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Abstract Background Circular RNAs (circRNAs) can influence a variety of biological functions and act as a significant role in the progression and recurrence of glioblastoma (GBM). However, few coding circRNAs have been discovered in cancer, and their role in GBM is still unknown. The aim of this study was to identify coding circRNAs and explore their potential roles in the progression and recurrence of GBM. Methods CircSPECC1 was screened via circRNAs microarray of primary and recurrent GBM samples. To ascertain the characteristics and coding ability of circSPECC1, we conducted a number of experiments. Afterward, through in vivo and in vitro experiments, we investigated the biological functions of circSPECC1 and its encoded novel protein (SPECC1-415aa) in GBM, as well as their effects on TMZ sensitivity. Results By analyzing primary and recurrent GBM samples via circRNAs microarray, circSPECC1 was found to be a downregulated circRNA with coding potential in recurrent GBM compared with primary GBM. CircSPECC1 suppressed the proliferation, migration, invasion, and colony formation abilities of GBM cells by encoding a new protein known as SPECC1-415aa. CircSPECC1 restored TMZ sensitivity in TMZ-resistant GBM cells by encoding the new protein SPECC1-415aa. The m6A reader protein IGF2BP1 can bind to circSPECC1 to promote its expression and stability. Mechanistically, SPECC1-415aa can bind to ANXA2 and competitively inhibit the binding of ANXA2 to EGFR, thus resulting in the inhibition of the phosphorylation of EGFR (Tyr845) and its downstream pathway protein AKT (Ser473). In vivo experiments showed that the overexpression of circSPECC1 could combine with TMZ to treat TMZ-resistant GBM, thereby restoring the sensitivity of TMZ-resistant GBM to TMZ. Conclusions CircSPECC1 was downregulated in recurrent GBM compared with primary GBM. The m6A reader protein IGF2BP1 could promote the expression and stability of circSPECC1. The sequence of SPECC1-415aa, which is encoded by circSPECC1, can inhibit the binding of ANXA2 to EGFR by competitively binding to ANXA2 and inhibiting the phosphorylation of EGFR and AKT, thereby restoring the sensitivity of TMZ-resistant GBM cells to TMZ.

Abstract Glioblastoma (GBM) represents a primary malignant brain tumor. Temozolomide resistance is a major hurdle in GBM treatment. Proteins encoded by circular RNAs (circRNAs) can modulate the sensitivity of multiple tumor chemotherapies. However, the impact of circRNA-encoded proteins on GBM sensitivity to temozolomide remains unknown. Herein, we discover a circRNA (circCOPA) through the circRNA microarray profile in GBM samples, which can encode a novel 99 amino acid protein (COPA-99aa) through its internal ribosome entry site. Functionally, circCOPA overexpression in GBM cells inhibits cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro and growth in vivo. Rather than itself, circCOPA mainly functions as a suppressive effector by encoding COPA-99aa. Moreover, we reveal that circCOPA is downregulated in GBM tissues and high expression of circCOPA is related to a better prognosis in GBM patients. Mechanistically, a heteromer of SFPQ and NONO is required for double-strand DNA break repair. COPA-99aa disrupts the dimerization of NONO and SFPQ by separately binding with the NONO and SFPQ proteins, thus resulting in the inhibition of proliferation or invasion and the increase of temozolomide-induced DNA damage in GBM cells. Collectively, our data suggest that circCOPA mainly contributes to inhibiting the GBM malignant phenotype through its encoded COPA-99aa and that COPA-99aa increases temozolomide-induced DNA damage by interfering with the dimerization of NONO and SFPQ. Restoring circCOPA or COPA-99aa may increase the sensitivity of patients to temozolomide.

Abstract An efficient and facile water dissociation process plays a crucial role in enhancing the activity of alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Considering the intricate influence between interfacial water and intermediates in typical catalytic systems, meticulously engineered catalysts should be developed by modulating electron configurations and optimizing surface chemical bonds. Here, a high‐entropy double perovskite (HEDP) electrocatalyst La2(Co1/6Ni1/6Mg1/6Zn1/6Na1/6Li1/6)RuO6, achieving a reduced overpotential of 40.7 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and maintaining exemplary stability over 82 h in a 1 m KOH electrolyte is reported. Advanced spectral characterization and first‐principles calculations elucidate the electron transfer from Ru to Co and Ni positions, facilitated by alkali metal‐induced super‐exchange interaction in high‐entropy crystals. This significantly optimizes hydrogen adsorption energy and lowers the water decomposition barrier. Concurrently, the super‐exchange interaction enhances orbital hybridization and narrows the bandgap, thus improving catalytic efficiency and adsorption capacity while mitigating hysteresis‐driven proton transfer. The high‐entropy framework also ensures structural stability and longevity in alkaline environments. The work provides further insights into the formation mechanisms of HEDP and offers guidelines for discovering advanced, efficient hydrogen evolution catalysts through super‐exchange interaction.

