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This work investigates the strain characteristics of surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonators fabricated on X-cut LiTaO3 (LT) substrates with varied Euler angles for exploring potential applications in strain sensing. The simulation and experimental results show that both Rayleigh wave and shear horizontal wave can be excited in (90°, $90^{\circ },\Psi \text {)}$ LT substrates when $\Psi $ is ranged from 132° to 162°. The resonance frequencies of both Rayleigh wave and shear horizontal wave shift with applied strain. The strain coefficient of frequency (SCF) strongly depends on the acoustic wave propagation direction. The maximum sensitivities of Rayleigh wave and shear horizontal wave to applied strain are about -0.94 and -0.41 ppm/ $\mu \varepsilon $ for $\Psi = 122^{\circ }$ and $\Psi = 132^{\circ }$ , respectively. It is also found that some SAW resonators deposited on certain Euler angles exhibit insensitivity to applied strain. The results of this work provide valuable insights for designing and optimizing SAW strain sensors based on LT substrates.

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Flexible quantum spin electronic devices based on ferromagnetic insulators have attracted wide attention due to their outstanding advantages of low-power dissipation and noncontact sensing. However, ferromagnetic insulators, such as monocrystalline yttrium iron garnet (Y3Fe5O12, YIG), hve weak stress effects with a small magnetostrictive coefficient (λ110, 10 ppm), making it difficult to achieve a large magnetic tunable amplitude. In this paper, large-scale (with a diameter of 40 mm), flexible Pt/YIG heterojunctions were obtained by double-cavity magnetron sputtering technology, indicating typical soft magnetism and good bending fatigue characteristics. Here, the 3 nm thickness of the Pt layer triggers an obvious magnetic proximity effect, in which the in-plane ferromagnetic resonance field is decreased by 70 Oe compared to flexible Cu/YIG heterojunctions. Meanwhile, it shows a wide tunable amplitude of 110 Oe under the flexible bending stresses, which is induced by the sensitive interface effect of Pt (3 nm)/YIG heterojunctions. The saturation magnetization of Pt/YIG heterojunctions is negatively correlated with Pt thickness rather than the relative stability of Cu/YIG heterojunctions, depending on the magnetic proximity effect. It brings greater application possibilities for flexible stress-sensitive magnetic oxides in spin logic electronic devices.

Bouquet is a fascinating wine characteristic that serves as an indicator of wine quality, developing during the aging process. The multifunctional monoterpenol oxidase VvCYP76F14 in wine grapes sequentially catalyzes three reactions to produce (E)-8-carboxylinalool, a crucial precursor for wine bouquet. Previous studies indicated that the activity of VvCYP76F14 derived from different wine grape varieties did not correlate with the amino acid sequence differences. In this study, 54 wine grape varieties were categorized into neutral, aromatic, and full-bodied types based on the sequence differences of VvCYP76F14, closely correlated with the content of wine lactone precursors. Computer modeling and molecular docking analysis of the full-bodied CYP76F14 revealed 17, 19, and 18 amino acid residues in the VvCYP76F14–linalool, VvCYP76F14–(E)-8-hydroxylinalool, and VvCYP76F14–(E)-8-oxolinalool complexes, respectively. Site-directed mutagenesis and in vitro enzyme activity analysis confirmed the substitutions of the key amino acid residues in neutral and aromatic varieties. Notably, the D299 mutation of VvCYP76F14 resulted in the complete loss of (E)-8-oxolinalool and (E)-8-carboxylinalool activities, aligning with the undetectable levels of (E)-8-oxolinalool and (E)-8-carboxylinalool in “Yantai 2-3-37”, which harbors the D299T substitution. Favorably, VvCYP76F14 could serve as a cost-effective fingerprint marker for screening superior hybrid offspring with the desired levels of wine lactone precursors.

Background: The efficient and accurate calculation of working chamber volume can greatly contribute to the optimized design efficiency of the combined profile scroll compressor, but current papers and patents lack research on the method of calculating the working chamber volume of a combined profile scroll compressor.Objective: A method of using digital image processing is proposed to efficiently calculate the working chamber volume of a combined scroll compressor.Methods: This method discretizes and reconstructs the scroll profile that forms the working chamber into a coordinate sequence with equal involute angle intervals. By calculating the relationship between the coordinate sequence and the rotation angle, a general coordinate sequence that forms the working chamber profile is obtained. The real-time changes in the projection image of the working chamber during all the suction, compression and discharge processes can be accurately depicted. The digital image is processed to obtain the actual projection area of the working chamber, and thus, the volume of the working chamber is accurately calculated.Results: The digital image method can accurately calculate the volume change of the working chamber of the combined profile scroll compressor by selecting the appropriate involute angle interval and digital image size, with a mean relative error of less than 1%. At the beginning of suction and the end of discharge, the calculated volume has been found to have poor accuracy, with a maximum relative error higher than 10%.Conclusion: The digital image method has been found to have high accuracy, greatly reduce the difficulty of the analysis of the working chamber volume, and promote the design optimization of the combined profile scroll compressor, thus broadening the idea for the calculation method of the working chamber volume of the scroll compressor.

Influenza A virus (IAV), a common respiratory infectious pathogen, poses a significant risk to personal health and public health safety due to rapid mutation and wide host range. To better prevent and treat IAV, comprehensive measures are needed for early and rapid screening and detection of IAV. Although traditional laboratory-based techniques are accurate, they are often time-consuming and not always feasible in emergency or resource-limited areas. In contrast, emerging point-of-care strategies provide faster results but may compromise sensitivity and specificity. Here, this review critically evaluates various detection methods for IAV from established laboratory-based procedures to innovative rapid diagnosis. By analyzing the recent research progress, we aim to address significant gaps in understanding the effectiveness, practicality, and applicability of these methods in different scenarios, which could provide information for healthcare strategies, guide public health response measures, and ultimately strengthen patient care in the face of the ongoing threat of IAV. Through a detailed comparison of diagnostic models, this review can provide a reliable reference for rapid, accurate and efficient detection of IAV, and to contribute to the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and control of IAV.

