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AbstractPolyetheretherketone (PEEK) implants have emerged as a clinically favored alternative to titanium alloy implants for cranial bone substitutes due to their excellent mechanical properties and biocompatibility. However, the biological inertness of PEEK has hindered its clinical application. To address this issue, we developed a dual-functional surface modification method aimed at enhancing both osteogenesis and antibacterial activity, which was achieved through the sustained release of chondroitin sulfate (CS) and levofloxacin (LVFX) from a biomimetic polydopamine (PDA) coating on the PEEK surface. CS was introduced to promote cell adhesion and osteogenic differentiation. Meanwhile, incorporation of antibiotic LVFX was essential to prevent infections, which are a critical concern in bone defect repairing. To our delight, experiment results demonstrated that the SPKD/CS-LVFX specimen exhibited enhanced hydrophilicity and sustained drug release profiles. Furthermore, in vitro experiments showed that cell growth and adhesion, cell viability, and osteogenic differentiation of mouse calvaria-derived osteoblast precursor (MC3T3-E1) cells were significantly improved on the SPKD/CS-LVFX coating. Antibacterial assays also confirmed that the SPKD/CS-LVFX specimen effectively inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, attributable to the antibiotic LVFX released from the PDA coating. To sum up, this dual-functional PEEK implant showed a promising potential for clinical application in bone defects repairing, providing excellent osteogenic and antibacterial properties through a synergistic approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Disturbance Storm Time (Dst) Index stands as a crucial geomagnetic metric, serving to quantify the intensity of geomagnetic disturbances. The accurate prediction of the Dst index plays a pivotal role in mitigating the detrimental effects caused by severe space-weather events. Therefore, Dst prediction has been a long-standing focal point within the realms of space physics and space-weather forecasting. In this study, a Temporal Convolutional Network (TCN) is deployed in tandem with the Integrated Gradient (IG) algorithm to predict the Dst index and scrutinize its associated physical processes. With these two components, our model can give the contribution of each input parameter to the outcome along with the forecast. The TCN component of our model utilizes interplanetary observational data, encompassing the vector magnetic field, solar-wind velocity, proton temperature, proton density, interplanetary electric field, and other relevant parameters for forecasting Dst indices. Despite the disparity in test sets, our model's forecast accuracy approximates the error levels of the prior models. Remarkably, the prediction error of these machine-learning models has become comparable to the inherent error between the Dst index itself and the actual ring-current strength. To understand the physical process behind the forecasting model, the IG algorithm was applied in our prediction model, in an attempt to analyze the underlying physical process of the machine-learning black box. In the temporal dimension, it is evident that the more recent the time, the more substantial the influence on the final prediction. Regarding the physical parameters, besides the historical Dst index itself, the flow pressure, the z -component of the magnetic field, and the proton density all significantly contribute to the final prediction. Additionally, IG attributions were analyzed for subsets of data, including different Dst-index ranges, different observation times, and different interplanetary structures. Most of the subsets exhibit an IG matrix with deviations from the mean distribution, which indicates a complex nonlinear system and sensitivity of the prediction to input values. These analyses align with physical reasoning and are in good agreement with previous research. The results affirm that the TCN+IG technique not only enhances space-weather forecast accuracy but also advances our comprehension of the underlying physical processes in space weather. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the prevalence and intensity of grasp reflexes and to examine changes in these reflexes after shunt surgery in patients with idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH). Methods: We enrolled 147 patients with probable iNPH. A standard procedure was used to determine the presence of grasp reflexes, and the intensity of these reflexes was assessed using a four-category classification. Clinical rating scales and their correlation with grasp reflexes were also evaluated. Grasp reflexes were reassessed in 72 patients 1 year after surgery. Results: We found that approximately 50.3% of patients with iNPH exhibited a positive grasp reflex. Among these patients, 69% exhibited bilateral positivity, while the remaining patients showed unilateral positivity. Furthermore, the intensity of the grasp reflex was significantly correlated with the severity of gait and with cognitive, urinary, motor, and behavioural symptoms. Surgical interventions led to a reduction (41.7%) or maintenance (30.6%) of the reflex intensity in 72.3% of iNPH patients. The changes in reflex intensity showed significant positive correlations with changes in the number of steps of the Timed Up and Go test and Trail Making Test-A scores but not with changes in total scores on the iNPH Grading Scale. Conclusion: This retrospective study identified grasp reflexes as a highly prevalent phenomenon in patients with iNPH. These reflexes can assist in evaluating the severity of various symptoms, including cognitive, gait, urinary, motor and emotional symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A portable sensing platform with excellent performance was constructed using CoNi-MOF-based chitosan-polyacrylamide hydrogel as a signal amplifier for the detection of adrenaline. [Display omitted] The development of a portable smartphone-based electrochemical sensor for analyzing adrenaline levels in real samples can make a great contribution to the research community worldwide. In order to achieve this goal, the key challenge is to build sensing interfaces with excellent electrocatalytic properties. In this work, microspherical bimetallic metal–organic frameworks (CoNi-MOF) consisting of nanoclusters were first synthesized using a hydrothermal method. On this basis, the catalytic activity of pure chitosan-polyacrylamide hydrogel (CS-PAM) was modulated by adding different amounts of CoNi-MOF during the in-situ synthesis of CS-PAM. Finally, a portable electrochemical detection system based on CS-PAM was established for the detection of adrenaline. A series of resulting composite hydrogels with a large specific surface area, abundant active sites, and unique network structure facilitate the enrichment and catalysis of adrenaline molecules. Under optimal conditions, the analytical platform constructed by using CoNi-MOF-based CS-PAM has the advantages of a wide detection range (0.5–10 and 10–2500 μM), a low detection limit (0.167 μM), and high sensitivity (0.182 and 0.133 μA·μM·cm−2). In addition, the sensor maintains selective detection of the target in the presence of many different types of interferences, and the current response is not significantly reduced even after 60 cycles of testing. We strongly believe that the designed smart portable sensing can realize the accurate determination of adrenaline in complex systems, and this study can provide new ideas for the research of MOFs-based hydrogels in electrochemical analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cu/SAPO-34 is a highly efficient catalyst that can be used in various catalytic fields. However, the use of phosphoric acid during the preparation process exacerbates environmental pollution issues. This article uses aluminum phosphate as a new raw material and uses direct ion exchange to effectively control and reduce pollution in the process of preparing Cu/SAPO-34. A series of physical and chemical properties and catalytic performance of the catalyst were analyzed and studied using various characterization instruments. The results indicate that the Cu/SAPO-34 catalyst has more isolated Cu2+ and Cu[OH]+ sites than the Con-Cu/SAPO-34 catalyst prepared by traditional methods, and exhibits excellent ability to remove NOx in the temperature range of 100–550 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The remarkable efficacy of cancer immunotherapy has been established in several tumor types. Of the various immunotherapies, PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors are most extensively used in the treatment of many cancers in clinics. These inhibitors restore the suppressed antitumor immune response and inhibit tumor progression by blocking the PD-1/PD-L1 signaling. However, the low response rate is a major limitation in the clinical application of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors. Therefore, combination strategies that enhance the response rate are the need of the hour. In this investigation, PT-100 (also referred to as Talabostat, Val-boroPro, and BXCL701), an orally administered and nonselective dipeptidyl peptidase inhibitor, not only augmented the effectiveness of anti-PD-1 therapy but also significantly improved