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In this study, a long‐distance non‐contact current measurement method is proposed based on the non‐contact sensor array measurement technology, combined with a new current algorithm. The sensor array is a vertical array composed of three three‐axis magnetic field (MF) sensors that is placed on the ground plane below the measured overhead line. The proposed current algorithm can optimize the geometry of the overhead line using the spatial MF values measured by the sensor array and then the three‐phase currents can be calculated. To improve the accuracy of current measurement, the spatial MF model in the algorithm considers the influence of cable sag. It enables a more accurate coupling matrix between the measured overhead line and the sensor array to be established. Additionally, the current algorithm architecture is designed using a composite algorithm to more optimally obtain the best three‐phase current values. A scale‐down overhead‐line measurement system is developed to test the proposed current measurement method. The results show whether a cable sag exists when the three‐phase currents are approximately balanced, with errors less than 2.0%. Moreover, it can be determined whether cable sag exists when the three‐phase currents are unbalanced, with less than 3.4% errors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypertrophic scar (HS), which results from prolonged inflammation and excessive fibrosis in re‐epithelialized wounds, is one of the most common clinical challenges. Consequently, sophisticated transdermal transfersome nanogels (TA/Fu‐TS) are prepared to control HS formation by synergistically inhibiting inflammation and suppressing fibrosis. TA/Fu‐TSs have unique structures comprising hydrophobic triamcinolone acetonide (TA) in lipid multilayers and hydrophilic 5‐fluorouracil in aqueous cores, and perform satisfactorily with regard to transdermal co‐delivery to macrophages and HS fibroblasts in emerging HS tissues. According to the in vitro/vivo results, TA/Fu‐TSs not only promote macrophage phenotype‐switching to inhibit inflammation by interleukin‐related pathways, but also suppress fibrosis to remodel extracellular matrix by collagen‐related pathways. Therefore, TA/Fu‐TSs overcome prolonged inflammation and excessive fibrosis in emerging HS tissues, and provide an effective therapeutic strategy for controlling HS formation via their synergy of macrophage phenotype‐switching and anti‐fibrosis effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

N‐alkyl anilines are a series of common and versatile compounds which not only have been used as reaction solvents, acid‐accepters, and organic‐bases, but also in synthesis of dyes, pharmaceuticals, and anti‐colodal. The N‐methyl and/or N,N‐dimethyl anilines are the most representative ones among these. Due to their widespread uses, numerous works have been reported on synthetic strategies in the past decades. The studies on N−H methylations of anilines mainly focus on selection of reagents, selection of catalysts, or ligands design. Different transition‐metals, e. g., Ir, Ru, Pd, and et. al, with different ligands have been used in the methylation protocols. Methanol (CH3OH), carbon dioxide (CO2), formaldehyde (HCHO), or dimethyl carbonate ((CH3)2CO3) was used as C source, and hydrogen (H2) or silanes as H source. In this work, we would like to summarize the latest advances on the synthesis of N‐methyl (N,N‐dimethyl included) anilines and derivatives. This review provides an overview of reactants and catalyst, as well as an emphasis on the scope of substrates and proposed reaction mechanism for each work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considerable advances in the role of oxytocin (OT) effect on behavior and the brain network have been made, but the effect of OT on the association between inter‐individual differences in functional connectivity (FC) and behavior is elusive. Here, by using a face‐perception task and multiple connectome‐based predictive models, we aimed to (1) determine whether OT could enhance the association among behavioral performance, resting‐state FC (rsFC), and task‐state FC (tsFC) and (2) if so, explore the role of OT in enhancing this triangular association. We found that in the OT group, the prediction performance of using rsFC or tsFC to predict task behavior was higher than that of the PL group. Additionally, the correlation coefficient between rsFC and tsFC was substantially higher in the OT group than in the PL group. The strength of these associations could be partly explained by OT altering the brain's FCs related to social cognition and face perception in both the resting and task states, mainly in brain regions such as the limbic system, prefrontal cortex, temporal poles, and temporoparietal junction. Taken together, these results provide novel evidence and a corresponding mechanism for how neuropeptides cause increased associations among inter‐individual differences across different levels (e.g., behavior and large‐scale brain networks in both resting and task‐state), and may inspire future research on the role of neuropeptides in the cross levels association of both clinical and nonclinical use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fabric‐based triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) exhibit superior output performance, flexibility, and wearability. However, the fabric structure often creates gaps that accumulate contaminants, which weaken the performance and durability of the TENGs. To address this challenge, a novel eco‐friendly superhydrophobic fabric‐based TENG (SF‐TENG) woven with superhydrophobic electroconductive bacterial cellulose fiber (SEBC fiber) is presented. To construct durable superhydrophobicity, an ingenious bio‐fabricated method is employed for the shell–core structure. SEBC fibers with bio‐fabricated shell–core structure exhibit excellent electroconductibility, mechanical property, biodegradability, and durable superhydrophobicity. SF‐TENG displays a maximum open‐circuit voltage of 266.0 V, a short‐circuit current of 5.9 µA, and an output power of 489.7 µW, and successfully powers devices such as stopwatch and calculator. Abilities of self‐cleaning and anti‐fouling guarantee the stable output performance of SF‐TENG under harsh environmental conditions such as liquids pouring. Furthermore, the intelligent clothing is designed based on SF‐TENG to detect motion signals, and it is further utilized to construct a Sports and Health Monitoring System as a deep application. In summary, this study provides a novel strategy of bio‐fabrication for the design and preparation of superhydrophobic electroconductive fiber with shell–core structure. The SF‐TENG demonstrates practicability, stability and is promising for wearable devices in harsh environmental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the growing infrastructure for overhead lines, the demand for overhead‐line condition‐monitoring technologies has become increasingly urgent. Traditional current transformers used to measure three‐phase currents are bulky and difficult to install, which further increases the cost of monitoring. In order to meet the current state assessment needs of transmission and distribution networks, this study uses a novel magnetic‐field sensor array to realize nonintrusive overhead‐line current detection. Based on the magnetic fields measured by magnetic‐field sensors placed on the ground under the overhead line, the