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To develop multi‐mode fluorescence thermometer with high performance, Lu2WO6:Er3+,Yb3+ materials were successfully designed and prepared. Under 980 nm excitation, the material can achieve accurate temperature measurement under three models. The above three models are based on different parameters, including two FIR (fluorescence intensity ratio) derived from two thermally coupled energy levels (TCELs) (2H11/2/4S3/2) and two non‐thermally coupled energy levels (NTCELs) (2H11/2/4F9/2), as well as fluorescence lifetime (FL) monitoring of the 2H11/2 energy level transition to the ground state. In the FIR mode of TCELs, maximum relative sensitivity (SR‐max) and minimum temperature resolution are 1.261 %K–1 and 0.237 K, respectively. The repeatability of five‐cycle temperature measurements is above 98.5%. The SR‐max value of FIR (NTCELs) and FL mode reach 0.862 and 0.201 %K−1, respectively. The obtained outcomes suggest that Lu2WO6:Er3+,Yb3+ materials might be considered as promising candidates for three‐mode fluorescence thermometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Herpes virus entry mediator (HVEM) is a costimulatory molecule, and has been proved to play an important role in airway inflammatory and remodeling processes of asthma. We aimed to investigate the expression of HVEM gene in patients with asthma as a means of assessing disease severity. Methods: This study was carried out on 59 subjects, 16 patients with mild persistent asthma, 11 patients with moderate persistent asthma, 13 patients with severe persistent asthma, and 19 age and gender matched healthy controls. The HVEM mRNA expressions of all subjects were determined by real time PCR. Correlations between HVEM mRNA expression and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO), pulmonary function test values, total blood white cell count and differential, total immunoglobulin E (IgE) level, and Asthma Control Test (ACT) score were analyzed, respectively. The discrimination abilities of HVEM mRNA between different groups were tested using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analyses. Results: This study showed the expressions of HVEM mRNA were significantly higher in the patients with severe and moderate persistent asthma than in patients with mild persistent asthma and healthy subjects (2.97 ± 1.23 vs. 1.17 ± 0.42 vs. 0.62 ± 0.38 vs. 0.46 ± 0.18/NAPDH, p < 0.001), but there was no significant difference between patients with mild persistent asthma and health controls (0.62 ± 0.38 vs. 0.46 ± 0.18/NAPDH, p = 0.557). HVEM mRNA expression at cut off point [1.01/NAPDH, area under the ROC curve (AUC) = 0.99] is sufficient to discriminate severe patients from mild-to-moderate patients, and at cut off point (0.93/NAPDH, AUC = 0.91) for discrimination of moderate-to-severe patients from mild ones, while at cut off point (0.76/NAPDH, AUC = 0.75) for discrimination of asthmatic patients from controls. Furthermore, HVEM mRNA expression was positively correlated with FeNO level (r = 0.524, p = 0.015), and total lymphocyte count (r = 0.426, p = 0.017) in patients with persistent asthma. Conclusions: HVEM gene expressions can be used as a potential biomarker for evaluating the severity of patients with persistent asthma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To meet the requirements for the mechanical and electrochemical performance for carbon fiber-based (CF-based) composite electrode materials in the structural lithium-ion batteries application, better CF-based composite is urgently needed. Herein, we report a novel hierarchical structure formed by wrinkled reduced graphene oxide/tin oxide (rGO/SnO2) coating wrapping on the surface of CF for the first time via a facile self-assembly approach and subsequent annealing treatment. Although the mass ratio of rGO/SnO2 coating in this composite is only about 12.8%, it exhibits excellent tensile strength which is up to 5.01 GPa and cycling stability including a high reversible capacity of 369 mAh g−1 at 100 mA g−1, which increases 230% than that of the CF. Besides, the morphology of this composite after 100 cycles is firstly observed to further confirm it still maintains a layered and fibrous structure. The excellent properties may benefit from the design of hierarchical hybrid rGO/SnO2 coating and the synergistic effects of SnO2, rGO and CF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aims: Thermal injury causes pulmonary edema and can lead to death. Intercellular junctions are composed of adhesive (p120ctn, E-cadherin, α-catenin and β-catenin) and compact (occludin and ZO-1) junctions. Heat deteriorates intercellular junctions and increases cell gaps to ultimately induce pulmonary edema, but the underlying mechanism remains elusive. Methods: Mouse lung epithelial (MLE-12) cells pre-treated with the c-Src inhibitor PP2, p120ctn catenin (p120ctn) small interfering RNA and p120ctn catenin (p120ctn) complementary DNA were subjected to heat treatment. Western blotting and real-time polymerase chain reaction assays were used to evaluate junction protein expression changes after heat treatment, and co-immunoprecipitation was used to test the binding state of junction proteins. In