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In order to cope with the grid fluctuation caused by large‐scale wind power connected to the grid, the wind thermal power generation system has been proposed and extensively studied. The wind thermal power generation system uses a wind turbine to drive a heat generation device to heat the heat storage medium, which is further exchanged to drive a turbine to generate electricity. A superconducting magnetic eddy current heater (SMH) is proposed for the characteristics of wind thermal power generation system, which uses non‐resistive, large current‐carrying superconducting coils for excitation, and has high output efficiency and power density. The working principle of magnetic eddy current heating is analysed, and the structure of SMH with no ferromagnetic material and two heating screens inside and outside is proposed according to the characteristics of SMH. An analytical model of the SMH is established, and the influence of the structure and materials of the SMH on the magnetic field distribution is analysed. Based on this, a 22‐pole SMH was designed and analysed for output power at 10–20 rpm. A three‐dimensional magnetism‐stress combined analysis model of SMH is established, and the strain and stress characteristics of SMH are simulated under the condition of maximum output power, which verifies the feasibility of the mechanical properties of existing superconducting materials for application in SMH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient visible-light photoelectrochemical photodetector based on a compact In-rich n-InGaN layer activated by p-Cu2O microcrystals operating as photoanode in the self-powered mode is demonstrated. The photocurrent density of 80 µA/cm2 under one-sun illumination is more than 10 times larger than that of a bare InGaN layer. Moreover, the photocurrent density, responsivity of 0.8 mA/W, specific detectivity of 4 × 109 Jones, and response times of 5–8 ms are more than five times better compared to those of our previously reported nanowire counterpart. The excellent performance is attributed to maximized photocarrier separation in the built-in electric field of the internal p–n junction for fully depleted Cu2O microcrystals with maximized height and the planar geometry, guaranteeing unhindered diffusion of the electrolyte to and from the photoanode surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are the most abundant stromal cell population in breast tumors. A functionally diverse population of CAFs increases the dynamic complexity of the tumor microenvironment (TME). The intertwined network of the TME facilitates the interaction between activated CAFs and breast cancer cells, which can lead to the proliferation and invasion of breast cells. Considering the special transmission function of CAFs, the aim of this review is to summarize and highlight the crosstalk between CAFs and breast cancer cells in the TME as well as the relationship between CAFs and extracellular matrix (ECM), soluble cytokines, and other stromal cells in the metastatic state. The crosstalk between cancer-associated fibroblasts and tumor microenvironment also provides a plastic therapeutic target for breast cancer metastasis. In the course of the study, the inhibitory effects of different natural compounds on targeting CAFs and the advantages of different drug combinations were summarized. CAFs are also widely used in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. The cumulative research on this phenomenon supports the establishment of a targeted immune microenvironment as a possible breakthrough in the prevention of invasive metastasis of breast cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, perovskite solar cells have achieved high efficiency in small areas, but the industrialization of perovskite solar cells is still hampered by the efficiency loss of cells during area scaling. Series modules are currently the most widely used and effective modular process for perovskite solar cells, a process that requires the patterning of the layer stack in individual cells. This interconnection scheme consists of three lines, P1–P3, which are ablated using a pulsed laser beam. In this work, we developed an efficient perovskite module with a high geometric fill factor (GFF) based on a two-step spin-coating method by optimizing the laser ablation step. We constructed the entire device structure by means of a picosecond green pulsed laser, meanwhile, the dead area is greatly reduced by optimizing the parameters and process, and finally achieving an ultra-high GFF of over 99%. In addition, we investigated the effect of poor P2 and P3 ablation on the perovskite solar modules and compared the performance of the module before and after ablation optimization. We finally obtained a maximum photoelectric conversion efficiency of 22.79% with an aperture area of 12.6 cm2. Concurrently, we conducted electrocatalytic hydrogen production experiments on the prepared perovskite solar modules, and the experimental results have also shown excellent performance and good prospects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) is characterized by poor prognosis and obvious limitations of therapeutic methods. The molecular target and mechanism of quercetin (QR), a natural anticancer product with extensive pharmacological activities, on lung squamous cell carcinoma is still unclear. Method. The effects of QR on LUSC were examined using cell proliferation, migration, and invasion tests. Key target genes were screened using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, Gene Ontology (GO)/Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) database, STRING website, topology, and prognosis analysis, molecular docking, and other bioinformatics methods for further analysis. Finally, the effects of QR on the expression of key targets in LUSC cells were detected using a cell cycle assay and western blotting. Results. Our study demonstrates that QR not only inhibits the proliferation of LUSC but also affects the invasion and metastasis of LUSC. After downloading and analyzing the TCGA database, 2150 differentially expressed genes were identified. PLK1, CDC20, and BUB1B were identified using enrichment analysis, topological network analysis, cluster analysis, and molecular docking screening. Subsequent experiments showed that QR could interfere with the cell cycle and downregulate the expression of the target gene PLK1 at the protein level. Conclusions. We found that QR not only inhibits the proliferation, migration, and invasion but also blocks the cell cycle progression of LUSC. QR downregulated the expression of the LUSC target gene PLK1 at the protein level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study compared the post-activation performance enhancement (PAPE) effects of a flywheel eccentric overload (FEOL) exercise and barbell half squats (BHS) on countermovement jump (CMJ) and 30 m sprint performance. Methods: Twelve male collegiate competitive basketball players were enrolled in this study and they implemented two training protocols: barbell half squat (BHS) and flywheel eccentric overload (FEOL) training. The BHS protocol included three intensities of load: low (40% 1RM), medium (60% 1RM), and high (80% 1RM), with each intensity consisting of 5 sets of 3 repetitions. The FEOL protocol included three inertia intensities: low (0. 015 kg∙m2), medium (0.035 kg∙m2), and high (0.075 kg∙m2), with each intensity consisting of 3 sets of 6 repetitions. The measurement time points were before training (baseline) and at 3, 6, 9, and 12 minutes after training. A two-stage (stage-I and stage-II) randomized crossover design was used to determine the acute effects of both protocols on CMJ and sprint performance. Results: At each training intensity, the jump height, jump peak power output (PPO), jump impulse and 30m sprint speed at 3, 6, 9, and 12 minutes after BHS and FEOL training did not change significantly compared to the baseline. A 2-way ANOVA analysis indicated significant main effects of rest intervals on jump height, jump PPO, and jump impulse, as well as 30m sprint speed. The interaction of the Time × protocol showed a significant effect on jump height between BHS and FEOL groups at high intensity in stage-I (F = 3.809, p = 0.016, df = 4) and stage-II (F = 3.044, p = 0.037, df = 4). And in high training intensity, the jump height at 3 (7.78 ± 9.90% increase, ES = 0.561), 6 (8.96 ± 12.15% increase, ES = 0.579), and 9 min (8.78 ± 11.23% increase, ES = 0.608) were enhanced in I-FEOL group compared with I-BHS group (F = 3.044, p = 0.037, df = 4). In stage-II, the impulse and sprint speed of the FEOL group were significantly higher than