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Abstract Background Research has suggested significant correlations among ageing, immune microenvironment, inflammation and tumours. However, the relationships among ageing, immune microenvironment, cystitis and bladder urothelial carcinoma (BLCA) in the bladder have rarely been reported. Methods Bladder single-cell and transcriptomic data from young and old mice were used for immune landscape analysis. Transcriptome, single-cell and The Cancer Genome Atlas Program datasets of BLCA and interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS) were used to analyse immune cell infiltration and molecular expression. Bladder tissues from mice, IC/BPS and BLCA were collected to validate the results. Results Eight types of immune cells (macrophages, B-cells, dendritic cells, T-cells, monocytes, natural killer cells, γδ T-cells and ILC2) were identified in the bladder of mice. Aged mice bladder tissues had a significantly higher number of T-cells, γδ T-cells, ILC2 and B-cells than those in the young group (P

Deposition pattern and path-planning deposition strategy have significant impacts on the deformation and residual stress of components during a wire-arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) process. This work comparatively addressed the influence of weaving and non-weaving deposition patterns on the distributions of residual stress and warping deformation during a single-bead-on-plate WAAM process. Further, four path strategies with different deposition sequences (in-out and out-in) and deposition directions (alternate and consistent) were designed for a weaving WAAM process of disc part, and their impacts on temperature history, warping deformation, and residual stress were comparatively analyzed through thermal-mechanical coupling finite element (FE) method. Simulation and experiment results manifest that, compared to the non-weaving pattern, the weaving deposition pattern results in more uniform deformation and lower residual stress on the deposited plate due to wider and shallower molten pool. Comparison results for the four deposition path strategies in the weaving WAAM process of disc part suggest that the out-in deposition sequence exhibits faster heat dissipation and uniform temperature field during the cooling stage, resulting in reduced warping deformation and residual stress on the workpiece. Moreover, uniform deformation is observed across path strategies employing alternate deposition direction. The out-in alternate deposition path strategy was identified as the optimal choice for the weaving WAAM process of disc part. Finally, physical experiments validated the simulated warping deformation of disc parts under different deposition path strategies. This work contributes to the design and optimization of weaving WAAM process for disc-shaped components.

Cell implantation offers an appealing avenue for heart repair after myocardial infarction (MI). Nevertheless, the implanted cells are subjected to the aberrant myocardial niche, which inhibits cell survival and maturation, posing significant challenges to the ultimate therapeutic outcome. The functional cardiac patches (CPs) have been proved to construct an elastic conductive, antioxidative, and angiogenic microenvironment for rectifying the aberrant microenvironment of the infarcted myocardium. More importantly, inducing implanted cardiomyocytes (CMs) adapted to the anisotropic arrangement of myocardial tissue by bioengineered structural cues within CPs are more conducive to MI repair. Herein, a functional Cig/(TA-Cu) CP served as biomimetic cardiac niche was fabricated based on structural anisotropic cigarette filter by modifying with tannic acid (TA)-chelated Cu2+ (TA-Cu complex) via a green method. This CP possessed microstructural anisotropy, electrical conductivity and mechanical properties similar to natural myocardium, which could promote elongation, orientation, maturation, and functionalization of CMs. Besides, the Cig/(TA-Cu) CP could efficiently scavenge reactive oxygen species, reduce CM apoptosis, ultimately facilitating myocardial electrical integration, promoting vascular regeneration and improving cardiac function. Together, our study introduces a functional CP that integrates multimodal cues to create a biomimetic cardiac niche and provides an effective strategy for cardiac repair.

Abstract Background/Purpose Risk factors for re-bleeding and death after acute variceal bleeding (AVB) in cirrhotic HCC patients are not fully understood.We aimed to (1) explore how the combination of high-risk esophageal varices, HCC status, and portal vein tumor thrombus (i.e., HCC Portal Hypertension Imaging Score [HCCPHTIS]) helps predict increased risk of variceal re-bleeding and mortality; (2) assess predictability and reproducibility of the identified variceal re-bleeding rules. Methods This prospective study included 195 HCC patients with first-time AVB and liver cirrhosis, and conducted multivariable Cox regression analysis and Kaplan-Meier analysis. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was calculated to find the optimal sensitivity, specificity, and cutoff values of the variables. The reproducibility of the results obtained was verified in a different but related group of patients. Results 56 patients (28.7%) had re-bleeding within 6 weeks; HCCPHTIS was an independent risk factor for variceal re-bleeding after AVB (Odd ratio, 2.330; 95% confidence interval: 1.728–3.142, p 3 was 66.2%, sensitivity 83.9%, and specificity 82.3%. HCCPHTIS area under the curve was higher than Child-Pugh score (89% vs. 75%, p 4 was associated with increased risk of death within 6 weeks after AVB (p 3 is a strong predictor of variceal re-bleeding within the first 6 weeks. However, patients with HCCPHTIS > 4 were at increased risk of death within 6 weeks.

To achieve the uniform and fine-grained microstructures during thermal deformation of nickel-based superalloys, a novel two-stage deformation approach was employed, involving prior cold deformation treatment (PCDT) and subsequent thermal deformation. Experimental investigations concerning this two-stage deformation method were carried out on Ni80A superalloy, encompassing various combinations of cold and thermal compression parameters. The analysis of microstructures revealed that PCDT significantly enhances dynamic recrystallization (DRX) process, resulting in fine-grained microstructures during thermal compression and expanding the processing-parameter domains for grain refinement. To clarify the shift of DRX kinetics in thermal compression induced by PCDT, the DRX kinetics models considering this pre-treatment were derived. These models demonstrated a linear inverse correlation between the activation energy within DRX kinetics models and prior stored energy from PCDT. This suggested that PCDT promotes the DRX process by reducing the activation energy during thermal compression. Following, the kinetics curves depicting DRX volume fraction during thermal deformation were drawn. Results indicated that under an identical thermal compression condition, the kinetics curve shifts towards decreasing strain with increasing of prior cold deformation. Under various thermal compression conditions, these kinetics curves for Ni80A superalloy processed with PCDT get shifted to the direction of decreasing strain when compared to the alloy without PCDT. These shifts underscore a pronounced acceleration of DRX process induced by PCDT. Finally, a finite element model incorporating DRX kinetics models was developed to further illustrate the influence of PCDT on the shift of DRX in an upsetting process, which shows a promising potential for theoretical calculations.

