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Localization of quantum Bernoulli noises (LQBNs) are the family of local annihilation and local creation operators acting on Bernoulli functionals. In this paper, we construct a density operator ρk represented by LQBNs, and define a new quantum entropy S (ρ k) based on LQBNs. Furthermore, we demonstrate that this quantum entropy S (ρ k) also has the basic properties of von Neumann entropy, such as concavity, subadditivity, and nonnegativity. In particular, we obtain the necessary and sufficient condition for S (ρ k) = k. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The repair of spinal cord injury is a great challenge in clinical. Improving the microenvironment of the injured site is the key strategy for accelerating axon regeneration and synaptic formation. Herein, a kind of silk fibroin microspheres functionalized by metformin through dopamine was developed using water-in-oil emulsification-diffusion method and surface modification technique, and the effect on cortical neuron was evaluated. The results showed that the microspheres showed a uniform size distribution with the diameter of around 60 μm and a concave structure. Moreover, the microspheres possessed good injectability and stability. In addition, the metformin could be successfully immobilized in the silk fibroin microspheres. The cell culture results displayed that the growth and morphology of cortical neurons on the microspheres with metformin concentration of 5 mg/mL and 10 mg/mL were obviously better than that on other samples. Notably, the spread area of single cortical cell on silk fibroin microspheres was increased with the ascending metformin concentration. Therefore, the results indicated that the metformin loaded silk fibroin microsphere could obviously improve the growth and spreading behavior of cortical neuron. The study may provide an important experimental basis for the development of drug loaded injectable biomaterials scaffolds for the treatment of spinal cord injury and have great potential for spinal cord regeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Ionic liquids (ILs) have been used in solvents for proteins in many applications, including biotechnology, pharmaceutics, and medicine due to their tunable physicochemical and biological properties. Protein aggregation is often undesirable, and predominantly occurs during bioprocesses, while the aggregation process can be reversible or irreversible and the aggregates formed can be native/non-native and soluble/insoluble. Recent studies have clearly identified key properties of ILs and IL-water mixtures related to protein performance, suggesting the use of the tailorable properties of ILs to inhibit protein aggregation, to promote protein crystallization, and to control protein aggregation pathways. This review discusses the critical properties of IL and IL-water mixtures and presents the latest understanding of the protein aggregation pathways and the development of IL systems that affect or control the protein aggregation process. Through this feature article, we hope to inspire further advances in understanding and new approaches to controlling protein behavior to optimize bioprocesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been verified to act as essential regulators in the progression of breast cancer (BC). We aimed to investigate the role of circRNA trefoil factor 1 (circ-TFF1) in BC progression. The expression of circ-TFF1, microRNA-338-3p (miR-338-3p) and fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1) mRNA was measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Cell proliferation was evaluated by methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT), colony formation, and 5-Ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine (EDU) assays. Cell apoptosis and invasion were assessed by flow cytometry and transwell assay, respectively. Cellular glycolysis, including glucose consumption, lactate production, and ATP/ADP ratio, was detected by commercial kits. All protein levels were measured by western blot assay. The relationship between miR-338-3p and circ-TFF1 or FGFR1 was predicted by online bioinformatics tool and verified by dual-luciferase reporter assay. Xenograft tumor model was established to verify the function of circ-TFF1 in vivo. Circ-TFF1 was overexpressed in BC tissues and cells. Circ-TFF1 knockdown inhibited cell proliferation, invasion and glycolysis and induced apoptosis in BC cells. Circ-TFF1 acted as a sponge of miR-338-3p, and the effects of circ-TFF1 knockdown on BC cell proliferation, apoptosis, invasion, and glycolysis were abolished by miR-338-3p inhibition. FGFR1 was confirmed to be a target gene of miR-338-3p, and miR-338-3p played a tumor-suppressive role in BC by targeting FGFR1. Moreover, circ-TFF1 regulated FGFR1 expression by targeting miR-338-3p. Additionally, circ-TFF1 knockdown hampered tumorigenesis in vivo. Circ-TFF1 knockdown suppressed BC progression by regulating miR-338-3p/FGFR1 axis, providing a promising therapeutic target for BC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monolithic HZSM-5/SS-fiber catalysts with hierarchical porous structure from micro-to macro-size for catalytic cracking of castor oil to produce biofuel were fabricated by seed coating and subsequent hydrothermal synthesis of ZSM-5 zeolite crystals onto the thin-sheet stainless steel fiber (SS-fiber). Compared with the powdered HZSM-5, the HZSM-5/SS-fiber catalyst exhibited high hydrocarbon selectivity (78% in gasoline and 57% in diesel) with enhanced physical properties of liquid products, as well as excellent coke-resistance with coking rate of 0.47 mg g zeolite −1 h−1 (one-eighth of the powdered HZSM-5), indicating a significant intensification on cracking process due to a unique combination of high heat/mass transfer and hierarchical pore structure. SiO 2 /Al 2 O 3 ratio exerts a pivotal influence on HZSM-5 loading and acid strength/amount of the HZSM-5/SS-fiber, which thereby strongly relates to the degree of cracking, aromatization, and deoxygenation. The HZSM-5/SS-fiber (200) with moderate acid amount and strength permitted mild secondary cracking and sufficient deoxygenation reactions, resulting in a low coke yield, a high liquid product yield and a high hydrocarbon/aromatic selectivity along with reduced acid values (7.4 mg KOH g−1 in gasoline and 83.2 mg KOH g−1 in diesel). The physical properties including kinematic viscosity, density, oxygen content and heating value, were optimal at SiO 2 /Al 2 O 3 ratio of 200. Monolithic HZSM-5/SS-fiber catalysts with hierarchical porous structure for catalytic cracking of castor oil were fabricated by seed coating and subsequent hydrothermal synthesis of the ZSM-5 zeolite crystals onto the thin-sheet stainless steel fiber (SS-fiber). Such structured design affords a unique combination of large void volume, high heat/mass transfer, hierarchical pore structure, and good robustness, thus contributing to high yield of hydrocarbon biofuels and excellent coke resistance compared with microporous ZSM-5 powder. The hydrocarbon content in the gasoline and diesel fractions on the HZSM-5/SS-fiber catalyst is 4–5 times higher than that of powder HZSM-5, while carbon deposition rate of powdered HZSM-5 is 7 times that of the HZSM-5/SS-fiber. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incorporating citizen engagement in scaling up nature-based solutions (NbS) is a burgeoning and promising approach to foster localized, decentralized, and bottom-up project management strategies. While scholars have expressed heightened interest in citizen participation, there is a prominent lack of exploration into the dynamic and evolutionary nature of participatory behaviors. Reinforced by the theory of planned behavior and scale-free network, an agent-based simulation was constructed to simulate the citizens' behavioral changes and evolutions in engaging NbS projects under different conditions. The simulation results suggest that as information is disseminated and opinions are exchanged, the proportion of residents exhibiting silence and unwillingness to participate experiences a fluctuating increase, while the proportion of residents with willingness to participate undergoes a fluctuating decrease. Ultimately, the proportions of the three groups tend to stabilize. Relying predominantly on the formal government-led network has the potential to enhance neighborhood participation rates, whereas an overreliance on informal networks rooted in social ties and information dissemination can have notable detrimental effects on participation. This study offers insights into the evolutionary process of citizen participation in NbS projects, thereby contributing valuable recommendations for promoting the sustainable development of environmental projects. • A novel agent-based model is presented, reinforced by the extended theory of planned behavior. • Reliance on the formal network could increase the participation rate of a neighborhood. • Three scenarios are simulated to analyze the potential impacts of interventions on citizens' participatory behaviors. • Information