those of the BHS group at 6, 9, and 12 min under low (FEOL = 0.015kg∙m2, BHS = 40%1RM), medium(FEOL = 0.035kg∙m2, BHS = 60%1RM), and high (FEOL = 0.075kg∙m2, BHS = 80%1RM) intensities. Furthermore, the sprint speed of the two training protocols did not change at different time points. The interaction of Time × training intensity showed lower sprint speeds in the II-BHS group at a high intensity (BHS = 80%1RM) compared to low (BHS = 40%1RM) and medium (BHS = 60%1RM) training intensities, especially at 9 min and 12 min rest intervals. Conclusion: Although barbell half squat training and flywheel eccentric overload training did not provide a significant PAPE effect on explosive power (CMJ and sprint) in male basketball players, FEOL training showed a better potential effect on enhanced CMJ jump performance at the high training intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the continuous evolution of bacteria and the constant use of traditional antibiotics, the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria and super viruses has attracted worldwide attention. Antimicrobial therapy has become the most popular and important research field at present. Coordination Polymer (CP) and/or metal-organic framework (MOF) platforms have the advantages of a high biocompatibility, biodegradability, and non-toxicity, have a great antibacterial potential and have been widely used in antibacterial treatment. This paper reviewed the mechanism and antibacterial effect of three typical MOFs (pure Ag-MOFs, hybrid Ag-MOFs, and Ag-containing-polymer @MOFs) in silver-based coordination polymers. At the same time, the existing shortcomings and future views are briefly discussed. The study on the antibacterial efficacy and mechanism of Ag-MOFs can provide a better basis for its clinical application and, meanwhile, open up a novel strategy for the preparation of more advanced Ag-contained materials with antibacterial characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People can learn, understand, and use music using the solfeggio method. People involved in professional music training have given it importance because it is a fundamental discipline of enlightenment music and a necessary training method and technical theory course to enter the professional level. This article presents an in-depth analysis of the music curriculum model based on data mining technology. Additionally, a music style classification method based on FP Growth association rules mining is developed, which decreases the number of frequent element sets needed and speeds up database scanning. To better match the characteristics of music, a multirepetition structure model is used, and the MFCC (Mel-frequency cepstral coefficients) function is used to set the repetition structure model. The results demonstrate that the music style classification method put forth in this article has clear advantages in terms of efficiency: when the minimum support is 0.2 percent, this method's execution time is about 33 percent compared to the other methods. The outcomes of the experiment suggest that this method can more accurately capture the repeatability of music and enhance separation performance to some extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The amorphous formation ability, thermal properties, crystallization behavior, magnetic properties, resistivity and bending ductility of Fe 84.5- x B 12 P 2 C 1 Cu 0.5 Co x (x = 0, 4, 8) alloys were systematically investigated. It is found that the substitution of Fe by Co promotes the transformation of the as-spun alloys from a completely amorphous structure to an amorphous/nanocrystalline dual-phase structure, which is related to the differences in the interactions between the involved atoms. The saturation magnetization of alloys increases with increasing Co content and can be increased to 1.93 T at x = 8 by heat treatment, but excessive substitution of Co for Fe deteriorates the coercivity and bending ductility due to the pre-existing α-Fe(Co) grains. The resistivity is positively correlated with the disorder of structure, and the as-spun alloy with x = 4 exhibits a high resistivity of 136.2 μΩ cm. As a result, the annealed Fe 80.5 B 12 P 2 C 1 Cu 0.5 Co 4 alloy with excellent soft magnetic properties (M s = 1.81 T, H c = 7.8 A/m) and good bending ductility in combination with high resistivity has potential for application in the field of electronic devices. • The crystallization tendency of alloy is enhanced by the substitution of Fe by Co. • The annealed Co4 alloy exhibits an ultrafine nanocrystalline structure. • Co4 alloy combines excellent soft magnetic properties with high resistivity. • Co0, Co4 Alloys exhibit good bending ductility even when annealing at T x1 -60 K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The occurrence of rainfall is the result of a combination of various meteorological factors. Traditional rainfall early warning models solely use Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)-derived Zenith Total Delay (ZTD) or Precipitable Water Vapor (PWV) to forecast rainfall, resulting in a low true detected rate. While non-linear rainfall early warning models based on the Back-Propagation Neural Network (BP-NN) algorithm consider the influences of various meteorological factors, the forecasts often exhibit a high false rate. To further improve the prediction of rainfall, a short-term rainfall early warning model based on the GNSS and BP-NN algorithms is proposed in this study. The method uses the traditional rainfall forecasting model and utilizes the BP-NN algorithm to combine various meteorological factors for rainfall early warning. The results of GNSS and BP-NN together improve the precision of rainfall early warning. Observation data from eight GNSS stations, the fifth-generation reanalysis of European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecast (ECMWF ERA5), and temperature, pressure, and rainfall data from corresponding meteorological stations in Ningbo, China were utilized to verify the rainfall early warning model proposed in this study. The results show that the proposed model can complement the advantages of the traditional linear and non-linear rainfall early warning methods. The model can maintain a high True Detected Rate (TDR) of rainfall early warning while simultaneously reducing the False Forecasted Rate (FFR). The average TDR of the eight GNSS stations is 100% and the FFR is 20.75%, which are both better than those of existing traditional linear and non-linear rainfall early warning models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is one of the common causes of heart failure. Myocardial injury triggers an inflammatory response and recruits immune cells into the heart. High expression of Krüppel-like factor 2 (KLF2) in endothelial cells (ECs) potentially exerts an anti-inflammatory effect. However, the role of extracellular vesicles (EVs) from KLF2-overexpressing ECs (KLF2-EVs) in DCM remains unclear. Methods and results: EVs were separated from the supernatant of KLF2-overexpressing ECs by gradient centrifugation. Mice were repeatedly administered low-dose doxorubicin (DOX) and then received KLF2-EVs through an intravenous injection. Treatment with KLF2-EVs prevented doxorubicin-induced left ventricular dysfunction and reduced the recruitment of Ly6high Mo/Mø in the myocardium. We used flow cytometry to detect Ly6high monocytes in bone marrow and spleen tissues and to elucidate the mechanisms underlying this beneficial effect. KLF2-EVs increased the retention of Ly6Chigh monocytes in the bone marrow but not in the spleen tissue. KLF2-EVs also significantly downregulated C–C chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) protein expression in cells from the bone marrow. Conclusions: EVs derived from KLF2-overexpressing ECs reduced cardiac inflammation and ameliorated left ventricular dysfunction in DCM mice by targeting the CCR2 protein to inhibit Ly6Chigh monocyte mobilization from the bone marrow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we developed a Cu 0.5 Fe 2.5 S 4 nanocatalyst through facile sulfidation of the Cu-MIL-88B(Fe) precursor to expedite surface Fe(III) reduction and enhance H 2 O 2 activation in the heterogeneous electro-Fenton (HEF). The as-prepared catalyst possesses relatively large specific surface area and uniformly dispersed metal active sites. The Cu 0.5 Fe 2.5 S 4 -catalyzed HEF system allowed complete removal of naproxen with minimal metal leaching, surpassing that of Cu-MIL-88B(Fe) or Fe 3 S 4. Quantitative XPS analysis, electrochemical characterization and density functional theory calculations reveal an electron donor-shuttle regime in which S2- and Cu species serve as the electron