IntroductionAlternol is a natural compound isolated from the fermentation of a mutated fungus. We have demonstrated its potent anti-cancer effect via the accumulation of radical oxygen species (ROS) in prostate cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we tested its anti-cancer spectrum in multiple platforms.MethodsWe first tested its anti-cancer spectrum using the National Cancer Institute-60 (NCI-60) screening, a protein quantitation-based assay. CellTiter-Glo screening was utilized for ovarian cancer cell lines. Cell cycle distribution was analyzed using flow cytometry. Xenograft models in nude mice were used to assess anti-cancer effect. Healthy mice were tested for the acuate systemic toxicity.ResultsOur results showed that Alternol exerted a potent anti-cancer effect on 50 (83%) cancer cell lines with a GI50 less than 5 µM and induced a lethal response in 12 (24%) of those 50 responding cell lines at 10 µM concentration. Consistently, Alternol displayed a similar anti-cancer effect on 14 ovarian cancer cell lines in an ATP quantitation-based assay. Most interestingly, Alternol showed an excellent safety profile with a maximum tolerance dose (MTD) at 665 mg/kg bodyweight in mice. Its therapeutic index was calculated as 13.3 based on the effective tumor-suppressing doses from HeLa and PC-3 cell-derived xenograft models.ConclusionTaken together, Alternol has a broad anti-cancer spectrum with a safe therapeutic index in vivo.

Background: Alternol is a small molecular compound isolated from the fermentation of a mutant fungus obtained from Taxus brevifolia bark. Our previous studies showed that Alternol treatment induced reactive oxygen species (ROS)-dependent immunogenic cell death. This study conducted a comprehensive investigation to explore the mechanisms involved in Alternol-induced immunogenic cell death.Methods: Prostate cancer PC-3, C4-2, and 22RV1 were used in this study. Alternol interaction with heat shock proteins (HSP) was determined using CETSA assay. Alternol-regulated ER stress proteins were assessed with Western blot assay. Extracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP) was measured using ATPlite Luminescence Assay System.Results: Our results showed that Alternol interacted with multiple cellular chaperone proteins and increased their expression levels, including endoplasmic reticulum (ER) chaperone hypoxia up-regulated 1 (HYOU1) and heat shock protein 90 alpha family class B member 1 (HSP90AB1), as well as cytosolic chaperone heat shock protein family A member 8 (HSPA8). These data represented a potential cause of unfolded protein response (UPR) after Alternol treatment. Further investigation revealed that Alternol treatment triggered ROS-dependent (ER) stress responses via R-like ER kinase (PERK), inositol-requiring enzyme 1α (IRE1α). The double-stranded RNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR) but not activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6) cascades, leading to ATF-3/ATF-4 activation, C/EBP-homologous protein (CHOP) overexpression, and X-box binding protein XBP1 splicing induction. In addition, inhibition of these ER stress responses cascades blunted Alternol-induced extracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP) release, one of the classical hallmarks of immunogenic cell death.Conclusion: Taken together, our data demonstrate that Alternol treatment triggered multiple ER stress cascades, leading to immunogenic cell death.

Organic semiconductor power devices have been attracting increasing attention due to their advantages such as flexibility, low fabrication cost, and sustainability. They have found wide applications in fields such as flexible electronic devices and biomedical devices. However, in the field of power applications, the lack of reliable organic semiconductor power devices is mainly attributed to the limited thermal stability and electrical stability of organic materials. This article provides a detailed review of the development status of organic semiconductor power devices from three aspects: device structure, organic materials, and fabrication methods. It clarifies that the future development goal is to enhance the voltage resistance and thermal stability of organic transistors through higher-performance structure design, higher-mobility materials, and higher-quality fabrication methods. The continuous innovation and development of the structures, materials, and fabrication of these devices will generate more novel devices, offering more possibilities for the application of organic semiconductor power devices. This information is of great reference value and guidance significance for engineers in related fields.

Background. Moyamoya disease (MMD) leads to nerve injury. Exosomes are touted as bio-shuttles for the delivery of distinct biomolecules inside the cells. Recently, UCH-L1 was shown to play a vital role in nerve injury. However, it is still unknown whether UCH-L1 can improve the nerve injury of MMD. Materials and Methods. Exosomes were isolated from the serum of patients with MMD and healthy controls. The total RNA was extracted from the exosomes, and the level of GFAP and UCH-L1 between the serum exosomes of the two groups was analyzed by a quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and western blot. Exosome labeling and uptake by SH-SY5Y cells were observed by confocal laser microscopy. Cell counting kit-8 assay and flow cytometry were used to determine the viability and apoptosis of SH-SY5Y cells, respectively. Results. Exosomes were successfully isolated and identified from serum. The expression of GFAP and UCH-L1 was significantly higher in the serum-derived exosomes from MMD patients compared with the healthy controls (P

Flexible electronic products, with their characteristics of flexibility and wearability, have attracted significant attention and have become an important direction in the research and development of the electronics industry. Planar micro-supercapacitors (MSCs) with flexible composite electrodes can provide reliable energy support for these products, propelling their further development. The research employed a quick, effective, and environmentally friendly method of laser scribing to create shape-controllable flexible composite electrodes on composite films of Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) and graphene oxide (PEDOT/GO), which were subsequently assembled into MSCs. An analysis of the composite electrode morphology, structure, and elemental distribution was conducted through the utilization of SEM, TEM, and XPS techniques. Following this, a comprehensive evaluation of the electrochemical performance of the flexible MSCs was carried out, which included cyclic voltammetry (CV), galvanostatic charge/discharge (GCD), and assessment of cyclic stability. The analysis of the CV results indicated that the MSCs achieved the areal capacitance of 5.78 mF/cm2 at 5 mV/s. After 5000 cycles at a current density of 0.05 mA/cm2, the capacitance retention rate was 85.4%. The high areal capacitance and strong cycle stability of MSCs highlight the potential of PEDOT/reduced graphene oxide (PEDOT/rGO) electrodes in electrode applications.

A simple proof using Birkhoff theorem is given for the result that the spectral norm of a doubly stochastic matrix is 1. We also show that the result generalizes the results of İpek, Bozkurt, and Jiang and Zhou on circulant matrices and rr-circulant matrices. Spectral norm of level-kk circulant matrix and applications are given.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is a prevalent malignancy with increasing incidence in middle-aged and older men. Despite various treatment options, advanced metastatic PCa remains challenging with poor prognosis and limited effective therapies. Nanomedicine, with its targeted drug delivery capabilities, has emerged as a promising approach to enhance treatment efficacy and reduce adverse effects. Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) stands as one of the most distinctive and highly selective biomarkers for PCa, exhibiting robust expression in PCa cells. In this review, we explore the applications of PSMA-targeted nanomedicines in advanced PCa management. Our primary objective is to bridge the gap between cutting-edge nanomedicine research and clinical practice, making it accessible to the medical community. We discuss mainstream treatment strategies for advanced PCa, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and immunotherapy, in the context of PSMA-targeted nanomedicines. Additionally, we elucidate novel treatment concepts such as photodynamic and photothermal therapies, along with nano-theragnostics. We present the content in a clear and accessible manner, appealing to general physicians, including those with limited backgrounds in biochemistry and bioengineering. The review emphasizes the potential benefits of PSMA-targeted nanomedicines in enhancing treatment efficiency and improving patient outcomes. While the use of PSMA-targeted nano-drug delivery has demonstrated promising results, further investigation is required to comprehend the precise mechanisms of action, pharmacotoxicity, and long-term outcomes. By meticulous optimization of the combination of nanomedicines and PSMA ligands, a novel horizon of PSMA-targeted nanomedicine-based combination therapy could bring renewed hope for patients with advanced PCa.

