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The microstructural evolution of DD9 single crystal superalloy turbine blade was studied after heat treatment. In comparison to the as-cast microstructures where the sizes of the γ′ precipitates have an obvious difference between the dendritic core and interdendritic regions, the γ′ sizes of the heat-treated microstructures tend to be uniform and more cubic. And in the heat-treated microstructures, the γ′ sizes and the related size dispersion degrees of the dendritic cores are slightly increased, while those of the interdendritic regions are obviously decreased. After all, all the γ′ sizes follow the normal distribution law. With the raise of section thickness, the γ′ sizes tend to increase and the related size dispersion degrees are enhanced during the cooling process after heat treatment, and the γ-γ′ eutectics are dissolved, left little residual eutectics and pores.

Effects of low angle boundaries (LABs) on the stress rupture properties of bicrystals of a nickel-based third generation single crystal superalloy at 1093 °C/158 MPa were investigated. The results show that the effect of LABs on the stress rupture elongation of the alloy is higher than that of the stress rupture life at 1093 °C/158 MPa. As the misorientation angle of the LABs reaches 9.0°, the stress rupture life of the alloy with LABs can still retain nearly 50% of that with LABs of 0° at 1093 °C/158 MPa; while the stress rupture elongation of the alloy with LABs drops obviously when the misorientation angle of the LABs is larger than 6.5°. The fracture surfaces of stress ruptured alloy with LABs of 0°~2.9° are characterized by dimple features, while those with LABs of 6.5°~12.3° all exhibit intergranular fracture features. Apparent dimple features can be observed at the intergranular fracture surface of the alloy with LABs of 6.5° and the elongation of it is high. However, obvious dendrite features can be observed at the intergranular fracture surfaces of the alloy with LABs of 7.6°~12.3° and the elongations of them are relatively low.

Simulating the stochastic traffic load has been an important issue for bridge condition evaluation. This paper proposes an improved cellular automaton for stochastic traffic load simulation with consideration of axle load and microscopic interaction. The cells, neighbors, transition rules and boundary conditions in the improved model are all redefined. The cell length can be manually defined with any value. The vehicle load can be precisely simulated using axle load if the cell length is set small or using concentrated load when a large cell length is defined. Acceleration based transition rules are proposed, and different acceleration for each vehicle can be computed to more reasonably simulate the microscopic behavior. The feasibility of the proposed model is validated through comparisons on traffic flow simulation and load effect quantification with in-field weigh in motion data and other models. The results indicate that the proposed model improves the existing models both in vehicle load simulation and traffic flow simulation and can be used for stochastic traffic load simulation for bridges with any length.

ObjectiveThis study examined the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in college students 1 month after the lockdown of Wuhan to identify possible risk factors for PTSD symptoms in a cross-sectional study.MethodsOut of 10,502 who responded, 9,274 students impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic were included in our study. PTSD symptoms was evaluated by the Impact of Event Scale-revised (IES-R). Anxiety/depression symptoms were evaluated by the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10). Personality traits, coping style, and social support were assessed by the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised Short Scale for Chinese (EPQ-RSC), the Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire (SCSQ), and the Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS). Logistic regression analysis was utilized to further explore risk factors for PTSD symptoms.ResultsMore than 1 month after the COVID-19 outbreak, 13.1% of college students developed PTSD symptoms, indicating that COVID-19 associated stressful experiences were connected with PTSD symptoms. After the COVID-19 outbreak, subjects with symptomatologic PTSD symptoms were more likely to experience strained relationships with their family, to have close contact with COVID-19 patients and to drop out of college. The logistic regression model demonstrated the association factors of PTSD symptoms. Neuroticism, psychoticism and an avoidant coping style were associated with increased risk for PTSD symptoms, while an active coping style was protective against PTSD symptoms during this pandemic.ConclusionThe results showed that PTSD symptoms was prevalent in Chinese college students 1 month after the COVID-19 outbreak. Effective psychological support work should be carried out accordingly.

IntroductionFear memory generalization is regarded as the core characteristic of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) development. However, the mechanism that contributes to the generalization of conditioned fear memory is still unclear. The generalization is generally considered to be a mismatch that occurs during memory consolidation.MethodsFoot shocks and tones were given as unconditioned stress and conditioned stress, respectively for fear conditioning training. Immunofluorescence staining, western blotting and qPCR were performed to determine the expression of different genes in amygdala of mice after fear conditioning training. Cycloheximide was used as a protein synthesis inhibitor and 2-methyl-6-phenylethynyl-pyridine was injected for mGluR5 inhibition.ResultsFear conditioning using caused incremental generalization, which was clearly observed during training. The density of c-Fos+ cells or the synaptic p-NMDAR expression did not differ with stress intensities. Strong-shock fear conditioning could induce significant mGluR5 de novo synthesis in the amygdala, which was not observed in the weak-shock group. Inhibition of mGluR5 impaired fear memory generalization induced by strong-shock fear conditioning, but the generalization level induced by weak-shock training was enhanced.DiscussionThese results indicated that mGluR5 in the amygdala is critical to the function of inappropriate fear memory generalization and suggested that this may be a potential target for the treatment of PTSD.