dissemination has a significant role in decreasing citizen participation. • Dependency on the informal network based on social networks have significant negative impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Recent advances in Avalanche Photodiodes: unique capabilities and performance enhancements in recent years. • Avalanche process description theories in Avalanche Photodiodes guide infrared detector development directions. • Finely engineered device structures propel further enhancements in infrared detector performance. • Low-dimensional and Three-dimensional Materials Collaboration: Paving a Novel Pathway for Infrared Detectors. Currently, the development trend of infrared detection systems is oriented towards achieving smaller size, reduced weight, lower power consumption, decreased cost, and heightened performance, collectively referred to as SWAP3. In this context, a rapid evolution is witnessed in the realm of next-generation high-sensitivity infrared avalanche photodiodes (APD). In recent years, the increasing demands for detector performance from astronomical, remote sensing, and civilian applications have presented novel challenges for the mechanistic exploration and device design of traditional avalanche photodetectors. This review explores the forefront of infrared APD technology, focusing on the remarkable progress achieved through the utilization of II-VI and III-V semiconductor families and the exploration based on novel low-dimensional materials. The review provides a detailed analysis of the unique properties and performance enhancements exhibited by APDs based on these material systems, shedding light on their potential for revolutionizing infrared sensing and imaging applications, and inspiring further innovation and exploration in the field of infrared photodetection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Development of construction land will directly damage ecosystem services related to the F-W-E. • HQ and CS, SDR and CS, and SDR and HQ have synergies. • CS and WY, HQ and WY have trade-offs. • FP has a trade-off relationship with CS, SDR, and HQ respectively. This research centers on the necessity for synchronized management of natural resources in urban agglomerations. This study utilizes the ecosystem services theory to analyze the interplay between land use and the Food-Water-Energy (F-W-E) nexus in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (B-T-H) region from 2000 to 2030. Assessment of ecosystem services is conducted using InVEST models, which include Habitat Quality (HQ), Water Yield (WY), Carbon Sequestration (CS), Soil Retention (SDR), and Food Production (FP). The findings indicate an annual increase in construction land with a concurrent notable decrease in cultivated land. Furthermore, HQ, CS, and per capita FP show an annual decline until 2020, which is expected to continue until 2030. Conversely, WY and SDR have been growing annually, albeit projected to decline by 2030. Spearman coefficient analysis uncovers synergies between HQ and CS, SDR and CS, and SDR and HQ, alongside trade-offs between CS and WY and HQ and WY. Trade-offs are also observed between FP and SDR, CS, and HQ. Applying K-means clustering analysis facilitates county-based spatial planning for the F-W-E system, providing crucial insights and suggestions for sustainable resource management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• First Chinese tray-meal dataset collected (1185 images, 99 dish categories). • Method developed for dish recognition based on deep learning. • Automatic nutrition estimation method for Chinese tray meals. Tray meal is a popular way of eating in China, and tray-based automatic dietary assessment is important for public health. Relevant research is lacking because public tray meal datasets and suitable methods are unavailable. In this study, we established and published the first Chinese tray meal dataset, the ChinaLunchTray-99. We collected real-world 1185 tray meal images, covering 99 dish categories with corresponding manually annotated bounding box and category-level labels. We developed a new framework for automatic dietary assessment, which consists of dish image recognition, volume estimation and nutrition mapping. First, we demonstrated a tray meal detection model considering feature extraction, anchor scales, and loss function, resulting in a high mean Average Precision of 92.13%. Second, we proposed an automatic method to estimate volume via detection results and tray's information. Finally, nutrients were mapped from the estimated volume. Our research can promote applications of automatic dietary assessment for Chinese tray meals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) is one of the common malignant tumors in the head and neck region, and its high migration and invasion seriously threaten the survival and health of patients. In cancer development, m6A RNA modification plays a crucial role in regulating gene expression and signaling. This study delved into the function and mechanism of the m6A reading protein YTHDF1 in LSCC. It was found that YTHDF1 was highly expressed in the GEO database and LSCC tissues. Cell function experiments confirmed that the downregulation of YTHDF1 significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion ability of LSCC cells. Further studies revealed that EIF4A3 was a downstream target gene of YTHDF1, and knockdown of EIF4A3 similarly significantly inhibited the malignant progression of LSCC in both in vivo and in vitro experiments. The molecular mechanism studies suggested that YTHDF1-EIF4A3 may promote the malignant development of LSCC by activating the EMT signaling pathway. This study provides important clues for an in-depth understanding of the pathogenesis of LSCC and is a solid foundation for the discovery of new therapeutic targets and approaches. • YTHDF1 is highly expressed in GEO database and LSCC tissues, suggesting that it may play the role of an oncogene in LSCC. • In LSCC, YTHDF1 regulates the expression of EIF4A3 through m6A methylation, revealing its importance in tumor development. • In vitro and in vivo experiments confirmed that knockdown of EIF4A3 significantly inhibited the malignant development of LSCC, providing a basis for potential future therapeutic strategies. • YTHDF1-EIF4A3 promotes the malignant progression of LSCC by activating the EMT signaling pathway, providing a new perspective for understanding the pathogenesis of LSCC. • Targeting YTHDF1 could be an essential potential molecular marker for LSCC diagnosis and treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of automobile industry technology, vehicles have greatly affected everyday life, work and other aspects. With the continuous innovation of sensor technology, computer technology, wireless communication technology, and GPS technology, the concept of Inter of Vehicles (IoV) has been widely regarded as the core technology to solve a series of problems. However, as a complexity network with multiple elements including people, vehicle, base-station and so on, IoV is confronted with security threatened. In this paper, secure data exchange has been considered for two authenticated On Board Units (OBUs) with help of Road Side Unit (RSU). Blockchain based authentication and physical layer security have been applied into IoV for wiretap resisting and privacy preserving data exchange. For wiretap resisting, two synchronized transmitted signals from OBUs act as artificial noise at eavesdropper. In addition, for privacy preserving, summed codeword is formed at RSU which cannot be recovered individually. Finally, simulation results have been conducted to demonstrate that the proposed protocol can achieve transmission efficiency as well as informatics security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetic anomaly detection (MAD) is a technique to find ferromagnets hiding in strong and complicated magnetic background. In many practical cases, the targets are very far from the detection sensor, which leads to low signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) and high detection difficulty. Most of the current methods determine the existence of target by some approaches based on signal analysis, such as the orthogonal basis function (OBF) and the minimum entropy (ME). However, although these methods consume low resources, the detection performances are not satisfactory enough. In recent years, due to the increase of computer capability, complex methods become applicable in MAD. In this study, a deep neural network (DNN) is adopted to detect the magnetic anomalies. The DNN has shown its better ability to represent natural data in many applications. A feature automatically learned by a DNN from data in the raw form is more effective for detecting target signals and suppressing irrelevant variations. Herein, a convolutional network with residual structure to implement the feature extraction is designed and an MAD method based on it is proposed. Through the semi‐real tests, the proposed method exhibits a strong capability to extract features and shows excellent performances on detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To