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Image super-resolution (SR) plays an important role in vision-based measurements, and reference-based image super-resolution (RefSR) is one such SR technique that enhances the resolution of a low-resolution (LR) image using an external high-resolution (HR) reference image. However, most existing RefSR methods search for the best-matching correspondence in the reference image, typically a single patch or pixel, to facilitate SR reconstructions, leading to reference underuse and misuse issues, since there are several texture details in different positions of the reference image for pairing with each image pixel or patch in the LR image. To this end, a novel generic framework for multicorrespondence matching is proposed in this article, which aims to identify multiple similar correspondences within the reference image for an LR patch or pixel. In our framework, multiple similar features from the reference image are exploited and aligned, and then they are all aggregated with the LR feature. The contribution of each similar feature from the reference image to the SR reconstruction process is determined by its similarity with the corresponding LR feature. Our designed framework facilitates the search for multiple similar correspondences within the same reference image. This approach enables us to fully harness the external content and textures present in the reference image, effectively mitigating the issues of underuse and misuse of the reference image. Furthermore, our innovative framework seamlessly integrates with existing RefSR models. It effortlessly incorporates existing RefSR models and generates multicorrespondence matching versions of them, leading to notable enhancements in their SR performance. We empirically show that existing state-of-the-art RefSR methods can be consistently improved by our framework, further improving the performance of these methods. Extensive quantitative and qualitative experiments validate the effectiveness of the proposed framework and demonstrate its superior performance. The code of the proposed method is available at https://github.com/ModestTony/MCMSR.

Image super-resolution (SR) is the process of restoring high-resolution (HR) images from low-resolution (LR) ones. Recent Transformer-based SR methods have achieved impressive results by utilizing the self-attention (SA) mechanism, which allows modeling long-range dependencies among input features in spatial dimensions. However, the computational complexity of SA increases quadratically with respect to the feature size, which makes Transformer-based methods inefficient. Additionally, despite the success of dense connections in convolutional neural network (CNN)-based methods, they have not been fully explored in Transformer-based methods. In this article, we propose a novel approach for lightweight SR, called densely connected transformer with linear SA (DCTLSA) network. Our method addresses the efficiency issue of SA by designing a new linear SA (LSA), which calculates the similarities in spatial dimension with linear complexity. Moreover, we leverage dense connections to integrate multiple levels of features and provide rich information for SR. Our experimental results demonstrate that DCTLSA outperforms state-of-the-art lightweight SR methods in terms of SR performance, model complexity, and inference speed. The code of the proposed method is available at https://github.com/zengkun301/DCTLSA.

The cell cycle regulator cyclin D3 (CCND3) is highly expressed in multiple myeloma (MM) and it promotes MM cell proliferation. After a certain phase of cell cycle, CCND3 is rapidly degraded, which is essential for the strict control of MM cell cycle progress and proliferation. In the present study, we investigated the molecular mechanisms regulating CCND3 degradation in MM cells. By utilizing affinity purification-coupled tandem mass spectrometry, we identified the deubiquitinase USP10 interacting with CCND3 in human MM OPM2 and KMS11 cell lines. Furthermore, USP10 specifically prevented CCND3 from K48-linked polyubiquitination and proteasomal degradation, therefore enhancing its activity. We demonstrated that the N-terminal domain (aa. 1–205) of USP10 was dispensable for binding to and deubiquitinating CCND3. Although Thr283 was important for CCND3 activity, it was dispensable for CCND3 ubiquitination and stability modulated by USP10. By stabilizing CCND3, USP10 activated the CCND3/CDK4/6 signaling pathway, phosphorylated Rb, and upregulated CDK4, CDK6 and E2F-1 in OPM2 and KMS11 cells. Consistent with these findings, inhibition of USP10 by Spautin-1 resulted in accumulation of CCND3 with K48-linked polyubiquitination and degradation that synergized with Palbociclib, a CDK4/6 inhibitor, to induce MM cell apoptosis. In nude mice bearing myeloma xenografts with OPM2 and KMS11 cells, combined administration of Spautin-l and Palbociclib almost suppressed tumor growth within 30 days. This study thus identifies USP10 as the first deubiquitinase of CCND3 and also finds that targeting the USP10/CCND3/CDK4/6 axis may be a novel modality for the treatment of myeloma.