Aims Understanding the patterns and drivers of carbon isotope discrimination (13Δ) in C3 and C4 functional groups is critical for predicting C3/C4 vegetation ratio from the isotopic composition of soil organic matter. In this study, we aimed to evaluate how intraspecific variation will modify functional group-level 13Δ values and the associated prediction of C3/C4 vegetation ratio. Methods We investigated 13Δ of 726 individual plants (96 species; C3 and C4 functional groups) and topsoil organic matter in 26 grassland communities along an aridity gradient in northern China. The fraction of C4 contribution was calculated with mixing models that considered: (i) both intra- and interspecific effects on the 13Δ values of C3 and C4 functional groups; (ii) only interspecific effects; or (iii) none of these effects. Important Findings We found divergent responses of plant 13Δ at the intraspecific level to the changes of aridity across the gradient. The 13Δ of both C3 and C4 functional groups was negatively correlated with an aridity index, with higher sensitivity for C3 than for C4 functional groups. Intraspecific 13Δ variation played a key role in driving the total 13Δ variations of C3 plants. Overlooking such intraspecific effect in mixing models led to a greatly increased fraction of C4 contribution to soil organic carbon. A correction for the effects of intraspecific variation is therefore essential for correctly inferring C3/C4 vegetation ratio in the past. Our findings provide basic information for the reconstruction of past vegetation change from bulk materials in arid and semiarid biomes.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a devastating mental illness with high morbidity and major social and economic burden. Currently, there is no promising therapy available for the treatment of PTSD. Some clinical studies showed that ketamine could effectively alleviate PTSD symptoms. However, it is still unclear which brain region ketamine targets and how it attenuates the PTSD-like effects. In this study, we examined the effect of ketamine on fear generalization (a core symptom of PTSD) by using a mice model of fear generalization induced by fear conditioning procedure. Before retrieval, ketamine was locally infused into the nucleus accumbens (a brain region closely associated with PTSD). Fear generalization mice were subjected to behavioral testing and biochemical assessments, following ketamine infusion. The results showed that the foot shock strength-dependently induced fear generalization in mice with increased c-fos activity, and a lower level of GluR1(S845), GluR1(S831) protein, and a higher level of P-GluN2B protein in the nucleus accumbens (NAc). Local infusion of ketamine into NAc decreased the fear generalization together with an increased level of GluR1(S845), GluR1(S831) protein, and decreased level of P-GluN2B protein. Altogether, these results conclude that ketamine might affect the glutamatergic signaling in the NAc to attenuate the fear generalization in mice.

We investigate the rotating wave approximation applied in the high-spin quantum system driven by a linearly polarized alternating magnetic field in the presence of quadrupole interactions. The conventional way to apply the rotating wave approximation in a driven high-spin system is to assume the dynamics being restricted in the reduced Hilbert space. However, when the driving strength is relatively strong or the driving is off resonant, the leakage from the target resonance subspace cannot be neglected for a multi-level quantum system. We propose the correct formalism to apply the rotating wave approximation in the full Hilbert space by taking this leakage into account. By estimating the operator fidelity of the time propagator, our formalism applied in the full Hilbert space unambiguously manifests great advantages over the conventional method applied in the reduced Hilbert space.

Fear memory is critical for individual survival. However, the maladaptive fear response is one of the hallmarks of fear-related disorders, which is characterized by the failure to discriminate threatening signals from neutral or safe cues. The biological mechanisms of fear discrimination remain to be clarified. In this study, we found that the nucleus accumbens (NAc) was indispensable for the formation of cued fear memory in mice, during which the expression of DNA methyltransferase 3a gene (DNMT3a) increased. Injection of Zebularine, a nonspecific DNMT inhibitor, into NAc immediately after conditioning induced a maladaptive fear response to neutral cue (CS

Stress-induced neuroepigenetic programming gains growing more and more interest in the studies of the etiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, seldom attention is focused on DNA demethylation in fear memory generalization, which is the core characteristic of PTSD. Here, we show that ten-eleven translocation protein 3 (TET3), the most abundant DNA demethylation enzyme of the TET family in neurons, senses environmental stress and bridges neuroplasticity with behavioral adaptation during fear generalization. Foot shock strength dependently induces fear generalization and TET3 expression in nucleus accumbens (NAc) in mice. Inhibition of DNA demethylation by infusing demethyltransferase inhibitors or AAV-Tet3-shRNA virus in NAc enhances the fear generalization and anxiety-like behavior. Furthermore, TET3 knockdown impairs the dendritic spine density, PSD length, and thickness of neurons, decreases DNA hydroxymethylation (5hmC), reduces the expression of synaptic plasticity-related genes including Homer1, Cdkn1a, Cdh8, Vamp8, Reln, Bdnf, while surprisingly increases immune-related genes Stat1, B2m, H2-Q7, H2-M2, C3, Cd68 shown by RNA-seq. Notably, knockdown of TET3 in NAc activates microglia and CD39-P2Y12R signaling pathway, and inhibition of CD39 reverses the effects of TET3 knockdown on the fear memory generalization and anxiety. Overexpression of TET3 by Crispr-dSaCas9 virus delivery to activate endogenous Tet3 in NAc increases dendritic spine density of neurons in NAc and reverses fear memory generalization and anxiety-like behavior in mice. These results suggest that TET3 modulates fear generalization and anxiety via regulating synaptic plasticity and CD39 signaling pathway.

The adsorption and wetting on quartz surfaces by aqueous solutions of xylyl-substituted biquaternary ammonium salt gemini surfactants with different spacer groups (C3 and C6), have been investigated. The interfacial properties of surfactant solutions such as contact angle, adhesional tension (γLV cos θ), quartz–water interfacial tension (γSL) as well as adhesion work (WA) have been estimated. The obtained results show that C3 and C6 have similar adsorption behavior on quartz surfaces. Before critical micelle concentration (cmc) is reached, the contact angles of gemini surfactants slowly increase with the increasing concentration, and the adsorption amount at the water–air interface is almost the same as those at a quartz–water interface. After reaching cmc, the gemini surfactant Cn molecules form a more compact adsorption film through bending the flexible spacer chain, instead of forming a bi-layer. As a result, a further increase in quartz–liquid interfacial tension (γSL) and a consequent increase in contact angle have been observed after cmc. Gemini C6 shows a stronger ability towards hydrophobic modification at a quartz surface than C3, demonstrating the contribution of the longer methylene spacer to the hydrophobic modification of the quartz surface.

