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Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality globally. We unveiled the diagnostic value of serum NLRP3, metalloproteinase‐9 (MMP‐9) and interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ) levels in post‐craniotomy intracranial infections and hydrocephalus in patients with severe craniocerebral trauma to investigate the high risk factors for these in patients with TBI, and the serological factors predicting prognosis, which had a certain clinical predictive value. Study subjects underwent bone flap resection surgery and were categorized into the intracranial infection/hydrocephalus/control (without postoperative hydrocephalus or intracranial infection) groups, with their clinical data documented. Serum levels of NLRP3, MMP‐9 and IFN‐γ were determined using ELISA kits, with their diagnostic efficacy on intracranial infections and hydrocephalus evaluated by receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. The independent risk factors affecting postoperative intracranial infections and hydrocephalus were analysed by logistic multifactorial regression. The remission after postoperative symptomatic treatment was counted. The intracranial infection/control groups had significant differences in Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) scores, opened injury, surgical time and cerebrospinal fluid leakage, whereas the hydrocephalus and control groups had marked differences in GCS scores, cerebrospinal fluid leakage and subdural effusion. Serum NLRP3, MMP‐9 and IFN‐γ levels were elevated in patients with post‐craniotomy intracranial infections/hydrocephalus. The area under the curve values of independent serum NLRP3, MMP‐9, IFN‐γ and their combination for diagnosing postoperative intracranial infection were 0.822, 0.722, 0.734 and 0.925, respectively, and for diagnosing hydrocephalus were 0.865, 0.828, 0.782 and 0.957, respectively. Serum NLRP3, MMP‐9 and IFN‐γ levels and serum NLRP3 and MMP‐9 levels were independent risk factors influencing postoperative intracranial infection and postoperative hydrocephalus, respectively. Patients with hydrocephalus had a high remission rate after postoperative symptomatic treatment. Serum NLRP3, MMP‐9 and IFN‐γ levels had high diagnostic efficacy in patients with postoperative intracranial infection and hydrocephalus, among which serum NLRP3 level played a major role. What is the central question of this study?Severe craniocerebral injury usually leads to the loss of nerve function: what is the diagnostic value of serum NLRP3, metalloproteinase‐9 (MMP‐9) and interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ) levels in the diagnosis of intracranial infections and hydrocephalus in patients with severe craniocerebral trauma after craniotomy?What is the main finding and its importance?Serum NLRP3, MMP‐9, and IFN‐γ levels had high diagnostic efficacy in patients with postoperative intracranial infection and hydrocephalus, among which serum NLRP3 level played a major role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zircon U-Pb age, whole-rock elemental and Sr-Nd isotopic data are presented for the Rushan intrusive complex from the northern Sulu orogen, China. The intrusion, emplaced at c. 111 Ma, consists mainly of biotite-bearing gabbro and pyroxene-bearing diorite. The rocks are high-K calcalkaline in major elements, and enriched in large ion lithophile elements (LILE) and light rare earth elements (LREE), depleted in high field strength elements (HFSE), and possess narrow ranges of initial [sup.87]Sr/[sup.86]Sr (0.70746-0.70827) and eNd(t) (-12.37 to -8.26). The complex is interpreted to originate from decompression melting of spinel-facies cratonic mantle that was metasomatized by the subducted Yangtze crustal materials and the melts experienced fractionation of olivine, clinopyroxene, apatite and Fe-Ti oxides. The Rushan complex is similar in composition to other Early Cretaceous mafic-intermediate complexes from the southern margin of the North China Craton, such as the Fangcheng basalts and Yinan gabbros, implying the mantle source of the Rushan intrusion is tectonically affiliated to the southern wedge of the Craton. We infer that the Rushan complex formed in an extensional regime corresponding to the asthenosphere upwelling during gradual erosion and replacement of the cratonic mantle by the fertile lithosphere beneath the eastern North China Craton. Keywords: gabbro-diorite, zircon U-Pb ages, geochemistry, petrogenesis, northern Sulu orogen.

