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BackgroundAstragalus mongholicus (AM) and Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM) are commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat heart failure (HF). Ferroptosis has been studied as a key factor in the occurrence of HF. It remains unclear whether the combined use of AM and SM can effectively improve HF and the underlying mechanisms.ObjectiveThis study aims to explore whether the combined use of AM and SM can improve HF by inhibiting ferroptosis. It also examines the roles and interactions of the pathways associated with GPX4, FSP1, and DHODH.MethodsIn vitro experiments used angiotensin II-induced (4 μM for 48 h) hypertrophic H9c2 cells, while in vivo studies employed a rat model of transverse aortic constriction-induced (to 1 mm for 8 weeks) HF. Interventions included decoctions of AM and SM (for animal experiments) and medicated serum (for cell experiments), along with specific pathway inhibitors such as erastin, FSP1 inhibitor and brequinar. Subsequently, various molecular biology methods were used to measure the protein levels of GPX4, FSP1, and DHODH, as well as each sample group’s ferroptosis-related and HF-related indicators, to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.ResultsThe combined use of AM and SM can effectively restore the levels of GPX4, FSP1, and DHODH that are reduced after HF, as well as improve indicators related to ferroptosis and HF. When GPX4, FSP1, or DHODH is inhibited, the ferroptosis-inhibiting effect and the ability of AM and SM to improve HF are both weakened. When two of the three proteins are inhibited, the protective effect of HDC is strongest when GPX4 is retained, followed by FSP1, and weakest when DHODH is retained.ConclusionThis study confirms that the combined use of AM and SM inhibits ferroptosis and alleviates HF by increasing GPX4, FSP1, and DHODH levels. It shows that the protective effect is strongest through GPX4, followed by FSP1, and weakest through DHODH. These findings provide new insights into the therapeutic mechanisms of this combination of botanical drugs.

Abstract Background Nutritional deficiencies (ND) continue to threaten the lives of millions of people around the world, with children being the worst hit. Nevertheless, no systematic study of the epidemiological features of child ND has been conducted so far. Therefore, we aimed to comprehensively assess the burden of pediatric ND. Methods We analyzed data on pediatric ND between 1990 and 2019 from the Global Burden of Disease study (GBD) 2019 at the global, regional, and national levels. In addition, joinpoint regression models were used to assess temporal trends. Results In 2019, the number of prevalent cases of childhood malnutrition increased to 435,071,628 globally. The global age-standardized incidence, prevalence, and DALY rates showed an increasing trend between 1990 and 2019. Meanwhile, the burden of child malnutrition was negatively correlated with sociodemographic index (SDI). Asia and Africa still carried the heaviest burden. The burden and trends of child malnutrition varied considerably across countries and regions. At the age level, we found that malnutrition was significantly more prevalent among children

As the largest steel-producing country, China’s steel industry has experienced rapid development in terms of production level and quality. Owing to the high consumption of coal in the iron and steel industry, air pollutants and carbon dioxide (CO2) show similar emission properties in flue gas. In view of the collaborative reduction of pollution and carbon emissions, the emission standards for pollutants and carbon were first analyzed, suggesting that carbon emission standards for the iron and steel industry should be accelerated. A collaborative technology system for the reduction of pollution and carbon emissions from the iron and steel industry in China is demonstrated, consisting of ① optimization of present ultra-low emission technology, ② low-carbon innovation for present production processes, ③ steel production process reengineering, and ④ carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS). Finally, the technical prospect for collaborative reduction of pollution and carbon emissions from the iron and steel industry in China is suggested to support high-quality green development in this industry.

The induction of ferroptosis is promising for cancer therapy. However, the mechanisms enabling cancer cells to evade ferroptosis, particularly in low-cystine environments, remain elusive. Our study delves into the intricate regulatory mechanisms of Activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3) on Cystathionine β-synthase (CBS) under cystine deprivation stress, conferring resistance to ferroptosis in colorectal cancer (CRC) cells. Additionally, our findings establish a positively correlation between this signaling axis and CRC progression, suggesting its potential as a therapeutic target. Mechanistically, ATF3 positively regulates CBS to resist ferroptosis under cystine deprivation stress. In contrast, the suppression of CBS sensitizes CRC cells to ferroptosis through targeting the mitochondrial tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. Notably, our study highlights that the ATF3-CBS signaling axis enhances ferroptosis-based CRC cancer therapy. Collectively, the findings reveal that the ATF3-CBS signaling axis is the primary feedback pathway in ferroptosis, and blocking this axis could be a potential therapeutic approach for colorectal cancer.

Total organic carbon (TOC) content is one of the most important parameters for characterizing the quality of source rocks and assessing the hydrocarbon-generating potential of shales. The Lucaogou Formation shale reservoirs in the Jimusaer Sag, Junggar Basin, NW China, is characterized by extremely complex lithology and a wide variety of mineral compositions with source rocks mainly consisting of carbonaceous mudstone and dolomitic mudstone. The logging responses of organic matter in the shale reservoirs is quite different from those in conventional reservoirs. Analyses show that the traditional △logR method is not suitable for evaluating the TOC content in the study area. Analysis of the sensitivity characteristics of TOC content to well logs reveals that the TOC content has good correlation with the separation degree of porosity logs. After a dimension reduction processing by the principal component analysis technology, the principal components are determined through correlation analysis of porosity logs. The results show that the TOC values obtained by the new method are in good agreement with that measured by core analysis. The average absolute error of the new method is only 0.555, much less when compared with 1.222 of using traditional △logR method. The proposed method can be used to produce more accurate TOC estimates, thus providing a reliable basis for source rock mapping.

