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Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a major complication of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and plays critical roles in the pathogenesis of atrial remodeling. However, the differentially expressed genes in atria during the development of AF induced by hyperglycemia have rarely been reported. Here, we showed time-dependent increased AF incidence and duration, atrial enlargement, inflammation, fibrosis, conduction time and action potential duration in db/db mice, a model of T2DM. RNA sequencing analysis showed that 2256 genes were differentially expressed in the atria at 12, 14 and 16 weeks. Gene Ontology analysis showed that these genes participate primarily in cell adhesion, cellular response to interferon-beta, immune system process, positive regulation of cell migration, ion transport and cellular response to interferon-gamma. Analysis of significant pathways revealed the IL-17 signaling pathway, TNF signaling pathway, MAPK signaling pathway, chemokine signaling pathway, and cAMP receptor signaling. Additionally, these differentially expressed genes were classified into 50 profiles by hierarchical clustering analysis. Twelve of these profiles were significant and comprised 1115 genes. Gene coexpression network analysis identified that mitogen-activated protein kinase 10 (MAPK10) was localized in the core of the gene network and was the most highly expressed gene at different time points. Knockdown of MAPK10 markedly attenuated DM-induced AF incidence, atrial inflammation, fibrosis, electrical disorder and apoptosis in db/db mice. In summary, the present findings revealed that many genes are involved in DM-induced AF and that MAPK10 plays a central role in this disease, indicating that strategies targeting MAPK10 may represent a potential therapeutic approach to treat DM-induced AF.

Axial ligand engineering is a good strategy for enhancing the ORR activity.

In the present study, the effects of Er2O3 doping on the phase, microstructure, and electrical properties of ZnO–Bi2O3 based varistors were systematically investigated. In particular, a correlation between the microstructure and electrical properties was established based on the quantitative analyses of grain size, grain size distribution, and porosity. It was found that appropriate Er2O3 content of 0.4 mol% effectively decreased the grain size and improved the homogeneity of grain size distribution, contributing to a well-connected Bi2O3 intergranular network. Thus, simultaneously enhanced voltage gradient of 280 V/mm and relatively high nonlinear coefficient of 46 were achieved in varistors. However, with further increasing Er2O3 content, the excess Er2O3 phases were generated and agglomerated at grain boundaries. This further caused coarse pores and seriously undermined the connectivity of Bi2O3 networks, leading to the decrease in nonlinearity of varistors. Furthermore, such a correlation revealed in this study may provide valuable guidelines for developing high-performance ZnO–Bi2O3 based varistors.

According to the self-heterodyne signal obtained by lidar under different fiber delay times, the model of the local oscillator signal was established, and the maintenance method of signal coherence in lidar based on the digital delay was improved by using multiple sinusoidal frequency modulation components. An imaging detection experiment was carried out at a distance of 5.4 km. The coherence of the lidar signal was maintained by combining the transmitting reference channel correction method and the local oscillator reference channel compensation method, accompanied by the use of a phase spectrum to analyze the improvement effect. The processing results of the echo signal showed that the method could remove the high-order phase errors that cannot be compensated by the phase gradient autofocus algorithm and improve the signal coherence, which could be used for the detection and imaging of long-range targets.

