Search

In this work, porous Cu-doped V2O5·nH2O thin film electrodes have been directly synthesized via low-temperature annealing and simple drop-casting method from V2O5/H2O2 sol with various concentration copper ion (Cu2+). It is interesting to find that the mass fraction of Cu2+ has effects on the morphologies, valence state of vanadium, and electrochemical performance of Cu-doped V2O5·nH2O thin film. When the mass fraction of Cu2+ is 1 wt.%, the obtained Cu-doped V2O5·nH2O thin film electrode shows network porous nanostructure. Moreover, it still shows high discharge specific capacity of 344 mAh g−1 at a current density of 250 mA g−1. Excellent cycling stability with only 0.14% per cycle degradation during 104 cycles can be obtained even at a high current density of 550 mA g−1. Improvement of electrochemical performance is attributed to unique network porous nanostructure, accelerating the lithium-ion transfer rate in the de-intercalation or intercalation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. In order to investigate electroencephalogram (EEG) instantaneous activity states related to executed and imagined movement of force of hand clenching (grip force: 4 kg, 10 kg, and 16 kg), we utilized a microstate analysis in which the spatial topographic map of EEG behaves in a certain number of discrete and stable global brain states. Approach. Twenty subjects participated in EEG collection; the global field power of EEG and its local maximum were calculated and then clustered using cross validation and statistics; the 4 parameters of each microstate (duration, occurrence, time coverage, and amplitude) were calculated from the clustering results and statistically analyzed by analysis of variance (ANOVA); finally, the relationship between the microstate and frequency band was analyzed. Main Results. The experimental results showed that all microstates related to executed and imagined grip force tasks were clustered into 3 microstate classes (A, B, and C); these microstates generally transitioned from A to B and then from B to C. With the increase of the target value of executed and imagined grip force, the duration and time coverage of microstate B gradually decreased, while these parameters of microstate C gradually increased. The occurrence times of microstate B and C related to executed grip force were significantly more than those related to imagined grip force; furthermore, the amplitudes of these 3 microstates related to executed grip force were significantly greater than those related to imagined grip force. The correlation coefficients between the microstates and the frequency bands indicated that the microstates were correlated to mu rhythm and beta frequency bands, which are consistent with event-related desynchronization/synchronization (ERD/ERS) phenomena of sensorimotor rhythm. Significance. It is expected that this microstate analysis may be used as a new method for observing EEG instantaneous activity patterns related to variation in executed and imagined grip force and also for extracting EEG features related to these tasks. This study may lay a foundation for the application of executed and imagined grip force training for rehabilitation of hand movement disorders in patients with stroke in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple resonance (MR) type thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) emitters are very promising in the high‐resolution and high‐efficiency displays, due to their narrow and highly efficient optical emissions. Early MR‐TADF cores that show only short‐range charge‐transfer (CT) electronic excitations hardly afford ideal performances (e.g., show low efficiencies) in organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs). This work thus designs and synthesizes two MR‐TADF emitters (TCzBN‐BP and TCzBN‐FP), where the same MR core TCzBN is chemically modified by the acceptor fragments benzophenone/9‐fluorenone (BP/FP) to incorporate long‐range CT excitations in the two molecules. OLEDs exploiting TCzBN‐BP as emitter, in which short‐range CT excitation is dominant in the first singlet (S1) excited state, achieve a maximum external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 35.6% and a narrow emission bandwidth of 35 nm. In contrast, OLEDs exploiting TCzBN‐FP with an overloaded long‐range CT excitation in the S1 state exhibit a maximum EQE of 27.2% and a broadened emission bandwidth of 56 nm. This work not only shows the importance of careful management of long‐ and short‐range CT excitations, but also provides a new insight into the structure–property relationship in the MR‐TADF emitters, which thus promotes the design of more novel MR‐TADF emitters with high efficiencies and high color purity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silver nanoclusters (AgNCs) have been widely applied in the field of biology, drug therapy and cell imaging in the last decade. In order to study the biosafety of AgNCs, GSH-AgNCs and DHLA-AgNCs were synthesized using glutathione (GSH) and dihydrolipoic acid (DHLA) as ligands, and their interactions with calf thymus DNA (ctDNA) from abstraction to visualization were studied. The results of spectroscopy, viscometry and molecular docking demonstrated that GSH-AgNCs mainly bound to ctDNA in a groove mode, while DHLA-AgNCs were both groove and intercalation binding. Fluorescence experiments suggested that the quenching mechanism of both AgNCs to the emission of ctDNA-probe were both in static mode, and thermodynamic parameters demonstrated that the main forces between GSH-AgNCs and ctDNA were hydrogen bonds and van der Waals forces, while hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic forces contributed to the binding of DHLA-AgNCs to ctDNA. The binding strength demonstrated that DHLA-AgNCs bound to ctDNA more strongly than that of GSH-AgNCs. The results of circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy reflected small effects of both AgNCs on the structure of ctDNA. This study will support the theoretical foundation for the biosafety of AgNCs and have a guiding significance for the preparation and application of AgNCs. [Display omitted] • The effect of ligand structure on the properties of silver nanoclusters was studied. • The mechanism of the interaction between silver nanoclusters and ctDNA was systematically investigated. • By combining experiments with molecular docking, the experimental results were visualized and credibility was improved. • Providing a new methodology for biosafety studies of ultra-small nanomaterials. • The influence of ligand functional groups on the interaction forces was investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C66H34N4O12F12Er2, triclinic, P1̄ (no. 2), a = 11.8934(5) Å, b = 12.0041(4) Å, c = 12.4578(5) Å, α = 68.718(4)°, β = 64.205(4)°, γ = 87.053(3)°, V = 1480.09(12) Å3, Z = 1, Rgt(F) = 0.0326, wRref(F2) = 0.0626, T = 293(2) K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Adipokines are reported to participate in many common pathologic processes of glucose dysregulation, such as insulin resistance, β-cell dysfunction, and chronic inflammation. Objective. To detect the concentrations of plasma asprosin in subjects with impaired glucose regulation (IGR) and newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes (nT2DM) and its relationship to parameters of glucose and lipid metabolism, insulin resistance, and pancreatic β-cell function. Methods. 143 eligible participants were included and were divided into three groups including normal glucose regulation (NGR, n=52), IGR (n=40), and nT2DM group (n=51). The intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT) and clinical and biochemical parameters were measured in all participants. Results. Plasma asprosin levels were higher in IGR (82.40 ± 91.06 ng/mL, P<0.001) and nT2DM (73.25 ± 91.69 ng/mL, P<0.001) groups compared with those in the NGR (16.22 ± 9.27 ng/mL) group, especially in IGR subjects. Correlation analysis showed that plasma asprosin levels were positively correlated with waist circumference (Wc), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), postchallenge plasma glucose (2hPG), HbA1c, triglyceride (TG), and homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and negatively correlated with homeostasis model assessment for β-cell function (HOMA-β), area under the curve of the first-phase (0–10 min) insulin secretion (AUC), acute insulin response (AIR), and glucose disposition index (GDI) (all P<0.05). Multiple logistical regression analyses revealed that plasma asprosin concentrations were significantly correlated with IGR and nT2DM after controlling for age, sex, BMI, and WHR. Conclusions. Circulating asprosin might be a predictor of early diagnosis in DM and might be a potential therapeutic target for prediabetes and T2DM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. In China, Oldenlandia diffusa (OD) is a natural herb that is widely used and has been proven to be effective in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This study aimed to preliminarily reveal the mechanism by which OD exerts its beneficial effect. Methods. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography photodiode array was applied to identify the absorbable compounds in the plasma of collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) model rats. After 2 weeks, an OD decoction or the identified absorbable compound was administered to CIA rats. Morphology, X-ray images of the joints, pathological images, arthritis index, and cytokine (TNF-α and IL-6) levels were evaluated. Results. p-Coumaric acid (p-CA) was identified as the absorbed compound in plasma. After administration of p-CA solution or the OD decoction, symptoms in the treated rats were alleviated as compared to the untreated model rats, and inflammatory cell infiltration was suppressed. The arthritis index and serum levels of TNF-α and IL-6 were decreased as compared to the control group. Conclusions. OD may exert its anti-inflammatory effect on RA via its active ingredient, p-CA. This information sheds light on the mechanism by which OD exerts its anti-inflammatory effort in RA and forms the basis for further development of therapeutic agents for RA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The charge structure in the cutting area has an important practical engineering significance in improving the blasting performance and increasing the excavation work efficiency, especially in tunneling practices with soft and broken surrounding rocks. To contain the excessive damage in the tunnel face of the Meishan Iron Mine, the finite element program LS-DYNA is used to investigate the effect of the charge structure of cutting holes (with an air deck and without an air deck at the blasthole bottom) on the blasting performance in roadway excavation. Numerical results indicated that the blasthole bottom was seriously damaged by blasting under the condition of charge without an air deck. Accordingly, 80-mm bottom air deck length is determined based on analytical calculation, and a numerical simulation was conducted and showed that the air deck could effectively weaken the excessive damage around the blasthole bottom. Specifically, the peak pressure at the monitoring point (10 cm horizontally from the center of the blasthole bottom) with an air deck is 22.1 MPa, which is much smaller than that of the no-air-deck case of 207.1 MPa. The field experimental results indicated that the tunnel face was obviously damaged under the condition of holes without an air deck and the tunnel face was relatively flat under the condition of a blasthole bottom with an air deck, which is consistent with the numerical results. The workload for cleaning loose rock for the next excavation cycle in a 3.5 m advance was reduced from 40 min to around 25 min. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synthetic bone substitute materials (BSMs) are becoming the general trend, replacing autologous grafting for bone tissue engineering (BTE) in orthopedic research and clinical practice. As the main component of bone matrix, collagen type I has played a critical role in the construction of ideal synthetic BSMs for decades. Significant strides have been made in the field of collagen research, including the exploration of various collagen types, structures, and sources, the optimization of preparation techniques, modification technologies, and the manufacture of various collagen-based materials. However, the poor mechanical properties, fast degradation, and lack of osteoconductive activity of collagen-based materials caused inefficient bone replacement and limited their translation into clinical reality. In the area of BTE, so far, attempts have focused on the preparation of collagen-based biomimetic BSMs, along with other inorganic materials and bioactive substances. By reviewing the approved products on the market, this manuscript updates the latest applications of collagen-based materials in bone regeneration and highlights the potential for further development in the field of BTE over the next ten years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disc displacement (DD) appears in the majority of temporomandibular disorder (TMD) patients. The correlation between craniofacial morphology and different disc positions has been underlined, while the craniofacial morphological differences based on sex and sagittal skeletal pattern stratification have been insufficiently studied. In this study, 304 patients with TMD complaints were included and classified into normal position, disc displacement with reduction (DDwR) and disc displacement without reduction (DDwoR) groups according to magnetic resonance imaging. A total of 24 cephalometric measurements, covering the cranial base, vertical relationship, sagittal relationship, mandible position and morphology, and dental relationship, were assessed using lateral cephalograms. A stratified analysis was performed based on the sex and sagittal skeletal pattern. Overall, DD patients had distinctive craniofacial morphological features. The posterior cranial base length and mandibular arc angle were statistically different only in females, while the Y-axis angle, occlusal plane angle and sella nasion point A angle (SNA) might be unique features in males. Skeletal class II had the most statistically different measurements compared to the others. Differences in the Frankfort mandibular incisor angle (FMIA) and saddle angle were especially displayed in skeletal class III patients. The sex and skeletal sagittal pattern could affect the morphological differences in TMD patients with different disc positions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterogeneous images acquired from various platforms and sensors provide complementary information. However, to use that information in applications such as image fusion and change detection, accurate image matching is essential to further process and analyze these heterogeneous images, especially if they have significant differences in radiation and geometric characteristics. Therefore, matching heterogeneous remote sensing images is challenging. To address this issue, we propose a feature point matching method named Cross and Self Attentional Matcher (CSAM) based on Attention mechanisms (algorithms) that have been extensively used in various computer vision-based applications. Specifically, CSAM alternatively uses self-Attention and cross-Attention on the two matching images to exploit feature point location and context information. Then, the feature descriptor is further aggregated to assist CSAM in creating matching point pairs while removing the false matching points. To further improve the training efficiency of CSAM, this paper establishes a new training dataset of heterogeneous images, including 1,000,000 generated image pairs. Extensive experiments indicate that CSAM outperforms the existing feature extraction and matching methods, including SIFT, RIFT, CFOG, NNDR, FSC, GMS, OA-Net, and Superglue, attaining an average precision and processing time of 81.29% and 0.13 s. In addition to higher matching performance and computational efficiency, CSAM has better generalization ability for multimodal image matching and registration tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Soil infiltration and water flow paths were quantified in subtropical forest types; • Soil water infiltrability rate increased with forest succession; • The degree of soil preferential flow did not evolve along succession sequence; • Soil porosity, root systems and rocks jointly affect soil water flow patterns. Maintaining and improving the water conservation capacity of forest ecosystems is an important step in building regional ecological protection barrier. At present, there is a lack of knowledge about the patterns of soil water flow in different stages of forest succession. Therefore, this study quantified the change tendency of soil infiltration and water flow paths in subtropical different forest types, including pine forests (PF), mixed pine and broadleaf forests (MF) and monsoon evergreen broadleaf forests (BF), and analysed the effect of soil physical properties on hydraulic properties. Results showed that (1) both BF and MF were characterized by a smaller bulk density and the larger porosity than PF. (2) The saturated hydraulic conductivity of BF and MF was 2.1 times and 3.1 times higher than that of PF, respectively, showing that there were clear differences in the soil infiltrability resistance of the