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The hybrid rocket motor (HRM) emerges as a promising propulsion system offering thrust adjustment at a low cost. Prior research has indicated that the inclusion of micro Al additives enhances HRM performance, yet a comprehensive investigation remains absent. Thus, this study aims to explore the impact of Al particle additive content and size variation on the characteristics of hybrid rocket motors (HRMs) through experiments and simulations. Firing tests are conducted on HRMs employing unadulterated HTPB, 38 % additive Al (2 μm), and 58 % Al (2 μm). Experimental findings reveal enhancements of 12.6 % and 33.9 % in regression rate, and 2.5 % and 8.0 % in specific impulse for the 38 % Al and 58 % Al fuel configurations, respectively, compared to the base case. Subsequently, a numerical two-phase combustion model is built to analyze the inner flow field characteristics. The high consistency between experimental and simulation results validates the efficacy of the numerical approach employed. Following this, a series of simulations covering Al content ranging from 0 % to 58 % and Al particle sizes from 0.4 μm to 75 μm is conducted. Simulation outcomes indicate that specific impulse and combustion efficiency enhancements correlate with the increase in Al mass fraction for particles with diameters under 35 μm. However, high Al content proves detrimental to specific impulse and combustion efficiency when particle diameter exceeds 35 μm. Additionally, regression rate and thrust demonstrate an increase with Al content, albeit the rate of increment diminishes with larger Al particles. This study comprehensively examines the influence of Al particle addition on HRM performance and elucidates the underlying mechanisms, thereby offering insights into HRM design and manufacture. • Hybrid rocket firing tests are performed on HTPB, 38 %, and 58 % Al particle fuel. • Simulations with various Al particle contents and diameters are performed. • High Al content with diameter under 35 μm is beneficial for combustion efficiency. • High Al content with diameter over 35 μm is detrimental for combustion efficiency. • Large particle reduces the thrust enhancement brought by Al content rise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the effects of casticin (CAS) on lipopolysaccharide-induced injury of human normal lung epithelial cells (BEAS-2B) and NF-κB-Keap1-Nrf2/ARE pathway. Methods: BEAS-2B cells were pretreated with different concentrations of casticin for 1 h, 2 h and 4 h, and then treated with 1 µg/ml liposolysaccharide to construct cell damage model. The contents of inflammatory factors in cell supernatant was detected by ELISA to screen the optimal concentration and time of casticin. The cells were divided into normal group, model group, Casticin group, ML385 group, Casticin+ML385 group and dexamethasone group. Cell apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry, the concentrations of inflammatory factors were detected by ELISA, and the levels of NF-κB p65, p-NF-κB p65, Keapl, Nrf2 and Nrf2 protein in cell nucleus were detected by Western blot. Results: The optimal concentration of CAS was 10 µmol/L and the optimal time was 2 h. Compared with normal group, the apoptosis rate, the contents of inflammatory factors, p-NF-κB p65 and Keap1 protein expression levels in model group were significantly increased (P<0.01), and Nrf2 protein expression levels in cells and nuclei were significantly decreased (P<0.01). Compared with model group, apoptosis rate and contents of inflammatory factors in casticin group and dexamethasone group were significantly decreased (P<0.01), protein expression levels of p-NF-κB p65 and Keap1 in Casticin group were significantly decreased (P<0.01). The expression level of Nrf2 protein in cells and nuclei was significantly increased (P<0.01). Compared with ML385 group, apoptosis rate, inflammatory factors contents, p-NF-κB p65 and Keap1 protein expression levels in Casticin+ML385 group were significantly decreased (P<0.01), the expression level of Nrf2 protein in cells and nuclei were significantly increased (P<0.01). Conclusion: CAS can inhibit cell inflammation induced by lipo-polysaccharide by regulating NF-κB-Keap1-Nrf2/ARE signaling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the clinical potential and safety of Moluodan to reverse gastric precancerous lesions. Methods: Patients aged 18–70 years diagnosed with moderate‐to‐severe atrophy and/or moderate‐to‐severe intestinal metaplasia, with or without low‐grade dysplasia, and negative for Helicobacter pylori were recruited in this randomized, double‐blind, parallel‐controlled trial. The primary outcome was the improvement of global histological diagnosis at 1‐year follow‐up endoscopy using the operative link for gastritis assessment, the operative link for gastric intestinal metaplasia assessment, and the disappearance rate of dysplasia. Results: Between November 3, 2017 and January 27, 2021, 166 subjects were randomly assigned to the Moluodan group, 168 to the folic acid group, 84 to the combination group, and 84 to the high‐dose Moluodan group. The improvement in global histological diagnosis was achieved in 60 (39.5%) subjects receiving Moluodan, 59 (37.8%) receiving folic acid, 26 (32.1%) receiving the combined drugs, and 36 (47.4%) receiving high‐dose Moluodan. Moluodan was non‐inferior to folic acid (95% confidence interval: −9.2 to 12.5; P = 0.02). High‐dose Moluodan had a trend for better protective efficacy, though there was no statistical significance. The disappearance rate of dysplasia was 82.8% in the Moluodan group, which was superior to folic acid (53.9%; P = 0.006). No drug‐related serious adverse events were observed. Conclusions: One pack of Moluodan three times daily for 1 year was safe and effective in reversing gastric precancerous lesions, especially dysplasia. Doubling its dose showed a better efficacy trend. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Temperature is a significant operational parameter of denitrifying filter (DF), which affects the microbial activity and the pollutants removal efficiency. This study investigated the influence of temperature on performance of advanced synergistic nitrogen removal (ASNR) of partial-denitrification anammox (PDA) and denitrification, consuming the hydrolytic and oxidation products of refractory organics in the actual secondary effluent (SE) as carbon source. When the test water temperature (TWT) was around 25, 20, 15 and 10 °C, the filtered effluent total nitrogen (TN) was 1.47, 1.70, 2.79 and 5.52 mg/L with the removal rate of 93.38%, 92.25%, 87.33% and 74.87%, and the effluent COD cr was 8.12, 8.45, 10.86 and 12.29 mg/L with the removal rate of 72.41%, 66.17%, 57.35% and 51.87%, respectively. The contribution rate of PDA to TN removal was 60.44%∼66.48%, and 0.77–0.96 mg chemical oxygen demand (COD cr) was actually consumed to remove 1 mg TN. The identified functional bacteria, such as anammox bacteria, manganese oxidizing bacteria (MnOB), hydrolytic bacteria and denitrifying bacteria, demonstrated that TN was removed by the ASNR, and the variation of the functional bacteria along the DF layer revealed the mechanism of the TWT affecting the efficiency of the ASNR. This technique presented a strong adaptability to the variation of the TWT, therefore, it has broad application prospect and superlative application value in advanced nitrogen removal of municipal wastewater. [Display omitted] • COD cr , NO 3 − -N, NH 4 + -N and TN were effectively removed by ASNR. • The removal rate of TN still reached to 74.87% at around 10 °C. • The denitrifying bacteria and anammox bacteria activity was affected by the TWT. • The actual COD cr consumption for removing 1 mg TN was significantly reduced. • This technique has superlative application value and broad application prospect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to enhance energy characteristics of propellants in hybrid rocket motors, aluminum particles are added into the solid fuel. However, these particles may lead to nozzle mechanical erosion, which significantly affects the motor performance. This paper intends to study thermochemical and mechanical erosion mechanism of carbon-based nozzles in hybrid rocket motors with aluminum metallized fuel. A firing test is performed, and 95 % hydrogen peroxide and hydroxyl‑terminated polybutadiene based fuel with aluminum particles are utilized. Experimental results show that many metal particles are ejected from the nozzle, and aluminum oxide deposits heavily on the nozzle inner surface. A method of numerical calculation coupled with two-phase flow, combustion of aluminum metallized fuel, thermochemical ablation reactions, and mechanical erosion is established. The errors of combustion chamber pressure and throat erosion rate between numerical calculation and test results are 0.53 % and 7.76 %, respectively. Simulation results indicate that with the increase of aluminum content, nozzle wall pressure gradually increases, while the mass fraction of H 2 O, CO 2 , OH, and O declines. The nozzle wall temperature and thermochemical erosion rate raise first and then