1,3-xylan is present in the cell walls of some red and green algae and is an important organic carbon in the ocean. However, information on its bacterial degradation is quite limited. Here, after enrichment with 1,3-xylan, the diversity of bacteria recovered from marine algae collected in Hainan, China, was analyzed with both the 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and the culture-dependent method. Bacteria recovered were affiliated with more than 19 families mainly in phyla Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes , suggesting a high bacterial diversity. Moreover, 12 strains with high 1,3-xylanase-secreting ability from genera Vibrio , Neiella , Alteromonas , and Gilvimarinus were isolated from the enrichment culture. The extracellular 1,3-xylanases secreted by Vibrio sp. EA2, Neiella sp. GA3, Alteromonas sp. CA13-2, and Gilvimarinus sp. HA3-2, which were taken as representatives due to their efficient utilization of 1,3-xylan for growth, were further characterized. The extracellular 1,3-xylanases secreted by these strains showed the highest activity at pH 6.0–7.0 and 30–40°C in 0–0.5M NaCl, exhibiting thermo-unstable and alkali-resistant characters. Their degradation products on 1,3-xylan were mainly 1,3-xylobiose and 1,3-xylotriose. This study reveals the diversity of marine bacteria involved in the degradation and utilization of 1,3-xylan, helpful in our understanding of the recycling of 1,3-xylan driven by bacteria in the ocean and the discovery of novel 1,3-xylanases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Growth in insect pest populations poses a significant threat to ecosystem functions and services, societal development, and food security in alpine regions under climate change. Risk assessments are important prioritization tools for pest management, which must be used to study insect pest expansion in alpine ecosystems under global warming. We used species distribution modeling to simulate the current and future distribution probabilities of 58 insect pest species in the Qinghai Province, China, based on a comprehensive field investigation. Subsequently, general linear modeling was used to explore the relationship between the distribution probability of these species and the damage caused by them. Finally, we assessed the ecological risk of insect pest expansion across different alpine ecosystems under climate change. RESULTS: Climate change could increase the distribution probabilities of insect pest species across different alpine ecosystems. However, the presence of insect pest species may not correspond to the damage occurrence in alpine ecosystems based on percent leaf loss, amount of stunting, and seedling death of their host species. Significant positive relationships between distribution probability and damage occurrence were found for several of the examined insect pest species. Insect pest expansion is likely to increase extensively in alpine ecosystems under increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) emission scenarios. CONCLUSION: The relationships between distribution probability and damage occurrence should be considered in species distribution modeling for risk assessment of insect pest expansion under climate change. Our study could improve the effectiveness of risk assessment of insect pest expansion under changing climate conditions. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The research of the real‐time state of charge (SOC) estimation method for lithium‐ion battery is developing towards the trend of model diversification and algorithm complexity. However, due to the limitation of computing ability in the actual battery management system, the traditional ampere‐hour (Ah) method is still widely used. First, temperature, charge‐discharge current, and battery aging are considered as the main factors, which affect the estimation accuracy of the Ah method under the condition that detection accuracy of the current sensor is determined. Second, the relationship between the SOC and battery open‐circuit voltage at different temperatures is analyzed, which is used to modify the initial SOC. Third, the influence mechanism of main factors on the effect of the Ah method is analyzed, and proposes a capacity composite correction factor to reflect the influence of charge‐discharge efficiency, coulomb efficiency, and battery aging comprehensively, and then update its value in real‐time. Lastly, the adaptive improved Ah formula and the complete SOC estimation model is designed, and the estimation effect of this model is verified by comparing with other SOC estimation methods in the experiment of dynamic cycle test. The results show that the estimation error of the adaptive improved method is less than 2% under two comprehensive working conditions, while the error of the traditional method is 5% to 10%, and compared with an extended kalman filter algorithm, it also gets a better SOC estimation performance, which proves that this method is scientific and effective. Highlights: The factors affecting the accuracy of traditional ampere‐hour method are analyzed in detail.The necessary shelf time of battery at extreme temperature was explored.Based on the semi‐empirical model, the capacity attenuation function k is proposed.Compound correction factor F is proposed to synthetically characterize the influence of