater the surrounding rock conductivity and the greater the flow rate of the tunnel. Under this condition, the water-inflow accident of the tunnel would be prone to occur. The research results provide a reference for the waterproof design and engineering practice of fractured rock tunnels.

Various production disturbances occurring in the flexible job shop production process may affect the production of the workshop, some of which may lead to the prolongation of production completion time. Therefore, a flexible job shop dynamic scheduling method based on digital twins is proposed and a dynamic scheduling framework is constructed. Compared with the traditional workshop, the digital twin-based flexible job shop can upload the relevant production data of the physical workshop to the data management center in real time, and after fusion processing the data can work cooperatively with the upper application system. Taking the dynamic disturbance of rush order insertion as an example, the dynamic scheduling of insertion order is realized based on the dynamic scheduling framework, and then the production efficiency is improved. To achieve the shortest completion time, a mathematical model for dynamic scheduling optimization is established and a genetic algorithm (GA) is applied to solve the model. Finally, a practical case is applied to show that the completion time of this algorithm is reduced by 35%, which verifies the feasibility of the proposed dynamic scheduling method.

This research aimed to investigate the role of glyoxalase 1 (Glo-1) polymorphisms in the susceptibility of schizophrenia. Using the real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and spectrophotometric assays technology, significant differences in Glo-1 messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) expression (P = 3.98 × 10−5) and enzymatic activity (P = 1.40 × 10−6) were found in peripheral blood of first-onset antipsychotic-naïve patients with schizophrenia and controls. The following receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves analysis showed that Glo-1 could predict the schizophrenia risk (P = 4.75 × 10−6 in mRNA, P = 1.43 × 10−7 in enzymatic activity, respectively). To identify the genetic source of Glo-1 risk in schizophrenia, Glo-1 polymorphisms (rs1781735, rs1130534, rs4746, and rs9470916) were genotyped with SNaPshot technology in 1,069 patients with schizophrenia and 1,023 healthy individuals. Then, the impact of risk polymorphism on the promoter activity, mRNA expression, and enzymatic activity was analyzed. The results revealed significant differences in the distributions of genotype (P = 0.020, false discovery rate (FDR) correction) and allele (P = 0.020, FDR correction) in rs1781735, in which G > T mutation significantly showed reduction in the promoter activity (P = 0.016), mRNA expression, and enzymatic activity (P = 0.001 and P = 0.015, respectively, GG vs. TT, in peripheral blood of patients with schizophrenia) of Glo-1. The expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) findings were followed up with the resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) analysis. The TT genotype of rs1781735, associated with lower RNA expression in the brain (P < 0.05), showed decreased neuronal activation in the left middle frontal gyrus in schizophrenia (P < 0.001). In aggregate, this study for the first time demonstrates how the genetic and biochemical basis of Glo-1 polymorphism culminates in the brain function changes associated with increased schizophrenia risk. Thus, establishing a combination of multiple levels of changes ranging from genetic variants, transcription, protein function, and brain function changes is a better predictor of schizophrenia risk.

Traditional culture of the mandarin fish (Siniperca chuatsi), an important freshwater fish in China, is restricted by live bait fish, as the difficulty of utilizing plant-derived nutrients in its artificial feed hinders its industrialization of artificial feed. This study evaluated the effect of the Bacillus velezensis GY65 strain, which shows probiotic effects on digestive and bacterial infections in mandarin fish. The complete genome of B. velezensis GY65 was obtained via sequencing. Seven amylase coding genes that could improve the fish digestion of plant feeds were identified. Twelve gene clusters of secondary metabolites related to antibacterial compounds were identified using the antiSMAH database. The effects of B. velezensis GY65 on growth performance, digestive enzyme capacity, antioxidant capacity, and innate immune response of mandarin fish were evaluated. The results showed a significantly (P

The dopamine transporter (DAT) is encoded by the SLC6A3 gene and plays an important role in the regulation of the neurotransmitter dopamine. The SLC6A3 gene contains several repetition alleles (3–11 repeats) of a 40-base pair variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR) in the 3′-untranslated region (3′-UTR), which may affect DAT expression levels. The 10-repeat (10R) allele could play a protective role against PD. However, inconsistent findings have been reported.Methods: A comprehensive meta-analysis was performed to accurately estimate the association between the 10R allele of the 3′-UTR VNTR in SLC6A3 and PD among four different genetic models.Results: This meta-analysis included a total of 3,142 patients and 3,496 controls. We observed a significant difference between patients and controls for the allele model (10R vs. all others: OR = 0.860, 95% CI: 0.771–0.958, P = 0.006), pseudodominant model (10R/10R + 10R/9R vs. all others: OR = 0.781, 95% CI: 0.641–0.952, P = 0.014) and pseudorecessive model (10R/10R vs. all others: OR = 0.858, 95% CI: 0.760–0.969, P = 0.013) using a fixed effects model. No significant differences were observed under the pseudocodominant model (10R/9R vs. all others: OR = 1.079, 95% CI: 0.945–1.233, P = 0.262). By subgroup analysis, the 10R, 10R/10R and 10R/9R genotypes were found to be significantly different from PD in Asian populations.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the SLC6A3 10R may be a protective factor in susceptibility to PD.

The efficient and clean conversion of light alkanes is a research hotspot in the petrochemical industry, and the development of effective and eco-friendly non-noble metal-based catalysts is a key factor in this field. Among them, gallium is a metal component with good catalytic performance, which has been extensively used for light alkanes conversion. Herein, we critically summarize recent developments in the preparation of gallium-based catalysts and their applications in the catalytic conversion of light alkanes. First, we briefly describe the different routes of light alkane conversion. Following that, the remarkable preparation methods for gallium-based catalysts are discussed, with their state-of-the-art application in light alkane conversion. It should be noticed that the directional preparation of specific Ga species, strengthening metal-support interactions to anchor Ga species, and the application of new kinds of methods for Ga-based catalysts preparation are at the leading edge. Finally, the review provides some current limitations and future perspectives for the development of gallium-based catalysts. Recently, different kinds of Ga species were reported to be active in alkane conversion, and how to separate them with advanced in situ and ex situ characterizations is still a problem that needs to be solved. We believe that this review can provide base information for the preparation and application of Ga-based catalysts in the current stage. With these summarizations, this review can inspire new research directions of gallium-based catalysts in the catalysis conversion of light alkanes with ameliorated performances.

Infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria are becoming a serious threat to public health worldwide. With an ever-reducing pipeline of last-resort drugs further complicating the current dire situation arising due to antibiotic resistance, there has never been a greater urgency to attempt to discover potential new antibiotics. The use of nanotechnology, encompassing a broad range of organic and inorganic nanomaterials, offers promising solutions. Organic nanomaterials, including lipid-, polymer-, and carbon-based nanomaterials, have inherent antibacterial activity or can act as nanocarriers in delivering antibacterial agents. Nanocarriers, owing to the protection and enhanced bioavailability of the encapsulated drugs, have the ability to enable an increased concentration of a drug to be delivered to an infected site and reduce the associated toxicity elsewhere. On the other hand, inorganic metal-based nanomaterials exhibit multivalent antibacterial mechanisms that combat MDR bacteria effectively and reduce the occurrence of bacterial resistance. These nanomaterials have great potential for the prevention and treatment of MDR bacterial infection. Recent advances in the field of nanotechnology are enabling researchers to utilize nanomaterial building blocks in intriguing ways to create multi-functional nanocomposite materials. These nanocomposite materials, formed by lipid-, polymer-, carbon-, and metal-based nanomaterial building blocks, have opened a new avenue for researchers due to the unprecedented physiochemical properties and enhanced antibacterial activities being observed when compared to their mono-constituent parts. This review covers the latest advances of nanotechnologies used in the design and development of nano- and nanocomposite materials to fight MDR bacteria with different purposes. Our aim is to discuss and summarize these recently established nanomaterials and the respective nanocomposites, their current application, and challenges for use in applications treating MDR bacteria. In addition, we discuss the prospects for antimicrobial nanomaterials and look forward to further develop these materials, emphasizing their potential for clinical translation.

Increasing antibiotic resistance has provoked the urgent need to investigate the interactions of antimicrobials with bacterial membranes. The reasons for emerging antibiotic resistance and innovations in novel therapeutic approaches are highly relevant to the mechanistic interactions between antibiotics and membranes. Due to the dynamic nature, complex compositions, and small sizes of native bacterial membranes, bacterial membrane mimetics have been developed to allow for the in vitro examination of structures, properties, dynamics, and interactions. In this review, three types of model membranes are discussed: monolayers, supported lipid bilayers, and supported asymmetric bilayers; this review highlights their advantages and constraints. From monolayers to asymmetric bilayers, biomimetic bacterial membranes replicate various properties of real bacterial membranes. The typical synthetic methods for fabricating each model membrane are introduced. Depending on the properties of lipids and their biological relevance, various lipid compositions have been used to mimic bacterial membranes. For example, mixtures of phosphatidylethanolamines (PE), phosphatidylglycerols (PG), and cardiolipins (CL) at various molar ratios have been used, approaching actual lipid compositions of Gram-positive bacterial membranes and inner membranes of Gram-negative bacteria. Asymmetric lipid bilayers can be fabricated on solid supports to emulate Gram-negative bacterial outer membranes. To probe the properties of the model bacterial membranes and interactions with antimicrobials, three common characterization techniques, including quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), and neutron reflectometry (NR) are detailed in this review article. Finally, we provide examples showing that the combination of bacterial membrane models and characterization techniques is capable of providing crucial information in the design of new antimicrobials that combat bacterial resistance.

The aim of the study is the deep understanding of the essential reactivity of the environmentally friendly mortar by which its applicability can be justified. Created in the study was the environmentally friendly mortar, which helped relieve the increasing requirements on conventional building materials that are produced from exhausted freshwater and river sand nowadays. Seawater (SW) and sea sand (SS) collected from the Eastern Seas of China were used to produce the mortar at various ages, including 10-day, 33-day, and 91-day. Both the curing and working conditions of the mortar were natural marine ones. The physicochemical-mechanical behaviors were investigated using uniaxial compression tests (UCTs), Energy Dispersive Spectrometer (EDS), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and thermal-field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis to understand the essential reactivity of the mortar with age accumulation. The results indicated that hydration products and favorable components were generated promisingly in the mortar: the C-S-H (xCaO·SiO2·zH2O) development was certainly achieved in the critical environment during the curing and working period; the extensive generation of C-A-S-H (CaO·Al2O3·2SiO2·4H2O) helped densify the C-S-H grid, which caused the promising development of the uniaxial compression strength (UCS); the framework porosity of the mortar was restrained effectively due to the development of Friedel’s salt that re-bonded the interfacial cracks between SS and the hydration products with the age accumulation in the critical environment. Consequently, UCS and the resistance against damage of the mortar showed increasing behavior even in the critical environment. The study established Friedel’s salt working models and strength and damage models to interpret the physicochemical reactivity of the mortar as: the source of the strength and toughness was the proper polymerization between the native saline components and the hydration product mixture generated throughout the production, curing, and application without the leaching phenomenon. The novel models and interpretation of the physicochemical reactivity ensured the applicability of the mortar produced with SW and SS in the critical environment.

