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The anticancer properties of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) are documented in the treatment of several types of cancer; however, there is no relevant evidence for its efficacy in the treatment of renal cell carcinoma (RCC). In the present study, the therapeutic effects of EGCG in vitro were investigated, with particular attention to the metastatic behavior of human RCC cells. MTT assays and flow cytometry were performed to detect the effects of EGCG on the proliferation and apoptosis of RCC cells. The migration and invasion abilities of RCC cells following treatment with EGCG were assessed by wound-healing and Transwell assays, respectively. Gelatin zymography and western blot analysis were performed to analyze the effect of EGCG on matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and MMP-9 expression levels. The results suggested that EGCG was able to inhibit the proliferation of RCC cells, induce apoptosis and effectively suppressed the migration and invasion of RCC cells. In addition, EGCG treatment resulted in the downregulation of MMP-2 and MMP-9 in RCC cells. We hypothesize that the anticancer effect associated with EGCG may involve the downregulation of MMP-2 and MMP-9. The present results suggest the potential of EGCG as a novel therapeutic agent against RCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urchin-like Cu-W18O49 and flower-like Cu-WO3 structures were successfully synthesized using a hydrothermal process followed by calcination. The synthesized products were characterized using XRD, SEM, and TEM. The results revealed that the as-prepared urchin-like and flower-like samples with monoclinic structures, which were approximately 1 μm and 1-2 μm, respectively, possessed microflower architecture assembled by the nanosheet. In addition, the gas sensing properties of monoclinic-structured Cu-WO3 to acetone were measured using a static state gas sensing test system. The sensor based on the flower-like Cu-WO3 nanostructures, which were calcined at 600°C, exhibited high sensitivity toward 10 ppm acetone at an optimum temperature of 110°C, and the maximum sensitivity reached 40, which was approximately four times higher than that of urchin-like WO3 that was annealed at 300°C. The sensitivity was improved by increasing the acetone concentration. The detection limit was as low as 1 ppm. Using linear fit, the sensor was determined to be sufficiently sensitive to detect acetone in a detection range of 1 to 10 ppm even in the presence of interfering gases, which suggests that this type of sensor has excellent selectivity and has the potential for use in acetone gas sensors in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thermoelectric performance of DNA duplex chains (G:C)–(T:A) n –(G:C) 3 is studied by a tight-binding ladder model. The quantum interferences due to intra- and inter-strand couplings can greatly enhance the thermopower effect in long systems. The peak value of Seebeck coefficient increases exponentially with n while the charge transfer rate remains almost constant for n > 3 as previously measured. Big figure of merit ( ZT ) might be available for large n . This result is applicable to other wire molecules having similar structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC–MS/MS) was developed and validated for the determination and pharmacokinetic investigation of songorine in rat plasma. Sample preparation was accomplished through a simple one-step deproteinization procedure with 0.2 mL of acetonitrile to a 0.1 mL plasma sample. Plasma samples were separated by UPLC on an Acquity UPLC BEH C18 column using a mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile-0.1% formic acid in water with gradient elution. The total run time was 3.0 min and the elution of songorine was at 1.68 min. The detection was performed on a triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometer equipped with positive-ion electrospray ionization (ESI) by multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) of the transitions at m/z 358.3 → 340.3 for songorine and m/z 237.2 → 194.3 for carbamazepine (internal standard). The calibration curve was linear over the range of 1–1000 ng/mL with a lower limit of quantitation (LLOQ) of 1.0 ng/mL. Mean recovery of songorine in plasma was in the range of 75.2–87.5%. The intra- and inter-day precision (RSD) was between 3.1–8.5% and 4.3–9.6% and the intra- and inter-day accuracy (RE) ranged from −4.0 to 8.9% and −9.0 to 6.7%. This method was successfully applied in pharmacokinetic study after intravenous administration of 5.0 mg/kg songorine in rats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of a three-dimensional (3D) culture system of sodium alginate gel on the directional differentiation induction of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) into chondrocytes, as well as the in vitro gene transfection technique. The biological characteristics of the passage and proliferation of rabbit BMSCs were investigated under conditions of in vitro monolayer and 3D culture of sodium alginate gel. Transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 gene recombinant adenoviral cosmid vectors and the recombinant adenoviral vector Ad.TGF-β1 were constructed, and the effect of Ad.TGF-β1 transfection on the differentiation of BMSCs into chondrocytes was investigated. The whole bone marrow rinsing method was used to obtain, separate and purify the rabbit BMSCs, and the in vitro monolayer and 3D culture of sodium alginate gel were thus successfully and stably established. A safe, stable and efficient method of constructing Ad.TGF-β1 TGF-β1 gene recombinant adenoviral vectors was established. Following TGF-β1 transfection, BMSCs were able to continuously secrete significantly increased amounts of specific extracellular matrix components of chondrocytes, such as collagen - and proteoglycans. Furthermore, the effects in the post-gene transfection 3D culture group were found to be enhanced compared with those in the monolayer culture group. In conclusion, the 3D culture system of sodium alginate gel and in vitro gene transfection exhibited significant inductive effects on differentiation, which could be used to promote BMSCs to differentiate into chondrocytes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A vehicle detection algorithm based on the multilevel knowledge base is proposed to overcome the problem of poor robustness as well as the difficulty of identifying weak vehicle targets. The multilevel task-driven method is adopted in the algorithm by building three different classes of knowledge bases to achieve the accuracy recognition of vehicle targets. First, a simple knowledge base is constructed via choosing Haar-like features to detect the vehicle region of interest in the traffic scene image; second, the optimal structure symmetry decision function is obtained by establishing the structure characteristics knowledge base, which is used to determine the region of the potential vehicle; finally, the property feature knowledge base is built to precisely identify vehicle targets via calculating maximum similarity. Then the relevant knowledge base will be continuously updated to achieve the method adaptive adjustment when satisfying the criterion. Experimental results illustrate that the recognition rate is more than 95% in different traffic scenarios, while the recognition rate for weak contrast vehicle targets is in excess of 71% and the false-alarm rate is simultaneously under 5%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chlorine-carbon bonds, interfacial, multifunctional passivation, semitransparent solar cells, SnO 2 Chlorobenzenesulfonic Potassium Salts as the Efficient Multifunctional Passivator for the Buried Interface in Regular Perovskite Solar Cells (Adv. Keywords: chlorine-carbon bonds; interfacial; multifunctional passivation; semitransparent solar cells; SnO 2 EN chlorine-carbon bonds interfacial multifunctional passivation semitransparent solar cells SnO 2 1 1 1 05/30/22 20220526 NES 220526 B Perovskite Solar Cells b In article number 2200417, Juan Zhao, Jie Zhong, and co-workers report the use of an organic potassium salt with chlorine groups (3Cl-BSAK) to modify the buried SnO SB 2 sb /perovskite interface in perovskite solar cells. [Extracted from the article]