Pyruvate kinase M2 (PKM2) is a central metabolic enzyme driving the Warburg effect in tumor growth. Previous investigations have demonstrated that PKM2 is subject to O-linked β-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) modification, which is a nutrient-sensitive post-translational modification. Here we found that unc-51 like autophagy activating kinase 1 (ULK1), a glucose-sensitive kinase, interacts with PKM2 and phosphorylates PKM2 at Ser333. Ser333 phosphorylation antagonizes PKM2 O-GlcNAcylation, promotes its tetramer formation and enzymatic activity, and decreases its nuclear localization. As PKM2 is known to have a nuclear role in regulating c-Myc, we also show that PKM2-S333 phosphorylation inhibits c-Myc expression. By downregulating glucose consumption and lactate production, PKM2 pS333 attenuates the Warburg effect. Through mouse xenograft assays, we demonstrate that the phospho-deficient PKM2-S333A mutant promotes tumor growth in vivo. In conclusion, we identified a ULK1-PKM2-c-Myc axis in inhibiting breast cancer, and a glucose-sensitive phosphorylation of PKM2 in modulating the Warburg effect.

In this study, TiO2nanocomposites immobilized with a ferrocene-containing polymer were facilely prepared according to mussel-inspired biomimetic strategy. The nanocomposites were used as heterogeneous catalysts for photocatalytic oxidation and photo-Fenton-like reactions simultaneously. Notably, mimetic wastewaters containing different organic pollutants could be treated viathese synergistic photoreactions in high salinity conditions. A series of organic pollutants such as tetracyclines, bisphenol A, bisphenol S, and rhodamine B could be degraded within 30 minutes in the presence of high-concentration inorganic salts (500 mmol L−1NaCl or NaNO3). It was possible to recycle the nanocomposites after the reactions for reuse, and the degradation efficiency was maintained stable in repeated consecutive experiments.

Chromatin relaxation is a prerequisite for the DNA repair machinery to access double-strand breaks (DSBs). Local histones around the DSBs then undergo prompt changes in acetylation status, but how the large demands of acetyl-CoA are met is unclear. Here, we report that pyruvate dehydrogenase 1α (PDHE1α) catalyzes pyruvate metabolism to rapidly provide acetyl-CoA in response to DNA damage. We show that PDHE1α is quickly recruited to chromatin in a polyADP-ribosylation-dependent manner, which drives acetyl-CoA generation to support local chromatin acetylation around DSBs. This process increases the formation of relaxed chromatin to facilitate repair-factor loading, genome stability and cancer cell resistance to DNA-damaging treatments in vitro and in vivo. Indeed, we demonstrate that blocking polyADP-ribosylation-based PDHE1α chromatin recruitment attenuates chromatin relaxation and DSB repair efficiency, resulting in genome instability and restored radiosensitivity. These findings support a mechanism in which chromatin-associated PDHE1α locally generates acetyl-CoA to remodel the chromatin environment adjacent to DSBs and promote their repair.

Flexible single crystal 0°YX lithium niobite (LNO) thin film is fabricated on a polyimide substrate combining crystal-ion-slicing (CIS) technology and the benzocyclobutene (BCB) bonding method. By finite element method (FEM) simulation, a surface acoustic wave resonator (SAWR) with a ${Q}$ factor of 493 is demonstrated by increasing the thickness of the BCB layer. While applying compressively strain and tensile strain, the SAWR strain sensors show good performance with strain sensitivity of 587 Hz/ $\mu \varepsilon $ and a wider strain range from −2231 or $2241 \mu \varepsilon $ compared with our previous work in solidly mounted resonators (SMRs) and memristors. The repeatability testing while applying compressively strain and tensile strain is performed at two strain states of 0 and $- 1594\,\,\mu \varepsilon $ , and 0 and $1599 \mu \varepsilon $ , respectively. As changing the strain value, the resonance frequency shows great consistency and displays good repeatability and high stability, indicating that the flexible LNO SAWR strain sensor has potentially applicable in flexible electronics systems.

ABSTRACT Homogenization of masonry is an important step for numerical modelling of masonry walls. Homogenization with favorable balance of simplicity, time efficiency, and accuracy facilitates the effectiveness of numerical models. [...]

Considering the comprehensive effect of the internal non-inertial system of planetary gear transmission (PGT) and external non-inertial system of the body, combined with the modified Heywood formula and Hertz formula, a calculation model for the dynamic bending stress and contact dynamic stress of the PGT in a non-inertial system (NIS) is proposed. The stress non-inertial coefficients (KNI) describing the influence of the additional effects on the dynamic stress in the non-inertial system are defined. Additionally, the variation law of non-inertial coefficients under two typical non-inertial conditions of variable-speed horizontal flight and somersault motion was studied. The effect of gear installation and manufacturing errors on the non-inertial coefficients under two maneuvering conditions was analyzed. The results indicated that non-inertial coefficients increase with an increase in the maneuverability of the body, and the variable-speed horizontal flight and somersault motion have significant effects on the changing trend of non-inertial coefficients with the gear installation and manufacturing errors. Compared with the gear error, the effect of the NIS has a significant influence on the non-inertial coefficients.

