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The development and utilization of unconventional water resources has become a strategy to alleviate the agricultural water crisis in many countries and regions. To understand the research progress, hot spots, and future trends in the field of unconventional water agricultural irrigation (UWAI), this paper systematically analyzes 6738 publications based on the core database of Web of Science 1990–2023 using the scientific bibliometric analysis software CiteSpace, VOSviewer, and Scimago Graphica. The results showed that the research on UWAI is always rapidly developing. Soil science, crop science, and bioengineering are the main disciplines involved. Most research on WUAI has occurred in China and the United States. Countries with higher levels of development tend to have more influence. Collaboration among authors is fragmented, and collaboration between authors and states needs to be strengthened. Through keyword analysis, the research hotspots are summarized as follows: (1) The effects of traditional and emerging pollutants brought by unconventional water irrigation on soil physicochemical properties, crop growth, and groundwater quality; (2) the health threats caused by pollutants entering the food chain and groundwater; (3) unconventional water utilization technologies, including rainwater harvesting agriculture, precision agriculture, and urban agriculture. Future research hotspots will focus on the mechanisms of pollutant solute transport and transformation in the water–soil–crop system under non-conventional water irrigation conditions and crop physiological responses. We suggest that the research on traditional and emerging pollutants in unconventional water should be strengthened in the future, and the risk control system of unconventional water irrigation should be improved. International cooperation should be strengthened, especially with poor countries in arid regions, to promote the formation of unified international standards and guidelines for non-conventional water irrigation in agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nonlinear pressure–flux relationship in the xylem of a conifer is attributed to the fluid–solid interaction within the bordered pits. However, the fluid–solid interactions between the torus–margo structure and the water flow within the pit lack comprehensive understanding. Herein, a fluid–solid interaction model was developed including the deformation of the torus–margo and the flow of water transportation. Nine pit samples were reconstructed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) pictures. Fluid–solid coupling models for pits in the stems of oriental arborvitae (Platycladus orientalis) were developed. The deflection of the torus was roughly proportional to the pressure difference between adjacent tracheids, while the pit resistance exhibited a considerable nonlinear increase. From 250 to 1750 Pa, the pit resistance increased from 4.1466 × 1016 Pa·s/m3 to 8.8344 × 1016 Pa·s/m3. The pit resistance decreased, and the pit's ability to regulate water flow enhanced when the pit diameter increased. Both the pit resistance and the pit's ability to regulate water decreased when the pit depth increased. The decrease in Young's modulus for the margo promoted the nonlinear pressure–flux relationship in bordered pits. The findings provide theoretical evidence for the nonlinear relationship between pressure and flux in bordered pits, as well as for the prevention of gas bubble transit through a bordered pit during tracheid cavitation. The passive hydraulic regulation of bordered pits could increase flow resistance and reduce the water flow rate in the xylem, inhibiting tree transpiration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the molecular mechanism of lung injury caused by paraquat (PQ) poisoning by investigating miR-199-mediated SET. Methods: A paraquat poisoning model was established in C57BL/6 male mice via intraperitoneal injection of paraquat. The mice were transfected with miR-199 siRNA and or mimic. After 14 days of treatment, pathophysiological changes of the lung were observed and lung tissue was analyzed via Hematoxylin-Eosin staining. The levels of miR-199, SETs, surfactant protein SP-A and SP-B, and inflammatory and oxidative factors were analyzed by qPCR, Western Blot, and ELISA kits. Results: A acute lung-injury (ALI) model was established using PQ treatment and confirmed with edema of pulmonary endothelium with low electronic density of endothelial cytoplasm, presence of protein-rich fluid, and numerous erythrocytes in alveolar space, concentric figures of damaged tubular myelin, alveolar destruction, and increase in inflammatory cell numbers. Compared with the control group, miR-199 and SET levels were reduced in the PQ-treated group. miR-199 siRNA increased the SET level, inflammatory and oxidative levels, and reduced the levels of SP-A and SP-B, and miR-199 mimic reduced the SET level, inflammatory and oxidative levels, and increased the levels of SP-A and SP-B. PQ treatment reduced miR-199 level. Conclusion: Paraquat induces ALI by affecting miR-199-mediated SET. