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Meiotic prophase I (MPI) is the most important event in mammalian meiosis. The status of the chromosome-binding proteins (CBPs) and the corresponding complexes and their functions in MPI have not yet been well scrutinized. Quantitative proteomics focused on MPI-related CBPs was accomplished, in which mouse primary spermatocytes in four different subphases of MPI were collected, and chromosome-enriched proteins were extracted and quantitatively identified. According to a stringent criterion, 1136 CBPs in the MPI subphases were quantified. Looking at the dynamic patterns of CBP abundance in response to MPI progression, the patterns were broadly divided into two groups: high abundance in leptotene and zygotene or that in pachytene and diplotene. Furthermore, 152 such CBPs were regarded as 26 CBP complexes with strict filtration, in which some of these complexes were perceived to be MPI-dependent for the first time. These complexes basically belonged to four functional categories, while their dynamic abundance changes following MPI appeared; the functions of DNA replication decreased; and transcription and synapsis were activated in zygotene, pachytene, and diplotene; in contrast to the traditional prediction, condensin activity weakened in pachytene and diplotene. Profiling of protein complexes thus offered convincing evidence of the importance of CBP complexes in MPI.

The DNA damage response (DDR) pathway generally protects against genome instability, and defects in DDR have been exploited therapeutically in cancer treatment. We have reported that histone demethylase PHF8 demethylates TOPBP1 K118 mono-methylation (K118me1) to drive the activation of ATR kinase, one of the master regulators of replication stress. However, whether dysregulation of this physiological signalling is involved in tumorigenesis remains unknown. Here, we showed PHF8-promoted TOPBP1 demethylation is clinically associated with breast tumorigenesis and patient survival. Mammary gland tumors from Phf8 knockout mice grow slowly and exhibit higher level of K118me1, lower ATR activity, and increased chromosomal instability. Importantly, we found that disruption of PHF8-TOPBP1 axis suppresses breast tumorigenesis and creates a breast tumor-specific vulnerability to PARP inhibitor (PARPi) and platinum drug. CRISPR/Cas9 mutation modelling of the deleted or truncated mutation of PHF8 in clinical tumor samples demonstrated breast tumor cells expressing the mimetic variants are more vulnerable to PARPi. Together, our study supports the pursuit of PHF8-TOPBP1 signalling pathway as promising avenues for targeted therapies of PHF8-TOPBP1 proficient tumors, and provides proof-of-concept evidence for loss-of-function of PHF8 as a therapeutic indicator of PARPis.

Intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) are distributed along the length of the intestine and are considered the frontline of immune surveillance. The precise molecular mechanisms, especially epigenetic regulation, of their development and function are poorly understood. The trimethylation of histone 3 at lysine 27 (H3K27Me3) is a kind of histone modifications and associated with gene repression. Kdm6b is an epigenetic enzyme responsible for the demethylation of H3K27Me3 and thus promotes gene expression. Here we identified Kdm6b as an important intracellular regulator of small intestinal IELs. Mice genetically deficient for Kdm6b showed greatly reduced numbers of TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs. In the absence of Kdm6b, TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs exhibited increased apoptosis, disturbed maturation and a compromised capability to lyse target cells. Both IL-15 and Kdm6b-mediated demethylation of histone 3 at lysine 27 are responsible for the maturation of TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs through upregulating the expression of Gzmb and Fasl. In addition, Kdm6b also regulates the expression of the gut-homing molecule CCR9 by controlling H3K27Me3 level at its promoter. However, Kdm6b is dispensable for the reactivity of thymic precursors of TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs (IELPs) to IL-15 and TGF-β. In conclusion, we showed that Kdm6b plays critical roles in the maturation and cytotoxic function of small intestinal TCRαβ+CD8αα+ IELs.