addition, hematoxylin and eosin staining and immunohistochemistry were used to evaluate changes in junction protein expression and lung injury in a Wistar rat model of thermal inhalation injury. Results: Heat increased cell permeability; induced ZO-1, occludin, α-catenin and β-catenin degradation; and decreased E-cadherin distribution in cell membranes. Heat also activated c-Src and decreased both p120ctn expression levels and occludin and ZO-1 association. c-Src inhibitor (PP2) treatment and p120ctn overexpression reversed these effects and attenuated lung injury in vivo. Conclusion: Heat induces junction protein degradation and dissociation to increase membrane permeability and cause lung edema via c-Src kinase activation and p120ctn expression downregulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we report a hierarchical structure formed by wrinkled reduced graphene oxide (rGO) sheets-wrapped carbon fiber via a facile and efficient electrostatic self-assembly method and subsequent annealing treatment. For this material, the Weibull scale parameter is 4.77 GPa. After 100 cycles, the rGO@CF retains 91% of its second charge capacity at 50 mA ⋅g−1, corresponding to a capacity fading of only 0.09% per cycle. Thus, this structural anode material exhibits enhanced capacity, high initial Coulombic efficiency and high tensile strength. Meanwhile, the carbon fiber and interweaved rGO sheets together form the whole conductive networks to provide multichannel highways for charge transfer (lithium-ion diffusion and electron transport) during discharge–charge processes, promising excellent electrochemical performance of this structural anode material. Hierarchical structure formed by wrinkled reduced graphene oxide (rGO) sheets-wrapped carbon fiber has been successfully fabricated by a facile and efficient electrostatic self-assembly method and subsequent annealing treatment. The PDDA plays a key role in the formation of wrinkled rGO sheets-wrapped carbon fiber under the experimental condition. The as-synthesized samples exhibited high tensile strength and excellent electrochemical stability as anodes for structural Li-ion battery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exact role of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) in older patients with chronic inflammatory diseases including asthma-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) overlap (ACO) remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the differences in FeNO levels of elderly patients with ACO, asthma, COPD, and chronic cough. We conducted a retrospective study analysing the data of stable outpatients from Pulmonary Department of the Second Clinical College, Jinan University. All participants (Age≥55 years) were divided into the ACO group (n=19), asthma group (n=16), COPD group (n=25), and chronic cough group (n=22). The clinical data such as peripheral eosinophil counts, serum high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), FeNO, and spirometry was collected, and the correlations between FeNO levels and systemic markers or spirometric indices were analyzed. Patients with ACO and asthma had significantly elevated FeNO levels (37.7±16.5, and 36.3±17.7 ppb) compared with COPD, and chronic cough patients (21.9±10.3, and 16.1±8.8 ppb). The FeNO levels were negatively associated with forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1, p=0.003), FEV1% predicted (p=0.012), and FEV1/forced vital capacity (FVC, p=0.002) in all groups. However, there were no significant correlation between FeNO levels and FVC, peripheral eosinophil counts, or serum hs-CRP (p>0.05). Elderly patients with ACO have higher levels of FeNO, when compared with patients with COPD or chronic cough. These findings suggest that FeNO measurement may provide an important implication for the etiological diagnosis of ACO in the elderly patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: High temperature significantly alters the amylose content of rice, resulting in mature grains with poor eating quality. However, only few genes and/or quantitative trait loci involved in this process have been isolated and the molecular mechanisms of this effect remain unclear. Here, we describe a floral organ identity gene, OsMADS7, involved in stabilizing rice amylose content at high temperature. OsMADS7 is greatly induced by high temperature at the early filling stage. Constitutive suppression of OsMADS7 stabilizes amylose content under high temperature stress but results in low spikelet fertility. However, rice plants with both stable amylose content at high temperature and normal spikelet fertility can be obtained by specifically suppressing OsMADS7 in endosperm. GBSSI is the major enzyme responsible for amylose biosynthesis. A low filling rate and high expression of GBSSI were detected in OsMADS7 RNAi plants at high temperature, which may be correlated with stabilized amylose content in these transgenic seeds under high temperature. Thus, specific suppression of OsMADS7 in endosperm could improve the stability of rice amylose content at high temperature, and such transgenic materials may be a valuable genetic resource for breeding rice with elite thermal resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As one