Background Patients undergoing allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation require cyclosporin ( CsA) infusion to be administered concurrently with parenteral nutrition ( PN). Aims To evaluate the physicochemical compatibility of parenteral CsA and PN administered via the same lumen of a central venous access device and to quantify and identify any particulate matter. Methods Three PN formulations were tested. Standard PN solution and PN solution with glutamine manufactured by Baxter Healthcare and standard PN solution manufactured by Fresenius Kabi. CsA concentrate for intravenous infusion 250 mg/5 mL (Sandimmun, Novartis Pharmaceuticals) was used. PN solutions were mixed with CsA at different volume ratios to simulate different rates of co-infusion in clinical practice. A real-life simulation was also performed with CsA in glucose 5% co-infused with the PN solution via the same lumen of a central venous access device. The size of colloidal species in the resulting samples was measured using dynamic light scattering. Results The static experiments for all dilution ratios and types of PN with CsA indicated average particle diameters of less than 500 nm. Only one sample indicated a particle larger than 5 µm. The 'real-life' simulation did not detect any particle with diameter greater than 5 µm. This was across all types of PN solutions and for all samples taken at a number of time points up to 24 h. Conclusion Commercially available PN formulations can be administered concurrently with CsA via the same lumen of a central venous access device. For infusions running up to 24 h, there is minimal risk of particle formation with a diameter greater than 5 µm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the scarcity of equipment and the high costs of maintenance, far fewer observations of solar radiation are made than observations of temperature, precipitation and other weather factors. Therefore, it is increasingly important to study several relevant meteorological factors to accurately forecast solar radiation. For this research, monthly average global solar radiation and 12 meteorological parameters from 1998 to 2010 at four sites in the United States were collected. Pearson correlation coefficients and Apriori association rules were successfully used to analyze correlations between the data, which provided a basis for these relative parameters as input variables. Two effective and innovative methods were developed to forecast monthly average global solar radiation by converting a RBF neural network into a multiple linear regression problem, adding a hard-ridge penalty to reduce the number of nodes in the hidden layer, and applying intelligent optimization algorithms, such as the cuckoo search algorithm (CS) and differential evolution (DE), to determine the optimal center and scale parameters. The experimental results show that the proposed models produce much more accurate forecasts than other models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because the railway maintainer's work has the characteristics of real-time and continuity and the personnel evaluation at home and abroad with a single evaluation index, this paper proposes the evaluation method based on multi-factor dynamic effects, the weight of index based on the double inspiriting control line is introduced, and the improved point and value of the positive and negative direction are identified, finally the dynamic improvements of the evaluation values at each time are completed, this method overcomes the shortcomings of invariableness of the evaluation indexes weights, and solving the problem that the qualitative indicators in the evaluation process are difficult to accurately measure and describe. The experimental results show that, the evaluation accuracy of the method for railway maintainer is more than 90%, this method effectively improves the detection accuracy compared to other methods and manages railway maintainer scientifically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amino acid saltshave greater potential for CO2captureat high temperatures than typical amine-based absorbents because oftheir low volatility, high absorption rate, and high oxidative stability.The protonation constant (pKa) of an aminoacid salt is crucial for CO2capture, as it decreases withincreasing absorption temperature. However, published pKavalues of amino acid salts have usually been determinedat ambient temperatures. In this study, the pKavalues of 11 amino acid salts were determined in the temperaturerange of 298–353 K using a potentiometric titration method.The standard-state molar enthalpies (ΔHm0) and entropies(ΔSm0) of the protonation reactions were also determinedby the van’t Hoff equation. It was found that sarcosine canmaintain a higher pKathan the other aminoacids studied at high temperatures. We also found that the CO2solubilities and overall mass-transfer coefficients of 5 m′ sarcosinate (moles of sarcosine per kilogram ofsolution) at 333–353 K are higher than those of 30% MEA at313–353 K. These results show that some possible benefits canbe produced from the use of sarcosine as a fast solvent for CO2absorption at high temperatures. However, the pronotationreaction of sarcosine is the least exothermic among those of all aminoacids studied. This could lead to a high regeneration energy consumptionin the sarcosinate-based CO2capture process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study researched formation mechanism and emission calculation and control of firebrick kiln NOx in Yangquan refractory industry base. On the basis of analyzing different types of firebricks, furnaces and fuels combined with the NOx formation mechanism, it is revealed that the formation types of NOx in the sequence followed by fuel-NOx and thermal-NOx when forming in the producer gas firebrick kiln, and ones followed by prompt-NOx and thermal-NOx in the natural gas firebrick kiln, while only thermal-NOx under oxygen-enriched combustion. The NOx discharge rate and concentration of different fuels, bricks and furnaces were separately measured and calculated by the methods of data monitoring and discharge coefficient, with the latter tested by the former. The results show that: all values of the latter are lower than the former in the producer gas and the deviations are very small (2% -3%), while the latter are all higher than the former in the natural gas and the deviations are very large (>25 %); the above-mentioned NOx formation mechanisms are also verified; it is reliable and convenient to calculate NOx emissions when using the discharge coefficient method, which is adjusted by data monitoring method. The single quality evaluation of NOx is carried out; the monitored NOx emission concentration is 1.05 to 1.66 times as large as the standard in the producer gas and that of the clay brick is smaller than others, while the values of intermittent type kiln are smaller than the continuous furnace; they decrease in the sequence of high alumina brick, silica brick and clay brick when the NOx emission of gas kiln is normal. The feasible control measures were proposed, which would lay the foundation for total quantity control of NOx in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pre-harvest sprouting (PHS) seriously affects wheat yield and quality of the grain. ABI3 is a key factor in the activation of seed development and repression of germination in Arabidopsis. An ABI3-interacting protein (AIP2) could polyubiquitinate ABI3, impair seed dormancy and promote seed germination in Arabidopsis. In this study, two wheat AIP2 genes, TaAIP2A and TaAIP2B, were isolated. Subcellular localization assay and yeast two-hybrid analysis revealed that TaAIP2A and TaAIP2B may function through interaction with wheat Viviporous-1 (TaVp1). The transcripts TaAIP2A and TaAIP2B were more abundant in wheat PHS susceptible cultivars than that of resistant ones, and decreased gradually following