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Video hashing is a popular research topic in the fields of multimedia information and security because its fast matching and low-cost storage characteristics are widely used in many applications (video copy detection, video retrieval, video authentication, etc.). This paper describes a compact video hashing method with a rotation- and translation-invariant model (RTIM). The key contribution of this approach is that it innovatively reconstructs an input video into a 3D RTIM by combining ring partition and a pipeline histogram; this is a first in video hashing and helps make video hashes resistant to rotation and translation. Then, the proposed model is decomposed via Tucker decomposition, and the generated core tensor is used to produce a compact hash. As the core tensor is a compressed version of the original tensor, hash construction with the core tensor makes RTIM hashing compact and achieves desirable discrimination ability. Different from existing video hashing algorithms, RTIM hashing can not only resist many commonly used digital operations, especially video rotation and cyclic frame shifting, but also achieve good discrimination ability. Various experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of our algorithm. Receiver operating characteristic curve comparisons show that compared with the state-of-the-art video hashing algorithms, RTIM hashing is more robust and compact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of multifunctional supramolecular hydrogels with high mechanical strength and multifunction is in high demand. In this work, the diblock copolymer poly(acrylamide‐co‐1‐benzyl‐3‐vinylimidazolium bromide)‐block‐polyAzobenzene is synthesized through reversible addition−fragmentation chain transfer polymerization. The dynamic host–guest interactions between the host molecule cucurbit[8] uril and guest units are used to fabricate a 3D network of supramolecular hydrogels. Investigations on the properties of the supramolecular hydrogels show that the tensile stress of the sample is 1.46 MPa, eight times higher than that of hydrogel without liquid‐crystalline block copolymer, and the self‐healing efficiency of the supramolecular hydrogels at room temperature is 88.3% (fracture stress) and 100% (fracture strain) after 24 h. Results show that microphase‐separated structure plays a key role in the high‐strength hydrogel, whereas the host–guest interaction endows the hydrogel with self‐healing properties. The supramolecular hydrogels with high mechanical strength, photo‐responsivity, injectability, and biocompatibility can be used in various potential applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photocatalytic oxidation technology can mineralize hazardous volatile organic compounds (VOCs), but the poor photocatalytic oxidation activity limits its practical application. Here we develop Cu‐doped WO3 electrospun nanofibers through a non‐equivalent doping strategy. The Cu dopant prefers substituting five‐coordinated W atoms atop the WO3 matrix, inducing strong dopant/matrix interaction (SDMI) effect and prominent charge rearrangement. A localized electric field (LEF) forms pointing from positively charged WO3 matrix to negatively charged Cu dopant, which triggers efficient photoexcited charge separation. Further, the Cu dopant promoted the production of ⋅OH radicals and thereby enhanced VOCs photodegradation. The 0.7 % Cu‐doped WO3 nanofibers show optimal photocatalytic oxidation performance towards formaldehyde and acetone, 5.5 and 4.8 times higher than pristine WO3 nanofibers, respectively. This work highlights the role of dopant‐induced LEF on the charge carriers separation and might shed light on developing more efficient photocatalysts with non‐equivalent dopants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A numerical analysis method for the debris cloud considering macroscopic multi-phase states is established. • we explore the debris cloud phase state partitioning criterion method and the temperature failure criterion is added. • The initial phase distribution diagram is obtained from the inversion of the debris cloud at the steady time. Hypervelocity impacts can cause material phase transitions. Solid-phase fragments retain the material strength and exhibit high penetration performance. Liquid- and gas-phase fragments have a much lower penetration performance but can still generate momentum and thermal impact on the rear plate. This study adopted the finite element-smoothed particle hydrodynamics (FE-SPH) adaptive method to simulate the phase transitions of debris clouds under hypervelocity impacts. The Johnson–Cook and maximum tensile stress failure criteria were used to simulate material compression and tensile failures, respectively. The material liquefaction temperature was considered the threshold of the temperature failure criterion. Three phase-transition criteria are proposed using temperature and pressure methods and a material phase diagram, in which the intermediate phase states are also defined, i.e., the melting-phase of the solid–liquid intermediate state and the hot-liquid phase of the liquid–gas intermediate state. A symmetric plate impact was used to verify the reliability of the physical quantities. The reliability of the numerical results was verified using experimental and numerical phase diagrams of the debris clouds at different velocities. The phase evolution characteristics of the debris clouds under hypervelocity impacts were studied using the FE-SPH adaptive method and temperature phase-transition criteria. The initial projectile phase model was obtained by the inversion of the debris cloud phase distribution at the steady-state moment, laying the foundation for the debris cloud phase model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing number of vehicles, the growing complexity of traffic environments has led to a rise in traffic pressure. As a critical hub connecting roads between cities, expressway traffic safety cannot be ignored.Merging areas, due to their complex road configuration, have become major accident-prone spots on expressways. Improving driving safety in expressway merging areas is of the utmost importance. Predicting the future trajectory of a vehicle can then be used to avoid traffic conflicts or even crashes by using methods such as future trajectories and active control. Therefore, the emergence of trajectory prediction techniques provides new approaches for intelligent traffic management in these areas. First, this paper takes a global perspective fromroadside light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensors to construct a vehicle trajectory database in the merging area, relying on object detection and trajectory tracking technologies. Then, a vehicle trajectory prediction model based on a self-supervised mechanism is developed, specifically designed for the complex interactive environment of expressway merging areas. Finally, four models, long short-term memory (LSTM), social LSTM (SL), convolutional social LSTM (CSL), and maneuver-aware pooling (MAP), are compared with the proposed model. The evaluation is based on the root mean square error (RMSE) metric for overall, left-turn, rightturn, straight, and merging trajectory accuracies and the Acc metric for horizontal and vertical intention accuracies. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed model achieves lower errors and higher prediction accuracy in both trajectory prediction and lateral and longitudinal intention prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite its great potential in cancer therapy, phototherapy, including photothermal therapy (PTT) and photodynamic therapy (PDT), often cause metastasis of tumors. Immunotherapy has revolutionized the cancer treatment owing to the capability of activating immune system to eliminate tumors. However, the integration of phototherapy and immunotherapy in a single nanoagent for cancer therapy is still a challenging task. Here, we fabricated (Cu9S5@mSiO2-PpIX@MnO2@CpG (CSPM@CpG)) as a synergistic therapeutic model for phototherapy enhanced immunotherapy. The intracellular uptake of cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG) promoted the infiltration of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) in tumor tissue, further stimulating the production of interferon gamma (IFN-γ) and remarkably elevating the immune response level. Excellent anti-tumor effects have been achieved by synergistic PTT/PDT/immunotherapy. The metastasis of tumors was effectively inhibited by the immune response of CpG. Thus, our proposed work provides a strategy to combine phototherapy with immunotherapy to enhance the therapeutic efficiency and further inhibit metastasis of tumors. CpG oligonucleotides can stimulate an anticancer immune response. Zhou et al. now develop nanoparticles that can deliver CpG, which promotes cancer cell death after photothermal and photodynamic therapy in vitro and in vivo, concomitant with an immunological response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Video hashing is a novel technique of multimedia processing and finds applications in video retrieval, video copy detection, anti-piracy search and video authentication. In this paper, we propose a robust video hashing based on discrete cosine transform (DCT) and non-negative matrix decomposition (NMF). The proposed video hashing extracts secure features from a normalized video via random partition and dominant DCT coefficients, and exploits NMF to learn a compact representation from the secure features. Experiments with 2050 videos are carried out to validate efficiency of the proposed video hashing. The results show that the proposed video hashing is robust to many digital operations and reaches good discrimination. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve comparisons illustrate that the proposed video hashing outperforms some state-of-the-art algorithms in classification between robustness and discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum homomorphic encryption (QHE) is allowed to perform operations on encrypted data which is very useful for delegated quantum computing in quantum cloud environments. But most of current QHE schemes only consider the single-user and single-server model. To be more practical and suitable for quantum networks, multi-party QHE based on quantum voting is considered in this paper. Firstly, an improved quantum voting scheme is proposed to facilitate anonymous broadcast. Secondly, a multi-party QHE scheme is proposed based on the improved quantum voting method. The proposed QHE scheme becomes more practical and flexible due to the reduction of the cost of delegated quantum computation, which significantly contributes to broadening the applicability of QHE in quantum networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates a multi-status simulation method based on event-driven for a smart distribution network (SDN). By switching a steady simulation model and a dynamic simulation model, the typical events of the SDN with various time constants can be simulated within the same simulation framework. The aim of the proposed method is to make full utilisation of the advantages of conventional simulation methods when considering the actual operation process of the SDN with many typical events so that the simulation results can approach the actual situation. To ensure that the operating status and corresponding simulation models of the SDN could be switched correctly and automatically, a simulation engine is proposed and implemented based on a finite state machine. Multi-status simulation experiments on IEEE 33-bus and an actual 10-kV distribution network validate the proposed multi-status simulation method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a new image hashing that is designed with tensor decomposition (TD), referred to as TD hashing, where image hash generation is viewed as deriving a compact representation from a tensor. Specifically, a stable three-order tensor is first constructed from the normalized image, so as to enhance the robustness of our TD hashing. A popular TD algorithm, called Tucker decomposition, is then exploited to decompose the three-order tensor into a core tensor and three orthogonal factor matrices. As the factor matrices can reflect intrinsic structure of original tensor, hash construction with the factor matrices makes a desirable discrimination of the TD hashing. To examine these claims, there are 14,551 images selected for our experiments. A receiver operating characteristics (ROC) graph is used to conduct theoretical analysis and the ROC comparisons illustrate that the TD hashing outperforms some state-of-the-art algorithms in classification performance between the robustness and discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Heavy metal contamination of environmental media in mining area is a global major concern because of its potential threat for human health through food chain. However, the comparison of exposure level and health risk is scarce among people living in the vicinity of mining area with different pollution source. In this study, the concentrations of Mn, Cd, As, Pb, Cu, Zn, Cr and Ni in soil, air, water, rice, vegetable, fish, poultry meat and pork from a Pb-Zn mining area and a Mn mining area in Huayuan county, China were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Results showed that the environmental media and foodstuffs in the two areas were contaminated by Cd, Pb, Zn, Cu, Cr and Ni. However, the pollution was more serious in Pb-Zn mining area than Mn mining area. The total hazard index (HI) was 6.59 and 4.55 in Pb-Zn mining area and Mn mining area, respectively, indicating a moderate non-carcinogenic risk of local people. As intake via rice ingestion was the predominant contributor to the total HI in the two mining areas, accounting for 25% and 35%, respectively. For Pb-Zn mining area, Cd intake through vegetable consumption and Mn intake via air inhalation appeared to be another two important components contributing to HI. This study highlights the multi-element and multi-pathway exposure assessment to evaluate the potential health risk and emphasizes concerns to reduce As and Cd in agricultural products as well as Mn in air to decrease the detrimental health effects of local resident. Highlights • Heavy metal pollution was more serious in Pb-Zn mining area than Mn mining area. • Heavy metal pollution posed a moderate non-carcinogenic risk to local people. • Health risks in the two mining areas were mainly attributed to As via rice ingestion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Pd/WO 3 was designed for catalyzing the reduction of toxic pollutants. • DFT and XPS unravel a unique catalytic mechanism for the Cr(VI) reduction by formic acid. • Electron transfer at WO 3 /Pd interfaces optimizes Pd electronic states and upshifts d -band center. • Electron-deficient Pd boosts formic acid dissociation for efficient H* production. • Pd/WO 3 surpasses most Pd-based catalysts for Cr(VI) reduction with high TOF of 62.12 min−1. Through theoretical calculations, we show that integrating Pd with WO 3 nanomaterials can trigger the interfacial electron transfer from Pd to WO 3 , thus upshifting the d -band center (ε d) of Pd to optimize toxic hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) reduction. The elevated ε d can derive stronger chemisorption capability toward crucial formic acid molecules, notably lowering the thermodynamic energy barrier and speeding up the kinetics process. In order to realize this concept, we synthesized unique Pd/WO 3 nanofibers by loading Pd nanoparticles onto electrospun WO 3 nanofibers through an in situ photodeposition technique. Extensive structural, morphological, and X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS) characterizations confirm the successful formation of the above nanofibers. As anticipated, the as-designed Pd/WO 3 nanofibers exhibit enhanced catalytic performance in the Cr(VI) reduction with a high turnover frequency (TOF) value of 62.12 min−1, surpassing a series of reported Pd-based catalysts. Such nanofibrous WO 3 -induced electronic modification of Pd with a high specific area leads to catalytic enhancement, providing a novel model for catalyst design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Road adhesion coefficient is an important parameter in vehicle active safety control system. Many researchers estimate road adhesion coefficient by total tire self-aligning torque (SAT, also called front-axle aligning torque), which obtains the average road adhesion coefficient of front wheels, thus leading large estimation error. In this paper, a novel estimation of road adhesion coefficient based on single tire SAT, which is obtained by tire aligning torque distribution, is brought forward. Due to the use of SAT, the proposed estimation method is available in steering only condition. The main idea of the proposed method is that road adhesion coefficient is estimated by single tire SAT instead of total tire SAT. The single tire SAT is closer to real tire torque state, and it can be obtained by aligning torque distribution, which makes use of the ratio for the aligning torque of front-left wheel and front-right wheel. Tire sideslip angle used in torque distribution is estimated by unscented Kalman filter (UKF). Two coefficients, including front-left and front-right tire-road friction coefficients, are estimated by iteration algorithm form single tire SAT. The final road adhesion coefficient is determined by a coefficient identification rule, which is designed to determine which tire-road friction coefficient as the final road adhesion coefficient. Both simulations and tests that use gyroscope/lateral accelerometer/global position system (GPS)/strain gauge are conducted, to validate the proposed methodology that can provide accurate road adhesion coefficient to vehicle active safety control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microcystin-LR (MC-LR), the most common microcystin (MC) present in water is known to pose a significant threat to human health especially hepatotoxicity. However, the specific molecular mechanisms underlying MC-LR-induced hepatic cellular damage still remain to be determined. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are known to play key roles in cellular processes including development, cell proliferation and responsiveness to stress. Thus, this study aimed to examine, whether miRNAs were involved in the observed MC-LR-mediated liver damage using miRNA profiling of a human normal liver cell line HL7702 using high-throughput sequencing techniques. Protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) activity, an established biomarker of microcystin toxicity, was determined 24 hr following treatment with the algal toxin to confirm responsiveness. Data demonstrated that MC-LR significantly inhibited PP2A activity in a concentration-dependent manner with inhibitory concentration (IC50) value of 4.6 µM. Compared with control cells, treatment with MC-LR at concentrations of 1, 2.5, 5 or 10 µM significantly modified expression of levels of 3,10, 9, and 99 miRNAs, respectively. Expression levels of miR-15b-3p were significantly increased in all 4 treatment groups, while miR-4521 expression levels were markedly reduced. In the case of miR-451a, 1, 5 or 10 pM also significantly lowered expression levels. However, a significant rise in miR-451a was noted in cells exposed to 2.5 µM toxin. The results obtained from miRNA differential expression levels were confirmed by real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR (qPCR). Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis of hepatic cells demonstrated that miRNAs significantly altered were involved in systems development, metabolism, and protein binding. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis data showed that target genes of differentially expressed miRNAs in liver cells predominantly participated in mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase (mTOR), Ras, Ras-related protein 1 (Rap1), hypoxia inducible factor 1 (HIF-1), and cancer development. In summary, evidence indicates that MC-LR-induced hepatotoxicity may be associated with alterations in miRNAs. Evidence indicates that alterations in miR-451a, miR-4521 and miR-15b-3p may be involved in the observed MC-LR- induced hepatotoxicity [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Ti 3 C 2 /Pd was designed for efficient catalytic transfer hydrogenation of nitrobenzene. • Experimental and DFT theoretical studies unravel unique catalytic mechanism. • Electron transfer at Ti 3 C 2 /Pd interfaces changes Pd electron configure (4 d 10 → 4 d 10-x). • Electron-deficient Pd boosts formic acid dissociation for atomic H* production. • Ti 3 C 2 /Pd chemisorbs active H* and inhibits undesirable H 2 evolution. Catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) with formic acid attracts much interest in catalysis, but the sluggish H* production and undesirable H 2 evolution reaction (HER) limit its practical applications. Herein we anchored Pd nanoparticles (NPs) on layered Ti 3 C 2 MXene for efficient and selective CTH of nitrobenzene in the presence of formic acid. Some electrons in Pd NPs transferred to Ti 3 C 2 MXene upon formation of Ti 3 C 2 /Pd nanohybrids, as confirmed by XPS and DFT simulations. The electron transfer changed Pd valance electron configuration from 4 d 10 to 4 d 10-x. Such electron-deficient Pd NPs tuned reaction pathway and promoted formic acid dissociation, both of which favored the production of active H* atoms, i.e., the exact reductant for CTH. Compared with Pd NPs, Ti 3 C 2 /Pd showed stronger adsorption of H* and therefore inhibited the occurrence of HER (2H*→H 2). Owing to favorable H* production and HER inhibition, Ti 3 C 2 /Pd (15 wt% Pd) showed enhanced nitrobenzene CTH performance with turnover frequency of 351.7 h−1 and 99% aniline selectivity, outperforming most of current catalysts. Our work might inspire designing more advanced CTH catalysts by tuning their valance electron configurations with 2D MXene materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Hemifacial spasm (HFS) is generally treated by microvascular decompression (MVD). Inadequate separation of vessel and nerve or adhesive inflammation surrounding the nerve root may cause recurrence. Objective To explore a method to reduce the incidence of adhesions and to ensure sufficient separation of the offending vessel and nerve during MVD. Methods Fifty-one patients diagnosed with HFS were studied. During the MVD procedure, Teflon sponges were placed between the offending vessels and medulla oblongata to push compressing vessels away from the facial nerve without contacting the nerve. Results Our method of placement of the Teflon sponge effectively shifts the compressing artery and ensures that both the Teflon sponge and offending vessels do not contact the root exit zone. This method also ensures that the Teflon sponge is fixed in place. Conclusion The technique described for the treatment of HFS provides an effective, safe, and durable resolution to patient symptoms that minimizes surgical complications and may be useful in treating HFS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Road icing in winter brings challenges to traffic safety, and microwave heating and deicing technology is an effective method with the advantages of high efficiency and environmental protection. Magnetite has been widely used as a microwave-absorbing material in pavement. In this paper, magnetite powder formed by crushing natural magnetite and high-purity Fe3O4 powder after purification were mixed to replace mineral powder, and the magnetite aggregate was used to replace the limestone aggregate with the same particle size to enhance the asphalt mixtures' microwave absorption capacity. The effect of microwave heating time and microwave power on the heating of the asphalt mixtures was studied, and the heating performance of different thicknesses of the asphalt mixtures under microwave radiation was evaluated. The heating performance of the mixtures under different initial temperatures and ice layer thicknesses was also assessed. The results showed that the addition of the magnetite powder–Fe3O4 powder and the magnetite aggregate significantly enhanced the heating performance of the asphalt mixtures by microwave heating. The replacement of the magnetite powder–Fe3O4 powder, the microwave heating time, and the microwave power had positive effects on the heating efficiency of the asphalt mixtures. Moreover, the thinner asphalt mixtures had a better heating performance. The heating and deicing performance of the mixtures decreased with a decline in initial temperature. As the ice thickness increased, the deicing time of the specimen surface to reach 0 °C also increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The liquid adsorption behavior and surface properties of α-, β-, and γ-cyclodextrin, CD, were studied and compared by FTIR and capillary rise method. These three CDs all showed an intense peak at 1155cm−1 due to the C–O structure stretching and the peak height was found to reduce with the sugar ring molecules of CD increase. All these three CDs adsorbed the non-polar liquids greatly as compared with the polar liquid due to their total surface free energies dominated by the Lifshitz–van der Waals interactions component. The increase of the sugar ring molecules has been found to increase the Lewis acid–base property of CDs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The excitations of ligand-to-metal charge transfer in the UV–vis spectra of the complexes Cp2MCl2 (Cp=π-C5H5, M=Ti, Zr, Hf) were described with the time-dependent density functional theory and the differential self-consistent-field density functional theory (ΔSCF–DFT). The nature of the main spectral features was interpreted on the basis of the electronic structure of the complexes. The optimization of the molecular structure for Cp2MCl2 yielded consistent pseudotetrahedral geometries. With the transition from ground state to excited state, the electrons transferred from Cp ligands to the central metals M, accompanied by an increase in the binding length of M&z.sbnd;Cl. This transfer process accounted for the first two absorption bands observed experimentally. The energies and oscillator strengths for the low-lying excitations depended strongly on the nature of the central metals. With varying the central metals from Ti, Zr, and to Hf, the energy gap increased between the sets of highest occupied molecular orbitals (HOMOs) and the sets of lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals (LUMOs). This increase was originated from an increment of energy for the LUMO sets that are mainly of d orbital of the metal and a relatively stable energy level of the HOMO sets that are mainly of p-orbital of Cp and Cl ligands. The excitation energies calculated by these methods showed a small difference, which can be well understood by a relativistic effect. The predicted level patterns of the lowest triplet excited states fit well the available phosphorescence data. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Fuzzy cognitive maps (FCMs) are a kind of cognitive model for knowledge representation and causal inference. Meanwhile, as fuzzy dynamical systems, FCMs have also been widely applied in the control-related fields, such as mobile robots, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and industrial controls. However, the existing works mainly focused on the practical applications but lacked the necessary theoretical discussions related to the FCM-based control mechanism. As is known, stabilization is one of the fundamental issues in the control fields. Till date, rigorous research on the stabilization of FCMs is still an issue to be studied. In this article, using state feedback control method, the global stabilizations of finite-state FCMs are investigated. First, utilizing the semi-tensor product (STP) of matrices, the algebraic expression of FCM can be derived. Some theorems ensure the sufficient condition for the existence of the state feedback controller of the global stabilization. Second, the constructive design processes of state feedback controllers are discussed in detail. Third, the global stabilization is further extended into partial stabilization, where only specific concepts of FCMs can be stabilized. The corresponding theoretical analysis is implemented. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed methods is verified by several examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gallbladder cancer (GBC) is the most common and lethal malignancy of the biliary tract that lacks effective therapy. In many GBC cases, infiltration into adjacent organs or distant metastasis happened long before the diagnosis, especially the direct liver invasion, which is the most common and unfavorable way of spreading. Methods: Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), spatial transcriptomics (ST), proteomics, and multiplexed immunohistochemistry (mIHC) were performed on GBC across multiple tumor stages to characterize the tumor microenvironment (TME), focusing specifically on the preferential enrichment of neutrophils in GBC liver invasion (GBC-LI). Results: Multi-model Analysis reveals the immunosuppressive TME of GBC-LI that was characterized by the enrichment of neutrophils at the invasive front. We identified the context-dependent transcriptional states of neutrophils, with the Tumor-Modifying state being associated with oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) metabolism. In vitro assays showed that the direct cell-cell contact between GBC cells and neutrophils led to the drastic increase in oxLDL uptake of neutrophils, which was primarily mediated by the elevated OLR1 on neutrophils. The oxLDL-absorbing neutrophils displayed a higher potential to promote tumor invasion while demonstrating lower cancer cytotoxicity. Finally, we identified a neutrophil-promoting niche at the invasive front of GBC-LI that constituted of KRT17+ GBC cells, neutrophils, and surrounding fibroblasts, which may help cultivate the oxLDL-absorbing neutrophils. Conclusions: Our study reveals the existence of a subset of pro-tumoral neutrophils with a unique ability to absorb oxLDL via OLR1, a phenomenon induced through cell-cell contact with KRT17+ GBC cells in GBC-LI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A dual‐polarised phase‐correcting microwave transmitarray that is based on an ultrathin phase‐shifting surface (PSS) has been developed at 22 GHz. The FSS element in this array has a square shape with the rotationally symmetrical geometry. It consists of two identical metallic layers etched on the two sides of a single dielectric layer. A phase‐shifting range of about 330° is achieved. A planar slot‐fed patch antenna was developed as the feed source for the compact structure. The transmitarray prototype, which is fed by a planar antenna, as well as a standard horn, was measured separately. The results show that peak gains of 25.82 and 27.45 dBi and 1 dB gain bandwidths of 6.8 and 9.5% are achieved for the two feed cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silicosis resulting from silica exposure is a global occupational disease characterized by severe pathological changes in progressive pulmonary fibrosis. Previous evidence has indicated that dysbiosis of the gut microbiota occurs after environmental dust exposure and is associated with certain diseases. The aims of this study are to elucidate the compositional and functional characteristics of the gut microbiota in early-stage silicosis and to understand their influence on pulmonary fibrosis. We investigated the gut microbial composition of fecal samples from 18 patients and 21 healthy subjects using 16S rRNA gene sequencing technology. Compared with the healthy subjects, reductions in the levels of Firmicutes and Actinobacteria were noted in patients with silicosis and progressive pulmonary fibrosis, as well as lower levels of Devosia, Clostridiales, AlloprevotellaandRikenellaceae_RC9. Lachnospiraceae and Lachnoclostridium levels were increased in patients with silicosis. GOC and KEGG analyses were used to predict that certain bacteria taxa play critical roles in the development of pulmonary fibrosis, including posttranslational modification, amino acid transport and metabolism, nucleotide transport and metabolism, and ribosomal structure and biogenesis. KEGG analysis showed that certain taxa participate in various roles including cancer, endocrine metabolism, immune system, signaling molecules and interaction, and transcription. Collectively, in this pilot study, microbiota changes have been represented in the gut of patients with silicosis. Although this change in gut microbiota have been represented, caution is needed when interpreting the findings since this is observational finding, not necessarily causative. More studies should be performed in the expanding population to be verified and more studies underlying biological mechanisms for better understanding the relationship between gut microbiota and development of pulmonary fibrosis in patients with silicosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The objective of this study was to investigate the willingness of patients with tuberculosis (TB) to use mobile medical services (mHealth) and its influencing factors, so as to provide theoretical guidance for optimizing the TB mobile medical platform and improve the willingness of patients to use mHealth. Methodology: In this cross-sectional study, convenience sampling method was used to investigate patients with TB from the outpatient clinics of two TB specialized hospitals (Beijing Thoracic Tumor and Tuberculosis Hospital and Tuberculosis Prevention and Treatment Hospital of Shaanxi Province) from January to June 2021 using a self-designed questionnaire. Results: Out of 231 patients, only 90 (38.96%) were aware of mHealth services, and 63 (27.27%) had used mHealth services. Among the 63 patients who had used mHealth services, the proportion of mobile medical forms based on WeChat platform was 74.89%. Patients' willingness to use mHealth was scored (11.49 ± 2.53). Univariate analysis showed that the scores of patients' willingness to use mHealth differed by gender and the different ways of affording healthcare (p < 0.05). Regression analysis showed that the influencing factors of willingness to use mHealth in patients with TB included attitude towards use (0.750), health beliefs (0.091) and social impact (0.169) (adjusted R2 = 0.781, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Patients' awareness of the advantages of the new medical model needs to be improved. Optimized design can improve the willingness of patients to use mHealth services and improve the role of mHealth in patient management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The advanced space debris protection shields in terms of both structural and material improvements are reviewed, and further directions for improvement are proposed. • The characterization for debris clouds and the phase transition of debris clouds are reviewed. • The lack of theoretical models characterizing irregular debris clouds for high impact/attack angles or complex shields is highlighted. • The numerical simulation methods for debris clouds are reviewed, one of the frontier directions proposed is the FE-SPH adaptive method. Spacecraft employ space debris protection shields to mitigate the threat of hypervelocity impact (HVI) from millimeter-sized (envisioned in centimeters) hazardous space debris. Advancements in protection shields have primarily leveraged high-performance materials, such as high-performance fiber composites, multifunctional impedance gradient materials, and metallic honeycombs and foams, to enhance their protective capabilities. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of advanced space debris protection shields for HVI, covering the design and optimization of protective materials or structures, properties of debris clouds, phase transition issues of debris clouds, and numerical simulation techniques. Finally, to address the current research deficiencies considering the latest practical developments in space debris protection engineering, it is essential to propose engineering science research. These are important for enhancing the safety, stability, and longevity of spacecraft. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study systematically assessed the feasibility of replacing ordinary Portland cement (OPC) with a multi–solid waste cementitious material (MSC) composed of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS), steel slag (SS), red mud (RM), fly ash (FA), limestone powder (LP), and desulfurized gypsum (DG) in specific proportions of 28%, 25%, 21%, 11.5%, 9%, and 5.5%, respectively. The hydration characteristics were analyzed using hydration heat, XRD, TG–DTG, FTIR, and SEM–EDX tests. The heavy metal content and leaching concentration of the MSC were determined using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP–MS). The unconfined compressive strength (UCS), indirect tensile strength (ITS), and water stability of the MSC-stabilized clayey sand and stone chips were investigated. The results showed that synergistic hydration among multiple solid wastes generated abundant hydration products, including Ca(OH) 2 , C–(A)–S–H gels, and AFt crystals, which formed dense and compact microstructures. Furthermore, Pb and Cd in the raw material were effectively solidified by MSC hydration, with leaching concentrations as low as 0.181 and 0.002 mg/L, respectively. The contents and leaching concentrations of the other heavy metals were significantly lower than their limits. The pH of the MSC mortar leachate was stable at 11.56 with curing age, which complied with environmental safety standards. Moreover, MSC as a binder demonstrated higher UCS, ITS, and water stability in comparison to OPC. When MSC was added at a 6% dosage to stabilize clayey sand and stone chips, the UCS values measured after 7 days of curing were 2.82 MPa and 4.83 MPa, respectively. Finally, the MSC was successfully applied in practical projects, demonstrating its promising application prospects. • The synergistic hydration characteristics of a multi–solid waste cementitious material (MSC) were revealed. • The environmental impact of MSC was investigated. • The mechanical properties of MSC-stabilized materials were evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of supramolecular hydrogels with multifunction is in high demand. In this work, Fe 3 O 4 hybrid supramolecular hydrogels were fabricated via dynamic host–guest interactions between the host molecule CB[6] and guest units. The "supramolecular crosslinker" formed by CB[6]-modified Fe 3 O 4 (Fe 3 O 4 @CB[6]) nanoparticles, was used to generate a 3D network of supramolecular hydrogels. Results indicate that the tensile stress of the sample is 0.31 MPa, and the self-healing efficiency of the supramolecular hydrogels at room temperature is nearly 100% (fracture strain) after 48 h. The hydrogels exhibited a self-healing property without a loss of conductivity. Furthermore, these supramolecular hydrogels were used to detect the bending of human fingers and knees. The hybrid supramolecular hydrogels with photothermal responsiveness, self-healing, injectability, stretchability, conductive ability and biocompatibility, can find applications in flexible electronics. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internal electric field (IEF) at heterojunction interfaces can separate photoexcited charge carriers and promote photocatalytic performance. Here we have modified WO 3 nanoplates with carbon dots (CDs) and constructed an interfacial IEF directing from CDs to WO 3 with assistance of their remarkably different work functions. Such electric field drove photoexcited electrons to transport towards CDs and retained photoexcited holes to stay at WO 3 , achieving electron/hole spatial separation. H 2 O preferred chemisorption on the five-coordinated W atoms of WO 3 with an elongated H-O bond and bent H-O-H angle, which allowed the activation of H 2 O and favorable production of ·OH radicals. The WO 3 /CDs (WC1) showed a superior photocatalytic activity for visible-light photooxidation of HCHO and CH 3 COCH 3 with CO 2 production rate of 411 and 188 μmol g–1 h–1, respectively, outperforming most of WO 3 -based photocatalysts. The enhanced photocatalytic performance correlated with the IEF-induced charge separation, favorable ·OH production and VOCs chemisorption. Our work confirms the role of CDs cocatalyst in the photocatalytic oxidation of VOCs, which will inspire enthusiasm to develop more advanced heterojunction photocatalysts involving carbon nanomaterials. [Display omitted] • Carbon dots-modified WO 3 nanoplates were designed for VOCs photodegradation. • Work function difference enables electron transfer from CDs to WO 3 upon contact. • Internal electric field drives charge separation evidenced by in-situ XPS and DFT simulations. • WO 3 chemisorbs and activates water with preferential hydroxyl radicals production. • Water activation and internal electric field account for superior photocatalytic performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] A regenerative braking system is designed for a rear-driven electric minivan. [•] A new control strategy coordinating energy efficiency and braking feel is proposed. [•] The control strategy is verified by simulation and hardware-in-loop (HIL) tests. [•] The proposed control strategy offers higher regeneration efficiency. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Building large-scale semantic resource is one of the major tasks in Language Information Processing. We propose Feature Structure Theory, and apply this theory in building a large-scale Chinese semantic resource based on Penn Chinese Treebank corpus. The feature structure theory aims at addressing annotation problems from special sentence patterns, flexible word order, and serial noun phrase, etc., which are universal in Chinese. Annotation based on feature structure theory describes more semantic information than traditional approaches, and achieves higher annotating efficiency and higher accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite drug delivery nanoplatforms receiving extensive attention, development of a simple, effective, and multifunctional theranostics nanoplatform still remains a challenge. Herein, a versatile nanoplatform based on a zirconium framework (UiO‐66‐N3) was synthesized, which demonstrated a combined photodynamic therapy (PDT), photothermal therapy (PTT), and chemotherapy (CT) for cancer treatment. A RuII polypyridyl alkyne complex (Ra) as a photosensitizer was modified into a nanoplatform by click reactions for the first time. When exposed to suitable light irradiation, the as‐prepared multifunctional nanoplatform (UiO‐Ra‐DOX‐CuS) not only demonstrated efficient 1O2 generation, but also exhibited excellent photothermal conversion ability. In particular, the nanotherapeutic agent presented a dual‐stimuli response; either acidic environment or NIR laser irradiation would trigger the drug release. The synergetic efficacy of UiO‐Ra‐DOX‐CuS combined PDT, PTT, and CT, which was evaluated by cell experiments. Moreover, the design could promote the development of RuII polypyridyl alkyne complexes based multifunctional nanoparticles and multimodal cancer treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal behavior of sulfide concentrates can give rise to many serious problems in its storage and transportation. In order to uncover the thermal behavior of sulfide concentrates, as well as obtain the kinetic parameters, four representative samples were tested using TG-DTG-DSC techniques in the presence of oxygen from 20 °C to 1000 °C and with three different heating rates of 5, 10, and 15 °C per minute. Meanwhile, corresponding activation energies of sulfide concentrates were also determined by the Coats-Redfern method (199.4-234.9 kJmol-1 for Sample 1, 203.6-235.9 kJmol-1 for Sample 2, 234.7-255.6 kJmol-1 for Sample 3, and 199.7- 254.9 kJmol-1 for Sample 4). Results indicate that the heating rate is an important factor affecting the thermal behavior of sulfide concentrates. The peak temperature corresponding to the maximum mass loss rate of the ore sample at different heating rates is different and the sulfide concentrates at heating rate of 5 °C per minute is more prone to spontaneous combustion. Furthermore, this thermodynamic method was demonstrated to be effective for investigating and predicting the thermal behavior of