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Smell can have significant physical and psychological impacts on space users, especially in hospital waiting areas where smells are complex, and users are vulnerable. Understanding how smellscapes affect patients and their companions may help improve space users’ interactions with such environments. This study aimed to identify odour types in hospital waiting areas, their influential factors, impacts on odour perception, and key aspects to characterise and evaluate the smellscape in typical waiting areas. An internet survey and field investigations were conducted in China, and subsequent data were analysed. Results showed that 1) nine primary odours were identified in hospital waiting areas, 2) people have negative but relatively tolerant attitudes towards the odours, 3) several demographic and environmental factors impact people’s odour perception and evaluation, 4) the evaluation of smellscapes is influenced by the overall environmental judgement, with better odour experience reported in smaller and relatively closed waiting areas, and 5) three dimensions – health, emotion, and quality – were identified to characterise the smellscape. This study highlights the importance of smellscape design and management in healthcare environments, considering odour types, individual differences, spatial features, and other senses to systematically improve the smellscape.

Abstract MuB is a non-specific DNA-binding protein and AAA+ ATPase that significantly influences the DNA transposition process of bacteriophage Mu, especially in target DNA selection for transposition. While studies have established the ATP-dependent formation of MuB filament as pivotal to this process, the high-resolution structure of a full-length MuB protomer and the underlying molecular mechanisms governing its oligomerization remain elusive. Here, we use cryo-EM to obtain a 3.4-Å resolution structure of the ATP(+)-DNA(+)-MuB helical filament, which encapsulates the DNA substrate within its axial channel. The structure categorizes MuB within the initiator clade of the AAA+ protein family and precisely locates the ATP and DNA binding sites. Further investigation into the oligomeric states of MuB show the existence of various forms of the filament. These findings lead to a mechanistic model where MuB forms opposite helical filaments along the DNA, exposing potential target sites on the bare DNA and then recruiting MuA, which stimulates MuB’s ATPase activity and disrupts the previously formed helical structure. When this happens, MuB generates larger ring structures and dissociates from the DNA.

The crop pests and diseases in agriculture is one of the most important reason for the reduction of bulk grain and oil crops and the decline of fruit and vegetable crop quality, which threaten macroeconomic stability and sustainable development. However, the recognition method based on manual and instruments has been unable to meet the needs of scientific research and production due to its strong subjectivity and low efficiency. The recognition method based on pattern recognition and deep learning can automatically fit image features, and use features to classify and predict images. This study introduced the improved Vision Transformer (ViT) method for crop pest image recognition. Among them, the region with the most obvious features can be effectively selected by block partition. The self-attention mechanism of the transformer can better excavate the special solution that is not an obvious lesion area. In the experiment, data with 7 classes of examples are used for verification. It can be illustrated from results that this method has high accuracy and can give full play to the advantages of image processing and recognition technology, accurately judge the crop diseases and pests category, provide method reference for agricultural diseases and pests identification research, and further optimize the crop diseases and pests control work for agricultural workers in need.

In challenging visibility conditions, the reliability of existing port lighting systems is significantly affected by abrupt changes in environmental factors (primarily stemming from ocean weather). This study proposes a cloud-edge collaborative dimming model that integrates a combined filter, enabling dynamic adaptation to these weather variations to ensure the stability of the lighting system. Additionally, the application of edge computing not only alleviates computational pressure but also facilitates the model’s ability to achieve effective regional adaptive dimming in accordance with environmental regulations. Experimental results indicate that this method is suitable for scenarios with unknown mutations under extreme conditions, providing a more reliable and intelligent solution for port lighting systems within the Internet of Things (IoT) framework.

Predicting wave-induced liquefaction around submarine pipelines is crucial for marine engineering safety. However, the complex of interactions between ocean dynamics and seabed sediments makes rapid and accurate assessments challenging with traditional numerical methods. Although machine learning approaches are increasingly applied to wave-induced liquefaction problems, the comparative accuracy of different models remains under-explored. We evaluate the predictive accuracy of four classical machine learning models: Gradient Boosting (GB), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP), and Random Forest (RF). The results indicate that the GB model exhibits high stability and accuracy in predicting wave-induced liquefaction, due to its strong ability to handle complex nonlinear geological data. Prediction accuracy varies across output parameters, with higher accuracy for seabed predictions than for pipeline surroundings. The combination of different input parameters significantly influences model predictive accuracy. Compared to traditional finite element numerical methods, employing machine learning models significantly reduces computation time, offering an effective tool for rapid disaster assessment and early warning in marine engineering. This research contributes to the safety of marine pipeline protections and provides new insights into the intersection of marine geological engineering and artificial intelligence.

Due to the emergence of root rot (RR), it can cause harm to the health of Zanthoxylum bungeanum (Z. bungeanum) plants. However, the reason for this is not clear, and further research is needed. We selected healthy and RR-affected 6-year-old Z. bungeanum trees (infected for 1 year), collected their rhizosphere and bulk soils, and analyzed soil microbial communities, enzyme activities, and physicochemical properties. When the plants were diseased, soil water content (SWC), available potassium (AK), organic matter (OM) contents, β-1,4-glucosidase (β-G) activity, and fungal Shannon index significantly decreased, while bacterial Shannon index significantly increased in the rhizosphere soil. Soil total nitrogen (TN), SWC, AK, OM contents, and β-G and N-acetyl-glucosamine (NAG) activity significantly reduced, while fungal Simpson index significantly increased in the bulk soil. There were significant differences in the bacterial communities of bulk and rhizosphere soil. However, there were no obvious differences in the fungal communities. Pearson's correlation analysis showed that changes in soil microbial communities were significantly correlated with changes in the contents of TN, AK, OM, and SWC, as well as the activities of β-G and NAG. In summary, changes in soil AK, OM, SWC, and TN resulted in changes in microbial community composition, as well as changes in β-G and NAG activities, and these alterations may lead to RR in Z. bungeanum.

Abstract Conventional androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) targets the androgen receptor (AR) inhibiting prostate cancer (PCa) progression; however, it can eventually lead to recurrence as castration‐resistant PCa (CRPC), which has high mortality rates and lacks effective treatment modalities. The study confirms the presence of high glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) expression, a key regulator of ferroptosis (i.e., iron‐dependent program cell death) in CRPC cells. Therefore, inducing ferroptosis in CRPC cells might be an effective therapeutic modality for CRPC. However, nonspecific uptake of ferroptosis inducers can result in undesirable cytotoxicity in major organs. Thus, to precisely induce ferroptosis in CRPC cells, a genetic engineering strategy is proposed to embed a prostate‐specific membrane antigen (PSMA)‐targeting antibody fragment (gy1) in the macrophage membrane, which is then coated onto mesoporous polydopamine (MPDA) nanoparticles to produce a biomimetic nanoplatform. The results indicate that the membrane‐coated nanoparticles (MNPs) exhibit high specificity and affinity toward CRPC cells. On further encapsulation with the ferroptosis inducers RSL3 and iron ions, MPDA/Fe/RSL3@M‐gy1 demonstrates superior synergistic effects in highly targeted ferroptosis therapy eliciting significant therapeutic efficacy against CRPC tumor growth and bone metastasis without increased cytotoxicity. In conclusion, a new therapeutic strategy is reported for the PSMA‐specific, CRPC‐targeting platform for ferroptosis induction with increased efficacy and safety.