proposed algorithm can be used to calculate the three‐phase current values. The proposed method does not require on‐site calibration before the field measurements are conducted. With partially known overhead‐line geometry specifications from utilities, the algorithm can optimize the overhead‐line geometry and finally achieve accurate current detection. The simulation and experimental results verify that the proposed current‐detection technique can accurately calculate the three‐phase currents of the overhead line with only three three‐axis magnetic‐field sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a closed‐form synthesis method for wideband bandpass filters with suppressed harmonics, where stepped‐impedance resonators (SIRs), scaled lines, and vertically installed planar (VIP) structures are introduced to improve the in‐band and out‐of‐band performances. By combining SIRs and scaled lines, the rejection level of the filter is greatly improved and a more compact size is achieved. And the VIP structures help to bring wide passband as well as suppressed harmonics. Then, a 3rd‐order filter is designed to verify the validity of the proposed method and topology. The simulated and measured results demonstrate that the proposed design has a wide passband (FBW = 52.9%), low insertion loss (<0.4 dB), and suppressed harmonics with the level of 20 dB up to 7.1f0. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current action mechanisms for aptamer‐based therapeutics depend on occupancy‐driven pharmacology to mediate protein functions. We report a new mechanism where aptamers leverage cellular proteasomal degradation system to degrade proteins for cancer treatment. A DNA aptamer (hereinafter referred to as c‐Met‐Ap) binds to the extracellular domain of mesenchymal‐epithelial transition factor (c‐Met) and selectively induces c‐Met phosphorylation at Y1003 and Y1349. The phosphorylation of Y1003 recruits E3 ubiquitin ligase casitas B‐lineage lymphoma, causing c‐Met ubiquitination and degradation in the proteasome. Furthermore, c‐Met‐Ap can induce a decrease in the heterodimeric partner proteins of c‐Met and the downstream effector proteins in the c‐Met signal axis, effectively inhibiting tumor growth in A549 tumor‐bearing BALB/c mice. Our study uncovers a novel, actionable mechanism for aptamer therapeutics and opens a new avenue for developing highly efficient anticancer drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current action mechanisms for aptamer‐based therapeutics depend on occupancy‐driven pharmacology to mediate protein functions. We report a new mechanism where aptamers leverage cellular proteasomal degradation system to degrade proteins for cancer treatment. A DNA aptamer (hereinafter referred to as c‐Met‐Ap) binds to the extracellular domain of mesenchymal‐epithelial transition factor (c‐Met) and selectively induces c‐Met phosphorylation at Y1003 and Y1349. The phosphorylation of Y1003 recruits E3 ubiquitin ligase casitas B‐lineage lymphoma, causing c‐Met ubiquitination and degradation in the proteasome. Furthermore, c‐Met‐Ap can induce a decrease in the heterodimeric partner proteins of c‐Met and the downstream effector proteins in the c‐Met signal axis, effectively inhibiting tumor growth in A549 tumor‐bearing BALB/c mice. Our study uncovers a novel, actionable mechanism for aptamer therapeutics and opens a new avenue for developing highly efficient anticancer drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is common and causes many deaths worldwide. The aim of this study is to explore the mechanism by which long non‐coding RNA FGD5‐AS1 regulates HCC cell proliferation and stemness. Methods: Tumor and normal adjacent tissues were harvested from HCC patients. Real‐time quantitative reverse transcription‐PCR was applied to examine the expression of FGD5‐AS1, miR‐223, Epithelial cell transforming sequence 2 (ECT2) and FAT1. The protein levels of ECT2, FAT1, proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), OCT4, CD133 and CD90 were analyzed by western blot. The localization of FGD5‐AS1 was examined by Fluorescence in situ hybridization. Cell proliferation was analyzed with CCK‐8 and colony formation assays. Spheroid formation was used for analyzing cell stemness. Gene interaction was examined by RNA immunoprecipitation and luciferase activity assays. A subcutaneous xenograft mouse model was established to analyze HCC growth and stemness in vivo. Immunohistochemistry staining was used to analyze the expression PCNA and OCT4 in subcutaneous tumors. Results: FGD5‐AS1 was upregulated in HCC and its high expression indicated poor prognosis of patients. High expression of FGD5‐AS1 enhanced HCC cell proliferation and stemness. Knockdown of FGD5‐AS1 restrained tumor growth and stemness in mice. FGD5‐AS1 directly sponged miR‐223 and promoted the expression of ECT2 and FAT1 in HCC. Both knockdown of miR‐223 and overexpression of ECT2 and FAT1 reversed FGD5‐AS1 silencing‐mediated suppression of HCC cell proliferation and stemness. Conclusion: FGD5‐AS1 directly sponged miR‐223 and promoted the expression of ECT2 and FAT1 in HCC, thus enhancing HCC cell proliferation and stemness. Our study identifies potential prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for HCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With millions of years of evolution, owls have developed many excellent characteristics in terms of their flight. The speed of an owl in flight is similar to the relative speed of the blade of a small wind turbine with respect to air. Therefore, the owl wing airfoil is selected as the design airfoil of the wind turbine blade to reduce the flow separation under low Reynolds number. In this study, we analyze an owl wing‐section airfoil and the non‐smooth leading‐edge shape of an owl's wing, and implement an orthogonal optimum design to optimize the wavelength and amplitude of the non‐smooth leading edge. We extract the cross‐sectional features of the airfoil and the non‐smooth leading‐edge shape of the wing. Based on the orthogonal optimum design results, we determine the optimal combination of the wavelength, amplitude, and airfoil, and then design a horizontal‐axis wind turbine blade through bionic coupling. The flow field at different tip speed ratios (TSRs) is simulated using the k‐ωSST turbulence model at the rated wind speed. The results show that the power coefficient (CP) of the bionic wind turbine at a high tip speed ratio is 17.7% higher than that of the standard type. Furthermore, we analyze the operation of the turbine at TSRs of 2 and 5. At a high TSR, the leading edge bulge of the bionic wind turbine blade can change the flow direction distribution of the airflow on the blade surface, make the airflow to adhere to the suction surface, and then reduce the stall area on the suction surface of the blade. Thus, the wind turbine produces higher torque, thereby generating higher power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A supplemental state observer‐based sliding mode control (SSOBSMC) for a dynamic system is proposed in this paper. First, a supplemental state vector is formulated including system output and supplemental output. A supplemental state observer (SSOB) is proposed to estimate the unavailable states. Furthermore, the SSOBSMC consisting of SSOB and sliding mode control (SMC) is proposed to perform state estimation and robust tracking control for the dynamic system with some unavailable states. To demonstrate the application of the proposed methods, a