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Simple Summary: Prostate cancer constitutes a large percentage of cancer-related deaths among men. Due to the complexity of the disease process and resistance to androgen deprivation therapy, a lot remains unknown about prostate tumorigenesis. Recently, several chemokines, including CXCL8 and its receptors (CXCR1 and CXCR2), have been shown to impact the development and progression of prostate cancer. In this study, we used various assays and animal models to better understand the role of CXCL8 receptors in prostate cancer incidence. The results herein indicate that the receptors may have opposing effects in the onset of prostate cancer. CXCR1 expression, not CXCR2, upregulates the tumor suppressor ITM2A to inhibit prostate tumor growth. Background: Chemokines, along with their receptors, exert critical roles in tumor development and progression. In prostate cancer (PCa), interleukin-8 (IL-8/CXCL8) was shown to enhance angiogenesis, proliferation, and metastasis. CXCL8 activates two receptors, CXCR1 and CXCR2. While CXCR2 expression was shown to promote PCa growth and metastasis, the role of CXCR1 remains unclear. Methods: In this study, we stably expressed CXCR1 and, as control, CXCR2 in the androgen-dependent PCa cell line MDA-PCa-2b to evaluate the effect of CXCR1 in tumor development. Results: MDA-PCa-2b-CXCR1 cells showed decreased cell migration, protein kinase-B (AKT) activation, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) expression, cell proliferation, and tumor development in nude mice, relative to MDA-PCa-2b-Vec and MDA-PCa-2b-CXCR2 cells. MDA-PCa-2b-CXCR1 cells also displayed a significant transition to mesenchymal phenotypes as characterized by decreased E-cadherin expression and a corresponding increased level of N-cadherin and vimentin expression. RNA-seq and Western blot analysis revealed a significant increase in the tumor suppressor integral membrane protein 2A (ITM2A) expression in MDA-PCa-2b-CXCR1 compared to control cells. In prostate adenocarcinoma tissue, ITM2A expression was also shown to be downregulated relative to a normal prostate. Interestingly, the overexpression of ITM2A in MDA-PCa-2b cells (MDA-PCa-2b-ITM2A-GFP) inhibited tumor growth similar to that of MDA-PCa-2b-CXCR1. Conclusions: Taken together, the data suggest that CXCR1 expression in MDA-PCa-2b cells may upregulate ITM2A to abrogate tumor development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhancing the livelihood resilience of livestock farmers in the old revolutionary base areas helps them to cope with the increasingly complex external risk shocks of recent years and promotes the sustainable development of regional agriculture. This study is based on survey data from 1047 livestock farmers in the Ningxia and Gansu provinces of the northwest old revolutionary base area. It incorporates the characteristics of livestock farmers and the elements of psychological capital into the sustainable livelihood analysis framework to construct a livelihood resilience index system. After measuring livelihood resilience, this paper uses a general linear regression model and a probit model to explore the impact and mechanism of digital literacy on the livelihood resilience of livestock farmers. The results show the following: (1) digital literacy has a significant positive effect on the livelihood resilience of livestock farmers, and the impact of different dimensions of digital literacy on different dimensions of livelihood resilience also varies. Additionally, this effect also shows the heterogeneity in different village clustering forms and different income groups. In areas inhabited by ethnic minorities and among moderate-income groups, the role of digital literacy on the livelihood resilience of livestock farmers is more significant. (2) The improvement of digital literacy has a significant positive impact on livelihood resilience through three different pathways: the "differential mode of association", learning channels, and types of income. (3) Digital literacy has led to the psychological aspects of rural hollowing-out problems among livestock farmers, which is particularly evident in families with only one type of caregiving burden (either only left-behind elderly people or only left-behind children). This problem is more evident. Therefore, this paper poses that the advancement of agricultural and rural economic development in China should not only focus on the cultivation of farmers' digital literacy but also accelerate the construction of digital infrastructure to ensure the long-term effective mechanism of improving digital literacy. At the same time, in the process of promoting digital rural areas, attention should be paid to the psychological isolation issues that the network era brings to farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Broccoli is a rich source of diverse bioactive compounds, but how their contents are influenced by different growing seasons and variations in broccoli head sizes remains elusive. To address this question, we quantified sixteen known bioactive compounds and seven minerals in broccoli with varying head sizes obtained in two different growing seasons. Our results suggest that the contents of vitamin C, total phenols, carotenoids, and glucoraphanin were significantly higher in samples from the summer–autumn season, showing increases of 157.46%, 34.74%, 51.80%, and 17.78%, respectively, compared with those from the winter–spring season. Moreover, chlorogenic acid is a phenolic compound with relatively high contents among the six detected, while beta-sitosterol is the sterol with relatively high contents. Further, principal component analysis was conducted to rank the comprehensive scores of the profiles of phenolic compounds, phytosterols, and minerals, demonstrating that the broccoli samples grown during the summer–autumn season achieved the highest composite scores. Our results indicate that broccoli heads from the summer–autumn season are richer in a combination of bioactive compounds and minerals than those from the winter–spring season based on the composite score. This study extends our understanding of the nutrition profiles in broccoli and also lays the foundation for breeding broccoli varieties with improved nutrition quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cement-stabilized macadam materials are widely utilized