Covalent organic frameworks (COF), a class of emerging microporous polymers, have been restrained for drug delivery applications due to their limited controllability over particle sizes and degradability. Herein, a dendritic mesoporous silica nanosphere (DMSN)-mediated growth strategy is proposed to fabricate hierarchical DMSN@COF hybrids through in situ growing of 1,3,5-tris(4-aminophenyl)benzene and 2,5-dimethoxyterephthaldehyde connected COF with acid cleavable C=N bonds. After the removal of the DMSN template, COF hierarchical particles (COF HP) with tailored particle sizes and degradability were obtained. Notably, the COF HP could be degraded by 55% after 24 h of incubation at pH 5.5, whereas the counterpart bulk COF only showed 15% of degradation in the same conditions. Due to the improved porosity and surface area, the COF HP can be utilized to load the chemotherapeutic drug, doxorubicin (DOX), with a high loading (46.8 wt%), outperforming the bulk COF (32.1 wt%). Moreover, around 90% of the loaded DOX can be discharged from the COF HP within 8 h of incubation at pH 5.5, whereas, only ~55% of the loaded DOX was released from the bulk COF. Cell experiments demonstrated that the IC50 value of the DOX loaded in COF HP was 2–3 times lower than that of the DOX loaded in the bulk COF and the hybrid DMSN@COF. Attributed to the high loading capacity and more pH-labile particle deconstruction properties, COF HP shows great potential in the application as vehicles for drug delivery.

Background: Recent studies have reported that diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) involving different primary extranodal sites have distinct clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis. However, the risk of secondary malignant neoplasms (SMNs) in DLBCL survivors with different primary extranodal sites are unknown. Methods: A total of 40,714 patients diagnosed with stage I/II DLBCL were included from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database from 1983 to 2015.The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) and absolute excess risk (AER) were used to assess the risk of SMNs. Results: The results show that the risk of SMN was significantly higher in extranodal DLBCL than in the US general population (SIR, 1.18; 95% CI, 1.11–1.26), and the risk of developing SMN remains significantly elevated with increased latency. Moreover, there were multiple site-specific risk patterns. There was a 22%, 44%, 66%, 123% and 151% increased risk of SMN 10 years after primary gastrointestinal tract, head/neck, skeletal, lung and liver/pancreas DLBCL diagnosis, respectively. There was a significant decrease risk of SMN with increasing age at diagnosis for primary gastrointestinal tract and skeletal DLBCL. In addition, DLBCL patients with primary sites in the gastrointestinal tract, thyroid and liver/pancreas had the highest incidences of secondary stomach cancer, second thyroid cancer, and second hepatobiliary cancer, respectively, which indicated that the initial site of DLBCL may predict the type of SMN. Conclusions: The strategies for cancer surveillance after extranodal DLBCL diagnosis may need to be individualized according to the subsite of extranodal DLBCL.

Background: Eribulin is a nontaxane microtubule inhibitor approved in China for patients with advanced breast cancer who show progression after ⩾2 lines of chemotherapy. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy and safety profile of eribulin and explore potential predictive factors for the efficacy of eribulin among Chinese women with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) in real-world practice. Patients and Methods: A total of 272 consecutive MBC patients who were treated with eribulin between November 2019 and October 2020 in 9 institutions nationwide were included in this study. Eribulin was administered intravenously at a dose of 1.4 mg/m 2 on days 1 and 8 of a 21-day cycle. Efficacy outcomes included progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), objective response rate (ORR), and clinical benefit rate (CBR). Adverse events (AEs) were graded according to The National Cancer Institute Common Toxicity Criteria (NCI-CTC) version 5.0. Results: Eribulin showed a median PFS of 4.1 months (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.6–4.6); however, the OS data were immature. The ORR was 17.6% and the CBR was 24.6%. A total of 51.8% of patients received eribulin monotherapy, while 48.2% of patients were treated with eribulin plus targeted therapy or other chemotherapy. The number of metastatic sites, duration of previous taxane treatment for MBC, and combination with bevacizumab were significant in Cox multivariate analysis ( p = 0.023, p = 0.048, and p = 0.046, respectively) and were significantly associated with PFS of eribulin. The most common AEs with eribulin treatment were hematological toxicities, including neutropenia, leukopenia, and anemia. Conclusion: Eribulin was effective with a manageable toxicity profile in clinical practice. Furthermore, when prescribed in combination with other agents, eribulin did not increase the toxic effects of each agent. Eribulin monotherapy or plus other agents is an alternative for the heavily pretreated patients with MBC.

Functional and structural disturbances in the orbitofrontal–striatal–thalamic circuitry are thought to be associated with mental symptoms and neurocognitive impairments in schizophrenia. This study tested whether synapse-associated protein 97 (SAP97), a reasonable candidate gene for schizophrenia, is related to orbitofrontal–striatal–thalamic connection changes in first-episode schizophrenia (FES) patients and the clinical performance of schizophrenic patients by affecting this integrity. Fifty-two FES patients and 52 matched healthy controls were recruited. All subjects underwent genotyping via the improved multiplex ligation detection reaction technique and scanning with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to provide orbitofrontal–striatal–thalamic functional and structural imaging data. A two-way analysis of covariance model was employed to examine abnormal brain connectivities, and Spearman correlations were applied to estimate the relationships between brain connectivity and clinical manifestations. In the FES group, those with the SAP97 rs3915512 TT genotype showed lower structural and functional connectivity than A allele carriers between the orbitofrontal gyrus and striatum/thalamus. In the FES group, negative correlations were found between resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) in the orbitofrontal gyrus and thalamus, and positive symptoms between structural connections in the orbitofrontal gyrus and striatum and cognitive functions, and positive correlations were suggested between RSFC in the orbitofrontal gyrus and thalamus and negative symptoms. Our findings suggested that the SAP97 rs3915512 polymorphism may be involved in mental symptoms and cognitive dysfunction in FES patients by influencing structural and functional connectivity of the orbitofrontal–striatal and orbitofrontal–thalamic regions.