Pressure sensitivity of the diaphragm-type Surface acoustic wave (SAW) pressure sensor was studied in this work. In the experiment, a one-port SAW resonator was fabricated on a 128° YX-lithium niobate (LiNbO $_{{3}}{)}$ substrate. The SAW resonator was attached to a metal diaphragm to form a pressure sensor. The experimental results showed that both Rayleigh and shear horizontal (SH) waves were excited in the SAW resonator. The pressure sensitivities of Rayleigh and SH waves were measured. It was found that the sensitivity of the SH wave was about 1456 ppm/MPa, which was significantly higher than that of the Rayleigh wave. The result was explained by studying the combined effect of biaxial stress on the strain sensitivity of Rayleigh and SH waves. It was found that the superposition of biaxial stress reduced the pressure sensitivity of the Rayleigh wave, while the superposition of biaxial stress increased the pressure sensitivity of the SH wave. This work provides a guidance for the design of highly sensitive SAW pressure sensors.

Rice bran residue possessed a steady lipase activity ((26.68 ± 3.69)%) after its endogenous lipase was extracted continuously by phosphate buffer solution (PBS) for 24 h. Therefore, the aim of this research was to explore whether there exist any bound lipases in rice bran (Oryza sativa). Three physical treatments (grinding, homogenizing and ultrasound crush) and 6 enzymatic treatments (cellulase, hemicellulase, pectinase, complex cellulase, glucoamylase and α-amylase) were applied to rice bran in order to investigate this bound lipase. The relative catalytic activities of extraction supernatant and residue for pectinase group were (437.63 ± 22.54)% and (159.26 ± 2.12)%, respectively, which were significantly higher (P< 0.05) than other groups. This phenomenon demonstrated that lipase was the most likely to combine with pectin. Molecular simulation proved that pectin could combine with two rice bran lipases (lipase 315 and lipase 308) and cover the catalytic centers so as to prevent the lipases from encountering the substrate and inhibiting their catalytic activities. During combination, pectin could make the lipases more compact and reduce the solvent accessible surface area of lipases, which would make the lipases inactive to molecular interaction. In summary, part of rice bran lipase was proved to exist in bound form and combined with the pectin.

ATM plays an important role in DNA damage response and is considered a potential target in cancer therapies. In this study, a goal-directed molecular generation approach based on ligand similarity and target specificity was applied to sample active molecules, and they were screened virtually to identify the theoretical lead compound 7a, which was later shown to inhibit ATM adequately. However, there is a main concern about its poor metabolic stability in vitro. Subsequent optimization was performed to improve the potency and selectivity toward ATM and attenuate the hepatic clearance in vitro, culminating in the identification of 10rwith nanomolar ATM inhibition, excellent cellular sensitivity to radiation and chemotherapy drugs, and impressive pharmacokinetic profiles. Furthermore, 10rcombined with irinotecandemonstrated a synergistic antitumor efficacy in SW620 xenograft models, suggesting that it could be a promising candidate drug combined with chemotherapy for the treatment of cancer.

Resistance to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) is a major challenge for clinicians and patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Serine-arginine protein kinase 1 (SRPK1) is a key oncoprotein in the EGFR/AKT pathway that participates in tumorigenesis. We found that high SRPK1 expression was significantly associated with poor progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with advanced NSCLC undergoing gefitinib treatment. Both in vitro and in vivo assays suggested that SRPK1 reduced the ability of gefitinib to induce apoptosis in sensitive NSCLC cells independently of its kinase activity. Moreover, SRPK1 facilitated binding between LEF1, β-catenin and the EGFR promoter region to increase EGFR expression and promote the accumulation and phosphorylation of membrane EGFR. Furthermore, we verified that the SRPK1 spacer domain bound to GSK3β and enhanced its autophosphorylation at Ser9 to activate the Wnt pathway, thereby promoting the expression of Wnt target genes such as Bcl-X. The correlation between SRPK1 and EGFR expression was confirmed in patients. In brief, our research suggested that the SRPK1/GSK3β axis promotes gefitinib resistance by activating the Wnt pathway and may serve as a potential therapeutic target for overcoming gefitinib resistance in NSCLC.

Porous carbon nanospheres have attracted extensive attention due to their excellent advantages in specific surface area, pore distribution, and electronic conductivity. Herein, boron‐doped hollow carbon nanospheres with mesoporous walls have been successfully synthesized via a combination of hard/soft templating and boronic acid/sugar ligation. Surface‐initiated Cu(0) mediated reversible deactivation radical polymerization was used to initiate the polymerization of 2‐hydroxyethyl acrylate and poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether acrylate from the surface of silica. 4‐carboxy‐3‐fluorophenylboronic acid was introduced as a boron precursor by N‐(3‐dimethylaminopropyl)‐N′‐ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride coupling and fructose was introduced as a carbon precursor by boronic esters. After carbonization and template etching, boron‐doped porous carbon spheres could be obtained. We believe such in‐situ heteroatom‐doped method has great potential in preparing hollow mesoporous carbon nanospheres with excellent properties.