Abstract Recently, topological insulators (TIs) KHgX (X = As, Sb, Bi) with hourglass-shaped dispersion have attracted great interest. Different from the TIs protected by either time-reversal or mirror crystal symmorphic symmetry tested in previous experiments, these materials were proposed as the first material class whose band topology relies on nonsymmorphic symmetries. As a result, KHgX shows many exotic properties, such as hourglass-shaped electronic channels and three-dimensional doubled quantum spin Hall effects. To date, high-pressure experimental studies on these nonsymmorphic TIs are minimal. Here, we carried out high-pressure electrical measurements up to 55 GPa, together with high-pressure X-ray diffraction measurements and high-pressure structure prediction on KHgAs. We found a pressure-induced semiconductor-metal transition between ~16 and 20 GPa, followed by the appearance of superconductivity with a T c of ~3.5 K at approximately 21 GPa. The superconducting transition temperature was enhanced to a maximum of ~6.6 K at 31.8 GPa and then slowly decreased until 55 GPa. Furthermore, three high-pressure phases within 55 GPa were observed, and their crystal structures were established. Our results showed the high-pressure phase diagram of KHgAs and determined the pressure-induced superconductivity in nonsymmorphic TIs. Thus, our study can be used to facilitate further research on superconductivity and topologically nontrivial features protected by nonsymmorphic symmetries.

Abstract Background Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a major subtype of breast cancer, with limited therapeutic drugs in clinical. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is reported to be overexpressed in various TNBC cells. Cantharidin is an effective ingredient in many clinical traditional Chinese medicine preparations, such as Delisheng injection, Aidi injection, Disodium cantharidinate and vitamin B6 injection. Previous studies showed that cantharidin had satisfactory pharmacological activity on a variety of tumors. In this study, we aimed to study the therapeutic potential of cantharidin for TNBC treatment by targeting EGFR, and expound its novel regulator miR-607. Methods The effect of cantharidin on breast cancer in vivo was evaluated by 4T1 mice model. Then the effects of cantharidin on TNBC cells was assessed by the MTT, colony formation, and AnnexinV-PE/7AAD staining. Cantharidin acts on EGFR were verified using the cell membrane chromatography, RT-PCR, Western blotting, MTT, and so on. Mechanistic studies were explored by dual-luciferase report assay, RT-PCR, western blotting, and immunofluorescence staining assay. Results Cantharidin inhibited TNBC cell growth and induce apoptosis by targeting EGFR. miR-607 was a novel EGFR regulator and exhibited suppressive functions on TNBC cell behaviors. Mechanistic study showed that cantharidin blocked the downstream PI3K/AKT/mTOR and ERK/MAPK signaling pathway. Conclusion Our results revealed that cantharidin may be served as a potential candidate for TNBC treatment by miR-607-mediated downregulation of EGFR. Graphical Abstract

Grapevine red blotch virus (GRBV) negatively affects the composition of grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) berries by reducing total soluble solids and anthocyanins, leading to economic losses for grape producers. Negative effects of GRBV were suspected to be due to impeded carbon translocation from leaves to fruit which limits sugar and flavonoid accumulation in berries. A two-year trial was conducted to determine whether an increase in source: sink ratio may affect sugar allocation and mitigate the effects of GRBV on Cabernet-Sauvignon plants. Experimental design was factorial (2 by 2) with healthy plants that did not have the virus (GRBV (-)) and plants having GRBV (GRBV (+)) and plants were subjected either untreated (UNT) or cluster thinned down to 10 clusters (CT). Effects of cluster thinning and virus status on leaf and shoot total soluble sugars (TSS), plant water status, leaf gas exchange, berry primary and secondary metabolites, and yield components were measured. The TSS in leaves began to accumulate around véraison. In shoot sap, GRBV(-) plants had greater concentration in TSS than GRBV(+) plants. The presence of disease improved plant water status increasing the stem water potential and increasing berry mass. However, juice total soluble solids were consistently lower in GRBV(+) plants despite increasing source: sink ratio by 3× with cluster removal. Likewise, GRBV(+) plants produced berries with lower anthocyanin content at harvest regardless of CT in both years. Our results suggest that GRBV infection severally impeded carbohydrate translocation out of the leaves, and in contrast to healthy plants reducing the number of clusters does not induce a reconcentration of sugars in the remaining clusters.

Conservation and efficient use of water resources are key to combating global climate change. The development of low-carbon industries plays an important role in promoting the protection of water resources. Based on this, this paper combines the measures of green production and consumption, and uses the concept of low-carbon packaging design to study the impact of water resource protection. First of all, this paper studies the impact of the packaging industry on the ecological environment, and combines the concept of global low-carbon development to implement a low-carbon packaging industry structure. Secondly, adhering to the concept of sustainable development, from green packaging design to green packaging consumption, this paper uses the water resources protection analysis impact model to empirically analyze the impact of the low-carbon packaging industry on water resources protection. The experimental results showed that after the implementation of the low-carbon packaging industry structure model in Zhejiang Province, China, the impact efficiency of the region on water resources was as high as 90%, and the sewage discharge showed a decreasing and stable trend, sewage discharge in the light industrial zone was reduced from 120,000 to 80,000 cubic meters, and two water pollutants, chemical oxygen demand (COD) and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), were reduced by 4,600 and 2,200 tons respectively. Studies have shown that low-carbon packaging design can reduce carbon emissions from packaging production to a certain extent and reduce pollutant emissions, thereby improving the efficiency of water resource protection and management.

The spatial variability in vineyard soil might negatively affect wine composition, leading to inhomogeneous flavonoid composition and aromatic profiles. In this study, we investigated the spatial variability in wine chemical composition in a Cabernet Sauvignon (Vitis vinifera L.) vineyard in 2019 and 2020. Because of the tight relationships with soil profiles, mid-day stem water potential integrals (Ψstem Int) were used to delineate the vineyard into two zones, including Zone 1 with relatively higher water stress and Zone 2 with relatively lower water stress. Wine from Zone 2 generally had more anthocyanins in 2019. In 2020, Zone 1 had more anthocyanins and flavonols. Zone 2 had more proanthocyanidin extension and terminal subunits as well as total proanthocyanidins in 2020. According to the Principal Component Analyses (PCA) for berry and wine chemical composition, the two zones were significantly different in the studied wine aromatic compounds. In conclusion, this study provides evidence of the possibility of managing the spatial variability of both wine flavonoid composition and aromatic profiles through connecting vineyard soil variability to grapevine season-long water status.