mass‐spring‐damper (MSD) system is used as an application example to perform numerically. From the simulation results, the SSOB shows a good ability for state estimation, while the SSOBSMC simultaneously demonstrates accuracy in state estimation ability as well as a robust tracking control performance for the non‐linear MSD system. The major contributions of this paper are the proposed SSOB that can accurately estimate the unavailable states for the non‐linear dynamic system with time‐varying disturbances; and the SSOBSMC, which simultaneously displays accuracy in state estimation ability and robust tracking control performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the collision between kerosene droplets and coal particles in the bubble trailing vortex region is crucial for enhancing slurry conditioning. We found the area of the bubble trailing vortex region increased as the bubble size increased via the Fluent 6.3.26 software. A kerosene droplet velocity range of 0.074–0.106 m/s and a coal particle velocity range of 0.062–0.104 m/s were obtained if a bubble had a diameter of 0.3 mm. We employed a high‐speed motion acquisition system and observed the collision process, which was divided into two stages: Compression and Rebound. The critical motion distance increased as the kerosene droplet size increased, and sufficient kerosene droplet motion distance and enough kinetic energy normally resulted in a rebound phenomenon. The attenuation energy was almost positively linear to the initial energy, and the energy attenuation coefficient of the collision process was fitted to 0.626. Our results can provide valuable insight into mineral separation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces a robust frequency domain empirical likelihood inference procedure for the parametric component in the spectral densities of stationary processes. We construct the empirical likelihood function by using a new spectral estimating function to achieve robustness against contamination in the spectral density. Simulation studies demonstrate the good performance of the proposed robust frequency domain empirical likelihood method, which produces more accurate confidence regions than the ordinary empirical likelihood counterpart. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We read with great interest the article by Figueiredo et al[1] regarding lower hand grip in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), for which it was demonstrated that patients with RA presented with lower bone strength of 2nd metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint through a finite element analysis (FEA) using high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) scan. Lower hand grip in rheumatoid arthritis patients is associated with low finite element analysis using high resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography scan of the 2nd metacarpophalangeal joint. For instance, small and large joints such as knee joints differ in many ways.[[3]] The application of FEA to knee joints is mostly the evaluation of surgery or implants[5] and it can also be used to evaluate hip contact mechanics.[6] As a result, we believe it would be more comprehensive to generalize FEA from small joints to large joints to meet clinical criteria. [Extracted from the article]

Bartlett correction constitutes one of the attractive features of empirical likelihood because it enables the construction of confidence regions for parameters with improved coverage probabilities. We study the Bartlett correction of spatial frequency domain empirical likelihood (SFDEL) based on general spectral estimating functions for regularly spaced spatial data. This general formulation can be applied to testing and estimation problems in spatial analysis, for example testing covariance isotropy, testing covariance separability as well as estimating the parameters of spatial covariance models. We show that the SFDEL is Bartlett correctable. In particular, the improvement in coverage accuracies of the Bartlett‐corrected confidence regions depends on the underlying spatial structures. The Canadian Journal of Statistics 47: 455–472; 2019 © 2019 Statistical Society of Canada [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of ruthenium hydride compounds containing substituted bidentate pyrrole‐imine ligands were synthesized and characterized. Reacting RuHCl(CO)(PPh3)3 with one equivalent of [C4H3NH(2‐CH=NR)] in ethanol in the presence of KOH gave compounds {RuH(CO)(PPh3)2[C4H3N(2‐CH=NR)]} where trans‐Py‐Ru‐H 1, R = CH2CH2C6H9; cis‐Py‐Ru‐H 2, R = Ph‐2‐Me; and cis‐Py‐Ru‐H 3, R = C6H11. Heating trans‐Py‐Ru‐H 1 in toluene at 70°C for 12 hr resulted a thermal conversion of the trans‐Py‐Ru‐H 1 into its cis form, {RuH(CO)(PPh3)2[C4H3N(2‐CH=NCH2CH2C6H9)]} (cis‐Py‐Ru‐H 1) in very high yield. The 1H NMR spectra of trans‐Py‐Ru‐H 1, cis‐Py‐Ru‐H 2, cis‐Py‐Ru‐H 3, and cis‐Py‐Ru‐H 1 all show a typical triplet at ca. δ–11 for the hydride. The trans and cis form indicate the relative positions of pyrrole ring and hydride. The geometries of trans‐Py‐Ru‐H 1, cis‐Py‐Ru‐H 1, and cis‐Py‐Ru‐H 3 are relatively similar showing typical octahedral geometries with two PPh3 fragments arranged in trans positions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heat stress can inhibit follicular development in dairy cows, and thus can affect their reproductive performance. Follicular granulosa cells can synthesize estrogen, that affects the development and differentiation of follicles by apoptosis. Heme oxygenase 1 (HO‐1/heat shock protein 32) plays an antiapoptotic and cytoprotective role in various cells during stress‐induced apoptosis, but little is known about its definitive function in bovine (ovarian) granulosa cells (bGCs). In our study, the roles and mechanism of HO‐1 on the heat stress‐induced apoptosis of bGCs were studied. Our results show that the expression of HO‐1 was significantly increased under heat stress. Moreover, HO‐1 silencing increased apoptosis, whereas its overexpression dampened apoptosis by regulating the expression of Bax/Bcl‐2 and the levels of cleaved caspase‐3. In addition, HO‐1 can also play a cytoprotective role by affecting estrogen levels and decomposing heme to produce biologically active metabolite carbon monoxide (CO). Meanwhile, CO significantly increased the level of HO‐1, decreased Bax/Bcl‐2 levels, and inhibited the activation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) signaling pathway. The apoptosis of ovarian GCs can affect the secretion of estrogen and lead to disorder of the ovarian microenvironment, thus affecting the normal function of the ovary. Our results indicate that HO‐1 acts as a cytoprotective enzyme and plays a protective role in heat‐induced apoptosis of bGCs. In conclusion, HO‐1 and its metabolite CO inhibit the apoptosis of bGCs induced by heat stress through the ERK1/2 pathway. The results of this study provide a valuable clue for improving the fertility of heat stressed cows in summer. Heme oxygenase (HO‐1) and its metabolite CO inhibit the apoptosis of bovine granulosa cells (bGCs) induced by heat stress through the extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) pathway. The results of this study provide a target for improving the fertility of heat stressed dairy cows in summer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

