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Accurate delineation of individual teeth and alveolar bones from dental cone-beam CT images is an essential step in digital dentistry for precision dental healthcare. Here, the authors present a deep learning system for efficient, precise, and fully automatic segmentation of real-patient CBCT images presenting highly variable appearances.

Cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) has been frequently reported in colorectal cancer survivors. Heparan sulfate (HS) was gradually considered to be related to cognitive disorders. The effect and potential mechanism of HS on CRCI in colorectal cancer patients were unexplored. In this study, all participants were divided into a cognitive impaired group and a cognitive normal group. The concentrations of oxidative stress factors and HS in serum were detected. Associations among HS, oxidative stress factors and CRCI were evaluated. Participants with cognitive impairment exhibited increased levels of HS, GSH, SOD and MDA, compared to the patients with normal cognitive performance. The independent significant association was found between HS and CRCI after controlling for various covariates. The higher concentrations of HS were related to the decreased cognitive performance among survivors who reported higher levels of GSH (β = 0.080, p = 0.002). Moreover, the nonlinear association between the level of HS and cognitive scores was confirmed using the restricted cubic splines (p < 0.001). These results indicated that the increased concentrations of circulating HS had a nonlinear negative connection with cognitive performance in colorectal cancer survivors, which was moderated by GSH. HS might be a new biomolecule for the identification and management of patients with CRCI.

Due to the shield tunneling underneath, long-term settlements may develop in the existing metro tunnels. The compensation grouting is applied worldwide to stabilize the settlement of ground and existing structures. Few field studies concerning large-diameter shield passing tunnel from below have analyzed the interaction between the compensation grouting and the existing tunnel. This paper presents a case study on the response of the operating metro tunnels to the compensation grouting of an underlying large-diameter tunnel in muddy clay stratum. The tunnel deformations before, during, and after the compensation grouting were monitored and analyzed. The long-term tunnel settlements were mitigated and stabilized by the timely compensation grouting. Smaller settlement rates were observed during the grouting treatment, and the settlement was gradually stabilized three months after the grouting. The grouting holes at the tunnel invert were used initially for better grouting efficiency. The horizontal displacement and convergence developed during the grouting construction and remained stable after the grouting process. Moreover, some limitations of the grouting treatment were discussed. The tunnel settlement in the section close to the center-line of the south-line tunnel cannot be prevented effectively. The differential displacement cannot be reduced by this grouting program.

Abstract Background High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) is recommended diagnosing and monitoring connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung disease (CTD-ILD). Quantitative computed tomography has the potential to precisely assess the radiological severity of CTD-ILD, but has still been under study. Objective To investigate whether dual-energy computed tomography (DECT), a novel quantitative technique, can be used for quantitative severity assessment in CTD-ILD. Methods This cross sectional study recruited adult CTD-ILD patients who underwent DECT scans from the ICE study between October 2019 and November 2021. DECT parameters, including effective atomic number (Zeff), lung (lobe) volume, and monochromatic CT number (MCTN) of each lung lobe, were evaluated. CTD-ILD was classified into extensive CTD-ILD and limited CTD-ILD by staging algorithm using combined forced vital capacity (FVC)%predicted and total extent of ILD (TEI) on CT. Dyspnea, cough, and life quality were scored by Borg dyspnea score, Leicester cough questionnaire (LCQ), and short-form 36 health survey questionnaire (SF-36), respectively. Results There was a total of 147 patients with DECT scans enrolled. Higher Zeff value (3.104 vs 2.256, p

Abstract Background Lenvatinib is a multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor that is being tested in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors to treat advanced gastric cancer; however, little data exists regarding the efficacy of lenvatinib monotherapy. Patient-derived xenografts (PDX) are established by engrafting human tumors into immunodeficient mice. The generation of PDXs may be hampered by growth of lymphomas. In this study, we compared the use of mice with different degrees of immunodeficiency to establish PDXs from a diverse cohort of Western gastric cancer patients. We then tested the efficacy of lenvatinib in this system. Methods PDXs were established by implanting gastric cancer tissue into NOD.Cg-Prkdc scid Il2rg tm1Wjl /SzJ (NSG) or Foxn1 nu (nude) mice. Tumors from multiple passages from each PDX line were compared histologically and transcriptomically. PDX-bearing mice were randomized to receive the drug delivery vehicle or lenvatinib. After 21 days, the percent tumor volume change (%Δvtumor) was calculated. Results 23 PDX models were established from Black, non-Hispanic White, Hispanic, and Asian gastric cancer patients. The engraftment rate was 17% (23/139). Tumors implanted into NSG (16%; 18/115) and nude (21%; 5/24) mice had a similar engraftment rate. The rate of lymphoma formation in nude mice (0%; 0/24) was lower than in NSG mice (20%; 23/115; p

Abstract Background Anti‐gamma aminobutyric acid B receptor (anti‐GABABR) encephalitis is a rare autoimmune neurological syndrome observed in lung cancer patients. More research on the clinical characteristics of small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and anti‐GABABR encephalitis should be carried out to improve diagnosis and treatment. Methods We retrospectively investigated the clinical characteristics, auxiliary examination results, and treatment responses in patients with SCLC and anti‐GABABR encephalitis at Beijing Chaoyang Hospital from January 2010 to December 2020. The study also retrospectively analyzed cases of SCLC and anti‐GABABR encephalitis well documented in China. Results A total of 60 cases of SCLC and anti‐GABABR encephalitis were analyzed in the study, two in our hospital, and 58 previously reported in the literature. The male:female ratio was 3:1, with a median age at presentation of 61 years (range: 40–81 years). Twenty‐eight patients initially presented with seizures, four with cognitive disorder, and three with psychiatric symptoms. The major symptoms were epileptic seizures (n = 56; 96.9%), cognitive impairment (n = 47; 81.0%), psychiatric disorders (n = 45; 77.6%), and conscious disturbance (n = 32; 55.2%). Fifty‐five patients underwent immunotherapy, and 23 patients underwent oncologic treatment in the literature. After a median follow‐up duration of 8.8 (range, 0.5–37.0) months, nine patients showed good outcomes (modified Rankin Scale score, mRS ≤2), eight patients showed poor prognosis (mRS > 2), and 18 patients died. Conclusions The clinical characteristics of SCLC and anti‐GABABR encephalitis are seizures, cognitive impairment, and psychiatric disorders which affect middle‐aged to elderly men in China. The long‐term prognosis is relatively poor.