donor and shuttle, respectively. The Cu species significantly accelerate the internal electron transfer between S and Fe and mitigate the dissolution of the adjacent iron sites, securing the sustainable reducing capacity. Moreover, Cu 0.5 Fe 2.5 S 4 -based HEF exhibits great practicability for treatment of various organics in urban wastewater. This study opens new avenue for addressing the challenge of sluggish Fe(III)/Fe(II) cycling in HEF. [Display omitted] • Cu 0.5 Fe 2.5 S 4 designed from MOF sulfidation serves as novel HEF catalyst. • S2- provides many electrons to boost the Fe(III)/Fe(II) cycling in HEF. • Cu species acts as the electron shuttle to accelerate the internal electron transfer. • The Cu-doping stabilizes the adjacent iron sites and enhances the •OH production. • The high porosity and dispersibility of Cu 0.5 Fe 2.5 S 4 promote the mass transport in HEF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To evaluate the effect of massive transfusion protocol on coagulation function in elderly patients with multiple injuries. Methods. In this retrospective cohort study, clinical data were collected from a total of 94 elderly patients with multiple injuries, including 44 cases who received routine transfusion protocol (control group) and 50 cases who concurrently received massive transfusion protocol in our hospital (research group). The changes in platelet parameters, coagulation function, and organ dysfunction scores at admission and 24 h after transfusion were compared between the two groups. The 24-hour plasma and red blood cell transfusion volume, length of stay, complications, and mortality of the two groups were analyzed statistically. Results. Twenty-four hours after blood transfusion, the hematocrit, platelets, and hemoglobin in the research group were higher than those in the control group, while the activated partial thromboplastin time, prothrombin time, thrombin time, fibrinogen, and scores of Marshall scoring system and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment were lower than those in the control group (P < 0.01). The 24-hour plasma transfusion volume was higher, and the length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay and total length of stay were lower in the research group compared with the control group (P < 0.01). No significant difference was found in the mortality rate between the research group and the control group (10.00% vs. 13.64%, P > 0.05). The incidence of complications in the research group was lower than that in the control group (12.00% vs. 31.82%, P < 0.05). Conclusion. Massive transfusion protocol for elderly patients with multiple injuries can improve their coagulation function and platelet parameters, alleviate organ dysfunction, shorten length of ICU stay, and decrease the incidence of complications, which is conducive to improving the prognosis of patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The liver is a crucial center in the regulation of energy homeostasis under starvation. Although downregulation of mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) has been reported to play pivotal roles in the starvation responses, the underpinning mechanisms in particular upstream factors that downregulate mTORC1 remain largely unknown. To identify genetic variants that cause liver energy disorders during starvation, we conduct a zebrafish forward genetic screen. We identify a liver hulk (lvh) mutant with normal liver under feeding, but exhibiting liver hypertrophy under fasting. The hepatomegaly in lvh is caused by enlarged hepatocyte size and leads to liver dysfunction as well as limited tolerance to starvation. Positional cloning reveals that lvh phenotypes are caused by mutation in the ftcd gene, which encodes the formimidoyltransferase cyclodeaminase (FTCD). Further studies show that in response to starvation, the phosphorylated ribosomal S6 protein (p-RS6), a downstream effector of mTORC1, becomes downregulated in the wild-type liver, but remains at high level in lvh. Inhibition of mTORC1 by rapamycin rescues the hepatomegaly and liver dysfunction of lvh. Thus, we characterize the roles of FTCD in starvation response, which acts as an important upstream factor to downregulate mTORC1, thus preventing liver hypertrophy and dysfunction. Author summary: Under starvation, the liver initiates a series of metabolic adaptations to maintain energy homeostasis that is critical for survival. During this process, mTORC1 pathway is downregulated to reduce anabolism and promote catabolism, ensuring adequate usage of limited resources. However, mechanisms underlying the downregulation of mTORC1 remain incompletely understood. In a zebrafish genetic screen aiming to characterize factors important for starvation response in the liver, we identify an ftcd mutation that causes liver hypertrophy and dysfunction under fasting. FTCD acts upstream to inactivate mTORC1 in response to starvation. Our work reveals previously unappreciated roles of FTCD in the responses to energy stress through modulating mTORC1 activities, moreover implicates a potential liver disorder risk of FTCD deficiency under the circumstances of starvation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After a major debt crisis occurs in a listed company, the stock prices of related enterprises may also fluctuate sharply, resulting in the spread of debt risk to more enterprises. Taking the stocks of listed companies as network nodes, we constructed a complex stock market network over three periods of time through the logarithmic return rate of stocks for the three periods of prophase, metaphase, and anaphase of the debt crisis. We studied the topological characteristics of the network and destructiveness over the three periods. Finally, the minimum spanning tree was used to construct a network and the community structure of the network. The empirical analysis took the debt crisis of the China Evergrande Company as an example to analyze the impact of its major debt crisis on the Chinese stock market. The research findings were as follows: First, the debt crisis increased the inter-industry connections within the network, that is, the correlations between enterprises in different industries was enhanced. Second, the closeness of the cross-industry connections increased the connectivity efficiency of the network, but compared with the other two periods, the debt crisis in the metaphase was less stable. Third, community research showed that in the metaphase of the debt crisis, the enterprises became the core nodes of the network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achieving the target of carbon neutrality has been an important approach for China to mitigate global climate change. Enterprises are major carbon emitters, and a well-designed early warning system is needed to ensure that their emissions align with carbon neutrality goals. Therefore, this study utilized electricity big data to construct an early warning model for enterprise carbon emissions based on carbon quota allocation. Taking key carbon-emitting enterprises in Guangxi as a case study, we aim to provide insights to support China's dual carbon goals. Firstly, we established the Carbon Quota Allocation System, enabling carbon quota allocation at the enterprise levels. Secondly, we developed the Enterprise Carbon Neutrality Index, facilitating dynamic warnings for carbon emissions among enterprises. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) In 2020, Guangdong received the highest carbon quota of 606 million tons, representing 5.72% of the national total, while Guangxi only received 2.63 billion tons. (2) Only 39.34% of enterprises in Guangxi are able to meet the carbon neutrality target, indicating significant emission reduction pressure faced by enterprises in the region. (3) Over 90% of enterprises in Guangxi receive Commendation and Encouragement warning levels, suggesting that enterprises in Guangxi are demonstrating a promising trend in emission reduction efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a kind of high-power density machine, superconducting machines have important application prospects in the fields of aerospace, ship propulsion, and wind power generation. The existing semisuperconducting-type machines have great difficulties in design and application because of the need to use complicated structures such as brushes and rotating dewars. A rotating-pole-shoe-type high-temperature superconducting machine is proposed in this article. The machine separates the pole shoe from the magnetic pole and generates a magnetic field synchronized with the armature side by rotating the pole shoe. The excitation system of the machine consists of a rotating rotor and a stationary inner stator. The superconducting coil is placed on the inner stator, avoiding the use of complex structures such as brushes and rotary seals. Aiming at the special structure of the rotating-pole-shoe-type superconducting machine, a three-dimensional magnetic field analysis of the superconducting machine is performed to improve the machine structure. The output performance of the machine is calculated and compared with that of the semisuperconducting-type machine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing immunoassay for absolute quantitation of protein biomarkers in Formalin Fixed Paraffin Embedded (FFPE) samples promises improved objectivity, consistency and accuracy in daily clinical practice. The feasibility of Quantitative Dot Blot (QDB) method for this purpose was explored in this study. We were able to measure HER2 protein levels using 0.5 µg/sample total protein lysate extracted from 2 × 5 µm FFPE slices absolutely and quantitatively using QDB method in 332 breast cancer FFPE samples. HER2 levels measured using two clinically validated antibodies for immunohistochemistry respectively were highly correlated (r = 0.963). We also achieved area under the curve (AUC) at 0.9998 ± 0.0002 (p < 0.0001, n = 224) with IHC analysis, and 0.9942 ± 0.0031 (p < 0.0001, n = 319) with combined results from IHC and Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses when analyzed with Receiver Operative Characteristics analysis (ROC) respectively. When the results were converted dichotomously with optimized cutoffs from ROC analyses, we achieved 99.5% concordance with IHC; and 96.9% with combined results from both IHC and FISH analyses. Therefore, we were able to demonstrate QDB method as the first immunoassay platform for absolute quantitation of protein biomarkers in FFPE samples to meet the need of daily clinical practice, especially for local laboratories or laboratories in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Adlay seed [Job's tears, Coix lachryma-jobi L. var. ma-yuen Stapf (Poaceae)] is a Traditional Chinese Medicine, which has been investigated to treat inflammatory diseases and rheumatism. Objective: This study evaluates the ameliorative effects of adlay seed extract (ASE) in a complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA)-induced rheumatoid arthritis (RA) rats. Materials and methods: The RA Sprague–Dawley rat model was induced and randomly divided into six groups with or without ASE treatment (50, 100 or 200 mg/kg). After 28 d administration, the symptoms, biochemical parameters and molecular mechanisms were investigated. Results: The values of paw oedema, PGE2 and MMP-3 decreased from 1.46 ± 0.04 to 0.66 ± 0.07 cm3, from 126.2 ± 11.48 to 79.71 ± 6.8 pg/mL and from 142.7 ± 8.36 to 86.51 ± 5.95 ng/mL, respectively; the values of body weight increased from 177.25 ± 5.94 to 205 ± 6.52 g in HASE group. In addition, treatment of ASE reduced the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-6, MCP-1), and increased the activities of antioxidant enzyme (GSH-Px, SOD, and CAT). Furthermore, ASE could suppress the mRNA expression of COX-2 and CHI3L1 and improve the mRNA expression of CAT and GPx-1 in ankle tissues of RA rats. Discussion and conclusions: For the first time, our results indicated ASE exerts anti-RA effects via inhibiting pro-inflammatory factors and alleviating oxidative stress. Our finding sheds light on the research and development of anti-RA functional foods from adlay seed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the traditional control scheme of a 12/8-pole bearingless switched reluctance motor (BSRM), radial force and torque are usually controlled as a compromise due to the conflict between their effective output areas. Additionally, each phase requires individual power circuits and is excited in turn to produce a continuous levitation force, resulting in high power device requirements and high controller costs. This paper discusses a 12/8-pole single-winding hybrid-rotor bearingless switched reluctance motor (HBSRM) with a hybrid rotor consisting of cylindrical and salient-pole lamination segments. The asymmetric rotor of the HBSRM slightly increases the complexity of its structure and magnetic circuit, but makes it possible to generate the desired radial force at any rotor angular position. A control scheme for the HBSRM is developed to utilize the independent excitation of the four windings in one phase to generate the desired levitation force at any rotor angular position, and it requires only half the number of power circuits used in the conventional control scheme of a 12/8-pole single-winding BSRM. Different from the average torque chosen to be controlled in traditional methods, this scheme directly regulates the instantaneous total torque produced by all excited phases together and presents a current algorithm to optimize the torque contribution of each phase so as to reduce torque pulsation, and the improved performance of this bearingless motor is finally validated by simulation analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polymer hydrogels are a promising electrolyte for flexible superconductors (FSCs) due to their excellent flexibility, ions transportations and interfacial compatibility. However, the large internal resistance will decrease the power density (PD) and energy density (ED) of FSCs. In this work, Ti 3 C 2 T x was introduced to polyacrylamide/calcium alginate (PC) hydrogel electrolyte to decrease the internal resistance (IR) and improve the interfacial adhesion. The polyacrylamide/calcium alginate@Ti 3 C 2 T x (PCT) composite hydrogels were successfully prepared by in-situ polymerization. Their mechanical property and adhesive property to various substrates were investigated, respectively, and a flexible supercapacitor was assembled with composite hydrogels as electrolyte and two self-made Ti 3 C 2 T x sheets as electrode. It was found composite hydrogels can adhere to various substrates, which make the voltage drop of FSCs from 163 mV to 78.9 mV. The FSCs show a good performance, whose specific capacitance is 1051.9 mF cm−2 with a current density of 1.07 mA cm−2, and the ED reaches 32.3 Wh kg−1 and the capacitance retention rate is as high as 96% at a high current density of 18.7 mA cm−2. Meanwhile, it can sensitively monitor human movements such as finger bending, frowning, swallowing, etc. This work is expected to be applied in the field of energy storage and sensing. [Display omitted] • Ti 3 C 2 T x was introduced to the PC hydrogel to decrease the internal resistance and improve the interfacial adhesion. • The FSC with PCT as electrolyte has high specific capacitance (1051.9 mF cm−2) and large energy density (32.3 Wh kg−1). • The PCT hydrogel shows a good performance in the field of sensing, it can sensitively monitor many human movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to reconstruct signals that are sparse with a tight frame from undersampled data by using the ℓ q -minimization method. This problem can be cast as a ℓ q -minimization problem with a tight frame subjected to an undersampled measurement with a known noise bound. We proved that if the measurement matrix satisfies the restricted isometry property with δ 2 s ≤ 1 / 2 , there exists a value q 0 such that for any q ∈ (0 , q 0 ] , any signal that is s-sparse with a tight frame can be robustly recovered to the true signal. We estimated q 0 as q 0 = 2 / 3 in the case of δ 2 s ≤ 1 / 2 and discussed that the value of q 0 can be much higher. We also showed that when δ 2 s ≤ 0.3317 , for any q ∈ (0 , 1 ] , robust recovery for signals via ℓ q -minimization holds, which is consistent with the case of ℓ q -minimization without a tight frame. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Highlights • The interlayer distance of hard carbon crystallites is tunable. • The defect sites of hard carbon for Na-ion storage can be tunable. • The designed carbon anode exhibits an excellent electrochemistry property. • Na-ion full-cell delivers a high energy density of 247 Wh kg−1 (vs. anode). Abstract Hard carbon materials hold the most promising application among all anode materials for sodium-ion batteries because of the high storage capacity and good cycling stability. However, the low initial Coulombic efficiency limits their further commercialization. Herein, a new carbonization strategy is presented to prepare a cost-effective hard carbon material as anodes for sodium-ion batteries by pyrolyzing the interpenetrating polymer networks (IPNs) made from the mixture of biomass-derivative lignin and epoxy resin. By adjusting heat-treatment temperatures and the lignin/epoxy resin mass ratios, we can adjust the interlayer distance of carbon crystallites and defect sites for Sodium-ion storage, and thus obtain a hard carbon with a high capacity of 316 mAh g−1, a high ICE of 82%, and good rate capability (e.g. , 161 mAh g−1 at 300 mA g−1), all of which are superior to or comparable to those state-of-the-art carbons reported in literatures, by the help of a large interlayer distance of 3.95 Å. Besides, a full cell with the configuration of as-prepared hard carbon anode versus air-stable O3-Na 0.9 [Cu 0.22 Fe 0.30 Mn 0.48 ]O 2 cathode is further demonstrated, while it presents a high ICE of 80% and an energy density of 247 Wh kg anode −1 (vs. hard carbon) with good cycle performance. These excellent properties verify that our synthetic strategy is feasible, scalable and can be extended into the fabrication of various carbon anode materials with anticipative microstructures for the economical SIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zeolite Fe-MFI was synthesized and applied as catalysts in the liquid-phase dehydration of 1-phenylethanol (PHE). The ferrum may influence the nucleation/crystallization processes, the crystal size is varied with the ferrum content. However, all the ferrum were incorporated into the framework when the Fe:Si = 0.005–0.025. In the PHE dehydration, the extra-framework ferrum is inactive. Nevertheless, the Fe-MFI is highly active, a PHE conversion of about 90% and a styrene selectivity >99% were achieved. The Fe-MFI with 1.5–1.8 mmol/g acid sites and Brönsted to Lewis in the 0.13–0.18 range is preferred. Moreover, the Fe-MFI could be reused for at least five times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we consider a common generalization of both hypercontinuous posets and s 2 -quasicontinuous posets, and introduce a new concept of quasi-hypercontinuous posets. The main results are: (1) A poset is a quasi-hypercontinuous poset iff the upper topology is a hypercontinuous lattice iff the S ⁎ -convergence is topological with respect to the upper topology; (2) For a quasi-hypercontinuous poset, the quasi-liminf convergence is topological with respect to the interval topology; (3) The interval topology on a quasi-hypercontinuous poset is Tychonoff; (4) A lattice is quasi-hypercontinuous as a poset iff its normal completion is a quasi-hypercontinuous lattice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • MIL-88B(Fe)/Fe 3 S 4 hybrids for effective water treatment by heterogeneous electro-Fenton. • Hybrid catalyst: highly uniform composition due to excellent distribution of small Fe 3 S 4. • Sulfidation allows breaking the activity-stability trade-off for high performance HEF. • Good recyclability of hybrids and fast trimethoprim removal even in urban wastewater. • Great catalytic activity and degradation mechanism confirmed by DFT calculations. Fe-based metal–organic frameworks are promising catalysts for water treatment, although their viability is hampered by the slow regeneration of active Fe(II) sites. A facile sulfidation strategy is proposed to boost the catalytic activity of MIL-88B(Fe) in heterogeneous electro-Fenton (HEF) treatment of organic micropollutants at mild pH. The synthesized MIL-88B(Fe)/Fe 3 S 4 hybrids possessed numerous and durable unsaturated iron sites, acting the S2− atoms as electron donors that enhanced the Fe(II) recycling. The sulfidated catalyst outperformed the MIL-88B(Fe), as evidenced by the 7-fold faster degradation of antibiotic trimethoprim by HEF and the fast destruction of micropollutants in urban wastewater. The hybrid catalyst was reused, obtaining >90% drug removal after four runs and, additionally, its inherent magnetism facilitated the post-treatment recovery. Electrochemical tests and DFT calculations provided mechanistic insights to explain the enhanced catalysis, suggesting that the accelerated Fe(III)/Fe(II) cycling and the enhanced mass transport and electron transfer accounted for the efficient trimethoprim degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel strategy for the synthesis of hierarchical porous carbons (HPCs) from resol by potassium acetate activation for advanced supercapacitor electrodes was reported. The resultant HPCs with a high specific surface area up to 1201 m 2 g −1 as a supercapacitor electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance of 226 F g −1 at 0.05 A g −1 . Besides, the electrode shows high rate capability with 62.4% retention from 0.05 to 20 A g −1 . Moreover, it demonstrates good cyclic stability, showing a high capacitance retention of 97.1% over 5000 charge-discharge cycles at 2.0 A g −1 . The facile, efficient and template-free synthesis strategy for novel 3D-HPCs may promote commercial application of HPCs in the fields of supercapacitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-temperature superconducting (HTS) machines have the virtues of higher power density and better stability, which makes it a good prospect in the applications of wind power generation and ship propulsion. When the high-temperature superconductor is used in the rotating machines, the behavior of the conductor would be affected by the complex magnetic field, Lorentz force, and the centrifugal force. In order to evaluate the performance of the HTS coil in the machine, a finite element method model of the machine to calculate the magnetic field coupled with stress field was built in this paper. At first, the distribution of the magnetic field in the machine was calculated, then the Lorentz force was calculated and transferred to the stress field to obtain the stress and strain in the HTS and other structural materials. In the calculation, three operating conditions were considered, including no-load, full-load, and three-phase short-circuit fault. The results show that the stress on the HTS coil and the structural component are all smaller than the critical stress, which proves that the design is reliable. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, we consider a common generalization of both s 1 -continuous posets and quasicontinuous domains, and we introduce new concepts of way below relations and s 1 -quasicontinuous posets. The main results are: (1) A poset is an s 1 -quasicontinuous poset iff the σ 1 -topology is a hypercontinuous lattice iff the S ⁎ -convergence is topological with respect to the σ 1 -topology; (2) A poset is s 1 -continuous iff it is meet s 1 -continuous and s 1 -quasicontinuous; (3) The λ 1 -topology on an s 1 -quasicontinuous poset is Tychonoff; (4) A poset P is s 1 -quasicontinuous and the σ 1 -topology is sober iff P is a quasicontinuous domain and the σ 1 -topology coincides with the Scott topology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The damping and screening system (DSS) is a key structure of the hybrid high-temperature superconducting generator. In this paper, an analytical method was introduced to analyze the performance of the DSS with different time constants on both the $d$ -axis and the $q$ -axis of the generator. First, the distribution of the eddy currents in the DSS was analyzed, and the calculation of the equivalent resistance, inductance, and time constant of the DSS was considered. Then, to analyze the performance of the nonuniform DSS (NDSS), a splitting method was introduced. Using the new method, parameters of the damping part, screening part, and supplementing part of the NDSS were calculated, respectively. At last, the screening and damping performances of the NDSS were evaluated. The finite-element method was also employed to verify the analytical results. An experimental platform was built up to test the screening ratio and verify the simulating results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene oxide supported l -proline (GO–Proline) bifunctional catalyst was prepared by covalent bonds via a succinate spacer. Fourier transform infrared spectrum (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were employed to characterize the structure and morphology. The characterizations demonstrated l -proline molecules could be readily introduced to the graphene oxide sheets with homogeneous distributions. Systematic studies demonstrated that it was an efficient, recoverable, and recyclable catalyst in the solvent free ketene forming reaction. Effect of different solvents on its catalytic properties was also investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we consider a common generalization of both s 2 -continuous posets and quasicontinuous domains, and we introduce new concepts of way below relations and s 2 -quasicontinuous posets. The main results are: (1) The way below relation on an s 2 -quasicontinuous poset has the interpolation property; (2) The λ 2 -topology on an s 2 -quasicontinuous poset is completely