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Anion exchanger 3 (AE3) is pivotal in regulating intracellular pH across excitable tissues, yet its structural intricacies and functional dynamics remain underexplored compared to other anion exchangers. This study unveils the structural insights into human AE3, including the cryo-electron microscopy structures for AE3 transmembrane domains (TMD) and a chimera combining AE3 N-terminal domain (NTD) with AE2 TMD (hAE3NTD2TMD). Our analyzes reveal a substrate binding site, an NTD-TMD interlock mechanism, and a preference for an outward-facing conformation. Unlike AE2, which has more robust acid-loading capabilities, AE3's structure, including a less stable inward-facing conformation due to missing key NTD-TMD interactions, contributes to its moderated pH-modulating activity and increased sensitivity to the inhibitor DIDS. These structural differences underline AE3's distinct functional roles in specific tissues and underscore the complex interplay between structural dynamics and functional specificity within the anion exchanger family, enhancing our understanding of the physiological and pathological roles of the anion exchanger family. This study provides structural insights into human AE3's role in pH regulation in excitable tissues, highlighting its structural differences from AE2 in anion transport regulation and their sensitivity to inhibitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Named entity recognition is a fundamental subtask for knowledge graph construction and question-answering in the agricultural diseases and pests field. Although several works have been done, the scarcity of the Chinese annotated dataset has restricted the development of agricultural diseases and pests named entity recognition(ADP-NER). To address the issues, a large-scale corpus for the Chinese ADP-NER task named AgCNER was first annotated. It mainly contains 13 categories, 206,992 entities, and 66,553 samples with 3,909,293 characters. Compared with other datasets, AgCNER maintains the best performance in terms of the number of categories, entities, samples, and characters. Moreover, this is the first publicly available corpus for the agricultural field. In addition, the agricultural language model AgBERT is also fine-tuned and released. Finally, the comprehensive experimental results showed that BiLSTM-CRF achieved F1-score of 93.58%, which would be further improved to 94.14% using BERT. The analysis from multiple aspects has verified the rationality of AgCNER and the effectiveness of AgBERT. The annotated corpus and fine-tuned language model are publicly available at https://doi.org/XXX and https://github.com/guojson/AgCNER.git. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advancements in CRISPR technology, particularly the development of base editors, revolutionize genetic variant research. When combined with model organisms like zebrafish, base editors significantly accelerate and refine in vivo analysis of genetic variations. However, base editors are restricted by protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) sequences and specific editing windows, hindering their applicability to a broad spectrum of genetic variants. Additionally, base editors can introduce unintended mutations and often exhibit reduced efficiency in living organisms compared to cultured cell lines. Here, we engineer a suite of adenine base editors (ABEs) called ABE-Ultramax (Umax), demonstrating high editing efficiency and low rates of insertions and deletions (indels) in zebrafish. The ABE-Umax suite of editors includes ABEs with shifted, narrowed, or broadened editing windows, reduced bystander mutation frequency, and highly flexible PAM sequence requirements. These advancements have the potential to address previous challenges in disease modeling and advance gene therapy applications. CRISPR base editors are limited by protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) sequences and specific editing windows. Here, authors developed ABE-Ultramax, a suite of adenine base editors with high efficiency, low indel rates, and flexible PAM requirements, enabling precise biallelic editing in zebrafish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microsized bismuth (Bi) with in-situ constructed three-dimensional (3D) porous network has been considered as a promising anode for high-performance potassium-ion batteries (PIBs). However, the mechanism of the in-situ porous evolution of microsized Bi during the charge/discharge process is still mysterious. Herein, various electrolytes are employed to disclose the origin of porous evolution of microsized Bi in PIBs. Experimentally and theoretically, the 3D porous network originates from the uniform interfacial charge distribution on the Bi surface in the linear ether-based electrolyte. In addition, the universality of the interfacial charge distribution mechanism was verified by microsized Sn and Sb. The in-situ constructed 3D porous network of Bi enables a superior potassium storage performance in a wide temperature range from −40 to 40 °C. More importantly, the K0.9Mn0.7Ni0.3O2∥Bi full cell delivers excellent cycling stability (a high capacity retention of 88.44% even after 2,000 cycles) and good temperature tolerance. This work gives a distinct clarification of the origin of the porous evolution of microsized Bi during cycling, which is critical for developing high-performance PIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natalisin (NTL) is a conserved neuropeptide, only present in insects, that has been reported to regulate their sexual activity. In this study, we investigated the involvement of NTL in the reproductive behaviors of a major invasive pest, Spodoptera frugiperda. We identified NTL precursor-encoded transcripts, and evaluated their transcript levels in different stages and tissues of S. frugiperda. The results showed that the NTL transcript level was expressed in both male and female pupae and both male and female adults in the later stage. It was highly expressed in male pupae, 3-day-old male and female adults, and 5-day-old male adults. In different tissues, the expression level is higher in the male and female adult brain and male testis. Immunohistochemical staining of the brain of S. frugiperda female and male adults revealed that three pairs of brain neurons of S. frugiperda adults of both sexes secreted and expressed NTL. To study the role of NTL in reproductive behaviors, NTL was silenced in S. frugiperda male and female adults by RNA interference (RNAi) technology, the results showed that silencing NTL could significantly affect the sexual activity behavior of the adults, reducing the calling rate of females, the courtship rate of males, and the mating rate. In summary, this study emphasizes the important role of NTL in regulating the mating behavior and sexual activity of S. frugiperda in both male and female adults, potentially laying a foundation to employ NTL as a new insect-specific target to control populations of pest insects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an innovative approach, the Adaptive Orthogonal Basis Method, tailored for computing multiple solutions to differential equations characterized by polynomial nonlinearities. Departing from conventional practices of predefining candidate basis pools, our novel method adaptively computes bases, considering the equation’s nature and structural characteristics of7 the solution. It further leverages companion matrix techniques to generate initial guesses for subsequent computations. Thus this approach not only yields numerous initial guesses for solving such equations but also adapts orthogonal basis functions to effectively address discretized nonlinear systems. Through a series of numerical experiments, this paper demonstrates the method’s effectiveness and robustness. By reducing computational costs in various applications, this novel approach opens new avenues for uncovering multiple solutions to differential equations with polynomial nonlinearities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The second-order nonlinear Hall effect (NLHE) in non-centrosymmetric materials has recently drawn intense interest, since its inherent rectification could enable various device applications such as energy harvesting and wireless charging. However, previously reported NLHE systems normally suffer from relatively small Hall voltage outputs and/or low working temperatures. In this study, we report the observation of a pronounced NLHE in tellurium (Te) thin flakes at room temperature. Benefiting from the semiconductor