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Abstract Due to the limitations imposed by urban power grid outages for maintenance, on‐line harmonic current detection technology for distribution network cables is expected to become an effective supplement to traditional offline diagnostic methods, enhancing the real‐time diagnosis of distribution network cable insulation conditions. This study established a 10 kV distribution network cable test platform and prepared typical defective cables subjected to moisture and long‐term thermal aging. Using COMSOL finite element electromagnetic simulation, the magnetic flux evolution laws of the cable insulation under typical defects were obtained. Experimental tests provided the harmonic current characteristics and statistical features of cables with typical defects. Based on these data, a method for analysing the degradation degree of distribution network cables was constructed using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression analysis. Furthermore, a defect‐type identification method based on cluster analysis was proposed. Results indicate that the odd harmonics and the 4th harmonic of the distribution network cable's harmonic current are closely related to the cable's degradation state. A model integrating principal component analysis (PCA) data dimensionality reduction and expectation‐maximization clustering analysis achieved a recognition accuracy of up to 75.64% in distinguishing between moisture‐affected and normal cable states. The proposed on‐line detection and evaluation methods can effectively identify high‐risk cables with latent defects.

Manufactured sand concrete (MSC) is a specific type of concrete successfully employed in many projects and structures made of reinforced concrete, and improving concrete structures. The important characteristic of mechanical sand is that the fine aggregate contains stone powder composed of particles which could pass 75 urn BS sieve. The influence of different stone powder contents on the properties of hardened concrete was studied through experiments. In addition, the experimental relations for estimating the mechanical parameters of MSC compared with CC is presented in this paper. Specimens made of MSC were prepared, on which the axial compression test, cube compression test, splitting test, flexural test and elastic modulus test were conducted. The experimental relations were obtained between the compressive strength, tensile strength and elastic modulus for MSC, and their validity were then investigated. Stone powder can fill the pores in the MSC, improve the overall grading of mechanism sand concrete, improve its working performance, and help to improve the mechanical strength of MSC. The optimum value of stone powder content is accepted as 7.5–10%. The conclusions obtained can provide a basis for the research and promotion application of mechanism sand concrete. The results indicated that the obtained relations could be used to estimate the mechanical properties of MSC with accuracy.

In this study, nitrogen-sulfur codoped carbon quantum dots (N-S/CQDs) with various functions and properties were synthesized through a one-step method utilizing citric acid and cysteine as reaction substrates. The fluorescence of N-S/CQDs can be specifically quenched by permanganate ion (MnO4−), and the quenched fluorescence can be recovered by the presence of reduced glutathione (GSH). A fluorescence sensing system based on N-S/CQDs@MnO4− was developed and successfully applied for the determination of GSH in pharmaceutical preparations. Additionally, N-S/CQDs demonstrated broad-spectrum antibacterial activity, with minimum inhibitory concentrations of 32 μg/ml against Staphylococcus aureus (gram-positive bacterium) and 64 μg/ml against Escherichia coli (gram-negative bacterium). N-S/CQDs also proved effective for cell imaging, exhibiting excellent biocompatibility. These findings underscore the multifunctional characteristics and promising application potential of N-S/CQDs. Furthermore, this study provides a solid foundation for the development of multifunctional carbon quantum dots and the expansion of their applications in various fields.

Purpose: To construct optimal models for predicting the invasiveness and pathological subtypes of subsolid nodules (SSNs) based on CT radiomics and clinical features. Materials and Methods: This study was a retrospective study involving two centers. A total of 316 patients with 353 SSNs confirmed as atypical adenomatous hyperplasia (AAH), adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS), minimally invasive adenocarcinoma (MIA) and invasive adenocarcinoma (IAC) were included from January 2019 to February 2023. Models based on CT radiomics and clinical features were constructed for classification of AAH/AIS and MIA, MIA and IAC, as well as lepidic-predominant adenocarcinoma (LPA) and acinar-predominant adenocarcinoma (APA). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the model performance. Finally, the nomograms based on the optimal models were established. Results: The nomogram based on the combined model (AAH/AIS versus MIA) consisting of lobulation, the GGN-vessel relationship, diameter, CT value, consolidation tumor ratio (CTR) and rad-score performed the best (AUC=0.841), while age, CT value, CTR and rad-score were the significant features for distinguishing MIA from IAC, the nomogram based on these features performed the best (AUC=0.878). There were no significant differences in clinical features between LPA and APA, while the radiomics model based on rad-score showed good performance for distinguishing LPA from APA (AUC=0.926). Conclusions: The nomograms based on radiomics and clinical features could predict the invasiveness of SSNs accurately. Moreover, radiomics models showed good performance in distinguishing LPA from APA.

