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Summary: Immune tolerance is one of the leading causes of chemotherapy resistance in carcinoma cases. Studies have shown that programmed cell death ligand‐1 (PD‐L1), an inhibitory molecule expressed by cancer cells, plays a significant role in immune tolerance through the induction of T cell dysfunction. The results of our RNA sequencing in previous studies revealed that microRNA‐145 (miR‐145), which is known to be down‐regulated by cisplatin in cisplatin‐resistant ovarian cancer cells, also represses gene PD‐L1 expression. However, the mechanism by which miR‐145 contributes to regulate PD‐L1 expression in cisplatin resistance of ovarian cancer is yet to be fully understood. Here, we show that cisplatin‐mediated miR‐145 down‐regulation increased PD‐L1 expression via targeting the c‐Myc transcription factor, thereby inducing T cell apoptosis in vitro. We also report that expression of miR‐145 is negatively correlated with PD‐L1 expression in human ovarian cancer tissues, malignant grades and the recurrent risks of ovarian cancer after chemotherapy. In summary, our findings suggest that the miR‐145/c‐Myc/PD‐L1 axis contributes to cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer and support that miR‐145 might act as an adjuvant therapeutic target in chemotherapy of ovarian cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents information on a study that probed the development of magnetic ordering in correlated-electron uranium systems. Experimental procedure; Results and discussion; Conclusion.

An acousto-optic (AO) Q-switched dual-wavelength laser operating at 1.5 µm eye-safe region is demonstrated via stimulated Raman scatting of a-cut YVO 4 -Nd:YVO 4 crystal within an end-pumped dual-wavelength Nd:GYSGG laser cavity. The in-band pumping absorption peak and coefficient of the dual-wavelength laser crystal Nd:GYSGG are measured in order to carry out efficient pumping, thus overcoming the drawbacks of short thermal focal length of the crystal and scale up the eye-safe output. Under 23.2 W absorbed pump power, 2.11 W of simultaneous dual-wavelength outputs at 1497 and 1516 nm are obtained with a pulse repetition rate of 23 kHz and a corresponding conversion efficiency of 9.1%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study that discussed the characteristics of correlated ƒ-electron systems. Techniques in the calculation of ƒ-electron systems; Properties of the systems; Degree of localization of the rare-earth monopnictides.

Presents information on a study which described a scheme for calculating the hybridization and exchange effects of magnetic ordering in correlated-electron uranium systems. Analysis of the varied electron phenomena in cerium and light actinide compounds; Methodology of the study; Results and discussion.

Focuses on the importance of all consequences of the Coulomb interaction which contribute to the two-ion interaction. Derivation of the expression for the two-ion interaction; Significance of the Thomas-Fermi theory.

Presents a study which reported on a technique involving a nonconventional electronic structure calculation based on treating the ƒ electron as a resonant state in solid-state environment to evaluate hybridization. Procedure for evaluating the hybridization; Calculation of the crystal-field level shifts and two-ion exchange interaction matrix.

Proposes a theory which organize the diverse magnetic behavior into a unified picture describable through one Hamiltonian model. Approaches used in treating the correlated f-electron systems; Concept of Kondo resonance-Kondo compensation; Key elements of the Kondo problem; Description of the atomic Hamiltonian; Information on the two-component spectrum near the Fermi level.

This study investigated the effect of Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis) natto on meat quality and skatole in TOPIGS pigs. Sixty TOPIGS pigs were randomly assigned to 3 groups (including 5 pens per group, with 4 pigs in each pen) and fed with basic diet (control group), basic diet plus 0.1% B. subtilis natto (B group), and basic diet plus 0.1% B. subtilis natto plus 0.1% B. coagulans (BB group), respectively. All pigs were sacrificed at 100 kg. Growth performance, meat quality, serum parameters and oxidation status in the three groups were assessed and compared. Most parameters regarding growth performance and meat quality were not significantly different among the three groups. However, compared with the control group, meat pH24, fat and feces skatole and the content of Escherichia coli (E. Coli), Clostridium, NH3-N were significantly reduced in the B and BB groups, while serum total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein, the levels of liver P450, CYP2A6, and CYP2E1, total antioxidant capability (T-AOC) and glutathione peroxidase and Lactobacilli in feces were significantly increased in the B and BB groups. Further, the combined supplementation of B. subtilis natto and B. coagulans showed more significant effects on the parameters above compared with B. subtilis, and Clostridium, and NH3-N. Our results indicate that the supplementation of pig feed with B. subtilis natto significantly improves meat quality and flavor, while its combination with B. coagulans enhanced these effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of daily dietary Bacillus subtilis (Bs), and adding L-tryptophan, fructan, or casein to fecal fermentation broths were investigated as means to reduce the production of noxious gas during manure fermentation caused by ammonia, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and 3-methylindole (skatole). Eighty swine (50.0±0.5 kg) were equally apportioned to an experimental group given Bs in daily feed, or a control group without Bs. After 6 weeks, fresh manure was collected from both groups for fermentation studies using a 3×3 orthogonal array, in which tryptophan, casein, and fructan were added at various concentrations. After fermentation, the ammonia, H2S, L-tryptophan, skatole, and microflora were measured. In both groups, L-tryptophan was the principle additive increasing skatole production, with significant correlation (r = 0.9992). L-tryptophan had no effect on the production of ammonia, H2S, or skatole in animals fed Bs. In both groups, fructan was the principle additive that reduced H2S production (r = 0.9981). Fructan and Bs significantly interacted in H2S production (p = 0.014). Casein was the principle additive affecting the concentration of ammonia, only in the control group. Casein and Bs significantly interacted in ammonia production (p = 0.039). The predominant bacteria were Bacillus spp. CWBI B1434 (26%) in the control group, and Streptococcus alactolyticus AF201899 (36%) in the experimental group. In summary, daily dietary Bs reduced ammonia production during fecal fermentation. Lessening L-tryptophan and increasing fructan in the fermentation broth reduced skatole and H2S. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A novel method of preparing the slippery lubricant-infused porous surface is proposed. • Condensation frosting is experimentally investigated on four typical substrates. • Directional icing propagation is impeded on the proposed slippery surface. • Molecular Dynamics simulation explores droplet wetting on slippery surfaces. Anti-propagation and enhanced icephobicity both are critical for anti-icing surfaces. In this work, four types of functional surfaces were prepared to investigate condensation frosting mechanisms (hydrophilic surfaces, hydrophobic slippery lubricant-infused porous surfaces, and two types of superhydrophobic surfaces). Experimental results indicated that no directional icing was identified on both the hydrophilic and slippery surfaces, while it was observed on superhydrophobic surfaces. The mechanisms were explained based on microscopic photos, together with theoretical analysis and Molecular Dynamics simulations. On the hydrophilic surfaces, the initially frozen droplets can induce the icing of some of their neighbours. However, these inter-droplet icing spreading failed to develop into a directional spreading for the whole field of view. On the slippery surfaces, most of the droplets had to freeze locally because the distances among them were beyond the effects of icing bridge. Moreover, the lubricant effects on droplet wetting were investigated using Molecular Dynamics simulation, and the results can support the existence of a lubricant layer beneath droplets. The surface icephobicity was experimentally investigated by measuring the critical shear stress of a frozen droplet. As a whole, the icephobicity of the slippery surface was significantly enhanced. Especially, when the substrate was chilled to −5 °C, the high icephobicity of the slippery surface was highlighted by an order of magnitude lower than that on the hydrophilic surface. Also, the slippery surfaces were fabricated based on silica nanoparticles via a commercially coating spray. This method can be of low economic cost for scalable preparation. Overall, the present work can be helpful for developing anti-icing functional surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To protect against soil secondary salinization, a desalination process for farmland drainage using wetlands was evaluated. In this study, the desalination effects of different plants in Chagan Lake were analyzed. A field experiment was conducted in the Qianguo irrigation district to choose the most efficient desalting plant by comparing the biomass contents and the ash rates of Typha spp., Phragmites communis , Phragmites japonica Steud. var. prostrata (Makino) L. Liu, Medicago sativa Linn., Lemna minor L. and Potamogeton crispus. Typha spp., Phragmites communis and Potamogeton crispus performed best among tested species in removing salt from saline farmland drainage. According to the calculated ash rates and ion contents, the amount of salt removed by reaping reed and cattail accounted for 10–26% of the salt in the drainage. The removal efficiencies of Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , Na + , Cl − and SO 4 2− ions are 9–15% per year. A constructed wetland containing 233–288 km 2 of Typha spp. is required so that the removal efficiency of these six ions can be more than 80%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of small molecular compounds in coal on quick direct coal liquefaction at high temperature was studied. The results showed that extraction with tetrahydrofuran just removed a portion of organic compounds, which were free or embedded in the macromolecular network structure in coal, without changing the macromolecular network of coal. However, removal of small molecular compounds in coal influenced the pyrolysis behavior and liquefaction performance of coal. The extracted coal exhibited better liquefaction activity in good donor solvent. The liquefaction conversion and yield of oils were higher than that of raw coal. The reason was that extraction with tetrahydrofuran made the relaxation of coal macromolecular network, and increased average pore size of extracted coal, which favored the diffusion of hydrogen-donating solvent into coal macromolecular network, thus increased the probability of collision of radicals and active hydrogen. The quick liquefaction experiment of extracted coal in poor hydrogen-donating solvents showed that the small molecular compounds played an important role as hydrogen donor during the quick liquefaction at high temperature without external active hydrogen resource. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

• Adsorptive water exists as clusters rather than liquid assumed widely. • Water adsorption can penetrate into the contact interface of silica particles. • A cross-scale model of heat transfer in silica aerogels is proposed. • Linearity dependence is illustrated between thermal conductivity and nanoscale adsorption. It is challenging to quantitatively predict the insulation degradation of porous materials caused by moisture absorption. A multiscale solution is proposed in this work. The adsorption intensity on connecting nanoparticles is evaluated at the nanoscale by defining an effective contact radius, which is detected and measured numerically. The thermal conductivity of connecting nanoparticles with adsorptive water is assessed by molecular statistics as the thermal conductivity of backbones. The up-scaling from nanoparticles to porous materials is built by mathematical modeling based on geometry structures. A simulation-based theoretical model is proposed for the thermal conductivity of silica aerogels with moisture. The results predicted by the present model agree well with experimental data. An in-depth analysis of experimental data using the proposed model demonstrates why a simple linear dependence is observed between the effective thermal conductivity and water fraction. In addition, the linearity can be attributed to the adsorbed water effect on the heat transfer through the silica-silica interface. The proposed model can deserve more credits considering that all the parameters are introduced explicitly and/or measured reliably by experimental measurement, mathematical derivations, or molecular dynamics simulations. It can demonstrate the molecular origin of the degeneration of thermal insulators under moisture. The present methodology may stimulate more cross-scale modeling and promote more understandings of heat transfer levels in nanoparticle-based materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Robot assisted gait training may help in producing rapid improvements in functional gait parameters. This paper presents new experimental results with an intrinsically compliant robotic gait training orthosis. The newly developed robotic orthosis has 6 degrees of freedom (DOFs). A trajectory tracking controller based on the boundary layer augmented sliding control (BASMC) law was implemented to guide the subject’s limbs on physiological gait trajectories. The compliance of the robotic orthosis sagittal plane hip and knee joints was also controlled, independently of the trajectory tracking control. The robotic orthosis and the control scheme were evaluated on three neurologically intact subjects walking on a treadmill. A maximum trajectory tracking error of 10° was recorded at the hip and knee sagittal plane joints. The results showed that subjects can walk in the robotic orthosis with comfort and the BASMC law was able to guide the subject’s limbs on reference physiological trajectories. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study investigated the effects of low levels of water-soluble pentosans (WSP), alkaline-extractable pentosans (AEP), and xylanase on the growth and organ development of broiler chicks. Three hundred and fifty 1-d-old female broiler chicks were randomly allocated into seven experimental groups of five pen replicates, with ten chicks per replicate. The control group consumed a corn-soybean meal-based diet. Six dietary treatment groups consumed the basal diet supplemented with one of the following: WSP at 50 mg/kg (WSP50) or 100 mg/kg (WSP100); AEP at 50 mg/kg (AEP50) or 100 mg/kg (AEP100); or xylanase at 3 mg/kg (Xase3) or 6 mg/kg (Xase6). Data including the body weight, digestive organ weights, gut length, rectal digesta viscosity, and gut microflora and pH were collected on d 5, 10, and 15. When compared to the control group, WSP50 promoted body weight gain and organ growth throughout the study, calculated as 3-d averages (p<0.05). WSP100 increased weight gain and enhanced organ development (proventriculus, gizzard, and gut) on d 10 (p<0.05), but the 3-d averages were not different from the control group except for the weight of gizzard. Both Xase3 and Xase6 increased the 3-d average weight gain and the growth of the gizzard (p<0.05). WSP50 increased the digesta viscosity compared to Xase3 on d 10 and 15 (p<0.05). WSP50, Xase3, and Xase6 increased the concentration of Lactobacillus in the rectum when compared to the control group (p<0.05), but only Xase3 lowered the digesta pH in the ileum and cecum on d 10 and 15. AEP had minimal influence on the growth and organ development of broilers. The results showed that low levels of WSP, AEP, and xylanase had different effects and underlying mechanisms on the growth and organ development of broiler chicks. WSP50 could increase the growth performance of broilers fed a corn-soybean meal-based diet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Aim: To investigate the effects of autologous bone marrow mononuclear cells (BM-MNCs) implantation on regulation of cholangiocyte apoptosis in a model of intrahepatic ischemic type biliary lesion (ITBL) in rabbits. Materials and Methods: Thirty Japanese white rabbits were divided randomly into 3 groups (10 per group) including controls (group A), ITBL model (group B), and BM-MNCs implantation groups (group C). All rabbits underwent the same surgical procedure to prepare the liver for graft removal during transplantation. Subsequently, no additional vascular intervention was performed in group A. In group B, the hepatic artery and common bile duct were clamped with microvascular clips for 2 hours, where after the clips were removed to recover the blood supply. Group C received, BM-MNCs (108 cells per rabbit) injected through the hepatic artery after removing the clips. The animals were killed 4 weeks after operation. The survival rate, histopathologic examination, cholangiocyte apoptosis with terminal uridine nick-end labeling (TUNEL) staining and expressions of Bcl-2 and Bax proteins were examined using immunohistochemical staining. Results: Group A animals showed a survival of 100%; the rates in groups B and C were both 90%. Histopathologic examination revealed normal intrahepatic cholangiocytes in group A, obviously damaged ones in group B, and alleviated damage in group C. TUNEL staining indicated apoptosis of cholangiocytes in group B was more serious than that in group A or group C. Immunohistochemical staining demonstrated significantly decreased Bcl-2 expression in group B compared with that in group A; Bcl-2 expression in group C returned to the level of group A. Simultaneously, the Bax expression presented adverse results; the ratios of Bcl-2/Bax were ranked as group A > group C > group B. Conclusion: Implantation of autologous BM-MNCs significantly reduced apoptosis of intrahepatic cholangiocytes and prevented or abated intrahepatic ITBL. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Ovarian cancer, the most deadly gynecologic malignancy, is often diagnosed late and at the advanced stage when the cancer cells have already migrated and invaded into other tissues and organs. Better understanding of the mechanism of metastasis in ovarian cancer cells is essential to the design of effective therapy. In this study, we investigated the function of scaffolding adaptor protein Gab2 in ovarian cancer cells. Gab2 is found to be overexpressed in a subset of ovarian tumors and cancer cell lines. Gab2 expression mainly regulates the migratory behaviors of ovarian cancer cells. Overexpression of Gab2 promotes the migration and invasion, and downregulates E-cadherin expression in ovarian cancer cells with low-Gab2 expression. Conversely, knockdown of Gab2 expression inhibits the migration and invasion, and promotes E-cadherin expression in ovarian cancer cells with high-Gab2 expression. By expressing Gab2 wild-type and Gab2 mutants that are defective in activation of the PI3K and Shp2-Erk pathways, we find that Gab2 inhibits E-cadherin expression and enhances the expression of Zeb1, a transcription factor involved in epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and cell migration and invasion through the activation of the PI3K pathway. Knockdown of Zeb1 expression blocks Gab2-induced suppression of E-cadherin expression and increase in cell invasion. LY294002 and GDC-0941, inhibitors of PI3K, or Rapamycin, an inhibitor of PI3K downstream target mTOR, can reverse the effects of Gab2 on migration and invasion. Overall, our studies reveal that Gab2 overexpression, via activation of the PI3K-Zeb1 pathway, promotes characteristics of EMT in ovarian cancer cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR) family of receptor tyrosine kinases has been reported to have an active role in a number of malignancies. Amplifications and overexpression of various EGFR family members, including EGFR, Her2, and ErbB3, have been reported in epithelial ovarian cancer. Although anti-EGFR-targeted therapy has shown limited clinical activity in ovarian cancer to date, a recent report suggests that activation of ErbB3, one of the members of the EGFR family, may support the growth and proliferation of ovarian cancer cells and that ErbB3 may therefore serve as a potential therapeutic target in this disease. Here, we review the EGFR family and the clinical experience with anti-EGFR family member-directed therapies in ovarian cancer to date. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction forces of a fractured femur among the bone, muscle, and other soft tissues are not well understood. Only a small number of in vivo measurements have been made and with many limitations. Mathematical modeling is a useful alternative, overcoming limitations and allowing investigation of hypothetical simulated reductions. We aimed to develop a model to help understand best practices in fracture reduction and to form a base to develop new technologies and procedures. The simulation environment allows muscle forces and moments to deform a fractured femur, and the behavior of forces during reduction can be found. Visual and numerical output of forces and moments during simulated reduction procedures are provided. The output can be probed throughout the reduction procedure down to the individual muscle's contribution. This is achieved by construction of an anatomically correct three-dimensional mathematical model of the lower extremity and muscles. Parameters are fully customizable and can be used to investigate simple, oblique, and some comminuted fractures. Results were compared with published in vivo measurements and were of the same magnitude. A simple midshaft fracture had a maximum resulting force of 428 N, whereas traction from the hip reached a maximum value of 893 N at 60 mm of displacement. Monte Carlo analysis revealed that the deforming force was most sensitive to the muscles' rest lengths. The developed model provides greater understanding and detail than in vivo measurements have to date. It allows new treatment procedures to be developed and importantly to assess the outcome. © 2008 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 26:1159-1165, 2008 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the transformation toughening theory an approximate solution is developed for