seed development. Expression of TaAIP2A and TaAIP2B in Arabidopsis aip2-1 mutant lines resulted in earlier flowering, promotion of seed germination, and reduced ABA sensitivity, respectively, somehow mimicking the phenotype of the wild type, with TaAIP2B having a stronger role in these aspects. Furthermore, the expression of upstream genes ABI1 and ABI2 were upregulated, whereas that of downstream genes ABI3 and ABI5 were downregulated in both TaAIP2A and TaAIP2B complemented lines upon ABA treatment. These results suggested that wheat AIP2s could negatively regulate the ABA signaling pathway and play important roles in seed germination, and thus wheat PHS resistance finally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spin-dependent electronic structures of aluminum-(Al) doped zigzag silicene nanoribbons (ZSiNRs) are investigated by first-principles calculations. When ZSiNRs are substitutionally doped by a single Al atom on different sites in every three primitive cells, they become half-metallic in some cases, a property that can be used in spintronic devices. More interestingly, spin-down electrons can be transported at the Fermi energy when the Al atom is placed on the sub-edge site. In contrast, spin-up electrons can be transported at the Fermi energy when the ZSiNRs are doped on sites near their centre. The magnetic moment on the edge is considerably suppressed if the Al atom is doped on edge or near-edge sites. Similar results are obtained for a phosphorus-(P) and boron-(B) doped ZSiNR. When two or more Si atoms are replaced by Al atoms, in general the half-metallic behaviour is replaced by a metallic, spin gapless semiconducting or semiconducting one. When a line of six Si atoms, along the ribbon's width, are replaced by Al atoms, the spin resolution of the band structure is suppressed and the system becomes nonmagnetic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to determine the clinical significance of the results of screening of newborn hearing and the incidence of deafness-susceptibility genes. One thousand newborn babies in the Handan Center Hospital (Handan, China) underwent screening of hearing and deafness-susceptibility genes. The first screening test was carried out using otoacoustic emissions (OAEs). Babies with hearing loss who failed to pass the initial screening were scheduled for rescreening at 42 days after birth. Cord blood was used for the screening of deafness-susceptibility genes, namely the GJB2, SLC26A4 and mitochondrial 12S rRNA (MTRNR1) genes. Among the 1,000 neonates that underwent the first hearing screening, 25 exhibited left-sided hearing loss, 21 exhibited right-sided hearing loss and 15 cases had binaural hearing loss. After rescreening 42 days later, only one of the initial 61 cases exhibited hearing loss under OAE testing. The neonatal deafness gene tests showed two cases with 1555A>G mutation and two cases with 1494C>T mutation of the MTRNR1 gene. In the SLC26A4 gene screening, four cases exhibited the heterozygous IVS7-2A>G mutation and one case exhibited heterozygous 1226G>A mutation. In the GJB2 gene screening, two cases exhibited the homozygous 427C>T mutation and 10 exhibited the heterozygous 235delC mutation. The genetic screening revealed 21 newborns with mutations in the three deafness-susceptibility genes. The overall carrier rate was 2.1% (21/1,000). The association of hearing and gene screening may be the promising screening strategy for the diagnosis of hearing loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thephase behavior of dispersions comprising mixed ionic surfactantand phytantriol was precisely controlled by varying the ionic surfactantcontent in the mixed lipid and the ionic strength in the system. Twoimportant trends in the phase transition of the mixed lipid systemswere identified: (1) An increase in the ionic surfactant content increasedthe curvature of the self-assembled system toward the hydrophobicregion, resulting in the phase transition from cubic phase to lamellarphase. (2) An increase in ionic strength decreased repulsion betweenthe headgroups of the ionic surfactant, resulting in a phase transitionfrom lamellar phase to cubic phase. The phase transitions were confirmedusing small-angle X-ray scattering and cryo-TEM and were stronglycorrelated with the visual turbidity of the dispersions. The lipidmixture with anionic surfactant showed high sensitivity to multivalentcations for triggering the phase transition, which may be a potentialstrategy to develop a detection/treatment system for toxic multivalentmetallic cations such as chromium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AdpA serves as the global transcription factor in the A-factor regulatory cascade, controlling the secondary metabolism and morphological differentiation of the filamentous bacterium Streptomyces griseus. AdpA binds to over 500 operator regions with the consensus sequence 5'-TGGCSNGWWY-3' (where S is G or C, W is A or T, Y is T or C, and N is any nucleotide). However, it is still obscure how AdpA can control hundreds of genes. To elucidate the structural basis of this tolerant DNA recognition by AdpA, we focused on the interaction between the DNA-binding domain of AdpA (AdpA-DBD), which consists of two helix-turn-helix motifs, and a target duplex DNA containing the consensus sequence 5'-TGGCGGGTTC-3'. The crystal structure of the AdpA-DBD-DNA complex and the mutant analysis of AdpA-DBD revealed its unique manner of DNA recognition, whereby only two arginine residues directly recognize the consensus sequence, explaining the strict recognition of G and C at positions 2 and 4, respectively, and the tolerant recognition of other positions of the consensus sequence. AdpA-DBD confers tolerant DNA sequence specificity to AdpA, allowing it to control hundreds of genes as a global transcription factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] This study uses Sliding T-test and Sliding F-test to do mutation tests. [•] Tests results recommend to develop a perfect monitoring system for wind farms. [•] Four probability density functions are used to evaluate wind speed and power. [•] Three intelligent optimization algorithms estimate Weibull’s parameters. [•] Three assessment indexes are used to choose the most fitting wind turbine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The viscoelastic damping materials (VDMs) used in the viscoelastic (VE) damping equipment may undergo thermal-oxidative aging during long-time exposure to complicated working environments and exhibit significant property degradation in their lifespan. Therefore, it is imperative to comprehend the mechanical performance of VDMs after aging. In this paper, the molecular chains of VDMs are categorized into elastic chains and free chains, and the effects of variable physical–chemical reactions in the thermal-oxidative aging process on these two kinds of chains are analyzed and then mathematically described based on the theory of chemical kinetics. By introducing the molecular chain statistical model to consider the influence of microstructure change on the macroscopic mechanical behavior of VDMs, a hyperelastic hybrid molecular chain model for thermal-oxidative aging VDMs is addressed in conjunction with the tube constraint model and filler reinforcement theory. Combined with the test data, the accuracy and applicability of the proposed model are comparatively evaluated, and the sensitivity analyses on the mechanical parameters and aging parameters of the proposed model are also conducted. The verified results suggest that the proposed model can reflect the mechanical behavior of aging VDMs during thermal-oxidative conditions with remarked accuracy. The results of the parameters analyses display that the macroscopic mechanical property of VDMs is prominently affected by their macromolecular chain structure, and the physical–chemical reactions occurring in the aging process synthetically play a collaborative influence on the mechanical performance of aging VDMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To reveal the failure mechanism of resonance effect on long-periodic structures, the spectrum