as semi-rigid base materials in road construction. However, conventional cement-stabilized macadam (CCSM) bases often develop shrinkage cracks during early construction and maintenance due to variations in humidity and temperature. Shrinkage cracks can subsequently result in reflective cracks in the asphalt pavement, significantly reducing the overall service life of the road. This study systematically evaluates the shrinkage and mechanical properties of large-size cement-stabilized macadam (LSCSM). Initially, the mix proportion for LSCSM is determined using the Bailey method. Subsequently, an experimental design based on the response surface method is implemented to comprehensively investigate various properties, including unconfined compressive strength, compressive rebound modulus, flexural strength, and the durability aspects of early drying shrinkage and temperature shrinkage through laboratory experiments. Further, the performance differences between CCSM and LSCSM are analyzed comparatively. The findings reveal that the compressive strength of LSCSM surpasses that of CCSM, albeit with comparatively lower compressive rebound modulus and flexural strength. LSCSM demonstrates a unique blend of characteristics, exhibiting traits of both semi-rigid and flexible materials. Furthermore, LSCSM exhibits favorable crack resistance properties, as evidenced by lower dry shrinkage strain, average dry and temperature shrinkage coefficient compared to CCSM. The proposed LSCSM in this study effectively reduces cement dosage and enhances the crack resistance performance of base materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The biosynthesis of thyroid hormones is essential for brain and neurological development. It requires iodine as a key component but is also influenced by other nutrients. Evidence for the combined nutrient status in relation to thyroid hormones during pregnancy is limited. We aimed to investigate the joint associations of iodine, selenium, zinc, calcium, magnesium and iron with maternal thyroid functions in 489 pregnant women from Hangzhou, China. Serum levels of six essential minerals and thyroid function parameters were measured during the first antenatal visit. Linear regression, quantile g-computation and Bayesian kernel machine regression were used to explore the individual and joint relationships between the six minerals and thyroid hormones. Linear regression analyses revealed that calcium was positively associated with free triiodothyronine (FT3). Zinc was positively associated with free thyroxine (FT4). Iodine was negatively associated with thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and positively associated with FT3 and FT4. The quantile g-computation and BKMR models indicated that the joint nutrient concentration was negatively associated with TSH and positively associated with FT3 and FT4. Among the six minerals, iodine contributed most to thyroid function. The findings suggested that maintaining the appropriate concentration of minerals, either as individuals or a mixture, is important for thyroid health during pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNETs) are characterized by dysregulated signaling pathways that are crucial for tumor formation and progression. The efficacy of traditional therapies is limited, particularly in the treatment of PNETs at an advanced stage. Epigenetic alterations profoundly impact the activity of signaling pathways in cancer development, offering potential opportunities for drug development. There is currently a lack of extensive research on epigenetic regulation in PNETs. To fill this gap, we first summarize major signaling events that are involved in PNET development. Then, we discuss the epigenetic regulation of these signaling pathways in the context of both PNETs and commonly occurring—and therefore more extensively studied—malignancies. Finally, we will offer a perspective on the future research direction of the PNET epigenome and its potential applications in patient care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paint removal is an essential process in the industrial field. Laser technology provides an effective method of paint removal to replace traditional mechanical and chemical methods. This paper establishes a continuous wave (CW) laser thermal paint removal model based on heat conduction theory and Arrhenius' law. The paint stripping process of epoxy paint film on the surface of 6061 aluminum alloy via CW laser was studied through simulation and experiment. We found that the carbonization of the paint film during the CW laser paint removal process will inhibit the laser paint removal process. Therefore, the paint removal efficiency of the CW laser is limited. The depth of CW laser paint removal increases linearly with the CW laser power density. However, during the CW laser paint removal process, due to the pyrolysis of the paint film and the reflection of the laser by the substrate, the surface temperature of the material first increases and then decreases. In addition, after laser paint removal, the surface roughness of the material after paint removal is reduced due to the melting of the base material. The model established in this article can provide a theoretical reference for studying the CW laser paint removal process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laser paint removal is a new cleaning technology that mainly removes paint through thermal ablation and mechanical stripping mechanisms. This paper established a thermal-mechanical coupling laser removal model of paint based on the heat conduction equation, Newton's second law, and Fabbro's theory. The removal process of epoxy resin paint film on an aluminum alloy surface via a nanosecond pulsed laser was studied using finite element simulations and experimental measurements. The simulation and experimental results show that the nanosecond pulse laser's primary paint removal mechanism is the mechanical stripping caused by thermal stress and plasma shock. The laser paint removal threshold is 1.4 J/cm2. In addition, due to the different generation times of plasma shock and thermal stress, the mutual superposition of stress waves occurs in the material. This results in a discrepancy between the actual and thermal stress differences. Moreover, the thermal stress difference causes the maximum actual stress difference to fluctuate. The simulation model