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pandemic outbreaks disrupt agricultural trade. The possible strengthening of import barriers to products from countries at the epicenter of a pandemic by their trade partners could aggravate this situation. This paper examines the responses of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), import refusals, and subsequent trade impacts on the agricultural exports from the developing countries that were the epicenters of four pandemics in the past two decades. Using monthly data for the period 2002–2020, we find increased import refusals and amplified trade‐impeding impacts on agricultural exports during pandemic outbreaks. Increased import refusals and the amplification of the trade‐impeding effect of import refusals were especially large when China was the epicenter. We further examine possible differences in these results across products and FDA inspection methods, and the main conclusions remain robust. This paper offers a better understanding of the economic outcomes of pandemic outbreaks and provides policy suggestions for China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An integrated full-bridge inverter circuit with fewer components and lower volume is proposed. The conventional light sintering system uses several independent power supplies, each having an input voltage source and inverting component. However, the structure of the proposed circuit comprises only one full-bridge inverter with two separated transformers for applying independent dc trigger and simmer output voltages. The separated transformers are considered to have the same operation switching frequency because of the integrated inverter part. When designing the system, we considered not only matching the switching frequency but also turning-on of the xenon flash lamp. Some of the considerations are as follows: no-load characteristic of the lamp at the initial moment, voltage-boosting effect of the parasitic inductance and capacitance, additional simmer output current path for continuous conduction, and dc trigger turn-off moment when the 15-kV trigger output voltage changes the lamp impedance. Here, the successful results of the aforementioned considerations for applying the light sintering technology are presented. The simulation and no-load experiment waveforms are consistent with the analysis of the effects of the parasitic inductance and capacitance. In addition, the waveforms show 15- and 1.0-kV stable output voltages for the dc trigger and simmer power supplies, respectively. Finally, the xenon flash lamp load is tested, and the integrated system is observed to be functional for single or series-connected lamps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interaction mechanisms of tetracycline (TC, as a typical antibiotic) on polystyrene microsphere (PSs, as a typical nanoplastic) were conducted by the batch, spectroscopic and theoretical techniques. The batch results showed that Na+ and K+ had no obvious effects on TC adsorption towards PSs, whereas Mg2+ significantly inhibited TC adsorption at pH > 5.0 due to its induced aggregations of PSs. The maximum TC adsorption capacity of PSs in the presence of humic acid (50.99 mg/g) was higher than that of PSs (44.77 mg/g) at pH 6.0. The highly effective adsorption was attributed to electrostatic attraction, π-π interaction and hydrophobic effect, which was determined by FT-IR and XPS analysis. According to DFT (density functional theory) calculations, the adsorption energy of TC/TC+ on PSs (1.52 eV) was significantly higher than that of negative TC− (0.57 eV), whereas minimum distance of TC on PSs (3.684 Å) was shorter than that of TC− on PSs (3.988 Å). The results of theoretical calculations indicated that TC was more preferably adsorbed on PSs with more stable configuration compared to TC−. These findings indicated that PSs can be used as a promising adsorbent for immobilization and pre-concentration of TC from aqueous solutions. Image 1 • TC sorption on PSs were electrostatic attraction, π-π interaction, hydrophobicity. • Mg2+ inhibited TC sorption at pH > 5.0 due to the induced aggregations of PSs. • HA enhanced TC sorption was due to the increased dispersion of PSs. • Highsorption energy of TC on PSs was demonstrated by DFT calculations. Investigations of antibiotics removal on nanoplastics in waste control by waste. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the design and manufacture of a 5.4 kJ/s three-phase resonant converter based on a 22 and 44 V lithium polymer (LiPo) battery as a high density power supply. Using the low LiPo battery input voltage generates a relatively high current that causes problems such as a large current burden on the used components and high peak-to-peak noise when the switch is turned off. To resolve such problems, the three-phase resonant converter in this work is used to handle the high input current. In the three-phase inverter structure, the amount of current flowing in a single switch is smaller than that of a single-phase current. In addition, the delta-star structure is intentionally introduced to reduce the turns ratio which helps to decrease the current on the transformer's primary side when the same output power is required. Furthermore, components such as series and parallel resonant capacitors are placed on the secondary side of the transformer, which have a high voltage and low current. These voltage and current conditions of the secondary side are more appropriate for commercialized film capacitors, which normally use series and parallel resonant capacitors because the film capacitors have been manufactured with high voltage and low current rated capacity. In terms of the design procedure, the used delta-star three-phase resonant circuit is redrawn on the secondary side of the transformer as a single-phase resonant equivalent circuit for the three-phase resonant converter design. Based on the simplified design, the operating mode and