compare the safety and efficacy of step-by-step debulking Microwave Ablation (MWA) with Transarterial Chemoembolization (TACE) monotherapy for huge (10 cm in diameter) unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after TACE refractoriness. Methods: This is a multi-center retrospective study carried out on 599 patients with huge unresectable HCC who received TACE as first-line therapy at five hospitals from January 2009 to December 2018. A total of 103 patients with TACE refractoriness were divided into two cohorts: monthly step-bystep debulking MWA (n ¼ 52) or continued TACE (n ¼ 51). Overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) after refractory TACE were evaluated. Residual liver and tumor volume were recorded for the MWA group. Results: Median follow-up period was 24.3 months and median OS and PFS were significantly longer in the MWA group than in the TACE group (OS 21.0 vs. 11.7 months, PFS 6.1 vs. 3.0 months, both p < 0.001). The one-, two-, and three-year OS rates in the MWA and TACE groups were 73.1%, 46.6%, and 37.2% versus 43.1%, 15.5%, and 2.9%, respectively. Furthermore, the 0.5-, 1-, and 2-year PFS rates in the MWA and TACE groups were 51.9%, 36.5%, and 25.0% versus 27.5%, 11.8%, and 0, respectively. Multivariate analyses confirmed that switching to debulking MWA treatment was an independent favorable prognostic factor for PFS and OS. In the MWA group, the average additions of residual liver volume/total liver volume were 7.7% ± 6.7%, 7.2% ± 10.2%, and 10.1% ± 8.8% after the first, second, and third MWA procedure. Conclusion: Step-by-step debulking MWA can significantly improve long-term OS and PFS in patients with huge unresectable HCCs compared with repeated TACE after TACE refractoriness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) 2 and 9 are the family members of proteases normally up-regulated in tumor to enhance the invasion and metastatic of tumor cells, and are associated with poor outcome of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs). In the present work, MMPs-degradable gelatin nanoparticles (GNPs) are simultaneously loaded with photosensitizer indocyanine green (ICG) along with signal transducer activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) inhibitor NSC74859 (NSC, N) for efficient photothermal therapy (PTT) and immunotherapy of HNSCCs. In the tumor tissue, Gel-N-ICG nanoparticle was degraded and encapsulated ICG and NSC were effectively released. Under near-infrared (NIR) irradiation, the released ICG nanoparticles enabled effective photothermal destruction of tumors, and the STAT3 inhibitor NSC elicited potent antitumor immunity for enhanced cancer therapy. Based on two HNSCC mouse models, we demonstrated that Gel-N-ICG significantly delayed tumor growth without any appreciable body weight loss. Taken together, the strategy reported here may contribute that the stimuli-responsive proteases triggered nanoplatform could reduce tumor size more effectively in complex tumor microenvironment (TME) through combination of PTT and immunotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of niobium-containing mesoporous materials Nb-SBA-15 have been prepared by a sonication–impregnation and hydrothermal process. The dispersion and structural properties of the niobium-containing species were systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, temperature programmed desorption and N2 adsorption–desorption. Their catalytic performance was evaluated for the selective oxidation of cyclopentene (CPE) to glutaraldehyde (GA). The novel Nb-based catalyst exhibited high activity with a CPE conversion of 87.3% and GA yield of 62% under favourable conditions. No significant deterioration of the catalyst performance was found in the cycle test, indicating the stability of the catalyst. The new Nb-SBA-15 catalyst displayed good catalytic performance both in ethanol and tert-butyl alcohol, which made the catalytic reaction system more flexible for future application. In addition, in situ infrared spectroscopy was adopted to monitor the reaction process. A mechanism of CPE oxidation to GA was proposed tentatively according to our experiment and some reports in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) is an economically important source of natural rubber. H. brasiliensis grows slowly in southern China mainly because of relatively low temperatures there. The slow growth rate delays plant propagation, so ways of increasing growth are needed. Light is important for regulating plant growth. An extended photophase is commonly used to increase plant growth and development. We studied the effects of an extended photophase, by supplemental LED night lighting, on the growth and physiology of young H. brasiliensis. Night lighting significantly increased plant height, stem diameter, and flush number. Chlorophyll a and total chlorophyll contents significantly increased, while chlorophyll b and carotenoids were unaffected. The photosynthetic parameters, nutrition status, and soluble sugar and protein contents changed little with supplemental lighting. The activities of antioxidases, including superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase, were similar in the experimental and control plants. The results showed that overnight LED lighting, in addition to solar irradiation during the daytime, could improve the rhythmic growth of H. brasiliensis without causing obvious physiological changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Observational studies have found that most patients with arthritis have depression. We aimed to determine the causal relationship between various types of arthritis and depression. Methods: We conducted a two‐sample bidirectional Mendelian randomized (MR) analysis to determine whether there was a significant causal relationship between depression and multiple types of arthritis. The data of our study were derived from the publicly released genome‐wide association studies (GWASs) and the largest GWAS meta‐analysis. MR analysis mainly used inverse‐variance weighted method; supplementary methods included weighted median, weighted mode, and MR‐Egger using MR pleiotropy residual sum and outlier to detect and correct for the presence of pleiotropy. Results: After adjusting for heterogeneity and horizontal pleiotropy, we found that depression was associated with an increased risk of osteoarthritis (OA) (OR = 1.02, 95%CI: 1.01–1.02, p = 2.96 × E − 5). In the reverse analysis, OA was also found to increase the risk of depression (OR = 1.10, 95%CI: 1.04–1.15, p =.0002). Depression only increased the risk of knee OA (KOA) (OR = 1.25, 95%CI: 1.10–1.42, p = 6.46 × E − 4). Depression could potentially increase the risk of spondyloarthritis (OR = 1.52, 95%CI: 1.19–1.94, p ≤ 8.94 × E − 4). Conclusion: There is a bidirectional causal relationship of depression with OA. However, depression only augments the risk of developing KOA. Depression may increase the risk of spondyloarthritis and gout. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, animal proteins are being replaced by plant-based proteins worldwide. Artificial meat and eggs made from plant-based proteins have been widely commercialized, especially in developed countries such as the United States. However, the traditional wet separation can damage the isolated proteins as well as have a negative impact on the environment. Therefore, there is a growing research interest in developing alternative methods, such as dry separation, for high quality plant protein separation. Electrostatic separation, a dry technology based on the different triboelectric charging properties of materials, has been used for plant protein separation in recent years. This review summarizes the technical issues that need to be considered, from material preparation to equipment construction, for electrostatic separation. Moreover, the separation efficiency, energy consumption, combination with other separation methods, the functionality of the resulting protein concentrates, and prospects for electrostatic separation are also reviewed here. Factors influencing the outcomes of electrostatic separation include the pretreatment of materials, design of the electrostatic separator, and process parameters. The separation efficiency of electrostatic separation can be further improved by cyclic separation or a combination of electrostatic separation with other methods. However, although the proteins obtained by electrostatic separation maintain their native functional properties, they are affected by the presence of other components such as phenolics or starch. Thus, electrostatic separation has several limitations that need to be addressed before it can be used widely. [Display omitted] • Proper pretreatment of plant material before electrostatic separation is important. • Overcharging and aggregation of particles need to be avoided during separation. • The design from tribocharging unit to separation bin affects the separation results. • Cycling one or combining multiple separation methods improves protein enrichment. • Functionality of dry separated proteins is influenced by components