established in this paper can provide a reference for studying the thermal-mechanical coupling process of laser paint removal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is primarily focused on the robust control of an inverted pendulum system based on policy iteration in reinforcement learning. First, a mathematical model of the single inverted pendulum system is established through a force analysis of the pendulum and trolley. Second, based on the theory of robust optimal control, the robust control of the uncertain linear inverted pendulum system is transformed into an optimal control problem with an appropriate performance index. Moreover, for the uncertain linear and nonlinear systems, two reinforcement-learning control algorithms are proposed using the policy iteration method. Finally, two numerical examples are provided to validate the reinforcement learning algorithms for the robust control of the inverted pendulum systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The FKBP (FK506-binding protein) gene family is an important member of the PPlase protease family and plays a vital role during the processes of plant growth and development. However, no studies of the FKBP gene family have been reported in cucumber. In this study, 19 FKBP genes were identified in cucumber, which were located on chromosomes 1, 3, 4, 6, and 7. Phylogenetic analysis divided the cucumber FKBP genes into three subgroups. The FKBP genes in the same subgroup exhibited similar structures and conserved motifs. The cis-acting elements analysis revealed that the promoters of cucumber FKBP genes contained hormone-, stress-, and development-related cis-acting elements. Synteny analysis of the FKBP genes among cucumber, Arabidopsis, and rice showed that 12 kinds of syntenic relationships were detected between cucumber and Arabidopsis FKBP genes, and 3 kinds of syntenic relationships were observed between cucumber and rice FKBP genes. The tissue-specific expression analysis showed that some FKBP genes were expressed in all tissues, while others were only highly expressed in part of the 10 types of tissues. The expression profile analysis of cucumber FKBP genes under 13 types of stresses showed that the CsaV3_1G007080 gene was differentially expressed under abiotic stresses (high temperature, NaCl, silicon, and photoperiod) and biotic stresses (downy mildew, green mottle mosaic virus, Fusarium wilt, phytophthora capsica, angular leaf spot, and root-knot nematode), which indicated that the CsaV3_1G007080 gene plays an important role in the growth and development of cucumber. The interaction protein analysis showed that most of the proteins in the FKBP gene family interacted with each other. The results of this study will lay the foundation for further research on the molecular biological functions of the cucumber FKBP gene family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industrial Internet of Things (IIoTs) has drawn significant attention in the industry. Among its rich applications, the field's video surveillance deserves particular interest due to its advantage in better understanding network control. However, existing decoding methods are limited by the video coding order, which cannot be decoded in parallel, resulting in low decoding efficiency and the inability to process the massive amount of video data in real time. In this work, a parallel decoding framework based on the speculative technique is proposed. In particular, the video is first speculatively decomposed into data blocks, and then a verification method is designed to ensure the correctness of the decomposition. After verification, the data blocks having passed the validation can be decoded concurrently in the parallel computing platform. Finally, the concurrent decoding results are concatenated in line with the original encoding order to form the output. Experiments show that compared with traditional serial decoding ones, the proposed method can improve the performance by 9 times on average in the parallel computing environment with NVIDIA Tegra 4 chips, thus significantly enhancing the real-time video data's decoding efficiency with guaranteed accuracy. Furthermore, proposed and traditional serial methods obtain almost the same peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) and mean square error (MSE) metrics at different bit rates and resolutions, showing that the introduction of the speculative technique does not degrade the decoding accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the current trend of power electronics in energy systems, a high percentage of renewable energy transports clean energy to the grid through grid-connected inverters. The pulse-width modulation (PWM) technique brings high-order harmonics near to the switching frequency, and LCL filters with low-pass characteristics become the common choice for grid-connected inverters. However, the low-order harmonics caused by nonideal switching characteristics are difficult to filter out, and the new resonance point introduced by the LCL filter causes a security problem for the energy systems. Firstly, the generation mechanism of the 6 k ± 1 order harmonic and high-frequency resonance from a PV grid-connected inverter is analyzed. Then, a virtual resistor is constructed by the active damping method to absorb the resonant component. Meanwhile, this paper also presents an adaptive modulation voltage compensation method to decrease the low-order harmonics. Finally, the actual measured data of user photovoltaic (PV) and multiple comparative simulations verify these theories. Simulation results show that the proposed coordinated control algorithm reduces the peak of the resonance point, and the rate of low-order harmonics mitigation is more than 50%. The proposed method is suitable for various operating conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging studies have presented an initial picture of the toxic effects of exposure to environmental micro- and nanoplastics. They have indicated that micro- and nanoplastics may induce toxicity by leading to oxidative stress, energy metabolism disorders, gene damage, and so forth in environmental organisms, marine invertebrates and vertebrates, and laboratory mouse models. In recent years, micro- and nanoplastics have been discovered in human fecal samples, placentas, lung tissue, and even blood; thus, micro- and nanoplastics pose an alarming and