ObjectiveThis study aims to examine the thyroid hormone profile and its association with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in patients infected by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).MethodsThis retrospective cohort study enrolled patients admitted to a tertiary hospital due to SARS-CoV-2 infection between February 18 and May 18, 2022. Clinical data were collected retrospectively from the electronic medical record system. Based on the thyroid function, patients were divided into five groups: normal, non-thyroid illness syndrome (NTIS), hypothyroidism, thyrotoxicosis, and unclassified. The association between thyroid function and severe COVID-19 was detected using multivariable logistic regression and restricted cubic splines analysis.ResultsThis study included 3,161 patients, with 7.7% of them developing severe COVID-19. 44.9% of the patients had normal thyroid function, 36.5% had NTIS, 6.7% had hypothyroidism, and 1.0% had thyrotoxicosis on admission. After adjusting for age, sex, and relevant clinical characteristics, NTIS and hypothyroidism were associated with increased risks of severe COVID-19 (odds ratio [OR] 2.38, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.59-3.56 and OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.23-4.26, respectively), compared to normal thyroid function group. Among patients with NTIS or hypothyroidism, higher levels of total triiodothyronine (TT3) are associated with lower risks of severe COVID-19 (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.64-0.82, for every 0.1nmol/L increase in TT3 level).ConclusionThyroid hormone profiles of NTIS or hypothyroidism are associated with increased risks of severe COVID-19. The decreased level of TT3 correlated with the increased risk of severe COVID-19 in patients with NTIS or hypothyroidism.

The impact of riverbank erosion poses serious threat to the environment, socio-economics and human safety. Due to the extremely complex mechanisms of erosion, assessing the risk of riverbank erosion is challenging. To address this, we propose an interpretable intelligent model framework to accurately assess large-scale riverbank erosion risk. Firstly, we constructed a multi-source dataset that encompasses 29 riverbank erosion influencing factors. Subsequently, by employing an adaptive feature weighting method, a comprehensive water level factor was synthesized, unifying data dimensions. The Relief algorithm was used to identify influential features for riverbank erosion, and an adaptive feature weighting SMOTE (AFW-SMOTE) algorithm was developed to balance the riverbank erosion dataset. Additionally, an ELM and BiGRU autoencoder was designed to effectively capture and learn key information from static and dynamic features. Finally, the outputs of the two autoencoders were integrated using the XGBoost algorithm to produce riverbank erosion risk assessment results, and the risks were visualized. This model not only performs excellently across multiple evaluation metrics but also significantly surpasses 22 other machine learning models. By integrating the Shapley value method, it enhances the model’s interpretability. This provides policymakers and relevant environmental management agencies with a powerful tool to scientifically assess and manage the risk of riverbank erosion.

As the new generation of artificial intelligence (AI) continues to evolve, weather big data and statistical machine learning (SML) technologies complement each other and are deeply integrated to significantly improve the processing and forecasting accuracy of fishery weather. Accurate fishery weather services play a crucial role in fishery production, serving as a great safeguard for economic benefits and personal safety, enabling fishermen to carry out fishery production better, and contributing to the sustainable development of the fishery industry. The objective of this paper is to offer an understanding of the present state of research and development in SML technology for simulating and forecasting fishery weather. Specifically, we analyze the current state of research and technical features of SML in weather and summarize the applications of SML in simulation and forecasting of fishery weather, which mainly include three aspects: fishery weather scenario generation, fishery weather forecasting, and fishery extreme weather warning. We also illustrate the main technical means and principles of SML technology. Finally, we summarize the most advanced SML fields and provide an outlook on their application value in the field of fishery weather.

Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) is a non-invasive neuroimaging technique widely utilized in the research of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), providing preliminary insights into the potential biological mechanisms underlying ASD. Deep learning techniques have demonstrated significant potential in the analysis of rs-fMRI. However, accurately distinguishing between healthy control group and ASD has been a longstanding challenge. In this regard, this work proposes a model featuring a dual-path cross-attention framework for spatial and temporal patterns, named STDCformer, aiming to enhance the accuracy of ASD identification. STDCformer can preserve both temporal-specific patterns and spatial-specific patterns while explicitly interacting spatiotemporal information in depth. The embedding layer of the STDCformer embeds temporal and spatial patterns in dual paths. For the temporal path, we introduce a perturbation positional encoding to improve the issue of signal misalignment caused by individual differences. For the spatial path, we propose a correlation metric based on Gramian angular field similarity to establish a more specific whole-brain functional network. Subsequently, we interleave the query and key vectors of dual paths to interact spatial and temporal information. We further propose integrating the dual-path attention into a tensor that retains spatiotemporal dimensions and utilizing 2D convolution for feed-forward processing. Our attention layer allows the model to represent spatiotemporal correlations of signals at multiple scales to alleviate issues of information distortion and loss. Our STDCformer demonstrates competitive results compared to state-of-the-art methods on the ABIDE dataset. Additionally, we conducted interpretative analyses of the model to preliminarily discuss the potential physiological mechanisms of ASD. This work once again demonstrates the potential of deep learning technology in identifying ASD and developing neuroimaging biomarkers for ASD.

Abstract For temperate desert ecosystems, understanding the maintenance mechanisms of biodiversity has become a central concern of policymakers, practitioners, and academicians, especially in the context of human disturbances. However, most of the past desert research is based on a single survey and single functional traits or phylogeny, and may lead to incomplete estimates of community assembly. To assess climate factors, soil factors, and human interference in the processes of dispersal assembly, filtering, and limiting similarity in community assembly, we selected 50 sites along the Beijing‐Xinjiang Expressway and conducted plant surveys at sites 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 km away from the expressway twice, one in spring and one in autumn, and collected 31 functional traits and phylogenetic information of 74 species. We found that incomplete detection can lead to bias in biodiversity estimation due to seasonal surveys. Road disturbance at different distances had no significant effect on species composition and community assembly processes. The trade‐off between dispersal limitation and environmental filtering is the process of maintaining desert plant diversity. Precipitation directly determined the dispersal limitation and environmental filtering. Soil pH mediated the effect of temperature on biotic interaction in the dimension of phylogeny, while soil pH and organic carbon acted as intermediate factors affecting biotic interaction in functional traits. Our findings suggest that climate change, notably precipitation, has a more pronounced impact on desert plant communities than human disturbances. A multifaceted approach considering functional traits and phylogeny across seasons is essential for understanding species coexistence in desert ecosystems.

