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This study focuses on the shear-strength properties of polyurethane polymer–treated sand stored at different temperatures. The triaxial test was performed at unconsolidated and undrained co...

This study investigated the tolerance, defensive response and methanogenic pathways of anaerobic granular slugde and anaerobic suspended sludge (AGS and ASS) exposed to different LCM concentrations. AGS presented a higher tolerance to LCM stress, accompanied with 20.8 ± 2.6% enhancement in methane production at 1000 mg/L LCM, which was likely attributed to the less cell deaths and extracellular polymeric substances (EPSs) protection. In the acidification stage, acetate accumulation was stimulated and the activity of acetate kinase was promoted by LCM. In the methanogenesis stage, propionate and butyrate utilization for methane production were impaired after LCM addition. LCM also improved the activity of pyruvate-ferredoxin oxidoreductase and strengthened the process of hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis, likely by accelerating interspecies electron transfer mediated by hydrogen. ErmB and ermF were the dominate LCM resistance genes in AGS under LCM pressure conferring the resistance mechanism of ribosomal protection.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a neurasthenic disease, which is the second-largest burden of disease globally. Increasing studies have revealed that depression is associated with abnormalities in gut microbiota and metabolites. Several species of bacteria have been classified as psychobiotics, which confer mental health benefits through interactions with commensal gut microbiota. Therefore, it is essential to identify new psychobiotics and elucidate their mechanisms in the the treatment of depression. This study aims to evaluate the antidepressant effect of Akkermansia muciniphila (AKK) in a mouse model of depression induced by chronic restraint stress (CRS). C57BL/6 male mice were divided into three groups: mice subjected to CRS, mice not subjected to CRS, and mice treated with AKK for three weeks. Behavioral tests were performed, and hormone, neurotransmitter, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels were measured. Cecal microbiota was analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and serum metabolites were detected using untargeted metabolomics. In addition, correlations between altered gut microbiota and metabolites with significant variations in serum associated with AKK ameliorating depression were analyzed using Pearson’s Correlation coefficient. The results revealed that AKK significantly ameliorated depressive-like behavior and restored abnormal variations in depression related molecular (corticosterone, dopamine and BDNF). Moreover, AKK altered chronic stress-induced gut microbial abnormalities. Untargeted metabolomics analysis revealed 23 potential biomarkers in serum that could be associated with the mechanisms underlying CRS-induced depression and the therapeutic effects of AKK. Pearson's correlation coefficient analysis revealed that AKK predominantly upregulated β-Alanyl-3-methyl-L-histidine and edaravone to relieve depression. Furthermore, β-Alanyl-3-methyl-L-histidine and edaravone exhibited the antidepressant phenotype in mice subjected to CRS. In conclusion, the study demonstrated that AKK ameliorates chronic stress-induced depressive symptoms in mice by regulating gut microbiota and metabolites. Funding Statement: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 81873309). Declaration of Interests: There are no conflicts of interest to declare. Ethics Approval Statement: The experiments were conducted in accordance with the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals and were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of the Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine.

In order to realize the automatic classification of sonar waveform and noise interference, a Sonar Noise Discriminator based on DeepGBM (SNDD) is proposed. First, the sonar waveform is characterized by feature extraction; Then, according to the actual needs, SNDD-R, SNDD-P or SNDD-G sub-models are selected to conduct dimensionality reduction processing on the data set; Finally, the data set is entered into DeepGBM for classifier training to complete the classification of the sonar waveform. Validation experiments on the actual sonar waveform data set show that the SNDD model has a better classification effect than other models.

Accurate detection of infrared small target in complex scenes plays a vital role in many practical applications. In the infrared patch-tensor (IPT) model, small target detection is regarded as a convex optimization problem of tensor robust principal component analysis (TRPCA), which separates low tubal rank and sparse tensors. Tensor singular value thresholding is employd as the proximal operation of tensor nuclear norm to estimate the low-rank background components. Considering the defect that the local structural weights in the Reweighted IPT shrink excessively small targets, an effective local prior map is used to better mine target and background information. The local prior and sparse enhancement weight are combined to obtain the final adaptive weight. Alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) is utilized to solve the model. Extensive experiments of infrared sequence images based on ground background prove that our algorithm has significant advantages in real-time and detection capability compared with state-of-the-arts.

The weight of motor is related to torque in exoskeleton. Designers need to install the motor on the exoskeleton. The weight and moment of inertia of the exoskeleton will change when the motor type is changed. For the purpose of determine the motor type, this paper developed a MATLAB Graphical User Interface (GUI) to complete forward kinematics solution, dynamic analysis through program writing and data interaction. The forward kinematics is solved by Denavit-Hartenberg (DH) parameters method, the dynamics is solved by Lagrange equation. General kinematics can be decomposed into multiple polynomials by Taylor series. Input polynomial coefficients into GUI to obtain motor torque curve data. The designer can then determine the motor power by the product of torque and rotational speed.