predicting the stress intensity factor for a crack interacting with an inclusion of arbitrary shape and size under I/II mixed mode loading conditions. The transformation strains in the inclusion induced by the crack tip field and the remotely applied stresses are evaluated based on the Eshelby equivalent inclusion theory. As validated by detailed finite element analyses, the solution is applicable with good accuracy for the inclusion of arbitrary shape and large size under mixed mode loadings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: It is becoming evident that different dynamic derivatives play increasingly important roles in approximating functions and solutions of nonlinear differential equations for their great flexibility in grid designs. Different dynamic derivatives on time scales not only offer a convenient way in practical applications, but also show their distinctive features in approximations. It may be worthwhile to investigate if such useful features can be maintained or even improved in certain senses while different dynamic derivatives are used in the same application simultaneously. Under this consideration, we will introduce the combined delta (, or forward) and nabla (, or backward) dynamic derivatives, explore their basic properties, and investigate their applications for approximating classical derivative functions and for solving differential equation problems in this paper. Proper forward jump, backward jump and step functions will be introduced and utilized. It is found that while the combined dynamic derivatives possess similar properties as and derivatives, they offer more balanced approximations to the targeted functions and differential equations at satisfactory accuracy. The combined dynamic derivatives also reduce the unexpected computational spuriosity, and therefore lead to more reliable numerical algorithm designs. Computational examples are given to further illustrate our results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

There has been a considerable number of recent discussions on applications of different types of dynamic derivatives. The dynamic derivatives not only play a central role in time scales theory and methods, but also provide a remarkable way of approximations in mathematical modelling and computational applications. In this paper, we will explore connections between existing dynamic and conventional derivatives over the time scales used. We will show that while first order dynamic derivatives provide acceptable accuracies in approximating conventional derivatives, second order dynamic derivatives are in general inconsistent with conventional derivatives. It is evident that, before incorporating structures of particular time scales used into the dynamic derivative formulae properly, one needs to be prudential when bridging discrepancies between the differential and difference equations modelling similar applications by higher order dynamic derivatives. Numerical experiments are given to further illustrate our conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crossed symmetric solutions of nonlinear boundary value dynamic problems play an important role in many applications, in particular in adaptive algorithm designs. This article is devoted to the continuation of our investigation on second-order nonlinear companion dynamic boundary value problems on time scales. Monotonically convergent upper and lower solutions of the problems and their quasilinear approximations are investigated. It is shown that, under proper smoothness constraints, the iterative sequences constructed not only converge to the analytic solutions of the desired companion problems monotonically, but also preserve important crossed symmetry properties. The quasilinearization offers an efficient way in the solution approximation. Computational examples are given to illustrate our results. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper is concerned with modified adaptive difference schemes for solving degenerate nonlinear reaction–diffusion equations with singular source terms. The adaptive mechanisms both in space and time are considered. Modified monitor functions based on arc-lengths of the rate function ut are constructed. Further analyses are given on properties of the numerical schemes derived. We show that, under proper smoothness, consistency and step-size constraints, the numerical solution obtained preserves the monotonicity of the physical solution. Numerical experiments are given to demonstrate the monotonicity and convergence properties of the methods. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The stability and deformation of the permanent shiplock slopes are among the key issues in the design and construction of the Three Gorges Project. The permanent shiplock slopes, formed by deeply and steeply cutting into weathered and fresh granites, are 1607 m in length and 50–170 m in height. The disturbed zone in the permanent cut slopes induced by excavation is therefore one of the most important aspects in slope stability and deformation evaluation. A comprehensive investigation including non-linear finite element analysis, in-situ testing, instrumentation and monitoring, back analysis and rock mass quality rating has been carried out for the identification and evaluation of the excavation disturbed zone in the permanent cut slopes. The results of the investigation confirmed the existence of such an excavation disturbed zone in the permanent cut slopes. This zone is characterized by a considerable weakening in the mechanical properties of the rock mass. From the cut surface to the deeper region of the permanent cut slopes, the excavation disturbed zone can be further divided into a damaged zone, an affected zone and a slightly affected zone according to the extent of weakening in the rock mass. The damaged zone and the affected zone have thicknesses of 5–10 m and 10–20 m, respectively. The exact pattern of the excavation disturbed zone is variable in different parts of the permanent cut slopes and are generally similar to that of the plastic zones estimated by using the non-linear finite element analysis. The present investigation has provided both factual data and insights for the stability and deformation evaluation of the permanent shiplock slopes. The approach and methodology developed in the paper can be used to assess similar excavation disturbed zones in other large cut slopes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Compressed carbon dioxide is a promising energy storage technology. However, renewable energy variability can lead to insufficiency during charging and discharging. The present work systematically investigates the effect of charging/discharging insufficiency on compressed carbon dioxide energy storage systems from the viewpoint of transient thermodynamic cycles. The insufficiency extent is defined based on the pressure at the high-pressure tank when disturbances occur. Then the effects of insufficiency extent are investigated in three typical scenarios. In the results, the effects of charging/discharging insufficiency on the efficiency, storage density and power output of the energy storage system during long-term operation are demonstrated. The efficiency of the system during the whole working period is 57.78%, lower than the design efficiency of 59.66%. In particular, the energy storage density is reduced dramatically to 197.60 kJ·m−3, which is 78.2% of the storage density of 252.68 kJ·m−3 at design conditions. Besides, the average output power of the turbine is reduced to 95.70% of the design value. The present work provides