Abstract In recent years, Pb-free CsSnI3 perovskite materials with excellent photoelectric properties as well as low toxicity are attracting much attention in photoelectric devices. However, deep level defects in CsSnI3, such as high density of tin vacancies, structural deformation of SnI6 − octahedra and oxidation of Sn2+ states, are the major challenge to achieve high-performance CsSnI3-based photoelectric devices with good stability. In this work, defect passivation method is adopted to solve the above issues, and the ultra-stable and high-performance CsSnI3 nanowires (NWs) photodetectors (PDs) are fabricated via incorporating 1-butyl-2,3-dimethylimidazolium chloride salt (BMIMCl) into perovskites. Through materials analysis and theoretical calculations, BMIM+ ions can effectively passivate the Sn-related defects and reduce the dark current of CsSnI3 NW PDs. To further reduce the dark current of the devices, the polymethyl methacrylate is introduced, and finally, the dual passivated CsSnI3 NWPDs show ultra-high performance with an ultra-low dark current of 2 × 10–11 A, a responsivity of up to 0.237 A W−1, a high detectivity of 1.18 × 1012 Jones and a linear dynamic range of 180 dB. Furthermore, the unpackaged devices exhibit ultra-high stability in device performance after 60 days of storage in air (25 °C, 50% humidity), with the device performance remaining above 90%.

This paper presents a tunable, low-frequency acoustic energy harvesting barrier, which contains the following four parts: the noise acquisition input module, the Helmholtz resonator optimization module, the resonant frequency tuning module, and the electricity generation module. The aim of this study is to make rational use of the huge noise energy inside the subway tunnel and convert it into electric energy to power the sensing and detecting equipment and lighting equipment along the railway. In this work, the optimal harvester unit and resonant frequency tuning part were pertinently designed to increase the output power of the unit. Experimental results show that one unit of the system can generate 317.5 mV instantaneous voltage and 100.8 μW instantaneous maximum power at 100 dB, and it verifies the efficiency and practicability of the proposed acoustic energy harvesting noise barrier. The device has a broad application prospect and can be adapted to different tunnel environments, including high-speed railway tunnels, highway tunnels, urban subway tunnels, etc., with excellent conversion efficiency. These results can provide valuable ideas for the design and practical application of new multi-functional noise barriers in the future.

Abstract Anaerobic fungus–methanogen co-cultures from rumen liquids and faeces can degrade lignocellulose efficiently. In this study, 31 fungus–methanogen co-cultures were first obtained from the rumen of yaks grazing in Qinghai Province, China, using the Hungate roll-tube technique. The fungi were identified according to morphological characteristics and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences. The methanogens associated with each fungus were identified by polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. They were five co-culture types: Neocallimastix frontalis + Methanobrevibacter ruminantium, Neocallimastix frontalis + Methanobrevibacter gottschalkii, Orpinomyces joyonii + Methanobrevibacter ruminantium, Caecomyces communis + Methanobrevibacter ruminantium, and Caecomyces communis + Methanobrevibacter millerae. Among the 31 co-cultures, during the 5-day incubation, the N. frontalis + M. gottschalkii co-culture YakQH5 degraded 59.0%–68.1% of the dry matter (DM) and 49.5%–59.7% of the neutral detergent fiber (NDF) of wheat straw, corn stalk, rice straw, oat straw and sorghum straw to produce CH4 (3.0–4.6 mmol/g DM) and acetate (7.3–8.6 mmol/g DM) as end-products. Ferulic acid (FA) released at 4.8 mg/g DM on corn stalk and p-coumaric acid (PCA) released at 11.7 mg/g DM on sorghum straw showed the highest values, with the following peak values of enzyme activities: xylanase at 12,910 mU/mL on wheat straw, ferulic acid esterase (FAE) at 10.5 mU/mL on corn stalk, and p-coumaric acid esterase (CAE) at 20.5 mU/mL on sorghum straw. The N. frontalis + M. gottschalkii co-culture YakQH5 from Qinghai yaks represents a new efficient combination for lignocellulose biodegradation, performing better than previously reported fungus–methanogen co-cultures from the digestive tract of ruminants.

Abstract Urotensin II (U‐II) and its receptor (UT) are involved in the pathogenesis of various diseases; however, their association with the development of cystitis has not been elucidated. The present study was designed to investigate the functional role of U‐II/UT signaling in cyclophosphamide (CYP)‐induced cystitis. A total of 60 female rats were randomly divided into the control and CYP‐treated groups. Intraperitoneal injection of CYP successfully induced cystitis in rats of the CYP‐treated group. The protein and mRNA expression levels of U‐II and UT were significantly enhanced in rat bladder tissues of the CYP‐treated group. Furthermore, the results of the immunofluorescence staining analysis demonstrated that CYP treatment apparently increased the expression levels of UT in the urothelium layer, detrusor smooth muscle, and bladder interstitial Cajal‐like cells. The selective antagonist of UT, SB657510 (10 μm), significantly suppressed the CYP‐induced increase in the spontaneous contractions of muscle strips and ameliorated the bladder hyperactivity of CYP‐treated rats. Moreover, CYP treatment significantly increased the protein expression levels of Ras homolog family member (Rho) A and Rho‐associated protein kinase 2 in rat bladder tissues. Following pretreatment with the Rho‐kinase inhibitor Y‐27632 (10 μm), the inhibitory effects of SB657510 (10 μm) on the spontaneous contractions of muscle strips were eliminated. In conclusion, the results of the present study suggested that activation of U‐II/UT signaling promoted the development of cystitis‐associated‐bladder hyperactivity by targeting the RhoA/Rho‐kinase pathway, indicating that the U‐II/UT signaling could serve as a novel target for the treatment of interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome.

Summary: Ischemic heart disease (IHD) remains the leading cause of death and disability worldwide and leads to myocardial necrosis and negative myocardial remodeling, ultimately leading to heart failure. Current treatments include drug therapy, interventional therapy, and surgery. However, some patients with severe diffuse coronary artery disease, complex coronary artery anatomy, and other reasons are unsuitable for these treatments. Therapeutic angiogenesis stimulates the growth of the original blood vessels by using exogenous growth factors to generate more new blood vessels, which provides a new treatment for IHD. However, direct injection of these growth factors can cause a short half-life and serious side effects owing to systemic spread. Therefore, to overcome this problem, hydrogels have been developed for temporally and spatially controlled delivery of single or multiple growth factors to mimic the process of angiogenesis in vivo. This paper reviews the mechanism of angiogenesis, some important bioactive molecules, and natural and synthetic hydrogels currently being applied for bioactive molecule delivery to treat IHD. Furthermore, the current challenges of therapeutic angiogenesis in IHD and its potential solutions are discussed to facilitate real translation into clinical applications in the future.