In recent years, there has been rapid development in video anomaly detection (VAD). The previous methods ignored the differences between normal videos and only emphasized learning the commonalities of normal videos. In order to improve the performance of anomaly detection, we delve into the spatial distribution of normal video features and utilize their differences for clustering, leading to more minor reconstruction errors for normal videos and more significant reconstruction errors for abnormal videos. To achieve this goal, we introduce a Multi-Cluster Memory Prototype framework (MCMP) for VAD, which explores the coarse-grained and fine-grained information from video snippet features simultaneously to learn a memory prototype, thereby significantly improving the ability to discriminate abnormal events in complex scenes. First, a video feature clustering method that employs contrastive learning is introduced to group samples sharing similar fine-grained features. Second, the memory mechanism is used to capture the feature distribution of normal samples. Lastly, the Gaussian filter feature transformation method is introduced to make normal and abnormal features more distinguishable. The frame level AUC of MCMP on ShanghaiTech and UCF-Crime benchmark datasets has increased by 1.26% and 0.45% compared to state-of-the-art methods. Our code is publicly available at https://github.com/WuIkun5658/MCMP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACTPaeoniflorin (Pae) has been reported to serve an important role in complications associated with diabetes. To the best of our knowledge, the role of Pae in diabetic cataracts has not yet been reported. Human lens epithelial SRA01/04 cells were induced by high glucose (HG) and subsequently treated with Pae. Cell viability was detected using the MTT assay. Moreover, LDH levels were detected. Immunofluorescence (IF) and Western blotting were used to determine the protein expression levels of N-cadherin and E-cadherin. ELISA was performed to determine oxidative stress-related indicator levels. TUNEL and Western blotting detected the apoptotic rate. The mRNA and protein expression levels of sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) in SRA01/04 cells were measured via reverse transcription-quantitative PCR and Western blotting, respectively. Subsequently, cell transfection techniques were used to inhibit the expression of SIRT1 in cells. MTT, ELISA, IF, Western blotting and TUNEL assays were used to investigate the mechanisms of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and oxidative damage with Pae in the diabetic cataract. Pae significantly increased cell viability and possibly inhibit the EMT and oxidative damage of SRA01/04 cells induced by HG. Pae was demonstrated to upregulate SIRT1 expression levels. The results therefore suggested that the downregulation of SIRT1 reversed the protective effect of Pae on EMT and oxidative damage in SRA01/04 cells induced by HG. In conclusion, Pae may inhibit EMT of lens epithelial cells and reduce oxidative damage in diabetic cataracts via the upregulation of SIRT1.

Lithium-metal batteries have been regarded as next-generation high-energy-density candidates beyond lithium-ion batteries. However, the lithium-morphology instabilities accompanied by continuous side reactions with electrolytes inevitably leads to dissatisfactory performances and even safety issues, where the unstable interface between lithium-metal anode and electrolytes has been regarded as the root cause. Artificial solid electrolyte interphase engineering has attracted a lot of attention to stabilize lithium-metal anodes. Here, a novel method with universality is reported to produce the organic–inorganic artificial solid electrolyte interphase. Using poly(propylene carbonate) as a sacrificial matrix, nanoparticles are dispersed on lithium-metal anodes surface uniformly to prepare artificial solid electrolyte interphase, where poly(propylene carbonate) turns into liquid propylene carbonate upon contact with lithium-metal anode. Silicon, Li1.5Al0.5Ge1.5(PO4)3, or Li1.4Al0.4Ti1.6(PO4)3nanoparticles are coated to suppress lithium-morphology instabilities and demonstrated ∼4 times longer cycle life. Preparing various organic/inorganic artificial solid electrolyte interphase is feasible by introducing various components in the fabrication process of poly(propylene carbonate) membrane, endowing this approach with huge potential in the research of artificial solid electrolyte interphase.

Extensive applications of bisphenols in industrial products have led to their release into aquatic environments, causing a great threat to human health due to their endocrine-disrupting effects, whereas existing methods are difficult to implement the rapid and high-throughput detection of multiple bisphenols. To circumvent this issue, we constructed a sensor array using two luminescent metal–organic frameworks (LMOFs) (Zr-BUT-12 and Ga-MIL-61) for the rapid discrimination of six bisphenol contaminants (BPA, BPS, BPB, BPF, BPAF, and TBBPA). Wherein, Zr-BUT-12 and Ga-MIL-61 exhibited different fluorescence-emission properties and good luminescent stability. Interestingly, bisphenols with different structures had diverse quenching effects on the fluorescence intensity of Zr-BUT-12 and Ga-MIL-61 via the adsorptive interaction, resulting in unique fluorescent fingerprints. Based on pattern recognition methods, different bisphenols were successfully identified, with the limit of detection in the range of 1.59–16.7 ng/mL for six bisphenols. More importantly, the developed sensor array could be effectively utilized for distinguishing different ratios of mixed bisphenols, which was further applied for bisphenol discrimination in real water samples. Consequently, our finding provides a promising strategy for the simultaneous recognition of multiple bisphenols, which encourages the development of a sensor array for the detection of multiple contaminants in environmental monitoring and food safety.