Abstract Alcoholic cardiomyopathy (ACM) is a myocardial injury caused by long-term heavy drinking. Existing evidence indicates that high levels of oxidative stress are the key to pathological cardiomyopathy caused by long-term exposure to high concentrations of alcohol, while angiotensin II (AngII) and its type 1 receptor (AT1R) play an important role in excessive drinking. Whether oxidative stress-induced damage in ACM is related to AngII and AT1R is unclear, and the effects of alcohol on the electrophysiology of myocardial cells have not been reported. Most existing studies have used animal models. This study established an in vitro model of ACM based on human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs). The transcriptional profiling of alcohol treatment was performed by RNA-seq analysis. The role of oxidative stress, the expression of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase (NOX), and the role of AngII and AT1R in the overactivation of oxidative stress were studied using fluorescent labeling, Western blotting, and high-content quantitative analysis. Real-time cell analysis(RTCA) and microelectrode array (MEA) were used to continuously monitor myocardial beating, observe the effects of alcohol on myocardial electrophysiological activity, and clarify the protective effects of the AT1R blocker losartan on ACM. We found that AngII and AT1R contribute to the effects of alcohol on the myocardium through oxidative stress damage, the mechanism of which may be achieved by regulating NOX.

Abstract Background The repair of tissue defects has attracted considerable attention and remained a substantial challenge. Calcium silicate (CaSiO3, CS) bioceramics have attracted the interest of researchers due to their excellent biodegradability. Recent studies have demonstrated that nanoscale-modified bioactive materials with favorable biodegradability could promote bone tissue regeneration, providing an alternative approach for the repair of bone defects. However, the direct construction of biodegradable nanostructures in situ on CS bioceramics was still difficult. Results In this study, flower-like nanostructures were flexibly prepared in situ on biodegradable CS bioceramics via hydrothermal treatment. The flower-like nanostructure surfaces exhibited better hydrophilicity and more significantly stimulated cell adhesion, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, and osteogenic differentiation. Furthermore, the CS bioceramics with flower-like nanostructures effectively promoted bone regeneration and were gradually replaced with newly formed bone due to the favorable biodegradability of these CS bioceramics. Importantly, we revealed an osteogenesis-related mechanism by which the FAK/p38 signaling pathway could be involved in the regulation of bone mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC) osteogenesis by the flower-like nanostructure surfaces. Conclusions Flower-like nanostructure surfaces on CS bioceramics exerted a strong effect on promoting bone repair and regeneration, suggesting their excellent potential as bone implant candidates for improving bone regeneration. Graphical Abstract

The complex distribution of synchronous grouting pressure results in excessive tunnel deformation and various structural diseases, especially for ultra-large-diameter shield tunnels. In this study, to reduce the risk of tunnel failure, a three-dimensional refined finite element model was established for the Wuhan Lianghu highway tunnel project, taking into account the non-uniform distribution of synchronous grouting pressure. This study focuses on investigating the development patterns of internal forces, deformations, and damages in segment structures under varying grouting pressure ratios. The results indicate that the primary failure mode of a segment is tensile failure occurring at the outer edge of the arch. Moreover, an increased ratio of grouting pressure between the arch bottom and top leads to a higher positive bending moment value and greater tensile damage at the arch waist. The tunnel ring gradually exhibits distinct “horizontal duck egg” shape deformation. When the grouting pressure ratio is 2.8, there is a risk of tensile cracking at the outer edge of the arch waist. At this time, the segment convergence deformation is 39.71 mm, and the overall floating amount reaches 43.12 mm. This research offers engineering reference for the prediction of internal forces and deformations in ultra-large-diameter shield tunnels during grouting construction, thereby facilitating their application in the development of resilient cities.

Viscoelastic (VE) dampers show good performance in dissipating energy, being widely used for reducing vibration in engineering structures caused by earthquakes and winds. Experimental studies have shown that ambient temperature has great influence on the mechanical behavior of VE dampers. Therefore, it is important to accurately model VE dampers considering the effect of temperature. In this paper, a new fractional-order Zener (AEF-Zener) model of VE dampers is proposed. Firstly, the important influence of fractional orders on the energy dissipation ability of materials is analyzed. Secondly, an equivalent AEF-Zener model is developed that incorporates the ambient temperature and fractional-order equivalence principle. Finally, the chaotic fractional-order particle swarm optimization (CFOPSO) algorithm is used to determine the model’s parameters. The accuracy of the AEF-Zener model is verified by comparing model simulations with experimental results. This study is helpful for designing and analyzing vibration reduction techniques for civil structures with VE dampers under the influence of temperature.

Due to the significant propagation delay in underwater sensor networks, conflict retransmission in channel access protocols comes at a high cost. This poses a challenge in scenarios where multiple sensor nodes generate data frames with strong temporal correlations, such as in disaster warning applications. Traditional channel allocation and timeout-based retransmission mechanisms lead to considerable access delays, making it difficult to meet the requirements. To tackle this issue, we propose the asynchronous pattern-designed random access (APDRA) protocol. This protocol enhances the access probability by designing retransmission time intervals for data frames based on pattern design. Additionally, we introduce a successive interference cancellation (SIC) mechanism at the receiver for decoding. This mechanism facilitates the transformation of the conventional method of discarding conflicted data frames into iterative decoding, thereby enhancing transmission efficiency. Via the utilization of simulations, we compare the APDRA protocol conventional underwater medium access control (MAC) protocols and existing retransmission mechanisms. The results demonstrate that the APDRA protocol has the ability to improve both the transmission success ratio (TSR) and reduces the access delay to some extent.

The intestinal epithelium is known for its rapid self-renewal, and glutamine is crucial in providing carbon and nitrogen for biosynthesis. However, understanding how glutamine affects gene expression in the intestinal epithelium is limited, and identifying the essential genes and signals involved in regulating intestinal epithelial cell growth is particularly challenging. In this study, glutamine supplementation exhibited a robust acceleration of intestinal epithelial cell proliferation and stem cell expansion. RNA sequencing indicated diverse transcriptome changes between the control and glutamine supplementation groups, identifying 925 up-regulated and 1152 down-regulated genes. The up-regulated DEGs were enriched in the KEGG pathway of cell cycle and GO terms of DNA replication initiation, regulation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase activity, DNA replication, minichromosome maintenance protein (MCM) complex, and ATP binding, whereas the down-regulated DEGs were enriched in the KEGG pathway of p53 signaling pathway, TNF signaling pathway, and JAK-STAT signaling pathway and GO terms of inflammatory response and intrinsic apoptotic signaling pathway in response to endoplasmic reticulum stress. Furthermore, GSEA analysis revealed a significant up-regulation of the cell cycle, DNA replication initiation, ATP-dependent RNA helicase activity, and down-regulation of the TNF signaling pathway. The protein–protein association network of the intersecting genes highlighted the significance of DNA replication licensing factors (MCM3, MCM6, and MCM10) in promoting intestinal epithelial growth in response to glutamine. Based on these findings, we propose that glutamine may upregulate DNA replication licensing factors, leading to increased PI3K/Akt signaling and the suppression of TNF, JAK-STAT, and p53 pathways. Consequently, this mechanism results in the proliferation of porcine intestinal epithelial cells and the expansion of intestinal stem cells.