Despite robust evidence on the role of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) in migraine via both central and peripheral actions, relatively less is known about how CGRP in the limbic system is involved in migraine progression. This study investigated whether CGRP production machinery exists in the two key limbic regions including hippocampus and amygdala using cortical spreading depression (CSD) as a model of migraine and whether such alteration by CSD is sensitive to N-methyl- d -aspartate (NMDA) receptor regulation in rats. A single or repetitive CSD was induced by topical application of KCl and monitored using electrophysiological methods. The NR2A-containing NMDA receptor antagonist, NVP-AAM077, or its vehicle, was perfused into the contralateral cerebroventricular ventricle of rat. Quantitative PCR was used to measure CGRP mRNA levels in the ipsilateral and contralateral hippocampus and amygdala after CSD events and compared to respective sham treatments. The results showed that neither a single CSD nor repetitive CSD affected CGRP mRNA levels in both the contralateral and ipsilateral hippocampus at 24 h post CSD induction. Differently, significant elevation of CGRP gene expression was observed in the ipsilateral amygdala at 24 h post multiple CSD, but not contralateral side, and not post-single CSD. Further results showed that the CSD-induced CGRP gene expression in the amygdala was markedly reduced by NVP-AAM077 and this reduction corresponded to a reduced cortical susceptibility to CSD in rats. We conclude that repetitive CSD events induce CGRP gene expression in amygdala, which is sensitive to NR2A regulation.

Being a promising candidate technology for the fifth-generation cellular systems, the ultra-dense network (UDN) is capable of improving the system throughput by deploying more small cells (SCs) in the existing macro-cells (MCs). In most cases, base stations (BSs) from both the MCs tier and SCs tier are modeled as two independent homogeneous Poisson point processes (PPPs) or other point processes derived from a PPP. In the previous works, the area spectral efficiency (ASE) and energy efficiency (EE) are evaluated from a typical user's perspective, and this method works well in single-user scenarios. However, there are multiple users sharing spectral resources in practical cellular systems, and the above-mentioned method cannot work in these scenarios. Therefore, we investigate the ASE and EE from the perspective of a typical BS. Analytical results show that the ASE increases with the increasing SCs density, which means that deploying more SCs in the MCs coverage area is a feasible way to enhance the system throughput. However, the energy consumption of the entire network is increasing as the SCs density increases. Therefore, we employ the firefly algorithm to jointly optimize the ASE and EE for the two-tier heterogeneous UDN. Finally, the optimal system parameters can be found under two fixed weights for the ASE and EE, respectively.

Rodents exhibit seasonal changes in their activity patterns as an essential survival strategy. We studied the activity patterns and strategies of the Siberian jerboa (Orientallactaga sibirica) in the Alxa desert region to better understand the habitats and behavioural ecology of xeric rodents. We conducted an experiment using three plots to monitor the duration, time, and frequency of the active period of the Siberian jerboa using infrared cameras in the Alxa field workstation, Inner Mongolia, China in 2017. The relationships between the activity time and frequency, biological factors (perceived predation risk, food resources, and species composition), and abiotic factors (temperature, air moisture, wind speed) were analysed using Redundancy Analysis (RDA). Our results showed that: (1) relative humidity mainly affected activities in the springtime; temperature, relative humidity and interspecific competition mainly affected activities in the summertime; relative humidity and perceived predation risk mainly influenced activities in the autumn. (2) The activity pattern of the Siberian jerboa altered depending on the season. The activity of the Siberian jerboa was found to be bimodal in spring and summer, and was trimodal in autumn. The activity time and frequency in autumn were significantly lower than the spring. (3) Animals possess the ability to integrate disparate sources of information about danger to optimize energy gain. The jerboa adapted different responses to predation risks and competition in different seasons according to the demand for food resources.

The MABFT high-density biological enrichment special denitrification process (modified aeration biological fluidized tank) is applied to the high ammonia nitrogen wastewater treatment project formed by digital printing. The results showed that when the influent NH3-N ≤ 300 mg/L, the effluent NH3-N ≤ 10mg/L treated by MABFT technology, the average removal rate of ammonia nitrogen was as high as 98.9%, and all indexes in effluent would meet the requirements of the People's Republic of China’s Discharge standards of water pollutants for dyeing and finishing of textile industry for new plants. Providing reference for the treatment of similar high ammonia wastewater.

There are trillions and trillions of microorganisms in the human gut, and these microorganisms and their metabolites are closely related to human health. Recent studies have found that the abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila is decreased in many diseases. Supplementation of A. muciniphila is used to treat many diseases, suggesting it as a probiotic. Herbal medicines are considered as valuable asset of traditional Chinese medicine. Recent studies have revealed traditional Chinese medicine as a potential prebiotic agent for the treatment of many diseases. Hence, in this review, we aimed to provide a plausible mechanistic basis for the interactions between herbal medicines and A. muciniphila, and therapeutic benefits on this interaction in various illnesses.

Aiming at the defects that the traditional Census algorithm uses a fixed window and a fixed threshold to cause the image to have discontinuous depths and low matching accuracy in weak texture regions, an improvement is proposed. The cost computation phase uses SAD-Census algorithm, and proposes a new type of adaptive window method. The gradient information is used to dynamically select the threshold value to realize the selection of the window, and the Census cost computation is optimized. Consider the whole picture, Complete cost aggregation at multiple scales based on minimum spanning tree(MST); introduce left and right consistency detection methods to detect mismatched points in occluded areas, smooth the image through singular point filling and median filtering, and improve the overall accuracy of the improved algorithm. Using Middlebury dataset for testing, the experimental results show that the improved algorithm proposed in this paper has significantly improved matching accuracy and robustness compared with traditional algorithms, especially in areas with deep discontinuities and weak textures.