ever-increasing threat to global public health. However, current research on the health effects of micro- and nanoplastics and the possible adverse outcomes in humans has only presented the tip of the iceberg. More robust clinical data and basic experiments are still warranted to elucidate the specific relationships and mechanisms. In this paper, we review studies on micro- and nanoplastic toxicity from the perspectives of eco-toxicity, the adverse effects on invertebrates and vertebrates, and the impact of micro- and nanoplastics on the gut microbiota and its metabolites. In addition, we evaluate the toxicological role of micro- and nanoplastic exposure and its potential implications in respect to human health. We also summarize studies regarding preventive strategies. Overall, this review provides insights on micro- and nanoplastic toxicity and its underlying mechanisms, opening up scientific avenues for future in-depth studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visuospatial selective attention can focus attention on a certain spatial area and rationally allocate attentional resources during visual target perception. Previous studies investigated the behavioral advantages of subjects when the target appeared in the upper and lower visual fields. However, the neurophysiological characteristics of the brain are not clear, and there is a lack of comprehensive analysis of the external behavior and the internal neurophysiological characteristics. We designed two task paradigms containing a spatial location orientation task and a visual search task. We used event-related potentials (ERP) components (P1 and P2) and electroencephalogram (EEG) rhythms (theta and alpha) to analyze the attention level and allocation of attention resources of the brain. The results showed that when the target appeared in the lower visual field in the spatial location orientation task, subjects consumed fewer attention resources and demonstrated better behavioral performance. In the visual search task, when the target appeared in the upper left visual field, subjects could better mobilize attention resources and behaved more advantageously. The study provides a basis for the design of the target in the upper and lower visual fields in the rehabilitation task, especially for stroke patients with low attention levels due to attention disorders such as spatial attention deficit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel flexible thermocouple film sensor on a polyimide substrate is proposed that is simple and flexible for monitoring the respiratory signal. Several thermocouples were connected in series and patterned on the polyimide substrate, and each one is formed by copper and a constant line connected to each other at two nodes. The respiratory signal was measured by the output voltage, which resulted from the temperature difference between the hot and cold junctions. The sensors were fabricated with surface-microfabrication technology with three sputtering steps. The measurement results showed that the peak voltage decreased by 90% in the case of apnea compared with normal breathing. The sensor has potential application for wearable detection of sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fatigue is a common phenomenon in sports and affects sports performance. The production of fatigue during running increases the risk of sports-related injury. People with high physical demands, such as construction workers, soldiers and athletes, are often in a state of muscle fatigue, which may have an adverse effect on health and safety. It is necessary to take effective preventive measures when muscle fatigue occurs. In this paper, a wearable system for monitoring hip dynamics during human walking is proposed, and a machine learning method is used to evaluate fatigue level. The fatigue level of each subject was determined by monitoring the percentage of maximum oxygen uptake. Different percentages of oxygen uptake correspond to different exercise levels. The hip joint angle sensor used herein can sense real-time changes in the angle of the human hip joint, and the data can be used to objectively evaluate the fatigue level of the human body to reduce the risk of running-related overuse injuries. This system can be applied to a human exoskeleton device without increasing the burden on the wearer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fluorescence lifetime imaging (FLIM) is a powerful tool that provides unique quantitative information for biomedical research. In this study, we propose a multi-layer-perceptron-based mixer (MLP-Mixer) deep learning (DL) algorithm named FLIM-MLP-Mixer for fast and robust FLIM analysis. The FLIM-MLP-Mixer has a simple network architecture yet a powerful learning ability from data. Compared with the traditional fitting and previously reported DL methods, the FLIM-MLP-Mixer shows superior performance in terms of accuracy and calculation speed, which has been validated using both synthetic and experimental data. All results indicate that our proposed method is well suited for accurately estimating lifetime parameters from measured fluorescence histograms, and it has great potential in various real-time FLIM applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A recessive gene PmQ conferring powdery mildew resistance was previously localized on the long arm of chromosome 2B in winter wheat landrace Qingxinmai. Breeder-friendly molecular markers are necessary for introgressing this gene into adapted wheat backgrounds for developing disease-resistant wheat cultivars. Three Kompetitive allele-specific PCR (KASP) markers were developed and validated based on SNP variants detected by Bulked segregant analysis-RNA-Seq (BSR-Seq) analysis using a recombinant inbred population derived from cross Qingxinmai × 041133. Two polymorphic SSR markers were also developed from the motifs in the Chinese Spring reference genome sequences of the target genomic region. Those markers were incorporated into a more saturated genetic linkage map for PmQ. The two flanking markers, Xicsq405 and Xicsk18, are 1.1 and 0.9 cM from PmQ, respectively. The KASP marker Xicsk19 produced unique amplification pattern in 158 out of 160 wheat cultivars or breeding lines. This marker with the gene-linked SSR markers Xicsqc, Xicsqd and Xicsq405 provides an efficient means in molecular marker-assisted selection for PmQ in wheat breeding. The