Mingming Deng1– 4*, Liming Yan5 *, Run Tong1– 4*, Joseph Zhao,6 Yanxia Li,7 Yan Yin,8 Qin Zhang,8 Jinghan Gao,8 Qiuyue Wang,8 Gang Hou,1– 4 Xiaoming Zhou9,10 1Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Center of Respiratory Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2National Center for Respiratory Medicine, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 3Institute of Respiratory Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 4National Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Fourth Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, People’s Republic of China; 6Sage Hill High School, Newport Coast, CA, USA; 7Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Department of Hematology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, People’s Republic of China; 8Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, First Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, People’s Republic of China; 9Respiratory Department, Center for Pulmonary Vascular Diseases, Fuwai Hospital, National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 10Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Gang Hou, Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Centre of Respiratory Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing, People’s Republic of China, Email hougangcmu@163.com Xiaoming Zhou, Respiratory Department, Center for Pulmonary Vascular Diseases, Fuwai Hospital, National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China, Email zhouxmcmu@163.comPurpose: Sarcopenia, an age-related loss of skeletal muscle mass and function, is frequent in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and is linked to a poor prognosis. The diagnosis of sarcopenia requires specific equipment and is inconvenient to introduce into clinical practice. Ultrasound is an innovative method to assess muscle quantity. The objective of this research was to evaluate the use of ultrasound for prospectively screening for sarcopenia in COPD patients.Patients and Methods: A total of 235 stable patients with COPD were included in this observational study and divided into development and validation sets. The Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia standards were used to define sarcopenia. The thickness (RFthick) and cross-sectional area (RFcsa) of the rectus femoris were measured using ultrasound. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis of RFthick and RFcsa was used to predict sarcopenia. Nomogram models were constructed based on RFthick, RFcsa, age and body mass index to identify sarcopenia.Results: Sarcopenia was present in 83 (35.32%) patients. Patients with sarcopenia had advanced age, decreased pulmonary function, decreased physical function and poor clinical outcomes. RFthick and RFcsa showed good predictive ability for sarcopenia in the development and validation sets. The nomogram based on RFthick and RFcsa could detect sarcopenia in COPD patients, and all had significant predictive performance in the development and validation sets. The calibration plot showed good agreement between the nomogram predictions and actual observations.Conclusion: The ultrasound measurement of the rectus femoris has potential for the clinical assessment of sarcopenia in patients with COPD.Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sarcopenia, ultrasound, rectus femoris, nomogram

Low-frequency signals can be used in target detection and geological exploration, but the large antenna sizes limit their applications. Hence, it is significant to investigate the low-frequency signal generation method based on antennas with appropriate sizes. Different from mechanical antenna methods, previous work of this paper proposes a novel low-frequency signal generation method in space on the basis of Doppler effect, and designs the high-frequency electric antenna staggered array and timing sequency of the periodic pulse train signal. In this paper, 8-element short-array and 64-element long-array experimental prototypes are proposed, and the 121.35 MHz signal is composed of 156 MHz radiating element signals. Experimental results show that the measured composite signal spectrums are similar to the simulations and physically verify the feasibility of the low-frequency signal generation method based on the high-frequency electric antenna array, which is valuable in the area of low-frequency signal generation with small antennas.

Inverse synthetic aperture ladar (ISAL) has the capability to achieve high-resolution imaging of long-distance targets in a short time because of the laser’s short wavelength. However, the unexpected phases introduced by target vibration in the echo can cause defocused imaging results of the ISAL. How to estimate the vibration phases has always been one of the difficulties in ISAL imaging. In this paper, in view of the echo’s low signal-to-noise ratio, the orthogonal interferometry method based on time-frequency analysis is proposed to estimate and compensate the vibration phases of ISAL. The method can effectively suppress the influence of noise on the interferometric phases and accurately estimate vibration phases using multichannel interferometry in the inner view field. The effectiveness of the proposed method is validated through simulations and experiments, including a 1200 m distance cooperative vehicle experiment and a 250 m distance noncooperative unmanned aerial vehicle experiment.

In the present study, an industrially viable ceramics fabrication way based on solid-state reaction method–semi-solution method was used to improve the dielectric and ferroelectric properties of acceptor-donor co-doped BaTiO3 ceramics. Unlike the conventional solid-state reaction method, additives in the semi-solution method were introduced in the form of the aqueous solution rather than oxide powders. Experiment results show that higher peak dielectric constant e m a x (140–150%), larger maximum polarization P m a x (24 μC cm−2), and less apparent aging phenomena were achieved by the semi-solution method. A comprehensive microscopic analysis was carried out to explore the origin of property enhancement. Results show that enhanced properties could be ascribed to the higher level of compositional homogeneity and lower content of oxygen vacancies. This study provides a new method to control aging phenomena and achieve property enhancement in acceptor-donor co-doped ceramics. Moreover, this simple and cost-effective method may also find its application in other extensive-doped ceramics.

