Search

In relativistic heavy-ion collisions, the properties of quark–gluon plasma (QGP) and complex dynamics of multi-scale processes in Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) are studied by analyzing the final state produced particles in a variety of different ways. In these proceedings, we present an overview of new detailed measurements of flow, chirality and vorticity by the STAR experiment at Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). Furthermore, STAR's future opportunities for the precision measurements on small systems, fixed-target (FXT) mode, and Beam Energy Scan (BES-II) program are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Multi-particle technique has been used to unravel the nature of the long-range collectivity in small collision systems. A large three-particle mixed-harmonic correlation (or event-plane correlation) signal was recently observed by the ATLAS Collaboration, but the role of non-flow correlations is not yet studied. We estimate the influence of non-flow correlations to the three-particle correlators in pp and p +Pb collisions using PYTHIA and HIJING models, and compare with the ATLAS results. The large non-flow effects from the jet and dijet production is found to be largely suppressed in p +Pb collisions using the subevent cumulant method by calculating the azimuthal correlation between two or more longitudinal pseudorapidity ranges. Depending on the experimental subevent method, however, the non-flow effects may still be significant in pp collisions. Future prospect to measure other multi-particle mixed-harmonic correlators in small systems are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fluctuations of harmonic flow along pseudorapidity, known as flow decorrelations, are an important probe of the initial state geometry of the quark-gluon plasma. The flow decorrelations are shown to be sensitive to the collective structure of the colliding nuclei, as revealed clearly by comparing 96Ru+96Ru collisions and 96Zr+96Zr collisions, which have different nuclear structures. The flow decorrelations in central collisions are mostly sensitive to nuclear deformations, while those in the mid-central collisions are primarily sensitive to differences in skin thickness between 96Ru and 96Zr. Longitudinal flow decorrelations in heavy-ion collisions are a new tool to probe the structure of colliding nuclei. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Wax content was negatively correlated with the incidence of superficial scald. • Wax components of Lupeol, lup-20(29)-en-3-one were significantly higher in the fruit bagged with non-woven fabric. • Overexpression of PbKCS10 increased the wax concentration in 'Chili' pear fruit. Superficial scald is a physiological disorder of fruit, which is easy to occur during long-term cold storage after harvest. Different preharvest bagging treatments (no bagging, polyethylene bagging and non-woven fabric bagging) were used to explore the occurrence mechanism of superficial scald. UHPLC-MS analysis, GC–MS analysis and RNA-seq revealed the influence of the wax of 'Chili' on the occurrence of superficial scald. The wax content and wax components (Lupeol, lup-20(29)-en-3-one, heptacosane, 9-octadecenoic acid, eicosanoic acid, cis -11-eicosenoic acid) were significantly higher in the fruit bagged with non-woven fabric (NWF, with low incidence of superficial scald) than that in fruit bagged with polyethylene (PE, high incidence of superficial scald). Transcriptomics and qRT-PCR data identified a wax synthesis gene, PbKCS10 , which exhibited high expression levels in fruit with low of superficial scald. The results of gene function showed that PbKCS10 reduced the occurrence of superficial scald by increasing the wax formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] We used the sessile drop method to measure the static contact angle. [•] Wettability mechanism of various metal foams and PCFSS was analyzed. [•] Contact angle was increased firstly and then was decreased with increasing porosity. [•] The effect of sintering parameters on the contact angle of PCFSS was also discussed. [•] The PCFSS with maximum static contact angle was obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Valuable information on dynamics of expanding fluids can be inferred from the response of such systems to perturbations in their initial geometry. We apply this technique in high-energy 96Ru+96Ru and 96Zr+96Zr collisions to scrutinize the expansion dynamics of the quark-gluon plasma, where the initial geometry perturbations are sourced by the differences in deformations and radial profiles between 96Ru and 96Zr, and the collective response is captured by the change in anisotropic flow Vn between the two collision systems. Using a transport model, we analyze how the nonlinear coupling between lower-order flow harmonics V 2 and V 3 to the higher-order flow harmonics V 4 and V 5, expected to scale as V 4 NL = χ 4 V 2 2 and V 5NL = χ 5 V 2 V 3, gets modified as one moves from 96Ru+96Ru to 96Zr+96Zr systems. We find that these scaling relations are valid to high precision: variations of order 20% in V 4NL and V 5NL due to differences in quadrupole deformation, octupole deformation, and nuclear skin modify χ 4 and χ 5 by about 1–2%. Percent-level deviations are however larger than the expected experimental uncertainties and could be measured. Therefore, collisions of isobars with different nuclear structures are a unique tool to isolate subtle nonlinear effects in the expansion of the quark-gluon plasma that would be otherwise impossible to access in a single collision system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large anti-correlation signal between elliptic flow v 2 and average transverse momentum [ p T ] was recently measured in small collision systems, consistent with a final-state hydrodynamic response to the initial geometry. This negative v 2 – [ p T ] correlation was predicted to change to positive correlation for events with very small charged particle multiplicity N ch due to initial-state momentum anisotropies of the gluon saturation effects. However, the role of non-flow correlations is expected to be important in these systems, which is not yet studied. We estimate the non-flow effects in pp , p Pb and peripheral PbPb collisions using Pythia and Hijing models, and compare them with the experimental data. We show that the non-flow effects are largely suppressed using the rapidity-separated subevent cumulant method (details of the cumulant framework are also provided). The magnitude of the residual non-flow is much less than the experimental observation in the higher N ch region, supporting the final-state response interpretation. In the very low N ch region, however, the sign and magnitude of the residual non-flow depend on the model details. Therefore, it is unclear at this moment whether the sign