corresponding genomic region of PmQ in the Chinese Spring reference genome has a conserved synteny with the genomes of sequenced wheat cultivars and Triticum durum, T. diccocoides, T. uratu, and barley. The annotation of the two genes, TraesCS2B01G517400.1 and TraesCS2B01G517700.1, associated with plant defense against pathogens placed a start for cloning PmQ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance of a knowledge search for green innovation has been recognized, but our understanding of the influence of green search is still unclear. We used 198 Chinese manufacturing data to sort the influential mechanism of green search on green innovation based on resource-based theory, information processing theory, and transaction cost theory. We also explored the intermediate role of green control (i.e., output and behavior control) between the two dimensions of green search (i.e., search breadth and depth) and green innovation (i.e., exploratory and exploitative innovation). The results show that the diversified green information searched from outside must be controlled through the behavior process and results in improving the quality of existing green products and developing new green products. A continuous and deep search for green knowledge can achieve the results of green innovation by setting goals and monitoring processes. When Chinese manufacturing enterprises are searching for knowledge to produce green products, they must pay attention to the supervision and control of the knowledge integration process and results to ensure the effective utilization and transformation of knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel, operational, reliable, flexible gas sensor based on silk fibroin fibers (SFFs) as a substrate was proposed for detecting the freshness of pork. Silk is one of the earliest animal fibers utilized by humans, and SFFs exposed many biological micromolecules on the surface. Thus, the gas sensor was fabricated through polyaniline (PANI) and silver nanowires (AgNWs) and deposited on SFFs by in-suit polymerization. With trimethylamine (TMA) as a model gas, the sensing properties of the PANI/AgNWs/silk composites were examined at room temperature, and the linear correlativity was very prominent between these sensing measures and the TMA measures in the range of 3.33 μg/L–1200 μg/L. When the pork sample is detected by the sensor, it can be classified into fresh or stale pork with the total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) as an index. The result indicated that the gas sensor was effective and showed great potential for applications to detect the freshness of pork. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Functional fermented fruit drinks are known worldwide for their health-promoting potential. Black wolfberry (BW) has high nutritional value, and its relative product development can be enriched through fermentation technology, so that its market might be broadened. Total acid, sugars, proteins, enzymes, anthocyanins, flavonoids, polyphenols, organic acids and DPPH free radical scavenging ability (DPPH) were tracked and determined by colorimetric method and HPLC during spontaneous fermentation of BW vinegar. The antioxidant capacity in vitro of BW vinegar was evaluated based on the dynamics of antioxidant contents and DPPH. The results showed that total acid continuously increased during fermentation, yet total sugar and reducing sugar shared a similar decreasing trend. The composition of samples differed in terms of total anthocyanins, total flavonoid, total polyphenol, total protein, superoxide dismutase (SOD), amylase, organic acids and DPPH through spontaneous fermentation. Functional compounds including total polyphenol, total flavonoid and three organic acids (γ-aminobutyric acid, lactic acid and gallic acid) played the main roles in antioxidation. Unexpectedly, SOD and ascorbic acid as antioxidants did not correlate with DPPH, but they were rich in the final products at 754.35 U/mL and 3.39 mg/mL, respectively. Generally, the quality of BW vinegar has been improved based on analyzing dynamics on functional compounds, organic acids and antioxidant capacity, which proves that BW vinegar obtained by spontaneous fermentation should be a potential source of fermented food with antioxidant effects for consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, significant progress has been obtained in object detection using Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs). However, owing to the particularity of Remote Sensing Images (RSIs), common object detection methods are not well suited for RSIs. Aiming at the difficulties in RSIs, this paper proposes an object detection method based on the Dense Feature Fusion Path Aggregation Network (DFF-PANet). Firstly, for better improving the detection performance of small and medium-sized instances, we propose Feature Reuse Module (FRM), which can integrate semantic and location information contained in feature maps; this module can reuse feature maps in the backbone to enhance the detection capability of small and medium-sized instances. After that, we design the DFF-PANet, which can help feature information extracted from the backbone to be fused more efficiently, and thus cope with the problem of external interference factors. We performed experiments on the Dataset of Object deTection in Aerial images (DOTA) dataset and the HRSC2016 dataset; the accuracy reached 71.5% mAP, which exceeds most object detectors of one-stage and two-stages at present. Meanwhile, the size of our model is only 9.2 M, which satisfies the requirement of being lightweight. The experimental results demonstrate that our method not only has better detection accuracy but also maintains high efficiency in RSIs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: The controller of a three-phase grid-connected inverter is studied and improved, which provides support for the independent control of power and the design of the controller. Aiming at the problem of power coupling and complicated decoupling in the d-q coordinate system of a three-phase grid-connected inverter, a current closed-loop control strategy based on an improved QPIR (quasi-proportional integral resonant) controller in the α-β two-phase static coordinate system is proposed. Firstly, the mathematical model of an LCL three-phase grid-connected inverter is established, and its