nature of Te, the obtained nonlinear response can be readily enhanced through electrostatic gating, leading to a second-harmonic output at 300 K up to 2.8 mV. By utilizing such a giant NLHE, we further demonstrate the potential of Te as a wireless Hall rectifier within the radiofrequency range, which is manifested by the remarkable and tunable rectification effect also at room temperature. Extrinsic scattering is then revealed to be the dominant mechanism for the NLHE in Te, with symmetry breaking on the surface playing a key role. As a simple elemental semiconductor, Te provides an appealing platform to advance our understanding of nonlinear transport in solids and to develop NLHE-based electronic devices. The nonlinear Hall effect (NLHE) in non-centrosymmetric materials could enable various device applications, but it is usually limited by small voltage outputs and low operational temperatures. Here, the authors report NLHE in semiconducting tellurium thin flakes, showing a second-harmonic voltage output up to 2.8 mV at 300 K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To define the characteristics of fundus manifestations in patients after SARS-CoV-2 infection with multimodal imaging techniques. This is a retrospective multicenter and multimodal imaging study including 90 patients. All patients with a visual complaint occurring immediately after SARS-CoV-2 infection were referred to six clinics between December 2022 and February 2023. Demographic information and the temporal relationship between SARS-CoV-2 infection and visual symptoms were documented. The characteristics of the fundus lesions were evaluated using multimodal imaging. Ninety patients from six hospitals were included in this study, including 24 males (26.67%) and 66 (73.33%) females. Seventy-eight patients (86.66%) (146 eyes) were diagnosed with Acute Macular Neuroretinopathy (AMN). The AMN patients were primarily young women (67.95%). Sixty-eight patients (87.18%) had AMN in both eyes. Thirty-eight eyes (24.36%) included Purtscher or Purtscher-like lesions. optical coherence tomography and infrared retinal photographs can show AMN lesions well. Eleven cases were diagnosed with simple Purtscher or Purtscher-like retinopathy (2 cases, 2.22%), Vogt‒Koyanagi‒Harada (VKH) syndrome or VKH-like uveitis (3 cases, 3.33%), multiple evanescent white-dot syndrome (MEWDS) (2 cases, 2.22%), and rhino-orbital-cerebral mucormycosis (ROCM) (5 cases, 5.56%). After SARS-CoV-2 infection, diversified fundus lesions were evident in patients with visual complaints. In this report, AMN was the dominant manifestation, followed by Purtscher or Purtscher-like retinopathy, MEWDS, VKH-like uveitis, and ROCM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this work was to investigate the impact of nanosecond pulse laser drilling on the quality of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP). The effects of laser parameters, including laser power, scan speed, pulse width and laser frequency on micro-hole quality and the thermal damage generated during the drilling process were analyzed. 0.4 mm diameter micro-holes were drilling using a 1064 nm fiber laser, using univariate and orthogonal experimental method. The results indicate that pumping at the entrance leads to a significant increase in hole diameter and heat-affected zone (HAZ) width at both the entrance and exit, as laser power, pulse width and frequency increase, and scanning speed decrease. The width of the HAZ at the exit is dependent on whether the energy reaches the carbon fiber ablation threshold. The holes were tapered and the hole taper was closely related to the change in laser parameters at the entrance and exit of the hole. A taper of approximately 0.3 was achieved with a combination of 99 W, 50 mm/s, 13 ns and 1500 kHz. The experiments indicate that laser power and pulse width are crucial factors that affect the quality of micro-hole processing. However, nanosecond laser drilling can result in thermal damage defects, including striations, micro-cracks, delamination, voids and surface fiber 'fish scale' peeling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inositol hexaphosphate (InsP6) is the major storage form of phosphorus in seeds. Reducing seed InsP6 content is a breeding objective in agriculture, as InsP6 negatively impacts animal nutrition and the environment. Nevertheless, how InsP6 accumulation is regulated remains largely unknown. Here, we identify a clade of receptor-like cytoplasmic kinases (RLCKs), named Inositol Polyphosphate-related Cytoplasmic Kinases 1-6 (IPCK1-IPCK6), deeply involved in InsP6 accumulation. The InsP6 concentration is dramatically reduced in seeds of ipck quadruple (T-4m/C-4m) and quintuple (C-5m) mutants, accompanied with the obviously increase of phosphate (Pi) concentration. The plasma membrane-localized IPCKs recruit IPK1 involved in InsP6 synthesis, and facilitate its binding and activity via phosphorylation of GRF 14-3-3 proteins. IPCKs also recruit IPK2s and PI-PLCs required for InsP4/InsP5 and InsP3 biosynthesis respectively, to form a potential IPCK-GRF-PLC-IPK2-IPK1 complex. Our findings therefore uncover a regulatory mechanism of InsP6 accumulation governed by IPCKs, shedding light on the mechanisms of InsP biosynthesis in eukaryotes. Inositol hexaphosphates (InsP6) are ubiquitous in eukaryotes and regulates a plethora of cellular functions. Here the authors identify a set of receptor-like cytoplasmic kinases that work in concert with 14-3-3- proteins to regulate InsP6 synthesis and accumulation and Pi homeostasis in Arabidopsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atomic clocks with higher frequency stability and accuracy than traditional space-borne atomic clocks are the cornerstone of long-term autonomous operation of space-time-frequency systems. We proposed a space cold atoms clock based on an intracavity cooling scheme, which captures cold atoms at the center of a microwave cavity and then executes in situ interactions between the cold atoms and microwaves. As a result of the microgravity environment in space, the cold atoms can interact with the microwaves for a longer time, which aids in realizing a high-precision atomic clock in space. This paper presents the overall design, operational characteristics, and reliability test results of the space atomic clock based on the intracavity cooling scheme designed for the operation onboard the China space station. In addition, the engineering prototype performance of the space cold atoms microwave clock is also presented. The ground test results for the clock show a fractional frequency stability of 1.1 × 10−12 τ−1/2 reaching 2.5 × 10−15 at 200,000 s, providing solid technical and data support for its future operation in orbit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To analyze the clinicopathologic information and CT imaging features of Epstein–Barr virus (EBV)-positive gastric cancer (GC) and establish CT-based radiomics models to predict the EBV status of GC. Methods: This retrospective study included 144 GC cases, including 48 EBV-positive cases. Pathological and immunohistochemical information was collected. CT enlarged LN and morphological characteristics were also assessed. Radiomics models were constructed to predict the EBV status, including decision tree (DT), logistic regression (LR), random forest (RF), and support vector machine (SVM). Results: T stage, Lauren classification, histological differentiation, nerve invasion, VEGFR2, E-cadherin, PD-L1, and Ki67 differed significantly between the EBV-positive and -negative groups (p = 0.015, 0.030, 0.006, 0.022, 0.028, 0.030, < 0.001, and < 0.001, respectively). CT enlarged LN and large ulceration differed significantly between the two groups (p = 0.019 and 0.043, respectively). The number of patients in the training and validation cohorts was 100 (with 33 EBV-positive cases) and 44 (with 15 EBV-positive cases). In the training cohort, the radiomics models using DT, LR, RF, and SVM yielded areas under the curve (AUCs) of 0.905, 0.771, 0.836, and 0.886, respectively. In the validation cohort, the diagnostic efficacy of radiomics models using the four classifiers were 0.737, 0.722, 0.751, and 0.713, respectively. Conclusion: A significantly higher proportion of CT enlarged LN and a significantly lower proportion of large ulceration were found in EBV-positive GC. The prediction efficiency of radiomics models with different classifiers to predict EBV status in GC was good. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of flexible wearable pressure sensors, capacitive pressure sensors using electric double-layer (EDL) effect have attracted much attention due to their advantages such as high sensitivity. In this study, an all-nanofiber ionic liquid EDL capacitive pressure sensor based on biodegradable polymer Polycaprolactone (PCL) is prepared by electrospinning technology. Based on the control of ionic liquid content in nanofibrous membranes, the performance of EDL capacitive pressure sensors has been investigated. The optimized device has a sensitivity of up to 26.4 kPa−1 in the range of below 10 kPa and 6.2 kPa−1 in the pressure range of 10 to 200 kPa. A detection limit as low as 8.53 Pa also gives it an advantage in detecting small pressures. Based on it, the prepared EDL capacitive pressure sensors have been successfully used to detect various physiological signals such as pulse, heartbeat, breathing, etc. In addition, the excellent mechanical properties and gas permeability also lay the foundation for its application in wearable electronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we prepared Pd nanoparticle (NP) catalysts using XC-72 carbon supports through a tailored deposition–precipitation method. Our primary objective was to unravel the size effects of Pd NPs on hydrogenation of tetraacetyldibenzylhexaazaisowurtzitane (TADBIW), a pivotal intermediate for synthesis of high energy density materials hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20). The controlled modulation of Pd NP size ranged from a mere 1.8 nm to 7.4 nm. Remarkably, our investigations into TADBIW hydrogenation unveiled a fascinating trend: the ultrasmall-sized Pd NPs with a diameter of 1.8 nm exhibited excellent yield and reaction rates. In stark contrast, their larger-sized counterparts demonstrated diminished catalytic activities. To disclose the size-dependent nature, various characterization techniques were employed, including XRD, TEM, XPS, CO and H2 pulse chemisorption. The comprehensive analysis revealed that the ultrasmall-sized Pd possessed more positively charged sites and exhibited higher dispersion. This unique configuration facilitated an accelerated adsorption of hydrogen and the electron-rich substrate TADBIW. Notably, this phenomenon led to a reduction in the activation energy through a thermodynamic effect, thereby enhancing overall catalytic performance. Our results strongly suggested that the ultrasmall-sized Pd NPs can exert a dominated influence on the physical and chemical states of the active sites, playing a key role in triggering the adsorption and activation of the substrate TADBIW. These findings not only deepen our understanding of the intricate connections between Pd NP size and catalytic activity but also open new avenues for advancing the design and optimization of catalysts in the hydrodebenzylation methodologies and synthesis of related compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a biodegradable material, poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) has important environmental significance, but its linear molecular chain structure makes it difficult to foam, and the traditional crosslinking modification will reduce its degradation performance. In this work, N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone (NVP) was grafted to PBAT using dicumyl peroxide (DCP) as initiator, then the PBAT-g-NVP foam was prepared by supercritical N2. The results showed that the grafting reaction improved the melt strength and foaming performance, but the degradation performance was maintained. The grafting mechanism, rheological properties, thermal properties and foaming behavior were also studied. The rheological properties showed that the melt strength of PBAT-g-NVP was significantly improved. The foaming window was widened and the cell structure became uniform. When there were 0.4 wt% DCP and 3 wt% NVP, the expansion ratio of PBAT-g-NVP foam was 10.5 and the maximum compressive stress was 253.2 kPa. In addition, the degradation degree of PBAT-g-NVP foam reached 98% in 35 d. The products prepared by this work have a wide application prospect in the field of disposable packaging or medical supplies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Producing syngas from dry reforming of methane is fascinating but challenging because of coking and sintering. Herein, fine Ni nanoparticles surrounded by Al2O3 are constructed by ion-exchange inverse loading method. The dual confinement composed of physical barrier originated from Al2O3 surroundings and chemical bonding sourced from NiAl2O4 spinel is present on pitaya-like Ni@Al2O3 catalysts. Mixed acid–base property of Ni@Al2O3 mediates the co-conversion of CH4 and CO2. On the one hand, the acidity of Al2O3, accelerates the pyrolysis of CH4. On the other hand, the basicity originated form ample O2− promotes the chemisorption of CO2 and oxidisation of carbon deposition using CO2 as oxidiser. Based on the dual confinement and cooperation of acid–base sites, Ni@Al2O3 survive severe coking with a CO2 conversion above 85% and no sign of deactivation. The metal-oxide interface is investigated focusing on physical–chemical confinement and properties, including electronic interaction, mixed acid–base property, and chemisorption of probe molecule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Edgeworthia gardneri (Wall.) Meisn., a member of the genus Edgeworthia in the family Thymelaeaceae, has long been applied as an edible and medicinal plant in China. E. gardneria has a hypoglycemic effect and is used to prepare daily drinks for the prevention and treatment of diabetes. However, the hypoglycemic substances involved remain unknown. The present study aimed to screen the α-glucosidase-inhibitors of E. gardneri and analyze its chemical profile using a ultraperformance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS) method. As a result, the ethyl acetate fraction (EAF) had significant α-glucosidase-inhibitory and antioxidant activities but did not show an α-amylase-inhibitory activity. A total of 67 compounds were identified in the EAF by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS analysis; among them, 48 compounds were first discovered in the genus Edgeworthia. Additionally, five flavonoids, namely, isoorintin, secoisolaricirinol, tiliroside, chrysin, and kaempferol, had α-glucosidase-inhibitory activities. Rutin had a α-amylase-inhibitory activity. Daphnoretin, a kind of coumarin, has α-glucosidase and α-amylase-inhibitory activities. These findings enrich the chemical library of E. gardneria. EAF has a selective α-glucosidase-inhibitory activity, and flavonoids and coumarins may be the active components of EAF. E. gardneria has important value for developing multiple-target hypoglycemic drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Environmental and lifestyle factors play an etiological role in the pathogenesis of different glomerular diseases. Thus, exploring the epidemic characteristics of renal disease in different nationalities and regions is important. Materials and methods: Patients who underwent renal biopsy from October 2008 to October 2022 were included. The proportion and change tendency of glomerular diseases and the differences between the sexes and different ages and races were analyzed. Results: There were 15,146 cases of glomerular diseases (98.5%), involving 7538 males (49.8%) and 7608 females (50.2%). The mean age was 37.0 years (range 0–80 years). The proportion of membranous nephropathy (MN) and diabetic nephropathy (DN) showed an increased trend. The most common primary glomerulonephritis (PGN) was IgA nephropathy (IgAN, 44.6%), followed by minimal-change disease (MCD, 24.3%) and MN (15.4%). Lupus nephritis (LN, 30%) accounted for the largest proportion of SGNs, followed by Henoch-Schonlein purpura nephritis (HSPN, 20.9%) and DN (19.8%). Compared with adults aged 18–60 years old, MCD and HSPN were more common in children and MN and DN in elderly individuals, statistically significant differences. Additionally, the sex and age distribution of PGN and SGN between the Tibetan and Han populations differed significantly, whereby LN was higher in the Han population and HSPN in the Tibetan population. Conclusion: The distribution of glomerular diseases showed age, sex and race differences. This research will be beneficial for providing epidemiological evidence for clinical diagnosis, disease prevention and public health decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, stepped slot-type grooves are utilized to develop coplanar waveguide (CPW) spoof surface plasmon polariton (SSPP) transmission lines (TLs). The equivalent circuit model is developed to analyze