In the present study, simultaneously enhanced electrical stability (low degradation rate of 8.0 × 10−3 mA∙ h1/2) and high nonlinear coefficient of 56 were obtained in ZnO varistors by doping SiO2. To clarify the mechanism of enhanced properties, comprehensive microscopic analyses were studied. Particularly, the intrinsic point defects were quantitatively characterized for the first time. Results showed that the densities of zinc interstitials (Zni) and oxygen vacancies (Vo) were dramatically decreased, resulting in enhanced stability. Besides, reduced Zni and Vo decreased the total donor density, contributing to the improved barrier height and thus leading to enhanced nonlinearity. Combined with XRD and SEM results, it is deduced that such reduced Zni and Vo are attributed to the Si-stabilized high oxygen conducting δ-Bi2O3 phase. Furthermore, this elucidated mechanism, which has been long neglected in Si-doped varistors, may provide valuable insights into further developing high-performance ZnO varistors.

A facile and efficient analytical method for determination of four triazine herbicides (atrazine, ametryn, terbutryn, and terbuthylazine) from rice was developed by employing a magnetic multiwalled...

Background: Many diseases can be treated with metformin. People with serum thyrotropin (TSH) levels higher than 10 mIU/L are at a risk of cardiovascular events. Some studies have suggested that metformin can lower serum TSH levels to a subnormal level in patients with hyperthyrotropinaemia or hypothyroidism. Objective: The objective of this analysis is to evaluate the effect of metformin treatment on serum TSH, free triiodothyronine (FT3), and free thyroxine (FT4) levels and other associated physiological indices. Methods: A comprehensive search using the PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science and Cochrane Central databases was undertaken for controlled trials on the effect of metformin on serum TSH, FT3, and FT4 levels and associated physiological indices. The primary outcome measures were serum TSH, FT3 and FT4 levels, thyroid size, thyroid nodule size, blood pressure, heart rate, body weight, and body mass index (BMI). The final search was conducted in April 2019. Results: Six RCTs were included. A total of 494 patients met the inclusion criteria. Metformin treatment did not significantly lower the serum TSH levels at 3 or 6 months but did at 12 months. Moreover, forest plots also suggested that metformin can significantly lower the serum TSH levels in patients with normal thyroid function but cannot statistically change the serum TSH levels in patients with abnormal thyroid function. In addition, metformin treatment clearly lowered the serum FT3 levels and had no significant effect on serum FT4 levels. Lastly, metformin cannot significantly change the systolic blood pressure (SBP) or BMI but can clearly increase the diastolic blood pressure (DBP). Conclusion: Metformin treatment can significantly lower the serum TSH levels, and this effect was much clearer after a 12-month treatment duration and in people with normal thyroid function. However, metformin cannot significantly change the serum FT4 levels or lower serum FT3 levels in people with non-thyroid cancer diseases. In addition, metformin can significantly increase DBP, but it has no clear effect on SBP or BMI.

Multifunctional catalysts with highly efficient oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), oxygen evolution reaction (OER), and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) are in great demand for energy conversion and...

Objective: Both serum uric acid (SUA) levels and lipid components, such as LDL, HDL, and Lp(a), have been reported to associate with CAD. However, the influence of SUA status at different concentrations of lipid indices for the risk of myocardial revascularization (MRT) in ACS patients is currently unknown.Methods: We retrospectively analyzed a hospital-based sample of 14,234 ACS patients with no previous history of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. All patients went for coronary angiography. Binary logistic regression models were performed, and the odds ratios (OR) at 95% confidence interval (CIs) were used to approximate the associated risk of UA and lipid profile for myocardial revascularization, with the lowest quartile/tertile serving as the reference category.Results: Overall, 8,818 (61.9%) patients undergone MRT out of 14,234 patients. Elevated SUA and HDL were negatively associated with an increased likelihood of MRT during admission (P < 0.001). However, LDL and Lp(a) levels were positively associated with MRT among ACS patients. Furthermore, interaction analyses between SUA and lipid profiles, particularly LDL and Lp(a), compared with those in the lowest quartile of SUA levels, show that patients in higher SUA quartiles grouped by lipid components had a significantly lower chance of undergoing MRT, with the lowest OR (95%CI) for subjects being 0.222 (0.170-0.290), 0.478 (0.374-0.612), and 0.604 (0.468-0.780) in LDL tertiles, being 0.671(0.523-0.862), 0.316(0.242-0.413), and 0.410 (0.310-0.542) in Lp(a) tertiles, respectively. In the three tertiles of HDL levels, the incidence of MRT dropped steadily as SUA levels increased. Also, we further analyzed ACS patients without diabetes. Compared with the first quartile of SUA levels, the risks of MRT were significantly lower in different tertiles of lipids components [LDL, Lp(a), HDL].Conclusion: An increase in SUA levels may decrease the chance of undergoing MRT in ACS patients, even in those with increased Lp(a) and LDL-c. Elevated serum uric acid may play a protective role during an acute stage of ACS.