As the service time of military equipment increases, equipment failure data is continuously accumulated during events such as routine maintenance, training, and combat readiness exercises, and the data presented is often imbalanced to varying degrees and consists of small samples. In addition, due to fault tolerances of various electrical component parameters in the equipment and widespread nonlinearity and feedback loops of the circuit, it is often difficult to accurately express the fault mechanism using mathematical models. This poses new challenges for the fault diagnosis of equipment. To address the aforementioned problems, machine learning methods are widely used for fault diagnosis. The essence of such methods is that they transform a fault diagnosis problem into a pattern recognition problem. By learning the characteristic data of normal modes and various failure modes, a diagnosis model is constructed and, ultimately, a diagnosis strategy is formed. Aiming at the problems of the unbalanced distribution of various fault samples from equipment and low fault diagnosis accuracy of existing algorithms, in this paper, we define a regularized weighted multiple kernel ensemble under a p-norm constraint by introducing a p-norm constraint weighted multicore extreme learning machine and an ensemble learning strategy based on the AdaBoost fault diagnosis model of extreme learning machine. Under the p-norm constraint, the model performed two types of adaptive sample weight distribution based on the size of various fault samples; simultaneously, the model combines the multisource data fusion and extreme learning abilities of the multiple kernel learning machine with high efficiency. The weight of a sample, W, is integrated into the optimization objective function of the multiple kernel extreme learning machine. Through the Adaboost integration strategy, the information-rich sample in the model is adaptively improved. Thus, the weight of a sample significantly improves the accuracy of fault diagnosis. Taking 6 UCI public data sets and 1 actual installation case as examples, a fault diagnosis experiment was conducted. The results of the experiment show that the model constructed in this study has significantly improved diagnostic accuracy compared with other models such as kernel extreme learning machine, weighted kernel extreme learning machine (\begin{document}$ {{\boldsymbol{W}}^{\left( 1 \right)}} $\end{document} and \begin{document}$ {{\boldsymbol{W}}^{\left( 2 \right)}} $\end{document} weighting method), and weighted multiple kernel extreme learning machine under 1-norm constraint, and the model’s diagnostic performance impact is limited.

Abstract Background Patients with primary lung adenocarcinoma are at increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). However, lung adenocarcinoma characteristics differ across histological subtypes. Therefore, we performed comprehensive analyses on the clinicopathological characteristics of lung adenocarcinoma and risk of VTE. Methods A total of 952 surgically resected lung adenocarcinoma cases were reviewed and classified according to criteria of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC)/American Thoracic Society (ATS) /European Respiratory Society (ERS). The correlation between this classification and VTE risk was retrospectively analyzed. The risks of other clinicopathological features including pleural invasion, vascular invasion and associated surgical intervention risks were also assessed. Results Of the 952 patients, 100 (10.4%) cases experienced VTE events during the follow‐up period. Among those with VTE, 28 (28%) were found before surgery, 47 (47%) were found within 1 month after surgery, and 91 (91%) were found in hospital. Univariate analysis revealed that ages, extent of resection and presence of micropapillary features were predictive of VTE risk. Furthermore, multivariable analysis demonstrated that the presence of micropapillary features (subdistribution hazard ratio [SHR] 1.560, 95% CI: 1.043–2.330) and age >60 (SHR: 2.270, 95% CI:1.491–3.470) were associated with increased risk of VTE. After one year, the probability of developing VTE was 13.1% and 8.3% in patients with micropapillary features and those without, respectively. Conclusions VTE is a common complication for lung adenocarcinoma patients who undergo surgery, especially during the perioperative process and hospitalization. Presence of micropapillary subtype and age are positively associated with VTE risk.

The quantization technique with a low-bit resolution can significantly reduce the cost and power consumption of analog-to-digital converter (ADC). It will play an important role in energy conservation and cost reduction for the incoming B5G millimeter-wave (MMW) communication systems. In this paper, we propose and demonstrated experimentally a low-bit Gaussian mixture model (GMM) based non-uniform adaptive vector quantization (AVQ) scheme for the low-cost intensity modulated envelope detection photonics-assisted 28 GHz MMW communication system for the first time. The principles of GMM-based one-dimensional adaptive scalar quantization (ASQ) and multi-dimensional AVQ are first introduced, and then are used to realize the low-bit non-uniform adaptive quantization for reducing the ADC bit resolution of MMW receiver. Furthermore, the performance of traditional uniform quantization, the present K-means and proposed GMM-based non-uniform ASQ/AVQ schemes are evaluated and compared in detail. Utilizing the proposed GMM-based AVQ scheme, the ADC quantization resolution in our MMW receiver can be reduced from 5 bits of the traditional uniform quantization to as low as 2 bits, without noticeable performance penalty. Moreover, as compared with the K-means-based quantization scheme, the MMW receiver enabled by GMM-based ASQ/AVQ scheme can save about half of the quantization time under similar performance. This is mainly because the clustering based on probability converges faster than the Euclidean distance, which significantly reduces the number of iterations required. Therefore, the GMM-based AVQ scheme is a promising solution to realize high performance ADCs with low-bit resolution for future MMW-enabled optical fiber wireless access networks.

Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing Access Passive Optical Networks (OFDMA-PONs), a solution for the next-generation optical access network, allows multiple optical network units (ONUs) to dynamically share subcarriers (SCs) to support efficient bandwidth allocation. In uplink transmission, multiple ONUs can share orthogonal low bit rate SCs to transmit data at different time slots (TSs) during the transmission cycle. In this paper, the dynamic subcarrier allocation (DSA) scheme based on deep reinforcement learning (DRL) is proposed for various ONU bandwidth requests. The novel scheme jointly allocates time slots, subcarriers, and modulation formats in a dynamic and flexible manner. The ONU can save transmit power by using a lower order modulation format while meeting the delay requirement. The simulation part demonstrates how the proposed DRL-based DSA scheme can be adapted to various situations, including 1) variation in the size of ONU bandwidth requests, and 2) variation in the weight of different indicators. The extensive simulation results show that, for the first time, the proposed DRL-based DSA algorithm achieves optimal traffic latency with substantial power saving, compared with the traditional two-dimensional DSA algorithms.

SiO-based materials represent a promising class of anodes for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), with a high theoretical capacity and appropriate and safe Li-insertion potential. However, SiO experiences a large volume change during the electrochemical reaction, low Li diffusivity, and low electron conductivity, resulting in degradation and low rate capability for LIBs. Here, we report on the rapid crafting of SiO–Sn2Fe@C composites via a one-step plasma milling process, leading to an alloy of Sn and Fe and in turn refining SiO and Sn2Fe into nanoparticles that are well dispersed in a nanosized, few-layer graphene matrix. The Sn and Fe nanoparticles generated during the first Li-insertion process form a stable network to improve Li diffusivity and electron conductivity. As an anode material, the SiO–Sn2Fe@C composite manifests high reversible capacities, superior cycling stability, and excellent rate capability. The capacity retention is found to be as high as 95% and 84% at the 100th and 300th cycles under 0.3 ​C. During rate capability testing at 3, 6, and 11 ​C, the capacity retentions are 71%, 60%, and 50%, respectively. This study highlights that this simple, one-step plasma milling strategy can further improve SiO-based anode materials for high-performance LIBs.