the effect of the stepped slot-type grooves. And it is found that all the three proposed SSPP TLs exhibit lower asymptotic frequency and more compact size than conventional SSPP TLs based on uniform grooves. Moreover, the dispersion features can be controlled flexibly by changing the impedance ratio of the stepped slot-type grooves. And among the three proposed SSPP TLs (Type A, Type B, and Type C), Type C SSPP TL has the most compact size. Consequently, based on Type C SSPP TL, an ultra-compact plasmonic low-pass filter (LPF) is designed to validate the design theory. Good agreement is observed between the simulated and measured results for which reflection coefficient is lower than − 10 dB in passband from 0 to 1.73 GHz and good shape factor of 1.09 for the transition from the passband to the stopband. Besides, the proposed plasmonic low-pass filter occupies very compact size, indicating that the proposed plasmonic filter can find potential applications in compact plasmonic system design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rare anomalies allow to be hidden in any subspace upon a high-dimensional space so that high-dimensional dimensional of the data brings a lot of trouble for anomalous detectors. To mine high-dimensional anomalies, this paper proposes a novel hypersphere with density fuzzy. On the one hand, the major contributors are chosen by using the fuzzy and a density estimator to quantify the contributions created by unknown instances, and then the hypersphere trained by the major contributors achieves anomalous identification. On the other hand, an inner product kernel is also derived to assist that the hypersphere pays more attention to local regions containing anomalies. Experimental results on ten UCI datasets show that the proposed model wins over the opponents on the three ultra-high dimensional datasets and most high-dimensional datasets in mining anomalies. Results also indicate that these models with fuzzy perform better than those without fuzzy, meanwhile, there is no significant difference between detected results. We demonstrate that calculating data density or attending data local regions can alleviate negative effects caused by high dimensionality on anomalous detection results to a certain extent. Additionally, the effort created by fuzzy to resist the curse of dimensionality do not rely on specific scenarios and specific detectors, while the assistance afforded by kernels to resist high dimensionality is dependent of detector structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sulfide-based all-solid-state lithium metal batteries (ASSLMBs) have received extensive attention due to their high energy density and high safety, while the poor interface stability between sulfide electrolyte and lithium metal anode limits their development. Hence, a hybrid SEI (LICl/LiF/LiZn) was constructed at the interface between Li5.5PS4.5Cl1.5 sulfide electrolyte and lithium metal. The LiCl and LiF interface phases with high interface energy effectively induce the uniform deposition of Li+ and reduce the overpotential of Li+ deposition, while the LiZn alloy interface phase accelerates the diffusion of lithium ions. The synergistic effect of the above functional interface phases inhibits the growth of lithium dendrites and stabilizes the interface between the sulfide electrolyte and lithium metal. The hybrid SEI strategy exhibits excellent electrochemical performance on symmetric batteries and all-solid-state batteries. The symmetrical cell exhibits stable cycling performance over long duration over 500 h at 1.0 mA cm−2. Moreover, the LiNbO3@NCM712/Li5.5PS4.5Cl1.5/Li-10%ZnF2 battery exhibits excellent cycle stability at a high rate of 0.5 C, with a capacity retention rate of 76.4% after 350 cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study published in the Blood Cancer Journal examined the outcomes of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) in adult patients with adverse-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and KMT2A rearrangement. The study found that haploidentical donor HCT (Haplo-HCT) had a lower relapse incidence compared to matched sibling donor (MSD) or matched unrelated donor (MUD) transplants. The study also investigated the prognostic value of different KMT2A fusion partners. The findings suggest that Haplo-HCT may be beneficial for AML patients with adverse-risk KMT2A rearrangement, excluding t(9;11), in terms of relapse prevention. [Extracted from the article]

Background: Forests play a crucial role in absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere. 55% of the carbon in terrestrial ecosystems is stored in forests, with the majority of forest carbon stored in soil. To better understand soil organic carbon (SOC) of forests and to access interventions that affect their SOC concentration, we conducted a comparative analysis between natural and planted forests. Forest interventions refer to the actions taken by humans to manage, protect, or transform forests, and can be divided into two main categories: environmental intervention and anthropogenic intervention. This study focused on the effects of different interventions on SOC in natural and planted forests by reviewing a total of 75 randomized controlled trials in the global literature and extracting a total of 15 different interventions. Results: Through network meta-analysis, we found that natural forests have 22.3% higher SOC than planted forests, indicating their stronger carbon storage function. In natural forests, environmental interventions have a stronger impact. SOC is significantly influenced by forest age, fertilization, and elevation. In planted forests, however, anthropogenic interventions have a stronger impact. Pruning branches and fertilization are effective interventions for planted forests. Furthermore, forest degradation has a significantly negative impact on SOC in planted forests. Conclusion: Overall, interventions to enhance soil carbon storage function differ between natural and planted forests. To address global climate change, protect biodiversity, and achieve sustainable development, it is imperative to globally protect forests and employ scientifically sound forest management practices. Regarding natural forests, the emphasis should be on comprehending the effects of environmental interventions on SOC. Conversely, concerning planted forests, the emphasis should be on comprehending the effects of anthropogenic interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A variety of factors such as time-varying transfer paths, planet shifts, etc., can induce additional modulation sidebands in the spectrum of planetary gearboxes. Most of previous work only considers the effect of a single factor on the sidebands, while these factors may occur at the same time and the corresponding results are not studied. Moreover, although all of these factors can result in additional sidebands, it is unclear that which the most important factor is, and brings difficulty to the fault diagnosis of planetary gearboxes. Aiming at this issue, a universal equation of phenomenological models of planetary gearboxes is developed in this paper to predict the importance of a certain factor in arising modulation sidebands. This model extends the previous phenomenological models which only contain a single factor of sideband formation and can describe the spectral structures of planetary gearboxes with multiple factors considered simultaneously. Effects of multiple factors including time-varying transfer paths, planet shifts and load sharing ratios on the modulation sidebands are analyzed. Furthermore, arbitrary one, two and multiple factors are introduced in the established phenomenological model to make a comparison between these factors. It is found that when the unequal load sharing among planet gears is not severe, a planet shift can result in abundant frequency components more prominently. Finally, the formation mechanisms of modulation sidebands are derived and some experimental validations are carried out to prove the effectiveness of proposed model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sparse triangular solver (SpTRSV) is mostly used for scientific and engineering applications. The structured-grid triangular solver of regular dependencies (STRSV) is a special kind of SpTRSV. Some general SpTRSVs that disregards the regularity of the matrix are unsuitable for solving this problem. This paper proposes an efficient parallel algorithm for STRSV on the SW26010 (a kind of China independently designed many-core processors), namely swStructTRSV. The algorithm