Medullary thymic epithelial cells (mTECs) play a central role in the establishment of T cell central immunological tolerance by promiscuously expressing tissue-restricted antigens (TRAs) and presenting them to developing T cells, leading to deletion of T cells responding to self-antigens. However, molecular mechanisms especially epigenetic regulation of mTEC homeostasis and TRA expression remain elusive. Here we show that the H3K27 demethylase Kdm6b is essential to maintain the postnatal thymic medulla by promoting mTEC survival and regulating the expression of TRA genes. Moreover, mice lacking Kdm6b developed pathological autoimmune disorders. Mechanically, Kdm6b exerted its function by reducing repressive H3K27 trimethylation (H3K27me3) at the promoters of anti-apoptotic gene Bcl2 and a set of Aire-dependent TRA genes. Thus, our findings reveal a dual role of Kdm6b in the regulation of mTEC-mediated T cell central tolerance.

The mammalian epididymis not only plays a fundamental role in the maturation of spermatozoa, but also provides protection against various stressors. The foremost among these is the threat posed by oxidative stress, which arises from an imbalance in reactive oxygen species and can elicit damage to cellular lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. In mice, the risk of oxidative damage to spermatozoa is mitigated through the expression and secretion of glutathione peroxidase 5 (GPX5) as a major luminal scavenger in the proximal caput epididymidal segment. Accordingly, the loss of GPX5-mediated protection leads to impaired DNA integrity in the spermatozoa of aged Gpx5-/- mice. To explore the underlying mechanism, we have conducted transcriptomic analysis of caput epididymidal epithelial cells from aged (13 months old) Gpx5-/- mice. This analysis revealed the dysregulation of several thousand epididymal mRNA transcripts, including the downregulation of a subgroup of piRNA pathway genes, in aged Gpx5-/- mice. In agreement with these findings, we also observed the loss of piRNAs, which potentially bind to the P-element-induced wimpy testis (PIWI)-like proteins PIWIL1 and PIWIL2. The absence of these piRNAs was correlated with the elevated mRNA levels of their putative gene targets in the caput epididymidis of Gpx5-/- mice. Importantly, the oxidative stress response genes tend to have more targeting piRNAs, and many of them were among the top increased genes upon the loss of GPX5. Taken together, our findings suggest the existence of a previously uncharacterized somatic piRNA pathway in the mammalian epididymis and its possible involvement in the aging and oxidative stress-mediated responses.

Bizarre parosteal osteochondromatous proliferation (BPOP), or Nora's lesion, is a rare benign osteochondromatous lesion. At present, the molecular etiology of BPOP remains unclear. JMJD3(KDM6B) is an H3K27me3 demethylase and counteracts polycomb-mediated transcription repression. Previously, Jmjd3 was shown to be critical for bone development and osteoarthritis. Here, we report that conditional deletion of Jmjd3 in chondrogenic cells unexpectedly resulted in BPOP-like lesion in mice. Biochemical investigations revealed that Jmjd3 inhibited BPOP-like lesion through p16

The checkpoint kinase ATR [ATM (ataxia-telangiectasia mutated) and rad3-related] is a master regulator of DNA damage response. Yet, how ATR activity is regulated remains to be investigated. We report here that histone demethylase PHF8 (plant homeodomain finger protein 8) plays a key role in ATR activation and replication stress response. Mechanistically, PHF8 interacts with and demethylates TOPBP1 (DNA topoisomerase 2-binding protein 1), an essential allosteric activator of ATR, under unperturbed conditions, but replication stress results in PHF8 phosphorylation and dissociation from TOPBP1. Consequently, hypomethylated TOPBP1 facilitates RAD9 (RADiation sensitive 9) binding and chromatin loading of the TOPBP1-RAD9 complex to fully activate ATR and thus safeguard the genome and protect cells against replication stress. Our study uncovers a demethylation and phosphorylation code that controls the assembly of TOPBP1-scaffolded protein complex, and provides molecular insight into non-histone methylation switch in ATR activation.

