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Under the condition of sparse aperture, the traditional inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) imaging method suffers from the sidelobe. Compressive sensing (CS) is a method to solve this problem. The traditional CS algorithm assumes that the strong scattering point of the target is located on the grid. Yet in practice, the distribution of the scattering point is continuous. If it deviates from the grid, the performance of CS will deteriorate. Therefore, a sparse aperture ISAR imaging method based on gridless CS is proposed in this paper. The method does not need to discretize the scene and use atomic norm minimization as sparse constraint. By solving semidefinite program, the position of scattering centers can be estimated directly in continuous space, which can solve the problem of basis mismatch effectively. The simulation results validate the feasibility of this algorithm.

The premise and foundation of targets' analysis and recognition is to quickly and accurately obtain the radar cross section (RCS) of micro-motion group targets in the middle of trajectory. By analyzing the process of obtaining dynamic RCS by fitting full static RCS, this paper points out that the traditional method cannot realize the simulation of RCS of micro-motion group targets, and establishes all types of micromotion models of pyramidal targets. Combined with the domain decomposition method based on equivalence principle algorithm for the body of revolution (EPA-BOR), the fast simulation of dynamic RCS of micro-motion group targets in the middle part of trajectory is implemented and verified.

Laryngeal carcinoma is one of the most common malignant tumors of the head, neck, and respiratory tract. The aim of the present study is to explore the biological function of SRY-related HMG-box 18 (SOX18) in laryngeal carcinoma cells and study the molecular mechanism involved. Initial findings indicate that the expression of SOX18 was increased in laryngeal carcinoma cell lines and tissues. The effect of SOX18 on laryngeal carcinoma cell proliferation, cell cycle, apoptosis, invasion, and migration was also identified. The results indicated that down-regulation of SOX18 significantly inhibited cell proliferation, migration, and invasion, and induced cell-cycle arrest in G0/G1 phase and apoptosis of laryngeal carcinoma cells. However, overexpression of SOX18 promoted cell proliferation, invasion, and migration, and inhibited cell apoptosis. The expression of cyclin D1, active-caspase-3, N-cadherin, MTA1, MMP-2, and MMP-7 was also regulated by the overexpression of siSOX18 or SOX18. In addition, it was found that SOX18 could also accelerate the phosphorylation of JAK2/STAT3 signaling in laryngeal carcinoma cells. Furthermore, our study indicated that SOX18 could stimulate cell proliferation, migration, and invasion of laryngeal carcinoma cells via regulation of JAK2/STAT3 signaling, which could provide a new strategy for laryngeal carcinoma diagnosis and molecular therapies.

In this paper, we design an AGV (automated guided vehicles) scheduling problem bilevel bi-objective model, that aim for reducing energy consumption and improving efficiency. A bilevel heuristic algorithm was designed to solve the model. The numerical experiments show that the model proposed in this paper can further reduce the energy consumption of horizontal transportation operations while optimizing operation efficiency.

Caprine arthritis encephalitis virus (CAEV) is a lentivirus that causes multisystemic chronic disorders in sheep and goats. It encodes Vif to counteract the restriction of Ovis aries A3Z2-Z3 (oaA3Z2-Z3) by inducing their degradation. Nevertheless, the mechanisms underlying the interplay between CAEV Vif and OaA3Z2-Z3 have yet to be elucidated. Here, we identified the cellular factors ElonginB/C, CYPA and Cullin5 as being hijacked by CAEV Vif as well as several functional domains of CAEV Vif required for degrading oaA3Z2-Z3. Moreover, we determined that CAEV Vif assembled E3 ubiquitin ligase stepwise via its SLE motif (170SLE172) to recruit ElonginB/C, the P21 site and the zinc finger motif (C132-C134-C154-C157) to recruit CYPA, as well as the hydrophobic domain (141IR142) to recruit Cullin5. And this CAEV Vif-mediated E3 ligase triggers the proteasomal degradation of oaA3Z2-Z3, which directly bind CAEV Vif through residues Y39 and L44. In particular, CYPA played an essential role in the process to regulate ligase assembly, which was analogous to CBF-β, the essential regulator for HIV-1 and SIV-mediated E3 ligase, indicating that there is a modular conservation and lineage-specific preference for cellular partners required by Vifs from different subgroups of lentiviruses. Taken together, these findings provide important insights regarding the CAEV Vif function and deepen our understanding of the arms race between the lentiviruses and their hosts.

