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Disuse-induced muscular atrophy is frequently accompanied by iron overload. Hibernating animals are a natural animal model for resistance to disuse muscle atrophy. In this paper, we explored changes in skeletal muscle iron content of Daurian ground squirrels (Spermophilus dauricus) during different periods of hibernation as well as the regulatory mechanisms involved. The results revealed that compared with the summer active group (SA), iron content in the soleus muscle (SOL) decreased (− 65%) in the torpor group (TOR), but returned to normal levels in the inter-bout arousal (IBA); splenic iron content increased in the TOR group (vs. SA, + 67%), decreased in the IBA group (vs. TOR, − 37%). Expression of serum hepcidin decreased in the TOR group (vs. SA, − 22%) and returned to normal levels in the IBA groups; serum ferritin increased in the TOR group (vs. SA, + 31%), then recovered in the IBA groups. Soleus muscle transferrin receptor 1 (TfR1) expression increased in the TOR group (vs. SA, + 83%), decreased in the IBA group (vs. TOR, − 30%); ferroportin 1 increased in the IBA group (vs. SA, + 55%); ferritin increased in the IBA group (vs. SA, + 42%). No significant differences in extensor digitorum longus in iron content or iron metabolism-related protein expression were observed among the groups. Significantly, all increased or decreased indicators in this study returned to normal levels after the post-hibernation group, showing remarkable plasticity. In summary, avoiding iron overload may be a potential mechanism for hibernating Daurian ground squirrels to avoid disuse induced muscular atrophy. In addition, the different skeletal muscle types exhibited unique strategies for regulating iron homeostasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human umbilical cord-mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) have been widely investigated as a new therapeutic agent to treat injuries and inflammatory-mediated and autoimmune diseases. Previous studies have reported on the safety of low-dose infusion of hUC-MSCs, but information on the cell behaviour at higher doses and frequency of injection of the cells remains uncertain. The aim of the present study was to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of hUC-MSCs by Cytopeutics® (Selangor, Malaysia) from low to an extremely high dose in different monitoring periods in healthy BALB/c mice as well as assessing the tumorigenicity of the cells in B-NDG SCID immunocompromised mice. Umbilical cord from two healthy human newborns was obtained and the isolation of the hUC-MSCs was performed based on previous established method. Assessment of the cells at different doses of single or multiple administrations was performed on healthy BALB/c mice in dose range finding, sub-acute (7 d and 28 d) and sub-chronic periods (90 d). Tumorigenicity potential of Cytopeutics® hUC-MSCs was also evaluated on B-NDG immunocompromised mice for 26 wk. Single or multiple administrations of Cytopeutics® hUC-MSCs up to 40 × 106 cells per kilogramme of body weight (kg BW) were found to have no adverse effect in terms of clinical symptoms, haematology and other laboratory parameters, and histology examination in healthy BALB/c mice. hUC-MSCs were also found to reduce pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6 and TNF-α) in a dose-dependent manner. No sign of tumor formation was observed in B-NDG mice in the 26-wk tumorigenicity assessment. Single or multiple administration of allogenic Cytopeutics® hUC-MSCs was safe even at very high doses, is non-tumorigenic and did not cause adverse effects in mice throughout the evaluation periods. In addition, Cytopeutics® hUC-MSCs exhibited immunomodulatory effect in a dose-dependent manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wireless and battery-free radio-frequency (RF) sensors can be used to create physical spaces that ambiently sense and respond to human activities. Making such sensors ultra-flexible and transparent is important to preserve the aesthetics of living environments, accommodate daily activities, and functionally integrate with objects. However, existing RF sensors are unable to simultaneously achieve high transparency, flexibility, and the electrical conductivity required for remote room-scale operation. Here, we report 4.5 µm RF tag sensors achieving transparency exceeding 90% that provide capabilities in room-scale ambient wireless sensing. We develop a laser-assisted water-based adhesion-reversion process to digitally realize computer-aided RF design at scale. By individually tagging multiple objects and regions of the human body, we demonstrate multiplexed wireless tracking of human-environment interactions and physiological signals at a range of up to 8 m. These radio-frequency identification sensors open opportunities for non-intrusive wireless sensing of daily living spaces for applications in health monitoring and elderly care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to govern particle assembly in an evaporative-driven additive manufacturing (AM) can realize multi-scale features fundamental to creating printed electronics. However, existing techniques remain challenging and often require templates or contaminating solutes. We explore the control of particle deposition in 3D-printed colloids by diffusiophoresis, a previously unexplored mechanism in multi-scale AM. Diffusiophoresis can introduce spontaneous phoretic particle motion by establishing local solute concentration gradients. We show that diffusiophoresis can play a dominant role in complex evaporative-driven particle assembly, enabling a fundamentally new and versatile control of particle deposition in a multi-scale AM process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Submerged macrophytes play an important role in structuring biological communities. Aquatic fungi are an important component of aquatic ecosystems. However, little is known about the effects of submerged macrophytes on fungal communities. In this study, we take an integrative approach to ascertain the influence of Potamogeton lucens L. on the structure, and function of the fungal communities from different areas (with/without P. lucens L.) of two sample types (water/sediment) using Illumina MiSeq metabarcoding and qPCR. Fungal