an improved understanding of the charging and discharging for compressed carbon dioxide energy storage, especially when renewables are integrated. • Problem on renewable energy variability effects on carbon dioxide energy storage is proposed and formulated. • Insufficient charging/discharging effects on efficiency, power and energy storage density are evaluated. • Cycle efficiency can be maintained at 57.78% but energy storage density reduced to 78.2%. • Necessity to consider renewable energy efficiency in economic analysis is suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yaks are a major source of livelihood for the high landers where agriculture does not exist. This multipurpose animal has remained a subject of studies since the second half of 18th century. However, there is limited data available on the chemistry of yak milk in China. The objective of this study was to analyze the chemical composition and nutrient profiles of Chinese yak milk. Fresh milk samples from 7 mid-lactating yaks (Maiwa breed) in Hongyuan county of Sichuan Province in China were collected, pooled, lyophilized and stored at -20 °C before use. Gross composition (total solids, protein, fat, ash, and lactose), minerals, and profiles of fatty acids, amino acids and proteins of the milk samples were examined. The average values of gross composition were 14.35% total solids, 3.51% protein, 5.80% fat, 3.90% lactose, and 0.58% ash in the yak milk. The levels of Ca, Na, K, Mg, Zn, and Fe were 1149.4, 276.8, 1066.1, 105.3, 6.9, and 1.5 mg/L, respectively. Gas liquid chromatography analysis of milk fat showed that major fatty acids in yak milk were C16:0, C18:1, C18:0, and C14:0. There was a small amount (2.68 mg/g fat) of conjugated linoleic acid in yak milk. Results of amino acid analysis indicated that glutamic acid (183.79 mg/g protein) was the most abundant amino acid in yak milk. The mean values of lysine and methionine were 81.01 and 30.61 mg/g protein, respectively. The total essential amino acid percentage is 46.36% which suggests that the yak milk may be a good supply of essential amino acids. SDS-PAGE and densitometry results demonstrated that, similar to cow's milk, the major proteins in yak milk are caseins, which accounts for over 60% relative percentage of total proteins. The relative percentage of α-lactalbumin in yak milk was significantly lower (P < 0.05) compared to bovine milk. As information about yak milk chemistry is limited, especially in China, more systematic studies in this area are needed in order to utilize this valuable resource. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a new adaptive patient-cooperative control strategy for improving the effectiveness and safety of robot-assisted ankle rehabilitation. This control strategy has been developed and implemented on a compliant ankle rehabilitation robot (CARR). The CARR is actuated by four Festo Fluidic muscles located to the calf in parallel, has three rotational degrees of freedom. The control scheme consists of a position controller implemented in joint space and a high-level admittance controller in task space. The admittance controller adaptively modifies the predefined trajectory based on real-time ankle measurement, which enhances the training safety of the robot. Experiments were carried out using different modes to validate the proposed control strategy on the CARR. Three training modes include: 1) a passive mode using a joint-space position controller, 2) a patient–robot cooperative mode using a fixed-parameter admittance controller, and 3) a cooperative mode using a variable-parameter admittance controller. Results demonstrate satisfactory trajectory tracking accuracy, even when externally disturbed, with a maximum normalized root mean square deviation less than 5.4%. These experimental findings suggest the potential of this new patient-cooperative control strategy as a safe and engaging control solution for rehabilitation robots. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A fiber optic bolometer (FOB) was demonstrated observing a fusion plasma for the first time at the DIII-D tokamak. A FOB uses a fiber optics-based interferometric technique that is designed to have a high sensitivity to temperature changes [75 mK/(W/m2) responsivity in high vacuum with 0.38 mK noise level] with a negligible susceptibility to electromagnetic interference (EMI) that can be problematic for resistive bolometers in a tokamak environment. A single-channel test apparatus was installed on DIII-D consisting of a measurement FOB and shielded reference FOB. The single-channel FOB showed a negligible increase in the noise level during typical plasma operations (0.39 mK) compared to the benchtop results (0.38 mK), confirming an insignificant EMI impact to the FOB. Comparisons to DIII-D resistive bolometers showed good agreement with the single-channel FOB, indicating that the FOB is comparable to a resistive bolometer when the impulse calibration is applied. The noise-equivalent power density of the calibrated FOB during a plasma operation was 0.55 W/m2 with an average sampling time of 20 ms. The major potential effect of ionizing radiation on the FOB would be the radiation-induced attenuation, which can be efficiently compensated for by adjusting the probing light power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The supercritical-CO 2 (S–CO 2) cooler is one of the main components in S–CO 2 power system. This work aims at revealing the cooling mechanism of S–CO 2 under wide working conditions to assist the S–CO 2 cooler design. The pseudo-condensation is proposed with the analogy between supercritical cooling and subcritical condensation. From the pseudo-condensation and the traditional turbulent field analysis, the specific heat is found to be the dominant parameter for the enhanced heat transfer in S–CO 2 cooling. The disappearing of enhanced cooling heat transfer, in the view of pseudo-condensation, is mainly due to the thickening of pseudo liquid film, which is dominated by the gravity force, inertial force and interfacial force in low mass flux flow while the gravity force effect is negligible in high mass flux flow. However, from the turbulent field analysis, the disappearing of enhanced cooling heat transfer is mainly caused by the thickening boundary layer due to the local increase in density and viscosity in addition to the decrease in specific heat. Finally, based on the S–CO 2 cooling mechanism, two correlations for predicting heat transfer are proposed and evaluated. The present work can significantly enhance in-depth understanding on S–CO 2 cooling and promote engineering application. • The S–CO 2 cooling mechanism is analyzed with pseudo-condensation and turbulent field. • Pseudo-condensation is based on analogy between supercritical cooling and subcritical condensation. • Turbulent field analysis focuses on selection of key influencing thermophysical properties. • Two more accurate correlations are developed based on the obtained cooling mechanism. • The pseudo-condensation for S–CO 2 cooling process is proved to be with high reliability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Molecular potential functions are examined for silica simulations under high temperature. • Molecular Dynamics simulations illustrate the sintering mechanism of silica nanoparticles. • The proposed method of "solid-liquid" coexistence can effectively analyse sintering process. • High temperature effects on nanoparticle contact are substantially identified and quantified. • The proposed model of thermal conductivity can accurate capture available experimental