N‐heterocyclic carbene catalyzed synthesis of 2,2′‐dihydroxybenzophenones from β‐methylenals and aurones was developed. The cleavage of the C−O bond by a retro‐Michael addition is the key step from the spirocyclic intermediate to final product. Annulation: N‐heterocyclic carbene‐catalyzed synthesis of 2,2′‐dihydroxybenzophenones from β‐methylenals and aurones was developed. The cleavage of the C−O bond by retro‐Michael addition is the key step from the spirocyclic intermediate to final product (see scheme). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enantioselective N‐heterocyclic carbene catalyzed [3+3] annulation of α‐bromoenals by dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) of enamines and normal resolution of α,α‐disubstituted imines were developed. The corresponding substituted dihydropyridones were isolated in good yields with excellent diastereo‐ and enantioselectivities, and a high selective factor (up to 83) was realized for the resolution of α,α‐disubstituted imines. The S factor: The enantioselective N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) catalyzed [3+3] annulation of α‐bromoenals by dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) of enamines, and normal resolution of α,α‐disubstituted imines were developed. The corresponding substituted dihydropyridones were isolated in good yields with excellent diastereo‐ and enantioselectivities, and a high selectivity factor was realized for the resolution of α,α‐disubstituted imines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enantioselective N‐heterocyclic carbene catalyzed [3+3] annulation of α‐bromoenals by dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) of enamines and normal resolution of α,α‐disubstituted imines were developed. The corresponding substituted dihydropyridones were isolated in good yields with excellent diastereo‐ and enantioselectivities, and a high selective factor (up to 83) was realized for the resolution of α,α‐disubstituted imines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SIRT7 is a member of the sirtuin family of proteins that are known to be associated with tumor development. However, the functional roles and molecular mechanisms underlying the function of SIRT7 in breast cancer cell survival and tumor development remain unclear. Recent studies demonstrated that SIRT7 is upregulated in breast cancer cells and tissues. In the present study, we systematically explored the roles of SIRT7 in the growth of breast cancer cells and tumors both in vitro and in vivo. Our results showed that SIRT7 plays a major role in facilitating cell survival by promoting cell proliferation and inhibiting apoptosis. SIRT7 depletion significantly inhibited cell invasion and wound healing by blocking cell cycle progression and inducing cell apoptosis. Meanwhile, SIRT7 depletion can increase the sensitivity of breast cancer cells to doxorubicin (DOX). Xenograft model studies showed that stable silencing of SIRT7 inhibited tumor growth and enhanced tumor sensitivity to DOX. Further research revealed that p38MAPK is involved in SIRT7‐mediated regulation of breast cancer cell proliferation and tumor growth. Taken together, our results showed that SIRT7 plays a critical role in breast cancer cell survival, migration, and tumor growth, and increased the efficiency of DOX treatment both in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, SIRT7 is a promising therapeutic target in breast cancer treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Free‐breathing three‐dimensional (3D) abdominal imaging is a challenging task for MRI, as respiratory motion severely degrades image quality. One of the most promising self‐navigation techniques is the 3D golden‐angle radial stack‐of‐stars (SOS) sequence, which has advantages in terms of speed, resolution, and allowing free breathing. However, streaking artifacts are still clearly observed in reconstructed images when undersampling is applied. This work presents a novel reconstruction approach based on a stacked convolutional auto‐encoder (SCAE) network to solve this problem. Methods: Thirty healthy volunteers participated in our experiment. To build the dataset, reference and artifact‐affected images were reconstructed using 451 golden‐angle spokes and the first 20, 40, or 90 golden‐angle spokes corresponding to acceleration rates of 31.4, 15.7, and 6.98, respectively. In the training step, we trained the SCAE by feeding it with patches from artifact‐affected images. The SCAE outputs patches in the corresponding reference images. In the testing step, we applied the trained SCAE to map each input artifact‐affected patch to the corresponding reference image patch. Result: The SCAE‐based reconstruction images with acceleration rates of 6.98 and 15.7 show nearly similar quality as the reference images. Additionally, the calculation time is below 1 s. Moreover, the proposed approach preserves important features, such as lesions not presented in the training set. Conclusion: The preliminary results demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed SCAE‐based strategy for correcting the streaking artifacts of undersampled free‐breathing 3D abdominal MRI with a negligible reconstruction time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A novel adsorbent made of polydopamine‐functionalized magnetic graphene and carbon nanotubes hybrid nanocomposite was synthesized and applied to determine 16 priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by magnetic solid phase extraction in water samples. FTIR spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy consistently indicate that the synthesized adsorbents are made of core–shell nanoparticles well dispersed on the surface of graphene and carbon nanotubes. The major factors affecting the extraction efficiency, including the pH value of samples, the amount of adsorbent, adsorption time and desorption time, type and volume of desorption solvent, were systematically optimized. Under the optimum extraction conditions, a linear response was obtained for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons between concentrations of 10 and 500 ng/L with the correlation coefficients ranging from 0.9958 to 0.9989, and the limits of detection (S/N = 3) were between 0.1 and 3.0 ng/L. Satisfactory results were also obtained when applying these magnetic graphene/carbon nanotubes/polydopamine hybrid nanocomposites to detect polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in several environmental aqueous samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A series of rod‐shaped polyoxometalates (POMs) [Bu4N]7[Mo6O18NC(CH2O)3MnMo6O18(OCH2)3CNMo6O18] and [Bu4N]7[ArNMo6O17NC(CH2O)3MnMo6O18(OCH2)3CNMo6O17NAr] (Ar=2,6‐dimethylphenyl, naphthyl and 1‐methylnaphthyl) were chosen to study the effects of cation–π interaction on macroionic self‐assembly. Diffusion ordered spectroscopy (DOSY) and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) techniques show that the binding affinity between the POMs and Zn2+ ions is enhanced significantly after grafting aromatic groups onto the clusters, leading to the effective replacement of tetrabutylammonium counterions (TBAs) upon the addition of ZnCl2. The incorporation of aromatic groups results in the significant contribution of cation–π interaction to the self‐assembly, as confirmed by the opposite trend of assembly size vs. ionic strength when compared with those without aromatic groups. The small difference between two aromatic groups toward the Zn2+ ions is amplified after combining with the clusters, which consequently triggers the self‐recognition behavior between two highly similar