Abstract Aims/Introduction Serum amyloid A (SAA) is an acute phase reactive protein that plays a vital role in the early diagnosis, risk prediction, efficacy observation and prognosis evaluation of infectious diseases. This study aimed to assess the association between SAA levels and the prognosis of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) and diabetes. Materials and Methods We carried out this retrospective cohort study from March 2022 to May 2022. The population was stratified by tertiles of SAA levels: low (36 mg/L). The primary outcome was whether the patient developed severe COVID‐19, and secondary outcomes included the need for invasive mechanical ventilation and length of hospital stay. Logistic regression analyses were carried out to identify risk factors affecting the prognosis of patients with COVID‐19 and diabetes. Results We analyzed 910 diabetes patients with COVID‐19. The median age of the patients was 69 years, and 52.3% were men. As SAA levels increased, the proportion of severe COVID‐19 (6.3% vs 7.3% vs 22.8%, P 36 mg/L further increased the odds ratio to 4.423 (P 36 mg/L remained an independent risk factor for the development of severe COVID‐19 (adjusted odds ratio 3.038, P

A Lamb wave is a guided wave that propagates within plate-like structures, with its vibration mode resulting from the coupling of a longitudinal wave and a shear vertical wave, which can be applied in sensors, filters, and frequency control devices. The working principle of Lamb wave sensors relies on the excitation and propagation of this guided wave within piezoelectric material. Lamb wave sensors exhibit significant advantages in various sensing applications due to their unique wave characteristics and design flexibility. Compared to traditional surface acoustic wave (SAW) and bulk acoustic wave (BAW) sensors, Lamb wave sensors can not only achieve higher frequencies and quality factors in smaller dimensions but also exhibit superior integration and multifunctionality. In this paper, we briefly introduce Lamb wave sensors, summarizing methods for enhancing their sensitivity through optimizing electrode configurations and adjusting piezoelectric thin plate structures. Furthermore, this paper systematically explores the development of Lamb wave sensors in various sensing applications and provides new insights into their future development.

When the landing position of a shipborne helicopter on the deck does not meet the requirements for towing it into the hangar, its position must first be corrected before towing can proceed. This paper studied the methods for using Shipborne Rapid Carrier Robots (SRCRs) to correct helicopter positions on the deck and proposed two correction methods, the stepwise correction method and the continuous correction method, aiming to improve the efficiency of the position adjustment process. Firstly, the actual helicopter landing position deviation was divided into two components—lateral offset and fuselage yaw angle—to quantitatively assess the deviations. Then, a mathematical model of the SRCR traction system was established, and its traction motion characteristics were analyzed. The kinematic characteristics and control processes of the two proposed position correction methods were subsequently studied, revealing the coordinated control relationships between key control elements. Finally, simulations were conducted to validate the feasibility of the proposed correction methods and compare their efficiencies. The results indicated that both the stepwise and continuous correction methods effectively achieved the position correction objectives. The stepwise method was more efficient when the initial yaw angle was small, while the continuous method proved more efficient when the initial yaw angle was large and the lateral offset was minimal. The results of this study may provide a valuable reference for correcting the positions of helicopters on deck.

Herpes zoster (HZ) induces significant pain and discomfort, which can seriously affect the quality of life of patients. At present, there is no specific treatment for HZ, and the mosteffective HZ control is vaccination. The main obstacle to developing an effective HZ vaccine is poorly induced cellular immune response. In this study, the IFN-α–gE–Fc fusion protein induced higher levels of humoral and cellular immunity compared to the unengineered gE antigen and higher levels of cellular immunity compared to the flagellin–gE–Fc fusion protein in a murine model. Compared with the marketed recombinant herpes zoster vaccine (Shingrix), IFN-α–gE–Fc can replace current used MPL adjuvant. At the same time, the immunogenicity of the IFN-α–gE–Fc + AQ was not weaker than that of the marketed recombinant zoster vaccine. The novel fusion protein provides a candidate entity for the development of a safe and effective novel HZ vaccine.

Low-cost, flexible and safe battery technology is the key to the widespread usage of wearable electronics, among which the aqueous Al ion battery with water-in-salt electrolyte is a promising candidate. In this work, a flexible aqueous Al ion battery is developed using cellulose paper as substrate. The water-in-salt electrolyte is stored inside the paper, while the electrodes are either printed or attached on the paper surface, leading to a lightweight and thin-film battery prototype. Currently, this battery can tolerate a charge and discharge rate as high as 4 A g−1 without losing its storage capacity. The charge voltage is around 2.2 V, while the discharge plateau of 1.6–1.8 V is among the highest in reported aqueous Al ion batteries, together with a high discharge specific capacity of ∼140 mAh g−1. However, due to the water electrolysis side reaction, the faradaic efficiency can only reach 85% with a cycle life of 250 due to the dry out of electrolyte. Benefited from using flexible materials and aqueous electrolyte, this paper-based Al ion battery can tolerate various deformations such as bending, rolling and even puncturing without losing its performance. When two single cells are connected in series, the battery pack can provide a charge voltage of 4.3 V and a discharge plateau as high as 3–3.6 V, which are very close to commercial Li ion batteries. Such a cheap, flexible and safe battery technology may be widely applied in low-cost and large-quantity applications, such as RFID tags, smart packages and wearable biosensors in the future.

Abstract Background This study aimed to analyze the clinical efficacy of one-stage anterior debridement of lower cervical tuberculosis using iliac crest bone graft fusion and internal fixation. Materials and methods A retrospective analysis was performed on 48 patients with lower cervical tuberculosis admitted to multiple medical centers from June 2018 to June 2021. Among them, 36 patients had lesions involving two vertebrae and 12 patients had lesions involving more than three vertebrae. All patients were treated with quadruple antituberculosis drugs for more than 2 weeks before the operation, and then treated with one-stage anterior debridement and autogenous iliac bone graft fusion combined with titanium plate internal fixation. After the operation, antituberculosis drugs were continued for 12–18 months. The patients were followed-up to observe the improvement in clinical symptoms, bone graft fusion, Cobb angle, visual analog score (VAS), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), wound healing, and neurological function. Results The patients were followed-up for 13–43 months, with an average of 21.46 ± 1.52 months. The clinical symptoms significantly improved after the operation. The bone graft was completely fused in all patients, and the bone fusion time was 3–6 months, with an average of 4.16 ± 0.47 months. At the last follow-up, the Cobb angle, VAS, ESR, and CRP level were significantly lower than those before surgery (P

Three-wheeled agricultural robots possess the advantages of high flexibility, strong maneuverability, and low cost. They can adapt to various complex terrains and operational environments, making them highly valuable in the fields of crop planting, harvesting, irrigation, and more. However, the horizontal stability of the three-wheeled agricultural robot chassis is compromised when working in harsh terrain, significantly impacting the overall operational quality and safety. To address this issue, this study designed a leveling system based on active suspension and proposed a stepwise leveling method based on an adaptive dual-loop composite control strategy (ADLCCS-SLM). Firstly, in the overall control of the three-wheeled chassis, a stepwise leveling method (SLM) was introduced. This method allows for rapid leveling by incrementally adjusting one or two suspensions, effectively avoiding the complex interactions between suspension components encountered in traditional methods involving the simultaneous linkage of three suspensions. Next, in terms of suspension actuator control, an adaptive dual-loop composite control strategy (ADLCCS) was proposed. This strategy employs a dual-loop composite control both internally and externally and utilizes an improved adaptive genetic algorithm to adjust critical control parameters. This adaptation optimizes the chassis leveling performance across various road conditions. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed ADLCCS-SLM was validated through simulation and experimental testing. The test results showed that the control effect of the proposed method was significant. Compared to the traditional multi-suspension linkage leveling method based on PID, the peak values of pitch angle and roll angle were reduced by 31.8% and 33.3%, respectively.