alpha diversity in area cultivated with P. lucens L. was higher than in those without P. lucens L., but the opposite trend was found in the sediment samples. The copy number of the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region in the sediment samples was higher in area with than without P. lucens L. We found 15 and 3 significantly different genera in the sediment and water samples, respectively. At the operational taxonomic unit (OTU) level, the fungal communities were found to be clustered according to area (with/without P. lucens L) and source (water/sediment). Total phosphorus, alkali-hydrolyzable nitrogen, and NO2− contents influenced the fungal community in the PL water samples. It was positively correlated with alkali-hydrolyzable nitrogen, content in the P. lucens L sediments samples. For the water samples, plant pathogens were significantly higher in P. lucens L area, while wood saprotrophs, plant pathogenic on pollen, fungal parasites, dung saprotroph, and animal pathogens were significantly higher in P. lucens L area. Our study confirmed that submerged macrophytes changed the fungal community composition in both sediment and water, demonstrating that submerged macrophytes affect the transportation and cycling of nutrients related to fungi in lake ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 3D printer uses machine vision to solve a problem that has plagued 3D inkjet printers, increasing the range of materials that can be used, and enabling the rapid production of complex objects such as a robot hand.Automatic correction of errors in printed surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excessive nitrogen (N) input is an important factor influencing aquatic ecosystems and has received increasing public attention in the past decades. It remains unclear how N input affects the denitrifying bacterial communities that play a key role in regulating N cycles in various ecosystems. To test our hypothesis—that the abundance and biodiversity of denitrifying bacterial communities decrease with increasing N—we compared the abundance and composition of denitrifying bacteria having nitrous oxide reductase gene (nosZ I) from sediments (0–20 cm) in five experimental ponds with different nitrogen fertilization treatment (TN10, TN20, TN30, TN40, TN50) using quantitative PCR and pyrosequencing techniques. We found that (1) N addition significantly decreased nosZ I gene abundance, (2) the Invsimpson and Shannon indices (reflecting biodiversity) first increased significantly along with the increasing N loading in TN10–TN40 followed by a decrease in TN50, (3) the beta diversity of the nosZ I denitrifier was clustered into three groups along the TN concentration levels: Cluster I (TN50), Cluster II (TN40), and Cluster III (TN10–TN30), (4) the proportions of Alphaproteobacteria and Betaproteobacteria in the high-N treatment (TN50) were significantly lower than in the lower N treatments (TN10–TN30). (5) The TN concentration was the most important factor driving the alteration of denitrifying bacteria assemblages. Our findings shed new light on the response of denitrification-related bacteria to long-term N loading at pond scale and on the response of denitrifying microorganisms to N pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Submerged macrophytes and microbial communities are important parts of lake ecosystems. In this study, the bacterial community composition in rhizosphere sediments and water from areas cultivated with (PL) and without (CK) shining pondweed (Potamogeton lucens Linn.) was investigated to determine the effects of P. lucens Linn. on the structure of the bacterial communities in Nansi Lake, China. Molecular techniques, including Illumina MiSeq and qPCR targeting of the 16S rRNA gene, were used to analyze the composition and abundance of the bacterial community. We found that bacterial alpha diversity was higher in PL water than in CK water, and the opposite trend was observed in sediment. In addition, 16S rRNA gene copy number in sediment was lower in PL than in CK. We found 30 (e.g., Desulfatiglans) and 29 (e.g., Limnohabitans) significantly different genera in sediment and water, respectively. P. lucens Linn. can change chemical properties in sediment and water and thereby affect the bacterial community. At the genus level, members of bacterial community clustered according to source (water/sediment) and area (PL/CK). Our study demonstrated that submerged macrophytes can affect the bacterial community composition in both sediment and water, suggesting that submerged macrophytes affect the transportation and cycling of nutrients in lake ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electronic textiles capable of sensing, powering, and communication can be used to non-intrusively monitor human health during daily life. However, achieving these functionalities with clothing is challenging because of limitations in the electronic performance, flexibility and robustness of the underlying materials, which must endure repeated mechanical, thermal and chemical stresses during daily use. Here, we demonstrate electronic textile systems with functionalities in near-field powering and communication created by digital embroidery of liquid metal fibers. Owing to the unique electrical and mechanical properties of the liquid metal fibers, these electronic textiles can conform to body surfaces and establish robust wireless connectivity with nearby wearable or implantable devices, even during strenuous exercise. By transferring optimized electromagnetic patterns onto clothing in this way, we demonstrate a washable electronic shirt that can be wirelessly powered by a smartphone and continuously monitor axillary temperature without interfering with daily activities. Electronic textiles should maintain performance against repeated mechanical, thermal and chemical stresses during daily activities. Here, authors demonstrate digital embroidery of robust liquid metal-based fibres with wireless functionalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A surface protein-imprinted biosensor was constructed on a screen-printed carbon electrode (SPCE) for the detection of anti-human immunoglobulin G (anti-IgG). The SPCE was successively decorated with aminated graphene (NH2-G) and gold nanobipyramids (AuNBs) for signal