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Multi-beam microwave antennas have attracted enormous attention owing to their wide range of applications in communication systems. Here, we propose a broadband metamaterial-based multi-beam Luneburg lens-antenna with low polarization sensitivity. The lens is constructed from additively manufactured spherical layers, where the effective permittivity of the constituting elements is obtained by adjusting the ratio of dielectric material to air. Flexible microstrip patch antennas operating at different frequencies are used as primary feeds illuminating the lens to validate the radiation features of the lens-antenna system. The proposed Luneburg lens-antenna achieves ±72° beam scanning angle over a broad frequency range spanning from 2 GHz to 8 GHz and presents a gain between 15.3 dBi and 22 dBi, suggesting potential applications in microwave- and millimeter-wave mobile communications, radar detection and remote sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food safety inspections are an essential aspect of food safety monitoring. Rapid, accurate, and low-cost food analysis can considerably increase the efficiency of food safety inspections. The lateral flow immunochromatographic assay (LFIA) technique has recently grown in popularity due to its ease of use and high efficiency. It is currently commonly utilized in food inspection. In this review, we briefly introduce the principle and classification of LFIA, critically discuss the recent application status of LFIA in food contaminantion detection, and finally propose that artificial intelligence and information technology will further advance the development of LFIA in the field of food safety monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AlCrFeNi multi-component alloys with excellent mechanical properties have been designed and extensively investigated in recent years. The massive fabrication of sheets will be an effective way for industrial application, where hot rolling is the inevitable process. After hot rolling, the mechanical properties could be further tailored. In this study, the effects of heat treatments on a dual-phase Al17Cr10Fe36Ni36Mo1 hot-rolled plate were systematically investigated, including: (i) annealing (700 °C, 850 °C, 1000 °C and 1150 °C for 1 h, respectively), (ii) solution and single aging (1150 °C for 1 h and 700 °C for 4 h), (iii) solution and double aging (1150 °C for 1 h, 700 °C for 4 h and 650 °C for 1 h). The B2 precipitates with varied morphologies were observed in the FCC matrix of the hot-rolled alloy after a heat treatment range from 700 °C to 1000 °C for 1 h, and the BCC particles in the B2 matrix were dissolved when the heat treatment temperature was higher than 1000 °C. The hot-rolled alloy heat treated at 700 °C for 1 h had the highest yield strength, and the hot-rolled alloy treated at 1150 °C for 1 h showed the lowest yield strength. After a solution at 1150 °C for 1 h, aging at 700 °C for 4 h and 650 °C for 1 h, the L12 phase and BCC particles were precipitated in the FCC and B2 matrices, and B2 nanoprecipitates were observed around the FCC grain boundaries. The solution and double aging alloy exhibit the tensile strength of 1365.7 ± 9.5 MPa, a fracture elongation of 14.2 ± 1.5% at 20 °C, a tensile strength of 641.4 ± 6.0 MPa, and a fracture elongation of 16.9 ± 1.0% at 700 °C, showing great potential for application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To further clarify the impact of different rootstocks in grafted blueberry, fruit quality, mineral contents, and leaf gas exchange were investigated in 'O'Neal' blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) grafted onto 'Anna' (V. corymbosum) (AO), 'Sharpblue' (V. corymbosum) (SO), 'Baldwin' (V. virgatum) (BO), 'Plolific' (V. virgatum) (PO), and 'Tifblue' (V. virgatum) (TO) rootstocks and own-rooted 'O'Neal' (NO), and differences in anatomic structures and drought resistance were determined in AO, TO, and NO. The findings revealed that fruit quality in TO and PO was excellent, that of BO and SO was good, and that of AO and NO was medium. 'Tifblue' and 'Plolific' rootstocks significantly increased the levels of leaf phosphorus and net photosynthetic rate of 'O'Neal', accompanied by a synchronous increase in their transpiration rates, stomatal conductance, and intercellular CO2. Additionally, the comprehensive evaluation scores from a principal component analysis based on anatomic structure traits from high to low were in the order TO > AO > NO. The P50 (xylem water potential at 50% loss of hydraulic conductivity) values of these grafted plants descended in the order NO > AO > TO, and the branch hydraulic conductivity of TO and sapwood hydraulic conductivity of TO and AO were significantly lower than those of NO. Thus, TO plants exhibited the strongest drought resistance, followed by AO, and NO, and this trait was related to the effects of different rootstocks on the fruit quality of 'O'Neal' blueberry. These results provided a basis for a deeper understanding of the interaction between rootstocks and scions, as well mechanisms to improve blueberry fruit quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Concrete is a versatile material widely used in modern construction. However, concrete is also subject to freeze–thaw damage, which can significantly reduce its mechanical properties and lead to premature failure. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the laboratory performance and freeze–thaw damage characteristics of a common mix proportion of concrete based on compressive mechanical tests and acoustic technologies. Freeze–thaw damage characteristics of the concrete were evaluated via compressive mechanical testing, mass loss analysis, and ultrasonic pulse velocity testing. Acoustic emission (AE) technology was utilized to assess the damage development status of the concrete. The outcomes indicated that the relationships between cumulative mass loss, compressive strength, and ultrasonic wave velocity and freeze–thaw cycles during the freezing–thawing process follow a parabola fitting pattern. As the freeze–thaw damage degree increased, the surface presented a trend of "smooth intact surface" to "surface with dense pores" to "cement mortar peeling" to "coarse aggregates exposed on a large area". Therefore, there was a rapid decrease in the mass loss after a certain number of freeze–thaw cycles. According to the three stages divided by the stress–AE parameter curve, the linear growth stage shortens, the damage accumulation stage increases, and the failure stage appears earlier with the increase in freeze–thaw cycles. In conclusion, the application of a comprehensive understanding of freeze–thaw damage characteristics of concrete based on compressive properties and acoustic parameters would enhance the evaluation of the performance degradation and damage status for concrete structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice production in the Anhui province is threatened by fungal diseases. We obtained twenty-five fungal isolates from rice and wild rice leaves showing leaf spot disease collected along the Yangtze River. A phylogenetic analysis based on internal transcribed spacer (ITS), translation elongation factor 1 alpha (TEF1-α), and beta tubulin (TUB2) sequences revealed one isolate (SS-2-JB-1B) grouped with Nigrospora sphaerica, one (QY) with Nigrospora chinensis, twenty-two with Nigrospora oryzae, and one isolate (QY-2) grouped in its own clade, which are related to but clearly different from N. oryzae. Nineteen tested isolates, including sixteen strains from the N. oryzae clade and the three isolates of the other three clades, caused disease on detached rice leaves. The three isolates that did not belong to N. oryzae were also able to cause disease in rice seedlings, suggesting that they were rice pathogens. Isolate QY-2 differed from the other isolates in terms of colony morphology, cell size, and susceptibility to fungicides, indicating that this isolate represents a new species that we named Nigrospora anhuiensis. Our analysis showed that N. sphaerica, N. chinensis, and the new species, N. anhuiensis, can cause rice leaf spot disease in the field. This research provides new knowledge for understanding rice leaf spot disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing use of the strategy and group target attack method in the modern battlefield, multi-target inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) imaging simultaneously with high efficiency draws more and more attention, which gives a promising prospect for aerospace target detection and recognition in the multi-target scenario. To overcome the shortcomings of traditional multi-target imaging with one beam at one pulse repetition time (PRT) based on phase array radar (PAR), this paper proposes a novel multi-target imaging waveform design method based on the newly full digital array radar (DAR). Firstly, we propose using radar waveform diversity with 2D orthogonality to realize multi-target ISAR imaging with high imaging quality and efficiency. Then, to meet the constant modulus requirement for maximizing the transmitting power, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) chirp theory is proposed to directly generate the transmit waveform instead of the traditional optimization method with the nonconvex problem for waveform design. Based on time-variant weighted and time diversity technology, a of group transmit waveforms is designed, which can form multiple beams simultaneously and make the signals arriving at different targets approximately orthogonal. Finally, simulations and experiments are carried out to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The multiple-input multiple-output synthetic aperture radar (MIMO SAR) system has developed rapidly since its discovery. At the same time, the low-disturbance and high-gain requirements of the MIMO system are continuing to increase. Through the application of digital