sulfide concentrate and the activation energy index was reasonable for determining its spontaneous combustion tendency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over decades many studies have focused on the biodegradation of microcystins (MCs), and some Mlr-dependent MC-degrading bacteria were recorded, but the ecological functions, metabolic traits, and potential evolution of these organisms remain poorly understood. In this study, 16S rRNA-based phylogeny unraveled a wide range of genetic diversity across bacterial lineage, accompanied by re-evaluation of taxonomic placement of some MC-degrading species. Genome-wide comparison showed that considerable genes unique in individual organisms were identified, suggesting genetic differentiation among these Mlr-dependent MC-degrading bacteria. Notably, analyses of metabolic profiles first revealed the presence of functional genes involved in phenylacetate biodegradation in the specialized genomic regions, and mlr gene cluster was located around the neighborhood. The identification of transposable elements further indicated that these genomic regions might undergo horizontal gene transfer events to recruit novel functionalities, suggesting an adaptive force driving genome evolution of these organisms. In short, phylogenetic and genetic content analyses of Mlr-dependent MC-degraders shed light on their metabolic potential, ecological roles, and bacterial evolution, and expand the understanding of ecological status of MCs biodegradation. Unlabelled Image • 16S rRNA-based phylogeny re-evaluating the taxonomy of MC-degrading bacteria • Genome-wide study strongly suggesting the genetic differences as to gene repertoire • Study on metabolic profiles revealing the presence of phenylacetate-related genes • Evolutionary analysis indicating the potential recruitment of functional genes • Schematic model for ecological roles of Mlr-dependent MC-degrading bacteria [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diverse metabolic behaviors endow microorganisms with various ecological functions, and metabolic activities of microbial species may affect the environmental conditions of their habitats. In this study, genome-guided analysis of Planktothrix spp. first divided these strains into six distinct groups, and comparisons of Planktothrix genomes revealed the inter- and intra-species variation. Prediction of central metabolism showed the functional diversity with regard to uptake of carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur sources. As the carbon-fixing microorganisms, Planktothrix isolates played a critical role in transforming the atmospheric carbon into organic carbon-the waterbodies' pool of available carbon. Diazotrophic lifestyle in certain Planktothrix strains may provide valuable avenues for supporting the equilibrium community. Furthermore, genome mining supported the exploration of biosynthetic gene clusters dedicated to cyanobacterial natural products, mainly including non-ribosomal peptide, polyketide, cyanobactin, and microviridin. Notably, some Planktothrix strains had the potential to non-ribosomally synthesize the microcystin (MC), a potent cyclic heptapeptide toxin, and MC-mediated cycling might strengthen the association between MC-producing and MC-degrading microorganisms. In short, genome-wide study of Planktothrix strains advances our current understanding of their metabolic potential and especially ecological roles in shaping natural environments. Unlabelled Image • Genome-based phylogeny dividing Planktothrix strains used into six separate clades • A global comparison strongly showing the intra- and inter-species differentiation • Metabolic diversity potentially contributing to their various ecological roles • An interplay pattern probably suggesting nutrient recycling in aquatic environments [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Ethnopharmacological relevance Herpetospermum caudigerum Wall. (HCW) is a traditional Tibetan medicine, which has been used to ameliorate liver injuries in the folk. Aim of the study Liver fibrosis has been recognized as a major lesion of the liver that leads to liver cirrhosis/hepatocarcinoma and even to death in the end. This study aims to demonstrate the protective effect of HCW against CCl 4 -induced liver injury in rats and to explore the underlying mechanisms. Materials and methods Hepatic fibrosis was induced by intraperitoneal injection of CCl 4. Liver function markers, fibrosis markers, serum anti-oxidation enzymes as well as elements levels were determined. Serum and liver tissues were subjected to NMR-based metabolomics and multivariate statistical analysis. Results HCW could significantly reduce the elevated levels of fibrosis markers such as hyaluronidase, laminin, Type III procollagen and Type IV collagen in the serum, improve the activities of the antioxidant enzymes, and effectively reverse the abnormal levels of elements in liver fibrosis rats. Correlation network analysis revealed that HCW could treat liver fibrosis by ameliorating oxidative stress, repairing the impaired energy metabolisms and reversing the disturbed amino acids and nucleic acids metabolisms. Conclusion This integrated metabolomics approach confirmed the validity of the traditional use of HCW in the treatment of liber fibrosis, providing new insights into the underlying mechanisms. Graphical abstract fx1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a novel perceptual image hashing based on weighted discrete wavelet transform (DWT) statistical features. This hashing converts input image into a normalized image by bi-linear interpolation and color space conversion, extracts edge image of the normalized image via Canny operator, and divides the edge image into non-overlapping blocks. For each block, a three-level 2D DWT is applied to obtain different sub-bands and the weighted sum of the DWT statistics of these sub-bands is calculated. Finally, image hash is generated by concatenating and quantizing these weighted DWT features. Similarity of image hashes is measured by Euclidean distance. The Copydays dataset and the Uncompressed Color Image Database (UCID) are both used to evaluate classification between robustness and discrimination. Receiver operating characteristics curve comparisons illustrate that our hashing is superior to some state-of-the-art algorithms in classification performance with respect to robustness and discrimination. The LIVE Image Quality Assessment Database is used to validate our application in reduced-reference image quality assessment. Experimental results show that our hashing has better performance in image quality assessment than two popular measures, i.e. peak signal-to-noise ratio and structural similarity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of this study is to generate an ultrasonic nanobubble (NB)-mediated purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP)/fludarabine suicide gene system for the treatment of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: NBs were prepared from a mixture the phospholipids 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC) and 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphate (DPPA), perfluoropropane gas and other materials using the high shear dispersion method. NBs treated with ultrasound irradiation functioned as a gene-transfer system, and a self-constructed suicide gene expression plasmid, pcDNA3.1(+)/PNP, treated with fludarabine functioned as a therapeutic gene. This system was used to determine the cytotoxic effects of PNP/fludarabine on HepG2 cells and SMMC7721 cells. Results: 1. NBs with a small diameter (208–416 nm) and at a high concentration and fine homogeneity were prepared under the optimal method. 2. The pcDNA3.1(+)/PNP plasmid was efficiently transfected into HCC cells using ultrasonic NBs. 3. At 0.75μg/ml fludarabine, PNP/fludarabine showed marked cytotoxic effects toward HepG2 and SMMC7721 cells. PNP/fludarabine achieved the same effect against both SMMC7721 and HepG2 cells but at a lower concentration of fludarabine for the latter. 4. Bystander effects: a 10–20% decrease in the cell survival rate was observed when only 5–10% of transfected cells were PNP positive. Conclusions: NBs constitute a non-toxic, stable and effective gene-delivery platform. The PNP/fludarabine suicide gene system inhibited the growth of HCC cells, induced HCC cell apoptosis, and caused a notable bystander effect at a low fludarabine concentration. This study establishes an important new method for miniaturizing microbubbles and improving a new NB-mediated approach for gene therapy of HCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Pneumonia is a common early-childhood respiratory infection that leads to long-term health impacts, but its risk factors remain unclear. Objective To examine the association between early life exposure to both outdoor and indoor air pollution and childhood pneumonia. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 2598 children aged 3–6 years in Changsha, China (2011-2012). Children's life-time prevalence of pneumonia and exposure to indoor air pollution related to home renovation were surveyed by a questionnaire answered by the parents. Children's exposure to outdoor air pollution, including nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), and particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤ 10 μm (PM 10 ), was estimated using the measured concentrations at monitoring stations. Association between childhood pneumonia and exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollution during both prenatal and postnatal periods were examined by using logistic regression model in terms of odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Results Life-time prevalence of pneumonia in preschool children in Changsha is high, up to 38.6%.We found that childhood pneumonia was associated with postnatal exposure to outdoor particulate air pollutant PM 10 , adjusted OR (95% CI) = 1.26 (1.00–1.57) for per 6 μg/m 3 increase in the concentration. Pneumonia was also associated with postnatal exposure to indoor renovation, adjusted OR (95% CI) = 1.30 (1.02–1.64) for new furniture and 1.30 (1.00–1.69) for redecoration. Combined exposure to outdoor high PM 10 and indoor renovation significantly increased the pneumonia risk. Sensitivity analysis indicated that the association was heterogeneous in different subgroups, but stronger in male and younger children. Conclusion High prevalence of childhood pneumonia in China may be associated with postnatal exposure to ambient particulate air pollution and house renovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although at present legislation does not allow drivers in a Level 3 autonomous vehicle to engage in a secondary task, there may become a time when it does. Monitoring the behaviour of drivers engaging in various non-driving activities (NDAs) is crucial to decide how well the driver will be able to take over control of the vehicle. One limitation of the commonly used face-based head tracking system, using cameras, is that sufficient features of the face must be visible, which limits the detectable angle of head movement and thereby measurable NDAs, unless multiple cameras are used. This paper proposes a novel orientation sensor based head tracking system that includes twin devices, one of which measures the movement of the vehicle while the other measures the absolute movement of the head. Measurement error in the shaking and nodding axes were less than 0.4°, while error in the rolling axis was less than 2°. Comparison with a camera-based system, through in-house tests and on-road tests, showed that the main advantage of the proposed system is the ability to detect angles larger than 20° in the shaking and nodding axes. Finally, a case study demonstrated that the measurement of the shaking and nodding angles, produced from the proposed system, can effectively characterise the drivers' behaviour while engaged in the NDAs of chatting to a passenger and playing on a smartphone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Otitis media (OM) is a common infection in early childhood with repeated attacks that lead to long-term complications and sequelae, but its etiology still remains unclear. Objective To examine the association between early life exposure to air pollution and childhood OM, with the purpose of identifying critical windows of exposure and key components of air pollution in the development of OM. Methods We conducted a prospective cohort study of 1617 children aged 3–4 years in Changsha, China (2011–2012). The prevalence of OM was assessed by a questionnaire administered by the parents. Individual exposures to nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ) and particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤ 10 μm (PM 10 ) during prenatal, postnatal, and current windows were estimated using the measured concentrations at monitoring stations. We used logistic regression model to examine the OM risk in terms of odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for exposure to different air pollutants during different timing windows, adjusting for covariates, multi-pollutants, and multi-windows. Results Life-time prevalence of doctor-diagnosed OM in preschool children in Changsha was 7.3%. Childhood OM was associated only with prenatal exposure to the industrial air pollution with adjusted OR (95% CI) = 1.44 (1.09–1.88) for a 27 μg/m3 increase in SO 2 , particularly during the first trimester of pregnancy. We further found that prenatal SO 2 exposure was not associated with the repeated attacks but was associated with the onset of OM, adjusted OR (95% CI) = 1.47 (1.10–1.96). The association between prenatal SO 2 exposure and early childhood OM was robust after adjusting for other pollutants and windows. Sensitivity analysis indicated that the association was stronger in females, children with parental atopy, and children living in houses with cockroaches, new redecoration, and condensation on window pane during winter. Conclusion We provide new evidence that prenatal exposure to industrial air pollution is associated with early childhood OM in China and may contribute to the onset of childhood OM. Our findings are helpful in developing more effective preventative strategies for childhood OM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A biotransformation method of producing resveratrol with immobilized Aspergillus oryzae negative pressure cavitation bioreactor (ICNPCB) with biphasic ionic liquid aqueous system pretreatment was investigated. Subsequently, the biotransformation conditions were optimized for the resveratrol production under types of ILs [C4MIM]Br, concentration of ILs 0.75 M, temperature 31 °C, ratios of solid to liquid 1:15 (mg/L), time 60 h and pH 6.0, the yield of resveratrol reached 224.61 ± 0.35 µg/g, which increased 4.36-fold to that of untreated one. The conversion rate of piceid reached 85.21%. The residual activity of immobilized microorganism was 82.26% after used for 15 runs. The developed method could be an effectively alternative biotransformation method for producing resveratrol from the waste residue of wine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: With more than 600,000 mortalities each year, colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most commonly diagnosed type of cancer worldwide. Recently, mechanisms involving noncoding RNAs have been implicated in the development of CRC. Methods: We examined expression levels of lncRNA CRNDE and miR-181a-5p in 64 cases of CRC tissues and cell lines by qRT-PCR. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function assays were performed to examine the effect of CRNDE and miR-181a-5p on proliferation and chemoresistance of CRC cells. Using fluorescence reporter and western blot assays, we also explored the possible mechanisms of CRNDE in CRC cells. Results: In this study, we found that the expression levels of the CRNDE were upregulated in CRC clinical tissue samples. We identified microRNA miR-181a-5p as an inhibitory target of CRNDE. Both CRNDE knockdown and miR- 181a-5p overexpression in CRC cell lines led to inhibited cell proliferation and reduced chemoresistance. We also determined that β-catenin and TCF4 were inhibitory targets of miR-181a-5p, and that Wnt/β-catenin signaling was inhibited by both CRNDE knockdown and miR-181a-5p overexpression. Significantly, we found that the repression of cell proliferation, the reduction of chemoresistance, and the inhibition of Wnt/β-catenin signaling induced by CRNDE knockdown would require the increased expression of miR-181a-5p. Conclusions: Our study demonstrated that the lncRNA CRNDE could regulate the progression and chemoresistance of CRC via modulating the expression levels of miR-181a-5p and the activity of Wnt/β-catenin signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Performances of Ga- and N-polarity solar cells (SCs) adopting gradient-In-composition intrinsic layer (IL) are compared. It is found the gradient ILs can greatly weaken the negative influence from the polarization effects for the Ga- polarity case, and the highest conversion efficiency (η) of 2.18% can be obtained in the structure with a linear increase of In composition in the IL from bottom to top. This is mainly attributed to the adsorptions of more photons caused by the higher In composition in the IL closer to the p-GaN window layer. In contrast, for the N-polarity case, the SC structure with an InGaN IL adopting fixed In composition prevails over the ones adopting the gradient-In-composition IL, where the highest η of 9.28% can be obtained at x of 0.62. N-polarity SC structures are proven to have greater potential preparations in high-efficient InGaN SCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heat stress dramatically decreases bull sperm quality and has recently received more attention due to the warmer