characterization of nonlinear and non-stationary long-periodic ground movements are studied. Firstly, the period and energy characterizations about IMFs (intrinsic mode functions) of ground movements are analyzed. Then, an energy-weighted average period is proposed to indicate the long-periodic characterization on different types of ground movements. Lastly, the simplified method on the low-frequency time history for long-periodic ground movements is proposed and verified. The research conclusions show that, various Hilbert amplitude spectra analysis can expose all the inherent information of nonlinear and non-stationary long-periodic ground movement accurately and comprehensively. The proposed periodic parameter that characterizes different earthquake classifications can help to efficiently and conveniently filter out long-period ground movements, and it also can be used as a quantitative indicator to identify long-period ground movements. The suggested simplified method can facilitate in-depth and accurate analysis of the low-frequency components of long-periodic ground movements. Effective and accurate evaluation on the low-frequency components of long-periodic ground movements plays the key role to uncover the nonlinear dynamic behavior of long-periodic structures, and it is of great scientific research significance in the field of earthquake engineering and structural engineering. • The spectrum characterizations of long-periodic ground movement can make up for the deficiencies of linear signals analysis. • The suggested periodic parameter can be used as a quantitative indicator to identify long-period ground movements. • The proposed simplified method can facilitate in-depth and accurate analysis on the long-periodic ground movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • AMPK inhibition markedly decreases neuronal injury and infarct size after cerebral I/R. • AMPK inhibition alleviates neuronal apoptosis after cerebral I/R. • The neuroprotective effects involved in the suppressed expression of cyt c and AIF. • These positive results provided a better understanding of underlying mechanisms of stroke. Stroke is a major public health problem with an imperative need for a more effective and tolerated therapy. Neuroprotective therapy may be an effective therapeutic intervention for stroke. The morbidity and mortality of stroke-induced secondary brain injury is mainly caused by neuronal apoptosis, which can be executed in a caspase-dependent or apoptosis inducing factor (AIF)–dependent manner. As apoptosis is an energy-dependent process with a relative time delay, abnormal energy metabolism could be a significant and fundamental pathophysiological basis of stroke. To our knowledge, convincible evidences that AMPK inhibition exerts neuroprotection in cerebral ischemia injury via anti-apoptosis remain to be investigated. Accordingly, the aims of this study were to investigate the protective effects of AMPK inhibitor BML-275 on cerebral ischemic/reperfusion (I/R) injury and to elucidate the underlying mechanisms. Cerebral ischemia was induced by transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (tMCAO) in male C57BL/6 mice. The therapeutic effects of BML-275 were evaluated by infarct sizes, neurological scores and the proportion of apoptotic neurons after 24 h of reperfusion. The cell apoptosis markers cyt c and AIF were also evaluated. The results showed that intraperitoneally administration of BML-275 alleviate the cerebral infarction, neurological deficit and neuronal apoptosis induced by MCAO. BML-275 simultaneously induces anti-apoptosis and decreases the expression of cyt c and AIF. This study supports the hypothesis that anti-apoptosis is one of potential neuroprotective strategies for the treatment of stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dietary selenium (Se) deficiency causes muscular dystrophy in various species, but the molecular mechanism remains unclear. Our objectives were to investigate: 7) if dietary Se deficiency induced different amounts of oxidative stress, lipic peroxidation, and cell apoptosis in 3 skeletal muscles; and 2) if the distribution and expression of 4 endoplasmic reticulum (ER) resident selenoprotein genes (Sepn1, Selk, Sels, and Selt) were related to oxidative damages in these muscles. Two groups of day-old layer chicks (n = 60/group) were fed a corn-soy basal diet (33 µg Se/kg; produced in the Se-deficient area of Heilongjiang, China) or the diet supplemented with Se (as sodium selenite) at 0.15 mg/kg for 55 d. Dietary Se deficiency resulted in accelerated (P < 0.05) cell apoptosis that was associated with decreased glutathione peroxidase activity and elevated lipid peroxidation in these muscles. All these responses were stronger in the pectoral muscle than in the thigh and wing muscles (P < 0.05). Relative distribution of the 4 ER resident selenoprotein gene mRNA amounts and their responses to dietary Se deficiency were consistent with the resultant oxidative stress and cell apoptosis in the 3 muscles. Expression of Sepn1, Sels. and Selt in these muscles was correlated with (r > 0.72; P< 0.05) that of Sepsecs encoding a key enzyme for biosynthesis of selenocysteine (selenocysteinyl-tRNA synthase). In conclusion, the pectoral muscle demonstrated unique expression patterns of the ER resident selenoprotein genes and GPx activity, along with elevated susceptibility to oxidative cell death, compared with the other skeletal muscles. These features might help explain why it is a primary target of Se deficiency diseases in chicks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate by numerical methods the tidal evolution of the Kepler-10 system, which consists of an inner rocky planet and an outer terrestrial planet, by considering various initial eccentricity pairs that follow conservation of angular momentum of the system. Our results cover the range of all reasonable initial eccentricities with various mass ratios of the two planets for the Kepler-10 system; all initial eccentricity pairs can produce the present observed orbits within certain errors. Additional simulations with alternate values of dissipation factor Q′1 are carried out, where the results may be indicative of the possible range 50 ≤ Q′1 ≤ 500. Moreover, considering the density of the terrestrial planets and the previous models, we provide a possible constraint on the mass of Kepler-10c of 7 M⊕ ≤ m2 ≤ 20 M⊕. Finally, we propose a possible planetary formation scenario for the Kepler-10 system: both planets may form from a distant region in the disc, then the inner planet may experience planet–planet scattering, following as tidal decay and circulation. However, the outer companion may undergo mainly disc migration, judging from our model. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Previous studies have shown that scutellarin inhibits the excessive activation of microglia, reduces neuronal apoptosis, and exerts neuroprotective effects. However, whether scutellarin regulates activated microglia-mediated neuronal apoptosis and its mechanisms remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate whether scutellarin can attenuate PC12 cell apoptosis induced by activated microglia via the JAK2/STAT3 signalling pathway. Microglia were cultured in oxygen–glucose deprivation (OGD) medium, which acted as a conditioning medium (CM) to activate PC12 cells, to investigate the expression of apoptosis and JAK2/STAT3 signalling-related proteins. We observed that PC12 cells apoptosis in CM was significantly increased, the expression and fluorescence intensity of the pro-apoptotic protein Bax and apoptosis-related protein cleaved caspase-3 were increased, and expression of the anti-apoptotic protein B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) was decreased. Phosphorylation levels and fluorescence intensity of the JAK2/STAT3 signalling pathway-related proteins JAK2 and STAT3 decreased. After treatment with scutellarin, PC12 cells apoptosis as well as cleaved caspase-3 and Bax protein expression and fluorescence intensity decreased. The expression and fluorescence intensity of Bcl-2, phosphorylated JAK2, and STAT3 