Underground coal fires are global catastrophes that result in energy waste, carbon emission, and eco-environment pollution. Remote sensing (RS) detection is essential for underground coal fire extinguishing engineering, and the most used is thermal infrared (TIR) RS. It can well obtain the thermal anomalies of land surface temperature (LST), which is the most direct surface feature of underground coal fires. However, most studies using TIR RS simply delineate underground fire sources vertically according to LST anomalies, which has relatively little impact when initially determining coal fire area locations on the large scale. As for the precise location of small-scale subsurface fire sources, the deviation between subsurface fire source locations inferred and real locations could lead to errors or even mistakes to fire extinguishing engineering. There is a lack of subsurface fire source evolution model reconstruction method, and the spatiotemporal correlations characteristic of LST thermal anomalies and underground fire sources have not yet been discussed. To this end, taking Miquan coalfield (Western China) as an example, a 3-D empirical Bayesian Kriging (EBK3D) method is first proposed to reconstruct the 4-D temperature fields of underground fire sources. Then, the feasibility of the vertical correspondence approach to inferring small-scale subsurface fire sources through LST thermal anomalies detected by unmanned aerial vehicle TIR RS and satellite TIR RS is analyzed. Finally, the spatiotemporal correlation characteristic of LST thermal anomalies and subsurface fire sources is analyzed. As the results show, it is feasible to reconstruct the underground fire source evolution model by the EBK3D method. The reconstructed 4-D temperature fields can dynamically reflect the evolutionary states of underground fire sources in three time periods, with cross-validated root mean square errors of 52.2 °C, 49.6 °C, and 37.1 °C and $R^{2}$ of linear regressions of 0.925, 0.9145, and 0.8429, respectively. The LST thermal anomalies show a significant spatiotemporal delay with respect to the subsurface fire source evolution. This makes the locations of the underground fire sources traced by the vertical correspondence method deviate from the real ones. The offsets of underground fire sources relative to surface thermal anomalies in the coal seam strike and dip directions for different time periods at depths of (T1: −44.43 m, T2: −27.72 m, and T3: −20.04 m) are (T1: 73.80 m, T2: 52.33 m, and T3: 45.06 m), and (T1: 16.79 m, T2: 17.27 m, and T3: 24.82 m), respectively. $R^{2}$ ’s for the linear regression model of the offset averages in three directions versus time and fire source size are (0.9247, 0.7949, and 0.9564) and (0.8739, 0.85 and 0.9152), respectively.

Metamaterial temperature sensors are receiving increasing attention due to the wireless and passive operation. Unfortunately, the frequency response of most metamaterial sensors to temperature is nonlinear, which increases the complexity of signal processing. A dual resonance frequency-selective surface (FSS) temperature sensor with linear frequency–temperature characteristic is proposed in this work. The dual-frequency resonance of the sensor is realized by introducing the circular slot unit cell into the substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) structure. The linear relationship between the temperature and the difference in the two resonance frequencies can be achieved at specific conditions. The proposed sensor was fabricated and measured from room temperature to 120 °C. The measured resonance frequency of the sensor decreases from 12.658 to 12.57 GHz in the SIW cavity resonance mode and from 13.787 to 13.727 GHz in a circular slot resonance mode. The experiment result shows that wireless temperature sensing is feasible and that the difference in resonance frequency has a good linear relationship with temperature. The sensitivity of the sensor is 0.309 MHz/°C. This design method can be extended to a wider temperature range and the sensor can be potentially applied to temperature sensing in industrial systems.

Automated code comment generation technologies can help developers understand code intent, which can significantly reduce the cost of software maintenance and revision. The latest studies in this field mainly depend on deep neural networks, such as convolutional neural networks and recurrent neural network. However, these methods may not generate high-quality and readable code comments due to the long-term dependence problem, which means that the code blocks used to summarize information are far from each other. Owing to the long-term dependence problem, these methods forget the previous input data’s feature information during the training process. In this article, to solve the long-term dependence problem and extract both the text and structure information from the program code, we propose a novel improved-Transformer-based comment generation method, named SeTransformer. Specifically, the SeTransformer utilizes the code tokens and an abstract syntax tree (AST) of programs to extract information as the inputs, and then, it leverages the self-attention mechanism to analyze the text and structural features of code simultaneously. Experimental results based on public corpus gathered from large-scale open-source projects show that our method can significantly outperform five state-of-the-art baselines (such as Hybrid-DeepCom and AST-attendgru). Furthermore, we also conduct a questionnaire survey for developers, and the results show that the SeTransformer can generate higher quality comments than those of other baselines.

Quinazoline and its derivatives have drawn much attention in the development of potential antitumor agents. Here, we synthesized a series of 1,2,3-triazole derivatives of quinazoline at the C6 position and evaluated for their cytotoxic activity in various human cancer cell lines. We found that compound 5awas the most cytotoxic to HCT-116 cells (IC50, 0.36 μM). Target profiling found that 5adirectly binds to both the autophagy-associated protein SQSTM1/P62 and the E3 ligase RNF168, promoting their interaction. Consistently, 5atreatment induces a decrease in RNF168-mediated H2A ubiquitination and compromises homologous recombination-mediated DNA repair, thus increasing the sensitivity of HCT-116 to X-ray radiation. Moreover, 5asuppressed xenografted tumor growth in mice in a dose-dependent manner. Taken together, the 1,2,3-triazole derivative of quinazoline 5amay serve as a novel compound for tumor therapy based on its role in promoting a P62/RNF168 interaction.

With the development of new energy, the proportion of wind power in the global power production structure is increasing year by year, and it has broad development prospects. This article discusses a new type of wind-powered permanent magnet eddy current heating device, which converts excess wind energy into heat energy and stores it in a heat storage medium, so as to achieve the function of storing heat energy. Thermal energy can be directly supplied to users and can also be used for thermal power generation when the power supply is insufficient, which is of practical significance to alleviating the problems of energy shortage and large amount of wind curtailment. Based on the law of electromagnetic induction and eddy current phenomenon, this paper establishes a model of permanent magnet eddy current heating device, and then simulates and analyzes the permanent magnet eddy current heating device to improve the heating power and material utilization of the device. The focus is on the influence of stator groove type, the number of stator slots and the thickness of the stator on the heating power. Finally, the simulation analysis of the permanent magnet eddy current heating device before and after the optimization is carried out in MATLAB. The simulation results prove the effectiveness of the optimization.