This paper focuses on the analysis of the stress state of a large-span frame pier-continuous box girder bridge with pier crossbeams anchored by pier crossbeams on the main pier of the Guangfo-Zhao Expressway. The bridge is constructed by the cantilever method, and a refined finite element model of the entire bridge is established using the finite element software Midas/FEA to analyze the stress state of the frame pier during the cantilever construction process. It is found that under the possible combined action of an unbalanced load during construction, the torsional resistance of the frame pier crossbeam does not meet the requirements of the design code. In order to eliminate the torsion of the frame piers, counterweights were used to monitor the frame piers during the construction of the box girders. In this paper, the theoretical calculation formula of the inclination angle of the end section of the frame pier crossbeam with the change of unbalanced bending moment, the calculation formula of the relationship between the horizontal displacement of the frame pier and the unbalanced bending moment, and the calculation formula corresponding to the relationship with the water tank counterweight are derived using the structural mechanics method. Two monitoring methods for the frame pier are proposed. In the construction monitoring of the bridge, the numerical fitting formula obtained by finite element numerical analysis calculation is compared with the calculated formula obtained by substituting the design parameters of the frame pier into the theoretical formula. The basic constants in both formulas are basically equal, verifying the correctness of the monitoring calculation formula proposed in this paper for the torsional resistance of the frame pier crossbeam. The applicability of the two monitoring methods is also compared and analyzed. This paper takes the main pier of Chaoyang overpass’s mainline bridge as the engineering background, which adopts the framework pier with a large-span prestressed concrete continuous box girder bridge. It analyzes the torsional state of the beam of the framework pier during the bridge construction process and conducts research on the construction monitoring of the framework pier crossbeam, providing valuable references for the construction monitoring of framework pier crossbeams in the construction of large-span framework pier continuous bridges in the future. The research results of this paper can provide assistance for the construction monitoring of similar projects. This paper’s innovation primarily resides in employing structural mechanics methods to compute the torsion of frame piers. On this basis, a simplified beam torsion calculation formula is proposed to strengthen its practical application in construction monitoring. The findings of this paper can help in the construction monitoring of similar projects.

The cobia, Rachycentron canadum (Linnaeus, 1766), is an important aquaculture species in cage and other intensive systems. This species has many advantages such as fast growth rate, excellent meat quality, and high market value, making cobia an excellent candidate species for commercial aquaculture. However, long-term artificial breeding of cobia has reduced gene exchange and population genetic diversity. To better protect germplasm resources, molecular markers provide a powerful tool in developing the breeding industry of cobia. Microsatellites are widely distributed, large in number with high polymorphism, and have long been considered important molecular markers for genetic diversity and marker-assisted breeding. More polymorphic microsatellite markers need to be developed for cobia because the number of published polymorphic simple sequence repeat (SSR) loci is very limited. In this study, Micro Satellite (MISA) software was used to identify SSR loci based on the genome sequencing data of cobia. We analyzed the distribution, quantity, and composition characteristics of the SSR loci to develop polymorphic microsatellite markers. The identified markers were used to evaluate the genetic diversity in five cultured populations.In this study, a total of 424 827 SSR loci were identified in the genome data of cobia, among which mononucleotides, dinucleotides, and trinucleotides accounted for 50.50%, 30.23%, and 14.02% of the total SSRs, respectively. Among all the repeat units contained in the total SSRs, A/T was the predominant repeat type of the mononucleotide repeats; AT/AT and AC/GT were the dominant repeat types of dinucleotides; AAT/ATT and AGG/CCT were the dominant repeat types of trinucleotides. Repeat numbers of the SSR core sequences in the genome of cobia ranged from 4 to 275 times. The predominant repeat number of the mononucleotide SSR was ten and the predominant number of the dinucleotide and trinucleotide SSR were six and four, respectively. A total of 173 518 SSR loci had a length of ≥20 bp, accounting for 47.98% of the total number of SSRs in the genome. These results indicated that the SSR loci in the genome of cobia were of a high frequency, rich variety, and with high polymorphic potential.Unigenes obtained by the genome sequencing of cobia were used to detect and analyze the SSR loci information using MISA software. The numbers and types of SSR sequences on the single-stranded DNA of the genome were counted. SSR sites in cobia genome mainly contain mononucleotide, dinucleotide, trinucleotide, tetranucleotide, pentanucleotide, and hexanucleotide repeats. The screening criteria for the polymorphic SSR loci was set as "mononucleotide repeat units with repeats at least 10 times; dinucleotides with repeats at least six times; trinucleotides, tetranucleotides, pentanucleotides, and hexanucleotides with repeats at least four times". Subsequently, based on the information of SSR loci screening, 100 candidate loci were randomly selected to design and synthesize primers for amplification. A total of 16 DNA samples from different cultured populations were used as templates. Multiple PCR amplifications were performed to screen ideal polymorphic SSR loci and suitable PCR primers. PCR products were detected using capillary fluorescence electrophoresis. The GeneMapper 4.1 software was used to analyze the accurate sites of the amplified sequences. Based on the genotyping data of the 100 SSR loci, SSR loci with high polymorphism were selected to analyze the genetic diversity of five cultured populations of cobia.The screening analysis results revealed a total of 344 820 SSR loci were detected in the genome of cobia. Among these SSR (with 1–6 nucleotide as repeat units), the top three repeat types were mononucleotide, dinucleotide, and trinucleotide, accounting for 50.49%, 30.23% and 14.02% of the total detected SSRs, respectively. Among the repeating units included in the detected SSRs, the mononucleotide repeats were dominated by A/T type, accounting for 46.34% of the total detected SSRs; AC/GT was the dominant repeat unit type of dinucleotide, accounting for 21.81% of the total detected SSRs. The number of SSR core sequence repeats in the total detected SSRs fluctuated in the range of 4 to 275 times. The predominant number of repeats of mononucleotide SSR was ten, and the predominant number of repeats of dinucleotide SSR was six. In this study, the length of ≥12 bp was set as the standard for screening high polymorphic SSR loci. A total of 361 684 SSR loci were obtained. However, the SSR loci with fragment lengths of 12–19 bp accounted the largest number, with a total of 188 166; these loci accounted for 52.02% of the total number of SSRs. Among the selected 100 candidate loci for genotyping, a total of ten polymorphic SSR markers were obtained. These markers were used in the genetic diversity analysis of five cultured populations collected in Beihai (RC-BH), Lingshui (RC-LS), Naozhou (RC-NZ), Xuwen (RC-XW), and Sanya (RC-SY). A total of 69 alleles were detected from 145 individuals, the average observed heterozygosity (Ho) was 0.628, and the average expected heterozygosity (He) was 0.706, and the mean polymorphism information content (PIC) was 0.653. The inbreeding coefficient (Fis) of the ten loci in the five cultured populations ranged from –0.317 to 0.270. The genetic distance between the five cultured populations ranged from 0.141 to 0.464, and the genetic similarity was 0.629–0.868. The results were similar to that of previous research using published markers, indicating that the polymorphic markers screened from the genome of cobia were of high accuracy and reliability. These polymorphic SSR markers provide strong support for population genetic diversity evaluation and molecular marker-assisted breeding of cobia, and provide effective technical support for the development of the cobia aquaculture industry.