BackgroundStroke is an acute disorder and dysfunction of the focal neurological system that has long been recognized as one of the leading causes of death and severe disability in most regions globally. This study aimed to supplement and exploit multiple comorbidities, laboratory tests and demographic factors to more accurately predict death related to stroke, and furthermore, to make inferences about the heterogeneity of treatment in stroke patients to guide better treatment planning.MethodsWe extracted data from the Medical Information Mart from the Intensive Care (MIMIC)-IV database. We compared the distribution of the demographic factors between the control and death groups. Subsequently, we also developed machine learning (ML) models to predict mortality among stroke patients. Furthermore, we used meta-learner to recognize the heterogeneity effects of warfarin and human albumin. We comprehensively evaluated and interpreted these models using Shapley Additive Explanation (SHAP) analysis.ResultsWe included 7,483 patients with MIMIC-IV in this study. Of these, 1,414 (18.9%) patients died during hospitalization or 30 days after discharge. We found that the distributions of age, marital status, insurance type, and BMI differed between the two groups. Our machine learning model achieved the highest level of accuracy to date in predicting mortality in stroke patients. We also observed that patients who were consistent with the model determination had significantly better survival outcomes than the inconsistent population and were better than the overall treatment group.ConclusionWe used several highly interpretive machine learning models to predict stroke prognosis with the highest accuracy to date and to identify heterogeneous treatment effects of warfarin and human albumin in stroke patients. Our interpretation of the model yielded a number of findings that are consistent with clinical knowledge and warrant further study and verification.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) severely impacted the health, society, and economy around the world. With declining protective efficacy of primary vaccination and the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants, a Covid-19 booster vaccination is being fully implemented globally. Many people received three doses of BBIBP-CorV inactivated vaccine in China and other developing countries. However, the antibody response and immune persistence of the homologous BBIBP-CorV booster vaccination is yet to be thoroughly evaluated, as previous studies focused within one month after the third dose. In this study, 97 participants were enrolled to analyze the antibody response and immune persistence within 6 months as well as the safety within 7 days after the third-dose of homologous BBIBP-CorV inactivated vaccine. The seroconversion rate for total antibody against the receptor binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein were both 100% at month 1 and month 6 after the third dose. The IgG against the RBD of the SARS-CoV-2 S protein seroconversion rate increased from 42.27% before the third dose to 100% 1 month after the third dose and then slightly decreased to 98.97% 5 months later. Positive IgM against the RBD of the SARS-CoV-2 S protein was rare and was observed in only one participant at month 1 after the third dose. The neutralizing antibody levels at month 1 and month 6 after the third dose increased 63.32-fold and 13.16-fold compared with those before the third dose, and the positive rate for neutralizing antibody was still 100% at month 6 after the third dose. Importantly, the antibody responses induced by the vaccine and immune persistence were not affected by sex or age. No serious adverse reactions were reported. Total antibody and IgG against the RBD of the SARS-CoV-2 S protein were highly correlated with neutralizing antibody, suggesting that total antibody and IgG against the RBD of the SARS-CoV-2 S protein could be used as predictors for neutralizing antibody. In conclusion, the third dose of homologous BBIBP-CorV inactivated vaccine induced a robust antibody response and moderate immune persistence. These finding are of great significance for development future vaccination strategies.

Abstract To change the situation of shape memory polymers (SMPs) that can only remember very few shapes and enable discretional morphing for practical application, the authors report a reversible stepless multiple SMP derived from ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). As the crystals of semi‐crystalline polymers are assembled by those with slightly different melting temperatures, and each type of crystal can remember a single shape, the crystalline region of UHMWPE is allowed to remember plenty of temporary shapes after programming. Changing the temperature of the programmed polymer within the melting/crystallization temperature ranges would lead to releasing/recovery of the memorized temporary shapes. Accordingly, multiple shape memory effects can be easily realized without an elaborate design of material structure and training process in advance as before. The temperature‐dependent adjustability of the analog capacitor and soft lens with embedded programmed UHMWPE as actuators, characterized by the continuous/random/proportional responsivity, further reveals the utilization prospects of the controllable reversible stepless discretionary morphing effect. Moreover, the maximum work density of the programmed UHMWPE is found to be 210 kJ/m3, which is more than 10 times of piezoelectric ceramics, so that it can serve as a proof‐of‐concept mechanical driver for reversibly pumping of ethanediol‐droplet upon heating/cooling.

This study investigates the effects of L1 tonal density and typology on naïve listeners' perception of L2 Cantonese tones and pitch-equivalent pure tones. Native speakers of two canonical tone languages (Vietnamese and Mandarin) and a pitch-accent language (Japanese) with varying degrees of tonal density were recruited as listeners in a discrimination task followed by a perceptual assimilation task. Results implied that Mandarin listeners with a sparser tone inventory exhibited significantly better performance than Vietnamese listeners, suggesting that denser tonality in L1 did not facilitate or even interfere with L2 tone perception. Furthermore, both groups of canonical tone listeners processed pitch contours in a domain-general manner, with comparable performance in the perception of lexical tones and pure tones. However, Japanese listeners of the pitch-accent language perceived pure tones better than lexical tones, showing a domain-specific mechanism. These findings suggest that both L1 tonal density and typology may modulate the perception of non-native tones.

Buffalo is an economically important livestock that renders useful services to manhood in terms of meat, milk, leather, and draught. The Xilin buffalo is among the native buffalo breeds of China. In the present study, the genetic architecture and selection signature signals of Xilin buffalo have been explored. Correlation analysis of the population structure of Xilin buffalo was conducted by constructing NJ tree, PCA, ADMIXTURE and other methods. A total of twenty-five (n = 25) Xilin buffalo whole genome data and data of forty-six (n = 46) buffaloes published data were used. The population structure analysis showed that the Xilin buffalo belong to the Middle-Lower Yangtze. The genome diversity of Xilin buffalo was relatively high. The CLR, π ratio, FST, and XP-EHH were used to detect the candidate genes characteristics of positive selection in Xilin buffalo. Among the identified genes, most of the enriched signal pathways were related to the nervous system and metabolism. The mainly reported genes were related to the nervous system (GRM5, GRIK2, GRIA4), reproductive genes (CSNK1G2, KCNIP4), and lactation (TP63). The results of this study are of great significance for understanding the molecular basis of phenotypic variation of related traits of Xilin buffalo. We provide a comprehensive overview of sequence variations in Xilin buffalo genomes. Selection signatures were detected in genomic regions that are possibly related to economically important traits in Xilin buffalo and help in future breeding and conservation programs of this important livestock genetic resource.

IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic is ongoing, and the world continues to work to defeat it. We designed this study to understand the longitudinal change in the mental health of residents who experienced the initial disease outbreak in China and to explore the long-term influencing factors.MethodsThe Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Generalized Anxiety Scale (GAD-7), and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) were administered to the same sample four times: during the initial outbreak (T1), 1 month later (T2), 18 months later (T3), and 26 months later (T4).ResultsA total of 397 participants completed all of the follow ups. The mean PSS scores among the four time points showed significant differences (F = 183.98, P < 0.001), with the highest score at T1 (15.35 ± 7.14), a sharp decline at T2 (11.27 ± 6.27), an obvious rebound at T3 (15.17 ± 7.46), and finally a slight decrease at T4 (14.41 ± 7.99). Among the four mean GAD-7 scores, significant differences were also found (F = 242.0, P < 0.001), with the trend that from T1 (7.42 ± 6.03) to T2 (7.35 ± 5.88), the scores remained steady, while they showed an apparent decline at T3 (5.00 ± 5.30) and no obvious change at T4 (4.91 ± 4.81). There were no significant differences among the mean PHQ-9 scores (F = 1.256, P < 0.284). The long-term influencing factors differed for stress, anxiety and depression, but all three were influenced by a history of psychosis at T4, quarantine status and whether the participants' family members were infected during the initial outbreak.DiscussionThe survey revealed that repeated outbreaks in other areas also had an impact on those who experienced the initial outbreak, with a return of stress, a decline in anxiety, and no change in depression, which provides direction for interventions in the future.

As the first barrier of host defense, innate immunity sets up the parclose to keep out external microbial or virus attacks. Depending on the type of pathogens, several cytoplasm pattern recognition receptors exist to sense the attacks from either foreign or host origins, triggering the immune response to battle with the infections. Among them, cGAS-STING is the major pathway that mainly responds to microbial DNA, DNA virus infections, or self-DNA, which mainly comes from genome instability by-product or released DNA from the mitochondria. cGAS was initially found functional in the cytoplasm, although intriguing evidence indicates that cGAS exists in the nucleus where it is involved in the DNA damage repair process. Because the close connection between DNA damage response and immune response and cGAS recognizes DNA in length-dependent but DNA sequence–independent manners, it is urgent to clear the function balance of cGAS in the nucleus versus cytoplasm and how it is shielded from recognizing the host origin DNA. Here, we outline the current conception of immune response and the regulation mechanism of cGAS in the nucleus. Furthermore, we will shed light on the potential mechanisms that are restricted to be taken away from self-DNA recognition, especially how post-translational modification regulates cGAS functions.

Abstract Background The most common biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are amyloid β (Aβ) and tau, detected in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) or with positron emission tomography imaging. However, these procedures are invasive and expensive, which hamper their availability to the general population. Here, we report a panel of microRNAs (miRNAs) in serum that can predict P-tau/Aβ42 in CSF and readily differentiate AD from other dementias, including vascular dementia (VaD), Parkinson disease dementia (PDD), behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), and dementia with Lewy body (DLB). Methods RNA samples were extracted from the participant’s blood. P-tau/Aβ42 of CSF was examined for diagnostic purposes. A pilot study (controls, 21; AD, 23), followed by second (controls, 216; AD, 190) and third groups (controls, 153; AD, 151), is used to establish and verify a predictive model of P-tau/Aβ42 in CSF. The test is then applied to a fourth group of patients with different dementias (controls, 139; AD,155; amnestic mild cognitive impairment [aMCI], 55; VaD, 51; PDD, 53; bvFTD, 53; DLB, 52) to assess its diagnostic capacity. Results In the pilot study, 29 upregulated and 31 downregulated miRNAs in the AD group were found. In Dataset 2, these miRNAs were then included as independent variables in the linear regression model. A seven-microRNA panel (miR-139-3p, miR-143-3p, miR-146a-5p, miR-485-5p, miR-10a-5P, miR-26b-5p, and miR-451a-5p) accurately predicted values of P-tau/Aβ42 of CSF. In Datasets 3 and 4, by applying the predicted P-tau/Aβ42, the predictive model successfully differentiates AD from controls and VaD, PDD, bvFTD, and DLB. Conclusions This study suggests that the panel of microRNAs is a promising substitute for traditional measurement of P-tau/Aβ42 in CSF as an effective biomarker of AD.

Autophagy relies on coordinated fusion of organelle membranes, although the interplay between the regulatory machinery is not well studied. Here, the authors show that SNARE complex formation is inhibited by mTORC1 phosphorylation of VAMP8, which prevents autophagosome-lysosome fusion.

Hydrolysis of Mg-based materials is considered as a potential means of safe and convenient real-time control of H2 release, enabling efficient loading, discharge and utilization of hydrogen in portable electronic devices. At present work, the hydrogen generation properties of MgLi-graphite composites were evaluated for the first time. The MgLi-graphite composites with different doping amounts of expanded graphite (abbreviated as EG hereinafter) were synthesized through ball milling and the hydrogen behaviors of the composites were investigated in chloride solutions. Among the above doping systems, the 10 wt.% EG-doped MgLi exhibited the best hydrogen performance in MgCl2 solutions. In particular, the 22 h-milled MgLi-10 wt.% EG composites possessed both desirable hydrogen conversion and rapid reaction kinetics, delivering a hydrogen yield of 966 mL H2 g−1 within merely 2 min and a maximum hydrogen generation rate of 1147 mL H2 min−1 g−1, as opposed to the sluggish kinetics in the EG-free composites. Moreover, the EG-doped MgLi showed superior air-stable ability even under a 75 RH% ambient atmosphere. For example, the 22 h-milled MgLi-10 wt.% EG composites held a fuel conversion of 89% after air exposure for 72 h, rendering it an advantage for Mg-based materials to safely store and transfer in practical applications. The similar favorable hydrogen performance of MgLi-EG composites in (simulate) seawater may shed light on future development of hydrogen generation technologies.

Abstract Background Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG) are a group of metabolic diseases with clinical and genetic heterogeneity, and CDG-IIg is one of the rare reported types of CDG. The aim of this study is to report the clinical manifestations and gene-phenotype characteristics of a rare case of CDG caused by a COG1 gene mutation and review literatures of CDG disease. Case presentation The patient was male, and the main clinical symptoms were developmental retardation, convulsion, strabismus, and hypoglycemia, which is rarely reported in CDG-IIg. We treated the patient with glucose infusion and he was recovered from hypoglycemia. Genetic analysis showed that the patient carried the heterozygous intron mutation c.1070 + 3A > G (splicing) in the coding region of the COG1 gene that was inherited from the mother, and the heterozygous mutation c.2492G > A (p. Arg831Gln) in exon 10 of the COG1 gene that was inherited from the father. The genes interacting with COG1 were mainly involved in the transport and composition of the Golgi. The clinical data and laboratory results from a patient diagnosed with CDG-IIg were analyzed, and the causative gene mutation was identified by high-throughput sequencing. The genes and signal pathways related to COG1 were analyzed by Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analyses. Conclusions The c.2492G > A (p. Arg831Gln) mutation in exon 10 of the COG1 gene may be a potential pathogenetic variant for CDG-IIg. Because of the various manifestations of CDG in clinical practice, multidisciplinary collaboration is important for the diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

Resistive switching devices have great promise for a wide variety of technological applications. Here, Yang et al demonstrate that electrochemically induced tellurium filament can give rise to resistive switching, and show that devices based on this can provide a number of advantages compared to metallic filament-based devices.