macroanions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A series of rod‐shaped polyoxometalates (POMs) [Bu4N]7[Mo6O18NC(CH2O)3MnMo6O18(OCH2)3CNMo6O18] and [Bu4N]7[ArNMo6O17NC(CH2O)3MnMo6O18(OCH2)3CNMo6O17NAr] (Ar=2,6‐dimethylphenyl, naphthyl and 1‐methylnaphthyl) were chosen to study the effects of cation–π interaction on macroionic self‐assembly. Diffusion ordered spectroscopy (DOSY) and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) techniques show that the binding affinity between the POMs and Zn2+ ions is enhanced significantly after grafting aromatic groups onto the clusters, leading to the effective replacement of tetrabutylammonium counterions (TBAs) upon the addition of ZnCl2. The incorporation of aromatic groups results in the significant contribution of cation–π interaction to the self‐assembly, as confirmed by the opposite trend of assembly size vs. ionic strength when compared with those without aromatic groups. The small difference between two aromatic groups toward the Zn2+ ions is amplified after combining with the clusters, which consequently triggers the self‐recognition behavior between two highly similar macroanions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most traditional voltage transformers in transmission and distribution networks are installed inside the substations. Nearly no accessible voltage information in the real‐time scale is available for field engineers to carry out the field measurement for the purposes of the power quality inspection and the equipment maintenance. In order to offer an on‐site and easy‐to‐use solution for the field measurement, the authors propose a novel electric‐field (EF) sensor array based technique for measuring the overhead‐line voltage. Based on the EFs measured by the EF sensor array and the partially known overhead‐line geometry information from utilities, the proposed voltage algorithm can accurately calculate each‐phase voltage without an on‐site calibration before conducting the field measurement. The simulation results demonstrate that the authors' proposed technique with only three EF sensors can accurately calculate the overhead‐line voltages and successfully reconstruct the real‐time three‐phase waveforms. The experiment results verify the feasibility of the proposed voltage sensor for the overhead‐line voltage measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized with senile plaques formed by Aβ deposition, and neurofibrillary tangles composed of hyperphosphorylated tau protein, which ultimately lead to cognitive impairment. Despite the heavy economic and life burdens faced by the patients with AD, effective treatments are still lacking. Previous studies have reported the neuroprotective effects of FGF10 in CNS diseases, but its role in AD remains unclear. In this study, we demonstrated that FGF10 levels were reduced in the serum of AD patients, as well as in the brains of 3xTg‐AD mice and APPswe‐transfected HT22 cells, suggesting a close relationship between FGF10 and AD. Further investigations revealed that intranasal delivery of FGF10 improved cognitive functions in 3xTg‐AD mice. Additionally, FGF10 treatment reduced tau hyperphosphorylation and neuronal apoptosis, thereby mitigating neuronal cell damage and synaptic deficits in the cortex and hippocampus of 3xTg‐AD mice, as well as APPswe‐transfected HT22 cells. Furthermore, we evaluated the therapeutic potential of FGF10 gene delivery for treating AD symptoms and pathologies. Tail vein delivery of the FGF10 gene using AAV9 improved cognitive and neuronal functions in 3xTg‐AD mice. Similarly, endogenous FGF10 overexpression ameliorated tau hyperphosphorylation and neuronal apoptosis in the cortex and hippocampus of 3xTg‐AD mice. Importantly, we confirmed that the FGFR2/PI3K/AKT signaling pathway was activated following intranasal FGF10 delivery and AAV9‐mediated FGF10 gene delivery in 3xTg‐AD mice and APPswe‐transfected HT22 cells. Knockdown of FGFR2 attenuated the protective effect of FGF10. Collectively, these findings suggest that intranasal delivery of FGF10 and AAV9‐mediated FGF10 gene delivery could be a promising disease‐modifying therapy for AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to efficient markets theory, information is an important factor that affects market performance and serves as a source of first-hand evidence in decision making, in particular with the rapid rise of Internet technologies in recent years. However, a lack of knowledge and inference ability prevents current decision support systems from processing the wide range of available information. In this paper, we propose a common-sense knowledge-supported news model. Compared with previous work, our model is the first to incorporate broad common-sense knowledge into a decision support system, thereby improving the news analysis process through the application of a graphic random-walk framework. Prototype and experiments based on Hong Kong stock market data have demonstrated that common-sense knowledge is an important factor in building financial decision models that incorporate news information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we report on an innovative method for the preparation of a series of organometal halide perovskite (OHP) photonic crystal beads with pronounced and tunable photonic stop bands by using self-assembled polystyrene spheres as a mold. After infiltration of the mold with OHP precursor solution and slow drying, the OHPs crystallized in the voids of the polystyrene arrays. By controlling the diameter of the polystyrene spheres, the photonic stop band of the OHPs could be precisely tuned. The overlap between the photonic stop band of the beads and the band gap of the OHPs enhances the light harvesting of the perovskite because of the slow photon effect, which arises from the photonic crystal beads. Moreover, the stability of the composite was greatly enhanced by coating with the transparent polymer PDMS without blocking the light propagation. The coated OHP photonic beads kept their composition even after having been in contact with water for 24 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we report on an innovative method for the preparation of a series of organometal halide perovskite (OHP) photonic crystal beads with pronounced and tunable photonic stop bands by using self-assembled polystyrene spheres as a mold. After infiltration of the mold with OHP precursor solution and slow drying, the OHPs crystallized in the voids of the polystyrene arrays. By controlling the diameter of the polystyrene spheres, the photonic stop band of the OHPs could be precisely tuned. The overlap between the photonic stop band of the beads and the band gap of the OHPs enhances the light harvesting of the perovskite because of the slow photon effect, which arises from the photonic crystal beads. Moreover, the stability of the composite was greatly enhanced by coating with the transparent polymer PDMS without blocking the light propagation. The coated OHP photonic beads kept their composition even after having been in contact with water for 24 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Controllable creating of wafer-scale homogeneous vertical or parallel 2D heterostructures with low cost by the van der Waals stacking or covalently bonded stitching of 2D layered materials, such as graphene, hexagonal boron nitride, and transition-metal dichalcogenides, is of great challenge. In this paper, a new green growth strategy for the fabrication of high-quality large-area and low-cost vertical MoS2/graphene heterostructures has been successfully demonstrated via electrochemical deposition in water solution, followed by an annealing process in chemical vapour deposition system for the first time. The vertical MoS2/graphene heterostructures have been systematically investigated by the combined use of Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. This simple, reliable, and environmentally friendly growth strategy on conducting monolayer graphene in a controlled manner opens up a new way for producing low-cost, large-area, and high-quality vertical MoS2/graphene heterostructures, which have promising applications not only in electronics and optoelectronics but also in the fields of catalysis and renewable energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, ultrathin two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs), such as MX2 (M = Mo, W; X = S, Se, etc.) have become the flagship materials after graphene. 