beamforming (DBF) techniques, the multidimensional waveform encoding (MWE) technique can play a key role in MIMO systems, which can greatly improve the system's performance, especially the multi-mission capability of radar. Intrapulse beamsteering in elevation is a typical form of multi-dimensional waveform encoding which can greatly improve the transmitting efficiency and multi-mission performance of radar. However, because of the high sensitivity of the DBF technique to height, there is significant deterioration in performance in the presence of terrain undulations. The OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) technique is widely used in communication. Due to the similarity of radar and communication systems and the great waveform diversity of OFDM signals, the OFDM radar has recently begun to emerge as a new radar system, simultaneously, the orthogonality of OFDM signals is in the time and frequency domains, and is not affected by terrain undulation. So, this paper proposes a novel radar mode combining intrapulse beamsteering in elevation and OFDM-Chirp signals, that is, the combination of "beam orthogonality" and "waveform orthogonality", which can greatly improve the performance and fault tolerance to interference signals. In this manuscript, the system working mode and signal processing flow are introduced in detail, and simulations for both point targets and distributed targets are carried out to verify the feasibility of the proposed mode. Simultaneously, a comparison experiment is carried out, which shows the high level of fault tolerance to terrain undulation and the high potential of the proposed radar mode in Earth observation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) have been deteriorating global water bodies, and the accurate prediction of algal dynamics using the modelling method is a challenging research area. High-frequency monitoring and deep learning technology have opened up new horizons for HAB forecasting. However, the non-stationary and stochastic process behind algal dynamics monitoring largely limits the prediction performance and the early warning of algal booms. Through an analysis of the published literature, we found that decomposition methods are widely used in time-series analysis for hydrological processes. Predictions of ecological indicators have received less attention due to their inherent fluctuations. This study explores and demonstrates the predictive enhancement for chlorophyll fluorescence data based on the coupling of three decomposition algorithms with conventional deep learning models: the convolutional neural network (CNN) and long short-term memory (LSTM). We found that the decomposition algorithms can successfully capture the time-series patterns of chlorophyll fluorescence concentrations. The results indicate that decomposition-based models can enhance the accuracy of single models in predicting chlorophyll concentrations in terms of the improvement percentages in RMSE (with increases ranging from 25.7% to 71.3%), MAE (ranging from 28.3% to 75.7%), and R2 values (increasing ranging from 14.8% to 34.8%). In addition, the comparison experiment for different decomposition methods might suggest the superiority of singular spectral analysis in hourly predictive tasks of chlorophyll fluorescence over the wavelet transform and empirical mode decomposition models. Overall, while decomposition methods come with their respective strengths and weaknesses, they are undeniably efficient in combination with deep learning models in dealing with the high-frequency monitoring of chlorophyll fluorescence data. We also suggest that model developers pay more attention to online data preprocessing and conduct comparative analyses to determine the best model combinations for forecasting algal blooms and water management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dual-phase high-entropy alloys with excellent room temperature and high-temperature properties have been widely studied as potential high-temperature structural materials. However, interface weakening causes its high-temperature performance to decline at higher temperatures, severely limiting further development. In this study, a series of Al17Cr10Fe36Ni36Mo1Hfx (x = 0, 0.03, 0.15, 0.3, 0.5, and 0.8 at%) alloys were prepared to study the effect of Hf content on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the matrix alloy. The results indicate that with the addition of the Hf, the Hf-rich phase began to precipitate at the interface and inside the B2 phase in the matrix alloy. In contrast, the morphology of both the FCC and B2 phases had no noticeable change. With the increase in Hf content, the high-temperature strength and ductility of the alloy first increased and then decreased, while the room temperature performance remained almost unchanged. Benefiting from the hindrance of the Hf-rich phase to grain boundary sliding and dislocation movement during high-temperature deformation, the tensile strength, yield strength, and plasticity of the matrix alloy increased from 474 MPa, 535 MPa, and 8.7% to 816 MPa, 923 MPa, and 42.0% for the Al17Cr10Fe36Ni36Mo1Hf0.5 alloys, respectively. This work provides a new path for designing a high-entropy alloy with excellent high-temperature mechanical properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The detector array method has been widely used in the field of high-energy laser far-field spot parameter measurement due to its ability to directly measure the far-field spot of high-energy lasers, wide dynamic range of the detectors, high system sampling frequency, good real-time performance, and suitability for various testing environment requirements. However, during the measurement process, the irradiation of strong lasers or damage to other hardware systems can result in invalid points in the acquired spot images, thereby reducing the measurement accuracy of the system. In order to achieve accurate measurement of laser far-field spot parameters, this paper establishes an experimental model based on the analysis of the sampling spacing of the detector array target and proposes a laser far-field spot invalid point repair algorithm based on image correlation coefficient. Experimental results demonstrate that the algorithm proposed in this paper effectively reduces the impact of invalid points in the measurement system on the measurement accuracy, and achieves accurate measurement of high-energy laser measurement systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neuroblastoma (NB) is known as the "king of childhood tumors" due to its highly metastatic, recurrence-prone, and difficult-to-treat characteristics. International Neuroblastoma Risk Grading Group (INRG) has recommended GD2, a disialoganglioside expressed on neuroectodermal tumor cells, as the target for detecting minimal residual disease in bone marrow metastases of high-risk neuroblastoma in children. Therefore, accurately identifying GD2-positive cells is crucial for diagnosing children with high-risk NB. Here, we designed a graphene/AuNP/GD2 Ab-functionalized electrochemical biosensor for GD2 detection. A three-electrode system was processed using a screen-printed technique with a working electrode of indium tin oxide, a counter electrode of carbon, and a reference electrode of silver/silver chloride. Graphene/AuNPs were modified on the indium tin oxide electrode using chronoamperometric scans, and then, the GD2 antibody was modified on the biosensor by electrostatic adsorption to achieve sensitive and specific detection of GD2-positive cells in bone marrow fluid. The results showed that a graphene/AuNP/GD2 Ab-functionalized electrochemical biosensor achieved GD2-positive cell detection in the range of 102 cells/mL~105 cells/mL by differential pulse voltammetry. Bone marrow fluid samples from 12 children with high-risk NB were retained for testing on our biosensor and showed 100% compliance with the clinical application of the gold-standard immunocytochemical staining technique for detecting GD2-positive cells qualitatively. The GD2-based electrochemical assay can accurately detect children with high-risk NB, providing a rapidly quantitative basis for clinical diagnosis and treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Allelopathy has garnered considerable attention, but the effects of different allelochemicals on invasive plants remain unclear. This study addressed the knowledge gap surrounding allelopathy and its impact on native and invasive plant species. We focused on the impact of caffeic acid and its derivatives on the growth and competitiveness of the native Lantana indica and the invasive plant Solidago canadensis. We selected three allelochemicals, caffeic acid, methyl caffeic acid, and ethyl caffeic acid, for evaluation at two concentrations (0.1 mM and 1.0 mM). Three planting methods were employed: (1) a single species of S. canadensis, (2) a single species of L. indica, and (3) a combination of S. canadensis and L. indica. In addition, a control group was also included. Results revealed that high concentrations (1 mM) of methyl caffeate (MC) and ethyl caffeate (EC) significantly reduced seed germination rate, seed germination index, and seed germination speed index of L. indica compared to a low concentration (0.1 mM). Plant height, stem diameter, biomass, and root length in the control group (CK) of S. canadensis were significantly higher than those in the treated groups. However, with increasing allelochemical concentration, L. indica's relative competitiveness gradually decreased. These findings provide insights into the concentration-dependent effects of allelopathic compounds on the growth of L. indica and S. canadensis. By analyzing how these allelochemicals influence the growth and competitiveness of native and invasive plants, the study sheds light on the dynamics of allelochemical interactions between these species. This knowledge can be pivotal for understanding plant competition dynamics in ecosystems and could inform strategies to control invasive species or promote native plant growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of low-sodium salt substitute (LSSS) has the potential to reduce sodium and increase potassium intake. LSSS has been available in the Chinese market for years. However, its real-world use and impact on sodium/potassium intake is unclear. Baseline data of 4000 adult individuals who participated in three similarly designed randomized controlled trials were pooled together for this analysis. Self-reported awareness and use of LSSS were collected using a standardized questionnaire, and the participants' 24-h urinary sodium and potassium excretion was used to estimate their dietary intake. Mixed-effects models were developed to assess the relationship between LSSS and 24-h urinary sodium and potassium excretion. 