amplification. Then 4-mercaptophenylboric acid (4-MPBA) was covalently anchored to the surface of AuNBs for capturing anti-IgG template through boronate affinity binding. The decorated SPCE was then deposited with an imprinting layer generated by the electropolymerization of pyrrole. After removal of the anti-IgG template by the dissociation of the boronate ester in an acidic solution, three-dimensional (3D) cavities complementary to the anti-IgG template were formed in the imprinting layer of polypyrrole (PPy). The molecularly imprinted polymers (MIP)-based biosensor was used for the detection of anti-IgG, exhibiting a wide linear range from 0.05 to 100 ng mL−1 and a low limit of detection of 0.017 ng mL−1 (S/N = 3). In addition, the MIP-based anti-IgG biosensor also shows high selectivity, reproducibility and stability. Finally, the practicability of the fabricated anti-IgG biosensor was demonstrated by accurate determination of anti-IgG in serum sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fertilizer-induced changes in soil nutrients regulate nitrogen (N) fixation in the terrestrial biosphere, but the influences of N and phosphorus (P) fertilization on the diazotroph communities in successive crop seasons were unclear. In this study, we assessed the effects of N and P (high vs. low doses) on the abundance and structure of N2-fixation communities after wheat and soybean harvest in a long-term (34 and 35 years) fertilization experiment. In both seasons, long-term N addition significantly decreased the abundance of nifH genes and 16S rDNA; in addition, high doses of N and P fertilizer decreased the richness of diazotrophs, whereas low doses did not. The proportion of the dominant genus, Bradyrhizobium, in the soybean season (86.0%) was higher than that in the wheat season (47.9%). Fertilization decreased diazotroph diversity and the relative abundance of Bradyrhizobium in the wheat season, but had insignificant effects in the soybean season. The addition of N, but not P, significantly changed the communities of both diazotrophs (at the genus level) and rhizobia (at the species level) in the two seasons. Soil pH was positively associated with nifH abundance and diazotrophic richness; soil NO3− content was negatively correlated with diazotrophic richness and positively correlated with diversity. Soil pH and NO3− content were the two main drivers shaping the soil diazotrophic community. Overall, long-term inorganic N had a greater influence than P on both diazotrophic abundance and community composition, and diazotrophic diversity was more clearly affected by fertilization in the wheat season than in the soybean season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cellulose aerogel (CA) was fabricated by a phase inversion induced sol-gel process along with supercritical drying. An amine grafted cellulose aerogel (AGCA) was prepared by grafting 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) onto the framework of the cellulose gel. The morphology, microstructure, pore structure and elemental composition of the CA and AGCA were characterized. Both CA and AGCA exhibited highly porous network consisting of fibrous network and nanopores. APTES grafting leaded to the blockage of the pore space of the CA and generated more nanopores. The specific surface area and pore volume of the AGCA is higher than those of the CA owing to the APTES grafting. The AGCA achieved a CO2 adsorption capacity of 1.20 mmol/g with dry 1% CO2, and exhibited excellent stability within 20 adsorption-desorption cycles [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A ZnMn2O4 catalyst has been synthesized via a sucrose-aided combustion method and characterized by various analytical techniques. It is composed of numerous nanoparticles (15–110 nm) assembled into a porous structure with a specific surface area (SSA) of 19.1 m2·g−1. Its catalytic activity has been investigated for the degradation of orange II dye using three different systems, i.e., the photocatalysis system with visible light, the chemocatalysis system with bisulfite, and the photochemical catalysis system with both visible light and bisulfite. The last system exhibits the maximum degradation efficiency of 90%, much higher than the photocatalysis system (15%) and the chemocatalysis system (67%). The recycling experiments indicate that the ZnMn2O4 catalyst has high stability and reusability and is thus a green and eximious catalyst. Furthermore, the potential degradation mechanisms applicable to the three systems are discussed with relevant theoretical analysis and scavenging experiments for radicals. The active species such as Mn(III), O2•−, h+, eaq−, SO4•− and HO• are proposed to be responsible for the excellent degradation results in the photo-chemical catalysis system with the ZnMn2O4 catalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrophobic silica aerogel (HSA) was synthesized by a facile sol–gel method and ambient pressure drying with methyltrimethoxysilane as precursor. The effect of precursor concentration on the sol–gel behavior, structure, and thermal conductivity of HSA was investigated. HSA with apparent density of 0.088 g/cm3 showed a thermal conductivity of 0.018 W/(m·K), a specific surface area of 502 m2/g and a pore volume of 1.66 cm3/g. The hydrophobic groups in HSA had a good thermal stability up to 450 °C. Polypropylene felt was used to synthesize hydrophobic silica aerogel composite (HSAC). The effect of sol loading on the structure and thermal conductivity of HSAC was investigated. HSAC with equivalent sol loading exhibited a low shrinkage of 2.5% and a low thermal conductivity of 0.020 W/(m·K). Finally, the preparation method of the HSA is facile and environmentally friendly, and the resulting composite is a promising candidate for thermal insulation under humid environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Runs statistics have found many applications in various fields and have attracted attentions of many researchers. Traditional methods used to investigate run-related distributions are ad hoc and not easy to generalize. The problems often become tedious because of the combinatorial complexity involved. Several unified methods have been devised to overcome the combinatorial difficulties. One of them is the finite Markov chain imbedding approach. Recently we