reduce as aluminum content increases. The mechanical erosion is mainly distributed in the convergent section, and it raises with the increase of aluminum content. When aluminum content is up to 38 %, the maximum mechanical and thermochemical erosion rates are 0.09185 mm/s and 0.0976 mm/s, respectively. This reveals that effects of mechanical erosion on hybrid rocket nozzles should be carefully considered and evaluated under conditions of high aluminum content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring the molecular mechanisms of cell behaviors is beneficial for promoting periodontal ligament stem cell (PDLSC)-mediated tissue regeneration. This study intends to explore the regulatory effects of EID3 on cell proliferation, apoptosis, and osteogenic differentiation and to preliminarily explore the regulatory mechanism of EID3. Here, EID3 was overexpressed or knocked down in PDLSCs by recombinant lentivirus. Then, cell proliferation activity was analyzed by colony-forming assay, EdU assay, and cell cycle assay. Cell apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry. The osteo-differentiation potential was analyzed using ALP activity assay, ALP staining, alizarin red staining, and mRNA and protein assay of osteo-differentiation related genes. The results showed that when EID3 was knocked down, the proliferation activity and osteogenic differentiation potential of PDLSCs decreased, while they increased when EID3 was overexpressed. The cell apoptosis rate decreased in PDLSCs with EID3 knockdown but increased in PDLSCs with EID3 overexpression. Moreover, EID3 inhibited the transduction of the AKT/MTOR and ERK signaling pathway. In addition, TAZ negatively regulated the expression of EID3, and the overexpression of EID3 partially reversed the promotive effects of TAZ on the osteogenic differentiation of PDLSCs. Taken together, EID3 inhibits the proliferation and osteogenic differentiation while promoting the apoptosis of PDLSCs. EID3 inhibits the transduction of the AKT/MTOR and ERK signaling pathways and mediates the regulatory effect of TAZ on PDLSC osteogenic differentiation. • The regulatory effects of EID3 on PDLSCs proliferation, apoptosis, and osteogenic differentiation was first identified. • EID3 inhibited the transduction of the AKT/MTOR and ERK signaling pathway in PDLSCs. • EID3 mediated the regulatory effect of TAZ on PDLSCs osteogenic differentiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning low-dimensional representations for networks has attracted considerable research interest due to the ever-increasing volume and variety of network-based information. It becomes especially important and challenging for temporal networks whose nodes and attributes evolve as time changes. To address the problem of temporal network embedding, we propose a novel Dynamic Bayesian Temporal Network Embedding (DBTNE) method that adopts a probabilistic framework and represents network embeddings as Gaussian distributions for learning effective embeddings for temporal networks. Unlike the existing temporal network embedding methods that learn dynamic embeddings only for nodes, our DBTNE jointly learns the dynamic embeddings of both nodes and attributes in temporal attributed networks for effectively capturing the similarities among them, which greatly facilitates attribute-related learning tasks such as link prediction, object classification and user profiling. In addition, we model the temporal dynamics of both nodes and attributes with neural ordinary differential equations, which supports effective and efficient capture of long-range dependencies among embeddings at different timestamps. Extensive experimental results on real-world temporal networks demonstrate that our DBTNE achieves better performance than popular state-of-the-art methods, including DeepWalk, Node2Vec, CAN, HTNE, M2DNE, MTSN, Dane-ATT, for typical graph learning tasks, such as dynamic link prediction and node classification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Tuning band structures based on metal sulfides/Zr-MOF heterojunctions. • Greatly optimized band structures. • Significantly improved light energy utilization and optical-electronic properties. • Remarkably enhanced photocatalytic efficiencies and accelerated reaction kinetics. Assembly of advanced MOFs based heterojunctions is an effective avenue to facilitate light utility and photogenerated electron-hole separation for photochemical detoxification of Cr(VI) and degradation of reactive dyes. Systematically polishing the band states of photocatalysts is the crucial point but still requires further study. Herein, a band structure tuning strategy was designed by depositing carefully selected metal sulfides on a 2D Zr-MOF to assemble six metal sulfides/Zr-MOF heterojunctions. Fortunately, In 2 S 3 /Zr-MOF presents prominent optical-electronic properties and photocatalytic performances since the highly matched band structure. And its UV–Visible light utility, carriers migration rate, electron-hole separation efficiency and recombination inhibition ability have been greatly optimized. Ingeniously, In 2 S 3 /Zr-MOF (M5) exhibits best photochemical purification abilities towards ultra-stubborn reactive dyes RR11, RB21 and highly toxic Cr(VI) ions, under 500 W xenon lamp, with degradation/reduction efficiencies of 91.8, 93.3 % and 97.9 % within 5, 13 h and 70 min, respectively. Compared with pure In 2 S 3 and Zr-MOF, the photocatalytic degradation kinetics towards RR11 have been increased 27.18 and 38.50 times, respectively, providing the recyclability of more than 4 times. Mechanism studies confirm that ·O 2 − species play dominant roles in removal of reactive dyes, and the powerful electrons transfer from the conduction band (CB) of In 2 S 3 to Zr-MOF's relatively positive CB further reinforce their ability to combine with dissolved O 2 in water to provide more ·O 2 −. While the cooperation of electrons in CB of Zr-MOF with O 2 /·O 2 − has been suggested as the mechanism for photocatalytic detoxification of Cr(VI) to Cr(III). This study provides a feasible strategy for boosting the photochemical purification capacities of Zr-MOFs based heterojunction platforms. A band structure tuning strategy has been effectively designed and carried out by depositing diverse metal sulfides with unique band states on a 2D Zr-MOF, respectively, enabling precisely modulate the optical-electronic properties and boost the photocatalytic reduction and degradation efficiencies under xenon lamp. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 39-year-old lady with Down’s syndrome presented with right iliac fossa pain to the emergency department. Computed tomography abdomen pelvis revealed a foreign body in the right lower anterior abdominal wall. We report the first case of using laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal (TEP) approach to remove an ingested foreign body that likely perforated through the gastrointestinal tract and subsequently migrated to the anterior abdominal wall. Granted, the laparoscopic TEP approach is more widely used in inguinal hernia mesh repairs and increasingly prostatectomies; we believe that the TEP approach could also be used in a novel fashion as in this case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • At high pressure, V 2 ZnC is thermodynamically and dynamically stable and no phase transition occurs. • Compared to V-C bonds, V-Zn and Zn-C bonds break more easily under stress, making it possible to obtain derived MXene materials (V 2 C). • High pressure increases the stability and hardness of V 2 ZnC, but decreases its conductivity. • At high pressure, V 2 ZnC has a high Debye temperature and melting point, making it suitable for high temperature applications. Based on the first principles of density functional theory, the effects of pressure on the crystal structure, elastic, electronic, thermodynamic stability and thermodynamic properties of the novel MAX phase V 2 ZnC were investigated. The elastic constants and phonon dispersion calculations indicated that V 2 ZnC is mechanically and dynamically stable in the pressure range 0–40 GPa. The enthalpy of formation calculation shows that V 2 ZnC is thermodynamically stable at a given pressure range, and pressure can improve the thermodynamic stability of V 2 ZnC. The calculated elastic constants and elastic modulus of V 2 ZnC increase with increasing pressure. In addition, pressure can improve the stiffness and elastic anisotropy of V 2 ZnC. Calculation of Poisson's ratio and B/G revealed a significant transition in the mechanical behavior of V 2 ZnC from brittleness to ductility at a pressure of 20 GPa. The analysis of the band structure and density of states confirms the metallic nature of V 2 ZnC. Under increasing pressure, a notable decrease in the electron state density at the Fermi level is observed, leading to an enhanced stability of V 2 ZnC. Furthermore, a systematic investigation of the thermophysical properties of V 2 ZnC under high pressure (0–40 GPa) has been conducted. It was found that the Debye temperature and melting point increase with the increase of pressure, indicating that the effective role of pressure