Strain engineering is effective to improve the carrier mobility of semiconductor materials. Here, the authors demonstrate lattice strain-induced mobility enhancement of an azobenzene compound under photoisomerization and its application in large-scale flexible organic field-effect transistors.

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of annual or perennial cover crops and tillage regimes on whole grapevine physiology and berry composition. We studied the interactive effects of tillage and cover crops on grapevine water status, leaf gas exchange, components of yield, berry composition and resulting water footprint in two contrasting production regions (Fresno County-hot climate and Napa County-warm climate) of California. The treatments included a perennial grass (PG), resident vegetation (RV), and an annual grass (AG) grown under conventional tillage (CT) and no-till (NT) settings. Neither cover crop nor tillage affected grapevine leaf gas exchange. However, at the Napa County vineyard, NT detrimentally affected grapevine water status compared to CT. Grapevine mineral nutrition, when assessed during anthesis revealed no effects of cover cropping in either year or at either location. Cover crop type did not affect yield components or berry composition, however CT increased titratable acidity (TA) at both sites. The water footprint of vineyards at either location was not affected by cover crops or tillage. Our results provided evidence that both in hot and warm climate vineyards cover cropping had negligible beneficial effects on grapevine physiology, mineral nutrition or productivity with no detrimental effects on vineyard water footprint; tillage was beneficial in younger vineyards to improve plant water status in semi-arid regions.

IntroductionOverhead photoselective shade films installed in vineyards improve berry composition in hot grape-growing regions. The aim of the study was to evaluate the flavonoid and aroma profiles and composition of wines from Cabernet Sauvignon grapes (Vitis vinifera L.) treated with partial solar radiation exclusion.MethodsExperimental design consisted in a randomized experiment with four shade films (D1, D3, D4, D5) with differing solar radiation spectra transmittance and compared to an uncovered control (C0) performed over two seasons (2021 and 2022) in Oakville (CA, USA). Berries were collected by hand at harvest and individual vinifications for each treatment and season were conducted in triplicates. Then, wine chemical composition, flavonoid and aromatic profiles were analyzed.ResultsThe wines from D4 treatment had greater color intensity and total phenolic index due to co-pigmentation with anthocyanins. Shade film wines D5 and D1 from the 2020 vintage demonstrated increased total anthocyanins in the hotter of the two experimental years. In 2021, reduced cluster temperatures optimized total anthocyanins in D4 wines. Reduced cluster temperatures modulated anthocyanin acylation, methylation and hydroxylation in shade film wines. Volatile aroma composition was analyzed using gas chromatography mass spectroscopy (GCMS) and D4 wines exhibited a more fruity and pleasant aroma profile than C0 wines.DiscussionResults provided evidence that partial solar radiation exclusion in the vineyard using overhead shade films directly improved flavonoid and aroma profiles of resultant wines under hot vintage conditions, providing a tool for combatting air temperatures and warmer growing conditions associated with climate change.

Globally, wine grape vineyards cover approximately 7.4 M ha. The potential for carbon (C) storage in vineyards is of great interest to offset greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change. Sustainable soil management practices such as cover crop adoption and reduced tillage may contribute to soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration. However, site-specific factors such as soil texture, other soil physicochemical properties, and climate largely influence the range and rate to which SOC may be stored. To measure the potential for C storage in vineyards under varying sustainable soil management practices, we calculated the net ecosystem carbon balance (NECB) of three cover crops [perennial grass (Poa bulbosa hybrid cv. Oakville Blue); annual grass (barley, Hordeum vulgare); resident vegetation (natural weed population)] under conventional tillage (CT) and no-till (NT) management. Results provided evidence that vineyards served as C sinks. In sandy soils, the type of cover crop and tillage may be of little influence on the NECB. While in finer-textured soils, tillage reduced the NECB and higher biomass-producing cover crops enhanced the overall C storage potential of the vineyard agroecosystem. Overall, our results revealed that site characteristics, namely, soil texture and climate, were key determinants of the C storage potential of vineyards in Mediterranean climates such as those found in coastal and inland California wine grape production regions.

Grape growing regions are facing constant warming of the growing season temperature as well as limitations on ground water pumping used for irrigating to overcome water deficits. Trellis systems are utilized to optimize grapevine production, physiology, and berry chemistry. This study aimed to compare 6 trellis systems with 3 levels of applied water amounts based on different replacements of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) in two consecutive seasons. The treatments included a vertical shoot position (VSP), two modified VSPs (VSP60 and VSP80), a single high wire (SH), a high quadrilateral (HQ), and a Guyot pruned VSP (GY) combined with 25%, 50%, and 100% ETc water replacement. The SH had greater yields, whereas HQ was slower to reach full production potential. At harvest in both years, the accumulation of anthocyanin derivatives was enhanced in SH, whereas VSPs decreased them. As crown porosity increased (mostly VSPs), berry flavonol concentration and likewise molar % of quercetin in berries increased. Conversely, as leaf area increased, total flavonol concentration and molar % of quercetin decreased, indicating a preferential arrangement of leaf area along the canopy for overexposure of grape berry with VSP types. The irrigation treatments revealed linear trends for components of yield, where greater applied water resulted in larger berry size and likewise greater yield. 25% ETc was able to increase berry anthocyanin and flavonol concentrations. Overall, this study evidenced the efficiency of trellis systems for optimizing production and berry composition in Californian climate, also, the feasibility of using flavonols as the indicator of canopy architecture.