The checkpoint kinase ATR is a master regulator of DNA damage response. Yet, how ATR activity is regulated remains to be investigated. We report here that histone demethylase PHF8 is critically required for ATR activation and cellular response to ATR-activating DNA lesions. With a combined approach of structural and biochemical analysis, we unveiled an extraordinary feature of the association/dissociation of PHF8 with TOPBP1, an essential allosteric activator of ATR. PHF8 removes TOPBP1 K118 mono-methylation to facilitate the association of TOPBP1 with RAD9, thus loading the TOPBP1-RAD9 complex to damaged chromatin and eventually activating ATR signaling and protecting cells against replication stress. We demonstrated that PHF8-promoted TOPBP1 demethylation contributes to breast tumorigenesis, and targeting PHF8 or PHF8-TOPBP1 binding sensitized breast cancer cells to chemotherapeutic drugs. Our study provides molecular insight into non-histone methylation switch in ATR activation and genome integrity and supports pursuing PHF8 as a potential therapeutic target for cancers.

The purpose of this study was to introduce a novel technology named segmental adjustment of hydraulic support setting load (SAHSSL) for pre-splitting and weakening the coal wall of a fully mechanized working face in hard and thick coal seams (HTCSs). The efficiency of SAHSSL was explored in the relatively stable and significant movement stages. A numerical simulation method using fast Lagrangian analysis of continua in three dimensions was used to evaluate the instability characteristics of the coal wall under different support setting loads (SSLs) ranging from 2000 to 8000 kN. The numerical results were verified by industrial testing of coal wall weakening in HTCSs. The results revealed that with the implementation of SAHSSL, the average coal-cutting time of the shearer reduced by about 21.7% (or 1.8 h), and the increasing resistance state was 64.8% of the 115 working cycles in the working specialty measurement of the support. Reasonable SSLs in the relatively stable stage of the periodic weighting length were obtained between 4000 kN and 6000 kN. The ground pressure was found to be the primary factor influencing the hard coal wall weakening for thick coal seam mining. The findings of this study clearly indicate that the proposed SAHSSL technology greatly enhanced the coal-cutting efficiency and weakened the coal wall effectively, and it could be adjusted under an effective roof control principle to meet the segmental requirements of coal wall weakening for thick coal seam mining.

To explain the excess cancer rate in males, several candidates for “escape from X-inactivation tumor-suppressor” (EXITS) were recently identified. In this report we provide direct experimental evidence supporting UTX’s role as an EXITS gene. Using a mouse lymphoma model, we show clear dosage effect of UTX copy number during tumorigenesis, which strongly supports the EXITS theory. Importantly, UTX deletion not only accelerates lymphomagenesis, it also strongly promotes tumor progression. UTX-knockout tumors are more aggressive, showing enhanced brain dissemination and formation of blood vessels. Efnb1 is overexpressed in UTX KO tumors and can lead to such phenotypes. In human patients, lymphomas with low UTX expression also express high levels of Efnb1, and cause significantly poor survival. Lastly, we show that UTX deficiency renders lymphoma sensitive to cytarabine treatment. Taken together, these data highlight UTX loss’s profound impacts on tumor initiation and drug response., UTX is a tumor suppressor gene located on the X-chromosome so it could potentially contribute to the cancer gender bias. Here the authors, using a mouse model of B cell lymphoma, show that UTX is a dosage sensitive tumor suppressor and may be responsible for some of the increased incidence and possibly aggressiveness of male cancers that harbour UTX mutations.

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Based on the panel data of 18 heavy polluting industries from 34 industrial industries in my country as samples, empirical analysis of the impact of environmental regulations, energy structure, enterprise scale, corporate competitiveness, and technological innovation on carbon emissions of heavy polluting industries. And by constructing a dynamic GMM model to analyze the lag effect of environmental regulations on carbon emissions. The results show that: environmental regulations have a significant negative effect on carbon emissions, and the previous environmental regulations have a restraining effect on carbon emissions in the current period; energy structure will increase carbon emissions; technological innovation, enterprise scale, corporate competitiveness, etc. affect carbon emissions Has a negatively significant effect.