internal and external factors of battery.A novel ampere‐hour (Ah) integral formula is proposed.A novel practical state of charge (SOC) estimation method is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The state of charge (SoC) estimation is the safety management basis of the packing lithium‐ion batteries (LIB), and there is no effective solution yet. An improved splice equivalent modeling method is proposed to describe its working characteristics by using the state‐space description, in which the optimization strategy of the circuit structure is studied by using the aspects of equivalent mode, analog calculation, and component distribution adjustment, revealing the mathematical expression mechanism of different structural characteristics. A novel particle adaptive unscented Kalman filtering algorithm is introduced for the iterative calculation to explore the working state characterization mechanism of the packing LIB, in which the incorporate multiple information is considered and applied. The adaptive regulation is obtained by exploring the feature extraction and optimal representation, according to which the accurate SoC estimation model is constructed. The state of balance evaluation theory is explored, and the multiparameter correction strategy is carried out along with the experimental working characteristic analysis under complex conditions, according to which the optimization method is obtained for the SoC estimation model structure. When the remaining energy varies from 10% to 100%, the tracking voltage error is <0.035 V and the SoC estimation accuracy is 98.56%. The adaptive working state estimation is realized accurately, which lays a key breakthrough foundation for the safety management of the LIB packs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel sequential convex (SCvx) optimization scheme via the Chebyshev pseudospectral method is proposed for efficiently solving the hypersonic reentry trajectory optimization problem which is highly constrained by heat flux, dynamic pressure, normal load, and multiple no-fly zones. The Chebyshev-Gauss Legend (CGL) node points are used to transcribe the original dynamic constraint into algebraic equality constraint; therefore, a nonlinear programming (NLP) problem is concave and time-consuming to be solved. The iterative linearization and convexification techniques are proposed to convert the concave constraints into convex constraints; therefore, a sequential convex programming problem can be efficiently solved by convex algorithms. Numerical results and a comparison study reveal that the proposed method is efficient and effective to solve the problem of reentry trajectory optimization with multiple constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving efficacy of inflammation treatment by increasing drug delivery to the inflammatory sites is a challenging endeavor. N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine (fMLP), the first discovered leukocyte chemotaxis peptide, is composed of formyl methionine, leucine and phenylalanine. It conjugates with formyl peptide receptors on the target cells with high receptor expression on the surface such as macrophages. With this in mind, we developed a novel fMLP-modified liposome (fMLP-LIP) for enhancing drug delivery to the inflammatory sites and resolving the systemic reaction issue with conventional anti-inflammatory drugs. Being a more stable and cheaper liposomal component than phospholipids, cholesterol (CHO) has been thoroughly investigated as an alternative anchor. In this study, fMLP was covalently conjugated with CHO with polyethylene glycol link to prepare the liposomes, cellular uptake of liposomes by differentiated human U937 cells was examined and cellular uptake experiment in vitro was employed to optimize fMLP-LIP prescription and investigate the uptake mechanism. An in vivo inflammatory model was established to evaluate the targeting performance of fMLP-LIP to inflammatory site. The in vitro and in vivo findings indicate that the fMLP ligands playing an important role in increasing drug delivery to inflammatory sites and fMLP-LIP as a promising anti-inflammatory drug carrier. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abstract of the article "Preparation of digoxigenin-labeled DNA probe for detection of duck flavivirus and its application," by Gao Xu-Hui and colleagues is presented.

An abstract of the article "Development of a semi-nested RT-PCR assay for detection of duck flavivirus," by Tang Yi and colleagues is presented.

Abstract: This study was to evaluate the replication and pathogenicity of attenuated human metapneumovirus (HMPV) mutants in severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) mice. SCID mice were intranasally infected with either wild type GFP-rHMPV (WT), or mutant viruses (M1, M2 and M4) with the N-linked glycosylation(s) of the F protein removed. The organs were collected for viral isolation, titration, pulmonary histopathology and mRNA detection by PCR at different time points. WT or mutant viruses were successfully isolated from the lungs of infected mice after inoculation. The titers of WT and M1 peaked on 5th day and remained detectable until 14th day post-inoculation. M2 reached approximately 4 logs lower titer on 5th and 9th day post-inoculation as compared to WT and M1. M4 showed similar growth kinetics to M2. Viral signal was never detected from the heart, liver, spleen, kidney and brain on 5th day post-inoculation. The pulmonary pathology score in the M1 infected mice was similar to WT infected mice but higher than in M2 or M4 infected mice. WT and HMPV mutants can thus only replicate in the lungs of SCID mice. Attenuated M2 and M4 may be considered as candidates for the preparation of vaccine against HMPV. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We have developed a novel nitric oxide (NO) cellular biosensor based upon the immobilization of red blood cells (RBCs) onto nanometer‐size colloidal gold that is attached to an electrochemically pretreated glassy carbon electrode via the bridging of an ethylenediamine monolayer. The biosensor has been characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electrochemistry. The immobilized RBCs display an excellent electrocatalytic response to nitric oxide. The electrocatalytic currents are proportional to the NO concentration in the range from 1.0×10–8 to 1.0×10–6 M and the detection limit is as low as 5.0×10–9 M (S/N=3). Furthermore, the biosensor is very stable and relatively free of potential interference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The properties and applications of Ag nanowires (AgNWs) are closely related to their morphology and composition. Therefore, controlling the growth process of AgNWs is of great significance for technological applications and fundamental research. Here, silver nanowires (AgNWs) were synthesized via a typical polyol method with the synergistic effect of Cl−, Br−, and Fe3+ mediated agents. The synergistic impact of these mediated agents was investigated intensively, revealing that trace Fe3+ ions provided selective etching and hindered the strong etching effect from Cl− and Br− ions. Controlling this synergy allowed the obtainment of highly uniform AgNWs with sub-30 nm diameter and an aspect ratio of over 3000. Transparent conductive films (TCFs) based on these AgNWs without any post-treatment showed a very low sheet resistance of 4.7 Ω sq−1, a low haze of 1.08% at a high optical transmittance of 95.2% (at 550 nm), and a high figure of merit (FOM) of 1210. TCFs exhibited a robust electrical performance with almost unchanged resistance after 2500 bending cycles. These excellent high-performance characteristics demonstrate the enormous potential of our AgNWs in the field of flexible and transparent materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract High-power lithium-ion battery packs are widely used in large and medium-sized unmanned aerial vehicles and other fields, but there is a safety hazard problem with the application that needs to be solved. The generation mechanism and prevention measurement research is carried out on the battery management system for the unmanned aerial vehicles and the lithium-ion battery state monitoring. According to the group equivalent modeling demand of the battery packs, a new idea of compound equivalent circuit modeling is proposed and the model constructed to realize the accurate description of the working characteristics. In order to realize the high-precision state prediction, the improved unscented Kalman feedback correction mechanism is introduced, in which the simplified particle transforming is introduced and the voltage change rate is calculated to construct a new endurance prediction model. Considering the influence of the consistency difference between battery cells, a novel equilibrium state evaluation idea is applied, the calculation results of which are embedded in the equivalent modeling and iterative calculation to improve the prediction accuracy. The model parameters are identified by the Hybrid Pulse Power Characteristic test, in which the conclusion is that the mean value of the ohm internal resistance is 20.68 mΩ. The average internal resistance is 1.36 mΩ, and the mean capacitance value is 47747.9F. The state of charge prediction error is less than 2%, which provides a feasible way for the equivalent modeling, battery management system design and practical application of pack working lithium-ion batteries. Graphical abstract Image Highlights • A novel endurance prediction method is proposed for the aerial LIB pack. • The voltage change rate and iterative calculation are launched. • The improved equivalent circuit model construction method is carried out. • Equivalent model parameters are determined and identified. • The generation mechanism research is investigated by using improved UKF algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The aerial lithium-ion battery pack works differently from the usual battery packs, the working characteristic of which is intermittent supplement charge and instantaneous large current discharge. An adaptive state of charge estimation method combined with the output voltage tracking strategy is proposed by using the reduced particle - unscented Kalman filter, which is based on the reaction mechanism and experimental characteristic analysis. The improved splice equivalent circuit model is constructed together with its state-space description, in which the operating characteristics can be obtained. The relationship function between the open circuit voltage and the state of charge is analyzed and especially optimized. The feasibility and accuracy characteristics are tested