used a different systematic approach that is inspired by methods in statistical physics. In this approach the study of runs distributions is decoupled into two easy independent steps. In the first step, elements of each of the same object are considered in isolation without regards of elements of the other objects. By considering only one kind of object each time the complexity involved is reduced considerably. In the second step, general formulas in matrix or explicit forms combine the results from the first step into a whole multi-object system with potential nearest neighbor interactions. The method reduces the complicated combinatorics to simple mechanical manipulations of binomial and multinomial coefficients, which can be carried out automatically by the Gosper-Zeilberger method. Many commonly studied run and pattern distributions, such as exact length runs, runs of Type I, II, III, the longest runs, rises and falls, among others, can be handled by the method. Novel run-related distributions have been derived using the method. We'll discuss the general framework of the method and use some examples to illustrate its application to distributions of runs, including the derivation of the m th longest runs distributions of multivariate random sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Allergic rhinitis (AR) has been reported to be associated with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of AR on nasal mucosa remodeling in CRS.Methods: Patients were enrolled and divided into the following groups: CRS with nasal polyps (NP) with allergic rhinitis (AR)(CRSwNPwAR; n = 20), CRS with NP without AR (CRSwNPsAR; n = 20), CRS without NP with AR (CRSsNPwAR; n = 20), CRS without NP without AR (CRSsNPsAR; n = 20), AR without CRS (AR; n = 20) and controls (n = 14). Eosinophil infiltration, mucus production, and collagen deposition were examined by hematoxylin and eosin, periodic acid schiff and masson's trichrome staining, respectively. VEGF-A and microvessel density were detected by immunohistochemistry. The expression of remodeling markers, including TGF-β1, MMP-7, MMP-9 and TIMP-1 were measured by Western blot.Results: The expression of remodeling factors, including VEGF-A, CD31, CD34 and TIMP-1 were significantly increased in CRSwAR compared to CRSsAR. Goblet cell hyperplasia, as well as VEGF-A, CD31, CD34, and MMP-9 expression were significantly higher in CRSwNPwAR compared to CRSwNPsAR. However, the expression of collagen fibers, MMP-7 and TGF-β1 were significantly higher in CRSsNPwAR compared to CRSsNPsAR.Conclusions: AR could enhance the remodeling process in CRS. Moreover, AR had different effects on CRSwNP and CRSsNP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrochemical polymerization of alizarin on glassy carbon electrode (GCE) was carried out in acidic solution by cyclic voltammetry (CV), and the polymerization process was monitored by electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance (EQCM). A possible mechanism concerning the polymerization of alizarin was also proposed in this work. The as-synthesized poly(alizarin) was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The study on electrode reaction process shows that the electrode reaction of poly(alizarin) is controlled by diffusion. Finally, the activation energy (Ea) of the electrode reactions of poly(alizarin) was obtained according to the temperature dependence of the redox peak currents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Firstly, based on the elasto-optical effect of quartz crystal, the formula of the transmissivity for the quartz birefringent optical filter (QBOF) applied with the mechanical-stress is derived and analyzed by numerical simulation, which shows that when the stress is applied on the surface of the quartz crystal vertically or parallel to its optical axis, the phase retardation of the quartz crystal will change accordingly, then the output optical spectrum of QBOF applied with stress is measured by Ultra-6600 spectrophotometer, the related experimental results are agreed with the simulation results very well, which show that when the stress is applied on the surface of the quartz crystal, the central wavelength will shift the longer or shorter wavelength according to the direction and the value of the applied stress. At last, a new type of the stress compensation QBOF is proposed, it can offset the change of phase retardation of the quartz crystal caused by the variation of temperature, which will has a certain application for the stable output of optical filter when the environment temperature changes as we believe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amine hybrid titania/silsesquioxane composite aerogel (AHTSA) was prepared by an one-pot sol-gel process without any catalyst. The sol-gel reaction mechanism of AHTSA was proposed. The use of 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) plays as an 'internal catalyst' and promotes the formation of gel during sol-gel process. The morphology, microstructure, pore structure and CO capture performances of AHTSA were investigated. AHTSA exhibits microstructure of the typical silica aerogels with colloidal structure. Moreover, AHTSA has a large number of macropores which favor the CO adsorption. Thermogravimetric analysis reveals that AHTSA has a high CO/N selectivity in CO/N mixture gas. CO adsorption capacity with dry and humid 1 vol% CO is as high as 4.19 and 5.04 mmol/g, respectively. Correspondingly, amine efficiency under dry and humid conditions is 0.37 and 0.44, respectively. AHTSA has very short adsorption halftime below 4 min, and its CO adsorption capacity do not show obvious attenuation after 30 adsorption-regeneration cycles, indicating AHTSA is a dynamic and regenerable sorbent. Graphical abstract: [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) was first proposed for the pioneer application of anticorrosion coatings. Original g-CN was facilely treated using HNO and the exfoliated g-CN sheets (E-g-CN) were fabricated, and then, polyaniline/E-g-CN composites (PANI/E-g-CN) as novel anticorrosive media were synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization and devoted to the corrosion protection of coatings. The E-g-CN sheets and PANI/E-g-CN composites were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared, thermogravimetric