Upstream treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF, for short) is a new approach to the prevention and treatment of AF with non-antiarrhythmic drugs, which is essentially primary and secondary prevention of AF. The former refers to the prevention of AF by controlling risk factors such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart failure before AF occurs, and the latter mainly refers to targeting ion channels, inflammation, oxidative stress, and other pathways to reduce or reverse atrial electrical and structural remodeling, reduction of AF load, and reduction of the chance of AF occurrence or progression. More and more studies have shown that many traditional Chinese medicines, active ingredients of Chinese medicines, and Chinese herbal formulas have definite effects on the upstream treatment of AF, but their mechanisms of action are different. Therefore, we summarized the relevant literature on the application and mechanisms of Chinese medicine on the upstream treatment of AF in recent years, hoping to be helpful for subsequent studies.

Abstract Glioma is the most common and fatal primary brain tumor in humans. Myosin binding protein H (MYBPH), which was first identified as an important myofibrillar constituent of vertebrate skeletal and cardiac muscles, reduces cell motility and metastasis. However, its role in gliomas remains unclear. We evaluated the expression of MYBPH in glioma using Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis ( http://gepia.cancer-pku.cn/ ) and Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas ( https://www.cgga.org.cn/ ). The results showed that MYBPH was highly expressed in glioma tissues. Moreover, MYBPH expression was significantly associated with high tumor aggressiveness and poor outcomes in glioma patients. Mechanistically, the results suggested that MYBPH might promote tumor progression by improving tumor invasion and migration. Our results establish MYBPH as an important prognostic biomarker that could be considered a potential epigenetic and immunotherapeutic target for treatment. We showed that MYBPH is a novel biomarker that is variably expressed in glioblastoma (GBM). The association of high MYBPH expression with poor prognosis in newly diagnosed GBM patients and increased expression in recurrent GBM is indicative of its role in tumor aggressiveness.

The current study presents a novel method to prepare high-purity V2O5 from Na3VO4 solution. This process characterizes Na3VO4 calcification separation, Ca10V6O25 ammoniation and solubilization, NH4VO3 crystallization, and vanadium precipitation, which achieves elemental V migration from the Na3VO4–Ca10V6O25–NH4VO3–V2O5 phase, finally obtaining high-purity V2O5. The influencing factors of the preparation process were investigated, and the results showed that vanadium was released from Na3VO4 solution to synthesize Ca10V6O25 in the first stage under the most suitable conditions (Ca/V molar ratio of 1.8, and a concentration of NaOH less than 160 g/L). In the second stage, the leaching efficiency of vanadium reached 95% at optimal conditions (NH4+/V molar ratio was 1.2, reaction temperature and time were 90 °C and 30 min, respectively). In the third stage, NH4VO3 yield and crystal size reached maximum values under optimal conditions (feed rate, crystallization temperature, and the power factor of the circulating pump were 6 m3/h, 30 °C, and 80% respectively). Finally, high-purity V2O5 was prepared via a series of large particle NH4VO3 post-treatments. In addition, the ICP analysis confirmed that the purity of the generated V2O5 was more than 99.5%.

BackgroundExisting studies have indicated that gut microbiota is closely related to the occurrence and development of coronary heart disease(CHD). Gut microbiota and its metabolites may be important diagnostic markers for CHD in the future and are expected to become new targets for the prevention and treatment of CHD. However, the current studies exploring the link between CHD and gut microbiota are miscellaneous and poorly targeted, without bibliometric analysis available.ObjectiveThe purpose of this research was to perform a bibliometric and visual analysis of published papers on the relationship between CHD and gut microbiota. The study also sought to identify principal authors, institutions, and countries to analyze the research status and trends of gut microbiota research in the field of CHD.MethodsThe Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database was searched for publications on CHD and gut microbiota between 2002 and 2022. CiteSpace 5.8. R1, VOSviewer 1.6.16, and Microsoft Excel 2019 software tools were utilized to perform this bibliometric analysis and visualization.ResultsThere were 457 qualified publications found in total, with the annual number of publications increasing. The United States dominated in this field. Hazen, Stanley l was the author of the most papers. Cleveland Clinic published the most papers of any institution. The six main clusters’ specific characteristics were discovered through analysis of the co-occurrence of keywords: inflammation, diet, trimethylamine n-oxide, metabolism, cardiovascular disease, and myocardial infarction. Newly emerging research has focused predominantly on gut microbiota metabolites and recent strategies for intervention in coronary atherosclerosis.ConclusionThese results provided a useful perspective on current research and future prospects for the research on the link between CHD and gut microbiota, which may help researchers to select suitable collaborators and facilitate their research to elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms of CHD, including the causes, prevention, and treatment.

A central aim of neuroethological research is to discover the mechanisms of natural behaviors in controlled laboratory studies. This goal, however, comes with challenges, namely the selection of experimental paradigms that allow full expression of natural behaviors. Here, we explore this problem in echolocating bats that evolved Doppler shift compensation (DSC) of sonar vocalizations to yield close matching between echo frequency and hearing sensitivity. We ask if behavioral tasks influence the precision of DSC in Pratt’s roundleaf bat, Hipposideros pratti, in three classic laboratory paradigms evoking audio-vocal adjustments: Stationary bats listening to echo playbacks, bats transported on a moving pendulum, and bats flying freely. We found that experimental conditions had a strong influence on the expression of the audiovocal frequency adjustments in bats. H. pratti exhibited robust DSC in both free-flying and moving-pendulum experiments but did not exhibit consistent audiovocal adjustments in echo playback experiments. H. pratti featured a maximum compensation magnitude of 87% and a compensation precision of 0.27% in the free flight experiment. Interestingly, in the moving pendulum experiment H. pratti displayed surprisingly high-precision DSC, with an 84% maximum compensation magnitude and a 0.27% compensation precision. Such DSC performance places H. pratti among the bat species exhibiting the most precise audio-vocal control of echo frequency. These data support the emerging view that Hipposiderid bats have a high-precision DSC system and highlight the importance of selecting experimental paradigms that yield the expression of robust natural behaviors.