Fear memories are critical for survival. Nevertheless, over-generalization of these memories, depicted by a failure to distinguish threats from safe stimuli, is typical in stress-related disorders. Previous studies have supported a protective role of ketamine against stress-induced depressive behavior. However, the effect of ketamine on fear generalization remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of ketamine on fear generalization in a fear-generalized mouse model. The mice were given a single sub-anesthetic dose of ketamine (30 mg/kg, i.p.) 1 h before, 1 week before, immediately after, or 22 h after fear conditioning. The behavioral measure of fear (indicated by freezing level) and synaptic protein expression in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and inferior-limbic pre-frontal cortex (IL-PFC) of mice were examined. We found that only ketamine administered 22 h after fear conditioning significantly decreased the fear generalization, and the effect was dose-dependent and lasted for at least 2 weeks. The fear-generalized mice showed a lower level of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and a higher level of GluN2B protein in the BLA and IL-PFC, and this was reversed by a single administration of ketamine. Moreover, the GluN2B antagonist ifenprodil decreased the fear generalization when infused into the IL-PFC, but had no effect when infused into the BLA. Infusion of ANA-12 (an antagonist of the BDNF receptor TrkB) into the BLA or IL-PFC blocked the effect of ketamine on fear generalization. These findings support the conclusion that a single dose of ketamine administered 22 h after fear conditioning alleviates the fear memory generalization in mice and the GluN2B-related BDNF signaling pathway plays an important role in the alleviation of fear generalization. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1007/s12264-019-00422-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Variations in plant nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations and ratios have great implications for primary productivity and nutrient cycling. Here, we reported their changes at functional group and community levels along an aridity gradient. We carried out a field investigation and set up 26 sampling sites along a transect in the drylands of northern China to examine the responses of plant nutrient status to increasing aridity and the relationships between plant and soil nutrients. The responses of N and P concentrations to increasing aridity differed between woody (sub-) shrubs and herbaceous species (including annual/biennial forbs and grasses, perennial forbs and perennial grasses). Nitrogen and P concentrations of shrubs decreased while those of herbs generally increased with increasing aridity. Plant N:P ratios increased significantly with increasing aridity for the plant functional groups and at the community level. At both organizational levels, nutrient concentrations in plants were negatively related to those in soils. Our results indicated that the responses of plant nutrition to aridity were dependent on plant functional group. Plant growth appeared increasingly limited by P, and plant and soil nutrients become increasingly decoupled at large spatial scale with increasing aridity.

Forage yield is the fundamental ecosystem service of grasslands. While the quantitative responses of forage yield to nitrogen (N) enrichment are well known, its qualitative responses remain unclear. Even less known is the relative contribution of changes in community composition to the quality of the yield at the community level. We examined the quantitative and qualitative responses of forage yield at both plant functional group and community levels with factorial treatments of N addition and mowing in a temperate steppe. Nitrogen addition significantly enhanced the community-level yield by favoring the growth of rhizomatous grass. Mowing tended to mediate the impacts of N addition on the yield. Nitrogen addition increased the concentrations of crude protein and crude fat in forage at the community level. Neither the main effects of mowing nor its interactive effects with N addition affected forage quality. The N-induced shifts in plant species composition significantly contributed to the effects of N addition on forage quality at the community level. Our results suggest that mowing wound weaken the positive effects of N deposition on the quantity but not the quality of forage yield. Changes in plant community composition are important in driving the qualitative responses of yield to N deposition.

Previous studies support a critical role of hippocampus in contextual fear memory. Structural and functional alterations of hippocampus occur frequently in posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD). Recent reports reveal that knockout of CLC-3, a member of the CLC family of anion channels and transporters, leads to neuronal degeneration and loss of hippocampus. However, the role of CLC-3 in contextual fear memory remains unknown. Using adenovirus and adeno-associated virus gene transfer to knockdown CLC-3 in hippocampal CA1, we investigate the role of CLC-3 in contextual fear memory. CLC-3 expression is increased in hippocampal CA1 after formation of long-term contextual fear memory. Knockdown of CLC-3 by adenovirus infusion in hippocampal CA1 significantly attenuates the contextual fear memory, reduces spine density, induces defects of excitatory synaptic ultrastructure showed by the decreased PSD length, PSD thickness and active zone length, and impairs L-LTP induction and maintenance. Knockdown of CLC-3 also induces the synaptic NMDAR subunit composition to an increased GluN2A/GluN2B ratio pattern and reduces the activity of CaMKII-α. Furthermore, selectively knockdown of CLC-3 in excitatory neurons by adeno-associated virus driven from CaMKII-α promoter is sufficient to impair long-term contextual fear memory. These findings highlight that CLC-3 in hippocampal CA1 is necessary for contextual fear memory.

At temperatures ranging from 760 to 1100 °C, the tensile properties of a nickel-based third generation single crystal superalloy DD9 with [100], [120] and [110] orientations were studied. The microstructures and fracture surfaces were observed by OM, SEM and TEM. Results show that the tensile strength of [100] specimen is higher than that of [120] and [110] specimens at 760 and 850 °C; while at the temperatures higher than 980 °C, the tensile strength of all specimens has little difference. The fracture mechanisms of [100], [120] and [110] specimens are the same at 760 and 980 °C. At 1100 °C, the fracture surfaces of [100] and [120] specimens are characterized by dimple features; while [110] specimen shows mixed quasi-cleavage and dimple featured fracture surfaces. At 760 °C, obvious superlattice stacking faults (SSFs) are observed only in [100] specimen; while at 1100 °C, the dislocation configurations of all specimens are similar. The difference in the number of potential active slip systems in [100], [120] and [110] specimens during the tensile deformation process is the main reason for the transverse tensile anisotropy.

Hepatic injury is one of the most challenging diseases in clinical medicine. Hepatic injury is accompanied by hepatocyte apoptosis and leads to hepatic fibrosis and cirrhosis, which may cause liver cancer and increased mortality. Therefore, it is essential to investigate the regulation mechanism and therapeutic strategies for hepatic injury. In the study, the effects of Thymosin β4 (Tβ4) on Long intergenic noncoding RNA-p21 (lincRNA-p21)-mediated liver injury were investigated. Results showed that lincRNA-p21 overexpression promoted hepatocytes apoptosis, which was blocked by Tβ4. Besides, Tβ4 reversed the levels of cleaved caspase-3 and caspase-9 induced by lincRNA-p21. LincRNA-p21 overexpression also caused the pathological injury and fibrosis in hepatic tissues and increased the levels of fibrosis-related proteins (Collagen I, α-SMA and TIMP-1), and induced hydroxyproline and ALT production. However, Tβ4 reversed the effects of overexpression of lincRNA-p21 on hepatic injury and fibrosis. In vitro experiments, after lincRNA-p21 was overexpressed in hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), the proliferation ability and the levels of HSCs markers α-SMA and Desmin were increased. However, Tβ4 reversed the effects of lincRNA-p21 on HSCs. Furthermore, the PI3K-AKT-NF-κB pathway was activated by lincRNA-p21, which was then reversed by the Tβ4 administration. After the mice treated by insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) (the activator of PI3K-AKT), the inhibitory effect of Tβ4 on activated the PI3K-AKT-NF-κB pathway was abrogated. Besides, IGF-1 abolished the protective effects of Tβ4 on hepatic apoptosis and fibrosis induced by lincRNA-p21. Therefore, Tβ4 reversed. lincRNA-p21-mediated liver injury through inhibiting PI3K-AKT-NF-κB pathway. Tβ4 may be a promising drug for fibrosis therapy.