Sulfide all-solid-state lithium batteries (SASSLBs) with a single-crystal nickel-rich layered oxide cathode (LiNixCoyMn1-x-yO2, x≥0.8) are highly desirable for advanced power batteries owing to their excellent energy density and safety. Nevertheless, the cathode material's cracking issue and its severe interfacial problem with sulfide solid electrolytes have hindered the further development. This study proposes to employ surface modification engineering to produce B-NCM cathode materials coated with boride nanostructure stabilizer in situ by utilizing NCM encapsulated with residual lithium. This approach enhances the electrochemical performance of SASSLBs by effectively inhibiting electrochemical-mechanical degradation of the NCM cathode material on cycling and reducing deleterious side reactions with the solid sulfide electrolyte. The B-NCM/LPSCl/Gr SASSLBs demonstrate impressive cycling stability, retaining 84.19% of its capacity after 500 cycles at 0.2 C, which represents a 30.13% increase vs. NCM/LPSCl/Gr. It also exhibits a specific capacity of 170.4 mAh/g during its first discharge at 0.1 C. This work demonstrates an effective surface engineering strategy for enhancing capacity and cycle life, providing valuable insights into solving interfacial problems in SASSLBs.

Surfactants are considered as typical emerging pollutants, their extensive use of in disinfectants has hugely threatened the ecosystem and human health, particularly during the pandemic of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19), whereas the rapid discrimination of multiple surfactants in environments is still a great challenge. Herein, we designed a fluorescent sensor array based on luminescent metal–organic frameworks (UiO-66-NH2@Au NCs) for the specific discrimination of six surfactants (AOS, SDS, SDSO, MES, SDBS, and Tween-20). Wherein, UiO-66-NH2@Au NCs were fabricated by integrating UiO-66-NH2(2-aminoterephthalic acid-anchored-MOFs based on zirconium ions) with gold nanoclusters (Au NCs), which exhibited a dual-emission features, showing good luminescence. Interestingly, due to the interactions of surfactants and UiO-66-NH2@Au NCs, the surfactants can differentially regulate the fluorescence property of UiO-66-NH2@Au NCs, producing diverse fluorescent “fingerprints”, which were further identified by pattern recognition methods. The proposed fluorescence sensor array achieved 100% accuracy in identifying various surfactants and multicomponent mixtures, with the detection limit in the range of 0.0032 to 0.0315 mM for six pollutants, which was successfully employed in the discrimination of surfactants in real environmental waters. More importantly, our findings provided a new avenue in rapid detection of surfactants, rendering a promising technique for environmental monitoring against trace multicontaminants.

Aminoglycoside (AG) antibiotics such as kanamycin (KAN) and streptomycin (STR) are widely used against bacterial infections in animals. Our aim was to develop a multiplex paper-based visual method to monitor the residues of KAN and STR in milk with the features of cost-effectiveness and visual readout. In this study, monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against STR were developed and used. The most sensitive mAb, named 6H3D5, displayed enhanced cross-reactivity to dihydrostreptomycin (101.62%) and no cross-reactivity to other related antibiotics. Additionally, a new dual dot enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was established for the simultaneous detection of KAN and STR in milk. All the experiments were performed in triplicate. The limit of detection (LOD) with the naked eye was 2.7 ng mL−1for KAN and 12.5 ng mL−1for STR. The quantitative detection ranges of KAN and STR were 0.38–38.66 and 2.47–31.90 ng mL−1, with LODs at 0.09 and 1.37 ng mL−1, respectively. Good correlations between the dual dot-ELISA and UPLC-MS/MS were observed for the detection of KAN (R= 0.911) and STR (R= 0.902). For quantitative analysis, the recovery rates for KAN and STR were 84.2–119.8% and 93.3–124.5% respectively. In commercial milk samples, KAN was found to be present up to a concentration of 1.47 ng mL−1, whereas STR was below the LOD. This dual dot-ELISA provides a new model for multi-compound analysis in a single assay enabling effective monitoring of food quality.