SAMHD1 possesses multiple functions, but whether cellular factors regulate SAMHD1 expression or its function remains not well characterized. Here, by investigating why cultured RD and HEK293T cells show different sensitivity to enterovirus 71 (EV71) infection, we demonstrate that SAMHD1 is a restriction factor for EV71. Importantly, we identify TRIM21, an E3 ubiquitin ligase, as a key regulator of SAMHD1, which specifically interacts and degrades SAMHD1 through the proteasomal pathway. However, TRIM21 has no effect on EV71 replication itself. Moreover, we prove that interferon production stimulated by EV71 infection induces increased TRIM21 and SAMHD1 expression, whereas increasing TRIM21 overrides SAMHD1 inhibition of EV71 in cells and in a neonatal mouse model. TRIM21‐mediated degradation of SAMHD1 also affects SAMHD1‐dependent restriction of HIV‐1 and the regulation of interferon production. We further identify the functional domains in TRIM21 required for SAMHD1 binding and the ubiquitination site K622 in SAMHD1 and show that phosphorylation of SAMHD1 at T592 also blocks EV71 restriction. Our findings illuminate how EV71 overcomes SAMHD1 inhibition via the upregulation of TRIM21., SAMHD1, a well‐studied HIV‐1 restriction factor, counteracts also the hand‐foot‐and‐mouth disease pathogen EV71. Upon infection, the E3 ligase TRIM21 is up‐regulated in an IFN‐dependent manner to induce SAMHD1 degradation and to relieve virus restriction.

Although human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the most common viruses inducing respiratory tract infections in young children and the elderly, the genotype distribution and characteristics of RSV in northeastern China have not been investigated. Here, we identified 25 RSV-A and 8 RSV-B strains from 80 samples of patients with respiratory infections between February 2015 and May 2015. All 25 RSV-A viruses were classified as the ON1 genotype, which rapidly spread and became the dominant genotype in the world since being identified in Ontario (Canada) in December 2010. All eight RSV-B viruses belonged to the BA genotype with a 60-nucleotide duplication, seven of which formed two new genotypes, BA-CCA and BA-CCB. The remaining RSV-B virus clustered with one of the Hangzhou strains belonging to genotype BA11. Construction of a phylogenetic tree and amino acid substitution analysis showed that Changchun ON1 viruses exclusively constituted Lineages 3, 5 and 6, and contained several unique and newly identified amino acid substitutions, including E224G, R244K, L289I, Y297H, and L298P. Selective pressure was also evaluated, and various N and O-glycosylation sites were predicted. This study provides the first genetic analysis of RSV in northeastern China and may facilitate a better understanding of the evolution of this virus locally and globally. J. Med. Virol. 89:222-233, 2017. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of Medical Virology Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

In order to correct the nonuniformity noise of the IR imaging system, a nonuniformity correction deghosting algorithm based on high-brightness region detection was proposed. Firstly, the bilateral filter was used to filter the image. The high-brightness regions in the result image were detected, and the correction factors corresponding to the regions were reduced. And then, the positions were detected which are high-brightness pixels in former frame but are not in current frame, and the correction factors corresponding to the regions were enlarged. Thus, the wrong update of the correction factor caused by high-brightness region of both the current frame and the previous frame was reduced. The correction method was validated using a real image sequence. The experimental results showed that the suppression effect of the proposed algorithm on the ‘ghost’ effect caused by the high-brightness region is better than the other two algorithms named SLTH-NUC and BFTH-NUC, respectively. Moreover, the proposed algorithm can also suppress the ‘ghost’ effect caused by the sharp edge of the scene.

For practical application of lithium–oxygen batteries, one of the challenges is the development of efficient bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in cathode. In this work, perovskite Sr0.9Y0.1CoO3−δ nanorods are synthesized by an electrospinning method. The performance of the Li–O2 cell with Sr0.9Y0.1CoO3−δ catalysts is better than that of the cell only with Super-P. Furthermore, modification of CoO nanoparticles on the cathode can provide an obviously improved electrochemical performance with a reduced voltage gap (∼80–140 mV), which is ascribed to the superior catalytic activity of CoO nanoparticles toward OER. All of these results demonstrate that the perovskite Sr0.9Y0.1CoO3−δ is an efficient bifunctional electrocatalyst for lithium–oxygen batteries, and the incorporation of CoO nanoparticles is an effective approach for improving the cathode performance as well.