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease with unclear pathogenesis that involves neuroinflammation and intestinal microbial dysbiosis. Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), an inflammatory marker, participates in neuroinflammation during dopaminergic neuronal damage. However, the explicit mechanisms of action of ICAM-1 in PD have not been elucidated. We established a subacute PD mouse model by the intraperitoneal injection of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) and observed motor symptoms and gastrointestinal dysfunction in mice. Immunofluorescence was used to examine the survival of dopaminergic neurons, expression of microglial and astrocyte markers, and intestinal tight junction-associated proteins. Then, we use 16 S rRNA sequencing to identify alterations in the microbiota. Our findings revealed that ICAM-1-specific antibody (Ab) treatment relieved behavioural defects, gastrointestinal dysfunction, and dopaminergic neuronal death in MPTP-induced PD mice. Further mechanistic investigations indicated that ICAM-1Ab might suppress neuroinflammation by inhibiting the activation of astrocytes and microglia in the substantia nigra and relieving colon barrier impairment and intestinal inflammation. Furthermore, 16 S rRNA sequencing revealed that the relative abundances of bacterial Firmicutes, Clostridia, and Lachnospiraceae were elevated in the PD mice. However, ICAM-1Ab treatment ameliorated the MPTP-induced disorders in the intestinal microbiota. Collectively, we concluded that the suppressing ICAM-1 might lead to the a significant decrease of inflammation and restore the gut microbial community, thus ameliorating the damage of DA neurons.

Abstract Due to rapid homogenization in habitat types as a result of urbanization, some urban birds adapt their nesting strategies to changes in local habitat characteristics. Bird nesting decisions might have been mainly linked to resource constraints and ensuring reproductive success. In this study, we examined patterns of nesting behavior by spotted doves (Spilopelia chinensis) in a rapidly urbanizing area of Nanchang, China using ArcGIS 10.8, satellite tracking, camera traps, and field survey. To explore the mechanisms underlying nesting behavior in urban habitats, we assessed the correlations between nest reuse and reproductive success, and between nest reuse and nest predation. From December 2018 to December 2021, a total of 302 breeding nests were surveyed. The results revealed that the nest reuse rate was 38.08% (n = 115). Nests closer to trunk, with lower nest position and higher large‐scale urbanization score tended to have higher reuse rate. In addition, nests with the higher the nest height and percent of canopy cover, and the lower small‐scale urbanization score were more likely to reproduce successfully, and the reused nests also reproduce more successfully. The reproductive success associated with nest reuse was significantly higher than that associated with new nests (χ2 = 8.461, p = .004). High degree of urbanization promoted nest reuse of spotted doves (large‐scale urbanization score, z = 2.094, p = .036), which apparently enhanced their reproductive success (nest reuse, z = 2.737, p = .006). In conclusion, a nest structure with good permeability is the material basis for the nest reuse in spotted dove, while the relatively low risk of predation in urban habitat and the scarcity of nest site resources due to urbanization increase the tendency of birds to reuse old nests, which is associated with their reproductive success and evolutionary fitness.

The zinc smelting industry is a major source of atmospheric mercury emissions in China. It is crucial to develop a low-cost technology to reduce mercury pollution emissions for the green development of zinc smelting. Thus, based on the concept of “using waste to treat waste”, this study uses high-sulfur slag and secondary zinc oxide, which are produced in the zinc smelting process as raw materials, to prepare zinc sulfide adsorbent by high-temperature sulfurization in an inert atmosphere. The zinc sulfide adsorbents prepared under different roasting temperatures and time were characterized and analyzed by various analysis methods, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy (Raman), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and specific surface area analysis (BET). The effects of various reaction times and flue gas components on the mercury removal performance were studied. The experimental results reveal that the zinc sulfide adsorbent can be successfully prepared when the roasting temperature and holding time are more than 250 ℃ and 60 min, respectively. Under this condition, many mesoporous holes are formed. The prepared ZnS–250 ℃–90 min adsorbent has the best performance for Hg0 adsorption. Moreover, gaseous elemental mercury (Hg0) has an average adsorption efficiency above 98% at flue gas temperatures below 150 ℃, and it exhibits high resistance to O2, SO2, and H2O. When the Hg0 adsorption efficiency decreased to 50%, the Hg0 adsorption capacity of ZnS–250 ℃–90 min was 3.04 mg·g−1 in the simulated zinc smelting flue gas atmosphere, which is superior to conventional metal sulfides for Hg0 adsorption. Furthermore, the Hg0 adsorption on the surface of ZnS adsorbent is a chemical adsorption process, and the unsaturated short-chain sulfur on the surface of ZnS adsorbent is the critical active site, which can react with Hg0 to form stable HgS, thus realizing the high-efficiency purification of Hg0 from smelting flue gas. Furthermore, the spent ZnS adsorbent can be regenerated using thermal desorption and polysulfide impregnation. An excellent cycle performance for Hg0 capture is realized, and the Hg0 adsorption efficiency remains above 99% after five cycles. Simultaneously, the desorbed mercury can be recycled as elemental mercury by condensation during the regeneration process of ZnS adsorbent. Thus, this study not only provides a low-cost method for mercury pollution control and resource recovery from the zinc smelting industry but also supports the cyclic utilization of typical waste produced in the zinc smelting industry, promoting the green production of the zinc smelting industry.

This paper proposes an active learning accelerated Monte-Carlo simulation method based on the modified K-nearest neighbors algorithm. The core idea of the proposed method is to judge whether or not the output of a random input point can be postulated through a classifier implemented through the modified K-nearest neighbors algorithm. Compared to other active learning methods resorting to experimental designs, the proposed method is characterized by employing Monte-Carlo simulation for sampling inputs and saving a large portion of the actual evaluations of outputs through an accurate classification, which is applicable for most structural reliability estimation problems. Moreover, the validity, efficiency, and accuracy of the proposed method are demonstrated numerically. In addition, the optimal value of K that maximizes the computational efficiency is studied. Finally, the proposed method is applied to the reliability estimation of the carbon fiber reinforced silicon carbide composite specimens subjected to random displacements, which further validates its practicability.