T immune cell infiltration and reversed the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. The combination of PT-100 and anti-PD-1 antibody increased the number of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Moreover, the mRNA expression of T cell-associated molecules was elevated in the tumor microenvironment. The results further suggested that PT-100 dramatically reduced the ratio of tumor-associated macrophages. These findings provide a promising combination strategy for immunotherapy in lung cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article provides a polyphenol-mediated modulation (PMM) strategy for the controllable assembly of hollow hybrid nanomaterials (HZIF-8/PcFe and HZIF-8@PcFe) with different TA (tannic acid) coating thicknesses to detect dopamine, which exhibit excellent linearity range (0.3–200 μmol/L) with a detection limit as low as 0.1 μmol/L (S/N = 3). [Display omitted] Multiple microenvironmental modulation of zeolite imidazole framework-8 (ZIF-8) is expected to solve the long-term intractable problem of low sensitivity in electrochemical sensing. Herein, the metal phthalocyanines with different central ions (PcM, M = Fe, Co, Ni and Cu) were introduced into ZIF-8 by in-situ synthesis method. Then, the hollow composite nanomaterials, HZIF-8/PcFe and HZIF-8@PcFe (HZIF-8, i.e., hollow ZIF-8) with different TA (tannic acid) coating thicknesses (∼11 nm and ∼33 nm) were successfully fabricated by carefully designed polyphenol-mediated modulation (PMM) strategy. Next, the HZIF-8@PcFe electrochemical sensor was constructed for selective and sensitive analysis by selecting dopamine (DA) as the analyte. The TA coating (superhydrophilic state), PcFe (redox properties) and hollow MOF cavity (faster mass transfer) was used as the triple microenvironment modulation of ZIF-8 to enhance the electrocatalytic performance. Under the optimum conditions (pH = 8.0), the linear correlations of 0.3 to 200 μmol/L was obtained for the peak current response, with a detection limit of 0.1 μmol/L (S/N = 3, i.e., Signal/Noise = 3). Meanwhile, the HZIF-8@PcFe electrochemical sensor exhibited excellent interference selectivity, reproducibility and stability, which enabled it to detect low abundance DA in real samples. And the F-test (homogeneity test of variance) and t -test (student's t test) statistical analyses were employed to enhance the accuracy of the actual samples' detection. This work will enlighten researchers working in the field of porous framework composites and open up new paths for the development of hollow MOFs hybrid materials in electrochemical sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synergistic armor-etching (SAE) approach was proposed using natural organic weak acid (tannic acid, i.e., TA) for the controllable assembly of hollow and interpenetrated HZIF-8@MWCNTs hybrid nanomaterial (ZIF-8, zeolitic imidazolate framework-8; MWCNTs, multi-walled carbon nanotubes), which exhibited highly ordered crystal structure and unique morphological characteristics. The SAE strategy not only can rapidly etch solid ZIF- material into a hollow structure (~ 10 min), but also form the TA shell (~ 33 nm) on its surface. Then, the HZIF-8@MWCNTs electrochemical sensor was constructed for selective and sensitive detection of the target molecule (dopamine, DA). A sequence of studies indicated that the fabricated TA coating was capable of promoting the spread of DA into the reactive centers of hollow MOF and MWCNTs, which exhibited outstanding electroanalytical characteristics through the synergistic effect. The DPV oxidation peak of DA was strongest at 50 mV vs. Ag/AgCl reference electrode. Under the optimal conditions, there are two linear dynamic ranges of current response of 0.01 ~ 10 and 10 ~ 550 µmol L− 1 with a detection limit of 0.003 µmol·L− 1 (S/N = 3). Simultaneously, the HZIF-8@MWCNTs electrochemical sensor could detect low levels of DA in real products. The recoveries of the actual sample tests were between 98.2% and 102%, and the relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) of all studies was less than 3.0%. The statistical analyses (F-test and t-test) were employed to demonstrate the accuracy of method developed. This work will enlighten researchers operating in the domain of MOFs composites, accelerating the advancement of electrochemical sensing on the basis of hollow MOFs materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Defects, such as delamination and debonding, are critical to the performance of carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites. In recent years, non-destructive testing techniques have been improved for the inspection of these defects among CFRPs. In this study, an all-optical and non-destructive laser ultrasonic technique with an optical microphone detection module has been presented to detect the artificial subsurface defects among the CFRP composites. A finite element simulation based on the thermo-mechanical coupling model was used to study the process of nanosecond pulsed laser excitation of the CFRP laminate to produce ultrasound and the propagation behavior of ultrasound among the CFRP laminate. A series of non-contact laser ultrasonic testing experiments were carried out to study the flat bottom holes of different sizes via a laser ultrasonic detection system. The artificial subsurface defects were reliably identified by the presented all-optical laser ultrasonic system imbedded in the optical microphone using four feature images. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Male animals may adjust their resource allocations for reproduction and other fitness functions in response to cues from rivals. For instance, adult males increase their investment in sperm for a higher paternity share when they perceive sperm competition risk in their surroundings. In nature, both juveniles and adults may coexist spatially and temporally. Yet, it is not clear how juvenile males of different ages respond to cues from adult rivals and fine‐tune their lifetime investment in sperm production and ejaculation in any insect. Here we used the Mediterranean flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella, which produces both fertile eupyrene and infertile apyrene sperm, to explore this question. We demonstrate that the late, but not early, instar larvae are sensitive to adult male cues. As a response, they produce more sperm before emergence and their resultant adults have shorter mating latency and ejaculate more sperm in the first few matings. When the juvenile stage produces more eupyrenes, the adult stops making these sperm, but regardless of the number of apyrenes produced during the juvenile stage, the adult continues to make them. These findings suggest that the number of spermatogonia for eupyrenes may be limited and that for apyrenes may be flexible. Our results show that the insect does not trade off survival, mating frequency, body size, or testis size for sperm production in response to adult males during the larval stage. Knowledge created in the present study offers insight into the stage‐dependent sensitivity of juvenile males to cues from adult rivals and subsequent lifetime resource allocations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Viable but nonculturable (VBNC) cells are characterized by their loss of culturability, ability to maintain a nonculturable state, and potential to resuscitate. The formation of VBNC cells can occur under a wider range of stress conditions, many of which are moderate and long-term in nature. The VBNC state is primarily found in environmental and food industry settings, but has occasionally been observed in clinical settings. During the induction and resuscitation process, the assessment of viability and culturability are crucial indicators used to accurately determine the presence of VBNC cells. As a unique microbial response to adverse circumstances, the viable but nonculturable (VBNC) state is characterized by the loss of culturability of microbial cells on/in nutrient media that normally support their growth, while maintaining metabolic activity. These cells can resuscitate to a culturable state under suitable conditions. Given the intrinsic importance of the VBNC state and recent debates surrounding it, there is a need to redefine and standardize the term, and to address essential questions such as 'How to differentiate VBNC from other similar terms?' and 'How can VBNC cells be standardly and accurately determined?'