Abstract Background Ureteral granulation tissue hemangiomas are rare benign vascular lesions, and they may be clinically asymptomatic or present with massive or recurrent hematuria. Sometimes hemangiomas are difficult to distinguish from malignant ureteral tumors, and most ureteral hemangiomas are confirmed by postoperative pathological examination. This article aims to present a case of granulation tissue-type hemangioma of the ureter and briefly review the current literature on this condition. Case presentation A 30-year-old male patient presented with complaints of painless macroscopic hematuria for 2 months. Computerized tomography of the urinary system showed that the upper 1/3 of the right ureter was occupied, and then the possibility of tumor lesions was considered. The urine cytology showed occasional nuclear abnormalities and many light-stained crystals in urine. Because of suspicious radiological and cytological findings, the patient underwent the right ureteroscopy and the laparoscopic right ureteral mass resection. The postoperative pathological report showed that it was a mesenchymal tumor. The morphological and immunohistochemical staining was consistent with that of hemangioma, tending to granulation tissue hemangioma. After surgery, the patient was in a good state and recovered well at the last follow-up. Conclusions Ureteral granulation tissue hemangiomas are an easily misdiagnosed disease. Intermittent painless hematuria is an important characteristic of this disease. Therefore, we suggest that unnecessary radical surgery can be avoided when clinicians consider the possibility of benign ureteral tumors during the evaluation.

The industrial internet depends on the development of cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and big data analysis. Intelligent fusion is dependent on the architecture and security features of the industrial internet. Firstly, the paper studies the infrastructure mode that needs to be solved urgently in the industrial internet and provides a possible infrastructure mode and related security evaluation system. Secondly, it analyses the digital transformation process with the case of G.E.os industrial nternet development practice. It clarifies that G.E. is forming a new value closed-loop through digital and strategy mixed channels. Thirdly, industrial internet security research is described within multiple viewpoints based on industrial internet applications, the security service and security assurance defense systemos architecture, and the non-user entrance probability model. Finally, the paper illustrates the changes in knowledge workflow and social collaboration caused by the industrial internet under intelligent manufacture.

Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) plays an irreplaceable role in the field of artificial intelligence. The traditional visual SLAM algorithm is stable assuming a static environment, but has lower robustness and accuracy in dynamic scenes, which affects its localization accuracy. To address this problem, a semantic SLAM system is proposed that incorporates ORB-SLAM3, semantic segmentation thread and geometric thread, namely DeepLabv3+_SLAM. The improved DeepLabv3+ semantic segmentation network combines context information to segment potential a priori dynamic objects. Then, the geometry thread uses a multi-view geometry method to detect the motion state information of the dynamic object. Finally, a new ant colony strategy is proposed to find the group of all dynamic feature points through the optimal path, and avoids traversing all the feature points to reduce the dynamic object detection time and improve the real-time performance of the system. By conducting experiments on public data sets, the results show that the method proposed in this paper effectively improves the positioning accuracy of the system in a high-dynamic environment compared with similar algorithms, and the real-time performance of the system is improved.

Bladder cancer is the most common malignant tumor of the urinary system, however there are several shortcomings in current diagnostic and therapeutic measures. In terms of diagnosis, the diagnostic tools currently available are not sufficiently sensitive and specific, and imaging is poor, leading to misdiagnosis and missed diagnoses, which can delay treatment. In terms of treatment, current treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, gene therapy, and other emerging treatments, as well as combination therapies. However, the main reasons for poor efficacy and side effects during treatment are the lack of specificity and targeting, improper dose control of drugs and photosensitizers, damage to normal cells while attacking cancer cells, and difficulty in delivering siRNA to cancer cells. Nanomedicine is an emerging approach. Among the many nanotechnologies applied in the medical field, nanocarrier-assisted drug delivery systems have attracted extensive research interest due to their great translational value. Well-designed nanoparticles can deliver agents or drugs to specific cell types within target organs through active targeting or passive targeting (enhanced permeability and retention), which allows for imaging, diagnosis, as well as treatment of cancer. This paper reviews advances in the application of various nanocarriers and their advantages and drawbacks, with a focus on their use in the diagnosis and treatment of bladder cancer.

Studies have indicated that the ethanol exposure impairs the gut microbiota, At the same time, high levels of alcohol exposure damage sperm in mice. However, whether the gut microbiota is involved in mediating the effects of alcohol on sperm quality remains unclear. This study aimed to assess the effect of chronic alcohol consumption on intestinal microbiota in mice and analyze the potential pathophysiological effect of altered intestinal microbiota on sperm quality. We established a mouse model of chronic alcohol consumption by allowing male C57 mice to freely ingest 10% ethanol for 10 weeks, and collected the fecal microbiota of the male mice in the chronic drinking group (alcohol) and the control group (control) and transplanted the specimens into the transplant groups (the alcohol-fecal microbiota transplantation [FMT] group and the control-FMT group). Sperm quality was significantly decreased in the alcohol-FMT group compared with the control-FMT group. Gut microbiota analysis revealed that the abundance of 11 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) was altered in the alcohol-FMT group. Nontargeted metabolomics identified 105 differentially altered metabolites, which were mainly annotated to amino acids, lipids, glycerophosphoethanolamine, organic oxygenic compounds, organic acids and their derivatives, steroids, and flavonoids. In particular, the oxidative phosphorylation pathway, which is the key to spermatogenesis, was significantly enriched in the alcohol-FMT group. Moreover, compared with the control-FMT group, the alcohol-FMT group presented significantly higher serum endotoxin and inflammatory cytokine levels, with more pronounced T cell and macrophage infiltration in the intestinal lamina propria and elevated levels of testicular inflammatory cytokines. In addition, RNA sequencing showed significant differences in the expression of testis-related genes between the alcohol-FMT group and the control-FMT group. In particular, the expression of genes involved in gamete meiosis, testicular mitochondrial function, and the cell division cycle was significantly reduced in alcohol-FMT mice. In conclusion, these findings indicated that intestinal dysbiosis induced by chronic alcohol consumption may be an important factor contributing to impaired sperm quality. Chronic alcohol consumption induces intestinal dysbiosis, which then leads to metabolic disorders, elevated serum endotoxin and inflammatory cytokine levels, testicular inflammation, abnormal expression of related genes, and ultimately, impaired sperm quality. These findings are potentially useful for the treatment of male infertility.

