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• The novel lateral control paradigm for autonomous heavy vehicle is highlighted. • Adaptive state estimator can improve estimation adaptivity against system uncertain. • Comprehensive performance of automatic lane guidance control system can be improved. • Simulation and HIL results validate the robustness of the proposed control strategy. Structured and unstructured uncertainties coupled with external disturbances usually pose considerable challenges in realizing heavy vehicle automatic lane guidance control. This paper presents a novel solution paradigm for the lateral control of autonomous heavy vehicle. The proposed control framework consists of an adaptive state estimator and a finite-time optimized ℋ ∞ state feedback regulator. Firstly, based on the dual extended Kalman filter (DEKF) technique, which can estimate model time-varying parameters and unknown states at the same time, the adaptive state estimation algorithm is proposed and investigated to improve state estimation adaptivity against uncertain time-varying general front/rear axle cornering stiffnesses. Then, using zero-sum dynamic game theory as the general framework, we analyze the minimax controller design problem and introduce the finite-time optimized robust regulator design method. The autonomous heavy vehicle automatic lane guidance controller is designed in the framework of robust optimal state feedback control to make it robust against external disturbance. Finally, results of various driving scenarios from both simulation and hardware-in-loop (HIL) implementation show that the proposed finite-time optimized robust and adaptive state estimation control paradigm can robustly obtain satisfactory automated lateral control performance for heavy vehicle when the control system is characterized by both time-varying model parameters and uncertain external energy-bounded disturbance. A comparative study is also conducted to investigate cases to show its effectiveness when the adaptive state estimation is used and when it is not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Significant difference in production behavior from fine and coarse grain is found. • Blockage problem could be induced by accumulation of fine natural sands. • The proposed step-wise depressurization can alleviate the temperature drop. • The sensible heat of the reservoir plays a dominant role in the gas production. There have been several field tests around the world to recover natural gas from gas hydrate reservoirs, yet they mostly suffer from the low productivity, sand problems and poor economic efficiency. The ultralow permeability of the sediments and an insufficient heat supply act as major barriers. Intense investigations have been carried out to study the gas production behavior from lab-synthesized hydrate-bearing coarse sands; yet the porous matrices could differ significantly from the natural sediments. Few studies have been found to focus on the role of fine natural sediments in the gas recovery performance. In this study, natural marine sediments from the South China Sea are used as the porous matrices, and gas is produced through an optimized stepwise depressurization. Significant differences in the gas production behaviors from fine natural sediments and coarse grains are found. The fine marine sediments may induce the blockage of the production well, even with protection measures; this problem will result in an uncontrolled pressure drop and gas output. Moreover, the stepwise depressurization efficiently contributes to remitting the temperature drop of the reservoir, increasing the minimum temperature from −0.5 ℃ upon a straight pressure drop to 0.27 ℃ upon a step-wise depressurization. This method can therefore help prevent the ice generation during hydrate dissociation. Additionally, a finer pressure gradient of 0.5 MPa will enhance the hydrate dissociation rate by 18.92% compared with the 2 MPa step scenario. The average gas production rate is determined to positively correlate with the Stefan number, which indicates a dominant role of the sensible heat of the reservoir in the efficient gas production. The findings could be applied in the field tests of gas hydrates to avoid ice generation and achieve a stable and continuous gas production behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LSO:Ce is a well-known scintillation crystal that is widely used in nuclear medicine, security checks, and high-energy physics. The scintillation properties of LSO can be modified by doping to meet the ever-growing requirements of radiation detection. However, exploring new doping techniques for LSO crystals with self-designed scintillation features remains time-consuming, especially by the Czochralski (CZ) method. In this paper, we established a high-efficiency crystal growth system based on the CZ method for the rapid growth of LSO crystals. The system is regulated by a high-accuracy auto-diameter controller to grow small boules of ϕ 20 mm × 100 mm. By incorporating an arc bottom crucible and optimizing the temperature field, the crystallization fraction of the as-grown crystal can be increased to 95% with the growth period compressed to 48 h. With the aid of the growth system, LSO crystals with Lu 3 + partially substituted by optical inertia RE ions (Sc 3 + , Y 3 + , La 3 + , Gd 3 +), metal cations co-doping (Ca2＋, Li 1 + , Yb 3 +), and different luminescent ions doping (Pr 3 + , Nd 3 + , Eu 3 + , Tb 3 + , Dy 3 + , Yb 3 +) are grown. Comparative analysis shows that the Ca co-doped LSO:Ce exhibits the best scintillation performance, taking into account both light output and decay time, among our samples. Moreover, Tb-doped LSO features relatively good scintillation efficiency with various wavelengths of visible light emission. • A miniaturized Cz system with high efficiency for new crystal exploration was developed. • Modified LSO crystals with different ions doping were successfully grown. • The optical and scintillation properties of the modified LSO crystals were studied. • Scintillation improvement or adjustment of LSO crystal was achieved by ions doping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C s 3 C u 2 I 5 : T l is a novel scintillator boasting high density, a substantial light yield, and excellent energy resolution, making it promising for applications in gamma-ray spectroscopy. In this paper, we developed a multi-functional melt growth furnace capable of convenient configuration for the Czochralski (Cz), Edge-defined Film-fed (EFG), and Bridgman methods. We successfully grew C s 3 C u 2 I 5 : T l crystals using the Cz, EFG, and Bridgman methods, yielding crystal sizes of Φ 15 mm, Φ 12 mm, and Φ 30 mm, respectively. The obtained crystals exhibit satisfactory crystalline quality, although they are susceptible to cracks during the cooling, cutting, and polishing processes. Samples are taken from the crystals to undergo analysis to investigate their optical and scintillation properties. Findings indicate that our C s 3 C u 2 I 5 : T l possess a large Stokes shift of 175 nm with nearly no spectral overlap between the PLE and PL spectra. The radioluminescence emission peaked at 505 nm, accompanied by a scintillation decay time of 828 ns. The samples exhibited a commendable energy resolution of 4.8% at 662 KeV and a high light yield of 83000 ph/MeV when coupled with a PMT. This study validates the viability of employing CZ and EFG methods for the growth of C s 3 C u 2 I 5 : T l crystal, in addition to showcasing the Bridgman method for the growth of centimeter-scale C s 3 C u 2 I 5 : T l crystals. • Development of a multi-functional for the melt growth of metal halide crystals. • Growth of centimeter-sized C s 3 C u 2 I 5 : T l crystals by Cz, EFG, and Bridgman methods. • The as-grown C s 3 C u 2 I 5 : T l has 83000 ph/MeV light yield and 4.8% energy resolution. • C s 3 C u 2 I 5 : T l crystals grown by Cz, EFG, and Bridgman show similar performances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corrupted sensing concerns the problem of recovering a high-dimensional structured signal from a collection of measurements that are contaminated by unknown structured corruption and unstructured noise. In the case of linear measurements, the recovery performance of different convex programming procedures (e.g., generalized Lasso and its variants) is well established in the literature. However, in practical applications of digital signal processing, the quantization process is inevitable, which often leads to non-linear measurements. This paper is devoted to studying corrupted sensing under quantized measurements. Specifically, we demonstrate that, with the aid of uniform dithering, both constrained and unconstrained Lassos can stably recover signal and corruption from the quantized samples when the measurement matrix is sub-Gaussian. Our theoretical results reveal the role of quantization resolution in the recovery performance of Lassos. Numerical experiments are provided to confirm our theoretical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhanced geothermal system (EGS) is an effective method for developing and utilizing hot dry rock (HDR). The key to the effectiveness of EGS is the construction of an artificial fracture network. The permeability of fractures has severe effects on the heat transfer efficiency and sustainability of geothermal energy. However, the evolution characteristics of hydraulic conductivity under different failure modes have not been adequately studied for HDR. To clarify this, rocks with different failure modes were investigated by conducting thermal triaxial compression experiments, and the fluid seepage related to different rock failure modes was comprehensively investigated. The results showed that the characteristic stresses and crack surface roughness of the rock increased as the confining pressure increased. The permeability in the composited failure mode was the largest (11.4 μm2), followed by that in the Y‐shaped shear failure mode (9.7 μm2), and that in the single‐shear failure mode was the smallest (7.2 μm2). The confining pressures had an inhibitory effect on permeability. As the confining pressure increased from 5 to 30 MPa, the permeability decreased by 88.8%, 88.4%, and 89.9%, respectively. In contrast, the permeability was significantly enhanced by 128.3%, 94.6%, and 131% as the flow rate increased from 3 to 7 mL/min. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of intangible cultural heritage cultural elements and traditional crafts in modern design, especially in modern fashion design, is not to flatter the public but to integrate the artistic language of intangible cultural heritage into modern fashion on the basis of deeply understanding the connotation of intangible cultural heritage and mastering its traditional crafts, so as to meet people's demand for fashion and aesthetics. It can also promote the inheritance and development of traditional intangible cultural heritage culture and technology. The purpose of this study is to analyze the intangible cultural heritage elements in the innovative design of fashion design by using interactive evolutionary computation. According to the composition characteristics of cultural elements, this research uses interactive evolutionary calculation to analyze the current status of intangible cultural heritage elements in clothing design. Then, 30 fashion designers are selected to evaluate the design situation and judge the effect of the method on the design. The results show that the neural network has evaluated 36 generations, that is, 256 times of moderate value. Compared with the general IGA algorithm, adding neural network IGA can reduce the fatigue caused by user reference score and improve the quality of the optimal solution, and the cultural image attributes whose perception frequency is more than 50% are favored. It is concluded that the research method in the intangible cultural heritage elements in fashion design can improve user satisfaction and the effect is good. This research contributes to the application of intelligent algorithm in the field of fashion design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights from the article: B The Cover Feature b shows an abstract "bat", one side is the I cinchona i alkaloid skeleton, and another side is the oxazoline dominant skeleton, which are combined to form a series of novel chiral ligands. In addition, in the right middle of the feature is the steric configuration of the transition state, which is formed by the combination of metal ligand complexes and substrates. B The Cover Feature b shows an abstract "bat", one side is the I cinchona i alkaloid skeleton, and another side is the oxazoline dominant skeleton, which are combined to form a series of novel chiral ligands.

[Display omitted] • The material formed a new structure with huge specific surface area when La:Al = 1:3. • La 1 Al 3 -BTC had a high adsorption capacity of 210.3 mg P·g−1 and P/metal ratio. • La atoms replaced Al atoms in Al-BTC skeleton when forming La 1 Al 3 -BTC. • Main adsorption mechanism was the inter-sphere complexation between La and phosphate. • La 1 Al 3 -BTC had a relatively high negative adsorption energy on H 2 PO 4 -. Lanthanum (La) is constantly used in phosphorus removal due to its high affinity with phosphate. Herein, a novel La/Al bimetallic organic framework was developed to improve the usage efficiency of La species. The effects of metal ratio, pH value and competitive anions were investigated, through which the adsorption mechanism was further explained. Results showed that when the doped La:Al ratio was 1:3, the absorbent (La 1 Al 3 -BTC) achieved the most excellent adsorption capacity of 210.3 mg P·g−1 and usage efficiency (P/metal ratio = 1.09). La 1 Al 3 -BTC can adapt to the wide pH range and multitudinous coexisting ions in real water, and its adsorption process was in accordance with Langmuir and pseudo-second-order models. Surface morphology of materials transformed from rod-like crystal to amorphous structure as the increase of Al doping. La replaced some Al atoms and embedded in Al-BTC skeleton. The specific surface area raised from 9.27 m2·g−1 of La-BTC to 257.01 m2·g−1 of La 1 Al 3 -BTC. The main mechanism for the adsorption of phosphate was the inner-sphere complexation occurred in the La active sites. Electron migration between different metals enhanced the adsorption process. Density-function theory (DFT) calculation well matched the experimental phenomenon. Overall, the development of La 1 Al 3 -BTC presented new potential applications for enhanced phosphorus removal and provided new insights for the design of La-based adsorbents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Image stitching aims to synthesize a wider and more informative whole image, which has been widely used in various fields. This study focuses on improving the accuracy of image mosaic and proposes an image mosaic method based on local edge contour matching constraints. Because the accuracy and quantity of feature matching have a direct influence on the stitching result, it often leads to wrong image warpage model estimation when feature points are difficult to detect and match errors are easy to occur. To address this issue, the geometric invariance is used to expand the number of feature matching points, thus enriching the matching information. Based on Canny edge detection, significant local edge contour features are constructed through operations such as structure separation and edge contour merging to improve the image registration effect. The method also introduces the spatial variation warping method to ensure the local alignment of the overlapping area, maintains the line structure in the image without bending by the constraints of short and long lines, and eliminates the distortion of the non-overlapping area by the global line-guided warping method. The method proposed in this paper is compared with other research through experimental comparisons on multiple datasets, and excellent stitching results are obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] The huge Li ion transport resistance through the grain boundaries (GBs) among rigid oxide particles forces the adoption of high-temperature sintering (HTS) process over 1000 °C. Nevertheless, the severe side reactions and uncontrollable lithium loss are always companied during the high-cost HTS process, which slows down the pace of oxide solid electrolyte (OSE) for practical application and accelerates the exploration of a new OSE sintering process. Herein, a near-room-temperature (60 °C) cold-sintering process is proposed by filling the GBs with a low-melting-point plastic crystal electrolyte (PCE). Due to the soft property and high-ionic conductivity of PCE, the Li ion transport rate through the GBs is 10 times faster than the bulk phase, endowing the OSE (Li 1.5 Al 0.5 Ge 1.5 (PO 4) 3 chosen as a representative) with a room temperature ionic conductivity of 0.25 mS cm−1. As proof of the concept, the assembled Li symmetrical cells perform a low over-potential of 50 mV with a capacity of 1 mA h cm−2 and full cells delivers a capacity retention of roughly 70% after 820 cycles (1.5 years) at 0.1C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Winter wheat is the main grain crop in the Yellow River Basin, and optimizing water and nitrogen management can not only improve the yield, but also reduce water and fertilizer waste and environmental pollution. Using two years of winter wheat field trials, the Aquacrop model was calibrated and validated, and 36 different water and nitrogen application scenarios were simulated and analyzed. Among them, the field trials were divided into three N application levels, and three lower limits of water control. The results showed that: (1) the model has good applicability to simulate the growth process of winter wheat in the Yellow River Basin. (2) At a constant level of irrigation or nitrogen application, crop yield initially increased and subsequently decreased with the enhancement of either irrigation or nitrogen application. Finally, through response surface analysis of regression equations, the recommended irrigation volume was determined to be between 296 and 303 mm, and the fertilizer application rate was set between 229 and 261 kg/ha. At these levels, the PFP could achieve over 60% of its maximum. This research provides a theoretical basis for the water-saving, fertilizer-saving and high-yield water and fertilizer management system of winter wheat in the irrigated area of the Yellow River Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The testis is vulnerable to ionizing radiation, sexual dysfunction and male infertility are common problems after local radiation or whole-body exposure. Currently, there are no approved drugs for the prevention or treatment