makes full use of the fine-grained and low latency communication characteristics of the SW26010 to reduce the waiting time for synchronization, maximizes the regularity of access to improve memory access bandwidth, and achieves overlap between memory access and computation simultaneously. Moreover, the idea of the algorithm can be extended to incomplete LU factorization (ILU factorization) because of consistent dependencies. The experimental results on a core group(8 * 8 network composed of 64 cores) of SW26010 show that swStructTRSV can achieve an average speedup of over 30 in the sequential version. swStructTRSV on SW26010 achieves solving speedups of 2.2 and 6.3 over the fast STRSV (fSpTRSV) previously implemented on SW26010 and MKL on Intel Xeon Gold 6132, respectively. swStructTRSV significantly outperforms cuSparse on NVIDIA TITAN RTX in terms of overall execution time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Noninvasive quantifying activated hepatic stellate cells (aHSCs) by molecular imaging is helpful for assessing disease progression and therapeutic responses of liver fibrosis. Our purpose is to develop platelet-derived growth factor receptor β (PDGFRβ)-targeted radioactive tracer for assessing liver fibrosis by positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of aHSCs. Methods: Comparative transcriptomics, immunofluorescence staining and flow cytometry were used to evaluate PDGFRβ as biomarker for human aHSCs and determine the correlation of PDGFRβ with the severity of liver fibrosis. The high affinity affibody for PDGFRβ (ZPDGFRβ) was labeled with gallium-68 (68Ga) for PET imaging of mice with carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced liver fibrosis. Binding of the [68Ga]Ga-labeled ZPDGFRβ ([68Ga]Ga-DOTA-ZPDGFRβ) for aHSCs in human liver tissues was measured by autoradiography. Results: PDGFRβ overexpressed in aHSCs was highly correlated with the severity of liver fibrosis in patients and CCl4-treated mice. The 68Ga-labeled ZPDGFRβ affibody ([68Ga]Ga-DOTA-ZPDGFRβ) showed PDGFRβ-dependent binding to aHSCs. According to the PET imaging, hepatic uptake of [68Ga]Ga-DOTA-ZPDGFRβ increased with the accumulation of aHSCs and collagens in the fibrotic livers of mice. In contrast, hepatic uptake of [68Ga]Ga-DOTA-ZPDGFRβ decreased with spontaneous recovery or treatment of liver fibrosis, indicating that the progression and therapeutic responses of liver fibrosis in mice could be visualized by PDGFRβ-targeted PET imaging. [68Ga]Ga-DOTA-ZPDGFRβ also bound human aHSCs and visualized fibrosis in patient-derived liver tissues. Conclusions: PDGFRβ is a reliable biomarker for both human and mouse aHSCs. PDGFRβ-targeted PET imaging could be used for noninvasive monitoring of liver fibrosis in mice and has great potential for clinical translation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is a challenging and meaningful task to carry out UAV-based livestock monitoring in high-altitude (more than 4500 m on average) and cold regions (annual average – 4 °C) on the Qinghai Tibet Plateau. The purpose of artificial intelligence (AI) is to execute automated tasks and to solve practical problems in actual applications by combining the software technology with the hardware carrier to create integrated advanced devices. Only in this way, the maximum value of AI could be realized. In this paper, a real-time tracking system with dynamic target tracking ability is proposed. It is developed based on the tracking-by-detection architecture using YOLOv7 and Deep SORT algorithms for target detection and tracking, respectively. In response to the problems encountered in the tracking process of complex and dense scenes, our work (1) Uses optical flow to compensate the Kalman filter, to solve the problem of mismatch between the target bounding box predicted by the Kalman filter (KF) and the input when the target detection in the current frame is complex, thereby improving the prediction accuracy; (2) Using a low confidence trajectory filtering method to reduce false positive trajectories generated by Deep SORT, thereby mitigating the impact of unreliable detection on target tracking. (3) A visual servo controller has been designed for the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) to reduce the impact of rapid movement on tracking and ensure that the target is always within the field of view of the UAV camera, thereby achieving automatic tracking tasks. Finally, the system was tested using Tibetan yaks on the Qinghai Tibet Plateau as tracking targets, and the results showed that the system has real-time multi tracking ability and ideal visual servo effect in complex and dense scenes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated gastric cancer (EBVaGC) is a distinct molecular subtype of gastric cancer (GC). At present, the clinical characteristics and prognostic implications of EBV infection and the potential clinical benefits of immune checkpoint blockade in GC remain to be clarified. Hence, this study was designed to analyze the clinical and pathological characteristics of GC patients with varying EBV infection states and compare their overall survival (OS). Methods: A retrospective study was performed on 1031 consecutive GC patients who underwent gastrectomy at the Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University from February 2018 to November 2022. EBV-encoded RNA (EBER) in situ hybridization (ISH) was used for EBV assessment, and immunohistochemical staining was used for evaluation of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1), and Ki67 expression. EBVaGC was defined as tumors with EBV positivity. In addition, EBV-negative GC (EBVnGC) patients were matched with EBVaGC patients based on seven clinicopathological parameters (age, gender, anatomic subsite, tumor size, Lauren classification, degree of differentiation, and tumor-node-metastasis [TNM] stage). The correlations of clinical features with HER2, PD-L1, and Ki67 expression were evaluated statistically. The survival of patients was assessed through medical records, telephone, or WeChat communication, and prognostic analysis was performed using the logrank test as well as univariable and multivariable regression analysis. Results: Out of 1031 GC patients tested, 35 (3.4%) were diagnosed with EBVaGC. Notably, the EBVaGC group exhibited a distinct predominance of males and younger patients, significantly higher Ki67 and PD-L1 expression levels, and a lower prevalence of pericancerous nerve invasion than the EBVnGC group (P < 0.01). In the 35 EBVaGC cases, Ki67 expression was negatively correlated with age (P < 0.05), suggesting that a younger onset age was associated with higher Ki67 expression. In addition, PD-L1 expression was correlated with the degree of differentiation, T-stage, and clinical stage of the patient. Furthermore, PD-L1 expression was elevated in tumors with lower differentiation or at later stages (P < 0.05). Using univariate analysis, Ki67, PD-L1, and clinical stage were identified as significant factors influencing the overall survival (OS) of EBVaGC patients (P < 0.05). Moreover, multivariate survival analysis revealed that clinical stage and Ki67 expression were independent risk factors for the OS of the patients (P < 0.05), and the three-year OS rate of EBVaGC patients was 64.2%. Conclusion: EBV-ISH is a practical and valuable method to identify EBVaGC. Owing to its unique etiological, pathological, and clinical characteristics, patients with EBVaGC might benefit from immune checkpoint blockade therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Post-disaster recovery and reconstruction provide an effective way to reduce the disaster vulnerability of, and promote leapfrog development in, an affected area. To date, studies that have used administrative boundaries to investigate the reconstruction of settlement space have not been able to clearly define the real boundaries of land use changes or quantify the degree of response to the 'Build-Back-Better' initiative, and have lacked any consideration of the fourth reconstruction stage–development period (10 years). This study constructed a mountain settlement niche and analyzed the characteristics, spatial reconstruction, and drivers of rural settlements during 2009–2019 in the upper reaches of the Minjiang River, southwest China. The results showed the following: (1) Natural factors were the basis for the formation and development of mountain settlement niches. The scale of the settlement niche and its land use structure depended on the physical geography features and the ethnic farming and grazing traditions. The