different forest types. The observed soil water exchange amount also showed that both BF and MF had higher water holding capacity than PF. (3) Macropore flow and lateral flow were the dominant preferential flow behaviors, but the degree of preferential flow did not evolve along succession sequence PF, MF and BF. The pattern of soil water flow was found to show obvious spatial variability, restricted by the joint influence of soil porosity, root systems and rocks. The above results suggest that soil infiltration improve with the sequence of forest succession, but that soil water flow patterns may be independent of forest succession due to the complex conditions of the soil. This study provided effective data information of forest soil hydrological antecedents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiply twinned icosahedrons possess a diversity of unique functionalities well‐suited to various applications, such as thermoelectric conversion. Regarding chalcogenide icosahedron, an unconventional yet promising thermoelectric candidate, disclosing its growth mechanism is rather challenging. This study uncovers the formation mechanism of thermoelectric Cu5+3xFe1‐xS4 (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.4) core‐shell nano‐icosahedrons, which is distinct from that of well‐known metal icosahedrons. Electron microscopy and molecular dynamics simulations reveal that the evolution into icosahedrons, stemming from the fivefold twin formation in the center of Cu5FeS4 particle aggregates, is accompanied by the gradual formation of Fe‐rich orthorhombic‐structured core and Cu‐rich cubic‐structured shell, which provides a peculiar stress relaxation mechanism. Further identified by density functional theory calculations, Fe atoms have the tendency to transform cubic Cu5FeS4 to its orthorhombic phase and in turn result in varied crystal structures and lattice parameters in the core and shell. Importantly, by adjusting the Cu/Fe ratio of the precursors, the stress‐releasing process and potential energy of icosahedrons are controllably tuned, generating Cu5+3xFe1‐xS4 icosahedrons with tunable diameters. Accordingly, a significantly enhanced thermoelectric zT of 0.90, the largest value for Cu5FeS4, is realized. This study will shed light on the design strategy for Cu‐based ternary chalcogenide icosahedrons with enhanced thermoelectric properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: to explore the association between the distance of disc displacement and disc morphology in patients with temporomandibular disorders (TMDs). Methods: a total of 717 joints in 473 subjects were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of each patient was evaluated for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disc morphology classification and position. The distance of the disc displacement and disc length were measured for smoothing spline prediction. A stratified analysis was performed based on the types of disc positions. The disc width and length-width ratio (L/W) were also measured. Descriptive statistics, one-way analysis of variance, smoothing spline analysis, threshold analysis, and two piecewise linear regression were performed to investigate the association between the displacement distance and length of discs. Results: the differences in displacement distance among morphological categories and among different disc positions were statistically significant. Nonlinear relationships were found between distance and length in all subjects. Two turning points of distance (−1.8 mm and 1.7 mm) were found, dividing the curve into three segments. Disc width and L/W were significantly different among discs in the three segments of the curve. The correlation coefficient (β) for the three segments were as follows: −0.6 [95% confidence interval (CI) = −0.9 to −0.3, p < 0.001], 0.0 (95% CI = −0.1 to 0.0, p = 0.027), and −0.7 (95% CI = −0.8 to −0.7, p < 0.001). Nonlinear relationships were also found between the distance and length in cases with anterior disc displacement (ADD), anterior disc displacement with reduction (ADDWR), and without reduction (ADDWoR). Conclusion: the turning points of the disc displacement distance may be considered as a potential reference value for high-risk disc deformation and ADD. Disc length decreases sharply with anterior disc displacement when the disc displacement distance is over 1.7 mm. Prospective and long-term studies are required to clarify the natural course of the disc at different stages of the regression curve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guided bone regeneration (GBR) has become a clinically standard modality for the treatment of localized jawbone defects. Barrier membranes play an important role in this process by preventing soft tissue invasion outgoing from the mucosa and creating an underlying space to support bone growth. Different membrane types provide different biological mechanisms due to their different origins, preparation methods and structures. Among them, collagen membranes have attracted great interest due to their excellent biological properties and desired bone regeneration results to non-absorbable membranes even without a second surgery for removal. This work provides a comparative summary of common barrier membranes used in GBR, focusing on recent advances in collagen membranes and their biological mechanisms. In conclusion, the review article highlights the biological and regenerative properties of currently available barrier membranes with a particular focus on bioresorbable collagen-based materials. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages of these biomaterials are highlighted, and possible improvements for future material developments are summarized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple resonance (MR) type thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) material is currently a research hotspot in organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) due to their high color purity and high exciton utilization. However, there are only a handful of MR‐TADF emitters with emissions beyond the blue‐to‐green region. The very limited emission colors for MR‐TADF emitters are mainly caused by the fact that so far molecular modifications of MR‐TADF do not offer much change in the emission colors. Here, we report a new approach to modifying a prototypical MR core of DABNA by fusing carbazoles to the MR framework. The carbazole‐fused molecule (TCZ‐F‐DABNA) basically maintains the MR‐dominated features of DABNA while red‐shifting the emission. Its OLED achieves an external quantum efficiency of 39.2 % with a peak at 588 nm, which is a record‐high efficiency for OLEDs with peaks beyond 560 nm. This work provides a new approach for significantly tunning emission colors of MR‐TADF emitters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple resonance (MR) type thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) material is currently a research hotspot in organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) due to their high color purity and high exciton utilization. However, there are only a handful of MR‐TADF emitters with emissions beyond the blue‐to‐green region. The very limited emission colors for MR‐TADF emitters are mainly caused by the fact that so far molecular modifications of MR‐TADF do not offer much change in the emission colors. Here, we report a new approach to modifying a prototypical MR core of DABNA by fusing carbazoles to the MR framework. The carbazole‐fused molecule (TCZ‐F‐DABNA) basically maintains the MR‐dominated features of DABNA while red‐shifting the emission. Its OLED achieves an external quantum efficiency of 39.2 % with a peak at 588 nm, which is a record‐high efficiency for OLEDs with peaks beyond 560 nm. This work provides a new approach for significantly tunning emission colors of MR‐TADF emitters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accuracy of lithium‐ion battery state estimation is critical to the safety of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). In this paper, aiming at the high‐fidelity modeling of the UAV lithium‐ion battery, a splice‐electrochemical polarization model (S‐EPM) for UAV lithium‐ion battery is constructed by combining the traditional electrochemical model with the equivalent circuit model, which greatly improved the accuracy of the battery modeling. In addition, a novel prior generalized inverse least‐squares algorithm is proposed. Also, based on this algorithm, the full‐parameter identification and multicondition error analysis of the S‐EPM are realized based on this algorithm. Finally, a targeted complex discharge rate test and a full‐function charge–discharge test were designed to further verify the applicability of the