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Ferroptosis is a novel type of cell death that is dependent on lipid peroxidation and iron accumulation, which distinguishes it from other types of programmed cell death. Current research indicates a significant association between ferroptosis and various pathological conditions, including cancer, neurological disorders, and cardiovascular diseases, albeit with a relatively unexplored role in dermatological afflictions. This paper elaborates on the mechanisms and signalling pathways of ferroptosis, summarizing the recent studies on ferroptosis and its related factors in dermatosis. Our objective is to shed light on novel perspectives and therapeutic strategies for dermatosis, enhancing the understanding of this under‐researched area through this comprehensive review. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The discrete element method (DEM) is used widely to study the crushing behaviour of granular materials from a microscale perspective. However, a crushing criterion that can be suitable for triggering particle crushing for different coordination numbers (CNs) is still lacking. To develop a crushing criterion, particle crushing tests are conducted for different CNs via the DEM. Crushable spherical agglomerates are made by bonding smaller sub-spheres. Based on the results of simulations, a new crushing criterion invariant to the coordination number effect is proposed. The crushing criterion is simply expressed in terms of the three principal stresses of the particles. Furthermore, the applicability of the criterion is verified under various conditions, such as different numbers of sub-sphere, shapes of particles, microscale parameters and loading patterns. By using the new criterion, the particle strengths obtained from the single particle crushing tests can be used as the crushing strengths for the particles under multiple contact loading conditions in DEM simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Proton-conducting solid oxide fuel cells (H-SOFCs) are appealing for low-to-intermediate temperature operation due to their intrinsic lower activation energy and better ionic conductivity. Unfortunately, there are currently few acceptable and high-performing cathode materials available for H-SOFCs. Herein, we present a novel high performance multicomponent Ruddlesden-Popper (RP) type cathode Pr 3 Ni 1.5 Cu 0.3 Nb 0.05 Ta 0.05 Zr 0.05 Y 0.05 O 7-δ (PNCNTZY) with superior triple conducting property. The multicomponent co-doping of Nb, Ta, Zr, and Y brings about the enhancement of configurational entropy and cocktail effect for improving H+/O2-/e- triple conductivity and oxygen vacancy concentration. Naturally, the ORR activity is improved by facilitated charge transfer and oxygen surface exchange, exhibiting reduced polarization resistance to just 0.24 Ω cm2 at 550 °C. When used as the cathode in H-SOFC single cells, excellent power production is demonstrated at 550 °C, with a peak power density of up to 0.84 W cm-2. Furthermore, the PNCNTZY sample shows adequate thermal compatibility with proton conductor electrolytes BaZr 0.1 Ce 0.7 Y 0.1 Yb 0.1 O 3-δ (BZCYYb) and then appropriate endurance durability (0.8 A cm-2 at 550 °C for about 250 h) due to their match of thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) brought about by the Co-free and partial replacement of larger-size elements. This extremely promising Co-free RP perovskite cathode for H-SOFCs produced by this work might provide a new type candidate and novel strategy for the commercialization of H-SOFCs. [Display omitted] • Multicomponent Co-free Pr 3 Ni 1.5 Cu 0.3 Nb 0.05 Ta 0.05 Zr 0.05 Y 0.05 O 7-δ (PNCNTZY) was developed as H-SOFCs cathode. • PNCNTZY cathode has RP structure and triple-conductivity (H+/O2-/e-). • Multicomponent co-doping significantly improved ORR activity and triple conductivity. • Single cell with PNCNTZY cathode shows excellent peak power densities (0.84 W cm-2 at 550 °C) and durability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determining crustal melting in parallel with geodynamic evolution provides critical information on plateau crustal thickening and uplift. Here we investigate the timing and duration of crustal melting through in situ analysis of zircon U–Pb ages, trace elements and Hf–O isotopes, and whole-rock elements and Sr–Nd–Hf isotopes for the granites and high-grade metamorphic rocks from the Pamir Plateau. Zircon dates record protracted crustal melting for both Central Pamir (43–33 and 22–12 Ma) and South Pamir (28–10 Ma). The Pamir Cenozoic granites are characterized by significant elemental and isotopic heterogeneity. The elemental variability within the Pamir Cenozoic granites is dominantly attributed to fractional crystallization of K-feldspar and plagioclase with subordinate biotite from a variably fractionated melt, and the accumulation of early crystallized feldspar during magma ascent. Peritectic mineral entrainment and accessory mineral crystallization had some influence on the geochemical characteristics of the garnet-bearing leucogranite dikes. Zircon Hf isotopes and whole-rock Sr–Nd–Hf isotopes show secular variations for both Central and South Pamir granites. The Central Pamir granites show a mild decrease in whole-rock ƐNd(t) values from Eocene (−4.3 to −4.9) to Miocene (−6.2 to −7.7), and the zircon ƐHf(t) values decrease from c. 40 Ma (+2 to −5) to c. 10 Ma (−4 to −8). In contrast, the South Pamir granites have highly variable whole-rock Sr–Nd–Hf (87Sr/86Sr(i) = 0.7053 to 0.7830; ƐNd(t) = −31.5 to +0.2; ƐHf(t) = −40.0 to +8.2) and zircon Hf isotopes (ƐHf(t) = −31.7 to +7.5) and display a strong decrease in ƐNd(t) and ƐHf(t) values from c. 25 Ma to c. 13 Ma. Geochemical and isotopic data indicate that both the Central and South Pamir experienced crustal melting from juvenile lower crust to ancient lower-middle crustal materials, and Indian crustal materials were incorporated into the melt region of the South Pamir leucogranites from c. 20 Ma. Our study highlights a causal link between a chain of events that includes magma underplating induced by lithosphere thinning and slab breakoff, lithosphere delamination and underthrusting of Indian lithosphere, and formation of the Cenozoic granites in Pamir. This series of processes are incorporated here into a comprehensive model for the geodynamic evolution of the Pamir during the India–Asia collision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although carbonates are the primary form of carbon subducted into the mantle, their fate during recycling is debated. Here we report the first coupled high‐precision Zn and Mo isotope data for Cenozoic intraplate basalts from western China. The exceptionally high δ66Zn values (+0.39 to +0.50‰) of these lavas require involvement of recycled carbonates in the mantle source. Variable δ98Mo compositions (−0.39 to +0.27‰) are positively correlated with Mo/Ce, best interpreted as mixing between isotopically light Mo from dehydrated oceanic crust and heavy Mo from recycled carbonates, which is also supported by positive coupling between δ66Zn and δ98Mo. Modeling reveals that involvement of ≤5% carbonate‐bearing oceanic crust fully resolves the observed δ66Zn–δ98Mo mantle heterogeneity probed by intracontinental basalts. Our study demonstrates that combined δ66Zn–δ98Mo data sets for mantle‐derived magmas can track recycled surficial carbonates in Earth's interior, providing a powerful geochemical tool for deep carbon science. Plain Language Summary: Carbon is an element of life and studying its geological cycle is crucial for understanding Earth's evolution including formation of a life‐supporting atmosphere. Here we report the first combined high‐precision Zn and Mo isotope data for Cenozoic intraplate lavas from western China, showing that the basalts record ≤5% carbonate‐bearing oceanic crust components in their mantle source. Our results provide new evidence for surficial carbonates being delivered into the deep upper mantle, which adds to the debate about the deepest extent of the terrestrial carbon cycle. Key Points: First combined zinc (Zn) and molybdenum (Mo) isotope data for mantle‐derived magmas to track the fate of subducted carbonatesZn−Mo isotopic compositions of Cenozoic Tarim basalts suggest surficial carbonates being delivered into the deep upper mantleWe highlight the utility of combined Zn−Mo isotope data as a powerful tool in deep carbon science [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the effects of angularity and coarse particle content on the shear behaviour of granular mixtures via the discrete element method. The contributions of different contact types to the shear strength are quantified, which can be used to classify the structure of granular mixtures. After that, a microscopic analysis of the effect of angularity on the thresholds of the granular mixtures is presented. Finally, a method that can predict the critical friction angle of granular mixtures at arbitrary coarse particle contents is proposed. The validity of the prediction method is verified by comparisons with the experimental and numerical data in other studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Acute severe pancreatitis (SAP) is a severe acute abdominal disease, which can lead to pancreatic infection and necrosis as well as distant organ damage. Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) can exert anti-inflammatory effect on SAP, while NLRP3 inflammasomes play an important role in the inflammatory response. This study aimed to investigate whether BMSCs exert anti-inflammatory effect on SAP by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome. Methods: The rat SAP model was established. Serum amylase, lipase and inflammatory factor levels were measured by ELISA, and the level of tissue injury was assessed by HE staining. The expression of NLRP3 inflammasome was detected by PCR, Western Blot and immunohistochemistry. ML385 was used to block Nrf2 pathway, aiming to investigate whether Nrf2 pathway was involved in the therapeutic effect of BMSCs on SAP by regulating NLRP3 inflammasome expression. Results: In SAP rats, NLRP3 inflammasome was activated, which became more evident over time. After transplantation of BMSCs, the NLRP3 inflammasome expression decreased at both mRNA and protein levels, the serum levels of amylase, lipase and inflammatory factors decreased, and the pathological scores of the pancreas and lung were both improved. After blocking the Nrf2 pathway, the NLRP3 inflammasome expression increased in the injured pancreas and lung, and the inflammation deteriorated, which inhibited the therapeutic effects of BMSCs on SAP. Conclusion: The therapeutic effect of BMSC on SAP is at least partially ascribed to the inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome, and Nrf2 pathway mediates the therapeutic effect of BMSC on SAP by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research progress of heavy oil catalytic cracking technology at home and abroad is summarized from three aspects: the research survey of reaction mechanism of heavy oil catalytic cracking, the analysis and comparison of molecular sieve catalytic materials for heavy oil catalytic cracking, the technical characteristics and industrial application of different heavy oil catalytic cracking processes. Firstly, modified molecular sieve catalyst materials, small-crystal molecular sieves, hierarchical pore molecular sieves have become hot spots in current research and application, so as to strengthen the hydrothermal stability of catalyst, the intracrystalline diffusion and the graded cracking of heavy oil macromolecules in the hierarchical pores of the heavy oil catalytic cracking catalyst; secondly, based on the research of the carbonium ion mechanism and the free radical mechanism of the catalytic cracking reaction and the like, the reaction severity of heavy oil catalytic cracking technologies such as DCC, CPP, HCC, RTC and HSFCC is continuously improved, and in order to match the optimal reaction environment for different feeds, new reactor or multi-reactor combination technology has become the main direction of process technology research, which has achieved the purpose of improving the yield and selectivity of light olefins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In key areas of ecological protection, it is significant to consider the similarity of pollution sources among heavy metals and the interaction between different sources, especially the ecological risk areas caused by heavy metal pollution. We collected 51 soil samples from five land use types with different soil depths in an industrial area on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Two and three major heavy metal combination types of Cd, Cu, Cr, Pb and Zn in different soil layers were identified using absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression models, and the potential pollution sources corresponding to the different types were quantified using Geo-Detector models. Factor-detector explanatory power of the land use type (q = 0.66) was much higher than that of the other factors of APCS1 in soil layer A, which was the most likely potential sources of Cd and Pb with high levels in urban land and irrigated land. Industrial activities, especially metallurgy and mining, are the most likely potential sources of Cd, Cu and Pb pollution. The downward migration of heavy metals in the study area was inferred from the similar trends of several indicators between soil layers A and B. The new model Nemerow Integrated Risk Index (NIRI) was used to analyse the integrated ecological risk across the study area and under different land use types by comparing with the pollution load index and Nemerow Integrated Pollution Index, and it was found that the risk level was lower in grassland and forest land than under other land use types, while it was higher in urban land and irrigated land. The contribution rate of Cd to NIRI values exceeded 80%, while the contribution rates of the 5 heavy metals to NIPI and PLI values are not significantly different, indicating that NIRI can highlight the impact of high cadmium toxicity factors on the overall risk level and is more accurate and flexible in identifying risk areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine ooids have formed in microbially colonized environments for billions of years, but the microbial contributions to mineral formation in ooids continue to be debated. Here we provide evidence of these contributions in ooids from Carbla Beach, Shark Bay, Western Australia. Dark 100–240 μm diameter ooids from Carbla Beach contain two different carbonate minerals. These ooids have 50–100 μm‐diameter dark nuclei that contain aragonite, amorphous iron sulfide, detrital aluminosilicate grains and organic matter, and 10–20 μm‐thick layers of high‐Mg calcite that separate nuclei from aragonitic outer cortices. Raman spectroscopy indicates organic enrichments in the nuclei and high‐Mg calcite layers. Synchrotron‐based microfocused X‐ray fluorescence mapping reveals high‐Mg calcite layers and the presence of iron sulfides and detrital grains in the peloidal nuclei. Iron sulfide grains within the nuclei indicate past sulfate reduction in the presence of iron. The preservation of organic signals in and around high‐Mg calcite layers and the absence of iron sulfide suggest that organics stabilized high‐Mg calcite under less sulfidic conditions. Aragonitic cortices that surround the nuclei and Mg‐calcite layers do not preserve microporosity, iron sulfide minerals nor organic enrichments, indicating growth under more oxidizing conditions. These morphological, compositional, and mineralogical signals of microbial processes in dark ooids from Shark Bay, Western Australia, record the formation of ooid nuclei and the accretion of magnesium‐rich cortical layers in benthic, reducing, microbially colonized areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Triassic rare-metal pegmatite deposits are widespread in East Asia; e.g., the western Kunlun and Songpan-Ganze belt in northern Tibet and the Altai belt in the heart of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. However, rare-metal enrichment processes and deposit formation mechanisms are enigmatic. Most rare-metal pegmatites in East Asia formed at ca. 220–200 Ma in the Late Triassic and are genetically related to S-type granites. Whole-rock and zircon Li and Cs contents indicate that sedimentary rocks represent a fertile rare-metal source for the pegmatite deposits and that long-term chemical weathering plays a key role in the enrichment of rare metals. The formation of these widespread deposits in East Asia was associated with lithospheric extension induced by slab retreat along the periphery of the supercontinent during Pangea assembly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are two parallel >1200-km-long semi-continuous (ultra)potassic magmatic belts in the southern (Karakorum-Lhasa) and the northern (Central Pamir–western Kunlun) parts of Pamir–western Tibet. The southern belt is widely attributed to northward subduction of the Indian plate, while it has been suggested that the northern belt relates to the southward subduction of the Asian plate. We report new zircon U-Pb ages and isotopic data for the northern belt that show eastward magma migration between ca. 20 Ma and the present, which are contemporaneous with continental-scale thermochronometric cooling ages. Whereas magma migration in the south was caused by progressive west-to-east Indian lithosphere break-off, magma generation in the north is shown to be related to asthenospheric mantle upflow through a small mantle window (∼100 km width) forced by Indian lithosphere underthrusting, Pamir–western Tibet lithosphere mantle dripping, and resistance of the Tarim lithosphere. Northern belt magma migration relates to progressively eastward underthrusting of the Indian lithosphere that took ∼15 m.y. to move northward across ∼350 km to meet Asian lithosphere. Accordingly, both belts of (ultra)potassic magmatism relate to the northward subduction of the Indian plate that was responsible for plateau uplift in Pamir–western Tibet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to understand the hydrocarbon generation potential of the siliceous shale in the Permian Gufeng Formation of the South Yellow Sea, the organic geochemistry and organic petrology of the siliceous shale in the Gufeng Formation of the CSDP-2 well were studied and analyzed. It is found that the TOC of the samples is mainly between 9% and 12%, and Tmax is mainly distributed between 510 and 540 °C. The value of the organic microscopic type index (TI) is between 25.71 and 31.00, which is a set of II2 high-quality source rocks with high organic matter abundance in the over mature stage of large-scale gas generation. According to the distribution characteristics of Molecular fossils in siliceous shale of Gufeng Formation of well CSDP-2, bacterial organic matter is the main hydrocarbon generating parent material, and aquatic animal organic matter is an important hydrocarbon generating parent material. The siliceous shale in Gufeng Formation of CSDP-2 well is in the stage of large-scale gas generation; Therefore, the Gufeng Formation in the central uplift of the South Yellow Sea has the material basis for the formation of large-scale shale gas reservoirs. At the same time, the siliceous metasomatism of the siliceous shale reservoir of Gufeng Formation is not conducive to the primary migration of oil, and there is much oil and gas remaining in the reservoir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) in pediatric patients presents diagnostic and treatment challenges, leading to delays and suboptimal strategies. Moreover, PCNSL in immunocompetent pediatric patients is rarely reported. This retrospective study aimed to describe the demographic and clinical features, as well as outcomes, of pediatric PCNSL cases. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted on 11 immunocompetent pediatric patients diagnosed with PCNSL between January 2012 and April 2020. Data regarding age, gender, initial presenting symptoms, tumor location, and radiological characteristics were collected. Treatment strategies and analyzed prognosis were documented. Survival curves were generated using the Kaplan-Meir method, and data were analyzed using SPSS (version 23.0, IBM Corp.). Results: The study cohort comprised 11 patients, including 10 males and 1 female. The age at diagnosis ranged from 4 to 15 years, with a median age of 10.6 years. Headache was the most common presenting symptom, observed in 81.8% (9/11) of patients. Tumor locations in the supratentorial and infratentorial regions exhibited a similar occurrence rate. All tumors showed strong contrast enhancement on T1-weighted images. The average survival time for the 11 patients was 44.4 months. Among them, 5 patients died by the last follow-up visit, with a mean survival time of 8.8 months (one patient died in a car accident). Conclusion: Headache is the predominant manifestation of PCNSL in pediatric patients. PCNSL demonstrates imaging characteristics resembling various intracranial tumors and is associated with a poor prognosis. Therefore, pediatric neurosurgeons should exercise caution in diagnosing and treating intracranial lymphoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The optimal technique for removing small colorectal polyps ranging from 5 to 10 mm in size remains uncertain. In order to compare the efficacy and adverse events between cold snare polypectomy (CSP) and hot snare polypectomy (HSP) for removing small polyps, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of available randomized controlled trials. Methods: We conducted a comprehensive search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library databases from 1998 to May 2023 to identify randomized controlled trials that evaluated the efficacy and safety of cold snare polypectomy (CSP) and hot snare polypectomy (HSP) for resecting small colorectal polyps. The primary outcome measure was the incomplete resection rate (IRR). Results: Seven studies that met our study criteria, with a total of 3178 included polyps, were included in our analysis. The incomplete resection rate (IRR) was found to be significantly higher in the CSP group compared to the HSP group (risk ratio [RR] 1.57 [1.17–2.11], P = 0.003). Although the CSP group had a higher local recurrence rate than the HSP group, the difference was not statistically significant (RR: 3.98 [0.66–23.84], P = 0.13). The polyp retrieval rates were not significantly different between the two groups (RR: 1.00 [0.99–1], P = 0.22). Perforation was not reported or mentioned in any of the seven studies. The overall immediate bleeding rate was significantly higher in the CSP group than the HSP group (RR: 2.26 [1.63–3.14], P < 0.001), but immediate postpolypectomy bleeding requiring additional intervention was similar between the groups (RR: 1.08 [0.54–2.17], P = 0.82). The delayed bleeding rate (RR: 0.83 [0.45–1.55], P = 0.56) and specific polypectomy time (RR: −0.46 [−1.05–0.12], P = 0.12) were also similar between the groups. Conclusions: The meta-analysis shows a significantly higher IRR for CSP compared with HSP when removing small polyps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study monitored the dynamic changes in retinal vascular width and the AVR in full-term neonates within 1–10 days of birth. It was conducted at hospitals in the Anhui province from October 2020 to March 2022. A total of 700 full-term, healthy infants were chosen randomly within 10 days of birth, and the Star Pupil Medical Cloud Data System (XBDS) was used to collect fundus images. Infants within 6 days of birth were grouped into groups one to six, while those within the 7th to 10th days were grouped into group seven. The fundus photographs were imported into Image-Pro-Plus (IPP) software. The optic disc diameter was measured. The retinal artery and vein's diameter was measured at a distance between 0.5- and 1.0-disc diameter from the optic disc's margin. The AVR was also calculated. Finally, each group's retinal vessel diameters and AVR were compared separately to show their dynamic changes. There were differences in the retinal artery diameter between groups one and two, three and four, four and five, and five and six. For retinal vein diameter, there were differences between groups one and two and groups six and seven. There were also differences in the AVR between all groups. In addition, there was a significant positive correlation between the small retinal artery and vein diameters. The retinal artery and vein diameters and AVR in neonates change dynamically during the first 10 days of life. The AVR undergoes the most dramatic change daily and is considerably smaller than the AVR in adults. Hence, this study found that the external environment undergoes significant changes following birth that affect the microcirculation. Then, the retinal central vascular system undergoes similar emergency and adaptive alterations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a distributed collision-free control scheme for connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) at a non-signalized intersection. We first divide an intersection area into three sections, i.e., the free zone, the platoon zone, and the control zone. In order to enable the following vehicles to track the trajectory of their leading vehicle in the platoon zone and the control zone, as well as to guarantee the desired distance between any two adjacent vehicles, the distributed platoon controllers are designed. In the control zone, each vehicular platoon is taken as a whole to be coordinated via an intersection coordination unit (ICU). To avoid collision between each pair of the conflicting platoons approaching from different directions, a platoon-based coordination strategy is designed by scheduling the arrival time of each leading vehicle of different platoons. Specially, considering traffic efficiency and fuel economy, the optimal control problem of the leading vehicle is formulated subject to the constraint of allowable minimum arrival time, which is derived from coordination with other approaching platoons. The Pontryagin Minimum Principle (PMP) and phase-plane method are applied to find the optimal control sequences. Numerical simulations show the effectiveness of this scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of a two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) metal-semiconductor (MS) heterojunction as an efficient cold source (CS) has recently been proposed as a promising approach in the development of steep-slope field-effect transistors (FETs). In addition to the selection of source materials with linearly decreasing density-of-states-energy relations (D(E)s), in this study, we further verified, by means of a computer simulation, that a 2D semiconductor-semiconductor combination could also be used as an efficient CS. As a test case, a HfS2/MoTe2 FET was studied. It was found that MoTe2 can be spontaneously p-type-doped by interfacing with n-doped HfS2, resulting in a truncated decaying hot-carrier density with an increasing p-type channel barrier. Compared to the conventional MoTe2 FET, the subthreshold swing (SS) of the HfS2/MoTe2 FET can be significantly reduced to below 60 mV/decade, and the on-state current can be greatly enhanced by more than two orders of magnitude. It was found that there exists a hybrid transport mechanism involving the cold injection and the tunneling effect in such a p- and n-type HfS2/MoTe2 FET, which provides a new design insight into future low-power and high-performance 2D electronics from a physical point of view. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DI center, as a widely existed defect in 4H‐SiC, has attracted much attention in recent years, while the origin of it is still unclear. Herein, by comparing first‐principles calculated potential point defects‐related zero‐phonon lines (ZPLs) and nonradiative capture cross‐sections with the DI center‐related values in the experiment, it is proposed that the transition from the bound exciton states about 57 meV below the CBM to the "+1/+2" level of antisite defect SiC is responsible for the DI center in 4H‐SiC. This work describes the temperature and transition energy level dependence of the hole capture cross‐section of antisite defect SiCh in 4H‐SiC, which provides an idea for the optimal design of point defects in semiconductor materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document is a retraction notice for an article titled "Hsa_circRNA_000166 Promotes Cell Proliferation, Migration and Invasion by Regulating miR-330-5p/ELK1 in Colon Cancer." The article was published in the journal OncoTargets & Therapy in 2020 but has since been retracted due to concerns about the duplication of images from other unrelated articles. The authors did not respond to queries or provide an explanation for the duplicated images, leading to the retraction. The retracted article will remain online but will be digitally watermarked as "Retracted." [Extracted from the article]