Introduction: Cerebral angiogenesis is correlated with post-stroke prognosis yet its mechanism is far from clear. Accumulating evidence shows that Rac1, a Rho-related GTPase, plays a central role in promoting neovascularization via activating Pak 1 in endothelial cells. We investigated whether activating endothelial Rac1 improved functional recovery and angiogenesis after ischemic stroke. Methods and Results: Young male mice were subjected to a 60-minute middle cerebral artery (MCAO) stroke. Endothelial Rac1 was overexpressed by brain injection of lentiviral vectors encoding Rac1 with endothelial promoter ENG the day after MCAO. Treatment improved the recovery of sensorimotor and cognition function assessed by single pellet reaching (day 7: p=0.042; day 14: p=0.012, n=7/group), adhesive removal (day 7: p=0.013, n=7/group) and novel object recognition test (day 21: p=0.045, n=7/group) compared to the control vector group. Follow-up immunofluorescence revealed that ENG-Rac1 promoted angiogenesis as measured by the endothelial proliferation (CD105+BrdU, p=0.016, n=5/group) and the elevation of pericyte (NG2, p=0.008, n=5/group), which is indispensable for stable vessel structure, in the peri-infarct zone, with no effect on brain cavity size. We further explored Rac1 signaling, involving Pak1, in mediating angiogenesis in vitro. Human brain endothelial cell line-5i (HEBC 5i) was subjected to a 16-hour oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) followed by re-oxygenation. Rac1 (NSC23766 at 30 μM) and/or Pak1 (IPA3 at 10 μM) inhibitors were incubated with HEBC 5i 24 hours after OGD. Delayed inhibition of Rac1 reduced endothelial proliferation (CCK-8 assay) at 48 hours (p=0.039, n=4/group) and the ability of migration (scratch assay) at 72 hours (p Conclusions: Activation of endothelial Rac1 improves post-stroke recovery and angiogenesis and this pro-angiogenetic effect is mediated by Pak1.

Quercetin, which is present in numerous fruits and vegetables, has shown promise in improving inflammation, lipid profiles, and blood pressure in humans. However, the efficacy of quercetin in diabetic nephropathy (DN) remains preclinical and unclear. Therefore, a meta-analysis based on preclinical animal data is needed to assess the efficacy, optimal dosage, and underlying mechanism of DN treatment to accelerate new drug research and clinical translation. We conducted a literature search in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library to retrieve randomized controlled trials evaluating the effects of quercetin in rat or mouse diabetic models. We assessed the quality of the studies individually according to SYRCLE's risk of bias tool for animal studies. Twenty animal studies, including 378 animals, were included in the meta-analysis. Meta-analysis data showed that renal function indices, such as renal index, urine protein, uric acid, urine albumin, and serum creatinine levels, significantly improved with quercetin administration. However, no significant association was observed between quercetin and creatinine clearance. Quercetin remarkably alleviated oxidative stress by reducing malondialdehyde (MDA) and increasing superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities. In addition, quercetin exhibits anti-inflammatory activity by reducing tumor necrosis factor-α（TNF-α）and interleukin-1β（IL-1β）levels. Subgroup analysis performed using quercetin doses and animal species indicated that animal species were a source of heterogeneity. This meta-analysis suggests that quercetin is a promising drug for DN treatment, facilitating clinical prediction and therapy.

It is very necessary to design electrodes with satisfactory electrochemical performance and robust mechanical properties for flexible energy storage devices. Herein, a self-supporting electrode with Negative Poisson's Ratio (NPR) structure was fabricated by combining electrospinning and laser direct writing technology, which overcame the limitation that the traditional carbon-based materials cannot be stretched and avoided the integration problem of rigid electrodes and soft substrates in the conventional stretchable devices. Furthermore, a quasi-solid-state asymmetric micro-supercapacitor with NPR structure was assembled by an as-spun separator coated with gel electrolyte and two composite electrodes composed of carbon nanofibers and nanoarrays (CNF@Fe2O3 nanorods and CNF@MnO2 nanosheets). The apparatus not only reached an extended voltage window of 2 V, but also achieved an area energy density of 26 μWh·cm−2 at a power density of 0.55 mW·cm−2, which was superior to other wearable micro-supercapacitors.

The undercooling (∆T) dependencies of the solidification pathways, microstructural evolution, and recalescence behaviors of undercooled Co-18.5at.%B eutectic alloys were systematically explored. Up to four possible solidification pathways were identified: (1) A lamellar eutectic structure consisting of the FCC–Co and Co3B phase forms, with extremely low ΔT; (2) The FCC–Co phase primarily forms, followed by the eutectic growth of the FCC–Co and Co2B phases when ΔT < 100 K; (3) As the ΔT increases further, the FCC–Co phase primarily forms, followed by the metastable Co23B6 phase with the trace of an FCC–Co and Co23B6 eutectic; (4) When the ΔT increases to 277 K, the FCC–Co phase primarily forms, followed by an FCC–Co and Co3B eutectic, which is similar in composition to the microstructure formed with low ΔT. The mechanisms of the microstructural evolution and the phase selection are interpreted on the basis of the composition segregation, the skewed coupled zone, the strain-induced transformation, and the solute trapping. Moreover, the prenucleation of the primary FCC–Co phase was also detected from an analysis of the different recalescence behaviors. The present work not only enriches our knowledge about the phase selection behavior in the undercooled Co–B system, but also provides us with guidance for controlling the microstructures and properties practically.

The resonant enhancement of the magnetoelectric coupling effect due to the bending and length modes had been investigated in the asymmetrical bilayered heterostructure consisting of the La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 and BaTiO3 deposited on SrTiO3. The frequency-dependent transverse magnetoelectric voltage coefficient demonstrated two sharp peaks in the vicinity of electromechanical resonant frequencies, which were attributed to the bending and length vibration modes, respectively. The value of the magnetoelectric voltage coefficients for the first peak was higher than that of the second one, which ascribed to the phase shift between the excited magnetic field and induced dielectric polarization. This result demonstrated the asymmetrical bilayered heterostructure has dramatically enhanced magnetoelectric effect when operated near these frequencies, which is likely to provide a tremendous opportunity for configuring the corresponding devices.