Abstract Background Sepsis-associated AKI has been shown to be related to sepsis mortality. Macrophage activation and endothelial cell damage are involved in the progression of sepsis-associated AKI, but the specific mechanisms are still unclear. Methods In vitro experiments, exosomes extracted from lipopolysaccharide (LPS) -stimulated macrophages were co-incubated with rat glomerular endothelial cells (RGECs) and then detected the injury markers of RGECs. Acid sphingomyelinase (ASM) inhibitor amitriptyline were used to investigate the role of ASM. In vivo experiment, exosomes produced by LPS-stimulated macrophages were injected into mice through tail vein to further explore the role of macrophage-derived exosomes. Moreover, ASM knockout mice were used to verify the mechanism. Result In vitro, the secretion of macrophage exosomes increased upon the stimulation with LPS. Notably, macrophage-derived exosomes can cause glomerular endothelial cell dysfunction. In vivo, macrophage infiltration and exosome secretion in glomeruli of the LPS-induced AKI group increased. The exosomes produced by LPS-stimulated macrophages were injected into mice, which also led to the injury of renal endothelial cells. In addition, in the LPS-induced AKI mouse model, compared with wild-type mice, the secretion of exosomes in glomeruli of ASM gene knockout mice and the injury of endothelial cells were reduced. Conclusion Our study shows that ASM regulates the secretion of macrophage exosomes, leading to endothelial cell injury, which may be a therapeutic target in sepsis-associated AKI.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, and communication between the gut and brain (the gut-brain axis) has been found to be essential in behavior and cognitive function. However, the exact mechanisms underlying microbiota dysbiosis in PD progression have not yet been elucidated. Our study aimed to investigate the correlation between gut microbiota disturbances and feces metabolic disorders in PD. We used 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) to induce PD models and observed mice's motor symptoms, dopaminergic (DA) neuron death, and gastrointestinal dysfunction. To identify alterations in microbiota and metabolome, feces were collected from mice and analyzed using 16 S ribosomal RNA sequencing feces metabolomics. Pearson analysis was utilized to investigate correlations between the abundances of gut microbiota components and the levels of gut microbiota metabolites, displaying their interaction networks. Our findings revealed a significant increase in Desulfobacterota in the PD mouse model and 151 differentially expressed fecal metabolites between PD and vehicle mice. Moreover, Pearson correlation analysis suggested that the protective factor N-acetyl-L-leucine (NALL) may be associated with neuroinflammation in the striatum and substantia nigra, which also had a negative relationship with the concentration of Desulfobacterota. Additionally, we found that oral administration of NALL alleviated MPTP-induced Motor Impairments and DA neuronal deficits. All in all, we concluded that the decrease of NALL might lead to a significant increase of Desulfobacterota in the MPTP model mouse and subsequently result in the damage of DA neurons via the gut-brain aix pathway.

Recently, convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have been widely applied in the seismic facies classification. However, even state-of-the-art CNN architectures often encounter classification confusion distinguishing seismic facies at their boundaries. In addition, the annotation is a highly time-consuming task, especially when dealing with 3-D seismic data volumes. While traditional semisupervised methods reduce dependence on annotation, they are susceptible to interference from unreliable pseudolabels. To address these challenges, we propose a semisupervised seismic facies classification method called CONSS, which effectively mitigates classification confusion through contrastive learning. Our proposed method requires only 1% of labeled data, significantly reducing the demand for annotation. To minimize the influence of unreliable pseudolabels, we also introduce a confidence strategy to select positive and negative sample pairs from reliable regions for contrastive learning. Experimental results on the publicly available seismic datasets, the Netherlands F3 and SEAM AI challenge datasets, demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms classic semisupervised methods, including self-training and consistency regularization, achieving exceptional classification performance.

Abstract The traditional Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm (GWO) has received widespread attention due to features of strong convergence performance, few parameters, and easy implementation. However, in actual optimization projects, there are problems of slow convergence speed and easy to fall into local optimal solution. The paper proposed a Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm based on Cauchy-Gaussian mutation and improved search strategy (CG-GWO) in response to the above problems. The Cauchy-Gaussian mutation operator is introduced to increase the population diversity of the leader wolves and improve the global search ability of the algorithm. This work retains outstanding grey wolf individuals through the greedy selection mechanism to ensure the convergence speed of the algorithm. An improved search strategy was proposed to expand the optimization space of the algorithm and improve the convergence accuracy. Experiments are performed with 16 benchmark functions covering unimodal functions, multimodal functions, and fixed-dimension multimodal functions to verify the effectiveness of the algorithm. Experimental results show that compared with four classic optimization algorithms, particle swarm optimization algorithm (PSO), whale optimization algorithm (WOA), sparrow optimization algorithm (SSA), and farmland fertility algorithm (FFA), the CG-GWO algorithm shows better convergence accuracy, convergence speed, and global search ability. The proposed algorithm shows the same better performance compared with a series of improved algorithms such as the improved grey wolf algorithm (IGWO), modified Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm (mGWO), and the Grey Wolf Optimization algorithm inspired by enhanced leadership (GLF-GWO).