in modulating the thermophysical characteristics of V 2 ZnC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular RNAs are emerging players in human cancers, including esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Herein, we assessed the expression level of circ_0023990 and explored the molecular mechanisms of circ_0023990 in ESCC. circ_0023990, miR-6884-5p, and PAK1 expressions in ESCC tissues and cells were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and western blot. ESCC cells were transfected with different constructs to alter the expression of circ_0023990, miR-6884-5p, and PAK1. The effect of circ_0023990 on the proliferation, invasion, and glycolysis of ESCC cells was observed. The interaction between circ_0023990 and miR-6884-5p and between miR-6884-5p and PAK1 were explored. A mouse model of ESCC was established to study the in vivo effect of circ_0023990 knockdown on tumor formation.The expression levels of circ_0023990 was upregulated in ESCC tissues and cells. Inhibiting circ_0023990 suppressed the proliferation, invasion, and glycolysis of ESCC cells. circ_0023990 might target miR-6884-5p and consequently modulate the expression and activity of PAK1. Knockdown of circ_0023990 led to significantly reduced tumor volume and weight in mice with ESCC.These findings overall suggest an oncogenic role of circ_0023990 in ESCC. Future research is warranted to confirm the expression pattern and clinical significance of circ_0023990 in ESCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Organoid technology is an emerging and rapidly growing field that shows promise in studying organ development and screening therapeutic regimens. Although organoids have been proposed for a decade, concerns exist, including batch‐to‐batch variations, lack of the native microenvironment and clinical applicability. Main body: The concept of organoids has derived patient‐derived tumour organoids (PDTOs) for personalized drug screening and new drug discovery, mitigating the risks of medication misuse. The greater the similarity between the PDTOs and the primary tumours, the more influential the model will be. Recently, 'tumour assembloids' inspired by cell‐coculture technology have attracted attention to complement the current PDTO technology. High‐quality PDTOs must reassemble critical components, including multiple cell types, tumour matrix, paracrine factors, angiogenesis and microorganisms. This review begins with a brief overview of the history of organoids and PDTOs, followed by the current approaches for generating PDTOs and tumour assembloids. Personalized drug screening has been practised; however, it remains unclear whether PDTOs can predict immunotherapies, including immune drugs (e.g. immune checkpoint inhibitors) and immune cells (e.g. tumour‐infiltrating lymphocyte, T cell receptor‐engineered T cell and chimeric antigen receptor‐T cell). PDTOs, as cancer avatars of the patients, can be expanded and stored to form a biobank. Conclusion: Fundamental research and clinical trials are ongoing, and the intention is to use these models to replace animals. Pre‐clinical immunotherapy screening using PDTOs will be beneficial to cancer patients. Key Points: The current PDTO models have not yet constructed key cellular and non‐cellular components.PDTOs should be expandable and editable.PDTOs are promising preclinical models for immunotherapy unless mature PDTOs can be established.PDTO biobanks with consensual standards are urgently needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerical simulation based on the discrete phase model and dynamic mesh model can more accurately simulate the working process for hybrid rockets, including the motion and evaporation process of particles and regression process of the fuel grain. The dynamic numerical simulation of combustion and flow in hybrid rocket motors based on a discrete phase model is carried out. Aluminum and aluminum hydride are added to the internal flow field as discrete droplets. Then, a hybrid rocket is designed with 95 % hydrogen peroxide as oxidizer and 38 % aluminum hydride+20 % aluminum+42 % hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene as the fuel and used to verify the model by firing test. A high degree of agreement between experiment and simulation findings is found. The average deviations for thrust and pressure are 3.6 % and 5.9 %, respectively. It offers the required backing for using the simulation method to investigate the flow and combustion process for the hybrid rockets. The results also demonstrate the transient characteristics of the inner flow field, including the separation and merging of vortexes in the pre-chamber. It is found that a peak of the regression rate appears at the front of the grain and moves backward. This is mainly because the vortex appears here and enhances its heat transfer. Through the discrete phase model, it is worth noting that the aluminum droplet content gradually decreases at the nozzle over time, which is consistent with the firing test. Further research on the impact of aluminum hydride content on the performance of the hybrid rockets has been carried out. The results show that the higher aluminum hydride content can lead to better performance for the hybrid rockets. The thrust, pressure, specific impulse, and characteristic velocity enhance with the increase of aluminum hydride content. An interesting discovery is that the average regression rate is maximum at 48 % aluminum hydride content. This research innovatively couples dynamic mesh and discrete phase models, which can help better understand the working process for hybrid rockets and provide important guidance for the selection of fuel formula. • A simulation model of hybrid rocket motors based on a discrete phase model is established. • The motion and evaporation of particles and regression of the fuel grain are simulated. • A test of hybrid rockets with fuel containing aluminum and aluminum hydride is carried out. • A high degree of agreement between experiment and simulation findings is found. • The impact of aluminum hydride content on the performance of the hybrid rockets is conducted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conventional RGB‐T salient object detection treats RGB and thermal modalities equally to locate the common salient regions. However, the authors observed that the rich colour and texture information of the RGB modality makes the objects more prominent compared to the background; and the thermal modality records the temperature difference of the scene, so the objects usually contain clear and continuous edge information. In this work, a novel mirror‐complementary Transformer network (MCNet) is proposed for RGB‐T SOD, which supervise the two modalities separately with a complementary set of saliency labels under a symmetrical structure. Moreover, the attention‐based feature interaction and serial multiscale dilated convolution (SDC)‐based feature fusion modules are introduced to make the two modalities complement and adjust each other flexibly. When one modality fails, the proposed model can still accurately segment the salient regions. To demonstrate the robustness of the proposed model under challenging scenes in real world, the authors build a novel RGB‐T SOD dataset VT723 based on a large public semantic segmentation RGB‐T dataset used in the autonomous driving domain. Extensive experiments on benchmark and VT723 datasets show that the proposed method outperforms state‐of‐the‐art approaches, including CNN‐based and Transformer‐based methods. The code and dataset can be found at https://github.com/jxr326/SwinMCNet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: The use of corticosteroids in chronic drug‐induced liver injury (DILI) is an important issue. Our previous randomized controlled trial showed that patients with chronic DILI benefited from a 48‐week steroid stepwise reduction (SSR) regimen. However, it remains unclear whether a shorter course of therapy can achieve similar efficacy. In this study, we aimed to assess whether a 36‐week SSR can achieve efficacy similar to that of 48‐week SSR. Methods: A randomized open‐label trial was performed. Eligible patients were randomly assigned to the 36‐ or 48‐week (1:1) SSR group. Liver biopsies were performed at baseline and at the end of treatment. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients with relapse rate (RR). The secondary outcomes were improvement in liver histology and safety. Results: Of the 90 participants enrolled, 84 (87.5%) completed the trial, and 62 patients (68.9%) were women. Hepatocellular damage was observed in 53.4% of the cohort. The RR was 7.1% in the 36‐week SSR group but 4.8% in the 48‐week SSR group, as determined by per‐protocol set analysis (p = 1.000). Significant histological improvements in histological activity (93.1% vs. 92.9%, p = 1.000) and fibrosis (41.4% vs. 46.4%, p =.701) were observed in both the groups. Biochemical normalization time did not differ between the two groups. No severe adverse events were observed. Conclusions: Both the 36‐ and 48‐week SSR regimens demonstrated similar biochemical response and histological improvements with good safety, supporting 36‐week SSR as a preferable therapeutic choice (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03266146). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Talar fractures often require osteotomy during surgery to achieve reduction and screw fixation of the fractured fragments due to limited visualization and operating space of the talar articular surface. The objective of this study was to evaluate the horizontal approach to the medial malleolus facet by maximizing exposure through dorsiflexion and plantarflexion positions. Methods: In dorsiflexion, plantarflexion, and functional foot positions, we respectively obtained the anterior and posterior edge lines of the projection of the medial malleolus on the medial malleolar facet. The talar model from Mimics was imported into Geomagic software for image refinement. Then Solidworks software was used to segment the medial surface of the talus and extend the edge lines from the three positions to project them onto the "semicircular" base for 2D projection. The exposed area in different positions, the percentage of total area it represents, and the anatomic location of the insertion point at the groove between the anteroposternal protrusions of the medial malleolus were calculated. Results: The mean total area of the "semicircular" region on the medial malleolus surface of the talus was 542.10 ± 80.05 mm2. In the functional position, the exposed mean area of the medial malleolar facet around the medial malleolus both anteriorly and posteriorly was 141.22 ± 24.34 mm2, 167.58 ± 22.36mm2, respectively. In dorsiflexion, the mean area of the posterior aspect of the medial malleolar facet was 366.28 ± 48.12 mm2. In plantarflexion, the mean of the anterior aspect of the medial malleolar facet was 222.70 ± 35.32 mm2. The mean overlap area of unexposed area in both dorsiflexion and plantarflexion was 23.32 ± 5.94 mm2. The mean percentage of the increased exposure area in dorsiflexion and plantarflexion were 36.71 ± 3.25% and 15.13 ± 2.83%. The mean distance from the insertion point to the top of the talar dome was 10.69 ± 1.24 mm, to the medial malleolus facet border of the talar trochlea was 5.61 ± 0.96 mm, and to the tuberosity of the posterior tibiotalar portion of the deltoid ligament complex was 4.53 ± 0.64 mm. Conclusions: Within the 3D model, we measured the exposed area of the medial malleolus facet in different positions and the anatomic location of the insertion point at the medial malleolus groove. When the foot is in plantarflexion or dorsiflexion, a sufficiently large area and operating space can be exposed during surgery. The data regarding the exposed visualization area and virtual screws need to be combined with clinical experience for safer reduction and fixation of fracture fragments. Further validation of its intraoperative feasibility will require additional clinical research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Helianthus annuus seed byproduct is a residual product obtained after seed oil extraction. The present study investigated the preventive and repair effects of the H. annuus seed byproduct ethanol extract (HSE) on ultraviolet radiation (UVR)‐induced injury in human immortalized keratinocytes (HaCaTs) and human skin fibroblasts (HSFs). Results revealed that the total phenolic acid and oligosaccharide content in HSE was >50%. HSE had a stronger preventive effect on UVR‐induced injury than the repair effect. Moreover, phenolic acids were the main active component of HSE mediating the preventative effect. In HaCaTs and HSFs, HSE prevented UVR‐induced injury by inhibiting excessive ROS production. It reduced the secretion of tumor necrosis TNF‐α, IL‐1α, IL‐1β, IL‐6, and IL‐8 by inhibiting the level of ROS, thus reducing inflammation‐mediated injury to skin cells. In addition, HSE inhibited the expression of various mRNA kinases in the MAPK–ERK/p38/JNK pathway. This downregulated the expression of activator protein‐1 (AP‐1) mRNA and further reduced the secretion of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)‐1, MMP‐3, and MMP‐9 as well as reduced UVR‐induced injury to the cells. In conclusion, HSE is a broad‐spectrum, natural UV filter with high efficiency and low toxicity that has the potential to be used in sunscreen products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Chronic lower back pain (CLBP) is one of the most common disorders worldwide. Flash cupping has the ability to relieve CLBP; nevertheless, its impact on CLBP and the likely mechanism of action have not been studied. OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to assess the impact of a single, brief cupping session on CLBP and low back muscle activity using multichannel surface electromyography (sEMG). METHODS: In this randomized controlled trial, 24 patients with CLBP were enrolled and randomly assigned to the control group (treated by acupuncture) and cupping group (treated by acupuncture and flash cupping). Acupuncture was applied on the shen shu (BL23), dachang shu (BL25), and wei zhong (BL40) acupoints in both the groups. A brief cupping treatment was applied to the shen shu (BL23), qihai shu (BL24), dachang shu (BL25), guanyuan shu (BL26), and xiaochang shu (BL27) acupoints on both sides of the lower back in the cupping group. The numeric rating scale (NRS) was used to assess therapy efficacy for lower back pain (LBP) before and after treatment. Surface EMG data collected during symmetrical trunk flexion-extension movements were utilized to measure lower back muscle activity and the effectiveness of LBP therapy. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference (P = 0.63) in pain intensity between the two groups before and after treatment. There was a statistically significant difference (P = 0.04) between the control group and the cupping group in the sEMG topographic map parameter CoGx-To-Midline. CONCLUSION: This study established a connection between the action mechanism of flash cupping and enhanced horizontal synchronization of lower back muscular activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dichromates and dyes have been widely used in industrial and agricultural production, but they are also responsible for the deterioration of water environments. Photochemical purification of them based on MOFs based photocatalysts has been proven to be feasible. And construction of MOFs based heterojunctions to polish the band states is an effective method for enhancing the separation of photogenerated electron-hole separation and carriers migration under low energy light. Herein, a Zr(IV)-biquinoline framework with bcu topology was synthesized to act as a matrix for depositing the in-situ generated In 2 S 3 species, providing a novel In 2 S 3 /Zr-MOF heterojunction. Indeed, owing to the highly matched band structure of the two components, the new heterojunction exhibits optimized visible light utility, photogenerated electron-hole recombination inhibition ability and carriers migration kinetics. Ingeniously, the 10%-Zr-MOF exhibited excellent photocatalytic REDOX abilities against Cr(VI) ions and dye RhB, with the photocatalytic deoxidation efficiency towards Cr(VI) ions (96.7 %) has been confirmed to be 3.14 and 1.42 times that of pristine Zr-MOF (30.8 %) and sole In 2 S 3 (68.2 %), respectively. Moreover, it also displayed a photocatalytic reduction kinetic rate of 0.031 min−1, which is 11.3 times and 2.69 times higher than that of fresh Zr-MOF (0.00274 min−1) and pure In 2 S 3 (0.0115 min−1). And the photocatalytic reduction and degradation mechanisms of In 2 S 3 /Zr-MOF also have been deliberately proposed, according to the detailed experimental and instrumental characterization results. This contribution presents a feasible post-modification reinforcement strategy to assemble novel Zr-MOFs based photocatalytic platforms for the decontamination of Cr(VI) and dyes from water. Greatly optimized band states, low energy light energy utilization, optical-electronic properties and decontamination of Cr(VI) and RhB were achieved via a novel In 2 S 3 /Zr-MOF heterojunction. Its photocatalytic deoxidation efficiency towards Cr(VI) is 3.14 and 1.42 times of pristine Zr-MOF and pure In 2 S 3 , respectively. [Display omitted] • Band structures modulating based on metal sulfides/Zr-MOF heterojunction. • Greatly optimized band states. • Significantly improved light energy utilization and optical-electronic properties. • Remarkably enhanced photocatalytic efficiencies and accelerated reaction kinetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although past learning-based Multi-View Stereo methods performed well, they still struggle to reconstruct regions with occlusions or weak textures. In this paper, we propose a Multi-View Stereo Net using attention mechanism and multi-source cost volume, namely AMS-MVSNet. We first introduce an improved multi-level feature pyramid net (FPN) structure to achieve smoother feature transitions in three stages, and establish additional connections between features that with larger scale difference. This can enhance the fusion of features extracted at different stages. In addition, we construct an attention-enhanced