Burgeoning evidence shows that microRNAs (miRNAs) are associated with tumorigenesis and progression. However, the alteration and function of many miRNAs in bladder cancer (BCa) are not clear. Here, we explored the regulatory effect of microRNA-582 (miR-582) on cell invasion in BCa and underlying mechanisms. The expression of miR-582 in BCa tissues and cell lines was examined by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). The target gene of miR-582 and their binding site were predicted by bioinformatics analysis. Luciferase reporter assay and western blot analysis were performed to confirm miR-582 directly targeting Forkhead Box G1 (FOXG1). The role of miR-582-FOXG1 axis in regulating BCa invasion was evaluated in cell models. The association of miR-582 with clinicopathologic features and prognosis was analyzed. Experimental results indicated that miR-582 was downregulated in BCa tissues and cell lines. Forced miR-582 decreased cell invasion, regulating expression levels of invasion-related proteins, such as MMP2, MMP9 and ZO-1. MiR-582 directly targeted FOXG1 by binding to its 3'UTR. Overexpression of FOXG1 rescued the regulating function in BCa cells induced by miR-582. Moreover, miR-582-FOXG1 axis has obvious clinical relevance with prognosis in BCa patients. Our results indicate that miR-582-FOXG1 axis may act as a key role on cell invasion and serve as a potential prognostic predicted biomarker.

Coke oven gas is considered as a potential hydrogen source for biogas bio-upgrading. In this study, the effects of CO on biomethanation performance and microbial community structure of hydrogenotrophic mixed cultures were investigated under thermophilic (55 °C) and extreme-thermophilic (70 °C) conditions. 5% (v/v) CO did not inhibit hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis during semi-continuous operation, and 83–97% CO conversion to CH4 was achieved. Methanothermobacter thermoautotrophicus was the dominant methanogen at both temperatures and was the main functional archaea associated with CO biomethanation. Specific methanogenic activity test results showed that long-term 5% CO acclimation shortened the lag phase from 5 h to 1 h at 55 °C and 15 h to 3 h at 70 °C. CO2 was the preferred carbon source over CO for hydrogenotrophic methanogens and CO consumption only started when CO2 was completely depleted. M. thermoautotrophicus dominated mixed cultures showed a great potential in simultaneous hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis and CO biomethanation.

In this study, hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis with respect to methanogenic activity and microbial structures under extreme-thermophilic conditions were examined, and compared with the conventional thermophilic condition. The hydrogenotrophic methanogens were successfully acclimated to the temperatures of 55, 65 and 70 °C. Although acclimation was slower at 65 and 70 °C, hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis remained fairly stable. High-throughput sequencing using 16S rRNA analysis showed that the higher temperatures resulted in single archaea community dominated by hydrogenotrophic Methanothermobacter. Moreover, the syntrophic bacteria changed from Coprothermobacter and Thermodesulfovibrio at 55 °C to Thermodesulfovibrio at 70 °C. Specific hydrogenotrophic methanogenic rate at 70 °C was 98.6 ± 4.2 Nml CH4/g VS/hr, which was over 4-folds higher than that 8at 55 °C. The lag phase under extreme-thermophilic conditions was longer than thermophilic condition, which was probably due to the archaeal structure with low diversity. Extreme-thermophilic condition resulted in a shift in methanogenesis pathway from acetoclastic methanogenesis to hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis with the enrichment of Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus.

The effect of strong static magnetic field (SSMF) on the microstructure and phase transformation temperature of Co38Ni33Al29 ferromagnetic shape memory alloy during heat treatment has been studied. Results indicate that the microstructure and phase transformation temperature are significantly affected by the external SSMF. With the increasing magnetic field intensity, the volume fraction of γ phase decreased from 13.2 to 5.1%, the morphologies of γ phase evolved from rods to discrete stripes, and a clear alignment of γ phase was observed. In addition, the transformation temperatures are also elevated as the magnetic field intensity increases. The martensitic transformation temperature (MS) and the Curie point (TC) rose by 13 K and 10 K respectively when 4 T SSMF was applied. Moreover, the coercivity (HC) dramatically reduced to 11.7 Oe at 4 T magnetic field. Magnetic domains formed in β phase and they became ordered with the enhancing intensities of magnetic field.

This study investigated membrane fouling in a coagulation/ultrafiltration (C-UF) process by comparing the floc properties and humic acid (HA) removal efficiency of three hydrous Al(III) species (Ala, Alb, and Alc). The results indicated that the coagulation and membrane mechanisms were different for all three Al species because of the differences in floc properties. The HA removal efficiency increased with increasing Al dosage until an equilibrium was reached at the optimal dosage of 6 mg L−1. In addition, membrane fouling gradually decreased as the Al dosages increased. Regardless of coagulant type, the OH and COOH functional groups of HA reacted with the Al species. Both external and internal membrane fouling were strongly dependent on the porosity of the cake layer and on the size distribution of the floc particulates, respectively. The pore area of the cake layer formed by the Ala-coagulated effluent was large because of the strong charge neutralization. Moreover, Ala generated large and loose flocs with a porous cake layer that mitigated external fouling. However, the internal fouling with the Alc coagulant was significant because the concentration of residual aggregates in the membrane pores was high.