It is well-established that anterior pituitary contains multiple endocrine cell populations, and each of them can secrete one/two hormone(s) to regulate vital physiological processes of vertebrates. However, the gene expression profiles of each pituitary cell population remains poorly characterized in most vertebrate groups. Here we analyzed the transcriptome of each cell population in adult chicken anterior pituitaries using single-cell RNA sequencing technology. The results showed that: (1) four out of five known endocrine cell clusters have been identified and designated as the lactotrophs, thyrotrophs, corticotrophs, and gonadotrophs, respectively. Somatotrophs were not analyzed in the current study. Each cell cluster can express at least one known endocrine hormone, and novel marker genes (e.g., CD24 and HSPB1 in lactotrophs, NPBWR2 and NDRG1 in corticotrophs; DIO2 and SOUL in thyrotrophs, C5H11ORF96 and HPGDS in gonadotrophs) are identified. Interestingly, gonadotrophs were shown to abundantly express five peptide hormones: FSH, LH, GRP, CART and RLN3; (2) four non-endocrine/secretory cell types, including endothelial cells (expressing IGFBP7 and CFD) and folliculo-stellate cells (FS-cells, expressing S100A6 and S100A10), were identified in chicken anterior pituitaries. Among them, FS-cells can express many growth factors, peptides (e.g., WNT5A, HBEGF, Activins, VEGFC, NPY, and BMP4), and progenitor/stem cell-associated genes (e.g., Notch signaling components, CDH1), implying that the FS-cell cluster may act as a paracrine/autocrine signaling center and enrich pituitary progenitor/stem cells; (3) sexually dimorphic expression of many genes were identified in most cell clusters, including gonadotrophs and lactotrophs. Taken together, our data provides a bird’s-eye view on the diverse aspects of anterior pituitaries, including cell composition, heterogeneity, cell-to-cell communication, and gene expression profiles, which facilitates our comprehensive understanding of vertebrate pituitary biology.

For study the energy output law of cylindrical charge with shell induced by different input energies, four different black powder masses were selected to ignite the main charge. Fragmentation degree of the shell was qualitatively analyzed by the area of holes on the witness plate and the recovered fragments mass. Through theoretical analysis, established the functional relationship between the average mass of fragments and the relative energy output of warhead, obtained how the relative energy output of charge changed with different initial energy input. The results showed that the change of input energy could lead to obvious variation in fragment characteristics, and could also control the output of charge. When the igniter mass increases from 1.55 g to 5.00 g, the relative energy output of the charge increases by 26.28%. Excessive initial input energy will destroy the shell confine in advance, resulting in a decrease in the relative energy output of charge.

Abstract Background Adipocyte accumulation is a predominant feature of age-related thymic involution, but the mechanisms responsible for thymic adipogenesis remain to be elucidated. The aim of this study was to identify key regulators in thymic adipogenesis. We used rosiglitazone, a potent peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) agonist, to induce adipogenic differentiation of OP9-DL1 cells, and investigated the differentially expressed proteins during adipogenic differentiation by using label-free quantitative proteomics. Furthermore, the effects of transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) on rosiglitazone-induced adipogenic differentiation of OP9-DL1 cells as well as the underlying mechanisms were also investigated. Results Proteomic analysis identified 139 proteins differed significantly in rosiglitazone-treated cells compared with dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO)-treated cells. Rosiglitazone-induced adipogenic differentiation was inhibited by TGF-β1 treatment in OP9-DL1 cells and primary thymic stromal cells. Real-time PCR analysis showed significant increases in PPARγ and fatty acid binding protein 4 mRNA levels in rosiglitazone-treated cells, which were inhibited by TGF-β1 treatment. TGF-β1 down-regulated PPARγ expression at both mRNA and protein levels in OP9-DL1 cells. Chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis demonstrated that TGF-β1 enhanced the binding of Smad2/3 and histone deacetylase 1, but reduced the binding of H3K14ac to the promoter of PPARγ gene. TGF-β1 partially reversed the inhibitory effects of rosiglitazone on the expression of Axin2 and β-catenin protein levels. TGF-β1 inhibited rosiglitazone-induced adipogenic transformation in OP9-DL1 cells by down-regulation of PPARγ and activation of the canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Conclusion Taken together, activation of TGF-β pathway may serve as a useful strategy to prevent thymic adiposity in age-related thymic involution.

Summary: Non-oxidative propane dehydrogenation (PDH) is an attractive reaction from both an industrial and a scientific viewpoint because it allows direct large-scale production of propene and fundamental analysis of C-H activation respectively. The main challenges are related to achieving high activity, selectivity, and on-stream stability of environment-friendly and cost-efficient catalysts without non-noble metals. Here, we describe an approach for the preparation of supported ultrasmall ZnO nanoparticles (2–4 nm, ZnO NPs) for high-temperature applications. The approach consists of encapsulation of NPs into a nitrogen-doped carbon (NC) layer in situ grown from zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 on a Silicalite-1 support. The NC layer was established to control the size of ZnO NPs and to hinder their loss to a large extent at high temperatures. The designed catalysts exhibited high activity, selectivity, and on-stream stability in PDH. Propene selectivity of about 90% at 44.4% propane conversion was achieved at 600°C after nearly 6 h on stream. : Chemistry; Catalysis; Nanoparticles Subject Areas: Chemistry, Catalysis, Nanoparticles

Abstract Background Previous studies have provided evidence that alcohol-dependent patients have abnormality in corpus callosum (CC); however, it is unclear whether micro-structural integrity of the CC subregions is differentially affected in this disorder. Methods In this study, a total of 39 male individuals, including 19 alcohol-dependent patients and 20 age-matched healthy controls, underwent diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). CC was reconstructed by DTI tractography and was divided into seven subregions. Multiple diffusion metrics of each subregion were compared between two groups. Results Compared to healthy controls, patients exhibited increased axial diffusivity (P = 0.007), radial diffusivity (P = 0.009) and mean diffusivity (P = 0.005) in the isthmus. In addition, we observed that daily alcohol intake was correlated positively with radial diffusivity and mean diffusivity and negatively with fractional anisotropy, while abstinence time of hospitalization was negatively correlated with mean diffusivity in the patients. Conclusion These findings suggest a selective micro-structural integrity impairment of the corpus callosum subregions in alcohol dependence, characterized by axon and myelin alterations in the isthmus.