. This opinion piece aims at contributing to an improved understanding of the VBNC state and promoting its proper handling as an underestimated and controversial microbial survival strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rapid development of urbanization and industrialization, water contamination has gradually become a big problem. Relevant studies show that adsorption is an efficient strategy to treat pollutants in water. MOFs are a class of porous materials with a three-dimensional frame structure shaped by the self-assembly of metal centers and organic ligands. Because of its unique performance advantages, it has become a promising adsorbent. At present, single MOFs cannot meet the needs, but the introduction of familiar functional groups on MOFs can promote the adsorption performance of MOFs on the target. In this review, the main advantages, adsorption mechanism, and specific applications of various functional MOF adsorbents for pollutants in water are reviewed. At the end of the article, we summarize and discuss the future development direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Male animals often adjust their sperm investment in response to sperm competition environment. To date, only a few studies have investigated how juvenile sociosexual settings affect sperm production before adulthood and sperm allocation during the first mating. Yet, it is unclear whether juvenile sociosexual experience (1) determines lifetime sperm production and allocation in any animal species; (2) alters the eupyrene : apyrene sperm ratio in lifetime ejaculates of any lepidopteran insects, and (3) influences lifetime ejaculation patterns, number of matings and adult longevity. Here we used a polygamous moth, Ephestia kuehniella, to address these questions. Upon male adult emergence from juveniles reared at different density and sex ratio, we paired each male with a virgin female daily until his death. We dissected each mated female to count the sperm transferred and recorded male longevity and lifetime number of matings. We demonstrate for the first time that males ejaculated significantly more eupyrenes and apyrenes in their lifetime after their young were exposed to juvenile rivals. Adult moths continued to produce eupyrene sperm, contradicting the previous predictions for lepidopterans. The eupyrene : apyrene ratio in the lifetime ejaculates remained unchanged in all treatments, suggesting that the sperm ratio is critical for reproductive success. Male juvenile exposure to other juveniles regardless of sex ratio caused significantly shorter adult longevity and faster decline in sperm ejaculation over successive matings. However, males from all treatments achieved similar number of matings in their lifetime. This study provides insight into adaptive resource allocation by males in response to juvenile sociosexual environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virulent Listeria monocytogenes is responsible for listeriosis, a highly fatal foodborne illness that impairs human health. One of the major causes of its pathogenicity is the carriage of virulence factor, listeriolysin O, encoded by hylA gene. Herein, the specificity and conservativity of hylA gene sequences were analyzed, with most conservative region selected. Then, a crossing priming amplification (CPA) assay targeting hylA conservative region was established under an isothermal condition (63 °C) to identify virulent L. monocytogenes within 60 min. Forty-four reference strains including two standard L. monocytogenes strains and forty-two strains of other species were selected to assess sensitivity and specificity. The CPA assay showed strong specificity and sensitivity (genomic DNA at 5.66 pg/μL). The practicality of the CPA assay was further confirmed in four artificially contaminated rice-flour products with limit of detection at 104 CFU/mL. In addition, a PMA-CPA assay was developed to direct detect L. monocytogenes viable cells with rice-flour products as a model system. In conclusion, the developed CPA method has advantages of high sensitivity, specificity and quick measurement in the detection of virulent L. monocytogenes , showing considerably feasible promise for future food safety. • Upon in-depth bioinformatics analysis, specificity and conservativity of hylA were determined. • CPA assay targeting hylA conserved region and producing detectable color change was established. • CPA assay identified virulent L. monocytogenes with high sensitivity and specificity. • The CPA assay was applicable in food samples to detect virulent L. monocytogenes. • A PMA-CPA assay was developed to direct detect L. monocytogenes viable cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Breast cancer is a leading cause of tumor-related death among women around the world, but its pathogenesis is still unclear. Transmembrane protein 189 (TMEM189) is widely expressed in many types of tissues and plays a critical role in tumorigenesis partly through mediating cell death. However, its regulatory function on breast cancer progression and particularly the underlying mechanisms have not been fully understood. In the present study, we found that TMEM189 knockdown significantly reduced the proliferation of breast cancer cells, while its over-expression facilitated the proliferative capacity of tumor cells. The effects of TMEM189 to promote breast cancer were validated in the constructed xenograft mouse models. RNA-sequencing studies subsequently showed that TMEM189 deletion was closely associated with ferroptosis signaling pathway, accompanied with elevated lipid reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, cellular ROS production, malondialdehyde (MDA) and the intracellular iron releases. However, GSH levels in breast cancer cells were highly impeded upon TMEM189 inhibition. Intriguingly, we found that TMEM189 knockdown-induced ferroptotic cell death was considerably abolished after autophagy inhibitor 3-MA co-treatment, as evidenced by the markedly decreased ROS generation and intracellular iron accumulation. Moreover, TMEM189 ablation strongly up-regulated LC3BII and transferrin receptor 1 (TfR1) expression levels in breast cancer cells, whereas down-regulated p62 and GPX4. Importantly, the expression changes of these molecules related to autophagy and ferroptosis were almost diminished in response to 3-MA exposure, along with restored cell proliferation. These findings suggested that TMEM189 could inhibit autophagy to mediate ferroptosis in breast cancer cells. Collectively, all our findings revealed the therapeutic potential of TMEM189 in the treatment of breast cancer. •TMEM189 inhibits breast cancer progression in vitro and in vivo. •TMEM189 dysregulation is associated with ferroptosis in breast cancer cells. •TMEM189 suppression induces ferroptosis in breast cancer cells. •TMEM189-suppressed autophagy mediates ferroptosis in breast cancer cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growing literatures highlight global shifts in education brought by spreading neoliberal values and marketisation. Parallel literatures address parenting styles. Parents, these literatures observe, are increasingly made responsible and/or voluntarily take responsibility for educational inputs alongside mainstream schooling. Much parental investment is in the so-called shadow education sector of private supplementary tutoring. Examining Chinese patterns, this paper notes longstanding high enrolment rates in both academic and non-academic supplementary education prior to government restrictions that brought a sharp marketplace jolt. The paper then employs parental interview data to show the rationales for such investment despite efforts by the Chinese authorities to retain schooling as a fully-sufficient form of education. The strengthened government policy altered the picture, but it seems likely that in the competitive society many parents will still secure supplementary support to manage what they feel to be a precarious environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China's economy is developing rapidly, and enterprises are paying more and more attention to environmental protection in the process of economic development. However, relatively speaking, the environmental awareness of enterprises and employees needs to be further improved. This paper investigates the impact of green human resource management on environmental performance by questionnaire survey. A total of 372 questionnaires were distributed to front-line employees and human resource supervisors, 357 of which were valid. Using descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, regression analysis, and mediating effect test, this paper studies the relationship between green human resource management and environmental performance, and tests the mediating role of employees' work values between green human resource management and enterprise environmental performance. The conclusion of the empirical study has some inspiration for the green human resource management of enterprises, provides some references for the development of relevant theories, and provides practical significance for the green development of enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contact failure as one of primary failures, which occurs between thin film resistance strain gauge (FRSG) and metal measured objective substrate, seriously influences the measurement validity and precision of the strain gauge. In this article, an electrical excitation thermal-wave imaging (EE-TWI) method is proposed for the inspection of contact failure. Equivalent circuits of the contact resistance under an external electrical source are used to identify the location of the contact failure. Long pulse thermography and lock-in thermography (LIT) are experimentally studied on the detection of contact failure. Pulsed phase thermography and principal component thermography in long pulse thermography as well as the amplitude, quadrature component in LIT are desirable to form the EE-TWI feature images, respectively. A graph-based segmentation method is employed to distinguish and localize the contact failure from EE-TWI images. EE-TWI provides a powerful tool for the contact failure evaluation of integrated thin film resistance strain gauge (FRSG) and