module, which can assign different weights according to the rendering effect of the same spatial point in different views. This can effectively alleviate the impact of false matches caused by weak textures or occlusions during cost volume construction. Furthermore, we utilize a multi-source cost volume that not only incorporates the matching information computed from each view group, but also introduces the depth map differences obtained from different views. The multi-source cost volume greatly enrichs the generalization ability of neural network. Lastly, our network architecture employs a Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) to reduce memory pressure during the depth inference process and improve efficiency. Our quantitative and qualitative testing results on the DTU, Tanks & Temples and BlendedMVS datasets demonstrate the excellent performance of our neural network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cracks with a width of more than 0.3 mm can seriously affect the safety and stability of concrete structures. Presently, there are many techniques for measuring the crack depth, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. However, due to the technical limitations and different applicability of each method, their accuracy in actual crack detection is often insufficient. In this article, to improve the detection accuracy in technological applications, the mature concrete crack depth detection technologies are summarised. The currently popular non-destructive testing technologies are divided into two categories: stress wave detection technology and electromagnetic wave detection technology. The specific detection methods and development status of the two technologies are discussed. Further, based on the detection principles, the advantages and disadvantages of various detection methods are systematically compared. The application conditions of each detection method are explored, and their feasibility for different forms of cracks are comprehensively analysed. A set of optimal methods for crack depth detection is proposed. Besides, the key points for the accurate measurement of concrete crack depth are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Limax maximus, or great gray slug, is a common agriculture pest. The pest infests crops during their growth phase, creating holes in vegetable leaves, particularly in seedlings and tender leaves. A study was conducted to assess the insecticidal activity of Ageratina adenophora extract against these slugs. Factors such as fecundity, growth, hatching rate, offspring survival rate, protective enzyme activity, and detoxifying enzyme activity were examined in slugs exposed to the extract's sublethal concentration (LC50) for two different durations (24 and 48 h). The phytochemical variability of the extracts was also studied. The LC50 value of the A. adenophora extract against L. maximus was 35.9 mg/mL. This extract significantly reduced the hatching rate of eggs and the survival rate of offspring hatched from exposed eggs compared with the control. The lowest rates were observed in those exposed for 48 h. The survival, growth, protective enzyme, and detoxification activity of newly hatched and 40-day-old slugs decreased. The A. adenophora extract contained tannins, flavonoids, and saponins, possibly contributing to their biological effects. These results suggest that the extract could be used as an alternative treatment for slug extermination, effectively controlling this species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objective: The combination of niraparib and abiraterone acetate (AA) plus prednisone is under investigation for the treatment of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) and metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC). Regular-strength (RS) and lower-strength (LS) dual-action tablets (DATs), comprising niraparib 100 mg/AA 500 mg and niraparib 50 mg/AA 500 mg, respectively, were developed to reduce pill burden and improve patient experience. A bioequivalence (BE)/bioavailability (BA) study was conducted under modified fasting conditions in patients with mCRPC to support approval of the DATs. Methods: This open-label randomized BA/BE study (NCT04577833) was conducted at 14 sites in the USA and Europe. The study had a sequential design, including a 21-day screening phase, a pharmacokinetic (PK) assessment phase comprising three periods [namely (1) single-dose with up to 1-week run-in, (2) daily dose on days 1–11, and (3) daily dose on days 12–22], an extension where both niraparib and AA as single-agent combination (SAC; reference) or AA alone was continued from day 23 until discontinuation, and a 30-day follow-up phase. Patients were randomly assigned in a parallel-group design (four-sequence randomization) to receive a single oral dose of niraparib 100 mg/AA 1000 mg as a LS-DAT or SAC in period 1, and patients continued as randomized into a two-way crossover design during periods 2 and 3 where they received niraparib 200 mg/AA 1000 mg once daily as a RS-DAT or SAC. The design was powered on the basis of crossover assessment of RS-DAT versus SAC. During repeated dosing (periods 2 and 3, and extension phase), all patients also received prednisone/prednisolone 5 mg twice daily. Plasma samples were collected for measurement of niraparib and abiraterone plasma concentrations. Statistical assessment of the RS-DAT and LS-DAT versus SAC was performed on log-transformed pharmacokinetic parameters data from periods 2 and 3 (crossover) and from period 1 (parallel), respectively. Additional paired analyses and model-based bioequivalence assessments were conducted to evaluate the similarity between the LS-DAT and SAC. Results: For the RS-DAT versus SAC, the 90% confidence intervals (CI) of geometric mean ratios (GMR) for maximum concentration at a steady state (Cmax,ss) and area under the plasma concentration–time curve from 0–24 h at a steady state (AUC 0–24h,ss) were respectively 99.18-106.12% and 97.91-104.31% for niraparib and 87.59-106.69 and 86.91-100.23% for abiraterone. For the LS-DAT vs SAC, the 90% CI of GMR for AUC0–72h of niraparib was 80.31-101.12% in primary analysis, the 90% CI of GMR for Cmax,ss and AUC 0–24h,ss of abiraterone was 85.41-118.34% and 86.51-121.64% respectively, and 96.4% of simulated LS-DAT versus SAC BE trials met the BE criteria for both niraparib and abiraterone. Conclusions: The RS-DAT met BE criteria (range 80%–125%) versus SAC based on 90% CI of GMR for Cmax,ss and AUC 0–24h,ss. The LS-DAT was considered BE to SAC on the basis of the niraparib component meeting the BE criteria in the primary analysis for AUC 0–72h; abiraterone meeting the BE criteria in additional paired analyses based on Cmax,ss and AUC 0–24h,ss; and the percentage of simulated LS-DAT versus SAC BE trials meeting the BE criteria for both. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04577833. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detecting the concrete crack depth has always been a technical problem. The traditional detection methods，which are based on stress wave theory, have limitations such as low accuracy, complex operation, time-consuming and laborious procedures. This paper proposes a new method based on the combination of tracer and hand-held radar to better complete this task. Its main procedures include firstly spreading tracer diffusion to the bottom of the crack propagation, and then mapping the location of the air-tracer interface by radar waves, thus visualising the crack depth information. This paper elaborates the detection principle of this new method, carried out the feasibility numerical analysis and simulation verification. Also, the concrete standard crack specimens were made, together with relevant experimental researches. As to the feasibility of the method, it is verified by using common distilled water and saturated sodium chloride solution as tracers. The detection effects of these two tracers are compared and analysed by comparing the test data with the actual depth of the specimen. This research innovatively applies tracers to actively improve the electrical ability of concrete cracks, and then uses radar to detect the electrical distribution of cracks, realising the visual detection of crack depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil salinity can adversely affect crop growth and yield, and an improved understanding of the genetic factors that confer salt tolerance could inform breeding strategies to engineer salt‐tolerant crops and improve productivity. Here, a group of K+‐preferring HKT transporters, TaHKT8, TaHKT9 and TaHKT10, were identified and negatively regulate the wheat shoot K+ accumulation and salt tolerance. A genome‐wide association study (GWAS) and candidate gene association analysis further revealed that TaHKT9‐B substantially underlies the natural variation of wheat shoot K+ accumulation under saline soil conditions. Specifically, an auxin responsive element (ARE) within an 8‐bp insertion in the promoter of TaHKT9‐B is strongly associated with shoot K+ content among wheat accessions. This ARE can be directly bound by TaARF4 for transcriptional activation of