Hydrogel electrolyte is especially suitable for solid-state Al-air batteries targeted for various portable applications, which may, however, lead to continuous Al corrosion during battery standby. To tackle this issue, an ethanol gel electrolyte is developed for Al-air battery for the first time in this work, by using KOH as solute and polyethylene oxide as gelling agent. The ethanol gel is found to effectively inhibit Al corrosion compared with the water gel counterpart, leading to stable Al storage. When assembled into an Al-air battery, the ethanol gel electrolyte achieves a much improved discharge lifetime and specific capacity, which are 5.3 and 4.1 times of the water gel electrolyte at 0.1 mA cm−2, respectively. By studying the gel properties, it is found that a lower ethanol purity can improve the battery power output, but at the price of decreased discharge efficiency. On the contrary, a higher polymer concentration will decrease the power output, but can bring extra benefit to the discharge efficiency. As for the gel thickness, a moderate value of 1 mm is preferred to balance the power output and energy efficiency. Finally, to cater the increasing market of flexible electronics, a flexible Al-air battery is developed by impregnating the ethanol gel into a paper substrate, which can function normally even under serious deformation or damage.

ABSTRACTImproved strength-ductility synergy is not uncommon among metallic materials with gradient structures of grains and twins. In this work, we report that the texture gradient innately created in Al-Mn strips by twin-roll casting is also capable of increasing the material’s ductility without sacrificing its strength. Analyses based on crystal plasticity theory demonstrated that the underlying mechanism of this texture-gradient-induced ductility enhancement lies in the orientation-dependent slip and grain rotation, which generate backstress, alter the local stress triaxiality, and delay the fracture process. These results advocate the integration of texture gradient design into the fabrication of high-performance gradient materials.

A denitrifying bacteria, which we named Chelatococcus DNB-15, was screened and isolated from the Shengli Oilfield polymer-containing wastewater. The strain was characterized by 16S rDNA analysis and the effects of nutrient substrate type, pH, mineralization and temperature on the activity of the strain were also investigated. The strain was identified as Chelatococcus, of which the most efficient carbon source is sodium citrate, the most suitable nitrogen source is potassium nitrate, the suitable temperature for growth is 35～45 °C, the suitable pH range for growth is 7.0～9.0, and the maximal tolerable mineralization is 4 × 104 mg/L. The desulfurization experiment showed that Chelatococcus DNB-15 has desulfurization ability to some extent. When the initial sulfide concentration is lower than 50 mg/L, Chelatococcus DNB-15 grows rapidly, and the sulfides are removed quickly within 24 h, displaying a sulfur removal rate higher than 99 %; When the initial sulfide concentration is higher than 150 mg/L, the growth of Chelatococcus DNB-15 is severely restricted, the desulfurization effect is not obvious, and the desulfurization rate is almost stagnant.

Abstract Background Increasing evidence suggests that mitophagy is responsible for the pathogenesis of intervertebral disk (IVD) degeneration. Previous studies have shown that Duhuo Jisheng Decoction (DHJSD), a classic Fangji of traditional Chinese medicine, can delay IVD degeneration; however, its specific mechanism of action is unknown. In this study, we investigated the mechanism by which DHJSD treatment prevented IVD degeneration in IL-1β-treated human nucleus pulposus (NP) cells in vitro. Methods Cell Counting Kit-8 was performed to explore the effects of DHJSD on the viability of NP cells exposed to IL-1β. The mechanism by which DHJSD delays IVD degeneration was explored using luciferase reporter assay, RT-qPCR, western blotting, TUNEL assay, mitophagy detection assay, Mito-SOX, Mitotracker and in situ hybridization. Results We observed that DHJSD enhanced the viability of NP cells treated with IL-1β in a concentration-time dependent approach. Moreover, DHJSD lessened IL-1β-induced NP apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction and activated mitophagy in NP cells treated with IL-1β. Mitophagy suppressor cyclosporin A reversed the beneficial impacts of DHJSD in NP cells. In addition, the differential expression of miR-494 regulated IL-1β-induced NP apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction, and the protective impact of miR-494 on NP cells treated with IL-1β was achieved by mitophagy activation, which was regulated by its target gene, sirtuin 3 (SIRT3). Finally, we observed that DHJSD treatment could effectively delay IL-1β-induced NP apoptosis by affecting the miR-494/SIRT3/mitophagy signal axis. Conclusions These results show that the miR-494/SIRT3/mitophagy signaling pathway is responsible for the apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction of NP cells and that DHJSD may exert protective effects against IVD degeneration by regulating the miR-494/SIRT3/mitophagy signal axis.

Based on the theory of zero bending moment under constant load, various optimization methods exist for the top beam of large-span continuous rigid frame bridges. These include achieving zero bending moment at the root of the cantilever beam, at the control stage section, and through the zero deflection method. This study aims to explore the methods and effects of optimizing roof beam design using the constant load zero bending moment method and the “three group bundle method”. Using finite element modeling, the total number and eccentricity of prestressed tendons required for each suspended pouring block are determined. Additionally, the “three group beam matching method” is employed to adjust the steel beam, adhering to the design concept of “large cantilever beam matching and small cantilever beam matching”, to achieve a reasonable configuration of the top plate beam. Through specific engineering examples, the results demonstrate that utilizing the constant load zero moment method and the “three group bundle method” can significantly enhance the structural performance and economy of large-span continuous rigid frame bridges. Moreover, it offers practical operability, providing an important reference basis for similar project designs.

The role of senior citizen centers is becoming more important, with a greater emphasis placed on ensuring that these establishments facilitate leisure and communication for older adults. These developments are taking place as population aging has now become an irreversible global trend. However, there is still a lack of systematic research on predicting the distribution density of senior citizen centers based on physical factors in urban planning. Therefore, this study set each administrative district in Busan as a unit and investigated physical factors affecting the distribution density of senior citizen centers around small apartment complexes to validate their effectiveness. First, the spatial hierarchy of each administrative district in Busan was examined. The city was divided into administrative districts while focusing on the distribution density of senior citizen centers (the dependent variable) around small apartment complexes where older adults live (within a 500 m radius). The spatial accessibility of senior citizen centers and the number of apartments in each administrative district were set as independent variables. This selection was made to verify the effectiveness of the physical factors by conducting an independent sample t-test, normality test, Friedman test, and two-way ANOVA. The chief findings of this study are as follows. (1) The spatial awareness of each administrative district was low, and there were large disparities in the land development density relative to the spatial scale of the administrative districts. (2) Regarding the physical factors affecting the distribution density of senior citizen centers, the spatial accessibility of senior residences was more significant than the number of small apartment complexes nearby. (3) Personal and social factors may have indirectly influenced the distribution density of senior citizen centers more than physical factors, depending on the type of house in which the older adults live. The findings will provide a theoretical basis for determining the location and distribution density of senior citizen centers in urban planning considering physical factors, as well as serve as a reference for public policy decisions related to the allocation of such centers in the future.