S‐EPM to complex conditions. The experimental results show that the voltage error of the model under each working condition is 5.50 and 3.0 mV, and the maximum percentage error ratio is 0.20% and 0.07%. This experiment can provide a theoretical basis for the combination of the electrochemical model and equivalent circuit model and the accurate estimation of internal state variables of lithium‐ion batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new magnetic adsorbent PAMAMG-FeO/P(GMA-AA-MMA) was prepared by growing third generation poly(amido) amine (PAMAMG) on the surface of superparamagnetic polymer microspheres FeO/P(GMA-AA-MMA). The maximum sorption capacity of U(VI) (395.2 mg g) on the sorbent was much higher than those of U(VI) on many other reported materials. The sorption of U(VI) on the magnetic adsorbent obeyed the Langmuir mode. The selectivity of the sorbent could reach up to 91.8 % at pH 4.5. Furthermore, PAMAMG-FeO/P(GMA-AA-MMA) could also be reused at least five times without any noticeable loss of its sorption capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonlinear spiking neural P (NSNP) systems are distributed parallel neural-like computing models that abstract the nonlinear spiking mechanisms of biological neurons. Echo state network (ESN) is a new type of recurrent neural network (RNN) that can overcome the disadvantages of traditional RNN. Inspired by the structure of ESN, this study proposes a new variant of NSNP systems, called echo spiking neural P (ESNP) systems, or the ESNP model. An ESNP system is essentially a specialized NSNP system equipped with an input layer and a readout layer. The ESNP system can also be viewed as a variant of ESN, where a specialized NSNP system is used as its reservoir. Owing to the use of spiking neurons, the state equation of ESNP model is different from the state equation of the ESN model. The proposed ESNP model is a recurrent-like model, and we used time-series forecasting as a case study to prove its capabilities. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed ESNP model for time-series forecasting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C48H30N4O12F12Cu3, monoclinic, P21/n (no. 14), a = 12.9112(5) Å, b = 28.1127(6) Å, c = 14.2324(5) Å, β = 110.665(4)°, V = 4833.5(3) Å3, Z = 4, Rgt(F) = 0.0489, wRref(F2) = 0.1108, T = 173(10) K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An external thermal high-temperature continuous feed moving bed tubular reactor was used for the gasification of high moisture content lignite (30.41 wt.%) under CO2 and an auto-generated steam atmosphere. The objectives of this study are to illustrate the synergistic gasification characteristics of high moisture content lignite and CO2 in the tubular reactor; CO2 and auto-generated steam (steam released from the lignite) were used as gasification agents for lignite gasification. The effects of temperature and CO2 flow rate were also investigated. Experimental results showed that when the gasification temperature increased from 800 °C to 1000 °C, the H2 yield also increased from 8.45 mol kg−1 to 17.86 mol kg−1. This may indicate that the H2O-CO2 gasification of semi-coke was enhanced with the rise in temperature. At 900 °C, the gas yield increased with the increase in CO2 flow rate, while the yield of char and liquid product showed an opposite trend. The lower heating value of the H2-rich syngas varied from 11.73 MJ m−3 to 12.77 MJ Nm−3. The experimental results proved that the high moisture content lignite in-situ CO2 gasification process is an effective methodology for the clean and efficient utilization of lignite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heavy bleeding without effective treatment may lead to life-threatening consequence. Traditional hemostatic sponges face challenge in deep wound contact and bonding, raising the need for the development of efficient hemostatic materials, where hemostatic fibers with considerable specific surface area are a candidate of choice. In particular, collagen microfibers as hemostatic agents have been recommended in clinical applications, which are promising for irregular trauma or extensive diffuse bleeding. In the current work, we have developed non-cross-linked collagen type I microfibers with appropriate structure and physical/chemical properties. Our strategy eliminates the laborious cross-linking and purification procedures and removes the risk of reagent residuals. The fabricated microfibers demonstrate good blood compatibility and low immunogenicity, which are important properties required for hemostatic agents. Furthermore, the microfibers present improved hemostasis, coagulation and wound healing, evidenced from a range of studies herein. In general, novel collagen microfibers with satisfactory performance have been explored in this work, which paves a way in the development of effective, biocompatible and cost-effective collagen-based biomaterials for hemostasis and wound healing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-view face generation from a single image is an essential and challenging problem. Most of the existing methods need to use paired images when training models. However, collecting and labeling large-scale paired face images could lead to high labor and time cost. In order to address this problem, multi-view face generation via unpaired images is proposed in this paper. To avoid using paired data, the encoder and discriminator are trained, so that the high-level abstract features of the identity and view of the input image are learned by the encoder, and then, these low-dimensional data are input into the generator, so that the realistic face image can be reconstructed by the training generator and discriminator. During testing, multiple one-hot vectors representing the view are imposed to the identity representation and the generator is employed to map them to high-dimensional data, respectively, which can generate multi-view images while preserving the identity features. Furthermore, to reduce the number of used labels, semi-supervised learning is used in the model. The experimental results show that our method can produce photo-realistic multi-view face images with a small number of view labels, and makes a useful exploration for the synthesis of face images via unpaired data and very few labels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microwave energy is a promising application in future rock breakage operations in the civil, mining, processing, and space industries. Rock engineering projects frequently experience mechanical vibration and blasting impacts. Thus, understanding the dynamic fracturing behavior of microwave-treated rock is essential for its future application in microwave-assisted mechanical rock breakage. A customized industrial microwave system with a multimode resonant cavity was used to heat red sandstone at different microwave power levels (up to 4 kW) for a constant exposure time (4 min). The rock surface temperature distribution after microwave treatment was measured by an infrared camera. Dynamic splitting tests were conducted using a split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) system in combination with a high-speed camera. Experimental results indicate that the rock dynamic splitting strength is negatively related to the microwave power, and the maximum reduction is 47.8%. Microwave treatment induced an obvious nonuniform temperature distribution and C-shaped surface cracks on disc specimens. During the dynamic splitting test, the crack induced by dynamic loading always initiates from the crack tip induced by microwave irradiation and then propagates along the loading diameter. The distribution of the inner high-temperature zone in the disc specimen is symmetric along the horizontal centerline of the disc specimen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The peptidase M24 (Metallopeptidase 24, M24) superfamily is essential for plant growth, stress response, and pathogen defense. At present, there are few systematic reports on the identification and classification of members of the peptidase M24 proteins superfamily in wheat. In this work, we identified 53 putative candidate TaM24 genes. According to the protein sequences characteristics, these members can be roughly divided into three subfamilies: I, II, III. Most TaM24 genes are complex with multiple exons, and the motifs are relatively conserved in each sub-group. Through chromosome mapping analysis, we found that the 53 genes were unevenly distributed on 19 wheat chromosomes (except 3A and 3D), of which 68% were in triads. Analysis of gene duplication events showed that 62% of TaM24 genes in wheat came from fragment duplication events, and there were no tandem duplication