TaHKT9‐B, which subsequently attenuates shoot K+ accumulation and salt tolerance. Moreover, the tae‐miR390/TaTAS3/TaARF4 pathway was identified to regulate the salt‐induced root development and salt tolerance in wheat. Taken together, our study describes the genetic basis and accompanying mechanism driving phenotypic variation in wheat shoot K+ accumulation and salt tolerance. The identified tae‐miR390/TaTAS3/TaARF4/TaHKT9‐B module is an important regulator in wheat subjected to salt stress, which provides the potentially important genetic resources for breeders to improve wheat salt tolerance. Summary statement: Here, a genome‐wide association study and candidate gene association analysis revealed that TaHKT9‐B substantially underlies the natural variation of wheat shoot K+ accumulation under saline soil conditions. In addition, this study provides the first evidence of which we are aware showing that the tae‐miR390/TaTAS3/TaARF4/TaHKT9‐B module is a key regulator of root growth in salt‐stressed wheat, providing a genetic basis for enhancing salt tolerance in wheat and other crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A dense and continuous Cr coating with a thickness of approximately 140 μm was successfully deposited on the surface of a thin-walled Zr alloy cladding tube using high-speed laser cladding technology in this study. The microstructure, phase composition, microhardness, and resistance to high-temperature oxidation of the coating were investigated. The experimental results showed that the Cr coating exhibited high-strength metallurgical bond with the Zr alloy substrate, forming a narrow heat-affected zone with a thickness of 25 μm, and the coating consists of ZrCr2 and α-Zr phase. The average microhardness of the coating was 589 HV0.05, about 2.3 times that of the substrate. After oxidation at 1200 °C for 1200 s in air, with the formation of complete and dense protective Cr2O3 scale, the Cr-coated Zr alloy cladding tube showed better high-temperature oxidation resistance than uncoated tube. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coordination polymerization of renewable β-ocimene has been investigated using asymmetric diiminophosphinate lutetium complex 1, β-diketiminate yttrium complex 2, bis(phosphino)carbazolide yttrium complex 3, half-sandwich benzyl fluorenyl scandium complex 4 and pyridyl-methylene-fluorenyl rare-metal complexes 5a–5c. Complexes 1, 4 and 5a–5c show trans-1,2-regioselectivities and high activities, of which 5c exhibits excellent isoselectivity (mmmm>99%). Conversely, complexes 2 and 3 promote β-ocimene polymerization to produce isotactic cis-1,4-polyocimenes (cis-1,4>99%, mm>95%). Diblock copolymers cis-1,4-PIP-block-cis-1,4-POc and cis-1,4-PBD-block-cis-1,4-POc are obtained in one-pot reactions of β-ocimene with isoprene and butadiene using complex 3. Epoxidation and hydroxylation of polyocimene afford functionalized polyolefins with enhanced Tg (from −20 °C to 79 °C and 74 °C) and hydrophilicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Identifying lymph node metastasis areas during surgery for early invasive lung adenocarcinoma remains challenging. The aim of this study was to develop a nomogram mathematical model before the end of surgery for predicting lymph node metastasis in patients with early invasive lung adenocarcinoma. Methods: In this study, we included patients with invasive lung adenocarcinoma measuring ≤ 2 cm who underwent pulmonary resection with definite pathology at Qilu Hospital of Shandong University from January 2020 to January 2022. Preoperative biomarker results, clinical features, and computed tomography characteristics were collected. The enrolled patients were randomized into a training cohort and a validation cohort in a 7:3 ratio. The training cohort was used to construct the predictive model, while the validation cohort was used to test the model independently. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify independent risk factors. The prediction model and nomogram were established based on the independent risk factors. Recipient operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to assess the discrimination ability of the model. Calibration capability was assessed using the Hosmer–Lemeshow test and calibration curves. The clinical utility of the nomogram was assessed using decision curve analysis (DCA). Results: The overall incidence of lymph node metastasis was 13.23% (61/461). Six indicators were finally determined to be independently associated with lymph node metastasis. These six indicators were: age (P < 0.001), serum amyloid (SA) (P = 0.008); carcinoma antigen 125 (CA125) (P = 0. 042); mucus composition (P = 0.003); novel aspartic proteinase of the pepsin family A (Napsin A) (P = 0.007); and cytokeratin 5/6 (CK5/6) (P = 0.042). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.843 (95% CI: 0.779–0.908) in the training cohort and 0.838 (95% CI: 0.748–0.927) in the validation cohort. the P-value of the Hosmer–Lemeshow test was 0.0613 in the training cohort and 0.8628 in the validation cohort. the bias of the training cohort corrected C-index was 0.8444 and the bias-corrected C-index for the validation cohort was 0.8375. demonstrating that the prediction model has good discriminative power and good calibration. Conclusions: The column line graphs created showed excellent discrimination and calibration to predict lymph node status in patients with ≤ 2 cm invasive lung adenocarcinoma. In addition, the predictive model has predictive potential before the end of surgery and can inform clinical decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The prognostic significance of adjuvant chemotherapy (ACT) for patients with stage IA micropapillary non-predominant (MPNP) lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate the effects of postoperative ACT in patients with stage IA MPNP-LUAD. Methods: A total of 149 patients with pathological stage IA MPNP-LUAD who underwent surgery at our center were retrospectively analyzed. Propensity score matching (PSM) analysis was conducted to reduce potential selection bias. Kaplan–Meier analyses were used to assess the impact of ACT on recurrence-free survival (RFS), overall survival (OS), and disease-specific survival (DSS). Subgroup analyses were performed for the survival outcomes based on the percentage of micropapillary components. Cox proportional hazards regression analyses were applied to identify risk factors associated with survival. Results: The receipt or non-receipt of postoperative ACT had no significant effect on RFS, OS, and DSS among all enrolled patients with stage IA MPNP-LUAD (P > 0.05). For patients with a micropapillary component > 5%, the 5-year rates of RFS, OS, and DSS were significantly higher in the ACT group compared to the observation group, both before and after PSM (P < 0.05). However, the differences between the two groups were not significant for patients with a micropapillary component ≤ 5% (P > 0.05). The resection range (HR = 0.071; 95% CI: 0.020–0.251; P < 0.001), tumor size (HR = 2.929; 95% CI: 1.171–7.330; P = 0.022), and ACT (HR = 0.122; 95% CI: 0.037–0.403; P = 0.001) were identified as independent prognostic factors for RFS through Cox regression analysis. Conclusion: Patients with stage IA MPNP-LUAD who have a micropapillary component greater than 5% might benefit from postoperative ACT, while those with a micropapillary component ≤ 5% did not appear to derive the same benefit from postoperative ACT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both human and animal experiments have demonstrated that energy metabolism dysfunction in neurons after seizures is associated with an imbalance in mitochondrial fusion/fission dynamics. Effective neuronal mitochondrial dynamics regulation strategies remain elusive. Nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) can ameliorate mitochondrial functional and oxidative stress in age‐related diseases. But whether NMN improves mitochondrial energy metabolism to exert anti‐epileptic effects is unclear. This study aims to clarify if NMN can protect neurons from pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) or Mg2+‐free‐induced mitochondrial disorder and apoptosis via animal and cell models. We established a continuous 30‐day PTZ (37 mg/kg) intraperitoneal injection‐induced epileptic mouse model and a cell model induced by Mg2+‐free solution incubation to explore the neuroprotective effects of NMN. We found that NMN treatment significantly reduced the seizure intensity of PTZ‐induced epileptic mice, improved their learning and memory ability, and enhanced their motor activity and exploration desire. At the same time, in vitro and in vivo experiments showed that NMN can inhibit neuronal apoptosis and improve the mitochondrial energy metabolism function of neurons. In addition, NMN down‐regulated the expression of mitochondrial fission proteins (Drp1 and Fis1) and promoted the expression of mitochondrial fusion proteins (Mfn1 and Mfn2) by activating the SIRT1‐PGC‐1α pathway, thereby inhibiting PTZ or Mg2+‐free extracellular solution‐induced mitochondrial dysfunction, cell apoptosis, and oxidative stress. However, combined