analysis, and transmission electron microscopy. The anticorrosion properties of the samples prepared were investigated by electrochemical measurements including Tafel plots, electrochemical impedance spectra, and open-circuit potential. Accelerated corrosion tests of iron panels coated by PANI/E-g-CN were performed in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution. Anticorrosive mechanism of PANI/E-g-CN was discussed in detail. PANI/E-g-CN-3 fillers possessed superior corrosion inhibition than individual components on iron coatings, which was due to the synergetic effect of anticorrosion between E-g-CN and PANI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The distributions of the mth longest runs of multivariate random sequences are considered. For random sequences made up of k kinds of letters, the lengths of the runs are sorted in two ways to give two definitions of run length ordering. In one definition, the lengths of the runs are sorted separately for each letter type. In the second definition, the lengths of all the runs are sorted together. Exact formulas are developed for the distributions of the mth longest runs for both definitions. The derivations are based on a two-step method that is applicable to various other runs-related distributions, such as joint distributions of several letter types and multiple run lengths of a single letter type. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

N-doped graphene has been extensively explored because of their intriguing properties. However, most of the conventional heat-processed N-doped graphene (HNG) suffer from the poor hydrophilic property and low electric conductivity when using electrode materials. Herein, we present a facile solution-processed strategy to fabricate N-doped graphene through electrochemical exfoliation of graphite in inorganic electrolyte solution. The resulting electrochemically exfoliated N-doped graphene (ENG) has high level of nitrogen (7.9 at.%) and oxygen (16.5 at.%), moreover, excellent electric conductivity (19 s cm). As a binder-free electrode material for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), ENG exhibits much better electroactivity than HNG and electrochemically exfoliated graphene (EG), moreover, much better methanol tolerance and long-term durability than that commercial Pt/C catalyst. The results provide new sights into scalable production of noble metal-free catalyst towards ORR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Distributions of runs of length at least k ( Type II runs) and overlapping runs of length k ( Type III runs) are derived in a unified way using a new generating function approach. A new and more compact formula is obtained for the probability mass function of the Type III runs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study how to manipulate by the $$\updelta $$ -doping a giant magnetoresistance (GMR) device, which can be realized experimentally by depositing two parallel ferromagnetic stripes on top and bottom of the semiconductor $$\hbox {GaAs/Al}_{x}\hbox {Ga}_{1-x}\mathrm{As}$$ heterostructure. We demonstrate an obvious GMR effect in the device with a $$\updelta $$ -doping. We also reveal that the magnetoresistance ratio depends not only on the weight but also on the position of the $$\updelta $$ -doping. These interesting results will be helpful for designing controllable GMR devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chitosan-stabilised metallic Pd (CTS-Pd) and Pt (CTS-Pt) nanoparticles were synthesised and used for the hydrogenation of palm oil. With the goal of preparing hydrogenated oil with low trans fatty acid (TFA) content under ambient conditions, Fe anion was added as the secondary metallic precursor to synthesise chitosan-stabilised bimetallic Pd-Fe (CTS-Pd-Fe) and Pt-Fe (CTS-Pt-Fe) nanoparticles. The catalytic hydrogenations with newly prepared nanoparticles were performed in aqueous solution under ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure. The addition of Fe was found to improve the catalytic activity and decrease the selectivity for TFA. Hydrogenation with CTS-Pt-Fe affords the optimal results, producing 3.8% TFA at 92.1% conversion of C and no TFA was formed until the content of C was lower than 1.7%. Based on the analyses, it can be demonstrated that the preferential conversion of C to cis C and cis C to C leads to the low formation of TFA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a case study of passive seismic velocity tomography in rock burst hazard during coal entry excavation. Key highlights of the study include the detection of rock burst hazard through passive seismic velocity tomography, risk assessment of rock bursts, and installation of microseismic (MS) monitoring system in mines.

In longwall mining, one of the factors most influencing safety in underground coal mining is the stress change, especially when such work is carried out within the thickness variation of a coal seam. This paper analyses the special case of a coal seam which suffers significant overstress as a result of variations in the geometry and dimension of the load itself, in particular, thinning. This is because such thickening and thinning locations of the thickness are generally areas where rock bursts occur most frequently. The results of the research were validated by measuring the stress state in the area under study. A numerical model was established using FLAC to understand the results of the field tests and map the zones in the model with a high risk of rock burst. The results of field tests, and the numerical modelling, show that thinning accentuates the stress concentration and energy accumulation. Furthermore, on the basis of a retrospective analysis of what was observed in a coal mine, some preventative measures were instigated as rock burst controls. Also, it was found that rock burst occurrence can be effectively reduced by the use of large-diameter drilling and break-tip blasting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the voussoir Beam Structure based mechanical analysis of the fault-pillars of rock experiencing static stress. Topics include background description of the voussoir beam analogue, considering an usual fault-pillar for the analysis, and process required to use equations for solving related problems.