An optimum design method, which is based on the interruption model of molded case circuit breaker (MCCB), is proposed for the cam design structure. First, it constructs a multifield coupled calculation model that enables us to simulate the interruption process of MCCB. The model carries out second development of Automatic Dynamic Analysis of Mechanical Systems (ADAMS) and constructs a set of differential equations describing the coupling of air blast process with complex mechanical movement, electric circuit, magnetic field, and dynamic arc model. With this model, investigations on the cam design structure’s lock effect during the interruption process of an actual MCCB are carried out. According to the fact that the movable conductor could not be locked under some interruption currents, an optimum design is made for its cam design structure. Simulation results show that after optimization, the cam design structure can prevent the movable conductor from returning when the short-circuit current is no less than 15 kA, and observably enhance the interruption performance of MCCB.

Lethal (3) malignant brain tumor like 2 (L3MBTL2) is a member of the MBT-domain proteins, which are involved in transcriptional repression and implicated in chromatin compaction. Our previous study has shown that L3MBTL2 is highly expressed in the testis, but its role in spermatogenesis remains unclear. In the present study, we found that L3MBTL2 was most highly expressed in pachytene spermatocytes within the testis. Germ cell-specific ablation of L3mbtl2 in the testis led to increased abnormal spermatozoa, progressive decrease of sperm counts and premature testicular failure in mice. RNA-sequencing analysis on L3mbtl2 deficient testes confirmed that L3MBTL2 was a transcriptional repressor but failed to reveal any significant changes in spermatogenesis-associated genes. Interestingly, L3mbtl2 deficiency resulted in increased γH2AX deposition in the leptotene spermatocytes, subsequent inappropriate retention of γH2AX on autosomes, and defective crossing-over and synapsis during the pachytene stage of meiosis I, and more germ cell apoptosis and degeneration in aging mice. L3MBTL2 interacted with the histone ubiquitin ligase RNF8. Inhibition of L3MBTL2 reduced nuclear RNF8 and ubH2A levels in GC2 cells. L3mbtl2 deficiency led to decreases in the levels of the RNF8 and ubH2A pathway and in histone acetylation in elongating spermatids, and in protamine 1 deposition and chromatin condensation in sperm. These results suggest that L3MBTL2 plays important roles in chromatin remodeling during meiosis and spermiogenesis.

Aimed to provide a more close-to-reality and rapid calculation method for optimization design of low voltage circuit breaker with complex mechanism, an interruption model is constructed, which can describe the coupling of air blast process with arc model, complex mechanical movement, magnetic field, and electric circuit. The model is based on the non-stationary gas conservation equations, and considers the influence of the chamber structure on the gas dynamics. To realize the interaction between the arc movement and the gas flow simply, on the one hand, the moving electric arc is deemed an energy input source of the chamber gas. On the other hand, the movement equation of the arc considering action of the gas flow is built. With this model, the general principle of the chamber gas flow, arc voltage and current during the interruption process of an actual breaker are calculated and compared with the experiment results. As an application, the influence of the chamber vent size on the arc movement is studied with the model as well.

Protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) are a family of enzymes that can methylate protein arginine residues. PRMTs' substrates include histones and a variety of non-histone proteins. Previous studies have shown that yeast Hmt1 is a type I PRMT and methylates histone H4 arginine 3 and several mRNA-binding proteins. Hmt1 forms dimers or oligomers, but how dimerization or oligomerization affects its activity remains largely unknown. We now report that Hmt1 can methylate histone H3 arginine 2 (H3R2) in vitro. The dimerization but not hexamerization is essential for Hmt1's activity. Interestingly, the methyltransferase activity of Hmt1 on histone H3R2 requires reciprocal contributions from two Hmt1 molecules. Our results suggest an intermolecular trans-complementary mechanism by which Hmt1 dimer methylates its substrates.