The HIV-1 reservoir is a major obstacle to complete eradication of the virus. Although many proteins and RNAs have been characterized as regulators in HIV-1/AIDS pathogenesis and latency, only a few long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been shown to be closely associated with HIV-1 replication and latency. In this study, we demonstrated that lncRNA uc002yug.2 plays a key role in HIV-1 replication and latency. uc002yug.2 potentially enhances HIV-1 replication, long terminal repeat (LTR) activity, and the activation of latent HIV-1 in both cell lines and CD4 + T cells from patients. Further investigation revealed that uc002yug.2 activates latent HIV-1 through downregulating RUNX1b and -1c and upregulating Tat protein expression. The accumulated evidence supports our model that the Tat protein has the key role in the uc002yug.2-mediated regulatory effect on HIV-1 reactivation. Moreover, uc002yug.2 showed an ability to activate HIV-1 similar to that of suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid or phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate using latently infected cell models. These findings improve our understanding of lncRNA regulation of HIV-1 replication and latency, providing new insights into potential targeted therapeutic interventions. IMPORTANCE The latent viral reservoir is the primary obstacle to curing HIV-1 disease. To date, only a few lncRNAs, which play major roles in various biological processes, including viral infection, have been identified as regulators in HIV-1 latency. In this study, we demonstrated that lncRNA uc002yug.2 is important for both HIV-1 replication and activation of latent viruses. Moreover, uc002yug.2 was shown to activate latent HIV-1 through regulating alternative splicing of RUNX1 and increasing the expression of Tat protein. These findings highlight the potential merit of targeting lncRNA uc002yug.2 as an activating agent for latent HIV-1.

In order to improve the lower frequency bandwidth and reduce the profile of the antenna, a novel 22.5:1 ultrawideband miniaturized antipodal Vivaldi antenna is proposed. In this work, additional Y-type gaps at the edge of the radiation patches, parasitic patches and resistors between the radiation patch and the parasitic patch together make the antenna working frequency extended to lower operating frequency. The profile of the antenna is $\mathbf{80mm}\times \mathbf{92 mm}$ made on a 0.508mm thick substrate. The operating frequency range is from 0.8GHz to 18GHz, giving a relative bandwidth of 183%. The gain of the antenna is sufficient to operate in the full spectrum. The cross polarization ratio at the low frequency is greater than 30dB, and is greater than 15dB at the high frequency.

This case report illustrates a patient who underwent supra-annular mechanical aortic valve replacement then suffered from prosthesis dysfunction, increasing pressure gradient with aortic valve. She was successfully underwent aortic valve re-replacement, sub-annular pannus removing and aortic annulus enlargement procedures through combined cardiac incision passing through aortic root, right atrium (RA), and upper atrial septum. This incision provides optimal visual operative field and simplifies dissection.

Overexploitation of rare earth mine has caused serious desertification and various environmental issues, and ecological restoration of a mining area is an important concern in China. In this study, experiments involving dry grass landfilling, chicken manure broadcasting, and plant cultivation were carried out to reclaim a rare earth mine area located in Heping County, Guangdong Province, China. The prime focus was to improve soil quality in terms of nutrients, microbial community, enzyme activity, and physicochemical properties so as to reclaim the land. After 2 years of restoration, an increase of organic matter (OM), available potassium (K), available phosphorus (P) levels, and acid phosphatase (ACP) activity and a reduction of the available nitrogen (N) level and urease (URE) activity in soil were achieved compared to the original mined land. The nutrients and enzyme activities in soil with 5 years of restoration were close to or surpass those in the unexploited land as control. The bulk density, total porosity, water holding capacity, pH, and electrical conductivity (EC) of soil were improved, and the number of cultivable microorganisms and the bacterial diversity in soil were greatly increased with time during ecological restoration, especially for surface soil. Furthermore, the artificial vegetation stably grew at the restored mining sites. The results indicated that organic amendments and phytoremediation could ecologically restore the rare earth mining sites and the mined land could finally be planted as farmland.