In this study, an SiC ceramic precursor vinyl ether–grafted liquid polycarbosilane (VE–LHBPCS) with approximate formulas of [SiH1.95(OCH2CH2OCH = CH2)0.05CH2]n was designed and synthesized. In order to cross‐link the ceramic precursor via fast thiol‐ene click reaction. The VE–LHBPCS was mixed with 1‐wt% ultraviolet (UV) decomposable free radical initiator BAPOs and 7‐wt% bis‐thiol compound 1,6‐hexanedithiol. According to Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy spectroscopy and photolithography experiment, more than 80% vinyl ether group was consumed within 3 s, and photolithography pattern with clear boundary could be formed after UV irradiation for only 1 s. Even for the VE–LHBPCS mixture with a thickness of 4 mm, 20‐s UV irradiation was sufficient to cure it with smooth surface and regular edge. Thermal gravimetric analysis demonstrated that the UV‐cured VE–LHBPCS mixture had a ceramic yield of 70.0 wt% at 1000°C, which was 20 wt% higher than that of raw LHBPCS. After pyrolysis up to 1000°C, about 29.5% isotropic linear shrinkage associated with the precursor‐to‐ceramic conversion was observed, and black dense ceramic with a density of 2.49 ± 0.09 g/cm3 and a chemical formula of SiC1.01O0.18S0.04 was obtained. With increasing the pyrolysis temperature, the content of element S decreased and the diffraction peaks of β‐SiC became sharper and stronger. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of the intermediate principal stress (relative magnitude quantified by b) on the mechanical behaviour of breakable granular materials was studied using a DEM simulation of realistic particle models. The realistic particle model obtained by 3D scanning was divided into coplanar and glued Voronoi polyhedrons to reflect particle morphology more truly and fracture. After isotropic compression, a series of true triaxial tests under various b values were conducted using cubic and isotropic specimens. The macro-behaviour showed that the peak and critical shear strength first increased to a crest and then decreased with increasing b. Particle breakage caused a decrease in dilatancy and an increase in coaxiality. Increasing b resulted in an increase in cracks oriented in the intermediate principal stress direction and more broken particles. From the particle-scale analysis, as the b value increased, both the coordination number at the peak state and the percentage of sliding contacts at the critical state decreased. Particle breakage reduced the normal and shear contact forces at the critical state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous mechanically strong and tough soft materials comprising of polymer networks have been developed over the last two decades, motivated by new high-tech applications in engineering and bio-related fields. These materials are characterized by their dynamic complexities and large deformation behaviors. In this Review, we focus on how chain dynamics affects the large deformation and fracture behaviors of soft materials. To favor readers without a rheology background, first we review the linear rheology behaviors of several simple networks. We show that, by playing with the physical entanglement, chemical cross-linking, and physical association of the building polymers, a very rich panel of dynamic responses can be obtained. Then, we show examples of how chain dynamics affects the deformation and fracture behaviors of dually cross-linked hydrogels having chemical cross-linkers and physical bonds. We also provide examples on the unique deformation behavior of physical double-network gels made from triblock polymers. Thereafter, examples of the influence of chain dynamics on the crack initiation and growth behaviors are presented. We show that even for chemically cross-linked double-network hydrogels that exhibit elastic behaviors in a common deformation window, the chain dynamics influences the damage zone size at the crack tip. Finally, we conclude this Review by proposing several directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The primary recrystallization texture distribution of grain oriented electrical steel. • The evolution of Al and N content during high temperature annealing process and effect on secondary recrystallization. • The mechanism of magnetostriction of grain oriented electrical steel is analyzed and a new grade of low noise grain oriented electrical steel has developed. • The magnetic properties under non-sinusoidal magnetization is analyzed. Shougang Steel has been pursuing the development of low iron loss and high permeability grain oriented electrical steels for more than a decade. Grain oriented electrical steel requires a very strong Goss {1 1 0}〈0 0 1〉 texture and as such a comprehensive control of thermo-mechanical processing parameters is required to achieve a strict control of texture. In this paper the key metallurgical problems associated with manufacture of grain oriented electrical steel are discussed, including the factors that affect both primary recrystallization and secondary recrystallization leading to the development of a strongly textured final sheet. The metallurgical factors affecting magnetostriction of electrical steels are also analyzed, and a technological approach for domain refinement, and its effect on magnetic properties, is described. Examples of magnetic properties under non-sinusoidal magnetization conditions are also reported and analyzed. As a result of continuous research and development efforts the high permeability low iron loss grain oriented electrical steel of thin gauge products of 0.2 mm/0.18 mm thickness have recently been developed to meet the requirements of the new China national standard of energy efficiency grades for power transformers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle shape is a vital factor affecting particle breakage and mechanical behaviour of granular materials. This report investigated the effect of elongation and flatness on the shear behaviour of breakable granular materials using the DEM. Rod-shaped and discoid models were used to model various elongated and flat particles. A breakable particle is constructed as an aggregate composed of coplanar and glued Voronoi polyhedra. After isotropic compression and drained triaxial compression tests, the macroscopic shear behaviours, including the shear strength and dilatancy response, were analyzed. Meanwhile, the particle breakage characteristics, including the evolution of particle size distribution curves, the extent of particle breakage and the correlation of relative breakage with energy input, were explored Furthermore, the evolutions of microscopic shear behaviours, including mechanical coordination number and contact force of assemblies with different elongation and flatness was evaluated. Finally, exploration of the related-anisotropy coefficients was carried out to probe the microscopic origins of macroscopic behaviour. A detailed analysis revealed the microscopic mechanism of the dependence of the peak and critical shear strengths on elongation and flatness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital light processing of ceramic precursor was used to prepare SiC rich ceramic parts in this study. In order to achieve appropriate light curing rate, the ceramic precursor allylhydropolycarbosilane (LHBPCS) was mixed with acrylate monomers tripropylene glycol diacrylate and trimethylolpropane triacrylate. The content of acrylate monomers was optimized to increase the ceramic yield and reduce the shrinkage during pyrolysis. According to the results of thermogravimetric analysis and photolithography experiment, 15 wt% acrylate monomers was appropriate. 