events to amplify genes. Analysis of the promoter sequences of TaM24 genes revealed that cis-acting elements were rich in response elements to drought, osmotic stress, ABA, and MeJA. We also studied the expression of TaM24 in wheat tissues at developmental stages and abiotic stress. Then we selected TaM24-9 as the target for further analysis. The results showed that TaM24-9 genes strengthened the drought and salt tolerance of plants. Overall, our analysis showed that members of the peptidase M24 genes may participate in the abiotic stress response and provided potential gene resources for improving wheat resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel dual-emissive Eu3+-loaded metal–organic framework (MOF) is designed and successfully fabricated by introducing 2-hydroxyterephthalic acid (H 2 BDC-OH) and Eu3+ ions into an UiO-66-type MOF material. The obtained MOF, here referred to as EuUCH , exhibits dual emission at 450 and 614 nm, and both emissions are quite stable in aqueous media in the pH range of 4–11. EuUCH is characterized by a high selectivity and sensitivity toward Fe3+ and Al3+, which yield different responsive modes. The two emissions of EuUCH are quenched by Fe3+; by contrast, only the emission at 450 nm is quenched by Al3+ showing a ratiometric fluorescence signal. More importantly, as there is no clear interference between the signals of Fe3+ and Al3+, EuUCH is successfully utilized for the simultaneous detection of Fe3+ and Al3+ in their mixtures. In addition, the simultaneous quantification of Fe3+ and Al3+ is achieved in more complicated swine wastewater with good recoveries. This work provides a water-stable dual-emissive probe and the possibility to achieve the simultaneous quantification of Fe3+ and Al3+ in complicated environment wastewater. [Display omitted] • A highly water-stable dual-emission Eu3+-loaded MOF (EuUCH) has been successfully fabricated. • EuUCH specifically recognizes Fe3+ and Al3+ with two different response signals. • The simultaneous quantification of Fe3+ and Al3+ in their mixture is achieved. • The probe could be practically applied for simultaneous quantification of Fe3+ and Al3+ in environmental wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We present LGR-Net which considers local geometric features and global topology-preserving features to achieve rotation invariance. • The complementary relationship between shape descriptions and spatial attributes is adaptively exploited by an attention-based fusion module. • LGR-Net significantly outperforms state-of-the-art methods on both synthetic and real-world datasets undergoing random 3D rotations. Point cloud analysis is a fundamental task in 3D computer vision. Most previous works have conducted experiments on synthetic datasets with well-aligned data; while real-world point clouds are often not pre-aligned. How to achieve rotation invariance remains an open problem in point cloud analysis. To meet this challenge, we propose an approach toward achieving rotation-invariant (RI) representations by combining local geometry with global topology. In our local-global-representation (LGR)-Net, we have designed a two-branch network where one stream encodes local geometric RI features and the other encodes global topology-preserving RI features. Motivated by the observation that local geometry and global topology have different yet complementary RI responses in varying regions, two-branch RI features are fused by an innovative multi-layer perceptron (MLP) based attention module. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first principled approach toward adaptively combining global and local information under the context of RI point cloud analysis. Extensive experiments have demonstrated that our LGR-Net achieves the state-of-the-art performance on various rotation-augmented versions of ModelNet40, ShapeNet, ScanObjectNN, and S3DIS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary The Notch protein is one of the most mechanistically direct transmembrane receptors—the intracellular domain contains a transcriptional regulator that is released from the membrane when engagement of the cognate extracellular ligand induces intramembrane proteolysis. We find that chimeric forms of Notch, in which both the extracellular sensor module and the intracellular transcriptional module are replaced with heterologous protein domains, can serve as a general platform for generating novel cell-cell contact signaling pathways. Synthetic Notch (synNotch) pathways can drive user-defined functional responses in diverse mammalian cell types. Because individual synNotch pathways do not share common signaling intermediates, the pathways are functionally orthogonal. Thus, multiple synNotch receptors can be used in the same cell to achieve combinatorial integration of environmental cues, including Boolean response programs, multi-cellular signaling cascades, and self-organized cellular patterns. SynNotch receptors provide extraordinary flexibility in engineering cells with customized sensing/response behaviors to user-specified extracellular cues. Video Abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel magnetic sorbent (AO-Fe 3 O 4 /P(GMA-AA-MMA) was prepared by grafting amidoxime groups onto the surface of superparamagnetic polymer microspheres prepared by a novel controlled radical polymerization technology named DPE method based on 1,1-diphenylethylene (DPE) as radical controlling agent, and characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The synthesized magnetic sorbent was applied to adsorb uranium (VI) from aqueous solutions and could be easily separated by an external magnetic field. Effect of pH, contact time, temperature, and initial U(VI) concentration on adsorption of U(VI) were investigated. An optimum sorption capacity of 200.5 mg g −1 was obtained under the current experimental condition. The sorption of U(VI) on the magnetic sorbent obeyed the Langmuir model, and was mainly attributed to surface complexation via the coordination of U(VI) ions with amidoxime groups. Meanwhile, AO-Fe 3 O 4 /P(GMA-AA-MMA) could also selectively adsorb U(VI) in aqueous solution containing co-existing ions efficiently. Furthermore, the desorption studies showed AO-Fe 3 O 4 /P(GMA-AA-MMA) could be used repeatedly and sorption capacity did not have any noticeable loss after five cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used eye-tracking to evaluate multiple facial context processing and event-related potential (ERP) to evaluate multiple facial recognition in individuals at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis. In total, 173 subjects (83 CHRs and 90 healthy controls [HCs]) were included and their emotion perception performances were accessed. A total of 40 CHRs and 40 well-matched HCs completed an eye-tracking task where they viewed pictures depicting a person in the foreground, presented as context-free, context-compatible, and context-incompatible. During the two-year follow-up, 26 CHRs developed psychosis, including 17 individuals who developed first-episode schizophrenia (FES). Eighteen well-matched HCs were made to complete the face number detection ERP task with image stimuli of one, two, or three faces. Compared to the HC group, the CHR group showed reduced visual attention to contextual processing when viewing multiple faces. With the increasing complexity of contextual faces, the differences in eye-tracking characteristics also increased. In the ERP task, the N170 amplitude decreased with a higher face number in FES patients, while it increased with a higher face number in HCs. Individuals in the very early phase of psychosis showed facial processing deficits with supporting evidence of different scan paths during context processing and disruption of N170 during multiple facial recognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fuzi (Aconitum carmichaelii Debx) has been traditionally used for the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC) in China for thousands of years. The total alkaloids of A. carmichaelii (AAC) have been considered as the main medicinal components of fuzi, whereas its underlying anti-UC mechanisms remain elusive. In the present study, the dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced UC mice model, which was consistent with the symptoms and pathological features of human UC, was established to comprehensively evaluate the anti-UC effects of AAC. The results indicated that AAC effectively improved the weight loss, disease activity index (DAI), spleen hyperplasia, and colon shortening, and thus alleviated the symptoms of UC mice. Meanwhile, AAC not only inhibited the MPO enzyme and the abnormal secretion of inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IFN-γ, and