In order to produce natural gas hydrate safely and efficiently, it is quite crucial to research the stability of hydrate reservoir in the process of its exploitation. The coupled thermal-hydrodynamic-mechanical (THM) numerical simulation can clearly present the mechanical response laws in the process of hydrate exploitation by horizontal well, but the model is often simplified as a profile vertical to the production well, so the evolution characteristics of real formation deformation space cannot be described sufficiently. To this end, this paper develops a coupled THM simulator applicable to the large-scale hydrate exploitation by horizontal well by introducing interactive interface to the FLAC mechanics program based on the hydrate exploitation program TOUGH + HYDRATE. Then, based on the field data of second hydrate production test in South China Sea, the gas and water production and formation deformation laws under the middle- and long-term development conditions of horizontal wells are studied by taking the actual gas production of horizontal well during the production test as the constraint of coupled THM model. And the following research results are obtained. First, when the production pressure is 7 MPa and the horizontal well length is 300 m, the gas production of horizontal well can reach 1190 × 104 m3, the pressure drop has a larger influence range in the free gas layer, the produced gas mainly comes from the free gas layer and the hydrate layer and the hydrate dissociation range is not large. Second, it is predicted that the seafloor settlement is about 0.16 m after 60 days' production test and 0.52 m after osne year's production. In conclusion, hydrate exploitation by horizontal well can cause a large range of seafloor settlement. The seafloor surface settles linearly and continuously and the spatial settlement distribute is in the shape of ellipse. What's more, the greatest deformation (vertical displacement) occurs at the horizontal well and above it, where formation damage happens the easiest. It is recommended to study seafloor deformation and landslip risk under the conditions of middle and long-term production based on seafloor topography, valley distribution and nonuniform spatial thickness of mineral ores.

Chronic occlusion of large intracranial arteries is the main cause of ischemic stroke in China. Patients with symptomatic intracranial artery occlusion and hemodynamic impairment are at high risk of recurrent stroke. Chronic occlusion of the intracranial segment of the internal carotid artery is a common type of intracranial artery occlusion. Medical management is regarded as the standard treatment for this disease. With the development of endovascular treatment, some patients with chronic cerebral artery occlusion have achieved satisfactory results with endovascular therapy. We reported a patient with symptomatic chronic occlusion of the ophthalmic segment of the internal carotid artery. Simple balloon angioplasty was performed, and the occluded ophthalmic segment of the internal carotid artery was successfully recanalized without perioperative complications. At 4 months follow-up, the internal carotid artery remained patent and perfusion of the right cerebral hemisphere improved dramatically. In addition, we briefly reviewed the relevant literature.

The separation of sensor, memory, and processor in a recognition system deteriorates the latency of decision-making and increases the overall computing power. Here, Zhang et al. develop a photoelectronic reservoir computing system, consisting of DUV photo-synapses and a memristor array, to detect and recognize the latent fingerprint with in-sensor and parallel in-memory computing.

Age-related hearing loss, or presbycusis, is a common cause of hearing loss in elderly people worldwide. It typically presents as progressive, irreversible, and usually affects the high frequencies of hearing, with a tremendous impact on the quality of life. Presbycusis is a complex multidimensional disorder, in addition to aging, multiple factors including exposure to noise, or ototoxic agents, genetic susceptibility, metabolic diseases and lifestyle can influence the onset and severity of presbycusis. With the aging of the body, its ability to clean up deleterious substances produced in the metabolic process is weakened, and the self-protection and repair function of the body is reduced, which in turn leads to irreversible damage to the cochlear tissue, resulting in the occurrence of presbycusis. Presently, oxidative stress (OS), mitochondrial DNA damage, low-grade inflammation, decreased immune function and stem cell depletion have been demonstrated to play a critical role in developing presbycusis. The purpose of this review is to illuminate the various mechanisms underlying this age-related hearing loss, with the goal of advancing our understanding, prevention, and treatment of presbycusis.

Effectively simulating the variation in suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in estuaries during typhoons is significant for the water quality and ecological conditions of estuarine shoal wetlands and their adjacent coastal waters. During typhoons, SSC undergoes large variations due to the significant changes in meteorological and hydrological factors such as waves, wind speed, and precipitation, which increases the difficulty in simulating SSC. Therefore, in this study, we use an optimized Principal Component Analysis Long Short-Term Memory (PCA-LSTM) framework with an attention mechanism to simulate the SSC in the Yangtze Estuary during Typhoon In-Fa. First, we integrate data from different sources into a multi-source dataset. Second, we use the PCA to reduce the dimensionality of the multi-source data and eliminate redundant variables in the feature data. Third, we introduce an attention mechanism to optimize the long and short-term memory (LSTM) model. Finally, we use the differential evolution (DE) algorithm for hyperparameter selection and merge the feature data with the SSC data as the input of the optimized LSTM network to simulate SSC. The results showed that SSC’s fitting coefficients (R2) at four hydrological stations improved by 7.5%, 6.1%, 7.4%, and 7.8%, respectively, using the attention-based PCA-LSTM compared to the PCA-LSTM. Moreover, compared to the traditional LSTM model, the R2 was improved by 33.8%, 30.5%, 32.0%, and 28.6%, respectively, using the attention-based PCA-LSTM framework. The study indicates that the selection of input variables can affect the model results. Introducing an attention mechanism can effectively optimize the PCA-LSTM framework and improve the simulation accuracy, which helps simulate the non-linear process of SSC variation occurring during Typhoon In-Fa.

IntroductionFood web is an important basis for identifying trophodynamic processes, and evaluating the structural and functional characteristics of ecosystems. The trophodynamics and system function of artificial reef (AR) ecosystems have rarely been examined.MethodsStable isotope analysis was used to investigate the food web structure and functions of an artificial reef (AR) ecosystem in this study.Results and DiscussionThe δ13C and δ15N values of particulate organic matter (POM) in AR showed noticeable seasonal changes, and the δ13C value of POM in autumn was significantly higher than that in other seasons (p

In order to analyze the nonlinear amplitude frequency characteristics of marine herringbone gear transmission system more accurately， the factors such as tooth surface friction， time-varying meshing stiffness， backlash， comprehensive transmission error， external load excitation， intermediate shaft section and elastic support are comprehensively considered， a bending torsional axial pendular nonlinear dynamics model of 24-DOF marine herringbone gear transmission system is established based on the lumped mass parameter method， and the nonlinear dynamic differential equations of the system are derived. In the model， the friction coefficient， friction force and friction moment are calculated by using the elastohydrodynamic lubrication theory. The Runge-Kutta numerical method is used to solve the differential equation. The phase diagram and time history diagram of the non-dimensional frequency system under the influence of tooth surface friction are obtained. The influence of tooth surface friction on the nonlinear frequency response characteristics of the system is analyzed. The results show that the tooth surface friction suppresses the vibration of the herringbone gear pair along the meshing line， but does not change the meshing state of the gear; in different meshing frequency range， low frequency range of 0~0.89 and high frequency range of 1.42~2， the damping effect of tooth surface friction on vibration amplitude cannot be ignored. In the non-stationary resonance range of dimensionless meshing frequency of 0.95~1.23， the damping effect of tooth surface friction is not obvious. It provides a theoretical basis for the study of vibration and noise reduction performance of herringbone gears.