Traditional hybridization chain reaction (HCR) as a popular isothermal amplification technique shows some inevitable disadvantages in bioanalysis due to its relatively slow kinetics, which could be markedly promoted when the HCR initiator occurs under tension. Herein, a poly DNA tetrahedrons (pTDNs)-mediated HCR was successfully constructed to make its initiator in a stretched state by long-range electrostatic forces owing to the superimposed electrostatic interactions derived from the synthesized pTDNs, and it was hypothesized that it could remarkably enhance HCR performance, which was testified by theoretical simulations and experimental studies. Consequently, pTDNs-mediated HCR was applied to develop a novel immunoassay for rapid and sensitive detection of aflatoxin B1 as a proof-of-concept, and its signal amplification was attributed to the increased G4DNAzyme that loaded on the second antibody. Our work paves a promising way using simple DNA frameworks alone to heighten HCR kinetics for reaction speed improvement and signal amplification in bioanalysis.

Adsorption of DNA probes onto nanomaterials is a promising strategy for bioassay establishment typically using fluorescence or catalytic activities to generate signals. Albeit important, there is currently a lack of systematic understanding of the sensing behaviors building on nanomaterial–DNA interactions, which greatly limits the rational method design and their subsequent applications. Herein, the issue was investigated by employing multifunctional metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) (FeTCPP⊂UiO-66) as a model that was synthesized via integrating heme-like ligand FeTCPP into commonly used MOFs (UiO-66). Our results demonstrated that the fluorescently labeled DNA adsorbed onto FeTCPP⊂UiO-66 was quenched through photoinduced electron transfer, fluorescence resonance energy transfer, and the internal filtration effect. Among different DNA structures, double-stranded DNA and hybridization chain reaction products largely retained their fluorescence due to desorption and conformational variation, respectively. In addition, ssDNA could maximally inhibit the peroxidase activity of FeTCPP⊂UiO-66, and this inhibition was strongly dependent on the strand length but independent of base composition. On the basis of these discoveries, a fluorescence/colorimetric dual-modal detection was designed against aflatoxin B1 with satisfactory performances obtained to further verify our results. This study provided some new insights into the sensing behaviors based on MOF–DNA interactions, indicating promising applications for rational bioassay design and its performance improvement.

ABSTRACTCTX-M-140, a novel CTX-M-type extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL), was identified in cephalosporin-resistant clinical isolates of Proteus mirabilis. CTX-M-140 contained an alanine-to-threonine substitution at position 109 compared to its putative progenitor, CTX-M-14. When it was expressed in an Escherichia coliisogenic background, CTX-M-140 conferred 4- to 32-fold lower MICs of cephalosporins than those with CTX-M-14, indicating that the phenotype was attributable to this single substitution. For four mutants of CTX-M-14 that were constructed by site-directed mutagenesis (A109E, A109D, A109K, and A109R mutants), MICs of cephalosporins were similar to those for the E. colihost strain, which suggested that the alanine at position 109 was essential for cephalosporin hydrolysis. The kinetic properties of native CTX-M-14 and CTX-M-140 were consistent with the MICs for the E. coliclones. Compared with that of CTX-M-14, a lower hydrolytic activity against cephalosporins was observed for CTX-M-140. blaCTX-M-140is located on the chromosome as determined by I-CeuI pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (I-CeuI-PFGE) and Southern hybridization. The genetic environment surrounding blaCTX-M-140is identical to the sequence found in different plasmids with blaCTX-M-9-groupgenes among the Enterobacteriaceae. Genome sequencing and analysis showed that P. mirabilisstrains with blaCTX-M-140have a genome size of ∼4 Mbp, with a GC content of 38.7% and 23 putative antibiotic resistance genes. Our results indicate that alanine at position 109 is critical for the hydrolytic activity of CTX-M-14 against oxyimino-cephalosporins.

CrN coatings have been widely used in many industrial fields, such as cutting tools, moulds, mechanical components. In this work, CrN coatings were deposited using a high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HIPIMS) with various negative bias voltages. The composition, microstructure, and mechanical properties of the coatings were studied using X-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and nanoindenter. The cutting performance of the micro drills coated in CrN was also investigated by high speeding dry drilling printed circuit board (PCB). The results show that the bias voltage has significant influences on the microstructure and properties of the as-deposited films. Increasing negative bias voltages resulted in the microstructures refining of the CrN coatings with columnar grains. Further increasing the negative bias voltage caused the formation of defects in CrN. With optimization of the negative bias voltage, the micro-drills with CrN deposited by HIPIMS exhibited an excellent tool life comparing with the uncoated one.