The nitrogen isotope composition (δ15N) of plants in arid and semiarid grasslands is affected by environmental factors, especially water availability. Nevertheless, it is unclear whether the response of δ15N to water availability differs between C3 and C4 photosynthetic pathways. We investigated plant δ15N of coexisting C3 and C4 species as a function of aridity along a 3200 km aridity gradient across the arid and semi-arid grasslands of northern China. Aridity was positively correlated with plant δ15N values in both C3 and C4 plants and also in the entire plant community, whereas soil bulk δ15N values increased first and then decreased along the aridity gradient. The N uptake by C4 plants appeared to be more affected by competition pressure of neighboring plants and soil microbes than for C3 plants along the transect. The decoupled relationship between plant and soil δ15N values indicated that variations in vegetation and soil δ15N values were driven by differential biogeochemical processes, while different soil N sources were used for plant growth along the climatic gradient. The advantage of C3 plants in the use of N may counteract the competitive advantage that C4 plants have over C3 plants due to their higher water use efficiency under drier conditions. These findings can help understand why C4 plants do not completely replace C3 plants in drier environments despite their higher water use efficiency.

Semicarbazide (SEM) is a by-product of azodicarbonamide used to improve the properties of the plastic seals of the glass jar lids of the canned food such as baby food. This work aimed to evaluate the effect of semicarbazide (SEM) on the morphology of testicular seminiferous tubules of juvenile albino rat. Twenty juvenile male albino rats aged 4 weeks were divided into two main groups: group I (control), group II (treated with SEM 40 mg/kg oral daily for 4 weeks). Specimens from the testes were processed for different histological examinations, histochemical staining with Periodic Acid Schiff (PAS) and immunohistochemical study using antibodies against Bcl-2 was carried out in addition to morphometrical and statistical analysis. SEM-treated group showed some vacuolated spermatogenic and Sertoli cells, discontinuity of germinal epithelium, some exfoliated spermatogenic cells in the lumen in addition to focal loss of the basement membrane. A statistically significant decrease in both mean epithelial height and area percentage was recorded in group II. A statistically significant decrease of PAS reaction of the basement membrane was observed. A statistically significant decrease in Bcl-2 positive cytoplasmic immunoreaction in cells of seminiferous tubules was detected. Electron microscopic examination revealed swollen mitochondria, dilated rough endoplasmic reticulum, vacuolated cytoplasm and areas of cytoplasmic loss in spermatogenicand Sertoli cells. The nuclei of some primary spermatocytes and spermatids appeared dark and shrunken or fragmented. Thickened basement membrane with collagen deposition was detected. It could be concluded that SEM causes significant structural changes in juvenile seminiferous tubules of rat testis.So, it is recommended to use alternative safe substance in the sealing process of glass jar lids.

We realize that an optomechanical system is not only able to measure angular velocity, but also simultaneously estimate position of the corresponding rotation axis. To implement the simultaneous estimation, we first propose a multiparameter estimation scheme through a system that consists of two optomechanical subsystems. The angular velocity and rotation-axis position are jointly sensed by tested mass and then estimated by radiation exiting from the cavity due to optomechanical coupling. We adequately consider the nuisance angles, which arise from unexpected misalignment of the system, and cavity decay and provide the precision bound of the homodyne detection. The results that reveal a phase-sensitive effect indicate that selecting an appropriate phase can improve precision. Our scenario and the corresponding analysis provide a possibility to optimize rotation estimation.

A nickel-based single crystal superalloy containing Re and Ru was cast in a directional solidification furnace. The single crystal specimens after standard heat treatment were grit blasted with different pressures and then heat treated at 1100 °C for 4 h under vacuum condition. The evolution of recrystallized microstructure and its effect on the tensile properties at 850 and 980 °C were investigated. After heat treatment, the cellular microstructure was observed, and the thickness of the cellular recrystallization zone increases with the increase in grit blasting pressure. The appearance of the cellular structure undermines the tensile properties. Both the tensile strength and elongation decrease with increasing the thickness of the cellular structure. The recrystallized grain boundaries can act as the channels for the crack initiation and propagation during tensile test. The low bearing capacity of recrystallized layers and the local stress concentration resulting from the notch effect of cracking were the main reasons for the decrease of tensile properties.

Summary Combining nutrient dynamics (plant nutrient uptake and soil fertility) can help uncover mechanisms of shrub-grass interactions and assess the validity of the stress-gradient hypothesis, which predicts that facilitation between plants increases in stressful environments. However, how facilitation via shrub-mediated nutrient increases varies with precipitation is poorly resolved. We first synthesized a global dataset from 66 studies and evaluated how shrubs affected soil organic carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in grasslands along a precipitation gradient. We then made new measurements in a single grassland type encroached by leguminous shrubs from the same genus (Caragana) to constrain the variations caused by combining different grassland types and shrubs traits in the meta-analysis. Specifically, we investigated how shrubs mediated N dynamics and how shrub-grass interactions varied along a precipitation gradient (147-342 mm) in a temperate steppe of China. At the global scale, leguminous shrub-mediated effects on soil nutrients increased with precipitation, while no relationship was found for non-leguminous shrub. For the field experiment, greater N and lower δ15N in Caragana compared to non-leguminous shrub (reference shrub, Salsola collina) suggested active N-fixation in Caragana. We found that Caragana enhanced N concentration and leaf quality (low C:N ratio) in neighbouring plants more on mesic sites than on xeric sites. Thus, facilitation increased via higher soil N and with decreasing environmental stress, at least along this relatively arid precipitation gradient. Our results highlight the importance of precipitation in determining the nutritional facilitation to neighbouring grasses from encroaching leguminous shrubs. Conceptual frameworks for plant facilitation may therefore need to include shrub characteristics (N-fixers vs. non-fixers) and positive effects of higher precipitation on this type of facilitation to characterize plant interactions along stress gradients. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Objectives The aim of this study is to compare two different methods in assessment of the position of fetal conus medullaris (CM) and to explore the significance for assessment of CM. Methods This study included both normal fetuses and those with the diagnosis of fetal spinal lesions. The position of fetal CM was performed sonographically using two methods: location of CM in relation to the vertebral body (CM level) and measurement of the conus sacrum (CS) distance. Results The results showed that intra-observer and interobserver concordance was high for the two methods, both in the normal and abnormal groups. There was significant association between femur length and CS distance (R2 = 0.917) and between gestational age and CS distance (R2 = 0.892). Conclusions We propose the combined use of CM level location and CS distance measurement for the prenatal diagnosis of fetal spinal lesions for complementary needs.