As an important nuclear hormone receptor, estrogen receptor α (ERα), which is encoded by the Esr1 gene, regulates the expression of hundreds of genes in a stimulus-specific, temporal, and tissue-specific fashion, mainly by binding to specific DNA sequences called estrogen response elements (EREs). As an important estrogen target tissue in males, the function of the efferent ductules relies on the presence of the ERα protein, but the underlying regulatory mechanisms are poorly illustrated. In this study, genome-wide ERα-binding sites in mouse efferent ductules were mapped by chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing. In total, 12,105 peaks were identified, and a majority of them were located far from the annotated gene transcription start site. Motif analysis revealed that ∼80% of the ERα-binding peaks harbored at least one ERE, whereas androgen response element-like sequences were the most overrepresented motif in the peaks without any EREs. A number of candidate transcription factor motifs adjacent to the EREs were significantly enriched, including AP2 and GRE, implying the involvement of these putative adjacent factors in the global regulation of ERα target genes. Unexpectedly, more than 50% of the ERα-binding peaks in mouse efferent ductules overlapped with those binding peaks previously identified in mouse uterus, suggesting the conserved mechanism of ERα action in these two tissues. Cobinding of ERα target genes by androgen receptor was further confirmed for Slc9a3 gene, which was responsible for fluid resorption in the efferent ductules. Taken together, our study provides a useful reference set for future work aimed at exploring the mechanism of ERα action in physiological conditions.

The interruption process of the new-type selective miniature circuit breaker (SMCB) is different from the traditional low-voltage circuit breaker (LVCB). According to the operating principle of the SMCB, its interruption process can be divided into three stages; the corresponding mathematical model and calculation method are proposed as well. The calculation of the static characteristic of the magnetic release equipped with the permanent magnet shows that the influence of the current direction on the electromagnetic force cannot be ignored, which lead to the minimum tripping current of the release is equal to -315 and 490 A, respectively, when the armature is close to the permanent magnet. With the simulation and experimental results when the effective value of the prospective short-circuit current is 644 A and 1.5 kA, it indicates that the bigger the closing phase angle is, the quicker the arc ignition between the main contacts and the less arcing time will be. Moreover, the typical interruption parameters of the simulation and experimental results are comparable, and it demonstrates that the proposed method can be used for the optimization design of the SMCB.

A 3-D transient finite-element method to analyze the short-time withstand current for an air circuit breaker (ACB) is presented. The cylindrical contact bridge is adopted to describe the current constriction between the movable and fixed contacts, and then considering the influence of the eddy current, the resistivity and thermal conductivity variations with the temperature, and the coupled calculation of the corresponding electromagnetic field and thermal field can be performed to evaluate the short-time withstand current capability. To verify the calculation method and results based on the ACB model, relevant experiments are also conducted through measuring the temperature of two points on the contacts with the thermocouple. It demonstrates that the proposed method can be used to optimize the design of ACBs.

Mammalian spermatogenesis is a classic adult stems cell–dependent process, supported by the self-renewal and differentiation of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). However, the identification of SSCs and elucidation of their behaviors in undisturbed testis has long been a big challenge. Here, we generated a knock-in mouse model, Id4-2A-CreERT2-2A-tdTomato, which allowed us to mark Id4-expressing (Id4+) cells at different time points in situ and track their behaviors across distinct developmental stages during steady-state and regenerating spermatogenesis. We found that Id4+ cells continue to produce spermatogonia, spermatocytes and sperm in mouse testis, showing they are capable of self-renewal and have differentiation potential. Consistent with these findings, ablation of Id4+ cells in mice results in a loss of spermatogenesis. Furthermore, developmental fate mapping reveals that Id4+ SSCs originate from neonate Id4+ gonocytes. Therefore, our results indicate that Id4 marks spermatogonial stem cells in the mouse testis.

Linkage transfer phenomenon, which exists in the opening process of the operating mechanism of the molded case circuit breaker MCCB, is introduced. The influence of the linkage transfer position on the behavior of the mechanism is analyzed. According to the analysis result, the linkage transfer position of an actual operating mechanism is improved with virtual prototype technology software ADAMS. Simulation and experiment results show that after improvement, the opening time of the mechanism is shortened by about 1 ms. Short-circuit tests demonstrate that the operating mechanism with its linkage transfer position improved is helpful for enhancing the interruption performance of MCCB while breaking the low-current faults.