settlement niche provided a realistic boundary for the spatial reconstruction. (2) The layout of residential land around cropland was the common feature of the mountain settlement niche. Of all the land use types, the roads and rural residential lands showed the most change over the 10 years; 13,860 residential patches increased in size and 4,742 patches were abandoned. (3) The area of orchards, planted to reconstruct the economy in the mountains, increased by nearly 2.5 times. (4) Collapses, landslides, and debris flow disasters and the ecological red line influenced the spatial reconstruction. While the main focus of postdisaster recovery is spatial reconstruction, initiatives should include economic and spiritual recovery, and should also achieve sustainable development of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study aims to develop a CT-based method for quantifying tracheal shape and evaluating its ability to distinguish between cases with or without tracheal invasion in patients with thyroid carcinoma. Methods: A total of 116 quantitative shape features, including 56 geometric moments and 60 bounding shape features, were defined. The tracheal lumen was semi-automatically defined with a CT threshold of less than − 500 HU. Three contiguous slices with the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd smallest trachea lumen areas were contiguously selected, and the appropriate number of slices to be included was determined. Fifty-six patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) invading the trachea and 22 patients with DTC but without invasion were retrospectively included. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was applied to select the representative shape features and determine the optimal threshold. Results: 23.3%, 25.9%, and 24.1% of the features displayed an area under the ROC curve (AUC) ≥ 0.800 when derived from 1, 2, and 3 slices, respectively. Calculating feature values from two slices with the 1st and 2nd smallest tracheal lumen area were considered appropriate. Six final features, including 3 geometric moments and 3 bounding shape features, were selected to determine the tracheal invasion status of DTC and displayed AUCs of 0.875–0.918, accuracies of 0.821–0.891, sensitivities of 0.813–0.893, and specificities of 0.818–0.932, outperforming the visual evaluation results. Conclusions: Geometric moments and bounding shape features can quantify the tracheal shape and are reliable for identifying DTC tracheal invasion. The selected features quantified the extent of tracheal deformity in DTC patients with and without tracheal invasion. Clinical relevance statement: Six geometric features provide a non-invasive, semi-automated evaluation of the tracheal invasion status of thyroid cancer. Key Points: • A novel method for quantifying tracheal shape using 56 geometric moments and 60 bounding shape features was developed. • Six features identify tracheal invasion by thyroid carcinoma. • The selected features quantified the extent of tracheal deformity in differentiated thyroid carcinoma patients with and without tracheal invasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Abnormalities in oocyte maturation, fertilization, and early embryonic development are major causes of primary infertility in women who are undergoing IVF/ICSI attempts. Although many genetic factors responsible for these abnormal phenotypes have been identified, there are more additional pathogenic genes and variants yet to be discovered. Previous studies confirmed that bi-allelic PATL2 deficiency is an important factor for female infertility. In this study, 935 infertile patients with IVF/ICSI failure were selected for whole-exome sequencing, and 18 probands carrying PATL2 variants with a recessive inheritance pattern were identified. Methods: We estimated that the prevalence contributed by PATL2 was 1.93% (18/935) in our study cohort. Results: 15 novel variants were found in those families, including c.1093C > T, c.1609dupA, c.1204C > T, c.643dupG, c.877-2A > G, c.1228C > G, c.925G > A, c.958G > A, c.4A > G, c.1258T > C, c.1337G > A, c.1264dupA, c.88G > T, c.1065-2A > G, and c.1271T > C. The amino acids altered by the corresponding variants were highly conserved in mammals, and in silico analysis and 3D molecular modeling suggested that the PATL2 mutants impaired the physiologic function of the resulting proteins. Diverse clinical phenotypes, including oocyte maturation defect, fertilization failure, and early embryonic arrest might result from different variants of PATL2. Conclusions: These results expand the spectrum of PATL2 variants and provide an important reference for genetic counseling for female infertility, and they increase our understanding of the mechanisms of oocyte maturation arrest caused by PATL2 deficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experience replay, which stores past samples for reuse, has become a fundamental component of off-policy reinforcement learning. Some pioneering works have indicated that prioritization or reweighting of samples with on-policiness can yield significant performance improvements. However, this method doesn't pay enough attention to sample diversity, which may result in instability or even long-term performance slumps. In this work, we introduce a novel Re-attention criterion to reevaluate recent experiences, thus benefiting the agent from learning about them. We call this overall algorithm, Re-attentive Experience Replay (RAER). RAER employs a parameter-insensitive dynamic testing technique to enhance the attention of samples generated by policies with promising trends in overall performance. By wisely leveraging diverse samples, RAER fulfills the positive effects of on-policiness while avoiding its potential negative influences. Extensive experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of RAER in improving both performance and stability. Moreover, replacing the on-policiness component of the state-of-the-art approach with RAER can yield significant benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rechargeable aqueous zinc metal batteries (RAZMBs) have received extensive attention for large-scale energy storage systems due to the merits of Zn anodes, including moderate volumetric and gravimetric energy density, low redox potential, abundant reserve, low cost and impressive intrinsic safety. However, Zn anodes suffer from a series of adverse reactions (dendrite growth, hydrogen evolution, and surface passivation) resulting in low Coulombic efficiency, large polarization, and unsatisfied cycling performance, which inevitably hinder the wide application of RAZMBs. To address the above issues, cellulose-based materials are widely used for Zn anode protection because of their unique physical and chemical properties and other advantages such as biocompatibility, non-toxicity, degradability and easy extraction. In order to better understand the current progress in cellulose-based materials for the Zn anode protection, we have classified and summarized the relevant literatures. In this review, we summarize and elaborate the causes of poor reversibility for Zn anodes, including dendrite formation, hydrogen evolution, and surface passivation. Subsequently, the effective strategies (anode interfacial engineering, gel electrolyte optimization, and separator modification) of cellulose-based materials toward stabilizing Zn anodes are overviewed. In the end, the existing challenges and prospects of cellulose-based materials in Zn anode protection are summarized to shed light on future work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Near-infrared organic small molecule luminescent materials have the advantages of easy modification, high quantum efficiency, good biological affinity, and color adjustability; thus, have promising application prospects in the fields of photoelectric devices, sensitive detection, photodynamic therapy, and biomedical imaging. However, traditional organic luminescent molecules have the problems of short emission wavelength, aggregation-causing emission quenching, and low quantum yield. Herein, we successfully synthesized four D-π-A-D light-emitting molecules based on electron-withdrawing malonitrile group and different electron-donating arylamine groups. These compounds showed satisfactory solvatochromism, aggregation-induced emission, red and near-infrared fluorescence, high photoluminescence quantum efficiency and temperature response properties. This successful example of molecular engineering provides a valuable reference for the development of advanced NIR materials