During the leaching process of ion-adsorbed rare earth ores, large amounts of non-rare earth impurities such as aluminum and iron will be generated. This study selected glutamic acid as a complex agent to selectively calculate aluminum ions; then, added non-ionic surfactants and extract and separate aluminum ions from a rare earth solution using the cloud point extraction method. The effects of solution pH, reaction temperature, equilibration time, amount of glutamic acid, reaction time, and amount of Triton X-114 on aluminum extraction were investigated. The results showed that with a Mglu:MAl ratio of 3:1, a solution pH of 4.5, a constant temperature of 40 °C, and the addition of 10 mL Triton X-114 after 10 min of reaction time, the single extraction efficiency of aluminum ions reached 78.01%, and the extraction efficiency of rare earths was only 5.09% after 10 min of equilibration time. The reaction equation of glutamic acid with aluminum ions was determined, and the lowest extraction concentration of aluminum ions in the glutamic acid complexation extraction solution was found to be cAl = 0.045 ± 0.003 g/L, with a separation coefficient of β(Al/RE) = 66.15. This result indicated that the aluminum ions in the mixed solution could be effectively separated from the rare earth ions when using glutamic acid as a complexing agent in combination with the turbidity point extraction method.

It has long been disputed whether Tetranychus cinnabarinus and Tetranychus urticae belong to the same genus, with T. cinnabarinus regarded as a red form of T. urticae. However, it is unclear why T. urticae and T. cinnabarinus have different body colors. Since carotenoids are responsible for the color of many organisms, the carotenoid profiles of T. cinnabarinus and T. urticae were compared by HPLC. There was no difference in carotenoid type, but T. cinnabarinus contained significantly more neoxanthin, astaxanthin, α-carotene, β-carotene, and γ-carotene, which may contribute to the deep red color. The transcriptome sequencing of both species identified 4079 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), of which 12 were related to carotenoid metabolism. RNA interference (RNAi) experiments demonstrated that silencing seven of these DEGs resulted in the different accumulation of carotenoid compounds in T. cinnabarinus and T. urticae. In addition, the body of T. urticae turned yellow after two days of feeding with UGT double-stranded RNAs and β-UGT small interfering RNAs. In conclusion, differences in the carotenoid profiles of T. urticae and T. cinnabarinus may be responsible for the different body colors.

Urbanization is currently considered one of the most rapid types of global environmental change. Urban habitats are biotically and abiotically different from their rural areas, i.e., the ambient temperature, predator, and food availability. These novel challenges create new selection pressures, which allow one to investigate eco-evolutionary responses to contemporary environmental change. A total of 118 breeding nests were monitored for nest predation in both urban and rural areas from 2018 to 2020. We used environmental factors from urban and rural areas and behavioral data from 439 Chinese Blackbird (Turdus mandarinus) valid incubation days to understand the impact of urbanization on the incubation behavior of blackbirds and its adaptation mechanism to the urban environment. Cities have warmer ambient temperatures and lower predation pressures than rural areas. Urban blackbirds chose the incubation strategy with shorter and more bouts, while rural blackbirds selected the incubation strategy with longer and fewer bouts. The plasticity of incubation behavior of urban blackbirds was higher than that of rural areas, and the range of egg temperature was also higher than that of rural areas. In addition, incubation temperature and the number of bouts per day were the key factors affecting the day survival rate of blackbirds, and the hatching rate of urban blackbirds was higher than that of rural blackbirds. Our results provide evidence for behavioral shifts in blackbirds during adaptation to urbanization and support the central role of behavioral adaptation in the successful colonization of new environments by wildlife. These help us understand the behavioral characteristics required for wildlife to live in cities and the urban adaptors faced environmental pressures.

Abstract The classical niche theory supports the idea that stable coexistence requires ecological differences between closely related species. However, information on waterbirds coexistence in the entirely landlocked freshwater system of Poyang Lake is not well understood, especially when the available biomass of their food in the area decreases. In this study, we tested the ecological segregation mechanisms in the 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 wintering periods among eight herbivorous waterbirds (including the Siberian crane Grus leucogeranus, hooded crane Grus monacha, white‐naped crane Grus vipio, common crane Grus grus, greater white‐fronted goose Anser albifrons, bean goose Anser fabalis, swan goose Anser cygnoides, and tundra swan Cygnus columbianus) at Poyang Lake. Using field observations and species niche and foraging habitat selection models, we investigated the abundance, distribution, and food sources of these eight waterbird species to quantify and compare their habitat use and ecological niches. Our results showed that niche segregation among the waterbirds, with respect to food types, time, and spatial location, allow them to coexist and use similar resources. The water level gradually receded in the sub‐lakes of the Poyang Lake, which could provide food sources and various habitats for wintering herbivorous waterbirds to coexist. We demonstrated that the differences in habitat use could mitigate interspecific competition, which may explain the mechanism whereby waterbirds of Poyang Lake coexist during the wintering period, despite considerable overlap in the dietary niches of herbivorous waterbirds.