2D-MX2 have attracted significant attention due to their novel properties arising from their strict dimensional confinement as well as strong spin-orbit coupling effects, which provides an ideal platform for exploring new fundamental research and realizing technological innovation. The 2D nature and the small lattice mismatch between MX2 make them ideal templates for construction of vertical and lateral heterojunctions at atomic scale by means of CVD epitaxial growth. This feature article aims to introduce current advances in the preparation of vertical or lateral epitaxial heterostructures based on 2D MX2 nanosheets as well as their potential applications in electronics, and optoelectronics. Firstly, various epitaxial CVD strategies for synthesis of vertical or lateral 2D MX2 heterostructures are comprehensively reviewed. Meanwhile, the advantages of these epitaxial methods as well as several applications of 2D MX2 heterostructures, such as photodiodes and photovoltaic devices are highlighted. Then the remaining challenges facing the controllable syntheses and the future perspectives of this promising area are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivated from problems in canonical correlation analysis, reduced rank regression and sufficient dimension reduction, we introduce a double dimension reduction model where a single index of the multivariate response is linked to the multivariate covariate through a single index of these covariates, hence the name double single index model. Because nonlinear association between two sets of multivariate variables can be arbitrarily complex and even intractable in general, we aim at seeking a principal one-dimensional association structure where a response index is fully characterized by a single predictor index. The functional relation between the two single-indices is left unspecified, allowing flexible exploration of any potential nonlinear association. We argue that such double single index association is meaningful and easy to interpret, and the rest of the multi-dimensional dependence structure can be treated as nuisance in model estimation. We investigate the estimation and inference of both indices and the regression function, and derive the asymptotic properties of our procedure. We illustrate the numerical performance in finite samples and demonstrate the usefulness of the modelling and estimation procedure in a multi-covariate multi-response problem concerning concrete. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The N-heterocyclic carbene-catalyzed [3+3] annulation of indoline-2-thiones and bromoenals has been developed, giving the corresponding indolo[2,3- b]dihydrothiopyranones in high yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bartlett correction, which improves the coverage accuracies of confidence regions, is one of the desirable features of empirical likelihood. For empirical likelihood with dependent data, previous studies on the Bartlett correction are mainly concerned with Gaussian processes. By establishing the validity of Edgeworth expansion for the signed root empirical log-likelihood ratio statistics, we show that the Bartlett correction is applicable to empirical likelihood for short-memory time series with possibly non-Gaussian innovations. The Bartlett correction is established under the assumptions that the variance of the innovation is known and the mean of the underlying process is zero for a single parameter model. In particular, the order of the coverage errors of Bartlett-corrected confidence regions can be reduced from O( n−1) to O( n−2). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background We hypothesized that food sensitization ( FS) in children could be linked to specific gut microbiota. The aim of our study is to quantify and evaluate differences in gut microbiota composition between children with FS and healthy controls. Methods A case-control study of 23 children with FS and 22 healthy children was performed. Individual microbial diversity and composition were analyzed via parallel barcoded 454 pyrosequencing targeting the 16S rRNA gene hypervariable V3-V5 regions. Results The children with FS exhibited lower diversity of both the total microbiota (p = 0.01) and the bacterial phylum Bacteroidetes (p = 0.02). In these children, the number of Bacteroidetes bacteria was significantly decreased and that of Firmicutes were significantly increased compared with the healthy children. At the genus level, we observed significant increases in the numbers of Sphingomonas, Sutterella, Bifidobacterium, Collinsella, Clostridium sensu stricto, Clostridium IV , Enterococcus, Lactobacillus, Roseburia, Faecalibacterium, Ruminococcus, Subdoligranulum, and Akkermansia in the FS group. We also found significant decreases in the numbers of Bacteroides, Parabacteroides, Prevotella, Alistipes, Streptococcus, and Veillonella in this group. Furthermore, linear discriminant analysis ( LDA) coupled with effect size measurements revealed the most differentially abundant taxa (increased abundances of Clostridium IV and Subdoligranulum and decreased abundances of Bacteroides and Veillonella), which could be used to identify FS. Conclusions Our results showed that FS is associated with compositional changes in the gut microbiota. These findings could be useful for developing strategies to control the development of FS or atopy by modifying the gut microbiota. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein we report a step-by-step strategy for the organic modification of polyoxovanadates, which is based on a suitable polyoxovanadate platform, and a series of novel functionalized polyoxovanadates can be synthesized conveniently by sequential esterification and amidation reactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The booming development of organometal halide perovskites in recent years has prompted the exploration of morphology-control strategies to improve their performance in photovoltaic, photonic, and optoelectronic applications. However, the preparation of organometal halide perovskites with high hierarchical architecture is still highly challenging and a general morphology-control method for various organometal halide perovskites has not been achieved. A mild and scalable method to prepare organometal halide perovskites in inverse opal morphology is presented that uses a polystyrene-based artificial opal as hard template. Our method is flexible and compatible with different halides and organic ammonium compositions. Thus, the perovskite inverse