regular; (3) A poset is s 2 -continuous iff it is meet s 2 -continuous and s 2 -quasicontinuous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Animal wastes from concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) can cause soil arsenic pollution due to the widespread use of organoarsenic feed additives. This study investigated the arsenic pollution of surface soils in a typical CAFO zone, in comparison with that of agricultural soils in the Pearl River Delta, China. The mean soil arsenic contents in the CAFO zone were elevated compared to those in the local background and agricultural soils of the Pearl River Delta region. Chemical speciation analysis showed that the soils in the CAFO zone were clearly contaminated by the organoarsenic feed additive, p -arsanilic acid (ASA). Transformation of ASA to inorganic arsenic (arsenite and arsenate) in the surface soils was also observed. Although the potential ecological risk posed by the arsenic in the surface soils was relatively low in the CAFO zone, continuous discharge of organoarsenic feed additives could cause accumulation of arsenic and thus deserves significant attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene inducing graphitization of hard carbon can be realized via assemble of PF and GO with hydrogen bonding, and sequential inducing tendency during carbonization process. [Display omitted] • A hard carbon with less defects and lower specific surface area is synthesized. • The unique structure is realized via graphene induced graphitization of hard carbon. • The hard carbon exhibits ultrahigh initial coulombic efficiency (90.4%). • A Na-ion full cell with great stability and superior rate capability is demonstrated. Hard carbons exhibit great potential as anode materials for Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). However, the large initial irreversible capacity is still a major obstacle in their practical application. It is widely known that lower surface area and fewer defects may increase the initial Coulombic efficiency (ICE) for carbon anode in SIBs. In this study, a graphene-induced graphitization strategy is proposed for synthesizing less defective hard carbon. This strategy is realized through the assembly of phenolic resin (PF) and graphene oxide (GO) taking advantage of their hydrogen bonding interaction. Thus, aromatic ring near graphene has a strong tendency to be arranged along the graphene layer during pyrolysis process, a significant transition from sp 3 to sp 2 hybridization carbon occurs, endowing hard carbon with fewer defects and lower surface area. The structural advantages of the hard carbon contribute to the superior ICE (90.4%), the highest ever reported, and excellent reversible specific capacity of 343 mA h g−1 at 30 mA g−1 even after 100 cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With designing stator teeth by using grain oriented silicon sheets (GO) and other parts still with non-grain oriented silicon sheets (NGO), the electromagnetic performance of interior permanent magnet synchronous machine (GO-IPMSM) can be improved greatly, however its torque ripple will be increased as well. For reducing its torque ripple, optimizing its rotor barrier shape is an effective way. In this paper, the polynomial method is proposed to establish the rotor barrier shape, and the genetic algorithm (GA) method is employed for the optimization process. In case the optimized GO-IPMSM can work normally, its anti irreversible demagnetization ability is analyzed as well. As shown, with the GO is adopted for designing the stator teeth and its rotor barrier shape is optimized, though its torque ability and efficiency have been increased, its anti irreversible demagnetization risk ability is reduced, however the proposed machine can still operate safely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims at the problem of reconstruction the unknown links in debt networks among enterprises. We use the topological matrix of the enterprise debt network as the object of reconstruction and use the time series data of accounts receivable and payable as input and output information in the debt network to establish an underdetermined linear system about the topological matrix of the debt network. We establish an iteratively reweighted least-squares algorithm, which is an algorithm in compressed sensing. This algorithm uses reweighted ℓ 2 -minimization to approximate ℓ 1 -norm of the target vectors. We solve the ℓ 1 -minimization problem of the underdetermined linear system using the iteratively reweighted least-squares algorithm and obtain the reconstructed topological matrix of the debt network. Simulation experiments show that the topology matrix reconstruction method of enterprise debt networks based on compressed sensing can reconstruct over 70% of the unknown network links, and the error is controlled within 2%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A simple solvent engineering strategy was employed to control morphology of PbI 2 films effectively by water processing. • Platelet-like PbI 2 films can successfully control the residual amount of PbI 2 in perovskite film. • Platelet-like PbI 2 films can control the morphology of the perovskite film and improve the device efficiency [Display omitted] The performance of organic-inorganic perovskite solar cells depends largely on the quality of perovskite film. Currently, various methods are applied to prepare the perovskite film. Among them, the two-step method is counted as a promising candidate to obtain high-quality perovskite film. In this study, we attain a special platelet-like PbI 2 films by applying pure water to cover wet PbI 2 film and standing for a period of time. The unique morphology contributes to the entry of organic cations solution into the PbI 2 and promoting its reaction with PbI 2 , which reducing the residual amount of PbI 2 in the perovskite film. Compared to the traditional two-step method, water processing method can obtain a high-quality perovskite film with enlarged grain size, improved crystallization, and prolonged carrier lifetime. As a result, the efficiency of the prepared device based on the film has increased from 17.90% without water processing to 20.14% of water processing. Which demonstrates that this solvent engineering for PbI 2 film opens up a possibility to prepare high-quality perovskite in a two-step method and obtain highly efficient perovskite solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of domestic HVDC transmission system needs the HVDC transformer to perform better. A large amount of higher harmonics will be generated in the load current when the transformer works in a converted way. Due to this, the eddy current field is a nonlinear and non-sinusoidal one. Based on Visual Basic 6.0 and MagNet, special software for magnetic leakage field analysis and stray loss calculation was written. Using the special software, the distribution of magnetic leakage field was studied and the stray loss of the transformer was calculated. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Mesoporous carbons are prepared from a mixture of the soluble starch with needle-like nano-sized Mg(OH)2 particles. The samples structures are characterized by TEM, nitrogen adsorption at 77K and XRD. The electrochemical performance for electrochemical capacitors is evaluated in a 6M KOH aqueous solution. The resultant carbons show a disordered pore structure with interweaving straight nano-tunnels that resembled the shape of the template, and possess a high surface area more than 1000m2 g−1 and a large pore volume. The special one dimensional morphology of templates cause a graphitization effect on the carbon in partial region, different from catalytic graphitization mechanism of transition metal particles. Due to those characteristics, the samples exhibit good electrochemical performances used for electrochemical capacitors electrode, especially excellent power capability. The sample carbonized at 950°C for 6h retain a capacitance of 126Fg−1 even at a high current density of 40Ag−1. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Recently, spinel high-entropy oxide (HEO) anode materials have garnered extensive attention for high-energy lithium-ion batteries due to their high specific capacity. Many studies have explored its energy storage mechanism, but few have paid attention to its characteristics in long cycle life. In this work, the whole life cycling performance of (FeCoNiCrMn)-HEO is presented and investigated for the first time. Distinct capacity trends are studied to divide the cycling life into three stages: activation, upgradation, and degradation. Ex situ morphological characterizations are conducted to reveal that the driving force of stage change is continuous particle fragmentation. As a result, refined particles promote conversion reaction reversibility and induce extra interfacial capacity, achieving 2831 mAh g−1 at 825 cycles. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations provide a deeper insight into the high entropy effect on the ultra-high extra interfacial capacity. However, continuous refinement brings about huge electrolyte interface-derived layers, which are also responsible for pre-decay and post-collapse. The view of the evolution of the lithium storage mechanism is explicitly presented and experimentally verified by high-energy ball milling and fluorinated vinyl carbonate (FEC). These above results can give practical solutions to design high specific capacity and long-life cycle stability HEO anode in the future. [Display omitted] • The whole life performance of (FeCoNiCrMn)-HEO was studied for the first time. • The driving force of capacity change is continuous particle fragmentation. • Particle refinement enhances reaction reversibility and interfacial capacity. • The high entropy effect led to the ultra-high extra capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, with the rapid development of information technology, the volume of image data has grown exponentially. However, these datasets typically contain a large amount of redundant information. To extract effective features and reduce redundancy from images, a representation learning method based on the Vision Transformer (ViT) has been proposed, and to our best knowledge, Transformer was first applied to zero-shot learning (ZSL). The method adopts a symmetric encoder–decoder structure, where the encoder incorporates Multi-Head Self-Attention (MSA) mechanism of ViT to reduce the dimensionality of image features, eliminate redundant information, and decrease computational burden. Consequently, it effectively extracts features, and the decoder is utilized for reconstructing image data. We evaluated the representation learning capability of the proposed method in various tasks, including data visualization, image reconstruction, face recognition, and ZSL. By comparing with state-of-the-art representation learning methods, the outstanding results obtained validate the effectiveness of this method in the field of representation learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A Pose-Invariant Convolutional Baseline is proposed. • Appearance-Enhanced Feature Learning Network is proposed. • The state-of-the-art results are reported in three Re-ID datasets. Person re-identification (Re-ID) has important practical application value in intelligent video analysis. Due to the illumination, occlusion, and pose variation, person Re-ID is still a challenging problem. Some recent Re-ID methods based on ResNet-50 have achieved high accuracy, but performance degradation is caused by pose variation. To address this issue, Pose-Invariant Convolutional Baseline (PICB) embed with the proposed Pooling Fusion Block (PFB) is put forward as a new baseline for person Re-ID task. On the basis of PICB, an end-to-end network named Appearance-Enhanced Feature Learning Network (AEFLN) is proposed to simultaneously learn diversity body features and discriminative part features. Specially, a novel (DBFL) strategy is presented to learn diversity body features, which could alleviate the potential local minima problem generated by optimizing model with randomly initialized parameters in PFB. In addition, uniform part-level feature extractors are applied to learn part features, which compensates for body features' lack of distinguishable local information. In testing phase, body features and part features are integrated to represent the enhanced appearance feature for each person image. Comprehensive experiments have demonstrated that our method can outperform the sate-of-the-art results on several public available datasets, including Market-1501, CUHK03 and DukeMTMC-reID. For instance, we achieve 74.8% (+11.1%) and 76.5% (+19.0%) in Rank-1 accuracy and mAP on CUHK03 dataset. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is still a considerable challenge for spinel Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 to achieve high tap density while retaining excellent power capability. Herein, a compact and mesopore-oriented holey-graphene framework (HGF) caging nano-Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 particles (Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 /HGF) is synthesized by capillary shrink effect. In the capillary drying process, nano-Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 particles prevent the absolute aggregation of graphene sheets, remaining mesopore-oriented porosity for rapid Li+ diffusion. After precisely adjusting the porous structure, Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 /HGF composite successfully achieves a balance between tap density and porosity. Furthermore, the in-plane nanopores of holey-graphene sheets provide channels for Li+ diffusion, obviously weakening the Li+ diffusion resistances of compact composite. The resultant Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 /HGF composite combines a high tap density of 1.1 g cm−3 and a moderate mesopore-oriented porosity with BET specific area of 152 m2 g−1, delivering volumetric-specific capacities of 161, 142, 120, 103 mA h cm−3 at 0.035, 1.75, 7 and 14 A g−1, respectively. Even as current density reaches 17.5 A g−1, the as-prepared Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 /HGF composite still displays a capacity of 98 mA h cm−3, showing excellent ultrahigh-rate performance. After 1000 cycles at 7A g−1, the capacity of dense Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 /HGF composite remains 84%, demonstrating high cycle stability. Image 1 • A balance between high tap density and mesopore-oriented structure. • Decreasing Li+ diffusion resistance due to holey-graphene sheets. • Excellent power capability and high cycle stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leaf morphology is a crucial aspect of plant architecture, yet the molecular mechanisms underlying leaf development remain incompletely understood. In this study, a narrow leaf mutant, m625, was identified in rice (Oryza sativa L.), exhibiting pleiotropic developmental defects. Pigment measurement revealed reduced levels of photochromic pigments in m625. Cytological analysis demonstrated that the m625 gene affected vascular patterns and cell division. Specifically, the narrowing of the leaf was attributed to a decrease in small vein number, shorter vein spacing, and an abnormal V-shaped arrangement of bulliform cells, while the thickening was caused by longer leaf veins, thicker mesophyll cells, and an increased number of parenchyma cell layers. The dwarf stature and thickened internode were primarily due to shortened internodes and an increase in cell layers, respectively. Positional cloning and complementation assays indicated that the m625 gene is a novel allele of NAL1. In the m625 mutant, a nucleotide deletion at position 1103 in the coding sequence of NAL1 led to premature termination of protein translation. Further RNA-Seq and qRT-PCR analyses revealed that the m625 gene significantly impacted regulatory pathways related to IAA and ABA signal transduction, photosynthesis, and lignin biosynthesis. Moreover, the m625 mutant displayed thinner sclerenchyma and cell walls in both the leaf and stem, particularly showing reduced lignified cell walls in the midrib of the leaf. In conclusion, our study suggests that NAL1, in addition to its known roles in IAA transport and leaf photosynthesis, may also participate in ABA signal transduction, as well as regulate secondary cell wall formation and sclerenchyma thickness through lignification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Olfactory dysfunction is a major non-motor symptom that appears during the early stages of Parkinson's Disease (PD), a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra (SN). Depletion of SN dopaminergic neurons by 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) is widely used as a model for PD and ultimately results in motor deficits. However, it is largely unknown whether olfactory behavior and, more importantly, neural activity in the olfactory bulb (OB) are impaired prior to the appearance of motor deficits. We partially depleted the SN dopaminergic population in mice by injection of 6-OHDA. Seven days after injection of 6-OHDA, motor ability was unchanged but olfactory-driven behaviors were significantly impaired. Injection of 6-OHDA into the SN significantly increased the power of the ongoing local field potential in the OB