Stroke is the leading cause of death and disability. Currently, there is no effective pharmacological treatment for this disease, which can be partially attributed to the inability to efficiently deliver therapeutics to the brain. Here we report the development of natural compound-derived nanoparticles (NPs), which function both as a potent therapeutic agent for stroke treatment and as an efficient carrier for drug delivery to the ischemic brain. First, we screened a collection of natural nanomaterials and identified betulinic acid (BA) as one of the most potent antioxidants for stroke treatment. Next, we engineered BA NPs for preferential drug release in acidic ischemic tissue through chemically converting BA to betulinic amine (BAM) and for targeted drug delivery through surface conjugation of AMD3100, a CXCR4 antagonist. The resulting AMD3100-conjugated BAM NPs, or A-BAM NPs, were then assessed as a therapeutic agent for stroke treatment and as a carrier for delivery of NA1, a neuroprotective peptide. We show that intravenous administration of A-BAM NPs effectively improved recovery from stroke and its efficacy was further enhanced when NA1 was encapsulated. Due to their multifunctionality and significant efficacy, we anticipate that A-BAM NPs have the potential to be translated both as a therapeutic agent and as a drug carrier to improve the treatment of stroke.

ABSTRACT This paper presents the results of a study on the cracking behaviour of young reinforced concrete walls with cracking control techniques. Material property tests were conducted to identify the [...]

The use of internal air pressure testing to detect flaws in a natural gas pipeline in China is described. The crack in the pipeline began at the inner weld surface and was detected before the pipeline entered service.

Recent decades have witnessed the accelerated retreat of alpine glaciers, which likely portends a decline in the glacial ice melt on which large downstream populations rely for freshwater. Thus, estimating water storage in alpine glaciers is critical for predicting the trend of glacier melting. This study compiled a rich set of ice thickness observations for glaciers of varying sizes in western China. We here presented a first-order assessment of the various errors involved in interpreting ice thickness from ground-penetrating radar (GPR) observations. An empirical Bayesian kriging (EBK) method was used for ice thickness interpolation and volume estimation. We then established a new volume-scaling law specific to western China glaciers based on these 36 volume-area pairs. And together with the Second Chinese Glacier Inventory (SCGI), we obtain a regional volume estimate of 4451 ± 298 km3. By comparison, we believed that this result is the most reliable estimate of the total ice storage in western China and more reliably predicts gross glacier melting. However, our results show that the method of glacier division can strongly affect the total volume estimation, which previous studies ignored. This emphasizes the need for more surveyed glaciers data and more accurate glacier inventory to improve the evaluation of the climate impact on glacier melting water resources and to help ensure the future survival of these alpine glaciers.

Atmospheric dryness (i.e., high vapor pressure deficit, VPD), together with soil moisture stress, limits plant photosynthesis and threatens ecosystem functioning. Regions where rainfall and soil moisture are relatively sufficient, such as the rainfed part of the U.S. Corn Belt, are especially prone to high VPD stress. With globally projected rising VPD under climate change, it is crucial to understand, simulate, and manage its negative impacts on agricultural ecosystems. However, most existing models simulating crop response to VPD are highly empirical and insufficient in capturing plant response to high VPD, and improved modeling approaches are urgently required. In this study, by leveraging recent advances in plant hydraulic theory, we demonstrate that the VPD constraints in the widely used coupled photosynthesis‐stomatal conductance models alone are inadequate to fully capture VPD stress effects. Incorporating plant xylem hydraulic transport significantly improves the simulation of transpiration under high VPD, even when soil moisture is sufficient. Our results indicate that the limited water transport capability from the plant root to the leaf stoma could be a major mechanism of plant response to high VPD stress. We then introduce a Demand‐side Hydraulic Limitation Factor (DHLF) that simplifies the xylem and the leaf segments of the plant hydraulic model to only one parameter yet captures the effect of plant hydraulic transport on transpiration response to high VPD with similar accuracy. We expect the improved understanding and modeling of crop response to high VPD to help contribute to better management and adaptation of agricultural systems in a changing climate. Coupled photosynthesis‐stomatal conductance models alone underestimate vapor pressure deficit (VPD) stress effects on crop stomatal conductance and transpirationLimited plant hydraulic transport capability could play a role in plant response to high VPDA simplified representation of plant hydraulic model for capturing VPD stress on plants is proposed Coupled photosynthesis‐stomatal conductance models alone underestimate vapor pressure deficit (VPD) stress effects on crop stomatal conductance and transpiration Limited plant hydraulic transport capability could play a role in plant response to high VPD A simplified representation of plant hydraulic model for capturing VPD stress on plants is proposed

Sulfobetaine methacrylate (SBMA) is a well-known zwitterionic molecule that can improve the hydrophilic property of hydrophobic membranes such as polysulfone (PSU). However, SBMA is too hydrophilic to dissolve in organic solvents. Hence, it is difficult to modify the polymer membranes via blending with their casting solution. This paper aims to synthesize an amphiphilic block polymers of polystyrene-block-sulfobetaine methacrylate (PS-b-SBMA) which can be well dissolved in organic solvents for membrane casting. The two PS-b-SBMA copolymers with SBMA content >28% were applied as the additives to cast the PSU ultrafiltration membrane. The PS-b-SBMA copolymer modified membranes showed lower contact angles and 3-folds higher water flux recovery after BSA treatment than the parent PSU membrane. Moreover, SEM images showed that the BSA contaminant on the modified membrane surfaces was much less than that on PSU membrane. Thus, such modified membranes can be applied to prevent protein fouling in the process of ultrafiltration.