of radiation testicular injury. Sulforaphane (SFN) is an indirect antioxidant that induces phase II detoxification enzymes and antioxidant genes. Herein, we investigated the radiation protective effect of SFN on testicular injury in mice and its potential mechanism. Mice were randomly divided into blank control group (Ctrl), radiation + no pretreatment group (IR), and radiation + SFN groups (IRS). In the radiation + SFN groups, starting from 72 h before radiation, SFN solution was intraperitoneally injected once a day until they were sacrificed. Mice in the blank control group and the radiation + no pretreatment group were simultaneously injected intraperitoneally with an equal volume of the solvent used to dissolve SFN (PBS with a final concentration of 0.1%DMSO) until they were sacrificed. They were subjected to 6Mev-ray radiation to the lower abdominal testis area (total dose 2Gy). Twenty-four hours after radiation, six mice in each group were randomly sacrificed. Seventy-two hours after radiation, the remaining mice were sacrificed. The results showed that the harmful effects of ionizing radiation on testes were manifested as damage to histoarchitecture, increased oxidative stress, and apoptosis, and thus impaired male fertility. SFN injections can reverse these symptoms. The results showed that SFN can improve the damage of mouse testis caused by irradiation. Furthermore, SFN prevents spermatogenesis dysfunction caused by ionizing radiation by activating Nrf2 and its downstream antioxidant gene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cyclic injection hydraulic fracturing is a promising way for the geothermal energy exploitation by reactivating the fractures in geothermal reservoir. However, fracture initiation and growth induced by cyclic injection schemes have been inadequately studied for hot dry rock (HDR), and the cyclic injection fracturing optimized often by experience. For this reason, the initiation and propagation of hydraulic fractures in the HDR under different cyclic injection methods were determined by experiment research for hydraulic fracturing. The results show that the cyclic frequency and injection rate play different roles in the stimulation of HDR. The cyclic injection with low frequency-low pressure can create more branched fractures, forming a short but complex hydraulic fracture network. However, when high flow-high frequency injection method is subjected, the branch fractures formed are significantly reduced, but each branch fracture can be fully expanded. To fully exploit the advantages of different injection methods, a numerical model that contains a fracture network was established with PFC software, and an alternating cyclic injection scheme with synergistic control of the cyclic frequency and injection rate was proposed. The comparison results indicated that the alternating cyclic injection method can effectively improve the fracturing effect in the HDR. The stimulation area of the alternating cyclic injection method is about 2.3 times and 2.7 times that of the low flow-low frequency and high flow-high frequency injection methods, respectively. The method presented here can be adopted to optimize the fracture growth regime and provide a scientific basis for EGS hydraulic fracturing design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liang, Z.; Ji, D.; Zhang, X.; Lingyun, W.; Zhang, T.; Li, S.; Yong, J.; Luo, J.; Liu, Y., and Zeng, J., 2023. Carboniferous oceanic basin sediment-gravity flows in the margin of the Junggar Basin, NW China: Characterisation and implications for hydrocarbon potential and evolution pacing. Journal of Coastal Research, 39(5), 890–906. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208. Several Carboniferous deep-marine-sandstone reservoirs have recently been discovered in the Junggar Basin, NW China. These reservoir sandstones were deposited by sediment-gravity flows that occurred on the continental slope of the Junggar Basin, and they have high hydrocarbon exploration potential. In this study, careful observations and petrological and geochemical analyses of samples from outcrop sections of Carboniferous rocks from the Junggar Basin were conducted to establish the deep-marine sedimentary characteristics, depositional environments, and mechanism of these gravity-flow deposits, as well as a sedimentary model for their occurrence. The deep-marine, gravity-flow deposit types include those of turbidity currents, debris flows, and slumps. The debris-flow deposits can be divided into pebbly debris-flow deposits and sandy debris-flow deposits. Results allow the relationship between the type and nature of gravity flows and ocean basin evolution to be established. During the early Carboniferous, the ocean basin had sufficient space to accommodate incoming sediment, and the sediment transport distance was long. The gravity-flow sediments of this period are dominated by sandy debris-flow deposits and turbidity-flow deposits characterised by thin individual layers but thick accumulations of multiple deposits. With continuous narrowing of the oceanic basin during the late Carboniferous, the basin had a smaller accommodation space. The main types of gravity-flow deposition during this period were pebbly and sandy debris flows, with rare thin turbidity-flow deposits. These deposits were coarser grained than their early Carboniferous equivalents, and their cumulative thicknesses were smaller. The results of the study provide insights into the prediction of deep-marine reservoir sandstones and the distribution of hydrocarbons in the Junggar Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine the impact of combined irrigation and fertilizer control on the summer maize yield, nitrogen use efficiency (NE), and nitrogen leaching (NL) in the Yellow River Basin. Based on the measured data from the field summer maize experiment in 2021 and 2022, a water-nitrogen movement model was constructed for 'Zhengdan 958' maize under two irrigation methods (wide furrow irrigation (G) and border irrigation (Q)), three fertilizer rates (120 kg/ha (N1), 220 kg/ha (N2), and 320 kg/ha (N3)), and three fertilizer frequencies (1 (T1), 2 (T2), and 3 (T3)), yielding 18 total treatments. Calculation of nitrogen leaching was based on water nitrogen transport modeling. The study then analyzed the factors and their combined effects. A multi-objective optimization genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) was established to evaluate maize yield, nitrogen use efficiency, and nitrogen leaching. The results indicate that the determination coefficients between simulated and measured water, nitrogen values exceeded 0.74. The rate optimized HYDRUS model effectively simulated the soil solute movement. The interaction of the irrigation method, fertilizer rate, and fertilizer application frequency did not significantly affect yield and nitrogen leaching, but did significantly impact nitrogen use efficiency (p < 0.05). Nitrogen leaching increased gradually as nitrogen application increased. The yield under wide furrow irrigation was 6.26% higher than that under border irrigation. The optimal coupling scheme of water and fertilizer was obtained using the genetic algorithm multi-objective optimization method, where the combined GN2T2 treatment was the optimal management model, the summer maize yield reached 14,077 kg/ha, nitrogen use efficiency and nitrogen leaching were reduced to 30.21 kg·kg−1 and 17.64 kg/ha, respectively. These findings can guide summer maize cultivation in the Yellow River Basin and assist in reducing nitrogen surface source pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The brain‐storm of designing low‐cost and commercialized eutectic electrolytes for zinc (Zn)‐based electrochemical energy storage (ZEES) remains unresolved and attractive, especially when implementing it at low temperatures. Here, we report an appealing layout of advancing chlorine‐functionalized eutectic (Cl‐FE) electrolytes via exploiting Cl anion‐induced eutectic interaction with Zn acetate solutions. This novel eutectic liquid shows high affinity to collaborate with 1,3‐dioxolane (DOL) and is prone to constitute Cl‐FE/DOL‐based electrolytes with a unique inner/outer eutectic solvation sheath for the better regulation of Zn‐solvating neighboring and reconstruction of H‐bonding. The side reactions are effectively restricted on Zn anodes and a high Coulombic efficiency of 99.5 % can be achieved over 1000 cycles at −20 °C with Zn//Cu setups. By prototyping scale‐up Zn‐ion pouch cells using the optimal eutectic liquid of 3ZnOAc1.2Cl1.8‐DOL, we obtain improved electrochemical properties at −20 °C with a high capacitance of 203.9 F g−1 at 0.02 A g−1 in a range of 0.20–1.90 V and long‐term cycling ability with 95.3 % capacitance retention at 0.2 A g−1 over 3,000 cycles. Overall, the proposal of ideal Cl‐FE/DOL‐based electrolytes guides the design of sub‐zero and endurable aqueous ZEES devices and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The brain‐storm of designing low‐cost and commercialized eutectic electrolytes for zinc (Zn)‐based electrochemical energy storage (ZEES) remains unresolved and attractive, especially when implementing it at low temperatures. Here, we report an appealing layout of advancing chlorine‐functionalized eutectic (Cl‐FE) electrolytes via exploiting Cl anion‐induced eutectic interaction with Zn acetate solutions. This novel eutectic liquid shows