In this study, an electrostatic force-driven on-chip tester consisting of a mass with four guided cantilever beams was employed to extract the process-related bending stiffness and piezoresistive coefficient in-situ for the first time. The tester was manufactured using the standard bulk silicon piezoresistance process of Peking University, and was tested on-chip without additional handling. In order to reduce the deviation from process effects, the process-related bending stiffness was first extracted as an intermediate value, namely, 3590.74 N/m, which is 1.66% lower than the theoretical value. Then, the value was used to extract the piezoresistive coefficient using a finite element method (FEM) simulation. The extracted piezoresistive coefficient was 9.851 × 10−10 Pa−1, which essentially matched the average piezoresistive coefficient of the computational model based on the doping profile we first proposed. Compared with traditional extraction methods, such as the four-point bending method, this test method is on-chip, achieving automatic loading and precise control of the driving force, so it has high reliability and repeatability. Because the tester is manufactured together with the MEMS device, it has the potential to be used for process quality evaluation and monitoring on MEMS sensor production lines.

PbFeO3 is part of a family of lead based perovskites with many intriguing properties; however, difficulties in synthesis have hampered investigation. Here, the authors present a detailed study of the structure of PbFeO3 observing unique charge ordering and spin orientation among the constituent ions.

There are few reports of ferroelectricity due to symmetry breaking transition in A-site-ordered quadruple perovskites. Here, the authors find one with phase transition from a high-temperature centrosymmetric paraelectric phase to a low-temperature non-centrosymmetric ferroelectric phase in a high pressure synthesized compound.

In this paper, a sensitive biomimetic enzyme-linked immunoassay (BELISA) method based on an Au@Pt@Au composite nanozyme label was developed for histamine (HA) detection. A molecular imprinted polymer prepared directly on the 96-well plate served as a biomimetic antibody. A BELISA method was developed for HA standard solutions at concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 100.00 mg/L. Under optimal conditions, the novel BELISA method had a low limit of detection (0.069 mg/L) and high sensitivity (7.20 mg/L). The HA spiked in yellow rice wine and liqueur samples were detected by this BELISA method with the recoveries ranging from 84.28% to 108.82%. There was no significant difference of the results between the BELISA method and HPLC for the detection of HA in the red and white grape wine samples.

Wine grape production is challenged by forecasted increases in air temperature and droughts due to climate change and photoselective overhead shade films are promising tools in hot viticulture areas to overcome climate change related factors. The aim of this study was to evaluate the vulnerability of ‘Cabernet Sauvignon’ grape berries to solar radiation overexposure, optimize shade film use for preserving berry composition. An experiment was conducted for two years with four shade films (D1, D3, D4, D5) with differing solar radiation spectra transmittance and compared to an uncovered control (C0). Integrals for leaf gas exchange and mid-day stem water potential were unaffected by the shade films in both years. At harvest, berry primary metabolites were not affected by treatments applied in either year. Despite precipitation exclusion during the dormant seasons in shaded treatments, and cluster zone temperatures reaching 58°C in C0, yield was not affected. Berry skin anthocyanin and flavonol composition and content were measured by C18 reversed-phase HPLC. In 2020, total skin anthocyanins (mg·berry-1) in the shaded treatments were 27% greater than C0 during berry ripening and at harvest. Conversely, flavonol content in 2020 decreased in partially shaded grapevines compared to C0. Berry flavonoid content in 2021 increased until harvest while flavonol degradation was apparent from veraison to harvest in 2020 across partially shaded and control grapevines. Untreated control showed lower di- to tri-hydroxylated flavonol ratios closer to harvest. Our results provided evidence that overhead partial shading of vineyards mitigate anthocyanin degradation by reducing cluster zone temperatures and is a useful tool in combatting climate change in hot climate regions.

We propose a novel scheme for fabricating high-accuracy optical fiber delay lines (OFDLs). The fabrication system integrates a self-designed optical fiber cutting device and a high-accuracy fiber length measurement module based on optical frequency domain reflectometry. The optical fiber cutting device can cleave optical fibers to a specific length with the help of the motorized stage. The accuracy of fiber-cutting was determined by the positional accuracy of the motorized stage, which can reach several microns or even lower. This integrated design significantly reduces the errors and uncertainties introduced by fiber-cutting. To test, a set of OFDLs of a certain length was fabricated by this system. The deviation from the desired fiber length was kept below 50 μm, thus proving high fabrication accuracy and repeatability.

A simplified model that calculates the deflagration pressure–time curves of a hydrogen explosion was proposed. The deflagration parameters (pressure peak, duration, deflagration index, and impulse) of hydrogen–air mixtures with different hydrogen concentrations were experimentally investigated. The results show that the pressure curves calculated by the model are consistent with experimental data pertaining to a methane and hydrogen explosion. By comparison, the pressure peak and deflagration index are found to be influenced by the aspect ratio and surface area of vessels. The impulse and explosion times at fuel-lean hydrogen concentrations are greater than those at fuel-rich concentrations. When the hydrogen concentration is between 34 vol.% and 18 vol.%, the greatest explosion damage effect is formed by both the overpressure and the impulse, which should be considered for hydrogen explosion safety design in industrial production.