has a significant potential to ensure the thin FRSG sticking performance and quality with application of mechanical properties measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a predominate cause of microbiological food safety. This study aimed to develop a polymerase spiral reaction (PSR) based assay for rapid and visual detection on V. parahaemolyticus. Firstly, the specificity and conservativity of species-specific target tlh gene were determined. Secondly, targeting tlh and virulence factors tdh and trh , PSR assay was developed and optimized using constructed positive plasmid controls and standard strain. Visualized result determination using fluorescent dye was applied to avoid false positive issues. Thirdly, 44 strains were used for specificity evaluation. Fourthly, pure and mixed species artificial contamination systems were included to test its applicability. In addition, a propidium monoazide (PMA)-PSR assay was set up to determine viable but non-culturable (VBNC) cells. Target tlh gene acquired high specificity and PSR assay was optimized to carry out at 65ᵒC for 1 h. Detection limit of PSR assay in purified genomic DNA, plasmid and artificially contaminated food samples were 5.31–53.1 pg/μL, 100 copies, and 103 CFU/mL, respectively, demonstrating the sensitivity as 100-fold higher than regular PCR. With PMA-PSR assay, VBNC cells were accurately determined without the disruption of dead cells and food compositions. Thus, PSR is applicable in detection of V. parahaemolyticus viable cells and virulence factors. • Targeting tlh , tdh and trh genes, PSR reaction was achieved at constant temperature within 1 h. • Visualized result determination by fluorescent dye was applied to avoid false positive issues. • Detection limit of PSR was 100 copies in pure DNA and 103 CFU/mL in artificially contaminated food. • With PMA treatment prior to PSR, VBNC cells were determined without the disruption of dead cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Socio-sexual environment can have critical impacts on reproduction and survival of animals. Consequently, they need to prepare themselves by allocating more resources to competitive traits that give them advantages in the particular social setting they have been perceiving. Evidence shows that a male usually raises his investment in sperm after he detects the current or future increase of sperm competition because relative sperm numbers can determine his paternity share. This leads to the wide use of testis size as an index of the sperm competition level, yet testis size does not always reflect sperm production. To date, it is not clear whether male animals fine-tune their resource allocation to sperm production and other traits as a response to social cues during their growth and development. Using a polygamous insect Ephestia kuehniella , we tested whether and how larval social environment affected sperm production, testis size, and body weight. We exposed the male larvae to different juvenile socio-sexual cues and measured these traits. We demonstrate that regardless of sex ratio, group-reared males produced more eupyrenes (fertile and nucleate sperm) but smaller testes than singly reared ones, and that body weight and apyrene (infertile and anucleate sperm) numbers remained the same across treatments. We conclude that the presence of larval social, but not sexual cues is responsible for the increase of eupyrene production and decrease of testis size. We suggest that male larvae increase investment in fertile sperm cells and reduce investment in other testicular tissues in the presence of conspecific juvenile cues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pressure is an effective way to improve the thermoelectric performance by optimizing the electronic transport property. However, the increase in the thermal conductivity under pressure limits the improvement of thermoelectric properties. Here, based on the first-principles calculation and phonon Boltzmann transport equations, we find the unusual negative relation between the thermal conductivity and pressure in CuInTe2, i.e., its thermal conductivity along the c direction surprisingly decreases by 49% with applying the pressure from 0 to 7.7 GPa. This anomalous phenomenon mainly originates from remarkably enhanced phonon scattering rates under pressure due to dramatically softened transverse acoustic phonons and low energy optical phonons, which provide more phonon–phonon scattering channels. Our findings reveal the mechanism of decrease in the lattice thermal conductivity under pressure, which could be used for further improvement in the thermoelectric performance synergetically in the presence of pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subalpine vegetation across the Tibetan Plateau is globally one of the most sensitive to climate change. However, the potential landscape‐scale effects of climate change on subalpine forest dynamics remain largely unexplored. Here, we used a forest landscape model (LANDIS‐II) coupled with a forest ecosystem process model (PnET‐II) to simulate forest dynamics under future climate change in Jiuzhaigou National Nature Reserve in the eastern subalpine region of the Tibetan Plateau. We examined changes in the composition, distribution and aboveground biomass of cold temperate coniferous forests, temperate coniferous forests, deciduous broad‐leaved forests and redwood forest under four climate change scenarios (RCP2.6, RCP4.5, RCP8.5 and the current climate) from 2016 to 2096. Our model predicts that by 2096, (i) cold temperate coniferous forests will expand and increase by 7.92%, 8.18%, 8.65% and 7.02% under current climate, RCP2.6, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios, respectively; (ii) distribution of forests as a whole shows upward elevational range shift, especially under RCP8.5 scenario and (iii) total aboveground biomass slowly increases at first and then decreases to 12%–16% of current distribution under RCPs. These results show that climate change can be expected to significantly influence forest composition, distribution and aboveground biomass in the subalpine forests of eastern Tibetan Plateau. This study is the first to simulate forest dynamics at the landscape scale in subalpine areas of the Tibetan Plateau, which provides an important step in developing more effective strategies of forest management for expected climate change, not only in China but also around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC), caused primarily by the human fungal pathogen Candida albicans, results in significant quality-of-life issues for women worldwide. Candidalysin, a toxin derived from a polypeptide (Ece1p) encoded by the ECE1 gene, plays a crucial role in driving immunopathology at the vaginal mucosa. This study aimed to determine if expression and/or processing of Ece1p differs across C. albicans isolates and whether this partly underlies differential pathogenicity observed clinically. Using a targeted sequencing approach, we determined that isolate 529L harbors a similarly expressed, yet distinct Ece1p isoform variant that encodes for a predicted functional candidalysin; this isoform was conserved amongst a collection of clinical isolates. Expression of the ECE1 open reading frame (ORF) from 529L in an SC5314-derived ece1Δ/Δ strain resulted in significantly reduced vaginopathogenicity as compared to an isogenic control expressing a wild-type (WT) ECE1 allele. However, in vitro challenge of vaginal epithelial cells with synthetic candidalysin demonstrated similar toxigenic activity amongst SC5314 and 529L isoforms. Creation of an isogenic panel of chimeric strains harboring swapped Ece1p peptides or HiBiT tags revealed reduced secretion with the ORF from 529L that was associated with reduced virulence. A genetic survey of 78 clinical isolates demonstrated a conserved pattern between Ece1p P2 and P3 sequences, suggesting that substrate specificity around Kex2p-mediated KR cleavage sites involved in protein processing may contribute to differential pathogenicity amongst clinical isolates. Therefore, we present a new mechanism for attenuation of C. albicans virulence at the ECE1 locus. Author summary: Vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC), caused primarily by the human fungal pathogen Candida albicans, results in significant quality-of-life issues for women worldwide. Candidalysin, a toxin derived from a polypeptide (Ece1p) encoded by the ECE1 gene, plays a crucial role in driving disease pathology. In this study, we aimed to determine if genetic variation of ECE1 existed across a collection of C. albicans clinical isolates. Using a targeted sequencing approach, we identified a conserved variant candidalysin isoform. We then constructed isogenic chimeric strains harboring swapped Ece1p peptides or HiBiT tags between representative isoforms and showed impaired secretion with the variant that was associated with reduced virulence in vitro and in vivo. We also elucidated a conserved pattern between key sequences near lysine-arginine cleavage sites involved in Ece1p polypeptide processing by the Kex2p enzyme that correlate with predicted and experimental candidalysin secretion. Therefore, we present a novel mechanism for attenuation of C. albicans virulence at the ECE1 locus that may partly underlie differential clinical outcomes and contribute to the balance between