data. Silica aerogels are extensively used for thermal insulation at high temperatures. However, it has been experimentally found that high temperature can change the pore structure and undermine thermal insulation. The mechanism of high temperature influence is unclear due to the limited resolution of experimental observations. In the present work, molecular dynamics simulations and theoretical modeling were combined to investigate the effects of high temperature on pore structures and heat conduction. At the scale of nanoparticles, the structural evolution induced by the sintering process of silica aerogels was numerically investigated. The melting process of a single silica nanoparticle can be divided into three stages, and it was found that extending the stage of surface diffusion can improve the thermal stability of silica nanoparticles. At the scale of particle assembly, the contact diameter between adjacent particles was identified and numerically evaluated. At the scale of bulk material, a theoretical model was developed to predict the solid thermal conductivity by considering both the temperature effect on the intrinsic thermal conductivity of backbone and the effect of nanoparticle size. A good agreement was found between the present model and available experimental data. An insightful discussion of the existing theoretical models and experimental data was also presented. The present work can inspire further cross-scale modeling of silica aerogels and may pave the way for the development of silica aerogels with high stability and thermal insulation at high temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the design analysis and optimization of a novel 3-degrees of freedom (DOF) wearable parallel robot developed for ankle rehabilitation treatments. To address the challenges arising from the use of a parallel mechanism, flexible actuators, and the constraints imposed by the ankle rehabilitation treatment, a complete robot design analysis is performed. Three design stages of the robot, namely, kinematic design, actuation design, and structural design are identified and investigated, and, in the process, six important performance objectives are identified which are vital to achieve design goals. Initially, the optimization is performed by considering only a single objective. Further analysis revealed that some of these objectives are conflicting, and hence these are required to be simultaneously optimized. To investigate a further improvement in the optimal values of design objectives, a preference-based approach and evolutionary-algorithm-based nondominated sorting algorithm (NSGA II) are adapted to the present design optimization problem. Results from NSGA II are compared with the results obtained from the single objective optimization and preference-based optimization approaches. It is found that NSGA II is able to provide better design solutions and is adequate to optimize all of the objective functions concurrently. Finally, a fuzzy-based ranking method has been devised and implemented in order to select the final design solution from the set of nondominated solutions obtained through NSGA II. The proposed design analysis of parallel robots together with the multiobjective optimization and subsequent fuzzy-based ranking can be generalized with modest efforts for the development of all of the classes of parallel robots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ankle rehabilitation robots can play an important role in improving outcomes of the rehabilitation treatment by assisting therapists and patients in number of ways. Consequently, few robot designs have been proposed by researchers which fall under either of the two categories, namely, wearable robots or platform-based robots. This paper presents a review of both kinds of ankle robots along with a brief analysis of their design, actuation and control approaches. While reviewing these designs it was observed that most of them are undesirably inspired by industrial robot designs. Taking note of the design concerns of current ankle robots, few improvements in the ankle robot designs have also been suggested. Conventional position control or force control approaches, being used in the existing ankle robots, have been reviewed. Apparently, opportunities of improvement also exist in the actuation as well as control of ankle robots. Subsequently, a discussion on most recent research in the development of novel actuators and advanced controllers based on appropriate physical and cognitive human-robot interaction has also been included in this review. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tannin extract desulfurization technology is widely applied in China, however, in which there are sulfur-containing byproducts that can cause negative effects, such as reducing desulfurization efficiency and increasing operating cost etc. Thus, inhibiting side reactions and controlling byproducts is an important problem to be resolved. In this article, the cause of byproducts formation by thermodynamic analysis is reported. First, the reaction mechanism between HS−and pentavalent vanadium V(V) in desulfurization solution is researched, and it is conclude that HS−can transforms instantly into polysulfide ionsSx2−, thenSx2−forms the element sulfur. Thus,Sx2−is the main source to generate byproducts. Second, by calculating and comparing the Gibbs free energy change of side reactions, the results show thatSx2−is more active than HS−in solution and can react more easily with oxygen to produce byproducts. Therefore, quickening the transformation fromSx2−to element sulfur is a key measure to resolve the problem on side reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Stretching computation strategies, including the hyperbolic exponential fittings along the lens interface, stretching transformations in z- and r-directions are discussed in this paper. The resulted adapted finite difference schemes are not only simple in structure, but also highly effective and efficient in the solution of paraxial Helmholtz equations for light beam propagation simulations and high performance lens designs. Cylindrically symmetric lens domains are assumed. Simulation results are given to illustrate the aforementioned numerical strategies with laboratory applications. Detailed algorithmic structures are given for immediate programming implementations and for similar lightwave propagation computation issues. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper studies the numerical solution of two-dimensional nonlinear degenerate reaction-diffusion differential equations with singular forcing terms over rectangular domains. The equations considered may generate strong quenching singularities. This investigation focuses on a variable time step Peaceman­Rachford splitting method for the aforementioned problem. The time adaptation is implemented based on arc-length estimations of the first time derivative of the solution. The two-dimensional problem is split into several one-dimensional problems so that the computational cost is significantly reduced. The monotonicity and localized linear stability of the variable step scheme are investigated. We give some numerical examples to illustrate our results as well as to demonstrate the viability and efficiency of the method over existing methods for the quenching problem. It is also shown that the numerical solution obtained preserves important properties of the physical solution of the given problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: It is well known that lipids are vital for axonal myelin repair. Diffuse axonal injury (DAI) is characterized by widespread axonal injury. The association between serum lipids and DAI is not well known. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations of serum lipid profile variables (triglycerides, high- and low-density lipoproteins, and total cholesterol) with DAI detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and with clinical outcome for patients suffering from traumatic brain injury (TBI). Methods: This study included 176 patients with a history of TBI who had undergone initial serum lipid measurements within 1 week and brain MRIs within 30 days. Based on MRI findings, patients were divided into negative and positive DAI groups. Results: Of the 176 patients, 70 (39.8%) were assigned to DAI group and 106 (60.2%) patients to non-DAI group. Compared with the non-DAI group, patients with DAI had significantly lower levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in serum during the first week following TBI. Multivariate analysis identified HDL-C as an independent predictor of DAI. Patients with lower serum HDL-C levels were less likely to regain consciousness within 6 months in TBI patients with DAI lesions identified by MRI. Conclusions: Plasma levels of HDL-C may be a viable addition to biomarker panels for predicting the presence and prognosis of DAI on subsequent MRI following TBI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs) have been widely used in actuation of medical devices due to their intrinsic compliance and high power-to-weight ratio features. However, the nonlinearity and time-varying nature of PAMs make it challenging to maintain high-performance tracking control. In this article, a high-order pseudopartial derivative-based model-free adaptive iterative learning controller (HOPPD-MFAILC) is proposed to achieve fast convergence speed. The dynamics of PAM is converted into a dynamic linearization model during iterations; meanwhile, a high-order estimation algorithm is designed to estimate the pseudopartial derivative component of the linearization model by only utilizing the input and output data in previous iterations. The stability and convergence performance of the controller are verified through theoretical analysis. Simulation and experimental results on PAM demonstrate that the proposed HOPPD-MFAILC can track the desired trajectory with improved convergence and tracking performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MicroRNAs (miRNA) are shown to be involved in the progression of several types of kidney diseases. Podocytes maintain the integrity of the glomerular basement membrane. Extracellular vesicles (EV) are important in cell-to-cell communication as they can transfer cellular content between cells, including miRNA. However, little is known about how extracellular signals from the glomerular microenvironment regulate podocyte activity. Using a non-contact transwell system, communication between glomerular endothelial cells (GEnC) and podocytes was characterised in-vitro. Identification of transferred EV-miRNAs from GEnC to podocytes was performed using fluorescence cell tracking and miRNA mimetics. To represent kidney disease, podocyte molecular profiling and functions were analysed after EV treatments derived from steady state or activated GEnC. Our data shows activation of GEnC alters EV-miRNA loading, but activation was not found to alter EV secretion. EV delivery of miRNA to recipient podocytes altered cellular miRNA abundance and effector functions in podocytes, including decreased secretion of VEGF and increased mitochondrial stress which lead to altered cellular metabolism and cytoskeletal rearrangement. Finally, results support our hypothesis that miRNA-200c-3p is transfered by EVs from GEnC to podocytes in response to activation, ultimately leading to podocyte dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acetylation is an important, reversible posttranslational modification to a protein. In a previous study, we found that there were a large number of acetylated sites in various nutrient storage proteins of the silkworm haemolymph. In this study, we confirmed that acetylation can affect the stability of nutrient storage protein Bombyx mori apolipophorin‐III (BmApoLp‐III). First, the expression of BmApoLp‐III could be upregulated when BmN cells were treated with the deacetylase inhibitor panobinostat (LBH589); similarly, the expression was downregulated when the cells were treated with the acetylase inhibitor C646. Furthermore, the increase in acetylation by LBH589 could inhibit the degradation and improve the accumulation of BmApoLp‐III in BmN cells treated with cycloheximide and MG132 respectively. Moreover, we found that an increase in acetylation could decrease the ubiquitination of BmApoLp‐III and vice versa; therefore, we predicted that acetylation could improve the stability of BmApoLp‐III by competing for ubiquitination and inhibiting the protein degradation pathway mediated by ubiquitin. Additionally, BmApoLp‐III had an antiapoptosis function that increased after LBH589 treatment, which might have been due to the improved protein stability after acetylation. These results have laid the foundation for further study on the mechanism of acetylation in regulating the storage and utilization of silkworm nutrition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This study proposed a new assessment technique with admittance control for measuring active ranges of motion of wrists. • The robotic system has a reconfigurable handle structure that allows for multi-dimensional wrist motions. • The reliability was validated on 11 subjects by measuring wrist flexion/extension and radial/ulnar deviation. The measurement of wrist active range of motion (ROM) is essential for determining the progress of hand functional recovery, which can provide insight into quantitative improvements and enable effective monitoring during hand rehabilitation. Compared with manual methods, which depend on the experience of the therapist, the proposed robot-assisted assessment technique can measure active ROM of human wrists. The robot with a reconfigurable handle design allows for multiple wrist motions. Experiments were conducted with 11 human subjects to measure ROMs of human wrist flexion/extension and radial/ulnar deviation. Reliability analysis was conducted by calculating the intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC), standard error of measurement (SEM) and SEM%. Results showed high reliability (ICC 2,1 ≥ 0.89, SEM ≤ 2.36°, SEM% ≤ 6.81%). Future will focus on adaptive joint self-alignment design between human users and robots to further improve its assessment accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thermoelectric effect can convert waste heat into electricity. The present work presents an integrated system of Thermoelectric Generators (TEG) and Phase Change Materials (PCMs) for thermal insulation of high-speed vehicles, where high heat fluxes of large fluctuations make thermal protection and energy harvest challenging. A single-stage thermoelectric generator is prepared with phase-change materials embedded to absorb and convert excessive heat. The performance is evaluated experimentally and numerically, between which a reasonable agreement is observed. The maximum temperature at the outside surface is reduced by 200 K, and the temperature curves are flattered. Furthermore, two-stage and two-segment integrated systems are numerically evaluated, generating a data set of thermoelectric performance. An artificial neural network is developed for prediction and a genetic algorithm is employed for optimization. The