intervention of SIRT1 inhibitor, Selisistat, and PGC‐1α inhibitor, SR‐18292, eliminated the regulatory effect of NMN pre‐treatment on mitochondrial fusion and fission proteins and apoptosis‐related proteins. Therefore, NMN intervention may be a new potential treatment for cognitive impairment and behavioral disorders induced by epilepsy, and targeting the SIRT1‐PGC‐1α pathway may be a promising therapeutic strategy for seizures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Photosensitive post-modification based on the super-stable UiO-67. • Greatly narrowed band gap and optimized band structure. • Significantly improved visible light utilization and optical-electronic properties. • Remarkably enhanced photocatalytic efficiencies and accelerated reaction kinetics. As a new kind of organic-inorganic hybrid semiconductor materials, MOFs have come into focus as photocatalysts for decontamination of Cr(VI) oxates and reactive dyes from contaminated water. However, although most Zr-MOFs exhibit hydrolytic stability, they absorb almost only ultraviolet light. Assembly of MOFs with both hydrolytic stability and high visible light responsiveness thus has become a most feasible avenue recently. Here, composite of Ag@UiO-67 was intentionally designed by modifying the classical Zr-MOF of UiO-67 with highly photosensitive Ag+ ions. Results suggested that compared with pristine UiO-67, Ag@UiO-67 displays significantly narrowed band gap (Eg) value, sufficiently negative conduction band (CB) potential, suitable valence band (VB) potential and significantly improved charge transfer efficiency. Notably, the Eg value of 2.09 eV gives Ag@UiO-67 excellent ability of visible photocatalytic reduction of Cr(VI) and degradation of Reactive dark blue K-R (RB13), with reduction and degradation efficiencies of 91.37 % within 140 min (k = 0.024 min−1) and 92.63 % within 160 min (k = 0.016 min−1), respectively, which are 5.6 and 6.9 times of as synthesized UiO-67. Moreover, photocatalytic mechanism studies reveal that · O 2 – plays key roles in bleaching RB13 and photogenerated species with sufficient negative potential can effectively reduce Cr(VI). And Ag@UiO-67 can utilize visible light more efficiently to accelerate the charge transfer rate. This work provides a feasible avenue to tailor the visible light sensitivity and band structure of classic Zr-MOFs, for eliminating inorganic and organic contaminants such as Cr(VI) ions and dye of RB13. Visible photocatalytic reduction and degradation capacities towards Cr(VI) and reactive dye (RB13) have been successfully achieved, by firmly anchoring Ag+ ions in UiO-67. This study provides a feasible strategy to realize the low-energy light utilization and bifunctionality of robust Zr-MOFs platforms. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel synthetic strategy using microwave-assisted precipitation was proposed to prepare defective CsH 3 PMo 11 VO 40 for the oxidation of methacrolein (MAL) to methacrylic acid (MAA). A systematic comparison of catalysts synthesized using different heating methods and preparation conditions was conducted. Microwave treatment was found to accelerate the crystallization rate of the catalyst and increase vanadyl species (VO2+) content on its surface, yielding the formation of defective Keggin structures. A moderate degree of defective Keggin units improves the oxidation capacity of active Mo species and facilitates the activation of oxygen into lattice oxygen, enhancing the oxidation of MAL. Therefore, the catalyst obtained through microwave heating demonstrates significantly improved catalytic performance compared to the one prepared via conventional heating. The defective Keggin structure plays a key role in catalytic enhancing. Under optimal conditions, the 70MH-40 catalyst exhibits the highest MAL conversion of 90.3% and MAA selectivity of 87.2%. [Display omitted] • CsH 3 PMo 11 VO 40 was produced via microwave-assisted precipitation method. • Microwave irradiation heating can produce defective Keggin units. • Appropriate defective Keggin unit content is beneficial for oxidation of MAL to MAA. • 70MH-40 exhibits efficient catalytic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultra-deep crude oils have become one of the most important targets for petroleum exploration. In ultra-deep petroleum systems, differential hydrocarbon generation of various source rocks and multistage oil accumulation and secondary alteration processes led to the coexistence of crude oils with diverse sources and formation mechanisms. How to effectively identify complicated crude oil categories is a difficult issue confronted with ultra-deep petroleum exploration. Because crude oils are generally fluorescent, fluorescence analysis methods exhibit great application potential for classifying ultra-deep crude oils. However, due to the lack of other restrictive parameters, previous methods based on fluorescence color and fluorescence spectra limit the geological application of fluorescence analysis methods in ultra-deep petroleum systems. Based on the combination of fluorescence spectral parameters and fluorescence lifetimes, this study innovatively provides a new fluorescence analysis method for identifying complex crude oil categories in ultra-deep petroleum systems. Moreover, the sources and formation mechanisms of the ultra-deep crude oil can be further identified by combining fluorescence parameters with physical and geochemical parameters. By applying the above method, this study effectively identified three categories of crude oils and revealed their sources and formation mechanisms in the ultra-deep petroleum system of the southwestern Tabei Uplift, Tarim Basin, China. The new fluorescence analysis method may have practical significance for revealing the sources and formation mechanisms of ultra-deep crude oils. • The new fluorescence method can effectively classify ultra-deep crude oil categories. • The fluorescence characteristics of biodegraded and non-biodegraded oils are diverse. • Fluorescence parameters can be used for direct reservoir and inclusion oil correlation. • Three categories of crude oils are identified in the southwestern Tabei Uplift. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Organic petrology and biomarkers in the Lower Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation from the Kazuo Basin were investigated. • Terrigenous organic matter was diluted by detrital minerals and phytoplankton was the most important organic matter source. • Anoxic bottom water may be necessary for organic matter enrichment in lake systems. • Climate changes controlled the organic matter enrichment model during deposition of the Jiufotang Formation. The Lower Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation, situated in western Liaoning Province, China, has attracted attention for abundant Jehol Biota fossils and the potential to improve understanding of the relationships among climate change, evolution of terrigenous organisms, and organic matter (OM) enrichment in lake systems during the Early Cretaceous. Based on organic petrology and biomarker analyses, this study investigated the depositional environment, OM sources, and enrichment mechanism of Jiufotang mudstone in the Kazuo Basin. Maceral composition shows that the OM source of Jiufotang mudstone shifted from mainly aquatic to terrigenous, and biomarkers such as abundant diterpenoids and retene indicate that terrigenous higher plants were mainly conifers during deposition of the Jiufotang Formation. Pr/Ph ratios (0.07–0.65) show that the studied section was deposited in anoxic bottom water that may be necessary for OM enrichment in lake systems. Gravity flows were accompanied by input of many clastic minerals and oxygenation of bottom waters, which is unfavorable for OM enrichment. Therefore, the best OM enrichment model for lake systems includes anoxic bottom water, stable water column stratification, low sedimentation rates, and high phytoplankton contributions. The climate changed from relatively dry to humid, which drove changes in the OM enrichment model in the lake. More importantly, the climate and terrigenous plant information obtained by biomarkers is useful to reconstruct the ecological environment of the Jehol Biota. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The characteristics of seasonal-harvesting and recalcitrance to biodegradation hinder the efficient bioenergy utilization of biomass. To overcome the drawbacks, it's necessary to develop an integrated strategy for ensiling preservation to improve the bioconversion of lignocellulosic biomass. In this study, sweet sorghum bagasse (SSB) was ensiled for 21 days, followed by diluted NaOH pretreatment to enhance the biodegradability. Compared with the raw SSB and non-biofortified silage, the bio-fortified ensiling with L. plantarum alone or both L. plantarum and fibrolytic enzyme promoted the degradation of lignocellulose (e.g., hemicellulose, lignin) of SSB. Based on the membership function, L. plantarum additives was the most efficient for the improvement of ensiling quality. The genus of Lactobacillus (3.91–40.45%), Enterobacteriaceae (11.63–38.58%), and Pantoea (8.21–28.01%) were dominant at 21 days, accompanied by the high content of lactic and acetic acid in different silages. Moreover, Lactobacillus was beneficial to ensiling quality. Comparing to raw SSB (40.91%), the enzymatic efficiency of SSB sharply increased to 88.52% by the combination pretreatment of bio-fortified ensiling with L. plantarum and subsequent 2% NaOH, which was the most economical pretreatment method. In short, this work proposes a promising strategy by combining bio-fortified ensiling and NaOH pretreatment for the storage and bioenergy production of SSB. [Display omitted] • L. plantarum and/or fibrolytic enzyme enhanced ensiling quality of SSB. • Bio-fortified ensiling with additives reconstructed bacterial community. • Bio-fortified ensiling with L. plantarum improved the degradation of NDF/ADL. • Bio-fortified ensiling combined NaOH pretreatment enhanced the bioconversion of SSB. • Combination of ensiling with L. plantarum and 2% dilute NaOH was recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• New nutrient proxy reveals oceanic P peaks during the Hirnantian glaciation and deglaciation. • The HICE was caused by enhanced organic carbon burial linked to more efficient P cylcing. • Persistent volcanisms and less CO 2 consumption via silicate weathering terminated the glaciation. • Post-glacial carbon cycle and climate depend on the duration of intensive volcanisms and oceanic nutrient availability. The Hirnantian Stage of the Late Ordovician coincides with a positive carbon isotope excursion (HICE, ∼+6 ‰), a major glaciation, increased volcanic activity, expanded marine anoxia, and one of the largest mass extinctions of the Phanerozoic. The origin of the HICE is debated, with proposed mechanisms favoring enhanced low-latitude carbonate weathering and/or increased efficiency of organic carbon burial. To test those hypotheses, we assembled new and published δ13C carb and δ13C org data and shale phosphorus and carbonate-associated phosphate concentrations from diverse depositional settings on several continents. We then evaluated these results using an integrated carbon cycle model derived from GEOCARB, and a coupled oceanic carbon and phosphorus cycle model. This approach yielded quantitative tests of the response of the global carbon cycle to changes in volcanic degassing, silicate and carbonate weathering rates, and organic carbon burial, individually and in combination, to determine which forcings yield signals most aligned with observed δ13C carb and δ13C org records. On this basis, the most plausible scenario for the HICE involves a ∼50 % decrease in weathering of silicates and organic carbon at higher latitudes combined with enhanced carbonate weathering (f wcarb = 88 %) at lower latitudes. Synchronous, globally enhanced burial of organic carbon was due to more efficient nutrient cycling caused by stronger thermohaline circulation and increased volcanism that further enriched oceanic dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in 13C. The influence of increased input of 13C-depleted carbon from volcanism and metamorphism may have been overwhelmed by these drivers of the positive δ13C shift. The Hirnantian Glaciation was likely initiated by secular enhancement of continental weathering due to the expansion of early plants but was terminated by increased volcanism and decreased CO 2 consumption by silicate weathering during the cooling. This scenario is consistent with the timeline of known geological events and offers insights into the mechanisms responsible for the associated biotic crisis. Specifically, the onset of the Hirnantian Glaciation induced lower global temperatures, resulting in sea-level fall and a loss of habitat space, while its termination led to enhanced organic carbon export and deep-water anoxia, all of which likely contributed to the Late Ordovician mass extinction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sweet sorghum, as a seasonal energy crop, is rich in cellulose and hemicellulose that can be converted into biofuels. This work aims at investigating the effects of synergistic regulation of Pichia anomala and cellulase on ensiling quality and microbial community of sweet sorghum silages as a storage and pretreatment method. Furthermore, the combined pretreatment effects of ensiling and ball milling on sweet sorghum were evaluated by microstructure change and enzymatic hydrolysis. Based on membership function analysis, the combination of P. anomala and cellulase (PA + CE) significantly improved the silage quality by preserving organic components and promoting fermentation characteristics. The bioaugmented ensiling with PA + CE restructured the bacterial community by facilitating Lactobacillus and inhibiting undesired microorganisms by killer activity of P. anomala. The combined bioaugmented ensiling pretreatment with ball milling significantly increased the enzymatic hydrolysis efficiency (EHE) to 71%, accompanied by the increased specific surface area and decreased pore size/crystallinity of sweet sorghum. Moreover, the EHE after combined pretreatment was increased by 1.37 times compared with raw material. Hence, the combined pretreatment was demonstrated as a novel strategy to effectively enhance enzymatic hydrolysis of sweet sorghum. [Display omitted] • Combination of P. anomala and cellulase enhanced silage quality of sweet sorghum. • Bioaugmented ensiling with P. anomala & cellulase reconstructed bacterial community. • Synergetic effects of P. anomala & cellulase enhanced biodegradability of sweet sorghum silage. • Ensiling & ball milling increased specific surface area and decreased pore size/crystallinity. • Ball milling further enhanced enzymatic hydrolysis of ensiled sweet sorghum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrospinning was employed to fabricate composite electrothermal films using carbon powder (CP)/carbon nanofiber (CNF). The study focused on investigating the effect of the CP content and carbonization temperature the electrothermal properties of these films. The results revealed a direct correlation between these parameters and the conductivity of the CP/CNF composite electrothermal films, ranging from 0.006 to 9.31 S/cm. Notably, the electrothermal performance of the composite electrothermal films exhibited positive linear relationships with CP content, carbonization temperature, and external voltage. By manipulating these factors, the temperature of the heat conduction surface was effectively controlled within the range of 30.22 to 236.96 °C. Impressively, the composite electrothermal film demonstrated remarkable stability, sustaining 50 electrothermal cycles without any performance. The controllable radiation heat transfer ranged from 0.29 to 1.68. The composite electrothermal films displayed a high heat transfer efficiency of 85.4 % demonstrating its ability to melt 1 cm3 of ice in just 3 min. These findings underscore the vast potential applications of the composite electrothermal film, emphasizing its efficiency and adaptability for various uses. [Display omitted] • The content of carbon powder and carbonization temperature have influence on the electrothermal film. • The properties of the electrothermal film are positively correlated with the applied voltage. • The film surface temperature range is 30.22℃~ 236.96℃, 50 cycles without performance loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) is one of the important oil crops, with a high demand for nitrogen (N). It is essential to explore the potential of rapeseed to improve nitrogen utilization efficiency (NUtE). Rapeseed is an allotetraploid crop with a relatively large and complex genome, and there are few studies on the mapping of genes related to NUtE regulation. In this study, we used the combination of bulk segregant analysis sequencing (BSA-Seq) and RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) to analyze the N-efficient genotype 'Zheyou 18' and N-inefficient genotype 'Sollux', to identify the genetic regulatory mechanisms. Several candidate genes were screened, such as the high-affinity nitrate transporter gene NRT2.1 (BnaC08g43370D) and the abscisic acid (ABA) signal transduction-related genes (BnaC02g14540D, BnaA03g20760D, and BnaA05g01330D). BnaA05g01330D was annotated as ABA-INDUCIBLE bHLH-TYPE TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR (AIB / bHLH17), which was highly expressed in the root. The results showed that the primary root length of the ataib mutant was significantly longer than that of the wild type under low N conditions. Overexpression of BnaA5.AIB could reduce the NUtE under low N levels in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). Candidate genes identified in this study may be involved in the regulation of NUtE in rapeseed, and new functions of AIB in orchestrating N uptake and utilization have been revealed. It is indicated that BnaA5.AIB may be the key factor that links ABA to N signaling and a negative regulator of NUtE. It will provide a theoretical basis and application prospect for resource conservation, environmental protection, and sustainable agricultural development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]