Voltage control of magnetic anisotropy (VCMA) in Si-compatible ferroelectric/ferromagnetic multiferroic thin films is promising to enable power-efficient and integrated magnetic memories. However, their VCMA effect is weak and is always smaller than that of the bulk counterparts. Here, we achieve a more substantial VCMA effect in thin films than in the bulk, benefiting from the large in-plane piezo-strain mediated magnetoelectric coupling under strong fields. Si-compatible ferroelectric Pb(Zr,Ti)O3(PZT) thin films with large breakdown strength of up to 3.2 MV cm−1are fabricated to further construct multiferroic thin films. Since conventional methods fail to measure the VCMA effect under strong fields, we establish a micro-ferromagnetic resonance method based on micro-fabrication. An enhanced VCMA effect is demonstrated in PZT/CoFeB thin films, whose voltage-induced effective magnetic field (Heff) could experimentally reach 26.1 Oe, which is much stronger than that in bulk control samples “PZT ceramic/CoFeB” (2.6 Oe) and “PMN-PT single crystal/CoFeB” (18.5 Oe) as well as previous reports. Theoretically, the Heffin thin films could be > 60 Oe near the breakdown strength, resulting from a giant in-plane piezo-strain S31< −0.3%, which is comparable to that of the best ferroelectric single crystals. Si-compatible multiferroic thin films with enhanced VCMA will be a useful platform for developing integrated magnetic and spintronic devices.

“Ferroelectric/ferromagnetic” multiferroic composites with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) are useful for developing power-efficient magnetic memories. Voltage control of PMA has been demonstrated in bulk multiferroic composites based on ferroelectric single crystals, but they are not compatible for integration. Multiferroic composite thin films are useful for developing integrated devices; however, voltage control of PMA in them has not been achieved yet at room temperature due to their low magnetoelectric (ME) coupling coefficient. Here, we demonstrate such functionality and propose to enhance their ME coupling effect under a strong electric field by taking full advantage of the large dielectric strength of ferroelectric thin films. First, the thickness-dependent breakdown of Pb(Zr0.384Ti0.576Nb0.04)O3(PNZT) thin films was studied, and the two-layer (∼200 nm) samples exhibited the highest breakdown strength (3.68 MV/cm) and small surface roughness (<1 nm). Second, we fabricated “PNZT/(Co/Pt)5” thin films with strong PMA whose breakdown strength is nearly independent of the top electrode materials. Finally, voltage-induced effective magnetic field (Heff) in “PNZT/(Co/Pt)5” was studied. It is comparable to that achieved in bulk composites and will induce magnetization switching under strong electric fields. Multiferroic composite thin films with large breakdown strength will provide a useful platform for enabling integrated multiferroic devices.

Electric field (E-field) control of magnetism based on magnetoelectric coupling is one of the promising approaches for manipulating the magnetization with low power consumption. The evolution of magnetic domains under in-situE-fields is significant for the practical applications in integrated micro/nano devices. Here, we report the vector analysis of the E-field-driven antiparallel magnetic domain evolution in FeCoSiB/PMN-PT(011) multiferroic heterostructures via in-situquantitative magneto-optical Kerr microscope. It is demonstrated that the magnetic domains can be switched to both the 0° and 180° easy directions at the same time by E-fields, resulting in antiparallel magnetization distribution in ferromagnetic/ferroelectric heterostructures. This antiparallel magnetic domain evolution is attributed to energy minimization with the uniaxial strains by E-fields which can induce the rotation of domains no more than 90°. Moreover, domains can be driven along only one or both easy axis directions by reasonably selecting the initial magnetic domain distribution. The vector analysis of magnetic domain evolution can provide visual insights into the strain-mediated magnetoelectric effect, and promote the fundamental understanding of electrical regulation of magnetism.

Despite being promising, the clinical application of magnetic hyperthermia for brain cancer treatment is limited by the requirement of highly invasive intracranial injections. To overcome this limitation, here we report the development of gallic acid-coated magnetic nanoclovers (GA-MNCs), which allow not only for noninvasive delivery of magnetic hyperthermia but also for targeted delivery of systemic chemotherapy to brain tumors. GA-MNCs are composed of clover-shaped MNCs in the core, which can induce magnetic heat in high efficiency, and polymerized GA on the shell, which enables tumor vessel-targeting. We demonstrate that intravenous administration of GA-MNCs following alternating magnetic field exposure effectively inhibited brain cancer development and preferentially disrupted tumor vasculature, making it possible to efficiently deliver systemic chemotherapy for further improved efficacy. Due to the noninvasive nature and high efficiency in killing tumor cells and enhancing systemic drug delivery, GA-MNCs have the potential to be translated for improved treatment of brain cancer.

R-loops are three-stranded structures that can pose threats to genome stability. RNase H1 precisely recognizes R-loops to drive their resolution within the genome, but the underlying mechanism is unclear. Here, we report that ARID1A recognizes R-loops with high affinity in an ATM-dependent manner. ARID1A recruits METTL3 and METTL14 to the R-loop, leading to the m6A methylation of R-loop RNA. This m6A modification facilitates the recruitment of RNase H1 to the R-loop, driving its resolution and promoting DNA end resection at DSBs, thereby ensuring genome stability. Depletion of ARID1A, METTL3, or METTL14 leads to R-loop accumulation and reduced cell survival upon exposure to cytotoxic agents. Therefore, ARID1A, METTL3, and METTL14 function in a coordinated, temporal order at DSB sites to recruit RNase H1 and to ensure efficient R-loop resolution. Given the association of high ARID1A levels with resistance to genotoxic therapies in patients, these findings open avenues for exploring potential therapeutic strategies for cancers with ARID1A abnormalities.