by using the aerial lithium-ion battery pack experimental samples with seven series-connected battery cells. Experimental results show that the state of charge estimation error is less than 2.00%. The proposed method achieves the state of charge estimation accurately for the aerial lithium-ion battery pack, which provides a core avenue for its high-power supply security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper presents both electrochemical and electrochemiluminescence (ECL) detections based on the layer-by-layer (LBL) films fabricated with hemoglobin (Hb) and the optimal nanocomposite containing multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and CdS quantum dots (QDs). Hb and the MWCNT–CdS nanocomposite were electrostatically assembled on the chitosan (CS) modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) forming with up to six bilayer films. Our results on cyclic voltammograms (CVs) revealed that the redox peak currents of Hb at the six-bilayer film ({MWCNT–CdS/Hb}6) modified GCE were the largest. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) could be stably detected using the six bilayer films modified GCE with a wide linear range from 0.125μM to 1.20mM. Nitrite (NO2 −) could also be determined through CdS QDs of the multilayer films based on stable ECL intensities with a linear range from 0.60μM to 0.80mM. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A novel platform, which hemoglobin (Hb) was immobilized on core–shell structurally Fe3O4/Au nanoparticles (simplified as Fe3O4@Au NPs) modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE), has been developed for fabricating the third biosensors. Fe3O4@Au NPs, characterized using transmission electron microscope (TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive spectra (EDS), were coated onto GCE mediated by chitosan so as to provide larger surface area for anchoring Hb. The thermodynamics, dynamics and catalysis properties of Hb immobilized on Fe3O4@Au NPs were discussed by UV–visible spectrum (UV–vis), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance technique (EQCM) and cyclic voltammetry (CV). The electrochemical parameters of Hb on Fe3O4@Au NPs modified GCE were further carefully calculated with the results of the effective working area as 3.61cm2, the surface coverage concentration (Γ) as 1.07×10−12 molcm−2, the electron-transfer rate constant (K s ) as 1.03s−1, the number of electron transferred (n) as 1.20 and the standard entropy of the immobilized Hb (ΔS 0′) as calculated to be −104.1Jmol−1 K−1. The electrocatalytic behaviors of the immobilized Hb on Fe3O4@Au NPs were applied for the determination of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), oxygen (O2) and trichloroacetic acid (TCA). The possible functions of Fe3O4 core and Au shell as a novel platform for achieving Hb direct electrochemistry were discussed, respectively. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Infection with drug-resistant bacteria poses a significant threat to human health. Judicious use of antibiotics could reduce the likelihood of bacterial resistance, which can be evaluated through antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST). This paper focuses on the application of a needle-like nanocapillary tip filled with chitosan (CS)/polyethylene pyrrolidone (PVP) hydrogel based on its specific pH-sensitive properties. The gel-filled nanocapillary has the potential to be used for electrical pH detection with a sensitivity of 3.06 nA/pH and a linear range from 7.3 to 4.3. Such sensitivity for pH measurement could be extended for monitoring of bacterial (such as Escherichia coli and Streptococcus salivarius ) growth because of the relationship between pH and bacterial growth. Bacterial growth curves obtained using the hydrogel-filled nanocapillary showed good agreement with the OD600 method. Moreover, this device could be applied for rapid AST for tetracycline and norfloxacin on E. coli with minimum inhibitory concentrations of 2 and 0.125 μg/mL, respectively. This study expands the application of the hydrogel-based nanocapillary for bacterial research by monitoring changes in pH values.

Catabolism of algal polysaccharides by marine bacteria is a significant process of marine carbon cycling. β1,3/1,4 - Mixed-linkage xylan (MLX) is a class of xylan in the ocean, widely present in the cell walls of red algae. However, the catabolic mechanism of MLX by marine bacteria remains elusive. Recently, we found that a marine Bacteroidetes strain, Polaribacter sp. Q13, is a specialist in degrading MLX, which secretes a novel MLX-specific xylanase. Here, the catabolic specialization of strain Q13 to MLX was studied by multiomics and biochemical analyses. Strain Q13 catabolizes MLX with a canonical starch utilization system (Sus), which is encoded by a single xylan utilization locus, XUL-Q13. In this system, the cell surface glycan-binding protein SGBP-B captures MLX specifically, contributing to the catabolic specificity. The xylanolytic enzyme system of strain Q13 is unique, and the enzymatic cascade dedicates the stepwise hydrolysis of the β1,3- and β1,4-linkages in MLX in the extracellular, periplasmic, and cytoplasmic spaces. Bioinformatics analysis and growth observation suggest that other marine Bacteroidetes strains harboring homologous MLX utilization loci