32.0% of the participants reported awareness of LSSS and 11.7% reported its current use. After adjusting for location, sex, age, and education, compared with the group of participants unaware of LSSS, participants who were aware of but not using LSSS and those who were using LSSS had a lower 24-h urinary sodium excretion by −356.1 (95% CI: −503.9, −205.9) mg/d and −490.6 (95% CI: −679.2, −293.7) mg/d, respectively (p < 0.001). No significant difference was found for 24-h urinary potassium excretion or sodium-to-potassium ratio among the three groups (p > 0.05). In conclusion, the findings of low usage of LSSS and the reduced urinary sodium excretion associated with the awareness and use of LSSS provide further support for the prometon of LSSS as a key salt reduction strategy in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nobiletin is a natural product with multiple physiological activities and is the main ingredient of Pericarpium Citri Reticulatae. We successfully discovered that nobiletin exhibits aggregation induced emission enhancement (AIEE) properties and it has significant advantages such as a large Stokes shift, good stability and excellent biocompatibility. The increase in methoxy groups endows nobiletin a greater fat-solubility, bioavailability and transport rate than the corresponding unmethoxylated flavones. Ulteriorly, cells and zebrafish were used to explore the application of nobiletin in biological imaging. It emits fluorescence in cells and is specifically targeted at mitochondria. Moreover, it has a noteworthy affinity for the digestive system and liver of zebrafish. Due to the unique AIEE phenomenon and stable optical properties of nobiletin, it paves the way for discovering, modifying and synthesizing more molecules with AIEE characteristics. Furthermore, it has a great prospect with regard to imaging cells and cellular substructures, such as mitochondria, which play crucial roles in cell metabolism and death. Indeed, three-dimensional real-time imaging in zebrafish provides a dynamic and visual tool for studying the absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion of drugs. In this article, more directions and inspiration can be presented for the exploration of non-invasive pharmacokinetic research and intuitive drug pathways or mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, aggregation-induced emission enhancement (AIEE) molecules have shown great potential for applications in the fields of bio-detection, imaging, optoelectronic devices, and chemical sensing. Based on our previous studies, we investigated the fluorescence properties of six flavonoids and confirmed that compounds 1–3 have good aggregation-induced emission enhancement (AIEE) properties through a series of spectroscopic experiments. Compounds with AIEE properties have addressed the limitation imposed by the aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) of classic organic dyes owing to their strong fluorescence emission and high quantum yield. Based on their excellent fluorescence properties, we evaluated their performance in the cell and we found that they could label mitochondria specifically by comparing their Pearson correlation coefficients (R) with Mito Tracker Red and Lyso-Tracker Red. This suggests their future application in mitochondrial imaging. Furthermore, studies of uptake and distribution characterization in 48 hpf zebrafish larvae revealed their potential for monitoring real-time drug behavior. The uptake of compounds by larvae varies significantly across different time cycles (between uptake and utilization in the tissue). This observation has important implications for the development of visualization techniques for pharmacokinetic processes and can enable real-time feedback. More interestingly, according to the data presented, tested compounds aggregated in the liver and intestine of 168 hpf larvae. This finding suggests that they could potentially be used for monitoring and diagnosing liver and intestinal diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The characteristics and preparation methods of zeolite-based adsorbents and membranes were reviewed and their applications in gas separation and purification were introduced according to classification. The effects of framework structure, equilibrium cations and pore size of zeolites as well as temperature and pressure of the system on gas adsorption and separation were discussed, and the separation mechanisms were also summarized. The main defects and improved methods of zeolite-based adsorbents and membranes were briefly described, and their future trend for gas separation and purification was finally prospected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The kaolin suspension calcination technology is currently gaining attention as a new process of calcining kaolin. In this paper, the cooling system of the kaolin suspension calcination process designed by CBMI Construction Co., Ltd. is simulated using ANSYS Fluent software to analyze the velocity field and temperature field of the gas–solid two-phase flow using the Eulerian model. A compiled UDF (User-Defined Function) is used to simulate the transfer of mass and heat from the downcomer tube to the different elements. The gas, coming from the gas outlet of the cyclone, enters the next level twin-cylinder cyclone in a spiral state. The results show that the airflow in the cyclone consists of an external spiral flow from the top to the bottom and an internal spiral flow from the bottom to the top. During the downward movement of the airflow, the outer spiral flow is continuously transformed into an inner cyclonic flow. The part of the airflow that rotates close to the inner cylinder is likely to become a 'short circuit flow', which largely affects the separation efficiency and cooling effect of the cyclone. There is evident temperature deviation and flow deviation in the twin-cylinder cyclone, which is primarily due to the high cooling air volume and high rotation of air flow coming from the gas outlet of the previous level's cyclone. The rotation of the air flow is the main cause of the bias temperature and bias flow phenomenon in the twin-cylinder cyclone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A film cooling hole is an efficient and reliable cooling method, which is widely used in aeroengine turbine blades to effectively improve the thrust–weight ratio of the engine. Electrical discharge machining is the most common manufacturing process for film cooling holes. Due to the rapid quenching after high-temperature melting, a certain thickness of the recast layer will be formed in the vicinity of the hole wall. The microstructure of the recast layer is considered to be an important factor affecting the performance of single-crystal blades. Generally, the recast layer has been thought of as one of the main reasons for the failure of turbine blades. Accordingly, the formation of the recast layer is an important and interesting issue to be revealed. In this work, the recast layer formed using electrical discharge machining on a single-crystal superalloy is studied with TEM. It is found that the recast layer is in the state of supersaturated solution with a single-crystal structure epitaxially grown from the matrix, and many dislocations were observed therein. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As a routine procedure in assisted reproductive technology (ART), it is crucial to assess the safety of frozen and thawed embryo transfer (FET). We aimed to investigate the metabolic profile of children conceived through FET in their early childhood. Method: A total of 147 children between the age of 1.5 and 4 years old, conceived through FET or naturally conceived (NC), were recruited. A total of 89 children, 65 in the FET group and 24 in the NC group (matched with the FET group based on children's BMI) were included in the final statistical analysis of biochemical markers and metabolomics. Results: Children conceived through FET had a lower level of fasting insulin level and HORM-IR and a higher level of fasting glucose and APOE as compared to children naturally conceived. Metabolomics showed that there were 16 small differential metabolites, mainly including amino acids, carnitines, organic acids, butyric, and secondary bile acid between two groups, which enriched in Nitrogen metabolism, Butanoate metabolism, Phenylalanine metabolism, and D-Arginine and D-ornithine metabolism pathways. Conclusion: Although the FET group had a significantly higher level of APOE and fasting glucose, it cannot yet be considered that children in the FET group had an obvious disorder of glucose and lipid metabolism. However, the potentially more active intestinal flora and lower carnitine levels of children in the FET group suggested by metabolomics are worth further exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The elastic deformation of the levitation electromagnet (LM) of the high-speed maglev vehicle brings uneven levitation gaps and displacement differences between measured gap signals and the real gap in the middle of the LM, and then reduces dynamic performances of the electromagnetic