The constitutive model is the basis and key for the application of materials in practical engineering. Numerical simulation has become one of the most important methods of scientific research, and an accurate constitutive model provides guarantees for the efficiency of numerical simulation. The multi-linear constitutive model is one of the most useful models for engineering. In this paper, different diameters of superelastic Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) wires are selected to investigate mechanical properties through experimentation. The influences of diameter, loading rate, temperature, and loading amplitude on the phase transformation stress, elastic modulus, residual strain, and energy dissipation properties are researched individually, and then the expressions of the influence law are given. Correction coefficients considering the effects of diameter, loading rate, temperature, and loading amplitude are employed to modify the multi-linear constitutive model. A multi-linear dynamic constitutive model considering multiple influence factors is given. Finite element analysis is carried out by introducing the modified multi-linear dynamic constitutive model into the finite element software, and the simulation results are compared to the testing results. The modified multi-linear dynamic constitutive model has high accuracy and can guide the engineering and numerical studies.

Synthetic rutile was prepared from titanium slag melt with a low amount of additive (B2O3) and low energy consumption in our previous work. The mechanism by which B2O3 promotes the precipitation of the rutile phase during the cooling and crystallization of titanium slag melt is not clear and needs further theoretical study. The effects of B2O3 on the structure and properties of titanium slag melt were investigated by molecular dynamics simulations in this study. The B2O3 content has a remarkable effect on the coordination environments of B, Ti and Si atoms, while it has no distinct effect on the position of the central peak in the bond length distributions of BOp, TiOm and SiOn polyhedra. As the B2O3 content increases from 0% to 24%, some of the Ti–O bonds in the oxygen connections are replaced by the B–O bonds and the structural strength of the titanium slag melt is reduced. As the B2O3 content increases from 0% to 24%, the self-diffusion coefficients of all ions increase, and their order remains the same. As the B2O3 content increases from 0% to 24%, the viscosity of the titanium slag melt decreases from 0.079 to 0.032 Pa·s. The addition of B2O3 reduces the overall strength, increases the diffusion coefficients and decreases the viscosity of the titanium slag melt. Such changes are conducive to the oxidation of low-valent titanium and to the precipitation of rutile in titanium slag melt. This work may lay the foundation for the efficient preparation of synthetic rutile by adding B2O3 to the titanium slag melt.

Recent research on the oxygen reduction reaction in has mainly focused on the design and synthesis of non-noble metal catalysts to overcome the cost limitations of precious metals that have a high catalytic activity. The catalytic activity of non-noble metal catalysts has been greatly improved over a large number of studies in the field, but there is still no obvious advantage over precious metal catalysts. In this work, an electrocatalyst with high limiting current density for the oxygen reduction reaction was successfully prepared by codoping a tungsten carbide matrix with Fe and N. The performance of the catalyst was characterized by various physical and electrochemical techniques. The limiting current density in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) can reach 6.644 mA cm−2, and the catalyst also has good half-wave and onset potentials. In addition to the excellent stability and methanol tolerance of the cathode process under alkaline conditions, the catalyst also exhibited the four-electron transfer mechanism as well as good ORR kinetics, and the yield of H2O2 was close to 0. This catalyst with its excellent properties is of significance in guiding research on non-noble metal catalysts with comparable performance to traditional noble metal catalysts.

ObjectiveTo investigate white matter microstructural alterations in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients with depression using the whole-brain diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) method and to explore the DTI–based machine learning model in identifying depressed PD (dPD).MethodsThe DTI data were collected from 37 patients with dPD and 35 patients with non-depressed PD (ndPD), and 25 healthy control (HC) subjects were collected as the reference. An atlas-based analysis method was used to compare fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) among the three groups. A support vector machine (SVM) was trained to examine the probability of discriminating between dPD and ndPD.ResultsAs compared with ndPD, dPD group exhibited significantly decreased FA in the bilateral corticospinal tract, right cingulum (cingulate gyrus), left cingulum hippocampus, bilateral inferior longitudinal fasciculus, and bilateral superior longitudinal fasciculus, and increased MD in the right cingulum (cingulate gyrus) and left superior longitudinal fasciculus-temporal part. For discriminating between dPD and ndPD, the SVM model with DTI features exhibited an accuracy of 0.70 in the training set [area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was 0.78] and an accuracy of 0.73 in the test set (area under the ROC was 0.71).ConclusionDepression in PD is associated with white matter microstructural alterations. The SVM machine learning model based on DTI parameters could be valuable for the individualized diagnosis of dPD.

Background: The pathological differences between Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) are substantial and unexplained yet. Here, we aimed to identify potential regulators that drive different pathogenesis of CD and UC by causal inference analysis of transcriptome data.Methods: Kruskal–Wallis and Dunnett’s tests were performed to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) among CD patients, UC patients, and controls. Subsequently, differentially expressed pathways (DEPs) between CD and UC were identified and used to construct the interaction network of DEPs. Causal inference was performed to identify IBD subtype-regulators. The expression of the subtype-regulators and their downstream genes was validated by qRT-PCR with an independent cohort.Results: Compared with the control group, we identified 1,352 and 2,081 DEGs in CD and UC groups, respectively. Multiple DEPs between CD and UC were closely related to inflammation-related pathways, such as NOD-like receptor signaling, IL-17 signaling, and chemokine signaling pathways. Based on the priori interaction network of DEPs, causal inference analysis identified IFNG and GBP5 as IBD subtype-regulators. The results with the discovery cohort showed that the expression level of IFNG, GBP5, and NLRP3 was significantly higher in the CD group than that in the UC group. The regulation relationships among IFNG, GBP5, and NLRP3 were confirmed with transcriptome data from an independent cohort and validated by qRT-PCR.Conclusion: Our study suggests that IFNG and GBP5 were IBD subtype-regulators that trigger more intense innate immunity and inflammatory responses in CD than those in UC. Our findings reveal pathomechanical differences between CD and UC that may contribute to personalized treatment for CD and UC.