Neurite plasticity is a critical aspect of brain functional recovery after stroke. Emerging data suggest that Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1 (Rac1) plays a central role in axonal regeneration in the injured brain, specifically by stimulating neuronal intrinsic growth and counteracting the growth inhibitory signaling that leads to growth cone collapse. Therefore, we investigated the functional role of Rac1 in axonal regeneration after stroke. Delayed treatment with a specific Rac1 inhibitor, NSC 23766, worsened functional recovery, which was assessed by the pellet reaching test from day 14 to day 28 after stroke. It additionally reduced axonal density in the peri-infarct zone, assessed 28 days after stroke, with no effect on brain cavity size or on the number of newly formed cells. Accordingly, Rac1 overexpression using lentivirus promoted axonal regeneration and functional recovery after stroke from day 14 to day 28. Rac1 inhibition led to inactivation of pro-regenerative molecules, including mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (p-MEK)1/2, LIM domain kinase (LIMK)1, and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (p-ERK)1/2 at 14 days after stroke. Inhibition of Rac1 reduced axonal length and number in cultured primary mouse cortical neurons using microfluidic chambers after oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) without affecting cell viability. In contrast, inhibition of Rac1 increased levels of glial fibrillary acidic protein, an extrinsic inhibitory signal for axonal growth, after stroke in vivo and in primary astrocytes after OGD. In conclusion, Rac1 signaling enhances axonal regeneration and improve post-stroke functional recovery in experimental models of stroke.

Troilite-orthopyroxene intergrowths are present as a common material in the brecciated diogenite Northwest Africa (NWA) 7183. In this study, we report on the petrographic, mineralogical, and rare earth element abundances of the troilite-orthopyroxene intergrowths to constrain their origin and assess their implications for the diverse petrogenesis of diogenites. Two groups of troilite-orthopyroxene intergrowths with various grain sizes and mineral chemistry have been observed in NWA 7183. One group of intergrowths contains fine-grained (

We analyze the mechanism of creating bubbles under asymmetric information through literature review. Our hypothesis is that information asymmetry will lead to herd behavior and then herd behavior will create bubbles. We find papers and evidences to support our hypothesis. However, after those literature reviews, we consummated our hypothesis and gave a conclusion. Our conclusion is the information asymmetry which can lead to herd behavior and there is a transaction phase. Herd behavior can create bubbles only when shocks come into the market. The bubble will enhance the herd behavior and then further create bubbles. In the first part of our hypothesis, we find three types of papers to support information asymmetry which can lead to herd behavior, which are theoretical model, mathematical model and experiment. It is similar in the second part of our hypothesis, which is herd behavior that can create bubbles.

Hierarchical urchin-like Fe 3 O 4 porous particles with 3D graphene modification (U-Fe 3 O 4 @RGO) are synthesized via cationic surfactant induced self-assembly of γ-FeOOH particles and graphene oxide (GO) sheets, followed by a calcination treatment. Fe 3 O 4 porous particles are tightly encapsulated by 3D graphene frameworks, which greatly improves the overall electrical conductivity and structural stability of the hybrids. With the help of synergistic effects between U-Fe 3 O 4 and graphene frameworks, U-Fe 3 O 4 @RGO anode demonstrates high reversible capacity, excellent cycling stability (2292 mA h g −1 specific capacity after 500 cycles at 0.5 A g −1 ) and outstanding rate capability (439 mA h g −1 specific capacity at 10 A g −1 ).

Isoprenoids are the most abundant and highly diverse group of natural products. Many isoprenoids have been used for pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, flavors, cosmetics, food additives and biofuels. Carotenoids and isoprenoid-based biofuels are two classes of important isoprenoids. These isoprenoids have been produced microbially through metabolic engineering and synthetic biology efforts. Herein, we briefly review the engineered biosynthetic pathways in well-characterized microbial systems for the production of carotenoids and several isoprenoid-based biofuels.

The Pb electrode is the most efficient and selective catalyst in reducing CO2 into HCOOH; however, the reaction mechanism remains elusive. Herein, we have investigated the mechanism of CO2 electroreduction to HCOOH on the Pb(111) surface using density functional theory calculations. We find that the effects of solvation and cations lead to different active intermediates for CO2 electroreduction (HCOO in gas-phase condition, both HCOO and COOH in solvent condition, and COOH in cation solution). In particular, the size and hydrophilic/hydrophobic nature of the cations are found to significantly affect the reaction selectivity and efficiency of CO2 electroreduction at different overpotentials. These findings rationalize several experimental observations and contribute to a thorough understanding of CO2 electroreduction.

Swine manure wastewater was treated in an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) that combined a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) and a hollow-fiber ultrafiltration membrane, and the feasibility of ammonia and phosphorus recovery in the permeate was investigated. The AnMBR system was operated steadily with a high mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) concentration of 32.32 ± 6.24 g/L for 120 days, achieving an average methane yield of 280 mL/gVSadded and total chemical oxygen demand removal efficiency of 96%. The methane yield of the AnMBR is 83% higher than that of the single CSTR. The membrane fouling mechanism was examined, and MLSS and the polysaccharide contents of the extracellular polymeric substances were found to be the direct causes of membrane fouling. The effects of the permeation/relaxation rate and physical, chemical cleaning on membrane fouling were assessed for membrane fouling control, and results showed that a decrease in the permeation/relaxation rate together with chemical cleaning effectively reduced membrane fouling. In addition, a crystallization process was used for ammonia and phosphorus recovery from the permeate, and pH 9 was the optimal condition for struvite formation. The study has an instructive significance to the industrial applications of AnMBRs in treating high strength wastewater with nutrient recovery.

