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Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is mainly caused by mutations in the PKD1 (~85%) or PKD2 (~15%) gene which, respectively, encode polycystin-1 (PC1) and polycystin-2 (PC2). How PC1 regulates cell proliferation and apoptosis has been studied for decades but the underlying mechanisms remain controversial. Protein kinase RNA-activated (PKR) is activated by interferons or double-stranded RNAs, inhibits protein translation, and induces cell apoptosis. In a previous study, we found that PC1 reduces apoptosis through suppressing the PKR/eIF2α signaling. Whether and how PKR is involved in PC1-inhibited proliferation and protein synthesis remains unknown. Here we found that knockdown of PKR abolishes PC1-inhibited proliferation and translation. Because suppressed PKR-eIF2α signaling/activity by PC1 would stimulate, rather than inhibit, the proliferation and translation, we examined the effect of dominant negative PKR mutant K296R that has no kinase activity and found that it enhances the inhibition of proliferation and translation by PC1. Thus, our study showed that inhibition of cell proliferation and protein synthesis by PC1 is mediated by the total expression but not the kinase activity of PKR, possibly through physical association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death globally and poses at significant challenge in terms of effective medical treatment. Leonurus japonicus Houtt , a traditional Chinese herb, is widely used in China for the treatment of obstetrical and gynecological disorders, including menstrual disorders, dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea, blood stasis, postpartum bleeding, and blood-related diseases such as CVD. Stachydrine, the main alkaloid component of Leonurus, has been shown to exhibit a wide range of biological activities including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-coagulant, anti-apoptotic, vasodilator, angiogenic promoter. Additionally, it has been demonstrated to have unique advantages in the prevention and treatment of CVD through regulation of various disease-related signaling pathways and molecular targets. In this comprehensive review, we examine the latest pharmacological effects and molecular mechanisms of Stachydrine in treating cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Our aim is to solid scientific basis for the development of new CVD drug formulations. [Display omitted] • 1 STA can protect vascular endothelial cells from damage. • 2 STA can help to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD) by inhibiting cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, cardiomyocyte fibrosis, and anti-apoptosis. • 3 STA can also protect Central Nervous System (CNS) diseases, such as protect traumatic brain injury and Alzheimer's disease. • 4 STA has properties of good bioavailability, non-toxic and very low toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reasonable regulation of iodine redox has gradually shown potential as a desirable cathodic reaction in zinc‐based batteries, but suffers from poor cyclic reversibility caused by uncontrollable side reactions. Also, the irregular growth of dendrites and unavoidable occurrences of hydrogen evolution reaction in H2O‐rich environment have become permanent topics in anodic zinc. Herein, a cross‐linked gel based on carboxymethyl chitosan is proposed and serves as an artificial electrolyte interphase for zinc anode (marked as Zn‐CMCS). Such a coating formed by crosslinking among a monodentate carboxyl group, a hydroxyl, an amino, and Zn2+ from adding solution closely adheres on the surface of the zinc foil with toughness, ductility, and ideal electrochemical kinetics. Additionally, its homogenized surface charge distribution provides a "flexible" substrate for zinc plating/stripping, resulting in a flat real‐time interface. While introducing I−/I0 conversion by matching adsorptive activated carbon on carbon fiber cloth (AC‐CFC) as cathode, the internal space restricted by CMCS gel enables the assembled Zn‐CMCS/AC‐CFC battery to exhibit a greatly improved reversibility under long‐cycling condition within 28 000 cycles (measured for more than 2 years) in a narrow operating voltage range of 0.23 V. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disease represents a specific case of malfunctioning within a complex system. Whereas it is often feasible to observe and possibly treat the symptoms of a disease, it is much more challenging to identify and characterize its molecular root causes. Even in infectious diseases that are caused by a known parasite, it is often impossible to pinpoint exactly which molecular profiles of components or processes are directly or indirectly altered. However, a deep understanding of such profiles is a prerequisite for rational, efficacious treatments. Modern omics methodologies are permitting large-scale scans of some molecular profiles, but these scans often yield results that are not intuitive and difficult to interpret. For instance, the comparison of healthy and diseased transcriptome profiles may point to certain sets of involved genes, but a host of post-transcriptional processes and regulatory mechanisms renders predictions regarding metabolic or physiological consequences of the observed changes in gene expression unreliable. Here we present proof of concept that dynamic models of metabolic pathway systems may offer a tool for interpreting transcriptomic profiles measured during disease. We illustrate this strategy with the interpretation of expression data of genes coding for enzymes associated with purine metabolism. These data were obtained during infections of rhesus macaques ( Macaca mulatta ) with the malaria parasite Plasmodium cynomolgi or P. coatneyi . The model-based interpretation reveals clear patterns of flux redistribution within the purine pathway that are consistent between the two malaria pathogens and are even reflected in data from humans infected with P. falciparum . This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Accelerating Precision Medicine through Genetic and Genomic Big Data Analysis edited by Yudong Cai & Tao Huang. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silver nanowires (Ag NWs) network is considered a promising alternative to replace indium tin oxide (ITO) as transparent conductive electrode (TCE). However, there are several intrinsic shortcomings such as rough surface topography, poor ambient and thermal stability still restrict their practical application. Here, we demonstrated a low temperature solution-processed composite TCE comprising of Ag NWs and ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) could resolve above issues. The highest temperature in whole process is no more than 100 °C. By optimizing the density of Ag NWs together with the thickness of ZnO NPs layer, the composite TCE showed excellent flexibility, ambient and thermal stability (∼300 °C) as well as high electrical conductivity (∼20 Ω/sq) and good optical transparency (∼87% at 550 nm). In addition, the ZnO NPs capping layer reduced the surface roughness of Ag NWs network by more than half of its initial value. All the demonstrated properties show the Ag NWs/ZnO composite TCE would be an ideal choice in a variety of flexible optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Near-end speech enhancement works by modifying speech prior to presentation in a noisy environment, typically operating under a constraint of limited or no increase in speech level. One issue is the extent to which near-end enhancement techniques require detailed estimates of the masking environment to function effectively. The current study investigated speech modification strategies based on reallocating energy statically across the spectrum using masker-specific spectral weightings. Weighting patterns were learned offline by maximising a glimpse-based objective intelligibility metric. Keyword scores in sentences in the presence of stationary and fluctuating maskers increased, in some cases by very substantial amounts, following the application of masker- and SNR-specific spectral weighting. A second experiment using generic masker-independent spectral weightings that boosted all frequencies above 1 kHz also led to significant gains in most conditions. These findings indicate that energy-neutral spectral weighting is a highly-effective near-end speech enhancement approach that places minimal demands on detailed masker estimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A business process or workflow is an assembly of tasks that accomplishes a business goal. Business process management is the study of the design, configuration/implementation, enactment and monitoring, analysis, and re-design of workflows. The traditional methodology for the re-design and improvement of workflows relies on the well-known sequence of extract, transform and load (ETL), data/process warehousing and online analytical processing (OLAP) tools. In this paper, we study the ad hoc queryiny of process enactments for (data-centric) business processes, bypassing the traditional methodology for more flexibility in querying. We develop an algebraic query language based on "incident patterns" with four operators inspired from Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) representation, allowing the user to formulate ad hoc queries directly over workflow logs. A formal semantics of this query language, a preliminary query evaluation algorithm, and a group of elementary properties of the operators are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deploying deduplication for distributed primary storage is a sophisticated and challenging task, considering that