commensal and pathogen at the vaginal mucosa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSCs) are fundamental to the initiation and propagation of action potentials in excitable cells. Ca2+/calmodulin (CaM) binds to VGSC type II (NaV1.2) isoleucine and glutamine (IQ) motif. An autism-associated mutation in NaV1.2 IQ motif, Arg1902Cys (R1902C), has been reported to affect the combination between CaM and the IQ motif compared to that of the wild type IQ motif. However, the detailed properties for the Ca2+-regulated binding of CaM to NaV1.2 IQ (1901Lys-1927Lys, IQwt) and mutant IQ motif (IQR1902C) remains unclear. Here, the binding ability of CaM and CaM's constituent proteins including N- and C lobe to the IQ motif of NaV1.2 and its mutant was investigated by protein pull-down experiments. We discovered that the combination between CaM and the IQ motif was U-shaped with the highest at [Ca2+] ≈ free and the lowest at 100 nM [Ca2+]. In the IQR1902C mutant, Ca2+-dependence of CaM binding was nearly lost. Consequently, the binding of CaM to IQR1902C at 100 and 500 nM [Ca2+] was increased compared to that of IQwt. Both N- and C lobe of CaM could bind with NaV1.2 IQ motif and IQR1902C mutant, with the major effect of C lobe. Furthermore, CaMKII had no impact on the binding between CaM and NaV1.2 IQ motif. This research offers novel insight to the regulation of NaV1.2 IQwt and IQR1902C motif, an autism-associated mutation, by CaM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clostridioides difficile ST37 is an emerging and prevalent multilocus sequence type and represents a lineage of clinical significance. This study aimed to characterize two epidemic C. difficile ST37 strains, CD161 and CDT4. CD161 acquires a chromosome and two distinct plasmids, pCD161-L, sharing high similarity with Clostridium phage, and pCD161-S, while CDT4 has a chromosome and a plasmid pCDT4 identical to pCD161-S. In the chromosome of both strains, three CdISt1-like elements and a skinCd element, which might influence sporulation, were identified. The multidrug resistance of the strains was due to the mutation in 23S rDNA, gyrA, and gyrB genes and the acquisition of ermB, ant6-Ia, aac6'-aph2", and tetM genes. In addition, a distinct pathogenicity locus (PaLoc) with truncated tcdA gene represents the genetic feature of ST37 strains. To our knowledge, this is the first complete genome, both chromosomes and plasmids, of epidemic C. difficile ST37 strains in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A combined theoretical and experimental approach is reported using spectrally windowed lock-in carrierography imaging (lock-in photoluminescence) under variable illumination intensity to provide quantitative contactless measurements of key electrical parameters (photogenerated current density, Jg, open circuit voltage, VOC, and maximum power voltage, Vm) of multicrystalline silicon (m-Si) solar cells in very good agreement with standard electrical measurements. The method is based on a recently developed photocarrier radiative recombination current flux relation which links the optical and electrical characteristics of solar cells. In addition, this approach is shown to yield non-contact all-optical estimates of the solar-cell current-voltage characteristics with the conventional variable load resistance replaced by variable laser intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many studies have been focused on rendering 2D vector elements on 3D terrain, and a series of algorithms have been proposed. Most of these algorithms struggle to provide a seamless overlay between vector elements and an irregular terrain surface. Despite their importance, the physical characteristics of vector elements are often ignored, which distorts the surface of vector elements. For example, if vector elements that represent roads and rivers are simply overlaid on terrain, the phenomena of uneven surfaces and rivers going uphill may occur because of elevation fluctuation. To correct these deficiencies, terrain should be modified according to the physical characteristics of vectors. We propose a local terrain modification method: First, the elevation of terrain covered by vector elements is recalculated according to vectors' physical characteristics. Second, the multigrid method is used to realize a smooth transition between the modified terrain and its surrounding area. Finally, by setting different transition ranges and comparing the visualization effects, rules are given for the selection of a suitable range. After modification, the terrain conforms to vectors' physical characteristics, and the overall relief is undamaged. The proposed method was applied to a CPU–GPU parallel heterogeneous model and demonstrated a high level of performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indole is a signalling molecule produced by many bacterial species and involved in intraspecies, interspecies, and interkingdom signalling. Despite the increasing volume of research published in this area, many aspects of indole signalling remain enigmatic. There is disagreement over the mechanism of indole import and export and no clearly defined target through which its effects are exerted. Progress is hindered further by the confused and sometimes contradictory body of indole research literature. We explore the reasons behind this lack of consistency and speculate whether the discovery of a new, pulse mode of indole signalling, together with a move away from the idea of a conventional protein target, might help to overcome these problems and enable the field to move forward. The role of indole in a wide range of stress responses is explored and explanations for the lack of consistency in the scientific literature are discussed. In view of the absence of a defined indole receptor protein, we discuss a proposal that the cell membrane is the primary target. The accumulation of indole in cell membranes, as well as its ability to pass thorough membranes in the absence of a protein transporter, offer explanations for its promiscuous effects on bacteria and eukaryotic cells. Indole signalling is exerted through one of two modes: a long-lasting but low-level (persistent) signal or a transient, high-level (pulse) signal. Persistent signalling mediates resistance to multiple stresses, including persister and biofilm formation, while pulse signalling has been shown to contribute to E. coli survival under starvation and the regulation of cytoplasmic pH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Male animals usually raise their sperm allocation after detecting sperm competition risk. To date, only a few studies have investigated the cues used by males to sense and respond to rivals. Yet, it is still largely unknown whether males respond to single or combined cues and whether they can increase their lifetime spermatozoal investment after a perception of rival cue(s).Here we postulate that males increase ejaculation and production of sperm after detecting combined cues from rivals, but such response quickly diminishes after the cues are removed. We exposed newly emerged and virgin focal males of the moth Ephestia kuehniella to various rival cues and then permanently removed the cues. We introduced a virgin female to an exposed focal male and an unexposed focal male, respectively, per day and counted the number of sperm transferred by the focal males in each mating and recovered in their body after death.We demonstrate that males significantly increased their lifetime sperm allocation and production after premating detection of either single (acoustic or chemical) or combined cues (acoustic + chemical or acoustic + chemical + tactile) from their rivals with combined cues (acoustic + chemical + tactile) somewhat strengthening such response in eupyrene production.The number of sperm ejaculated by males significantly decreased over successive matings in their lifetime regardless of whether they were exposed to rival cues, but the decline was significantly faster in rival‐cue‐exposed males than in unexposed ones. This suggests that the increase in spermatogenesis cannot fully compensate for that of sperm expenditure in response to rival cues.We show that 10‐hr premating rival exposure was sufficient to maximize males' response in sperm ejaculation and production. The impact of the rival perception on sperm transfer persisted for most of males' reproductive life, suggesting that the moth males have a long‐term memory of sperm competition risk experienced in the early adulthood. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We consider the robust estimator of mean and covariance for incomplete data. • We design two efficient algorithms for the existing robust estimator. • To deal with the small sample regime, we propose a regularized robust estimator. • The regularized estimator gives reliable estimates when the sample size is small. This paper considers the robust estimation of the mean and covariance matrix for incomplete multivariate observations with the monotone missing-data pattern. First, we develop two efficient numerical algorithms for the existing robust estimator for the monotone incomplete data, i.e., the maximum likelihood (ML) estimator assuming the samples are from a Student's t -distribution. The proposed algorithms can be more than one order of magnitude faster than the existing algorithms. Then, to deal with the unreliability and the inapplicability of the Student's t ML estimator when the number of samples is relatively small compared to the dimension of parameters, we propose a regularized robust estimator, which is defined as the maximizer of a penalized log-likelihood. The penalty term is constructed with a prior target as its global maximizer, towards which the estimator will shrink the mean and covariance matrix. In addition, two numerical algorithms are derived for the regularized estimator. Numerical simulations show the fast convergence rates of the proposed algorithms and the good estimation accuracy of the proposed regularized estimator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bimetallic hollow organic frameworks (H-MOFs) have been brought into focus in recent years and are being researched in various disciplines. However, there haven't been many reports of their application in electrochemical sensing. In this study, an innovative 3D hollow nanomaterial that resembles a "chocolate sugar cube" was created using a quick and easy hydrothermal synthesis technique. On this basis, a series of core-shell structured materials (H-MOF@PPy) were obtained by modifying polypyrrole (PPy) on the surface of H-ZnNi-MOF using an in-situ synthesis method. With its substantial specific surface area, distinctive frame structure, and wide range of active sites, H-MOF@PPy can be used to build an electrochemical sensor that can detect norepinephrine bitartrate (NE-B). Under optimal conditions, this assay platform has the advantages of a wide measurement range (0.1–10 and 10–1000 μM), high sensitivity (0.288 and 0.112 μA·μM·cm−2), and a low detection limit (0.033 μM). In addition, the sensor demonstrates high selectivity for NE-B in the presence of other coexisting interfering substances and can be used for over 60 cycles without significant loss of analytical performance. The suggested method was utilized for the measurement of NE-B in actual human serum with satisfactory results. It is firmly believed that our study will pave a feasible way for development of high-performance bimetallic hollow MOF-based electrochemical sensors. [Display omitted] • Hollow core-shell conductive composite materials (H-MOF@PPy) were successfully obtained. • Different thicknesses of PPy and their electrochemical responses to NE-B were investigated in detail. • H-MOF@PPy-40 has both the intrinsic virtues of H-ZnNi-MOF and the high charge collection property of PPy. • The established sensor can detect NE-B accurately and is comparable to the traditional HPLC method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes kernel-based MinMax clustering methods with kernelization of the metric and auto-tuning hyper-parameters which learn the variable weights and adjust the cluster weights automatically. We develop the new objective functions that are obtained from the proposed algorithms to achieve the desirable partition by minimizing the dissimilarity measures with kernelization of the metric. Correspondingly, two additional steps are introduced to k-means algorithms, so that, not only the performance is improved, but also the efficiency remains. More specifically, the proposed algorithms learn two types of weights at each iteration where variable weights identify relevant variables and cluster weights to confine the occurrence of the large variance cluster. Finally, the experiments on ten UCI benchmark datasets corroborate the superiority of the proposed algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Sinusoidal carrier BCTWI for CFRP laminate delamination detection is proposed. • More energy concentration is achieved by cross-correlation matched filtering. • SNR and defect depth resolution are improved by BCTWI. A Barker-coded modulation thermal-wave imaging (BCTWI) with laser as an external stimulus source based on pulse compression technique is reported on carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates delamination detection. CFRP samples with different size and depth flat bottom holes (FBHs) are prepared for providing simulated defects of CFRP interlayer delamination. Three kinds of thermal wave feature images (phase, delay time and peak) are formed and deeply studied on their capability of detectivity. Experimental results indicate that delay time and phase images are relatively suitable modality for low-power active thermography requirement due to insensitive to the various excitation power. BCTWI significantly improve SNR and defect depth resolution in comparison with linear frequency modulation thermography (LFMT). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dioecious woody species often exhibit male-biased sex ratios under drought habitat, which may result in vulnerability in drying soils. However, whether biased sex ratios are associated with sex-specific responses in growth and defence against insect herbivory under drought stress conditions is unknown. We investigated the sexual responses in terms of growth and defence in Populus yunnanensis Dode in response to two water treatments (40% and 100% field capacity). Drought stress reduced the plant growth (e.g., height increment, gas exchange, photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency, and water potential) of both sexes and reduced the leaf water content and defensive performance (increased damaged area by leaf-chewing generalists and decreased leaf contents of total phenolics, condensed tannins, and flavonoids) of the females but not the males. Moreover, female defensive performance was lower than that of the males under drought conditions. Additionally, the plant mortality rate increased for both sexes, and it was higher for females than for males during drought stress in response to all leaf defoliation treatments. Our results suggest that sexual responses in terms of growth and defence to drought are significantly different and that P. yunnanensis females have a lower defence capability than males, which may explain the male-biased sex ratio that exists in the natural population. Hence, this study provides new insight into forecasting population dynamics for dioecious plant species in drying habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The autoregressive (AR) model is a widely used model to understand time series data. Traditionally, the innovation noise of the AR is modeled as Gaussian. However, many time series applications, for example, financial time series data, are non-Gaussian, therefore, the AR model with more general heavy-tailed innovations is preferred. Another issue that frequently occurs in time series is missing values due to system data record failure or unexpected data loss. Although there are numerous works about Gaussian AR time series with missing values, as far as we know, there does not exist any work addressing the issue of missing data for the heavy-tailed AR model. In this paper, we consider this issue for the first time, and propose an efficient framework for parameter estimation from incomplete heavy-tailed time series based on a stochastic approximation expectation maximization coupled with a Markov Chain Monte Carlo procedure. The proposed algorithm is computationally cheap and easy to implement. The convergence of the proposed algorithm to a stationary point of the observed data likelihood is rigorously proved. Extensive simulations and real datasets analyses demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silent mating type information regulation 2 homolog-1 (SIRT1) is involved in a wide range of cellular processes because of its role as a deacetylated histone and its association with a variety of transcription factors. SIRT1 has essential roles in autophagy, including in the formation of autophagic vacuoles and the assembly of autophagy-related gene (ATG) protein complexes. The present study focused on the role of SIRT1 in autophagy in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced mouse type II alveolar epithelial cells (AECII). We designed experiments using SIRT1-overexpressing mice and wild-type mice, and AECII were isolated from these two types of mouse for in vitro LPS injury trials. Our results suggest that levels of the autophagy proteins, Beclin1 and LC3B, as well as those of the inflammatory factors, IL-6 and TNF-α, were increased in LPS-induced mouse AECII, and that SIRT1 protected against damage in mice with acute respiratory distress syndrome and in mouse AECII in vitro following LPS treatment. Subsequently, we screened multiple inflammatory, apoptotic, and unclassified genes (including Atg7), which interacted with SIRT1 in LPS-injured mouse AECII, as assessed by mRNA microarray analysis. These results demonstrate that LPS can reduce the levels of SIRT1 and ATG7 in vivo and in vitro and indicate that SIRT1 is involved in autophagy through regulation of ATG7 in AECII in response to LPS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Objectives This study focused on the comparative genomic analyses of two qnrVC6 carrying Pseudomonas spp. strains which might give us insights on the similarity and difference in the genomic contexts of qnrVC6 gene. Methods Comparative genomic analyses of the novel qnrVC6 carrying Pseudomonas spp. genomes with emphasis on their antimicrobial resistance genes and virulence factors were performed. Results Most Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways, Clusters of