Variations of Libor Market Model (LMM), including Constant Elasticity of Variance-LMM (CEV-LMM) and Stochastic Alpha-Beta-Rho LMM (SABR-LMM), have become popular for modeling interest rate term structure. Nevertheless, the limitation of applying CEV-/SABR-LMM to model negative interest rates still exists. In this paper, we adopt the approach of Free-Boundary SABR (FB-SABR), which is an extension based on standard SABR. The key idea of FB-SABR is to apply absolute value of forward rate $|F_t|$ in the rate dynamic $\mathrm{d} F_t = |F_t|^\beta \sigma_t \mathrm{d} W_{t}$, which naturally allows interest rates to across zero boundary. We focus on introducing FB-SABR into LMM to handle volatility smile under negative rates. This new model, FB-SABR-LMM, can be used to price interest rate instruments with negative strikes as well as to recover implied volatility surface.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced in the ischemic myocardium can induce cardiomyocyte injury and death, resulting in cardiac remodeling. Ferroptosis, known as a newly type of cell death caused by iron-dependent oxidative stress, which is an essential death mechanism in cardiomyocytes. However, it is unclear whether oxidative stress products can further induce ferroptosis and aggravate cardiomyocyte injury. Geniposide (GEN), a major active component of Gardenia jasminoides J. Ellis, possesses the natural antioxidant activity and cardioprotective effect. Herein, we evaluated the role of ferroptosis in myocardial oxidative injury and the protective effect of GEN on myocardial ferroptosis. We first detected iron overload, massive ROS, and lipid peroxidation in ferric ammonium citrate (FAC)-treated cardiomyocytes, which were typical characteristics of ferroptosis. The iron overload-induced oxidative stress and ferroptosis aggravated cardiomyocyte injury, which were significantly alleviated by GEN treatment. Similar phenotypic changes of ferroptosis were consistently discovered in hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced cells, which were reversed by GEN treatment as well. Interestingly, the RNA-binding protein Grsf1, which directly upregulated Gpx4 at the translational level, was activated by GEN following myocardial oxidative injury. The specific knockdown of Grsf1 increased their sensitivity to ferroptosis and weakened the cardioprotective effect of GEN in H2O2-treated cardiomyocytes. Moreover, GEN treatment reduced iron overload and lipid peroxidation in myocardial infarction (MI) rats, thereby fighting against the cardiac ischemic injury. Collectively, our study revealed the pathogenesis of oxidative stress and ferroptosis associated with myocardial ischemia, and indicated the antioxidant and anti-ferroptosis effects of GEN on preventing myocardial injury by activating the Grsf1/GPx4 axis, serving as a potential therapeutic target.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells have been successfully used in the therapy of B cell leukemia and lymphoma, but still have many challenges in their use for treating T cell malignancies, such as the lack of unique tumor antigens, their limitation of T cell expansion, and the need for third party donors or genome editing. Therefore, we need to find novel targets for CAR T cell therapy to overcome these challenges. Here, we found that both adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL) patients and ATLL cells had increased CCR8 expression but did not express CD7. Moreover, targeting CCR8 in T cells did not impair T cell expansion in vitro. Importantly, anti-CCR8 CAR T cells exhibited antitumor effects on ATLL- and other CCR8-expressing T-ALL cells in vitro and in vivo, and prolonged the survival of ATLL and Jurkat tumor-bearing mouse models. In conclusion, these collective results show that anti-CCR8 CAR T cells possess strong antitumor activity and represent a promising therapeutic approach for ATLL and CCR8+ tumors.

Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (MIRI) is related to ferroptosis and apoptosis elicited by reactive oxygen species (ROS). In this research, we investigated the protective effect of salvianolic acid B (SAB) as a natural antioxidant on ferroptosis and apoptosis in the MIRI process, and discussed the protective mechanism inhibiting ubiquitin-proteasome degradation of glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4) and the c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNK) apoptosis signal pathway. We observed that ferroptosis and apoptosis occurred in the MIRI rat model in vivo and the H9c2 cardiomyocyte hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) damage model in vitro. SAB can alleviate tissue damage related to ROS, ferroptosis and apoptosis. Ubiquitin-proteasome degradation of GPX4 occurred in H/R models, and SAB reduced the ubiquitin-proteasome degradation of GPX4. SAB downregulates JNK phosphorylation and the expression of BCL2-Associated X (Bax)/B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) and Caspase-3 to inhibit apoptosis. The role of GPX4 in the cardioprotection of SAB was further verified by the elimination effect of the GPX4 inhibitor RAS-selective lethal 3 (RSL3). This research shows that SAB may be used as a myocardial protective agent against oxidative stress, ferroptosis and apoptosis, and has potential clinical application prospects.

Proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) is a green hydrogen production technology with great development prospects. As an important part of PEMWE, bipolar plates (BPs) play an important role and put forward special requirements due to the harsh environments on both the anode and cathode. Recently, metal-based BPs, particularly stainless steel and titanium BPs have attracted much attention from researchers all over the world because of their advantages of high corrosion resistance, low resistivity, high thermal conductivity, and low permeability. However, these metallic BPs are still prone to being oxidized and are facing with hydrogen embrittlement problems in the PEMWE working environment, which would result in reduced output power and premature failure of the PEMWE stack. In order to reduce the corrosion rate and maintain low interfacial contact resistance, the surface modification of the metallic BPs with protective coatings, such as precious metals (e.g., Au, Pt, etc.) and metal nitrides/carbides, etc., have been extensively investigated. However, the above-mentioned coating materials are restricted by the high-cost materials, complex equipment, and the complicated operation process. In this review, the surface modification of metallic BPs based on silane treatment, conductive polymers, e.g., polyaniline (PANI) and polypyrrole (PPy) as well as some nanoparticles-promoted polymer hybrid coatings which have been investigated for PEMWE, are summarized and reviewed. As for the silane treatment, the dense silane can not only effectively enhance the corrosion resistance but also improve the adhesion between the substrate and the conductive polymers. As for PANI and PPy, the typical value of corrosion current density of a PANI coating is 5.9 μA cm−2, which is significantly lower than 25.68 μA cm−2 of the bare metal plate. The introduction of nanosized conductive particles in PANI can further reduce the corrosion current density to 0.15 μA cm−2. However, further improvement in the electrical conductivity is still desired to decrease the interface contact resistance (ICR) to be lower than 10 mΩ cm2. In addition, serious peeling off of the coating during long-term operation also needs to be solved. Typically, the conductive polymer reinforced by graphene, noble metals, and their compounds in the form of nanoparticle-promoted polymer hybrid coatings could be a good choice to obtain higher corrosion resistance, durability, and conductivity and to extend the service life of PEMWE. Especially, nanoparticle-promoted polymer hybrid coatings consisting of polymers and conductive noble metals or nitrides/carbides can be controlled to balance the conductivity and mechanical properties. Due to the advantages of a simple preparation process, low cost, and large-scale production, nanoparticle-promoted polymer hybrid coatings have gradually become a research hotspot. This review is believed to enrich the knowledge of the large-scale preparation process and applications of BPs for PEMWE.

Cinnamomum camphora is a traditional aromatic plant used to produce linalool and borneol flavors in southern China; however, its leaves also contain many other unutilized essential oils. Herein, we report geographic relationships for the yield and compositional diversity of C. camphora essential oils. The essential oils of 974 individual trees from 35 populations in 13 provinces were extracted by hydrodistillation and analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and gas chromatography-flame ionization detection, respectively. Oil yields ranged from 0.01% to 3.46%, with a significantly positive correlation with latitude and a significantly negative correlation with longitude. In total, 41 compounds were identified, including 15 monoterpenoids, 24 sesquiterpenoids, and two phenylpropanoids. Essential oil compositions varied significantly among individuals and could be categorized into various chemotypes. The six main chemotypes were eucalyptol, nerolidol, camphor, linalool, selina, and mixed types. The other 17 individual plants were chemotypically rare and exhibited high levels of methyl isoeugenol, methyl eugenol, δ-selinene, or borneol. Eucalyptol-type plants had the highest average oil yield of 1.64%, followed in decreasing order by linalool-, camphor-, mixed-, selina-, and nerolidol-type plants. In addition, the five main compounds exhibited a clear geographic gradient. Eucalyptol and linalool showed a significantly positive correlation with latitude, while selina-6-en-4-ol was significantly and negatively correlated with latitude. trans-Nerolidol and selina-6-en-4-ol showed significantly positive correlations with longitude, whereas camphor was significantly and negatively correlated with longitude. Canonical correspondence analysis indicated that environmental factors could strong effect the oil yield and essential oil profile of C. camphora.

In this paper, the sources of K and Na in vanadium-nitrogen (VN) alloys and their effects on the furnace structure were studied. The results show that K and Na are mainly present as counter-ions of decavanadate and dodecanadate in ammonium polyvanadate (APV) and vanadium trioxide (V2O3). In the production process of VN, the concentration of K in the scab produced in the kiln is 25 times higher than that of the vanadium raw material, the concentration of Na is 15 times higher than that of the raw material, and the degree of enrichment of K is stronger than that of Na. Additionally, in the VN products, K and Na are mainly distributed uniformly in the form of KCN and NaCN. The results also found that the K and Na vapors during the production of VN promoted the formation of VN. However, K, Na steam, KCN, NaCN, K2CO3, Na2CO3 and other potassium-sodium high-temperature corrosive substances cause strong corrosion of the furnace lining, graphite sagger, push plate, and heating elements. Therefore, in the process of synthesizing VN, the raw materials of K and Na content of impurity elements must be reasonably controlled. The results not only analyzed the source of K and Na, but also analyzed the characteristics of their enrichment and the influence on the equipment.

The membrane electrode assembly (MEA) is the core component of proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis cell, which provides a place for water decomposition to generate hydrogen and oxygen. The microstructure, thickness, IrO2 loading as well as the uniformity and quality of the anodic catalyst layer (ACL) have great influence on the performance of PEM water electrolysis cell. Aiming at providing an effective and low-cost fabrication method for MEA, the purpose of this work is to optimize the catalyst ink formulation and achieve the ink properties required to form an adherent and continuous layer with doctor blade coating method. The ink formulation (e.g., isopropanol/H2O of solvents and solids content) were adjusted, and the doctor blade thickness was optimized. The porous structure and the thickness of the doctor blade coating ACL were further confirmed with the in-plane and the cross-sectional SEM analyses. Finally, the effect of the ink formulation and the doctor blade thickness of the ACL on the cell performance were characterized in a PEM electrolyzer under ambient pressure at 80 °C. Overall, the optimized doctor blade coating ACL showed comparable performance to that prepared with the spraying method. It is proved that the doctor blade coating is capable of high-uniformity coating.