levitation unit. However, most of the published literature has paid little attention to the dynamic deformation of the LM under complex line conditions. In this paper, considering the flexibility of the LM and the levitation bogie, a rigid-flexible coupled dynamic model is established to simulate deformation behaviors of the LMs of the maglev vehicle passing through the 650 m radius horizontal curve. Simulated results indicate that the deflection deformation direction of the same LM on the front transition curve is always opposite to that on the rear transition curve. Similarly, the deflection deformation direction of a left LM on the transition curve is opposite to that of the corresponding right LM. Furthermore, deflection deformation amplitudes of the LMs in the middle of the vehicle are always very small (less than 0.2 mm). However, the deflection deformation of the LMs at both ends of the vehicle is considerably large, and the maximum deflection deformation is about 0.86 mm when the vehicle passes at the balance speed. This forms a considerable displacement disturbance for the nominal levitation gap of 10 mm. It is necessary to optimize the supporting structure of the LM at the end of the maglev train in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the effects of land use and slope aspect on soil erodibility (K-factor) and the fractal dimension (D) of soil particle size distribution (PSD) in calcareous soils at the watershed scale in western Iran. The study analyzed 113 soil samples collected from four land uses (slope-farmland, farmland, pasture, and woodland) at a depth of 0–20 cm, measuring common soil properties such as soil texture, soil organic matter (SOM), calcium carbonate (CaCO3), pH, and cation exchange capacity (CEC). The PSD of soil samples was measured using the international system of soil size fractions, and the D for PSD was calculated. The K-factor was calculated using the RUSLE model. The results showed that the K-factor was highest in slope farmlands with SOM at 1.6% and lowest in woodlands at 0.02 Mg h MJ−1 mm−1 with SOM at 3.5%. The study also found that there were significant correlations between D and clay content (r = 0.52), sand content (r = −0.29), and CEC (r = 0.36). Woodland soils had the highest SOM content, with a mean D value of 2.895, significantly higher than the mean D value of slope farmland soils, which had the lowest SOM at 1.6%. The study concludes that woodland soils retain finer particles, particularly clay, resulting in lower soil loss and land degradation compared to other land uses. Finally, the study suggests that shady slope aspects (south aspect) contain more organic matter due to less solar radiation and higher soil water content, resulting in lower soil erodibility (0.02 Mg h MJ−1 mm−1) and higher D values compared to other slope aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polygonati Rhizoma, a typical homology of medicine and food, possesses remarkable anti-fatigue, anti-aging, metabolic regulatory, immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, anti-diabetes, and anti-cancer effects. Among bioactive phytochemicals in Polygonati Rhizoma, polysaccharides play important roles in the health-promoting activities through the mechanisms mentioned above and potential synergistic effects with other bioactives. In this review, we briefly introduce the updated biosynthesis of polysaccharides, the purification method, the structure characterization, and food applications, and discuss in detail the biological activities of Polygonati Rhizoma polysaccharides and associated mechanisms, aiming at broadening the usage of Polygonati Rhizoma as functional food and medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The imbalance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and clearance causes oxidative stress and ROS, which play a central role in regulating cell and tissue physiology and pathology. Contingent upon concentration, ROS influence cancer development in contradictory ways, either stimulating cancer survival and growth or causing cell death. Cells developed evolutionarily conserved programs to sense and adapt redox the fluctuations to regulate ROS as either signaling molecules or toxic insults. The transcription factor nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2)-KEAP1 system is the master regulator of cellular redox and metabolic homeostasis. NRF2 has Janus-like roles in carcinogenesis and cancer development. Short-term NRF2 activation suppresses tissue injury, inflammation, and cancer initiation. However, cancer cells often exhibit constitutive NRF2 activation due to genetic mutations or oncogenic signaling, conferring advantages for cancer cells' survival and growth. Emerging evidence suggests that NRF2 hyperactivation, as an adaptive cancer phenotype under stressful tumor environments, regulates all hallmarks of cancer. In this review, we summarized the source of ROS, regulation of ROS signaling, and cellular sensors for ROS and oxygen (O2), we reviewed recent progress on the regulation of ROS generation and NRF2 signaling with a focus on the new functions of NRF2 in cancer development that reach beyond what we originally envisioned, including regulation of cancer metabolism, autophagy, macropinocytosis, unfolded protein response, proteostasis, and circadian rhythm, which, together with anti-oxidant and drug detoxification enzymes, contributes to cancer development, metastasis, and anticancer therapy resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major health burden worldwide due to its high morbidity, mortality, and complex etiology. Fusobacterium nucleatum (Fn), a Gram-negative anaerobe found in 30% of CRC patients, promotes CRC carcinogenesis, metastasis, and chemoresistance. Effective antimicrobial treatment is an unmet need for the rising CRC burden. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) represent a new class of antimicrobial drugs. In our previous study, we did the structure-activity study of Jelleine-I (J-I) and identified several halogenated J-I derivatives Cl-J-I, Br-J-I, and I-J-I. To determine whether those J-I derivatives can be a new therapy for bacterial-associated CRC, here we tested the antibacterial activities of these AMPs against Fn and their effects on CRC development. We found that Br-J-I showed the highest anti-Fn activity and Br-J-I may target membrane-associated FadA for Fn membrane disruption. More importantly, Fn promoted the growth of CRC cells-derived xenograft tumors. Br-J-I suppressed Fn load, colon inflammation, and Fn-induced CRC growth. Of note, Br-J-I induced better anti-CRC effects than common antibiotic metronidazole and Br-J-I sensitized the cancer-killing effect of chemotherapy drug 5-fluorouracil. These results suggest that Br-J-I could be considered as an adjunctive agent for CRC treatment and AMPs-based combination treatment is a new strategy for CRC in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) and corn (Zea mays L.) are common forage plants for feeding livestock, and their effects on soil bacterial organisms have been extensively studied. However, there is little comprehensive research on soil bacterial organisms and their function in a long-term alfalfa monocropping system after corn insertion and fertilization. The effects of alfalfa–corn rotation (AF: alfalfa monocropping, RA: alfalfa and corn rotation) and nitrogen fertilization (RA0 and RA15) were investigated in a field experiment. The results showed that fertilization significantly increased the aboveground biomass (AGB) and soil nitrate nitrogen, and corn insertion significantly decreased the nitrate nitrogen ( NO 3 − -N) (p < 0.05). In addition, the bacterial community structure among the treatments was significantly changed by the rotation and fertilization. The rotational system of RA significantly increased the soil bacterial diversity compared with AF (p < 0.01), and most of the soil bacterial communities were of the phyla Actinobacterota and Proteobacteria. The RA system had a lower relative abundance of Actinobacterota than the AF system. The bacterial function prediction found that the soil carbon and nitrogen cycle processes in RA were more active than those in AF. The RDA analysis revealed that NO 3 − -N and pH were the main environmental factors affecting the bacterial community structure in the RA system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common malignancy and the second most deadly cancer worldwide. Recent studies have uncovered the close relationship between Gram-negative anaerobic bacterium Fusobacterium nucleatum (Fn), commonly found in the human oral cavity and gut, and CRC development. Currently, there is no specific antimicrobial therapy for CRC treatment. Due to the antibiotic allergy, side effects, and resistance of existing antibiotic therapy, a new generation of antimicrobial therapy targeting specific CRC-promoting bacteria is urgently needed. In this study, we were looking for herb medicines and found that sodium new houttuyfonate (SNH), derived from the plant Houttuynia cordata Thunb, showed potent antibacterial activity on Fn with little toxicity toward host cells. Importantly, SNH inhibited Fn-induced inflammation and CRC growth promoted by Fn. Our findings of SNH with potent anti-Fn activity are promising for CRC treatment and provide an important foundation for future antimicrobial therapy for clinical CRC treatment. Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Recent studies showed that the common anaerobe Fusobacterium nucleatum (Fn) is closely associated with a higher risk for carcinogenesis, metastasis, and chemoresistance of CRC. However, there is no specific antimicrobial therapy for CRC treatment. Herbal medicine has a long history of treating diseases with remarkable effects and is attracting extensive attention. In this study, we tested six common phytochemicals for their antimicrobial activities against Fn and whether anti-Fn phytochemicals can modulate CRC development associated with Fn. Among these antimicrobials, we found that SNH showed the highest antimicrobial activity and little cytotoxicity toward cancer cells and normal cells in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, SNH may target membrane-associated FadA, leading to FadA oligomerization, membrane fragmentation and permeabilization. More importantly, SNH blocked the tumor-promoting activity of Fn and Fn-associated cancer-driven inflammation, thus improving the intestinal barrier damaged by Fn. SNH reduced Fn load in the CRC-cells-derived mice xenografts with Fn inoculation and significantly inhibited CRC progression. Our data suggest that SNH could be used for an antimicrobial therapy that inhibits Fn and cancer-driven inflammation of CRC. Our results provide an important foundation for future gut microbiota-targeted clinical treatment of CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform quantitative studies to investigate the effect of high-calorie diet on Drosophila oogenesis. We use the central composite design (CCD) method to obtain quadratic regression models of body fat and fertility as a function of the concentrations of protein and sucrose, two major macronutrients in Drosophila diet, and treatment duration. Our results reveal complex interactions between sucrose and protein in impacting body fat and fertility when they are considered as an integrated physiological response. We verify the utility of our quantitative modeling approach by experimentally confirming the physiological responses—including increased body fat, reduced fertility, and ovarian insulin insensitivity—expected of a treatment condition identified by our modeling method. Under this treatment condition, we uncover a Drosophila oogenesis phenotype that exhibits an accumulation of immature oocytes and a halt in the production of mature oocytes, a phenotype that bears resemblance to key aspects of the human condition of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Our analysis of the dynamic progression of different aspects of diet-induced pathophysiology also suggests an order of the onset timing for obesity, ovarian dysfunction, and insulin resistance. Thus, our study documents the utility of quantitative modeling approaches toward understanding the biology of Drosophila female reproduction, in relation to diet-induced obesity and type II diabetes, serving as a potential disease model for human ovarian dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Restaurant food is one of the important sources of sodium intake in China. We aimed to determine whether a restaurant-based comprehensive intervention program may induce lower sodium content in restaurant food. A randomized controlled trial was implemented between 2019 and 2020 in 192 restaurants in China. After baseline assessment, the restaurants were randomly assigned to either an intervention or a control group (1:1). Comprehensive activities designed for intervention restaurants were conducted for one year. The primary outcome was the difference in change of sodium content estimated by the mean values of five best-selling dishes for each restaurant, from baseline to the end of the trial between groups. In total, 66 control restaurants and 80 intervention restaurants completed the follow-up assessment. The average sodium content of dishes at baseline was 540.9 ± 176.8 mg/100 g in control and 551.9 ± 149.0 mg/100 g in intervention restaurants. The mean effect of intervention after adjusting for confounding factors was −43.63 mg/100 g (95% CI: from −92.94 to 5.66, p = 0.08), representing an 8% reduction in sodium content. The restaurant-based intervention led to a modest but not significant reduction in the sodium content of restaurant food. There is great urgency for implementing effective and sustainable salt reduction programs, due to the rapid increase in the consumption of restaurant food in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We explored whether there are splice variants (SVs) of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARG) in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) patients and its relationship with clinical features and KGN cell functions. Methods: We performed a study involving 153 women with PCOS and 153 age-matched controls. One type of PPARG SV was detected by SMARTer RACE. The correlations between PPARG SV expression levels, clinical features, and KGN cell functions were analyzed. The effect of the PPARG SV on the expression of important genes in metabolism-related pathways was explored by PCR array. Results: The expression of the PPARG SV in PCOS patients was significantly higher than that in the controls. Clinical features were more significant in the PCOS group with the SV. Compared with overexpression of PPARG, the overexpression of the PPARG SV inhibited the proliferation, migration, and apoptosis of KGN cells in vitro. The genes related to the PPARG SV were mainly involved in lipid metabolism. Conclusion: While granulosa cells contribute greatly to the development of follicles, our results suggest that the identified PPARG SV may regulate cell proliferation, migration, and apoptosis in granulosa cells, which could partially explain the mechanisms of ovulation dysfunction in PCOS. Further investigation of the utility of this PPARG SV as a biomarker for PCOS is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the therapeutic effect and primary pharmacological mechanism of Ziyuglycoside I (Ziyu I) on collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) mice. CIA mice were treated with 5, 10, or 20 mg/kg of Ziyu I or 2 mg/kg of methotrexate (MTX), and clinical manifestations, as well as pathological changes, were observed. T cell viability and subset type were determined, and serum levels of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) and interleukin-17 (IL-17) were detected. The mRNA expression of retinoid-related orphan receptor-γt (RORγt) and transcription factor forkhead box protein 3 (Foxp3) in mouse spleen lymphocytes was ascertained by the real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Molecular docking was used to detect whether there was a molecular interaction between Ziyu I and protein kinase B (Akt). The activation of mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) in T cells was verified by Western blotting or immunofluorescence. Ziyu I treatment effectively alleviated arthritis symptoms of CIA mice, including body weight, global score, arthritis index, and a number of swollen joints. Similarly, pathological changes of joints and spleens in arthritic mice were improved. The thymic index, T cell activity, and RORγt production of Ziyu I-treated mice were significantly reduced. Notably, through molecular docking, western blotting, and immunofluorescence data analysis, it was found that Ziyu I could interact directly with Akt to reduce downstream mTOR activation and inhibit helper T cell 17 (Th17) differentiation, thereby regulating Th17/regulatory T cell (Treg) balance and improving arthritis symptoms. Ziyu I effectively improves arthritic symptoms in CIA mice by inhibiting mTOR activation, thereby affecting Th17 differentiation and regulating Th17/Treg balance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The liver is the most common site for colorectal cancer (CRC)–associated metastasis. There remain unsatisfactory medications in liver metastasis given the incomplete understanding of pathogenic mechanisms. Herein, with an orthotopic implantation model fed either regular or high-fat diets (HFD), more liver metastases were associated with an expansion of conjugated bile acids (BAs), particularly taurocholic acid (TCA) in the liver, and an increased gene expression of Na+–taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP). Such hepatic BA change was more apparently shown in the HFD group. In the same model, TCA was proven to promote liver metastases and induce a tumor-favorable microenvironment in the liver, characterizing a high level of fibroblast activation and increased proportions of myeloid-derived immune cells. Hepatic stellate cells, a liver-residing source of fibroblasts, were dose-dependently activated by TCA, and their conditioned medium significantly enhanced the migration capability of CRC cells. Blocking hepatic BA uptake with NTCP neutralized antibody can effectively repress TCA–triggered liver metastases, with an evident suppression of tumor microenvironment niche formation. This study points to a new BA–driven mechanism of CRC–associated liver metastases, suggesting that a reduction of TCA overexposure by limiting liver uptake is a potential therapeutic option for CRC—associated liver metastasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We determined whether a town-level comprehensive intervention program could lower the salt intake of a population. The parallel, cluster randomized controlled trial was carried out between October 2018 and January 2020 in 48 towns from 12 counties across 6 provinces in China. All participants were asked to complete the 24 h urine collections, anthropometric measurements and questionnaires at the baseline and one-year post-intervention survey. A total of 2693 participants aged 18 to 75 years were recruited at the baseline. A total of 1347 individuals in 24 towns were allocated to the intervention group and the others were allocated to the control group. Valid information from 2335 respondents was collected in the follow-up survey. The 24-h urinary sodium excretion was 189.7 mmol/24 h for the intervention group and 196.1 mmol/24 h for the control group at baseline. At a one-year follow-up, the mean effect of salt intake did not show a significant change (p = 0.31) in the intervention group compared to the control group. However, the mean result of potassium excretion in the intervention group increased by 2.18 mmol/24 h (85.03 mg/24 h) (p = 0.004) and systolic blood pressure decreased by 2.95 mmHg (p < 0.001). The salt-related knowledge and attitude toward salt