330 mJ/cm2 UV irradiation dose was selected for every layer with a thickness of 25 μm, and green bodies with different shapes were successfully printed. During pyrolysis, these printed parts changed from transparent yellow to black accompanying uniform shrinkage. At 1000 °C, the shrinkage was 24.0–26.0%, and crack-free SiC rich ceramic parts with density of 2.11 g/cm3 and chemical formula of SiC 1.31 O 0.26 were obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Adolescent smartphone addiction (ASA) has fueled concerns worldwide regarding the negative health effects. This study aimed to examine whether parental smartphone addiction (PSA) affected ASA, and evaluated the mediating role of the parent-child relationship and the moderating role of parental bonding in the effect from PSA to ASA, among a Chinese sample of parent-child pairs.Methods: A large-scale cross-sectional survey was conducted among 10- to 15-year-old students and their parents. ASA and PSA were assessed by Mobile Phone Addiction Index (MPAI). The parent-child relationship was evaluated by Child-Parent Relationship Scale-Short Form (CPRS-SF), and parental bonding was estimated by Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI). Conditional process model was used to examine the relationship between PSA and ASA, as well as the mediating effect of parent-child relationship and the moderating effect of parental bonding.Results: A total of 9515 adolescents and their parents completed the online survey. PSA significantly positively predicted ASA (B = 0.488, p < 0.001). The parent-child relationship negatively mediated the association from PSA to ASA (B = -0.321, p < 0.001). Parental overprotection moderated the indirect path from PSA to ASA through the parent-child relationship (B = -0.016, p < 0.001), but parental care had not any moderation (B = -0.005, p > 0.05). Specifically, parental overprotection had a positive moderating effect on the second half mediation path. The indirect effect of PSA on ASA through parent-child relationship was greater in higher overprotection than in lower.Limitations: Cross-sectional study of self-administrated questionnaires.Conclusions: Adolescents had a higher tendency toward smartphone addiction when their parents excessively used smartphones. The findings highlighted the essential role of parent-child relationship and parental bonding in the association from PSA to ASA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 9Cr-oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) steel was thermally aged at 873 K for up to 5000 h. The size distribution and chemical composition of the dispersed oxide nanoparticles were analyzed by small-angle neutron scattering under a magnetic field. Combined with transmission electron microscopy, Vickers micro-hardness tests and electron backscattered diffraction measurements, all the results showed that the thermal treatment had little or no effect on the size distributions and volume fractions of the oxide nanoparticles in the ferromagnetic matrix, which suggested excellent thermal stability of the 9Cr-ODS steel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the Internet of things, the intelligent visual image is a high noise image. Because the fixed threshold (or block to get the threshold) used in the general fixed threshold segmentation and adaptive threshold in combination with the wavelet denoising algorithm can not achieve the target location when the transition "interference" between the targets to be segmented is too high and the brightness difference between the targets to be segmented is large. Aiming at the image features under the Internet of things, a feature location method for variable threshold segmentation image based on improved wavelet is proposed. In this paper, a variable threshold algorithm is designed, which uses the multi-scale shrinkage threshold in the new spherical coordinate domain, and uses the adaptive nonlinear shrinkage function to continuously separate image information and noise information at the threshold. At last, the simulation experiment of this method is carried out, and a large number of comparisons with similar algorithms are made. The experimental results show that under the high noise image of the Internet of things, the improved image location method in this paper has better effect. The experimental results show that under severe occlusion and high noise conditions in the Internet of Things, the proposed method has better image feature location and denoising performance. When the noise intensity increases to 60%, the PSNR of the proposed method is 28.8764 dB. When the wavelet decomposition scale is 7, the average running time of the proposed method is 25 ms, and the denoising accuracy is 73%. It can effectively improve the peak signal-to-noise ratio and denoising accuracy, and shorten the running time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the issue of automated intersection control for connected vehicles in the presence of Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks. DoS attacks can disrupt the vehicular communication network, leading to increased service time and additional transmission delays, thereby raising a risk of collisions at intersections. To mitigate this problem, we propose a resilient automated intersection control system that ensures safe passage of connected vehicles through non-signalized intersections. First, we establish a communication topology that captures the information transmission between vehicles using a vehicle conflict graph. This topology serves as the basis for designing a distributed control protocol that enables conflict-free cooperation at intersections, taking into account the stochastic delays caused by DoS attacks. To synthesize a resilient controller for the automated intersection control system, we employ the polytopic overapproximation technique based on the real Jordan form. This technique allows us to model the system dynamics and uncertainties, enabling the derivation of a set of sufficient conditions for system stability. By solving a series of linear matrix inequalities, we obtain the controller gains that satisfy these stability conditions. Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Al-enriched Beta zeolite nanocrystals with densely populated acid sites and enhanced mass transfer efficiency have been demonstrated to show promising catalytic performance. In this work, low Si/Al ratio (8–9) Beta nanocrystals (about 20 nm) was synthesized by using DABCO based di-cationic quaternary ammonium salts as organic structure directing agent with high solid yield (＞95 %). The hydrothermal synthesis process was followed by monitoring the intermediate products at different time intervals, through which the key role of the di-cationic quaternary ammonium for the formation of Beta nuclei was identified. The promising catalytic performance of the Al-rich Beta nanocrystals in 1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene transalkylation with benzene was attributed to the high density and enhanced accessibility of acid sites. [Display omitted] • Beta Zeolite with enriched Al content (Si/Al = 8.6) and small crystal size (20 nm) was efficiently synthesized by using DABCO di-quaternary ammonium salt as the SDA. • The key role of the di-cationic quaternary ammonium for the formation of Beta nuclei was identified. • The densely populated acid site, boosted by the enhanced accessibility, improved the intrinsic catalytic activity for transalkylation of 1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene with benzene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uncontrolled or dysregulated inflammation has adverse effects on the reproduction, production and health of animals, and is a major pathological cause of increased incidence and severity of infectious and metabolic diseases. To achieve successful transition from a non-lactation pregnant state to a non-pregnant lactation state, drastic metabolic and endocrine alteration have taken place in dairy cows during the periparturient period. These physiological changes, coupled with decreased dry matter intake near calving and sudden change of diet composition after calving, have the potential to disrupt the delicate balance between pro- and anti-inflammation, resulting in a disordered or excessive inflammatory response. In addition to cytokines and other immunoregulatory factors, most oxylipins formed from polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) via enzymatic and nonenzymatic oxygenation pathways have pro- or anti-inflammatory properties and play a pivotal role in the onset, development and resolution of inflammation. However, little attention has been paid to the possibility that oxylipins could function as endogenous immunomodulating agents. This review will provide a detailed overview of the main oxylipins derived from different PUFAs and discuss the regulatory role that oxylipins play in the postpartum inflammatory response in dairy cows. Based on the current research, much remains to be illuminated in this emerging field. Understanding the role that oxylipins play in the control of postpartum inflammation and inflammatory-based disease may improve our ability to prevent transition disorders via Management, pharmacological, genetic selection and dietary intervention strategies. • Cows have a higher incidence of diseases during the periparturient period, which has a strong association with postpartum dysregulated inflammation. • Oxylipins are a group of lipid mediators that play a key regulatory role in the onset, development and resolution of inflammation. • Understanding oxylipins biosynthesis and the regulation of bovine postpartum inflammation may improve our ability to prevent transition disorders via Management, pharmacological, genetic selection and dietary intervention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long‐distance lateral magma propagation may reflect the complex interaction between regional tectonics and crustal uplift. Here, we report observations on the Taxkorgan intrusive complex (TIC) of the Central Pamir. TIC is a 70 km long, 10–18 km wide, north‐northwest–elongated body intruded into mid‐upper crust in parallel with, and close to, the Kongur Shan Extensional System. New zircon U‐Pb dating shows that syenite samples exhibit a clear younging pattern from south to north along the pluton axis within an interval between 11.5 and 10.3 Ma, which is interpreted as lateral magma propagation