Abstract Background Social support is an important health determinant and may affect dietary behaviors. The purpose of this study was to examine the relations between perceived social support and the Chinese Diet Balance Index-16 (DBI-16) among ethnic minority groups in Southwest China. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted between May 2019 and August 2020 among six ethnic minority groups native to Yunnan Province (n = 3564). Perceived social support from family, friends and significant others were measured with the Multi-dimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). Dietary data were obtained using a 100-item Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) and a lifestyle questionnaire. Lower Bound Score (LBS), Higher Bound Score (HBS) and Diet Quality Distance (DQD) which represent inadequate, excessive and unbalanced food intake respectively were calculated to measure the compliance with the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese 2016. Results One thousand four hundred ninety-six men and two thousand sixty-eight women were included. 51.2% of the subjects had moderate or high levels of inadequate intake; 21.3% had moderate or high levels of excessive intake; and 74.0% had moderate or high levels of unbalanced dietary intake. With potential confounders adjusted, support from family was negatively associated with inadequate intake, while support from friends was positively associated with inadequate and excessive intake. No significant associations were found between perceived social support from significant others and diet quality indicators. Conclusions An unbalanced diet is common among adults of the ethnic minority groups in Yunnan Province, Southwest China. Social support should be taken into account in designing nutrition interventions rather than focusing solely on individuals.

Keloid is a common benign skin tumor in the outpatient department, and patients are often accompanied by itching and pain. Since the pathogenesis is unknown, the effect of single method treatment is unsatisfactory, and therefore the recurrence rate is high. Therefore, comprehensive treatment is mostly used in clinical treatment. Adjuvant radiotherapy is currently one of the most effective treatments for keloid. After long-term clinical practice, brachytherapy and electron beam radiotherapy has increasingly become the gold standard of treatment, because brachytherapy provides more focused radiation treatment to focal tissue to significantly reduce recurrence rate, and better preserve normal tissue. With the development of new radiotherapy techniques, more options for the treatment of keloid. Currently, adjuvant radiotherapy has been widely recognized, but there is no consensus on the optimal protocol for adjuvant radiotherapy for keloids. This review provides a review of published treatment options and new radiotherapy techniques for adjuvant radiotherapy of keloids and gives a comprehensive evaluation for clinical treatment.

ObjectiveSuccinylation modification of the lysine site plays an important role in tumorigenesis and development, but it is rarely reported in prostate cancer (PCa), so this study aims to elucidate its expression in and clinical correlation with PCa.MethodsA total of 95 tumor, 3 normal and 52 paired adjacent tissue of PCa were involved for succinylation stanning. 498 PCa samples with 20 succinylation modification-related genes from TCGA were downloaded for model construction. Statistical methods were employed to analyze the data, including Non-Negative Matrix Factorization (NMF) algorithm, t-Distributed Stochastic Neighbor Embedding (t-SNE) algorithm and Cox regression analysis.ResultsThe pan-succinyllysine antibody stanning indicated that tumor tissues showed higher succinyllysine level than adjacent tissues (p

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common new cancer case and the second most fatal malignancy in men. Surgery, endocrine therapy, radiotherapy and chemotherapy are the main clinical treatment options for PCa. However, most prostate cancers can develop into castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), and due to the invasiveness of prostate cancer cells, they become resistant to different treatments and activate tumor-promoting signaling pathways, thereby inducing chemoresistance, radioresistance, ADT resistance, and immune resistance. Nanotechnology, which can combine treatment with diagnostic imaging tools, is emerging as a promising treatment modality in prostate cancer therapy. Nanoparticles can not only promote their accumulation at the pathological site through passive targeting techniques for enhanced permeability and retention (EPR), but also provide additional advantages for active targeting using different ligands. This property results in a reduced drug dose to achieve the desired effect, a longer duration of action within the tumor and fewer side effects on healthy tissues. In addition, nanotechnology can create good synergy with radiotherapy, chemotherapy, thermotherapy, photodynamic therapy and gene therapy to enhance their therapeutic effects with greater scope, and reduce the resistance of prostate cancer. In this article, we intend to review and discuss the latest technologies regarding the use of nanomaterials as therapeutic and diagnostic tools for prostate cancer.

BackgroundIn China, there are a growing number of young women being diagnosed with breast cancer. Fear of Cancer Recurrence (FCR) has become one of the major psychological concerns reported by young breast cancer patients. Yet, there is a lack of psychological intervention tailored for reducing FCR for Chinese young breast cancer patients. In the current study, the Fear-focused Self-compassion Therapy is developed to help Chinese young breast cancer patients to manage FCR. The therapy was developed based on FCR development theories and self-compassion related therapy. The primary objective is to evaluate the short-term and long-term effectiveness of Fear-focused Self-compassion Therapy. The secondary objective is to examine the underlying mechanisms of therapy in reducing FCR in young breast cancer patients.MethodsThe Fear-focused Self-compassion Therapy consists of 8-week face to face group sessions. This study will be a randomized controlled trial with 160 Chinese young female breast cancer patients with severe FCR. Participants will be randomized to the therapy group or a usual care control group (1:1). Measurements will be completed at baseline, immediately completing intervention, 3, 6, and 12 months later. Primary outcomes are FCR severity, and secondary outcomes include symptoms of depression and anxiety, satisfaction with therapy, and cost-effectiveness of the therapy.DiscussionIf successful, this study will provide an effective psychological intervention to treat FCR for young breast cancer patients in China, and illuminate the underlying mechanisms of the Fear-focused Self-compassion Therapy in reducing FCR.Clinical trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04965428. Registered 23rd July 2021, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04965428?cond=fear+of+cancer+recurrence&draw=2&rank=1

Grain boundary engineering (GBE) is considered to be an attractive approach to microstructure control, which significantly enhances the grain-boundary-related properties of face-centered cubic (FCC) metals. During the twinning-related GBE, the microstructures are characterized as abundant special twin boundaries that sufficiently disrupt the connectivity of the random boundary network. However, controlling the grain boundary character distribution (GBCD) is an extremely difficult issue, as it strongly depends on diverse processing parameters. This article provides a comprehensive review of controlling GBCD during the twinning-related GBE of FCC materials. To commence, this review elaborates on the theory of twinning-related GBE, the microscopic mechanisms used in the optimization of GBCD, and the optimization objectives of GBCD. Aiming to achieve control over the GBCD, the influence of the initial microstructure, thermo-mechanical processing (TMP) routes, and thermal deformation parameters on the twinning-related microstructures and associated evolution mechanisms are discussed thoroughly. Especially, the development of twinning-related kinetics models for predicting the evolution of twin density is highlighted. Furthermore, this review addresses the applications of twinning-related GBE in enhancing the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of FCC materials. Finally, future prospects in terms of controlling the GBCD during twinning-related GBE are proposed. This study will contribute to optimizing the GBCD and designing GBE routes for better grain-boundary-related properties in terms of FCC materials.