IL-17A) and suppressed the overexpression of inflammatory mediators (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) of mRNA but also reduced the phosphorylation of p38 MAPK, ERK, and JNK, and the protein expressions of NF-κB, IκB-α, STAT3, and JAK2 in the colon tissue. Furthermore, the LC-MS/MS quantitative determination suggested that the three low toxic monoester alkaloids were higher in both contents and proportion than that of the three high toxic diester alkaloids. Additionally, molecular docking was hired to investigate the interactions between alkaloid-receptor complexes, and it suggested the three monoester alkaloids exhibited higher binding affinities with the key target proteins of MAPK, NF-κB, and STAT3. Our finding showcased the noteworthy anti-UC effects of AAC based on the MAPK/NF-κB/STAT3 signaling pathway, which would provide practical and edge-cutting background information for the development and utilization of A. carmichaelii as a potential natural anti-UC remedy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. To explore the relationship between craniomaxillofacial features and psychological distress among adult pretreatment orthodontic patients. Methods. A group of 190 patients (95 males and 95 females) was included. Questionnaires including the Kessler psychological distress scale (K10) were sent to patients, and cephalograms were collected. Patients were divided into two groups according to K10 score: psychological distress group (score ≥ 20) and no psychological distress group (score < 20). Nineteen hard tissue and thirteen soft tissue parameters were traced on cephalograms to characterize the craniomaxillofacial features. Results. There was no significant difference in gender or age distribution between the two groups. Male patients with psychological distress showed statistically significantly larger anterior facial height (AFH) (126.62 mm vs. 120.97 mm), upper lip length (25.11 mm vs. 23.26 mm), and smaller overbite (1.21 mm vs. 2.75 mm) than patients without psychological distress. Male patients with hyperdivergent pattern and open bite were more likely to have psychological distress. None of the parameters showed statistical differences across groups in females. Frankfort-mandibular plane angle (r = 0.235), Bjork's sum (r = 0.311), AFH (r = 0.322), overbite (r = − 0.238), AFH/posterior facial height (r = 0.251), and upper anterior facial height (UAFH)/lower anterior facial height (LAFH) (r = − 0.230) were correlated with K10 score in males. After adjusting gender and age, the AFH (B = 0.147) and UAFH/LAFH (B = − 14.923) were significantly related with the K10 score. Conclusion. Psychological distress was mainly correlated with hyperdivergent pattern, open bite, and larger lower anterior facial height proportion in pretreatment orthodontic patients. Orthodontists should be aware of the possible underlying psychological distress in patients with specific craniomaxillofacial features. Clinical assessment of psychological distress may need to take into account gender differences in patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fatigue properties of composite materials are degraded seriously in hygrothermal environments, so taking into account their influence is very important when evaluating the fatigue life of composite structures. Tensile fatigue experiments of carbon fiber reinforced resin composite cross-ply laminates were conducted in room temperature/dry (RTD), cool temperature/dry (CTD) and elevated temperature/wet (ETW) conditions. The S-N curves and fatigue failure modes of the cross-ply laminates were obtained in three conditions. On this basis, a finite element model was established to discuss the influence of temperature and moisture content on the fatigue properties, as well as a method for determining environmental factors of fatigue life of cross-ply laminates was established. The results show that the saturation moisture absorption and temperature have a significant influence on the tensile fatigue properties of cross-ply laminates. The high-cycle fatigue property is weakened significantly by the saturation moisture absorption and high temperature, but the low-cycle fatigue properties were strengthened in cool temperature conditions. The delamination failure mode in ETW is the most severe, presenting with an obvious necking phenomenon. The influence of temperature has a greater effect than that of moisture content, but moisture absorption would play its affect obviously when temperature exceeds 40 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two remote methylthio group functionalized organoimido derivatives of hexamolybdate, (Bu 4 N) 2 [Mo 6 O 18 (NC 6 H 4 -SCH 3 - p )] ( 1 ) and (Bu 4 N) 2 [Mo 6 O 18 (NC 6 H 4 -SCH 3 - m )] ( 2 ), were synthesized through the refluxing reaction of octamolybdates, the hydrochloride salts of corresponding organic amines in anhydrous acetonitrile with dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC) as dehydration agent. They are characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction, FT-IR spectra, UV–Vis spectra, elemental analysis, 1 H NMR and cyclic voltammetry. X-ray structural study reveals that anion clusters of both compounds possess some typical structural features of mono-substituted hexamolybdate, and their anion clusters are connected into two dimensional network via intermolecular multiple C–H⋯O hydrogen bonds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hepatic fibrosis is concomitant with liver inflammation, which has been highlighted as significant treatment of chronic liver disease. We previously demonstrated that tetramethylpyrazine (TMP), the effective component of Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort, can inhibit the activation of HSCs and consequential anti-hepatic fibrosis. In this study, our work demonstrated that TMP improved liver histological architecture, decreased hepatic enzyme levels and attenuated collagen deposition in the rat fibrotic liver. In addition, TMP significantly protected the liver from CCl4-caused injury and fibrogenesis by suppressing inflammation with reducing levels of inflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), NLRP3, nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β). Experiments in vitro showed that TMP inhibited inflammatory cytokine expression in HSCs associated with disrupting platelet-derived growth factor-b receptor (PDGF-βR)/NLRP3/caspase1 pathway. These data collectively indicate that TMP can attenuate liver inflammation in liver fibrosis and possibly by targeting HSCs via PDGF-βR/NLRP3/caspase1 pathway. It provides novel mechanistic insights into TMP as a potential therapeutic remedy for hepatic fibrosis. © 2015 IUBMB Life, 67(4):312-321, 2015 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

End-point prediction is one of the most difficult problems in basic oxygen furnace (BOF) steelmaking process. To address this problem, some researchers have proposed some methods based on flame image processing and pattern classification. Because of the dynamically changing flame and real-time needs during the blowing process, there are still some issues that need to be solved. We propose a novel method based on accurate and fast multi flame features extraction and general regression neural network (GRNN). Firstly, flame images were acquired, and then the background of each image was removed via color similarity determination algorithm; secondly, color, texture, and boundary features were extracted; the fast and robust boundary and texture features were extracted by using the proposed methods, and these features were tested for their validity to the end-point prediction via comparing them with some other similar methods; finally, the prediction model was built using multi-features and GRNN. The experimental results demonstrated that it is accurate and fast to use the proposed method to the BOF end-point predict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The yield advantage of indica-japonica hybrid rice over indica hybrid rice has been studied extensively. However, little information is available about the growth characteristics and yield performance of I-JR under shading stress. A 2-year field experiment was conducted to compare the grain yield, total dry weight, and radiation use efficiency of I-JR (Yongyou 1540 and Yongyou 538) and IR (Y-liangyou 900 and Quanyouhuazhan) under shading stress after flowering. The grain yields of I-JR and IR were reduced by 45.0% and 59.2% caused by shading averaged across two years. Shading significantly affected grain filling percentage of I-JR and IR, and decreased by 44.5% and 55.3% compared with the normal conditions. The TDW and distribution of panicle were significantly reduced by