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Artemisia argyi H.Lév. & Vaniot essential oil (AAEO) has shown pharmacological effects such as anti‐inflammation, antioxidant, and anti‐tumor properties. However, the protective effect of AAEO on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐induced liver injury and its potential protective mechanism are still unclear. In this study, we used ultra‐performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry metabolomics techniques to investigate the changes in liver tissue metabolites in mice exposed to LPS with or without AAEO treatment for 14 days. The biochemical results showed that compared with the control group, AAEO significantly reduced the levels of liver functional enzymes, suggesting a significant improvement in liver injury. In addition, the 18 differential metabolites identified by metabolomics were mainly involved in the reprogramming of arachidonic acid metabolism, tryptophan metabolism, and purine metabolism. AAEO could significantly inhibit the expression of COX‐2, IDO1, and NF‐κB; enhance the body's anti‐inflammatory ability; and alleviate liver injury. In summary, our study identified the protective mechanism of AAEO on LPS‐induced liver injury at the level of small molecular metabolites, providing a potential liver protective agent for the treatment of LPS‐induced liver injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tunable liquid lenses with controllable focal length attract much attention from many researchers due to the unique advantages of strong adjustability, low power consumption, fast response time, and easy integration. In the last two decades, tunable liquid lenses have already been applied in machine vision, code scanner cameras, cellphone cameras, webcams, microscopes, mini projectors, AR/VR displays, 3D displays, and so on. There is no doubt that the tunable liquid lenses play an increasingly more important role in the field of optical technology. In this review, the research background and significance of the tunable liquid lenses are introduced. Tunable liquid lenses are systematically qualified according to the driving mechanism, and their current status and latest progress are presented in detail. The existing problems, directions for future research, and current and potential applications of the tunable liquid lenses are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The environmental pollutant bisphenol A (BPA), used in the manufacture of plastic packaging materials for various diets, is widely distributed in the environment and causes severe hepatotoxicity by inducing oxidative stress. Artemisia argyi essential oil (AAEO), a volatile oil component isolated from Artemisia argyi H.Lév. & Vaniot, has pharmacological effects, especially for hepatoprotective actions. However, the potential effect of AAEO in BPA induced hepatotoxicity has not been characterized. First, we analyzed the chemical composition in AAEO by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Herein, we investigated the effect of AAEO on hepatic metabolic changes in mice exposed to BPA. Results showed that compared with the BPA group, AAEO could reduce the level of liver function enzymes in BPA mice serum, and ameliorate hepatic lesions and fibrosis. Additionally, 20 differential metabolites screened by metabolomics were mainly involved in the reprogramming of glutathione metabolism, purine metabolism, and polyunsaturated fatty acid synthesis. Moreover, AAEO could reduce hepatic ferroptosis induced by BPA, as demonstrated by reducing xanthine oxidase activity, up‐regulating the activities of glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), superoxide dismutase, and catalase and the expression of SLC7A11 to promote the glutathione synthetic, while inhibiting transferrin receptor 1 (TFR1) expression to reduce the accumulation of Fe2+ in cells. Therefore, our study identified AAEO as a hepatic protectant against BPA‐induced hepatotoxicity by reversing the occurrence of ferroptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cell penetrating peptides (CPPs) are short peptides that can carry biomolecules of varying sizes across the cell membrane into the cytoplasm. Correctly identifying CPPs is the basis for studying their functions and mechanisms. Here, we propose a novel CPP predictor that is able to predict CPPs and their uptake efficiency. In our method, five feature descriptors are applied to encode the sequence and compose a hybrid feature vector. Afterward, the wrapper + random forest algorithm is employed, which combines feature selection with the prediction process to find features that are crucial for identifying CPPs. The jackknife cross validation result shows that our predictor is comparable to state‐of‐the‐art CPP predictors, and our method reduces the feature dimension, which improves computational efficiency and avoids overfitting, allowing our predictor to be adopted to identify large‐scale CPP data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When