such as starch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Proteins generally tend to aggregate with less desirable properties in numerous solvents, which is one of the major challenges in the development of solvents for functional proteins. This work aims to utilize fluorescence spectroscopy and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) to understand the effects of ionic liquids (ILs) on the fluorescence and aggregation behavior of superfolder green fluorescent protein (sfGFP). The studied ILs consisted of four different anions coupled with primary, tertiary and quaternary ammonium cations. The results show that the chromophore fluorescence was generally maintained in 1 mol% IL-water mixtures, then decreased with increasing IL concentration. We primarily employed the pseudo-radius of gyration (pseudo-R g) to evaluate sfGFP aggregation. The sfGFP was less aggregated with nitrate-based ILs compared to in buffer, and more aggregated in the mesylate-based ILs. Further, we show that the polyol additives of glycerol and glucose in IL-water mixtures slightly decreased the sfGFP propensity to aggregate. Size-exclusion chromatography (SEC)-SAXS was used to characterize the monomeric sfGFP in ethylammonium nitrate (EAN) and triethylammonium mesylate (TEAMs)-water mixtures. The presence of 1 mol% TEAMs maintained the sfGFP fluorescence, promoted the compact structure, but slightly increased the amount of large aggregates, which contrasted with that of EAN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even with an improved understanding of pain mechanisms and advances in perioperative pain management, inadequately controlled postoperative pain remains. Predicting acute postoperative pain based on presurgery physiological measures could provide valuable insights into individualized, effective analgesic strategies, thus helping improve the analgesic efficacy. Considering the strong correlation between pain perception and neural oscillations, we hypothesize that acute postoperative pain could be predicted by neural oscillations measured shortly before the surgery. Here, we explored the relationship between neural oscillations 2 hours before the thoracoscopic surgery and the subjective intensity of acute postoperative pain. The spectral power density of resting-state beta and gamma band oscillations at the frontocentral region was significantly different between patients with different levels of acute postoperative pain (i.e., low pain vs. moderate/high pain). A positive correlation was also observed between the spectral power density of resting-state beta and gamma band oscillations and subjective reports of postoperative pain. Then, we predicted the level of acute postoperative pain based on features of neural oscillations using machine learning techniques, which achieved a prediction accuracy of 92.54% and a correlation coefficient between the real pain intensities and the predicted pain intensities of 0.84. Altogether, the prediction of acute postoperative pain based on neural oscillations measured before the surgery is feasible and could meet the clinical needs in the future for better control of postoperative pain and other unwanted negative effects. The study was registered on the Clinical Trial Registry (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03761576?term=NCT03761576&draw=2&rank=1) with the registration number NCT03761576. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we prove that ζ cannot be a solution to any nontrivial algebraic differential equation whose coefficients are polynomials in Γ , Γ (n) and Γ (ℓ n) over the ring of polynomials in C , where ℓ , n ≥ 1 are positive integers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The circadian rhythm is a biological rhythm that is closely related to the rhythmic expression of a series of clock genes. Results from several studies have indicated that clock genes are associated with the estrous cycle in female animals. Until now, the relationship between estrus cycle transition and clock gene expression in reproductive-axis-related tissues has remained unknown in Small-tailed Han (STH) sheep. This study was conducted to analyze the expression patterns of six canonical clock genes (Clock , BMAL1 , Per1 , Per2 , Cry1 , and Cry2) in the follicle phase and luteal phase of STH sheep. We found that all six genes were expressed in the brain, cerebellum, hypothalamus, pituitary, ovary, uterus, and oviduct in follicle and luteal phases. The results indicated that Clock expression was significantly higher in the cerebellum, hypothalamus, and uterus of the luteal phase than that of the follicle phase, whereas BMAL1 expression was significantly higher in the hypothalamus of the luteal phase than that of the follicle phase. Per1 expression was significantly higher in the brain, cerebellum, hypothalamus, and pituitary of the luteal phase than that of the follicle phase, and Per2 expression was significantly higher in the hypothalamus, pituitary, and uterus of the luteal phase than that of the follicle phase. Cry1 expression was significantly higher in the brain, cerebellum, and hypothalamus of the luteal phase than that of the follicle phase, whereas Cry2 expression was significantly higher in the pituitary of the luteal phase than that of the follicle phase. The clock gene expression in all tissues was different between follicle and luteal phases, but all clock gene mRNA levels were found to exhibit higher expression among seven tissues in the luteal phase. Our results suggest that estrous cycles may be associated with clock gene expression in the STH sheep. This is the first study to systematically analyze the expression patterns of clock genes of different estrous cycle in ewes, which could form a basis for further studies to develop the relationship between clock genes and the estrous cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The supply of healthy sporelings plays a crucial role in the successful aquaculture of commercially cultivated brown kelp Saccharina japonica. Epibacteria are of critical importance for maintaining seaweed health and development. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the epibacterial community associated with mature sporophytes and 1.5- and 2.0-month-old sporelings, as well as juvenile sporophytes of S. japonica by using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and predicted the bacterial functional profiles. We found that Proteobacteria, Verrucomicrobia, Bacteroidetes, and Planctomycetes were the main phyla, while Loktanella and Rubritalea and Persicirhabdus were the dominant genera for all four developmental stages. Highly abundant core microbiota included Persicirhabdus, Loktanella, Litorimonas, and Rubritalea. Further analysis of the predicted functions showed that different metabolic functions were involved at different developmental stages. More metabolic functions were found in 2-month-old sporelings and mature sporophytes. Both the diversity, composition of the epiphytic bacterial communities, and metabolic functions changed according to different developmental stages at least in 1.5- and 2-month-old sporelings. Our results not only provide fundamental knowledge for the epibacteria associated with S. japonica but will also help nursery farms in preventing and mitigating the disease outbreaks by monitoring the variations of the epibacterial communities at the nursery stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solvents that support protein functionality are important for biochemical applications, and new solvents are required. Here we employ FTIR and fluorescence spectroscopies, small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and X-ray crystallography to understand conformational changes of lysozyme with ionic liquids (ILs) added. Spectroscopic techniques identified that the secondary structure of lysozyme was maintained at the lower IL concentrations of 1 and 5 mol%, though the Tryptophan environment was significantly altered with nitrate-based ILs present. SAXS experiments indicated that the radius of gyration of lysozyme increased with 1 mol% IL present, and then decreased with increasing IL concentrations. The tertiary structure, particularly the loop regions, changed as a function of IL concentration, and this depended on the IL type. The crystallographic structure of lysozyme with the IL of ethylammonium nitrate present confirmed the loop region was extended, and identified three specific binding sites with nitrate ions, and that the positively charged areas were IL sensitive regions. This work provides a detailed understanding of lysozyme conformational changes in the presence of ILs. This approach can be extended to other functionally-important proteins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Existing dopaminergic drugs are improved to avoid side effects. • Novel drugs to treat Parkinson's disease are developed based on new targets and some are proved effective. • Disease-modifying drugs are developed and the results of clinical trials are promising. • Research have shown that reuse of other disease treatment drugs is a new strategy. Current