high affinity to collaborate with 1,3‐dioxolane (DOL) and is prone to constitute Cl‐FE/DOL‐based electrolytes with a unique inner/outer eutectic solvation sheath for the better regulation of Zn‐solvating neighboring and reconstruction of H‐bonding. The side reactions are effectively restricted on Zn anodes and a high Coulombic efficiency of 99.5 % can be achieved over 1000 cycles at −20 °C with Zn//Cu setups. By prototyping scale‐up Zn‐ion pouch cells using the optimal eutectic liquid of 3ZnOAc1.2Cl1.8‐DOL, we obtain improved electrochemical properties at −20 °C with a high capacitance of 203.9 F g−1 at 0.02 A g−1 in a range of 0.20–1.90 V and long‐term cycling ability with 95.3 % capacitance retention at 0.2 A g−1 over 3,000 cycles. Overall, the proposal of ideal Cl‐FE/DOL‐based electrolytes guides the design of sub‐zero and endurable aqueous ZEES devices and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In vitro models that mimic in vivo host-pathogen interactions are needed to evaluate candidate drugs that inhibit bacterial virulence traits. We established a new approach to study Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm susceptibility on biotic surfaces, using a three-dimensional (3-D) lung epithelial cell model. P. aeruginosa formed antibiotic resistant biofilms on 3-D cells without affecting cell viability. The biofilm-inhibitory activity of antibiotics and/or the anti-biofilm peptide DJK-5 were evaluated on 3-D cells compared to a plastic surface, in medium with and without fetal bovine serum (FBS). In both media, aminoglycosides were more efficacious in the 3-D cell model. In serum-free medium, most antibiotics (except polymyxins) showed enhanced efficacy when 3-D cells were present. In medium with FBS, colistin was less efficacious in the 3-D cell model. DJK-5 exerted potent inhibition of P. aeruginosa association with both substrates, only in serum-free medium. DJK-5 showed stronger inhibitory activity against P. aeruginosa associated with plastic compared to 3-D cells. The combined addition of tobramycin and DJK-5 exhibited more potent ability to inhibit P. aeruginosa association with both substrates. In conclusion, lung epithelial cells influence the efficacy of most antimicrobials against P. aeruginosa biofilm formation, which in turn depends on the presence or absence of FBS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Covariance matrix estimation concerns the problem of estimating the covariance matrix from a collection of samples, which is of extreme importance in many applications. Classical results have shown that $O(n)$ samples are sufficient to accurately estimate the covariance matrix from $n$ -dimensional independent Gaussian samples. However, in many practical applications, the received signal samples might be correlated, which makes the classical analysis inapplicable. In this paper, we develop a nonasymptotic analysis for the covariance matrix estimation from linearly-correlated Gaussian samples. Our theoretical results show that the error bounds are determined by the signal dimension $n$ , the sample size $m$ , and the shape parameter of the distribution of the correlated sample covariance matrix. Particularly, when the shape parameter is a class of Toeplitz matrices (which is of great practical interest), $O(n)$ samples are also sufficient to faithfully estimate the covariance matrix from correlated samples. Simulations are provided to verify the correctness of the theoretical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Boosting the energy density and safety issue of lithium-ion batteries has become ever more important to satisfy the diverse applications such as energy storage and mobile electronic devices. Herein, we present a new high voltage polyether-based electrolyte (HVPEE) by solvation structure design that can endure high-voltage operations and also possess non-flammable features. Especially, HVPEEs show better compatibility and stability with electrode than conventional electrolyte. We find that the solvent separated ion pair (SSIP) and contact ion pair (CIP) dominate the ion–solvent structure of HVPEEs, rather than the free solvent and ions. In this way, the oxidative decomposition of HVPEE on the cathode interface can be suppressed significantly due to the reduced highest occupied molecular orbital of SSIP complex structure than that of free TFSI-. As a result, the oxidation voltage can achieve as high as 5.35 V when the ether group/Li is optimized at 10/1 in the HVPEE, enabling the LiFePO 4 //Li full cells deliver a capacity of 165 mA h g−1 with a capacity retention of 98 % after 200 cycles. Moreover, when the cut-off voltage is 4.5 V, the discharge capacity of the LiNi 0.6 Mn 0.2 Co 0.2 O 2 //Li full cell can reach 170 mA h g−1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the frame theory and signalling theory, this article uses financial technology (fintech) to analyse online news sentiment and proposes the relevant hypothesis of the influence of news relevance on stock market risk, and conducts an empirical study on the VAR model of the stock return rate by using the news relevance and news sentiment data of the Uqer database. The results show a two‐way Granger causality between news sentiment and stock returns. News relevance is not Granger causality of yield but Granger causality of news sentiment. In addition, combined with the impulse response, variance decomposition, and relevance analysis, it is found that the news relevance degree positively affects news sentiment and then indirectly affects the stock return rate. Our findings indicate that news relevance is an essential variable in analysing online text sentiment and stock market volatility, and online news will increase the volatility of stock market risk. These results contribute to the financialization literature and guide fintech enterprises to balance market risk by combining signalling and frame theory to improve news relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strategic management of nitrogen fertilizers can not only mitigate agricultural nitrogen pollution but also significantly enhance crop yield and nitrogen use efficiency. This study was designed to determine the optimal nitrogen fertilizer management strategy for the Yellow River irrigation area. Leveraging two years of field data related to soil water nitrogen and summer maize growth indices, parameters for the Root Zone Water Quality Model 2 (RZWQM2) were calibrated and validated. Subsequently, various scenarios were generated to simulate the impacts of different nitrogen application rates and basal chasing ratios on summer maize yield, nitrogen agronomic efficiency, nitrogen physiological efficiency, and nitrogen apparent recovery rate. The Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method was employed for a comprehensive evaluation. RZWQM2 can effectively simulate the dynamic changes in soil moisture and nitrogen in the Yellow River irrigation area, and the results indicated that the mean relative error (MRE) between the simulated and observed values varied from 5.77% to 14.09%, and 4.36% to 33.01%, while the root mean square error (RMSE) ranged from 0.016 to 0.037 cm3/cm3, and 0.111 to 1.995 mg/kg. The normalized root mean square error (NRMSE) varied between 6.20% to 14.42% and 5.24% to 17.84%, respectively. The results validate the model's effectiveness in simulating summer maize yields and nitrogen metrics under varying nitrogen fertilizer management practices. A nitrogen application rate of 180–200 kg/hm2 (expressed in terms of pure nitrogen) in the Yellow River irrigation area could adequately meet the requirements for summer maize production. The recommended nitrogen fertilizer management strategy in the Yellow River irrigation area involves applying 200 kg/hm2 of nitrogen in a 1:2:1 ratio during the sowing, trumpeting, and anthesis stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in ocean heat content (OHC), salinity, and stratification provide critical indicators for changes in Earth's energy and water cycles. These cycles have been profoundly altered due to the emission of greenhouse gasses and other anthropogenic substances by human activities, driving pervasive changes in Earth's climate system. In 2022, the world's oceans, as given by OHC, were again the hottest in the historical record and exceeded the previous 2021 record maximum. According to IAP/CAS data, the 0–2000 m OHC in 2022 exceeded that of 2021 by 10.9 ± 8.3 ZJ (1 Zetta Joules = 1021 Joules); and according to NCEI/NOAA data, by 9.1 ± 8.7 ZJ. Among seven regions, four basins (the North Pacific, North Atlantic, the Mediterranean Sea, and southern oceans) recorded their highest OHC since the 1950s. The salinity-contrast index, a quantification of the "salty gets saltier—fresh gets fresher" pattern, also reached its highest level on record in 2022, implying continued amplification of the global hydrological cycle. Regional OHC and salinity changes in 2022 were dominated by a strong La Niña event. Global upper-ocean stratification continued its increasing trend and was among the top seven in 2022. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Solid-state polymer electrolytes are outstanding candidates for next-generation lithium metal batteries in the realm of high specific energy densities, high safeties and tight contact with electrodes. However, their applications are still hindered by the limitations that no single polymer is electrochemically stable with the oxidizing high-voltage cathode and the highly reductive Li anode, simultaneously. Herein, a bilayer asymmetric polymer electrolyte (SL-SPE) without accessional interface resistance that using poly (ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) as a "bridge" to connect the sulfonyl (O S = O)-contained oxidation-tolerated layer and polyether-derived reduction-tolerated layer (SPE), is proposed and synthesized by sequential two-step UV polymerizations. SL-SPE can provide widened electrochemical stability window up to 5 V, while simultaneously deploying a stable Janus interface property. Eventually, the superior high-voltage (4.4 V) cycling durability can be displayed in LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 |SL-SPE|Li batteries. This finding provides a bran-new idea for designing multifunctional polymer electrolytes in the application of solid-state batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both catalysts used show excellent catalytic activities and enantioselectivities, giving the (R)- and (S)-enantiomers of the adducts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the determination of the complete set of elastic, piezoelectric, and dielectric constants of a 0.67Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-0.33PbTiO3 (0.67PMN-0.33PT) single crystal by using Brillouin scattering in which all experimental data were collected from one [001]cub-poled crystal sample. The values of determined constants are similar to those previously determined from four crystal samples by using a hybrid method combining both ultrasonic and resonant techniques. The directional dependence of the compressional and shear modulus of the crystal in the (001) plane was investigated. A new weak broad peak appears at the low frequency side (∼18 GHz) between 45° and 65° scattering angles and the possible origins of the peak are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the problem of recovering a structured signal from a relatively small number of noisy measurements with the aid of a similar signal which is known beforehand. We propose a new approach to integrate prior information into the standard recovery procedure by maximizing the correlation between the prior knowledge and the desired signal. We then establish performance guarantees (in terms of the number of measurements) for the proposed method under sub-Gaussian measurements. Specific structured signals including sparse vectors, block-sparse vectors, and low-rank matrices are also analyzed. Furthermore, we present an interesting geometrical interpretation for the proposed procedure. Our results demonstrate that if prior information is good enough, then the proposed approach can (remarkably) outperform the standard recovery procedure. Simulations are provided to verify our results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New-onset diabetes mellitus (NOD) refers to forms of diabetes mellitus that develop during the therapeutic processes of other diseases such as hypertension. This study has been conducted in a network meta-analysis to compare antihypertensive drugs by identifying both the advantages and disadvantages on NOD by focusing on their respective effect rates. Odd ratios and corresponding 95% confidence intervals or credible intervals were calculated within pairwise and network meta-analysis. A total of 38 articles with 224 140 patients were included to evaluate the preventive effect of hypertension drugs on NOD. From the network meta-analysis it was evident that both angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor as well as angiotensin receptor blocker treatments are associated with a lower risk of developing NOD compared with placebo, with ranking probabilities of 79.81% and 72.77%, respectively, while β-blockers and calcium channel blockers may significantly increase the probability of developing NOD (β-blockers: odds ratio, 2.18 [95% credible intervals: 1.36-3.50]; calcium channel blockers: odds ratio, 1.16 [95% credible intervals, 1.05-1.29]). In conclusion, angiotensin receptor blockers have an advantage over the other treatments regarding the NOD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study a gate-tunable superconducting qubit (gatemon) based on a thin InAs-Al hybrid nanowire. Using a gate voltage to control its Josephson energy, the gatemon can reach the strong coupling regime to a microwave cavity. In the dispersive regime, we extract the energy relaxation time T 1 ∼ 0.56 μs and the dephasing time T 2 * ∼ 0.38 μs. Since thin InAs-Al nanowires can have fewer or single sub-band occupation and recent transport experiment shows the existence of nearly quantized zero-bias conductance peaks, our result holds relevancy for detecting Majorana zero modes in thin InAs-Al nanowires using circuit quantum electrodynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heat stress reduces plant growth and reproduction and increases agricultural risks. As a natural compound, melatonin modulates broad aspects of the responses of plants to various biotic and abiotic stresses. However, regulation of the photosynthetic electron transfer, reactive oxygen species (ROS) homeostasis and the redox state of redox-sensitive proteins in the tolerance to heat stress induced by melatonin remain largely unknown. The oxygen evolution complex activity on the electron-donating side of photosystem II (PSII) is inhibited, and the electron transfer process from QA to QB on the electron-accepting side of PSII is inhibited. In this case, heat stress decreased the chlorophyll content, carbon assimilation rate, PSII activity, and the proportion of light absorbed by tomato seedlings during electron transfer. The ROS burst led to the breakdown of the PSII core protein. However, exogenous melatonin increased the net photosynthetic rate by 11.3% compared with heat stress, substantially reducing the restriction of photosynthetic systems induced by heat stress. Additionally, melatonin reduces the oxidative damage to PSII by balancing electron transfer on the donor, reactive center, and acceptor sides. Melatonin was used under heat stress to increase the activity of the antioxidant enzyme and preserve ROS equilibrium. In addition, redox proteomics also showed that melatonin controls the redox levels of proteins involved in photosynthesis, and stress and defense processes, which enhances the expression of oxidative genes. In conclusion, melatonin via controlling the photosynthetic electron transport and antioxidant, melatonin increased tomato heat stress tolerance and aided plant growth. • MT alleviated the oxidative damage of PSII by balancing the electron transfer of the donor side, reaction center, and receptor side. • MT inhibited ROS accumulation by promoting the key enzyme activities of AsA-GSH cycle, and modulating redox state of redox-sensitive proteins. • MT regulates the redox proteins of heat resistant signaling pathway and increases the expression of oxidative genes in downstream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Obesity and overweight are closely related to cardiovascular mortality. Arterial stiffness is one of the important risks for cardiovascular diseases and is strongly related with the cardiovascular mortality. However, the relationship between obesity and arterial stiffness is still controversial. A cross‐sectional study was performed to examine the relationship of body fat percentage (BFP), an indicator of obesity, with carotid‐femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) in 2603 subjects (aged 58.62 ± 11.27 years, male 71.07%, hypertension 64.89%). All participants were divided into four groups according to the gender and the presence of arterial stiffening based on a value ≥10 m/s of cfPWV(group1 : male with cfPWV <10 m/s, group2 : male with cfPWV ≥10 m/s, group3 : female with cfPWV <10 m/s, group4 : female with cfPWV ≥10 m/s). Body weight, height, waist circumference, blood pressure were measured and clinical biochemical tests were recorded. cfPWV was measured using a non‐invasive automatic device (Complior Analysis, France). BFP were calculated by CUN‐BAE equation. The level of cfPWV was significantly increased with the increasing trend of BFP in both males and females. Stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that SBP, DBP, HR, Hcy, BFP, FPG were independent associated with cfPWV in females and SBP, eGFR, FPG, BFP, DBP were independent associated with cfPWV in males. In the subgroups stratified by age, BFP was correlated with cfPWV only in females over 60 years old, but not in female those aged under 60 years old and males. In addition to the age and blood pressure, BFP was one of important predictor of arterial stiffening special in females aged over 60 years old. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new method has been developed for the preparation of substituted pyrrolidines by the palladium-catalyzed intramolecular bromoamination of substituted aminoalkenes. The catalytic system and reaction conditions used for this transformation have been fully optimized. Notably, this reaction exhibits excellent selectivity, affording the pyrrolidine products as single 5-exo-bromoalkylpyrrolidines in excellent yields. Furthermore, this reaction occurs at room temperature under mild conditions, reaching completion within 1 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work investigated the frequently observed “rebounds” of contaminants of concern in groundwater systems. Specifically, influences of bioaugmented microorganisms on the sorption and desorption of representative petroleum constituents [benzene, 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene and naphthalene (BTN)] were studied in freshly-spiked and historically–contaminated sediments. Capable microorganisms were enriched and supplemented to contaminated sediments to enhance biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons. In freshly-spiked sediments, when petroleum-degrading microorganisms were added, concentrations of dissolved petroleum constituents appeared to increase initially, and 12.4, 14.0 and 20.0 mg/kg of benzene, 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene and naphthalene, respectively desorbed from the sediments into the water phase. In the historically-contaminated sediments, the augmentation of petroleum-degrading microorganisms led to the desorption of 0.023–0.059, 0009–0.016, and 1.731–2.763 mg/L of previously sequestrated BTN into the water phase, and also triggered the desorption of 0.051–0.223, −0.133–2.630, and 2.324–1.200 mg/kg of previously sequestrated BTN as the methanol extraction quantity. The mechanisms of the enhanced desorption at the presence of microbes remain to be determined; however, we presumed that microbially produced constituents such as biosurfactants and cell mass could have attributed to the partition of petroleum compounds from the sediments. Findings from this study may partially explain “rebounds” of certain petroleum constituents into the groundwater during in situ bioremediation practice, although such immediate rebounds sometimes are weak, and the desorbed constituents can be eventually biodegraded under proper biogeochemical conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polar auxin transport, which is critical for land plant pattern formation and directional growth, is largely depended on asymmetric distribution of PIN proteins at the plasma membrane (PM). Endocytosis and recycling processes play important roles in regulating PIN protein distribution and abundance at the PM. Two subunits (SEC8, EXO70A1) of exocyst, an octameric vesicle-tethering complex, have been reported to be involved in PIN protein recycling in Arabidopsis . However, the function of exocyst complex in PIN protein recycling and polar auxin transport remains incompletely understood. In this study, we utilized two SEC6 down-regulation mutants ( PRsec6-1 and PRsec6-2 ) to investigate the role of exocyst subunit SEC6 in the primary root development, polar auxin transport and PIN proteins recycling. We found that in PRsec6 mutants: 1. Primary root growth was retarded, and lateral root initiation were compromised. 2. Primary roots were sensitive to exogenous auxin 1-napthalene acetic acid (NAA) but not 2,4-dichlorophenoxy (2.4-D). 3. Recycling of PIN1 and PIN2 proteins from the Brefeldin A (BFA) compartment to the PM was delayed. 4. Vesicles accumulated in the primary root tip cells, especially accumulated in the cytosol closed to the PM. These results further demonstrated that the exocyst complex plays an important role in PIN protein recycling and polar auxin transport in Arabidopsis primary root. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) is one of the most attractive electrolyte materials for solid-state batteries due to its high ionic conductivity, however, the battery performance is limited by the high electrolyte–electrode interfacial resistance. Herein, PVDF polymer mixed with ceramic Li 7 La 3 Zr 2 O 12 is coated on cellulose support membrane (PLCSM) through a simple slurry-casting method. The ionic transport of PLCSM is originated from dimethyl formamide (DMF)-Li+ solvation structure, which plays a critical role in conducting lithium ions. β-PVDF after dehydrofluorination offers a high dielectric constant and enhances the dissociation of lithium salt. As a result, PLCSM with a total thickness of 85 µm presents an oxidation voltage of 4.9 V. Li-Li symmetric cells by employing PLCSM reveal that the critical current density (CCD) is increased to 1 mA cm−2. A full cell of LiFePO 4 |PLCSM |Li with high mass loading (1.2 mA h cm−2) shows a first-cycle discharge capacity of 160 mA h g−1. With LiNi 0.6 Mn 0.2 Co 0.2 O 2 as the cathode, the initial discharge capacity is 153 mA h g−1, and the capacity retention after 80 cycles is 80 %. The sandwiched PLCSM provides an effective strategy to achieve high-performance dendrite-free Li metal batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In mammals, nemo-like kinase 2 (NLK2) is a conservative protein kinase involved in Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and immune response. However, the role of NLK2 in immune response in teleost remain unclear. In this study, we identified an ortholog of mammalian NLK from grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) named CiNLK2. CiNLK2 shares a high level of homology with the counterparts, especially with that of Cyprinus carpio. CiNLK2 was ubiquitously expressed in all tested tissues (liver, brain, spleen, gill, kidney and eye) and its expression was up-regulated under the treatment with poly I:C or GCRV. Overexpression of CiNLK2 suppressed the production of IFN I in CIK cells whether or not treated with poly I:C. However, knockdown of CiNLK2 increased the expression level of IFN I. The analysis of subcellular localization showed that CiNLK2 protein was scattered throughout the cytoplasm and nucleus. In terms of mechanism, CiNLK2 can directly interact with MAVS and inhibit MAVS-induced IFN I response. Moreover, CiNLK2 increased the phosphorylation level of MAVS, which led to the degradation of MAVS protein. On the other hand, CiNLK2 suppressed the phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of IRF3. In general, CiNLK2 served as an inhibitor for IFN I response by targeting MAVS-IRF3 signal axis. • Poly I:C or GCRV stimulation increases the mRNA level of CiNLK2. • CiNLK2 phosphorylates MAVS and promotes its degradation. • CiNLK2 serves as an inhibitor for IFN I response by targeting MAVS-IRF3 signal axis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diflubenzuron is an insecticide that serves as a chitin inhibitor to restrict the growth of many harmful larvae, including mosquito larvae, cotton bollworm and flies. The residue of diflubenzuron is often detected in aquaculture, but its potential toxicity to aquatic organisms is still obscure. In this study, zebrafish embryos (from 6 h to 96 h post-fertilization, hpf) were exposed to different concentrations of diflubenzuron (0, 0.5, 1.5, 2.5, 3.5 and 4.5 mg/L), and the morphologic changes, mortality rate, hatchability rate and average heart rate were calculated. Diflubenzuron exposure increased the distance between the venous sinus and bulbar artery (SV-BA), inhibited proliferation of myocardial cells and damaged vascular development. In addition, diflubenzuron exposure also induced contents of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondialdehyde (MDA) and inhibited the activity of antioxidants, including SOD (superoxide dismutase) and CAT (catalase). Moreover, acridine orange (AO) staining showed that diflubenzuron exposure increased the apoptotic cells in the heart. Q-PCR also indicated that diflubenzuron exposure promoted the expression of apoptosis-related genes (bax, bcl2, p53, caspase3 and caspase9). However, the expression of some heart-related genes were inhibited. The oxidative stress-induced apoptosis damaged the cardiac development of zebrafish embryos. Therefore, diflubenzuron exposure induced severe cardiotoxicity in zebrafish embryos. The results contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the safety use of diflubenzuron. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accuracy level of short-term load forecasting (STLF) affects the power department's arrangements for unit start-up, shutdown, overhaul, and load dispatching. However, the existing algorithms do not fully consider load volatility and difficulty in setting the algorithm parameters. In this regard, this paper proposes a hybrid model which combines complete ensemble empirical mode decomposition with adaptive noise (CEEMDAN), gated recurrent unit (GRU) with improved gray wolf optimizer (IGWO), namely CEEMDAN–IGWO–GRU (CIG) hybrid algorithm. Firstly, the details and trend information of the load signal are separated by the CEEMDAN algorithm to suppress the interference of load fluctuation. Then, the GRU network optimized by IGWO parameters is used to predict each component, separately. Finally, the complete load forecasting results are obtained by reconstructing the forecasting result of each component. The power load data of a certain area under study is used to verify the CIG model, and the experimental results are compared with other existing algorithms. The experimental results show that the load forecasting results of the CIG model get the high-precision evaluation of 0.6997%, 52.4685, and 38.1891 MW in MAPE, RMSE, and MAE, respectively. Therefore, the parameter optimization ability of the IGWO algorithm can effectively improve the prediction accuracy, and the CIG method can availably suppress the impact of load fluctuation on prediction and has a powerful nonlinear fitting ability. In conclusion, CIG has great potential in establishing a power load forecasting