instantaneous power calculation equation is deduced. Secondly, the frequency method is applied to compare and analyze the proportional resonant, quasi-proportional resonant, and improved current controller, and the appropriate improved controller parameters are obtained according to the traditional proportional integral controller parameter design method and the weight coefficient. Finally, the improved controller is compared with the traditional controller in the simulation model of the LCL three-phase grid-connected inverter based on active damping. The results show that the proposed improved current control strategy has good dynamic response characteristics, can realize the non-static error control of grid-connected current, and realizes the decoupling control of active power and reactive power when the load jumps. At the same time, the results also prove the superiority of the proposed control strategy and verify its effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: The proposed approach may find potential applications in fast evaluation of the security level of power systems and identification of the most severe cases from the entire contingency list. As one important means of ensuring secure operation in a power system, the contingency selection and ranking methods need to be more rapid and accurate. A novel method-based least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (Lasso) algorithm is proposed in this paper to apply to online static security assessment (OSSA). The assessment is based on a security index, which is applied to select and screen contingencies. Firstly, the multi-step adaptive Lasso (MSA-Lasso) regression algorithm is introduced based on the regression algorithm, whose predictive performance has an advantage. Then, an OSSA module is proposed to evaluate and select contingencies in different load conditions. In addition, the Lasso algorithm is employed to predict the security index of each power system operation state with the consideration of bus voltages and power flows, according to Newton–Raphson load flow (NRLF) analysis in post-contingency states. Finally, the numerical results of applying the proposed approach to the IEEE 14-bus, 118-bus, and 300-bus test systems demonstrate the accuracy and rapidity of OSSA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ship targets in ORSIs (Optical Remote Sensing Images) have the characteristics of various scales, and most of them are medium and small-scale targets. When the existing target detection algorithms are applied to ship target detection in ORSIs, the detection accuracy is low. There are two main reasons for the above problems, one is the mismatch of the receptive fields, and the other is the lack of feature information. For resolving the problem that multi-scale ship targets are difficult to detect, this paper proposes a ship target detection algorithm based on feature enhancement. Firstly, EIRM (Elastic Inception Residual Module) is proposed for feature enhancement, which can capture feature information of different dimensions and provide receptive fields of different scales for mid- and low-level feature maps. Secondly, the SandGlass-L block is proposed by replacing the ReLu6 activation function of the SandGlass block with the Leaky ReLu activation function. Leaky ReLu solves the problem of 0 output when ReLu6 has negative input, so the SandGlass-L block can retain more feature information. Finally, based on SandGlass-L, SGLPANet (SandGlass-L Path Aggregation Network) is proposed to alleviate the problem of information loss caused by dimension transformation and retain more feature information. The backbone network of the algorithm in this paper is CSPDarknet53, and the SPP module and EIRM act after the backbone network. The neck network is SGLPANet. Experiments on the NWPU VHR-10 dataset show that the algorithm in this paper can well solve the problem of low detection accuracy caused by mismatched receptive fields and missing feature information. It not only improves the accuracy of ship target detection, but also achieves good results when extended to other categories. At the same time, the extended experiments on the LEVIR dataset show that the algorithm also has certain applicability on different datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, AlGaN-based deep-ultraviolet (DUV) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) with AlGaN as the dielectric layers in p+-Al0.55Ga0.45N/AlGaN/n+-Al0.55Ga0.45N polarization tunnel junctions (PTJs) were modeled to promote carrier tunneling, suppress current crowding, avoid optical absorption, and further enhance the performance of LEDs. AlGaN with different Al contents in PTJs were optimized by APSYS software to investigate the effect of a polarization-induced electric field (Ep) on hole tunneling in the PTJ. The results indicated that Al0.7Ga0.3N as a dielectric layer can realize a higher hole concentration and a higher radiative recombination rate in Multiple Quantum Wells (MQWs) than Al0.4Ga0.6N as the dielectric layer. In addition, Al0.7Ga0.3N as the dielectric layer has relatively high resistance, which can increase lateral current spreading and enhance the uniformity of the top emitting light of LEDs. However, the relatively high resistance of Al0.7Ga0.3N as the dielectric layer resulted in an increase in the forward voltage, so much higher biased voltage was required to enhance the hole tunneling efficiency of PTJ. Through the adoption of PTJs with Al0.7Ga0.3N as the dielectric layers, enhanced internal quantum efficiency (IQE) and optical output power will be possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Prostate Cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. In this study, we analyzed a molecule known as a microRNA, which regulates the expression of genes. microRNAs are involved in processes related to cancer onset and progression. Abnormal expression of microRNAs can promote prostate cancer. This study showed that knockdown of microRNA miR-214-3p enhanced the progression and of prostate cancer. In addition, miR-214 regulated the expression of many genes. These results are useful to better understand the function of miR-214-3p in prostate cancer and can be a useful target in the treatment of the disease. Abnormal expression of microRNA miR-214-3p (miR-214) is associated with multiple cancers. In this study, we assessed the effects of CRISPR/Cas9 mediated