supply disruptions occur, firms want to employ an effective pricing strategy to reduce losses. However, firms typically do not know precisely how customers will react to price changes in the short term, during a disruption. In this article, we investigate the customer's order variability and the firm's profit under several representative heuristic pricing strategies, including no change at all (fixed pricing strategy), changing the price only (naive pricing strategy), and adjusting the belief and price simultaneously (one‐period correction [1PC] and regression pricing strategies). We show that the fixed pricing strategy creates the most stable customer order process, but it brings lower profit than the naive pricing strategy in most cases. The 1PC pricing strategy produces a more volatile customer order process and smaller profit than the naive one does. Although the regression pricing strategy is a more advanced approach, it leads to lower profit and greater customer order variability than the naive pricing strategy (but the opposite when compared to the 1PC strategy). We conclude that (i) completely eliminating the customer order variability by employing a fixed pricing strategy is not advisable and adjusting the price to match supply with demand is necessary to improve the profit; (ii) frequently adjusting the belief about customer behaviors under imperfect information may increase the customer's order variability and reduce the firm's profit. The conclusions are robust to the inventory assumption (i.e., without or with inventory carryover) and the firm's objective (i.e., market clearance or profit maximization). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Facing fierce competition from rivals, sellers in online marketplaces are eager to improve their sales by delivering items faster and more reliably. Because logistics quality can be known only after a transaction, sellers must identify effective ways to communicate logistics information to consumers. Drawing on the accessibility‐diagnosticity framework, we theorize that the sales impacts of logistics information depend on its relative diagnostic value. Using data on 1493 items with 505,785 consumer reviews from an online marketplace, we examine how sales are affected by three information sources for logistics services: online word of mouth (WOM) about logistics, self‐reported logistics services, and expected delivery time. We use an instrumental variable method to address the endogeneity issue between sales and WOM. We find that, ceteris paribus, consumers give more weight to WOM about logistics and delivery time when they make purchase decisions but less weight to self‐reported logistics service. The effects of logistics information on sales are asymmetric for large and small sellers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The accurate evaluation of BRAFV600E mutation in preoperative fine‐needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) specimens is important for making management decisions in thyroid nodules (TNs). The aim of this study was to assess the false‐positive and false‐negative BRAFV600E mutations in thyroid FNAC specimens and their influence on diagnosis of TN. Methods: This prospective study enrolled 292 nodules in 269 patients who underwent BRAFV600E mutation analysis using amplification refractory mutation system‐quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (ARMS‐qPCR) both in FNAC specimens and formalin‐fixed, paraffin‐embedded (FFPE) tissue samples after surgery. The false‐positive and false‐negative mutations for BRAFV600E analysis using ARMS‐qPCR in FNAC specimens were recorded, with reference to the results of BRAFV600E mutation analysis using ARMS‐qPCR in FFPE tissue sample. Diagnostic performances of FNAC, BRAFV600E mutation analysis in FNAC specimens, BRAFV600E mutation analysis in FFPE tissue sample, and the combination of FNAC and BRAFV600E mutation analysis for predicting thyroid malignancy were assessed. Results: The false‐positive and false‐negative mutations for BRAFV600E analysis using ARMS‐qPCR in FNAC specimens were 10.1% (19/189) and 7.1% (7/98), respectively. FNAC combined with preoperative BRAFV600E mutation analysis significantly increased the diagnostic sensitivity from 75.7% to 92.3%, and accuracy from 78.7% to 90.6% in comparison with FNAC alone (both P < .001). No significant differences were found between the combination of FNAC and BRAFV600E mutation analysis in FNAC specimens and the combination of FNAC and BRAFV600E mutation analysis in FFPE tissue sample (sensitivity: 92.3% vs 91.9%; accuracy: 90.6% vs 91.3%; both P > .05). Conclusions: FNAC combined with preoperative BRAFV600E mutation analysis can significantly increase the diagnostic performance in comparison with FNAC alone. False‐positive and false‐negative BRAFV600E mutation results are found in preoperative FNAC specimens, whereas it does not affect the overall auxiliary diagnosis of TNs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Buckwheat