In this study, a sensitive capillary electrophoresis (CE) method based on molecularly imprinted solid-phase extraction (MISPE) was proposed to determine histamine in foods. A molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) synthesized by bulk polymerization was used as the MISPE adsorbent for the selective extraction of histamine. Under the optimal conditions, the MISPE-CE method possessed good linearity for histamine detection in the concentration range of 0.1–100.0 μg/L. The limit of detection and limit of quantification of the method were calculated to be 0.087 μg/L and 0.29 μg/L, respectively. The histamine in spiked rice vinegar and liquor samples were detected by the developed method with recoveries of 92.63–111.00%. The histamine contents in fish, prawn, pork, chicken breast and soy sauce samples were determined using the developed method and a high-performance liquid chromatography method, with no significant difference found between the two methods.

Climate change models predict lower precipitation and higher air temperatures that will negatively affect viticultural regions. Irrigation of vineyards will be crucial for mitigating abiotic stress during the growing season. However, the environmental impact of irrigation requires consideration for ensuring its sustainability in the future. We evaluated the standard irrigation practices on grapevine water use efficiency, berry flavonoid composition, vineyard water footprint, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi-grapevine symbiosis in two seasons with contrasting amounts of precipitation. The irrigation treatments consisted of weekly replacement of 25, 50, and 100% of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) during two growing seasons. Irrigation in grapevine vineyards mitigated the water scarcity when precipitation during the dormant season was not sufficient. The results provided field data supporting that despite the low rainfall recorded in one of the seasons, increasing the amount of irrigation was not advised, and replacing 50% ETc was sufficient. In this treatment, berry composition was improved with increased contents of total soluble solids, anthocyanins, and flavonols, and a stable flavonoid profile without an economic decrease in yield. In addition, with 50% ETc, the mycorrhizal symbiosis was not compromised and water resources were not highly impacted. Altogether, our results provide fundamental knowledge for viticulturists to design an appropriate irrigation schedule under the future warming scenarios with minimal environmental impact in semi-arid regions facing warming trends.

Proximal sensing is used in vineyards to precisely monitor and manage spatial and temporal variability while reducing laborious and repetitive measurements. Soil electrical conductivity (EC) and canopy vegetation indexes are two frequently assessed variables with off-the-shelf sensors. In this study, the ecophysiological variability of a commercial vineyard comprising three varieties in three blocks, Cabernet-Sauvignon (CS), Cabernet franc (CF), and Petit Verdot (PV), was investigated. Random sampling was used to continuously assess spatial variability in plant physiology and berry composition. Soil EC and NDVI were also continuously monitored throughout the season. There was a noticeable spatial pattern in the normalised differential vegetation index (NDVI) in the vineyard and soil EC. The spatial pattern of NDVI can be partially elucidated by the season-long stem water potential (Ψstem), which was lowest in the CS block. However, leaf photosynthesis did not match this spatial pattern. The spatial distribution of NDVI and soil EC did not satisfactorily explain the spatial variations in yield components and berry chemistry. Principal component analyses (PCA) were performed resulting in a clear discrimination of each of the three cultivars. Soil EC showed a significant relationship with Ψstem integrals, total skin anthocyanins and tri- to di-hydroxylated flavonoids. In each cultivar block, soil EC showed some capability to be related to plant water status, and NDVI showed a relationship with yield. Overall, this study provided evidence of the spatial variability of grapevine physiology in a commercial vineyard with three cultivars. Also, it showed that the cultivar effect and uniform crop level management can diminish the efficiency of proximal sensing, thus weakening the relationship of soil and canopy indexes with plant physiology and berry chemistry. Nonetheless, our study showed that it is possible to apply temporal proximal sensing methods when assessing plant water status, primary metabolism, yield and berry secondary metabolism, which give an indication of the possibility of managing the spatial variability of both plant physiology and berry chemistry.

Majority of viticulture regions are located in mid-latitudes characterized by weather variability and stressful environments relying on irrigation for mitigating environmental stress during the growing season and to ensure a profitable yield. The aim of this study was to characterize the response of grapevine (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Cabernet Sauvignon) to different applied water amounts based on the replacement of fractions of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) during two growing seasons with contrasting precipitation patterns. The experiment consisted of three irrigation treatments based on the weekly replacement of 25, 50, and 100% of ETc. Grapevine stem water potential decreased during the growing season reaching its lowest value (-1.5 and -1.2 MPa, respectively) at harvest in the more stressed vines (25 and 50% ETc). Leaf gas exchange variables were measured during the two seasons and 100% ETc had the highest rates of photosynthesis and stomatal conductance and better instantaneous water use efficiency, also resulting in higher leaf chlorophyll and carotenoid content. Mineral nutrient content for nitrogen and potassium increased linearly with the increase in applied water. At harvest, no differences were observed in the number of clusters per vine; however, the 25% ETc had the lowest berry size and yield per vine with no difference in sugar content of berry. Conversely, sugar allocation to reserve organs was highly affected by applied water leading to different shoot to root biomass partitioning, where shoot:root ratio, leaf non-structural carbohydrates, and photosynthetic pigments increased with greater applied water. Likewise sucrose:N ratio and root non-structural carbohydrates decreased with the lower applied water. Altogether, carbon allocation between the source and sink organs likely controlled the response of grapevines to water deficits in a hot climate, and replacing 50% ETc was sufficient to sustain the grapevine performance given the enhancement of sugar transport, which could slow down the detrimental effect of water deficits on yield.

