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To achieve a micro-destructive and rapid measurement of the wood density of standing trees, this study investigated the possibility of the unified modeling of multiple tree species, the reliability of the micro drilling resistance method for measuring wood density, the relationship between drilling needle resistance and wood density, and whether moisture content has a significant impact on the model. First, 231 tree cores and drill resistance data were sampled from Pinus massoniana, Cunninghamia lanceolate, and Cryptomeria fortunei. The basic density and moisture content of each core were measured, and the average value of each resistance data record was calculated. Second, the average drill resistance, the natural logarithm of average drill resistance, and absolute moisture content were used as independent variables, while the basic wood density was used as the dependent variable. Third, the total model of the three tree species and sub-model for each tree species were established through a stepwise regression method. Finally, the accuracy of each model was compared and analyzed with that of using the average basic density of each tree species as an estimated density. The estimated accuracy of the total model, sub model, and average wood density modeling data were 90.070%, 93.865%, and 92.195%, respectively. The results revealed that the estimation accuracy of the sub-model was 1.670 percentage points higher than that of the average wood density modeling data, while the estimation accuracy of the total model was 2.125 percentage points lower than that of the average wood density modeling data. Additionally, except for Cryptomeria fortunei, the natural logarithm of drill resistance significantly influenced the wood density model at a significance level of 0.05. Moreover, moisture content significantly affected the total model and sub-models of Pinus massoniana at a significance level of 0.05. The results indicated the feasibility of using the micro-drilling resistance method to measure the wood density of standing trees. Moreover, the relationship between wood density and drill resistance did not follow a linear pattern, and moisture content slightly influenced the drill needle resistance. Furthermore, the establishment of a mathematical model for each tree species was deemed essential. This study provides valuable guidance for measuring the wood density of standing trees through the micro-drilling resistance method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, 2D intercalated pseudocapacitance MoO3 and Nb2O5 have been widely investigated, while 3D Mo-Nb–O materials have rarely been discussed. Here, we synthesized Mo3Nb2O14-B by a simple ball-milling method and further prepared Mo3Nb2O14-L with advanced energy storage properties by a solvothermal method, where the abundant nanopore channels and in situ carbon encapsulation led to fast Li-ion diffusion and excellent structural stability. It performs well in half-cell performance tests, including high reversible capacity (461 mAh g−1 at 0.1C), initial coulomb efficiency of 88.4%, excellent cycling performance (4.4% capacity loss in 600 cycles at 10 C), and significant intercalation mimetic capacitive contribution (89.2% at 1.0 mV s). All these advantages indicate that Mo3Nb2O14-L has great potential for use as anode material for lithium-ion batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, many studies have been conducted in the field of firearm identification with the objective of providing an objective method of evaluating the comparison of cartridge cases. However, less attention has been paid to the objective evaluation of bullet comparisons. In this study, 1 000 registered Chinese Norinco QSZ-92 pistols were used, and a database of 2 996 bullets was constructed. Both the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and the score-based likelihood ratio method were used to objectively evaluate the similarity scores derived by the Evofinder® system. The results indicate that this system has excellent ability to discriminate between the selected pistols. This paper proposes an objective evaluation method, which serves as a response to the ongoing debates regarding the foundation of the discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is growing interest in expanding the production of soybean oils (mainly triacylglycerol, or TAG) to meet rising feed demand and address global energy concerns. We report that a plastid‐localized glycerol‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH), encoded by GmGPDHp1 gene, catalyzes the formation of glycerol‐3‐phosphate (G3P), an obligate substrate required for TAG biosynthesis. Overexpression of GmGPDHp1 increases soybean seed oil content with high levels of unsaturated fatty acids (FAs), especially oleic acid (C18:1), without detectably affecting growth or seed protein content or seed weight. Based on the lipidomic analyses, we found that the increase in G3P content led to an elevated diacylglycerol (DAG) pool, in which the Kennedy pathway‐derived DAG was mostly increased, followed by PC‐derived DAG, thereby promoting the synthesis of TAG containing relatively high proportion of C18:1. The increased G3P levels induced several transcriptional alterations of genes involved in the glycerolipid pathways. In particular, genes encoding the enzymes responsible for de novo glycerolipid synthesis were largely upregulated in the transgenic lines, in‐line with the identified biochemical phenotype. These results reveal a key role for GmGPDHp1‐mediated G3P metabolism in enhancing TAG synthesis and demonstrate a strategy to modify the FA compositions of soybean oils for improved nutrition and biofuel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, many studies have been conducted in the field of firearm identification with the objective of providing an objective method of evaluating the comparison of cartridge cases. However, less attention has been paid to the objective evaluation of bullet comparisons. In this study, 1 000 registered Chinese Norinco QSZ-92 pistols were used, and a database of 2 996 bullets was constructed. Both the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and the score-based likelihood ratio method were used to objectively evaluate the similarity scores derived by the Evofinder ® system. The results indicate that this system has excellent ability to discriminate between the selected pistols. This paper proposes an objective evaluation method, which serves as a response to the ongoing debates regarding the foundation of the discipline., Competing Interests: No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors., (© 2019 The Author(s). Published by Taylor & Francis Group on behalf of the Academy of Forensic Science.)

Inadequate nutrition complicates the clinical course of critically ill patients, and many of these patients develop pulmonary edema. However, little is known about the effect of malnutrition on the mechanisms that resolve alveolar edema. Therefore, we studied the mechanisms responsible for the decrease in alveolar fluid clearance in rats exposed to malnutrition. Rats were allowed access to water, but not to food, for 120 h. Then, the left and right lungs were isolated for the measurement of lung water volume and alveolar fluid clearance, respectively. The rate of alveolar fluid clearance was measured by the progressive increase in the concentration of Evans blue dye that was instilled into the distal air spaces with an isosmolar 5% albumin solution over 1 h. Malnutrition decreased alveolar fluid clearance by 38% compared with controls. Amiloride (10(-3) M) abolished alveolar fluid clearance in malnourished rats. Either refeeding for 120 h following nutritional deprivation for 120 h or an oral supply of sodium glutamate during nutritional deprivation for 120 h restored alveolar fluid clearance to 91 and 86% of normal, respectively. Dibutyryl-cGMP, a cyclic nucleotide-gated cation channel agonist, increased alveolar fluid clearance in malnourished rats supplied with sodium glutamate. Terbutaline, a beta(2)-adrenergic agonist, increased alveolar fluid clearance in rats under all conditions (control, malnutrition, refeeding, and glutamate-treated). These results indicate that malnutrition impairs primarily amiloride-insensitive and dibutyryl-cGMP-sensitive alveolar fluid clearance, but this effect is partially reversible by refeeding, treatment with sodium glutamate, or beta-adrenergic agonist therapy.