With measuring the arc current, arc voltage and arc images, the high-current air arc commutation process across the separated electrodes was investigated. It shows that the existence of a short stable arc in the gap may increase the current commutation time. According to the energy balance of the arc column, the conditions to maintain the short stable arc were introduced and the effects of the current limiting resistance on the current commutation process were discussed.

A 2-D magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) arc model is developed to simulate the influence of the venting configuration on air arc plasma motion in a low-voltage circuit breaker. It is demonstrated that the fully closed back venting is helpful to accelerate the arc motion due to the propagation of a pressure wave. Side- and central-type front-venting configurations are also compared. It is found that the arc velocity is higher, and yet the probability of reignition is increased for the central-type front venting, as a consequence of differences in the current density distribution. Using an arc chamber with different venting configurations, short-circuit interruption experiments are carried out. These verify the arc reignition trends predicted in the simulations.

Gas flow in arc quenching chamber has an important effect on the interruption capability of low voltage circuit breakers. In this paper, based on a simplified model of arc chamber with a single break, which can be opened by the electro-dynamics repulsion force automatically, the effect of different vent configurations including middle vent and side vent on the interruption performance is investigated. First, the experiments are carried out to compare the different performance in the interruption process between middle vent type and side vent type. In addition, according to the experimental model, a 3-D magneto-hydrodynamic model was developed by adapting and modified the commercial computational fluid dynamics software FLUENT. The simulation results show the same trend in arc motion as explained in the experimental conclusions in theory.

The dynamic characteristics are the key issues in the optimum design of a permanent magnetic actuator (PMA). A new approach to forecast the dynamic characteristics of the multilink PMA is proposed. By carrying out further developments of ADAMS and ANSOFT, a mathematic calculation model describing the coupling of mechanical movement, electric circuit and magnetic field considering eddy current effect, is constructed. With this model, the dynamic characteristics of the multilink PMA are calculated and compared with the experimental results. Factors that affect the opening time of the multilink PMA are analyzed with the model as well. The method is capable of providing a reference for the design of the PMA.

This paper is devoted to study the influence of ferromagnetic material on arc behavior in low voltage electric apparatus. With the self-programmed interface, one 2-D magnetohydrodynamic arc model can be developed based on the commercial software FLUENT and ANSYS, to study the vapor of ferromagnetic material effects on air arc behavior. Then, the corresponding interruption experiments are performed to verify the simulation qualitatively. It demonstrates that the vapor of ferromagnetic material is disadvantageous to arc interruption characteristics. In addition, the influence of the size of the ferromagnetic splitter plate on arc motion is simulated. It shows that the bigger splitter plate may accelerate the arc motion.

This paper presents an accurate and systematic method to model the equivalent circuit of pulse generator in the electrical fast transients/burst test (EFT/B). Firstly, a new analytical expression is presented to express the generator's charging and discharging process under open-condition (1000-Ω), which all its coefficients are determined according to the output waveform specified by the manufacturer. And then, with adoption of the step source, the transfer function of the pulse forming network in Laplace domain is deduced, which is ready for the network synthesis. Based on above discussion, the parameterized method and the technique of constant-resistance are adopted for the network synthesis. Finally, the equivalent circuit is renormalized and improved to meet the specification under matching-condition (50-Ω). In this way, the equivalent circuit of EFT/B generator is obtained and can be adjusted conveniently to satisfy the different manufacturers. The PSPICE simulation with a certain load is validated by measurement.

According to a new kind of permanent contactor, this paper analyses the dynamic behavior of the contactor with and without current-feedback system. And it presents a method to obtain the dynamic characteristics of the contactor with current-feedback system. The experiments prove that the method is correct. Then, it compares the contactor without current-feedback system with the one with current-feedback system. The result shows that the contactor with current-feedback system can avoid this flaw of the contactor without current-feedback system.