The article discusses the staggered roadway layout for controlling gob-side rock bursts (GRB) at the Yuejin coal mine (YCM) in Yima City, China. The static stress joined with dynamic stress in coal seams in mines will result into a rock bursts. An appendix for the roadway stagger layout method which aims to raise coal recovery in caving mining is also presented.

Carbon/alumina (C/AlO) composite aerogel with high compressive strength and low thermal conductivity has been successfully synthesized by sol-gel method, followed by CO supercritical drying and carbonization. SEM images and compressive Young's modulus measurements show that the C/AlO aerogel with a molar ratio of Resorcinol/Alumina (R/Al) of 1.0 presents homogeneous pore structures and obtains excellent compressive Young's modulus up to 90 MPa. Three weight losses regions are observed during heat treatment process, confirmed by TG/DSC measurements. XRD patterns and TEM images indicate that α-AlO phase transition occurs only when heat treatment temperature reaches up to 1500 °C with the adding of carbon source, 200 °C higher than pure AlO aerogel. The as-dried RF/AlO aerogel possesses thermal conductivity as low as 0.025 W m K. The thermal conductivities of C/AlO aerogels increase gradually with the increase of heat treatment temperatures, caused by increasing solid thermal conductivity. The thermal conductivities range from 0.033 to 0.049 W m K, suitable for efficient thermal insulations uses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report on whole-exome sequencing (WES) of 213 melanomas. Our analysis established NF1, encoding a negative regulator of RAS, as the third most frequently mutated gene in melanoma, after BRAF and NRAS. Inactivating NF1 mutations were present in 46% of melanomas expressing wild-type BRAF and RAS, occurred in older patients and showed a distinct pattern of co-mutation with other RASopathy genes, particularly RASA2. Functional studies showed that NF1 suppression led to increased RAS activation in most, but not all, melanoma cases. In addition, loss of NF1 did not predict sensitivity to MEK or ERK inhibitors. The rebound pathway, as seen by the induction of phosphorylated MEK, occurred in cells both sensitive and resistant to the studied drugs. We conclude that NF1 is a key tumor suppressor lost in melanomas, and that concurrent RASopathy gene mutations may enhance its role in melanomagenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel Pt nanoflowers/polyaniline/nitrogen-doped graphene (PtNFs/PANI/NG) electrocatalyst was prepared by dispersing Pt nanoflowers (PtNFs) onto a polyaniline (PANI) grafted N-doped graphene (NG) matrix through a two-step electrochemical process. Firstly, NG was prepared by a hydrothermal reaction of graphene oxide (GO) with urea, and then electrochemical polymerization of aniline at NG was carried out. Secondly, PtNFs was dispersed onto the film of PANI/NG by electrochemical reduction of HPtCl. The as-prepared composites were characterized by SEM, XRD, and Raman spectra. Compared with PtNFs/PANI/G, PtNFs/PANI, and PtNFs/NG catalysts, the novel PtNFs/PANI/NG catalyst exhibits more advantages such as high catalytic activity, excellent poisoning tolerance, and stability characteristic towards methanol electro-oxidation, which is attributed to not only the good dispersion of PtNFs on PANI/NG but also the strong interactions between metal particles and conducting polymer matrixes. The results suggest that the PtNFs/PANI/NG catalyst can be a promising alternative for catalyst in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). [Figure not available: see fulltext.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Banana peel-activated carbon (BPAC) with a very high surface area of 1,950 m g was prepared and investigated for the removal of methylene blue (MB) or Orange II dye molecules from aqueous solutions. Results of adsorption experiments showed that the BPAC exhibited high adsorption capacity with cationic dyes. The maximal Orange II and MB uptakes were determined to be more than 333 and 1,263 mg g, respectively. The zeta-potential analysis revealed that surface charge of BPAC is negative and hence the present activated carbon is excellent for adsorption of MB cationic dye from water. The adsorption equilibrium, kinetics, and thermodynamics of MB dye were investigated and the results indicated a monolayer chemical adsorption involving electrostatic attraction. BPAC was found to be a highly promising material for the effective removal of cationic contaminants such as MB dye from water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the derivatives and environmental application of Chitosan. Topics discussed include the properties and the production of Chitosan considering various processes including deacetylation, bleaching, and demineralization, the remediation as environmental application of Chitosan both in organic and inorganic contaminants, and the significance of a Chitosan-Based amperometric sensors.