simulation of the 22 and 44 V LiPo battery-based chargers were analyzed, and the comparison of the resistor and capacitor load test results for the two chargers verifies both the aforementioned features and the performance of the proposed chargers using 300 and 150 A of the LiPo battery. The advantages are confirmed, and the capacitor bank is charged to 600 V for 80 ms, achieving power efficiencies of 82 and 92.5% for the 22 and 44 V based capacitor chargers, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The detection of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) represents an extensive requirement across various domains, including food, environmental, and medical fields. This study introduces a highly sensitive technique for the quantification of H 2 O 2 , integrating the electrochemiluminescence properties of perovskite with bio-catalyzed precipitation. A water-soluble perovskite-based electrochemiluminescence (ECL) biosensing interface was constructed, wherein H 2 O 2 catalyzes a precipitation reaction that leads to the formation of an insoluble precipitate on the electrode surface. This occurrence effectively quenches the electrochemiluminescence signal of the perovskite, thus facilitating the quantitative detection of H 2 O 2 . The modified perovskite demonstrated excellent ECL performance, offering a stable signal source, while the bio-catalyzed precipitation reaction significantly amplified the quenching effect, thereby enhancing detection sensitivity. This strategy exhibits excellent stability and sensitivity, presenting a promising method for the detection of hydrogen peroxide, which holds great potential for applications in various fields., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Background: Many studies have described lung lesion computed tomography (CT) features of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients at the early and progressive stages. In this study, we aim to evaluate lung lesion CT radiological features along with quantitative analysis for the COVID-19 patients ready for discharge., Methods: From February 10 to March 10, 2020, 125 COVID-19 patients (age: 16-67 years, 63 males) ready for discharge, with two consecutive negative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and no clinical symptoms for more than 3 days, were included. The pre-discharge CT was performed on all patients 1-3 days after the second negative RT-PCR test, and the follow-up CTs were performed on 44 patients 2-13 days later. The imaging features and quantitative analysis were evaluated on both the pre-discharge and the follow-up CTs, by both radiologists and an artificial intelligence (AI) software., Results: On the pre-discharge CT, the most common CT findings included ground-glass opacity (GGO) (99/125, 79.2%) with bilateral mixed distribution, and fibrosis (56/125, 44.8%) with bilateral subpleural distribution. Enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes were also commonly observed (45/125, 36.0%). AI enabled quantitative analysis showed the right lower lobe was mostly involved, and lesions most commonly had CT value of -570 to -470 HU consistent with GGO. Follow-up CT showed GGO decrease in size and density (40/40, 100%) and fibrosis reduction (17/26, 65.4%). Compared with the pre-discharge CT results, quantitative analysis shows the lung lesion volume regressed significantly at follow-up., Conclusions: For COVID-19 patients ready for discharge, GGO and fibrosis are the main CT features and they further regress at follow-up., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at http://dx.doi.org/10.21037/qims-20-531). YXJW serves as an unpaid Editor-In-Chief of Quantitative Imaging in Medicine and Surgery. The other authors have no conflicts of interest to declare., (2020 Quantitative Imaging in Medicine and Surgery. All rights reserved.)

The cardioprotective benefits of aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) are well established, although the regulatory role of ALDH2 in vascular remodeling in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is largely unknown. ALDH2 potently regulates the metabolism of aldehydes such as 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE), the endogenous product of lipid peroxidation. Thus, we hypothesized that ALDH2 ameliorates the proliferation and migration of human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (HPASMCs) by inhibiting 4-HNE accumulation and regulating downstream signaling pathways, thereby ameliorating pulmonary vascular remodeling. We found that low concentrations of 4-HNE (0.1 and 1μM) stimulated cell proliferation by enhancing cyclin D1 and c-Myc expression in primary HPASMCs. Low 4-HNE concentrations also enhanced cell migration by activating the nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signaling pathway, thereby regulating matrix metalloprotein (MMP)-9 and MMP2 expression in vitro. In vivo, Alda-1, an ALDH2 agonist, significantly stimulated ALDH2 activity, reducing elevated 4-HNE and malondialdehyde levels and right ventricular systolic pressure in a monocrotaline-induced PAH animal model to the level of control animals. Our findings indicate that 4-HNE plays an important role in the abnormal proliferation and migration of HPASMCs, and that ALDH2 activation can attenuate 4-HNE-induced PASMC proliferation and migration, possibly by regulating NF-κB activation, in turn ameliorating vascular remodeling in PAH. This mechanism might reflect a new molecular target for treating PAH., (Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)