opal maintains the advantage of straightforward structure and band gap engineering. Furthermore, optoelectronic investigations reveal that morphology exerted influence on the conducting nature of organometal halide perovskites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Die fortschreitende Entwicklung im Gebiet der organometallischen Halogenidperowskite führte zu einer Suche nach Strategien zur Morphologiekontrolle, mit dem Ziel, die Leistung dieser Materialien in photovoltaischen, photonischen und optoelektronischen Anwendungen zu steigern. Die Synthese von organometallischen Halogenidperowskiten mit ausgeprägten hierarchischen Architekturen ist noch immer eine Herausforderung, und ein allgemeines Syntheseprotokoll wurde bislang nicht beschrieben. Hier berichten wir über die milde und skalierbare Synthese von organometallischen Halogenidperowskiten mit inverser Opalstruktur durch Verwendung von Polystyrol ‐ Opalen als harte Template. Unser Protokoll ist flexibel und mit verschiedenen Halogeniden und organischen Ammoniumverbindungen kompatibel. Die Bandlücken der OHP ‐ iOs können leicht angepasst werden, und die Materialien behalten ihre empfindliche Photoleitfähigkeit. Optoelektronische Messungen zeigen, dass die Morphologie einen Einfluss auf die Leitungseigenschaften der organometallischen Halogenidperowskite mit inverser Opalstruktur hat. Porös, mit all seinen Vorteilen: Eine Serie von organometallischen Halogenidperowskiten mit inverser Opalstruktur (OHP ‐ iOs) wurde durch Templatsynthese mit kolloidalen Polystyrolkristallen hergestellt. Die Bandlücken der OHP ‐ iOs können leicht angepasst werden, und die Materialien behalten ihre empfindliche Photoleitfähigkeit. OHP ‐ iOs sind vielversprechende Materialien für optoelektronische Bauelemente und Photokatalysatoren. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the presence of the alkaline catalyst sodium hydroxide, the intermediate of hyperbranched polyester (H20Cl) was prepared by the modification of the hyperbranched polyester Boltorn H20 with epichlorohydrin. Then a new kind of quaternary ammonium functionalized hyperbranched polyester (H20C16 N) was synthesized by the reaction of H20Cl and hexadecyldimethylamine. The characteristics of H20C16 N were determined by FT-IR, H NMR and TGA. The molecular and molecular weight distribution of H20C16 N were determined by Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC) and the surface activities of H20C16 N including surface tension ( γ) and the critical micelle concentration (CMC) were measured at 25 °C. The H20C16 N reduced the surface tension of water to 30.81 mN/m at concentration levels of 7.94 × 10 mol L and micellization free energies of the quaternary ammonium salt in its solution showed a good tendency towards adsorption at interfaces. The H20C16 N was applied to the silk fabric. An antimicrobial test of the treated fabrics against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was carried out. SEM and XPS analysis were performed to study the dispersion of H20C16 N onto the fabric. All results exhibited excellent antibacterial properties of the hyperbranched polyester quaternary ammonium salt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Failure of surface-mounted multilayer ceramic capacitor ( MLCC) results mainly from bending of the printed circuit board during handling and applications. Cracking of MLCC normally initiates at the junction of the bottom end of termination and the dielectric ceramics and it would cut through dielectric ceramics and electrodes to result in the capacitance loss and failure of MLCC. The purpose of this study was to mitigate the stress concentration and to shift the stress concentration location toward the side end of MLCC to minimize the number of electrodes cut by cracking. To achieve this, effects of the stiffness and the thickness of the solder and the size of MLCC on the location of crack initiation and the fracture load were examined. Nanoindentation was performed to obtain the mechanical properties of the constituents of the system. Finite element analyses were conducted to simulate the stress field in the surface-mounted MLCC subjected to bending and the results were compared to the observed crack initiation locations and the fracture load. The outcome would provide guidelines in mounting and designing of MLCCs to enhance its reliability and lifetime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel method for description of the strain field distributions during the steel forging was proposed in the present study, i.e., function representation for the strain field. Through deduction and calculation of the strain field function, the deformation characteristic of the void defects was obtained and the empirical features of void closure were quantitatively calculated based on the method. The analytical results of the deformation degree in size of the void and the critical condition of void closure were verified by numerical simulation, which shows the deviation is within 7%. During the practical process, the void closing region determined by the method can be developed to prediction of internal void closure, which simplifies the models with void. This methodology provides the scientific basis for process design in consideration of elimination of internal void defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the interactions of dendrimers as delivery vectors with biomembranes is important for functional optimization. Here, coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations are employed to study the interactions between a surface-modified dendrimer with short peptides and lipid bilayers under physiological and low pH conditions. The peptide consists of three histidines (H) with the pH-sensitive property and an arginine (R). It is found that the peptide-dendrimer conjugate either adheres to or penetrates through the negatively charged, asymmetrical bilayer, dependent on the pH value. Calculation of the potential of mean force shows that the penetration is energy favorable at low pH. The conjugate can lead to membrane thinning with enhanced permeability. Inspired by the results, a possible route is proposed for gene delivery using the non-specific electrostatic interaction adjusted by the pH environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: TFG‐related axonal Charcot–Marie–Tooth (CMT) disease is a late‐onset, autosomal dominant, hereditary motor, and sensory neuropathy characterized by slowly progressive weakness and atrophy of the distal muscles. The objective of this study was to determine the common pathogenic mechanism of TFG‐related CMT type 2 (CMT2) caused by different mutations and establish a direct association between TFG haploinsufficiency and neurodegeneration. Methods: Three individuals carrying the TFG p.G269V mutation but with varying disease durations were studied. The effect of the p.G269V mutation was confirmed by analyzing protein samples extracted from the blood of two individuals. The functional consequences of both CMT2 mutant gene products were evaluated in vitro. The effect of TFG deficiency in the nervous system was examined using zebrafish models and cultured mouse neurons. Results: Overexpression of p.G269V TFG failed to enhance soluble TFG levels by generating insoluble TFG aggregates. TFG deficiency disrupted neurite outgrowth and induced neuronal apoptosis both in vivo and in vitro and further impaired locomotor capacity in zebrafish, which was consistent with the phenotype in patients. Wnt