Short-time withstand current is one of the crucial nominal parameters in air circuit breaker. A numerical method to evaluate the short-time withstand current is proposed. Cylindrical current carrying bridge is introduced to describe the contact spot between movable and fixed contacts. Taking into account the action of ferromagnetic splitter plates, the variation of the conductor properties with temperature and the variation of contact spot radius with the electro-dynamic repulsion force, a transient finite element calculation model is developed by coupling the electromagnetic field and thermal field. The loaded short circuit current is considered as the short-time withstand current once the highest temperature is near to the melting point of the contact material. It demonstrates that the method is useful to evaluate the performance of the air circuit breaker.

In the optimum design of AC contactors, it is important to analyze the dynamic behavior. Moreover, movable contact and core bounces have remarkable effect on the lifetime of contactors. According to a new kind of contactor with feedback controlled magnet system, this paper builds two different sets of periodically inter-transferred equations to obtain the dynamic characteristics of the contactor. The equations describe the coupling of the electric circuit, electromagnetic field and mechanical system taking account of the influence of friction. Then, the paper gives an optimum design to the dimension and the duty ratio of the contactor' pulse modulated wave (PWM) under different exciting, and proves, by experiment and simulation, that the bounce time of the contactor working in the optimized duty ratio is much less than that of the general AC contactors.

The gas-puffer effect has important effects on the interruption capability of a molded case circuit breaker (MCCB). In this paper, on the basis of a simplified model of an arc chamber with a single break, the effect of back-volume of an arc-quenching chamber on arc behavior in an MCCB is investigated. Firstly, using a 2-D optical-fiber arc-motion measurement system, experiments are performed to study the effect of back-volume on the arc-motion and gas pressure in an arc-quenching chamber. We demonstrate that the lower back-volume of the arc-quenching chamber is, the higher the pressure and the better the arc motion will be. Then, corresponding to the above experiments, the gas pressure inside the arc-quenching chamber is calculated using the integral conservation equation. The simulation results are consistent with the experimental results.

This paper simulates the dynamic behavior of the operating mechanism of ACB, and analyzes factors influencing the mechanism's operating time. First, it builds a dynamic model for the mechanism with virtual prototype technology. Experiment validation is carried out to prove the correctness of the model. Based on this model, it puts emphasis on analyzing the influence of electro-dynamic repulsion force on the operating time of the mechanism. Simulation and experimental results show that after adding electric repulsion force to the model, the operating time is shortened about 1.1 ms. Besides the repulsion force, other influencing factors including the stiffness of opening spring, locations of every key axis, mass and centroidal coordinates of every mechanical part are analyzed as well. Finally, it makes an optimum design for the mechanism. After optimization, the velocity of operating mechanism is improved about 6.7%.

To predict the thermal behavior of switchgear quickly, the Thermal Network Finite Difference Analysis method (TNFDA) is adopted in thermal analysis of AC contactor in the paper. The thermal network model is built with nodes, thermal resistors and heat generators, and it is solved using finite difference method (FDM). The main circuit and the control system are connected by thermal resistors network, which solves the problem of multi-sources interaction in the application of TNFDA. The temperature of conducting wires is calculated according to the heat transfer process and the fundamental equations of thermal conduction. It provides a method to solve the problem of boundary conditions in applying the TNFDA. The comparison between the results of TNFDA and measurements shows the feasibility and practicability of the method.

A two-dimensional arc magnetohydrodynamic model is presented to study the effects of metallic vapour and gassing material on air switching arc motion based on different mixture plasma properties (pure air, 99% air–1% Cu, 99% air–1% Ag, 99% air–1% Fe, 90% air–10% PA6). It demonstrates that metallic vapours may cool the arc central region and reduce the arc motion velocity, and iron vapours have the strongest action compared with copper and silver vapours; the gassing material may improve the arc motion velocity. In addition, the effect of the net emission coefficient model and the grey body radiation model on the calculation results for pure air arc motion is compared. To verify the simulation results partially, using the integrated imaging diagnostics system, experiments are carried out to measure the average velocity of arc motion with one model chamber. (Some figures in this article are in colour only in the electronic version)