for all frequency bands, and decreased odor-evoked excitatory beta responses and inhibitory high-gamma responses. Moreover, 6-OHDA treatment led to increased odor-evoked calcium responses in the mitral cells in the OB of awake mice. These data suggest that the olfactory deficits caused by depletion of the SN dopaminergic population are likely due to abnormal hyperactivity of the mitral cells in the OB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)–CRISPR-associated (Cas) system is a powerful genomic DNA editing tool. The increased applications of gene editing tools, including the CRISPR-Cas system, have contributed to recent advances in biological fields, such as genetic disease therapy, disease-associated gene screening and detection, and cancer therapy. However, the major limiting factor for the wide application of gene editing tools is gene editing efficiency. This review summarizes the recent advances in factors affecting the gene editing efficiency of the CRISPR-Cas9 system and the CRISPR-Cas9 system optimization strategies. The homology-directed repair efficiency-related signal pathways and the form and delivery method of the CRISPR-Cas9 system are the major factors that influence the repair efficiency of gene editing tools. Based on these influencing factors, several strategies have been developed to improve the repair efficiency of gene editing tools. This review provides novel insights for improving the repair efficiency of the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing system, which may enable the development and improvement of gene editing tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: We previously showed that the protective effects of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs)‐released exosomes (EPC‐EXs) on endothelium in diabetes. However, whether EPC‐EXs are protective in diabetic ischemic stroke is unknown. Here, we investigated the effects of EPC‐EXs on diabetic stroke mice and tested whether miR‐126 enriched EPC‐EXs (EPC‐EXsmiR126) have enhanced efficacy. Methods: The db/db mice subjected to ischemic stroke were intravenously administrated with EPC‐EXs 2 hours after ischemic stroke. The infarct volume, cerebral microvascular density (MVD), cerebral blood flow (CBF), neurological function, angiogenesis and neurogenesis, and levels of cleaved caspase‐3, miR‐126, and VEGFR2 were measured on day 2 and 14. Results: We found that (a) injected EPC‐EXs merged with brain endothelial cells, neurons, astrocytes, and microglia in the peri‐infarct area; (b) EPC‐EXsmiR126 were more effective than EPC‐EXs in decreasing infarct size and increasing CBF and MVD, and in promoting angiogenesis and neurogenesis as well as neurological functional recovery; (c) These effects were accompanied with downregulated cleaved caspase‐3 on day 2 and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2) upregulation till day 14. Conclusion: Our results indicate that enrichment of miR126 enhanced the therapeutic efficacy of EPC‐EXs on diabetic ischemic stroke by attenuating acute injury and promoting neurological function recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To increase statistical power to identify genes associated with complex traits, a number of transcriptome-wide association study (TWAS) methods have been proposed using gene expression as a mediating trait linking genetic variations and diseases. These methods first predict expression levels based on inferred expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) and then identify expression-mediated genetic effects on diseases by associating phenotypes with predicted expression levels. The success of these methods critically depends on the identification of eQTLs, which may not be functional in the corresponding tissue, due to linkage disequilibrium (LD) and the correlation of gene expression between tissues. Here, we introduce a new method called T-GEN (Transcriptome-mediated identification of disease-associated Genes with Epigenetic aNnotation) to identify disease-associated genes leveraging epigenetic information. Through prioritizing SNPs with tissue-specific epigenetic annotation, T-GEN can better identify SNPs that are both statistically predictive and biologically functional. We found that a significantly higher percentage (an increase of 18.7% to 47.2%) of eQTLs identified by T-GEN are inferred to be functional by ChromHMM and more are deleterious based on their Combined Annotation Dependent Depletion (CADD) scores. Applying T-GEN to 207 complex traits, we were able to identify more trait-associated genes (ranging from 7.7% to 102%) than those from existing methods. Among the identified genes associated with these traits, T-GEN can better identify genes with high (>0.99) pLI scores compared to other methods. When T-GEN was applied to late-onset Alzheimer's disease, we identified 96 genes located at 15 loci, including two novel loci not implicated in previous GWAS. We further replicated 50 genes in an independent GWAS, including one of the two novel loci. Author summary: TWAS-like methods have been widely applied to understand disease etiology using eQTL data and GWAS results. However, it is still challenging to discriminate the true disease-associated genes from those in strong LD with true genes, which is largely due to the misidentification of eQTLs. Here we introduce a novel statistical method named T-GEN to identify disease-associated genes considering epigenetic information. Compared to current TWAS methods, T-GEN not only identified eQTLs with higher CADD scores and function potentials in gene-expression imputation models, but also identified more disease-associated genes across 207 traits and more genes with high (>0.99) pLI scores. Applying T-GEN in late-onset Alzheimer's disease identified 96 genes at 15 loci with two novel loci. Among 96 identified genes, 50 genes were further replicated in an independent GWAS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper mainly studies the formation control problem of multiple quadrotor aircraft via fixed-time control theory. First, based on the bilimit homogeneous theory and the framework of multiagent theory, for multiaircraft, a fixed-time formation control strategy is proposed. Considering the external disturbance existing on the attitude loop of the aircraft, the corresponding fixed-time disturbance observer is designed with the observer technology. Then, a fixed-time attitude controller is designed based on the accurate observation and fast compensation from the disturbance observer. Finally, some simulations are performed to verify the effectiveness of the proposed theoretical method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing demand for person re-identification (Re-ID) tasks, the need for all-day retrieval has become an inevitable trend. Nevertheless, single-modal Re-ID is no longer sufficient to meet this requirement, making Multi-Modal Data crucial in Re-ID. Consequently, a Visible-Infrared Person Re-Identification (VI Re-ID) task is proposed, which aims to match pairs of person images from the visible and infrared modalities. The significant modality discrepancy between the modalities poses a major challenge. Existing VI Re-ID methods focus on cross-modal feature learning and modal transformation to alleviate the discrepancy but overlook the impact of person contour information. Contours exhibit modality invariance, which is vital for learning effective identity representations and cross-modal matching. In addition, due to the low intra-modal diversity in the visible modality, it is difficult to distinguish the boundaries between some hard samples. To address these issues, we propose the Graph Sampling-based Multi-stream Enhancement Network (GSMEN). Firstly, the Contour Expansion Module (CEM) incorporates the contour information of a person into the original samples, further reducing the modality discrepancy and leading to improved matching stability between image pairs of different modalities. Additionally, to better distinguish cross-modal hard sample pairs during the training process, an innovative Cross-modality Graph Sampler (CGS) is designed for sample selection before training. The CGS calculates the feature distance between samples from different modalities and groups similar samples into the same batch during the training process, effectively exploring the boundary relationships between hard classes in the cross-modal setting. Some experiments conducted on the SYSU-MM01 and RegDB datasets demonstrate the superiority of our proposed method. Specifically, in the VIS→IR task, the experimental results on the RegDB dataset achieve 93.69% for Rank-1 and 92.56% for mAP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]