Squeezed state light is a fundamental resource for many quantum optics experiments. Important applications like quantum-enhanced magnetometer and quantum key distribution, require the squeezing level as high as possible. In balanced homodyne detection, the detector output is directly proportional to the noise of the squeezed beam. The detected quadrature is dependent on the relative phase between the squeezed beam and local oscillator. Here, we present a balanced homodyne detector (BHD) with independent phase control and noise detection branches. The independence between the phase control and noise detection branches is experimentally verified, the two branches are independently optimized according to the practical requirements. With the BHD, a bright squeezed light at 1550 nm with quantum noise reduction of 10.3 dB is directly detected. After stabilizing the relative phase between the squeezed states and local oscillator by the phase locking branch of the BHD, the fluctuation of the noise suppression is ±0.2 dB by 1-h testing time.

In orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems, high peak to average power ratio (PAPR) is one of its core issues. The OFDM signal with high PAPR passes high-power amplifier (HPA) will result in severely nonlinear distortions, which not only decreases HPA power efficiency, but also increases the whole system's bit error rate (BER). In order to attain the OFDM signal with lower PAPR and better BER, we consider PAPR optimization with error vector magnitude (EVM) constrains in this paper. Different from the second order conic programming (SOCP) scheme with high complexity proposed in the literature, we present an innovative approach based on linearized alterative direction method of multipliers (LADMM) to deal with the PAPR optimization. The proposed LADMM algorithm is a simple and efficient method with FFT/IFFT complexity in every iteration. We also prove LADMM algorithm's convergence and then perform simulations. Simulation results demonstrate that LADMM algorithm not only acquires larger PAPR reduction, but also obtains better BER.

The design of the good-performance materials for toxic formaldehyde (CH2O)-gas-detection is critical for environmental preservation and human health. In this work, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were employed to investigate the adsorption behavior and electronic properties of CH2O on transition metal (TM)-doped phthalocyanine monolayers. Our results prove that PdPc and RuPc monolayers are thermodynamically stable. Analysis of the adsorption energy showed that the CH2O gas molecule was chemisorbed on the RuPc monolayer, while it was physisorbed on the PdPc nanosheet. The microcosmic interaction mechanism within the gas-adsorbent system was revealed by analyzing the density of states, the charge-density difference, the electron-density distribution, and the Hirshfeld charge transfer. Additionally, the RuPc monolayer was highly sensitive to CH2O due to the obvious changes in electrical conductivity, and the recovery time of CH2O molecule was predicted to be 2427 s at room temperature. Therefore, the RuPc monolayer can be regarded as a promising gas-sensing material for CH2O detection.

Samarium, gadolinium, and yttrium co-doped ceria (Ce0.8Sm0.16Y0.03Gd0.01O1.9, CSYG) and BaIn0.3Ti0.7O2.85 (BIT07) powders were prepared by sol-gel and solid-state reaction methods, respectively. CSYG-BIT07 composite materials were obtained by mechanically mixing the two powders in different ratios and calcining at 1300 °C for 5 h. Samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), as well as electrical properties and thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) measurements. A series of CSYG-BIT07 composite materials with relative densities higher than 95% were fabricated by sintering at 1300 °C for 5 h. The performance of the CSYG-BIT07 composite electrolyte was found to be related to the content of BIT07. The CSYG-15% BIT07 composite exhibited high oxide ion conductivity (σ800°C = 0.0126 S·cm−1 at 800 °C), moderate thermal expansion (TEC = 9.13 × 10−6/K between room temperature and 800 °C), and low electrical activation energy (Ea = 0.89 eV). These preliminary results indicate that the CSYG-BIT07 material is a promising electrolyte for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (IT-SOFCs).

The abnormal expression of miRNA is closely related to the occurrence of pancreatic cancer. Herein, a programmable DNAzyme amplifier for the universal detection of pancreatic cancer-related miRNAs was proposed based on its programmability through the rational design of sequences. The fluorescence signal recovery of the DNAzyme amplifier showed a good linear relationship with the concentration of miR-10b in the range of 10–60 nM, with a detection limit of 893 pM. At the same time, this method displayed a high selectivity for miR-10b, with a remarkable discrimination of a single nucleotide difference. Furthermore, this method was also successfully used to detect miR-21 in the range of 10–60 nM based on the programmability of the DNA amplifier, exhibiting the universal application feasibility of this design. Overall, the proposed programmable DNAzyme cycle amplifier strategy shows promising potential for the simple, rapid, and universal detection of pancreatic cancer-related miRNAs, which is significant for improving the accuracy of pancreatic cancer diagnosis.

The lateral bathymetry in the estuary results in different degrees of tidal mixing asymmetry, which has significant impacts on the longitudinal sediment transport by changing the temporal variation of vertical eddy diffusion. This study focus on the lateral variation of tidal mixing asymmetry and longitudinal sediment transport at the landward boundary of turbidity maximum zone in the North Channel of Yangtze estuary, which is a typical time-dependent salt wedge estuary. A transect survey was carried out in December, 2018; five vertical profiles of flow velocity, salinity and suspended sediment concentration were simultaneously measured covering a spring tidal cycle. Analysis of the data revealed that, after the maximum ebb, the stratification in the main and secondary channel was stronger than that on the shoal. In the channel, during ebb tide, the stronger stratification restrained the turbulent mixing induced by vertical shear, vertical mixing during the flood tide was stronger than that during ebb tide and vertical mixing coefficients ranged from 0.06 to 0.12, showing regular tidal mixing asymmetry over a flood–ebb tidal cycle. Therefore, stronger eddy diffusion caused by vertical mixing resulted in higher suspended sediment concentrations during flood tide, the larger landward tidally averaged sediment transport rate was induced by tidal pumping with the transportation of flood tidal current and the net sediment transport over a flood–ebb tidal cycle in the channel was landward. Meanwhile, on the shoal, under the effect of vertical shear, the vertical mixing during flood tide was weaker than that during ebb tide; vertical mixing coefficients ranged from −0.27 to −0.02, showing the reversed tidal mixing asymmetry. Higher suspended sediment concentration was transported seaward by the ebb current, the tidally averaged sediment transport rate by both tidal pumping and advection was seaward and the net sediment transport was seaward. Furthermore, large river discharge increased the seaward advection sediment flux on the surface layer in the main channel, resulting in the seaward tidally averaged sediment flux. Strong resuspension increased the seaward advection sediment flux near the bottom in the main and secondary channel, resulting in the seaward tidally averaged sediment flux.