This work presents a novel substrate integrated waveguide high-pass filter. Using space mapping method, a reduced number of full-wave evaluations are needed in the optimization process, leading to a reduced optimization time. Measurement results show that the filter stop band performance is indeed improved. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 57:733–737, 2015

Graphene has attracted an enormous amount of interest because of its excellent properties. The relatively versatile possibilities in the doping of graphene sheets afford them with tuneable electronic properties, and provide a simple but efficient approach in tuning their catalytic activity at an atomic level. Recently, a lot of efforts have been carried out to further tailor the electronic and catalytic properties of graphene by doping, realizing the precise structure control and superior characteristics of graphene, which also broadens their applications in nanoelectronics and optoelectronics. In this review, the synthesis methods developed during the last decade for the fabrication of doped graphene with excellent properties are summarized. Moreover, as a rising and brilliant research direction, the bioanalysis applications based on doped graphene also were demonstrated.

The lentiviral accessory proteins Vpx and Vpr are known to utilize CRL4 (DCAF1) E3 ligase to induce the degradation of the host restriction factor SAMHD1 or host helicase transcription factor (HLTF), respectively. Selective disruption of viral CRL4 (DCAF1) E3 ligase could be a promising antiviral strategy. Recently, we have determined that posttranslational modification (neddylation) of Cullin-4 is required for the activation of Vpx-CRL4 (DCAF1) E3 ligase. However, the mechanism of Vpx/Vpr-CRL4 (DCAF1) E3 ligase assembly is still poorly understood. Here, we report that zinc coordination is an important regulator of Vpx-CRL4 E3 ligase assembly. Residues in a conserved zinc-binding motif of Vpx were essential for the recruitment of the CRL4 (DCAF1) E3 complex and Vpx-induced SAMHD1 degradation. Importantly, altering the intracellular zinc concentration by treatment with the zinc chelator N , N , N ′-tetrakis-(2′-pyridylmethyl)ethylenediamine (TPEN) potently blocked Vpx-mediated SAMHD1 degradation and inhibited wild-type SIVmac (simian immunodeficiency virus of macaques) infection of myeloid cells, even in the presence of Vpx. TPEN selectively inhibited Vpx and DCAF1 binding but not the Vpx-SAMHD1 interaction or Vpx virion packaging. Moreover, we have shown that zinc coordination is also important for the assembly of the HIV-1 Vpr-CRL4 E3 ligase. In particular, Vpr zinc-binding motif mutation or TPEN treatment efficiently inhibited Vpr-CRL4 (DCAF1) E3 ligase assembly and Vpr-mediated HLTF degradation or Vpr-induced G 2 cell cycle arrest. Collectively, our study sheds light on a conserved strategy by the viral proteins Vpx and Vpr to recruit host CRL4 (DCAF1) E3 ligase, which represents a target for novel anti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) drug development. IMPORTANCE The Vpr and its paralog Vpx are accessory proteins encoded by different human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) lentiviruses. To facilitate viral replication, Vpx has evolved to induce SAMHD1 degradation and Vpr to mediate HLTF degradation. Both Vpx and Vpr perform their functions by recruiting CRL4 (DCAF1) E3 ligase. In this study, we demonstrate that the assembly of the Vpx- or Vpr-CRL4 E3 ligase requires a highly conserved zinc-binding motif. This motif is specifically required for the DCAF1 interaction but not for the interaction of Vpx or Vpr with its substrate. Selective disruption of Vpx- or Vpr-CRL4 E3 ligase function was achieved by zinc sequestration using N , N , N ′-tetrakis-(2′-pyridylmethyl)ethylenediamine (TPEN). At the same time, zinc sequestration had no effect on zinc-dependent cellular protein functions. Therefore, information obtained from this study may be important for novel anti-HIV drug development.