Orthologous Groups of proteins (COG) categories, and (Gene Ontology) GO terms are shared by both genomes. Although qnrVC6 gene is responsible for the increase of quinolone resistance in both strains, but it duplicated in P. putida strain Guangzhou-Ppu420. And the resistance to β-lactams and aminoglycosides are dependent on different genes. Sharing some adherence, antiphagocytosis, and iron uptake related genes with P. putida strain Guangzhou-Ppu420, P. aeruginosa strain Guangzhou-Pae617 specifically acquires biosurfactant, pigment, protease, regulation, secretion system, and toxin related virulence factors. Conclusions Sharing most KEGG pathways, COG categories, and GO terms, P. putida strain Guangzhou-Ppu420 and P. aeruginosa strain Guangzhou-Pae617 differ in antimicrobial resistance genes and virulence factors. Highlights • Two Pseudomonas spp. strains differ in antimicrobial resistance genes and virulence factors. • QnrVC6 is responsible for quinolone resistance in both strains, but it duplicated in P. putida. • The resistance to β-lactams and aminoglycosides are dependent on different genes. • P. aeruginosa specifically acquires some toxin related virulence factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food safety issues caused by food-borne pathogenic microorganisms during low-temperature food storage have attracted broad attention. In the current study, Staphylococcus aureus cells in planktonic and different stages of biofilm formation were inoculated into four types of quick-frozen rice and flour products. The changes in culturable cell number of S. aureus in the artificially contaminated food samples stored at 4 °C and −20 °C were recorded for 60 days. Next, the PMA-qPCR method was used to explore the viable cell number and determine whether low temperature induced S. aureus enter into the viable but non-culturable (VBNC) state. Finally, the expression changes of enterotoxin gene seb in S. aureus were determined by RT-qPCR during food sample storage. Results showed that the culturable cell number of S. aureus was not significantly changed during 60 days except for the decreased culturable cell number in the 8 h biofilm cells in MF stored at −20 °C. In addition, S. aureus cells did not enter into the VBNC state during low temperature storage. Moreover, the seb gene was continuously expressed in most samples although with difference in expression level. The findings provided an alert for the risk of S. aureus contamination in quick-frozen rice and flour products. • S. aureus planktonic and biofilm cells survival was examined in quick-frozen food model. • The persistence of S. aureus in rice and flour products at low temperatures was recorded in 60 days. • Assessed by PMA-qPCR, the VBNC state of S. aureus was formed in quick-frozen food model. • Overall seb gene expression and stable cell numbers posed risk of S. aureus in quick-frozen food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Escherichia coli O157:H7 is a major foodborne pathogen causing food poisoning. Standard detection method for foodborne E. coli is plate counting, which is time consuming and omits VBNC cells. PSR is an isothermal amplification technique identifying trace amount DNA. However, its effectiveness is influenced by residual DNA from dead cells. This study aimed at designing a PMA-PSR system for accurate determination of viable cells of E. coli O157:H7. Firstly, PSR was optimized in fluorescence indicator, betaine concentration and reaction time. The optimized system could successfully identify rfbE, stx1 and stx2 genes within 45 min at 65 °C. Secondly, sensitivity and specificity were tested in pure culture and different food samples. With 100% specificity, PSR could determine DNA amount as low as 1.12 pg/μL. Thirdly, a PMA-PSR system was designed for accurate determination of viable cells. Cells were treated with 5 μg/mL PMA to remove residual DNA from dead cells. Pretreated cells were adapted to PSR, thus viable cells were specifically detected. Fourthly, the system was applied in food samples with VBNC cells. Viable cells could be accurately determined in accordance with regular assay. In conclusion, the PMA-PSR system was an efficient tool for accurate determination of E. coli O157:H7 viable cells. • The optimized PSR system could determine E. coli O157:H7 at 65 °C within 45 min. • PSR results can be determined by naked eye observation on color change. • PMA-PSR acquires high specificity (100%) and sensitivity (1.12 pg/μL). • PMA-PSR detects viable cells avoiding the impact of dead cells and food component. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrocatalytic CO 2 reduction reaction (CO 2 RR) over Cu-based electrocatalysts still suffered from low efficiency but high energy consumption. In this study, atomic-dispersed Sn-modified Cu nanowires (Cu@Sn NWs) were synthesized for selective electrocatalytic CO 2 RR to CO with an optimized FE CO of 96.4 %. Moreover, formaldehyde oxidation half-reaction (FOR) at MnO 2 /CP anode, replacing water oxidation (WOR), was introduced to build a novel CO 2 RR/FOR system with CO 2 RR over Cu@Sn NWs, to further improve CO 2 RR efficiency and to reduce the energy consumption. Generally, compared with CO 2 RR/WOR system, CO 2 RR/FOR system shows a much higher CO 2 RR performance. Meanwhile, HCHO can be converted to HCOOH at MnO 2 /CP anode with tunable selectivity (50 ∼ 65 %), depending on the applied cell voltage. Specifically, at a cell voltage of 3.5 V, about 97.9 % of HCHO can be removed with HCHO→HCOOH selectivity of about 50 %. Moreover, the working cell voltage and energy consumption can be significantly reduced over CO 2 RR/FOR system, versus CO 2 RR/WOR system. For example, at the current density of − 4 mA/cm2 (FE CO = ∼95 %), the cell voltage is lower by about 270 mV, and the energy consumption is lower by about 8.97 %. Compared with the sum of the energy consumption of a single CO 2 RR and FOR, the energy consumption of the CO 2 RR/FOR system can be reduced by about 47.3 %. When solar cells were used as the power supply, the CO generation rate in the CO 2 RR/FOR system is about 1.43 times that in the CO 2 RR/WOR system, accompanied by the anodic conversion of HCHO to HCOOH with the selectivity of 58.2 %. [Display omitted] • Cu@Sn NWs show excellent CO selectivity. • CO 2 RR/FOR system can selectively reduce CO 2 to CO and oxidize HCHO to HCOOH. • The CO 2 RR performance of CO 2 RR/FOR system is higher than that of CO 2 RR/WOR system. • The pairing of CO 2 RR and FOR can reduce the required energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the intelligent production process of wood products, the classification system of wood knot defects is a very practical solution. However, traditional image processing methods cannot handle it well due to the uncertainty of manually extracted features. Therefore, a lightweight and reliable artificial neural network model is proposed to classify and identify our objective. To solve this problem, a wood knot defect recognition model named SE-ResNet18 combining convolutional neural network, attention mechanism, and transfer learning is proposed in this paper. First, the Sequence-and-Exception (SE) module is combined with Basicblock and is constructed as two modules called RBBSE-1 and RBBSE-2. These modules learn to enhance features that are useful for the current task, suppress useless features, and fuse the output features with the original features. Then, the fully connected layer is replaced with a global average pooling layer, which can effectively reduce the parameters of the fully connected layer in the model. Finally, a SE-ResNet18 was constructed by one convolutional layer, five RBBSE-1 modules, and three RBBSE-2 modules of different channels. The SE-ResNet18 has a higher accuracy (98.85%) in the test set compared to the unimproved model ResNet-18. Compared with the previously proposed ReSENet-18, more SE modules are used in SE-ResNet18 to provide a basis for future training on a larger-scale dataset. Based on the same test set, a comparison with other classical models (such as LeNet-5, AlexNet, etc.) was conducted, and the results validated the superiority of the proposed model. The proposed model achieves the expected objective and provides a new way of thinking for non-destructive testing of wood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital fringe projection profilometry based on phase-shifting technology is a reliable method for complex shape measurement, and the phase is one of the most important factors affecting measurement accuracy. The calculation of the absolute phase depends on the calculation of the wrapped phase and encoding technology. In this paper, a technique of obtaining the absolute phase of multi-frequency heterodyne fringe images using the Hilbert transform is presented. Since the wrapped phase can be calculated from only one fringe image of each frequency, the method does not need phase-shifting. The absolute phase can be obtained from the wrapped phase by applying the heterodyne method. The measurement time and computational complexity are dramatically reduced, the measurement efficiency is greatly improved, and this benefit from the number of images is greatly reduced. The experimental results show that the method presented in this paper performs well in the application, and the accuracy is no different from that of the phase-shifting