This study systematically determined the optimal dosage ratio and the viscosity (η) of co-coagulants, polyaluminum chloride (PAC) and poly dimethyldiallylammonium chloride (PDMDAAC), on coagulation performance and membrane fouling in a hybrid coagulation-ultrafiltration (C-UF) process for natural organic matter (NOM) removal. Floc characteristics—including floc size, fractal dimension, strength and re-growth ability—were studied with respect to coagulant-dosing operations. Membrane fouling was evaluated in association with assessment of NOM removal performance by the hybrid process. The best coagulation performance was achieved when PAC and PDMDAAC were dosed with 1.0 mg/L and 0.1 mg/L, respectively. The addition of PDMDAAC could enhance the NOM removal efficiency, especially at low PAC dosages. Co-coagulants PAC/PDMDAAC (ηPDMDAAC = 2.18 dL/g) resulted in formation of the largest flocs with the smallest Df under all shear conditions, while the flocs formed by PAC/PDMDAAC (ηPDMDAAC = 1.86 dL/g) had higher recovery abilities. The results from ultrafiltration experiments indicated that coagulation using PAC/PDMDAAC with a viscosity range from 0.99 dL/g to 1.86 dL/g can significantly reduce membrane fouling, leading to increasing water fluxes from 0.1170 to 0.4906 in the ultrafiltration process.

Cortical spreading depression (CSD) is a propagating wave of depolarization followed by depression of cortical activity. CSD triggers neuroinflammation via the pannexin-1 (Panx1) channel opening, which may eventually cause migraine headaches. However, the regulatory mechanism of Panx1 is unknown. This study investigates whether sarcoma family kinases (SFK) are involved in transmitting CSD-induced Panx1 activation, which is mediated by the NR2A-containing N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor. CSD was induced by topical application of K+ to cerebral cortices of rats and mouse brain slices. SFK inhibitor, PP2, or NR2A&ndash, receptor antagonist, NVP&ndash, AAM077, was perfused into contralateral cerebral ventricles (i.c.v.) of rats prior to CSD induction. Co-immunoprecipitation and Western blot were used for detecting protein interactions, and histofluorescence for addressing Panx1 activation. The results demonstrated that PP2 attenuated CSD-induced Panx1 activation in rat ipsilateral cortices. Cortical susceptibility to CSD was reduced by PP2 in rats and by TAT-Panx308 that disrupts SFK&ndash, Panx1 interaction in mouse brain slices. Furthermore, CSD promoted activated SFK coupling with Panx1 in rat ipsilateral cortices. Moreover, inhibition of NR2A by NVP&ndash, AAM077 reduced elevation of ipsilateral SFK&ndash, Panx1 interaction, Panx1 activation induced by CSD and cortical susceptibility to CSD in rats. These data suggest NR2A-regulated, SFK-dependent Panx1 activity plays an important role in migraine aura pathogenesis.

The effects of the composite flocculant, polyaluminium chloride and poly dimethyldiallylammonium chloride (PACl-PDMDAAC) in comparison with PACl on coagulation efficiencies and membrane fouling in coagulation-ultrafiltration (C-UF) process were analysed, which was conducted in the conditions of different basicity (B) values and the presence of Mg2+. Results showed that PACl-PDMDAAC enhanced the ability of charge neutralization and absorption bridging, and improved the coagulation efficiency. When B value was 1.5, the flocculant hydrolyzed to form more Alb morphology and effectively removed HA molecules. The presence of Mg2+ could improve the coagulation performance through bridging ability. The results of the ultrafiltration test showed that the flux reduction for PACl was 70%, while the flux reduction for PACl-PDMDAAC was 60% in C-UF process. PACl-PDMDAAC could effectively reduce membrane fouling mainly by reducing strongly attached cake/gel layer. When B value was 1.5, the Alb content of the flocculant was higher and the ability of adsorption charge neutralization was strong, resulting in forming a stable cake layer. Therefore, the membrane fouling was the lightest. In addition, the presence of Mg2+ in raw water reduced the membrane fouling.

In order to break through the bottleneck of traditional CCD camera in suppressing noise, this paper designs a new system of digital domain correlation double sampling. The CCD video signal is digitized by a high-speed, high-resolution A/D converter at a sampling frequency much higher than the readout rate, and then an optimal digital signal processing algorithm is designed for the characteristics of the CCD signal readout noise to suppress noise. Experiments show that the system can suppress the readout noise at 8.1 e- at 500K read rate, which can reduce the output noise of CCD more effectively.

This study focused on investigating the effects of polypropylene fiber on the liquefaction resistance of saturated sand. We performed a battery of tests with a state-of-the-art ring shear apparatus on fiber-reinforced saturated sand, considering the influences of fiber content and sand density. Two different shearing methods named shear-torque-controlled (STC) and cyclic-torque-controlled (CTC) were considered for carrying out the tests. An energy approach was chosen to evaluate the results, and the fiber reinforcement mechanisms were analyzed. Our test results showed that in STC tests, the shear strength and shearing time of saturated sand increased proportionally to an increase of fiber content and sand density. The cycles required for liquefaction in CTC tests also increase with an increase in sand density and fiber content. The presence of fibers clearly increases the shear energy required for liquefaction. The shear energy increases with an increase in sand density and fiber content. Greater total shear energy is required in specimens with a higher density or larger fiber content. Fiber reinforcement in sand has acted as a spatial network in interlocking soil grains, thereby resulting in the necessity of more energy for overcoming the resistance during the shearing process. After performing the shearing test, the unreinforced specimen with loose structure collapsed totally, and the one with a dense structure collapsed partially, while fiber reinforcement specimens still maintained structural stability.