Abstract: La-loaded absorbents have been widely reported for fluoride removal due to the strong affinity of La3+ towards fluoride ion. Herein, chemical removal of fluoride from flue gas scrubbing wastewater using lanthanum salt is investigated. The retaining free F− concentration, phase composition and morphology of filtration residues, and the distribution of fluorine have been investigated using ion-selective electrode, analytical balance, scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray diffractor. The results show that at La/F molar ratio ≥1:3.05, the majority of fluorine exists as LaFx3−x complexes, leading to the failure of fluoride removal. At 1:3.20 ≤ La/F molar ratio ≤1:3.10, the formation of LaF3 is facilitated. However, co-existing LaFx3−x tends to absorb on the surface of LaF3 particles, leading to the formation of colloidal solution with large numbers of LaF3·LaFx3−x suspended solids. At an optimized La/F molar ratio of 1:3.10, a fluoride removal of 97.86% is obtained with retaining fluorine concentration of 6.42 mg L−1. Considering the existing of positively charged LaFx3−x and LaF3·LaFx3−x, coagulation removal of fluoride is proposed and investigated using lanthanum salts and negatively charged SiO2·nH2O colloidal particles, which is in-situ provided via Na2SiO3 hydrolysis at pH near 5.5. At a La/F molar ratio of 1:3.00 and Na2SiO3 dose of 0.50 g L−1, a fluoride removal of 99.25% is obtained with retaining fluorine concentration of 2.24 mg L−1. When Na2SiO3 dose increases to 1.00 g L−1, the retaining fluorine concentration could be further reduced to 0.80 mg L−1.

Background: Membranous nephropathy (MN), a major cause of nephrotic syndrome, has attracted people’s attention in recent years for its growing prevalence. It is the second or third leading cause of ESRD in patients with primary glomerulonephritis and is the leading glomerulopathy that recurs after kidney transplantation. Summary: MN can be classified as idiopathic membranous nephropathy (IMN) and secondary MN. The discovery of the M-type phospholipase A2 receptor (PLA2R) and thrombospondin type-1 domain-containing 7A (THSD7A) provides the new diagnostic methods and treatment strategies for IMN on the molecular level. The study on single nucleotide polymorphism of IMN genes, such as the single M-type phospholipase A2 receptor 1 (PLA2R1) gene and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) gene, explains the pathogenesis of the disease from the perspective of genetics and conforms to the trend of the era of precision medicine. Key Messages: This review focuses on advances in the pathogenesis of IMN, including molecular and genetic pathogenesis, as well as discussing the diagnostic and treatment guiding value brought by these new discoveries.

Background and Objective Circulating tumor cells (CTC) play an important role in the screening and prognosis of lung cancer, but the low efficiency and specificity of CTC isolation obviously restrict its clinical application. The purpose of this study is to explore a new and efficient isolation method of CTC in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in order to achieve the purpose of early diagnosis of NSCLC. Methods Three kinds of immunolipid magnetic spheres of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), vimentin and folic acid (FA) were prepared by thin film method. After characterization, the sorting scheme of cell line was explored, the optimal sorting scheme of NSCLC CTC was constructed, and its clinical application value was studied. Results The average capture efficiency of EGFR, Vimentin and FA magnetic spheres used alone and in combination to lung cancer cell lines was 78%, 79%, 82% and 91%, respectively. In 60 patients with lung cancer, using 2 CTC per 7.5 mL blood as cutoff value, the positive rates of EGFR, Vimentin and FA magnets used alone and in combination were 65.0%, 33.3%, 93.3% and 100%, respectively. It was also found that the number of CTC detected by combined use of the three magnetic spheres was correlated with clinical stages (P

This paper studies the similarities and the differences between natural aggregate concrete (NAC) beams and recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) beams in terms of concrete material properties, bearing capacity, and crack resistance and further proposes correction formulas for cracking moment calculation of RAC beams that consider different recycled aggregate substitution ratios. First, the basic mechanical properties (e.g., cube compressive strength, axial compressive strength, and elastic modulus) of RAC blocks were tested; second, comparative bending tests of RAC beams and natural aggregate concrete beams were conducted, in order to obtain the cracking moments, yield bending moments, ultimate bending moments, mid-span deflections and crack development forms; finally, numerical simulations were performed to investigate the cracking performances of RAC beams. Through analyzing the experimental results, it is found that the crack development pattern of RAC beams resembles that of natural aggregate concrete beams, while the cracking performance of RAC beams significantly deviates from that of NAC beams. Finally, the correction formulas for the cracking moment calculation of RAC beams are proposed based on the numerical simulation results and verified by data from other researchers, which can be regarded as a correction for the cracking moment calculation formulas in the current code for RAC beams with respect to varied recycled concrete aggregate substitution ratios.