The fruit diameter (FD), fruit length (FL), fruit peduncle length (FPL), fruit weight (FW) and fruit index (FI, FL/FD) are important quantitative traits in wolfberry fruit, and also one of the most important goals of variety breeding; however, the inheritance of these traits has not been studied to date. In this study, the genetic analysis of these five fruit traits was undertaken for four pairs of F1 hybrid populations (CI, CII, CIII and CIV) using the major gene and polygene mixed inheritance model. The results showed that the five fruit traits exhibited super-parent segregation in four hybrid combinations, and five traits of progeny with abundant genetic diversity. In CII, CIII and CIV, the mid-parental heterosis ratio (RHm%) of FD, FL, FPL and FI was greater than 0 with positive heterosis. FD, FL and FI in CI, CII and CIII were controlled by one pair of additive-dominant major genes (A-1). However, in CIV, FD was controlled by two pairs of additive-dominant alleles (B-6) and FL was best fitted to polygenic control (A-0). In addition, it was found that FPL in CI, CIII and CIV was controlled by one or two pairs of additive-dominant major genes (A-1, B-6, B-1), and FW in CIII and CIV was also controlled by one or two pairs of additive-dominant major gene controls (A-1, B-1). For FD, FPL, FW and FI in CIII and FPL and FW in CII, the major genes heritability was over 50%, indicating that these traits are affected by both genes and the environment, and that the selection of these traits should be considered in later generations due to the large effect of environmental factors. Therefore, this study provides a theoretical basis for QTL mapping and early selection of hybrid breeding of Lycium fruits.

Mesoporous silica materials have attracted great research interest for various applications ranging from (bio)catalysis and sensing to drug delivery. It remains challenging to prepare hollow mesoporous silica nanoparticles (HMSN) with large center-radial mesopores that could provide a more efficient transport channel through the cell for guest molecules. Here, we propose a novel strategy for the preparation of HMSN with large dendritic mesopores to achieve higher enzyme loading capacity and more efficient bioreactors. The materials were prepared by combining barium sulfate nanoparticles (BaSO4 NP) as a hard template and the in situ-formed 3-aminophenol/formaldehyde resin as a porogen for directing the dendritic mesopores’ formation. HMSNs with different particle sizes, shell thicknesses, and pore structures have been prepared by choosing BaSO4 NP of various sizes and adjusting the amount of tetraethyl orthosilicate added in synthesis. The obtained HMSN-1.1 possesses a high pore volume (1.07 cm3 g−1), a large average pore size (10.9 nm), and dendritic mesopores that penetrated through the shell. The advantages of HMSNs are also demonstrated for enzyme (catalase) immobilization and subsequent use of catalase-loaded HMSNs as bioreactors for catalyzing the H2O2 degradation reaction. The hollow and dendritic mesoporous shell features of HMSNs provide abundant tunnels for molecular transport and more accessible surfaces for molecular adsorption, showing great promise in developing efficient nanoreactors and drug delivery vehicles.

Photoelectrocatalytic (PEC) oxidation is an advanced technology that combines photocatalytic oxidation (PC) and electrolytic oxidation (EC). PEC activity can be greatly enhanced by the PC and EC synergy effect. In this work, novel copolymerized g-C3N4 (denoted as CNx)/TiO2 core-shell nanowire arrays were prepared by chemical vapor deposition. CNx were deposited on the surface of TiO2 nanowire arrays using organic monomer 4,5-dicyanidazole and dicyandiamide as copolymerization precursor. TiO2 nanowire arrays provide a direct and fast electron transfer path, while CNx is a visible light responsive material. After CNx deposition, the light response range of TiO2 is broadened to 600 nm. The deposition of CNx shell effectively improves the PC efficiency and PEC efficiency of TiO2. Under visible light irradiation and 1 V bias potential, the rate constant k of PEC degradation of CNx/TiO2 core-shell nanowire arrays is 0.0069 min−1, which is 72% higher than that of pure TiO2 nanowires. The built-in electric field formed in the interface between TiO2 core and CNx shell would effectively promote photogenerated charge separation and PEC activity.

The in-plane elastic waves in periodically multilayered isotropic structures, which are decoupled from the out-of-plane waves, are represented mainly by the frequency–wavenumber spectra and occasionally by the frequency–phase velocity spectra as well as being studied predominantly for periodic bi-layered media along and perpendicular to the thickness direction in the existing research. This paper investigates their comprehensive dispersion characteristics along arbitrary in-plane directions and in entire (low and high) frequency ranges, including the frequency–wavelength, wavenumber–phase velocity, wavelength–phase velocity spectra, the dispersion surfaces and the slowness curves with fixed frequencies, as well as the frequency–wavenumber and frequency–phase velocity spectra. Specially, the dispersion surfaces and the slowness curves completely reflect the propagation characteristics of in-plane waves along all directions. First, the method of reverberation-ray matrix (MRRM) combined with the Floquet theorem is extended to derive the dispersion equation of in-plane elastic waves in general periodic multilayered isotropic structures by means of the elastodynamic theory of isotropic materials and the state space formalism of layers. The correctness of the derivation and the numerical stability of the method in both low and high frequency ranges, particularly its superiority over the method of the transfer matrix (MTM) within the ranges near the cutoff frequencies, are verified by several numerical examples. From these demonstrations for periodic octal- and bi-layered media, the comprehensive dispersion curves are provided and their general characteristics are summarized. It is found that although the frequencies associated with the dimensionless wavenumber along thickness ql=nπ (n is an integer) are always the demarcation between pass and stop bands in the case of perpendicular incident wave, but this is not always exist in the case of the oblique incident wave due to the coupling between the two modes of in-plane elastic waves. The slowness curves with fixed frequencies of Floquet waves in periodically multilayered isotropic structures, as compared to their counterpart of body waves in infinite isotropic media obtained from the Christoffel equation now have periodicity along the thickness direction, which is consistent to the configuration of the structures. The slowness curves associated with higher frequencies have a smaller minimum positive period and have more propagation modes due to the cutoff properties of these additional modes.