maximum specific power can be improved to 570 W/m2 in the two-segment system, while the temperature variation at the hot side of TEG in the two-stage system can be reduced to 230 K. Finally, a discussion on the effects of PCMs parameters is performed. Overall, the present work not only demonstrates the feasibility of such an integrated system but also illustrates the whole procedure of the predictions and optimizations. This could inspire more development for advanced integrated systems for thermal management. • Experiments of integrated thermoelectric conversion system and COMSOL simulations are mutually validated. • Phase change materials integrate with thermal insulation and thermoelectric conversion. • The high fidelity of proposed neural network prediction and optimization is demonstrated. • The maximum temperature is reduced to 540 K in a two-stage system. • The maximum specific power is improved to 570 W m−2 in a two-segment system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Rough surface promotes ice nucleation if accessible groove width and ice lattice constant match. • Ice nucleation is significantly inhibited by decreasing solid surface free energy. • A quenching-induced wandering or jumping-up of nanodroplet is observed. It is significant to inhibit the formation of ice on solid surface under some occasions in industry. The origin of ice formation on solid surface is the heterogeneous ice nucleation, which has drawn a lot of research attention in the last decade. In this work, we investigated the effects of surface fraction, pillar height, and solid surface wettability on ice nucleation using molecular dynamics simulation. Compared with that of smooth surface, the ice nucleation rates on rough surface can be enhanced or inhibited depending on the groove size, which can be attributed to the status of water molecules confined between pillars. In addition, it is found that the ice nucleation rate can be significantly weakened by reducing the solid surface free energy. More importantly, when the surface free energy is low enough, a quenching-induced mobility of nanodroplet is observed, including wandering on the solid surface or jumping away. These findings can address the importance of the coupling effect of the gap width and height of pillars, together with the quenching-induced mobility, which we believe will be helpful to understand more molecular mechanisms of heterogeneous ice nucleation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comprehensive review of high-level control techniques for upper-limb robotic training. It aims to compare and discuss the potentials of these different control algorithms, and specify future research direction. Included studies mainly come from selected papers in four review articles. To make selected studies complete and comprehensive, especially some recently-developed upper-limb robotic devices, a search was further conducted in IEEE Xplore, Google Scholar, Scopus and Web of Science using keywords ('upper limb*' or 'upper body*') and ('rehabilitation*' or 'treatment*') and ('robot*' or 'device*' or 'exoskeleton*'). The search is limited to English-language articles published between January 2013 and December 2017. Valuable references in related publications were also screened. Comparative analysis shows that high-level interaction control strategies can be implemented in a range of methods, mainly including impedance/admittance based strategies, adaptive control techniques, and physiological signal control. Even though the potentials of existing interactive control strategies have been demonstrated, it is hard to identify the one leading to maximum encouragement from human users. However, it is reasonable to suggest that future studies should combine different control strategies to be application specific, and deliver appropriate robotic assistance based on physical disability levels of human users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study which predicted the triggering of an instability from unusual anisotropic, well-ordered, magnetism to an unstable state. Delocalization for rare earths; Key to understanding solid-state behavior in the transitional regime between localized and delocalized f-electron behavior; Approaches in building a unified phenomenological and electronic structure theory; Description of the change in behavior from CeSb to CeTe; Prediction of valence fluctuation behavior for CeN.

The measurement of wrist passive ranges of motion (ROMs) can provide insight into improvements and allow for effective monitoring during a rehabilitation program. Compared with conventional methods, this study proposed a new robotic assessment technique for measuring passive ROMs of the wrist. The robotic system has a reconfigurable handle structure that allows for multi-dimensional applications of wrist motions. The assessment reliability of this robotic system was analysed on 11 subjects for measuring wrist extension/flexion and radial/ulnar deviation. Preliminary data demonstrated its potential with intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC 2,1 ) all greater than 0.857 and standard error of measurement (SEM) less than 3.38°. Future work will focus on the standardization of the assessment protocol of this robotic system for assessment purposes, paving the way for its clinical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A rehabilitation robot plays an important role in relieving the therapists' burden and helping patients with ankle injuries to perform more accurate and effective rehabilitation training. However, a majority of current ankle rehabilitation robots are rigid and have drawbacks in terms of complex structure, poor flexibility and lack of safety. Taking advantages of pneumatic muscles' good flexibility and light weight, we developed a novel two degrees of freedom (2-DOF) parallel compliant ankle rehabilitation robot actuated by pneumatic muscles (PMs). To solve the PM's nonlinear characteristics during operation and to tackle the human-robot uncertainties in rehabilitation, an adaptive backstepping sliding mode control (ABS-SMC) method is proposed in this paper. The human-robot external disturbance can be estimated by an observer, who is then used to adjust the robot output to accommodate external changes. The system stability is guaranteed by the Lyapunov stability theorem. Experimental results on the compliant ankle rehabilitation robot show that the proposed ABS-SMC is able to estimate the external disturbance online and adjust the control output in real time during operation, resulting in a higher trajectory tracking accuracy and better response performance especially in dynamic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The novelty of this paper is the adjustable workspace and torque capacity of a compliant ankle rehabilitation robot (CARR). The robot has three rotational degrees of freedom (DOFs) redundantly actuated by four compliant actuators. It suffers from conflicting workspace and actuation torque due to the use of a parallel mechanism and compliant actuators. To address this issue, also considering physical constraints imposed by human users, the CARR is designed with reconfigurability to make a trade-off between workspace and torque capacity for meeting different training requirements. Theoretical analysis indicates that varying kinematic and dynamic performance of the robot can be achieved by reconfiguring the layout of the actuators. Experiments with/without load also demonstrate the validity of the reconfigurable robotic design for practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]