The aim of this study is to evaluate prognostic and therapeutic implications of microvessel density (MVD) in the recurrence-free survival (RFS), disease-specific survival (DSS), and overall survival (OS) in prostate cancer (PCa). As of April 2019, EMBASE, PubMed, Cochrane Library, Science Direct/Elsevier, MEDLINE, and CNKI are used for systematic literature retrieval to investigate the correlation between MVD and PCa. Meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager and Stata software. Combined hazard ratio (HR) was identified with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) in a random or fixed effects model. Thirteen studies were identified in this article. Of which, 8 studies analyzed for the recurrence-free survival (2,399 patients) demonstrated that MVD significantly elevated in the poor recurrence-free survival (HR 2.57, 95% CI 2.21–2.97). Other 2 eligible studies (330 patients) with 3 data sets for the MVD-OS analysis and the pooled HR (HR 1.70, 95% CI 1.27–2.28) suggested a weak risk of overall death rate in patients with high-MVD levels. The last 3 studies for disease-specific survival (220 patients) suggested that the association with high MVD and disease-specific survival may not have statistically significance (HR 1.32, 95% CI 0.49–3.56). This study suggests that high intratumoral MVD appears a significant progenitor for poor recurrence-free survival of PCa.

Acoustic liners are the most effective solution to attenuate the noise of ducts with flows but still suffer from narrow sound absorption bandwidth and heavy bulk. In this work, we present a new type of acoustic meta-liner structure, which is composed of perforated plates and coiled-up Fabry–Pérot (FP) channels with carefully designed equivalent length. By tuning the geometric parameters of the perforated plate and the optimal combination of the coiled-up FP channels, perfect impedance matching is achieved in a broadband range. The strong dissipation of sound energy could also be observed under different speeds of grazing flow and high incident sound intensity. It is analytically, numerically, and experimentally demonstrated that for the structure, over 90% sound absorption is achieved in the broadband range from 500 to 3000 Hz in the absence of flow and the condition of grazing flow with a speed of 30–98 m/s, coupled with a 90–130 dB incident sound pressure level. Moreover, the thickness of the proposed simply structured meta-liner is 44 mm, which is only 8/125th of the wavelength corresponding to 500 Hz. As a deep sub-wavelength liner, it exhibits potential application prospects in the field of fluid–solid coupled machinery such as aero-engine systems and ventilation duct systems.

Ultra-broadband sound absorption with periodic gradient impedance matching is of great concern in the research of acoustic materials. This study investigates the impedance matching of composite acoustic metamaterials comprising micro-perforated plates (MPPs) and subsequent Fabry–Pérot(FP) channels. Based on the impedance matching theory, ultra-broadband sound absorption has been realized through a design with 36 channels whose thickness is only 50 mm. Also, the average sound absorption coefficient of 88% and an absorption frequency bandwidth (490–4000 Hz) can be achieved by preserving the matching impedance. Furthermore, by changing the thickness of the perfect absorber being 100 mm, the average sound absorption coefficient can reach greater than 90% in the frequency range of 250–4500 Hz. The proposed structure is validated analytically and experimentally. This work can help with designing and improving the method of acoustic metasurfaces and especially have the potential in ultra-broadband sound absorber designs.

In this paper, partially coherent radially polarized (RP) Laguerre-Gaussian (LG) rotationally symmetrical power-exponent phase vortex (RSPEPV) beams with the LG-correlated Schell-model (LGSM) were introduced. The statistical properties of the tightly focused beams, including intensity distribution, degrees of polarization and coherence, and Stokes vector, were studied based on vectorial Richards-Wolf diffraction integral theory. Moreover, when the distance between focal plane and the observation plane z = 0, the relationships between the tight-focusing properties of RP-LG-RSPEPV beams with LGSM and the order of LGSM p’, topological charges l, power exponent n, spatial correlation δ, and radial index p were investigated. The results show that by changing the order of LGSM, topological charge, power exponent, spatial correlation length, and radial index, the focal spot distribution of various shapes can be obtained. This work provides ideas for the application of partially coherent beams in particle capture and optical tweezers.

In order to solve the problem that the actual current cannot closely follow the given current or the predicted output voltage fluctuates too much due to the unreasonable selection of the weight coefficient when the model predictive control seeks the optimal control variable, a model predictive control method based on fuzzy control dynamically selecting weight coefficients was proposed. Fuzzy control was applied to the selection of the weight coefficient, and the optimal weight coefficients can be sent to the currently running model predictive control system online. Three groups of experiments were conducted for the simulation, comparison and analysis of different weight coefficients, and the reasonable interval of the weight coefficient was obtained. The simulation results show that the weight coefficient based on fuzzy control has good performance. When the load change is severe, the robustness of the motor is well, and the current can closely follow the given current; When the load change is gentle, the output voltage fluctuation will be reduced under the condition that the current can follow the given current. The improved control system improves the anti-disturbance ability, and the weight coefficient can be changed automatically according to the actual demand, which provides some reference for the control design of permanent magnet linear synchrous motor.

During the design and manufacturing process of the truss antenna, the surface accuracy of the truss antenna is inherently affected by tolerance. An appropriate optimal design of the truss antenna structure is important to improve surface accuracy. In order to receive the optimal design of the truss structure, this paper adopts the multiobjective optimization algorithm based on an approximate model to optimize the tolerance model with random error. Firstly, considering the influence of the processing and assembly errors of the members on the surface accuracy of the structure, the equilibrium state equation of the truss is established by the principle of minimum potential energy. Then, the relationship between the tolerance and the surface accuracy is obtained by the Monte Carlo method. For improving the computing efficiency of the Monte Carlo method, an approximate model of the truss antenna unit is established, where the rod length tolerance is set as the design variable, and the truss surface accuracy and processing cost are set as the objective functions. Finally, tolerance optimization is carried out by using the multiobjective genetic algorithm. The results indicate that the Pareto solution is obtained with an error less than 10%. Moreover, a set of solutions of the tolerance are obtained which can meet different antenna design requirements. And the results show that the influence of the web rod is significantly greater than that of the bottom rod on the surface accuracy of the structure.

The deployment strategy and dynamic analysis of the AM-2 AstroMesh ring truss antenna reflector are studied in this paper. The rigid multibody dynamic models of the truss structures with alterable and fixed diagonal length are established, respectively, by using the natural coordinate formulation (NCF). The driving scheme and the synchronous constraint scheme are proposed for two types of truss structure, respectively. The degree of freedom (DOF) analysis of the truss structure is carried out according to the redundant constraint processing method. The deployment strategies of the two different types of truss structures are discussed. The dynamic simulation of the deployment of a 30-side AM-2 AstroMesh reflector truss structure with fixed diagonal length without gravity is carried out. The deployment characteristics of the truss structure are obtained. The driving forces are predicted according to the dynamic simulation.

The space truss deployable antenna has low natural frequency, multi-closed-loop, and multiredundant structure characteristics, which is a kind of flexible antenna. It is hard to obtain the vibration characteristics under low frequency by finite element analysis or conventional shaking table test. To verify the structure characteristics of the antenna in the folded state below 2 Hz, a low-frequency vibration system is established based on the 6-DOF Stewart platform. Rotation matrix analysis method was adopted to obtain the platform’s velocity and acceleration characteristics. Then, a low-frequency vibration test was carried out on the platform. The results show that the natural frequency of the antenna is 1.51 Hz and the maximum dynamic displacement is 140.6 mm, which provides a certain foundation for the further development of the space truss antenna.