The microstructures of low angle boundaries (LABs) of a third generation single crystal superalloy DD9 in as-cast state and after different heat treatment processes were studied by optical microscopy (OM) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). The results showed that the as-cast LABs of DD9 alloy consisted of rod-like and bulk γ' phases with γ matrix between them, and there were eutectic γ-γ' precipitating at the LABs, as well as small amounts of discrete distribution of carbides. The γ' phase locateed at the grain boundaries was larger than that distributed on both sides of the grain boundaries. After the solution heat treatment, as-cast eutectic γ-γ' at LABs dissolved completely, and rod-like γ' phase was still found at some LABs. Meanwhile, the LABs were inclined to be straight compared to the as-cast state. The primary aging heat treatment made γ' phase at the LABs dissolved completely, and the secondary aging heat treatment resulted little change in the morphology of the LABs. Thus, the effect of the primary aging heat treatment on the microstructures of the LABs was greater than that of the secondary aging heat treatment.

To theoretically evaluate three widely used second generation single crystal superalloys-PWA1484, ReneN5 and DD6, the alloy densities, phase graphs, TCP contents, d-electron energy, and creep rupture lives were calculated, and the calculation results were analyzed combined with actual data. Results showed that among the three alloys, PWA1484 had the greatest density, secondly was DD6, and ReneN5’s density was the lowest. The PWA1484 alloy was most likely to precipitate TCP due to its highest d-orbital energy level; the ReneN5 alloy had a medium d-orbital energy level, but its high Cr content induced it to precipitate the most TCP types; the DD6 alloy had the least chance to precipitate TCP phases because of its lowest d-orbital energy level as well as lowest Cr content. It is concluded that thermodynamic calculation had the ability to simulate TCP types and TCP content at steady states, while d-orbital energy concept was capable of exhibiting the alloys in sequence of TCP precipitation potential. Mere thermodynamic calculation will lead to comparatively conservative results, including more TCP types, higher TCP contents and lower rupture lives. Analyzing the thermodynamic and d-orbital energy calculations comprehensively, it can be considered that the DD6 alloy has the most stable microstructure among the three single crystal superalloys.

Long-term overuse of grasslands results in quantitative and qualitative decline of forage yield. Nutrient supplementation is a key strategy to improve forage yield. While mounting evidence showed that nitrogen (N) supplementation can increase forage yield, little is known about its impacts on forage quality. To understand the effects of N supplementation on forage quality at the community level, we carried out a field experiment in the meadow steppe of Hulunbuir. Our results showed that N supplementation significantly increased forage yield by 23%, which was mainly due to positive responses of perennial rhizomatous grass. The yield of other plant functional groups showed neutral response to N supplementation. The concentrations of crude protein, crude fat, and crude fiber varied significantly among different plant functional groups. Nitrogen supplementation significantly enhanced the concentration of crude protein in rhizomatous grass, bunchgrass, legume, and sedge. It enhanced the content of crude fat in rhizomatous grass but with no effect on other functional groups. Nitrogen supplementation had no effect on the concentration of crude fibre in all functional groups. At the community level, N supplementation significantly increased the concentrations of crude protein and crude fat. Our results are important for understanding the responses of forage production in meadow steppe under the scenarios of N enrichment.长期过度利用导致我国草原的生产功能严重衰退,适量补充关键性养分元素是提升牧草产量的关键.以往研究表明,氮素输入可提升牧草产量,但对牧草品质的影响鲜有涉及.本研究以内蒙古草甸草原退化草地为对象开展控制试验,旨在明确氮素补给如何通过改变不同植物类群的牧草品质和植物群落结构影响群落水平上的牧草品质.结果表明: 氮素输入显著提升了牧草产量达23%,主要得益于根茎禾草类群的贡献; 氮素输入对其他植物类群的生产力无显著影响.不同植物类群的粗蛋白、粗脂肪、粗纤维含量均存在显著差异.氮素输入显著提高了根茎禾草、丛生禾草、豆科植物、苔草类植物的粗蛋白含量,提高了根茎禾草的粗脂肪含量,而对所有类群的粗纤维含量均无显著影响.在群落水平上,氮素输入显著提高了粗蛋白和粗脂肪含量.这对于理解氮素补给对草甸草原牧草生产的影响具有重要意义.

Background Fear renewal, the context‐specific relapse of a conditioned fear after extinction, is a widely pursued model of post‐traumatic stress disorder and phobias. However, its cellular and molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. The dentate gyrus (DG) has emerged as a critical locus of plasticity with relevance to memory, anxiety disorders, and depression, and it contributes to fear memory retrieval. Here, we have identified the role of the DG in fear renewal and its molecular mechanism. Materials and Methods Muscimol (MUS), activator of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) forskolin (FSK), inhibitor of protein kinase A (PKA), Rip‐cAMP, and a phosphodiesterase inhibitor rolipram were infused into DG of standard deviation rats before renewal testing. cAMP levels after fear renewal was measured by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay. The protein levels of phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) isoforms were tested by western blot. At last, the roles of cAMP signaling were also tested in the acquisition of fear conditioning, fear retrieval, and extinction. Results Intra‐DG treatment of MUS and Rp‐cAMP impaired fear renewal. FSK and rolipram exhibited the opposite effect, which also occurred in the retrieval of original fear memory. This change in fear renewal was regulated by PDE4 isoforms PDE4A, PDE4A5, and PDE4D. In addition, FSK and rolipram facilitated the acquisition of fear conditioning in long‐term memory, but not short‐term memory, while Rp‐cAMP impaired long‐term memory. For extinction, FSK and rolipram inhibited extinction process, while Rp‐cAMP facilitated fear extinction. Conclusion These findings demonstrated that fear renewal activated cAMP signaling in the DG through decreased PDE4 activity. Because of the role of cAMP signaling in the acquisition or retrieval of fear conditioning and encoding of extinction, it is speculated that initial learning and extinction may have similarities in molecular mechanism, especially fear retrieval and fear renewal may share cAMP signaling pathway in the DG.