shading, but the apparent exportation and apparent export rate were increased. Under shading stress, the RUE during the grain filling stage was decreased by 26.5% (I-JR) and 71.7% (IR). The correlation analysis showed that grain yield was significantly correlated with RUE, intercepted radiation and TDW in I-JR. In addition, shading significantly reduced the specific leaf weight, net photosynthetic rate and stomatal conductance in leaves, and the negative effects were higher in IR than in I-JR. Overall, our results showed I-JR had significantly higher grain yield than IR under shading stress, which was attributed to its higher grain filling percentage and total dry weight resulted from higher RUE and leaf photosynthetic characters during grain filling stage as compared with IR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Laser parameters optimization for generating Rayleigh waves with larger amplitudes. • Nonlinear interaction analysis of tuned Rayleigh waves with evolving fatigue damage. • Multi-component nonlinear modulation of Rayleigh waves considering contact and friction. • Experimental verification for evolving fatigue damage detection. In this paper, we clarify the nonlinear interaction between tuned Rayleigh waves and evolving fatigue damage and achieve evolving fatigue damage detection. Firstly, the impact of laser parameters on Rayleigh waves is investigated to generate stronger Rayleigh waves. Secondly, the multi-component nonlinear modulation mechanism of Rayleigh waves is analyzed using the nonlinear model considering contact and friction. The simulation results indicate that during the plastic deformation stage, waveform distortion is minimal. As microcracks form, the longitudinal wave component becomes dominant in Rayleigh wave nonlinearity due to contact and friction behaviors between microcrack faces, resulting in waveform distortion, harmonic generation, and increased acoustic nonlinearity parameters. However, the shear wave component only exhibits high-frequency filterability without nonlinearity. As macrocracks develop, both longitudinal and shear wave component amplitudes decrease significantly. Finally, an experimental validation is carried out. The experimental results validate that the acoustic nonlinearity parameters first stabilize and then increase significantly from the pristine state to the microcrack propagation, and the indicator can be utilized for fatigue damage detection. The research can provide guidance for nonlinear laser-generated Rayleigh wave detection of fatigue damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on monthly data of precipitation, temperature, sunshine duration, wind speed, relative humidity and other climatic factors in Youyang County during 1956-2013, net primary productivity (NPP) in the county was calculated by using a climate productivity model, and effects of changes in climatic factors on NPP in the county were studied. The results show that annual average NPP in Youyang County during 1956-2013 was 11.137 t/(hm2 · a), but there were no significant changes over the past 58 years. There was a significantly positive correlation between NPP and annual precipitation or annual mean relative humidity. Under the background of global warming, NPP in Youyang County will face greater pressure, thereby putting pressure on local ecological environment. The research can provide scientific reference for the construction of Youyang County and ecological protection zones in the southeast of Chongqing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase signaling cascades orchestrate diverse cellular activities with common molecular players. To achieve specific cellular outcomes in response to specific signals, scaffolding proteins play an important role. Here we investigate the role of the scaffolding protein JNK interacting protein-1 (JIPI) in neuronal signaling by a conserved axonal MAP kinase kinase kinase, known as Wallenda (Wnd) in Drosophila and dual leucine kinase (DLK) in vertebrates and Caenorhabditis elegans. Recent studies in multiple model organisms suggest that Wnd/DLK regulates both regenerative and degenerative responses to axonal injury. Here we report a new role for Wnd in regulating synaptic structure during development, which implies that Wnd is also active in uninjured neurons. This synaptic role of Wnd can be functionally separated from the role of Wnd in axonal regeneration and injury signaling by the requirement for the JIPI scaffold and the p38b MAP kinase. JIPI mediates the synaptic function of Wnd via p38, which is not required for injury signaling or new axonal growth after injury. Our results indicate that Wnd regulates multiple independent pathways in Drosophila motoneurons and that JIPI scaffolds a specific downstream cascade required for the organization of presynaptic microtubules during synaptic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The interaction between Rayleigh waves and surface defects is studied by simulation. • Wavenumber variation mechanism of non-dispersive Rayleigh waves is revealed. • We establish a relation between Rayleigh wave features and the 3D size of surface defects. • A 3D evaluation method for surface defects by broadband Rayleigh waves is proposed. • A laser ultrasonic testing experiment is conducted to verify the proposed method. To address the issues of large imaging errors for small defects and the difficulty in depth evaluation using local wavenumber estimation for surface defect imaging, a novel three-dimensional (3D) evaluation method for surface defects using broadband laser-generated Rayleigh waves with wavenumber analysis is proposed. A finite element model is established to investigate the interaction between the Rayleigh wave and the surface defect and reveal the wavenumber change mechanism of the non-dispersive Rayleigh wave in the case of defects. It is discovered that when the Rayleigh wave encounters the surface defect, various mode-converted scattered waves are generated, resulting in the appearance of new components with wavenumbers lower than that of the incident Rayleigh wave in the wavenumber domain. Additionally, the maximum amplitude of the Rayleigh wave in the B-scan image increases as the defect depth increases. Based on the simulation analysis, a 3D evaluation method for surface defects is proposed. Firstly, the scattered Rayleigh wave caused by the defect is extracted using frequency-wavenumber analysis. Secondly, a space-frequency-wavenumber analysis is used to determine the local wavenumber of the scattered Rayleigh wave for defect imaging. Finally, the defect depth is estimated by analyzing the maximum amplitude of the Rayleigh wave. A surface defect detection experiment is conducted to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method, and the experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can suppress noise interference and accomplish high-precision imaging of small surface defects compared to the traditional method. Moreover, the method can establish a linear mapping relationship between the defect depth and the maximum amplitude of the Rayleigh wave for depth evaluation. The research results can provide a potential application for the 3D evaluation of surface defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land subsidence induced by coal mining (MLS) has posed a huge threat to the ecological environment, buildings, roads, and other infrastructure safety in mining areas. However, the prediction and evaluation of MLS is relatively complex, and the reliability of the prediction results is closely related to factors such as the professional knowledge and engineering experience of researchers. This paper aims to combine intelligent optimization algorithms: ant lion optimizer (ALO), bald eagle search (BES), bird swarm algorithm (BSA), harris hawks optimization (HHO), and sparrow search algorithm (SSA), with machine learning model of gradient boosting with categorical features support algorithm (CatBoost) to predict MLS. To achieve this goal, five hybrid models based CatBoost were developed and the prediction accuracy and reliability of the models were compared and analyzed. The prediction performance of the hybrid models has been significantly improved on the basis of a single model, of which the SSA-CatBoost model has the most obvious improvement (from R2 = 0.927 to 0.965, RMSE = 0.541 to 0.377, MAE = 0.386 to 0.297, VAF = 92.720 to 95.837). The importance and predictive contribution of all input features to predictive labels were studied with the Shapley method. The research results indicate that hybrid model technology is a reliable MLS prediction method. This study can help mining technicians use machine learning methods to study the degree of MLS damage to the surface