The virion infectivity factor (Vif) open reading frame is conserved among most lentiviruses. Vif molecules contribute to viral replication by inactivating host antiviral factors, the APOBEC3 cytidine deaminases. However, various species of lentiviral Vif proteins have evolved different strategies for overcoming host APOBEC3. Whether different species of lentiviral Vif proteins still preserve certain common features has not been reported. Here, we show for the first time that diverse lentiviral Vif molecules maintain the ability to interact with the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) Gag precursor (Pr55 Gag ) polyprotein. Surprisingly, bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV) Vif, but not HIV-1 Vif, interfered with HIV-1 production and viral infectivity even in the absence of APOBEC3. Further analysis revealed that BIV Vif demonstrated an enhanced interaction with Pr55 Gag compared to that of HIV-1 Vif, and BIV Vif defective for the Pr55 Gag interaction lost its ability to inhibit HIV-1. The C-terminal region of capsid (CA) and the p2 region of Pr55 Gag , which are important for virus assembly and maturation, were involved in the interaction. Transduction of CD4 + T cells with BIV Vif blocked HIV-1 replication. Thus, the conserved Vif-Pr55 Gag interaction provides a potential target for the future development of antiviral strategies. IMPORTANCE The conserved Vif accessory proteins of primate lentiviruses HIV-1, simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), and BIV all form ubiquitin ligase complexes to target host antiviral APOBEC3 proteins for degradation, with different cellular requirements and using different molecular mechanisms. Here, we demonstrate that BIV Vif can interfere with HIV-1 Gag maturation and suppress HIV-1 replication through interaction with the precursor of the Gag (Pr55 Gag ) of HIV-1 in virus-producing cells. Moreover, the HIV-1 and SIV Vif proteins are conserved in terms of their interactions with HIV-1 Pr55 Gag although HIV-1 Vif proteins bind Pr55 Gag less efficiently than those of BIV Vif. Our research not only sheds new light on this feature of these conserved lentiviral Vif proteins but also provides a formerly unrecognized target for the development of antiviral strategies. Since increasing the Vif-Pr55 Gag interaction could potentially suppress virus proliferation, this approach could offer a new strategy for the development of HIV inhibitors.

The graphene/V 2 O 5 xerogels nanocomposites were synthesized by the hydrothermal method. The structure of the samples was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The electrochemical properties of the graphene/V 2 O 5 xerogels nanocomposites were studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and galvanostatic charge–discharge measurements as electrode materials for supercapacitor. In the graphene/V 2 O 5 xerogels nanocomposites, graphene sheets and the layers of V 2 O 5 xerogels (V 2 O 5 · 1.6H 2 O) were stacked together. The graphene/V 2 O 5 xerogels nanocomposites exhibited high specific capacity and high-rate capability, delivering a specific capacitance of 195.4 F/g and 184.6 F/g at the current density of 1A/g and 10 A/g between 0 and 0.65 V, respectively.

The V3O7∙H2O/CNT nanocomposite is synthesized by hydrothermal process with the induction of functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The analysis of X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed that the crystal structure of the V3O7∙H2O nanobelts is orthorhombic. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results indicated that the mol rate of V5 +/V4 + is 1.93. The field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) images confirmed the V3O7∙H2O nanobelts have several micrometers in length and a few hundred nanometers in width. The electrochemical properties of the as-prepared V3O7∙H2O/CNT nanocomposite were studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and galvanostatic charge–discharge measurements as cathode material. Herein, the V3O7∙H2O/CNT nanocomposite exhibits excellent electrochemical properties and good cycling behavior with the 50th capacity of 183.8, 198.9 and 162.7 mAh g− 1 at the current density of 100, 200 and 500 mA g− 1 between 2.0 and 4.0 V, respectively.

Two mixers using a “surface-volume” hybrid integration approach and a “surface” integration approach are designed and fabricated. Their performances are compared with different measurement methods. Experiment results show that this so-called surface-volume hybrid integration approach demonstrates advantages when compared with a monotonous integration approach under certain circumstances. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 56:1015–1019, 2014

Nanomaterials have received much attention for their fascinating catalytic activity, large surface area, and excellent photonic and electronic features. These characteristic properties have been used to improve the sensitivity and the specificity of biosensors. This article reviews nanomaterials, including metal nanoparticles (NPs), carbon materials, quantum dots, magnetic NPs and silicon NPs, and evaluates their different functions when applied to the construction of carbohydrate biosensors. Furthermore, we discuss specialized nanomaterials, e.g., photo-to-electron conversion nanomaterials, upconverting NPs, composite nanomaterials and nanopores. Finally, we present applications of nanomaterial-based carbohydrate biosensors, including profiling of carbohydrate-lectin interaction, cancer-cell and pathogen detection, and glycosylation analysis.

Rapid charge and discharge cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries have been commonly researched for the development of electrical mobility applications. Here, an interpenetrating network vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) nanosheets/carbon nanotubes (CNTs) nanocomposite was fabricated by a freeze-drying process. Field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy tests indicated that the CNTs and V2O5 nanosheets form an interpenetrating network structure. X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses confirmed that the V2O5 nanosheets exhibit orthorhombic crystal structure and mixed element states in the nanocomposite. The electrochemical properties of the V2O5 nanosheets/CNTs nanocomposite were studied by cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and galvanostatic charge–discharge measurements. The results indicated that the V2O5 nanosheets/CNTs nanocomposite exhibits high specific capacity and good cycling stability. The initial specific capacity of the V2O5 nanosheets/CNTs nanocomposite is 130.7 mA h g−1 for a current density up to 5.0 A g−1 and remains at 100.1 mA h g−1 after 100 cycles.