Facial anthropometric measurements play an important part not only in forensic cases but also in clinical treatments. The utilization of 2D photograph methods in facial anthropometric studies to found database with age, gender, ethnicity, and region was expanded by other races but little for Han nationality. This study was undertaken to describe reference ranges of facial anthropometric proportions of Han nationality and compare the anthropometric characteristics with other ethnicities. Our subjects focused on full-face photos of Han nationality in South China which consisted of 1176 healthy person (425 adult males, 421 adult females and 157 underage boys and 173 underage girls). Eight anthropometric landmarks on photos were examined by ImageJ software, and 7 anthropometric ratios were analyzed. The results indicated sex- and age- and ethnics-related anthropometric variations in Chinese Han nationality in South China. For adults, females have larger ratios in intercanthal-nasal width and lip height index and smaller nose width index; for impubes, boys were larger in lip height index and smaller in lip width ratios than girls, but as age achieved, the underage boys and girls exhibited a significantly larger nose width index and lip width index, smaller canthal index, intercanthal-nasal width and lip height index. Comparing with Japanese, India, North American and Persian, Chinese Han showed great difference in facial anthropometric proportions.

We introduce a generalized Rashba coupling approximation to analytically solve confined two-dimensional electron systems with both the Rashba and Dresselhaus spin–orbit couplings in an external magnetic field. A solvable Hamiltonian is obtained by performing a simple change of basis, which has the same form as that with only Rashba coupling. Each Landau state becomes a new displaced-Fock state instead of the original Harmonic oscillator Fock state. Analytical energies are consistent with the numerical ones in a wide range of coupling strength even for a strong Zeeman splitting, exhibiting the validity of the analytical approximation. By using the eigenstates, spin polarization correctly displays a jump at the energy-level crossing point, where the corresponding spin conductance exhibits a pronounced resonant peak. As the component of the Dresselhaus coupling increases, the resonant point shifts to a smaller value of the magnetic field. In contrast to pure Rashba couplings, we find that the Dresselhaus coupling and Zeeman splittings tend to suppress the resonant spin Hall effect. Our method provides an easy-to-implement analytical treatment to two-dimensional electron gas systems with both types of spin–orbit couplings by applying a magnetic field.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a devastating medical illness, for which currently available pharmacotherapies have poor efficacy. Accumulating evidence from clinical and preclinical animal investigations supports that ketamine exhibits a rapid and persistent effect against PTSD, though the underlying molecular mechanism remains to be clarified. In this literature review, we recapitulate the achievements from early ketamine studies to the most up-to-date discoveries, with an effort to discuss an inclusive therapeutic role of ketamine for PTSD treatment and its possible therapeutic mechanism. Ketamine seems to have an inimitable mechanism of action entailing glutamate modulation via actions at the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) and α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA) receptors, as well as downstream activation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathways to potentiate synaptic plasticity.

Objectives To evaluate the value of prenatal ultrasonographic diagnosis of diastematomyelia, and to provide a basis for the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of fetal diastematomyelia. Methods Four fetuses with suspected diastematomyelia based on prenatal ultrasonography are presented. Detailed prenatal ultrasonography was performed to examine spinal cord abnormalities. The region of interest–based spine sagittal plane was defined and 3D volumetric scans were performed, as needed. Images were stored and compared with MRI or ultrasonographic images after abortion. Results In the four cases of diastematomyelia diagnosed by prenatal ultrasonography, two were confirmed by MRI after birth, and the other two were confirmed by autopsy and pathologic examination after abortion. Varying degrees of spine or spinal cord deformities were noted. Two pregnancies were terminated, and two newborns underwent surgery. Conclusions Prenatal ultrasonography contributes to the diagnosis of diastematomyelia and provides a basis for prenatal counseling and prognosis.

The forming and growing mechanisms of homogenization-solution pores in a single crystal superalloy were investigated. The microstructures were observed with optical microscope (OM) and field emission microscope (FEM) after homogenization-solution heat treated at 1328 °C and 1350 °C for 2 h, 6 h and 9 h. Results indicate that when heat treated at 1328 °C, pores appear at the interface of eutectic and matrix at first and then leave in the matrix with the shrink of eutectic. When heat treated at 1350 °C, incipient melting happens at first, and some of them have a pore in the center. After that, with the homogenization-solution process, incipient melting microstructure fades away gradually. By analyzing the results with thermodynamics and kinetics methods, it is concluded that some pores nucleate during directional solidification and then become larger and visible during homogenization-solution heat treatments; some pores are generated by incipient melting, yet such pores are difficult to be distinguished from other pores; imbalanced elements cross-diffusion induces to the forming and growing of pores too, and such imbalanced diffusion also plays an important part on the growth of all preexisting pores.

It is of difficulties in measuring welding deformation because of high temperature and the light intensity. In this paper the traditional welding deformation measurement method are reviewed,and the features and limitations of each method were analyzed,and then focused on the non-contact optical measurement method based on the WDIC. In this paper, a noncontact measurement method based on WDIC (weak digital image correlation) is proposed to obtain full-field buckling deformation in the whole welding and cooling process. And the matching difficulties which are caused by weak speckle performance and the large deformation around the solder joint are overcome through the method of piecewise benchmarks based on the continuity of adjacent states. Based on the above methods, the experiment of the sheets welding with three different curvatures was carried on and the following conclusions are summarized based on the analysis of the buckling deformation. The formation mechanisms of out-of-plane deformation in welding area were clarified based on the experimental results. First, low carbon steel occurs buckling deformation with dish shape in welding process and saddle shape in cooling process. Second, the curvature of the sheet has a great influence on the result of the welding. The sheet with a bigger curvature has the smaller displacement in Z direction in the welding process and the smaller transverse strain in the area adjacent to the welding seam. Those measuring results can be used to analyze the influence factors of welding deformation, control the welding deformation and verify the welding numerical simulation.