Resorcinol-formaldehyde/alumina composite (RF/AlO) gels were initially prepared using sol-gel techniques, and then dried to aerogels with supercritical fluid CO. RF/AlO aerogels were successfully converted to monolithic carbon/alumina composite (C/AlO) aerogels after carbonization under flowing Ar at 800 °C. The samples were characterized by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscope and X-ray diffraction, and the compressive strengths were also measured. The results indicated that the resulting C/AlO aerogels prepared from hydrated AlCl possessed microstructures containing highly reticulated networks of fibers, 2-5 nm in diameter and of varying lengths, whereas the samples prepared from hydrated Al(NO) were amorphous with microstructures comprised of interconnected spherical particles with diameters in the 5-15 nm range and the alumina were surrounded by amorphous carbon. The difference in microstructure resulted in each type of aerogels displaying distinct physical and mechanical properties. In particular, the as-prepared C/AlO aerogels with the weblike microstructure were far more mechanically robust than those with the colloidal network. Correspondingly, the compressive strengths are 5.6 and 2.8 MPa, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) is a common health problem in the world. However, its etiology remains unclear. Recent researches have hypothesized that Staphylococcus aureus (SA) exotoxins which act as superantigens might be associated with inflammatory mucosal changes seen in CRSwNP. The objective of this study is to evaluate the relationship between Staphylococcus aureus superantigens and CRSwNP. PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library and CNKI were searched to collect the case-control studies on the relationship between SA superantigens and CRSwNP from the date of establishment of the databases to May 2013. The extracted data were analyzed by RevMan 5.0. The main outcome measures were SA culture-positive rate, the detection rate of SA superantigens and its specific IgE. Twelve studies including 340 cases and 178 controls were selected. The results showed that SA culture-positive rate in the CRSwNP group was significantly higher than that in the control group (OR 4.85, 95 % CI 1.80-13.05, P = 0.002), the detection rate of SA superantigens and its specific IgE in the CRSwNP group were both significantly higher than that in the control group (OR 12.07, 95 % CI 4.57-31.90, P < 0.00001; OR 17.03, 95 % CI 5.43-53.39, P < 0.00001, respectively) and the CD4 T cell counts and Lund-Mackay CT scores were statistically higher in the IgE-positive group than in the IgE-negative group (MD 16.26, 95 % CI 4.86-27.67, P = 0.005, MD 2.43, 95 % CI 0.39-4.48, P = 0.02, respectively). However, the eosinophil and CD8 T cell counts showed no difference between IgE-positive group and -negative group. This meta-analysis indicated that the SA superantigens may be a risk factor for CRSwNP, and the presence of SA superantigen is related to the disease severity of CRSwNP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the spectrum characters of passive mode locked $$\hbox {Yb}^{3+}$$ -doped fiber laser were investigated in detail, tunable four wavelengths with more than 30 nm tuning range, single wavelength, double wavelengths, multi-wavelengths laser output have all been observed in experiment. Moreover, these results were analyzed theoretically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pyrosequencing is one of the important next-generation sequencing technologies. We derive the distribution of the number of positive signals in pyrograms of this sequencing technology as a function of flow cycle numbers and nucleotide probabilities of the target sequences. As for the distribution of sequence length, we also derive the distribution of positive signals for the fixed flow cycle model. Explicit formulas are derived for the mean and variance of the distributions. A simple result for the mean of the distribution is that the mean number of positive signals in a pyrogram is approximately twice the number of flow cycles, regardless of nucleotide probabilities. The statistical distributions will be useful for instrument and software development for pyrosequencing and other related platforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper the temperature effect on the transmission spectrum of the quartz optical rotation filter is investigated theoretically and experimentally in detail, which shows that the output center wavelength of filter will shift towards the long wavelength with the temperature increasing and the output center wave-length of filter will shift towards the short wavelength with the temperature decreasing. The simulation and the experiment results are the same basically. According to this conclusion, a new type quartz optical rotation filter that is insensitive to the changing temperature is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate and summarize the surgical procedure and efficacy of transnasal endoscopic repair of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) rhinorrhea. This is a retrospective study including 22 patients with CSF rhinorrhea who underwent transnasal endoscopic repair between January 2003 and August 2010. The location of the lesion was determined by both HRCT scan and intranasal endoscopy, and the lesion was repaired with a graft from autologous thigh muscle fascia. The grafts were placed and fixed above (inlay) or beneath (onlay) the lesions or defects. The causes of CSF rhinorrhea in our study included trauma, surgical injury, and meningoencephalocele, or idiopathic etiology. There were 15 of 17 patients with histories of trauma or surgical injury who were found to have defects in skull base by HRCT examination. The other 5 patients had an intact skull base, minor local osteoporosis, or bone resorption. All 22 patients had no reoccurrence of CSF rhinorrhea during the follow-up period, which ranges from 4 to 72 months. The transnasal endoscopic approach is a safe and effective procedure, with minimal invasion, for the repair of CSF rhinorrhea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sequencing by synthesis is the underlying technology for many next- generation DNA sequencing platforms. We developed a new model, the fixed flow cycle model, to derive the distributions of sequence length for a given number of flow cycles under the general conditions where the nucleotide incorporation is probabilistic and may be incomplete, as in some single-molecule sequencing technologies. Unlike the previous model, the new model yields the probability distribution for the sequence length. Explicit closed form formulas are derived for the mean and variance of the distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resorcinol-formaldehyde/silica composite (RF/SiO) aerogels were synthesized using sol-gel process followed by supercritical CO drying. Monolithic carbon/silicon carbide composite (C/SiC) aerogels were formed from RF/SiO aerogels after carbothermal reduction. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy demonstrate that β-SiC was obtained after carbothermal reduction. Scanning electron microscopy and nitrogen adsorption/desorption reveal that the as-prepared C/SiC aerogels are typical mesoporous materials. The pore structural properties were measured by nitrogen adsorption/desorption analysis. The resulting C/SiC aerogels possess a BET surface area of 564 m/g, a porosity of 95.1 % and a pore volume of 2.59 cm/g. The mass fraction of SiC in C/SiC aerogels is 31 %. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction of bovine hemoglobin (BHb) with troxerutin was investigated by UV-Vis absorption spectra and fluorescence spectra methods, circular dichroism spectra, and the freeze-fractured TEM methods. Results showed that troxerutin causes the fluorescence quenching of BHb through a static quenching mechanism. The binding constant K and number of binding sites n of troxerutin with BHb were obtained. Positive values of the thermodynamic parameters enthalpy change and entropy change indicate that the interaction between troxerutin and BHb is driven mainly by electrostatic interactions. This shows that the binding is spontaneous at the standard state since the change in the standard Gibbs energy value is negative. The average binding distance between the donor (BHb) and the acceptor (troxerutin) was assessed from the Förster theory. The present study suggests that the thermal stability of BHb is enhanced upon binding with troxerutin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified common variants of modest-effect size at hundreds of loci for common autoimmune diseases; however, a substantial fraction of heritability remains unexplained, to which rare variants may contribute. To discover rare variants and test them for association with a phenotype, most studies re-sequence a small initial sample size and then genotype the discovered variants in a larger sample set. This approach fails to analyse a large fraction of the rare variants present in the entire sample set. Here we perform simultaneous amplicon-sequencing-based variant discovery and genotyping for coding exons of 25 GWAS risk genes in 41,911 UK residents of white European origin, comprising 24,892 subjects with six autoimmune disease phenotypes and 17,019 controls, and show that rare coding-region variants at known loci have a negligible role in common autoimmune disease susceptibility. These results do not support the rare-variant synthetic genome-wide-association hypothesis (in which unobserved rare causal variants lead to association detected at common tag variants). Many known autoimmune disease risk loci contain multiple, independently associated, common and low-frequency variants, and so genes at these loci are a priori stronger candidates for harbouring rare coding-region variants than other genes. Our data indicate that the missing heritability for common autoimmune diseases may not be attributable to the rare coding-region variant portion of the allelic spectrum, but perhaps, as others have proposed, may be a result of many common-variant loci of weak effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pyrosine detection and quantification was reported by voltammetry with the electrochemically reduced graphene oxide (ERGO) modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE). The differential pulse voltammograms of pyrosine on the modified GCE showed that pyrosine can be sensitively detected, which may be attributed to the large surface area of ERGO and the improved electron transfer ability of ERGO compared to graphene oxide. The effect of supporting electrolyte and its concentration on the detection of pyrosine was also investigated in this paper. The ERGO modified GCE showed a linear concentration range between 1.6 and 374 μmol L of pyrosine with a correlation coefficient of 0.9972, and the detection limit was as low as 1.2 × 10 mol L (signal-to-noise ratio of 3). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The shifting direction of a central wavelength for a quartz birefringent filter is found different when the filter is rotated around the axis parallel and perpendicular to the quartz optical axis in this paper. Based on this result, a new type of two-stage modified-Lyot quartz filter is presented, which show that the central wavelength of this new type Lyot filter is actually insensitive to incident angle through theory analysis when incident angle is less than 18°, and the maximum transmission decrease only about 66% compared to normal incidence. Moreover, this conclusion is in good agreements with relative experiment results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selective determination of hydroquinone (HQ) in the presence of catechol (CC) was developed at an over-oxidized poly(hydroquinone) (PHQ) electrode. The electrochemical polymerization of HQ was carried out by potentiostatic method on a glassy carbon electrode. The resulting PHQ was over-oxidized in 0.10 mol/L NaOH solution and thus poly( p-benzoquinone) was obtained. Two dihydroxybenzene isomers, HQ and CC, show different voltammetric behavior at the over-oxidized PHQ electrode. The peak current of HQ is much larger than that of CC with the same concentration, which is attributed to the different position of the hydroxyl groups in benzene ring of the two isomers. The results from electrochemical impedance spectroscopy also demonstrates that the over-oxidized PHQ electrode has a stronger affinity for HQ over CC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We characterized the mutational landscape of melanoma, the form of skin cancer with the highest mortality rate, by sequencing the exomes of 147 melanomas. Sun-exposed melanomas had markedly more ultraviolet (UV)-like C>T somatic mutations compared to sun-shielded acral, mucosal and uveal melanomas. Among the newly identified cancer genes was PPP6C, encoding a serine/threonine phosphatase, which harbored mutations that clustered in the active site in 12% of sun-exposed melanomas, exclusively in tumors with mutations in BRAF or NRAS. Notably, we identified a recurrent UV-signature, an activating mutation in RAC1 in 9.2% of sun-exposed melanomas. This activating mutation, the third most frequent in our cohort of sun-exposed melanoma after those of BRAF and NRAS, changes Pro29 to serine (RAC1P29S) in the highly conserved switch I domain. Crystal structures, and biochemical and functional studies of RAC1P29S showed that the alteration releases the conformational restraint conferred by the conserved proline, causes an increased binding of the protein to downstream effectors, and promotes melanocyte proliferation and migration. These findings raise the possibility that pharmacological inhibition of downstream effectors of RAC1 signaling could be of therapeutic benefit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]