treatments for Parkinson's disease (PD) are mainly dopaminergic drugs. However, dopaminergic drugs are only symptomatic treatments and limited by several side effects. Recent studies into drug development focused on emerging new molecular mechanisms, including nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase, nuclear receptor-related 1 (Nurr1), adenosine receptor A2, nicotine receptor, metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs), and glucocerebrosidase (GCase). Also, immunotherapy and common pathological mechanisms shared with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and diabetes have attracted much attention. In this review, we summarized the development of preclinical and clinical studies of novel drugs and the improvement of dopaminergic drugs to provide a prospect for PD treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three cadmium(II) coordination polymers constructed from 5,7-disulfonate-1,4-naphthalenedicarboxylate and N-containing ligands, {[Cd2(DSNPDC)(phen)(H2O)4]·2.5H2O}n (1), {[Cd2(DSNPDC)(phen)2(H2O)4]·3H2O}n (2) and [Cd2(DSNPDC)(bpy)2(H2O)4]n (3) (H4-DSNPDC = 5,7-disulfonate-1,4-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid, phen = 1,10-phenanthroline, and bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine), were synthesized and characterized. Compound 1 displays a two-dimensional (2D) layered structure. In 2 and 3, the dinuclear [Cd2(COO)2] units are connected by DSNPDC4– ligands to generate one-dimensional (1D) chains. Due to the presence of the terminal chelating phen/bpy ligands, all compounds show low dimensional structures. Compounds 1–3 exhibit fluorescence emissions centered at 378, 419 and 376 nm, respectively, which are assigned to ligand-centered emissions or ligand-to-metal charge transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To compare the long‐term efficacy between pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) combined with passive stretching (PRF‐PS) exercise and PS exercise alone in reducing pain and improving quadriceps muscle strength and knee function. Methods: Sixty‐two participants were randomly assigned with a 1:1 allocation to the PRF‐PS exercise group or the PS exercise group. Level of pain, muscle strength, and knee function were assessed from baseline to the first, third, and sixth months after treatment using the VAS, peak torque (PT), and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), respectively. Results: There were no significant differences at baseline between the 2 groups. Compared to exercise alone, participants achieved superior efficacy with PRF‐PS in pain relief, improvement of muscle strength, and knee function. Moreover, the improvement of all variables was maintained for a longer period of time in the PRF‐PS group. The reduction in participants' VAS pain intensity scores was superior for PRF‐PS vs. PS with overall estimation (adjusted mean difference: −1.85 cm; 95% confidence interval [CI] −2.25, −1.45 cm; P = 0.000). The increase in participants' PT scores was superior for PRF‐PS vs. PS with overall estimation (adjusted mean difference: 15.53 N. m; 95% CI 7.07, 23.98 N. m; P = 0.000; and 12.62 N. m; 95% CI 0.96, 24.28 N. m; P = 0.000 for PT 60 degrees/s and PT 180 degrees/s, respectively). The reduction in participants' WOMAC scores was superior for PRF‐PS vs. PS with overall estimation (adjusted mean difference: −16.43; 95% CI −22.22, −10.64; P = 0.000). Discussion: The improvement in pain relief and knee function might be associated with restoration of muscle strength after PRF‐PS exercise by overcoming muscle inhibition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential benefits of adopting PV (photovoltaic) in residential apartments in China, such as reducing peak demand and electricity transmission issues, have been overlooked. Community PV is more applicable for most Chinese cities residents living in apartment buildings. However, existing studies failed to provide comprehensive insight regarding factors influencing community PV adoption and adoption decision strategies. This study utilized a discrete choice experiment performed in Wuhan to examine individuals' community PV adoption preferences and analyze the factors influencing their decisions. The study found that respondents who were well-educated, older than 40, lived in residential buildings constructed earlier than 2006, had a living area >120 m2, or used AC for more months in the summer were more likely to adopt PV. Three decision strategies (classes) with different PV product preferences were identified. Peer effect is identified to significantly influence the community PV adoption as almost 65% of the respondents are more likely to adopt PV if there are high neighboring PV adoption or installation agreement rates. Cost was not a determining factor for a significant proportion of respondents, who instead focused on revenue. Subsidy policies also had limited influence, affecting only about 43% of respondents. Policy implications are provided based on the research results. • Using a discrete choice experiment in Wuhan to investigate community PV adoption. • Respondents who are more willing to adopt PV were identified. • Three decision heuristics for community adoption were discovered. • 65% of respondents are significantly impacted by peer effect. • Cost is not a significant barrier to community PV adoption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene, a new material with a hexagonal honeycomb sheet structure composed of a single layer of carbon atoms, is the world's thinnest and strongest substance known to human, it has low resistivity and strong light transmission characteristics, so it can be used as a candidate material for integrated circuit chips and new energy batteries. In this paper, we mainly discuss the quantum walk of two non-interacting particles on the graphene structure graph, in which we select coin operator G in coin space H C and construct shift operator S , the time evolution operator U is obtained from the tensor of G and S. Since two particles without interaction can occupy the same site, the initial state is a composite of two particles at the same site. On this foundation, the relation between the relative distance and evolution time of two non-interacting particles is studied by the distance evolution operator. • Graphene has a two-dimensional honeycomb structure, which can be used as a candidate material for integrated circuit chips and new energy batteries. • The study of two-particle quantum walks is currently a hot topic, and the evolution operator for two particles is obtained by constructing coin space and position space. • The distance between two non-interacting particles on a graphene structure graph over time is determined by relative distance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green fluorescent protein (GFP) and its variants are widely used in medical and biological research, especially acting as indicators of protein structural integrity, protein-protein interactions and as biosensors. This study employs superfolder GFP (sfGFP) to investigate the impact of varying alkyl chain length of 1-C n -3-methylimidazolium chloride ionic liquid (IL) series ([C n mim]Cl, n = 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12) on the protein fluorescence, structure, hydration, aggregation dynamics and crystallization behaviour. The results revealed a concentration-dependent decrease in the sfGFP chromophore fluorescence, particularly in long alkyl chain ILs ([C 10 mim]Cl and [C 12 mim]Cl). Tryptophan (Trp) fluorescence showed the quenching rate increased with longer alkyl chains indicating a nonpolar interaction between Trp57 and the alkyl chain. Secondary structural changes were observed at the high IL concentration of 1.5 M in [C 10 mim]Cl and [C 12 mim]Cl. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) indicated relatively stable protein sizes, but with IL aggregates present in [C 10 mim]Cl and [C 12 mim]Cl solutions. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) data showed increased protein size and aggregation with longer alkyl chain ILs. Notably, ILs and salts, excluding [C 2 mim]Cl, promoted sfGFP crystallization. This study emphasizes the influence of the cation alkyl chain length and concentration on protein stability and aggregation, providing insights into utilizing IL solvents for protein stabilization and crystallization purposes. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To retrospectively compare the efficacy and safety of surgical resection (SR) and thermal ablation for the treatment of adrenal metastases.Methods From January 2008 to December 2018, 133 patients with adrenal metastases who underwent SR (n = 76) or thermal ablation (n = 57) were enrolled. The mean tumor size was 58.00 ± 10.65 mm (22-80 mm) in the SR group and 58.03 ± 12.76 mm (34–89 mm) in the thermal ablation group. Local progression-free survival (LPFS) and safety were compared between the two groups using the Kaplan–Meier method: and log-rank tests. Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to evaluate the prognostic factors of LPFS. Complications, hospitalization days, and blood loss were also assessed.Results: The median follow-up was 29.0 months (range, 20.4–37.6 months). No treatment-related mortality was observed. The 1-, 3- and 5-year LPFS rates were 74.0%, 62.8%, and 31.4% in the SR group and 72.8%, 68.7%, and 51.5% in the ablation group, with the median LPFS of 41.5 months (95% CI: 9.3–23.4 months) vs. 47.9 months (95% CI 20.6–75.8 months), respectively (p = 0.784). Tumor size ≥3 cm was the only significant risk factor for LPFS (p = 0.031). The ablation group was superior to the SR group with a lower major complication rate (4.1% vs. 14.5%, p = 0.03), less blood loss (1 ml vs. 100 ml, p < 0.001), and a shorter hospital stay (2 d vs. 6 d, p < 0.001).Conclusion: Thermal ablation provided a similar LPFS and less comorbidities than SR, indicating that it is an effective and safe treatment for adrenal metastases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infrared (IR) detection at 1300–1650 nm (optical communication waveband) is of great significance due to its wide range of applications in commerce and military. Three dimensional (3D) topological insulator (TI) Bi2Se3 is considered a promising candidate toward high‐performance IR applications. Nevertheless, the IR devices based on Bi2Se3 thin films are rarely reported. Here, a 3D TI Bi2Se3/MoO3 thin film heterojunction photodetector is shown that possesses ultrahigh responsivity (Ri), external quantum efficiency (EQE), and detectivity (D*) in the broadband spectrum (405–1550 nm). The highest on–off ratio of the optimized device can reach up to 5.32 × 104. Ri, D*, and the EQE can reach 1.6 × 104 A W−1, 5.79 × 1011 cm2 Hz1/2 W−1, and 4.9 × 104% (@ 405 nm), respectively. Surprisingly, the Ri can achieve 2.61 × 103 A W−1 at an optical communication wavelength (@ 1310 nm) with a fast response time (63 µs), which is two orders of magnitude faster than that of other TIs‐based devices. In addition, the device demonstrates brilliant long‐term (>100 days) environmental stability under environmental conditions without any protective measures. Excellent device photoelectric properties illustrate that the 3D TI/inorganic heterojunction is an appropriate way for manufacturing high‐performance photodetectors in the optical communication, military, and imaging fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the existence and multiplicity results of nontrivial positive solutions to a quasilinear elliptic equation in RN, when N ≥ 2, as −Δpu+up−1=λk(x)ur−1−h(x)uq−1.Here, h(x),k(x)>0 are Lebesgue measurable functions, 10 is a parameter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A BOC signal has been widely used in the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). Although the BOC signal has many advantages, the autocorrelation function (ACF) of the BOC signal has lots of peaks, which makes signal acquisition difficult. This paper proposes a similar enfoldment acquisition (SEA) algorithm, which can be applied to sin-BOC and cos-BOC signals, with even and odd modulation orders. The SEA algorithm utilizes the similarity between the main peak and the secondary peak to construct a new ACF to eliminate the ambiguity of the BOC signal. This paper simulates the acquisition performance of the SEA algorithm, Martin algorithm, and SCPC algorithm, while the simulation result shows that the SEA algorithm is superior to the Martin algorithm and SCPC algorithm. Since the SEA algorithm does not need filters or auxiliary signals, its complexity is lower than that of the Martin algorithm and SCPC algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vancomycin (Van) is a common antibiotic that pollutes food, feed and ecological environment. In the present study, an anti-Van polyclonal antibodies (pAbs) and Eu3+-labeled goat anti-rabbit IgG monoclonal antibody based indirect competitive time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay (IC-TRFIA) was established for ultrasensitive determination of Van, and its half-maximum inhibition concentrations (IC50) was 13.74 ng/L and the limit of detection (LOD) was 1.07 ng/L. The IC-TRFIA showed strong cross-reactivity (CRs) of 36.2% for norvancomycin, and less than 0.1% for polymyxin B, kanamycin and ampicillin. It was found that the IC-TRFIA for Van spiked in different milk powder samples determination were with good accuracy, stability and repeatability, and its recoveries are 83.0–97.9%, also with its coefficient of variations (CVs) are 3.0–12.9% in intra-assay and inter-assay. The results showed that the established IC-TRFIA was promising for ultrasensitive determination of Van in food samples. Highlights Prepared high-quality Van-KLH/BSA conjugates. Obtained high activity and purify anti-Van polyclonal antibodies. Prepared high-quality Eu3+-labelled goat anti-rabbit IgG monoclonal antibody. Firstly established an IC-TRFIA for Van based on the anti-Van polyclonal antibodies and Eu3+-labelled goat anti-rabbit IgG monoclonal antibody. The IC-TRFIA can be used for ultrasensitive determination of Van in milk powder samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study systematically investigated the performance of ozonation on tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) degradation under different ozone dosages (5.21–83.33 μmoL/L), initial solution pH (3.0–11.0) and temperatures (10–50 °C). At the same time, the generations of inorganic products (bromide ion and bromate) under different experimental conditions were evaluated and the organic products were also identified. Then, the possible mechanism was proposed and verified by the quantum chemical calculation. In addition, variations and controlling of the toxicity were also analyzed, including acute toxicity, chronic toxicity and genotoxicity. Ozonation was proved to be an efficient and promising technology for removing TBBPA from water. TBBPA of 1.84 μmoL/L could be completely degraded within 5 min under the ozone dosage of 41.67 μmoL/L in wide ranges of pH (3.0–11.0) and temperature (10–40 °C). During the degradation of TBBPA, over 65% of the average bromine ion was detected and nine products were identified. The proposed degradation pathways verified that TBBPA might undergo addition and stepwise oxidative debromination, the hydrogen extraction, and the deprotonation. The results of toxicity testing showed that ozonation could effectively control the acute and chronic toxicity of the water samples, although the toxicity increased in the initial reaction stage due to the accumulation of more toxic intermediates. • Ozonation had strong adaptability to pH (3.0–11.0) and temperature (10–40 °C). • Ozonation had higher level of bromine ion (over 65%) than other reported methods. • It underwent three degradation pathways verified by quantum chemical calculation. • Accumulation of more toxic intermediates resulted the increase of toxicity. • Acute and chronic toxicity were controlled below 0.1 and 1.0 TU, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acetate formation is a disadvantage in the use of Escherichia coli for recombinant protein production, and many studies have focused on optimizing fermentation processes or altering metabolism to eliminate acetate accumulation. In this study, E. coli MEC697 (MG1655 nadR nudC mazG) maintained a larger pool of NAD(H) compared to the wild‐type control, and also accumulated lower concentrations of acetate when grown in batch culture on glucose. In steady‐state cultures, the elevated total NAD(H) found in MEC697 delayed the threshold dilution rate for acetate formation to a growth rate of 0.27 h−1. Batch and fed‐batch processes using MEC697 were examined for the production of β‐galactosidase as a model recombinant protein. Fed‐batch culture of MEC697/pTrc99A‐lacZ compared to MG1655/pTrc99A‐lacZ at a growth rate of 0.22 h−1 showed only a modest increase of protein formation. However, 1 L batch growth of MEC697/pTrc99A‐lacZ resulted in 50% lower acetate formation compared to MG1655/pTrc99A‐lacZ and a two‐fold increase in recombinant protein production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fretting fatigue crack formation and propagation behaviors of Ni‐based single‐crystal (NBSX) superalloys are investigated in this paper. Subsurface crack formation process is revealed by in situ fretting fatigue experiment. The crack is observed to form on subsurface area, then propagates to the contact surface. Inclusions in materials are found to have obvious effects on crack propagation, and slip lines are closely related to the crack propagation direction. Crystal plastic finite element method (CPFEM) simulation is used to simulate crack formation position. The accumulative plastic strain peaks at the edge of contact zone and the subsurface area. The results show that the CPFEM simulation and in situ observation achieve good agreements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of crystal orientation on fretting fatigue induced crack initiation and dislocation distribution is studied by in-situ SEM observation and electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD) in this paper. Cracks and slip lines are observed in the fretting contact area of