The lithium air, or Li–O2, battery system is a promising electrochemical energy storage system because of its very high theoretical specific energy, as required by automotive applications. Fundamental research has resulted in much progress in mitigating detrimental (electro)chemical processes; however, the detailed structural evolution of the crystalline Li2O2 and LiOH discharge products, held at least partially responsible for the limited reversibility and poor rate performance, is hard to measure operando under realistic electrochemical conditions. This study uses Rietveld refinement of operando X-ray diffraction data during a complete discharge–charge cycle to reveal the detailed structural evolution of Li2O2 and LiOH crystallites in 1,2-dimethoxyethane (DME) and DME/LiI electrolytes, respectively. The anisotropic broadened reflections confirm and quantify the platelet crystallite shape of Li2O2 and LiOH and show how the average crystallite shape evolves during discharge and charge. Li2O2 is shown to form via a nucleation and growth mechanism, whereas the decomposition appears to start at the smallest Li2O2 crystallite sizes because of their larger exposed surface. In the presence of LiI, platelet LiOH crystallites are formed by a particle-by-particle nucleation and growth process, and at the end of discharge, H2O depletion is suggested to result in substoichiometric Li(OH)1–x, which appears to be preferentially decomposed during charging. Operando X-ray diffraction proves the cyclic formation and decomposition of the LiOH crystallites in the presence of LiI over multiple cycles, and the structural evolution provides key information for understanding and improving these highly relevant electrochemical systems.

Contents The objective of our study was to establish the feasibility of experimental protocols for cloning sika deer. We performed auxiliary enucleation to improve the efficiency of nuclear transfer operation by optimizing the demecolcine concentration to induce cytoplasmic protrusions in the sika deer oocytes. In the present study,we had studied the impact of different demecolcine concentrations on cytoplasmic protrusions and enucleation rates. We determined that 95.9% of the sika deer oocytes formed cytoplasmic protrusions when treated for 1 h with 0.8 μg/ml demecolcine. The lowest observed rate of protrusion was 19.3% after overnight treatment with demecolcine. When the oocytes aged or had a poor cumulus expansion, they exhibited a significant decrease in the ability to form cytoplasmic protrusions. The rates of enucleation (94.9% vs 85.8%, p

A novel substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) highpass filter with sharp attenuation characteristics using shunt SIW resonant stubs is proposed. The highpass filter consists of a main SIW transmission line loaded with three shunt SIW resonant stubs. The three shunt SIW resonant stubs are used to realise the band-stop filter, whose stopband is designed to coincide with the transition band of the SIW highpass filter. Therefore, the sharp attenuation of the stopband filter contributes to the attenuation of the entire filter. To verify the concept, a filter prototype with a cutoff frequency of 16 GHz is designed, fabricated and measured. Another hybrid filter with the same specifications is fabricated and compared. The measured results show that the proposed filter has sharper attenuation characteristics than the hybrid filter.

This work presents an efficient method for the design of substrate integrated waveguide SIW filters. The proposed design approach is based on a combined use of equivalent circuit model of a filter and a space mapping technique. A reduced number of full-wave evaluations are needed, leading to a reduced optimization time. A novel SIW filter with improved stop-band characteristic using cross-coupling has been proposed. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE 24:360-366, 2014.

Integrated frequency-modulation continuous-wave radars are attractive to a wide range of industrial and commercial applications. The design considerations unique to such an integrated radar front end are studied in this work. Theoretical models as well as experiment results are presented, which verify the effectiveness of the proposed design approach. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 55:1907–1912, 2013

Vanadium oxide nanorods (VONRs) and vanadium oxide nanotubes (VONTs) were fabricated by hydrothermal method with the induction of hydroxyl and carboxyl functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The functionalized CNTs not only facilitate the dispersion of CNTs but also serve as centers for polymerization in the hydrothermal reaction. The formation of (VONRs) and (VONTs) was observed by field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, x-ray powder diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy tests. Self-assembling nanotubes and nanorods were formed together with the layered structures, but they followed different formation mechanisms. The “Rolling” and “Attaching-Oriented Attachment Growth” mechanisms are proposed to describe the formation of VONRs and VONTs, respectively.