Abstract Different from the other work, the almost sure asymptotic stability of an uncertain stochastic T–S fuzzy system driven by Lévy noise has been investigated. However, the Lévy noise caused the càdlàg paths in the system, and the uncertainty was the linear fractional form, which made difference to the general norm-bounded type. Using the special stochastic techniques and new matrix decomposition method, we deal with the càdlàg paths and uncertainty of the system. As the main results, the sufficient conditions of almost sure asymptotic stability for stochastic T–S fuzzy system driven by Lévy noise have been presented. On this basis, the closed-loop system is robustly almost surely asymptotically stable with fuzzy state-feedback controller. Furthermore, our stabilization criteria are based on linear matrix inequalities (LMIs), whence the feedback controller could be designed more easily in practice.

5G on line scenario needs short build time of network slice, it can use prediction algorithm to isolate network resource in advance to reduce the construction time of network slice.A 5G network slicing algorithm based on prediction was proposed, which used fourth square as cost function to predict the network resource requests with accepted accurate and lower complexity of algorithm.And then based on the prediction result, virtual nodes and links resource were allocated, and container was pulled up when network slice request arrives to network, the dynamic creation of network slices was completed.The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm can get 90% accurate of prediction, and reduce 50% construction time of network slice, and improve the network utilization ration，when new network slice reusing the original network slice.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) produces circular RNA (circRNA), whose functions have not yet been clearly elucidated. In this study, a novel circRNA HBV_circ_1 produced by HBV was identified in HBV-positive HepG2.2.15 cells and HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissue (HCCT). Microarray analysis of 68 HCCT samples showed that HBV_circ_1 abundance was significantly higher than that in paracancerous tissues. In addition, survival rate of HBV_circ_1-positive patients was significantly lower compared with HBV_circ_1-negative patients. Transient expression indicated that HBV_circ_1 enhanced cell proliferation, migration, and invasion and inhibited apoptosis in vitro. Furthermore, ectopical HBV_circ_1 expression increased tumor size in vivo. HBV_circ_1 was confirmed to interact with cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (CDK1) to regulate cell proliferation. These results suggest that HCC progression may be promoted by interaction of HBV_circ_1 with CDK1. Our data not only showed a novel clue to understand carcinogenesis and progress of HBV-related HCC but also provided a new target for the development of therapeutic drugs.

The effect of annealing time on the microstructure and corrosion behavior of CoCrFeMnNi HEA was explored in alkaline soil simulation solution by using electrochemical measurements, immersion test and surface analysis technology. The results show that the corrosion resistance of HEA increases first and then decreases with increasing annealing time. The corrosion behavior of HEA is related to σ-phase, grain size, inclusions and surface passive film. The σ-phase distributed at the grain boundary (GB) and the Mn-rich inclusions facilitate the pitting corrosion. Most of pits occurred in or near the GB regions are attributed to the selective dissolution of Fe, Co, and Cr elements. And the pits generated inside σ-phase are mainly caused by the selective dissolution of Cr element. While Mn element in the two inclusions is selectively dissolved, resulting in the occurrence of holes.

Scrub typhus is a natural foci disease caused by the bacteria Orientia tsutsugamushi. Symptoms of the disease range from fever to severe multiple organ dysfunction. The diagnosis is based on clinical signs and antibody serological tests, which has poor sensitivity and specificity. Scrub typhus is rarely associated with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) and haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). In this paper, we report a 17-year-old Asian male who was characterized with a persistent fever without eschar. He was diagnosed with scrub typhus using metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) of the blood after negative of routine examinations. The patient was progressed to HLH and MODS but had a good recovery following anti-rickettsial therapy, dexamethasone, and advanced life support. Besides, we present a brief overview of the literature about scrub typhus and associated complications.

ObjectivesWe sought to evaluate the prognostic value of blood routine parameters and biochemical parameters, especially inflammation-related biomarkers, and establish an inflammation-related prognostic model in Chinese patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF).Material/methodsPatients diagnosed as IPF at Beijing Chaoyang Hospital and aged 40 years and older were consecutively enrolled from June 2000 to March 2015, and finally, a total of 377 patients were enrolled in the derivation cohort. The follow-up ended in December 2016. We used Cox proportional hazard model to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) and establish the prognostic model. The discrimination and calibration of the prognostic model were evaluated in an independent validation cohort enrolled from China-Japan Friendship Hospital between January 2015 and December 2019.ResultsMultivariate analysis revealed that patients with elevated monocyte-to-red blood cell count ratio (MRR) and monocyte counts showed increased risk of mortality. The clinical-physiological-biomarker (CPB) index and CPB stage we established in this study were a significant predictor, and the C-index for CPB index and CPB stage in the validation cohort was 0.635 (95% CI: 0.558–0.712) and 0.619 (95% CI: 0.544–0.694), respectively. Patients in CPB stage III had the poorest survival.ConclusionWe developed and validated a new inflammation-related prognostic model (CPB index and CPB stage) which was integration of age, gender, FVC (%, predicted), DLCO (%, predicted), Charlson Comorbidity Index, and blood monocyte counts. This prediction model exhibited strong ability in predicting mortality in Chinese patients with IPF.

Progressive infarction (PI) is common in small subcortical infarction and may lead to a poor outcome. The purpose of our study is to identify neuroimaging predictors for PI. From April 2017 to December 2020, we enrolled 86 patients with an anterior circulation subcortical infarction within 48 h after onset. Progressive infarction was defined by an increase of ≥ one point in motor power or ≥ two points in the total National Institute of Health Stroke Scale score within 7 days after admission and further confirmed by diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI). To identify predictors, demographic characteristics, clinical information, laboratory date, and neuroimaging characteristics were evaluated. The infarct size and infarct slice number were measured by DWI. We found that thirty-one patients (36%) had PI. In a univariate analysis, the patients with PI had higher levels of triglyceride, lower levels of blood urea nitrogen and prothrombin time, and a higher frequency of infarct slice number ≥ three compared to the patients without PI. After logistic regression stepwise adjustment for all considered relevant confounders, infarct slice number ≥ three slices proved to be independently associated with PI (OR = 4.781, 95% CI 1.677–13.627; OR = 4.867, 95% CI 1.6–14.864; OR = 3.584, 95% CI 1.034–12.420). Our study showed that a lesion extending ≥ three slices on DWI is an independent predictor for progressive infarction in patients with anterior circulation small subcortical infarction.