The deployment of a modular truss antenna reflector is relied on the driven energy of the springs between the components of the structure. The deployment process is characterized by fast speed and large impact. In order to study the impact characteristics of antenna deployment on the boundary, the deployment dynamic analysis of a modular truss antenna reflector is carried out. The deployment impact experiment is performed to obtain the impact forces of the reflector on the boundary. The dynamic model of the modular truss reflector is modified according to the experiment results. The dynamic analysis of a satellite with an arm and a modular truss reflector is conducted by using the modified reflector model. The dynamic behavior of the satellite in orbit during the modular truss antenna reflector deployment is predicted.

Tooth surface wear causes variation in meshing stiffness and transmission error of the gear system and further causes the fluctuation of dynamic characteristics. In this study, a dynamic behavior prediction model of the gear transmission system was established, which considered the machined tooth surface wear based on the mixed lubrication sliding wear model and the gear tribology-dynamic model. The gear pair wear characteristics along the meshing line were analyzed through simulations, and the impacts of wear conditions, operating torque, and speed on the dynamic characteristics of the gear transmission system with tooth surface wear were discussed. The results demonstrated that the transmission error and the vibration displacement amplitude of the gear system had increased gradually with the increase of the wear degree and that the fluctuation intensified. The fluctuation of gear dynamic characteristics increased with the increase in torque, and the fluctuation of gear dynamic characteristics initially increases and then decreases with the increase in rotating speed.

Uncertainty of target motion, limited perception ability of onboard cameras, and constrained control have brought new challenges to unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) dynamic target tracking control. In virtue of the powerful fitting ability and learning ability of the neural network, this paper proposes a new deep reinforcement learning (DRL)-based end-to-end control method for UAV dynamic target tracking. Firstly, a DRL-based framework using onboard camera image is established, which simplifies the traditional modularization paradigm. Secondly, neural network architecture, reward functions, and soft actor-critic (SAC)-based speed command perception algorithm are designed to train the policy network. The output of the policy network is denormalized and directly used as speed control command, which realizes the UAV dynamic target tracking. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed end-to-end control method is demonstrated by numerical simulation. The results show that the proposed DRL-based framework is feasible to simplify the traditional modularization paradigm. The UAV can track the dynamic target with rapidly changing of speed and direction.

Visual-inertial odometry is critical for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and robotics. However, there are problems of motion drift and motion blur in sharp brightness changes and fast-motion scenes. It may cause the degradation of image quality, which leads to poor location. Event cameras are bio-inspired vision sensors that offer significant advantages in high-dynamic scenes. Leveraging this property, this paper presents a new range and event-based visual-inertial odometry (REVIO). Firstly, we propose an event-based visual-inertial odometry (EVIO) using sliding window nonlinear optimization. Secondly, REVIO is developed on the basis of EVIO, which fuses events and distances to obtain clear event images and improves the accuracy of position estimation by constructing additional range constraints. Finally, the EVIO and REVIO are tested in three experiments—dataset, handheld and flight—to evaluate the localization performance. The error of REVIO can be reduced by nearly 29% compared with EVIO in the handheld experiment and almost 28% compared with VINS-Mono in the flight experiment, which demonstrates the higher accuracy of REVIO in some fast-motion and high-dynamic scenes.

To substitute fossil resources, it is necessary to investigate the conversion of biomass into 1,2-propanediol (1,2-PDO) as a high-value-added chemical. The Pt/deAl-Beta@Mg(OH)2 catalytic system is designed to obtain a higher 1,2-PDO production yield. The optimal yield of 1,2-PDO is 34.1%. The unique shell-core structure of the catalyst demonstrates stability, with a catalytic yield of over 30% after three times of use. The primary process path from glucose to 1,2-PDO, glucose-hexitol-1,2-PDO, is speculated by the experiments of intermediate product selectivity. The alkaline catalytic mechanism of the reaction process is elucidated by studying catalyst characterization and analyzing different time courses of products. The introduction of Mg(OH)2 improves the target yield by promoting the isomerization from glucose to fructose and retro-aldol condensation (RAC) conversion, with pseudo-yield increases of 76.1% and 42.1%, respectively. By studying the processes of producing lactic acid and 1,2-PDO from glucose, the glucose hydrogenolysis flow chart is improved, which is of great significance for accurately controlling 1,2-PDO production in industrial applications. The metal, acid, and alkali synergistic catalytic system constructed in this paper can provide a theoretical basis and route reference for applying biomass conversion technology in practice.

In this paper, an advanced statistical physics adsorption model (double-layer model with two energies) is successfully established. On the basis of this model, statistical thermodynamic functions (e.g., entropy (S), Gibbs free enthalpy (G), and internal energy (Eint)), pore size distribution (PSD), and site energy distribution (SED) functions were successfully developed and applied to investigate the adsorption mechanisms of nanopore-structured ashitaba waste-based activated carbons (AWAC) and walnut shell-based activated carbons (WSAC) on Congo red (CR) and methylene blue (MB) dyes in aqueous solutions. Statistical thermodynamic results indicated that the adsorption reactions involved in this study are entropy-increasing, endothermic, and spontaneous in nature. Furthermore, PSD and SED described the heterogeneity of these adsorbents in terms of geometry or structure and energy and illustrated that the aforementioned adsorption processes are endothermic physisorption. All in all, this study contributed to broadening the understanding of the adsorption mechanisms of dye molecules onto biomass-based activated carbons.

Electric upsetting has been widely employed to manufacture the preformed workpiece of large-scale exhaust valves. The temperature field in the electric upsetting process plays an important role in microstructure evolution and defect formation. In order to uncover the temperature evolution in a larger-scale electric upsetting process, the electric-thermal-mechanical multi-field coupling finite element model was developed to simulate the electric upsetting forming process of Ni80A superalloy. The temperature distribution characteristics and their formation mechanisms under different stages were analyzed systematically. Results indicate that at the preheating stage, the billet temperature increases from 20 °C to 516.7 °C, and the higher temperature region firstly appears at the contact surface between billet and anvil due to the combined effects of contact resistance and volume resistance. With increasing preheating time, the higher temperature region is transferred to the interior of the billet because the contact resistance is reduced with increasing temperature. As for the forming process, the billet is gradually deformed into an onion shape. The highest billet temperature increases to 1150 °C and keeps relatively constant. The high temperature region always appears at the neck of the onion due to the relatively higher current density at this place. It enlarges continuously in the primary stage and intermediate stage, and then decreases at the stable deformation stage. The low temperature regions lie in the contact surface and the outer surface of the onion because a lot of heat is lost to the anvil and surroundings through thermal conduction and radiation. Finally, the established finite element model was verified by an actual electric upsetting experiment. The average relative error between simulated temperatures and experimental ones was estimated as 7.54%. The longitudinal and radial errors between simulated onion shape and the experimental one were calculated as 1.38% and 2.70%, respectively.