A dual-channel inverse synthetic aperture ladar imaging experimental system based on wide-pulse binary phase coded signals and its moving target imaging are introduced. The analysis, simulation, and experimental data processing results of binary phase coded signal Doppler compensation and pulse compression are included. The method of motion phase error estimation based on interferometric processing and the imaging method with small computation in the case of large squint angles are proposed, and the simulation results are presented. The effectiveness of the imaging method is verified by experimental data processing. Doppler frequency curves are estimated based on time-frequency analysis of echo signals, and the coarse compensation of motion phase error is realized. According to the interferometric phase and coherence coefficient of dual-channel echo signals’ time-frequency analysis, the coherence of the dual-channel echo signals is checked, and along-track interferometry can be applied to the precise compensation. The stable interferometric phase and increased coherence coefficient of actual dual-channel data imaging results indicate the effectiveness of the motion phase error compensation method proposed. Considering characteristics of inverse synthetic aperture ladar (ISAL) imaging, after dividing echo signals into multiple sub-apertures, range-Doppler algorithm and sub-aperture stitching are adopted, the stitched image is corrected geometrically through Stolt transformation, and the computation is reduced.

Electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) is a very prospective strategy to reduce CO2 to valuable fuels and chemical products, thereby alleviating the growing energy crisis and greenhouse effect. In this study, CO2RR mechanisms on M3(TABTO)2 (M = Sc-Cu, Y-Mo and Ru-Rh, TABTO = 1,3,5-triamino-2,4,6-benzenetriol) are investigated by means of density functional method. The results show that the studied catalysts are stable thermodynamically. Co3(TABTO)2 exhibits the best catalytic performance for the formation of CH3OH with the same overpotential of 0.41 V both in the gas phase and in solution. For Fe3(TABTO)2, however, the product is HCOOH with the overpotential of 0.29 V in the gas phase and 0.70 V in solution. For Ru3(TABTO)2 to produce CH4, solvent effect reduces the overpotential significantly from 0.97 V in the gas phase to 0.54 V in solution, making it to be a promising CO2RR catalyst. Moreover, the improvement of CO2RR catalyst activity can be achieved by the axial oxygen modification in M3(TABTO)2 (M = Sc, Y and V). A good relationship between d band center and overpotential is observed, which might provide us with a new direction to design the promising catalyst.

(Pb0.97La0.02)(ZrxSn0.94–xTi0.06)O3 (PLZST) antiferroelectric ceramics with x = 0.75–0.90 have been fabricated and found to be a novel electrocaloric material system with a giant negative electrocaloric effect (ΔT = −11.5 K) and a large electrocaloric strength (|ΔT/ΔE| = 0.105 K cm kV–1) near room temperature. Additionally, the PLZST antiferroelectric ceramic also exhibits a large positive electrocaloric effect around the Curie temperature. The giant negative effect and the coexistence of both positive and negative electrocaloric effects in one material indicate a promising possibility to develop mid- to large-scale solid-state cooling devices with high efficiency.

(Pb,La)(Zr,Sn,Ti)O3 (PLZST) single crystals with their chemical composition located at the tetragonal antiferroelectric region are grown via the flux method in a PbO–PbF2–B2O3 mixture. Segregation of the Ti4+ component in the as-grown crystals is observed due to the strong affinity between the oxygen anion and Ti4+ ions. The critical electric field of the antiferroelectric to ferroelectric phase transition is determined to be about 0.5 kV mm−1. The electric field induced ferroelectric phase transforms back into the antiferroelectric phase at a depolarization temperature of 125 °C. Anisotropy of the harvested energy density and electrocaloric behaviors are achieved for the [100], [110] and [111]-oriented PLZST crystals. Based on the thermodynamic theory approach, all the abovementioned behaviors originate from the anisotropic total entropy change. Enhanced electrocaloric strength (0.3 K mm kV−1) and the harvested energy density of 0.62 J cm−3 are obtained in the [111]-oriented PLZST crystals. Our results demonstrate the competence of PLZST single crystals for cooling devices and pyroelectric energy harvesting and provide new opportunities to improve energy harvesting density and electrocaloric properties via the anisotropic structural layout, which make the PLZST crystals attractive for solid state cooling devices and energy conversion technologies.