change of v 2 – [ p T ] can serve as evidence for initial state momentum anisotropies predicted by the gluon saturation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Superficial scald of pear fruit is a physiological disorder that easily occurs during cold storage and seriously affects pear eating quality and commodity value. It is important to study the mechanism of superficial scald disorder. Our previous study reported that the incidence of superficial scald of calcium chloride (CaCl2)-treated pear fruit during storage was significantly lower than that of untreated fruit. In this study, we found that the accumulation of lignin in CaCl2-treated fruit was significantly lower than that of untreated fruit. The expression of the Pb4CL2 gene in the lignin synthesis pathway was downregulated in the CaCl2-treated fruit. The lignification level of the fruit overexpressing Pb4CL2 was significantly higher than that of the empty vector fruit. Therefore, we speculate that downregulation of Pb4CL2 after CaCl2 treatment plays an important role in CaCl2 inhibiting superficial scald disorder by affecting lignin accumulation in pear fruit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Hypertensive nephropathy is second only to diabetes for the causation of chronic kidney disease worldwide. As the mortality and morbidity of hypertensive nephropathy keep increasing, it is important to elucidate its pathogenesis and develop new treatment strategies. In this study, an angiotensin II (Ang II)-induced renal cell system was established, and the expression of ubiquitin specific peptidase 1 (USP1) in human kidney (HK-2) cells was found to be regulated by Ang II treatment through quantitative RT-PCR and Western blot assay. The detection of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), malondialdehyde (MDA) and lipid reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels revealed that interference with USP1 reversed Ang II-induced oxidative stress and ferroptosis, which was enhanced by overexpression of USP1. Subsequently, USP1 inhibitor SJB3-019A loaded in MIL-100 and PEGTK was modified to fabricate SJB3-019A@MIL-PEGTK nanoparticles, which was confirmed to exhibit excellent alleviation of hypertension-induced oxidative stress and ferroptosis in renal cells both in vitro and in vivo. Our study identified an important pathogenesis of hypertensive nephropathy and SJB3-019A@MIL-PEGTK nanoparticle was used to develop an effective clinical treatment for hypertensive nephropathy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The STAR isobar data of 96Ru+96Ru and 96Zr+96Zr collisions at s NN = 200 GeV show that ratios of observables (R O) such as the multiplicity distribution, p (N ch) , and the harmonic flow, v n , deviate from unity, when presented as a function of centrality, c [1]. These deviations have been attributed to the differences in the shape and radial profiles between 96Ru and 96Zr nuclei. In addition, the ratios R O (x) depend on the choice of the event activity variable x , which could be either N ch or centrality. We estimate the difference Δ R between these two choices, based on the published p (N ch) , as well as those from a multiphase transport (AMPT) model with varied nuclear structure parameters: nuclear radius (R 0), surface diffuseness (a 0), quadrupole deformation (β 2), and octupole deformation (β 3). In contrary to R v n (c) , R v n (N ch) is nearly independent of the analysis approaches, suggesting that nonflow effects are better controlled by N ch than c. The ratios of observables sensitive to the chiral magnetic effect (CME) are also much closer to unity for x = N ch than x = c , indicating that the ratios calculated at the same N ch provide a better baseline for the non-CME background. According to the AMPT results, the dominant parameter for Δ R is a 0 , while R 0 and β n are only important in central collisions. The published p (N ch) is also used to estimate Δ R 〈 p T 〉 for mean transverse momentum, which is non-negligible compared with R 〈 p T 〉 − 1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protosappanin‐A (PrA) and oleanolic acid (OA), which are important effective ingredients isolated from Caesalpinia sappan L., exhibit therapeutic potential in multiple diseases. This study focused on exploring the mechanisms of PrA and OA function in podocyte injury. An in vitro model of podocyte injury was induced by the sC5b‐9 complex and assays such as cell viability, apoptosis, immunofluorescence, quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction, and western blot were performed to further investigate the effects and mechanisms of PrA and OA in podocyte injury. The models of podocyte injury were verified to be successful as seen through significantly decreased levels of nephrin, podocin, and CD2AP and increased level of desmin. The sC5b‐9‐induced podocyte apoptosis was inhibited in injured podocytes treated with PrA and OA, accompanied by increased protein levels of nephrin, podocin, CD2AP, and Bcl2 and decreased levels of desmin and Bax. The p‐AKT/p‐mTOR levels were also reduced by treatment of PrA and OA while AKT/mTOR was unaltered. Further, the effects of PrA and OA on injured podocytes were similar to that of LY294002 (a PI3K‐AKT inhibitor). PrA and OA were also seen to inhibit podocyte apoptosis and p‐AKT/p‐mTOR levels induced by IGF‐1 (a PI3K‐AKT activator). Our data demonstrate that PrA and OA can protect podocytes from injury or apoptosis, which may occur through inhibition of the abnormal activation of AKT‐mTOR signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

□  This research took the large-scale thread whirling system as the object, to study the effect of supporting and holding way on the dynamic response of the workpiece system. Considering the specialties of large-scale thread whirling system and high-speed hard cutting technology, the theoretical dynamic model of the workpiece system was set up based on the Generalized Polynomial Assumed Mode Method after simulating cutting force by Deform 3D. Then, the natural frequency and the dynamic response characteristic were analyzed through solving the dynamic model with the Runge–Kutta method; the effect of hold devices as well as cutting position on the natural frequency of workpiece system were studied; and the vibration suppression capability of system damping and holding stiffness were also discussed. In the end, the large-scale thread whirling experiment was carried out to study the relationships between holding parameter, vibration amplitude and roughness. The results show that floating rests, holding stiffness and system damping play important roles in the vibration suppression during thread whirling process, and it is appropriate to set the holding ratio between 40% and 50% or between 65% and 70% in this case to improve machining quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]