reduction improved significantly in the intervention group (p < 0.05). A longer period of intervention and follow-up assessment might be needed to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of the program on salt reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis of historical village landscape characteristics and the influential driving factors of their evolutions can provide an essential decision-making basis for rural sustainable development strategies and landscape planning. How to obtain historical village landscape data at a time when objectively recorded data, such as remote sensing images, were unavailable is a key problem that restricts the analysis of village landscape evolution characteristics. As local villagers are important knowledge sources regarding historical village landscapes, a participatory data collection and analysis approach was used for village historical landscape data in this paper using a virtual globe-based three-dimensional participatory geographic information system (3D PGIS). Taking Duimengshan village, Guizhou, China, as a case study, the 3D landscape of the Duimengshan village and corresponding major historical events in four historical periods, 1958, 1980, 1995, and 2015, were collected in an on-site, interactive way by researchers with the participation of local villagers, and its land-use structure, ecosystem service values, and landscape pattern were analyzed. The results show that the historical landscapes in the four periods were strongly related to important local historical events. The 3D PGIS greatly mobilized the enthusiasm of villagers to participate with its intuitive 3D display form and simple and easy-to-use operation mode. It can be concluded that the historical landscape memory of local villagers and the oral inheritance information handed down from generation to generation can be utilized to make up for the lack of remote sensing and other objective data in the collection and acquisition of historical village landscape data. The obtained historical village landscape characteristics and their evolution laws can be used in future participatory rural planning and landscape design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salt intake in China is very high, which increases the risk of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. This study aimed to assess the levels of salt-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors (KABs) and the factors that influence them and to explore the relationship between the scores of salt-related KAB and 24-h urinary sodium excretion. In 2018, we collected data from 5453 individuals aged 18–75 years from six provinces in China. A face-to-face survey was carried out, focusing on the KAB related to salt reduction. All participants were asked to collect one 24-h urine sample. Of the 5453 participants, 5352 completed urine collection. The mean score for overall KAB was 31.27 (SD = 9.18), which was composed of three elements: knowledge 4.80 (SD = 5.14), attitude 9.33 (SD = 3.93), and behavior 17.14 (SD = 4.43). The average 24-h urinary sodium excretion was 187.70 (SD = 77.48) mmol, which was equivalent to a urinary sodium excretion of 4.32 (SD = 1.78) g/d. We found that salt-related knowledge, attitude, behavior, and overall KAB scores were all inversely associated with 24-h urinary sodium excretion. For every one-point increase in the KAB score, the 24-h urinary sodium excretion decreased by 0.851 mmol (95% CI: −1.095, −0.602). We also found that location (rural/urban), sex, age, and education are associated with salt-related KAB scores. These results suggest that large-scale health education is needed to reduce salt intake in the Chinese population. In particular, efforts should be focused on reaching those who live in rural areas with low educational levels and older people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uranium anomalies were discovered in ferruginous sandstone in the Khusayyayn Formation of the Wajid Group in southern Saudi Arabia. Based on field surveys, ground radiometric surveys, and chemical analysis, this paper summarizes the characteristics of the lithology and lithofacies of the ferruginous sandstone and analyzes the genetic mechanism of uranium concentration in ferruginous sandstone. Ferric iron basically exists in the form of Fe2O3 in ferruginous sandstone, with an average content of 28.95 wt.%. The formation period of the ferruginous sandstone occurred during the early synsedimentary and later diagenesis stages from the Carboniferous to the Devonian. The uranium anomaly is hosted in thin-bedded and lenticular ferruginous sandstone, with a uranium content ranging from 50 to 766 ppm. The average U-Ra equilibrium coefficient of ferruginous sandstone was 1.00, indicating that the uranium was weakly reformed after the uranium concentration. Ferric ions are closely related to uranium mineralization. The initial concentration of the uranium occurred during the deposition of the ferruginous sandstone. Most of the uranium was adsorbed by a ferric colloidal solution, and part of it was reduced by Fe2+, organic carbon, and sulfur in the uranium preconcentrated stage during the deposition of ferruginous sandstone. The uranium ore was superimposed, transformed, and concentrated due to the change in the pH environment in the early Neogene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Will public attention to the environment affect the green behavior of enterprises? This paper collected the panel data of steel enterprises in China from 2009 to 2017, evaluated the green investment efficiency by the measurement of the slack model (SBM) and the "super efficiency" (DEA) model, and studied the impact of public environmental attention on green investment efficiency. Firstly, public environmental attention has significantly promoted enterprise green investment efficiency; Secondly, the business environment has significantly promoted enterprise green investment efficiency, and the influence of public environmental attention on enterprise green investment efficiency is positively regulated by the business environment; Thirdly, the influence mechanism of public environmental attention on the promotion of green investment efficiency comprises environmental regulation and environmental responsibility; Fourthly, public environmental attention has a heterogeneous effect on the promotion of enterprise green investment efficiency. The promotion of public environmental attention on green investment efficiency is more significant for large enterprises than medium-sized enterprises. The effect of the promotion of public environmental attention on green investment efficiency is more significant for state-owned enterprises than private enterprises. The promotion of public environmental attention on green investment efficiency is more significant in eastern China than in central and western China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The deformation and failure features of rock formation in deep coal mines are basic mechanical problems in the complex geology environment and complicated excavation process. Under the effect of cyclic loading and unloading, the bearing capacity weakens and damage degree exacerbates significantly, which seriously threatens the safety and stability of the working face. To study the damage characteristics of sandstone, especially the precursor characteristics of acoustic emission (AE), this paper conduct the AE response experiments on sandstone under cyclic loading and unloading. The results show that with the increasing number of cycles, the loading modulus, unloading modulus, total strain energy, elastic energy, and dissipation energy of sandstone in the cycle stage all increase continuously. In the initial loading stage, the sandstone has fewer cycles and lower stress levels, fewer AE ringing counts and energy, and less rock damage. With the increasing cyclic times and loading stress, the damage degree of sandstone increases rapidly in a very short time. The damage variable represented by ringing count is more sensitive than by energy. Just before rock failure, the ringing count and the energy value increase significantly, and the damage curve rises sharply. In addition, AE waveform signals have obvious aggregation characteristics and four main bands. Just before sandstone failure, the main frequency band becomes wider, the low frequency bands f1 and f2 become connected, and the main signal frequency appears abnormally low and high. The waveform signals before sandstone instability and failure show a phenomenon where the low-frequency amplitude is generally at a high level, the high-frequency signal decreases, the amplitude becomes low, and the multipeak phenomenon weakens. The above characteristics of the AE time domain and waveform analysis can be used as the precursor characteristics of sandstone failure and instability. This study can reveal the process of the sandstone deterioration and AE response under the cyclic loading and unloading condition, and has certain guiding significance for roof and floor control in deep roadway, instability warming monitor of working faces, and guarantees for safety production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilization are important for maintaining the health and productivity of Leymus chinensis steppe, their impact on the abundance and community structure of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) in this ecosystem is still unclear. We used the amoA gene as a molecular marker to monitor changes in AOA and AOB under low and high N and P fertilization and applied the resin-core technique to measure soil N mineralization. We found that the abundance of AOA based on amoA gene copies, ranging from 7.51 × 107 to 1.23 × 108 copies g−1 soil, was higher than that of AOB. Fertilization, especially high N and P, increased the number of amoA copies associated with AOB. AOA and AOB communities were dominated by Crenarchaeota and Proteobacteria, respectively. Fertilization