the demands of low read/write latency, stable read/write performance, and efficient space saving are all of paramount importance. Unfortunately, existing schemes cannot present a satisfactory solution for the aforementioned requirements simultaneously. In this article, we propose D^3 , a dynamic dual-phase deduplication framework for distributed primary storage. Several major innovations are established in D ^3 . First, we formulate a deduplication-oriented taxonomy called Dedup-Type , to group data with similar deduplication-related characteristics into larger categories. It serves as coarse-grained filter and one of the prioritizing references in D^3 . Second, D^3 is a dual-phase framework—inline-phase and offline-phase deduplication processes work in concert with each other. Third, D ^3 operates in a dynamic manner. We design two critical mechanisms: context-aware threshold adjustment (CTA) for local inline-phase deduplication, and deferred priority-based enforcement (DPE) for global offline-phase deduplication. The CTA mechanism enables selective deduplication under a periodically updated threshold. Data skipped during the inline phase is regarded as a candidate for offline phase, and is handled in a prioritized order under the governance of DPE mechanism. Evaluation results demonstrate that, compared with conventional inline and offline deduplication schemes, D^3 achieves more efficient and stabler read/write performance with competitive space saving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Zoige Depression is an important depocenter zone within the northeast of the Songpan-Ganzi Flysch Basin, which is bounded by the South China, North China, and Qiangtang blocks, and also forms the northeastern margin of Tibetan Plateau. This paper discusses the provenance of Middle to Late Triassic sedimentary rocks in the Zoige Depression using petrography, heavy mineral assemblages, and zircon U-Pb geochronology. The results demonstrate that the detritus is derived from multiple source regions. Four distinct parent rocks can be distinguished based on the heavy mineral assemblages and lithic fragments: Provenance 1 predominantly comprises intermediate-acidic volcanic rocks; Provenance 2 includes high-grade metamorphic rocks; Provenance 3 contains a mixture of various detrital components; and Provenance 4 primarily consists of mafic volcanic rocks. The different U-Pb ages of the zircons from the Middle to Late Triassic ranging from 260 to 280, 429-480, 792-974, and 1,800-2,500 Ma represent distinct source regions, which are comparable to the 4 provenances mentioned above: Provenance 1 (260-280 Ma), Eastern Kunlun Orogen; Provenance 2 (429-480 and/or 1,800-2,500 Ma), Qinling orogeny (mainly in North Qinling); Provenance 3 (1,800-2,500 Ma), the North China Block; and Provenance 4 (792-974 Ma), the Yangtze Block. Overall, the detritus in the Middle Triassic (Ladinian, T2zg) primarily originates from the Eastern Kunlun Orogen and North Qinling. During the Late Triassic (Early Carnian, T3z), the southern margin of the North China Block was likely transported westward to the basin by a river network between the North China and South China blocks flowing through the Qinling region, because of the predominance of the detrital zircon age ranging from 1,800 to 2,500 Ma and the occurrence of quartz sandstone with visible enlargement texture. Since the Late Triassic (Middle Carnian, T3zh), great changes have occurred in the source terrains, such as the absence of sources of the Eastern Kunlun Orogen and North China Block and the predominance of Yangtze Block. This drastic change can be explained by the Triassic collision between the South China and North China blocks, and the clockwise rotation of the South China Block progressively closed the basin and uplifted the Qinling orogeny. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is associated with hypertension and has been linked with the pathogenesis of increased arterial blood pressure (BP). Currently, whether CMV infection is associated with the progression of hypertension and hypertensive target organ damage (TOD) remains to be identified. We aimed to examine the relationship between CMV infection and the progression of hypertension and hypertensive TOD, which could provide clues on the possible mediating mechanisms, in the Han Chinese population. A total of 372 patients with hypertension and 191 healthy controls (Han participants from Xinjiang, China) were included in the study. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and qPCR were used to detect CMV infection. C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) titers were also analyzed using an ELISA kit. Moreover, cardiovascular disease markers were evaluated by echocardiography, carotid ultrasonography, and tomographic scans. Essential hypertension (EH) patients exhibited a marked increase in CMV IgG antibody, CRP, TNF-α, and IL-6 levels. Higher grade of hypertension and hypertensive TOD had higher CMV IgG antibody and CRP levels. The CMV IgG antibody titers were positively correlated with arterial BP, greater grade of hypertension and hypertensive TOD, and CRP and IL-6 levels. The higher quartile of CMV IgG titer and CRP level were associated with the incidence of hypertension and the progression of hypertension and hypertensive TOD. In the Han Chinese population, high CMV IgG titers are associated with the progression of hypertension and hypertensive TOD. CMV IgG titer >4.25 U could be an independent predictor of hypertension and progression of hypertension, while that >4.85 U could be an independent risk factor for hypertensive TOD. The underlying mechanism may be largely mediated by chronic inflammation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High reliability, efficient I/O performance and flexible consistency provided with low storage cost are all desirable properties of cloud storage systems. Due to the inherent conflicts, however, simultaneously achieving optimum on all these properties is impractical. N-way Replication and Erasure Coding, two extensively-applied storage schemes with high reliability, adopt opposite and unbalanced strategies on the tradeoff among these properties, thus considerably restraining their effectiveness on wide range of workloads. To address the aforementioned obstacle, we propose a novel storage scheme called ASSER, an ASSembling chain of Erasure coding and Replication. ASSER stores each object in two parts: a full copy and a certain amount of erasure-coded segments. We establish dedicated read/write protocols for ASSER leveraging the unique structural advantages. On the basis of elementary protocols, we implement sequential and PRAM (Pipeline-RAM) consistency to make ASSER feasible for various services with different performance/consistency requirements. Evaluation results demonstrate that under the same fault tolerance and consistency level, ASSER outperforms N-way replication and pure erasure coding in I/O throughput under diverse system and workload configurations with superior performance stability. More importantly, ASSER delivers stably efficient I/O performance at much lower storage cost than the other comparatives. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The air-cooling transport process of AZ31B magnesium alloy plate was investigated and carried out under different initial cooling temperatures and different sample sizes at a transport velocity of 0.3 m/s. In order to provide the theoretical basis for the actual industrial rolling production, a detailed analysis of the temperature distributed along both the width direction and the thickness direction under different conditions was performed. Through the processing of the experimental data, the emissivity of AZ31B plate in the air-cooling transport process, as an important heat transfer parameter, was modeled accurately. After that, based on the establishment of the emissivity calculation model, the empirical formula of Stefan-Boltzmann was modified and optimized to be the temperature control model for the air-cooling process in consideration of the heat transfer characteristics of magnesium alloy. Finally, combining the finite element numerical simulation and the experimental results, comprehensive heat transfer coefficient between the AZ31B plate and the external environment during the transport process was accurately defined and further fitted about the experimental parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background:The level of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and its gene polymorphism are associated with the end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and the related complications. This study aimed to investigate the correction between IL-6 -174G/C polymorphism and ESRD by meta-analysis. Methods:Using the databases including PubMed, Embase, Cochrane library, CNKI, and CBM, the data of case-control studies on correlation between IL-6 -174G/C polymorphism and ESRD from database establishment to January 2016 were collected. According to inclusion and exclusion criteria, the quality of literatures was evaluated. The relevant research data were extracted, followed by meta-analysis using Revman 5.3 software (London, UK). The combined odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (95%CI) of each genetic model were calculated, and the publication bias data was assessed using the Stata 12.0 software (College Station, TX). Results:A total of five literatures were included, with 1199 cases in case group and 1089 cases in control group. Meta-analysis showed that, there was no significant correlation between each genetic model of IL-6 -174G/C polymorphism and ESRD [(C versus G): OR = 1.36, 95%CI (0.69, 2.66),p = .38; (CC + GC versus