Ni-based single-crystal (NBSX) superalloys. The in-situ SEM observation captures different crack and slip line behaviors under different crystal orientations. The EBSD analysis results show obvious misorientation and orientation deviation in the fretting contact area. For both crystal orientations, the geometrically necessary dislocation (GND) density distributions in the contact area are obtained by using Hough-based EBSD methods. The peak position of grain reference orientation deviation (GROD) and GND density matches with the fretting fatigue crack formation position. EBSD analysis shows that the dislocation density distribution on each slip system is closely related to the crack initiation direction. The direction of slip system with the maximum dislocation density agrees with the crack initiation direction obtained by in-situ observation. Image 1 • In-situ observation of fretting fatigue shows different crack and slip line behaviors of different crystal orientations. • EBSD results show obvious misorientation in the fretting contact area. • The peak position of GND density matches with the fretting fatigue crack formation position. • The direction of slip system with the maximum dislocation density agrees with the crack direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many research literatures, the dynamical behaviour of cellular neural networks (CNNs) is simplified by using cloning template. However, the flaws of cloning template are obvious, because the correlation between weights of cells in CNNs is enhanced. In order to overcome the shortcomings of cloning template, value-varying templates can be used in CNNs. In this paper, associative memories based on CNNs with value-varying templates are investigated. A criterion about stability of CNNs is presented. Then, the problem about obtaining parameters of CNNs can be translated into a problem of solving linear equations for each cell. A design procedure of associative memories is given by our theories and methods. From the procedure, the parameters of CNNs can be obtained. Finally, three examples are used to demonstrate the effectiveness of our theories and methods. And the results show that success rate of associative memories is higher than previous methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of the urban morphology on greenhouse gas emission is one of the key issues on global climate change. Since the urban form is directly related to the spatial distribution of urban land use, it is necessary to investigate the relation between carbon emission and different land use categories. In this paper, the city of Eindhoven (230,000 inhabitants) was used as a case study. According to the main road network, the entire city is divided into 6754 irregular patterns. Agglomerative cluster analysis was conducted to classify the patterns into 14 valid land use categories based on their land use function and land cover composition namely: agriculture, transport, retail trade, green space (with 3 sub-categories), residential (with 7 sub-categories), and others. The random forest algorithm was applied to select the significant features and to measure the relation between land use and carbon emission. The results have shown the importance of various landscape metrics on the carbon emission in each land use category. The most significant landscape metric is selected to describe the impact of spatial attributes on carbon emission. The outcomes show the carbon emission distribution of each land use category in the city. The retail trade and residential land use categories contribute a large proportion of carbon emission, terrace houses produce more carbon emission than other residential building categories. The combination of mid-rise buildings and low-rise buildings has a higher probability to produce more carbon emission. The assessment results can provide important support for the low carbon city spatial planning. • Statistics of landscape metrics shows high reliability on land use classification. • Random forest and hierarchical clustering improve classification performance. • CO 2 emission in the residential area is significantly influenced by building layout. • Knowledge of the relation of land use and CO 2 emission supports fine scale plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline antibiotics using BiVO 4 /TiO 2 /RGO was studied. • BiVO 4 /TiO 2 /RGO was of excellent photochemical catalysis effect. • The removal rate of TC, CTC, OTC and DXC was 96.2%, 97.5%, 98.7% and 99.6%, respectively. Photocatalytic performance of four tetracycline antibiotics using BiVO 4 /TiO 2 /RGO composites was investigated. To make full use of catalysis, optimum preparation conditions involved RGO content, solution pH and hydrothermal temperature on the structure forming of BiVO 4 /TiO 2 /RGO composites were investigated. Subsequently, the obtained visible light-driven photocatalyst was used to degrade four kinds of tetracycline antibiotics involved tetracycline (TC), chlortetracycline (CTC), oxytetracycline (OTC) and doxycycline (DXC) for wastewater treatment. Results showed that BiVO 4 /TiO 2 /RGO photocatalyst exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity and high compatibility due to the enhanced separation efficiency of photo-generated carriers with high reduction and oxidation capability. The degradation process of four kinds of tetracycline antibiotics was traced and detected through identifying intermediates produced in the reaction system. And a possible catalytic mechanism for BiVO 4 /TiO 2 /RGO photocatalyst was put forward based on band gap structure of BiVO 4 and TiO 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: β‐1,6‐glucan is an important cell wall component of Candida albicans. Deleted mutants of the two β‐1,6‐glucan synthase genes KRE6 and SKN1 are viable albeit with a range of defects including slow growth. It remains unclear whether β‐1,6‐glucan synthesis is not required under culture conditions or compensatory mechanisms exist in C. albicans. Here, we report that depleting β‐1,6‐glucan synthases leads to a significant increase in cell wall chitin levels through the posttranscriptional regulation of the chitin synthase Chs3 which maintains cell viability. And depleting β‐1,6‐glucan synthases in chs3Δ/Δ cells results in cell death. The elevation of cell wall chitin is mediated by the activation of the PKC signaling pathway and an unknown pathway(s) involving Ca2+–calcineurin. Also, kre6Δ/Δ skn1Δ/Δ cells are not more susceptible to caspofungin, the antifungal drug that inhibits β‐1,3‐glucan synthases, suggesting that β‐1,3‐glucan has no role in compensating β‐1,6‐glucan synthesis. Given the vital importance of elevating chitin synthesis in the absence of β‐1,6‐glucan synthesis in C. albicans, antifungal drugs targeting β‐1,6‐glucan and chitin synthesis could be used in combination therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Semantic segmentation plays a vital role in the intelligent comprehension of remote sensing images (RSIs). However, research on semantic segmentation of RSIs still faces the following challenges: 1) The complexity of ground object structures, including variations in scale and shading environments, poses difficulties for current methods in capturing global context. 2) In long-tail distributed remote sensing data, the scarcity of tail classes makes it difficult for their features to be effectively learned, as features of head classes often overshadow them. To address these issues, we propose a contextual self-rasterization learning network (CSRL-Net) for the semantic segmentation of RSIs. Our approach comprises the following two key components. Firstly, a grid context perception mechanism is developed to collaboratively establish context dependencies within and among multi-scale grids, capturing long-range spatial correlations. Secondly, a joint weight loss function is designed to convert the prior knowledge into weight factors. This loss function combines re-weighting and logit adjustment, giving more attention to tail classes and integrally balancing learning bias. To evaluate the effectiveness of our proposed method, we apply it to the Potsdam, Vaihingen, and GID datasets and compare its performance with current advanced models. Experimental results demonstrate that our method achieves excellent performance in terms of MIoU, mean F1 and OA, with improvements ranging from 0.364% to 1.764% compared to the 17 comparison models. Notably, the proposed joint weight loss significantly improves IoU and F1 for tail classes, resulting in increases of 2.909% (IoU) and 2.085% (F1) on the Vaihingen dataset and 4.697% (IoU) and 4.043% (F1) on the GID dataset. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Membrane-based filtration is a promising technique to treat the enormous amounts of oily wastewater, specifically those with micron-sized oil droplets. However, the understanding on the effect of the surfactants, that are inevitably present to stabilize the oil emulsion, on the filtration performance remains poor. This study aimed to investigate the effect of surfactant type (namely, non-ionic Tween 20, positively charged CTAB, and negatively charged SDS) on filtration flux and membrane fouling during the microfiltration of the surfactant-stabilized oil emulsion with mean droplet sizes of approximately 20 μm. The Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) was employed to quantify the evolution of fouling, and both the DLVO and XDLVO models were used to quantify the oil droplet-membrane and oil droplet-deposited layer interaction energies. Two key understanding on the correlation between the DLVO and XDLVO predictions with flux and fouling were obtained. Firstly, the steep flux enhancement vis-à-vis a DI water feed by the feed containing CTAB-stabilized oil emulsion was tied to the attractive interaction of the surfactant with the membrane, as evident from the DLVO model. This attraction was not related to the extent of membrane fouling, which was relatively lesser for the CTAB-stabilized oil emulsion. Secondly, the extent of membrane fouling was tied to the repulsive energy magnitudes rather than attractive ones, specifically in that the least repulsive energy values of the Tween 20 – stabilized oil emulsion was linked to the most extensive fouling. Highlights • Differences in flux, fouling and interaction energy due to surfactant type. • Surfactants adsorbed onto membrane to give the same charge sign as the oil emulsion. • Correlate DLVO and XDLVO profiles with flux and fouling trends. • Attractive surfactant-membrane energy linked to flux enhancement. • Greater repulsive interaction energy tied to lesser extent of fouling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies showed that Nel-like molecule-1 (Nell-1) can positively regulate odontoblastic differentiation and dentin formation. Intriguingly, our group found that Nell-1 is co-expressed with neural markers. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether Nell-1 protein plays a regulatory role in the differentiation of dental pulp cells into neural-like cells by in vivo and in vitro studies. The expression patterns of Nell-1 and dental pulp neural markers were observed by double immunofluorescence staining in normal dental pulp tissue sections of Wistar rat. Collagen sponge containing Nell-1 protein was added into the pulp cavity of rat molars in order to observe the expression patterns of neural markers in rat dental pulp repair and regeneration model by immunohistochemical staining. Moreover, human dental pulp stem cells (hDPSCs) were cultured, and different concentrations of Nell-1 protein were added for 12 h, 24 h, and 72h. The expression of neural markers was detected by using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blot. Nell-1 was co-expressed with neural markers including substance P (SP) and Nestin in rat dental pulp tissue. The expression of neural markers including SP, neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and Nestin was increased obviously in rat dental pulp tissues stimulated with Nell-1 protein. In cultured hDPSCs induced by Nell-1 protein, the expression of neural markers including glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), Nestin, and β-III tubulin was increased. Nell-1 plays a positive role in inducing the differentiation of DPSCs into neural-like cells. • Nell-1 is co-expressed with neural markers in pulp, which indicates that Nell-1 might be expressed in dental pulp nerve. • The expression levels of neural markers were increased in rat pulp and in cultured hDPSCs stimulated with Nell-1 protein. • This is the first study to demonstrate the effect of Nell-1 on dental pulp cells neural-like differentiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The Er3+/Tm3+/Yb3+ tri-doped Y 7 O 6 F 9 phosphor is synthesized by a typical hydrothermal method. The Y 7 O 6 F 9 : 0.6%Er3+/0.2%Tm3+/15%Yb3+ phosphor is selected for the study. The up-conversion characteristics and temperature sensing performances of the phosphor are investigated under the excitation of 980 nm laser. The temperature sensing performances are investigated in the temperature range of 306–546 K based on thermal and non-thermal coupled levels by using fluorescence intensity ratio technology. The maximum sensitivity is 54.3 × 10−3 K−1 at 546 K, which is based on 3F 2,3 (red emission at 695 nm of Tm3+) and 4S 3/2 (green emission at 545 nm of Er3+) levels. After comparison, it is found that the sensing sensitivity of Y 7 O 6 F 9 : 0.6%Er3+/0.2%Tm3+/15%Yb3+ phosphor is relatively high. The excellent temperature sensing performances of the phosphor are verified. What's more, the white luminescent emission of the phosphor is achieved by adjusting excitation power and sample temperature during the experiment. And the luminescent emission color of the phosphor can be modulated widely. The above experimental results not only enable us to have a deeper understanding of tunable upconversion luminescent emission and optical temperature sensing, but also provide a significant step for high sensitivity thermometry, white light illuminating and color displaying. Highlights • White luminescent emission is achieved by adjusting excitation power and sample temperature. • The luminescent emission color can be modulated widely. • The up-conversion photon absorption process at room temperature and high temperature is investigated. • Sensing sensitivity of the phosphor is relatively high. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The evolution of the cake during dead-end microfiltration of different compositions of bidisperse feeds was investigated using network modeling and three-dimensional (3D) optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging. The foulant particles were latex of two different sizes (namely, 3 and 5 µm) and the membrane was polycarbonate track-etched with nominal diameter of 2 µm. The results from the network model indicate that (i) the deposition of the smaller particles on the non-porous area was reduced by the presence of larger particles, whereas that of the larger particles was not affected by the concentration of the smaller ones; and (ii) monodisperse small particles gave a greater specific cake resistance than monodisperse large particles, and the specific cake resistance of the bidisperse mixture can only be reduced with a sufficient proportion of larger particles. OCT results substantiated the model by revealing that (i) bidisperse feeds tended to form homogeneous cakes, but the presence of a higher concentration of large particles led to heterogeneous cakes; (ii) the presence of a lower concentration of larger particles enhanced clustering, while a higher concentration reduced that; and (iii) in the longer-term filtration, the monodisperse feed of small particles dynamically deposited and detach continuously, while the bidisperse feed with the highest concentration of larger particles exhibited negligible deposition and detachment. Highlights • Studied fouling mechanisms and cake formation by various bidisperse mixtures. • Network model revealed different deposition on nonporous area and cake resistance. • OCT revealed different cake growth, clustering and dynamic behavior. • Cake resistance only lowered above a critical proportion of large particles. • Bidisperse feeds tended to form homogeneous cakes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Due to its potential application in nuclear cladding system, Fe-Cr-Al alloys have attracted significant interest recently. Thus, it is of importance to acquire the classical interatomic interaction potential in order to predict the mechanical behavior of FeCrAl structures at the microscopic scale. In this work, the particle swarm optimization method has been applied and improved to develop the interatomic potentials for Fe, Cr, Al unitary systems and Fe-Cr, Fe-Al binary systems. The potential parameters are fitted to experimental elastic constants, first principle calculated lattice information and defect formation energies with consideration of force matching. The developed Fe-Cr-Al ternary potentials are used to predict the phase stability region for FeCrAl ferrite alloys. The bulk modulus for the single crystal and the plastic behavior under grain boundary tensile stress are also modeled to find the influence of Cr and Al contents on the mechanical properties of FeCrAl alloys. The solutes Cr would improve the mechanical properties while high Al content would lead to poor elastic and plastic properties. The predictions from the newly developed potential are in good agreement with experimental results. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • Particle swarm optimization method was improved for interatomic potential development. • The Fe-Cr-Al ternary potentials are developed to predict mechanical behavior and phase stability for FeCrAl alloy. • High Al content would lead to poor elastic and plastic properties for FeCrAl alloy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We discuss equivalence conditions for the non-existence of non-trivial meromorphic solutions to the Fermat Diophantine equation fm(z)+gn(z)=1 with integers m,n≥2, from which other approaches to proving the little Picard theorem are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]