decreased the relative abundances of Thaumarchaeota in the AOA community and Proteobacteria in the AOB community and increased the relative abundance of Ammonia_oxidizing_bacteria_ensemble. In N and P fertilization treatments, soil N transformation was closely related to AOB but not AOA. Soil ammonium N and nitrate N reshape the structure of ammonia oxidizers of AOB but not those of AOA on L. chinensis steppes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are many rivers flowing from complex paths into Lake Dianchi. At present, there is a lack of inflow and water quality monitoring data for some rivers, resulting in limited accuracy of statistical results regarding water volume and external loading estimations. In this study, we used DYRESM to estimate the water volume entering Waihai of Lake Dianchi from 2007 to 2019 without historical hydrological observation data. Then, we combined this information with the monthly monitoring data of water quality to calculate the annual external loading. Our results showed that: (1) DYRESM could effectively capture the extreme changes of water level at Waihai, showing its reliable applicability to Lake Dianchi. (2) The average annual inflow of rivers entering Waihai was about 6.69 × 108 m3. The fitting relationship between river inflow and precipitation was significant on annual scale (r = 0.74), with a higher inner-annual fitting coefficient between them (r = 0.98), thus suggesting that precipitation and its caused river inflows are the main water source for Waihai. (3) From 2007 to 2010, the river loadings remained at a high level. They decreased to 2445.44 t (total nitrogen, TN) and 106.53 t (total phosphorus, TP) due to a followed drought in 2011. (4) The river loading had annual variation characteristics. The contribution rates of TN and TP loading in the rainy season were 63% and 67% respectively. (5) Panlong River, Daqing River, Jinjia River, Xinbaoxiang River, Cailian River and Hai River were the main inflow rivers. Their loadings accounted for 81.3% (TN) and 80.3% (TP) of the total inputs. (6) River loadings have gradually reduced and the water quality of Waihai has continually improved. However, Pearson analysis results showed that the water quality parameters were not significantly correlated with their corresponding external loading at Waihai, indicating that there might be other factors influencing the water quality. (7) The contribution rates of internal release to the total loads of TN and TP at Waihai were estimated to be 7.6% and 8.9% respectively, suggesting that the reductions of both external and internal loading should be considered in order to significantly improve the water quality at Waihai of Lake Dianchi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combined stress from water and temperature is considered an effective approach for improving the cold resistance of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.). However, the relationships among irrigation depth, root morphology and architecture, and cold resistance of alfalfa remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of drip irrigation at the soil surface (Deep-0), at 20 cm depth (Deep-20), and at 40 cm depth (Deep-40) on root morphology and architecture and cold resistance of alfalfa. The Deep-0 treatment had the highest aboveground biomass and belowground biomass, and the root system in the Deep-40 treatment tended to a 'herringbone' branching type, which increases the cost of water uptake. After cold acclimation for 3 days, the cold resistance of Deep-0 was strongest, and was associated with higher soluble sugar content and fewer reactive oxygen species in the roots. Deep-40 enhanced the severity of drought stress on the crown and increased the risk of crown exposure to low-temperature stress. The results showed that Deep-0 promoted alfalfa growth and development by regulating root morphology and architecture and improving water absorption efficiency, thereby enhancing the ability of the root system to withstand low-temperature stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lake Dianchi is one of the most eutrophic lakes in China. The decline in water quality and the occurrence of massive algal blooms pose a significant threat to the health and environmental safety of the water ecosystem, making Lake Dianchi a key concern for algal bloom management in China. Obtaining the spatiotemporal dynamics of algal blooms for the longest time possible is crucial to algal bloom management and future prediction. However, it is difficult to acquire a long-term record of algal blooms from a single sensor in order to cover a more extended period of eutrophication in the lake due to the limitation of the spatial and temporal resolution of the sensors. In this study, Landsat and Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) images were combined with the Floating Algae Index (FAI) to reconstruct a unified time series of bloom areas to analyze the algal bloom dynamics in Lake Dianchi in recent decades. Regarding the interannual variation, the bloom area showed an increasing trend from 1987 to 2021, with larger bloom areas in 1991–1992, 2000–2003, 2012–2013, and 2020–2021. In terms of seasonal characteristics, the bloom area was significantly more prominent in the rainy season compared with the dry season during the year. The spatial distribution of the bloom frequency showed a pattern of higher frequencies in the north and lower frequencies in the south. From 2000 to 2021, the initial bloom time and bloom duration showed a trend of delaying and then advancing and decreasing and then increasing, respectively. We analyzed the importance of long-term records of algal blooms and found that the percentage of rainy season images is an essential factor in reconstructing time series based on different sensors. In addition, the relationship between environmental factors and algal blooms was analyzed. The results show that wind speed and air temperature were the main meteorological factors controlling the interannual variation in algal blooms in Lake Dianchi. Water quality factors such as nutrients have less of an influence on the variation in algal blooms because the algal growth demand has been met. Environmental management measures taken by local governments have led to improvements in the lake's trophic state, and continued strengthening of environmental pollution control is expected to curb the algal blooms in Lake Dianchi. This study provides a long-term record of algal blooms in Lake Dianchi, which provides essential reference information for a comprehensive understanding of the development process of algal blooms in Lake Dianchi and its sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transferability of adversarial examples allows the attacker to fool deep neural networks (DNNs) without knowing any information about the target models. The current input transformation-based method generates adversarial examples by transforming the image in the input space, which implicitly integrates a set of models by concatenating image transformation into the trained model. However, the input transformation-based methods ignore the manifold embedding and hardly extract intrinsic information from high-dimensional data. To this end, we propose a novel feature transformation-based method (FTM), which conducts feature transformation in the feature space. FTM can improve the robustness of adversarial example by transforming the features of data. Combining with FTM, the intrinsic features of adversarial examples are extracted to generate transferable adversarial examples. The experimental results on two benchmark datasets show that FTM could effectively improve the attack success rate (ASR) of the state-of-the-art (SOTA) methods. FTM improves the attack success rate of the Scale-Invariant Method on Inception_v3 from 62.6% to 75.1% on ImageNet, which is a large margin of 12.5%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conventional subspace learning approaches based on image gradient orientations only employ first-order gradient information, which may ignore second-order or higher-order gradient information. Moreover, recent researches on the human vision system (HVS) have uncovered that the neural image is a landscape or a surface whose geometric properties can be captured through second-order gradient information. The second-order image gradient orientations (SOIGO) can mitigate the adverse effect of noise in face images. To reduce the redundancy of SOIGO, we propose compact SOIGO (CSOIGO) by applying linear complex principal component analysis (PCA) in SOIGO. To be more specific, the SOIGO of training data are firstly obtained. Then, linear complex PCA is applied to obtain features of reduced dimensionality. Combined with collaborative-representation-based classification (CRC) algorithm, the classification performance of CSOIGO is further enhanced. CSOIGO is evaluated under real-world disguise, synthesized occlusion, and mixed variations. Under the real disguise scenario, CSOIGO makes 2.67% and 1.09% improvement regarding accuracy when one and two neutral face images per subject are used as training samples, respectively. For the mixed variations, CSOIGO achieves a 0.86% improvement in terms of accuracy. These results indicate that the proposed method is superior to its competing approaches with few training samples, and even outperforms some prevailing deep-neural-network-based approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: With global climate change and increased aquaculture production, fishes in natural waters or aquaculture systems are easily subjected to hypoxic stress. However, our understanding about their responsive mechanisms to hypoxia is still limited. Japanese flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) is a widely cultivated marine economical flatfish, whose hypoxic responsive mechanisms are not fully researched. In this study, responses to hypoxia were investigated at blood