increased. AG490, a specific inhibitor of the JAK2/STAT3 signalling pathway, was used. Our findings suggest that AG490 attenuates the effects of scutellarin. Our study revealed that scutellarin inhibited OGD-activated microglia-mediated PC12 cells apoptosis which was regulated via the JAK2/STAT3 signalling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The taxonomic classification of Picea meyeri and P. mongolica has long been controversial. To investigate the genetic relatedness, evolutionary history, and population history dynamics of these species, genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) technology was utilized to acquire whole-genome single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers, which were subsequently used to assess population structure, population dynamics, and adaptive differentiation. Phylogenetic and population structural analyses at the genomic level indicated that although the ancestor of P. mongolica was a hybrid of P. meyeri and P. koraiensis, P. mongolica is an independent Picea species. Additionally, P. mongolica is more closely related to P. meyeri than to P. koraiensis, which is consistent with its geographic distribution. There were up to eight instances of interspecific and intraspecific gene flow between P. meyeri and P. mongolica. The P. meyeri and P. mongolica effective population sizes generally decreased, and Maxent modeling revealed that from the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) to the present, their habitat areas decreased initially and then increased. However, under future climate scenarios, the habitat areas of both species were projected to decrease, especially under high-emission scenarios, which would place P. mongolica at risk of extinction and in urgent need of protection. Local adaptation has promoted differentiation between P. meyeri and P. mongolica. Genotype‒environment association analysis revealed 96,543 SNPs associated with environmental factors, mainly related to plant adaptations to moisture and temperature. Selective sweeps revealed that the selected genes among P. meyeri, P. mongolica and P. koraiensis are primarily associated in vascular plants with flowering, fruit development, and stress resistance. This research enhances our understanding of Picea species classification and provides a basis for future genetic improvement and species conservation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Choline, an indispensable nutrient, plays a pivotal role in various physiological processes. The available evidence regarding the nexus between dietary choline intake and health outcomes, encompassing cardiovascular disease (CVD), cancer, and all-cause mortality, is limited and inconclusive. This study aimed to comprehensively explore the relationship between dietary choline intake and the aforementioned health outcomes in adults aged > 20 years in the U.S. Methods: This study utilized data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2011 and 2018. Dietary choline intake was evaluated using two 24-h dietary recall interviews. CVD and cancer status were determined through a combination of standardized medical status questionnaires and self-reported physician diagnoses. Mortality data were gathered from publicly available longitudinal Medicare and mortality records. The study utilized survey-weighted logistic and Cox regression analyses to explore the associations between choline consumption and health outcomes. Restricted cubic spline (RCS) analysis was used for dose‒response estimation and for testing for nonlinear associations. Results: In our study of 14,289 participants (mean age 48.08 years, 47.71% male), compared with those in the lowest quintile (Q1), the adjusted odds ratios (ORs) of CVD risk in the fourth (Q4) and fifth (Q5) quintiles of choline intake were 0.70 (95% CI 0.52, 0.95) and 0.65 (95% CI 0.47, 0.90), respectively (p for trend = 0.017). Each 100 mg increase in choline intake was associated with a 9% reduced risk of CVD. RCS analysis revealed a linear correlation between choline intake and CVD risk. Moderate choline intake (Q3) was associated with a reduced risk of mortality, with an HR of 0.75 (95% CI 0.60–0.94) compared with Q1. RCS analysis demonstrated a significant nonlinear association between choline intake and all-cause mortality (P for nonlinearity = 0.025). The overall cancer prevalence association was nonsignificant, except for colon cancer, where each 100 mg increase in choline intake indicated a 23% reduced risk. Conclusion: Elevated choline intake demonstrates an inverse association with CVD and colon cancer, while moderate consumption exhibits a correlated reduction in mortality. Additional comprehensive investigations are warranted to elucidate the broader health implications of choline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonlamellar liquid crystalline dispersions such as cubosomesandhexosomes have great potential as novel surface-targeted active deliverysystems. In this study, the influence of internal nanostructure, chemicalcomposition, and the presence of Pluronic F127 as a stabilizer, onthe surface and interfacial properties of different liquid crystallineparticles and surfaces, was investigated. The interfacial propertiesof the bulk liquid crystalline systems with coexisting excess waterwere dependent on the internal liquid crystalline nanostructure. Inparticular, the surfaces of the inverse cubic systems were more hydrophilicthan that of the inverse hexagonal phase. The interaction betweenF127 and the bulk liquid crystalline systems depended on the internalliquid crystalline structure and chemical composition. For example,F127 adsorbed to the surface of the bulk phytantriol cubic phase,while for monoolein cubic phase, F127 was integrated into the liquidcrystalline structure. Last, the interfacial adsorption behavior ofthe dispersed liquid crystalline particles also depended on both theinternal nanostructure and the chemical composition, despite the dispersionsall being stabilized using F127. The findings highlight the need tounderstand the specific surface characteristics and the nature ofthe interaction with colloidal stabilizer for understanding and optimizingthe behavior of nonlamellar liquid crystalline systems in surfacedelivery applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We found that Icaritin, an intestinal metabolite of Epimedium-derived flavonoids (EF) enhanced osteoblastic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) only under osteogenic induction conditions. We also demonstrated its effect on inhibition of adipogenic differentiation of MSCs. Unlike the findings of others on EF compounds, we showed that Icaritin was unable to promote proliferation, migration and tube like structure formation by human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in vitro. These results suggested that the exogenous phytomolecule Icaritin possessed the potential for enhancing bone formation via its osteopromotive but not an osteoinductive mechanism. Though some flavonoids were shown to regulate the coupling process of angiogenesis and osteogenesis during bone repair, our results suggested that Icaritin did not have direct effect on enhancing angiogenesis in vitro. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhancement of Se solubility in organic solvents without the use of alkylphosphine ligands is the key for phosphine-free synthesis of selenide semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs). In this communication, we demonstrate the dissolution of elemental Se in oleylamine by alkylthiol reduction at room temperature, which generates soluble alkylammonium selenide. This Se precursor is highly reactive for hot-injection synthesis of selenide semiconductor NCs, such as Cu2ZnSnSe4, Cu(InGa)Se2, and CdSe. In the case of Cu2ZnSnSe4, for example, the as-synthesized NCs possessed small size, high size monodispersity, strong absorbance in the visible region, and in particular a promising increase in photocurrent under AM1.5 illumination. The current preparation of the Se precursor is simple and convenient, which will promote the synthesis and practical applications of selenide NCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Yolk sac tumor (endodermal sinus tumor) is a rare malignant germ cell tumor arising in the testis or ovary. Extragonadal yolk sac tumor is even rarer and has only been described in case reports. Due to the rarity of the tumors, the appropriately optimal treatment remains unclear. We report a case of yolk sac tumor in the seminal vesicle. Case: A 38-year-old Asian male presented with gross hematuria and hemospermia. Transrectal ultrasound scan showed a solid mass in the left seminal vesicle and the scrotal sonography showed no abnormalities. Bilateral seminal vesicles were resected, and histopathological examination showed a typical pattern of yolk sac tumor (YST). The patient responded poorly to comprehensive treatment of radiotherapy, chemotherapy and surgeries, developed systemic multiple metastases, and died of cachexia one and half years after diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The use of X-ray scattering techniques in pharmaceutical science is increasing, in part through increased collaborations with the materials science community, and through increased availability of instrumentation, particularly synchrotron sources. The ability to understand not only the biopharmaceutical outcome, but also arguably, more importantly, the structural aspects of drugs and drug delivery systems, is essential to progressing pharmaceutical science; this review serves as an introduction to the major techniques and the wide range of areas in which X-ray scattering may be applied in understanding and controlling structure in pharmaceutical systems. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Half-hourly electricity price in power system are volatile, electricity price forecast is significant information which can help market managers and participants involved in electricity market to prepare their corresponding bidding strategies to maximize their benefits and utilities. However, the fluctuation of electricity price depends on the common effect of many factors and there is a very complicated random in its evolution process. Therefore, it is difficult to forecast half-hourly prices with traditional only one model for different behaviors of half-hourly prices. This paper proposes the improved forecasting model that detaches high volatility and daily seasonality for electricity price of New South Wales in Australia based on Empirical Mode Decomposition, Seasonal Adjustment and Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average. The prediction errors are analyzed and compared with the ones obtained from the traditional Seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average model. The comparisons demonstrate that the proposed model can improve the prediction accuracy noticeably. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Dopamine release associated with motivational arousal is thought to drive goal-directed learning and consolidation of acquired memories. This dopamine hypothesis of learning and motivation directly suggests that dopamine is necessary for modifications of excitatory synapses in dopamine terminal fields, including the prefrontal cortex (PFC), to "stamp in" posttrial memory traces. It is unknown how such enabling occurs in native circuits tightly controlled by GABAergic inhibitory tone. Here we report that dopamine, via both D1-class receptors (D1Rs) and D2-class receptors (D2Rs), enables the induction of spike timing-dependent long-term potentiation (t-LTP) in layer V PFC pyramidal neurons over a "window" of more than 30 ms that is otherwise closed under intact inhibitory constraint. Dopamine acts at D2Rs in local GABAergic interneurons to suppress inhibitory transmission, gating the induction of t-LTP. Moreover, dopamine activates postsynaptic D1Rs in excitatory synapses to allow t-LTP induction at a substantially extended, normally ineffective, timing interval (+30 ms), thus increasing the associability of prepost coincident stimuli. Although the D2R-mediated disinhibition alone is sufficient to gate t-LTP at a normal timing (+10 ms), t-LTP at +30 ms requires concurrent activation of both D1Rs and D2Rs. Our results illustrate a previously unrecognized circuit-level mechanism by which dopamine receptors in separate microcircuits cooperate to drive Hebbian synaptic plasticity across a significant temporal window under intact inhibition. This mechanism should be important in functioning of interconnected PFC microcircuits, in which D1Rs and D2Rs are not colocalized but their coactivation is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2-dimensional unsteady expansion process of plasma jet ablated in capillary because of the discharging of pulse power is simulated with CE/SE (conservation element / solution element) scheme in this paper. The high resolution computational space-time CE/SE scheme is simplified and improved to solve the axisymmetric two dimensional Euler equations of the unsteady expansion process of ablation plasma jet in open air. The variation and distribution of pressure and velocity of ablation plasma jet in flow field are illustrated and analysed. The shock wave and discontinuity of the jet are clearly depicted according to results of simulation, and simulating results are well agreement with experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes to use a cognitive-relay technique to mitigate intercell interference (ICI) in cellular systems. In the proposed system, several relay stations (RSs) that are equipped with cognitive radio are deployed near the cell boundary. The base station (BS) and the RS in each cell operate in the same spectrum band as primary and secondary transmitters, respectively. Once an interference-limited mobile station (MS) requests an RS for assistance, the RS senses the spectrum band and accesses a spectrum hole to forward its received signal (and interference) to the MS. At the receiver of the MS, optimum combining is employed to combine the original signal that is received from the BS and the relayed signal to cancel the ICI. The system performance is analyzed in terms of the outage capacity and the average capacity considering the impact of the availability of cognitive-relay channels and the link quality between the RS and the MS. The location and the coverage radius of the RS are designed based on the requirement of the RS-MS link quality. Finally, simulation results are given to validate the theoretical analysis and to show the capacity improvement due to the ICI cancellation with the assistance of cognitive relay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: When boiling occurs in a micro-channel, the growing bubbles could be confined. They expand both upstream and downstream and cause flow instability in the form of flow fluctuations. The instability occurs frequently when the Bond number of the fluid in the micro-channel is less than unity. To reduce the flow instability, installation of an inlet orifice at the upstream or the micro-channel expanding at the downstream are found to be effective. A generalized instability model for micro-channels was established, which includes the effects of both inlet orifice and channel expansion. Experiments of evaporating water in 48 parallel micro-channels with 353μm hydraulic diameter were conducted, and the generalized instability criterion was validated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In the hybrid approach of large-eddy simulation (LES) and Lighthill's acoustic analogy for turbulence-generated sound, the turbulence source fields are obtained using an LES and the turbulence-generated sound at far fields is calculated from Lighthill's acoustic analogy. As only the velocity fields at resolved scales are available from the LES, the Lighthill stress tensor, serving as a source term in Lighthill's acoustic equation, has to be evaluated from the resolved velocity fields. As a result, the contribution from the unresolved velocity fields is missing in the conventional LES. The sound of missing scales is shown to be important and hence needs to be modeled. The present study proposes a kinematic subgrid-scale (SGS) model which recasts the unresolved velocity fields into Lighthill's stress tensors. A kinematic simulation is used to construct the unresolved velocity fields with the imposed temporal statistics, which is consistent with the random sweeping hypothesis. The kinematic SGS model is used to calculate sound power spectra from isotropic turbulence and yields an improved result: the missing portion of the sound power spectra is approximately recovered in the LES. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analogous to the dispersion of lamellar phase-forming lipids to form liposomes, dispersion of lipids that form alternative liquid crystalline structures, such as cubic and hexagonal phase, forms particles termed cubosomes and hexosomes, respectively. Although these particles possess alternative structural forms and hence behavior, when compared to liposomes, they have received significantly less attention in the literature. While most studies have utilized glyceride lipids to prepare nonlamellar dispersions, recent advances in identifying new materials from which to prepare these particles has broadened the interest in this field. This review focuses on the materials used to form nonlamellar dispersions and the methods used to characterize their structure. Increased awareness of their structural characteristics and hence potential benefits in applications, such as drug delivery, is hoped to stimulate further studies that will ultimately see their uptake in commercial products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The time correlations of pressure modes in stationary isotropic turbulence are investigated under the Kraichnan and Tennekes “random sweeping” hypothesis. A simple model is obtained which predicts a universal form for the time correlations. It implies that the decorrelation process of pressure fluctuations in time is mainly dominated by the sweeping velocity, and the pressure correlations have the same decorrelation time scales as the velocity correlations. These results are verified using direct numerical simulations of isotropic turbulence at two moderate Reynolds numbers; the mode correlations collapse to the universal form when the time separations are scaled by wavenumber times the sweeping velocity, and the ratios of the correlation coefficients of pressure modes to those of velocity modes are approximately unity for the entire range of time separation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The centrosymmetric title complex, [Fe(C2H2N9)2(H2O)2]·-2H2O, has been prepared by an in situ [2+3] cycloaddition reaction of dicyanamide with sodium azide and ferrous sulfate, with heating and stirring. The FeII ion is coordinated by four N atoms from two 5-(1H-tetrazol-5-ylamino)-1H-tetrazolate ligands and two water molecules in axial positions in an octahedral geometry. The complex is linked into a three-dimensional network by O—H⋯N, N--H⋯O and N—H⋯N hydrogen bonds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the outage probability of a wireless system with conventional beamforming using a uniform linear array beamformer. The focus is to examine the impact of beamforming impairments, such as direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation errors, signal spatial spreads, antenna array perturbation, and mutual coupling. Fading statistics of Rayleigh, Rician, and Nakagami are used to characterize the desired signal, whereas interferers are assumed to be subject to Rayleigh fading. A simplified beamforming model is used in deriving closed-form outage probability expressions. Numerical results illustrate the increase of outage probabilities in the presence of DOA estimation errors, signal spatial spreads, and antenna perturbation. However, negligible outage performance impact is observed due to mutual coupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reverse link capacity of a direct-sequence code-division multiple-access (DS-CDMA) system in a multicell environment has been studied recently, and significant capacity improvements due to the use of beamforming have been observed. However, system performance with beamforming will be affected by several impairments, such as direction of arrival estimation errors, array perturbations, mutual coupling, and signal spatial spreads. In this paper, reverse link performance of CDMA systems with beamforming under these impairments (imperfect beamforming) is investigated. A simplified beamforming model is developed to evaluate the system performance in terms of user capacity, bit-error rates (BER), and outage probabilities. Both signal-to-interference-ratio-based power control and strength-based power control are considered in this paper. The capacity and BER degradations due to different impairments are shown, and outage probabilities under different power control schemes are examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intracellular localization of signaling proteins is critical in directing their interactions with both upstream and downstream signaling cascade components. While initially described as a cyclin kinase inhibitor, p21Waf1/Cip1 has since been shown to have bimodal effects on cell cycle progression and cell proliferation, and evidence is emerging that intracellular localization of this protein plays a role in directing its signaling properties by dictating its interactions with downstream molecules. Since we have previously demonstrated a pro-apoptotic and cell cycle inhibitory effect of p21 attenuation after transfection of antisense p21 oligodeoxynucleotides (ODN) in several cell lines, we asked whether cytosolic p21 mediates a positive effect on vascular smooth muscle (VSM) cell cycle transit. We now show that transfection of a nuclear-localization signal deficient (ΔNLS) p21 construct into VSM cells results in increased cytosolic levels of p21 and causes increased cell cycle transit as measured by [3H]thymidine incorporation. Thus, at least in VSM cells, cytosolic localization of p21 is a means by which this signaling protein transmits pro-mitogenic signals to the proteins responsible for G1/S transition. Furthermore, compartmentalization of p21 may help explain the biphasic nature of p21 in a variety of cell types and may lead to therapeutic advances directed at modulating pathologic cell growth in vascular diseases and cancer. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The throughput performance of slotted ALOHA (S-ALOHA) in a cellular system and Nakagami fading environment is studied. Based on the signal capture model, the effects of the multiple access interference (MAI) from in-cell users and the cochannel interference (CCI) from cochannel cells are quantified analytically. Especially considered are the cases when asynchronism of cochannel cells is present, for which an approximation of the interference distribution is successfully applied to get a highly precise expression of the system throughput. Our study shows that though the MAI level and capture effect determine the basic behavior of the S-ALOHA, CCI significantly reduces the throughput of S-ALOHA and asynchronous CCI introduces an especially severe impairment. Our analytical framework is also able to incorporate additional channel conditions and system parameters like lognormal shadowing and the cellular cluster size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid growth and increasing demands for near-ubiquitous high-quality high-data-rate services present the most challenges for wireless system design. As an effective method to provide such services, space-time (ST) coding is gaining more and more attention. This paper extends ST coding, originally designed for known frequency-nonselective fading channels, to unknown frequency-selective channels. A novel scheme is presented to suppress intersymbol interference, coherently demodulate the information symbols with estimated channel state information in an ST transmit diversity wireless time-division multiple-access system that is equipped with multiple antennas at both transmit and receive sides. The proposed algorithm is powerful and computationally efficient. In addition to the