With the support of Internet of Vehicles technology, UBI (Usage Based Insurance) car insurance rate determination has certain guiding significance for achieving accurate pricing of car insurance rates and satisfying the personalized needs of users. Based on the CNN (Convolutional Neural Networks) algorithm and SVM (Support Vector Machine) algorithm, this paper establishes a rating model for UBI car insurance rates. The model first performs a series of operations such as convolutions, pooling and nonlinear activation function mapping using the CNN algorithm so that it can extract the features from the driving behavior data of UBI customers. Then, it introduces the Hull Vector to optimize the operating efficiency of the SVM algorithm. The HVSVM (Hull Vector Support Vector Machine) algorithm classifies customers according to their driving behavior, and thus obtains UBI customer car insurance rate grades. Therefore, this paper proposes a UBI car insurance rate grade determination model based on the CNN-HVSVM algorithm. The empirical results of the model show that the CNN-HVSVM algorithm has higher discrimination accuracy in the risk rating process of UBI customer driving behavior than the CNN algorithm, BP neural network algorithm and SVM algorithm; and when dealing with large training sets, it has a speed advantage over the CNN-SVM algorithm. Furthermore, it is easy to realize in the process of establishing the UBI car insurance rate determination model and it has good robustness, which can adapt to diverse data sets, thus achieving better results in the car insurance rate determination process. Therefore, the CNN-HVSVM model can predict the grade of UBI car insurance users more accurately and efficiently, and the prediction results are more consistent with the actual situation, which has strong applicability and flexibility. The UBI car insurance premium rate determination model based on the CNN-HVSVM algorithm can determine driver behavior more fairly and reasonably, and has certain practical significance for promoting car insurance rate market reform, which can better promote future UBI research work.

Abstract Background Duck Tembusu virus (DTMUV) is a novel member of Flavivirus. The isolated and purified DTMUV strain XZ-2012 was used as a strain model, to intramuscularly inject the six-month egg-laying shelducks with the infective dose of 104TCID50. The dynamic distribution of the virus in spleen at different time post-infection (pi) was studied using RT-PCR, RT-qPCR, ELISA, immunofluorescence and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Result The results showed that the virus occurred in the spleen after 2 hpi and lasted up to 18 dpi. The registered viral load increased from 2 hpi to 3 dpi, and then it diminished from 6 dpi to 18 dpi with a slight rise at 12 dpi. From 2 hpi to 6 dpi the DTMUV particles were mostly distributed in the periellipsoidal lymphatic sheath (PELS) of spleen white pulp, few being found in the sheathed capillary. From 9 dpi to 18 dpi, the DTMUV particles were migrating into periarterial lymphatic sheaths (PALS) around the central artery through the red pulp. Under TEM, the virus particles could be observed mostly in lymphocytes and macrophages. Conclusion It was suggested that DTMUV invaded lymphocytes and macrophages of the spleen at 2 hpi and replicated significantly from 1 dpi to 3 dpi, being eliminated from 9 dpi to 18 dpi. This is the first study on the dynamic distribution of DTMUV from invasion to elimination in duck spleen conducted by molecular and morphological methods. It could provide theoretical basis for the occurrence, development and detoxification of the virus in the organs of the immune system.

The liquid and gas diffusion layer is a key component of proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer (PEMWE), and its interfacial contact resistance (ICR) and corrosion resistance have a great impact on the performance and durability of PEMWE. In this work, a novel hybrid coating with Au contacts discontinuously embedded in a titanium oxidized layer was constructed on a Ti felt via facile electrochemical metallizing and followed by a pre-oxidization process. The physicochemical characterizations, such as scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectrometer, and X-ray diffraction results confirmed that the distribution and morphology of the Au contacts could be regulated with the electrical pulse time, and a hybrid coating (Au-TiO2/Ti) was eventually achieved after the long-term stability test under anode environment. At the compaction force of 140 N cm−2, the ICR was reduced from 19.7 mΩ cm2 of the P-Ti to 4.2 mΩ cm2 of the Au-TiO2/Ti. The corrosion current density at 1.8 V (RHE) is 0.689 μA cm−2. Both the ICR and corrosion resistance results showed that the prepared protective coating could provide comparable ICR and corrosion resistance to a dense Au coating.

Recently, nickel phosphides (Ni-P) in an amorphous state have emerged as potential catalysts with high intrinsic activity and excellent electrochemical stability for hydrogen evolution reactions (HER). However, it still lacks a good strategy to prepare amorphous Ni-P with rich surface defects or structural boundaries, and it is also hard to construct a porous Ni-P layer with favorable electron transport and gas–liquid transport. Herein, an integrated porous electrode consisting of amorphous Ni-P and a Ni interlayer was successfully constructed on a 316L stainless steel felt (denoted as Ni-P/Ni-316L). The results demonstrated that the pH of the plating solution significantly affected the grain size, pore size and distribution, and roughness of the cell-like particle surface of the amorphous Ni-P layer. The Ni-P/Ni-316L prepared at pH = 3 presented the richest surface defects or structural boundaries as well as porous structure. As expected, the as-developed Ni-P/Ni-316L demonstrated the best kinetics, with η10 of 73 mV and a Tafel slope of ca. 52 mV dec-1 for the HER among all the electrocatalysts prepared at various pH values. Furthermore, the Ni-P/Ni-316L exhibited comparable electrocatalytic HER performance and better durability than the commercial Pt (20 wt%)/C in a real water electrolysis cell, indicating that the non-precious metal-based Ni-P/Ni-316L is promising for large-scale processing and practical use.