of the most promising structural anode materials, carbon fibers (CF) have gained much attention. One of the central problems in their application is retaining their tensile strength and simultaneously improving their electrochemical properties. Herein, we report reduced graphene oxide/SnO2@carbon fibers (rGO/SnO2@CF) with wrinkled surfaces, fabricated via a simple hydrothermal method followed by heat treatment. This material exhibits prominent tensile properties, improved reversible capacity, excellent cycling stability and significantly enhanced first cycle coulombic efficiency. Compared to the reversible capacity at the 20th cycle, the rGO/SnO2@CF retained 93.6% reversible capacity after 100 cycles at 50 mA g−1, corresponding to a capacity fading of only 0.08% per cycle. The Weibull scale parameter and shape parameter of rGO/SnO2@CF were up to 4.63 GPa and 7.87, respectively. Our measurements revealed that the positive influence of rGO effectively countervailed the negative influence of the hydrothermal process on the tensile strength; the interleaved structure of rGO/SnO2 prevented the dispersion degree of tensile strength from decreasing; the synergistic effect of rGO and SnO2 enhanced the properties of the carbon fibers, including the tensile strength and the electrochemical properties; the formed rGO network structure and bicontinuous electronic transport pathway are in favor of the cycling stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along with industry upgrading and urbanization, the agricultural industry in China has been experiencing a stage of rapid development, on the bright side. On the other side, ecological environment deterioration and resource scarcity have become prevalent. Called by the current situation, circular agriculture arises as a direction for the industry to achieve sustainable development. This study develops an evaluation indicator system for circular agriculture using an entropy method, and evaluates factors that could drive the Chinese agricultural industry to achieve better performance. We employ the method using provincial data collected from the province of Henan, in which around 10% of the total grain in China is produced. It was found that agricultural technology and water resources per capita are positively related to circular performance in agriculture. In contrast, urbanization and arable land per capita are negatively related to circular performance. This article provides support to the government in policy-making related to the improvement of circular agricultural performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

La 2 O 3 /γ-AgI heterojunction composite demonstrates enhanced catalytic activity in the photodegradation of tetracycline (TC) due to the effective separation and transfer of charge carriers. [Display omitted] • La 2 O 3 /AgI heterojunction composite was prepared using a simple ball-milling method. • The heterojunction fromed simultaneously with the crystal phase transformation of AgI. • La 2 O 3 /AgI composite showed improved photocatalytic activity in degradaing antibiotics. • The enhanced catalytic activity resulted from effective separation and transfer of charge carriers. La 2 O 3 /AgI nanocomposite was prepared using ball-milling, resulting in the transformation of AgI crystal structure and the formation of heterostructure with La 2 O 3. The nanocomposite showed enhanced photocatalytic performance in degrading antibiotics and dehydrogenating organic compounds. The influence of AgI content on the photocatalytic performance was examined, and all composites showed improved catalytic activity compared to individual La 2 O 3 and AgI. The enhanced activity is attributed to smaller particle size, heterostructure formation, build-in electric field, effective charge carrier separation and transfer. Active species trapping experiment and EPR measurement revealed that superoxide radicals and photogenerated holes are the main active species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Borosilicate glass–ceramics precursors with varying compositional ratios in the CaO–SiO 2 –B 2 O 3 (CBS) system were synthesized by sol–gel method. The precursors were calcined at 1200 °C for 2 h to form glass powders. The glass–ceramics were prepared by overlaying glass slurries on the substrates before sintering at different temperatures. The as-prepared glasses and glass–ceramics were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction. The crystallization activation energies ( E c ) were calculated using the Kissinger method from DSC results. The morphology and crystallization behavior of the glass–ceramics were monitored by scanning electron microscopy. Both glass transition and crystallization temperatures decreased, however, the metastable zone increased. The E c values of CBS glasses and glass–ceramics were 254.1, 173.2 and 164.4 kJ/mol with increasing B 2 O 3 content, whereas that of the calcined G3 glass was 104.9 kJ/mol. Finally, the coatings were prepared at a low temperature (700 °C). The crystals that grew on the surface of multilayer coatings demonstrated heterogeneous surface nucleation and crystallization after heat-treatment from 700 °C to 850 °C for 4 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]