is an important alternative crop and a raw material for functional food formulation. Phase II detoxification proteins/enzymes provide cytoprotective roles against oxidative stress and inflammation originating from various stressors. We aimed to identify and characterize potential phase II enzyme inducers from methanolic extracts of buckwheat flour, using an activity‐guided fractionation based on the induction of quinone reductase (QR) (EC 1.6.5.2) in Hepa 1c1c7 cells. RESULTS: We isolated the QR inducers N‐trans‐feruloyltyramine (I), syringic acid (II), quercetin (III) and myricetin (IV). The relative QR‐inducing ability, as well as the concentration required to double QR specific activity (CD values, in parentheses), decreased in the order: quercetin (3.0 µmol L–1) > N‐trans‐feruloyltyramine (24 µmol L–1) > myricetin (58 µmol L–1) > syringic acid (5.4 mmol L–1). Quercetin and N‐trans‐feruloyltyramine exhibited the greatest extent of QR induction of an approximately four‐fold maximum induction and these compounds also exhibited the greatest values for the ratio of IC50 (i.e. level to reduce viability by 50%): CD values of 11 and > 8.3, respectively, among the four QR inducers isolated. Isobologram analyses for binary combinations of compounds I–IV revealed primarily antagonistic interactions for QR induction. CONCLUSION: These findings add to our understanding of the nutraceutical potential of buckwheat as a chemoprophylactic dietary component. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper, we propose a liquid prism based on electrowetting‐on‐dielectric and gravity effect. The device is filled with two immiscible liquids. The conductive liquid is filled in the upper part of the device, and the oil is filled in the bottom of the device. Different from the conventional liquid prism, the density of the conductive liquid is larger than that of the oil. The liquid–liquid interface can form a tilt shape when applied different voltages to the opposite sidewalls. The beam will be deflected when the light passes through the device. Our results show that the tilt angle of the liquid–liquid interface is ~45°, and the light beam can be deflected by 22.2° (−10.9° to +11.3°). The actuation time of the device is ~240 ms. The proposed liquid prism for light beam steering and tracking has potential application in laser directions, telecommunications, and scanners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Many plants require prolonged exposure to cold to acquire the competence to flower. The process by which cold exposure results in competence is known as vernalization. In Arabidopsis thaliana, vernalization leads to the stable repression of the floral repressor FLOWERING LOCUS C via chromatin modification, including an increase of trimethylation on lysine 27 of histone H3 (H3K27me3) by Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2). Vernalization in pooids is associated with the stable induction of a floral promoter, VERNALIZATION 1 (VRN1). From a screen for mutants with a reduced vernalization requirement in the model grass Brachypodium distachyon, we identified two recessive alleles of ENHANCER OF ZESTE‐LIKE 1 (EZL1). EZL1 is orthologous to A. thaliana CURLY LEAF 1, a gene that encodes the catalytic subunit of PRC2. B. distachyon ezl1 mutants flower rapidly without vernalization in long‐day (LD) photoperiods; thus, EZL1 is required for the proper maintenance of the vegetative state prior to vernalization. Transcriptomic studies in ezl1 revealed mis‐regulation of thousands of genes, including ectopic expression of several floral homeotic genes in leaves. Loss of EZL1 results in the global reduction of H3K27me3 and H3K27me2, consistent with this gene making a major contribution to PRC2 activity in B. distachyon. Furthermore, in ezl1 mutants, the flowering genes VRN1 and AGAMOUS (AG) are ectopically expressed and have reduced H3K27me3. Artificial microRNA knock‐down of either VRN1 or AG in ezl1‐1 mutants partially restores wild‐type flowering behavior in non‐vernalized plants, suggesting that ectopic expression in ezl1 mutants may contribute to the rapid‐flowering phenotype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper, we propose an optical switch by deforming the shape of the liquid droplet. The optical switch consists of two immiscible liquids. The dye‐doped water is conductive, while the clear liquid is insulating. In the voltage‐off state, incident light can pass through the circular aperture formed of clear liquid. When the voltage is applied to the liquids, the surrounding dye‐doped water pushes to the side wall because of the effect of electric field force. So, the diameter of the circular aperture is rapidly reduced, and the incident light is absorbed by the dye‐doped water. Our results show that the device can obtain an optical attenuation (~350:1) and reasonable response time (~320 ms). The diameter of the aperture can be largely tuned from ~0.5 to ~6.2 mm as the applied voltage is changed from ~25 to ~65 V. The proposed