signaling was activated as a protective factor in response to TFG deficiency. Conclusion: CMT2‐related TFG mutation induces TFG haploinsufficiency within cells and drives disease by causing progressive neurite degeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Morphological novelties, including formation of trait combinations, may result from de novo gene origination and/or co‐option of existing genes into other developmental contexts. A variety of shape–color combinations of capitular florets occur in Chrysanthemum and its allies. We hypothesized that co‐option of a carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase gene into the floral symmetry gene network would generate a white zygomorphic ray floret.We tested this hypothesis in an evolutionary context using species in Chrysanthemum sensu lato, a monophyletic group with diverse floral shape–color combinations, based on morphological investigation, interspecific crossing, molecular interaction and transgenic experiments.Our results showed that white color was significantly associated with floret zygomorphy. Specific expression of the carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase gene CCD4a in marginal florets resulted in white color. Crossing experiments between Chrysanthemum lavandulifolium and Ajania pacifica indicated that expression of CCD4a is trans‐regulated. The floral symmetry regulator CYC2g can activate expression of CCD4a with a dependence on TEOSINTE BRANCHED1/CYCLOIDEA/PROLIFERATING (TCP) binding element 8 on the CCD4a promoter.Based on all experimental findings, we propose that gene co‐option of carotenoid degradation into floral symmetry regulation, and the subsequent dysfunction or loss of either CYC2g or CCD4a, may have led to evolution of capitular shape–color patterning in Chrysanthemum sensu lato. See also the Commentary on this article by Zhang, 236: 800–802. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Little is known about the impact of direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) on appropriate versus inappropriate prescribing. Aromatase inhibitor (AI) therapy for breast cancer provides an ideal paradigm for studying this issue, because AIs have been the focus of substantial DTCA, and because they should only be used in postmenopausal women, age can serve as a simple surrogate marker of appropriateness.Methods: Data regarding national DTCA spending for the AIs were obtained from TNS Multimedia; hormonal therapy prescription data were obtained from IMS Health. Time series analyses were performed to characterize the association between monthly changes in DTCA spending for the AIs and monthly changes in the proportion of all new hormonal therapy prescriptions represented by the AIs from October 2005 to September 2007. Analyses were stratified by age, considering prescriptions for women ≤ 40 (likely premenopausal) to be inappropriate and those for women > 60 (likely postmenopausal) to be appropriate.Results: Monthly dollars spent on AI-associated DTCA varied considerably ($118,600 to $22,019,660). Time series analysis revealed that for every million dollars spent on DTCA for the AIs, there was an associated increase 3 months later in the new AI prescription proportion of 0.15% for all ages (P < .0001) and 0.18% for those > 60 years (P < .0001), but no significant change for those ≤ 40 at any time from 0 to 6 months.Conclusions: DTCA for the AIs was associated with increases in appropriate prescriptions with no significant effect on inappropriate prescriptions, suggesting that DTCA may not foster inappropriate medication use for certain drug classes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the impact of direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) on appropriate versus inappropriate prescribing. Aromatase inhibitor (AI) therapy for breast cancer provides an ideal paradigm for studying this issue, because AIs have been the focus of substantial DTCA, and because they should only be used in postmenopausal women, age can serve as a simple surrogate marker of appropriateness. METHODS: Data regarding national DTCA spending for the AIs were obtained from TNS Multimedia; hormonal therapy prescription data were obtained from IMS Health. Time series analyses were performed to characterize the association between monthly changes in DTCA spending for the AIs and monthly changes in the proportion of all new hormonal therapy prescriptions represented by the AIs from October 2005 to September 2007. Analyses were stratified by age, considering prescriptions for women ≤ 40 (likely premenopausal) to be inappropriate and those for women > 60 (likely postmenopausal) to be appropriate. RESULTS: Monthly dollars spent on AI-associated DTCA varied considerably ($118,600 to $22,019,660). Time series analysis revealed that for every million dollars spent on DTCA for the AIs, there was an associated increase 3 months later in the new AI prescription proportion of 0.15% for all ages ( P < .0001) and 0.18% for those > 60 years ( P < .0001), but no significant change for those ≤ 40 at any time from 0 to 6 months. CONCLUSIONS: DTCA for the AIs was associated with increases in appropriate prescriptions with no significant effect on inappropriate prescriptions, suggesting that DTCA may not foster inappropriate medication use for certain drug classes. Cancer 2013. © 2012 American Cancer Society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of forging on the diffusion of chromium (Cr) in alloy steel ingot are studied by diffusion model with finite element method (FEM) and verified by the experimental observations. Calculated results show that forging can enhance the diffusion of Cr in alloy steel ingot during the homogenization treatment, which is attributed to the geometry change and the increased diffusion coefficient caused by recrystallization. The geometry change caused by the forging is a factor to increase the diffusivity (from the high concentration region to the low one) of Cr. But, the diffusion coefficient of Cr in the deformed sample is obviously enhanced, the diffusivity is two orders of magnitude higher than that caused by geometry change. The enlarged diffusion coefficient is originated from the recrystallization, which plays a major role in enhancing the diffusion during the homogenization treatment. The experimental results are confirmed with the calculated predicts, the calculated deviation is less than 7%. It is shown that the effect of recrystallization is a new mechanism of enhancing the diffusion by forging .The theoretical explanations of the diffusion mechanism enhanced by forging are also proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance of degradation of newly synthesized collagen in regulating collagen production. We read with great interest the article by Jabbari et al. on the role of collagen supplementation in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and osteoarthritis (OA).[1] We appreciate the authors' valuable contribution to this comprehensive systematic review; however, we would like to highlight some key points. 2022; 74 (7): 1296 - 1297. doi: 10.1002/art.42106 32 Ma KS-K, Wang L-T, Tsai S-Y. Correspondence to: 'Combination of human umbilical cord mesenchymal (stromal) stem cell transplantation with IFN- treatment synergistically improves the clinical outcomes of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Is collagen supplementation friend or foe in rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis?. [Extracted from the article]