This study proposed a combined algebraic spiral (CAS) scroll compressor with a profile that consists of two algebraic spirals with different parameters smoothly connected by a higher-order curve. The advantage lies in the ability of the ending algebraic spiral to regulate the stroke volume and wrap size, while the starting algebraic spiral can control the discharge volume and the center part of the wrap, thus improving the geometric performance of the scroll compressor. The research established the geometric model of CAS scroll wrap and conducted parametric studies. The results indicate that CAS scroll compressor exhibits the minimum discharge volume, maximum stroke volume, and compression ratio when both the discharge volume chamber and the stroke volume chamber are entirely constructed using the algebraic spiral. Moreover, it was observed that the radial leakage curve length decreases as the polar angle at the connection point increases. Under identical wrap diameters and adequate minimum wall thickness, a larger spiral coefficient may be chosen for the ending algebraic spiral in order to enhance geometric performance. Conversely, a smaller spiral coefficient and spiral index for the starting algebraic spiral can improve compression and reduce leakage. Moreover, in comparison to a single algebraic spiral scroll compressor with an equivalent wrap size, CAS scroll compressor exhibits a 20.62% decrease in discharge volume, a 31.62% rise in compression ratio, a 30.75% reduction in radial leakage curve length, and superior geometric performance when compared to other algebraic spiral scroll compressors.

Cervical lymph node metastasis in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer affects postoperative recurrence and survival. Hypoparathyroidism is caused by parathyroid gland injury during thyroidectomy. Carbon nanoparticles can trace stained lymph nodes, aiding in thorough dissection of lymph nodes in the operation area. To reduce postoperative occurrence of hypoparathyroidism, the parathyroid glands and their functions (identified by negative imaging induced by carbon nanoparticles) are retained in situ. However, the safety and adverse effects of nanocarbon suspension in thyroid surgery have rarely been evaluated. In this report, we describe a patient with thyroid cancer who had carbon secretions in the trachea caused by nanocarbon suspension when tracheal intubation was performed under general anesthesia, and the inflatable balloon surface of the tracheal tube was covered with these secretions. The patient recovered without fever, cough, phlegm production, chest pain, hoarseness, or hypocalcemia-induced convulsions. No consensus has yet been reached on the most appropriate injection site, depth, dose, or waiting time for nanocarbons in thyroid cancer surgery. We believe that nanocarbon suspension is safe for use in thyroid cancer surgery, but the most appropriate injection depth should be based on the thickness of the thyroid gland tissue to avoid deep injection into the trachea.

Objective:Our goal was to detect the risk factors for malignant TI-RADS 3 nodule and to construct a predictive model. Patients and Methods:All 199 patients with TI-RADS 3 nodule underwent first-time thyroid surgery from January 2018 to September 2021. Univariate analysis identified potential risk covariates and then incorporated these covariates into multivariate logistic regression to determine the risk factors for malignant TI-RADS 3 nodule and construct a predictive model. Results:Binary logistic regression analysis showed that age [odds ratio (OR): 0.926, 95% CI: 0.865-0.992; P= .029), low level of parathyroid hormone (OR: 0.940, 95% CI: 0.890-0.993; P= .027), and preoperative ultrasound features of TI-RADS 3 nodule, such as echogenicity (OR: 8.496, 95% CI: 1.377-52.406; P= .021), echogenic foci (OR: 8.611, 95% CI: 1.484-49.957; P= .016), and maximum tumor diameter (OR: 0.188, 95% CI: 0.040-0.888; P= .035) were independent risk factors for malignant TI-RADS 3 nodule. Based on these independent risk factors, a logistic regression model was established. The area under curve of the prediction model for TI-RADS 3 thyroid cancer was 0.921 (95% CI: 0.856-0.986, P< 0.001). The maximum Youden index was 0.698. The cut-off value, sensitivity, and specificity were 0.074, 84.6%, and 85.2%, respectively. Conclusion:Young age, iso/hypo/very hypo echo, echogenic foci, nodule diameter <30 mm, and low level of PTH are independent risk factors for TI-RADS 3 thyroid carcinomas. This prediction model has a high sensitivity and specificity. A prediction model value of more than 0.074 implies that the TI-RADS 3 nodule has undergone a malignant transformation, and fine needle aspiration is recommended in these cases.

This paper provides new empirical evidence on the impacts of state and federal mental health parity laws on related labor market outcomes, particularly working time. The mandated benefits for mental health in the US drive up the costs of providing health insurance substantially. In response, employers may avoid hiring more full-time workers, whose compensation includes health insurance, by increasing working time per worker and reliance on part-time employment; employees may also have an incentive to increase their labor supply to qualify for the benefits. Using individual-level data from the Current Population Survey 1992-2010 and exploiting policy variation by state and year, we find state parity laws increase average weeks worked by 1.4 percent (47.56 weeks as the baseline). Since self-insured firms are exempted from state regulations, parity is estimated to have nearly twice as large an effect on small firms as it does on large firms. Moreover, we study two federal parity laws and find the more comprehensive one is associated with 1.7 percent more weeks worked (47.62 weeks as the baseline). These results indicate that both of employers and employees may response to the increasing costs of providing more comprehensive health insurance by extending their working time.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common chronic inflammatory skin disease characterized by T helper 2 inflammation as the core pathogenic mechanism. MRGPRX2 plays a key role in nonhistamine allergies and neuroimmune mechanisms in chronic inflammatory dermatitis. However, the role of MRGPRX2 in AD and the development of type 2 inflammation is not yet clear. This study aimed to define the role of MRGPRX2 in type 2 inflammation development and cytokine release in AD by determining its levels in patients with AD and healthy controls. Furthermore, MrgprB2-conditional knockout (MrgprB2−/−) and wild-type mice were used to construct an MC903-induced AD mouse model to observe skin inflammation and cytokine release. Tryptase and its antagonist were applied separately to MrgprB2–/–mice with AD and wild-type mice with AD to confirm the role of the MRGPRB2–tryptase axis in the development of type 2 inflammation in AD. We found that AD severity and type 2 cytokine levels were not associated with IgE levels but were associated with MRGPRX2/MRGPRB2 expression. MrgprB2–/–mice with AD showed milder phenotypes and inflammatory infiltration in the skin than wild-type mice with AD. Tryptase released by MRGPRX2/MRGPRB2 activation is involved in the release of type 2 cytokines, which contributes to inflammatory development in AD.