ObjectiveThe diagnosis of neuronal intranuclear inclusion disease (NIID) is currently based on CGG repeat expansion in the 5′UTR of the NOTCH2NLC gene, or p62-positive intranuclear inclusions in skin biopsy. The purpose of this study is to explore the value of non-invasive pathological findings in urine sediment cells from NIID patients.Materials and methodsTen patients with clinically suspected NIID were enrolled for skin biopsy and gene screening. Morning urine (500 ml) was collected from each patient, and cell sediment was obtained by centrifugation. Urine cytology, including Giemsa staining, p62 immunostaining, and electron microscopic examination, were conducted on cell sediment.ResultsThe main clinical symptoms of 10 patients included episodic disturbance of consciousness, cognitive impairment, tremor, limb weakness, and so on. Cerebral MRI showed that 9 patients had linear DWI high signal in the corticomedullary junction. Genetic testing found that the number of CGG repeat ranged from 96 to 158 in the NOTCH2NLC gene. Skin biopsy revealed that all patients showed p62-positive intranuclear inclusions in 18.5 ± 6.3% of the duct epithelial cells of sweat gland. In contrast, urine sediment smears revealed that only 3 patients had p62 positive intranuclear inclusions in 3.5 ± 1.2% of the sedimentary cells. Ultrastructural examinations showed that intranuclear inclusions were also identified in the cell sediment of the 3 patients.ConclusionUrine cytology may be a new and non-invasive pathological diagnosis technique for some NIID patients, although the positive rate is not as high as that of skin biopsy, which is a sensitive and reliable pathological method for NIID.

In this paper, a stochastic multi-objective intelligent framework (MOIF) is performed for distribution network reconfiguration to minimize power losses, the number of voltage sags, the system’s average RMS fluctuation, the average system interruption frequency (ASIFI), the momentary average interruption frequency (MAIFI), and the system average interruption frequency (SAIFI) considering the network uncertainty. The unscented transformation (UT) approach is applied to model the demand uncertainty due to its being simple to implement and requiring no assumptions to simplify it. A human-inspired intelligent method named improved mountaineering team-based optimization (IMTBO) is used to find the decision variables defined as the network’s optimal configuration. The conventional MTBO is improved using a quasi-opposition-based learning strategy to overcome premature convergence and achieve the optimal solution. The simulation results showed that in single- and double-objective optimization some objectives are weakened compared to their base value, while the results of the MOIF indicate a fair compromise between different objectives, and all objectives are enhanced. The results of the MOIF based on the IMTBO clearly showed that the losses are reduced by 30.94%, the voltage sag numbers and average RMS fluctuation are reduced by 33.68% and 33.65%, and also ASIFI, MAIFI, and SAIFI are improved by 6.80%, 44.61%, and 0.73%, respectively. Also, the superior capability of the MOIF based on the IMTBO is confirmed compared to the conventional MTBO, particle swarm optimization, and the artificial electric field algorithm. Moreover, the results of the stochastic MOIF based on the UT showed the power loss increased by 7.62%, voltage sag and SARFI increased by 5.39% and 5.31%, and ASIFI, MAIFI, and SAIFI weakened by 2.28%, 6.61%, and 1.48%, respectively, compared to the deterministic MOIF model.

Sound source recognition is a very important application of passive sonar. How to distinguish between surface and underwater acoustic sources has always been a challenge. Due to the mixing of underwater target radiated noise and marine environmental noise, especially in shallow water environments where multipath effects exist, it is difficult to distinguish them. To solve the surface and underwater acoustic source recognition problem, this paper proposes a multi-channel joint detection method based on machine learning. First, the simulation data are generated using the normal model KRAKEN setting in the same environment as the SACLANT 1993 experiment, which uses a vertical linear array of 48 hydrophones. Secondly, the GBDT classifier and LightGBM classifier are trained separately, and then the model is evaluated using precision, recall, F1, and accuracy. Finally, four ML models (kNN, random subspace kNN, GBDT, and LightGBM) are used to analyze all 48 channels of hydrophone data. For each model, two kinds of feature extraction methods (module features, real and imaginary features) are applied. Generally, the results show that both GBDT and LightGBM models have better performance than both kNN and random subspace kNN ones. For both GBDT and LightGBM models, the results using module features have better performance than using real and imaginary features.

Underwater wireless sensor networks (UWSNs) are significantly different from terrestrial sensor networks in the following aspects: low bandwidth, high latency, variable topology, limited battery, low processing power and so on. These new features pose many challenges to the design of self-organizing routing protocol for UWSNs. This paper focuses on the application of Ad Hoc On-demand Distance Vector (AODV) routing protocol in UWSNs. In order to solve the problems of packet collision and excessive energy consumption associated with the flooding-based routing discovery method and the periodic hello packet routing maintenance mechanism of AODV, a routing discovery and maintenance method based on location and energy information is proposed, and it is referred to as the route-focusing AODV (RFAODV) routing protocol. In the RFAODV protocol, the routing discovery process is focused on a few nodes through forwarding area control and dynamic delay adjustment. In addition, feedback from a media access control layer and residual energy control are used for routing maintenance. We implement the RFAODV and evaluate its performance according to the sea trial data as parameters in the NS-2. The simulation results show that compared with the other protocols, RFAODV improves the routing discovery success ratio by at least 18%, increases the packet transmission ratio by at least 4%, reduces the protocol overhead by at least 15% and reduces the energy consumption by at least 5% under various simulation scenarios. RFAODV is suitable for large-scale, high-load and dynamic networks underwater wireless sensor networks.

We have experimentally implemented a photonics-aided large-capacity fiber-mm-wave wireless communication system employing a simple dual-polarized single-input single-output (SISO) wireless based on polarization multiplexing at the W-band. To compare the performance of different algorithms, 18G-baud, and 35G-baud 16-level quadrature-amplitude-modulation (16QAM), probabilistically shaped 16QAM (PS-16QAM), 64QAM and PS-64QAM signal using different carrier phase recovery (CPR) algorithms are transmitted in the system. Moreover, we compare the Viterbi–Viterbi (VV), improved new algorithm based on VV (NVV), blind phase search (BPS), and two-stage BPS algorithms’ computational complexity to better compare different algorithms. Using the experiment result, we can demonstrate that the BPS algorithm is about half a magnitude better than the NVV algorithm for PS-QAM signals, while the NVV algorithm has the lowest computational complexity. Additionally, we also achieve error-free wireless transmission at a net data rate of 324.1 Gb/s with the bit error ratio (BER) below the forward-error correction (FEC) threshold of 1 × 10−2 assuming soft-decision forward-error correction (SD-FEC) when using the BPS algorithm.

The formation process of starch in the grain is influenced by both genetic characteristics and environmental factors, which can affect starch quality. Waxy wheat Yangnuo1 (YN1) and non-waxy wheat Yangmai15 (YM15) were subjected to heat stress at the early, medium, and late grain-filling stages using artificial intelligence temperature control. Heat stress increased the short-chain content of amylopectin in both cultivars and decreased their amylose contents. The effect of heat stress on the wheat amylopectin structure was most pronounced 16–20 days after anthesis (DAA). The crystallinity and enthalpy of starch decreased, as did the swelling potential, solubility, and transmittance, but the retrogradation degree showed an opposite trend after heat stress. Compared with YM15, YN1 exhibited superior physical and chemical properties as well as anti-aging properties of starch and consequently had greater thermal stability under heat stress due to its higher degree of branching. The most sensitive stage to heat stress for yield was 6–10 DAA, which resulted in significant decreases in grain number and 1000-grain weight, followed by 16–20 DAA, which resulted in a significant decrease only in 1000-grain weight. Our study indicated that heat stress during the early stage of grain filling resulted in a decrease in both grain weight and yield, whereas during the middle stage of grain filling, it led to a decline in starch quality, especially in non-waxy wheat.