from a single feeder zone at its northwestern margin. The lateral magma propagation was caused by a combination of crustal rigidity differences, and a topography‐induced pressure gradient that is nearly orthogonal to the least compressive stress. We propose that long‐distance lateral magma propagation plays an important role in plateau expansion, restraining the thickness and elevation of the Pamir Plateau. Plain Language Summary: Long‐distance lateral magma propagation within the crust has been documented for diverse magmatic systems. The Miocene Taxkorgan intrusive complex was formed during India‐Asia collision in the Central Pamir Plateau, and it consists of a syenite pluton and several discrete lobes of monzogranites. New SIMS zircon U‐Pb dating results shows that monzogranites across TIC have overlapping ages between 12.4 and 12.2 Ma, indicating they were emplaced from a series of synchronous and independent magma feeder zones. In contrast, syenite samples exhibit a clear younging pattern from south to north within an interval between 11.5 and 10.3 Ma. The pattern of decreasing ages along the pluton axis is interpreted as lateral magma propagation from a single feeder zone at its northwestern margin. It is inferred that long‐distance lateral magma propagation, such as documented for the Taxkorgan intrusive complex, played a key role in plateau expansion, restraining the thickness and elevation of the Pamir Plateau. Key Points: Taxkorgan intrusive complex (TIC) syenite pluton shows a clear younging pattern from south to north within an interval between 11.5 and 10.3 MaTIC syenite pluton formed by lateral magma propagation from a single feeder zone at its northwestern marginLong‐distance lateral magma propagation plays an important role in plateau expansion, restraining the thickness and elevation of Plateau [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In silica‐rich hot spring environments, internally laminated, digitate sinter deposits are often interpreted as bio‐mediated structures. The organic components of microbial communities (cell surfaces, sheaths and extracellular polymeric substances) can act as templates for silica precipitation, therefore influencing digitate sinter morphogenesis. In addition to biologic surface‐templating effects, various microenvironmental factors (hydrodynamics, local pH and fluctuating wind patterns) can also influence silica precipitation, and therefore the morphology of resulting digitate sinters. Digitate sinter morphology thus depends on the dynamic interplay between microenvironmentally driven silica precipitation and microbial growth, but the relative contributions of both factors are a topic of continuing research. Here we present a detailed study of digitate silica sinters in distal, low‐temperature regimes of the El Tatio geothermal field, Chile. This high‐altitude geothermal field is extremely arid and windy, and has one of the highest silica precipitation rates found in the world. We find that digitate silica sinters at El Tatio always accrete into the prevailing eastward wind direction and exhibit laminar growth patterns coinciding with day–night cycles of wind‐ and thermally driven evaporation and rewetting. Subaerial parts of digitate sinters lack preserved organics and sinter textures that would indicate past microbial colonization, while filamentous cyanobacteria with resistant, silicified sheaths only inhabit subaqueous cavities that crosscut the primary laminations. We conclude that, although fragile biofilms of extremophile micro‐organisms may have initially been present and templated silica precipitation at the tips of these digitate sinters, the saltation of sand grains and precipitation of silica by recurrent wind‐ and thermally driven environmental forcing at El Tatio are important, if not dominant factors shaping the morphology of these digitate structures. Our study sheds light on the relative contributions of biogenic and abiogenic factors in sinter formation in geothermal systems, with geobiological implications for the cautious interpretation of stromatolite‐like features in ancient silica deposits on Earth and Mars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-strength concrete (HSC) has been widely used in civil engineering. HSC is a kind of multiphase composite material with large dispersion. In order to improve the safety of structure or component design, it is of great significance to study the variability of HSC mechanical properties and its variation with time. This paper carries out experimental research on the time-varying properties of C80 fly ash HSC under standard curing conditions, and analyzes the influence of curing time and fly ash content on the mean value and variation coefficient of compressive strength. Based on the compressible packing model (CPM), a compressive strength calculation model of fly ash HSC is established. Because the aggregate distribution characteristics have great influence on strength, the maximum paste thickness is analyzed based on the random aggregate model, a computational model for compressive strength of fly ash HSC considering the randomness of maximum paste thickness is presented further. The results show that the compressive strength values predicted by the proposed model have the same variation rule with predictive values of models in codes containing different fly ash content at different age, and the predictive values of models in codes are all in the prediction range of the proposed model with a 95% guarantee rate. This proposed model not only has a good calculation accuracy, but also has a certain prediction confidence interval, which provides a certain theoretical basis for the random prediction of the compressive strength of high-strength concrete. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The evolution of the western Kunlun‐Pamir region involved the opening and closing of several branches of the Paleo‐Tethys Ocean, although the specific timing of these events is poorly constrained. Here, we present a synthesis of sedimentary, magmatic, and metamorphic records associated from the Mazar‐Kangxiwa suture zone in the western Kunlun‐Pamir that is generally regarded as the main Paleo‐Tethys Ocean suture. These data show that the Paleo‐Tethyan oceanic basin opened at ca. 340 Ma and closed by ca. 250 Ma, and there is no record of a magmatic arc between ca. 300–250 Ma. The absence of a magmatic arc was a result of oceanic crust underthrusting, rather than oceanic subduction, which is consistent with a narrow back‐arc basin. Our study provides an important example of how an oceanic basin opened and closed without oceanic subduction, and highlights a potential mechanism to account for the absence of a magmatic arc. Plain Language Summary: The closure of oceanic basins is generally believed to result from oceanic subduction associated with development of arc magmatism. However, there are no magmatic arcs associated with the closure of some oceanic basins in the Paleo‐Tethys realm. In order to understand the detailed history of ocean basins in the Paleo‐Tethys oceans, we carry out an integrated in situ analysis of zircon U‐Pb age and Hf‐O isotopes, along with whole‐rock geochemistry for sedimentary, magmatic, and metamorphic records from the Mazar‐Kangxiwa suture zone in the western Kunlun‐Pamir that is widely regarded as the main Paleo‐Tethys Ocean suture. Our data reveals that there is no record of a magmatic arc associated with Paleo‐Tethys Ocean closure during the Permian (ca. 300–250 Ma). This Paleo‐Tethyan oceanic basin was closed by oceanic crust underthrusting, rather than oceanic subduction. Thus, not all Paleo‐Tethyan oceanic basins were closed by subduction with development of arc magmatism. We propose that widespread oceanic crust underthrusting accounts for the common absence of a magmatic arcs in oceanic basins of the Paleo‐Tethys realm. Key Points: There is no record of a magmatic arc during oceanic basin closure in the Mazar‐Kangxiwa suture zone between ca. 300–250 MaThis Paleo‐Tethyan oceanic basin opened at ca. 340 Ma and closed by ca. 250 MaOceanic crust underthrusting was a potential mechanism to account for oceanic basin closure and the absence of a magmatic arc [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Effects of particle angularity on the shear strength and dilatancy of breakable granular materials were studied. • Relationship between particle breakage characteristics and particle angularity was found. • Contact forces effected by particle angularity are studied. • Variation of shear strength can be highlighted by the analysis of anisotropies. Particle shape is an important factor that affects particle breakage and the mechanical behaviour of granular materials. This report explored the effect of angularity on the mechanical behaviour of breakable granular materials under triaxial tests. Various angular particles are generated using the quasi-spherical polyhedron method. The angularity α is defined as the mean exterior angle of touching faces in a particle model. A breakable particle is constructed as an aggregate composed of coplanar and glued Voronoi polyhedra. After being prepared under the densest conditions, all assemblies were subjected to triaxial compression until a critical state was reached. The macroscopic characteristics, including the shear strength and dilatancy response, were investigated. Then, particle breakage characteristics, including the extent of particle breakage, breakage pattern and correlation between the particle breakage and energy input, were evaluated. Furthermore, the microscopic characteristics, including the contact force and fabric anisotropy, were examined to probe the microscopic origins of the shear strength. As α increases, the peak shear strength increases first and then remains constant, while the critical shear strength generally increases. Assemblies with larger angularity tend to cause more serious particle breakage. The relative breakage is linearly correlated with α under shear loading. Compared with unbreakable particles, the peak shear strength and the critical volumetric strain decline, and the degree of decline linearly increases with increasing α. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The main purpose of this study was to elucidate the anti-apoptotic effects of curculigoside (CUR) on ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) in a mouse model of cyclophosphamide (CTX)-induced premature ovarian failure (POF). Method: Intraperitoneal injection of CTX (100 mg/kg body weight) induced POF in mice. Thirty-six female mice were divided into six groups: blank group; POF model group; low-dose CUR group; medium-dose CUR group; high-dose CUR group; and estradiol benzoate group. Mice were orally administered for 28 consecutive days. Twenty-four hours after the completion of treatment, mice were weighed and euthanized, and blood was collected from the eyeball under anesthesia. The ovaries were surgically separated and weighed, and the ovarian index was calculated. Hematoxylin–eosin (HE) staining was used to observe follicular development and corpus luteum morphology in the ovaries. Serum levels of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) and estradiol (E2) were measured. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) content and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in ovarian tissue were determined. The GC apoptosis level was measured. Western blotting was used to detect protein expression levels of Beclin-1, LC3, P62, AKT, p-AKT, mTOR and p-mTOR in the ovaries. Results: The results showed that CUR can improve body weight and ovarian index; promote follicular development and reduce follicular atresia; improve FSH, AMH and E2 levels; downregulate MDA levels and restore antioxidant enzyme activity; inhibit the autophagy level; activate the AKT/mTOR signaling pathway; and alleviate GC apoptosis. Conclusion: CUR improves POF by activating the AKT/mTOR signaling pathway, inhibiting autophagy and alleviating GC apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microbial fossils preserved by early diagenetic chert provide a window into the Proterozoic biosphere, but seawater chemistry, microbial processes, and the interactions between microbes and the environment that contributed to this preservation are not well constrained. Here, we use fossilization experiments to explore the processes that preserve marine cyanobacterial biofilms by the precipitation of amorphous silica in a seawater medium that is analogous to Proterozoic seawater. These experiments demonstrate that the exceptional silicification of benthic marine cyanobacteria analogous to the oldest diagnostic cyanobacterial fossils requires interactions among extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), photosynthetically induced pH changes, magnesium cations (Mg2+), and >70 ppm silica. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Finite element analyses on notched beams and axis‐symmetric pipes of power‐law creep materials subjected to combined primary and secondary loads are performed in this work. In view of the characteristics of time‐dependent strain energy density at notches under combined loads, a time‐dependent stress and strain estimation method to address the primary and secondary loads has been proposed by considering the stress ratio between the reference stress devoted by primary stress and the total reference stress. The applicability of the modified method to notched components with different geometrical configurations and load conditions is discussed. Good agreement between the results of inelastic analysis and the modified method is observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multimodal medical image fusion technology has been widely used in various applications of clinical diagnosis, which aims to provide richer information by integrating effective features of multiple medical images. In this article, a novel fusion scheme based on region-preserving edge enhancement is proposed for medical images. The overlapping regions of source images that need to be fused are detected first. Next, according to the different visual features, the overlapping map is divided by Fuzzy c-means (FCM)-based algorithm. Then, different fusion strategies based on visual saliency and texture details are proposed for region-preserving and edge enhancement. Experimental results show that the proposed scheme can effectively highlight the visual features and retain key information. Furthermore, the performance of different medical images also demonstrates that the proposed method can obtain better results than those achieved by some of the state-of-the-art methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Revealing the collapsed morphology of granular columns at different aspect ratios. • The granular column mobility changes regularly with the particle shape parameters. • Exploring the energy and coordination number with shape during the collapse process. Granular flows that are composed of coarse solid particles are common in catastrophic events, such as landslides, rock avalanches, pyroclastic flows, or even turbidity currents. Understanding their complex dynamics is thus a key concern for risk assessment. The goal of the analyses in this study is to investigate the effects of particle shape on two-dimensional granular column collapses via the discrete element method (DEM). Specifically, three different particle shape types are constructed through three shape parameters (i.e., Sphericity S , Angularity α and roughness λ), the granular column mobility R * changes regularly with the evolution of the shape parameters at a specific aspect ratio. We investigate the effects of particle shape on the collapse of granular columns using a method that first selects an extreme shape and then transitions through a series shape evolution. Using this method, particle shape is shown to have an important effect on deposition morphology, energy evolution and the mechanical coordination number. Furthermore, the shape parameters that have the strongest impacts on granular column collapse are shown to be S and α , which can be used as macroscale factors to describe particle shape. Also, λ , which is a microscale factor that describes the particle surface, is shown to have a weaker influence. This study provides useful insights into the fluidity response of particle shape on granular column collapse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the process of land use/cover changes (LUCC) can provide experience on the enhancement of soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks and carbon sequestration potential for different areas. This study is uniquely to divide different ecological functional areas, and originally combine the machine learning method and soil carbon pool dataset for regional comparative analysis, to compare and quantitatively analyze the drivers of LUCC and the changes in SOC stocks effected by LUCC over 30 years. The results show that topography and climate changes are the main drivers affecting LUCC in four natural areas, while soil factors and population changes do not cause significant effects. The total SOC stocks in Qinghai was increased by 71.18 Tg C and 107.19 Tg C in 0–30 cm and 0–300 cm layers, respectively, and the highest SOC stocks within 0–300 cm were in Pastoral area. Desert and Gobi area had the lowest SOC stocks in both 0–30 cm and 0–300 cm layers. SOC stocks increased in both 0–30 cm and 0–300 cm layers only in Sanjiangyuan Natural Reserve, while the Desert and Gobi area showed a decrease in both over 30 years. This study emphasizes the significant impact of grassland changes on SOC stocks, indicating the importance of considering these changes in land management and ecological protection policies. The initial and original SOC stocks of pre-LUCC may influence the SOC stocks in post-LUCC. The response of SOC stocks changes to LUCC was varies in different areas. The heterogeneity of different ecological functional areas is affected by multiple factors and SOC stocks will become more complex among these areas in the future. These findings contribute to the development of ecological protection policies and the enhancement of regional land management strategies. [Display omitted] • We delineated four functional regions and compared differences in LUCC and SOC stock changes on a 30-year scale. • A machine learning approach was used to quantify the differences in the drivers of LUCC within the different functional regions. • Climate change and topographic factors are the main drivers of LUCC, and population change is constrained by natural factors within different functional zones to produce different driver strengths. • All four functional zones have a decrease in SOC reserves due to a decrease in grassland and large areas of bare ground. • SOC stocks increased only in the 0–30 cm and 0–300 cm layers in Sanjiangyuan Nature