As renewable and environment-friendly materials, coir and sisal natural fibers can be used in soil reinforcement with minimum cost and other benefits. In this study, we focused on their improvements of unconfined compressive properties of polymer treated sand. In total, 36 groups of unconfined compressive strength tests, combined with X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope investigations were performed. We had studied the effects of polymer and fiber contents, and fiber types on the reinforcement effectiveness. The results showed that both coir and sisal fiber can improve the mechanical properties and microstructure of treated sand. In terms of strength properties, sisal fiber inclusion was better than coir fiber, while both have a similar reinforcement benefit on soil ductile behaviors. The strength and compressive energy increased with an increment in polymer and fiber content. The reinforced sand can have up to 1 MPa compressive strength and 140 kPa compressive energy for coir fiber inclusion, while 1.2 MPa and 170 kPa, respectively, for sisal fiber. The axial stress-strain characteristics and failure patterns were also improved, and the brittle index decreased toward zero, which suggests an increasing ductile. The polymer membrane enwrapping and bonding sand grains, and the network structure built by fiber crossing and overlapping among sand grains, as well as the interfacial attachment conferred by polymer between sand grains and fiber, all contributed to the reinforcement of treated sand.

Background and purpose Long-term disability after stroke is common yet the mechanisms of post-stroke recovery are far from clear. It has been suggested that Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1 (Rac1) contributes to functional recovery after ischemic stroke in mice. As Rac1 activation plays diverse roles in multiple cell types after central nervous system (CNS) injury, we herein examined the functional role of endothelial Rac1 in post-stroke recovery and angiogenesis. Methods Transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) in mice and oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) in human brain endothelial cell line-5i (HEBC 5i) were performed to mimic ischemic stroke. Lentivirus vectors encoding Rac1 with GFP and endothelial promotor ENG were injected into the animal's brain after stroke to overexpress Rac1. After injection, stroke recovery was tested by multiple behavioral tests including novel object recognition, adhesive removal and single pellet reaching tests. Endothelial regeneration in the peri-infarct zone was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC). In the vitro model, the effect of Rac1 and Pak1 inhibitors to cell proliferation and migration was examined by CCK-8 and wound healing assays after OGD. The cellular protein level of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), phosphorylated cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB), extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2 and mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK) 1/2 were detected by western blots. Results Delayed overexpression of endothelial Rac1 after MCAO improved cognitive and sensorimotor recovery from day 14 to 21 after stroke, increased vascular density and the protein level of pericytes in the peri-infarct zone without altering tissue loss in mice. Consistently, inhibition of Rac1 prevented endothelial proliferation and migration after OGD. Pak1 inhibition exerted a similar effect on endothelial cells. However, co-incubation of Rac1 and Pak1 inhibitors with cells did not lead to additive effects when compared with either inhibitor alone. Moreover, individual inhibition of Rac1 or Pak1 suppressed OGD-induced activation of pro-regenerative molecules, including CREB, MEK1/2 and ERK1/2, as well as the production of BDNF in vitro. The level of these proteins did not further decrease if both Rac1 and Pak1 were simultaneously inhibited. Conclusions We conclude that activation of endothelial Rac1 improves functional recovery and angiogenesis after stroke, and this process is mediated by Pak1 signaling. This study provides novel insight for Rac1 in the mechanism of long-term stroke recovery.

Neonatal hypoxia&ndash, ischemia (HI) is a major cause of death and disability in neonates. HI leads to a dramatic rise in intracellular calcium levels, which was originally thought to be detrimental to the brain. However, it has been increasingly recognized that this calcium signaling may also play an important protective role after injury by triggering endogenous neuroprotective pathways. Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase &beta, (CaMKK &beta, ) is a major kinase activated by elevated levels of intracellular calcium. Here we evaluated the functional role of CaMKK &beta, in neonatal mice after HI in both acute and chronic survival experiments. Postnatal day ten wild-type (WT) and CaMKK &beta, knockout (KO) mouse male pups were subjected to unilateral carotid artery ligation, followed by 40 min of hypoxia (10% O2 in N2). STO-609, a CaMKK inhibitor, was administered intraperitoneally to WT mice at 5 minutes after HI. TTC (2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride monohydrate) staining was used to assess infarct volume 24 h after HI. CaMKK &beta, KO mice had larger infarct volume than WT mice and STO-609 increased the infarct volume in WT mice after HI. In chronic survival experiments, WT mice treated with STO-609 showed increased tissue loss in the ipsilateral hemisphere three weeks after HI. Furthermore, when compared with vehicle-treated mice, they showed poorer functional recovery during the three week survival period, as measured by the wire hang test and corner test. Loss of blood&ndash, brain barrier proteins, a reduction in survival protein (Bcl-2), and an increase in pro-apoptotic protein Bax were also seen after HI with CaMKK &beta, inhibition. In conclusion, inhibition of CaMKK &beta, exacerbated neonatal hypoxia&ndash, ischemia injury in mice. Our data suggests that enhancing CaMKK signaling could be a potential target for the treatment of hypoxic&ndash, ischemic brain injury.