Research has shown that celastrol can effectively treat a variety of diseases, yet when passing a certain dosage threshold, celastrol becomes toxic, causing complications such as liver and kidney damage and erythrocytopenia, among others. With this dichotomy in mind, it is extremely important to find ways to preserve celastrol’s efficacy while reducing or preventing its toxicity.

Background: Alzheimer’s disease with a causative genetic mutation (AD-CGM) is an uncommon form, characterized by a heterogeneous clinical phenotype and variations in the genotype of racial groups affected. Objective: We aimed to systemically describe the phenotype variance and mutation spectrum in the large sample size of the Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH) cohort, Beijing, China. Methods: Next-generation sequencing (NGS) was carried out in 1108 patients diagnosed with dementia. A total of 40 Han Chinese patients with three AD gene mutations were enrolled. A systemic review of all the patients was performed, including clinical history, neurocognitive assessment, brain magnetic resonance imaging, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers. Results: We studied the following gene mutation variants: 12 AβPP, 13 PSEN1, and 9 PSEN2, and 23 among them were novel. Most of them were early-onset, but PSEN1 mutation carriers had the youngest onset age. The commonest symptoms were similar to those of AD, including an amnestic syndrome, followed by psychiatric symptoms and movement disorder. On MRI, parietal and posterior temporal atrophy was prominent in PSEN1 and PSEN2 mutation carriers, while AβPP mutation carriers had more vascular changes. The CSF biomarkers profile was indistinguishable from sporadic AD. Conclusion: We identified a small group of AD-CGM subjects representing 3.6% among more than 1000 demented patients in the PUMCH cohort. These subjects usually presented with early-onset dementia and exhibited significant clinical and genetic heterogeneity. Identification required complete screening of genetic mutations using NGS. Although family history was usually present, we found non-familial cases of all three genetic mutations.

Background: Heat pump air conditioning technology has broad application prospects and high market value in the field of electric automobiles owing to its increasing performance and energy-saving properties. Pure electric vehicles require high-energy consumption at low temperatures, which seriously affects the popularity of electric vehicles with a heat pump air conditioning system. Objective: The aim of this research is to describe the recent developments in the study of the heat pump air conditioning system for electric vehicles. Methods: This paper summarizes the research work of scholars published worldwide based on the electric vehicle heat pump air conditioning system, premised on lately published patents and journal articles. Starting from the components of the air conditioning system, focusing on the research results and development trends that have been achieved in this field. Results: The new technology path and pattern of the electrical vehicle heat pump air conditioning system provide methods and suggestions for future growth, put forward by the current development situation. Conclusion: The latest progress of the electric vehicle heat pump air conditioning system has been summarized and prospected. There are still some problems and technical bottlenecks in heat pump air conditioning system. It is of great significance to improve the environmental adaptability of electric vehicles and optimize the reasonable heat pump air conditioning system for the endurance of electric vehicles.

The effectiveness of control measures to contain coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Wanzhou, China was assessed. Epidemiological data were analyzed for 183 confirmed COVID-19 cases and their close contacts from five generations of transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 throughout the entire COVID-19 outbreak in Wanzhou. Approximately 67.2% and 32.8% of cases were symptomatic and asymptomatic, respectively. Asymptomatic and presymptomatic transmission accounted for 75.9% of the total recorded transmission. The reproductive number was 1.64 (95% confidence interval: 1.16–2.40) for G1-to-G2 transmission, decreasing to 0.31–0.39 in later generations, concomitant with implementation of rigorous control measures. Substantially higher infection risk was associated with contact within 5?d after the infectors had been infected, frequent contact and =8?h of contact duration. The spread of COVID-19 was effectively controlled in Wanzhou by breaking the transmission chain through social distancing, extensive contact tracing, mass testing and strict quarantine of close contacts.

Aiming to realize the integration of signal processing with the human body, wearable and implantable radio frequency (RF)/microwave devices are rapidly developed. However, the insufficiency in skin commonality and biocompatibility brings up challenges in making such devices. In this study, an ultra-flexible and biocompatible CoFeB/silk film is developed potentially for on-skin and implantable RF/microwave applications. Moreover, the CoFeB/silk films present controllable dissolvability in aqueous solutions and exhibit great potentials in applications for environmentally friendly disposable devices. A strain-tunable bandstop filter based on the CoFeB/silk film was fabricated, which exhibited a large frequency tunability of 3 GHz and ability in monitoring the finger-joints’ motions. This concept and method of combining ferromagnetic materials with the biocompatible substrate offers a novel pathway for wearable/implantable applications.