Several factors may affect the success of a replanting vineyard. Given the current environmental conditions, an optimized irrigation schedule would still be one of the most desirable tools to improve crop productivity and fruit quality. On the other hand, the symbiosis of grapevines with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) is a key component of the vineyard production systems improving the vine growth, nutrient uptake, and berry quality. The aim of this study was to characterize the response of Merlot grapevines to AMF inoculation and two different irrigation amounts in their first productive year. The experiment was conducted on 2-year Merlot grapevines inoculated with AMF (I) or not-inoculated (NI) and subjected to two irrigation amounts, full irrigated (FI), where the amount of water was enough to maintain expansive growth and half irrigated (HI) where plants received the half of the amount of water of FI plants. Water status, gas exchange parameters, growth, mineral content, berry composition, and mycorrhizal colonization were monitored through the season. AMF inoculation improved the grapevine vegetative growth, water status, and photosynthetic activity, especially when vines were subjected to HI irrigation; however, no effect was observed on the leaf mineral content, must pH, total soluble solids, or total acidity. The main effects were observed on the flavonoid composition of berry skins at harvest. Irrigation amounts and mycorrhizal inoculation modified cyanidin and peonidin derivatives whereas flavonol composition was mainly affected by irrigation treatments. A strong relationship between the mycorrhizal colonization rate of roots and total quercetins, cyanidins, and peonidins was found. Findings support the use of a mycorrhizal inoculum and a better water management in a hyper-arid growing season; however, these results may be affected by edaphoclimatic characteristics and living microbiota in vineyard soils, which should be taken into account before making the decision of inoculating the vineyard.

In recent years, cell membrane drug delivery systems have received increasing attention. However, drug-loaded membrane delivery systems targeting therapy in myocardial ischemia–reperfusion injury (MIRI) have been relatively rarely studied. The purpose of this study was to explore the protective effect of platelet-membrane-encapsulated Carvedilol on MIRI. We extracted platelets from the blood of adult SD rats and prepared platelet membrane vesicles (PMVs). Carvedilol, a nonselective β-blocker, was encapsulated into the PMVs. In order to determine the best encapsulation rate and drug-loading rate, three different concentrations of Carvedilol in low, medium, and high amounts were fused to the PMVs in different volume ratios (drugs/PMVs at 2:1, 1:1, 1:2, and 4:1) for determining the optimum concentration and volume ratio. By comparing other delivery methods, including abdominal injection and intravenous administration, the efficacy of PMVs-encapsulated drug-targeted delivery treatment was observed. The PMVs have the ability to target ischemic-damaged myocardial tissue, and the concentration and volume ratio at the optimum encapsulation rate and the drug-loading rate are 0.5 mg and 1:1. We verified that PMVs@Carvedilol had better therapeutic effects compared to other treatment groups, and immunofluorescence observation showed a significant improvement in the apoptosis indicators and infarction area of myocardial cells. Targeted administration of PMVs@Carvedilol may be a promising treatment for myocardial reperfusion injury, as it significantly improves postinjury cardiac function and increases drug utilization compared to other delivery methods.

In this paper, we propose a bistable shock structure based on the thermal actuation principle, which overcomes the response time limitation of heating and cooling in typical thermal actuators and enables a rapid release of energy. Thus, force with a steep rising edge can be applied on a target. Using a bistable shock structure to generate on-chip shock loads, we propose an automated and resettable method for shock testing of microstructures. We characterize the microscale shock process by high-speed camera and finite element simulation (FEM). The method can simulate the dynamic response of key structures in MEMS devices under mechanical shock conditions, and therefore, can be used to evaluate shock fracture strength of microstructures.

Carbon stable isotope composition of berry must at harvest (δ13C) is an integrated assessment of plant water status during grape (Vitis vinifera L.) berry ripening. Measurement of δ13C of grape juice is proposed as an alternative to traditional measurements of water status to capture the spatial variability of physiological response at the vineyard scale, i.e., zoning. We performed samplings at four different locations in California, United States, with three different cultivars of table and wine grapes (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Crimson-Seedless). Leaf physiology (photosynthesis, AN, stomatal conductance, gs) and stem water potentials (Ψstem) were routinely measured. The δ13C was measured at harvest and strong relationships were found between Ψstem (R2 = 0.71), stomatal conductance (R2 = 0.71), net carbon assimilation (R2 = 0.59) and WUEi (R2 = 0.53). The role of leaf nitrogen on the signal was assessed by evaluating relationships between leaf nitrogen and WUEi (R2 = 0.54), Ci/Ca (R2 = 0.51), δ13C (R2 = 0.44), and Ψstem (R2 = 0.37). Although nitrogen can be among the environmental factors able to affect the δ13C signal, this difference is only observable when variability in N is very large, by pooling different vineyards/varieties, but not at the within-vineyard scale. The utility of δ13C was further tested and measured on grape berries sampled on an equidistant grid in a 3.5 ha vineyard where Ψstem was also measured throughout the field season and used to delineate management zones. Physiological measurements and grape composition were correlated to soil electrical resistivity and satellite-derived vegetation index. The two management zones obtained by δ13C or Ψstem were spatially similar at 67% and allowed to separate the harvest in two pools having statistically different grape composition (soluble solids, organic acids, and anthocyanin profiles). Zoning by δ13C performed as well as zoning by Ψstem to separate grape phenolic composition, e.g., for selective harvest. Our results provided evidence that δ13C of grape must is a reliable and repeatable assessor of plant water status and gas exchange in vineyard systems that are crucial for zoning vineyards, even when irrigated, and for ground-truthing sensor maps in precision viticulture.