Within the grain boundary engineering (GBE) of alloys, a mixed grain boundary network with random grain boundaries interrupted by twin boundaries, contributes to enhancing the overall grain boundary-related properties. The higher density of twin boundaries is pursued herein. Furthermore, a two-stage deformation method, i.e., prior cold deformation followed by thermal deformation, was proposed for improving the mixed grain boundary network in the thermal deformation of Ni80A superalloy. The influence of prior cold deformation on the mixed grain boundary network was investigated through a series of two-stage deformation experiments. The analysis of the stress–strain curves shows that the critical strain for dynamic recrystallization (DRX) and peak strains decrease significantly under the effect of prior cold deformation. In comparison to the necklace-like microstructures that occur after a single thermal deformation, the microstructures apparent after a two-stage deformation are characterized by finer DRX grains with abundant Σ3n twin boundaries, with a significantly improved density of the Σ3n twin boundaries (BLDΣ3n) by a factor of around nine. With increasing prior cold strain, the grain size, after a two-stage deformation, decreases continuously, while the BLDΣ3n increases firstly and then decreases. The mechanisms for improving the mixed grain boundary network via two-stage deformation were uncovered. The sub-grain boundaries formed in prior cold deformation stimulate the nucleation of DRX grains and twins; meanwhile, the driving force for grain boundary migration is enhanced due to prior stored energy. Then, DRX is activated in advance and occurs more completely, thereby promoting the formation of Σ3n twin boundaries.

The flexible self-powered display system integrating a flexible triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) and flexible alternating current electroluminescence (ACEL) has attracted increasing attention for its promising potential in human–machine interaction applications. In this work, a performance-enhanced MXene/cellulose nanofibril (CNF)/MXene-based TENG (MCM-TENG) is reported for powering a flexible patterned ACEL device in order to realize self-powered display. The MCM multilayer composite film was self-assembled through the layer-by-layer method. The MCM film concurrently acted as a triboelectric layer and electrode layer due to its high conductivity and strength. Moreover, the effect of CNF concentration and number of layers on the output performance of TENG was investigated. It was found that the MCM-TENG realized the optimum output performance. Finally, a flexible self-powered display device was realized by integrating the flexible TENG and ACEL. The MCM-TENG with an output voltage of ≈90 V at a frequency of 2 Hz was found to be efficient enough to power the ACEL device. Therefore, the as-fabricated flexible TENG demonstrates a promising potential in terms of self-powered displays and human–machine interaction.

Abstract The nanosheet stacking phenomenon in graphene thin films significantly deteriorates their gas-sensing performance. This nanosheet stacking issue should be solved and reduced to enhance the gas detection sensitivity. In this study, we report a novel ammonia (NH3) gas sensor based on holey graphene thin films. The precursors, holey graphene oxide (HGO) nanosheets, were prepared by etching graphene under UV irradiation with Fenton reagent (Fe2+/Fe3+/H2O2). Holey graphene was prepared by the reduction of HGO (rHGO) with pyrrole. Holey graphene thin-film gas sensors were prepared by depositing rHGO suspensions onto the electrodes. The resulting sensing devices show excellent response, sensitivity, and selectivity to NH3. The resistance change is 2.81% when the NH3 level is as low as 1 ppm, whereas the resistance change is 11.32% when the NH3 level is increased to 50 ppm. Furthermore, the rHGO thin-film gas sensor could be quickly restored to their initial states without the stimulation with an IR lamp. In addition, the devices showed excellent repeatability. The resulting rHGO thin-film gas sensor has a great potential for applications in numerous sensing fields because of its low cost, low energy consumption, and outstanding sensing performance.

Describing the dynamic recrystallization (DRX) behaviors and grain evolution mechanisms in the hot forming process contributes to controlling microstructures and enhancing mechanical properties of materials. Here, the isothermal compression experiments for SAE 5137H steel were conducted under temperatures of 1123–1483 K and strain rates of 0.01–10 s−1. The DRX kinetics models, including DRX volume fraction and grain size models, and the meso-scale cellular automaton (CA) models, were established based on the obtained true stress–strain curves and microstructure observation results. In order to dynamically reveal DRX behaviors and grain morphology evolution, a multi-field and multi-scale coupling finite element (FE) model for the hot compression process was developed by embedding the solved DRX kinetics models and CA models. Results show that the DRX volume fraction and grain size increase with temperature increasing and strain rate decreasing. The DRX grains are easier to nucleate at the initial grain boundaries. As strain increases, DRX grains grow up by devouring the matrix grains until DRX occurs completely. The microstructures after compression are composed of equiaxed DRX grains. Finally, the comparisons of grain size between experimental results and simulation results were performed. The mean relative errors between experimental results and predicted results from DRX kinetics models, and between experimental results and predicted results from CA models, were evaluated as 6.5% and 6.0%, respectively. It proves that the developed FE model can well describe the microstructure evolution in the hot deformation process of SAE 5137H steel.

The removal of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) has become a hot research topic in the field of environmental engineering in recent years. In this work, a simple pyrolysis method was designed to prepare a high-performance biochar-loaded zero-valent copper (CuC) material for the catalytic degradation of antibiotics ENR by PMS. The results showed that 10 mg/L of ENR was completely removed within 30 min at an initial pH of 3, CuC 0.3 g/L, and PMS 2 mmol/L. Further studies confirmed that the reactive oxygen species (ROS) involved in ENR degradation are ·OH, SO4−·, 1O2, and O2−. Among them, 1O2 played a major role in degradation, whereas O2−· played a key role in the indirect generation of 1O2. On the one hand, CuC adsorbed and activated PMS to generate ·OH, SO4−· and O2−·. O2−· was unstable and reacted rapidly with H2O and ·OH to generate large amounts of 1O2. On the other hand, both the self-decomposition of PMS and direct activation of PMS by C=O on biochar also generated 1O2. Five byproducts were generated during degradation and eventually mineralized to CO2, H2O, NO3−, and F−. This study provides a facile strategy and new insights into the biochar-loaded zero-valent transition-metal-catalyzed PMS degradation of CECs.

In this study, a method combining numerical surface generation technology and three-dimensional hot-line contact EHL is employed to evaluate the contact characteristics of micro-textured surfaces under high-load line contact. Based on numerical simulation, the film thickness, film pressure, friction coefficient and surface flashing temperature of the virtual texture surface with different cross-sectional shapes and sizes are studied. On this basis, the subsurface stress at the contact point is calculated by the DC-FFT algorithm. The results show that, compared with a smooth surface, the micro-textures of different shapes all increase the average oil film thickness of the surface and reduce the friction coefficient, but at the same time lead to an increase in the contact stress of the surface. By changing the width and depth of the texture, the maximum film pressure has changed by 11.4 and 18.5%, respectively.