miR-214 depletion in prostate cancer (PCa) cells and the underlying mechanisms. Knockdown of miR-214 promoted PCa cell proliferation, invasion, migration, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), and increased resistance to anoikis, a key feature of PCa cells that undergo metastasis. The reintroduction of miR-214 in miR-214 knockdown cells reversed these effects and significantly suppressed cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. These in vitro studies are consistent with the role of miR-214 as a tumor suppressor. Moreover, miR-214 knockout increased tumor growth in PCa xenografts in nude mice supporting its anti-oncogenic role in PCa. Knockdown of miR-214 increased the expression of its target protein, Protein Tyrosine Kinase 6 (PTK6), a kinase shown to promote oncogenic signaling and tumorigenesis in PCa. In addition, miR-214 modulated EMT as exhibited by differential regulation of E-Cadherin, N-Cadherin, and Vimentin both in vitro and in vivo. RNA-seq analysis of miR-214 knockdown cells revealed altered gene expression related to PCa tumor growth pathways, including EMT and metastasis. Collectively, our findings reveal that miR-214 is a key regulator of PCa oncogenesis and is a potential novel therapeutic target for the treatment of the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the violation and fluctuation of system voltage has occurred with greater frequency with the integration of high-penetration distributed photovoltaic generation. In this paper, the voltage violation and fluctuation in a high-penetration distributed photovoltaic integrated system is analyzed, and then a corresponding suppression strategy is proposed. Firstly, based on solar cell and photovoltaic control system models, the influence factors of photovoltaic output are analyzed. Secondly, the voltage violation and fluctuation caused by photovoltaic integration is analyzed, and the quadratic parabola relationship between bus voltage fluctuation and photovoltaic power variation is constructed. Next, according to the virtual synchronous generator characteristic of distributed photovoltaics, a double-hierarchical suppression strategy is proposed to make full use of reactive power regulation capability, which can maintain the symmetry of power supply while meeting standard requirements. The proposed strategy can conveniently realize quick response and support the photovoltaic extensive access. Moreover, with the employment of the proposal, the system voltage violation and fluctuation can be suppressed effectively. Finally, considering the photovoltaic access location, capacity, and partial shading, the effectiveness of the proposed strategy is verified in IEEE 33-bus distribution system with field measured data. After distributed photovoltaic accesses the system, more than 60% of buses appear to have undergone bus voltage violation. With the proposed method, more than 20% of the voltage deviation and more than 6% of the voltage fluctuation are effectively suppressed so that the system voltage can be kept below 1.07 p.u. and the voltage fluctuation can be kept within 4%, meeting the requirements of power quality standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The high recombination rate of the electron-hole pair on the surface of rutile TiO2 (RT) reduces its photocatalytic performance, although it has high thermodynamic stability and few internal grain defects. Therefore, it is necessary for RT to develop effective methods to reduce electron-hole pair recombination. In this study, magnetic α-Fe2O3/Rutile TiO2 self-assembled hollow spheres were fabricated via a facile hydrothermal reaction and template-free method. Based on the experimental result, phosphate concentration was found to play a crucial role in controlling the shape of these hollow α-Fe2O3/RT nanospheres, and the optimal concentration is 0.025 mM. Due to a heterojunction between α-Fe2O3 and RT, the electron-hole pair recombination rate was reduced, the as-synthesized hollow α-Fe2O3/RT nanospheres exhibited excellent photocatalysis in rhodamine B (RhB) photodegradation compared to α-Fe2O3 and RT under visible-light irradiation, and the degradation rate was about 16% (RT), 60% (α-Fe2O3), and 93% (α-Fe2O3/RT) after 100 min. Moreover, α-Fe2O3/RT showed paramagnetism and can be recycled to avoid secondary environmental pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Real-time online simulation based on a real-time workshop (RTW) plays a vital role in the study and application of power electronics. However, restricted by the performance of equipment and hardware, the simulators so far available in the market mainly support simulation steps over 50 μs, while large step simulation may result in the action delay of pulse-width modulating (PWM), numerical oscillation and high-level non-characteristic harmonic distortion. In view of these problems, this paper puts forward a modeling method based on integral prediction and interpolation compensation. First of all, prediction is performed one step in advance by the implicit trapezoidal method to find out the accurate time when the triangle carrier wave intersects with the modulation wave. At the same time, a mathematic model is built for the insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) to output equivalent voltage waveform according to the principle of area equivalent. Next, in MATLAB/Simulink, offline simulation is performed with the three-phase AC-DC-AC converter as the subject. By comparing the control accuracy, the content of harmonic wave and the simulation time, the simulation effects of the 50 μs fixed-step interpolation prediction model are the same as that for a 5 μs fixed-step standard model. Finally, the effectiveness and high efficiency of this algorithm are verified on a real-time simulator, marking the application of offline models on real-time simulators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The gene Pm61 that confers powdery mildew resistance has been previously identified on chromosome arm 4AL in Chinese wheat landrace Xuxusanyuehuang (XXSYH). To facilitate the use of Pm61 in breeding practices, the bulked segregant analysis-RNA-Seq (BSR-Seq) analysis, in combination with the information on the Chinese Spring reference genome sequence, was performed in the F2:3 mapping population of XXSYH × Zhongzuo 9504. Two