GG): OR = 1.28, 95%CI (0.58, 2.82),p = .54; (CC versus GG + GC): OR = 1.71, 95%CI (0.82, 3.54),p = .15; (CC versus GG): OR = 1.74, 95%CI (0.76, 3.99),p = .19; (GC versus GG): OR = 1.18, 95%CI (0.55, 2.54),p = .67]. The race subgroup analysis showed that, there was no significant correlation between each genetic model of IL-6 -174G/C polymorphism and ESRD in the Caucasians (p > .05). Conclusion:IL-6 -174G/C polymorphism has no significant correlation with the susceptibility risk of ESRD, and may not be a risk factor for ESRD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and objective: Henoch-Schönlein purpura (HSP) is an important cause of chronic kidney disease in children. This meta-analysis identified risk factors associated with renal involvement in childhood HSP. Methods: PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science were searched. The quality of all eligible studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale criteria. An analysis of possible risk factors was conducted to report the odds ratio (OR) and weighted mean difference (WMD). Results: Thirteen studies (2398 children) revealed 20 possible and 13 significant risk factors associated with renal involvement in HSP, with the following meta-analysis estimates of OR and WMD, with 95% confidence intervals: older age (0.90, 0.61–1.19); age > 10 y (3.13, 1.39–7.07); male gender (1.36, 1.07–1.74); abdominal pain (1.94,1.24–3.04); gastrointestinal bleeding (1.86, 1.30–2.65); severe bowel angina (3.38, 1.17–9.80); persistent purpura (4.02, 1.22–13.25); relapse (4.70, 2.42–9.14); WBC > 15 × 109/L (2.42, 1.39–4.22); platelets > 500 × 109/L (2.98, 1.22–7.25); elevated antistreptolysin O (ASO) (2.17, 1.29–3.64); and decreased complement component 3 (C3) (3.13, 1.62–6.05). Factors not significantly associated with renal involvement were: blood pressure; orchitis; elevated C-reactive protein; elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR); and elevated serum IgA/IgE or IgG. Arthritis/arthralgia may be a risk factor according to the criteria of the American College of Rheumatology (1.41, 1.01–1.96). Conclusion: The following are associated with renal involvement in pediatric HSP: male gender; > 10 y old; severe gastrointestinal symptoms (abdominal pain, gastrointestinal bleeding, and severe bowel angina); arthritis/arthralgia; persistent purpura or relapse; WBC > 15 × 109/L; platelets > 500 × 109/L; elevated ASO; and low C3. Relevant clinical interventions for these risk factors may exert positive effects on the prevention of kidney disease during the early stages of HSP. However, the results should be interpreted cautiously due to the limitations of the studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cs 2 SeI 6 has been widely studied as a potential candidate for solar cells. In this paper, we conducted simulation work to study the photoelectric properties and stability of Cs 2 SeI 6 under hydrostatic pressure based on first principles calculations. The photoelectric parameters of Cs 2 SeI 6 can be improved under pressure. The perovskite Cs 2 SeI 6 has a band gap value of 1.339 ​eV under the pressure of 1.5 ​GPa, which is nearly the optimal band gap for the best photoelectric conversion efficiency of the single-junction solar cells. The structural, mechanical, and thermodynamic stability of Cs 2 SeI 6 are guaranteed by the positive frequency of the phonon dispersion spectrum, the Born-Huang stability criterion, and the rapidly decreasing Gibbs free energy. The calculated elastic constants indicate that Cs 2 SeI 6 is ductile. The calculated results indicate that the Cs 2 SeI 6 has a better photoelectric performance and stability under the pressure of 1.5 ​GPa. It is more suitable for the single-junction solar cells. The perovskite Cs 2 SeI 6 has a band gap value of 1.339 ​eV under the pressure of 1.5 ​GPa, which is nearly the optimal band gap (1.34 ​eV) for the best photovoltaic efficiency of the single-junction solar cells. [Display omitted] • The calculated phonon spectra and the elastic coefficients of Cs 2 SeI 6 ​show that Cs 2 SeI 6 ​is stable. • The bang gap, absorption spectrum, dielectric function and conductivity of Cs 2 SeI 6 ​are improved by applying pressure. • The calculated results indicate Cs 2 SeI 6 ​has great application potential in light absorption layer material of solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) plays a critical role in maintaining cellular cholesterol homeostasis. The purpose of this study is to identify the molecular mechanism(s) underlying ABCA1 epigenetic modification and determine its potential impact on ABCA1 expression in macrophage-derived foam cell formation and atherosclerosis development. DNA methylation induced foam cell formation from macrophages and promoted atherosclerosis in apolipoprotein E-deficient (apoE−/−) mice. Bioinformatics analyses revealed a large CpG island (CGI) located in the promoter region of ABCA1. Histone methyltransferase enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) downregulated ABCA1 mRNA and protein expression in THP-1 and RAW264.7 macrophage-derived foam cells. Pharmacological inhibition of DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) with 5-Aza-dC or knockdown of DNMT1 prevented the downregulation of macrophage ABCA1 expression, suggesting a role of DNA methylation in ABCA1 expression. Polycomb protein EZH2 induced DNMT1 expression and methyl-CpG-binding protein-2 (MeCP2) recruitment, and stimulated the binding of DNMT1 and MeCP2 to ABCA1 promoter, thereby promoting ABCA1 gene DNA methylation and atherosclerosis. Knockdown of DNMT1 inhibited EZH2-induced downregulation of ABCA1 in macrophages. Conversely, EZH2 overexpression stimulated DNMT1-induced ABCA1 gene promoter methylation and atherosclerosis. EZH2-induced downregulation of ABCA1 gene expression promotes foam cell formation and the development of atherosclerosis by DNA methylation of ABCA1 gene promoter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several modification algorithms that alter natural or synthetic speech with the goal of improving intelligibility in noise have been proposed recently. A key requirement of many modification techniques is the ability to predict intelligibility, both offline during algorithm development, and online, in order to determine the optimal modification for the current noise context. While existing objective intelligibility metrics (OIMs) have good predictive power for unmodified natural speech in stationary and fluctuating noise, little is known about their effectiveness for other forms of speech. The current study evaluated how well seven OIMs predict listener responses in three large datasets of modified and synthetic speech which together represent 396 combinations of speech modification, masker type and signal-to-noise ratio. The chief finding is a clear reduction in predictive power for most OIMs when faced with modified and synthetic speech. Modifications introducing durational changes are particularly harmful to intelligibility predictors. OIMs that measure masked audibility tend to over-estimate intelligibility in the presence of fluctuating maskers relative to stationary maskers, while OIMs that estimate the distortion caused by the masker to a clean speech prototype exhibit the reverse pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adenosine deaminases that act on RNA (ADARs) have been reported to be functional on various viruses. ADAR1 may exhibit antiviral or proviral activity depending on the type of virus. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 is the most well-studied lentivirus with respect to its interaction with ADAR1, and variable results have been reported. In this study, we demonstrated that equine ADAR1 (eADAR1) was a positive regulator of equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV), another lentivirus of the Retroviridae family. First, eADAR1 significantly promoted EIAV replication, and the enhancement of viral protein expression was associated with the long terminal repeat ( LTR ) and Rev response element ( RRE ) regions. Second, the RNA binding domain 1 of eADAR1 was essential only for enhancing LTR -mediated gene expression. Third, in contrast with APOBEC proteins, which have been shown to reduce lentiviral infectivity, eADAR1 increased the EIAV infectivity. This study indicated that eADAR1 was proviral rather than antiviral for EIAV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An approach is proposed for producing compressed sensing (CS) matrices via multidimensional pseudo-random sequences. The columns of these matrices are binary Gold code vectors where zeros are replaced by −1. This technique is mainly applied to restore sub-Nyquist-sampled sparse signals, especially image reconstruction using block CS. First, for the specific requirements of message length and compression ratio, a set Λ which includes all preferred pairs of m-sequences is obtained by a searching algorithm. Then a sensing matrix A is produced by using structured hardware circuits. In order to better characterize the correlation between any two columns of A, the average coherence is defined and the restricted isometry property (RIP) condition is described accordingly. This RIP condition has strong adaptability to different sparse signals. The experimental results show that with constant values of N and M, the sparsity bound of A is higher than that of a random matrix. Also, the recovery probability may have a maximum increase of 20 % in a noisy environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A tetragonal columnar-shaped TiO2 (TCS-TiO2) nanorods are synthesized via a facile route for the immobilization of glucose oxidase (GOx). A novel electrochemical glucose biosensor