The vanadium oxide (VO x )/carbon nanotubes (CNTs) nanocomposites were synthesized by a hydrothermal method. The morphologies and structures of composites were characterized by XRD, SEM and TEM. The results indicated that the VO x /CNTs nanocomposites have a crossing network structure. The electrochemical cycling stability of the nanocomposites as cathodes could be improved with the increase of CNTs content. Specially, when the CNTs content was 20 wt%, the initial discharge capacity of the nanocomposites was about 190 mAh/g in 2.0–4.0 V vs. Li + /Li, and the capacity could remain 93.1% after fiftieth cycle.

The high theoretical energy density of Li-O2 batteries as required for electrification of transport has pushed Li-O2 research to the forefront. The poor cyclability of this system due to incomplete Li2O2 oxidation is one of the major hurdles to be crossed if it is ever to deliver a high reversible energy density. Here we present the use of nano seed crystallites to control the size and morphology of the Li2O2 crystals. The evolution of the Li2O2 lattice parameters during operando X-ray diffraction demonstrates that the hexagonal NiO nanoparticles added to the activated carbon electrode act as seed crystals for equiaxed growth of Li2O2, which is confirmed by scanning electron microscopy energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX) elemental maps also showing preferential formation of Li2O2 on the NiO surface. Even small amounts of NiO (∼5 wt %) particles act as preferential sites for Li2O2 nucleation, effectively reducing the average size of the primary Li2O2 crystallites and promoting crystalline growth. This is supported by first principle calculations, which predict a low interfacial energy for the formation of NiO-Li2O2 interfaces. The eventual cell failure appears to be the consequence of electrolyte side reactions, indicating the necessity of more stable electrolytes. The demonstrated control of the Li2O2 crystallite growth by the rational selection of appropriate nano seed crystals appears to be a promising strategy to improve the reversibility of Li-air electrodes.

Intense interest in the Li–O2 battery system over the past 5 years has led to a much better understanding of the various chemical processes involved in the functioning of this battery system. However, detailed decomposition of the nanostructured Li2O2 product, held at least partially responsible for the limited reversibility and poor rate performance, is hard to measure operando under realistic electrochemical conditions. Here, we report operando nanobeam X-ray diffraction experiments that enable monitoring of the decomposition of individual Li2O2 grains in a working Li–O2 battery. Platelet-shaped crystallites with aspect ratios between 2.2 and 5.5 decompose preferentially via the more reactive (001) facets. The slow and concurrent decomposition of individual Li2O2 crystallites indicates that the Li2O2 decomposition rate limits the charge time of these Li–O2 batteries, highlighting the importance of using redox mediators in solution to charge Li–O2 batteries.

Although human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the most common viruses inducing respiratory tract infections in young children and the elderly, the genotype distribution and characteristics of RSV in northeastern China have not been investigated. Here, we identified 25 RSV‐A and 8 RSV‐B strains from 80 samples of patients with respiratory infections between February 2015 and May 2015. All 25 RSV‐A viruses were classified as the ON1 genotype, which rapidly spread and became the dominant genotype in the world since being identified in Ontario (Canada) in December 2010. All eight RSV‐B viruses belonged to the BA genotype with a 60‐nucleotide duplication, seven of which formed two new genotypes, BA‐CCA and BA‐CCB. The remaining RSV‐B virus clustered with one of the Hangzhou strains belonging to genotype BA11. Construction of a phylogenetic tree and amino acid substitution analysis showed that Changchun ON1 viruses exclusively constituted Lineages 3, 5 and 6, and contained several unique and newly identified amino acid substitutions, including E224G, R244K, L289I, Y297H, and L298P. Selective pressure was also evaluated, and various N and O‐glycosylation sites were predicted. This study provides the first genetic analysis of RSV in northeastern China and may facilitate a better understanding of the evolution of this virus locally and globally. J. Med. Virol. 89:222–233, 2017. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of Medical Virology Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