Abstract Background Chronic liver injury induces pathological repair, resulting in fibrosis, during which hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) are activated and transform into myofibroblasts. CD248 is mainly expressed on myofibroblasts and was considered as a promising target to treat fibrosis. The primary aim of this study was to generate a CD248 specific antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) and evaluate its therapeutic efficacy for liver fibrosis and its safety in vivo. Methods CD248 expression was examined in patients with liver cirrhosis and in mice with CCl4-induced liver fibrosis. The ADC IgG78-DM1, which targets CD248, was prepared and its bioactivity on activated primary HSCs was studied. The anti-fibrotic effects of IgG78-DM1 on liver fibrosis were evaluated in CCl4-induced mice. The reproductive safety and biosafety of IgG78-DM1 were also evaluated in vivo. Results CD248 expression was upregulated in patients with liver cirrhosis and in CCl4-induced mice, and was mainly expressed on alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA)+ myofibroblasts. IgG78-DM1 was successfully generated, which could effectively bind with and kill CD248+ activated HSCs in vitro and inhibit liver fibrosis in vivo. In addition, IgG78-DM1 was demonstrated to have qualified biosafety and reproductive safety in vivo. Conclusions Our study demonstrated that CD248 could be an ideal target for myofibroblasts in liver fibrosis, and CD248-targeting IgG78-DM1 had excellent anti-fibrotic effects in mice with liver fibrosis. Our study provided a novel strategy to treat liver fibrosis and expanded the application of ADCs beyond tumors. Graphic Abstract

The mechanical behavior of steel–concrete–steel (SCS) sandwich composite structures under low- or high-velocity impact loading has garnered increasing attention from researchers in recent decades. However, to date, limited effort has been dedicated to studying the residual resistance of SCS sandwich composite structures following impact damage. In a previous investigation, the authors developed a rubberized lightweight high-ductility cement composite (RLHDC) for implementation in double-layer steel–RLHDC–steel composite panels and examined the dynamic response of these panels under impact. To further explore the residual performance of impact-damaged composite panels, the present study conducts flexural tests on nine such panels. The study quantifies and analyzes the effects of various connector types, connector spacing, number of concrete layers, rubber powder content, and number of impacts on the residual flexural resistance of the impact-damaged composite panels. Detailed analysis is conducted on the failure modes, load–displacement curves, strain curves, and load–slip curves of the impact-damaged specimens. The test results reveal that the impact-damaged composite panels experience flexural failure with bond slip under static load. The residual flexural performance is found to be sensitive to the number of concrete layers and number of impacts. Finite element (FE) simulations are performed using LS-DYNA to investigate the residual flexural behavior of the impact-damaged composite panels. The restart method is employed in the simulations to mimic the post-impact static loading scenario. The agreement between the FE results and the experimental findings validates the model and provides a straightforward and effective approach for studying the residual performance of composite structures. An expanded parameter analysis leveraging the calibrated FE model indicates that the steel plate’s thickness and strength predominantly influence the composite panel’s residual resistance, whereas the influence from concrete strength proves less consequential.

As the simplest and most fundamental model describing the interaction between light and matter, a breakdown in the rotating wave approximation of the Rabi model leads to phase transition versus coupling strength when the frequency of the qubit greatly surpasses that of the oscillator. In addition to the phase transition revealed in the ground state, we show that the dynamics of physical quantities can reflect such a phase transition for this model. In addition to the excitation of the bosonic field in the ground state, we show that the witness of inseparability (entanglement), mutual information, quantum Fisher information, and the variance of cavity quadrature can be employed to detect the phase transition in quench. We also reveal the negative impact of temperature on checking the phase transition by quench. This model can be implemented using trapped ions, superconducting artificial atoms coupled bosonic modes, and quantum simulations. By reflecting the phase transition in a fundamental quantum optics model without imposing the thermodynamic limit, this work offers an idea to explore phase transitions by nonequilibrium process for open quantums.

Mealworm-flour-formulated flour-based products have gained increasing attention; however, their textural properties need to be improved. Propylene glycol alginate (PGA) is a commercial food additive with excellent emulsifying and stabilizing capabilities. We evaluated the effects of adding three commercially available PGAs (0.3% w/w, as food additive) on the properties of 10% concentration of mealworm-flour-formulated bread and steamed bread. The results showed that, compared with the control (2.17 mL/g), three PGA brands (Q, M, and Y) significantly increased the specific volume of the bread to 3.34, 3.40, and 3.36 mL/g, respectively. Only PGA from brand Q significantly improved the specific volumes of bread and steamed bread. The color of the bread was affected by the Maillard reaction. The addition of PGAs also augmented the moisture content of the fresh bread crumbs and steamed bread crumbs. All three PGAs improved the textural properties of bread and steamed bread. During storage, PGA addition delayed the staling of bread and steamed bread. In summary, our study showed that the addition of 0.3% PGA from three different producers improved bread properties, with PGA from brand Q having the most substantial effect. PGA had a more substantial effect on bread than steamed bread. Our results provide a theoretical basis to guide the development of insect-formulated flour-based products.

This study introduces a novel approach to the critical task of submarine pipeline or cable (POC) detection by employing GoogleNet for the automatic recognition of side-scan sonar (SSS) images. The traditional interpretation methods, heavily reliant on human interpretation, are replaced with a more reliable deep-learning-based methodology. We explored the enhancement of model accuracy via transfer learning and scrutinized the influence of three distinct pre-training datasets on the model’s performance. The results indicate that GoogleNet facilitated effective identification, with accuracy and precision rates exceeding 90%. Furthermore, pre-training with the ImageNet dataset increased prediction accuracy by about 10% compared to the model without pre-training. The model’s prediction ability was best promoted by pre-training datasets in the following order: Marine-PULSE ≥ ImageNet > SeabedObjects-KLSG. Our study shows that pre-training dataset categories, dataset volume, and data consistency with predicted data are crucial factors affecting pre-training outcomes. These findings set the stage for future research on automatic pipeline detection using deep learning techniques and emphasize the significance of suitable pre-training dataset selection for CNN models.