Reserve, but decreased in other functional areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of particle shape (angularity α and sphericity S), physical properties (shear modulus G p and Poisson's ratio ν p) and particle size distribution (uniformity coefficient C u) on the small-strain stiffness G max were investigated via the discrete element method (DEM) in this study. The G max values were obtained by DEM simulations of drained triaxial tests. Microscopic analysis indicates that G max uniquely depends on two microscale variants, i.e., the mechanical coordination number CN m and contact stiffness between particles. The particle shape effect was only related to CN m. The contact stiffness can be represented by the values of G p and C u. Accordingly, an empirical expression composed of CN m , G p and C u that can predict the G max of granular materials with different particle properties (e.g., particle size distribution, particle shape, and fabric effect) was proposed. The accuracy of the expression has been verified by comparing the data with previous studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of oscillations in gas composition, known as lean/rich dithering, on the performance of a commercial Pd-based three-way catalyst (TWC) for stoichiometric natural gas (NG) engines were evaluated using synthetic exhaust flow reactor experiments. Under simulated NG exhaust conditions, NO conversion was intimately correlated to CH 4 conversion at slightly fuel-rich operating conditions. CH 4 conversion significantly varied with lambda (or O 2 concentration) and depended on the direction of the lambda change. The dynamic CH 4 conversion is likely related to the change of catalyst oxidation state and structures of Pd active sites. The CH 4 -NO cross-over point was found at a rich-biased lambda rather than stoichiometry. Compared to static operation, catalyst performance was much higher under a realistic dithering condition. The impacts of dithering parameters including amplitude and frequency on CH 4 and NO conversions were explored. O 2 dosage is proposed as an effective descriptor of the TWC dithering performance. In the O 2 -dosage space, the performance of distinct dithering parameters collapse, helping to elucidate the fundamental influence of dithering parameters on TWC performance. With the help of O 2 dosage, an optimal operating window leading to high CH 4 and NO conversions was identified. A higher dithering amplitude is required to keep the catalyst in a reduced state for higher CH 4 and NO conversions, while an appropriate O 2 dosage that does not exceed the breakthrough OSC is necessary to avoid excess O 2 that results in NO slip. The dithering amplitude and O 2 -dosage-metric maps provide a new method for studying dynamic TWC performance and identifying optimum operation strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: MicroRNA (miR)-200c has been widely reported to be involved in colon cancer progress. However, the mechanisms of miR-200c in regulating tumor metastasis and growth remain to be fully elucidated. This study aimed to investigate the mechanism of miR-200c targets fucosyltransferase 4 (FUT4) on the proliferation of colon cancer.Methods: The miR-200c and FUT4 mRNA levels in LoVo and SW480 cells were measured by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Further, miR-200c mimic, FUT4 siRNA and FUT4 mimic were transfected into cells, separately. Cell counting kit-8, plate colony formation and transwell assays were used to analyse the cells biological behaviour.. Immunofluorescence was used to analyse the Ki-67 expression Moreover, the Wnt/β-catenin pathway-related proteins were detected by western blots. A double luciferase experiment was performed to confirm the relationship between miR-200c and FUT4. In vivo, tumour growth and Wnt/β-catenin pathway-related proteins were also analysed.Results: In vitro, the expression of miR-200c and FUT4 were negatively correlated in LoVo and SW480 cells (correlation coefficients were - 0.9046 and - 0.9236, respectively). MiR-200c overexpression inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of LoVo and SW480 cells by downregulating FUT4. The Ki67-positive cells and Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway-related proteins were reduced in the miR-200c overexpression and FUT4 silencing groups. A dual luciferase reporting system identified FUT4 as the target of miR-200c. The results in vivo were further confirmed the foundation of cells study.Conclusions: In summary, miR-200c overexpression inhibits proliferation of colon cancer targeting FUT4 to downregulate the Wnt/β-catenin pathway, which promises molecular targets to inhibit metastasis for colon cancer therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the most critical part of a hydropower station, reversible pump–turbines (RPTs) are facing the trend of high parameterization (e.g., high head and high rotation speed) with the rapid development of hydropower, which may cause more detrimental cavitation-induced hydrodynamic forces. Considering that cavitation occurs more easily under pump mode than turbine mode for the RPT, the characteristics and generation mechanism of the hydrodynamic radial force induced by cavitation of a RPT model at pump mode are investigated by computational fluid dynamics and experimental methods. Combined with the shear stress transport (SST) turbulence model, the three-dimensional (3D) unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (URANS) equations are solved to calculate the cavitation flow of the RPT at various cavitation states. The blade loading and the pressure pulsations of the pressure/suction surfaces of the blade are monitored from the inlet to the outlet. Results show that with the development of cavitation, increasing cavitation bubbles covering the blade surfaces lead to the decrease of the blade loading, weaken the regularity of the pressure fluctuation, and increase the amplitude of the pressure pulsation, especially the suction surface. Furthermore, the characteristics of hydrodynamic radial forces under various cavitation states are discussed, and it is found that the values of the hydrodynamic radial forces become larger and the alternating hydrodynamic radial forces are more remarkable with the development of cavitation. Meanwhile, the symmetry of the radial force of the impeller presents a slight change due to the rotor–stator interaction between impeller and guide vanes and the symmetrical structure of the guide vanes. Then, to explore the generation mechanism of the hydrodynamic radial forces, the frequency spectrum of the pressure pulsation and hydrodynamic radial forces are analyzed comparatively. It is found that the hydrodynamic radial forces are affected by the rotor–stator interaction in the initial stage of cavitation, whereas the influence of the pressure distribution of suction surface of the blade increases with the development of cavitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, a gross quality control (QC) procedure is proposed for the Global Navigation Satellite System Occultation Sounder (GNOS) Global Positioning System radio occultation (GPS RO) refractivity data to remove abnormal data before they are assimilated. It consists of a climate extreme check removing data outside the range of the Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate (COSMIC) climate maxima and minima over approximately five years, and a vertical gradient check that rejects profiles containing super-refractions. These two QC steps were applied sequentially to identify outliers in GNOS GPS RO refractivity data during boreal winter 2013/2014. All of the abnormal refractivity profiles and the outliers at each level of the GNOS GPS RO observations were effectively removed by the proposed QC procedure. The post-QC GNOS GPS RO refractivity observations were then assimilated in the Global /Regional Analysis and PrEdiction System (GRAPES) using the three-dimensional variational (3D-Var) system. The impacts of the GNOS refractivity observation on GRAPES analysis and forecasting were evaluated and analyzed using an observation system experiment run over one whole winter season of 2013/2014. The experiment results demonstrated a positive impact of GNOS GPS RO data on analysis and forecast quality. The root mean squared error of GRAPES analysis temperature was reduced by 1% in the Southern Hemisphere (SH) extratropics and in the tropics, and the anomaly correlation scores of the forecasted 500-hPa geopotential height over the SH increased significantly during days 1 to 5. Overall, the benefits of using GNOS GPS RO data are significant in the SH and tropics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to counteract the main lobe multi-false target jamming of radar, a blind source separation jamming suppression method based on channel ratio function is proposed. The cross-polarised auxiliary antenna is used to expand the receiving channel, and the blind signal processing method is used to separate the jamming from the target echo. This method utilises the statistical characteristics of channel ratio function and chooses the time unit with only jamming to process. And it realises jamming suppression and echo extraction. The simulation results show that the proposed method has good jamming suppression performance and is not affected by channel noise and polarisation purity of auxiliary antenna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]