The significant criterion for evaluating the merits of a new type of high molecular polymer lies in its engineering properties and eco-friendliness. The focus of this study was to determine the effects of preparation conditions on the viscosity of the polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) emulsion, including reaction temperature (Tr), initiator concentration (CAPS), monomer concentration (CVA), pH value, and degree of dilution (Ddi). Based on the results of a series of laboratory tests, the range of viscosity value of PVAc was obtained under different conditions, and one set of viscosity values out of these was applied to soil reinforcement tests. Meanwhile, based on the test results, the engineering properties of PVAc solution were evaluated using strength and moisture retention tests, and the reinforcement mechanism was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In addition, it was proven through a vegetation growth test that the PVAc was eco-friendly.

Axonal plasticity is critical for functional recovery after stroke. Our previous study suggested that Rac1, a small GTPase, contributes to post-stroke axonal regeneration. However, the specific cellular and molecular mechanisms mediating its effects remain unknown. The two major factors controlling axonal plasticity in the injured brain are the neuronal intrinsic property for outgrowth and astrocytic inhibition of axonal growth. We investigated the selective roles of neuronal and astrocytic Rac1 in post-stroke recovery and axonal regeneration. Stroke was induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion for 60 minutes in 7 to 8 week old male mice. Brain injection of lentivirus encoding Rac1 with neuronal (NSE) or astrocytic (GFAP) promotors was performed 7 days after stroke in wild type mice to overexpress neuronal or astrocytic Rac1. Tamoxifen administration was started 7 days after stroke in Thy1-cre/Rac1 floxed mice to induce genetic deletion of neuronal Rac1. Delayed overexpression of neuronal Rac1 promoted sensorimotor recovery assessed using a single pellet reaching test (% success rate) from 21 to 28 days after stroke (Day 28: GFP control 51.25±4.41 vs. NSE-Rac1 66.67±2.36, n=8-9, p

Brain endothelial cells play an essential role in BBB integrity and vascular recovery after injury. Accumulating evidence shows that Rac1, a Rho-related GTPase, are central in promoting endothelial vascular development. However, the contribution of endothelial Rac1 in ischemic stroke has not been directly investigated. We hypothesized that Rac1 signaling protects endothelial cells and promotes angiogenesis after stroke. Immortalized human brain endothelial cells (HBEC-5i) were challenged by oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) for 18 hours followed by re-oxygenation. For cell viability test, NSC 23766 (NSC, 3, 15 and 30 μM), a specific Rac1 inhibitor, was added at re-oxygenation (immediately after the18 hours ODG). The viability of endothelial cells was assessed by CCK-8 (% normoxia control) 24 hours after the18 hours OGD. For migration and tube formation assays, NSC at 30 μM was added 24 hours after the 18 hours OGD to avoid potential effects on cell survival. Cell migration using scratch assay (wound area compared to initial time %) was examined 72 hours after the 18 hours OGD. Tube formation, the ability of cells to align into tube-like structures (number of junctions), was measured 28 hours after the 18 hours OGD. Data are presented as mean±SEM. OGD reduced endothelial cell viability (control 100±3.23 vs. OGD 69.97±1.11, n=6-7, p0.05; 15 μM: OGD+vehicle 69.97±1.11 vs. OGD+NSC 60.77, n=6, p

Aggregation-induced emission (AIE) is currently receiving intense interest because of its important implications in photophysics. The structure-property relationship decipherment of AIE luminogens is of crucial importance for the fundamental understanding and application exploration. In this research, a series of novel luminogens based on phosphindole oxide (PIO), including a peculiar one with a folded conformation and apparent through-space conjugation, were synthesized and studied as models to elucidate the AIE mechanism. The significant impacts of steric, conjugation and electronic effects on the AIE property are presented based on the results of crystallography analysis, optical spectra measurements and theoretical computation. Non-doped yellow organic light-emitting diodes were fabricated with the new PIO-based luminogens, and they exhibited high brightness, good electroluminescence efficiencies and low efficiency roll-off.

The penetration of solar energy continues to rise and becomes a central piece of the global energy mix. Thus, considering ways for more efficiently operated power systems to accommodate significant amounts of such a variable resource will be increasingly important. Improvements in solar forecasting methods and techniques will clearly be relevant. In addition to season and irradiation angle, the most important factor of influencing solar energy output is the effect of cloud movement on solar irradiation shadow on solar plate. This paper briefly analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of various moving target algorithms, and compares the typical feature matching algorithm (block motion estimation algorithm) and optical flow algorithm (CLG algorithm) against the collected cloud movement image sequence. The result shows that optical flow algorithm (CLG algorithm) is applied to cloud movement image. The calculation is very fast, with an accuracy above 96%. A comparison with CLG algorithm shows that direction and speed accuracy of block motion estimation algorithm based on hexagonal search pattern is 0.79 and 0.47, respectively.

Thiolate-protected gold nanoclusters, Aum (SR)n , have potential applications in many fields due to their high stability and remarkable electronic properties. However, the controlling factors in determining the stability and HOMO-LUMO gap of Aum (SR)n remain controversial, despite decades of work on the topic. Through DFT calculations, including nonlocal many-body dispersion (MBD) interactions, the geometric and electronic properties of Aum (SR)n clusters are investigated. Calculations demonstrate that the MBD interactions are essential for correctly describing the geometry and energy of the clusters. Greater anisotropic polarization and more atoms distributed in the shell of the clusters lead to more pronounced MBD interactions and higher stability of the clusters. Furthermore, the HOMO-LUMO gap of the clusters strongly depends on the gold core. These results provide critical clues for understanding and designing Aum (SR)n clusters.