This paper proposes a power switch open-circuit (OC) fault diagnosis method for a motor drive inverter system. This method utilizes adjacent trend lines to extract fault features from the current vector trajectory, enabling rapid fault diagnosis and localization. Firstly, the current vector trajectory is obtained by applying the Clark transformation to the three-phase currents, and trend line slopes are calculated using equidistant current signal nodes. Subsequently, the method determines fault by calculating changes in adjacent trend line slopes and quickly locates the faulty power switch by considering the average slope of adjacent trend lines and the beta-axis current direction in the alpha–beta coordinate system. Accurate OC fault localization can be achieved with just a few trend line data points calculated in each current cycle, reducing the extra hardware and computational burden. This method is not only suitable for load variations but also applicable to the diagnosis of both single-switch and multiple-switch faults. Finally, simulation and experimental results validate the effectiveness and robustness of the method.

β-Ga2O3 Schottky barrier diodes with field plate (FP-SBDs) are fabricated and their SPICEcompatible model are constructed for double-pulse test circuit and DC-DC boost converter simulations. The reverse recovery time ( $t_{{\mathrm {rr}}}$ ) of the β-Ga2O3 SBD is 8.8 ns and its reverse recovery charge ( $Q_{{\mathrm {rr}}}$ ) is 8.33 nC when switching from a forward current of 1 A to a reverse bias voltage of 100 V with a di/dt of 400 A/μs, which is analogous with the prediction of our model. Device with the radius of 500 μm was fabricated, a current of 2 A can be obtained at the forward voltage of 2 V, meanwhile, the breakdown voltage is 467 V. The Ga2O3-based converter module after device packaging with TO-220 reveals a comparative efficiency to that of the SiC-based converter under multiple conditions, and reached up to 95.62% at the input voltage of 200 V. The decent performance of Ga2O3 FP-SBD and its DC-DC converter indicates great potential in power application.

Background: Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) promote tumor progression through extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling and extensive communication with other cells in tumor microenvironment. However, most CAF-targeting strategies failed in clinical trials due to the heterogeneity of CAFs. Hence, we aimed to identify the cluster of tumor-promoting CAFs, elucidate their function and determine their specific membrane markers to ensure precise targeting.Methods: We integrated multiple single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) datasets across different tumors and adjacent normal tissues to identify the tumor-promoting CAF cluster. We analyzed the origin of these CAFs by pseudotime analysis, and tried to elucidate the function of these CAFs by gene regulatory network analysis and cell-cell communication analysis. We also performed cell-type deconvolution analysis to examine the association between the proportion of these CAFs and patients’ prognosis in TCGA cancer cohorts, and validated that through IHC staining in clinical tumor tissues. In addition, we analyzed the membrane molecules in different fibroblast clusters, trying to identify the membrane molecules that were specifically expressed on these CAFs.Results: We found that COL11A1+ fibroblasts specifically exist in tumor tissues but not in normal tissues and named them cancer-specific fibroblasts (CSFs). We revealed that these CSFs were transformed from normal fibroblasts. CSFs represented a more activated CAF cluster and may promote tumor progression through the regulation on ECM remodeling and antitumor immune responses. High CSF proportion was associated with poor prognosis in bladder cancer (BCa) and lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), and IHC staining of COL11A1 confirmed their specific expression in tumor stroma in clinical BCa samples. We also identified that CSFs specifically express the membrane molecules LRRC15, ITGA11, SPHK1 and FAP, which could distinguish CSFs from other fibroblasts.Conclusion: We identified that CSFs is a tumor specific cluster of fibroblasts, which are in active state, may promote tumor progression through the regulation on ECM remodeling and antitumor immune responses. Membrane molecules LRRC15, ITGA11, SPHK1 and FAP could be used as therapeutic targets for CSF-targeting cancer treatment.

BackgroundMany countries have currently relied on various types of vaccines for the public to control the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The adverse reactions (ARs) after vaccination may affect vaccination coverage and confidence. However, whether sleep quality was associated with ARs after vaccination remains unclear.MethodsWe designed a longitudinal paired study within a hospital setting. We collected data about the side effects within 7 days after two doses of scheduled vaccination among healthcare workers (HCWs). All HCWs were asked to complete a sleep survey indexed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) before vaccination and after a 1-month follow-up. Then, we explored the relationship between sleep quality before or after vaccination and the occurrence of ARs.ResultsA total of 345 HCWs were recruited to receive COVID-19 vaccination. The sleep quality became worse after vaccination. All local and systemic reactions were mild or moderate in severity (32.46%), and no serious adverse event was reported. Binary logistic regression showed participants with poor sleep quality (PSQI > 5) than good sleep quality (PSQI ≤ 5) before the two doses of vaccination, respectively, exhibited 1.515 and 1.107 times risk of ARs after each vaccination (both p < 0.001).ConclusionThere is an apparently complex bidirectional relationship between sleep quality and COVID-19 vaccination adverse effects. Poor sleep quality significantly increases the risk of mild ARs after vaccination, while vaccination may cause a temporary decline in sleep quality.

Understanding the mechanism of the formation and rupture of conductive filaments in HfO2-based memristors is essential to solve the problem of scalability of the devices. Here, Zhang et al. visualize this process by tracking atomic-scale evolution of conductive filaments during resistive switching cycles.

The natural gas hydrate resources in the South China Sea alone are about 85 trillion cubic meters. In the drilling process of marine gas hydrate, the natural gas hydrate will decompose and produce gas, as the rising of temperature and dropping of the pressure in the annulus. This process will have a significant impact on drilling safety. Therefore, it is necessary to study the wellbore temperature distribution during the drilling of marine hydrate layer. In this paper, the wellbore temperature distribution of safe drilling in hydrated formation is taken as the research goal, and the research status of relevant domestic and international wellbore temperatures was investigated. According to the characteristics of the marine environment and reservoir-forming characteristics of hydrate reservoirs in the South China Sea, the wellbore temperature distribution model of offshore drilling wellbore under the condition of hydrate decomposition was established. The temperature distribution curve of drilling straight wellbore in hydrate layer of South China Sea was obtained. When drilling the hydrate reservoir, the distribution regularity of the wellbore temperature is similar to that of the conventional offshore drilling wellbore. However, the temperature of the wellbore annulus near the hydrate decomposition site is lower than the ambient temperature, mainly due to the hydrate decomposition endothermic. In this paper, the sensitivity analysis of several main parameters of the wellbore temperature distribution of drilling straight wellbore in hydrate layer of South China Sea was carried out. Through the conduction of experiment and numerical simulation, we have get some new findings: (1) The hydrate saturation has little effect on the wellbore temperature; (2) As the drilling fluid displacement increases, the annulus temperature of the wellbore above the mudline increases, and the temperature of the wellbore below the mudline decreases continuously; (3) As the density of the drilling fluid increases, the temperature at the wellhead decreases, and the temperature at the bottom of the well increases slightly; (4) The greater the rate of penetration of the well, the temperature at the upper part of the wellbore decreases, and the temperature at the bottom of the wellbore increases; Among them, the penetration rate has the most obvious effect on the annular temperature. The results are expected to be helpful to guide the drilling process of marine gas hydrate and offer some references.