discussion of system identifiability, both theoretical analysis and numerical simulation are presented to illustrate the performance of the proposed estimator and receiver in multipath fading channels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most of hybrid test researches utilizing OpenSees are based on the hybrid test system framework software OpenFresco. Such software is convenient but can only be connected to specific test control systems, which limits the widespread application of hybrid test. In this paper, a new hybrid test system based on Matlab-OpenSees combined programming is developed, and the details of hybrid test system including core architecture, test facilities and Matlab-OpenSees system are described. Then, the performance verification of test facilities and Matlab-OpenSees system is conducted. Next, the mechanical properties of viscoelastic damper are tested under different amplitudes, frequencies and temperatures. Finally, the hybrid tests of three-dimensional viscoelastic damping structures are implemented by the developed hybrid test system for the first time. The feasibility and accuracy of hybrid test system based on Matlab-OpenSees combined programming are verified by the seismic response comparison of viscoelastic damping structures obtained by the hybrid test and the finite element numerical simulation. A good damping effect of viscoelastic dampers on the structures under earthquake excitation is demonstrated by comparing the results of the damped and undamped structure. • A new hybrid test system based on Matlab-OpenSees combined programming is established. • The Matlab-OpenSees interface is developed based on TCP/IP communication protocol and network communication principle. • The test facilities can high-precisely track the displacement commands and meet the requirements of displacement control in hybrid test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that electronic energy bands are split by spin‐orbit coupling in a system that lacks inversion center, and the bulk Rashba effect in ferroelectric semiconductor GeTe has attracted intensive attention due to its giant Rashba coefficient. However, the Rashba effect in GeTe film will disappear below a critical thickness due to the occurrence of centrosymmetric structure with decreasing thickness. In this paper, GeTe/In2Se3$_2\text{Se}_3$ heterostructures are investigated by means of first‐principle calculations, and it is found that the Rashba effect not only can be revived for the nonpolar‐GeTe film, but also can be enhanced for the ultrathin polar‐GeTe film. The variation of the bias field within the GeTe film in the heterostructure in contrast with that within the isolated GeTe film may be employed to explain the remarkable improvement of Rashba effect and the spin textures around the spin‐split band. Furthermore, the influence of the In2Se3$_2\text{Se}_3$ polarization on the Rashba coefficient is also discussed. With the increasing demands of device miniaturization, the authors hope that the method of constructing heterostructure may be an alternative route to enable large Rashba effect surviving down to the ultrathin film limit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the performance of ethanolic extract from Morus alba L. leaves (MLEE) in preserving chilled pork under retail conditions. The four treatments were 5 mg/mL sodium benzoate solution (SB), 1 mg/mL MLEE solution (high-concentration MLEE; HM), 0.5 mg/mL MLEE solution (low-concentration MLEE; LM), and 0 mg/mL MLEE solution (C). The quality characteristics, pH, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances values, metmyoglobin, total volatile basic nitrogen, and number of microbes of MLEE-treated chilled pork stored at 4 °C for 9 days were consistent with those obtained by the SB treatment and lower than those obtained by the C treatment. Sensory analyses showed that treatment of pork with MLEE did not have a negative impact on its sensory characteristics. MLEE can extend the shelf life of chilled pork from 3 days to 6 days (9 days) in first-class (second-class) fresh meat. Results suggest that MLEE could be a candidate resource in the preservation of chilled pork. • MLEE can extend the shelf life of chilled pork. • Panelists can accept the MLEE-treated pork. • Gram-positive Bacillus was one of the main inducements of meat deterioration. • MLEE could be a candidate resource in the preservation of chilled pork. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mechanical properties of viscoelastic (VE) dampers directly affect the aseismic performance of viscoelastically damped structures; therefore, it is of great significance to accurately describe the nonlinear mechanical characteristics of VE dampers in the aseismic design and analysis of structures. However, most of the existing mathematical models for VE dampers have been established from a macroscopic perspective, and there is a general lack of a comprehensive connection to the microstructure characteristics of VE materials and external influence factors such as loading frequency, ambient temperature, and strain amplitude. In this paper, inspired by the molecular chain network models and fractional derivative theory, a microstructure-based equivalent visco-hyperelastic model is proposed for VE dampers with consideration of temperature dependence and the filler reinforcement effect. To verify the characterization capacity of the proposed model, laboratory experiments on the dynamic property of VE dampers were carried out with varying frequencies, temperatures, and strain amplitudes, and the proposed model was then employed to predict the experimental results. Finally, model parameter analysis was conducted to clarify the relationship between material microstructure and its macroscopic performance. The experiments indicate that the VE damper possesses an excellent energy-dissipation capability, and characteristic parameters of VE dampers tend to be more sensitive in the low ranges of frequency and temperature than in the high ranges. Comparisons between the experimental and numerical results suggest that the proposed model can describe the mechanical properties of VE dampers at different frequencies, temperatures, and strain amplitudes with good accuracy. Parameter analysis demonstrates that the proposed model can reflect the influence of material microstructure on the macroscopic mechanical properties of VE dampers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Imbalanced data can always be observed in our daily life and various practical tasks. A lot of well-constructed machine learning methodologies may produce ineffective performance, when conducted on this kind of data. This originates from the produced high training biases that towards the majority class instances. Among all the solutions of this problem, data generation of the minority class is always considered the most effective approach. However, in all the previous works, data are always processed sample-wisely and the distribution of each single data attribute is never noticed. So, in this paper, to estimate the mechanism of how each attribute contributes to its label, we explore the potential connection between the two items by Conditional Generative Adversarial Networks (CGAN) separately and individually. Then, the constructed new instances are purified by a designed attribute-based minimax filter and the survivors are concatenated to form the eventual generated data. In other words, different from the CGAN based data generation way, the proposed approach improves it by additionally considering all the single attribute patterns of the data that to construct new instances. In addition, we extend the binary class imbalanced learning framework to multiple class one. In the experimental part, the improved model is compared against GAN, CGAN and some other standard multiple-class oversampling algorithms on several widely used datasets. Results, in terms of four common measurements, have shown that the proposed approach can produce comparable and always superior performance when compared with the competitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]