method while the efficiency is greatly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A method of selective laser melting of ink-printed (SLM-IP) Cu nanoparticles (NPs) for facile controllable fabrication of super-hydrophobic surface structure is reported in this paper. A hierarchical structure composed of micro/nano-scaling copper (Cu) meshing texture was obtained by SLM-IP NPs. The meshing sizes are varied from 0.05 mm to 0.23 mm. By applying the analysis of SEM, XRD, Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope (CLSM), apparent contact angle (CA) measurement and water droplet dynamic behavior analysis, the effects of both mesh size and nano-sized structures on the hydrophobicity were discussed. The results show that the mesh surface fabricated by SLM-IP Cu NPs expresses an excellent super-hydrophobicity with a CA as high as 160° and sliding angle as low as 3.9° with a mesh grid size of 0.05 mm. An apparent CA model for double roughness structure was used to predict the CAs. The calculated CAs show a good agreement with the measurements when the mesh grid size is far less than the radius of water drop. SLM-IP Cu NPs takes the advantages of additive manufacturing and provides a flexible way for the functional surface structure fabrication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a nano-sized amorphous carbon covered surface was fabricated by an additive manufacturing process of selective laser melting of ink-printed (SLM-IP) copper (Cu) nanoparticles (NPs) in ambient condition. This technique synthesizes pure Cu by chemical reduction route using an organic solvent during laser melting. Additionally, the polymer in the solvent was decomposed by the thermal energy, which resulted in the formation of nano-sized amorphous carbon. Consequently, two layers of copper and carbon were fabricated on the substrate of stainless steel which was illustrated by the cross-section SEM. The upper layer of carbon possesses super-hydrophobic and high-light absorptance properties. The reaction products were characterized by the analyze of XRD, XPS and EDS. The contact angle and dynamic behavior of water droplet on the fabricated surface were carried out to demonstrate the super-hydrophobicity. The study provides an easy and flexible method for the fabrication of the functional surface by laser sintering in air ambient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Objectives The aim of this study is to understand the surveillance of Streptococcus agalactiae (GBS) serotype and genotype which help developing specific vaccine for GBS infection. Methods The GBS serotype was determined by strep-B-Latex rapid agglutination method and multiplex PCR assay based on the differences among serotypes. Alleles and multilocus sequence types (MLST) were determined using the GBS MLST Website. Results Four GBS serotypes (Ia, Ib, III, and V) were identified, with serotype III which was intimately associated with purulent meningitis and sepsis, as the dominance. In EOD cases, sepsis and pneumonia showed dominance, but purulent meningitis was dominant in LOD cases. Also, a new ST-17 like type which might be a clone derive from ST-17 and emerge among neonatal disease cases was identified. Conclusions The prevalence of GBS serotype and genotype and their relation with GBS diseases guide the development of capsular polysaccharide vaccine. Highlights • Four GBS serotypes were identified, with type III intimately associated with purulent meningitis and sepsis, as dominance. • In EOD cases, sepsis and pneumonia showed dominance, but purulent meningitis was dominant in LOD cases. • A new ST-17 like type which might be a clone derive from ST-17 and emerge among neonatal disease cases was identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives This study aimed at investigating the enzyme activities and ion concentrations in potential pathogen S.cerevisiae upon ultrasonic treatment. Methods The activities of ATPase and antioxidase were identified by ATPase, SOD, and CAT assay kits following the instructions. Extracellular Ca 2+ and K + concentrations were determined in an atomic absorption spectrometer with calcium and potassium hollow-cathode lamps as radiation sources. Results SOD and CAT activities were enhanced by relatively low ultrasonic power at early time points and reduced to lower levels. Total ATPase, Na + /K + -ATPase, and Ca 2+/ Mg 2+ -ATPase activities were reduced by ultrasonic field, with higher reducing rate at stronger ultrasonic power and early time points. In addition, ultrasonic field disturbed the Ca 2+ and K + balances in S.cerevisiae cells. Conclusions Ultrasonic field resulted in the reduce even the lost of S.cerevisiae cell viability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silver nanowire (Ag NW)/graphene composite films were fabricated on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates using an electrophoresis method, making graphene sheets closely contact with NW networks. As electrophoresis voltage increased from −1 V to −10 V, the transmittance and sheet resistance of the composite film changed in the range of 64.8%–35.2% and 0.98 Ω/sq-6.61 Ω/sq (initial values are 75.7% and 0.77 Ω/sq). Combined advantages of two materials, the stability of the Ag NW film was greatly enhanced due to protection of the graphene layer, and the conductivity of the graphene electrode was remarkably improved ascribed to introduction of the interconnected networks. The areal and specific capacitance of the composite film increased from 1.22 mF/cm 2 to 7.6 mF/cm 2 and decreased from 108.4 F/g to 25.7 F/g at 100 mV/s in a 1 M LiClO 4 solution, as the electrophoresis voltage increased from −1 V to −10 V. Furthermore, the Ag NW/graphene composite film exhibited a good long-term cycling stability with 82.6% capacitance retention after 2500 cycles. Additionally, a symmetric supercapacitor using the Ag NW/graphene films as electrodes exhibited symmetric galvanostatic charge-discharge and similar CV curves under flat and bent conditions, indicating that the fabricated electrode could be considered as one of excellent candidates in flexible and transparent supercapacitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives We previously described the novel qnrVC6 and bla IMP-45 carrying megaplasmid pBM413. This study aimed to investigate the complete genome of multidrug-resistance P. aeruginosa Guangzhou-Pae617, a clinical isolate from the sputum of a patient who was suffering from respiratory disease in Guangzhou, China. Methods The genome was sequenced using Illumina Hiseq 2500 and PacBio RS II sequencers and assembled de novo using HGAP. The genome was automatically and manually annotated. Results The genome of P. aeruginosa Guangzhou-Pae617 is 6,430,493 bp containing 5881 predicted genes with an average G + C content of 66.43%. The genome showed high similarity to two new sequenced P. aeruginosa strains isolated from New York, USA. From the whole genome sequence, we identified a type IV pilin, two large prophages, 15 antibiotic resistant genes, 5 genes involved in the “Infectious diseases” pathways, and 335 virulence factors. Conclusions The antibiotic resistance and virulence factors in the genome of P. aeruginosa strain Guangzhou-Pae617 were identified by complete genomic analysis. It contributes to further study on antibiotic resistance mechanism and clinical control of P. aeruginosa . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to characterise a novel multidrug resistance megaplasmid carrying qnrVC6 and bla IMP-45 from Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain Guangzhou-Pae617 isolated from a patient hospitalised in Guangzhou, China, in 2012. The plasmid pBM413 has a length of 423 017 bp and an average G + C content of 56.41%. A qnrVC6 gene flanked by two copies of insertion sequence (IS) elements IS CR1 , a multiresistance class 1 integron In 786 containing aacA4 – bla IMP-45 – bla OXA-1 – catB3 cassettes, an armA gene, and an aphA7 gene flanked by two copies of IS 26 were identified. To our knowledge, this is the first identification of a qnrVC6 gene in P. aeruginosa . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A culture of stationary phase Escherichia coli cells has been reported to produce copious indole when exposed to high temperature (50°C), and this response has been proposed to aid survival. We reinvestigated this phenomenon and found that indole production under these conditions is probably not a direct response to heat stress. Rather, E. coli produces indole when growth is prevented, irrespective of whether this is due to heat stress, antibiotic treatment or the removal of nutrients. Moreover, 300μM indole produced at 50°C does not improve the viability of heat stressed cells. Interestingly, a much lower concentration of indole (20 μM) improves the survival of an indole-negative strain (ΔtnaA) when heat stressed during exponential growth. In addition we have shown that the distribution of tryptophanase, the enzyme responsible for indole synthesis, is highly heterogeneous among cells in a population, except during the transition between exponential and stationary phases. The observation that, despite the presence of the tryptophanase, very little indole is produced during early exponential phase suggests that there is post-translational regulation of the enzyme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]