A new reliability estimation method based on partial multiplicative dimensional reduction is proposed for probabilistic and non-probabilistic hybrid structural systems. The proposed method is characterized by decorrelating interval input variables from random input variables using the partial multiplicative dimensional reduction method in conjunction with the weakest-link theory. In this method, the failure statistics of the original performance function are equivalent to a statical chain of two elements, in which one of the two elements represents the failures due to random input variables and the other represents the failures due to interval variables. Rather than yielding an estimated interval of failure probability, the proposed method produces a single value for failure probability, which is more meaningful for engineering. In addition, the accuracy, validity, and superiority of the proposed method are demonstrated, and the error-related properties of the proposed method are investigated.

The paper summarizes the structure and water-absorbing mechanism, classification, and preparation method of polymer fire extinguishing gel, and prospects for its application in aerial firefighting, forest ground fire extinguishing, opening of firebreaks, and mitigating human casualties in forest fire extinguishing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of aluminum in the weathering crust leaching rare earth ore harms the subsequent extraction and separation of rare earths. High-quality rare earth production processes must reduce the aluminum content in their feed liquid. Groups containing lone pairs of electrons can form stable insoluble complexes with metal ions under certain conditions. In this paper, 3-hydroxyphenylphosphoryl propionic acid is used to selectively separate rare earths by complexation in feed liquid. The results show that: using 3-hydroxyphenylphosphoryl propionic acid as the complexing agent, and when the amount of 3-hydroxyphenyl phosphoryl propionic acid is six times the theoretical complete reaction amount, the reaction time is 10 min, the reaction temperature is 50 °C, and the solution is adjusted to pH 1, the extraction rate of RE3+ is 90.48%, and the extraction rate of Al3+ is nearly 9.52%. The separation of rare earth and aluminum is well realized. 3-hydroxyphenyl phosphoryl propionic acid has good water solubility and low cost, and the product after complexation reaction with metal ions is solid and easy to separate. It has potential as an alternative complexing agent in the industry.

Rare earth element recovery in molten salt electrolysis is approximately between 91 and 93%, whereof 8% is lost in waste molten salt slag. Presently, minimal research has been conducted on the technology for recycling waste rare earth molten salt slag, which is either discarded as industrial garbage or mixed with waste slag into qualified molten salt. The development of a new approach toward the effective treatment of rare earth fluoride molten salt electrolytic slag, which can recycle the remaining rare earth and improve the utilization rate, is essential. Herein, weak magnetic iron separation, sulfuric acid leaching transformation, water leaching, hydrogen fluoride water absorption, and cycle precipitation of rare earth are used to recover rare earth from their fluoride molten salt electrolytic slag, wherein the thermodynamic and kinetic processes of sulfuric acid leaching transformation are emphatically studied. Thermodynamic results show that temperature has a great influence on sulfuric acid leaching. With rising temperature, the equilibrium constant of the reaction gradually increases, and the stable interval of NdF3 decreases, while that of Nd3+ increases, indicating that high temperature is conducive to the sulfuric acid leaching process, whereof the kinetic results reveal that the activation energy E of Nd transformation is 41.57 kJ/mol, which indicates that the sulfuric acid leaching process is controlled by interfacial chemical reaction. According to the Nd transformation rate equation in the sulfuric acid leaching process of rare earth fluoride molten salt electrolytic slag under different particle size conditions, it is determinable that with the decrease of particle size, the reaction rate increases accordingly, while strengthening the leaching kinetic process. According to the equation of Nd transformation rate in the sulfuric acid leaching process under different sulfuric acid concentration conditions, the reaction series of sulfuric acid concentration K = 6.4, which is greater than 1, indicating that increasing sulfuric acid concentration can change the kinetic-control region and strengthen the kinetic process.

Insects are behaviorally and physiologically affected by different light conditions, including photoperiod, light intensity, and spectrum. Light at night has important influences on nocturnal insects, including most moth species. Moth copulation and mating usually occur at night. Although a few studies examine changes in insect mating under artificial light at night, detailed influences of light, such as that of monochromatic light, on moth mating remain largely unknown. In this study, on the basis of long-term insects rearing experience, dim red light (spectrum range: 610–710nm, with a peak at 660nm; 2.0 Lux) during scotophase was hypothesized to enhance mating in the yellow peach moth, Conogethes punctiferalis. To test the hypothesis, the mating of moths under dim red, blue, and white lights during scotophase was observed. Under the dim red light, the enhancement of mating in C. punctiferalis was observed. In addition, the electroantennografic response of males against the female sex pheromone increased with red light treatment during scotophase. In an analysis of the differentially expressed genes in the antennae of males under red light and dark conditions, the expression levels of two odorant-binding protein (OBP) genes, CpunOBP2 and CpunPBP5, were up-regulated. Two genes were then expressed in Escherichia coli, and the recombinant proteins showed strong binding to female pheromone components in fluorescence-binding assays. Thus, the results of this study indicated that dim red light at night enhanced the mating of C. punctiferalis. One of the mechanisms for the enhancement was probably an increase in the antennal sensitivity of males to the female sex pheromone under red light that was caused by increases in the expression levels of pheromone-binding protein genes in male antennae.