Bazi Bushen capsule (BZBS), as a Chinese medicine used to relieve fatigue, has been proven effective for the treatment of atherogenesis through antilipid effects. To investigate the potential mechanism of BZBS in the anti-atherosclerotic effect, Ovx/ApoE-/- mice were applied to investigate the anti-atherosclerotic efficiency and potential mechanism of BZBS. Therapeutic effect was evaluated based on the number of CD68+ and CD3+ cells, the level of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), and the ratio of cleaved caspase-3/caspase-3, as well as increasing ratio of Bcl2/Bax. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were chosen to evaluate the role of GPER1. Treatment with BZBS reduced lipid deposition by reducing the numbers of CD68+ and CD3+ cells, the level of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1, and the ratio of cleaved caspase-3/caspase-3, and increasing the ratio of Bcl2/Bax as compared with the control group. In si-GPER1-treated HUVECs, the anti-apoptotic effect of BZBS was decreased. This study revealed that BZBS exhibited a clear effect against atherogenesis via GPER1-dependent anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic mechanisms. We believe that this manuscript is informative and useful for researchers pursuing the related alleviation of post-menopausal AS via anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic mechanisms.

Nickel phosphides have been investigated as an alternative to noble metals and have emerged as potential catalysts that can efficiently catalyze the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). However, the impacts of facet morphology and crystal structure of the nickel phosphides on their catalytic reactivity have not been systematically investigated. Herein, nickel phosphides with different crystalline states were prepared through a facile calcination treatment. It was found that the calcination treatment had important effects on the phase compositions, morphologies, and crystallinity of nickel phosphides, which are closely related to their HER activity. Generally, the crystallized Ni-P catalysts exhibited faster kinetics than the amorphous Ni-P. In particular, the Ni-P 300 showed remarkable HER performance with η10 of ca. 65 mV, along with a very low Tafel slope of ca. 44 mV dec−1 due to the increased catalytically active sites. Furthermore, the Ni-P 300 exhibited negligible decay during the 140 h galvanostatic electrolysis, showing better catalytic stability than the commercial Pt/C catalyst. Compared with the amorphous Ni-P, the boosted HER activity of the Ni-P 300 could benefit from the mixed nanocrystalline Ni2P and Ni3P, which could contribute to the Hads adsorption/desorption abilities and helped provide more activity sites, promoting the HER performance.

Since its recent appearance in China, the NADC30-like strains of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus 2 (PRRSV-2) have caused an expanding epidemic, and this has further expanded the genetic diversity of PRRSV. In this study, three NADC30-like strains—GXFCG20210401, GXQZ20210403 and GXNN20210506—were isolated from pig serum samples obtained in Guangxi, and their genomes were sequenced. A comparative analysis of the whole genomes showed that the three strains were most similar to NADC30 (88.3–88.7%). In particular, the non-structural protein coding regions (nsp1, nsp4-5, nsp7-8 and nsp9) showed the highest similarities to JXA1, and the ORF2a-ORF5 regions showed the highest similarities to NADC34. The three strains had same discontinuous deletions of 111+1+19 amino acids in the nsp2 region, which were similar to the NADC30-like strains. Phylogenetic tree analysis based on the ORF5 gene showed that the three PRRSV isolates were divided into lineage 1.5 along with the representative NADC34-like strains, but they were classified as NADC30-like strains with respect to the whole genome and nsp2 evolutionary trees. Recombinant analysis revealed complex recombination patterns in the genomes of the three strains, which likely originated from multiple recombination events among JXA1-like, NADC30-like and NADC34-like strains. The results from animal experiments showed that the GXQZ20210403 strain was 20% lethal to piglets and caused more severe clinical reactions than GXFCG20210401, and both recombinant strains were similar in terms of pathogenicity to the previously reported NADC34 strains. This study demonstrates that NADC34-like strains of PRRSV have been circulating in the southern provinces of China and have exchanged genomes with several other indigenous strains. In addition, differences in recombination patterns may cause different clinical pathogenicity and indicate the importance of the surveillance and preventive control of recombinant strains.

In this study, emulsion-free radical reaction was applied to synthesize a novel sulfomethylating hydrophobically associating copolymer (HPDS) by using acrylamide, acrylic acid, NaHSO3, HCHO, and a laboratory-made N,N-divinylnonadeca-1,10-dien-2-amine to enhance heavy-oil recovery. The structure and properties of HPDS were characterized by a range of experiments, which showed that HPDS had better stability and enhanced heavy-oil recovery capacity than hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM). One-dimensional flooding experiments illustrated that HPDS performed better in establishing resistance factor (RF) and residual RF (RRF), and approximately 19.8% oil recovery could be enhanced by injecting 1500 mg/L of HPDS solution compared with that of HPAM at only 14.1%. HPDS has a promising application prospect in enhancing heavy-oil recovery.