global climate and more intensive production. However, no data exist regarding sperm quality or the related molecular mechanisms under heat stress. Recent studies showed that inducible heat shock proteins (HSPs) play an important role in the dairy heat stress regulation. In this article, to investigate the impacts of heat stress on sperm quality and the associated molecular mechanisms, sperm quality and enzyme activities concerning acrosome reaction were assessed in Simmental, Limousin and Yanbian bulls under heat stress. Subsequently, changes in heat shock protein expression profiles of Simmental bulls were observed, because we observed that sperm quality of these bulls was most sensitive to heat stress. Finally, the relationship between sperm quality and heat shock protein expression under heat stress was analyzed. The results show that summer heat stress decreased the sperm quality of the three bull breeds significantly. Moreover, different levels of heat stimulation induced various enzyme activity changes, among which the activity change in acrosomal enzyme was the most remarkable. Furthermore, the expression of heat shock proteins in the sperm was influenced by the imposed heat stress, among which the expression levels of HSP60 and HSP70 were increased while HSP90 decreased. In summary, our data show that heat stress seriously affects sperm quality and that HSP90 was most sensitive, although it should be noted that seasonal effects may confound these results. This change in heat shock protein expression may be the major factor that affected the sperm quality of the bulls. The findings may provide a new hypothesis for how heat stress impacts reproduction mechanistically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Environmental factors have been found to be associated with allergic diseases, but it is unclear which environmental factor during which exposure window causes what kind of allergic diseases. Objectives We investigated association between exposure to some predominant outdoor and indoor environmental factors during preconceptional, prenatal, and postnatal periods and allergic diseases/symptoms in 2598 children in China. Methods Children's lifetime incidence of allergic diseases and current prevalence of allergic symptoms and exposure to indoor new furniture/redecoration and mold/dampness was surveyed by a questionnaire. Exposure to outdoor air pollutants was estimated by the concentrations measured at air quality monitoring stations. Multiple logistic regression model was used to evaluate the associations between outdoor air pollutants and indoor environmental factors and allergic diseases (asthma, allergic rhinitis, and eczema) and symptoms (wheezing, night cough, and rhinitis-like). Results We found that preconceptional, prenatal, and postnatal exposure to outdoor industrial and traffic air pollutants were significantly associated with increase in the risk of childhood asthma, and also positively associated with allergic rhinitis and eczema. However, we cannot distinguish the effect of outdoor air pollutants and exposure windows because of their high correlations. New furniture was associated with eczema and allergic rhinitis during postnatal exposure, but redecoration associated with asthma and eczema during prenatal exposure. Indoor visible mold/damp stains was significant for eczema during prenatal exposure and asthma during postnatal exposure respectively, but window condensation was significant for all childhood allergic diseases during both prenatal and postnatal exposures. Allergic symptoms in children were found to be associated with exposure to indoor factors only. Conclusions Associations between outdoor air pollutants and indoor environmental factors and childhood allergic diseases/symptoms were divergent and related to the timing of exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Customer loyalty has been gaining attention as firms face increasing competition. However, customer loyalty consists of a mixture of loyalty to the firm, as well as to the specific salesperson. By using dyadic data from both buyers and sellers, we investigated the influence of salespersons' and selling firms' behaviors on these 2 types of customer loyalty, and the moderating effect of employees' brand-building behavior in the loyalty transfer process. Our results showed that both salesperson's and selling firm's behaviors can promote the 2 kinds of loyalty, and that salesperson-owned loyalty is positively related to loyalty to the selling firm. Contrary to our prediction, employees' brand-building behavior exerted a significant, negative moderating effect on salesperson-owned loyalty transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A millimeter-sized ThCr2Si2-type CeNi2As2 single crystal was synthesized by the NaAs flux method and its physical properties were investigated by magnetization, transport, and specific-heat measurements. In contrast to the previously reported CaBe2Ge2-type CeNi2As2, the ThCr2Si2-type CeNi2As2 is a highly anisotropic uniaxial antiferromagnet with the transition temperature TN = 4.8 K. A magnetic-field-induced spin-flop transition was seen below TN when the applied B is parallel to the c axis, the magnetic easy axis, together with a huge frustration parameter f = θW/TN. A pronounced Schottky-type anomaly in specific heat was also found around 160 K, which could be attributed to the crystalline electric field effect with the excitation energies being fitted to ▵ 1 = 325 K and ▵ 2 = 520 K, respectively. Moreover, the in-plane resistivity anisotropy and low-temperature x-ray diffractions suggest that this compound is a rare example exhibiting a possible structure distortion induced by the 4f-electron magnetic frustration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Several important monolignols such as coniferyl alcohol were catalyzed using Rhus laccase (RL) from Rhus vernicifera in a water/acetone solution. The enzymatic mechanism is discussed in detail. Sites 6, β, and phenolic oxygen were the main active sites of phenylpropanoid compounds, which were first oxidized by the enzyme and then radicalized. RL was also responsible for lignin biosynthesis, especially in the early stage. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Vinylated polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS-M) was prepared by the reaction of POSS containing amine groups with acrylic acid. Azobenzene liquid crystalline copolymer (LCP-POSS) was then synthesized with 6.0 mol% POSS-M and 94.0 mol% acrylate monomer containing azobenzene liquid crystalline moiety (Azo-M) by free-radical copolymerization. Homopolymer of Azo-M (LCP) was also synthesized under the same conditions. Their thermal properties and liquid crystallinity were characterized by Thermal gravimetric analysis (TG), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Wide-angle X-ray diffraction experiments (XRD) and polarized optical micrographs (POM). The results showed that LCP-POSS has higher thermal stability and glass transition temperature than pure LCP due to the incorporation of the rigid cage-like POSS. Especially, LCP-POSS exhibits enantiotropic smectic and nematic liquid crystalline behaviors, its smectic-nematic transition temperature ( T) and nematic-isotropic transition temperature ( T) are higher than those of pure LCP, which may promote and extend its applications on stimuli-responsive materials and devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Activation of protein C plays an important role in modulating coagulation as well as inflammation during severe sepsis. The baseline of activated protein C level in patients with severe sepsis showed interindividual variability between survivors and nonsurvivors, and the decreased level of protein C correlated with organ dysfunction and poor outcome. However, there are limited data concerning the genetic predisposition of individuals carrying two functional polymorphisms -1641A>G and -1654C>T within protein C gene to sepsis. Here we investigated the impact of these two variations on the development of severe sepsis in 240 patients with severe sepsis and 323 healthy controls using direct sequencing. After Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons, -1641A/-1654C haplotype was significantly associated with the fatal outcome of severe sepsis ( P = 0.008, OR 1.739, 95% CI 1.165–2.595), which was confirmed by multiple logistic regression analysis ( P = 0.024, OR 2.090, 95% CI 1.101–3.967). Compared to patients without carrying -1641A/-1654C haplotype, the -1641A/-1654C haplotype carriers showed higher SOFAmax scores (10.3 ± 5.2 vs. 9.0 ± 4.5; P = 0.014) and more hepatic dysfunction ( P = 0.004, OR 2.270, 95% CI 1.312–3.930). These findings suggest that protein C haplotype -1641A/-1654C is associated with organ dysfunction and is an independent risk factor for the fatal outcome of severe sepsis in Chinese Han population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]