also preferentially utilize MLX. These results reveal the catabolic specialization of MLX degradation by marine Bacteroidetes, leading to a better understanding of the degradation and recycling of MLX driven by marine bacteria.IMPORTANCERed algae contribute substantially to the primary production in marine ecosystems. The catabolism of red algal polysaccharides by marine bacteria is important for marine carbon cycling. Mixed-linkage β1,3/1,4-xylan (MLX, distinct from hetero-β1,4-xylans from terrestrial plants) is an abundant red algal polysaccharide, whose mechanism of catabolism by marine bacteria, however, remains largely unknown. This study reveals the catabolism of MLX by marine Bacteroidetes, promoting our understanding of the degradation and utilization of algal polysaccharides by marine bacteria. This study also sets a foundation for the biomass conversion of MLX., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

1,3-xylan, an important organic carbon in the ocean, is peculiar to marine algae. 1,3-xylanase-secreting bacteria and their extracellular 1,3-xylanases play pivotal roles in the degradation and biomass conversion of 1,3-xylan. However, only a few 1,3-xylanase-secreting bacteria and 1,3-xylanases have been reported. Here, we identified a novel marine bacterium capable of secreting 1,3-xylanases, designated as strain HB14 T . Phylogenetic analysis revealed that strain HB14 T clustered tightly with known species of the genus Gilvimarinus , showing the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity (97.7%) with the type strain of Gilvimarinus chinensis . Based on phylogenetic, genomic, chemotaxonomic and phenotypic studies, strain HB14 T was classified as a representative of a novel species in the genus Gilvimarinus , for which the name Gilvimarinus xylanilyticus sp. nov. was proposed. The type strain is HB14 T (=CCTCC AB 2022109 T  = KCTC 92379 T ). Four 1,3-xylanases secreted by strain HB14 T were identified based on genome and secretome analyses, and the two (Xyn65 and Xyn80) with relatively higher abundance in secretome were successfully expressed in Escherichia coli and biochemically characterized. They showed the highest activity at pH 6.0-7.0 and 40°C and released mainly 1,3-xylobiose and 1,3-xylotriose from 1,3-xylan. These data suggest that strain HB14 T acts as a player in marine 1,3-xylan degradation and recycling and that its extracellular 1,3-xylanases may have a good potential in 1,3-xylooligosaccharides preparation., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Zhang, Sun, Xu, Zhao, Yu, Zhang, Zhang, Chen, Zhang and Zhao.)

The properties and applications of Ag nanowires (AgNWs) are closely related to their morphology and composition. Therefore, controlling the growth process of AgNWs is of great significance for technological applications and fundamental research. Here, silver nanowires (AgNWs) were synthesized via a typical polyol method with the synergistic effect of Cl - , Br - , and Fe 3+ mediated agents. The synergistic impact of these mediated agents was investigated intensively, revealing that trace Fe 3+ ions provided selective etching and hindered the strong etching effect from Cl - and Br - ions. Controlling this synergy allowed the obtainment of highly uniform AgNWs with sub-30 nm diameter and an aspect ratio of over 3000. Transparent conductive films (TCFs) based on these AgNWs without any post-treatment showed a very low sheet resistance of 4.7 Ω sq -1 , a low haze of 1.08% at a high optical transmittance of 95.2% (at 550 nm), and a high figure of merit (FOM) of 1210. TCFs exhibited a robust electrical performance with almost unchanged resistance after 2500 bending cycles. These excellent high-performance characteristics demonstrate the enormous potential of our AgNWs in the field of flexible and transparent materials., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Background: Ovarian stimulation with clomiphene (CC) or progestin has been applied for patients with diminished ovarian reserve (DOR). However, it remains unclear which treatment confers greater benefits. This study aimed to compare the outcomes of progestin-primed ovarian stimulation (PPOS) protocol vs CC-primed ovarian stimulation (CPOS) in infertile women with DOR., Methods: A before-and-after self-controlled study was conducted to retrospectively investigate the data from 50 infertile women with DOR, who failed to conceive in their first in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection-frozen embryo transfer cycle when stimulated with CPOS, and switched to PPOS, in the Reproductive Medicine Center of Changzhou Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital., Results: Our results showed that PPOS significantly suppressed the luteinizing hormone (LH) surge and yielded more satisfactory results in patients with DOR, including increased number of retrieved oocytes, MII mature oocytes, normal fertilized oocytes, cleaved embryos, high-grade embryos, cryopreserved embryos, pregnancy rate, live-birth rate, and decreased miscarriage rates., Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that compared with CPOS protocol, PPOS protocol could not only suppress the LH surge but also improved the quantity, particularly the quality of oocytes in patients with DOR, suggesting that PPOS treatment is more effective than CPOS for patients with DOR.