single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), two Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR (KASP), and six simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers, together with previously identified polymorphic markers, saturated the genetic linkage map for Pm61, especially in the proximal side of the target gene that was short of gene-linked markers. In the newly established genetic linkage map, Pm61 was located in a 0.71 cM genetic interval and can be detected in a high throughput scale by the KASP markers Xicsk8 and Xicsk13 or by the standard PCR-based markers Xicscx497 and Xicsx538. The newly saturated genetic linkage map will be useful in molecular marker assisted-selection of Pm61 in breeding for disease resistant cultivar and in its map-based cloning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To coordinate the economy, security and environment protection in the power system operation, a two-step many-objective optimal power flow (MaOPF) solution method is proposed. In step 1, it is the first time that knee point-driven evolutionary algorithm (KnEA) is introduced to address the MaOPF problem, and thereby the Pareto-optimal solutions can be obtained. In step 2, an integrated decision analysis technique is utilized to provide decision makers with decision supports by combining fuzzy c-means (FCM) clustering and grey relational projection (GRP) method together. In this way, the best compromise solutions (BCSs) that represent decision makers' different, even conflicting, preferences can be automatically determined from the set of Pareto-optimal solutions. The primary contribution of the proposal is the innovative application of many-objective optimization together with decision analysis for addressing MaOPF problems. Through examining the two-step method via the IEEE 118-bus system and the real-world Hebei provincial power system, it is verified that our approach is suitable for addressing the MaOPF problem of power systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulsed eddy current (PEC) technology is another important non-contact nondestructive testing technology for defect detection. However, the temperature drift of the exciting coil has a considerable influence on the precision of PEC testing. The objective of this study is to investigate the temperature drift effect and reduce its impact. The temperature drift effect is analyzed theoretically and experimentally. The temperature drift effect on the peak-to-peak values of the output signal is investigated, and a temperature compensation method is proposed to reduce the effect of temperature variation. The results show that temperature drift has a negative impact on PEC testing and the temperature compensation method can effectively reduce the effect of temperature drift. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fermentation products of Cordyceps sinensis ( C. sinensis ) mycelia are sustainable substitutes for natural C. sinensis . However, the volatile compositions of the commercial products are still unclear. In this paper, we have developed a simultaneous distillation-extraction (SDE) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method for the profiling of volatile components in five fermentation products. A total of 64, 39, 56, 52, and 44 components were identified in the essential oils of Jinshuibao capsule (JSBC), Bailing capsule (BLC), Zhiling capsule (ZLC), Ningxinbao capsule (NXBC), and Xinganbao capsule (XGBC), respectively. 5,6-Dihydro-6-pentyl-2H-pyran-2-one (massoia lactone) was first discovered as the dominant component in JSBC volatiles. Fatty acids including palmitic acid (C16:0) and linoleic acid (C18:2) were also found to be major volatile compositions of the fermentation products. The multivariate partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) showed a clear discrimination among the different commercial products as well as the counterfeits. This study may provide further chemical evidences for the quality evaluation of the fermentation products of C. sinensis mycelia., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Characterizing a surface defect is very crucial in non-destructive testing (NDT). We employ an electromagnetic acoustic transducer (EMAT) to detect the surface defect of a nonmagnetic material. An appropriate feature that can avoid the interference of the human factor is vital for evaluating the crack quantitatively. Moreover, it can also reduce the influence of other factors, such as the lift-off, during the testing. In this paper, we conduct experiments at various depths of surface cracks in an aluminum plate, and a new feature, lift-off slope (LOS), is put forward for the theoretical and experimental analyses of the lift-off effect on the receiving signals. Besides, by changing the lift-off between the receiving probe and the sample for testing, a new method is adopted to evaluate surface defects with the EMAT. Compared with other features, the theoretical and experimental results show that the feature lift-off slope has many advantages prior to the other features for evaluating the surface defect with the EMAT. This can reduce the lift-off effect of one probe. Meanwhile, it is not essential to measure the signal without defects.

The electromagnetic acoustic transducer (EMAT), a non-contact NDT tool with large lift-off, is becoming an attractive method for detecting the cracks in the metal parts. However, the lift-off of the transducer has a direct effect on the feature that is used to characterize the defects. A detailed investigation on the relationship between the feature and the lift-off of the EMAT is crucial in the detection process. This paper investigates the lift-off effect on the feature, cut-off frequency of EMAT in the Rayleigh wave. The study can be divided into two parts. Firstly, with a multi-field coupling environment, 2-D electromagnetic and wave generation EMAT models are built to simulate the interaction of the Rayleigh wave with the surface crack. Then, the lift-off effect on the cut-off frequency is investigated through simulation and experiment. Compared to the previous studies, it is found that lift-off would cause a negative result when the lift-off varies in the testing process. Besides, the calibration obtained from the tests at a random lift-off value can be used in other tests with any different lift off value provided that the lift-off is kept as a constant during the detection process.