Glucocorticoids (GCs) can modulate the memory enhancement process during stressful events, and this modulation requires arousal-induced norepinephrine (NE) activation in the basolateral amygdale (BLA). Our previous study found that an intrahippocampal infusion of propranolol dose-dependently induced post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-like memory impairments. To explore the role of the noradrenergic system of the BLA in PTSD-like memory impairment, we injected various doses of NE into the BLA. We found that only a specific quantity of NE (0.3 μg) could induce PTSD-like memory impairments, accompanied by a reduction in phosphorylation of GluR1 at Ser845 and Ser831. Moreover, this phenomenon could be blocked by a protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor or calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMK II) inhibitor. These findings demonstrate that NE could induce PTSD-like memory impairments via regulation of the β-adrenoceptor receptor (β-AR)-3′,5′-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP)/PKA and CaMK II/PKC signaling pathways.

Atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition has important effects on soil microbial community diversity and composition. While it is well-known that mowing, a widely used grassland management strategy, could mediate the impacts of N enrichment on macro-organism community composition, much less known is the intra-annual variation of soil microbial community and their responses to N deposition and mowing. Here, we examined the responses of soil bacteria and fungi communities to N deposition and mowing in four months of different seasons in a semiarid grassland in northern China. Nitrogen addition significantly reduced alpha-diversity and changed the community composition of both bacteria and fungi communities across generally all months, possibly due to N-induced soil acidification. Mowing did not affect soil microbial community diversity and did not mediate the impacts of N addition. Soil microbial community diversity and composition significantly varied across different months. Such temporal variation of soil microbial community composition was much greater than the variation resulting from N addition and mowing. Our results suggest that the negative impacts of N enrichment on soil bacteria and fungi diversity are temporally consistent and are unaffected by plant biomass removal.

There is considerable debate regarding how the taxonomic diversity of microbial communities relates to the functional diversity across space while similar questions have been explored in macro-organism communities. Here, we investigated the taxonomic and functional diversity patterns of soil microbial communities by coupling the data obtained from marker genes sequencing and functional gene surveys. Meanwhile, we evaluated the relative effects of environment and geographic distance on shaping these patterns in alpine grasslands of northern China. Although the taxonomic diversity and composition of microbial communities varied across sites, we found no consistent changes in the functional structure. Both the environmental factors and geographic distance concurrently affected the taxonomic diversity patterns but they had no effects on the spatial variations in functional genes. The functional alpha diversity was weakly correlated to the taxonomic alpha diversity across sites. Moreover, we found no significant relationship between the taxonomic and functional composition similarity among microbial communities. Together, our results provide evidence that spatial variation in microbial functions could be independent of their variations in taxonomic diversity. Even the drivers of spatial variations in the functional structure could be totally different from those of taxonomic variations such as environmental differences and dispersal limitation. Our findings suggest that spatial variations of microbial function structure within a community would not follow the variations of taxonomic structures due to different drivers between both of them over space.

The hot-gas corrosion resistance of DD9 single crystal superalloy at 900°Cwas investigated in the present study. The composition and the morphology of corrosion layer were characterized by energy dispersive X-ray analysis spectroscope (EDS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results show that DD9 single crystal superalloy has excellent hot-gas corrosion resistance and basically obeys parabolic rate law during corrosion test for 100 h at 900 °C. The irregular and prismatic morphology of NiO tightly piles each other on the surface after 100 h corrosion test. The corrosion products possess three layers, outer layer is predominate NiO with a little of Al2O3, middle layer is mixed oxide, and inner layer is sulfide. It was found that flake shaped NiS phase formed in the sulfide layer.

Many macrofungus sclerotia are well-known medicinal herbs, health food and nutritional supplements. However, the prevalent adulterant commercial products are major hindrances to their incorporation into mainstream medical use in many countries. The mushroom sclerotia of Lignosus rhinocerotis, Poria cocos, Polyporus umbellatus, Pleurotus tuber-regium and Omphalia lapidescens are commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine. In this study, IR macro-fingerprint method was used in the identification of these sclerotia. The results showed that the spectrum of L. rhinocerotis (LR) was comparable with P. cocos with 94.4% correlation, except that the peak at 1543cm(-1) of LR appeared in lower intensity. The spectrum of P. umbellatus and P. tuber-regium was also correlated (91.5%), as both spectra could be clearly discriminated in that P. umbellatus spectrum has small base peaks located at the range of 1680-1500cm(-1). O. lapidescens was not comparable with all the other sclerotia as its spectrum was totally different. Its base peak was broad and derivated equally along the range. The first IR has revealed the dissimilarity among five mushrooms sclerotia. The second derivative and 2DIR further enhanced the identification in detail.

To study the influence of aging heat treatments on the microstructure of single crystal superalloys with high content of refractory elements and optimal the aging heat treatment regimes, a single crystal superalloy containing 22 wt% refractory elements was investigated. Results show that for the experimental alloy, even the homogenization–solution heat treatment for 25 h cannot homogenize the alloying elements completely. During primary aging heat treatment, γ′ phase grows larger and turns to regular cubes. Higher aging temperature induces larger γ′ cubes. For specimens with primary aging heat treated at 1120 °C, γ′ morphology does not change apparently during secondary aging heat treatment. For specimens with primary aging heat treatment at 1150 °C, γ′ phase in interdendrite grows obviously comparing with that in dendrites. By analyzing the precipitating kinetics of γ′ phase, it is found that owning to the dendrite segregation and different aging heat treatment temperatures, γ′ phase at different regions grows under the control of different factors at different aging heat treatment stages. The two controlling factors that are driving forces of phase transformation and element diffusion rate induce obviously different growth rates of γ′ phase. As a result, the γ′-precipitating behaviors are variable based on different solute concentrations and aging temperatures. For advanced single crystal superalloys that are supposed to be used at relatively high temperatures, the final γ′ size after aging heat treatment is suggested to be close to the crossing point of diffusion controlling curve and driving force controlling curve corresponding to the serving temperature. And then, high-temperature properties can be improved.