is constructed based on the direct electrochemistry of GOx at TCS-TiO2 modified glassy carbon electrode. The fabricated biosensor is characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, electrochemical impedance spectra and cyclic voltammetry. The immobilized enzyme molecules on TCS-TiO2 nanorods retain its native structure and bioactivity and show a surface controlled, quasi-reversible and fast electron transfer process. The TCS-TiO2 nanorods have large surface area and provide a favorable microenvironment for enhancing the electron transfer between enzyme and electrode surface. The constructed glucose biosensor shows wide linear range from 5.0×10−6 to 1.32×10−3 M with a high sensitivity of 23.2mAM−1 cm−2. The detection limit is calculated to be 2.0×10−6 M at signal-to-noise of 3. The proposed glucose biosensor also exhibits excellent selectivity, good reproducibility, and acceptable operational stability. Furthermore, the biosensor can be successfully applied in the detection of glucose in serum sample at the applied potential of −0.50V. The TCS-TiO2 nanorods provide an efficient and promising platform for the immobilization of proteins and development of excellent biosensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glycerol is a major by-product of industrial ethanol production and its formation consumes up to 4 % of the sugar substrate. This study modified the glycerol decomposition pathway of an industrial strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to optimize the consumption of substrate and yield of ethanol. This study is the first to couple glycerol degradation with ethanol formation, to the best of our knowledge. The recombinant strain overexpressing GCY1 and DAK1, encoding glycerol dehydrogenase and dihydroxyacetone kinase, respectively, in glycerol degradation pathway, exhibited a moderate increase in ethanol yield (2.9 %) and decrease in glycerol yield (24.9 %) compared to the wild type with the initial glucose concentration of 15 % under anaerobic conditions. However, when the mhpF gene, encoding acetylating NAD-dependent acetaldehyde dehydrogenase from Escherichia coli, was co-expressed in the aforementioned recombinant strain, a further increase in ethanol yield by 5.5 % and decrease in glycerol yield by 48 % were observed for the resultant recombinant strain GDMS1 when acetic acid was added into the medium prior to inoculation compared to the wild type. The process outlined in this study which enhances glycerol consumption and cofactor regulation in an industrial yeast is a promising metabolic engineering strategy to increase ethanol production by reducing the formation of glycerol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the relationship between the size of an excised endometrioma and the magnitude of damage to the ovary after the surgery. Design: A retrospective, controlled study. Setting: A university hospital. Patient(s): Eighty-five women with a history of laparoscopic excision of unilateral endometrioma who underwent in vitro fertilization (IVF). Intervention(s): IVF-embryo transfer procedures. Main Outcome Measure(s): Antral follicle counts (AFC), number of dominant follicles (follicles ≥15 mm), and number of oocytes retrieved. Result(s): In the group with cyst diameters of ≥4 cm and group with cyst diameters of <4 cm, the AFC, number of dominant follicles, and number of oocytes retrieved were decreased in the operated ovaries when compared with those in intact ovaries; in the former group, a statistically significant reduction was observed. The differences of AFC, number of dominant follicles, and number of oocytes retrieved from both ovaries were further compared among the two groups: the decrease in the group with cyst diameters of ≥4 cm was higher than in the group with cyst diameters of <4 cm. After adjusting for age and AFC in intact ovaries, similar results were obtained, although AFC only showed a tendency. In addition, the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis revealed a statistically significant, positive correlation between the size of excised cysts and the incidence of fewer than four oocytes retrieved from an operated ovary. Conclusion(s): The magnitude of the ovarian damage after laparoscopic endometrioma excision might be related to the size of cyst; the damage to ovaries is more severe when an endometrioma ≥4 cm is excised. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Broussonetia papyrifera is an economically significant tree with high utilization value, yet its cultivation is often constrained by soil contamination with heavy metals (HMs). Effective scientific cultivation management, which enhances the yield and quality of B. papyrifera, necessitates an understanding of its regulatory mechanisms in response to HM stress. Results: Twelve Metallothionein (MT) genes were identified in B. papyrifera. Their open reading frames ranged from 186 to 372 bp, encoding proteins of 61 to 123 amino acids with molecular weights between 15,473.77 and 29,546.96 Da, and theoretical isoelectric points from 5.24 to 5.32. Phylogenetic analysis classified these BpMTs into three subclasses: MT1, MT2, and MT3, with MT2 containing seven members and MT3 only one. The expression of most BpMT genes was inducible by Cd, Mn, Cu, Zn, and abscisic acid (ABA) treatments, particularly BpMT2e, BpMT2d, BpMT2c, and BpMT1c, which showed significant responses and warrant further study. Yeast cells expressing these BpMT genes exhibited enhanced tolerance to Cd, Mn, Cu, and Zn stresses compared to control cells. Yeasts harboring BpMT1c, BpMT2e, and BpMT2d demonstrated higher accumulation of Cd, Cu, Mn, and Zn, suggesting a chelation and binding capacity of BpMTs towards HMs. Site-directed mutagenesis of cysteine (Cys) residues indicated that mutations in the C domain of type 1 BpMT led to increased sensitivity to HMs and reduced HM accumulation in yeast cells; While in type 2 BpMTs, the contribution of N and C domain to HMs' chelation possibly corelated to the quantity of Cys residues. Conclusion: The BpMT genes are crucial in responding to diverse HM stresses and are involved in ABA signaling. The Cys-rich domains of BpMTs are pivotal for HM tolerance and chelation. This study offers new insights into the structure-function relationships and metal-binding capabilities of type-1 and − 2 plant MTs, enhancing our understanding of their roles in plant adaptation to HM stresses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Our study examined antennal structures in nine species of Vespinae wasps, providing insights into their morphology and sensilla diversity. Using SEM, we identified 19 sensilla types, including unique variations in pit organs and sensilla trichodea. The males of seven species exhibited tyloids. This research enhances our understanding of sensory systems in Hymenoptera, aiding taxonomy and evolutionary studies. This study investigates the distribution, morphology, and potential functions of antennal sensilla in various wasp species, including Dolichovespula flora, D. intermedia, Vespula structor, Vl. vulgaris, Provespa barthelemyi, Vespa bicolor, V. ducalis, V. mocsaryana, and V. velutina var. nigothorax. The study thoroughly analyzes the antennal structure of these species, representing all four genera of the yellow-jacket and hornet subfamily Vespinae. Using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the study identifies a total of nineteen types of sensilla, including sensilla trichodea (ST-I, ST-II, ST-III), sensilla campaniform (SCF-I, SCF-II, SCF-III), pit organs (SCO-I, SCO-II, and SA), sensilla placodea (SP-I, SP-II), sensilla chaetica (SCH-I, SCH-II), sensilla basiconica (SB-I, SB-II), sensilla agmon (SAG-I, SAG-II), and sensilla coelocapitular (SCA). Additionally, tyloids were observed in the males of seven species, except for Vl. structor and Vl. vulgaris. The study provides insights into these sensilla types' morphology, abundance, and distribution. It discusses the variations in sensilla morphology among different species and the presence of gender-specific sensilla. This study provides new data about the morphology and distribution patterns of sensilla and tyloid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: This research aims to explore the phototactic behavior and key opsin genes associated with Vespinae. The results showed that the two species, Vespula germanica and Vespa analis, exhibited varying photophilic rates under different wavelengths of light, suggesting that light wavelength significantly affects their phototactic behavior. Additionally, the opsin genes of the most aggressive hornet, Vespa basalis, have been sequenced. There are only two opsin genes, one for UV light and the other for blue light, and Vespa basalis lacks long-wavelength visual proteins. However, they exhibit peak phototaxis for long-wavelength light and instead have the lowest phototropism for UV light. This suggests that the visual protein genes have a complex regulatory mechanism for phototactic behavior in Vespinae. Our findings provide a sound theoretical basis for further investigation of visual expression patterns and phototactic mechanisms in Vespinae. The phototactic behavior of insects is commonly used to manage pest populations in practical production. However, this elusive behavior is not yet fully understood. Investigating whether the opsin genes play a crucial role in phototaxis is an intriguing topic. Vespinae (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) are a common group of social wasps that are closely associated with human activities. Efficiently controlling wasp populations while maintaining ecological balance is a pressing global challenge that still has to be resolved. This research aims to