model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The quaternary ammonium oxime reactivators are a class of important reactivators for nerve agents poisoning, and their sensitive and specific analysis in biomedical samples meets many challenges due to their highly polar properties. In present paper, a novel determination method based on surface‐enhanced Raman spectrometry (SERS) was developed for series of quaternary ammonium oxime reactivators. The self‐cleaning effect of iodine anion on the surface of porous shell‐insulated nanoparticles and the electrostatic adsorption effect were proved to be effective to remove the strong interference of protein and other coexisting substances and significantly improve the response intensity and fingerprint feature of Raman peaks. The analysis of five important quaternary ammonium oxime reactivators (PAM‐Cl, TMB‐4, MMB‐4, HI‐6, LüH6) was achieved in biomedical samples, which had the merit of simple sample pretreatment, rapid speed, high sensitivity, and fingerprint peak characteristics. The detection limits reached values of as low as 0.5 ng·mL−1 for dipyridyl quaternary ammonium oxime reactivators. The method has been successfully used for blood concentration monitoring in vivo and evaluation of the liposomes drug delivery ability to penetrate the blood–brain barrier in mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA-binding protein 3 (IGF2BP3) plays a key role in tumorigenesis and tumor progression. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in men and women all over the world. However, the relationship between IGF2BP3 and small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) has not been reported yet. Methods. SCLC and normal samples (GSE19945 and GSE149507) were obtained in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) dataset. Differential genes were screened by R software, and functional analysis and signal pathway enrichment analysis were carried out. In addition, we used the survival analysis database to analyze the relationship between prognosis and gene expression. Besides, immunohistochemistry (IHC) and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) were used for further research. Results. Five differentially expressed miRNAs and 9 differentially expressed mRNAs were selected by using R software. Survival analysis database results show that C7, CLIC5, PRDX1, IGF2BP3, and LDB2 were related the overall survival of patients with SCLC. Furthermore, multivariate analysis included that IGF2BP3 was independent risk factors for SCLC patients. Besides, gene function and signal pathway enrichment analysis showed that differentially expressed miRNAs were involved in the process of tumorigenesis and development. Furthermore, IHC and qPCR outcomes showed that the expression level of hsa-miR-182, hsa-miR-183, and IGF2BP3 was differentially expressed in normal lung tissues (NLTs) and SCLC tissues (SCLCTs). Conclusions. Our results concluded that hsa-miR-182, hsa-miR-183, and IGF2BP3 may take part in the development of SCLC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bayan Obo Fe–REE–Nb deposit is a world-largest REE deposit in Inner Mongolia, North China Craton. It also contains large Fe and Nb reserves. The REE ore body is hosted in H8 dolomite of the Bayan Obo Group. Depositional time and genesis of H8 dolomite are still controversial in addressing the genesis of the REE deposit. In this study, Pb–Pb age and geochemical features of carbonate minerals in H8 dolomite have been studied, providing constraints to genesis of H8 dolomite and the REE deposit. Results of Pb–Pb dating from unmetamorphosed and non-mineralized domains of the H8 dolomite well constrain the depositional age as 1619 ± 150 Ma, which is earlier than both REE ore and carbonatite dykes in the Bayan Obo region. This indicates that REE mineralization has characteristics of epigenetic origin. Geochemical data of carbonate minerals in H8 dolomite have low REE contents, distinctly distinguished from those carbonatitic dykes. However, the fine-grained H8 dolomite whole rocks have high REE contents, similar to those carbonatitic dykes. Mineral analysis suggests a close relationship between REE mineralization and calcite carbonatite dykes and related-derived fluids, which could transport a large amounts of REE. Integrated with these new geochronological and geochemical data, we draw conclusion that the Bayan Obo Group was a Proterozoic depositional succession, REE mineralization is as result of sedimentary carbonate rocks once being metasomatised by fluids derived from regional REE-rich calcite carbonatitic magma at depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a monolayer actively tunable dual-frequency switch in the terahertz (THz) range based on photosensitive silicon (PSi) metamaterial. The designed unit cell consists of hollow cross-shaped slots and four L-shaped slots made of a perfect electric conductor (PEC), with PSi embedded in both the cross-shaped and four L-shaped slots of identical dimensions. The PEC serves as the dielectric substrate. By varying the intensity of the pump beam to adjust the conductivity of the PSi, tuning of the transmittance at the resonant frequencies of the entire structure is achieved, enabling the switch to function in both ON and OFF states. Under vertical incidence of THz waves in the range of 1 THz to 3 THz, in the absence of pump beam, the PSi is in an insulating state with a conductivity of approximately 1 S/m. The proposed terahertz dual-frequency switch is in the ON state, with transmittances of 97.0% at the first resonance frequency (f 1 = 1.736 THz) and 98.3% at the second resonance frequency (f 2 = 2.176 THz), and group delays of 4.397 ps and 2.540 ps, respectively. When the pump beam intensity is 294.6 μj/cm2, the PSi is in a metallic state with a conductivity of approximately 1 × 105 S/m. The switch is in the OFF state, with zero transmittance in the range of 1 THz to 3 THz and a group delay of 0.327 ps. The calculated modulation degrees of amplitude at f 1 and f 2 for this terahertz dual-frequency switch are both 100%, demonstrating a high-performance switch. The two resonant frequencies f 1 and f 2 of the terahertz dual-frequency switch are generated by weakly coupled superposition between the embedded cross-shaped and four L-shaped PSi resonators (CSPR and FLSPR), exhibiting polarization-insensitive characteristics under vertical incidence of THz waves. We believe that this compact structure of terahertz metamaterial dual-frequency switch holds great application prospects in terahertz filtering, slow light devices, terahertz modulation, and the future 6G communication field. • We propose a monolayer actively tunable dual-frequency switch based on photosensitive silicon metamaterial operates within the frequency range of 1 THz to 3 THz. • It exhibits polarization-insensitive characteristics under vertically incident terahertz waves. • This device achieves high-performance tuning of transmittance at the first resonance frequency (f 1 = 1.736 THz) and the second resonance frequency (f 2 = 2.176 THz), with a range from 97.0% to 0 and 98.3% to 0, respectively (corresponding to the ON and OFF states). • Moreover, it demonstrates the 100% modulation degrees of amplitude, making it a high-performance switch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cell with BTEAI exhibits a considerable cycling stability and an expected reversibility, which is attributed to the catalytic effect on electrochemical reaction and the inhibition for redox shuttling. Synchrotron X-ray tomography technique is firstly employed to in situ investigate the morphological evolution of electrode interface in RM-involved Li-O 2 cells. [Display omitted] • BTEAI can reduce the overpotential and facilitate the kinetics associated to Li 2 O 2 decomposition. • An organic–inorganic composite SEI-contained layer is generated on Li anode surface due to the reaction between BTEA+ and Li, as well as the decomposition of LiTFSI. • A cell with BTEAI exhibits a considerable cycling stability and an expected reversibility, which is attributed to the catalytic effect on electrochemical reaction and the inhibition for redox shuttling. • Synchrotron X-ray tomography technique is firstly employed to in situ investigate the morphological evolution of electrode interface in RM-involved Li-O 2 cells. In situ characterization on interface stability has been hardly tried in redox mediator (RM)-involved Li-O 2 battery thus far. Here, benzyltriethylammonium iodide (BTEAI) can act as a self-defensive RM in the electrolyte LiTFSI/TEGDME to enhance the reaction kinetics and increase the cycling stability by suppressing the redox shuttling. I- effectively reduces the charging overpotential by changing decomposition route for Li 2 O 2. BTEA+ can facilitate LiTFSI decomposition in the electrolyte, and participate in formation of an organic–inorganic composite SEI-contained layer on Li anode. Moreover, for the first time, non-destructive synchrotron X-Ray tomography is used to investigate the mechanism of suppressing shuttle effect by monitoring the morphological evolution of electrodes interface. This work provides an insight into the development of functional RM and in situ protection strategies for Li anodes in Li-O 2 batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA-binding protein 3 (IGF2BP3) plays a key role in tumorigenesis and tumor progression. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in men and women all over the world. However, the relationship between IGF2BP3 and small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) has not been reported yet. Methods. SCLC and normal samples (GSE19945 and GSE149507) were obtained in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) dataset. Differential genes were screened by R software, and functional analysis and signal pathway enrichment analysis were carried out. In addition, we used the survival analysis database to analyze the relationship between prognosis and gene expression. Besides, immunohistochemistry (IHC) and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) were used for further research. Results. Five differentially expressed miRNAs and 9 differentially expressed mRNAs were selected by using R software. Survival analysis database results show that C7, CLIC5, PRDX1, IGF2BP3, and LDB2 were related the overall survival of patients with SCLC. Furthermore, multivariate analysis included that IGF2BP3 was independent risk factors for SCLC patients. Besides, gene function and signal pathway enrichment analysis showed that differentially expressed miRNAs were involved in the process of tumorigenesis and development. Furthermore, IHC and qPCR outcomes showed that the expression level of hsa-miR-182, hsa-miR-183, and IGF2BP3 was differentially expressed in normal lung tissues (NLTs) and SCLC tissues (SCLCTs). Conclusions. Our results concluded that hsa-miR-182, hsa-miR-183, and IGF2BP3 may take part in the development of SCLC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Colorectal cancer (CRC), one of the main causes of death, remains a leading cause of mortality in gastrointestinal cancer and tends to affect the younger generation. However, the pathological process of colorectal cancer is unclear. Exploring potential pathogenesis and therapeutic targets of CRC is significant as its high prevalence and high mortality. Nowadays, the rapid development of bioinformatics provides us an opportunity to explore potential molecular markers of CRC. Materials and Methods. First, three CRC gene chips with paracancerous controls were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Second, after combining and batch correcting the three chips using the R language and Perl language, the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were selected to investigate how they affect the CRC occurrence and development by GO and KEGG enrichment analysis. Third, based on the STRING website and the Cytoscape software, the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed and the core genes were screened out. Finally, through polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunohistochemistry (IHC), the expression and function of the core gene CXCL8 in CRC were explored. Results. GSE10950, GSE44076, and GSE75970, including 126 intestinal cancer samples and 126 paracancer samples, were screened as the datasets. 192 DEGs were screened, including 43 upregulated genes and 149 downregulated genes. Through the DEGs screened out, GO enrichment analysis, KEGG enrichment analysis, and the construction of PPI interaction network were carried out. Finally, according to the nodes and edges in the PPI network, the DEGs were sorted and the core genes were selected. Through basic experiments, the first ranked CXCL8 was further studied, and the results suggest that the expression of CXCL8 is related to the proliferation, migration, invasion, and even distant metastasis of CRC. Conclusion. The present study showed that DEGs of CRC are associated with multiple tumor-related biological processes and signaling pathways. The core gene CXCL8 has the potential to be a new therapeutic target for CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new chemosensor, namely N-(2-morpholinoethyl)acetamide-4-morpholine-1,8-naphthimide (MMN), was designed and synthesized through an amidation reaction. MMN was fabricated as a multifunctional fluorescent probe for monitoring pH and isoxaflutole. MMN exhibited excellent stability in MeCN/H2O (v/v, 9/1), with an obvious "off–on" fluorescence response toward pH changes due to intramolecular charge transfer (ICT), where the linear response ranges of MMN in the weakly acidic system were from 4.2 to 5.0 and from 5.0 to 6.0 with apparent pKa = 4.62 ± 0.02 and 5.43 ± 0.02. Based on morpholine as the lysosome targetable unit, MMN could selectively locate lysosomes in live cells. MMN also successfully detected the presence of H+ in test papers. Finally, MMN could specifically recognize isoxaflutole at a detection limit of 0.88 μM. A possible sensing mechanism was identified based on density function theory calculations. These results indicate that MMN could be a superior potential chemosensor for detecting pH and isoxaflutole selectively and sensitively and could be used in real sample detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientific and reasonable evaluation of project construction effectiveness plays an important role in the follow-up project management. However, the post-assessment of project construction effectiveness is a multi-complex system involved in many certain and uncertain factors, with complicated nonlinear relationship between evaluation indicators and grade standards, which should be considered in post-assessment. In this study, a set pair analysis model based on game theory was developed. In the model, the weights of evaluation indicators were obtained by game theory, and then the connection degree of the single index was calculated in the support of certain and uncertain analysis method of set pair theory. Then, the comprehensive connection degree of the object was obtained based on the model. So the evaluation grades and the transformation trend between grades of objects were confirmed. Based on the above analysis, the set pair situation was introduced to analyze the coordination among the subsystems, clarify the underlying causes of transformation trend and evaluate the sustainable development level of the project. The model was applied to the post-assessment of the rural drinking water safety project construction effectiveness of Hunan Province, and the results were compared with that from sudden change evaluation method. The results showed: 1) Project completion rate, qualification rate of project, water fee profit, completion rate of resolving rural drinking water difficulty, rural tap-water benefit rate, water quality and water environment protection of water functional zone were the main factors affecting rural drinking water safety in Hunan; Among these factors, water fee profit, rural tap-water benefit rate, water quality and water environment protection of water functional zone were key limiting factors of the project benefits; 2) Three areas (Hengyang, Chenzhou and Yongzhou) had "excellent" rural drinking water safety level, while Changde, Yiyang and Loudi had "general level", and the others in "well" level; 3) The five indexes in project management subsystem were at level I or level II in all the areas, indicating that the governors of Hunan Province have paid much attention to the management of the people's livelihood project in recent years; However, the level of the indicators in socioeconomic performance subsystem and ecologic environment response subsystem were generally poor and the protection of ecological environment haven't been done well; 4) The three subsystems of the rural drinking water safety system in Changsha and Huaihua were in strong coordination state, so the project was in a high sustainable development level; The coordination level of the three subsystems in Loudi was general, thus the sustainable development level was not high; The three subsystems in Zhuzhou was out of coordination, indicating worrying sustainable development; The coordination degree of the subsystems in Hengyang and Chenzhou was almost uncoordinated, making the project sustainable development condition poor; The subsystems were in harmony in other cities, so the follow-up benefit of the projects were relatively stable. The results above illustrated that the proposed method are reliable, can reflect more comprehensive information than the sudden change evaluation method. Therefore, the study can provide a reliable method for the decision-making and management of the similar projects or follow-up projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first system controlled anomeric isomerism of glucopyranoside-functionalized N-heterocyclic carbenes based pyridine enhanced precatalyst preparation, stabilization and initiation type palladium(II) complexes (Glu-NHCs-Pd(II)-PEPPSI, 2a–d) were prepared and fully characterized. It is interesting to note that pure β–anomer PEPPSI complex 2d was obtained, in which the Glu-substituent connects to the imidazole heterocycle ring N through ethoxy bridged anomeric carbon. In addition, the catalytic activities revealed that Glu-NHCs-Pd(II)-PEPPSI complexes 2a-d are efficient catalysts for the aqueous Suzuki reaction. Under optimized conditions, a series of fluorene-cored functional materials with different aryl-substituents were synthesized through the Suzuki reaction with excellent yields. The Glu-NHCs-Pd(II)-PEPPSI complex containing bulky and rigid 2,5-dimethylphenyl group played an important role in maintaining the β conformation and improving the catalytic activity significantly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]