The high-temperature stability and filtration property controlling of ultra-high-temperature water-based drilling fluids is a worldwide problem. To resolve this problem, a high-temperature-resistant quaternary copolymer (HTRTP) was synthesized based on molecular structure optimization design and monomer optimization. The physical and chemical properties were characterized by infrared spectroscopy, thermal weight, and spectrophotometry, and their temperature and salt resistance was evaluated in different drilling fluids, combined with adsorption, particle size analysis, and stability test. The results show that the thermal stability of HTRTP is very strong, and the initial temperature of thermal decomposition is above 320°C. The salt resistance of HTRTP is more than 162 g/L, and the calcium resistance is more than 5000 mg/L, which is equivalent to the foreign temperature-resistant polymer DCL-a, and is superior to the domestic metal ion viscosity increasing fluid loss agent PMHA-II for drilling fluids. It has excellent high-temperature resistance (245°C) and fluid loss reduction effect in fresh water base mud, fresh water weighted base mud, saturated brine base mud, and composite salt water base mud, which is better than foreign DCL-a (245°C) and domestic PMHA (220°C). The adsorption capacity of HTRTP on clay particles is large and firm, and the adsorption capacity changes little under the change of chemical environment and temperature. Both before and after HTRTP aging (245°C/16 h), the permeability of filter cake can be significantly reduced and its compressibility can be improved. By optimizing the particle size gradation of the drilling fluid and enhancing the colloid stability of the system, HTRTP can improve the filtration building capacity of the drilling fluid and reduce the filtration volume. The development of antithermal polymer provides a key treatment agent for the study of anti-high-temperature-resistant saline-based drilling fluid.

Barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) can infect wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), leading to yield loss. Among four BYDV strains (GAV, GPV, PAV, and RMV) identified in China, BYDV-GAV is the prevailing isolate. YW642, a wheat–Thinopyrum intermedium translocation line, is resistant to BYDV isolates at both seedling and adult stages. Zhong 8601 is the wheat recurrent parent of YW642 and is susceptible to BYDV. In this study, we investigated the adult-stage resistance mechanism of YW642, measured BYDV titer and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in adult-stage leaves of YW642 and Zhong 8601 inoculated with BYDV-GAV, and identified transcriptional differences between YW642 and Zhong 8601 using microarray-based comparative transcriptomics. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and H2O2 assay showed that both BYDV titer and H2O2 content were markedly lower in YW642 than in Zhong 8601 at 21, 28, 35, and 40 days post-inoculation (dpi). The transcriptomic comparison revealed that many types of genes were significantly up-regulated at 35 dpi in adult-stage leaves of YW642 compared to Zhong 8601. The important up-regulated genes associated with the adult-stage resistance encoded 15 resistance-like proteins, pathogenesis-related proteins (such as defensin and lipid transfer proteins), protein kinase homologs, transcription factors, reactive oxygen species scavenging-related proteins, and jasmonic acid and gibberellic acid biosynthesis enzymes. These results suggest that precise expression regulation of these proteins plays a crucial role in adult-stage resistance of YW642 against BYDV infection. Keywords: Barley yellow dwarf virus, Reactive oxygen species, Resistance at adult stage, Defense-associated genes, Phytohormone

Pig manure (PM) is often highly enriched in heavy metals, such as Cu and Zn, due to the wide use of feed additives. To study the potential risks of heavy metal accumulation in the soil and rice grains by the application of PM and other organic manure, a four-year field experiment was conducted in the suburb of Shanghai, southeast China. The contents of Cu, Zn, Pb, and Cd in the soils and rice plants by the treatments of PM and fungal culturing residues (FCR) show a trend of annual increase. Those in the soils and rice by the PM treatment are raised even more significantly. Cu and Zn contents in the soil and rice roots by the PM are significantly higher than those by the non-fertilizer control (CK) during the four years, and Pb and Cd also significantly higher than CK in the latter two years. Heavy metals taken up by the rice plants are mostly retained in the roots. Cu and Zn contents in the rice plants are in the decreasing order of roots > grains > stems > leaves, and Pb and Cd in the order of roots > stems > leaves > grains. Cu, Zn, Pb, and Cd contents in the soils by the PM treatment increase by 73%, 32%, 106%, and 127% on annual average, and those in the brown rice by 104%, 98%, 275%, and 199%, respectively. The contents of Cu, Zn, Pb, and Cd in the brown rice of the treatments are significantly correlated with those in the soils and rice roots (p < 0.05), suggesting the heavy metals accumulated in the rice grains come from the application of PM and FCR. Though the contents of heavy metals in the brown rice during the four experimental years are still within the safe levels, the risks of their accumulative increments, especially by long-term application of PM, can never be neglected.

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are the most promising clean energy source in the 21st century. In order to achieve a high power density, electrocatalytic performance, and electrochemical stability, an ordered array structure membrane electrode is highly desired. In this paper, a new porous Pt-TiO2@C ordered integrated electrode was prepared and applied to the cathode of a PEMFC. The utilization of the TiO2@C support can significantly decrease the loss of catalyst caused by the oxidation of the carbon from the conventional carbon layer due to the strong interaction of TiO2 and C. Furthermore, the thin carbon layer coated on TiO2 provides the rich active sites for the Pt growth, and the ordered support and catalyst structure reduces the mass transport resistance and improves the stability of the electrode. Due to its unique structural characteristics, the ordered porous Pt-TiO2@C array structure shows an excellent catalytic activity and improved Pt utilization. In addition, the as-developed porous ordered structure exhibits superior stability after 3000 cycles of accelerated durability test, which reveals an electrochemical surface area decay of less than 30%, considerably lower than that (i.e., 80%) observed for the commercial Pt/C.