optical switch has potential applications in light shutters, tunable irises, and variable optical attenuators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we report a 1 × 4 optical switch using deformable liquid droplet. The deformation is produced by the electrowetting on dielectric phenomenon. The device consists of a dyed oil and a transparent conductive liquid sealed in a transparent cylinder. The top glass cover of the device has four independently addressable electrodes for the actuation of the liquid dome in each direction. In the voltage-off state, incident light is absorbed by the dyed liquid. When the voltage is applied to the liquid, the dome of the transparent liquid is uplifted and then spreads to four different directions because of the effect of electrostatic force. Accordingly, the transparent liquid pushes the dyed oil out to form a light path. The device with simple structure can freely control multiple switch apertures through changing the driven voltage. In addition, we analyze the electro-optical characteristics such as transmittance, response time (open time ~110 ms, close time ~160 ms), contrast ratio (~661:1). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When an unreliable supplier serves multiple retailers, the retailers may compete with each other by inflating their order quantities in order to obtain their desired allocation from the supplier, a behavior known as the rationing game. We introduce capacity information sharing and a capacity reservation mechanism in the rationing game and show that a Nash equilibrium always exists. Moreover, we provide conditions guaranteeing the existence of the reverse bullwhip effect upstream, a consequence of the disruption caused by the supplier. In contrast, we also provide conditions under which the bullwhip effect does not exist. In addition, we show that a smaller unit reservation payment leads to more bullwhip and reverse bullwhip effects, while a large unit underage cost results in a more severe bullwhip effect. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 64: 203-216, 2017 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The existing product line design literature devotes little attention to the effect of demand uncertainty. Due to demand uncertainty, the supply-demand mismatch is inevitable which leads to different degrees of lost sales depending on the configuration of product lines. In this article, we adopt a stylized two-segment setup with uncertain market sizes and illustrate the interplay between two effects: risk pooling that mitigates the impact of demand uncertainty and market segmentation that facilitates consumer differentiation. Compared to downward substitution, inducing bidirectional substitution through product line decisions including quality levels and prices can yield greater risk pooling effects. However, we show that the additional benefit from the risk pooling effect cannot compensate for the reduced market segmentation effect. We demonstrate that the presence of demand uncertainty can reduce the benefit of market segmentation and therefore the length of product lines in terms of the difference between products. We also propose three heuristics that separate product line and production decisions; each of these heuristics corresponds to one particular form of demand substitution. Our numerical studies indicate that the best of the three heuristics yields performance that is close to optimality. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 62: 143-157, 2015 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Watermelon [Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai var. lanatus] production in the same field without rotation of crops leads to disease buildup and poor yields. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the influences of root exudates produced by watermelon cultivars susceptible or resistant to the pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. niveum (FON). At low concentrations of root exudates (<50 mg L1), the susceptible cultivar stimulated the growth of FON but the resistant cultivars inhibited FON at high concentration (200 mg L-1). Mycotoxin production was increased more in the presence of exudates from susceptible than resistant cultivars and after flowering than before flowering. Activities of enzymes (protease, pectinase, cellulose, and amylase) were stimulated more in resistant than susceptible cultivars by FON. Also, there were higher ratios of antifungal phenplic acids (p-hydroxybenzoic, phthalic, gallic, coumaric, cinnamic, ferulic, salicylic, and sinamic acids) to fungus-stimulating phenolic acids (vanillic and syringic acids) in resistant cultivars than in susceptible ones both before and after flowering. Breeding of resistant cultivars containing more antifungal agents is a strategy that, if pursued, could lead to a reduction in the occurrence of watermelon wilt disease, especially when rotation of crops is not possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]