The relationships between differences in plant water status, induced by spatial variability in soil texture, and the changes in berry and wine composition were investigated in an irrigated Cabernet Sauvignon (Vitis vinefera L.) vineyard for 2 years. A stratified and an equidistant grid were overlaid on the vineyard to characterize the soil texture by proximal sensing, soil sampling, and grapevine physiological and berry chemical development. Based on the mid-day stem water potential (Ψstem) integrals, the vineyard was divided into two functional homogenous zones: Zone 1 with higher water stress and Zone 2 with lower water. Zone 1 consistently had lower Ψstem, net carbon assimilation, and stomatal conductance in both years. Berry weight and titratable acidity were lower in Zone 1 at harvest. Zone 2 reached 26 and 24°Bx total soluble solids (TSS) at harvest in Years 1 and 2, respectively, with higher TSS values of 30 and 27°Bx in Zone 1. Ravaz index did not vary spatially. Fruits were harvested differentially in both years and vinified separately from the two zones. In Year 1, all berry skin anthocyanin derivatives, tri-, di- hydroxylated, and total anthocyanins concentrations were higher in Zone 2. However, in Year 2, only malvidin, tri-hydroxylated, and total anthocyanins were higher in Zone 1. There were no differences in wine flavonoids in Year 2 when harvest commenced earlier. In both years, Ψstem, berry weight, and TSS were directly related to soil bulk electrical conductivity (EC). Our results indicated vineyard variability stemmed from soil texture that affected long-term plant water status which does not affect spatial variability of Ravaz Index. In conclusion, our work provides fundamental knowledge about the applicability of soil bulk EC sensing in the vineyards, and its potential directional utilization by connecting proximal soil sensing to spatial distribution of whole-plant physiological performance together with berry and wine chemistry.

The majority of the wine grapes are grown in Mediterranean climates, where water is the determining factor for grapevine physiology and berry chemistry. At the vineyard scale, plant water status is variable due to the variability in many environmental factors. In this study, we investigated the ecophysiological variability of an irrigated Cabernet Sauvignon (Vitis vinifera L.) vineyard. We used equidistant grid sampling to assess the spatial variations of the plants and soil, including plant water status by stem water potential (Ψstem), leaf gas exchange, and on-site soil analysis. We also measured soil electrical conductivity (EC) by proximal sensing at two depths [0.75 – 1.5 m (sub soil); 0 – 0.75 m (top soil)]. Ψstem integrals were calculated to represent the season-long plant water status. On the base of realized Ψstem integrals, the vineyard was delineated into two functional homogeneous zones (fHZs) with one severely water stressed zone and one moderately water stressed zone. Sub soil EC was directly related to Ψstem (r2 = 0.56) and gs (r2 = 0.39) when the soil was proximally sensed at harvest in 2018. Although the same trend was evident in 2019 we could not deduce a direct relationship. The fruits from the two fHZs were harvested differentially. Comparing the two fHZs, there was no significant difference in juice total soluble solids or pH. The severely water stressed zone showed significantly higher malvidin and total anthocyanins on a dry skin weight basis, but lower peonidin, malvidin on a per berry basis in 2018. In 2019, there were more quercetin and total flavonols per berry in the severely water stressed zone. Overall, this study provided fundamental knowledge of the viability of managing spatial variability by delineating vineyard into distinct zones based on plant water status, and the potentiality of proximally sensed soil EC in the spatial assessment of plant water status and the supporting of vineyard management.

Grapevine productivity, and berry and wine flavonoid concentration, depend on the interactions of cultivar, environment, and applied cultural practices. We characterized the effects that mechanical leaf removal and irrigation treatments had on the flavonoid concentration of ‘Merlot’ (Vitis vinifera, L.) grape berries and wines in a hot climate over two growing seasons with contrasting precipitation patterns. Leaves were removed by machine, either at prebloom (PBLR), or at post-fruit-set (PFLR), or not removed (control) and irrigation was either applied as sustained deficit irrigation (SDI) at 0.8 of crop evapotranspiration (ETc) from budbreak to fruit set, or regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) at 0.8 ETc from bud break to fruit set, 0.5 ETc from fruit set to veraison, and 0.8 ETc from veraison to harvest, of ETc In 2014, PFLR reduced the leaf area index (LAI) compared to control. The RDI decreased season-long leaf water potential (ΨInt) compared to SDI. However, in 2015, none of the treatments affected LAI or ΨInt. In 2014, berry flavonoid concentrations were reduced by PBLR as well as SDI. SDI increased the flavonoid concentrations in wine, and PFLR increased some wine flavonols in one season. No factor affected the concentrations of wine proanthocyanidins or mean degree of polymerization. Thus, mechanical PFLR and RDI may increase berry flavonoid accumulation without yield reduction, in red wine grapes cultivars grown in hot climates when precipitation after bud break is lacking. However, spring precipitation may influence the effectiveness of these practices as evidenced by this work in a changing climate.

Vineyard-living microbiota affect grapevine health and adaptation to changing environments and determine the biological quality of soils that strongly influence wine quality. However, their abundance and interactions may be affected by vineyard management. The present study was conducted to assess whether the vineyard soil microbiome was altered by the use of biostimulants (arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inoculation vs. non-inoculated) and/or irrigation management (fully irrigated vs. half irrigated). Bacterial and fungal communities in vineyard soils were shaped by both time course and soil management (i.e., the use of biostimulants and irrigation). Regarding alpha diversity, fungal communities were more responsive to treatments, whereas changes in beta diversity were mainly recorded in the bacterial communities. Edaphic factors rarely influence bacterial and fungal communities. Microbial network analyses suggested that the bacterial associations were weaker than the fungal ones under half irrigation and that the inoculation with AMF led to the increase in positive associations between vineyard-soil-living microbes. Altogether, the results highlight the need for more studies on the effect of management practices, especially the addition of AMF on cropping systems, to fully understand the factors that drive their variability, strengthen beneficial microbial networks, and achieve better soil quality, which will improve crop performance.