The single crystal superalloy with [001] orientation were prepared by screw selecting method in the directionally solidified furnace. Three different cooling method, water cooling (WC), air cooling (AC) and furnace cooling (FC) were used after same solution treatment. Then these specimens received same two-step aging treatment. Influence of solution cooling method on the microstructure and stress rupture properties of the alloy under the test condition of 980 °C and 300 MPa was investigated. The microstructures of the samples were examined by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results showed that the solution cooling method of heat treatment played an important role in the microstructure and stress rupture properties of the alloy. The size of γ′ phase and the width of the γ matrix channel of the alloy increased with decreasing cooling rate. The stress rupture properties of the alloy increased at first and decreased afterwards with decreasing cooling rate. The alloy with air cooling (AC) has the best stress rupture properties. The γ′ phase changed into a perfect raft structure during the stress rupture process of the specimens with AC method. However, the γ′ phase changed into a very irregular raft microstructure in the specimens with the water cooling (WC) and furnace cooling (FC) method. The micro-cracks in the specimen with irregular raft make the initiation and interconnection easier than that in the specimen with regular raft. Therefore, the alloy with AC method has optimum microstructure and stress rupture property.

A cable-suspended parallel mechanism for full rolling motion of moving platform is designed, a kinematic mathematical model and a statics model of the mechanism are established, the variation of cable length during full rolling motion at two deflection angles of 0° and 10° are analyzed, by creating a virtual prototype, the distribution of cable tension and the change of centroid displacement of the moving platform are analyzed. The research results will provide a new technical scheme for full rolling of moving platform.

As to a 6-DOF wire-driven parallel manipulator in the application of virtual flight experiment of wind tunnel, the high precision motion control of supported aircraft model has been researched. First, the integrated dynamic model of the system has been established, and a proportional and differential controller has been designed on the base of position feedback. Finally, the numerical simulation of motion control system has been done in the example of 6-DOF motion. The analysis result shows that the high precision motion control can be achieved by PD control law for aircraft model, and the system stability could be improved by selecting wire tension coefficient properly, which can provide theoretical reference and support for virtual flight experiment of complex model and has great practical application value.

Two experimental single crystal superalloys with 2% Cr and 4% Cr (mass fraction) were cast in a directionally solidified furnace, while other alloying element contents were kept unchanged. The effects of Cr content on the microstructure, phase stability, tensile properties at 1100 °C and stress rupture properties at 1070 °C and 160 MPa of the single crystal superalloy were investigated. The results show that the size of γ' phase particles become small and uniform, and the cubic shape turns a little regular with the increase of Cr content. The γ' directional coarsening and rafting were observed in the 2% Cr and 4% Cr alloys after long term aging (LTA) at 1100 °C. The rafting rate of γ' phase increased with increasing Cr content. Needle-shaped topologically close packed (TCP) phases precipitated and grew along fixed direction in both alloys. The precipitating rate and volume fraction of TCP phases significantly increased with the increase of Cr content. The tensile property of the alloy increased and the stress rupture properties of the alloy decreased with the increase of Cr content at high temperature. The increase of Cr content increased the partition ratio of TCP forming elements, Re, W, and Mo, and the saturation degrees of these elements in γ phases increased. Therefore, the high temperature phase stability of the alloy decreased with the increase of Cr content.

With its unique migration operator and mutation operator, Biogeography-Based Optimization (BBO), which simulates migration of species in natural biogeography, is different from existing evolutionary algorithms, but it has shortcomings such as poor convergence precision and slow convergence speed when it is applied to solve complex optimization problems. Therefore, we put forward a Cooperative Coevolutionary Biogeography-Based Optimizer (CBBO) in this paper. In CBBO, the whole population is divided into multiple sub-populations first, and then each subpopulation is evolved with an improved BBO separately. The fitness evaluation of habitats of a subpopulation is conducted by constructing context vectors with selected habitats from other sub-populations. Our CBBO tests are based on 13 benchmark functions and are also compared with several other evolutionary algorithms. Experimental results demonstrate that CBBO is able to achieve better results than other evolutionary algorithms on most of the benchmark functions.

Fifty-six sudden unexplained death (SUD) cases were collected from Chinese Han population, which occurred during daily activities and were autopsy negative in comprehensive postmortem autopsy. The coding exons of potassium channel genes KCNE1, KCNQ1, and nitric oxide synthase gene NOS1AP were sequenced. A synonymous mutation, KCNE1 F54F TC was identified in 2 SUD cases, which was absent in the control subjects. Neither genotype nor allele frequencies of KCNE1 and KCNQ1 exhibited a significant difference between the SUD and control group. In contrast, the allele frequency (p = 2.7 × 10(-10)) and genotype frequency (p = 5.9 × 10(-7)) of rs3751284, and the genotype frequency (p = 2.9 × 10(-2)) of rs348624 in NOS1AP of SUD were significantly different from that of controls (p0.05). Our study suggested that rs3751284 and rs348624 might be susceptibility loci for SUD during daily activities. Larger sample sizes and further molecular studies are needed to confirm or exclude an effect of the NOS1AP SNPs on SUD risk.

A follow-up study aimed primarily at investigating late radiation effects on the genital organs and eye lenses was performed between 1999 and 2010 on three individuals who suffered from acute radiation sickness in China. The examination included a medical history, a physical examination, ultrasonography, laboratory analysis, and an ophthalmologic examination. In Case 1, amenorrhea occurred after exposure to a Co source. The uterus and ovaries were significantly narrowed in the second year following exposure. The estradiol level decreased significantly during the first 3 y; progesterone was lowest in the second year; and levels of follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone increased, especially in the first year. The lenses in both eyes appeared opaque 6 mo after the exposure, resulting in a gradual deterioration in visual acuity. In Case 2 (8 y old), the levels of testosterone and estradiol were normal. In Case 3, the levels of testosterone and estradiol were also normal, but the sperm count was 0 from 6 mo to 1 y, and the proportion of abnormal sperm was increased from 3-5 y after the accident. The lenses in Case 3 also began to turn opaque in the ninth year after the accident. In Case 1, the ovarian function was reduced, leading to amenorrhea and early menopause. In Case 3, the sperm count was reduced and the number of abnormal sperm was increased due to testicular damage by radiation. Radiation-induced cataracts occurred in both Case 1 and Case 3.