To observe the expression changes of metadherin (MTDH) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) in the laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma tissues and to investigate the significance.The expression of MTDH and MMP-9 in 54 cases of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma tissues(observation group) and 30 cases of para-carcinoma tissues (control group) was examined by immunohistochemical method, the correlation between them and their correlations with the clinicopathological parameters were analyzed.The positive expression rates of MTDH in the observation group and control group were 64.8% (35/54) and 6.7% (2/30), respectively; the positive expression rates of MMP-9 in the observation group and control group were 70.4% (38/ 54) and 13.3% (4/30), respectively; and there was a statistically significant difference between two groups (all P0.01). In the laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma tissues, the expression of MTDH protein was related with degree of differentiation, lymph-node metastasis and TNM stage (all P0.05); and the expression of MMP-9 protein was related lymph-node metastasis and TNM stage (all P0.05). The expression of MTDH was positively correlated with MMP-9 in the laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma tissues (r = 0.371, P0.01).The high expression of MTDH and MMP-9 was closely related to the occurrence, development and metastasis of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma, joint detection of the two proteins was valuable for early diagnosis and prognosis of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

Coxsackievirus A16 (CA16) and enterovirus 71 (EV71) are two main causative pathogens of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD). Unlike EV71, virulence determinants of CA16, particularly within 5′ untranslated region (5′UTR), have not been investigated until now. Here, a series of nucleotides present in 5′UTR of lethal but not in non-lethal CA16 strains were screened by aligning nucleotide sequences of lethal circulating Changchun CA16 and the prototype G10 as well as non-lethal SHZH05 strains. A representative infectious clone based on a lethal Changchun024 sequence and infectious mutants with various nucleotide alterations in 5′UTR were constructed and further investigated by assessing virus replication in vitro and virulence in neonatal mice. Compared to the lethal infectious clone, the M2 mutant with a change from cytosine to uracil at nucleotide 104 showed weaker virulence and lower replication capacity. The predicted secondary structure of the 5′UTR of CA16 RNA showed that M2 mutant located between the cloverleaf and stem-loop II, affected interactions between the 5′UTR and the heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein K (hnRNP K) and A1 (hnRNP A1) that are important for translational activity. Thus, our research determined a virulence-associated site in the 5′UTR of CA16, providing a crucial molecular target for antiviral drug development.

Contents With the goal of establishing experimental protocols for cloning sika deer, various conditions for in vitro maturation (IVM) and artificial activation of sika deer oocytes were examined. In vitro maturation was evaluated in seven different culture media. The highest rate of oocyte maturation was 75.4% in 10 lg ⁄ ml follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), 1 lg ⁄ ml LH, 0.2 mM cysteamine and 50 ng ⁄ ml epidermal growth factor (EGF) after 24 h of IVM. The efficiency after 24 h of IVM did not differ significantly (p > 0.05) from that observed after 20 h. Cysteamine (0.2 mM) significantly increased the maturation rates after 20 h (from 59.1% to 67.2%, p < 0.05) and after 24 h (from 63.2% to 71.6%, p < 0.05) of IVM. The IVM rates of oocytes collected during the oestrous season (75.4%) and the anoestrous season (23.3%) were significantly different at 24 h. The 20 lg ⁄ ml FSH, 2 lg ⁄ ml LH, 0.4 mM cysteamine and 100 ng ⁄ ml EGF significantly increased the maturation rates (from 23.3% to 54.2%, p < 0.01) at 24 h during the anoestrous season. For the activation experiments, the most effective method was chemical activation [ionomycin + 6-dimethylaminopurine (6-DMAP)], which promoted the development of sika deer oocytes to the blastocyst stage (32.4%). Our results indicate that in vitro matured sika deer oocytes are good candidates for parthenogenetic activation and that chemical treatment is needed for relatively efficient activation of the oocytes. These optimized conditions for IVM and parthenogenetic activation may be useful for efforts to restore populations of the endangered sika deer using the somatic cell nuclear transfer technique.

This paper introduces a novel technique for low radar cross section (RCS) antenna array optimization. The space mapping (SM) algorithm is used as the optimization tool, which includes a coarse model, designed using the pattern multiplication formulation; and a fine model which is verified using full wave analysis method of moments (MoM). The mapping relationship between coarse model and fine model is iteratively updated until the response of fine model meets the specified design requirements. By using SM method, a reduced number of full-wave evaluations are needed in the optimization process, leading to a reduced optimization time.

A travelling wave excited electrically small radiator using substrate integrated waveguide technology is proposed. The proposed small radiator provides a circularly polarized radiation. A wide band matching is obtained due to travelling wave excitation mechanism. The radiation principle as well as a design example are presented in this paper.