Antiplatelet therapy has become a cornerstone in the treatment of coronary heart disease (CHD). However, due to high-residual-platelet-reactivity, clopidogrel resistance (CR) is a common phenomenon, and it is rarely known about the relationship between CR and epigenetic changes. This study compared the whole genomic methylation patterns of blood samples from patients with CR (n = 6) and non-CR (n = 6) with the Human Methylation 850K BeadChip assay. We explored differentially methylated CpG sites, genes, and pathways using bioinformatics profiling. The CR and control groups showed significantly different DNA methylation at 7,098 sites, with 979 sites showing hypermethylation and 6,119 sites showing hypomethylation. The pyrosequencing method was used to validate four differentially methylated CpG loci (cg23371584, cg15971518, cg04481923, cg22507406), confirming that DNA methylation was associated with the risk of CR (30 CR vs. 30 non-CR). The relative mRNA expression of the four genes (BTG2, PRG2, VTRNA2-1, PER3) corresponding to the loci above was also associated with CR, suggesting that alterations in DNA methylation may affect the expression of these four genes, eventually resulting in CR. Additionally, differentially methylated sites are partially related to genes and pathways that play key roles in process of circadian entrainment, insulin secretion, and so on. Hence, the mechanism and biological regulation of CR might be reflected through these epigenetic alterations, but future research will need to address the causal relationships.

To overcome the problem of arsenic separation and enrichment from an alkaline leaching solution in arsenic-containing dust, a CO32--type tri-n-octylmethyl-ammonium chloride (TOMAC) method for extracting thioarsenite is proposed in this paper. Considering an alkaline leaching solution as the research object, after vulcanization pretreatment, TOMAC transformation and organic phase saturated extraction capacity were measured, and the extraction mechanism was preliminarily studied. First, Cl−-type quaternary ammonium salt was effectively transformed to HCO3--type by treating organic phase with saturated NaHCO3five times. TOMAC was effectively transformed from HCO3- to CO32- type by alkaline washing with 1.0 mol/l NaOH solution; this washing was repeated thrice. Thereafter, the effects of organic phase composition, phase ratio, extraction time, and temperature on the extraction and separation of arsenic were investigated. The results show that under the conditions of 30% CO32--type TOMAC + 15% sec-octanol + 55% sulfonated kerosene, VO/VA = 1/1, and 5 min extraction at room temperature, the single-stage extraction rate of AsIII is 85.2%. The AsIII concentration in raffinate can be reduced to less than 1.33 × 10−3 mol/l by four-stage countercurrent extraction, and the extraction rate of AsIII can exceed 98.4%.

Inflammasomes, multiprotein complex induced by harmful factors in the body, play a crucial role in innate immunity. Activation of inflammasomes lead to the activation of casepase-1 and then the secretion of inflammatory cytokines, including IL-1β and IL-18, subsequently leading to a type of cell death called pyroptosis. There are two types of signaling pathways involved in the process of inflammasome activation: the canonical and the non-canonical signaling pathway. The canonical signaling pathway is mainly dependent on casepase-1; the non-canonical signal pathway, which was recently discovered, is mainly dependent on caspase-11, but is also meditated by caspase-4, caspase-5, and caspase-8. Kidney inflammation is basically associated with inflammatory factor exudation and inflammatory cell infiltration. Several studies have showed that inflammasomes are closely related to kidney diseases, especially the NOD-, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome, which play a role in regulating kidney inflammation and fibrosis. In this review, we focus on the relationship between inflammasomes and kidney diseases, especially the role of the NLRP3 inflammasome in different kinds of kidney disease via both canonical and non-canonical signal pathways.

Digital twinning technology originated in the field of aerospace. The real-time and bidirectional feature of data interaction guarantees its advantages of high accuracy, real-time performance and scalability. In this paper the digital twin technology was introduced to electric vehicle energy consumption research. First, an energy consumption model of an electric vehicle of BAIC BJEV was established, then the model was optimized and verified through the energy consumption data of the drum test. Based on the data of the vehicle real-time monitoring platform, a digital twin model was built, and it was trained and updated by daily new data. Eventually it can be used to predict and verify the data of vehicle. In this way the prediction of energy consumption of vehicles can be achieved.

Synthetic rutile was prepared from titanium slag melt with low energy consumption and a small amount of additive (B2O3) in our previous work. The modification mechanism of titanium slag was not clear enough. The migration and enrichment behaviors of Ca and Mg elements during cooling and crystallization of boron-bearing titanium slag melt were characterized by XRF, FESEM, EMPA, and XPS. Results show that when additive (B2O3) is added, Ti elements are migrated and enriched in the area to generate rutile, while Ca, Mg, and B elements are migrated and enriched in another area to generate borate. With the additive (B2O3) amount increased, Ca and Mg element migration is complete and more thorough. Additive (B2O3) promotes rutile formation and inhibits the formation of anosovite during cooling and crystallization of titanium slag melt. With the additive (B2O3) amount increasing from 0% to 6%, the proportion of Ti3+ in the modified titanium slag reduces from 9.15% to 0%, and the proportion of Ti4+ increases from 90.85% to 100% under the same cooling and crystallization condition. The result will lay the foundation for the efficient preparation of synthetic rutile by adding B2O3 to the titanium slag melt.