with AIE and temperature-sensitive properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the probable existence of a causal relationship between sleep phenotypes and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR). Single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with sleep phenotypes were selected as instrumental variables at the genome-wide significance threshold (P < 5 × 10−8). Inverse‐variance weighted was applied as the primary Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis method, and MR Egger regression, weighted median, simple mode, and weighted mode methods were used as complementary analysis methods to estimate the causal association between sleep phenotypes and PDR. Results indicated that genetically predicted sleep phenotypes had no causal effects on PDR risk after Bonferroni correction (P = 0.05/10) [Chronotype: P = 0.143; Daytime napping: P = 0.691; Daytime sleepiness: P = 0.473; Insomnia: P = 0.181; Long sleep duration: P = 0.671; Morning person:P = 0.113; Short sleep duration: P = 0.517; Obstructive sleep apnea: P = 0.091; Sleep duration: P = 0.216; and snoring: P = 0.014]. Meanwhile, there are no reverse causality for genetically predicted PDR on sleep phenotypes [Chronotype: P = 0.100; Daytime napping: P = 0.146; Daytime sleepiness: P = 0.469; Insomnia: P = 0.571; Long sleep duration: P = 0.779; Morning person: P = 0.040; Short sleep duration: P = 0.875; Obstructive sleep apnea: P = 0.628; Sleep duration: P = 0.896; and snoring: P = 0.047]. This study's findings did not support the causal effect of between sleep phenotypes and PDR. Whereas, longitudinal studies can further verify results validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increase in port scale and business complexity has led to an increased demand for comprehensive and lean control on ports. The current operation mode is facing the bottleneck of the increasingly significant production efficiency and performance. Digital twin (DT) technology realizes holographic visual management and control patterns using cyber-physical fusion and promotes the transformation of a port to an intelligent operation mode. In this paper, the framework of a digital twin application system is proposed based on the analysis of business characteristics of large-scale comprehensive ports. Construction methods and technologies such as digital twin modeling, global ubiquitous perception, data mapping, and model fusion are analyzed. With regard to the construction needs of Qingdao Port's digital twin system, this paper presents a case study and illustrates the overall design process and function of the digital twin system for typical terminals. The system realizes the intelligent operation of the port with the core functions of three-dimensional visual monitoring and optimal dispatching based on real-time perception data. This paper serves as a feasible reference for future intelligent development of large ports and the application of digital twin technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

KNN crystals and solid-state crystal growth method have great application prospects due to their, respectively, outstanding advantages. However, at present there are also some problems that need to be solved urgently. In this work, both of BiCoO3 and CuO were chosen as dopants to further improve the size and piezoelectric properties of KNN-based crystals prepared by seed-free solid-state crystal growth (SFSSCG) method. In particular, the effects of CuO-doping on the growth, structure, and electrical properties were investigated systematically. The results show that Co, Cu, and Bi co-doping can promote the growth of KNN-based single crystals and enhance their electrical properties. The addition of CuO does not change the perovskite crystalline structure of the crystals. When the content of CuO is less than 0.5 at.%, the crystals have a single orthorhombic perovskite structure. And when the content of CuO is 0.7 at.%, a two-phase coexisting structure consisting of orthorhombic and tetragonal phases is present in the crystal. The domains in the crystals are mainly composed of 180° ones and have a parallel lamellar microstructure. The average domain width in the crystals first decreases and then increases with increasing the CuO content. When the content of CuO is 0.3 at.%, the crystals obtain an excellent overall electrical properties of d33 = 498 pC/N, Pr = 28.3 μC/cm2, Qm = 64.9, kt = 0.37, TC = 418 °C, εr = 373, and tanδ = 0.015, implying that they have a promising applications in piezoelectric and ferroelectric devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maintaining sufficient cerebral oxygen metabolism is crucial for human survival, especially in challenging conditions such as high-altitudes. Human cognitive neural activity is sensitive to fluctuations in oxygen levels. However, there is a lack of publicly available datasets on human behavioural responses and cerebral dynamics assessments during the execution of conflicting tasks in natural hypoxic environments. We recruited 80 healthy new immigrant volunteers (males, aged 20 ± 2 years) and employed the Stroop cognitive conflict paradigm. After a two-week exposure to both high and low-altitudes, the behavioural performance, prefrontal oxygen levels, and electroencephalography (EEG) signals were recorded. Comparative analyses were conducted on the behavioural reaction times and accuracy during Stroop tasks, and statistical analyses of participants' prefrontal oxygen levels and EEG signals were performed. We anticipate that our open-access dataset will contribute to the development of monitoring devices and algorithms, designed specifically for measuring cerebral oxygen and EEG dynamics in populations exposed to extreme environments, particularly among individuals suffering from oxygen deficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the aerobics competition, the judge's judgment plays a key role in the athlete's performance and ranking. However, due to the existence of human factors and subjective judgments, artificial judgments are prone to errors and unfairness. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to design and implement a machine vision system based on light detection sensor, which is used to assist judges in aerobics competition. The system aims to improve the objectivity and accuracy of competition judgment and reduce the influence of subjective factors on competition results. In this paper, the optical detection sensor technology is used to obtain real-time movement data of athletes by setting sensors in different positions of the field. The sensors can recognize the athlete's body outline, posture and movement flow, and transmit the data to a computer for real-time analysis and processing. Through machine vision algorithms, the system can automatically identify and analyze the degree of completion and technical difficulty of different actions. The experimental results show that the machine vision system based on the light detection sensor can accurately capture the movements of athletes and provide reliable data for judging. Compared with traditional manual evaluation, this system has higher objectivity and accuracy, and can reduce the interference of subjective factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Zambezi Delta basin is a passive marginal basin located on the East African coast that has good oil and gas exploration potential. Due to the special geological evolutionary background of the Beira High in the Zambezi Delta basin, it has a low gravity anomaly, and the existing seismic survey lines do not cover the whole basin; therefore, it is difficult to interpret the structural characteristics of the whole basin based solely on gravity or seismic data. Based on satellite altimetry gravity anomaly data, this study infers the distribution characteristics of faults in the Zambezi Delta basin by using the normalized vertical derivative of the total horizontal derivative (NVDR-THDR) technique. Then, constrained by seismic data, the gravity anomaly at the Moho interface is extracted by using the fast forward method of the double-interface model of the gravity anomaly, and this anomaly is then removed from the Bouguer gravity anomaly to obtain the sedimentary layer gravity anomaly. The thickness of the sedimentary strata is obtained by inversing the sedimentary basement depth of the whole basin. Then, uplifts and depressions are divided based on a sedimentary layer thickness of 3 km. This research demonstrates that the Zambezi Delta basin mainly features nearly SN-trending and NE-trending faults and that