In this paper, the effect of surface ultrasonic rolling treatment (SURT) on surface properties of T4003 cold metal transfer (CMT) welded joints was studied. Surface topography and microstructure changes of the welded joint surface before and after SURT were observed by optical microscope and scanning electron microscope. The hardness and residual stress distribution of welded joint were measured by a microhardness tester and X-ray diffractometer. The change of corrosion resistance of welded joints was studied by electrochemical polarization curve measurement. The results show that surface roughness (Ra) of the weld zone, heat affect zone (HAZ), and base metal after SURT was reduced to 0.320 μm, 0.156 μm, and 0.227 μm, respectively, and surface morphology became smooth. The plastic deformation layer and working hardening layer were formed at the welded joint. The degree of plastic deformation of the weld zone was more serious than that in the base metal, and grains in weld zone was obviously refined. The thickness of plastic deformation layer was about 100 μm. The surface hardness in the weld zone was highest, which is about 420 HV. The refinement of grains and the increase of surface hardness can improve the fatigue life of welded joint. After SURT, the residual stress in the welded joint changes from residual tensile stress to residual compressive stress, which can also improve fatigue life of the welded joint. Surface corrosion resistance of welded joints after SURT was improved due to smooth surface and the formation of fine grains layer.

A series of polycrystalline samples of a new diluted magnetic semiconductor (DMS) (Ba,K)(Zn,Mn)2Sb2 has been synthesized and systematically studied. The parent phase is the so-called “Zintl compound” BaZn2Sb2, a week-degenerate semiconductor with a narrow band gap of 0.2 eV. In (Ba,K)(Zn,Mn)2Sb2, the charge is doped by (Ba,K) substitution while the spin is independently doped by (Zn,Mn) substitution. (Ba,K)(Zn,Mn)2Sb2 and analogue (Ba,K)(Zn,Mn)2As2 have comparable narrow band gaps, carrier and spin concentrations. However, the former establishes a short-range spin-glass order at a very low temperature (2Sb2 to be a touchstone for DMS theoretical models.

In this paper, a novel approach to achieving a wideband tunable dual-passband microwave photonic filter (MPF) is proposed based on optical-injected distributed feedback (DFB) semiconductor lasers and a dual-output Mach–Zehnder modulator (DOMZM). The fundamental concepts for realizing the MPF are the wavelength-selective amplification effect and the period-one oscillation state under optically injected DFB lasers. These effects provide a widely tunable range of center frequency, along with high flexibility and low insertion loss. The proposed MPF is experimentally demonstrated, showing that the dual-passband center frequency in the MPF can be tuned independently from 19 to 37 GHz by adjusting the detuning frequency and injection ratio. Meanwhile, the insertion loss of the system is about 15 dB when there is no optical or electrical amplifier in the MPF link. The out-of-band suppression ratio of the MPF is more than 20 dB, which can be improved by adjusting the power of the two optical signals.

The crystal structure of Ca2CuO2Cl2, dicalcium oxidocuprate(II) dichloride, was redetermined on the basis of single-crystal X-ray diffraction data using a laboratory Mo anode. Previous structure determinations based on single-crystal X-ray data [Grande & Müller-Buschbaum (1977). Z. Anorg. Allg. Chem. 429, 88–90], powder X-ray diffraction data [Yamada et al. (2005). Phys. Rev. B, 72, 224503–1–5] or neutron diffraction data [Argyriou et al. (1995). Phys. Rev. B, 51, 8434–8437] were confirmed. The present study allowed the refinement of anisotropic displacement parameters for all crystallographic sites, accompanied with higher accuracy and precision for bond lengths and angles. The layered title compound comprises of [CuO4] square-planar and [CaO4Cl4] square-antiprismatic coordination polyhedra, and is the undoped parent compound of a high-temperature superconducting cuprate.

Importance. Acupuncture can help reduce unpleasant side effects associated with endocrine therapy for breast cancer. Nevertheless, comprehensive evaluation of current evidence from randomized controlled trials(RCTs) is lacking. Objective. To estimate the efficacy of acupuncture for the reduction of hormone therapy-related side effects in breast cancer patients. Evidence review. RCTs of acupuncture in breast cancer patients that examined reductions in hormone therapy–related side effects were retrieved from PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Ovid MEDLINE, and Cochrane Library databases through April 2016. The quality of the included studies was evaluated according to the 5.2 Cochrane Handbook standards, and CONSORT and STRICTA (Revised Standards for Reporting Interventions in Clinical Trials of Acupuncture) statements. Intervention . Interventions included conventional acupuncture treatment compared with no treatment, placebo, or conventional pharmaceutical medication. Major outcome measures were the alleviation of frequency and symptoms and the presence of hormone therapy–related side effects. Findings/Results. A total of 17 RCTs, including a total of 810 breast cancer patients were examined. The methodological quality of the trials was relatively rigorous in terms of randomization, blinding, and sources of bias. Compared with control therapies, the pooled results suggested that acupuncture had moderate effects in improving stiffness. No significant differences were observed in hot flashes, fatigue, pain, gastrointestinal symptoms, Kupperman index, general well-being, physical well-being, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and interleukin (IL). Conclusions. Acupuncture therapy appears to be potentially useful in relieving functional stiffness. However, further large-sample trials with evidence-based design are still needed to confirm these findings.