The huge potential of High-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HIPIMS) to improve the properties of deposited coatings has been verified. In this study, Ti-Si-N coatings were deposited on Si (111), glass and cemented carbide substrates by using HIPIMS. The influences of the peak voltage, duty cycle and total gas pressure on the transient peak current of the Ti90Si10 target was investigated in detailed. The (200) diffraction intensity decreased with increasing bias voltage from -50 V to -400 V. The hardness of the Ti-Si-N coatings deposited at various bias voltages and the internal stress at different bias voltages were studied. The results indicate that HIPIMS technology can considerably improve the mechanical capacity of the Ti-Si-N coatings, possibly due to the combined protection of the increased adhesive force with the substrate and the relatively high hardness, which are caused by densification and dislocation strengthening effects.

In this paper we propose a simple yet robust secure cooperative spectrum sensing scheme with hard decision combining for Opportunistic Spectrum Access (OSA) networks. Based on the historical sensing records and the assistance of trusted OSA nodes, the proposed approach effectively mitigates spectrum sensing data falsification attacks by excluding misbehaving OSA nodes from the process of cooperation. Both analyses and numerical results are provided for various performance metrics, including overall detection probability. Comparison of the proposed method with existing well-known secure spectrum sensing methods verifies the robustness and effectiveness of the proposed scheme.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are one class of important industrial chemicals that may replace conventional organic solvents. Due to the solubility, the toxicity study of ILs focused on aquatic mediums. However, there is seldom research for the the toxicity on terrestrial organism. In this paper, we studied the toxicity of three imidazolium ionic liquids 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium chloride ([Bmim][CL]), 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate ([Bmim][BF4]), and 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium trifluoroacetate ([Bmim][CF3COOH]) on seed germination and seedling growth of pakchoi. Inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) marker technique was applied to detect DNA damage induced by imidazolium ILs. The results showed that all of three ILs could inhibit seed germination and seedling growth of pakchoi significantly at higher concentration (≥16 mM/L). At same concentration (1 mM/L and 4 mM/L), the genotoxicity of three ILs was following the trends: [Bmim][BF4]> [Bmim][CF3COOH]> [Bmim][CL]. It was concluded that ISSR assay offered a useful way to detect toxicity of ILs contamination on plant at low concentration even without transformation of physiological feature, such as germination and growth parameters and so on.

Soil-Rock Mixture (SRM) is a unique type of geological material characterized by inhomogeneous composition and complicated structures. This paper investigated the fracture mechanisms that govern the strength and deformation of SRM subjected to uniaxial compression loads by means of computed tomography (CT) techniques. The self-designed loading devices and self-developed image processing program were applied to identify and quantify the fractures inside SRM during compressions. The results show that the internal fracture behavior of SRM greatly depends on the rock ratios of SRM.

This paper presents results of impermeability and frost resistance tests of a series of high strength concrete which will be used in Yuncheng coal mine shaft lining. And the shaft is one of the most difficult to construct using freezing method because of the extreme thick overburden soil. The results show the impermeability and frost resistance of the selected concrete mix proportion options can meet the special requirements of the shaft construction. It’s due to the low water-cement ratio, admixture and water-reducing agent decreases void caused by excess water. And the composite mineral admixture forms bubbles to cut off the tiny water permeable channels in cement stone. Also the filling effect and pozzolanic effect caused by fly ash contribute a lot. The research on high strength concrete used in shaft of coal mine with thick overburden soil is still rare worldwide.

An amino-derivative of parathion was prepared and conjugated to human serum albumin (HSA) and bovine thyroglobulin (BTG) via diazonium condensation. Spleen cells producing high titer antibody were removed and fused with myeloma cells of SP2/0 origin. Using a conventional immunization protocol, we generated nine stable murine monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) producing cell lines to parathion. After four successive limiting dilutions, antibodies produced by nine clones had high affinities, ranging from 109 to 1012 M–1. These clones were found to be of IgG class and IgM class with k light chain. Subclass determination showed that the clones produced IgG1, IgG2a, IgG2b, and IgM types of antibody. One clone (2H9) was used to establish the calibration curve with a sensitivity of 26 ng/mL, a practical working range of 46.8–6000 ng/mL parathion.

Summary: The content of total chlorine in o-cresol formaldehyde novolac epoxy resin (CNE), the main resin component for encapsulation formulation, affects the reliability of semi-conductor device greatly and it is one of the major criteria used by the electronic industry in measuring the quality of resins. A new process which synthesizes a high purity CNE with less than 300 ppm total chlorine content has been developed. This high purity resin has provided an extended device life under the accelerated stress test condition.