In the present study, we designed a new system, Ba(Ti0.99-1.25xMn0.01Nbx)O3 (x = 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.25%, 1.5%), to improve the energy storage properties of BaTiO3–based ceramics. Here the acceptor dopant Mn was introduced to enhance the maximum polarization Pmax while reducing the remnant polarization Pr by inducing aging phenomena. The donor dopant Nb was added to make the hysteresis loop slimmer and slender through ‘softening’ effect. And the ratio of acceptor and donor was adjusted to modify the energy storage properties by modulating the shape of hysteresis loop. Results showed that an enhancement of 76% over pure BaTiO3 in recoverable energy storage density (Wrec) has been achieved in hybrid-doped samples, accompanied by a high energy conversion efficiency (η) up to 86%. Hereinto, donor-dominant samples doped with 1% Mn and 1.25% Nb exhibited the highest Wrec and η with excellent thermal stability. This study proved the feasibility of enhancing the energy storage properties by hybrid doping and may provide a new viewpoint for later studies.

(Pb1−1.5xLax)(Zr0.66Sn0.23Ti0.11)O3 (PLZST) (x = 0–0.024) ceramics were designed based on chemical composition modification and fabricated using the conventional solid-state method. Structural phase transition, thermal depolarization and pyroelectric properties of the PLZST system were investigated systematically. Phase structures of various chemical compositions in the PLZST system were discussed based on the electronegativity difference versus tolerance factor relationship phase diagram. Enhanced pyroelectric response with a value of 14.01 μC cm−2 K−1 was realized for the ceramics with x = 0.018, which is far larger than the previously reported values. The results indicated that there was a quadratic function relationship between the pyroelectric peak temperature (Tpeak) and composition (x): Tpeak = 182 + 404x − 3.0 × 105x2. The composition dependence of the wide range pyroelectric response over 19–185 °C was obtained by changing x from 0 to 0.024. Our results also reveal that the enhanced and wide temperature range pyroelectric properties of the composition-optimized PLZST system are of great significance to pyroelectric technology.

Large Bi2O3 single crystals over tens of microns were grown on amorphous glass substrates from an aqueous solution by using aerosol assisted chemical vapor deposition. The chelating agent not only stabilizes bismuth ions, but also modifies the kinetic crystal growth dynamics on substrates, resulting in well-developed parallelepiped-shaped single crystals. The crystal shape, size and its growth process are investigated with respect to both substrate temperature (Ts) and deposition time (td). Under low Ts, it is more like a layer-by-layer growth mechanism with well-defined crystal habit, crystal size and its distribution, while as increasing td, crystals grow mainly laterally along the substrate surface with nearly constant crystal thickness, which finally coalesce with each other without observable boundaries.

Three novel asymmetrical substituted phthalocyaninecobalt with nitro and (4-butyl formate) phenoxy, (4-propenyl-2-methoxy) phenoxy or (4-methyl formate) phenoxy as different bulky peripheral groups (CoPcNO2-OBFPh, CoPcNO2-OPMPh, CoPcNO2-OMFPh) are successfully developed and applied as dopant-free hole-transporting materials (HTMs) in perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The impact of the different peripheral groups on properties of these phthalocyanines is also investigated. For the modification of bulky aroxy peripheral groups, all of the three metallophthalocyanines exhibit good solubility, suitable hole mobility, high thermal stability, and appropriate HOMO and LUMO energy levels. The most effective device based on CoPcNO2-OBFPh demonstrates an impressive power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 13.91% under AM 1.5G standard conditions, while CoPcNO2-OPMPh and CoPcNO2-OMFPh devices exhibit relative lower PCE of 11.81% and 9.47% respectively. In addition, CoPcNO2-OBFPh-based PSC shows the best stability after 1008 h in air with 50% relative humidity at room temperature.

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