explore the phototactic behavior and key opsin genes associated with Vespinae. We found significant differences in the photophilic rates of Vespula germanica and Vespa analis under 14 different light conditions, indicating that their phototactic behavior is rhythmic. The results also showed that the two species exhibited varying photophilic rates under different wavelengths of light, suggesting that light wavelength significantly affects their phototactic behavior. Additionally, the opsin genes of the most aggressive hornet, Vespa basalis, have been sequenced. There are only two opsin genes, one for UV light and the other for blue light, and Vespa basalis lacks long-wavelength visual proteins. However, they exhibit peak phototaxis for long-wavelength light and instead have the lowest phototaxis for UV light. This suggests that the visual protein genes have a complex regulatory mechanism for phototactic behavior in Vespinae. Additionally, visual protein sequences have a high degree of homology among Hymenoptera. Despite the hypotheses put forward by some scholars regarding phototaxis, a clear and complete explanation of insect phototaxis is still lacking to date. Our findings provide a strong theoretical basis for further investigation of visual expression patterns and phototactic mechanisms in Vespinae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Shikonin (SK), a naphthoquinone with anti-tumor effects, has been found to decrease production of tumor-associated exosomes (exo). This study aims to verify the treatment effect of SK on ovarian cancer (OC) cells, especially on the production of exo and their subsequent effect on macrophage polarization. Methods: OC cells SKOV3 and A2780 were treated with SK. The exo were isolated from OC cells with or without SK treatment, termed OC exo and SK OC exo, respectively. These exo were used to treat PMA-induced THP-1 cells (M0 macrophages). M2 polarization of macrophages was determined by measuring the M2 specific cell surface markers CD163 and CD206 as well as the secretion of M2 cytokine IL-10. The functions of galectin 3 (LGALS3/GAL3) and β-catenin in macrophage polarization were determined by gain- or loss-of-function assays. CB-17 SCID mice were subcutaneously injected with SKOV3 cells to generate xenograft tumors, followed by OC exo or SK OC exo treatment for in vivo experiments. Results: SK suppressed viability, migration and invasion, and apoptosis resistance of OC cells in vitro. Compared to OC exo, SK OC exo reduced the M2 polarization of macrophages. Regarding the mechanism, SK reduced exo production in cancer cells, and it decreased the protein level of GAL3 in exo and recipient macrophages, leading to decreased β-catenin activation. M2 polarization of macrophages was restored by LGALS3 overexpression but decreased again by the β-catenin inhibitor FH535. Compared to OC exo, the SK OC exo treatment reduced the xenograft tumor growth in mice, and it decreased the M2 macrophage infiltration within tumor tissues. Conclusion: This study suggests that SK reduces M2 macrophage population in OC by repressing exo production and blocking exosomal GAL3-mediated β-catenin activation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land surface phenology (LSP) products that are derived from different data sources have different definitions and biophysical meanings. Discrepancies among these products and their linkages with carbon fluxes across plant functional types and climatic regions remain somewhat unclear. In this study, to differentiate LSP related to gross primary production (GPP) from LSP related to remote sensing data, we defined the former as vegetation photosynthetic phenology (VPP), including the starting and ending days of GPP (SOG and EOG, respectively). Specifically, we estimated VPP based on a combination of observed VPP from 145 flux-measured GPP sites together with the vegetation index and temperature data from MODIS products using multiple linear regression models. We then compared VPP estimates with MODIS LSP on a global scale. Our results show that the VPP provided better estimates of SOG and EOG than MODIS LSP, with a root mean square error (RMSE) for SOG of 12.7 days and a RMSE for EOG of 10.5 days. The RMSE was approximately three weeks for both SOG and EOG estimates of the non-forest type. Discrepancies between VPP and LSP estimates varied across plant functional types (PFTs) and climatic regions. A high correlation was observed between VPP and LSP estimates for deciduous forest. For most PFTs, using VPP estimates rather than LSP improved the estimation of GPP. This study presents a useful method for modeling global VPP, investigates in detail the discrepancies between VPP and LSP, and provides a more effective global vegetation phenology product for carbon cycle modeling than the existing ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Symmetry plays an important role in solving practical problems of applied science, especially in algorithm innovation. In this paper, we propose what we call the self-adaptive inertial-like proximal point algorithms for solving the split common null point problem, which use a new inertial structure to avoid the traditional convergence condition in general inertial methods and avoid computing the norm of the difference between x n and x n − 1 before choosing the inertial parameter. In addition, the selection of the step-sizes in the inertial-like proximal point algorithms does not need prior knowledge of operator norms. Numerical experiments are presented to illustrate the performance of the algorithms. The proposed algorithms provide enlightenment for the further development of applied science in order to dig deep into symmetry under the background of technological innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antisocial personality disorder (ASPD) is closely connected to criminal behavior. A better understanding of functional connectivity in the brains of ASPD patients will help to explain abnormal behavioral syndromes and to perform objective diagnoses of ASPD. In this study we designed an exploratory data-driven classifier based on machine learning to investigate changes in functional connectivity in the brains of patients with ASPD using resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data in 32 subjects with ASPD and 35 controls. The results showed that the classifier achieved satisfactory performance (86.57% accuracy, 77.14% sensitivity and 96.88% specificity) and could extract stabile information regarding functional connectivity that could be used to discriminate ASPD individuals from normal controls. More importantly, we found that the greatest change in the ASPD subjects was uncoupling between the default mode network and the attention network. Moreover, the precuneus, superior parietal gyrus and cerebellum exhibited high discriminative power in classification. A voxel-based morphometry analysis was performed and showed that the gray matter volumes in the parietal lobule and white matter volumes in the precuneus were abnormal in ASPD compared to controls. To our knowledge, this study was the first to use resting-state fMRI to identify abnormal functional connectivity in ASPD patients. These results not only demonstrated good performance of the proposed classifier, which can be used to improve the diagnosis of ASPD, but also elucidate the pathological mechanism of ASPD from a resting-state functional integration viewpoint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

STUDY QUESTION Do assisted reproduction techniques (ARTs) affect DNA methylation of imprinted genes and does aberrant methylation of imprinted genes account for the incidence of human spontaneous abortion (SA)? SUMMARY ANSWER Our results show that imprinting errors of imprinted genes may contribute to human SA, and the occurrence of aberrant methylation of imprinted genes in ART pregnancies was comparable with that in natural pregnancies. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Animal data and human studies demonstrated that in vitro culture of embryos can cause methylation defects in individual genes, which might affect subsequent embryonic development and contribute to SA. However, our previous studies showed an abnormal methylation pattern of PEG1 in human aborted chrionic villus samples (CVS) but an increased occurrence of aberrant methylation in CVS from ART-derived pregnancies was not observed. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE AND DURATION CVS were collected from women who underwent abortion procedures in the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics in Nanfang Hospital from May 2008 to July 2011. Muscle samples (MS) were obtained from aborted fetuses and stillbirths. The samples were divided into four experimental groups: (A) SA/stillbirth after ART (n= 75), (B) multi-fetal reduction after ART (n=73), (C) SA/stillbirth of natural pregnancies (n=90) and (D) induced abortion (IA) of natural pregnancies (n=82). PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING AND METHODS The mean±SD age of patients was 31.0±4.1 (range: 18–45 years). The DNA methylation patterns of one paternally methylated (H19) and two maternally methylated (LIT1 and SNRPN) genes were analyzed in CVS and MS using pyrosequencing and bisulfite sequencing PCR. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE Clear hypo-methylation (<10%) or hyper-methylation (>90%) were not detected in LIT1 and SNRPN but two regions of hyper-methylation (91.7 and 91.4%) were observed in H19. The mean percentage of methylation in the SA samples (groups A and C) was higher than that in the IA samples (groups B and D; P<0.05). Box plot analyses showed that in the 165 SA samples, methylation values for 40/495 (8.1%) differentially methylated regions of the three genes represented outliers. The incidence of outlier was highest for LIT1 (13.3%, 22/165). In contrast, no outliers were found in the 155 IA samples. The receiver operating characteristic curve analyses showed a positive correlation between percentage methylation of all three genes and incidence of SA (P<0.05). In addition, the conception modes (natural versus ART) and the fertilization methods used in ART (IVF and ICSI) did not affect the methylation patterns of the imprinted genes. No increase in the rate of abnormal methylation was found in the ART samples. LIMITATIONS AND REASONS FOR CAUTION The studied loci represent only a small fraction of developmentally important genes. Further studies are needed to evaluate changes in the expression and the methylation status of other genes that may lead to SA. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS The findings provide new insights into the etiology of human SA. The possibility that the abnormal methylation seen is a consequence of the defect that led to the SA cannot be excluded. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) None of the authors has any competing interest. This study was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (81170574), The National Key Basic Research Development Plan of China (973 Program) (2007CB948104), Comprehensive strategic sciences cooperation projects of Guangdong Province and Chinese Academy (04020416) and Guangzhou Science and Technology Program key projects (11C22120737). [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), a class of widely used flame retardants, are extensively diffused in the environment. Of particular concern are the reported highly sensitivity of PBDEs in children or developmental animals, however, almost no information is available on their potential effects on adults and the mechanisms are still unknown. In the present study, we investigated the neurotoxic effects of sub-chronic PBDE-47 exposure on adult male Sprague-Dawley rats. Thus, PBDE-47, 0.1, 0.5 and 1 mg/kg per day was administered to rats by gavage for 30 days. The learning and memory function was tested by Morris water maze. Further, in order to explore the potential mechanism, the expression of NMDA-receptors was evaluated by using both immunohistochemistry (IHC) and RT-PCR. Our results showed that sub-chronic exposure to PBDE-47 produced learning and memory deficits in male adult rats. Also, significant decrease in the CA1, CA3 and dentate gyrus areas of hippocampus affected by all three doses of PBDE-47 on the expression of NR1, NR2B and Glu were found by IHC. In addition, the evaluation of expression of the NR1, NR2B and NR2C showed statistically significant decrease in mRNA expression in rats exposed to PBDE-47. These findings showed that sub-chronic exposure to PBDE-47 could also induce behavioral alterations and the neurotoxic effects might due to the down-regulation expression of NMDA receptors. Our data indicated that the possibility of exposure of adults to PBDE-47 warranted further studies to characterize their potential neurotoxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clostridium beijerinckii mutant strain IB4, which has a high level of inhibitor tolerance, was screened by low-energy ion implantation and used for butanol fermentation from a non-detoxified hemicellulosic hydrolysate of corn fiber treated with dilute sulfuric acid (SAHHC). Evaluation of toxicity showed C. beijerinckii IB4 had a higher level of tolerance than parent strain C. beijerinckii NCIMB 8052 for five out of six phenolic compounds tested (the exception was vanillin). Using glucose as carbon source, C. beijerinckii IB4 produced 9.1 g l of butanol with an acetone/butanol/ethanol (ABE) yield of 0.41 g g. When non-detoxified SAHHC was used as carbon source, C. beijerinckii NCIMB 8052 grew well but ABE production was inhibited. By contrast, C. beijerinckii IB4 produced 9.5 g l of ABE with a yield of 0.34 g g, including 2.2 g l acetone, 6.8 g l butanol, and 0.5 g l ethanol. The remarkable fermentation and inhibitor tolerance of C. beijerinckii IB4 appears promising for ABE production from lignocellulosic materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) can serve as a beneficial signaling agent or toxin depending on its concentration and location within a cell or organism. Methods to measure the localized accumulation of H2O2 in living specimens remain limited. Motivated to meet this need, we have developed a nuclear-localized fluorescent probe for H2O2, Nuclear Peroxy Emerald 1 (NucPE1), to selectively interrogate ROS fluxes within this sensitive organelle. NucPE1 selectively accumulates in the nuclei of a variety of mammalian cell lines as well as in whole model organisms like Caenorhabditis elegans, where it can respond to subcellular changes in H2O2 fluxes. Moreover, in vivo NucPE1 imaging reveals a reduction in nuclear H2O2 levels in worms overexpressing sir-2.1 compared with wild-type congeners, supporting a link between this longevity-promoting sirtuin protein and enhanced regulation of nuclear ROS pools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE--Previous studies have demonstrated that mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) develop insulin resistance with proinflammatory macrophage infiltration into white adipose tissue. Concomitantly, adipocytes undergo programmed cell death with the loss of the adipocyte-specific lipid droplet protein perilipin, and the dead/dying adipocytes are surrounded by macrophages that are organized into crown-like structures. This study investigated whether adipocyte cell death provides the driving signal for macrophage inflammation or if inflammation induces adipocyte cell death. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS--Two knockout mouse models were used: granulocyte/monocyte-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF)-null mice that are protected against HFD-induced adipose tissue inflammation and cyclophilin D (CyP-D)-null mice that are protected against adipocyte cell death. Mice were fed for 4-14 weeks with a 60% HFD, and different markers of cell death and inflammation were analyzed. RESULTS--HFD induced a normal extent of adipocyte cell death in GM-CSF-null mice, despite a marked reduction in adipose tissue inflammation. Similarly, depletion of macrophages by clodronate treatment prevented HFD-induced adipose tissue inflammation without any affect on adipocyte cell death. However, CyP-D deficiency strongly protected adipocytes from HFD-induced cell death, without affecting adipose tissue inflammation. CONCLUSIONS--These data demonstrate that HFD-induced adipocyte cell death is an intrinsic cellular response that is CyP-D dependent but is independent of macrophage infiltration/activation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elemental and Li-Sr-Nd isotopic data of minerals in spinel peridotites hosted by Cenozoic basalts allow us to refine the existing models for Li isotopic fractionation in mantle peridotites and constrain the melt/fluid-peridotite interaction in the lithospheric mantle beneath the North China Craton. Highly elevated Li concentrations in cpx (up to 24 ppm) relative to coexisting opx and olivine (<4 ppm) indicate that the peridotites experienced metasomatism by mafic silicate melts and/or fluids. The mineral δLi vary greatly, with olivine (+0.7 to +5.4‰) being isotopically heavier than coexisting opx (−4.4 to −25.9‰) and cpx (−3.3 to −21.4‰) in most samples. The δLi in pyroxenes are considerably lower than the normal mantle values and show negative correlation with their Li abundances, likely due to recent Li ingress attended by diffusive fractionation of Li isotopes. Two exceptional samples have olivine δLi of −3.0 and −7.9‰, indicating the existence of low δLi domains in the mantle, which could be transient and generated by meter-scale diffusion of Li during melt/fluid-peridotite interaction. The Nd/Nd (0.5123-0.5139) and Sr/Sr (0.7018-0.7062) in the pyroxenes also show a large variation, in which the cpx are apparently lower in Sr/Sr and slightly higher in Nd/Nd than coexisting opx, implying an intermineral Sr-Nd isotopic disequilibrium. This is observed more apparently in peridotites having low Sr/Sr and high Nd/Nd ratios than in those with high Sr/Sr and low Nd/Nd, suggesting that a relatively recent interaction existed between an ancient metasomatized lithospheric mantle and asthenospheric melt, which transformed the refractory peridotites with highly radiogenic Sr and unradiogenic Nd isotopic compositions to the fertile lherzolites with unradiogenic Sr and radiogenic Nd isotopic compositions. Therefore, we argue that the lithospheric mantle represented by the peridotites has been heterogeneously refertilized by multistage melt/fluid-peridotite interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spatial learning and memory (LM) is a property of central importance in the nervous system, yet many of the molecular mechanisms for benzo(a)pyrene[B(a)P]-induced LM deficits remain enshrouded in mystery. In this study, influence of exposure to B(a)P on LM deficits in adult male Sprague- Dawley rats was evaluated by Morris water maze. Then morphological changes in the ultramicrostructure of hippocampal neurons were observed by transmission electron microscopy. Furthermore, to better understand the molecular changes that occur in B(a)P induced LM deficits, antibody-based protein microarrays was used to analyze protein expression changes in rats submitted to sub-chronic oral gavage of B(a)P (2 mg/kg for 90 days). Results suggested that rats in the B(a)P-treated groups have significantly impaired Morris water maze performance when compared