Objective To explore the effects of wedelolactone (WEL) on sepsis-induced renal injury in the human renal proximal tubular epithelial cell line HK-2. Methods HK-2 cells were stimulated by 1 µg/ml lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to trigger renal injury in vitro . HK-2 cells were pretreated with or without WEL (0.1, 1 and 10 µM) before LPS stimulation. Protein and mRNA analyses were performed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, Western blot analysis and quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction. The MTT assay and flow cytometry were used to measure cell viability and the rate of cell apoptosis. Protein tyrosine phosphatase non-receptor type 2 (PTPN2) knockdown was induced by the transection of HK-2 cells with short hairpin RNA. Results Cell viability was significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner by WEL in LPS-induced HK-2 cells. WEL also decreased the levels of four inflammatory cytokines and cell apoptosis in LPS-induced HK-2 cells. The level of PTPN2 was increased after WEL treatment. PTPN2 knockdown partly abolished the inhibitory effects of WEL on cell apoptosis, the levels of inflammatory cytokines and on p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase/nuclear factor-kappaB signalling in LPS-induced HK-2 cells. Conclusion WEL improved renal injury by suppressing inflammation and cell apoptosis through upregulating PTPN2 in HK-2 cells. PTPN2 might be used as a potential therapeutic target for LPS-induced sepsis.

The actin cytoskeleton and membrane-associated caveolae contribute to active processes, such as cell morphogenesis and motility. How these two systems interact and control directional cell migration is an outstanding question but remains understudied. Here we identified a negative feedback between contractile actin assemblies and phosphorylated caveolin-1 (CAV-1) in migrating cells. Cytoplasmic CAV-1 vesicles display actin-associated motilities by sliding along actin filaments or/and coupling to do retrograde flow with actomyosin bundles. Inhibition of contractile stress fibers, but not Arp2/3-dependent branched actin filaments, diminished the phosphorylation of CAV-1 on site Tyr14, and resulted in substantially increased size and decreased motility of cytoplasmic CAV-1 vesicles. Reciprocally, both the CAV-1 phospho-deficient mutation on site Tyr14 and CAV-1 knockout resulted in dramatic AMPK phosphorylation, further causing reduced active level of RhoA-myosin II and increased active level of Rac1-PAK1-Cofilin, consequently led to disordered contractile stress fibers and prominent lamellipodia. As a result, cells displayed depolarized morphology and compromised directional migration. Collectively, we propose a model in which feedback-driven regulation between actin and CAV-1 instructs persistent cell migration.

Multi-omics molecules regulate complex biological processes (CBPs), which reflect the activities of various molecules in living organisms. Meanwhile, the applications to represent disease subtypes and cell types have created an urgent need for sample grouping and associated CBP-inferring tools. In this paper, we present CBP-JMF, a practical tool primarily for discovering CBPs, which underlie sample groups as disease subtypes in applications. Differently from existing methods, CBP-JMF is based on a joint non-negative matrix tri-factorization framework and is implemented in Python. As a pragmatic application, we apply CBP-JMF to identify CBPs for four subtypes of breast cancer. The result shows significant overlapping between genes extracted from CBPs and known subtype pathways. We verify the effectiveness of our tool in detecting CBPs that interpret subtypes of disease.

Objective This study aimed to identify the risk factors for death in patients with sepsis-related myocardial injury. Methods A retrospective study was conducted in 158 patients with sepsis-related myocardial injury in a mixed medical intensive care unit from January 2009 to March 2020. The patients were divided into those who survived and those who died on the basis of whether they survived after 28 days. Demographic and clinical parameters were collected. Multivariate logistic regression was performed. Results Sixty-nine (43.7%) patients died within 28 days after admission to the intensive care unit. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the oxygenation index (odds ratio [OR]: 0.979, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.970–0.989), acute kidney injury (OR: 4.787, 95% CI: 1.674–13.693), norepinephrine dose (OR: 1.706, 95% CI: 1.375–2.117), and abdominopelvic cavity infection (OR: 0.257, 95% CI: 0.076–0.866) were significantly associated with mortality within 28 days after admission in patients with sepsis-related myocardial injury. Conclusions Patients with sepsis-related myocardial injury have a high mortality rate. A high oxygenation index, occurrence of acute kidney injury, high norepinephrine dose, and occurrence of abdominopelvic cavity infection are independent risk factors for 28-day mortality in patients with sepsis-related myocardial injury.