these faults exhibit east-west partitioning. The nearly SN-trending strike-slip faults controlled the sedimentary development of the basin, and the NE-trending tensile faults may have acted as migration channels for oil, gas and magma. The "overcompensation" effect of the Moho interface gravity anomaly on the gravity anomaly of the sedimentary layer is caused by the depression of the Moho interface beneath the Beira High, which results in a low gravity anomaly value for the Beira High. The pattern of uplifts and depressions trends NE and has the structural characteristics of east-west blocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current literature only focuses on the relationship between foreign direct investment (FDI) and haze pollution, while giving little attention to the effect of geographic conditions on the relationship between FDI and haze pollution. Given this drawback, we conducted an empirical research to explore the impact of FDI and geographic condition on the haze pollution using data from 283 prefecture-level cities in China, including geographical location, geographical environment, and geographical proximity elements. The results indicated that: (1) FDI affected haze pollution, however the impact of FDI on haze pollution demonstrated significant heterogeneity in different areas; (2) the regional heterogeneity in haze pollution was induced by geographical environmental elements such as the population density and temperature; and (3) haze pollution and FDI have a notable spatial spillover, degrading the air quality in surrounding cities. Therefore, when the government formulates plans, the importance of geographic conditions for economic development and environmental capacity should be emphasized. Because of the spatial spillover effect of haze pollution, provinces and municipalities should be encouraged to improve their collaboration on elimination of haze pollution and implement joint steps to prevent and control haze pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Myocardial infarction (MI) is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Danlou tablet (Dan) is an effective traditional Chinese medicine for cardiac protection, although the underlying mechanism was not fully understood. In this study, we used a murine MI model and demonstrated that Dan administration effectively attenuated myocardial apoptosis, cardiac remodeling, and heart failure post MI. Dan increased CD31-positive capillaries in MI hearts, and reduced the apoptosis and oxidative stress in human umbilical vein endothelial cells after oxygen–glucose deprivation stress, simultaneously with the activated HIF-1α/VEGFA/eNOS signaling. Moreover, inhibition of eNOS by L-NAME attenuated Dan-induced protection against MI, and abolished its effect in promoting angiogenesis and reducing endothelial apoptosis and oxidative stress. Collectively, Dan is beneficial to promote eNOS-dependent endothelial protection and angiogenesis thus protecting against MI. A deep understanding of Dan-induced protection might help promote clinical usage of Dan in MI treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The layered nickel-cobalt-manganese LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 (LNCM) was investigated as commercializable and high reversible capacity cathode material by more and more investigators in recent years. In this paper, the LiNi1/3Co1/3−xMn1/3YxO2 (x = 0, 0.02, 0.05, 0.10) samples were successfully obtained by a ball milling combined with calcination method. The synthesized LNCM nanocomposites are characterized by different analytical methods. The effect of amount of Y ions doping on the lithium storage performance of LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 was also studied systematically. The Y3+ ions replace the part of Co ions, reducing cation mixing and increasing the diffusion coefficient of Li+ ions in the lattice. It causes the unit cell volume to become larger, and the structure of the material becomes more stable in the intercalation and de-intercalation process of Li+ ions. These test results show that LiNi1/3Co1/3−0.05Mn1/3Y0.05O2 (Y-0.05 LNCM) sample behaves best electrochemical properties with the specific capacity of 174.8 mAh g–1 at 0.5 C after 100 cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Federated learning (FL) is a decentralized and privacy-preserving machine learning technique that protects data privacy by learning models locally and not sharing datasets. However, due to limited computing resources on devices and highly heterogeneous data in practical situations, the training efficiency and resource utilization of federated learning is low. In order to resolve these challenges, we introduce a blockchain-assisted dynamic adaptive and personalized federated learning framework (TV-FedAvg) in the presence of restricted computing power resources and data heterogeneity. After each round of local training, we utilize an improved scoring model based on VIKOR and TOPSIS to comprehensively score the devices. The scores are then utilized to choose devices for participation in global aggregation and to carry out model aggregation through blockchain consensus. Furthermore, resources are reallocated for the next round to enhance resource efficiency, model fairness, and performance. Finally, we demonstrate through experimentation that TV-FedAvg outperforms other models such as pFedMe, FedAvg, Per-FedAvg, and TOPSIS in terms of both efficiency and performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the unstable evolution of railway slopes is the premise for preventing slope failure and ensuring the safe operation of trains. However, as two major factors affecting the stability of railway slopes, few scholars have explored the unstable evolution of railway slopes under the joint action of rainfall-vibration. Based on the model test of sandy soil slope, the unstable evolution process of slope under locomotive vibration, rainfall, and rainfall-vibration joint action conditions was simulated in this paper. By comparing and analyzing the variation trends of soil pressure and water content of slope under these conditions, the change laws of pore pressure under the influence of vibration and rainfall were explored. The main control factors affecting the stability of slope structure under the joint action conditions were further defined. Combined with the slope failure phenomena under these three conditions, the causes of slope instability resulting from each leading factor were clarified. Finally, according to the above conclusions, the unstable evolution of the slope under the rainfall-vibration joint action was determined. The test results show that the unstable evolution process of sandy soil slope, under the rainfall-vibration joint action, can be divided into: rainfall erosion cracking, vibration promotion penetrating, and slope instability sliding three stages. In the process of slope unstable evolution, rainfall and vibration play the roles of inducing and promoting slide respectively. In addition, the deep cracks, which are the premise for the formation of the sliding surface, and the violent irregular fluctuation of soil pressure, which reflects the near penetration of the sliding surface, constitute the instability characteristics of the railway slope together. This paper reveals the unstable evolution of sandy soil slopes under the joint action of rainfall-vibration, hoping to provide the theoretical basis for the early warning and prevention technology of railway slopes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of individuals infected with HIV-1 among men who have sex with men (MSM) has risen rapidly in recent years in China, and the subtypes CRF01_AE, CRF07_BC, and B, as well as many novel unique recombinant forms (URFs) are prevalent among them. Co-circulation of strains among MSM populations allows the generation of circulating recombinant forms (CRFs) and URFs. In this study, we identified two new URFs from two HIV-1-positive subjects who were infected through homosexual contact in Hebei, China. Analysis of near-full-length genome sequences, using phylogenetic and recombination analysis showed that the two URFs originated from CRF01_AE, CRF07_BC, and B, and CRF01_AE segments in the backbone of the URFs were derived from cluster 4 of CRF01_AE. The CRF07_BC segments of two URFs were clustered with 07BC_N in a phylogenetic tree. The identification of novel URFs with complex genomic structures shows that it is necessary to strengthen surveillance of HIV-1 variants in MSM populations in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]