to controls. Meanwhile, the B(a)P-induced neuronal damage was also found in the hippocampus under transmission electron microscopy. Our results demonstrate that LM deficits associated protein expression signatures could be identified from tissue proteomes, as well as potential biomarkers such as retinoic acid receptor b (RARb), synaptotagmin iosfomrs 1 (Syt1) and Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), previously not found. This study, therefore, identifies, for the first time, multiple novel proteins that are dysregulated by B(a)P, which both enhance our understanding of B(a)P induced LM deficits and represent targets of novel therapeutics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a dissipative particle dynamics approach, we study the conformations and interactions of a cylindrical polyelectrolyte brush (CPB) with added salt. The effects of counterion valency on the conformational behaviors of the CPB are analyzed in detail by considering various parameters like the distribution of bond lengths, the mean distance between two grafting points, the order parameter of side chains, etc. The lyotropic behavior of the CPB is also investigated through examining the backbone persistence. Our simulations demonstrate that the presence of the multivalent counterions can induce the collapse of the CPB, leading to various conformations. We identify a horseshoe to helical to coil-like conformation transition with increasing counterion valency. An important factor for the collapse of the CPB is the fact that the strong condensation of counterions induced by the higher electrostatic correlations decreases the osmotic pressure inside the brush. It is found that the ratio of the backbone persistence to the diameter of the CPB, lp/d, can only be affected to a slight extent by changing the counterion valency and the side chain length. These results may provide a valuable guideline that can be used to tailor the microstructure of the systems and to yield desired macroscopic behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While human listeners can, to some extent, understand the information conveyed by the speech signal when it is mixed with noise, traditional objective intelligibility measures usually fail to operate without a priori knowledge of the clean speech signal. This hence limits the usability of those measures in situations where the clean speech signal is inaccessible. In this paper a glimpse-based method is extended to make speech intelligibility predictions directly from speech-plus-noise mixtures. Using a neural network, the proposed method estimates the time-frequency regions with a local speech-to-noise ratio above a given threshold – known as glimpses – from the mixture signal, instead of separately comparing the speech signal against the noise signal. The number and locations of the glimpses can then be used to produce an intelligibility score. In Experiment I where listener intelligibilities were measured in one stationary and nine fluctuating noise maskers, the predictions produced by the proposed method were highly correlated with the subjective data, with correlation coefficients above 0.90. In Experiment II, with the same neural network trained on normal natural speech as in Experiment I, the proposed method was used to predict the intelligibility of speech signals modified by intelligibility-enhancement algorithms and synthetic speech. The method can still maintain its predictive power by demonstrating a similar performance to its intrusive counterpart with an overall correlation coefficient of 0.81, which is superior to many modern traditional measures evaluated under the same conditions. Therefore, the proposed method can be used to estimate speech intelligibility in place of traditional measures in conditions where their capacity falls short. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface-directed phase separation via a two-step quench process in asymmetry polymer mixtures is numerically investigated by coupling the Flory−Huggins−de Gennes equation with the Cahn−Hilliard−Cook equation. Two distinct situations, i.e., the minority component is preferred by the surface and the majority component is preferred by the surface, are discussed, respectively. The morphology and evolution dynamics of the phase structure, especially the secondary domain structure, are analyzed. The wetting layer formation mechanisms during the two-step quench process are examined. The simulated results demonstrate that different secondary domain structures in these two situations can be induced by the second quench with deeper quench depth, which can be used to tailor phase morphology. It is also found that, in the second quench process, the evolution of the wetting layer thickness can cross over to a faster growth when the preferential component is the minority component. In this situation, the formation mechanism of the wetting layer will change and is eventually determined by the second quench depth. However, when the preferential component is the majority component, a deeper second quench depth corresponds to a slower growth of the wetting layer thickness. The chemical potential is calculated to explain the difference regarding the growth dynamics of the wetting layer thickness between these both situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: There has been a tremendous amount of research in machine tool servomechanism control, contour control, and machining force control; however, to date these technologies have not been tightly integrated. This paper develops a hierarchical optimal control methodology for the simultaneous regulation of servomechanism positions, contour error, and machining forces. The contour error and machining force process reside in the top level of the hierarchy where the goals are to (1) drive the contour error to zero to maximize quality and (2) maintain a constant cutting force to maximize productivity. These goals are systematically propagated to the bottom level, via aggregation relationships between the top and bottom-level states, and combined with the bottom-level goals of tracking reference servomechanism positions. A single controller is designed at the bottom level, where the physical control signals reside, that simultaneously meets both the top and bottom-level goals. The hierarchical optimal control methodology is extended to account for variations in force process model parameters and process parameters. Simulations are conducted for four machining operations that validate the developed methodology. The results illustrate the controller can simultaneously achieve both the top and bottom-level goals. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Natural tendons are composed of ordered parallel arrangement of bundles of type I collagen fibers. It is responsible for transmitting the forces generated by the bones and muscles to move the body. Tendon injuries are common sports injuries, accounting for 50% of sports injuries. In adulthood, factors such as few tendon tissue cells and poor blood supply make it difficult to heal on their own after injury. Therefore, restoring the structure and function of native tendon tissue is still an unsolved problem. The purpose of this study is to study the use of biomimetic nano-parallel material composite proteins to induce the directional differentiation of stem cells to tendon lineages to promote muscle regeneration and repair. This study proposes to prepare composite protein nanomaterials by simulating the parallel arrangement of tendon collagen fibers. This can facilitate the directed differentiation of fibroblasts into tendon lineages. It can use the BP algorithm in the neural network algorithm to simulate the parallel arrangement of tendon collagen fibers, which is more efficient than other schemes. The experimental results in this study show that the rat cells are repaired after about 6 weeks. Tendon repair enters a remodeling phase with reduced cell numbers, collagen, and mucopolysaccharide synthesis. During this period, tendon repair gradually changes from the cellular level to the tissue level, and tenocyte metabolism remains high. Tenocytes and collagen fibers are aligned in the direction of stress. A higher proportion of collagen 1 synthesis occurs during this period. Collagen 1 accounts for 65% to 80% of the dry weight of the tendon, which plays the most important role in the mechanical properties of the tendon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The material property is distributed non-symmetrically through the cross-section. • The FGM arch shows different stability performance from the homogeneous arch. • The temperature rise has an evident effect on the mechanical behavior of the FGM arch. • Numerical verification agrees well with the derived analytical predictions. • Parametric studies are conducted comprehensively. Several recent applications, i.e. space-structures and fusion reactors, involve the adoption of functionally graded materials (FGM) in their basic elements, such as the thin-walled cylinders, arches, beams, plates, and so on. These elements may be under a temperature variational environment due to the season's change, day and night temperature variation, or even fire disasters. The load capacity and/or buckling behavior of these thin-walled structures may be different from the ones only under mechanical loadings. Based on this fact, this study refers to the in-plane asymmetric buckling of the heated circular FGM arches under uniform pressure fields. The material of the FGM arch is thermo-elastic. A thermal radially-outward deflection occurs before the pressure field is introduced. This deflection may result in different buckling mechanisms from the arch under