Stress concentration often occurs around bolt holes in load-bearing joint structures of large complex equipment, ships, aerospace and other complex machinery fields, which is an important mechanical factor leading to the failure of joint structures. It is of great engineering significance to study the phenomenon of stress concentration on connected structures for the safety of large and complex equipment; meanwhile, the layout of bolts seriously affects the stress around holes. Many scholars have studied the layout optimization of multi-bolted structures through experiments and simulations, but few algorithms have been applied to the layout optimization of bolted structures. And most of the studied types of multi-bolt structures are symmetrical. Therefore, in this paper, the gray wolf algorithm is used to optimize the layout of nickel steel plate connectors with a bolt layout in triangular position, and the optimal objective function is found based on the hole circumferential stress of the nickel steel plate, maximum shear stress of the bolt and bending stress of the nickel steel plate. Comparing the optimal values obtained by the fruit fly optimization algorithm, particle swarm optimization algorithm, gray wolf optimization algorithm, multiverse optimization algorithm and wind driven optimization algorithm, the accuracy of selecting the gray wolf algorithm for optimization is verified. A multi-bolt connection structure model was established in ABAQUS, and the surface stress before and after optimization was compared to verify the correctness of the gray wolf algorithm applied to the structure layout optimization of the nickel steel flat bolt connection. The results show that under the force of 15 KN, compared with the original bolt structure layout, the optimized upper side nickel steel plate bore peripheral stress is reduced by 73.1 MPa, and the optimization rate is 24%; bolt stress is reduced by 47.7 MPa, and the optimization rate is 12.5%; when the load is less than 18 KN, the optimization effect of both the upper nickel steel plate and bolt group is more than 10%. When the load is greater than 18 KN, the optimization effect is reduced, and when the load is greater than 21 KN, the nickel steel plate has exceeded the yield limit. Due to the existence of fixed constraints, the optimization of the lower nickel steel plate is not obvious. The results of this study can provide data and theoretical support for the layout optimization of the nickel steel flat bolt connection structure, and help to improve reliability analysis and health monitoring in complex assembly fields such as large complex equipment and aerospace.

Obesity is a recognized epidemic worldwide, and the accumulation of excess free saturated fatty acids (SFAs) in cells induces cellular lipotoxic damage and increases the risk of a wide spectrum of metabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes (T2D) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have been reported to combat SFA-induced cellular damage. However, the comparative studies of the two types of unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs) are still limited. We investigated the effects of different MUFAs and PUFAs in the human hepatocyte line L-02 cells in vitro, and in high-fat-diet (HFD)-induced obese C57BL/6 mice in vivo. The results of the in vitro study showed that SFAs induced significant cellular lipotoxic damage, but the combination of MUFAs/PUFAs with SFAs significantly improved the impaired cell viability. Particularly, oleic acid (OA) was superior to eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and arachidonic acid (AA) in terms of its anti-apoptotic effect and inhibition of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. In vivo, both olive-oil-enriched (HFD + OO) and fish-oil-enriched high-fat diets (HFD + FO) reduced hepatic steatosis and improved insulin sensitivity in obese mice. However, FO induced an abnormal increase in serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and an increase in the oxidative stress indicator Malondialdehyde (MDA). Liver-targeted lipidomic analysis showed that liver lipid metabolites under the two types of UFA dietary interventions differed from the HFD group, modulating the abundance of some lipid metabolites such as triglycerides (TGs) and glycerophospholipids. Furthermore, the FO diet significantly increased the abundance of the associated FA 20:5 long-chain lipid metabolites, whereas the OO diet regulated the unsaturation of all fatty acids in general and increased the abundance of FA 18:1 in the overall lipid metabolites, especially TGs, which may primarily contribute to the FO, and OO drove protection in NAFLD.

The stiffness of static pressure spindles and slides is affected by the phenomenon of fluid-structure interaction (FSI). Many methods have been proposed to calculate the stiffness with FSI considered. However, the influence of FSI on stiffness is still unknown. This paper studies the lateral stiffness of an aerostatic slide. The relationship between the lateral stiffness of the aerostatic slide, the lateral bearings, and the solid structure is deduced. According to the relationship, this paper proposes a theory that reveals the influence mechanism of FSI on the stiffness of static pressure spindles and slides. The proposed theory is also valid for the normal stiffness of the aerostatic slide and the thrust stiffness of an aerostatic spindle.

A delay generator is a timing control device that can generate a delay for the input signal according to the actual requirements. A delay generator with a combination of rough delay and precise delay is implemented on a Xilinx Kintex-7 series FPGA with a design scheme based on carry delay chain. The delay generator uses the delay time parameters sent by the upper monitor to work and to reflect the current working state to the upper monitor. In this article, a theoretical model of the delay generator is designed, and a delay compensation scheme is proposed to make the working state of the theoretical model closer to the actual circuit. Through simulation experiments, the time resolution of the delay generator is 54 ps, and the time accuracy is less than 50 ps. The delay scheme adopted in this article is highly scalable, and the time resolution and time accuracy can be further improved. Finally, a theoretical model of the delay generator with relatively high time resolution is implemented through low resource occupancy rate and little workload.

To improve the decoding performance of asynchronous sparse code multiple access (SCMA) systems over additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channels, this paper proposes a novel windowed joint detection and decoding algorithm for a rate-compatible (RC), LDPC code-based, incremental redundancy (IR) hybrid automatic repeat quest (HARQ) scheme. Since incremental decoding can exchange information iteratively with the detections made at previous consecutive time units, we propose a windowed joint detection and decoding algorithm. The extrinsic information exchanging process is performed between the decoders and the previous w detectors at different consecutive time units. Simulation results show that the sliding-window IR-HARQ scheme for the SCMA system outperforms the original IR-HARQ scheme with a joint detection and decoding algorithm. The throughput of the SCMA system with the proposed IR-HARQ scheme is also improved.

The response characteristics of the warhead under thermal stimuli conditions are important to the safety improvement. The goal of this study is to obtain data on the warhead in the fast cook-off process. In this paper, a numerical calculation method is proposed, whose reliability is supported by comparison with experimental results. Through the numerical calculation, the temperature distribution, temperature change, and ignition time are acquired. The numerical results show that the ignition time is 76 s after the warhead started to burn and that the maximum temperature of the explosive’s outer surface is 238.3 °C at the ignition time. The fast cook-off experiment of the warhead is implemented so as to get the flame temperature and reaction grades that are not available through numerical calculation. The experimental results show that the overpressure fails to reach the preset minimum value which is equivalent to 6 kg of TNT and that the reaction grade is deflagration. The research results have reference value for the design of the warhead and the reduction of detonation risks.