Application of activating agents can significantly improve efficiency of plants for remediation of soils contaminated by heavy metals, however, damage to soil and plants limits application of traditional activating agents. The aim of our experiments is to select an efficient,green and low-cost activating agent to improve efficiency of plant extraction technology. In this study, contaminated soil was remediated by Sedum alfredii. The effects of two plant extracts (i.e., Oxalis corniculata,OX and Medicago sativaextract, ME) in addition to citric acid (CA) were studied in oscillatory activation experiment and pot experiment. The oscillation activation experiment revealed that extraction quantity of heavy metals in the soil was enhanced significantly with concentration of plant extract. The extraction quantity of Zn from 100% OX extract and ME extract were significantly higher than 10 mmol/L CA (54.04% and 33.09%, respectively). The 10 mmol/L CA has best extraction efficiency for Cd, up to 41.36 µg/kg, which is significantly higher than CK (control) (p

Suppressing the trajectory data to be released can effectively reduce the risk of user privacy leakage. However, the global suppression of the data set to meet the traditional privacy model method reduces the availability of trajectory data. Therefore, we propose a trajectory data differential privacy protection algorithm based on local suppression Trajectory privacy protection based on local suppression (TPLS) to provide the user with the ability and flexibility of protecting data through local suppression. The main contributions of this article include as follows: (1) introducing privacy protection method in trajectory data release, (2) performing effective local suppression judgment on the points in the minimum violation sequence of the trajectory data set, and (3) proposing a differential privacy protection algorithm based on local suppression. In the algorithm, we achieve the purpose Maximal frequent sequence (MFS) sequence loss rate in the trajectory data set by effective local inhibition judgment and updating the minimum violation sequence set, and then establish a classification tree and add noise to the leaf nodes to improve the security of the data to be published. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm is effective, which can reduce the data loss rate and improve data availability while reducing the risk of user privacy leakage.

Objective: To investigate the effects of microRNA-137 (MIR137) polymorphisms (rs1198588 and rs2660304) on the risk of schizophrenia in a Han Chinese population.Methods: Schizophrenia was diagnosed according to the DSM-5. Clinical symptoms and cognitive functions were assessed with the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS) and Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS), respectively. The polymorphisms were genotyped by improved multiplex ligation detection reaction (iMLDR) technology in 1,116 patients with schizophrenia and 1,039 healthy controls.Results: Significant associations were found between schizophrenia and MIR137 in the distributions of genotypes (p = 0.037 for rs1198588; p = 0.037 for rs2660304, FDR corrected) and alleles (p = 0.043 for rs1198588; p = 0.043 for rs2660304, FDR corrected) of two SNPs. When the population was stratified by sex, we found female-specific associations between MIR137 and schizophrenia in terms of genotype and allele distributions of rs1198588 (χ2 = 4.41, p = 0.036 and χ2 = 4.86, p = 0.029, respectively, FDR corrected) and rs2660304 (χ2 = 4.74, p=0.036 and χ2 = 4.80, p = 0.029, respectively, FDR corrected). Analysis of the MIR137 haplotype rs1198588-rs2660304 showed a significant association with schizophrenia in haplotype T-T [χ2 = 4.60, p = 0.032, OR = 1.32, 95% CI (1.02–1.70)]. Then, significant female-specific associations were found with the haplotypes T-T and G-A [χ2 = 4.92, p = 0.027, OR = 1.62, 95% CI (1.05–2.50); χ2 = 4.42, p = 0.035, OR = 0.62, 95% CI (0.39–0.97), respectively]. When the TT genotype of rs1198588 was compared to the GT+GG genotype, a clinical characteristics analysis also showed a female-specific association in category instances (t = 2.76, p = 0.042, FDR corrected).Conclusion: The polymorphisms within the MIR137 gene are associated with susceptibility to schizophrenia, and a female-specific association of MIR137 with schizophrenia was reported in a Han Chinese population.

Rock burst is a serious nonlinear dynamic geological hazard in underground engineering construction. In this paper, a true triaxial unloading rock burst experiment and numerical simulation are carried out on Tianhu granite to investigate the rock burst tendency and crack development characteristics of surrounding rock after excavation. The experiment and numerical simulation process monitored the rock burst stress path to determine the rock burst stress. According to the evolution law of the frequency and amplitude of rock burst acoustic emission monitoring, the shape characteristics of rock burst fragments are analyzed. The rock burst numerical simulation analysis is carried out by the PFC software, and the temporal and spatial evolution law of cracks is obtained. The research results show that the laboratory experiment and numerical simulation of Tianhu granite have rock burst strengths of 163.4 MPa and 161 MPa, respectively, and the average rock burst stress ratio is 8.38, that is, the Tianhu granite has a low rock burst tendency. During the rock burst, the development of tensile cracks will produce flaky debris, and the development of shear cracks will produce lumpy debris. Rock burst will happen when the crack growth rate to be exceeded the unloading crack growth rate; therefore, it can be used as a precursor signal for the occurrence of rock burst.

Universal distinct element code (UDEC) is a simulation software based on the discrete element method, widely used in geotechnical mining. However, in the UDEC, when simulating large-scale excavation, the subsidence of the fractured zone is almost equal to the mining height, which makes the deformation value calculated in the study of gob-side entry retention too large. To solve this problem, in this paper, the double-yield constitutive model is applied to the whole caving zone to analyze the deformation and failure characteristics of surrounding rock along gob-side entry retaining by roof cutting. The results of the simulation are in good agreement with the result of drilling peeking (drilling observation by borehole televiewer) and field condition (observation and measurement in the field). Finally, by using this numerical method, the effects of roadway width, temporary support, and coal side support on the failure of the roof and the arc coal side are studied.

Fringe projection profilometry (FPP) has been broadly employed for three-dimensional shape measurements. However, the measurement accuracy suffers from gamma nonlinearity. This paper proposes an intensity-averaged double three-step phase-shifting (IDTP) algorithm making use of color-encoded fringe projection, which does not require complex calibration processes or extra fringe patterns. Specifically, two phase maps with π/2 phase shift are encoded into the red and blue channels of color fringe patterns. The average fringe patterns of the red and blue channels are approximately in sinusoidal waveform with little harmonics, thus can be directly used for accurate phase recovery. Additionally, an adaptive weight is also estimated for average operation to suppress the effect of color crosstalk. Both simulations and experiments demonstrate that the proposed IDTP algorithm can effectively eliminate nonlinear phase errors.