physiological, biochemical, hormonal, and molecular levels. Responsive mechanisms of the HIF-1/LDH-A signaling pathway in epigenetic modification and transcriptional regulation were also researched. These results are important for enriching the theory of environmental responsive mechanisms and guiding aquaculture. Japanese flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) responsive mechanisms to hypoxia are still not fully understood. Therefore, we performed an acute hypoxic treatment (dissolved oxygen at 2.07 ± 0.08 mg/L) on Japanese flounder. It was confirmed that the hypoxic stress affected the physiological phenotype through changes in blood physiology (RBC, HGB, WBC), biochemistry (LDH, ALP, ALT, GLU, TC, TG, ALB), and hormone (cortisol) indicators. Hypoxia inducible factor-1 (HIF-1), an essential oxygen homeostasis mediator in organisms consisting of an inducible HIF-1α and a constitutive HIF-1β, and its target gene LDH-A were deeply studied. Results showed that HIF-1α and LDH-A genes were co-expressed and significantly affected by hypoxic stress. The dual-luciferase reporter assay confirmed that transcription factor HIF-1 transcriptionally regulated the LDH-A gene, and its transcription binding sequence was GGACGTGA located at −2343~−2336. The DNA methylation status of HIF-1α and LDH-A genes were detected to understand the mechanism of environmental stress on genes. It was found that hypoxia affected the HIF-1α gene and LDH-A gene methylation levels. The study uncovered HIF-1/LDH-A signaling pathway responsive mechanisms of Japanese flounder to hypoxia in epigenetic modification and transcriptional regulation. Our study is significant to further the understanding of environmental responsive mechanisms as well as providing a reference for aquaculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluated the relationship of urinary sodium excretion with a conditional mean, 10th and 90th percentiles of body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference among 10,034 person-visits of Bangladeshi population. We fitted linear mixed models with participant-level random intercept and restricted maximum likelihood estimation for conditional mean models; and quantile mixed-effect models with participant-level random intercept and Laplace estimation for 10th and 90th percentiles models. For each 100 mmol/24 h increase in urinary sodium excretion, participants had a 0.10 kg/m2 (95% CI: 0.00, 0.10) increase in the mean; a 0.39 kg/m2 (95% CI: 0.23, 0.54) increase in the 10th percentile; and a 0.59 kg/m2 (95% CI: 0.39, 0.78) increase in the 90th percentile of BMI. For each 100 mmol/24 h increase in urinary sodium excretion, participants had a 0.20 cm (95% CI: 0.10, 0.30) increase in mean; a 0.18 cm (95% CI: −0.03, 0.40) change in the 10th percentile; and a 0.23 cm (95% CI: 0.03, 0.43) increase in the 90th percentile of waist circumference. We found a modest association between urine sodium and conditional mean of BMI and waist circumference. The magnitude of associations between urine sodium and the 10th and 90th percentile BMI distributions were higher compared to the conditional mean models, suggesting high sodium intake could be more detrimental to underweight and obese participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic development of various regions is influenced by high-quality population mobility. The research object of this article is the employment mobility data of "Double First-Class" university graduates from 2014 to 2019; the subsequent analysis is based on these data. First, this paper summarizes the current state of university graduates' employment mobility. Second, this paper employs the fixed-effect model and PCA method to conclude that economic factors are the primary factors influencing university graduates' employment mobility. Finally, based on the nonlinear, small sample, and high-dimensional characteristics of university graduates' employment mobility data, this paper employs the random forest and BP neural network methods to build a prediction model for university graduates' employment retention rate. The results show that the BP neural network model outperforms the random forest model in terms of prediction accuracy. The BP neural network model can accurately predict the employment retention rate of "Double First-Class" university graduates, which can guide the reasonable mobility of university graduates and provide a reference for government universities and individuals to make decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate integration of the extended target's energy is one of the important challenges of moving target detection in wideband radar. In this paper, a coherent integration method for wideband radar, i.e., variable-scale moving target detection (VSMTD), is proposed to resist range migration and Doppler broadening. On the one hand, subband decomposition can effectively integrate the energy of the extended target in range using variable-scale transformation, accomplished by modulating the filter bank. On the other hand, it increases the coherent integration time by mitigating the range migration in a sufficiently narrow subband. The discrete Fourier transform (DFT) modulated filter bank and the fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm are also used to achieve fast VSMTD implementation. Finally, the simulation results demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed VSMTD method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the inter-provincial high-tech industry panel data from 2010 to 2016 in China, this study constructs static and dynamic panel models, respectively, to study the relationship between high-tech industry agglomeration and high-tech export product upgrading, and makes an in-depth discussion on open innovation to achieve sustainable development through industry agglomeration. This paper studies and tests the transmission mechanism between high-tech industrial agglomeration and export product upgrading, which makes up for the research gap in industry agglomeration. The results show that: (1) China's high-tech industry agglomeration has a significant positive effect on its export industry product upgrading. (2) Regional education has a significant positive effect on the high-tech industry's export product upgrading, and the influence of high-tech industry agglomeration on export product upgrading is negatively regulated by regional education. (3) From the perspective of influence mechanism, high-tech industry agglomeration has a positive effect on high-tech export product upgrading mediated by innovation and openness (open innovation), and then affects the sustainable development of a regional economy. (4) The high-tech industry agglomeration has a heterogeneous effect in promoting their export products; in terms of scale, the promotion effect is more significant in the large enterprises than small- and medium-sized enterprises; in terms of region, the eastern and western regions have a more significant role in promoting export product upgrading; in terms of industries, the electronic and communication equipment manufacturing industry has the most obvious promotion effect. Based on the research results, this study puts forward policy suggestions such as increasing investment in high-tech industries, strengthening the degree of opening to the outside world, encouraging enterprise innovation, and promoting balanced development of the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to quantitatively evaluate the degree of protection in protective layer mining and provide guidance for the design of a secondary outburst elimination scheme, a variable weight-projection gray target dynamic evaluation model for the effectiveness of protective layer mining is established. The improved order relation analysis method was used to determine the subjective weight of each index toward the decision-making goal based on numerical diversity characteristics, and the initial fixed-weight calculation for mixed multi-attribute metrics was processed through the degree of index action. The variable weight function was used to dynamically adjust the fixed weight through the penalty and incentive index methods. Four indexes (gas content, gas pressure, coal seam permeability coefficient, and expansion deformation) were selected, the outburst elimination and anti-reflection were taken as the guide, and the critical value of each index for eliminating burst and the critical value of pressure relief were taken as the positive and negative bullseyes. Based on the variable weight-projection gray target decision model, the distance between the two target centers of each scheme was calculated; at the same time, the variable weight vector changed dynamically with the evaluation scheme to achieve the dynamic quantitative evaluation of the degree of protection. Additionally, compared with the calculation results of fixed weights, it was found that the variable weight-projection bullseye distance can more accurately reflect the dynamic control effect of differences in numerical combinations of multi-attribute indexes in different decision schemes based on the degree of protection of protective layer mining. Taking a mine in PingMei as the engineering background, Ding protected the Wu area, and the degree of protection in the Wu group coal seam reached 116.29%, eliminating the outburst risk of the coal seam. The Wu protected the Ji group coal seam, with the degree of outburst risk in the Ji group being reduced by 14.27, and the Ding + Wu group protected the Ji group coal seam, with the degree of outburst risk of the Ji group being reduced by 20.71%, but not eliminated. The evaluation model quantifies the degree of protection of protective layer mining, and provides a theoretical basis for further assessing whether the working face should strengthen the enhancing permeability or whether it needs to be used in tandem with high-strength outburst elimination methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]