pure pressure loading. Analytical predictions on the buckling pressure are derived by combining the thin-walled shell schemes, admissible displacement functions, and the energy theory. Subsequently, a finite element simulation is introduced to trace the kinematic movement of the crown point. The pressure-displacement plots are obtained, from which, the buckling pressure is reachable. It is found the thermal field affects considerably the static stability of the FGM arch. Finally, a discussion refers mainly to the influence of material inhomogeneity on the buckling pressure, especially focusing on the influence of different power-law indexes on the internal forces, stresses, and strains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Jurkevich method is a useful method to explore periodicity in the unevenly sampled observational data. In this work, we adopted the method to the light curve of Cyg X-1 from 1996 to 2012, and found that there is an interesting period of 370 days, which appears in both low/hard and high/soft states. That period may be correlated with black hole physics and accretion disk geometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To characterize the phenotype spectrum, diagnosis, and response to growth‐promoting therapy in patients with ACAN variants causing familial short stature. Methods: Three families with ACAN variants causing short stature were reported. Similar cases in the literature were summarized, and the genotype and phenotype were analyzed. Results: Three novel heterozygous variants, c.757+1G>A, (splicing), c.6229delG, p.(Asp2078Tfs*1), and c.6679C>T, p.(Gln2227*) in the ACAN gene were identified. A total of 314 individuals with heterozygous variants from 105 families and 8 individuals with homozygous variants from 4 families were confirmed to have ACAN variants from literature and our 3 cases. Including our 3 cases, the variants reported comprised 33 frameshift, 39 missense, 23 nonsense, 5 splicing, 4 deletion, and 1 translocation variants. Variation points are scattered throughout the gene, while exons 12, 15, and 10 were most common (25/105, 11/105, and 10/105, respectively). Some identical variants existing in different families could be hot variants, c.532A>T, p.(Asn178Tyr), c.1411C>T, p.(Gln471*), c.1608C>A, p.(Tyr536*), c.2026+1G>A, (splicing), and c.7276G>T, p.(Glu2426*). Short stature, early‐onset osteoarthritis, brachydactyly, midfacial hypoplasia, and early growth cessation were the common phenotypic features. The 48 children who received rhGH (and GnRHa) treatment had a significant height improvement compared with before (−2.18 ± 1.06 SD vs. −2.69 ± 0.95 SD, p < 0.001). The heights of children who received rhGH (and GnRHa) treatment were significantly improved compared with those of untreated adults (−2.20 ± 1.10 SD vs. −3.24 ± 1.14 SD, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Our study achieves a new understanding of the phenotypic spectrum, diagnosis, and management of individuals with ACAN variants. No clear genotype–phenotype relationship of patients with ACAN variants was found. Gene sequencing is necessary to diagnose ACAN variants that cause short stature. In general, appropriate rhGH and/or GnRHa therapy can improve the adult height of affected pediatric patients caused by ACAN variants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: We conducted a study on flightin, a vital protein found in insect flight muscles, with a specific focus on the social wasp Vespa basalis, which is a dangerous hornet species. Using sequence analysis techniques, we successfully obtained an 1189 bp cDNA sequence encoding the flightin protein consisting of 150 amino acids. According to our analysis, the molecular weight and isoelectric point of the amino acid sequence are 18.05 kDa and 5.84, respectively. The protein lacks a transmembrane topology structure, and we identified four patterns of functional sites. Conducting phylogenetic analysis on 38 species, including 8 Vespidae species, revealed a close evolutionary relationship between Vespa basalis and Vespa mandarinia. These findings warrant further investigation, especially considering the contrasting information obtained from the analysis of mitochondrial sequences. Flight is a complex physiological process requiring precise coordination of muscular contraction. A key protein in insect flight is flightin, which plays an integral role in the flight muscles. This research sought to evaluate the flight competence of the social wasp V. basalis by characterizing the molecular components involved. Our study focused on Vespa basalis, one of the most dangerous hornet species, utilizing PCR to obtain a partial cDNA sequence of the flightin protein. We then employed phylogenetic and sequence analysis to gain insights into this protein in flight-related adaptations. The cDNA has an 1189-base pair sequence including an open reading frame (453 bp) encoding 150 amino acids. Analyzing the deduced amino acid sequence using an online tool revealed a molecular weight of 18.05 kDa, an isoelectric point of 5.84, four functional site patterns, and no transmembrane topology. We constructed a phylogenetic tree of flightin based on 38 species. Our analysis indicated that V. basalis is most closely related to V. mandarinia; this alignment is consistent with their similar aggressive behavior, but their evolutionary relationship, based on mitochondrial sequences, presents a contrast. These initial findings on the flightin gene in V. basalis lay the groundwork for future functional studies to elucidate its specific role in flight adaptations and explore its potential as a target for pest management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ship detection and recognition in Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images are crucial for maritime surveillance and traffic management. Limited availability of high-quality datasets hinders in-depth exploration of ship features in complex SAR images. While most existing SAR ship research is primarily based on Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), and although deep learning advances SAR image interpretation, it often prioritizes recognition over computational efficiency and underutilizes SAR image prior information. Therefore, this paper proposes YOLOv5s-based ship detection in SAR images. Firstly, for comprehensive detection enhancement, we employ the lightweight YOLOv5s model as the baseline. Secondly, we introduce a sub-net into YOLOv5s, learning traditional features to augment ship feature representation of Constant False Alarm Rate (CFAR). Additionally, we attempt to incorporate frequency-domain information into the channel attention mechanism to further improve detection. Extensive experiments on the Ship Recognition and Detection Dataset (SRSDDv1.0) in complex SAR scenarios confirm our method's 68.04% detection accuracy and 60.25% recall, with a compact 18.51 M model size. Our network surpasses peers in mAP, F1 score, model size, and inference speed, displaying robustness across diverse complex scenes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: 2,4,6,8,10, 12-hexanitro-2,4,6,8,10, 12-hexazepane (CL-20) is a new energetic material with high performance and low sensitivity. In-depth study of the thermal decomposition mechanism of CL-20 is a necessary condition to improve its performance, ensure its safety, and optimize its application. On the basis of a large number of empirical force fields used in molecular dynamics simulation in the past, the machine learning augmented first-principles molecular dynamics method was used for the first time to simulate the thermal decomposition reaction of CL-20 at 2200 K, 2500 K, 2800 K, and 3000 K isothermal temperature. The main stable resulting compounds are N2, CO2, CO, H2O, andH2, where CO2 and H2O continue to decompose at higher temperatures. The initial decomposition pathways are denitration by N–N fracture, ring-opening by C–N bond fracture, and redox reaction involving NO2 and CL-20. After ring opening, two main compounds, fused tricyclic pyrazine and azadicyclic, were formed, which were decomposed continuously to form monocyclic pyrazine and pyrazole ring structures. The most common fragments formed during decomposition are those containing two, three, four, and six carbons. The formation rule and quantity of main small molecule intermediates and resulting stable products under different simulated temperatures were analyzed. Methods: Based on ab initio Bayesian active learning algorithm, efficient and accurate prediction of CL-20 is made using the dynamic machine learning function of Vienna Ab-Initio Simulation Package (VASP), which constructs the energy potential surface by learning a large number of data based on AIMD calculations. The result is a machine learning force field (MLFF). Then the molecular dynamics of CL-20 was simulated using the trained MLFF model. PAW pseudopotentials and generalized gradient approximation (GGA), namely, Perdew-Burke-Ernzerhof (PBE) functional, are used in the calculation. The plane wave truncation energy (ENCUT) is set to 550 eV, and using the Gaussian broadening, the thermal broadening size of the single-electron orbital is 0.05 eV. A van der Waals revision of the system with Grimme Version 3. The energy convergence accuracy (EDIFF) of electron self-consistent iteration is set to 1E-5 eV and 1E-6 eV, respectively. The two-step structure optimization is carried out using 1′1′1 k point grid and conjugate gradient method. The ENCUT was changed to 500 eV and EDIFF to 1E-5 eV, and NVT integration (ISIF = 2) of Langevin thermostat was used for machine learning force field training and AIMD simulation of the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]