environment and provide scientific advanced prediction and evaluation for the protection and management of the ecological environment in mining areas and the formulation of safety production measures. • High-precision prediction model of Mining Land Subsidence (MLS) was proposed. • The intelligence algorithms were used to Automatically optimize the hyperparameters of CatBoost. • The hybrid model can more reliably and intelligently evaluate the degree of MLS harm. • The hybrid model can scientifically guide mining environmental protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purine intermediates play important roles in physiological function and participate in the kidney disorders, while a targeted quantification of the metabolic alterations in the purine metabolism in acute kidney injury (AKI) individuals has not been conducted. In the study, a novel, rapid and sensitive LC-MS method for simultaneous quantification of 16 purine metabolites was developed using hydrophilic interaction separation mode in human plasma and urine. The developed method was validated by using charcoal-stripped plasma and urine as blank matrix. The results showed that the method was good linear (R2 > 0.99) and the lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) ranged from 0.833 ng/mL to 800 ng/mL. The recovery and matrix effect were repeatable and stable. The intraday precision ranged from 0.7% to 12.7%, while the inter-day precision ranged from 1.6% to 18.5%. Most analytes were stable in the autosampler and could subject three freeze-thaw cycles. The method provided a wider coverage of purine metabolites and completed good separation of interfering compounds of nucleosides, deoxynucleosides and their corresponding nucleobases without derivatization, which was time-saving and labor-saving for the large-scale analysis. Furthermore, the method was successfully applied to plasma and urine samples of hospitalized patients without and with AKI. The results showed certain purine intermediates were up-regulated in plasma and down-regulated in urine of AKI inpatients, indicating that AKI stress may associate with inflammatory responses. The novel method can facilitate the quantitative analysis of purine metabolites in biological fluids, and exhibit great prospects in providing more information on the pathogenesis of AKI. [Display omitted] • A simple, rapid and sensitive method was established to simultaneously quantify 16 purines. • Structurally similar analogs showed good separation without derivatization. • The study discovered more altered purine intermediates under state of AKI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Automated object identification in three‐dimensional (3D) space is crucial for work zone safety, such as compliance with construction rules and preventing workplace injuries and deaths. However, it is greatly challenged by some factors like high‐quality detection, high‐quality instance segmentation, few engineering object datasets with masks, and accurate 3D object understanding due to scale variations and limited cues in the 3D world. Traditional hand‐crafted methods suffer from these challenges. Our key insight is to use 2D object detection, instance segmentation and camera vision to compute pseudo‐light detection and ranging (LiDAR) point cloud for 3D object identification. On the one hand, an enhanced feature pyramid network is proposed to extract more fine‐grained object features, and an improved cascade mask R‐CNN is applied to detect bounding boxes and masks for all 2D objects efficiently. Moreover, the AIM dataset for heavy equipment detection is augmented, and a new object class with the bounding box and mask is added. On the other hand, pseudo‐LiDAR point clouds of objects based on bounding boxes and masks are recovered from a monocular image by deep learning, automatic camera parameter estimation, vision‐based method, and space filter. Extensive experiments and analyses show that the new methodology can identify 3D objects and automatically analyze work zone safety. The proposed object detection model has achieved state‐of‐the‐art results on the AIM dataset and 97.2% in mean average precision for the augmented dataset. The collision detection model using pseudo‐LiDAR point cloud has obtained 95.99% in accuracy. The new model will serve as a baseline to support 3D object identification research for other 3D tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Escherichia coli (E. coli) is considered the most common life‐threatening infectious bacteria in our daily life and poses a major challenge to human health. However, antibiotics frequently overused and misused has triggered increased multidrug resistance, hinders therapeutic outcomes, and causes higher mortalities. Herein, we addressed near‐infrared (NIR) laser‐excited human serum albumin (HSA) mediated graphene oxide loaded palladium nano‐dots (HSA‐GO‐Pd) that can effectively combat Gram‐negative E. coli in vitro. NIR laser‐excited designed hybrid material highly generates singlet oxygen and hydroxyl radical by electron spin‐resonance (ESR) analysis. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images show small spherical sizes PdNPs on the surface of GO nano‐sheets. The zeta (ζ) potential study indicates that in an aqueous medium, the average PdNPs size and surface capped charge comes from human body protein (HSA), HSA‐GO‐Pd is 5–8 nm, and +25 mV, respectively. The spectroscopic characterization reveals that in the synthesized HSA‐GO‐Pd nanocomposite, PdNPs successfully well‐dispersed decorated on the surface of graphene oxide. The as‐synthesized HSA‐GO‐Pd shows excellent antibacterial activity against gram‐negative pathogen by killing 95% bacteria within 5 h. HSA‐GO‐Pd having very biocompatible and shows significant antibacterial activities. Owing to their intense photothermal conversation potential, low toxicity to normal cells, the as‐addressed hybrid (HSA‐GO‐Pd) combined with NIR‐irradiation will catch up valuable insight into the effective ablation of pathogenic bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Des1 inhibition attenuated cardiac myocytes hypertrophy induced by the protein-bound uremic toxins, indoxyl sulfate and p-cresol sulfate. • Des1 inhibition attenuated cardiac fibroblasts and renal mesangial cells collagen synthesis induced by indoxyl sulfate and p-cresol sulfate. • PBUTs mediates sphingolipid imbalance & inflammatory responses in heart and kidney cells, and these effects were attenuated by Des1 inhibition. • Sphingolipid modifying agents may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of CVD and CKD and warrant further investigation. Non-dialysable protein-bound uremic toxins (PBUTs) contribute to the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in chronic kidney disease (CKD) and vice versa. PBUTs have been shown to alter sphingolipid imbalance. Dihydroceramide desaturase 1 (Des1) is an important gatekeeper enzyme which controls the non-reversible conversion of sphingolipids, dihydroceramide, into ceramide. The present study assessed the effect of Des1 inhibition on PBUT-induced cardiac and renal effects in vitro , using a selective Des1 inhibitor (CIN038). Des1 inhibition attenuated hypertrophy in neonatal rat cardiac myocytes and collagen synthesis in neonatal rat cardiac fibroblasts and renal mesangial cells induced by the PBUTs, indoxyl sulfate and p-cresol sulfate. This is at least attributable to modulation of NF-κB signalling and reductions in β-MHC, Collagen I and TNF-α gene expression. Lipidomic analyses revealed Des1 inhibition restored C16-dihydroceramide levels reduced by indoxyl sulfate. In conclusion, PBUTs play a critical role in mediating sphingolipid imbalance and inflammatory responses in heart and kidney cells, and these effects were attenuated by Des1 inhibition. Therefore, sphingolipid modifying agents may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of CVD and CKD and warrant further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This report analyzes the long time stability of four methods for non-iterative, sub-physics, uncoupling for the evolutionary Stokes–Darcy problem. The four methods uncouple each timestep into separate Stokes and Darcy solves using ideas from splitting methods. Three methods uncouple sequentially while one is a parallel uncoupling method. We prove long time stability of four splitting based partitioned methods under timestep restrictions depending on the problem parameters. The methods include those that are stable uniformly in , the storativity coefficient, for moderate , the minimum hydraulic conductivity, uniformly in for moderate and with no coupling between the timestep and the spacial meshwidth. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]