To the optimization design of molded case circuit breakers (MCCBs), it is important and necessary to simulate the interruption process and analyze the characteristics. A set of differential equations can describe the interactive coupled phenomena of electric circuit, electromagnetic field and mechanism motion system in MCCB. First, with virtual prototyping technology, the simulation model for the operation mechanism of MCCB can be built, and experiments have been carried out to verify its validity. Then, with the existence of electrodynamic repulsion force, the interruption process of the MCCB has been investigated with the influence of arc voltage, closing phase angle, prospective current, mechanism starting motion time and blow open force. It demonstrates the proposed method is effective and is capable of evaluating the new design of MCCB products.

For the optimization design of air circuit breaker (ACB), it is important and necessary to calculate the electro-dynamic repulsion force acting on the movable contact. A method based on 3-D FEM with the equations that describe the relationships among current, magnetic field and repulsion force, which takes the ferromagnet into account, is adopted to calculate the electro-dynamic repulsion force. The method enables one to analyze the factors that affect the electro-dynamic repulsion force, including the number of the movable conductor parallel branches as well as the location of the axis and the shape of the flexible connection. The discussion of the calculation results is also presented in this paper.

A two-dimensional compressible magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) computational model has been developed to study the effect of gassing material on air arc behavior in low voltage circuit breaker. The properties of arc plasma and the electric, magnetic and radiative phenomena have been taken into account in the model. Based on the model, steady state solutions have been performed to study the effect of gassing material on the arc radius and electric field in the arc column. Then, the effect of gassing material on the transient process of arc motion also has been simulated. In addition, using the two-dimensional optical fiber measurement system, experiments have been done to measure the average velocity of arc motion with one model chamber and to verify the simulation model and prediction results. It demonstrates that the action of gassing material may yield the stronger electric field, less arc radius and higher arc motion velocity.

Arc-motion process is crucial to the interruption capability of the low-voltage circuit breaker. First, to a simplified chamber with full open venting, with a 2-D optical-fiber arc-motion measurement system, experiments were done to measure the arc-motion velocity in order to analyze the influence of different arc ignition position on the arc motion. It demonstrates that the larger the volume behind the arc is, the slower the arc moves. In addition, the influence of the gassing material on arc-motion velocity was also studied experimentally. Then, the commercial computational fluid dynamics software FLUENT was adapted and modified to develop a 2-D magneto-hydrodynamic model of the arc with the same conditions as the experimental model. The simulation result was consistent with the experiment conclusions

JMJD3 (KDM6B) is an H3K27me3 demethylases and emerges as an important player in developmental processes. Although some evidence indicated the involvement of JMJD3 in osteoblast differentiation in vitro, its role as a whole in osteoblast differentiation and bone formation in vivo remains unknown. Here we showed that homozygous deletion of Jmjd3 resulted in severe delay of osteoblast differentiation and bone ossification in mice. By biochemical and genetical methods, we demonstrated that JMJD3 mediated RUNX2 transcriptional activity and cooperated with RUNX2 to promote osteoblast differentiation and bone formation in vivo. These results strongly demonstrated that JMJD3 is required for osteoblast differentiation and bone formation in mice.

JMJD3 (KDM6B) is an H3K27me3 demethylase and counteracts polycomb-mediated transcription repression. However, the function of JMJD3 in vivo is not well understood. Here we show that JMJD3 is highly expressed in cells of the chondrocyte lineage, especially in prehypertrophic and hypertrophic chondrocytes, during endochondral ossification. Homozygous deletion of Jmjd3 results in severely decreased proliferation and delayed hypertrophy of chondrocytes, and thereby marked retardation of endochondral ossification in mice. Genetically, JMJD3 associates with RUNX2 to promote proliferation and hypertrophy of chondrocytes. Biochemically, JMJD3 associates with and enhances RUNX2 activity by derepression of Runx2 and Ihh transcription through its H3K27me3 demethylase activity. These results demonstrate that JMJD3 is a key epigenetic regulator in the process of cartilage maturation during endochondral bone formation.