Lanthanide-doped upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) are promising for applications as wide as biosensing, bioimaging, controlled drug release, and cancer therapy. These applications require surface engineering of as-prepared nanocrystals, commonly coated with hydrophobic ligand of oleic acid, to enable an aqueous dispersion. However, literature-reported approaches often require a long time and/or multiple step treatment, along with several fold upconversion luminescence (UCL) intensity decrease. Here, we describe a strategy allowing oleate-capped UCNPs to become water-soluble and open-modified, with almost undiminished UCL, through ultrasonication of minutes. The prompt phase transfer was enabled by oleate-mediated supramolecular self-assembly of amino modified β-cyclodextrin (amino-β-CD) onto UCNPs surface. We showed that this method is valid for a wide range of UCNPs with quite different sizes (6–400 nm), various dopant types (Er, Tm, and Ho), and hierarchical structures (core, core-shell). Importantly, the amino group of amino-β-CD on the surface of treated UCNPs provide possibilities to introduce entities for biotargeting or functionalization, as exemplified here, a carboxylic-containing near infrared dye (Cy 7.5) that sensitizes UCNPs to enhance their UCL by ~4,820 fold when excited at ~808 nm. The described method has implications for all types of oleate-capped inorganic nanocrystals, facilitating their myriad bioapplications.

The failure types and ultimate loads for eight carbon-epoxy laminate specimens with a central circular hole subjected to tensile load were tested experimentally and simulated using two different progressive failure analysis (PFA) methodologies. The first model used a lamina level modeling based on the Hashin criterion and the Camanho stiffness degradation theory to predict the damage of the fiber and matrix. The second model implemented a micromechanical analysis technique coined the generalized method of cells (GMC), where the 3D Tsai–Hill failure criterion was used to govern matrix failure, and the fiber failure was dictated by the maximum stress criterion. The progressive failure methodology was implemented using the UMAT subroutine within the ABAQUS/implicit solver. Results of load versus displacement and failure types from the two different models were compared against experimental data for the open hole laminates subjected to tensile displacement load. The results obtained from the numerical simulation and experiments showed good agreement. Failure paths and accurate damage contours for the tested specimens were also predicted.

The reduction pretreatment (RP) process is an effective method to improve billet quality, and the deformation recrystallization plays an important role in the process. Exploring the RP process parameters, a dynamic recrystallization model of GCr15 steel was established by the phase-field method and physical simulation. The recrystallization kinetics and flow stress curves during hot compression were simulated by using this mode. The effects of deformation parameters and initial grain size on the dynamic recrystallization were investigated. Moreover, by using the results obtained by Finite element method (FEM), dynamic recrystallization during the RP process was investigated though this model. It was found that increasing the deformation temperature, deformation rate and decreasing the initial grain size can promote the dynamic recrystallization kinetics. Large Zener-Hollomon parameters can enhance recrystallized grain refinement, while the recrystallized grain size was not affected by the initial grain size. During the RP process, when the reduction is insufficient (10%), partial recrystallization occurs in the billet. With the increase of reduction from 10% to 16%, the area of complete recrystallization increases gradually. When the reduction is the same, the recrystallization in the billet center increases with the decrease of casting speed. When the reduction is 10%, partial recrystallization occurs in the billet center at a casting speed of 0.7 m min ^−1 , and fully recrystallization occurs in the billet center with a casting speed of 0.5 m min ^−1 . Thus, when the reduction is difficult to increase further, the recrystallization in the billet center can be improved by decreasing the casting speed.

Animal vocalizations and human speech are typically characterized by a complex spectrotemporal structure, composed of multiple harmonics, and patterned as temporally organized sequences. However, auditory research often employed simple artificial acoustic stimuli or their combinations. Here we addressed the question of whether the neuronal responses to natural echolocation call sequences can be predicted by manipulated sequences of incomplete constituents at the midbrain inferior colliculus (IC). We characterized the extracellular single-unit activity of IC neurons in the great roundleaf bat, Hipposideros armiger (both sexes), using natural call sequences, various manipulated sequences of incomplete vocalizations, and pure tones. We report that approximately two-thirds of IC neurons exhibited a harmonic interaction. Neurons with high harmonic interactions exhibited greater selectivity to natural call sequences, and the degree of harmonic interaction was robust to the natural amplitude variations between call harmonics. For 81% of the IC neurons, the responses to the natural echolocation call sequence could not be predicted by altered sequences of missing call components. Surprisingly, nearly 70% of the neurons that showed a harmonic interaction were characterized by a single excitatory response peak as revealed by pure tones. Our results suggest that prevalent harmonic processing has already emerged in the auditory midbrain IC in the echolocating bat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, Ti-based materials are used as the construction materials of anode porous transport layers (PTLs) in proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEM WE). The major limiting factors of Ti anodes include passivation and corrosion. Herein, the challenges are addressed by using selective pulsed electrodeposition (PE), preparing orientated Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) and a degradable polypyrrole (PPy) composite coating (PE-Au/PPy coating) on Ti-based PTLs. The PTL treatment consists of four steps: electropolymerizing of PPy, mechanical polishing of PPy outside the pores of Ti felts, acid etching, and final electrodepositing AuNPs. Testing results show that etched Ti enables AuNPs to be preferentially deposited on the active surface to make the PE-Au/PPy coating highly conductive, effectively inhibiting Ti passivation. PPy formed a conductivity difference with highly active acid-etched Ti, promoting the preferential deposition of AuNPs on the active Ti surface, which improves noble metal utilization. The PE-Au/PPy coating presents a low interfacial contact resistance (ICR) (ca. 0.9 mΩ cm² at 140 N cm-2) and excellent corrosion resistance (0.17 μA cm-2) in the simulated PEM WE environments. Significantly, the PE-Au/PPy coating exhibits high electrochemical properties and ultralong lifespans of over 1000 h, still with a low ICR (1.5 mΩ cm²), further validating the usefulness of the protective layer. In addition, here the preferential deposition process of AuNPs on the Ti surface is analyzed using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), clarifying the protective mechanisms in PE-Au/PPy coating. Overall, this work not only shows the great potential of PE-Au/PPy coating as PTL anode materials but also optimizes noble metal utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]